[crow]

"Hyung~"

Dae-hyun sighed. It was the resigned sigh of someone who knew doom was coming, and couldn't do anything about it. At the moment, doom was 5'11" of lanky teen, wearing the world's most eager grin, running full speed at him. The sight reminded him of nothing so much as an over-enthused dog, much too big to be lifted anymore but still just as willing to jump into your arms.

In other words, his brother--- his real, biological younger brother, Kim Dong-hyun.

[crow]

"Dong-hyun," said Dae-hyun dispassionately, moments before impact. It was all he could get out before Dong-hyun was upon him, wrapping him up in an all-encompassing hug. The difference in height between them was now enough for Dong-hyun to tuck Dae-hyun's head under his chin, a fact that Dae-hyun found endlessly infuriating.

Well, he supposed it could be worse. He could be short enough, or his brother tall enough, that Dong-hyun could smother Dae-hyun into his chest. He might really die then, since Dong-hyun wasn't big on letting go, and not being able to breathe would become a very real problem.

[crow]

"Hyung! I missed you. How've you been? How are all the other hyungs?" Fortunately, in his eagerness to ask questions, Dong-hyun cut the hug short this time. He didn't entirely let go, but he did peel back a bit, his arms hanging only loosely around Dae-hyun. From there it was easier for Dae-hyun to peel him off.

"They're fine," said Dae-hyun, brushing himself off. "Not that you need to ask. You can just go over and see for yourself if you really wanted to know."

[crow]

Dae-hyun originally wouldn't have encouraged this. The first time his kid brother had just showed up at their dorm, Dae-hyun honestly thought he would die from the mortification. It wasn't that he hated his brother or anything, but Dong-hyun was just so... Well, put it this way, there wasn't ever a time in Dong-hyun's life that he hadn't reminded Dae-hyun of an oversized puppy.

But contrary to Dae-hyun's expectations, most of his bandmates didn't mind. In fact, they were for the most part pretty fond of his brother.

[crow]

In fact, it probably would have been a fair assessment to say that, on average, they liked Dong-hyun more than they liked Dae-hyun... which made sense, since it was easier to like someone you didn't have to live with or work with or anything. But it still made Dae-hyun a little miffed to think about.

He wondered, briefly, what Dong-hyun's group was like. He had one now, training together, even if they hadn't debuted quite yet. But he wasn't about to drop by to see for himself.

[crow]

It was beneath his dignity to drop in on a group of trainees when he had already debuted himself, even if it was to check on his own brother. The aura of dreams and desperation would just be too much. Besides, based on what Dong-hyun had told him about some of the members, he wasn't really sure these were people he'd want to be meeting.

For today though, it was just the two of them. Or at least, it was for the moment, anyway.

[crow]

They were both going home for the fall holiday, and they'd elected to meet a few hours earlier to shop for gifts. Dong-hyun was the one who had suggested it, and Dae-hyun figured he might as well. Like he'd said, it wasn't like he hated his brother or anything.

"Where do you want to go first?" said Dong-hyun, already looking around for their first destination.

Dae-hyun gave the question some serious thought. "We might as well start looking at the skin care," he said.

[crow]

Frankly, if he was choosing gifts based on what he personally thought they needed... Well, no, he might still have bought something for their mother. But then he ran the risk of her smacking him upside the head with a tastefully wrapped box of cosmetics, for implying that she had aged, or something.

But in this case, it was because their mother had specifically dropped hints about wanting to brighten herself up. Who she was trying to impress in this day and age, he could only guess, but...

[crow]

If she had asked for it, however indirectly, it was better for them to give her what she wanted. Their family matriarch had always been the unquestioned dictator in their family, and woe befell the poor peon who disobeyed her wishes.

It was a good thing he was there, too. Dong-hyun had always been the baby of the family, and while his heart was in the right place, reading subtle hints wasn't his specialty. He probably hadn't even known that their mother had dropped any hints, period.

[crow]

"Huh? Oh, right, for mom and noona, right?" said Dong-hyun.

"Right," said Dae-hyun, too tired to correct him that Seo-hyun probably wouldn't want cosmetics for herself. Seo-hyun... He wasn't really sure how it happened, considering what he and Dong-hyun looked like, but Seo-hyun had a decidedly dowdy-looking face and figure. Her body took after their mom, and her face took after their dad, which was just about the worst combination possible, given the options. And perhaps as a result of that, she had never taken particular care with her appearance.

[Wild Pet Found]