The penthouse was by far the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen, ornamented in silvers and whites, glass chandeliers and family portraits. I wondered who lived here when their dad wasn't around, it seemed empty even though we were in it. I waited for the twins to find their way up and stared at the portrait on the wall, of a woman with bright brown eyes and a face full of freckles, holding in her arms two babies. Her eyes were kind and honest, I knew those eyes, I saw them every day. Behind her was a man in a well-tailored suit with his arms around her, they seemed happy.
"She was a true beauty wasn't she?" A voice spoke from behind me and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I turned around and I immediately recognized Mr Park from the portrait.
He looked a lot like Sailor, but evidently older and with a few greys in his hair. His eyes were stern but his gaze was soft, and it was then that I realized that he looked an awful lot like Sora too.
"Mr Park, it's a pleasure to meet you," I spoke reaching out my hand to shake his, his grip was firm. "And yes, she was beautiful."
"Katayi I've heard a lot about you, your father speaks very highly of you and your academic achievements. My children have evidently taken a liking to you, if they've brought you all the way to Tokyo to stay here." He expressed leading me to the living room, where Sora, Sailor and Khondwani were seated on the white couch. "I found her wandering the hallways."
"Did you get lost?" Sora asked with a slight laugh, "you should see the manor in Aberdeen."
"I wasn't lost, I just got distracted," I admitted feeling slightly embarrassed. Taking a seat next to my brother.
"Thank You for letting us stay here Mr Park, you have a beautiful home." Khondwani complimented politely.
"Thank you, Khondwani for your sentiment despite the fact that the house is rather plain, you're a true saint." He said with a slight laugh. "How's been the summer so far, did you kids get up to anything...fun?"
"Aside from sun tans, surfing and festivals, nothing much." Sora explained, "but it was fun, we made lots of friends."
"As you always do." He nodded not sounding surprised at all, "my children are quite the social butterflies aren't they?"
"Who Sora?" Sailor asked incredulously with a slight laugh, "definitely not me."
"Yeah, you're more of an antisocial moth," I responded teasingly placing my hand on his knee in comfort.
"So how were the meetings in New York?" Sora asked taking a seat next to her dad and he reached forward to hug her in greeting. "I'll take that as they were a success."
"When are they not?" He said charismatically, "it's all about being convincing enough, you know that."
"Congratulations...again." Sailor smiled giving him an awkward thumbs up. "I hope you didn't miss us too much."
"I always miss you two, you're my life." He assured them and my heart felt all warm inside, knowing that they were so...loved. "If I could I'd take you everywhere with me, you know that."
"Sure." Sailor responded with a poor excuse for a smile. "You've been well though, right?"
"Of course, work keeps me busy enough." Mr Park responded, "oh which reminds me, I just got off the phone with a representative of Celine who wants you for a shoot this Friday."
"Dad you know how Sailor feels about modelling!" Sora protested rolling her eyes in annoyance.
"They're offering hundreds of thousands just to have you pose in front of a camera, it won't take much effort you'll receive a call later this week to discuss the specifics." Their father dictated waving off their protest.
"Um..wait-" I begun but Khondwani smacked me warningly on the shoulder in warning not to get involved. "Nevermind."
"Don't make me do that." Sailor refused glancing down.
"I'm not making you do anything I'm merely telling you what's in your best interest, especially since the summer is almost over." Mr Park said standing up, "just be ready, and meet their requirements."
"Appa, why so soon?" Sora asked,
"We can discuss this later." Mr Park said, "it's getting late, goodnight children, there's food in the fridge, and if you need anything- and I mean anything at all don't be shy to ask. I can make it happen."
"Thank you, goodnight," I spoke nodding, then once he left Sailor left with him before I could even speak, he slipped out of my grasp. "Oh."
"I'll talk to him." Khondwani volunteered. "Lord help us."
"You can say that again," I responded with a slight laugh.
There were enough rooms that no one had to share, I took a long shower and immediately slipped into bed, I called my father and spoke to him for a while before I fell asleep. Our first night in Tokyo, was eventful but it was also only the beginning.
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The next day
Seven and Thandiwe had picked us up at around seven in the evening to go to what they had dubbed, Korea in little Tokyo, which in their opinion is the best Korean barbecue place in town. We didn't leave the house without security, Mr Park had insisted that we lay low but knowing the four of us we'd never listen. Sora and Khondwani were walking around with a giant map in their hands even though Seven and Thandiwe had assured them that they'd lived here all their lives and that they know the streets of Tokyo like the lines on the palms of their hands.
Sailor wanted to match clothing with me, he and Thandiwe wouldn't stop rambling about how excited they were for our double date...plus Sora and Khondwa. Seven and I, we just watched them be giddy and excited and I hadn't realized how similar our relationship dynamics were in comparison. Therefore I wore a pair of white sweatpants and a baby blue crop and he wore a white tracksuit with a singular blue Nike tick at the centre of his shirt. Sailor Park could be wearing a table cloth and still look fresh off of vogue.
