Saturday, December 23rd, 2023
Itaewon, Seoul
6:00am

"Home is where love resides, memories are created, friends always belong, and laughter never ends."

At Won's house in Itaewon, the early morning air was crisp, the quiet streets outside still waking up. Inside, the house was already starting to buzz with energy. Lee An, Taryn, and Lee Jun had stayed over the night before, preparing for their trip to Serendipity Springs. Now, it was 6am on Saturday, and the day of their departure had finally come.

Won was in the kitchen, scrolling through his phone as he ordered breakfast. Lee An, rubbing her tired eyes, made her way downstairs in search of water. She opened the fridge, the cool air waking her up slightly.

"야, 오원. 왜 이렇게 일찍 일어났어? Hey, Oh Won. Why are you up this early?" Lee An asked, glancing at him.

"어, 그냥 배고파서 깼나 봐. 나도 모르겠어. Uh, I think it's just hunger. I don't even know." Won replied with a sheepish smile.

"우리 어젯밤에 그렇게 많이 먹었는데, 벌써 배고프다고? 진짜? We had such a big dinner last night, and you're already hungry? Seriously?" Lee An laughed, shaking her head.

"야, hey, no judging. 뭐 먹고 싶어? What do you want to eat?" Won asked, glancing at his phone again.

"글쎄... 치킨? 피자? 짜장면? 아무거나. Hmm... Chicken? Pizza? Black bean noodles? Anything." Lee An replied with a grin.

"그럼 난 짜장면, 치킨, 피자 다 시킬게. Byeol이 곧 올 거야. 그녀가 좋아하는 거 안 시키면 나 죽어. I'll go with black bean noodles, chicken, and pizza. Byeol's coming soon. If I don't order her favorite, she'll kill me." Won smirked as he finalized the order.

"맞아. 나도 그녀가 무서워. Right. I'm scared of her too." Lee An grinned, closing the fridge and sipping her water.

After ordering the food, Lee An decided to take a shower. As she walked toward the staircase, she glanced back at Won, who had already sprawled out on the couch, watching TV.

"나 씻고 올게. 그리고 Won, 빨리 짐 싸. Taryn 늦으면 우리 죽일 거야. I'm going to wash up. And Won, please go start packing. Taryn will kill us if we're late for our flight." Lee An pleaded.

"알았어, 알았어. 금방 쌀게. I know, I know. I'll pack soon." Won waved her off, still not moving from his spot.

Lee An rolled her eyes and headed upstairs. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang-it was the first delivery. Won groaned as he got up from the couch.

"누구세요? Who's there?" Won called out as he walked to the door.

"치킨 배달입니다. Chicken delivery," came the reply.

"아, 잠깐만요. Oh, wait a second." Won opened the door and paid the delivery guy, grabbing the bags of chicken.

"맛있게 드세요. Enjoy your meal." The delivery guy smiled.

Won nodded, "감사합니다. Thank you."

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang again.

"피자 배달입니다. Pizza delivery."

Won jogged to the door, "네, 네, 갑니다! Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!" He collected the pizza and set it on the counter next to the chicken.

Finally, the last delivery arrived-black bean noodles. Just as Won paid for it, the front door opened again, and Kang Byeol stepped inside, sniffing the air.

"오, 짜장면! 내 거 맞지? Oh, black bean noodles! This is mine, right?" Byeol grinned.

"너 왔어? 여기 있어, 맞아. You're here? Yeah, it's yours. Won handed her the noodles with a smirk.

"응, 고마워. 다들 어디 있어? Yep, thanks. Where is everyone?" Byeol asked, glancing around.

"Lee An은 샤워 중이고, Lee Jun은 아직 자고 있고, Taryn은 아마 비행 일정 확인 중일걸. Lee An is showering, Lee Jun is still sleeping, and Taryn is probably double-checking our flight details." Won answered.

"아, 그렇구나. 너는? Oh, I see. What about you?"

"나? Me?

"짐은 다 쌌어? Have you packed?"

"한 주 동안 가는 건데 뭐. 곧 쌀 거야. It's just a week-long trip. I'll pack soon." Won said nonchalantly.

"알았어. 근데 Tae가 네가 아직 안 쌌다는 거 알면 큰일 나. Alright. But if Tae finds out you haven't packed yet, you're in trouble." Byeol teased with a chuckle.

Just then, Taryn appeared out of nowhere.

"뭐? 너 아직 짐 안 쌌다고? Won?" What? You haven't packed yet? Won?" Taryn's voice was a mix of disbelief and frustration.

"Oh no, 난 Lee An한테 갈게. Oh no, I'm going to check on Lee An." Byeol laughed and made a quick escape up the stairs.

"야, 강별. Hey, Kang Byeol!" Won called after her, but it was too late. He tried to follow, but Taryn grabbed his arm.

"어딜 도망가려고? 아직 짐도 안 쌌으면서! Where do you think you're going? You still haven't packed!" Taryn scolded him.

