queenka • taeyong

4

In the past, the grand dark blue front door of 74 Chewing Cres never made Cheri mad or annoyed, but today it did.

The house itself was beautiful, inside and out, being one of the largest homes on the street. Not only was it architecturally wondrous to look at, but the memories it held were that as well. The building held remembrance of slumber parties, first kisses, countless baking attempts, millions of movies watched, secrets shared, subtle nips at mother's wine and many more.

Cheri raised a manicured hand and knocked on the door, not stopping until she could hear a familiar voice call from the inside that 'they're coming'.

At the sounds of the locks turning, she stepped away from the door and zipped up her sweater, covering up her exposed skin showing thanks to the cropped tank she wore.

Right on time, the door swung open. "My god, Nam Cheri is that you?" The woman immediately pulled her in for a tight-hug which she wasn't ready for. "You've grown so much."

"Yeah, it's been awhile." Cheri laughed and pulled away from the woman that she once considered her second mom.

The woman stepped aside, letting Cheri inside. "So what brings you back here?"

She slipped off her Gucci sneakers and placed them on the shoe rack before following the homeowner into the kitchen. "Well, I'm actually here to visit Jisung."

"Oh yes! How could I forget?" She poured a small glass of ice tea and slid it over to the girl, just like how she used to do whenever Cheri came over. "He goes to your school now."

"Yeah, I was assigned to tutor him in math last month." Her words weren't necessarily a lie but it wasn't the real reason why she was there. She sipped her drink. "Is he home?"

"Yeah, he just got home from practice. He should be upstairs in his room, you know the way."

Cheri quickly finished her drink. "Great, thanks." She abandoned the empty glass on the kitchen counter and made her way up the stairs.

Along the stairwell, there were photos showing the Park children grow over the years. Cheri could even spot herself in a few, one especially stood out to her. It was taken on Valentine's Day. Nine year old Cheri was dressed in a themed outfit for the holiday: a red plaid skirt with black tights worn underneath and a white long sleeve with a small red heart in the center. She was side hugging a tiny seven year old boy who was simultaneously grinning at the camera, displaying his missing baby teeth, and trying to pry of young Cheri off of him. While his sister stood on the other side of him, in a matching outfit to Cheri's, holding up bunny ears behind him and smiling with her tongue sticking out.

She stopped eyeing the photo and continued making her way up the long stair case. The house had incredibly high ceilings which made the way between floors a trek. Eventually, she made it to her destination and promptly let herself in.

His room was larger than hers, with an en-suite and small seating area. His king sized bed was pressed against the grey wall in a corner, which created even more space.

The bathroom door swung open and out walked Jisung. "Listen up, kiddo."

He jumped back in surprise, making the towel that hung around his hips almost drop. "Cheri, what the fuck."

"Oh please," She rolled her eyes and walked up to him, quickly checking out his lean body. "it's nothing that I haven't seen before."