-• it's stuck •-

The best way to get ready in the morning? Playing your favourite playlist as you perform a fashion week in the four walls of your bedroom. And as the sun rises in the east, spilling warm, shiney rays through the white blinds, I take a long, hot shower in the bathroom, shave my legs and arms, and put on a face mask to get rid of the puffy face. I might have not slept the whole night yesterday, but the world will not squint eyes at that.

I've already selected clothes for myself. The black bodycon dress with black shin length leather coat and black stockings are waiting for me outside the bathroom.

After I'm done with my morning routine, I put on my bathrobe and tie the ends on my stomach before blow drying my hair and using a curler on them. By the end of it, I've voluptuous mass of hair cascading on my shoulders and breasts, framing my round face and bouncing softly everytime I move my head.

I search through YouTube for makeup tutorials and click on the one with the most views. The youtuber has so many products I almost feel lost while trying to find an alternative of them in my little make-up bag. But I manage, and as the video ends, I've this natural no make up look with slightly smoky eyes and dark lipstick.

I blush at my own reflection. Honestly, if I was a guy, I'd so smash me.

Throwing all my make-up stuff in the bag, I zip it up and carry it out of the bathroom. Tossing it on the bed, because I'm putting it away carefully later, which if I'm being truthful, I'm not. I'll just forget about it until I need it again. My feet gravitate towards my outfit and I gently put it on, making sure I don't smudge my make-up or stain my black dress. The fitted hem reaches just below my thighs. I wear the black stockings and since they're woolen from inside, my legs no longer feel they'll freeze and fall off. I pick up the long feminine coat and shove my arms through the sleeves. I call it feminine because it has an hourglass shape that hugs your waist and bust area like a corset, but it's not tight. It's a double breasted coat with notch lapels.

I turn around to look at my reflection in the mirror and release my hair from the confines, they spread all over my shoulders and breasts. I choose a pendant from my jewelry box and clasp it over my turtleneck dress. The platinum chain stands out against the black color. I leave my ears empty.

Picking up my backpack, I thrust all the necessary things in it. At first I wanted to choose a bag that'll go with my outfit, but then I realised I didn't really bring many handbags with me, and the ones I bought, are too small to carry anything but a phone and my lipbalm. So I'm bringing one of them with me today to compliment my outfit and making one of my brothers carry my backpack for me.

"Tara, Ayush, breakfast is here!" I hear Agastya shout from the living room.

"Coming!" I sling the metal chain of my mini bag over my shoulder, pick up the backpack and hurriedly slip on my flat platform mid calf boots that comes with a zip.

"Tara! Ayush!" Agastya bellows across the room.

I wince and open the door, tripping a little as I step out and close the door of my bedroom. I pull down the hem that rode up and fix my hair before walking into the living room confidently.

Arush's eyes fall on me first and the noodles he's hogging on standing like a horse, fall from his mouth into the plate at my sight. I grimace.

"What the hell, Arush?" Agastya twists his nose.

Arush juts his chin in my direction.

Agastya turns and the disgust on his face transforms into disbelief. "What the hell are you wearing!?" He storms up to me and pulls at the coat, buttoning it up immediately. I stop myself from tripping over as at his rough manhandling.

"I'm wearing what Vivaan Bhai helped me pack." I step away from him and rip my coat off his hands, unbuttoning it again.

"Tara-" he raises a finger at me, but is stopped abruptly when the door across from us opens, revealing Shourya dressed casually in fitted black slacks, black turtleneck and the same color trenchcoat. The only thing that stands out is the gold watch on his wrist.

"Oh," he whispers upon seeing me, then looks down at himself, before looking back at me.

I blink, my cheeks flushing red.

"What the hell?" Agastya looks between us flabbergasted. "Did you guys plan this?"

I sputter out a scoff. "Of- Of course not!"

"Go and change," he looks at me.

"Why should I change?" I glower angrily.

"Because I can't ask him to change. And you need to dress appropriately anyway."

"I'm dressed appropriately."

"Do you have any idea of the male attention you'll be attracting if I let you out like this?" He wags a finger up and down at my body.

