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June 7, 2018
"I can't thank you enough for agreeing to this," Youngjae smiled gratefully, his eyes watching the digital elevator numbers increase slowly.
"Well, you're very convincing, and I want to make a good impression on my new teacher." With a loud ding, the two stepped out onto the fourth floor.
Youngjae let out a hearty chuckle. "Your sister doesn't know about this, does she?"
"Not yet, she won't," Yoobin sighed, gazing at the familiar door with a sense of hesitancy. Her pale index finger halted above the door bell.
There's no going back from this.
One last chance.
"He loves her," Youngjae's eyes gleamed seriously with full confidence. "I won't ask you to trust him, but I know that he'll never mess it up again once you let him back into her life; into your lives."
A bittersweet grin hooked at Yoobin's lips, as her finger tip pressed the button. "I know."
Despite the dynamic of the moment, there was no answer to the beep of the door bell. Puzzled, Yoobin tapped the button two times more as Youngjae pulled out his phone.
After no one picked up the call, Youngjae felt the tug of a worrisome suspicion. Fumbling through his pants pocket, he pulled out a shiny silver key, and plugged it into the door knob. With a sense of urgency he twisted the key fiercely and unlocked the door.
Upon entering the residence, Yoobin was shocked. She almost would have never recognized the place she had stepped in only three weeks ago. Dirty laundry was piled over various corners in the room, used jackets lying over the couch. Storage containers were tipped over, the contents of books, binders, and folders spilling out. Half eaten to-go-boxes were piled high, the mixed scents of various cuisine slipping into the musk of alcohol.
Open alcohol bottles lay on their sides atop the kitchen counter tops. Crumpled beer cans were tossed into an over flowing trash can of paper plates and plastic utensils. The sink was crowded with unwashed dishes and glasses.
"JB?" Youngjae called out, picking up wrinkled clothes on the floor as he walked towards the bedroom. Flicking on the light, the master bedroom was in a state of utter disarray with pillows and blankets on the floor. The items from book shelves and the desk table on the corner tipped over.
The step brother was still confused as to where his sibling was until a loud groan erupted from the bathroom. Rushing in, Youngjae and Yoobin found a disheveled Jaebum hugging the toilet's base, his unshaven face leaning against the seat. The liquids within no doubt the after effects of a bad hangover.
Yoobin held up a hand to her nose at the putrid stench as Youngjae heaved a sigh and clambered over to his step brother.
"JB. JB. JB!" his voice crescendoed, as the taps on Jaebum's face grew harder.
