assumptions | jjk | [DISCONTINUED]

chapter 3

"Welcome home Eunhwa."

I was warmly greeted by my mother as I entered the house. As I slipped my shoes off, I looked into the woman's eyes. They were filled with uncertainty and stress.

I frowned.

"Is something wrong?" mom asked, tilting her head.

"No," I sighed, "there's nothing wrong."

"Well, I suppose that's good. I have to have a little chat with your father, so I hope you don't mind," she said quickly.

Before I could get a word out of my mouth, mom turned and swiftly paced down the hall to her, and dad's office.

I wonder what the big deal is.
Probably business related things.

Minutes later, curiosity began to nag at me while I remained bored in my room. My fingers fiddled with a piece of paper and I spun around in my desk chair. Seriously Eunhwa, just do something productive instead of snooping on people— like work on your English project or whatever.

But the snooping idea sounded better.

Rising out of my chair, I crept out of my room and down the stairs to my parents' office. Leaning gently against the door, I listened closely:

"I'm so sick of their company!" I heard one of them shout, making me slightly jump.

More dialogue followed, but I couldn't make out what was being said.

"Our investments haven't been going well lately, meanwhile they're thriving," my father said. "With us taking in less and less money, we don't have much to invest into these smaller businesses. Meanwhile, Jeon Enterprises is reeling in plenty, so those smaller businesses are choosing them as investors instead of us."

Sighs behind through the door and my expression dropped even more.

"If we continue to lose more money....

".....we may have to throw in the towel."

• • •

The next day at school was gloomy for me.

Their words haunted my mind, reminding me that our business was failing.

And there's nothing I can do about it.

I hate seeing my parents stressed over money, it makes me feel bad—I'm not a big fan of causing trouble for them. After all, they take care of me and make sure I live a stable life. If everything they've worked towards crumbles, there's nothing left for them. For any of us. They do a lot for me.

A sudden touch broke my thoughts and grabbed my attention. I flinched, and noticed Haerin looking down at me.

"Are you alright?"

I looked away and nodded.

"You don't seem to be the brightest lately," Haerin mentioned, removing her hand from my shoulder.

"When am I ever?" I said in a joking tone, plastering a fake smile on my face.

Concern filled the tall girl's eyes. "Eunhwa-yah, just tell me what's going on."