Chapter 4

"Summer rain"

After doing a full turn, Yoo Jin looked at the camera, nervously.

"So, what do you think?" Yoo Jin asked and sat down on her bed, bringing her computer to rest on her lap, "is it good enough?"

"It's perfect!" spoke the woman on one of the pictures on the screen, "but... it's just... very yellow." The woman herself was wearing clothes in the most faded and dark colors and her long brown hair hang loosely on her back.

"Really?" asked Yoo Jin as she looked down at her yellow pantsuit. She was wearing a white shirt underneath the blazer and her hair was made into a high ponytail.

"I think it looks great," said the man in the other picture on the screen with a bright smile, "yellow is a beautiful color and it's very fitting here in the summertime. Chaeyeong is just a closet emo, don't listen to her."

"I am not a closet emo!" yelled Chaeyeong immediately and crossed her arms, "I just don't like wearing clothes that stands out too much, it feels like I'm screaming for attention."

"Or it can scream 'confidence and bright personality'," said the man, making Chaeyeong let out a huff of air in response.

"Eric, don't tease Chaeyeong," said Yoo Jin and looked at Eric who was just sitting with a smug smile on his face.

"I would never dare tease Chaeyeong," said Eric, earning a glare from Chaeyeong through the screen.

"You so do," said Chaeyeong, "Yoo Jin, I really miss you, Eric is being insufferable without you here to control him."

"I miss you too, actually I miss both of you," said Yoo Jin, "how are you doing? Are you both happy at your job?"

"I love my job," said Eric enthusiastically, "I don't know if it's because my boss started this company on his own, or if it's just his personality, but he's very chill. He never looks down on his employees and you can talk to him like you talk to every other coworker of yours."

"That sounds like the perfect workplace to be in," said Yoo Jin, "what about you, Chaeyeong? Is your boss also 'chill'?"

"Not in the slightest!" said Chaeyeong with a huge sigh, "I really envy you, Eric, for having such a great boss. Mine is just... I guess he's like any boss of any large company. Always talking down to you, gives you insane deadlines, huge amount of overtime and just in general gives you a hard time." It got quiet on the video call after Chaeyeong was done talking, and she quickly let out a nervous laughter as she tried to shrug it off.

"Don't be so serious, I'll be fine," she said, showing off her best smile.

"Hang in there sweetie," said Yoo Jin and Chaeyeong's smile faded a bit as she nodded her head.

"You know, our workplaces aren't that far away from each other," started Eric, "if someone is giving you a hard time or you need a friend to eat lunch with, you can call me up anytime."

"Thanks, but seriously, I'll be fine," said Chaeyeong, feeling a bit uncomfortable, "you guys worry too much about me."

"That's what friends do," said Yoo Jin.

"You should only be worried about yourself," said Chaeyeong, "Oh by the way, what did you say the name of the company was?"

"BioTec," replied Yoo Jin, "and the job title is 'Data Scientist'."

"That's awesome," said Eric, "imagine, if you get the job, all three of us will have the same job title."

"You're right, that would be pretty cool," said Yoo Jin while imagining herself sitting in a big office with three large screens in front of her. She imagined herself worrying about deadlines and bitching about her boss like Chaeyeong. Or who knows, maybe she would get a cool boss, like Eric. No matter what, she just knew, deep in her heart, it would all be amazing.

"Yoo Jin?" said Chaeyeong all of a sudden, interrupting Yoo Jin's thoughts, "shouldn't you get ready to leave?" Yoo Jin looked at her watch and immediately got up from her bed.

"Oh my gosh, you're right," yelled Yoo Jin, "I have to go now, I'll keep you both updated."

"Alright, good luck," said Eric and waved.

"FIGHTING!" yelled Chaeyeong and Yoo Jin sent them both a smile before turning off the video call.

After looking through her purse, making sure she hadn't forgotten anything, Yoo Jin left her room and walked down the stairs. The sound of two people talking was audible far away and Yoo Jin didn't even have to guess who was hanging out with her brother at this point.

