𝖍𝖊𝖑𝖑𝖘𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔦𝔫𝔤

“mhm,” lili only nods in reply, keeping it quiet that it was the first thing to pop up in the search engine after she had quickly googled what was a good gift to give one’s neighbors ( and fellow group mates ) after ceremoniously becoming a new member — oddly enough, not many results applied to her current situation so lili took the first thing that sounded as close to a sensical ( yet appropriate ) gift.   it didn’t seem like it was a bad thing considering somin appeared to take it in stride ( or maybe she was being nice, lili wasn’t too sure yet ) --  “isn’t that what a good neighbor does?”

"i guess so," she says, and she remembers when all the crystallis girls had moved into their apartments and had spent a couple weeks just making the rounds and bringing gifts, so this isn't all that different from that, honestly. she thinks it's fun that lili had decided to do the same, and she feels herself warming up to her already. "it's also what friends do, so," somin grins after, pleased.

lili practically beams, feeling a sense of approval at somin’s words. sure, they were probably no where near as close as friends but coworkers who stayed friendly had always been lili’s goal. anything above that, lili assumed she was excelling — and it was, technically, her first day. ( if she didn’t count the meeting when she had met everyone else and was told about her role and what not ) she thinks a gold star was surely in her future, her grandma be damned about doing too much.

the tour was in full swing and sarang was enjoying every bit of it. sure, concerts left her tired, the traveling could be a bitch much but every moment on stage was worth it. the second best part was the shopping, no matter where they went sarang found a little trinkets she wanted to buy and the photos her scrape-booking were abundant. today it was all about kobe and she was paired with lili for the sight-seeing aspect of it. just as they stepped outside of the hotel and on to the streets, sarang pulled out and turned on the little camera they were given by staff.

lili tries to remember all the travel guides that had been scattered in her room from this morning. a late riser, today, lili had only sparingly glanced at a few before she was dragged out of the comforts of an air-conditioned hotel room and into the exhausting japanese heat. if she had complained about korea’s heat wave, it truly had not prepared her for japan’s humidity. “mm, nankinmachi? we could grab some lunch from the stalls?” that is, if they didn’t collapse from a heat stroke on the way there.

"oh, the korean tradition for giving ddeok as a housewarming gift?" she asks, looking too amused about the fact that she's pretty sure it's supposed to be a completely different ddeok, but honestly? somin is not mad about receiving ddeokbokki instead of something sweet. she doesn't mind sweet things, but she also absolutely loves savoury things.

“mhm,” lili only nods in reply, keeping it quiet that it was the first thing to pop up in the search engine after she had quickly googled what was a good gift to give one’s neighbors ( and fellow group mates ) after ceremoniously becoming a new member — oddly enough, not many results applied to her current situation so lili took the first thing that sounded as close to a sensical ( yet appropriate ) gift.   it didn’t seem like it was a bad thing considering somin appeared to take it in stride ( or maybe she was being nice, lili wasn’t too sure yet ) --  “isn’t that what a good neighbor does?”

sarang nodded her head, turning her attention to the bag that lili had. "i've had those before but i don't eat them often." a snack she wouldn't seek out but if she came across them in isle, maybe she'd toss one or two bags into her cart. "mainly because i really like croissants, so when i eat it and it's not warm and buttery, i get a little deflated but they're not bad at all. i didn't have the bag today but the chocolate flavor isn't bad either." in fact, sarang was pretty sure that she liked that one more.

lili takes a small, cautious bite — munching quietly akin to a judge on culinary wars. “mm, it’s a little too sweet for my liking,” which was crazy because lili loved her sweets — in moderation. “ugh, how can you bring it up and not have gifted it, now you have to bring me some next time.” a promise for a new day is always a good sign, and lili hopes sarang feels the same. it’s a manifesting thing, lili thinks, and lili loves a good manifestation — it’s how she got herself here, after all.

"too sweet." sarang repeated, mentally taking note. something to scribble down later so she knew what not to buy for the other girl. a small smile formed on her face as she nodded her head, "sorry, i didn't think about it until now, i'll remember to keep an eye out and i'll save a bag just for you." and it wasn't an off-hand comment, it was a promise and sarang could already see that she'd be hunting down the chocolate flavor. it'd haunt her mind if she didn't.

lili waves a hand dismissively, “no apologies needed.” the fact of the matter was that lili should have been satisfied with what was brought to her door in the first place! whatever happened to beggars can’t be choosers? — not that lili could ever be compared to a beggar but you get the point. “i will hold you to a saved bag though,” she, cheekily, adds despite her earlier words. it was chocolate, need she say more?

sarang nodded her head, turning her attention to the bag that lili had. "i've had those before but i don't eat them often." a snack she wouldn't seek out but if she came across them in isle, maybe she'd toss one or two bags into her cart. "mainly because i really like croissants, so when i eat it and it's not warm and buttery, i get a little deflated but they're not bad at all. i didn't have the bag today but the chocolate flavor isn't bad either." in fact, sarang was pretty sure that she liked that one more.

lili takes a small, cautious bite — munching quietly akin to a judge on culinary wars. “mm, it’s a little too sweet for my liking,” which was crazy because lili loved her sweets — in moderation. “ugh, how can you bring it up and not have gifted it, now you have to bring me some next time.” a promise for a new day is always a good sign, and lili hopes sarang feels the same. it’s a manifesting thing, lili thinks, and lili loves a good manifestation — it’s how she got herself here, after all.

yura smirks, seeing how lili reacts what she said. it was really quite entertaining and while yura wouldn't normally say things like this so readily, now that lili was a crystallis member, she did feel a sense of responsibility to give the new addition advice or tips if asked. that didn't mean she couldn't have a little fun with this though and purposely drew out her silence, deciding not to answer the new questions right away. instead, she took her time grabbing a water bottle and handed it over to the younger.

lili nods, slowly digesting the information being fed to her — being in a group was different than existing as an individual. she wasn’t used to working in a group setting — sure, evaluations may have been paired here and there but for as long as she’s known, she had always been looking out for lili, now there were three other girls she had to be concerned for, too. not that she wanted all that on her shoulders but it was a start — didn’t that go hand-in-hand with if one falls down, we all fall down with you? and lili was not ready to fall, not when she had just begun to rise. “hm, so it’s more girl-girl intuition, gotcha.” and as a person who prided herself on her keen sense of observation, lili was all eyes on her co-workers, acquaintances, members? hm, she would need to work on how she was going to file them in her life’s mission. 

