Morningtime, the next day.
Yeo Ri stood in front of the mirror, carefully tying the sash around her waist into a bow. She had even memorised an online tutorial and practiced several times so she could do it perfectly.
Once she was satisfied, she smiled.
Yeo Ri caught her reflection in the mirror. For the first time in a long while, she felt pretty. No imperfections in her appearance tugged her anxiety nor anger, or even hate.
She looked—she dared to say—simply adorable.
She twirled in the dress she had chosen for the day—a cute yellow one-piece with a large bow to cinch the waist. The bow was originally meant to go on the back, but since the weather was starting to grow colder, she ended up tying it in the front so it would not be obscured by the cardigan she had paired the dress with.
She wandered to the accessories section at her vanity, contemplating whether she should choose a hat or a hairclip.
"Yeo Ri, are you ready yet?" Gun's head snuck out from behind the ajar door, furtively checking to see if Yeo Ri was decent before entering the room.
"No—" seeing her brother's appearance, Yeo Ri pouted and glared at him, "—I thought I told you to wear the printed shirt, Oppa. I even ironed it for you."
Gun's brows jumped. Sighing helplessly, he defended himself, "I will, I will. I haven't finished dressing yet. I didn't want it to crease so I'll put it on when we leave."
Yeo Ri pouted harder. "You better!" she warned.
Gun usually had no qualms about wearing whatever Yeo Ri had prepared for him, but this one was a bit...
He exited the room, leaving his darling little sister to doll herself up, and returned to the living room, where the dreaded item of clothing laid in wait for him.
With a slight grimace, he picked it up.
Gold bar prints...
The button-up shirt was covered, front to back, with gold bars.
When did his little sister become so obsessed with material wealth? Did she really have to have it on their clothes...
"I'm ready," Yeo Ri's voice rang out just as he was gingerly holding the piece of clothing.
Gun's eyes fell on the white cardigan Yeo Ri draped on her arm, and an idea sparked in his mind.
"Oh, the weathers getting quite cold, hasn't it? I should put on a jacket too," Gun smiled, all too happy to make excuses to cover up his 'fancy' shirt.
Yeo Ri side-eyed him, but said, "Get the yellow one, so we match."
"Yeah, okay!"
Gun rushed into his room to grab a yellow corduroy jacket from his closet. It matched nicely with the white shirt with its yellow-coloured gold bar prints.
"Let's go," Gun sported a triumphant smile as he walked out with the yellow jacket covering his shirt.
"You think it's too tacky, don't you?" Yeo Ri pouted.
"No~" Gun denied smilingly. "It's cute," he pandered.
"Really? Then you won't mind if I grab a few more shirts like that for you, then."
Gun's smile froze.
"T-that's..."
"I'm just joking, Oppa," Yeo Ri let go of her pout and tittered at her brother's panic. "Thanks for always humouring me," Yeo Ri skipped her steps, raising her feet to show off her socks. It had the same gold bar pattern as his shirt.
Gun flashed a wry smile at his mischievous sister.
Yeo Ri giggled as she ran off, grabbing her purse from the dining table, and rushed to the entrance to put her shoes on.
Gun trailed after her slowly, keeping his eyes on her to make sure she didn't trip or fall.
The two greeted their neighbour on their way down, and donned face masks as soon as they got out of the elevator.
Today, it would be just the two of them.
Yeo Ri cleared her schedule and banned Tae Yang from following her, and Gun muted his phone so he could focus on her. It didn't matter if he had any group projects that required his attention or something else; he was determined to make it Yeo Ri's day.
Neither Yeo Ri nor Gun had the heart to spend so much money on taxi fare, and the both of them decided on using public transportation for the day.
"Where should we go first?" Gun asked as he pulled out his phone from his pockets with one hand. His other hand was occupied with Yeo Ri's hand, holding her firmly so that they wouldn't get separated.
"Um..." Yeo Ri contemplated. The two of them had loosely planned the date before they went to sleep the night prior, but did not set a time or order to the plan—eat, watch a movie, window-shopping, in no particular order.
"I'm not hungry yet," she decided, "and it's too early to watch movies, so..."
"That leaves shopping, then," Gun finished her words.
"Window-shopping," she corrected. Yeo Ri was determined to only look and not waste money on anything, even if she could afford them now.
"Right. Window-shopping." Gun readily nodded his head, smiling as though he didn't believe her. In any case, even if Yeo Ri didn't want to spend her money, he'd spend his money on her anyways. As long as it was within his means, Gun had the intention of buying her everything she took interest in.
Yeo Ri shot a suspicious glance at her brother, narrowing her eyes, "We're really just gonna window-shop, okay? Seriously."
"Yep. Seriously." Gun nodded his head like a pecking chicken, simply agreeing with whatever she said on the surface.
The duo chatted quietly as they took the subway. Thanks to the volume of people, the two barely stood out, and no one seemed to recognise Yeo Ri. The two enjoyed their ride peacefully.
The efficient subway moved quickly, and several stations later, they reached their destination.
"The commercial street is that way," Gun kept a close eye on the navigation app, making sure that they were on the correct path. Despite being a Seoul resident born and raised, the Lee duo had rarely, if ever, ventured outside their little neighbourhood for leisure, and this was the first time they had gone out to such a trendy and popular place. They were unfamiliar with the roads, and thus took extra care so that they wouldn't get lost.
"I see it!" Yeo Ri exclaimed, pointing to the hustle and bustle. People crowded the wide streets. Shops and stalls lined the streets, with the occasional open space where buskers and performers would occupy and perform. With it being the weekend, the streets were rather lively.
Gun let himself be pulled into the crowd by the eager girl.
Yeo Ri's eyes were filled with awe as they walked past the storefronts, resisting the urge to enter the shops in fear of temptation. She had money now, but that did not mean she should spend her money like water. Her habits from their days of poverty haunted her, constantly guilt-tripping her into keeping a tight leash on her wallet and self-control.
However, there was one shop that Yeo Ri simply could not resist—
"Oppa..." Yeo Ri turned to Gun, brandishing her ultimate weapon: puppy eyes.
"..." Gun raised his defenses, "We haven't even had breakfast yet. It's not good to have ice cream on an empty stomach."
"Oppa..." Even though he couldn't see the lower half of her face, she jutted her lips cutely, silently pleading with big, watery eyes.
"..." Gun clenched his jaw. He was losing the battle, but he had to persevere!
"Only one scoop... Please? We can share," she begged.
"I don't know..."
"Aw, Oppa~!" Yeo Ri whined, shaking his arm. "I've been dieting because of work. Can't I get a reward? Please?"
"Ugh..." Gun groaned.
He lost!
"Fine. Just one scoop, or you're going to get an upset stomach later."
"Yay!"