Haru

“…and don’t forget to make sure he does his breathing treatment.” Father talked to the maids of our home, reminding them—the way he does every time he leaves for work—to watch over me. “If I hear a single complaint from him about the behavior of the maids, finding a new source of income won’t be your biggest problem. Understand?”

“““Yes Mr. Jin!”””

Father walked over and gave me a kiss on the forehead, his hazel eyes shining as he looked at me. I’d inherited Mother’s lavender hair color while Father gave his rose-colored hair to my sister. Both my sister and I had our Mother’s jade-green eyes. “Father loves you, you know that?” For a man who was known for being strict during his meetings, he sure did relax whenever it came to me.

I forced myself to smile for him. “Of course, Father!”

With a happy face, Father added, “I’ll be home very soon. Someone important is coming over today.” He walked out the door, and I ran away from the maids to race up the stairs.

“Mr. Haru! You shouldn’t be running in the house!”

I stuck my tongue out at the maid who said that to me. “I don’t wanna be late for today’s story!”

I kept running up the stairs, eventually making my way to my older sister’s door.

 Her door’s really tall and really white. Well, it might be tall to me because I’m so small, but I’ll grow one day! I don’t know much about my sister other than the faces she makes. She makes the same serious face Father makes even though she’s not around him a lot. She’s the only sister I have, and I wanna see her smile more!

I lightly knocked on her door. “Hi! It’s your brother, Haru! I’m here with another story! This time, it’s about Mother, just like you wanted!” I heard a slight rustling behind the door, so I knew she was there.

The last time I told her a story, she quietly slid a note to me from under her door. It read, Dear brother, can you please tell me a story about Father and Mother? I don’t see them often, and I’d love to get to know them better through you.

“Of course!” I remember responding. “Anything for you, sister!” That same night, I asked Father if I could start coming to work with him on the weekends. I didn’t care about his business.

I wanted to make my big sister smile.

With a story in mind, I spent nights making sure that it would be amazing enough to make my sister smile and laugh.

The story starts off with Mother and I being driven in our family’s car.

“Mother, do you and Father hate my sister?” Even as a little kid, their behavior didn’t make sense to me. I couldn’t count how many times my parents told me they loved me, but I didn’t have a single memory of them doing the same for my sister. “She looks lonely at the dinner table every night, and she does so much stuff that I’m scared she’ll break into little pieces one day.”

Mother pat my head. “Of course I love your sister. As the one who’ll eventually take over your father’s job, she needs to study hard while she can. We can’t accept failures in this family.”

“B-but what about being a kid?” I hugged the teddy bear I always brought places. “Does she ever play with toys and go to the playground like other kids?”

Mother shook her head. “She’s not like you, Haru. Nari came into this world healthily and safely, but you almost didn’t make it.” She reached into her purse and pulled out one of my inhalers. “I’m glad that she’s so independent for her age. You on the other hand worry me.”

“I do?”

“Yes, you do.” Mother’s hand began to shake. “The last thing I want as a mother is to experience the shock that I may lose my child again.” She hugged me, and I reluctantly hugged her back.

I’m happy to be alive, yet Mother’s words didn’t move me the way they were probably supposed to.

She almost lost me, but she’s losing her daughter too. If she doesn’t do something now, then it might be too late!

“Mother!” It was the first time I’d ever raised my voice at her. She looked at me, terrified. “I want my sister to feel loved too! I know you and Father love me. You kiss my cheek before I go to school, and I see other Mothers and Fathers do that with their kids too. You pat my head when I do something good and comfort me whenever I feel sad. I get whatever I want, but what I want now is for my big sister—for Sis to be happy!”

I cried so hard in the car that I can’t remember how Mother responded.

I would tell Sis this story so she knows the truth, and that someone in this family cares about her.

Nari

My little brother is the only person who talks to me normally. It could be due to Mother and Father’s nature of working in business, but any words they shared with me felt cold and logical.

“You did well during the last gymnastics competition, but there’s room for improvement.”

“That wasn’t good enough. If you continue to disappoint me, I’ll need to increase the amount of tutors coming to our home.”

“Your face is getting rounder. If your eating habits get any worse, I may have to privately schedule a liposuction for you.”

I need to do better.

I must do better.

Doing well in competitions and getting good grades are the only time my parents ever glance in my direction. Yes, I understand that my younger brother can be adorable at times but allowing his cuteness to excuse your monopolized love hurts your only daughter more than anything.

Once again, my words fall on deaf ears.