"And that is my problem?" I hiss. "I can wear whatever I want. And if you try talking me out of it, I'm going out bare-legged. I'll not even wear the stockings. Try me."

He rubs his temples tiredly. "Fine. But if someone cat calls you, I'm punching them in the face."

My jaw drops.

"Then I'll be in the jail, Bhai will be called here, and the vacation will be cut short. You'll be shipped to London immediately along with the twins. You want that?" He threatens me.

My eyes tear up immediately and lips start to tremble. I see the flash of guilt that crosses his face but it's temporary. Damn it. I need to continue the emotional drama. "No, please, I don't want to ruin this for the twins. I'll just stay in my room all day. Have fun, you guys." I whisper, forcing a smile on my face as I glance at the crestfallen Arush and poker-faced Shourya, before turning around and heading back to my room, slamming the door shut.

I walk up to the bed and sit on the edge, facing the door. Let the countdown begin.

Three.

I open my eyes wider and don't blink so they don't lose the tears.

Two.

I sit in a defeated posture, like I'm being torn down by the world and discarded in shreds.

Was that too dramatic?

Yes.

Anyway.

One.

The door opens and I immediately start to sniffle, my head lowered, eyes cast down to my lap as I feign a tremble of my shoulders, putting on a crying scene to melt my tough brother. He might try as hard as he can to boss me around, claim that my existence is annoying, but I know I'm his weak point.

"Tara?" He kneels in front of me, trying to catch my gaze with his. I turn my head away, sniffling harder. "Accha, I'm sorry, short stuff. You look so pretty I got worried. You're my responsibility here, you know that, right?"

I pucker my lips out just the slightest and look down at him. "It's okay. You guys can go have fun. I'll be fine in my room." I plaster a fake, pained smile on my face.

He sighs in defeat. "No, call me an idiot, sexist, douchebag. I deserve that. There's no way we'll be able to enjoy without you. And you wanted to come here the most, didn't you? Now that we're here, you're saying stuff like this. C'mon, don't break my heart."

I push my pressed lips to the side, displaying the depth of my grief.

"Okay, you know what," he holds my hands in his. "You can wear whatever you want. And none of us have any right to say a word to you. Now c'mon, let's have something to eat for breakfast so we can set out for the day. The tour guide will wait for us in the lobby at ten am. Let's not waste anymore time." He gets up on his feet, my hand still in his as he tugs at it encouragingly.

"I can wear this dress?" I pout at him.

He smiles. "Of course, you can."

"You'll not punch anyone if they make an indecent comment at me?"

He breathes harshly. I squeeze his hand and give him my best puppy look. He relents. "Okay, I'll not. As long as no one crosses their limit, I'll control my temper."

"Yes!" I jump on my feet and hug him tightly. He chuckles, patting my back fondly before we pull away and proceed out of the room. My feet slow down as we reach the dining table and I settle down beside Arush.

"You're coming with us?" He asks me hopefully.

I smile and nod at him, my gaze darting across the table, landing on Ayush who plays with his food, looking tragically stricken. "What's wrong?"

He shakes his head.

"Constipation." Arush chuckles.

"Huh?"

"Shut the fuck up!" Ayush tosses a lettuce at him.

"Hey! Don't play with food." I chastise. "Anyway, is that what's bothering you?"

He rolls his eyes and looks down at his plate.

"He can't poop in new places."

I snicker. "What?"

"Can we not discuss about shit while we're in the first stage of digestion?" Shourya asks sarcastically, regarding me with a glare.

"What's unnatural about poop?" I shoot back.

"Nothing. It's just not an appropriate topic of discussion on the dining table." He counters.

I roll my eyes and focus on my plate, filling it with little of everything. He goes back to his breakfast.

I try to hold back but fail. "Is it stuck?" I ask Ayush softly. Two spoons slam down and Agastya sighs sharply. "Alright, sorry," I press my lips tighter in order to curb the victorious grin.

Arush coughs out a chuckle and I nudge him in the rib cage, subtly shaking my head. Accidentally, he snorts, and we both burst out laughing.

"It's not funny!" Ayush groans exasperatedly.

