Liar//MYG✔️

Chapter 6//134340

It was the morning of Jinae's concert, and she sipped her second cup of coffee in an hour to calm her nerves. She had her whole morning and early afternoon stretched out empty before her, and she had no idea how to fill them. She was careful to never schedule things on the day of a performance. She did it that way so that she'd stay calm and not stress. She rationalized that if all she had to worry about that day was preparing for the stage, she'd be fine.

Of course, she stressed anyways.

She passed the hours by stretching, watching television, cleaning her apartment.

She considered texting Yoongi but she decided against it. A part of her wanted to see if he'd remember the importance of today without a reminder from her.

Jinae wanted to know if she was important enough to Yoongi to take priority in his life.

Maybe it was just a little petty of her, but she just couldn't shake the feeling that this recital would be the deciding event in their friendship.

If he showed up, then she'd know he cared.

If he didn't, well, Jinae didn't want to think about that.

She didn't know how she'd react if he lied to her yet again.

That's what it was, lying. Every time Yoongi promised he would show and then didn't, Jinae considered it a lie. Most people would just say that it was a broken promise, but in Jinae's eyes, that would be called a lie.

That was the way she'd always seen it.

******

Seven-year-old Jinae had sat in the living room waiting for her father to come home from work. That morning at the breakfast table, he'd promised both Jinae and her mother to be back before dinnertime. He was going to take both of them on a date. They were going to watch a new animated film at the movie theater in town. Then he was going to take them to the new pizza place. He'd even hinted at a visit to the ice cream shop, a rare treat for the lactose-intolerant Jinae.

After she'd returned from school, she'd excitedly changed out of her school uniform and into her favorite shirt, a pink shirt with a unicorn decal on it. She'd then rushed through her homework and chores, to the chagrin of her mother. Jinae had to be reminded to do her piano exercises, as she'd forgotten them in her excitement.

Mr. Yoon was always working, and he rarely had time to spend with his daughter, who adored him. So, Jinae was ecstatic to spend this promised time with her parents. She liked to watch the two of them laugh and smile together. Jinae noticed how the lines in her mother's face always disappeared when she was with her father.

It made Jinae happy.

The family's usual time for dinner crept nearer, but still, her father didn't come. A tightness in her throat began to constrict her airways, and her eyes began to sting when the phone rang. Jinae couldn't hear who was on the other end, but she could tell from her mother's knit eyebrows and frown that it was her father.

"What do you mean you're working late again?" Jinae held her breath in the moments that followed, unable to hear what was being said on the other line.

"I just don't understand why the boss couldn't let you come home for dinner at least." Mrs. Yoon dropped her voice down lower, but Jinae could still hear. "You promised Jinae. She'll be crushed." Jinae's fingers began to play with the end of her pigtail braid, her face turning into disappointment.

"Yes, I can take her alone, but it won't be the same."

"I know. Okay. Please eat something. I love you." Jinae gazed sadly at her mother, who was forcing a smile.