"진짜로 금방 할 거야! 나 많이 필요 없어. 그리고 비행기까지 아직 시간 남았잖아. I'll pack soon! I don't need much. And we still have time before the flight." Won tried to reason with her.

Taryn crossed her arms, "아니, 우리 10시에 공항으로 나가야 하고 지금 벌써 7시야. No, we're leaving for the airport at 10am, and it's already 7am."

"Tae, 난 충분히 시간이 있어. 게다가, 난 너처럼 안 굴어. Tae, plenty of time for me. Besides, I'm not you." Won grinned, enjoying the banter.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Taryn asked, narrowing her eyes.

"It means you take hours to get ready." Won said.

"야! 난 필요한 것만 하는 거라고! Hey! I just do what's necessary!" Taryn said, defensively.

"그래, 몇 시간이나 걸리지. Yeah, for hours," Won shot back with a smirk.

"Shut up, Won." Taryn muttered, giving him a playful shove.

As their playful bickering continued to fill the room, Lee Jun and Byeol descended the stairs, already used to this chaotic start to their mornings. Lee Jun shook his head, sighing dramatically.

"이 사람들 진짜...These two, seriously..." he muttered, glancing at Byeol as they walked to the dining table.

Byeol laughed, sitting down. "다들 진짜 친하긴 하지. Yeah, they're really close, aren't they?"

The aroma of chicken, pizza, and black bean noodles filled the room, making Lee Jun's stomach growl. As he started to serve himself, the shouting between Taryn and Won continued, getting louder by the second.

"야, 조용히 좀 해! Hey, shut up!" Lee Jun finally snapped, glaring at the two. "빨리 와서 앉아, 밥 먹자. Come sit down already, let's eat."

Taryn huffed but finally made her way to the table, with Won trailing behind, still looking smug. As they sat down, Lee Jun looked around.

"야, 근데 Lee An 어디 갔어? Hey, where's Lee An?"

"Shower 중이야. She's in the shower." Taryn replied, reaching for a slice of pizza.

Without missing a beat, Lee Jun cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "야! 이안!! 빨리 안 내려오면 밥 없어!! Hey! Lee An!! If you don't come down soon, there won't be any food left!!"

He smirked and added, "이 멍청아! You idiot!"

Upstairs, there was a loud thud, followed by hurried footsteps as Lee An stormed down the stairs, her face flushed with annoyance. "뭐라고 했어, 너? What did you just call me?" she growled, marching straight toward Lee Jun.

Before he could react, Lee An smacked him lightly on the back of his head. "너 죽을래? Do you want to die?"

Lee Jun raised his voice, "야, 네 오빠야. Hey, I'm your older brother."

"응, 딱 2살 차이 나는. 그리고 나 바보 아니거든, 바보야. Yes, by just 2 years. And I'm not an idiot, idiot."

Lee Jun, rubbing his head. "너 바보야, 내가 너를 도와주고 야. You idiot, I was doing you a favor."

Lee An rolled her eyes and took her seat at the table, muttering something under her breath. The group finally settled in, and the sound of food being passed around filled the room.

"와, 치킨 진짜 맛있어 보여. Wow, the chicken looks really good." Lee An said as she piled some onto her plate.

As they ate, they fell into their usual rhythm of chatting, laughing, and poking fun at each other. Byeol, was paying extra attention to Lee Jun, making sure he had enough food on his plate and asking if he needed anything.

"Jun아, 이거 더 먹을래? Jun, do you want some more of this?" Byeol asked sweetly, leaning over to pass him a bowl of noodles.

Won raised an eyebrow, noticing how overly caring Byeol was being. A mischievous grin spread across his face. "Byeol, 너 Lee Jun한테 너무 잘해주네. Byeol, you're being really nice to Lee Jun, aren't you?"

Lee Jun, oblivious, continued eating while Byeol's face turned a faint shade of pink. "아, 그냥 챙겨주는 거야. I'm just looking after him."

"내 말이 그거야, 왜? 이유가 뭐야? My point exactly, why? What's the reason?" Won inquired.

Lee An joined in, smirking. "응, 너무 챙겨주는 것 같은데? Yeah, you're looking after him a bit too much, don't you think?"

Taryn, not one to miss out on the teasing, added, "너무 obvious해. 고백할 거면 빨리 해. It's so obvious. If you're going to confess, just do it already."

Byeol's face reddened, and before anyone could say more, she grabbed a handful of pizza toppings and threw them across the table, hitting Won and Lee An squarely in the face. "닥쳐! Shut up!"

The room erupted into laughter as Won and Lee An wiped the sauce off their faces, unable to stop laughing. Taryn leaned back, dodging the food, grinning.

"애들 같아, 진짜. You're such kids." Lee Jun sighed, shaking his head as if he were the only mature one in the group. "이제 조용히 밥이나 먹어. Now, just eat your food quietly."

Still chuckling, they settled back down, the teasing subsiding as they focused on the delicious spread in front of them.