Shourya looks aggravated. Agastya sighs for the umpteenth time.

"Shh," I place a finger on my lips, holding back the tear-jerking laugh as I shake my head frantically at Arush. He sucks in a sharp breath, inflates his cheeks with air, but then sputters out a chortle, making me holler again.

"What is wrong with you guys!?" Ayush gets up, causing the chair to screech back before he storms off to his room.

"Seriously, you both, it's not a joke. Grow up." Agastya looks at me in disappointment and follows the twin into his bedroom. "Ayush, wait, listen to me." The door slams close.

"I didn't know you were so immature." Shourya erupts at me as if I don't feel enough guilty. "He was right. Grow up."

"Did I ask for your opinion?" I bite back.

"No. But I feel like you needed it."

"Alright, mister, that's my sister you're talking to. Mind your business." Arush warns him.

Shourya shakes his head slightly and takes his plate to his bedroom. I release a remorseful sigh. "God, I didn't know it would hurt him so much." I whisper under my breath.

"He's sensitive about it."

I look at him in disbelief. "You should have stopped me then."

"I don't remember encouraging you." He shrugs.

"You laughed." I remind him.

"It was funny."

"It was." I nod. "But now I regret it." I look in the direction of Ayush's room. Agastya is still inside with him. I hope he convinces him to let go of his anger. I'll apologise if he allows me.

Agastya's phone on the table begins to ring. Arush and I share a glance. "Who's it?"

I steal a glimpse. "Vivaan Bhai."

"Answer the phone." He forces me.

I quickly pick up the vibrating device and answer the call. "Good morning, Bhai."

"Good morning, my love. Where's Agastya?"

"He's in his room." I lie. "Why did you call him first and not me?"

He chuckles. "I thought you'd be asleep, darling. Anyway, what's going on?"

"We're having breakfast right now. Then we'll head out to explore the city."

"Alright, have fun, I won't disturb you. But tell Agastya to call me in next two hours okay? I wont be able to receive calls once I clock in at the work."

"Okay!"

"Great then. Bye. Take care. And don't forget to send me pictures."

"Of course." I smile.

He hangs up and I put the phone back in its place. Thankfully, in another minute, the door of Ayush's bedroom opens and the two come back to the dining table.

"I'm sorry, Ayush. I shouldn't have made fun of your condition." I say sincerely.

He shrugs off my apology.

"I'm sorry too." Arush mumbles.

"Let's not have a repeat." Agastya warns us both.

"Oh, um, Vivaan Bhai called just now. He said you can call him back anytime in the next two hours. Afterwards he'll be busy with his work." I relay the message to the eldest in the room.

Agastya nods, already checking his phone. "The tour guide is here. Let's finish eating first." He instructs, then suddenly notices the absence at the table. "Where's Shourya?"

"He took his plate to his room." Arush answers.

"Good riddance." Agastya mutters.

The guilt thickens another inch. My stupid comments chased him away from the dining table. Maybe he would have hit it off with my brothers over something common? Ugh, why did I have to be so immature!

After we finish eating, I take it on myself to inform him about the tour guide waiting for us in the lobby. He opens the door after the second knock. "We've to leave."

He immediately steps out and I stumble back, not having expected the quick exit. His hand shoots out to hold my arm and I hurriedly stand straight, swallowing the unease crawling up my throat at his electric, cold touch shackling us together.

"You're clumsy, Tara." I clear my throat and roll my eyes at the comment. "Rather than heels, I suggest you use crutches."

"Very funny." I scowl. "And they're not heels. They're boots."

His eyes fall to my feet, before slowly, and when I say slowly, I mean excruciatingly slowly climb back my figure to meet my eyes. "They've heels."

"Because they're platform boots."

"That's another reason they should not have heels." He murmurs, his body still invading my private space, hand holding my arm like he forgot we're two seperate individuals.

"They're not heels. They just have some extra inches on them." I swallow.

"Extra inches?" He cocks a brow at me.

My lashes flicker. "At the sole, yes." I whisper.

The door next to his room opens and I fly apart from him, scurrying back into the living room as I wait for everyone to join me.

