Zhoumi's POV
"Zhoumi, you need to wake up now." I rubbed my eyes.
"What time is it?" I yawned.
"It's time for you to wake up. You guys leave at 7. It's 6 right now. Now hurry up! I just finished making breakfast."
"Meh." I answered.
"You really aren't a morning person, are you? Henry woke up at 5:30 if you want to know. He helped me with breakfast. I think he'll be done with the shower soon, so you get ready."
I stepped out of the bathroom around 6:30 and plunked myself down at the table. Henry and Jialing were obviously wide awake, laughing like little kids. Are they seriously talking about cartoons?
"Are you two talking about cartoons?" I asked. Honestly, how old are they?
"Yes. Are you eating?"
"You guys are 20! Not 2."
"I'm 19! We can still be kids if we want to. At least we're the youngest around. How about you start eating, Mr. Crabby?" Jialing stuck her tongue. I chuckled and ate my breakfast listening to them talking about Doraemo, Tom and Jerry, Automan and others. They sure are little kids.
*Bong bong bong* "HENRY! ZHOUMI! WE NEED TO LEAVE NOW!" Siwon yelled.
"SIWON! IF YOU BREAK THE DOOR I WILL CHUCK A KNIFE AT YOU!" Jialing hollered. Dang! She is loud!
Silence at the door. Then we heard upstairs from Yesung. "Ah, Leeteuk? I think my ears are bleeding." We laughed. Henry and I hugged her and left.
I couldn't wait for practice to be over. We just finished the MV for Blue Tomorrow. I guess it was sort of hard because I feel all warm inside, and really didn't want to think about what it feels like to break up or whatever.
When we got back to the dorms, Jialing was all dressed up and reading on the couch. She was wearing designer's jeans, a light pink top with a crisp, white faux leather jacket. She sat on the couch reading a magazine.
"You're ready?" I asked.
"Yeah. Why don't you take a shower, get dressed, and then we'll leave? I think it'd be fun to eat at the food court. I have this huge craving for milk tea with boba." She smiled with a little blush. I can feel the heat from her cheeks also spread onto mine. My heart skipped a beat. Well, no use staring. I took a shower, and went into my bedroom to change. When I opened the door, Henry was in front of it smirking.
"What are you making that face for?"
"You like Jialing~~~"
"No I don't! I mean, I do like her. She's a great person… what are you talking about?"
"Oh come on, it's obvious. You're even wearing that special cologne. You're thinking it as a date. Plus, you're blushing."
"No I'm not! Ugh, fine. Just shut up." I shoved past him.
"Don't worry," he whispered. "She'll fall for you." I smiled. At least Henry said something nice for once.
JiaLing's POV
La di da~~~ Sitting on the couch reading a random magazine. Finally, Zhoumi comes out. He's in a grey tee and slightly torn jeans, plus sunglasses and a hat. Even though he's wearing such plain clothes, he still looks really charismatic. Heehee, I'm such a fangirl. He smiled at me, and I stood up, grabbed my purse, and headed out with him.
Once we got to the mall, I grabbed his hand and ran to the food court. We went to the Crystal Tulips Cafe and sat at one of the little tables with windows looking over the entire mall. I ordered my milk tea with boba pearls and a slice of raspberry cheesecake. Zhoumi got a skinny latte and a chocolate croissant.
"Boba, boba! I love bobas! Cheesecake, cheesecake! I'm getting cheesecake!" I giggled. This is my favorite snack! I love these two foods!
"You are such a little kid."
"What? Can't a little girl have fun? You could loosen up, too, you know."
"I'm old."
"You're older. By four years. I hardly think that's anything. I heard that from your buddies you turn to a 15 year old when you shop."
"Let the truth speak for itself." He slipped a sneaky grin. It's so cute, even if I can't see much of his face. Every time his lips twitch into a smile or line, my heart flutters. I feel a little light… ahh he must be noticing me blushing.