Thandiwe and Seven wore all black, her in a little black dress and heels and him in a dark trench coat. Sora and Khondwani had complained earlier about how no one had let them in on the fact that we were planning on matching and made us wait fifteen minutes for them to change into matching Star Wars shirts. In conclusion, everyone around me was impossible.
Once we arrived at the restaurant we took a seat at a corner booth that could seat all of us, I sat in between Thandiwe and Sailor. The restaurant was very modern and had very good lighting, it wasn't that crowded today so we knew we'd chosen a good day to come.
"So Thandiwe when was the last time you were in Zambia?" I asked her in curiosity, yearning to relate to someone.
"When I was very young, so maybe about fourteen? I don't have a very good memory of it all, but last I was there my mother and I went to Livingstone and saw the Victoria falls, it was beautiful." Thandiwe told me, reminiscing. "What about You?"
"Oh my family goes back home all the time, last year we were in Lusaka and we spent the entirety of our time there going to the cinemas and shopping." I explained, "what's your favourite Zambian food?"
"Visashi." Sailor answered and I snorted a laugh swatting his shoulder.
"I wasn't asking you." I scolded and he figuratively zipped his lips.
"Aye but It had to be said." He defended.
"Vitumbua." Seven responded, and Thandiwe laughed too. "Thandi makes them every Sunday morning, I'll never get sick of it."
"How are your boyfriends more Zambian than you two?" Khondwani wondered, "you two might as well celebrate Independence Day with us every October."
"We're way ahead of you." Seven responded, showing us all a tattoo on his wrist which was a variation of the yin and Yang except the yin had the Japanese flag inside of it and the hand had the Zambian flag. It was a tiny almost unnoticeable tatoo, but the sentiment was sweet. "See?"
"I told him not to get it, that it was corny but he insisted and I grew to love it's meaning," Thandiwe explained.
"I feel so unbearably single." Sora groaned. "Everyone go away."
"And for what it counts, my favourite Zambian food is dry fish and nshima." She explained to me. "How long have you known the twins?"
"About two months now, trust me when I say I met them completely involuntarily," I grumbled.
"Oh come on you know you love us, you're happy that we crashed your family vacation, we made it more fun!" Sora teased wiggling her eyebrows.
"Whatever." I shrugged, but she was right. I did love them. A lot. But I couldn't admit that, I'm Kat. "How did you meet the twins?"
"Whenever they're in Tokyo we run in the same circles, their family came to watch one of Seven's violin Concerto's back when he was still competing." Thandiwe disclosed as the waiter approached our table.
"Good evening and welcome, what can I get you all?" He asked in Japanese and we let Seven and Thandiwe translate our orders for us.
I ordered the Jeyuk Bokkeum (Spicy Pork BBQ) and so did Sora, Khondwani had the Grilled Korean BBQ Pork Ribs (Dwaeji Galbi), Seven and Sailor ordered the rice and kimchi with grilled vegetables, and Thandiwe had the Spicy Grilled Shrimp Skewers.
"You play the violin?" Khondwani asked Seven, and Seven smirked slyly as he gestured to the wall behind my brother which had signatures and autographs from famous people, all the way from sportsmen to idols to actors and actresses. And there at the centre of everything was a picture of Seven accepting roses from an adoring crowd and it read.
SEVEN IKEDA, PRO VIOLINIST, YOUNGEST JAPANESE CITIZEN TO LEAD AN ORCHESTRA AT THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE.
"Wow." I mouthed, "you must be very talented."
"I know." He agreed.
"We say thank you, Seven." Thandiwe reminded him.
"Sorry, darling." He apologized, then turned back to me. "Thank you, Katayi."
"Whipped." Sora coughed and Khondwani laughed.
Oftentimes those two were truly in their own world.
"Tell them the story of how you guys are soulmates!" Sora asked clapping her hands. "I'll never get tired of that one."
"Oh no we don't want to bore anyone-" Seven excused but Thandiwe interrupted him immediately.
"I do!" She intervened, "Seven and I have known each other since we were babies, literally babies! I mean our moms were best friends since they were children too, they grew up together and fell in love and got pregnant at the same time, we were raised in the same house until we were like nine years old. But then my dad got a new job and I moved to the US, and Seven was absolutely distraught without me."
"This seems incredibly biased." Seven spoke narrowing his eyes.
"Silence darling I'm telling the story. But then when I was sixteen my mom and I moved back to Japan and I started attending his high school and I discovered that he'd become this hot-shot violinist and every girl was practically writing FanFiction about him. I'm a violinist too so we'd compete against each other all the time and I hated him for always getting in my way. Our little siblings are best friends so we had to babysit them all the time together and plot twist-" Thandiwe narrated.
