The Independent Women's Club

[1] The Independent Women's Club

[1]

As soon as I arrived home, I immediately jumped off my bed. Today's a super tiring day. I woke up early to finish my work cause today's the deadline for that. Then right after, I went to the publishing company, where I got recently accepted and submitted my work. Luckily, there were no problems, but that's not the end of it. Today's also my grandmother's 80th birthday, so my mom kept forcing me to go, or else I have to give up living alone in this super cozy apartment, which I rented using my own money because they won't allow me to move-out not unless I can feed myself. I prove to them that I can manage, and they agreed to it. The idea of living with my family again would be the death of me, so I drove to our house, even though I'm still lack of sleep. It's been a couple of months since I last visited our house, though it's just an hour away from my apartment. I was so busy revising and updating my very first novel, so I had no choice but to focus and work my ass off.

My mom kept complaining about it, but somehow, she understood my situation. Well, I was always so distant with everyone, and there's no exemption to that. Don't get me wrong. I love my family. It's just that whenever I'm home, it's so loud and chaotic. I have three younger siblings, and my grandparents are living with us. In addition to that, two of my cousins who are in college are currently staying in our house, too. How am I supposed to have a peaceful life when everyone's going to knock on my room every second, minute, and hour for the entire day? Just imagining those scenarios makes me go crazy, literally.

I almost forgot to mention that when I arrived there, my relatives were all waiting outside. I felt like a celebrity, and it doesn't feel any good. My mom probably spread the news to my entire bloodline that I got accepted at Ohayo Publishing. It's a popular publishing company, and yes, it's an honor and a privilege for someone like me, who just graduated. Last year, I sent them the sample of my manuscript via email. To be honest with you, I wasn't expecting anything because I knew for a fact that Ohayo's standards would be outstanding. They're known for that. However, I received a reply a few days after, and they immediately hire me, saying that they see my potential as a writer and that they want to make good use of my fresh ideas. The good thing about that company is that they didn't consider where I belong or how old I am. They believed in me as soon as they finished reading my manuscript, and that made me realize how rare it was to find an outstanding company with such a mindset.

"Kelly has everything, aside from boyfriend. When are you going to get married?"

Out of all the half-hearted compliments and pressuring questions I received from people who visited my grandmother's birthday party, that one was the most annoying. Since when did it become a standard? Getting married is a choice. It's not something that's already written in the palm of your hand. I know that being single since birth made a big impact on why I have this kind of mindset, but it's still not good to pressure someone on something that she or he has no interest in doing. I mean, it's too personal for me. My parents don't even ask me that question because they know how much I love being on my own. Aside from that, I'm just 22 years old!

Ugh, I don't understand these people.

*ding dong*

I woke up from the sound of my doorbell. I didn't realize that I fell asleep. I checked my watch, and it's already 9:00 pm. I slept for almost 2 hours. After checking the time, I walked to the door to check who is it.

Ugh, another chaos.

I opened the door with a blank face. "SURPRISE!" they shouted. Each one of them is holding bottles of soju and some plastic bags.

"What is it? I'm super tired."

"You're always tired whenever we come over. Now, excuse me," Solar slightly pushed me, so she can enter inside. "I love your house! Can't I just live here?" she added while taking a look.