Chapter 2

When I entered the living room, I saw Soo-Jung's laptop on the table.

Around her were her two younger sisters on the floor and her two older sisters on the sofa.

Looks like I'm not the only one who's late. The oldest and youngest rub their eyes.

From the way they're still staring, I think Soo-jung woke them up.

I'm jealous. If I had to wake up in the morning, I'd rather it was her.

"Yang Zhiqi, if you're late, come and sit down, we're all waiting for you."

"OK, Sis..."

"Geumbye, there's still time, don't be so hard on me."

Look at that.

Even now, Geum-bi is in a bad mood, but Soo-jung takes it in stride.

She's half the reason why I'm stuck in my room.

"Haam~ I'm tired. Sis, do you want something to eat while we wait?"

"Hey, Hwa-yeon Yang. You have no hands or feet, why do you keep eating for Suzie?"

"What did you say?" "I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to big sister."

"That's why I'm telling you to move."

"Aww, you're really bothering me this morning..."

"Dude, what did you just say?"

The other half of the reason I locked myself in my room.

Fourth in our house, Hwa-yeon started a snowball fight with Geum-bi's sister.

"Why? I just asked her if she wanted something to eat. Is that so perverse?"

"Perverse? Is that how you talk to your sister?"

"You're the one who started the fight."

"How is asking me not to spoil Crystal an argument? It's obvious."

"I didn't make you do it, I was just curious."

"I did! You didn't want to get up from the floor, did you?"

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

"What do you know!"

In fact, it wasn't just me, but everyone in the house was locked in their rooms.

There was a lot at stake for these two, who often... no, always fought when they met.

Geum-bi is a military commander and Hwa-yeon is a typical rebel, and they fight even more because they are the younger sister and brother.

I wondered why Geum-bi was so impetuous when Soo-jung, the eldest, was so gentle.

My youngest is quiet and reserved, but the fourth, Hwa-yeon, sighed and wondered why she was so impetuous.

"Enough, it's almost time for mum to call, are you ready?"

"...chit, it's okay sis."

"...Heh. You always say something when you see me, chit."

Luckily, the oldest sister in the family, Soo-jung, was in the living room today.

She looked at her watch and clapped her hands in unison, and the two of them looked at each other, but lowered their tails meekly.

-Pivik.

"Ah, Mum's home!"

The light flashed in the window of my laptop screen, connecting me to the other side.

Hearing my words, everyone in the living room turned to the table and my mother appeared, sitting in her study.

-We haven't seen each other for a long time. How are you all?

"Yes, we're all fine, Mum."

Soo-jung replied on behalf of the others and we nodded in unison.

Mum smiled when she saw us, but her face on the screen quickly changed to a worried expression as she wondered what was going on.

-I'm calling you today because... I have something to tell you.

"Something to tell you?"

-Yes. Something I've been hiding for a long time... a family secret.

My mother is usually a soft-spoken woman who doesn't change her expression much.

Today she stuttered more and couldn't look at us.

There was something heavy in the air and everyone was quiet except for Soo-jung.

The laptop slowly emitted a sound that was hard to believe.

-... have been together for so long.

"Yes... I'm always grateful. You had a hard time raising us alone, didn't you?"

I'm more grateful to you for raising them so well, even though I don't get to see them as often as I'd like, especially Crystal.

"The children have been great to me. ...and now the youngest is grown up."

-Mum. ... So that's all I want to talk about today.

Not knowing what to say, she hesitated, then picked up a piece of paper.

On the white piece of paper were two words... "Suicide note."

-Your father really did leave a note before he died.

"What...?"

-I thought if you saw it, you'd believe it was real, so I brought it here.

"What are you trying to say, Mum?"

-One of our family members is not a blood relative.

"""""...ne?!"""""

Suddenly, not only Soo-jung's sister, but also the other four who had been quiet, shouted.

My mother was stunned, her eyes narrowed and she struggled to speak.

-Originally... I was going to tell you when you reached puberty, but before that... you know, Dad... you know, he was...

"Well, yeah."

-So I thought I'd keep it a secret forever, but then I realised I should tell you. Now that Mok-hee, the youngest, has grown up, we have to deal with the question of how to divide up the inheritance.

"Unfortunately... then I also included my father's will...."

-Because it's late, but it's also your father's will. Haha, so who is this person....

We all swallowed.

Family secrets, other bloodlines, suicide notes, legacies.

The information swirled in my head, but more than that, the suspense made my heart flutter.

Mum's mouth opened cautiously.

Just as the only person was about to be revealed...

