Mia slipped an arm around mine and pulled me close. "Hiya~!" She said brightly, her smile as radiant as ever. "Do you know them? Are they your friends?"

I wouldn't exactly call them 'friends', but to deny knowing them would be a little too rude. "Yeah, they're classmates of mine from school."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Cha Mia, his older sister." She introduced herself, extending a hand, and Dae Hee was the first to take it.

"Oh Dae Hee, nice to meet you, Unnie!"

"I-I'm Go Bin." She followed, a little less energetic, but no less sincere. "It's a pleasure."

"Likewise, likewise!" Mia smiled widely. "I hope this dummy hasn't caused you any trouble. He can be a bit of a handful."

"Hey." I interrupted her. "Don't talk about me like I'm not here."

Dae Hee laughed, and even Go Bin managed a small chuckle, her eyes lingering on Mia. "Oh no, nothing like that. He's actually been very helpful. He... he helped me out of a tight spot." She gulped, scratching her blushing, chubby cheek.

Next to her, Dae Hae nodded enthusiastically, her dark hair bouncing, her eyes firmly set on me. "We really owe him a lot."

Mia looked at me, her eyebrows raised. "Really now?"

I shrugged. "I just did what anyone would've done. No need to make a big deal out of it."

"N-no... many others have ignored it." Go Bin whispered, barely audible. "But not you." Her voice trembled slightly, and she glanced at Dae Hee for reassurance before continuing. "W-we're really grateful."

Mia looked at me, and for a moment, there was a softness in her expression I hadn't seen before. "Oh, such a hero." She slightly elbowed me on the ribs. "I didn't know you were such a nice guy."

"It's not about being nice." I replied, a little more seriously than I intended. "I just hate watching the wrong people get away with it." Clearly, those girls weren't drug traffickers or terrorists, but why sow evil with no reason? I've seen one too many news about teenagers taking their own lives because of that.

She hummed, considering my words. "You're right. And I'm glad you did."

I shrugged, sighing. "Seriously, don't fret over it too much." I turned towards Go Bin, whose eyes went wide and flustered when my attention was solely on hers. "Did they bother you again?"

"N-No, they haven't."

"In fact, they're acting nice now. All thanks to you." Dae Hee supplied cheerfully. Her eyes went slightly heavy-lidded as I glanced back at her, her smile widening. 

I licked my lips. "I'm glad to hear that." Then I turned towards Mia, who was watching Dae Hee a little too closely. "Anyway. We should let these two go back to their business."

"Ah, yes." She said, turning to Dae Hee and Bin, who were still watching us with curious eyes. "Sorry for keeping you. It was lovely meeting you two."

Dae Hee beamed, waving a tiny, slender hand. "Likewise! I hope we'll see each other again soon!"

"Yeah." Bin added, her eyes darting between me and Mia. "Take care, Oppa."

As the two of them walked off, Dae Hee still glancing back over her shoulder every few steps, Mia turned to me, a thoughtful expression on her face. Then she frowned. "Take care, Oppa." She imitated Go Bin in a soft, breathy tone, exaggerating it just enough to sting.

"It's just a polite thing. Don't read too much into it."

Her lips twisted into something between amusement and suspicion. "Mm, maybe. Or maybe not." She huffed. "And that girl seems to like you."

"Which one?"

"The taller one." Mia said, softly. She still had her arm looped around mine as we continued walking. "Dae Hee. She's got a monumental crush on you but doesn't seem to realize it, or worse, know how to express it."

I gave her a side eyed glance. "It always surprises me how girls can just tell that kinda thing at a glance. And if you're right, then that's even worse, isn't it?"

She looked up at me, a curious expression on her face. "Don't you guys notice that kinda thing among yourselves?"

I thought about it for a moment. "Sometimes. If it's blatant enough. But most of the time, it's more like a feeling. Like a gut instinct."

Mia chuckled, her eyes twinkling. "Men. You're all the same. Always looking for the obvious signs. It's not about that. It's about the small things, the way she looks at you, the tone of her voice when she speaks to you. That's how you know."

I shook my head. "I don't have the time nor patience for that."

I said that, but truthfully I had been paying a lot more attention to the way Mia spoke, looked, and acted around me. I had been trying to understand her, to figure her out, and I was slowly getting the hang of it. As if I had the time or mind to do the same for every woman that interacted with me. 

Mia was quiet for a moment, her fingers playing absently with a strand of her hair. "Well, maybe that's a good thing." She said finally. "Maybe you're better off not knowing. Ignorance is bliss, after all." She smiled widely.

xXx

After we were done at the clothing store, we grabbed a quick snack and drifted into a slow walk through the mall. The crowd had thinned, leaving only the low hum of conversation. It wasn't quite yet time for lunch, and the horror movie Mia had mentioned was still several hours away from the screening.

