To Want You

47

"Is that so?" Abel nibbles the bottom portion of his lips, seemingly like he's lost in thought. After a moment of pure silence, he speaks in a rather low voice. "You should've said something earlier. Family comes first before work you know." 

If the room wasn't already quiet as it is, I would've missed it for sure. All this time, he's been the opposite of considerate but when I mentioned my brother, he totally changed. My heart flutters a little but the awkward atmosphere that's slowly setting in is causing both my palms to sweat for some reason. 

Bringing my hand behind the base of my neck, I rub the area a little in hopes to distract me from the softness of his voice. "It's fine. He won't mind If I'm a little late."

"You can go." Abel eventually dismisses me, turning his back to fetch something from his shelf. I do a subtle nod while slowly making my way to the door. 

"V-very well. Have a good night." 

And with that, I excuse myself out. 

My pace gradually fastens by the time I reach the main ground where my car's parked at. A little fumbling here and there and then I'm finally entering the vastness of the road. 

Time check, seven sharp. 

I promised Clever I'd be at home before seven-thirty. I'm not late. So this is fine. As long as I don't end up in an unwanted traffic jam everything will turn out the way it should be. 

As if the little devil could suddenly tell I was thinking of him, my phone rings with his contact name flashing brightly on the screen. It's a taunting sight, to be honest. If I existed in a different world where Clever wasn't my brother, I'd have probably already ignored the call. 

With one hand I grab my phone and put it on the loudspeaker. 

"Noona, where are you? You're late. Hyung's already here."  His voice, although adorable, can trigger my stress levels. 

Whiny as always. 

"I just got off from work. I'll be there in twenty minutes." 

Thinking I can't hear him, he whispers something to someone about how I'm being late on purpose. After a moment, he comes back to the phone. "Twenty minutes is too long. Can't you arrive in ten minutes?" 

"Can't do baby. " I mumble under my breath, eyes fixated towards the road. "Unless this car magically turns into a jet plane you'll have to be patient and wait for noona to get there. I'm almost home anyway." 

A loud thump echoes across the phone and I can only assume Clever had just stomped his feet against the ground. The line of my eyebrows curves and I release a sigh. Here we go again. 

"I want to go now! You promised you'll finish work early so that we can play! You're breaking your promise!"

"I'm almost there, baby. See? I'm even speeding my car right now. Just a few more minutes." 

"Noona!" He wails loudly, causing me to momentarily squint my eyes. God, what did I do in my past life to deserve this? It's exhausting. 

Don't get me wrong though. I still love my brothers despite their behavior but sometimes, I guess it's alright to fantasize about taping their mouths shut and their arms and legs with a sturdy rope.

There's a crying baby on the phone and I can't believe I'm thinking about taping them. My busy day never ends now does it? 

I roll my eyes to the moon and rub the space between my eyebrows like I'm about to have a really bad headache. Typical behavior from a spoiled brat. 

Give me a break. I grumble under my breath. 

I'm already having trouble at work. If I return home to a crying baby it'll totally be unfair. 

Biting the bottom part of my lip, I rattle my brain for a response that will hopefully not make things worse than it already is. I need to find a way to make him calm down before mom finds out he's crying because of me. Again. I don't think I'll be willing to be a good daughter and listen to whatever rant she'll begin lecturing me with. 

Think. 

Think fast. 

Who else is with Clever right now? 

Nathan.

I know for a fact Nathan's listening to this conversation too. 

After a moment of silence, I huff out a heavy breath. "Clever, baby, I'll be there in fifteen minutes. And Nathan?" 

Silence. 

I roll my eyes and pipe up the speed of my car. "Nathan, I know you're listening." 

"What?" 

"Make sure Clever doesn't break anything. It's all you if he gets himself hurt, you got that?" 

"Fifteen minutes right?"

"Yeah. I'll try to be there as fast as I can." 

Abel's Pov

It's been ten minutes since she's left the building and I'm now making my way home. I've discarded my work attire away, replacing it with a white t-shirt and black jeans. My hair's tattered and messy, showing just how much I've run my fingers through the past few minutes. Once I reach the parking area, I slide into my car and begin driving towards my place. 

Fortunately, tomorrow I don't have to worry about seeing that Miller against since it's the weekend. I stop under a red light, the vibrant shade of crimson emitting from the stop sign playing a color scheme beyond the windows of my car and then the lights flash green. 

It doesn't take me that long for me to arrive. After tossing my things on the couch, I automatically saunter towards the direction of my bedroom and enter the bathroom connected to it.

A shower. 

I need a shower to wash off the memory of Miller from my head.