We finished our little afternoon snack and started to pay. I took out my wallet out of my purse, and blushed. Dammit I haven't used my wallet in so long I forgot that it was Super Junior M. I was about to tug a random bill or two out and stuff it back in, but Zhoumi grabbed my wrist.
"What are you doing?!" I asked in shock.
"Let me see your wallet." He smirked. I gave in and slid the wallet across the table. He let go of me and picked up the wallet. He turned it round and round, pointing out each picture that has him in it. He started making little poses to imitate the pictures. I let out a chuckle.
"What? Is it because I'm terrible or is it because I'm being self-centered?"
"Both." He gave a playful slap on my arm. Then we had a little argument on who will pay for the meal. He won, and paid for the two of us. I saw a sale going on across the restaurant, and pulled him over. We walked around the store, and every now and then I'd grab a shirt or something that I liked. Both of our arms were full of clothes in less than 30 minutes.
"Wow. Are you really going to buy all these?" I made a funny face at him.
"No. I'm going to try them on. I'll only take a few. Besides, there's like, at least 20 more shops we'll go to?" I scurried to the fitting stalls with the clothes on my arms.
Zhoumi's POV
"How long does it take for you to choose an outfit and come out?" I said in a purposely loud voice.
"Shut up! You sound like a perv." I chuckled. Okay, maybe I did. I was actually taking up most of the benches in front of the fitting rooms by sorting out all the clothes I was holding. Luckily, I was able to take out a few pants and shirts out of the gazillion by the time she came out. She looked really nice in the first outfit. It's a simple light pink and white striped tee that compliments her curves nicely, and jeans that have crystal rhinestones on the back pockets.
"Very nice, Jialing." I replied.
"You think so? There's a few more different colors of these tops. I kinda like this thick stripe style. So, this pink, orange, light blue, dark blue, green, and purple. Which ones should I get?" She hung all the same clothing on her arms.
"Pink, orange, green, and dark blue. Actually, scratch the orange. It's too funny looking." I answered. She seemed happy with that answer. We spent three hours at different stores trying on clothes and commenting on each other. She bought 5 huge bags of clothing, and 8 boxes of shoes. I have 3 bags and 5 boxes, so half of what she bought. And I'm helping her carry all the miscellaneous things she bought for decoration or whatever.
"See? I buy so much stuff every time I get here."
"Yeah, but I'm the one who's holding all the boxes."
"Hey, I'm holding all the bags. These are heavier."
"And these boxes are harder to carry!"
"I told you, I ran out of guys to shop with. There's a reason."
"Yea, I really see that now, Jialing."
"Call me Lingling. Come on, let's take a taxi home!" I smiled and followed her. Secretly, I was celebrating. Yay! I can call her by a nickname! The taxi was a struggle since we had to figure out where to put all the boxes and bags and things. The driver didn't look too happy about it, but I gave him a nice tip. While we were riding, I was thinking about slipping my hand into hers, but I was nervous that she'd be all upset or something. There was traffic on the way home, so the ride was long. I guess she dozed off because she leaned onto my shoulder peacefully sleeping. I smile. Victory for Mi.
"We're back!" I shouted into the main dorm once we got home(aka the dorm that the other SuJu members live).
"GENG GE! SOMEONE! I NEED HELP!" Lingling yelled.
"Geez! Ling Mei. Lower your voice! The whole world can hear you!" Sure enough, Hangeng came to help take the bags out of her arms. She was giggling and being all cute.
"Hey, what about me?' I whined.
"Oh fine, wussy. I'll help you. We can dump all of these...on Kyuhyun's bed!" She gave a laugh. We did just that, and Kyuhyun just had an annoyed look on his face. It's unusual and funny that he's not doing anything to get back at her.
"Go make me a sandwich, woman." He said. Oh, alright. He gave a smirk, and Lingling rolled her eyes.
