Kina's POV
I sat on the studio floor staring at myself in the studio mirrors. I replayed the argument I had with my mother in my head, allowing it to mull in my head.
"Are you okay?" I heard Aubree's voice ring through the empty studio. I turned in the direction of the voice as Aubree approached me slowly. I shrugged, not wanting to get into it. Aubree sat down next to and placed her hand on my shoulder comfortingly.
"I don't think I'm okay" I answered truthfully. Aubree looked at me sympathetically and squeezed my shoulder reassuringly.
"Maybe you should go home" she suggested.
"Home is the last place I want to be right now. Trust me" I sighed. Aubree nodded in understanding before leaving me alone. I ran a hand through my hair before laying down on the floor and letting my thoughts consume me once again.
"Surprise" Erika's face appeared over mine. A wave of happiness rushed through my veins at the sight of her. Erika's eyes filled with concern as she sat down next to me. I sat up and pulled her in for a tight hug.
"What's wrong?" she asked softly as she rubbed my back soothingly. I felt all the worries leave my body. I pulled away slightly and gently kissed her forehead.
"You have no idea how happy I am that you're here" I whispered into her hair. She placed a kiss on my arm before rubbing it soothingly.
"I'll always be here for you" her voice was like silk and provided instant comfort to my heart. We sat in silence for a while as both of us savoured the moment together. I contemplated telling her everything that weighed heavy on my heart but I was afraid she would look at me differently if she knew the problems that plagued my life.
"Do you want to get out of here? I have a place that really helps me calm down when I have a lot on my mind" Erika suggested as if she had read my thoughts. I released her and she got up before reaching her hand out to help me up. I watched as she crossed the studio to talk to Aubree.
"Aubree says we're free to go as long as we pick up an extra practice to make up for the time we lost today" Erika explained as she neared closer to me. I pulled her into me and wrapped my arms around her waist.
"I'm grounded. I probably won't be allowed to go anywhere" I explained. Erika chuckled to herself before looking up at me.
"My love I have been grounded many many times. Just tell your mom we're having a late practice and you're gonna stay over at mine tonight" her eyes sparkled with mischief as she said these words. I pulled out my phone to send my mom a message. I would have phoned but I wasn't in the mood for talking to her.
Erika pulled me out of the studio and into the evening air. I looked up into the sky and allowed the fresh air to fill my lungs.
"Do you want to walk or do you want to run?" Erika's eyes sparkled with mischief as she lead me through the field behind the studio. I shrugged which caused her to take off running ahead of me. I rolled my eyes and followed after her.
"Do you even know where we're going?" I questioned as Erika appeared to be running in no particular direction.
"Trust me I've been through this field multiple times" she reassured me as she pulled me down a hill that seemed to come out of nowhere. We ran for a couple more minutes until we reached a main road. Erika stopped for us to catch our breaths before we walked the remaining way until we reached a place that was set up similarly to the boardwalk minus the beach.
"Welcome to K-Town also known as a home away from home for Korean nationals" Erika smiled excitedly. She pulled me through the various stores until we reached the town's centre. I watched as Erika's smile grew at the sight in front of her.
"Today is the perfect day to be here" she sighed blissfully. I took her hand in mine and she leaned into me as we walked through the square. We reached a couple who were busking outside one of the stores. Erika let go of me and stood in front of me.
"Dance with me?" she asked. I rolled my eyes and pulled her into me. We danced together as if we were the only people in the square. The worry I felt in my chest disappeared only to be replaced with the love and affection Erika gave me.
I lifted her chin lightly so I could look into her eyes. My heart began to race from the intensity of the look in her eyes. Slowly. I leaned in and placed my lips gently on hers. Sparks flew between us as I pulled away from her. The song ended and we pulled away from each other. Erika talked to the couple before placing a tip in their tip jar.
"Well they gave me this" Erika giggled as she flashed a CD at me.
"Do they even make CD players anymore?" I questioned. Erika shrugged and pulled me towards a restaurant that appeared to be the least busy in the square.
"Ajumma are you open?" Erika said into the empty store. An old woman peeked her head out from the kitchen before a smile spread across her face.
"We're not open yet but for you I will make an exception" the woman said as she pulled Erika into a bone crushing hug. Erika exhaled deeply when she was finally released from the hug. The old woman looked at me with a smile before looking back at Erika.
