I turned around slowly, my heart pounding in my chest. Minho stood there, hands in his pockets, looking as composed as ever. His eyes softened slightly when they met mine, but the stoic, manly exterior remained.

"Minho?" I whispered, my voice barely audible.

"It's been a while," he said, his deep voice resonating in the quiet room. I swallowed, taking in the sight of him. The last time we had spoken was months ago, and it hadn’t exactly ended on the best terms.

I stood frozen for a moment, unsure of what to say or do. Minho was the last person I expected to see today. Finally, I broke the silence, “What are you doing here?”

He shrugged, a small, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips. "Heard it was Chuseok. Thought I'd stop by and see my little sister."

I blinked, surprised. His words didn’t match the distance that had grown between us over the past year, but there was something in his tone that made me believe he was being sincere. Still, the tension between us hung heavy in the air.

“Where have you been?” I asked, crossing my arms, trying to keep my voice steady.

Minho glanced away for a moment, before finally answering. “Work. A lot’s been going on.”

I rolled my eyes slightly. “You couldn’t have called?”

He looked back at me with a sigh, stepping closer. “I know. I’m sorry, Sena. But I’m here now.”

I took a deep breath, trying to push back the flood of emotions threatening to overwhelm me. Minho and I hadn’t been close for a long time, and him showing up now, out of the blue, wasn’t going to magically fix that. But at the same time, seeing him in front of me stirred something—memories of when we were younger, when we were closer.

“You think just showing up makes it okay?” I asked, my voice softer, but the hurt still evident.

He rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes dropping to the floor. "I don't expect it to. I know I’ve been absent, and I know that’s not fair to you. But things have been complicated. Work, life—" He trailed off, his usual confidence faltering.

I stepped closer, my arms still crossed. "I needed you, Minho. All this time, you were the only family I had, and you disappeared on me."

“I know,” he admitted quietly. "I thought staying away would make things easier for you."

"Easier?" I almost scoffed, shaking my head. "It didn’t make anything easier, Minho. It just made me feel more alone."

He opened his mouth to respond but stopped. His eyes softened as he saw how much his absence had hurt me. For the first time, he looked vulnerable, and that vulnerability made me hesitate.

“I didn’t come here to argue,” he finally said, his voice low. “I came because… I missed you, Sena. I missed my sister.”

The sincerity in his voice caught me off guard. I looked away for a moment, not sure how to respond. I wanted to be angry, wanted to keep blaming him for everything, but hearing him say he missed me… it chipped away at the wall I had built around myself.

I sighed, dropping my arms. “I missed you too. But this isn’t something you can just walk back into and expect everything to be fine.”

He nodded, his expression solemn. “I know. I’m not asking for that. I’m asking for a chance to try. To fix things.”

I studied him for a moment, the part of me that longed for family battling with the part that had learned not to expect anything from anyone.

“Alright,” I said, my voice quieter. “But don’t disappear on me again. Not this time.”

Minho nodded, stepping closer. "I won't. I promise."

For the first time in a long while, it felt like maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t as alone as I thought.

I glanced over at the others, their expressions a mix of confusion and curiosity. Jungkook raised an eyebrow, his lips twitching as if he was trying to piece together what was going on. Nari had her arms crossed, eyeing Minho with suspicion, while Jimin and Yoongi exchanged quick glances.

“Uh, so…” Nari started, breaking the silence, “who’s this guy?”

Minho offered a small smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’m Minho, Sena’s brother.”

“Brother?” Jimin repeated, clearly surprised. “You never mentioned you had a brother.”

I shrugged, still feeling awkward under everyone’s gaze. “There wasn’t really a reason to. He’s been… busy.”

“Right.” Yoongi’s tone was flat, his sharp gaze focused on Minho like he was trying to read him. “Busy.”

“Okay, this is weird,” Nari muttered, shifting her weight. “But family drama aside, should we be worried about you showing up out of nowhere?”

“No,” I said quickly, though I wasn’t entirely sure how true that was. I didn’t even know what Minho had been up to all this time, or why he was really here now.

Minho seemed to sense the tension, and he cleared his throat, looking at the others. “I’m not here to cause any trouble. I just wanted to see my sister.”

Jungkook shot me a look, his expression softening. “You okay with this?”

I nodded, though the knot in my stomach hadn’t completely loosened. “Yeah. I’m okay.”

"Who's this? You're boyfriend?" Minho asked me, eyebrows raised at Jungkook

I felt my cheeks heat up instantly as Minho's words sank in. Jungkook’s eyes widened for a split second before he quickly looked away, rubbing the back of his neck in that familiar, awkward way he always did when things got uncomfortable.

"N-No," I stammered, trying to sound casual but failing miserably. "He's not my boyfriend, Minho."

Minho raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced as he looked between Jungkook and me. "Right... sure. You two look pretty close for 'just teammates.'"

Jungkook cleared his throat, taking a step back as if trying to create some distance. "We’re, uh... just friends. Teammates."

"Uh-huh," Minho replied, clearly amused by the situation, a teasing smirk forming on his lips. "Well, if you say so."

Nari, who had been watching the entire exchange with a grin, finally burst out laughing. "This is gold."

Jimin shook his head, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he muttered, "Awkward."

I shot Minho a look, silently pleading with him to stop embarrassing me, but of course, he didn’t. He just chuckled and shrugged. "Alright, alright, I’ll drop it. For now."

"Thank you," I muttered, my face still burning.

Jungkook shifted awkwardly beside me, clearly wanting to be anywhere else at the moment. "I think I'll... grab some more coffee," he mumbled before making a quick exit, much to Nari’s amusement.

"Nice guy," Minho commented, watching him go. "But I’m not buying the 'just friends' thing."

I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "Minho, please."