Our hands lie next to each other's, fingertips almost touching. This is what we've come to. So close, yet we'll never be close enough.
❛❛ If it was so wrong, then why did it have to feel so right? ❜❜
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Park Jiyeon's plans for her last summer...
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육┃❛❛ Your summer break will be no less interesting than you planned for it to. ❜❜
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Surprisingly, there's an air of cheerfulness surrounding me and Jeongguk when we pull up into the driveway of the house. His toothed smile shines on his face as he progresses towards the end of the incident of him cooking pancakes for his band mates and them turning out just how he wanted for the first time in his life.
It's amazing how he can say the simplest of things with the brightest eyes, enchanting the listener so much that they wouldn't mind hearing the same story the whole day. And that's precisely my condition when I walk up to the door; engrossed in his sweet voice ── smiling despite my annoyance at the beginning of the ride.
But that relaxed ambiance fades off as soon as we set foot into the house and feel the urgency that resides within. Jimin, the one to open the door, steps aside and I hear my mother talking so hurriedly that her words collide into one another; something that happens only when she is stressed.
Questions like why my elder brother doesn't say anything about me and Jeongguk arriving together, or why everyone looks so tense are answered immediately when I spot Dad ── dressed in travel wear with a suitcase at his side. I recognize that, too, the navy blue carry-on luggage that's always packed for sudden trips.
And yet, I still find myself asking the most obvious question: "What's going on?"
"Jiyeon, I'm so sorry," my father begins, looking up at me with regretful eyes.
"But you promised me," I interject stupidly, as if that's going to change the situation. "You promised me you wouldn't leave this month."
"I know, sweetie. This came up so suddenly." He apologises once more, reeling off about how important it is for him to go. I do catch some of his words, something along the lines of the company needing him for a week or two to seal the deal, but I can't help but feel deceived.
I stand there, crossing my arms over my chest till Dad finishes getting ready. He apologizes one more time, sending a sad smile my way before pulling me into a brief hug. He does the same for Jimin and bids my mother goodbye with a peck before turning to Jeongguk.
He shakes his head immediately when Dad expresses remorse for not being able to spend time with him, either. Jeongguk's about to go for either a bow or a handshake, but my father pulls him into a hug instead. Jimin only smiles through the pinch of jealousy.
During any other time, I would have teased him about it, but this time, I can't bring myself to. Instead, I walk up the stairs as soon as Dad is out the door and sit in solitude.
That is, before Jeongguk knocks on my door, poking his head in. "May I?"
Not seeing the point of his asking for permission, I don't reply. He takes my silence as an approval and walks in, sitting down beside me on the bed.
