K A Z U H A
—
The dinning room table could easily have seated twenty people, but I only saw seven sitting with me.
Eight, if you count me.
I felt a little nervous when I first walked I to the room, afraid I would trip over my own feet and make a complete fool of myself in front of these people. Thankfully Sukhyun kept his hand on my back as we entered and I felt a little better knowing he was by my side.
Every eye in the room was focused on me as if I was the newest species they couldn't wait to dissect. And if that wasn't enough, I continued to worry about the family would think of me.
I don't come from wealth, quite the opposite and it would be obvious from my outfit that I don't belong here.
Sukhyun pulled out a chair for me and I sat down, thanking him.
Ryujin sat down next to me on the left and gave me a welcoming smile.
I couldn't believe how strikingly similar she was to Sukhyun; it was like looking at a female equivalent of him. She had dark black hair, bright brown eyes a little lighter than Sukhyun's, and dimples that would make any man dance in his palms. Her style screamed levels of sophistication.
"I'm Ryujin, I'm sure Sukhyun told you about me." She said sweetly.
"Yes, he did."
"Let me introduce you to the rest of us. The grumpy young man sitting in front of you is Matthew, but he prefers to be called Matt. He thinks Matthew is a bit old-fashioned and makes him sound like an old man."
"Speak for yourself!" Matt grumbled.
"Language Matt! That's no way to talk to your older sister!" Sukhyun scolded him in an older brother tone.
"Whatever!" Matt replied.
He looked like a typical seventeen-year-old brat. He had lost his parents at a very young age and that must have been difficult.
I could completely relate to him because I went through the same thing when I was his age. Like his older brother and sister, he had also been gifted with good looks. I bet a lot of girls in his high school swooned when he passed by and speaking of which, I wondered if he played any sports. For a teenager, he was built like a bull and probably ate like one too.
"What the hell are you looking at?!"
It took me a while to realize that Matthew was talking to me.
My face grew hot. "N-nothing," I stammered. "I'm sorry."
"Matthew, I hope you respect your elders. That's no way to talk to Zuha. Apologize to her right now."
"Make me!" He threw his napkins on the plate and abruptly threw it off the table.
The plate shattered on the floor. The maid rushed to clean up the mess.
"And I don't give a shit about dinner. I'm going to order pizza anyway."
He stood up, grabbed a sandwich from the tray and stormed out of the room.
I felt like I almost survived a hurricane.
That kid needed to learn some manners and fast. I take back what I said about him being a spoiled teenager. More like the spawn of satan.
"I apologize on his behave, Zuha." Sukhyun said quietly.
"He's seventeen but he's still going through that puberty phase, you know." Ryujin intervented.
"It's okay, really."
"Matthew hasn't been same since our parents passed away." Ryujin said and the table was filled with silence.
"I'm sorry to hear about your parents," I said. "My parents died when I was little, so I don't remember them much, but I can still feel the loss. I can only imagine what you're going through."
"Thanks." Ryujin murmured, giving my hand a small squeeze.
So we started with dinner.
I looked at the plate full of food on the table in front of me.
I was served the starter, an elegant dish of shrimp with avocado and cucumber, and deviled eggs, followed by sliced duck in a cherry sauce or something like that.
I gulped down my food like I was in death row and this was my last meal.
I even licked the cherry sauce off the plate.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Sukyun looking at me with interest, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards.
Between chewing and taking quick bites, I choked on the wine.
Ryujin laughed. "Calm down. The food isn't going anywhere."
"She eats like Rocco." Said a small voice.
I looked in the direction the small voice came from.
I hadn't even noticed the little girl sitting two chairs away from me. The girl looked a lot like Matt, and there was a certain sadness in her eyes ad if the little girl had seen many unspeakable things, and she was looking at me as if she could look into my soul.
"Who is Rocco?" I asked.
"Our dog is a German Shephard."
I tried not to feel insulted, because clearly, the girl wasn't trying to be disrespectful and was just stating what she had observed.
Did all the younger Huh's swear they would defame me as soon as I set foot in this house?
"You must be Yunjin," I pointed out, smiling at her despite her calling me a hungry dog. "I saw the trains in your room."
She looked at me as if I had fallen out of my chair.
"Hell no. I'm Eunchae. Yunjin's over there!" She pointed in the other direction.
I turned to where her fingers was pointing and my form almost slipped from my hand.
Yunjin was not a child.
Not even close.
Either that or I needed a pair of glasses because she was a woman sitting at the end of the table.
