Crossing The Line (Seulrene)

Taking a Leap

Saturday evening came faster than Joohyun would have thought. She was so nervous, to the point where her heart was stuck in her throat. Seulgi and her texted during the rest of the week, talking about absolutely nothing and yet about everything at the same time. One of them would bring up a completely random subject and it started at least an hour of conversation. Seulgi even sent her some pictures that she had taken. Joohyun never felt more at peace. She was excitedly going to school in the morning and locked herself in her room when she would come back in the evening, playing happy music in her headphones. Something she hadn't done for a very long time. But she tried to tone it down because she saw the looks Kyung-Mi and Hyun-Woo gave her. They couldn't be suspicious of anything. Joohyun didn't want to lose her sole source of happiness. She told her parents that she was sleeping at a friend's house and her mother almost gave her a heart attack when she asked if it was 'the girl from your literature project'. Under the intense gazes of her siblings, she had denied, telling her that she wasn't that close to her and thankfully the conversation changed direction.

That was with a suppressed smile that she left her house on Saturday evening with a large handbag that contained her pajamas and all her necessities. However, once she was in front of Yeri's house, the fact that she and Seulgi wouldn't be alone came back to the front of her concerns. How was she supposed to interact with them? They'll surely look at her with eyes full of hatred. Coming was a mistake. She had never once addressed them in a nice way. How could she be here? Was she supposed to act as nothing happened during all these years?

She was on a verge of a panic attack when the image of Seulgi came to her mind. She could imagine her reassuring words and it managed to slightly calm her nerves. She took small steps toward the house until she stood in front of the door. She lifted her hand, knocking with apprehension. A middle-aged woman opened the door, immediately smiling at her.

« Hello, there! You must be Joohyun? » The said girl nodded anxiously « Come in » The woman gestured for her to enter her home and Joohyun did as told. She saw another woman around the same age walk up to them and she stood next to the first woman, smiling welcomingly at her.

« Welcome to our home, Joohyun. I'm Yeri's mom, Tiffany » She then turned her head toward the other woman with a smile « And this is my wife and Yeri's other mama, Taeyeon » She introduced. Joohyun's eyes widened. The picture from Seulgi's wall now took a whole new meaning. Yeri's t-shirt, which read 'I love my moms' on the pride picture, wasn't referring jokingly to Seungwan and Sooyoung but her actual mothers. She quickly put herself together and smiled at them.

« It's nice to meet you. Thank you for letting me stay for the night » She gave them a small bow.

« It's our pleasure » Taeyeon said « And it's nice to see that Yeri made a new friend » Joohyun forced a smile because Yeri certainly didn't consider her a friend. Only Seulgi might, and it might be a reach from her part.

« Speaking of the little devil » Tiffany walked to the bottom of the stairs and yelled « Yeri, Joohyun is here »

« The others already arrived » Taeyeon informed her « And the pizzas will be here soon » Footsteps rushing down the stairs caught their attention and a second later Yeri in her cute light pink pajamas appeared. She smiled a bit awkwardly at Joohyun but appeared cool about her presence.

« Hey, girl! Ready for the most mind-blowing party. We're playing Jenga » Her mothers shook their heads, embarrassed but smiling « What? At my age, you went to nightclubs. Aren't you happy I'm here? »Yeri said dramatically.

« That's why you're the best daughter » Taeyeon grinned at her.

« That's not hard since I'm the only one » She teased and her moms laughed. Their interaction made Joohyun smile. She wished her parents would be that cool with her « Come on, Joohyun! » Yeri got her out of her thoughts, gesturing for her to follow her upstairs « You should get into your pajama before the pizzas arrive » Joohyun exchanged a shy smile with her mothers before following her upstairs « So... » Yeri started as they made their way down the hallway to her bedroom. She turned around and stopped, making Joohyun almost bump into her « I know that we started on the wrong foot and that we don't know each other but tonight I want you to know that you can relax and be who you are....and maybe we can even become friends » Joohyun was very surprised by that sudden surge of sympathy but something bothered her.