"Yeonjun, magic boy," said Yoo Jin as she entered the living room, making both boys widen their eyes as they looked at her, "I'll be out for a bit."

"Are you going to an interview?" asked Yeonjun and Yoo Jin looked suspiciously at him.

"How did you know that?"

"You wouldn't dress up like that expect for a job interview or a date," explained Yeonjun, "and by the way you always mooch around at home, I doubt you would have a date."

"You little!" uttered Yoo Jin, "if it wasn't because I was in a hurry, I would give you a beating!"

"I guess it's my lucky day, then," said Yeonjun and Yoo Jin just looked away, about to leave the living room, but just before she did, Yeonjun spoke again.

"Good luck, Noona." Yoo Jin looekd at her brother in surprise and watched as Taehyun followed.

"Yes, good luck Noona!" he said, "you look amazing, I'm sure it'll turn out well."

"Thanks, I'll do my best!" said Yoo Jin, "magic boy, will you still be here when I return?"

"I asked mom if he could stay for dinner," said Yeonjun before Taehyun could answer.

"And mom agreed?" Yoo Jin spouted without much thought, earning a glare from Yeonjun that quickly made her continue, "I mean, great! I'll see you both later then." Once again Yoo Jin was about to leave when suddenly, Taehyun got up from his seat and made a fist, yelling with all his power.

"Noona, FIGHTING!" 

Yeonjun and Yoo Jin both burst out laughing, making Taehyun regret his decision immediately.

"You're so cute!" said Yoo Jin in a high pitched voice as she gently patted Taehyun on his head, making his cheeks turn even redder.

"Stop it, you make me feel like I'm a little child," said Taehyun and turned away.

"Well..." Yoo Jin said, "you are kinda short so you can't blame me."

"What!" exclaimed Taehyun while he watched Yoo Jin walk towards the hallway with a grin on her face.

"I'm taller than you! I promise you, one day I will prove it!" yelled Taehyun.

"If you say so," said Yoo Jin before disappearing out of the door.

The house suddenly felt a million times quieter, until Taehyun turned around and sat down on the sofa again.

"Don't mind her, she just likes to tease you," said Yeonjun as he noticed the fallen look in Taehyun's eyes.

"I guess she does," said Taehyun, "she looked really pretty, don't you think?"

"Dude, don't talk like that about my sister, it's weird!" said Yeonjun disgusted, "and how can you even say that after you have seen her wearing sweats so many times. With hair unkempt and no makeup?"

"I don't know," said Taehyun and shrugged his shoulders, "I always thought she looked pretty, just... today it was in a more obvious way." It got quiet as Taehyun looked into the distance and Yeonjun just stared at him, mouth half open.

"Okay, I think we need to play some video games before this gets too weird," said Yeonjun and Taehyun just laughed in response.

***

Walking down the streets of the neighbourhood, Yoo Jin smiled at every person she met, and even though she felt like the smiles she received back was out of pity, she didn't let it get to her.

Not today.

Even on the bus, she sent the bus driver her brightest smile and all the way to her stop, she looked out of the window, watching the cityscape move past her.

"Have a nice day," she told the bus driver when she got off and turned around to wave goodbye.

Yoo Jin took in a deep breath before she started walking towards her destination. She just kept walking and walking, and then she walked some more. It wasn't until she could barely feel her legs anymore, she was starting to feel worried.

After taking a quick scan around, she walked up to the first person she could get her eyes on.

"Excuse me sir," she said and stopped the tall man, "I am trying to find this company, BioTec, do you know where it is."

"I do, but it's pretty far away," the man answered.

"But, that doesn't make any sense, I've been walking for ages."

"Then I'm afraid you've been walking in the wrong direction." Yoo Jin felt her heart drop inside her chest and she gulped.

"Alright," she said, trying to keep calm, "which way should I go, then?"

***

"YES! Another victory!" shouted Yeonjun while Taehyun lowered his head in defeat, "wanna go again?"