"Is this your yeoja-chingu?" the woman whispered causing Erika to flush a light shade of pink.
"Hajimayo. She doesn't speak Korean and yes she is my yeoja-chingu" Erika giggled. The woman chuckled and rubbed Erika's shoulder.
"Oh where are my manners. Kina this is Ajumma Cha, Ajumma this is Kina. My yeoja-chingu" Erika giggled. Ajumma Cha pulled me in for a hug which slightly cut off my air supply.
Once introductions were through, Erika led me to a table in the back nearest a wall that had writing all over it. Ajumma Cha came to our table with two menus before leaving us alone to decide on what to order.
"You've had Korean food before right?" Erika asked as she opened one of the menus and put it in the middle of the table. Her eyes scanned the options quickly before she looked up at me.
"Yeah I have quite a few times at Cassie's house" I answered. Erika nodded before she scanned the menu again. Once she was finished she quickly translated every word on the page. We made our decisions and a waiter came to take our orders.
"You're so beautiful" I said as I kissed the top of her hand. She giggled as I gently kissed each and every one of her fingers. When I reached her ring finger I looked up at her and placed a soft kiss on it.
"Do you want me to put a ring on this finger one day?" I asked. Erika's eyes widened and she burst out laughing.
"Slow down Kina we're still in high school. We don't have time to be thinking about marriage" she chuckled. I smirked at her and let her hand go.
"You didn't say no" I teased. She rolled her eyes and shrugged me off. I blew her a kiss as the waiter came to the table with our drink orders. We thanked him before he left us alone once again. I looked at the wall that had writing scribbled all over it.
"I think my family has written on that wall millions of times. We've been coming to this restaurant since I was three years old" Erika said. She stood up from the table and walked over to the wall. Quietly I followed behind her and wrapped my arms around her shoulders.
"I think I wrote this when I was eleven" she pointed to a message written in neat print.
"When I'm older I will bring my boyfriend to meet Ajumma Cha" she translated her message to me. I chuckled and placed a kiss on her shoulder. She looked up at me and giggled.
"Close enough" I shrugged. She continued to translate the various messages she had written through the various stages of her life as we waited for our food to arrive. I found myself staring at her as her eyes scanned the wall filled with her memories.
"Yah lovebirds! Your food will get cold!" Ajumma Cha yelled from the table. Erika giggled and we returned to the table together. Erika picked up her chopsticks and picked up a rice cake from the stew in front of us.
"Open" she instructed. I did as I was told and she placed the warm rice cake in my mouth. She giggled before she began to eat. We ate in mostly silence aside from Erika feeding me from time to time. When we had finished eating we stacked the plates and made our way back to the front of the restaurant.
"How many thousands?" Erika joked with Ajumma Cha. She shrugged her off with a smile.
"On the house. You're one of my favourite customers" she said with a wink. Erika pouted and pulled her purse out from her bag. She handed a few bills to Ajumma Cha.
"Consider it a tip" Erika said before leading me out of the restaurant and into the open air. We walked through the many alleys that were littered with stores. I pulled Erika into a corner and kissed her gently. I felt her hand softly caress my cheek as I deepened the kiss.
She pulled away much too soon for my liking. I rested my forehead against hers as we waited for our breathing to return to normal.
"How does dessert sound to you?" Erika suggested. I placed a chaste kiss on her lips before pulling away completely.
"Lead the way Miss Park" I said. She rolled her eyes and took my hand in hers as we walked through the alleyway until we reached a small corner store. We walked inside and Erika ran up to the counter.
"Jake-ssi" she said to the boy at the register. He playfully rolled his eyes at her.
"Yah Erika what do you want from me?" Jake asked. Erika looked up the menu.
"Kkwabaegi, Hotteok and a small serving of watermelon bingsu juseyo" Erika blinked innocently at him. Jake scoffed and got the order together and handed it to Erika.
"Saranghae" Erika smiled.
"Gomawo" Jake replied as he rang up the order. Erika put her arms around me while we waited.
"I put a family discount for you because if I don't my mom will kill me. That brings your total to $3" Jake read from the screen in front of him. Erika happily paid him and led me towards the door.
