"야! lee seokmin!" a female voice screemed at the top of her lungs from the second floor of the house.
jungkook watched as seokmin rolled his eyes and scratched his ear in irritation. they were in the middle of another game and his older sister just had to ruin it for them.
"wait, 누나!" seokmin replied, returning to his match and doing his best to prevent his character from getting killed off. jungkook followed his friend's lead, moving his upper body to follow his avatar's movements and yelling when there was a narrow miss.
"lee seokmin, i told you to cook the rice for dinner," jennie stomped down the stairs, her hand ready to slap her younger brother's nape.
"i already did!"
"you didn't even step into the kitchen," she clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, displaying her distaste for her brother's irresponsibility, "already did, my ass."
she placed a hand on her hip, waiting for the younger male to shift from his position and do her bidding. when seokmin barely moved, jennie slapped the back of his brother's head. "야, get up and make the rice so i can make dinner. i'm sure jungkook's hungry."
the wide-eyed teenager sheepishly smiled at the beautiful brunette, feeling shy that she was going through some effort to prepare dinner for them.
"you don't have to, 누나," he let go of his controller and waved his hands in front of his figure, "i'll just eat dinner at home."
"nonsense," jennie smiled at him then glared at her brother, "after all, it was seokmin's idea to drag you all the way here. he has the responsibility to prepare dinner, yea?"
"no, really, it's okay." he reasoned once again.
"i insist." she said sternly, but her eyes were soft and welcoming.
jungkook watched as she left with a wide smile on her face. to him, jennie wasn't even close to what he would consider a friend. in his eyes, lee jennie was just his best friend's older sister who was generally nice to every single one of friends.
6 YEARS LATER
"fuck," jennie chuntered softly as she rolled around in bed. she had overslept again.
veraciously, her mother wouldn't mind if she stayed under the covers a bit more. after all, it was summer vacation and ever since she started university she seldom came home (caused by the lack of leisurely time to do so). now, she was in her third year and her mother was extensively aware of the stress her eldest daughter was going through.
but jennie followed a strict daily schedule since the beginning of her college days, and she wanted to abide by it for fear that when the next semester came rolling around, she would slack off.
by 8:15, she was already dressed and downstairs. on regular days, she would exit through the back door and walk around her mother's garden. it wasn't much, but it was lovely and she didn't want to bear the hassle of going out of their house's vicinity to walk around the neighbourhood; however, she refrained from doing so when an amalgamation of voices were heard from the kitchen.
amidst the overlapping baritones, she could hear her mother's voice, jokingly scolding the group of men in her house. taking a step closer, she pushed open the double doors that were made of misty glass and framed with wood. it was an unconventional piece for a cooking area, but her mother adored it.
she was in a bit of a shock to see her younger brother surrounded by a group of three other men. the quartet were kidding around and tossing an apple to each other.
now, she wasn't surprised to see her younger brother (although it's been several months since she'd seen him since they decided to go to separate educational establishments, but their homecoming had been planned together), she was astounded by the fact that his friends were crowding the kitchen when it was this early in the morning.
"누나!" seokmin yelled with his eyes glowing in enthusiasm. he stood up from his seat and wrapped his arms around his sister's waist. he easily lifted him and twirled his petite frame around. long gone were the years when her height towered over him.
"put me down!" she berated over and over again, yet seokmin continued to embrace her tightly.
jennie wasn't the best at expressing her fondness for her brother, but he was sentient of her adoration and loved her immensely for it.
"i thought when the two of you would go to college, you'd mature a bit," their mother spoke as she continued frying the eggs for today's breakfast, "i guess fate has forsaken me again."
the siblings exchanged questionable expressions before taking their usual seats at the kitchen counter (on casual days like these, the family opted to enjoy a hearty meal inside the kitchen instead of the dining room— it was more efficient and less tiring).
"i thought you weren't coming back until tomorrow?" jennie asked. the three other boys have quieted down when she arrived, probably caused by the absence of comfort because of her presence. she wasn't going to lie; the silence made her feel rather awkward, as well.
"happy april fools, i guess." seokmin said before stuffing some food into his mouth. jennie glared at him, and was about to retort when he beat her to it, "by the way, do you still remember my friends?"
of course she did. after all, they were always at this house when they were younger. at times, they would tarry at different intervals, but mostly, the whole lot would come along and wreak havoc all over the lee household. puberty had done these boys good since they were far from the lanky boys she would see playing video games in her teenage years.
"if i remember correctly, you're mingyu," she squinted her eyes at the young man sitting beside her sibling. his eyes were sharp, his parted fringe slightly covered his brows and his thin lips were separated into a toothy smile. he motioned a finger hand in her direction and winked, "i'm still the most handsome right, 누나?"
jennie smiled teasingly, "hm. i don't recall you being handsome when you were younger."
when the rest of the boys erupted with laughter, she continued, "and this is eunwoo!" she happily pointed out. eunwoo's hair was hazel and wavy. his features were as soft as she remembered them and she smiled at the memory of him accidentally slipping in the hallway when he was running to the bathroom.
"and... jungkook?" she barely recognised the boy sitting at the farthest side of the table. his hair had been grown out and small hoop earrings dangled from his ears. his eyes widened at the mention of his name. "ah, jungkook!" she proclaimed without incertitude. she could recognize that adorable meme-worthy expression anywhere.
jungkook couldn't help but fawn at her bright expression. her lips were spread in a shining beam, and her eyes turned to crescents due to her undoubted beatitude.
a realization dawned unto him; it was possible that he wouldn't continue to see jennie in her older sister role anymore. in contrast, he was seeing her more of a... potential love interest?
wow, that was jumping over the line
no. she was more of a... crush?
hah. yeah. crush.
...
hELLO, EVERYONE! HAPPY APRIL FOOLS!
i hope y'all are doing okay right now. please remember to keep safe!
💕
-soo.