"She fell in love with me, even when I told her not to." He deadpanned ending the story.
"You fell for me first." She argued folding her arms.
"See, now no one at this table believes that's true for a minuscule moment." He added sarcastically.
"You're awful." She smiled looking deeply into his eyes.
"I love you, rather obsessively, nevertheless." He reassured her and she gave him a very big hug, squeezing him in a way that made his cheeks tiny red for a brief moment. "Oh."
"I love you too Eight." She teased.
"You guys should write a book." Sailor commented as the waiter brought the food to our table, heating the grill at the centre of it.
"Something tells me someone is already on it." Seven nodded in agreement.
"So Kat, I stalked your YouTube channel last night." Thandiwe confessed, "I'm in love with your videos."
"Oh, really?" I asked, being taken by surprise. "How did you know about them?"
"Sora told me." Thandiwe disclosed and Sora smiled guiltily.
"Sorry, I felt like a proud mom!" Sora excused. "I couldn't help myself."
"It's not her fault, she's like a little newsboy from the 1940s when it comes to keeping secrets." Khondwani defended patting Sora's head affectionately.
"I can tell." I laughed at his comparison. "And thank you, which is your favourite video?"
"I loved the baking boyfriend tag video, when you guys dropped the bomb about your relationship. You should have seen the comments, everyone was-" Thandiwe begun but Sailor covered my ears with his hands.
"We're not checking comments until the end of summer." I laughed explaining it to her. "I just don't want to be focused on other people's opinions and looking at views and all that."
"Wise decision." Seven approved. "I hate listening to other people's opinions, last time I did I was on the brink of literal insanity."
"Huh?" Sora wondered.
"He's not lying, the school almost shipped him away," Thandiwe told, like it wasn't that deep.
I liked that about them, that nothing was ever really that deep, they were open books.
"We'll, just so you know when you do, you're certainly going to be surprised." Thandi anticipated flipping her shrimp on the open grill, Seven cautiously watching her making sure she doesn't unintentionally burn herself.
"Pleasantly?" I wondered dishing out some rice onto Sailor's plate and onto mine.
"Depends." She smirked knowingly. "It's all about perspective you know?"
I wanted to know what she knew...but that was wrong, right? I promised my boyfriend that I wouldn't look.
"Right, perspective." I sighed, reminding myself that it would indeed be wrong for me to go behind his back.
"Why aren't we being intrusive about my sister's relationship?" Khondwani asked taking a sip from his drink, "let's take a break from interrogating eight and nine over there."
"What do you want to know?" Sailor asked feeding me a spoonful of rice, "we're an open book."
"No the heck we are not!" I reminded him nearly choking on the grains of rice and he laughed. "Stop encouraging this."
"Tell us how you guys started dating?" Thandiwe asked. "I'm dying to know."
"Don't be nosy love." Seven disapproved tying Thandiwe's braids up for her so she could eat.
"Oh but I'm the nosiest person I know." She assured him. "Tell!"
"He cornered me in the dark desolated forest and professed his undying love to me." I narrated and everyone laughed. "It's true, trust me I'm a very reliable source."
"You cornered her in a forest?" Sora asked in shock,
"It was romantic, Kat just doesn't appreciate my spontaneity but you should've seen her, she was on the brink of tears." Sailor told everyone moving his food around his plate.
"I was not on the brink of tears!" I refused,
"Aye, that's right you were simply just questioning your existence because you couldn't believe it." He excused and I rolled my eyes at him.
"Doesn't his little leprechaun accent ever get annoying?" Thandiwe asked and I laughed. "Seriously!"
"At first it took me aback, but I'm definitely used to it now." I assured her, and then my gaze met Haru's, "I adore everything about him, even all the annoying stuff."
"Why do you like Kat, Sailor?" Seven asked, breaking the silence.
"Because she's Kat...she's amazing. She cares about everyone, she talks about space with stars in her eyes, and she knows me better than anyone. She makes me feel like a person, she came into my life unexpectedly and now...honestly, I can't imagine my life without her." He explained as everyone listened in, "also she watches all my favourite movies with me and that's pretty cool."
"Wow," Sora spoke, placing a hand over her heart in sincerity. "That was so sweet, I don't think I've ever heard you talk like that."
OMG ITS CURRENTLY 4AM AND I STAYED UP LATE TO UPDATE FOR YOU GUYS!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR 200K !!! IM ACTUALLY FREAKING OUT RN SM. THANK YOU FOR BELIEVING IN SAILOR AND KAT, AND STICKING AROUND FOR THEIR STORY I LOVE U ILY ILY! ENJOY THIS DOUBLE UPDATE <33
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PREDICTIONS<<<
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S