"The extra five is for you to buy yourself a life" Erika teased before we left the store. I looked at Erika expectantly once we were far enough from the store.
"So Jake is my cousin. His mom is my dad's other sister but we never see them because my mom had a fight with Jake's mom" she explained. I nodded knowingly as we reached the square again. Erika pulled out her phone and opened the camera app.
"Smile" she said before taking a selfie of the both of us. She inspected the photo with furrowed eyebrows before deciding to take another one.
"Much better. Now let me call my dad and tell him to pick us up from the studio. We'll get a taxi back because it's dark" she explained. She quickly phoned her dad and explained the situation before we walked back towards the street to wait for a taxi.
The ride back to the studio was short and I held Erika close to me for the duration of the trip. When we arrived at the studio the lights were still on to our relief.
"Aubree we're back. I brought you some bingsu" Erika called through the studio. She took the small serving of bingsu out of the bag and took it towards Aubree's office. I followed behind her until the light of the office hit us.
"Bribery. I like it" Aubree chuckled as Erika handed the dessert to her. She looked at me with a comforting smile.
"Are you feeling better?" Aubree asked. I nodded.
"I'm feeling a lot better thank you" I replied. Erika's phone rang and she answered it quickly.
"Tae? Okay we're coming" she said into the phone.
"Enjoy your bingsu. We're gonna leave now but we'll probably make up today's practice, tomorrow" Erika explained. I walked quickly out of the office and she followed suit. We grabbed our bags and left the studio. We got into the car and Erika's brother drove us to their house.
"The power couple had a fight again and mom left" her brother explained. Erika rolled her eyes at him.
"I don't care" she shrugged. We arrived at their house in a short amount of time and Erika's older brother shut off the car's engine. Erika and I got out of the car together and she led me into her house. We walked together into her living room to greet her dad.
"Appa. This is Kina. She's staying over tonight because we had a late practice and her mom couldn't pick her up" Erika explained. Her dad nodded and took his attention from the T.V to his daughter and then to me.
"Enjoy yourselves but not too late because it's a school night. I'll wake you both up early tomorrow" her dad said before his gaze returned to the T.V. Erika led me to her bedroom and shut the door behind us. Before she could turn on the lights they snapped on causing Erika to jump.
"Explain" Aideen said looking between Erika and I. Erika's other sister was sitting on the bed looking at us with the same intensity. The door opened and Erika's brother walked in and sat down on the bed.
"Fine. Kina had a bad day so I took her to K-Town and we spent the evening there and she met Jake and Ajumma Cha and now we're here because she didn't feel like going home" Erika confessed. I facepalmed and shook my head at her.
"Hi everyone I'm Kina. This is not how I had imagined meeting you" I introduced myself awkwardly. Erika's brother looked me up and down.
"Likewise" he said earning an elbow to the ribs from Aideen. Erika sighed and turned towards me.
"Since my siblings are going to be rude and not introduce themselves. This is Aideen my oldest sister who you've already met, Taeyang my only brother who you've also already met and Hyejin my second older sister" I was introduced to the other Park siblings.
"We already know a lot about you" Hyejin blurted causing Erika to shriek and push all of them out of her room. She sighed against the door once she had managed to get her older siblings out.
"You talk to your siblings about me?" I smirked.
"Shut up" she buried her face in her hands causing me to laugh. She opened one of the drawers of her vanity and pulled out a new toothbrush, a wash cloth and some travel sized face and body washes.
"Do you need any pads or tampons?" she asked. I shook my head and she closed the drawer. She handed me the things she had just taken out and walked over to the open door of her bathroom. She turned on the light before walking back to her vanity.
"You can shower first. I'll find you some clothes to wear to bed and something for you to wear tomorrow. Leave your jeans outside the bathroom door I'll put them in the washer now so they can go in the dryer before we sleep" she said. I nodded and did as I was told. We took turns in the bathroom and soon enough we were ready for bed. Erika turned off the lights before getting into her bed with me.
"Thank you" I said softly.
"What for?" she questioned.
"For doing everything you did for me today"
"You're my girlfriend. You'd do the same for me if the roles were reversed" she said before turning over and closing her eyes.
For the first time in a while I felt safe as I slept.
Because I had Erika in my arms.