"Well..." Taehyun said and Yeonjun sent him a confused look, "isn't your mom gonna be home soon? Maybe we should do something besides playing games?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know... study?" 

"I'm not sure I heard you correctly, did you actually say study?" Taehyun nodded, "since when do you care about studying?"

"I don't... but I don't want your mom to think I'm a bad influence."

"Really?" Yeonjun asked while exanimating the look in Taehyun's eyes, "we can study then, but since when are you concerned about how my mother views you?" Taehyun moved a bit in his seat and looked away, almost embarrassed as he said:

"When it keeps me from hanging out with my best friend for a whole week." Both of the boys diverted their eyes from each other, trying to ignore the awkward silence until Yeonjun suddenly cleared his throat.

"You're seriously acting weird today," said Yeonjun, "let's go upstairs and study before it gets too awkward."

"Sure," said Taehyun and got up.

"And Taehyun," said Yeonjun, making him turn around, "nothing could ever keep me from hanging out with you. I mean... you're my best friend too."

"Thanks," said Taehyun. 

While Yeonjun was busy switching off the TV, it again became quiet in the living room, Taehyun simply standing in the background without being in the way, but all of a sudden, the sound of raindrops hitting the windows became audible.

"Summer rain," said Taehyun while the sound only got louder as it started raining more heavily.

"I guess," said Yeonjun.

"I hope Noona will be okay, I didn't see her bringing an umbrella," said Taehyun in worry.

"She left a long time ago, stop worrying about her, she's a grown up woman." 

"Okay okay," said Taehyun, quickly dropping the subject and following Yeonjun upstairs.

The hours passed in the brink of a moment. Even doing something boring like studying could become fun when doing it with a friend. All except maybe math, the only subject Taehyun refused to study. He said if he wasn't allowed to forget about such a dreadful thing like math, during his summer holiday, what was even the point?

Before long, both of Yeonjun's parents got home and Jeong-Yeon immediately started making dinner, happy to find her son studying in his room.

Two gentle knocks on the door to Yeonjun's room, made both the boys go quiet, while Yeonjun told the person to come inside.

"Hey boys," said Se Hyeong, "dinner is almost ready, could you come down and help me set the table?"

"Of course, we'll be right down, dad," said Yeonjun and closed up his books.

It was still raining heavily, to the point where it sounded like someone was using the roof of the house like a drumset.

"Is Noona not home yet?" asked Yeonjun while he and Taehyun were carrying the plates to table.

"No, but I'm sure she'll be home soon," answered Jeong-Yeon, while she turned off the stove.

"Did she leave a long time ago?" asked Se Hyeong.

"Yes, I think so," said Yeonjun.

"And she didn't bring an umbrella with her," continued Taehyun.

"This boy has been worrying about her more than her entire family," said Yeonjun with a sigh, making his father laugh quietly.

"I'm only happy to see someone worry about my daughter," said Se Hyeong, "let's hope she gets home soon, otherwise I'll try and call her up."

But they didn't have to wait any longer, and there was absolutely no reason to call up anyone, because in that same moment, the sound of a door opening and being shut, echoed in the entire house.

"Yoo Jin, is that you?" called Jeong-Yeon, but there was no response. Only the sound of heavy footsteps could be heard, as Yoo Jin appeared before them, trying to sneak past the kitchen and upstairs.

"Yoo Jin!" yelled Jeong-Yeon and Yoo Jin stopped just before the staircase. From head to toe, Yoo Jin was drenched. Her long brown hair was sticking to her back and from all over her body, small droplets of water fell to the ground, making a small pool around her.

"I see you didn't make it home before the rain started," said Jeong-Yeon.

"I didn't make it to the interview before the rain..." muttered Yoo Jin quietly.

"What?" asked Jeong-Yeon in return.

"Honey, why don't we let our daughter go upstairs and change before we start questioning her?" said Se Hyeong.

