ᖇOOᗰᗰᗩTᗴՏ ᗯITᕼ ᕼIᗰ 《C.TZ × J.JK》

Chapter 3: New Dorms

"WHAT?!" Mina and Tzuyu shrieked in unison. "Move out?!"

"Jimin, you've got to be kidding," Mina said and took his hands in hers.

They waited for him to say something but he stared back at them with a grave face, his expression clearly saying that he wasn't. Silence followed as the girls let the news sink in, a feeling of dread creeping up their skins. They could feel their world slowly fall apart.

Throat caught on tears, Tzuyu tried again. "Jimin, seriously! If you're playing one of your stupid pranks again, this is not funny!"

He just shook his head in reply.

"Easy for you to say, Jimin," Mina sobbed, her eyes fully streaming a river. Jimin pulled her in for a hug and let her cry on his shoulder. "We've been living in this house for four years. Four years!"

"No, Minari," he finally said. "You guys have to move out. She's tight on money right now. She really can't pay for extra stuff."

At his words, Tzuyu buried her head in a cushion and let her sobs escape too. She knew that she was tired of living off of someone else's money and next year was her year! She had finally been allowed for pay for the rent herself with her unnie. Just that thought made her feel more . . . Grown up. But before that time could even arrive, she was told to move out. What?! That was not fair. To her and her independent dreams. "B-but," she weeped, "where are we going to live then?"

Jimin sighed and patted Mina's back. "Dorms," he simply said, softly kissing her head. "The only places available at the moment are dorms."

Mina pulled back for a second, but rested her cheek on his shoulder again. "When are we--" she began to say but trailed off. She didn't have to finish though.

"She said that before the start of the term would be more convenient," he explained. "Two weeks, thats all you guys have. You'll have to find a dorm in a few days so you could have enough time to shift your furniture."

"Where? We can't take it all with us."

He smiled, despite his broken heart. He knew she would cry and he couldn't believe that he was able to see her like that. But for her sake, he needed to be strong. "Oh, Minari, of course not. The furniture is going to be taken back to the orphanage, to your old bedroom. It was cleared out just for you guys. The rest, like dining tables and cabinets, are going to be sold for extra money. And the utensils, too. But you could take some with you to your dorm along with maybe, your desks and beanbag chairs?"

"But isn't that gonna take a lot of money? Bringing back the furniture, I mean," Tzuyu asked and wiped her eyes with a tissue. She reached forward and lightly touched Mina's hand for comfort.

"Don't worry, Tzu. The orphanage has that covered up. But the ones that you guys are taking with you might be a problem. Hey, maybe I could ask my friends for help," he offered. "That works?"

Tzuyu nodded.

For another few minutes, another round of silence began wrapping them in its tentacles. Jimin let the girls recover from the shock. He waited until they began pressing him for more details and then laid out the whole plan for the next few months, or maybe even the next few years.

The girls were to come back to the orphanage during vacations or holidays, though they were free to choose. They may remain at their dorms or go over at a friend's house, which, they both said was okay with them. But what really was bothering them was their permanent home. They were grown ups now. They couldn't still rely on the orphange to provide a roof over their heads and look after them.

This part took Jimin a bit longer to explain but he could tell that they understood. Mrs. Lee had been worried about this too, but she knew that the girls would be fine. She had planned to let them stay at the orphanage for as long as they wanted, but she said that it would soon be the time for them to find their own place. An apartment, most likely, to begin with. But for that, they needed to have a proper job, not just a part time to go with their schooling hours.