I was trailing behind her, hands in my pockets, observing. Her stride was casual, her arms swinging lightly at her sides. She stopped occasionally to inspect a store window, her reflection mirroring her movements in the glass. We continued walking normally. Sometimes her arm would brush against mine, or her hand, but they were so fleeting and brief that I wasn't sure if they were intentional or not.

The back of her hand caressed mine.

She didn't say anything, didn't react, didn't change her expression. It was a simple, natural gesture.

I glanced down at our hands. Her fingers were long and slender, and her skin looked smooth and unblemished. Her nails were painted a pale, shimmering color, almost like pearls, and they were neatly manicured; she took great care of her appearance.

Her fingers slowly, gently, intertwined with mine, the warmth of her skin seeping into me.

I didn't pull away.

But, at the same time, I didn't reciprocate either. I just let her fingers wrap around mine, her grip loose enough that I could slip free if I wanted.

I didn't want to.

Not yet.

I glanced at her face. Her eyes were straight ahead, her expression unreadable, as if the physical connection between us was nothing more than an afterthought. I studied her, her eyes, her smile, the way her lips moved when she spoke. "Jae-il, look at that." She was pointing at something in a store window. "Isn't that cute?"

I looked. It was a small, plush toy, a cartoonish caricature of a cat. I nodded absently. "Yeah, it's cute."

She turned her head slightly, catching my eye. "You're not even looking, dummy."

"Do you want it?" I asked, ignoring the jab.

She tilted her head, considering. "No. I'm just pointing it out. I have enough of those things at home." She tugged at my hand.

But I didn't budge. "Well... I'm getting it for you anyway." It was enough of an excuse to wrench free from her dubious hand-holding. "Just wait for me here."

"Wait—"

I promptly walked into the store, leaving her out there with her hand hanging. As I stepped inside, I felt a surge of relief. I tugged at my collar, exhaling. I glanced outside through the window, and saw her standing there, her arms crossed, a small smile on her face. I shook my head and approached the counter, asking for that particular toy.

The clerk, a young woman with a cheerful smile, retrieved it from the window display and handed it to me. There was a prominent blush on her face as I paid and she wrapped it up. She must've been a first timer, because she was a little awkward and nervous, fumbling with the packaging, and when she finally managed to get it ready, she handed it over with a shy, almost apologetic smile.

I nodded in thanks and left the store.

"Here." I held the bag out to Mia. She looked at it for a moment, then took it, a smile spreading across her face.

"Thank you." She said, her voice soft. Then, her eyes flicked to my empty hand. "You didn't have to, you know." She said, a small smile on her lips. "But I appreciate the gesture."

"You did help me pick out some clothes." I replied. "So this is my way of saying thank you."

She huffed, tightening her hold on the gift. "I'll treasure it."

"You don't have to, it's just a toy." I started walking again, and she quickly caught up to me.

"But you gave it to me." Mia said, holding the cat up to her lips, as if to hide the grin behind it. "So of course I will treasure it. Just like I treasure the time we spend together. Because, apparently, this idiot, dumb little brother of mine will leave for the other side of the world and I'll never see him again."

"Such a drama queen." I rolled my eyes, bumping into her shoulder and nearly sending her off-balance. "Again with this. I told you I'd try to visit as often as possible. Or, you know, you could do the same. We won't be disconnected from each other to the point that you'll want to treasure a cheap stuffed animal, of all things."

"A cheap stuffed animal?" She gasped, looking at me in mock shock. "You didn't just call it that, did you?" She wrapped an arm around my neck in a very weak and soft chokehold. I literally had to crouch to make it possible. "This is priceless, you dummy. You shouldn't judge a gift by its price tag. It's the thought that counts, not the cost. And you went in and bought it for me."

As she said so, she bumped the stuffed toy on my head, as if it was some kind of plush punishment. "There, now you've learned your lesson. Don't be a cheapskate and start valuing the gifts you get." She looked at me with a glint of mischief in her eyes. "And don't think I'll let you go so easily, either. No matter how far you travel, no matter how many oceans separate us, you'll always be my little brother." ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ NovᴇlFɪre.nᴇt

"Fine. Fine. Whatever."

I wrestled free and walked ahead.

Mia easily caught up, her hand slipping into mine once again, her fingers intertwining with mine. There was no hesitation this time, no attempt at subtlety.

She held my hand firmly, her palm warm against mine.

Just as I was about to wrestle myself free from this, Mia suddenly stopped in her tracks, spinning around with that grin that made my chest tighten.

"Wait—look!" She said, pointing at a photo booth tucked into a corner of the mall. "We have to do this. Come on, it'll be fun!"