"day two, got it." sarang nodded her head as her attention turned towards the snacks she brought. "honestly, i'm a better safe than sorry person. i wasn't sure what you'd like so i went for the most common and known brands." sarang normally wouldn't mind being adventurous on her own but that couldn't be said for everyone. on top of it, it'd be horrible if she brought a gift and lili didn't like any of it.

health conscious due to a almond mom grandma mentality, lili had never really partaken in snacks — often a smoke as you go kind of person, but she wasn’t opposed to trying. what was the saying — life was all about trying out new experiences? “hm,” she hums, gathering her bearings as she runs a scattered gaze among the treats sarang has brought before pinking up a a light blue bag with a  croissant plastered across the plastic wrapping. “salt bread snack?” she tugs at the seams until it breaks, taking a small, curious sniff of the contents before picking one from the bottom of the bag. 

when she gets a knock on her door in the middle of her gaming session, she doesn't realize it's her actual apartment door for a moment. she ignores it, but call it what you will, there's something telling her that she should check. tugging her headphones off of her head and letting them settle around her neck—honestly it's a miracle that she had heard anything at all, and also that she's not playing an fps right now—she gets up and heads over to the door, peeking out the peephole and startling a little when she realizes it's the newest addition to crystallis.

“an act of goodwill,” lili says rather than what it actually is — a peace offering — in the off chance that in the future ( or very, very near present ) that lili somehow steps on some toes. ( it wasn’t a matter of if but when, really ) “or at least that’s what i googled last night when i was trying to come up with things to give everyone.”

"no worries." sarang replied easily, while she was quit to unpack. sarang knew her efficiency was more of a strange quirk. "if you need help, just let me know." it was an honest offer and sarang didn't mind helping out, it would give them time to bond. lili was right, they did know each other but not well enough. it still wasn't a lie that she felt better having someone new in the group. it was grounding in a way. when lili returned with the drinks and ice, sarang was setting out the snacks she had grabbed.

she’d never been ‘there’s no i in team’ — she, however, had always been the ‘but there is an i in win’ sort of person. acclimating to a group setting was going to be an uphill battle, lili knows this, but seeing sarang breaching the gap helped in ways lili couldn’t put into words. being the new kid on the block was nothing new and usually lili acted pretty briskly because of it. this was neither the time nor place to reveal her bad temperament so she tries to keep that pristine smile in place, shrugging off her negative nancies that were plaguing her and tried to look on the brighter side of things. 

in a way, yura finds it funny. she wasn't exactly excited to debut in a group at first but she quickly found herself getting used to being okay with that idea starting from lgc girls. by the time crystallis was announced, yura was surprised-but-not that she felt little resistance to debuting in a group then; she was just happy to debut in something permanent at all, not to mention something she could call her own.

by yura’s first words, lili wonders if she’s come to the right place, practically deflating on the spot. that was until yura continues and lili knows she’s exactly where she needed to be. aside from sarang, lili had her two options: somin or yura — both of whom had been with crystallis through thick and thin — and crystallis has been through some nasty splits but despite them, somin and yura had remained a constant. since yura had opened her door first, lili was happy to pick her brains for some well-needed crystallis tea.

sarang had been around for a while but it felt nice to have new member. everyone experienced it once but it felt good to experience it in real time with someone so, sarang found herself heading over to lili's unit with a few snacks and drinks in hand. one, it was good to push herself, bonding wouldn't help if she only interacted with her member when it came to work. two, things were made bit easier because of the fact that they trained together. sarang wouldn't call them close but they weren't strangers either. she could even member lili witnessing her bathroom break down, something she pointedly tried to forget.

lili was in the middle of a decorating crisis when a knock interrupts her thoughts. “oh thank god,” a welcome disruption as she removes her palm from her forehead and turns away from the wall in her room that lay two identical shades of burgundy of which she wanted her room painted — they were different hues, of which she was absolutely, positively sure of — but staring at them for the last half hour was beginning to make her head ache and the fumes from the drying paint did not make it any better. with a sigh, she departs for the front door, swinging it open without even glancing at the lcd screen beside it to see who had come.

she would say she didn't believe in the whole manifestation thing-- for a lot of her life, she had tried to manifest money in her mother's bank account so they didn't have to struggle, only for the cycle to repeat itself. that her sister wouldn't feel so bad about all her achievements to no avail. but... it a way it was true-- they had been talking about this, truly, not too long ago. a constant of wonder of when, and even if-- and then, now-- they were there. she can feel her body buzzing practically, and she hums, biting her bottom lip hard to prevent the squeal that wants to escape.

lili was relieved to have someone to share this with — beyond that, she was happy that someone was practically on the cusp of the same journey. just a step or two more and they’d be right there! she could practically taste it! years before, lili would have felt threatened but now, all she felt was a sense of relief that she wasn’t as alone as she had always felt before. “i’m glad you’re here with me.” she hadn’t known emi long but in the short time that she did, growing close to the other had brought a comfort she knew was irreplaceable.