Jialing's POV
"Dinner's ready!" I called. They started swarming in like little bees. I started to set down the dishes I made. I made a few classic Chinese dishes, hoping they'd appreciate the new flavors. Well, except for Kyuhyun; I purposely slapped his chopsticks.
"What's that for?" He asked.
"That's not your dinner. Here, let me get yours." I walked to the counter and brought a plate in front of him. Guess what it was?! You guessed it, didn't you? It was a sandwich.
"I didn't know what kind of sandwich you wanted, so I just used the stale bread in the back of the fridge and leftovers. Enjoy!" I sneered at him.
"Haha! Looks like Kyu has finally met someone who can top off his tricks." Heechul said while stuffing food into his mouth. Everyone was talking about getting the kareoke out after dinner. So everyone gone out to get the living room ready, and I started gathering the dishes. Zhoumi stayed to help me; I washed and he dried. I glance over and start to think… He's so nice, considerate, and helpful. I'm falling for him, I can feel it. But, the thing is, does he like me back? I mean, he is four years older than me, and I still haven't told Yesung about mom and dad... Am I even ready for something like this? I just left China and nothing's been figured out, I don't know...
After washing the dishes, I went ahead to clean the table while he put the plates away. I was wiping the tabletop and sucked into La la Land, only to come out of it from a crash. Zhoumi dropped a plate.
"Oh no! Zhoumi, are you okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that." Aww, he was blushing. It's kinda cute to see he be such a klutz sometimes. At least he's making an effort, though- that's what counts. I told him to put the rest of the plates in as I was picking up the pieces to clean.
"Jialing, you can get a cut-"
"Owwie!"
"See? I told you." I started blushing a little. He bent down and took my hand. At that moment, my heart began to beat so fast, I wonder if he could hear. He had such a concerned expression on his face as he was gently cleaning the cut with a damp paper towel. He paused to check on me. My finger was so close to him that I could feel light breathing coming from his nose. Nothing could be hidden as this point. My face was for sure as red as peppers.
Suddenly, a crowd of "Oooooooooh~~~~" piped in. I jumped a bit, and turned to see the rest of Super Junior standing in front of the kitchen door. They were winking and making kissy faces. How embarrassing! I grabbed the paper towel out of Zhoumi's hand to clean up the rest of the broken plate, and then raced out of the room through the wall of boys. But before I could even figure out where I should head, Hangeng's strong grip got a hold of my arm, and he dragged me into his room. What's going on now?!
Hangeng's POV
I couldn't believe it. Zhoumi and Jialing as a thing? Not okay at all. Well, at least not now. I guess he's good enough for her. I don't know. I haven't thought about this! But I need to tell her, and possibly Zhoumi. I mean, she shouldn't get such ahead in life without getting her priorities set. By the looks of my lawsuit as well, I won't be able to look over her for long. Yesung needs to know, and has a right to know. I dragged LingMei to my room and locked the door. I plopped her on the bed and grabbed a chair to sit down, facing her.
"What's wrong, GengGe? I want to go play karaoke!" She whined.
"Ling, you can't go out with Zhoumi."
"Why not?" Her face was all shocked.
"You've just came to Korea not so long ago. You're on summer vacation, getting used to the new life. You need to straighten your priorities out!"
"I have them straightened! I got two jobs, I've checked the college and what not, and I've been contacting my parents to get my stuff here. Everything's perfectly fine. I'm already settled-"
"You haven't told Yesung that you're his sister, have you?" I stared at her seriously. Then she had another shocked face.
"How...how do you know about that?!" She stood up asking.
"Sit back down, LingMei. Of course I'd know your brother, we're about the same age. I don't remember much, since he left when we were three, but we used to play together. That's actually how our families first became friends, anyways. My parents told me about it. Then you came along. I don't know... I've always felt that I wanted to protect you, to take his place in taking care of you, hoping one day he'd come back to get you or something... I don't know anymore. What I do know, is that nothing more should happen in your life until your brother, your real brother, knows who you are." There was a moment of silence. I'm actually impressed in how quiet she is right now. I'd thought it'd be more dramatic with her thrashing and yelling and crying and whatever. She stared at the ground for a long time before nodding at me.
