stardust | park seonghwa ✓

08

FOR some reason, Wooyoung had set up a play date with Hyekyung this afternoon at his house.  And even though my consciousness tells me a million times that maybe staying at home with a mug of coffee is much better than getting my energy wasted, Hyekyung still managed to drag me out of the house, threatening to call Yeosang for not listening to her.

As you can probably tell, people are generally on Hyekyung's side.

So that's why we are now standing in front of a homely building, the perfect picture of a warm household in which the doorstep in just a few metres from us. With one hand holding Hyekyung's and the other lifting up my phone, I try to read the pinpoint on the maps. Squinting at the house number, I realise that was not the house and we need to walk a bit more. The little girl next to me keeps on trying to drag my hand down, saying that she could read it but claims that we are in Europe when clearly, we're in South Korea.

"Are we there yet?" the little girl asks, tugging at my sleeve, "we passed a lot of houses alweady.."

"No, we are looking for house number 8. Can you help me find it on this side of the road?"

Hyekyung tilts her head to the side, pausing to think. "What does 8 wook wike again, eonnie?" she asks before flashing me an innocent grin, "Kyungie fowgot..."

"8 looks like a circle with a belt in the middle," I explain to her before hearing her chirp an 'okay' enthusiastically.

As Hyekyung walks slightly ahead of me, I let my mind wander off. Honestly, today is a pretty beautiful day and it's been a while that I get to go out and enjoy the sun like this when usually I'd be tangled up in the mountain of assignments my professors had given me. If Wooyoung hadn't convinced me to let Hyekyung come then I'd probably in the very same boring routine, which I will admit isn't very healthy.

I would have walked past my little sister if she hadn't stopped so abruptly, pointing at a house  with a widespread grin. "Tadah!" she cheers, jumping up and down, "Numbew eight!"

"Uyoung!" she exclaims before Naruto running into the house yard and my eyes widen.

"Hyekyung no!" I catch her small hand and slow her down, "you need to be polite, you can't run into someone's house like that!" I say as we come to the front doors.

"B-but Uyoung my fwend..."

"Still," I lift her up and place her on my hips, "this is not my apartment or our house, so we need to be respectful."

I chuckle when Hyekyung sticks out her bottom lip in a pout so I push her hair out of her face, on the verge of uwu-ing. "How about you knock the door for us, huh?" I say.

That seemed to cheer her up and she bounces excitedly in my arms, reaching out for the wooden door of the house and pounds in small rapid knocks, almost falling at how eager she was. "Uyoung!" she yells over the top of her lungs before letting out small giggles. 

As I shush her for being a little too loud, I can hear the thumping of steps from the other side of the door — probably running — and a clatter before a loud "ouch".  "Coming..!" Wooyoung's familiar voice chirps from somewhere inside the house and not long after, the door opens to reveal Wooyoung with one of the biggest grins I've ever seen worn on his face.

Immediately, Hyekyung opens her arms so Wooyoung could carry her on his hips before the two of them zoom into the house, leaving me stunned at the doorway. That... was kind of what I half expected. Shaking my head, I welcome myself in when I realise neither Wooyoung nor Hyekyung will be back to drag me inside.

Wooyoung's house is nice and warm, a contrast to the chilly weather outside. He had framed pictures lining up the hall, of his family maybe. I don't know if he lives with his parents or not, but the house is exceptionally clean, much neater than my apartment and I know that Wooyoung is a bit of a clean-freak in class (just a little bit) so I'm not that surprised. I come to the living room where the two are playing with a Lego set Wooyoung had pulled out for them to play with.