"No, I want to know how the interview went," said Jeong-Yeon and glared at Yoo Jin who just stared at the floor, until she lifted her head and made the dark lines of mascara beneath her eyes visible.

"I got lost, okay?" yelled Yoo Jin, "I got lost and once I got back on track, it started raining. I was late and when I finally reached the company, they wouldn't even let me in. I missed my last bus and the roof at the bus stop was broken. I went to a department store, but all of their umbrellas were sold out." After Yoo Jin stopped talking, every person in the kitchen was staring at her in shock, her mother most of all as her eyes had turned blood red.

"You got lost?" Jeong-Yeon asked.

"Yes, I got lost," said Yoo Jin.

"Your first interview in a month and you... just blew it like that."

"It's not like I wanted to get lost!" said Yoo Jin.

"No no, of course not," said Jeong-Yeon sarcastically, "just like you didn't want to get fired from 3 part time jobs in 2 months for being late, forgetting your shifts, breaking things and just being the careless person you always are! Seriously Yoo Jin, when are you going to grow up and get your head out of the clouds?" Yoo Jin stared at her mother, while Se Hyeong, Yeonjun and Taehyun all shifted their eyes back and forth between the two women who were in an open war with each other. 

"I'm going upstairs," said Yoo Jin and started walking up the stairs.

"What about dinner?" asked Se Hyeong.

"I'm not hungry!" yelled Yoo Jin from the top of the stairs.

After slamming the door behind her, Yoo Jin threw herself on her bed and buried her face in her pillow. She let out a slight grunt of annoyance, kicking her legs back and forth, until she rolled around and stared at her ceiling.

"It's not like I want to be this way either..."

Being swept away into a state of not really sleeping and not really being awake, Yoo Jin felt like she was floating above her bed. A feeling of emptiness filled up her body, even time felt empty. It just went by on its own, leaving her behind all alone. In fact, it felt like it had been this way for the past year. 

For everyone else, time went by. But to Yoo Jin, time was frozen and all she could do, was watch her friends move on with their life, while she stayed in the same spot with the same fake smile on her lips, pretending to be fine. 

When she looked back at her youth, she wondered about how many times she wished for time to stop. Even just for a moment. But she never knew her greatest wish, would turn into her greatest enemy. 

"Noona." Yoo Jin was pulled out of her state of depression when she heard the gentle voice of her brother as he popped his head inside her room, "are you asleep."

"No," said Yoo Jin while sitting up in bed, "do you need something?"

"No I..." started Yeonjun as he walked inside, making his right hand visible, "I just thought you might be hungry." Yeonjun handed the plate to Yoo Jin who was looking at him in confusion.

"Mom let you bring me food?"

"I said I was still hungry and wanted to eat in my room," said Yeonjun and winked.

"You didn't have to do that for me," said Yoo Jin, but her brother just let out a sigh and extended his arm again.

"Would you just take the food," said Yeonjun and Yoo Jin laughed while accepting the plate.

"Thank you." Yeonjun gave a quick nod and walked towards the door.

"Noona," he said just before grabbing the handle.

"Yes?" asked Yoo Jin, who was already busy stuffing her face.

"If you're up to it, after you have eaten, you're welcome to come and play some games with Taehyun and me," said Yeonjun, "also, Taehyun said he learned some new magic trick he wants to try out on us." 

Holding a hand in front of her mouth, Yoo Jin immediately burst out laughing.

"That boy... he really lives up to his nickname," said Yoo Jin in between her laughs.

"Yeah, he does," replied Yeonjun, "but I think this time, it's mostly because he wants to cheer you up."

"Really?"

"Yes," said Yeonjun, "he's been worried about you all day." Silence fell upon the two siblings as they just looked at the ground with a smile on their face.

"He's a good kid," said Yoo Jin, "just go, I'll join you two when I'm done eating."

Hello everyone!

Writing this story seriously brings a smile to my face and I hope the same applies to my readers. What I want more than anything, is for my readers to be happy while reading my story.

Please let me know if I have succeeded, leave a comment down below.

Love, Annalise~