Around seven every morning, the Baek household wake up and gather around the grand dining table to have breakfast together. Out of the Baek family members, only three of the grandchildren and their parents resided at the manor. The other Baek family members lived in other provincial housing of the Baek property or if they were still in school - they attended Khuwe Academy, and lived on campus.
Baek Ae-ri was the first to arrive at the table as she plopped herself down at the third seat to the left of the chandelier hanging in the direct middle with her eyes glued to her phone.
"I want to eat ice cream" she hollered at one of the maids tensely without looking up from her phone. She was the youngest grandchild of the household - aged 7 and known as the second daughter of the firstborn child of the Baek family. Her older sister Baek Soojin - is currently attending Khuwe Academy. Ae-ri is short-tempered and acts immaturely for her age due to the fact she was spoiled upon birth and had always gotten her way of things.
Following Ae-ri's arrival at the table, was Baek Hyun. He is the firstborn of the youngest child of Baek Jeong-Hoon.
Ae-ri looked up from her phone as she sensed movement across the room from Hyun. "Since when did you come down on time to eat breakfast?" She inquired with utter curiosity.
"Since when can I not?" Hyun replied hazily. His hair was unkempt as if he had just stumbled out of bed and his eyes looked jolt and puffy because he had stayed up gaming all night. He seated himself directly across from Ae-ri and started to pick at his fingernails.
"Did you lose your game early or what."
"Nah, didn't grandfather say he had an important announcement for just today?" Hyun asked rhetorically.
Ae-ri looked up suddenly, shrugged at Hyun, and then diverted her attention back to her phone. For she was still a child and did not pay attention to such matters.
"Probably."
"If it wasn't for this stupid announcement I could have finished my game and won more points!" Hyun grumbled and then chipped his fingernails he was just picking at a few moments ago.
"Sh**" he cursed.
"I don't get why you still play that video game, Hyun." She paused for a second. "I mean, didn't auntie Hyejin just scold you the other day when she came back from the States?"
"I don't give a damn about my mother. Plus, I've gained a lot of attention recently for my online gaming streams."
A smug look appeared on Hyun's face as he added on, "It's called being good at something and having fans notice my hard work and skills."
"You forgot to add in the fact that it's also all because of your Baek status." a voice chimed in from down the east entrance.
"Shut up Jiwon."
Baek Jiwon entered the dining area and seated herself beside Hyun. Ae-ri looked up once again and this time she shut off her phone and started talking to Jiwon, her favorite cousin who she adored since she was a newborn.
"Jiwonnn!! You're back already?" she said happily with excitement.
Jiwon nodded and smiled at her. "Yeah, aunt Hyejin and I went to the states to attend a fashion show hosted by one of our sponsored brands. I'm pretty sure I saw one of the idols you adore there as well."
"That's soo unfair, I wanna go someday too!" Ae-ri whined. Jiwon chuckled and smoothes her, patting her head and tracing her fingers through her loose braids.
Hyun scoffed and said, "Who would want to attend some lousy fashion show and sit there for hours doing nothing." He then looked directly at Jiwon and continued, "Oh maybe someone who is a boring person themselves."
"Says the guy who only games all day and has his fanbase coming from our family name" Jiwon retorted.
"You-"
Cling Clack!
Hyun couldn't finish his sentence as a tray of ice cream slipt out of one of the maid's hands and fell to the floor, shattering the glasses into little bits and pieces onto the grand marble floor of the dining room. Everyone in the dining hall turned to the sudden commotion in a split second.
The ice cream Baek Ae-ri had demanded earlier was now on splat the dirty floor mixed amongst pieces of glass shards, and everyone could see her incoming tantrum and anger rising displayed on her facial expressions. It was evident to all that Ae-ri did not have the patience to wait for a replacement and had always hated when things didn't go her way.
"I'm so sorry miss!" the maid on the floor trembled slowly and spoke, as if her life was on the line.
Ae-ri's facial expressions had turned to the max, and she started fuming, ready to snap at the maid. "YOU ARE-"
But before Ae-ri could finish her sentence, a swift brief of air sped past her and she turned around to see the one cousin whom she despised the most - Baek Eun-bi, speed past her rushing to help the fallen maid, while still in her nightgown.
"Are you okay Ma'am?" Eun-bi asked with care and concern for the maid who seemed to be around the age of her forties or fifties. This action shocked the maid rather, as she had never been treated with such care and kindness by any of the Baek household members.
"Y-yes, t-thank you" She stumbled her words out of fear and shock.