"What if he doesn't want me?" She whispered. I felt my heart twitch. When we were back in China, she was always afraid. Lots of girls hung around me, trying to get my attention. She'd see and hide in a corner, afraid that one day, I'll be with someone else and abandon her. That was how close we were. None of us wanted to lose each other. I sat next to her on the bed and wrapped an arm around her.
"He won't." I said. "We all love you. I bet most of them would be jealous once they knew. Unless they feel sorry for you to have klutzy Yesung as the dramatic long lost brother." She finally let a smile out. "You know, I've felt lonely without you all these years. Promise me I'll still be your brother?" She gave me a tight hug in return.
"No matter how many guys come through my life, you'll be at the top. You're my brother. My special brother." I awarded myself with a reassuring smile. At least I'll still have her. I guess I finally know now what it felt like for her before when I was with other girls. My heart felt like it was jabbed when I saw her with Zhoumi in the kitchen. It wasn't jealousy, but a sense of fear. I felt, like I was scared she would leave me, and we'd be further and further apart. I mean, we've been apart for so long, and to see that we might not be able to be so close worried me. Plus, there's that sense of protection you have for your little sister.
"Do you want to go out now? Or do you want to stay with me when I give Zhoumi a fair warning?" I asked. She hugged me even tighter.
"Nah, you can tell him. I'm not ready to face this with others. But can you walk with me back out?"
"What, scared of walking alone?" I smirked.
"Nooooo. I just wanna be with my GengGe. Come on!" I grabbed her hand and walked outside with her.
Zhoumi's POV
The boys were having fun singing purposely off key, and then actually doing some. I was wondering the whole time what was Hangeng doing with Lingling. I didn't want to follow because he had such a serious and nervous face. What was that all about? Then, after a while, they finally came out-hand in hand? My heart instantly went from flying in the skies to face plant on cement ground. What? So right after we had some special time, he goes ahead and makes a move too? I started walking up to him.
"Great, follow me." He said. We went to his room and locked the door behind him.
"You can't date LingMei yet." He said. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"What? I have to wait for you to finish with her?"
"No, it's just-"
"I finally got a moment with Jialing! I know it's not official but you saw the connection we had! And you just drag her to your room right after that, and come out holding hands? What are you trying to play here?"
"Calm down! It's not like that."
"Oh? So you're saying there's a special reason that you can be so close to her?" I charged at him and grabbed him by the collar. I was about to punch him when he kicked me in the stomach, making me collapse on the ground gasping for air. Freaking martial arts, it's not fair.
"You need to wait. At least, after she tells Yesung that he's her brother." I look up at him. "Now you listen? Look, when Yesung was born, his parents couldn't afford to have a kid. Because of that, he was sent away and adopted by a family in Korea. Then LingMei came along, and we became best friends. I know the whole thing. I've been along with her for 13 years. It's not right for her to move on in life without getting this settled." In shock, I stared at the ground. So, I've been falling for Yesung's sister all this time?
"They look nothing alike. Or act alike. It'd be more believable is you say she's seriously yours."
"Ha, I wish. She looks a lot like her dad and Yesung looks like their mom I guess. They have some shared perks I think." I thought about it. Well, I guess I could wait for a bit. I nodded at Hangeng and he helped me get back onto my feet. I was about to leave when suddenly he grabbed me by the collar.
"What the heck?" I shouted.
"A fair warning. If you dare hurt LingMei, she's got me behind her back." He said in a scowl, and then let me down while chuckling. We slap each other on the back and finish the night off with everyone else. Who, nicely enough, didn't mention anything more about our "romantic kitchen" incident.
