play pretend° taeyong

// chapter seven

✔Song Hana's POV

The sun slowly descended to the west with colors of orange and red widely plastered across the skies. The scene was calm and quiet. A perfect sunset, I would say.

Meanwhile, the other side of the world was gradually filled with shades of dark blue. Millions of glistening stars begin to dominate the heavens. The street that used to be occupied by constantly hustling people was now emptied. I couldn't be more satisfied for momentarily experiencing a peaceful neighborhood.

"Hana, how are you?"

I was snapped back to my senses when mother intentionally dropped her fork, making this sharp and piercing sound. I directly looked at her in the eye and raised my brows, indicating I am asking her to repeat the question even though I clearly heard her the first time.

"How is he?", she asks one more time as she stuffs her mouth with a spoonful of chicken-tuna salad. I nervously stopped chewing for a moment, setting aside the food inside my mouth.

"We're fine." I quietly answered, with one corner of my lip twitching.

"You won't share anything?"

I look at father with a perturbed face and avert my eyes to mother, who was smiling from ear to ear as if she was anticipating something grand and lovely.
Before I could open my mouth to reply, I deeply sighed as my brows knit together. I feigned a smile and said, "I met his mom a this morning. I was so glad because she was so nice and so warm. I feel so welcomed."

Mother's lip coiled upwards into a toothless smile and excitedly replied with a giggle, saying "She looks so expensive, doesn't she?".

A chuckle choked out of my throat and I brightly replied, "I mistook her as a the president's wife."

Father silently grunted and suddenly joined in the conversation.

"I never heard you talk about Joseph's parents." he mumbled, raising a brow. "He. . . I. . . Never met them. I only heard then speak through the phone. . .", I stuttered as I feel my voice shaking all of a sudden.

Father placed down his spoon and fork in the middle of his plate and wiped away the morsel on his lower lip. "Since we're talking about Joseph. . . Let me ask something."

Anxious, I sensed my stomach getting butterflies. I quickly swallowed the lump in my throat and bit the inside of my cheeks.

"How come you didn't bring him home? How come you never introduced him to us?"

I was hesitant in telling it to their face that Joseph never wanted to see them in person, that he never liked the idea of our parents interfering in our relationship. He said he prefers to keep things private.

"Uh. . . He's just shy, I guess." I said in a trembling voice. "He. . ."

But I suddenly lost my words. I didn't know what to say anymore. "He. . ." I stammered one more time.

Out of the blue, we heard a disembodied voice from outside the house. It was faint at the beginning but as I listen more carefully, I start to find the sound more familiar.

"Yaedura! Open the gate, I'm here!", it says.

"Wait, Ten?" I asked mom.

She held back a chortle whislt yanking her shoulders upwards. And said, "Why don't you see for yourself."

My body quickly responded right when I realized it could actually be Ten. My feet moved along as I run towards out of the house.

I hastily twisted the door knob and opened it.