CLICHÉD

C-20

Why do I feel like Jisung is the real child here? My family seems to like him more than me.

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"In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit-Amen. The mass is over, you may now go and spread the words of God."

I kiss both of my parents' cheeks and hug my brother. I pepper Jeongin's face with kisses before giving him to my mother.

"Noona! Wer ayu going? I wanna go too!" Jeongin whines as he refuses to let go of my hand.

"We're going to buy foods for Dori! Can you play with him to keep him entertained?"

"I can do that!" He salutes.

I pat his head before finally going.

"He's so adorable," Jisung says.

"He is!" I grin at him proudly.

The weather is kind of windy today so I had to hold down the skirt of my dress from flying up. It's really uncomfortable at times like this but I like the style so I just suck it up every time.

A gush of wind suddenly blows and it almost made my dress hike up, good thing my hands were fast. That was close!

"Here, use this."

I look at Jisung as he takes off the flannel draped on his back. He ties it on my waist while refusing to meet my eye.

"Thank you." I smile at him.

"No problem." He smiles back with his cheeks turning pinkish.

"Are you still sick?" I ask him and put my hand on his forehead.

"Nah, I'm perfectly okay now. Thanks for taking care of me, by the way." He scratches his nape and grins.

"Anytime."

I'm glad he's back to his old self again. He's all sulky the other day.

We finally reached C&R Pet Shop and went inside. We had some struggles finding the right thing because it turns out that we're both clueless. Good thing that Jisung is a friendly guy and one of the workers there is his friend.

"Bye, Hwall! Thanks for the help!" He waves to his friend as we exit the store.

"How did you even meet him?"

"We met at the school's male bathroom while washing our hands."

"That's... weird."

He just laughs and helps me carry Dori's stuff.

"Oh, I met your friend at the cafe last time," I tell him.

"Which one?"

"Hwang Hyunjin. He says he's the Prince of SOPA."

He wheezes and shakes his head. "He's not Hyunjin without the dramatics."

"He's very accommodating and he let me adopt Dori even if it's not part of their business. I guess he's really your friend because he's nice to me like Felix."

"Uh, did he say anything about me?" He looks at me uneasily.

"Hmm... I remember him saying that you told him to watch over me and Minho. Was that true? I thought he was a weirdo for a while because he kept staring at us."

He pressed his lips in a thin line as he avert his gaze in front. "I was just worried, you know?"

"Hey, you don't have to worry when I'm with Minho."

"That's the thing..." He stops walking and looks at me seriously. "I don't trust him."

I stop walking too. "Why is that?"

"I don't know, he just seems so mysterious and I don't like it. Haven't you heard about the rumours about him?"

I pout at his prejudice but I couldn't blame him because I used to think like him before. "It's not my story to tell but I can assure you that those rumours are not true. He's not a bad person, alright? Give him a chance. We shouldn't let other people's judgments blind our own."

He scratches his nape sheepishly and looks down. "I'm sorry, I was just concerned for you."

"Don't be..." I pat his back. "Minho is good to me. In fact, we're already friends!"

"O-Oh..." Jisung gives me a tight-lipped smile. "I'm happy for you..."