My brothers arrive and soon enough, Shourya does too. I ignore him as we go out, and I ignore him when we reach the lobby, I also ignore him when the twenty three year old travel vlogger paid to show us around throws lingering glances between us, probably joining the imaginative dots in her head because of our outfits.

She introduces herself as Tanya Shah. She's studying at SNU University and is a popular travel vlogger from Varanasi, India who shifted to South Korea to pursue her dream career in her dream city.

We pile inside the black van waiting for us outside the hotel. I get the left window seat beside Agastya, the twins settle down in the second row and Shourya takes up the passenger seat while she controls the wheel.

She chatters on and on about everything she has on the to-do list for today. I tune her out after sometime, focusing on shooting a video of the scenery in my camera gifted by Yuvaan before our departure.

I vaguely hear her mention Jeju Island and tune right back in. "Did you just say Jeju?"

She beams. "Yes! We'll be flying there next week."

"I've heard of it so many times in dramas. I can't wait." I smile at her through the rear view mirror.

"Is that a DSLR?" She asks glancing at the camera in my hands.

"Yes!" I chuckle. "Canon EOS 90D. My brother gifted it to me."

"Wow, now we know who's favourite in the family."

I giggle softly. "Where are we going first?"

"Gyeongbokgung." She replies. "It's like an epic centre of Korean culture. From there, we'll go to Hanok Village and from there, we'll head to Samcheondong. It's a street with different shops. Of course, we'll be stopping for lunch before heading to Hanok Village. And then we'll stop at Innisfree cafe for a quick drink. By five we'll circle to Insadong, you can buy as many traditional souvenirs as you want there. I'll help you out with the shopping. And then we'll return to the hotel."

"No Namsan tower?"

She chuckles. "I'm actually putting it off for when we come back from Jeju. There are chances of a snowfall and if you're lucky, you'll be able to see it from the Namsan tower."

"Are there no clubs here?" Agastya asks sounding bored.

"You'll like Itaewon then. That's where young people come together to enjoy the bustling night life of South Korea. I was actually contemplating putting it on our schedule. If we take the minors along, there's not much to do there, so I crossed it off."

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

She flushes red.

I slap my brother's thigh.

"I do."

"Then bring him along. The minors will stay at the hotel tonight. Take me out."

She slowly nods. "Sure."

"That's not fair." Arush speaks up.

"It wouldn't be if you were an adult. Are you?" Agastya looks over his shoulder.

"You're nineteen!" Yeah, he turned nineteen during the exam period. No one had time to throw in a party so we just cut cakes and called it a day. He didn't mind either. He had his last exam the next day. He couldn't afford getting hammered.

"20 according to the Korean age system." Agastya smirks at him through the rear view mirror.

Arush slumps in his seat with a huff.

"Here, we are." She parks the car in the parking lot and cuts off the engine.

The moment we get out, Ayush says, "I need to use the washroom."

"Oh," she blinks. "We've one here. Come, I'll show you."

Ayush blushes in embarrassment. "I'll come along." I volunteer and grab my brother's hand, nodding at him in assurance. We follow her lead and she shows us the way to the public washroom. The two of us wait outside while he goes in.

"What are we going to do here?"

"Look around, have fun. The place is massive and the architecture is absolutely stunning. This palace was built in 1395 and was home to the Kings of Joseon Dynasty. I'm sure you must have seen the similar setups in many period dramas."

"And what's Hanok Village?"

"As the name suggests, it's a village that is filled with a lot of Hanoks - traditional Korean houses as well as alleys. It has a lot of cultural centers and museums that showcase the culture of the Joseon Dynasty. All in all, a very unique display of the dynasty architecture and way of life. It offers juxtaposition between the modern and traditional aspects of the city." She explains patiently.

"I'm excited!" I grin.

She smiles back, looking in the direction of the bathroom. I follow and see a sad looking Ayush coming out, his hand on his stomach.

I raise my brows at him when our eyes meet.

He shakes his head, his face ashen, eyes frustrated.

It's still stuck.

Poor Ayush.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Don't forget to vote and comment. Makes my day.