Jiwon then sneered. "I see you care for your own kind." Ae-ri joined in as her anger suddenly faded away with a sly smug surfacing on her face replacing it instead. "Well since you decided to interrupt me, why don't you apologize and beg in her stead Eun-bi?"
Eun-bi paused for a second to think and then without a word, she started to position herself on her knees as she kneeled and dipped her head down to the floor, in a way of asking for forgiveness towards Ae-ri for the maid. Baek Eun-bi knew that the poor maid was already suffering from back pain, and it wouldn't have been good for her condition to worsen so she took the humiliation instead.
Well, this is usual for me. She thought to herself.
Across the room, Hyun just stared and then laughed at his cousins.
"This was funny, I've had my share so I'll be leaving before the boredom dries me out again." He got up from his seat and started to take his leave and head back to his gaming room.
Click Clack. Clickity Clack..
Just then the presence of that sound filled up the entire atmosphere. None of the grandchildren had to look up to know where the sound came from. The sound of their grandfather's shoes entered the scene, the sound so familiar that they've all grown up hearing indicating the arrival of Baek Jeong-Hoon.
He had just entered the dining area.
"Where are you going!" He hollered loudly and demanded at Hyun who he could see from the back of his eyes was headed off somewhere. His voice could be heard stern and clear as it echoed throughout the dining hall, tensing up the whole atmosphere of the manor.
"N-nowhere!"
Hyun immediately retreated back to his seat at the table, and Jiwon and Ae-ri followed right behind him hurriedly. Eun-bi also got up swiftly, dusted herself off, and took her seat at the table - the farthest one towards the right end from her cousins.
From the corner of her eyes, Eun-bi could see her aunts and uncles arriving at the table, taking a seat next to her cousins one after another until everyone had arrived. Moments of silence followed after, as they all waited for Baek Jeong-Hoon to be seated at the direct center end of the table.
Baek Jeong-Hoon then cleared his throat after moments of silence, retrieving the stressful tension. "I have an announcement to make this morning, regarding my grandchildren." He looked sternly at Hyun and Jiwon, and then finally made his glance towards Eun-bi.
"First, I've decided that I will be enrolling Hyun into the military academy."
Upon hearing his grandfather's statement, Hyun's face changed to a shocked and remorseful look as he stared at his grandfather unable to suppress any words. He opened his mouth open and then shut it. This cycle repeated a couple of times in silence until he finally regained his senses to speak.
"Grandpa, I don't need to go to the military academy. I literally don't understand why you're sending me there, and I've just started gaining popularity online among my fans too!"
"Why would you send me off to someplace that's unbeneficial for me and would hurt my status as your grandchild?" He added in, hoping to convince him further.
"What do you mean! All you do is game every day and waste your youth away. You lack the basic education and social skills, and this is an utterly humiliating sight to the Baek household!" He roared, obstinate about his decision.
Realizing he's unable to go against his grandfather's demands, Hyun quickly shut up and quieted down. The look displayed on his face showed as if his soul was sucked out of him, and his parents looked at him in disbelief but without shock, as if they had mentally prepared themselves prior to the announcement already.
After a few minutes of silence, seeing that his grandson has stopped his retorts, he continued on. "Ah and as for my second announcement." He cleared his throat once again.
"Eun-bi will be attending Khuwe Academy starting next week with you Jiwon. So take her back with you to campus when your vacation leave is over."
Bang.
"Father this is unacceptable!" Baek Soo-ah, Jiwon's mother implored in response. Baek Hyejin nodded in support as well.
Jiwon then chimed in, "Grandfather, I feel as if Eun-bi isn't really ready for the academy yet. I mean ever since we were kids, she never took proper etiquette classes or any of the extra preparatory courses you had us take."
"If you consider it from her perspective, and because I care about her a lot as her cousin I'm going to be speaking up about this matter. I would feel really awful for her if she couldn't keep up with the stress and courses of Khuwe as her dear cousin!" She lied, showing a false emphatic expression as she batted her eyelashes over exaggerating her sympathy.
There's no way they are seriously doing this right now... This is the school where my Mother and Father met as well, I have to attend it.
Eun-bi then took the initiative and answered, "Grandfather, I think I'll be fine at the Academy, and I will be sure to catch up on the material I'm not familiar with, prior to attending classes there." She smiled fairly.
"Well then, It's settled then. Jiwon, I hope you're willing to show Eun-bi around next week then after we take her for her registration records and completion." He said, nodding his head in approval of Eun-bi's response, and glanced over with a stern look on his face towards Jiwon.
Knowing that she too, cannot go against her grandfather's words, Jiwon and everyone else seated at the table agreed without continued intrusion.
Eun-bi was to attend Khuwe Academy and the decision was final.