A soft knock came from my door. “Hi! It’s your brother, Haru!” Ranting in my diary did wonders for my mental state, but hearing the words of a family member helped restore confidence in myself. “I’m here with another story! This time, it’s about Mother, just like you wanted!”

I grabbed a pillow from my bed and put it against the door, sitting on it as I waited for Haru to continue.

Sadly, that moment never came.

I heard louder, more intense footsteps come from the stairs. I couldn’t tell how many people there were, but they were definitely headed towards my room.

I jumped up, running to my mirror to make sure that I was presentable for our guests. My two low ponytails were adorned by black bows, and the blue dress I’d worn for my tutor earlier hadn’t wrinkled yet. I quickly combed small portions of my hair before opening the door myself.

Father had picked up Haru, holding him in his arms. Haru’s short stature always made him look younger than his real age. At 9, you would think that he’d grow tired of being picked up so much. Next to Father was a tall man with black hair and sharp eyes. To his right was a boy I’d never seen before. He seemed to be around my age, but his aura felt similar to mine.

His blonde hair made me wonder what his mother looked like, and his sky-blue eyes had confidence that no child should be able to muster.

“Nari, my daughter!” Father stroked my head with unfamiliar kindness. “This man here is an old friend of mine.”

The tall man gave a slight bow. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, heiress. I’m Kim Sungmin of SK Entertainment.” He put a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “This here is my son, Kim Sora. Like you, he’ll be taking over my company when he’s older.”

Sora took a deep bow. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Jin.”

“Not at all.” I responded with a bow in kind. “The pleasure is mine, Mister Kim.”

Our fathers laughed in unison with mine saying, “They’re getting along already!” Father looked at me and smiled, motioning towards Sora.

Ah, I see what you want me to do.

I looked at Sora. “Mister Kim, would you like me to show you around the house?”

He nodded. “I would be delighted.”

I looked at Father once again. I’d never seen such happiness on his face directed towards me. For the first time, I felt like I was doing something right. I didn’t know what his intentions were with the Kim family, but if getting close to Sora can help the rest of my family accept me, then I’ll do what needs to be done.

After all, this is all I’m good for.

Haru

After meeting Sora, Sis started leaving the house more. Father and Kim Sungmin set up playdates so that the two could get to know each other better, even going so far as to make sure they’d go to the same middle and high schools. Now that she’s rarely in her room, Sis feels even more distant than before.

She smiles more now, and I know that it’s because of Sora. He’s nice to her and doesn’t expect as much from her as our parents do. As a reward for dating Sora, she has less work to do. Father didn’t know I was listening, but he called it an organic business deal.

He’s using my big sister as a pawn.

The day I found out, I knocked on her door louder than before. “Sis! Can I come in?”

“The door’s unlocked.”

When I entered her room, I saw that Sis had been in the middle of choosing an outfit for tomorrow. She turned to face my direction. “This is a first, brother. You usually sit outside when you want to speak to me.”

“This time’s different.” The thought of seeing my sister get manipulated made me angry. “Father is using you, Sis! I’m closer to him, and I got to hear him talk about it!”

“I know what he’s doing. You’re closer to him, so you may not understand how I feel about this.” I couldn’t respond to her. “Dating Sora is my only chance to get close to our parents. I don’t care if they have ulterior motives or not.”

“But Sis—”

“But nothing, Haru!” Sis threw her clothes on the ground and ran over to me. Her face was a contorted mess of frustration and sadness. “Do you know how much I’ve suffered just to get to this point? Instead of playing with dolls or whatever like a normal child, I’ve had to memorize management skills, predict stock prices, and throw away my childhood for the sake of taking over a family that doesn’t care about me!” She grabbed my hands. “I may turn thirteen in three months, but my childhood ended the moment the first textbook was opened in this home.”

Her hands shook slightly, reminding me of Mother.  “You’re my younger brother, and you’re lucky that you don’t need to go through this.” She forced a smile. “I don’t care about being manipulated if it means that I can get the love I’ve always wanted. Loneliness can eat you from the inside, and I’m barely more than half a person now.” She tightened her grip on my hands. “Let me have this before I become something I’m not, okay Haru?”

I let go of her hands and hugged her. “I love you Sis. We may not be close, but I want you to always remember that.”

She rubbed my back. “I love you too, brother.”

That same night, I went into my room and started drawing the two of us. I wondered what life would be like if we’d been normal siblings with a normal family.

Would we have argued more?

Would I have pulled her hair like an obnoxious little brother?

I don’t know, but I’m glad that I have my sister back after all these years. She’s still the obsessive girl I know, and she’s the only sister I’ve got.