-Well, I guess it's not that person after all...! I'm sorry, I should have told you in person instead of from a distance.

"Eh, Mum?"

-I can't right now, I'm busy at work, but I'll find a time soon! I'll talk to you then, and in the meantime, how are you...!

"Mum, eh?! Mum?!"

Soo-jung shouted in panic, her fingers drumming on the laptop keyboard.

But the screen didn't come back on and we stared at the dark screen for a while.

"... What does it all mean?"

It was my sister's words that broke the long silence.

We took turns looking at each other and began to speak softly.

* * *

"So, in short, one of us is an adopted child, right?"

It was Geum-bi who spoke first, as she was quick to assess the situation.

But even she couldn't just accept it, so she frowned and frowned.

"We're only talking about this now because the youngest has grown up and the distribution of the inheritance according to dad's will... something like that."

Maybe it wasn't just that it was hard to accept.

Maybe it was the fact that they were finally discussing such a complicated subject that made her bite her lip and grit her teeth.

"But you should have told us... when we hit puberty, and... well, somehow it got put off."

It was the older sister, Soo-jung, who calmed Geum-bi down.

She patted Geum-bi's thigh and tried to make her mother understand.

"We know how much trouble she's been going through," she said, "and for her to confess everything like that... it must have been too much for her."

I understand what she's saying.

Losing her husband and raising five children alone was hard enough.

To tell them that one of them was adopted... I didn't know if it would break our childhood relationship.

My mum used to say how grateful she was that we got on so well, so maybe that's why she was hysterical.

To be honest, I didn't think I'd be able to treat someone else the same way if they weren't related to me.

The more I thought about it, the more I understood my mum's decision.

... I mean, rationally, anyway.

"Haha, I don't know. I don't know, sis, I don't know, but at least when we were older... You shouldn't have told me or you, you know, if you were like that, you'd be like..."

"Don't be silly, I'm not saying you're always right, I'm just saying you had no choice. You need to calm down a bit..."

"OK, I understand, but understanding doesn't mean emotionally accepting, does it?"

It had been a long time since I'd heard Geumbi yell at Soo-jung.

Judging by the expressions on my sisters' faces and mine, it seemed like a long time since we'd had a fight like this.

"Sister, think about it. One of us isn't blood, she's adopted, but she won't say who, and if she runs away like this... what are we going to do?"

"She's not running away, she's made up her mind and wants to talk to you face to face."

"Then she should have done it in the first place! How reckless of her, she'd have to tell us everything on video... ugh!"

"Well done, good girl. I know how you feel, Goldie, so let's calm down, okay?"

Geum-Bi's voice grew louder and louder until she finally said something unspeakable, pointing her finger at the laptop.

Crystal hugged her tightly.

"It was embarrassing, wasn't it? Confused, ridiculous and angry because you wanted something out of it."

"No, sis, I just... ...."

"But I'm sure your mum had her own reasons, so we'll just have to wait and see, we can do that, can't we?"

"Waiting is something I'm used to... ...."

"Yes, it's the same as always, we just have to wait for Mum to come home. Don't mention anything in the meantime. Anyway, everything will be revealed later."

"...Yes, ok, sis...."

Crystal patted Goldie on the back and then gave her a gentle pat to calm her down.

With that, her tantrums disappeared and as her body slumped, she bowed her head in submission.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry I yelled at you at the wrong time."

"No, I'm sure they were relieved that you were so clear, weren't they?"

"Yeah, I was a bit."

"Me too. A bit... cider, hmm."

"Me too... It didn't sound too bad."

Me, Hwa-yeon and the youngest agreed with Soo-jung's words.

Then Geum Bi wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at Crystal with a wry smile.

"Thank you, sister... and everyone else."

"Jia, I feel like I've been bombed this morning, so why don't we order something to cheer us up? Tell me what you want to eat, I'm the big sister!"

"Gee, I'll have chicken and pizza then!"

"I'd rather have something light than greasy."

With Geum-bi's gratitude and Soo-jung's flexibility, the air in the house changed.

Although Hwa-yeon and the younger girl disagreed on the menu, Soo-jung calmly handed over the two menus.

"I can't beat her," I thought.

The living room was a bomb, an atomic bomb.

We turned on the TV, watched the delivery and laughed hysterically.

We fought when we fought, sulked when we sulked and locked ourselves in our rooms for most of the day.

But when we were together, we felt like brothers.

* * *

That night I was lying in bed after brushing my teeth when I heard a creak.

Through the ajar door... Soo-jung was looking in.