Complete Private Playing With Fire

[Yugam]

Already lost in whatever fuckery was going on between himself and Dayeon, Ari hardly heard Val as he lifted his phone to show Dayeon. "Wait really?" he said to Val throwing her a cursory, but curious, glance. "All over then, huh?"

"Ha, ha-ha. Looks like you also got the same error too," Dayeon finally said after having stared at Ari's phone for a bit too long.
"I somehow doubt that its an error, D," Ari said with a slight frown. He hadn't even heard of an error like this happening before. And its not like DNA could lie either.

"Well, this answered absolutely nothing."
"Uh, well...for us, this just created more questions."
"That's definitely one way to put it," Ari said chipped in before handing Val his phone, the relatives tab still open. "Unless you tell us both we're hallucinating or something, I think I'm gonna go break out the hard stuff."

@Luthien | @Lune

 

[Luthien]

An amused snort escaped her as Dayeon mentioned going back to school if she wanted to read things, the blonde shaking her head as she spoke. "Don’t bother with it, nothing there that you haven’t learned on your own by now." Unless her unnie suddenly wanted to become a doctor or something she certainly didn’t need to go back into the hell that was the education system.

Bless the internet really.

"Wait really? All over then, huh?"
"Mhmm, guess I’m Miss Worldwide instead—"

She’d been distracted enough by her own results to have missed the tension growing on the table, finally looking away from them to ask about the missing Middle Eastern part in his, only to be greeted by the sight of his phone being held in Dayeon’s direction. "You two alright…?" One eyebrow rose quizzically as she stared at the two Asians in the room, her gaze shifting from her boyfriend to the idol and back.

"Ha, ha-ha. Looks like you also got the same error too."
"Whatcha mean by ‘error’?"
"I somehow doubt that it's an error, D."

While her own results had been decidedly uninteresting—save for the absurdly high Italian heritage that answered none of the questions she held—it wasn’t hard to notice that wasn’t the same for the other two. The bemused look she gave Ari was answered by the man handing his unlocked device over, before mentioning he was gonna go break out the hard stuff.

"Look I know Genghis Khan got around, but that was like aaageees ag—" She’d read the unexpected stories users had shared after doing one of these kits, the tales themselves had been what prompted Valeria to suggest this out after all, but the blonde hadn’t actually expected one of them to play out between them. "—ooh…?"

Her eyes had quickly fallen on the ‘Close Relatives (1)’ tab in Ari’s phone, the name of a rather well known idol clearly displayed underneath it. "Oh." The ‘46% DNA shared’ underneath her name was impossible to miss too, which meant they didn’t share just one parent… with the app being kind enough to label Dee as his sister.

"Y-Yeah… the hard stuff sounds good."

@Dayeon | @Ari

 

[Lune]

"Mhmm, guess I’m Miss Worldwide instead—"

The woman was too deep in thought to react to anything else. It was then when Ari passed the phone to his girlfriend Dayeon quickly added in response to what was happening.

"Oh."

"Yes." She deadpanned, before yelling to the man who's bringing the stuff out for them "I don't drink but I'll take the hard stuff, just this once."

While waiting for the drink, she tapped her fingers restlessly on the table.

"I mean, there's always a chance of human error, right?" Trying to inhale some copium, Dayeon shuffled through the possible 'errors' that might be happening here in order to calm herself. "Contaminated sample, mixed DNA, or things like that."

No matter how much she backed and entered the page, the same result still appeared there. The idol buried her face in her hands, facepalming on top of the table.

She grunted. raising her head to look at Valeria.

"I am feeling a lot of different emotions pouring inside of me. Is this what they call 'cringe'?"

@Ari | @Valeria

 

[Yugam]

Ari would've continued on with the Worldwide jokes if the only slightly concerning matters that were currently plaguing himself and Dayeon weren't becoming more and more real feeling by the second.

"Look I know Genghis Khan got around, but that was like aaageees ag—" Val trailed off, finally realizing it apparently wasn't just Genghis Khan who had been around the block a few times. "Mm," came Ari's slightly annoyed hum, the kind that usually indicated he was thinking.

"I mean, there's always a chance of human error, right?" Dayeon said, hoping against hope that there was some kind of mistake, like the universe wasn't the type to fuck them both in the ass and then tell them they should be grateful. "Contaminated sample, mixed DNA, or things like that."

"I mean, sure, but the chances are astronomically low," Ari said, pulling out a bottle of whiskey from one of the cabinets. "That being said, I guess there was also an astronomically low chance of us ever having met you in the first place. Or of all us just happening to play Terra. So I guess if there was ever a time for an implausible possibility, it would be now."

Ari came back to the table with three glasses and the whiskey, pouring a couple fingers into each before setting the bottle down with a thud and sliding the glasses towards the other two. "Wait a second, are you implying you don't want me as your brother?" Ari added flatly, making it difficult to tell whether or not he was joking.

@Luthien | @Lune

 

[Luthien]

It was clear Dayeon was still in the denial phase, though the blonde could hardly blame her unnie about it considering… well, everything really. "Contaminated sample, mixed DNA, or things like that." Highly unlikely considering they’d shipped their samples from different parts of the USA, even the samples of Ari and Val had been packed in their own individual boxes before being shipped out.

Ari’s voice gave life to the thoughts she’d left unspoken, the sound of cabinet doors opening and closing echoing from the kitchen. "R-Right, we’ve already fucked over a bunch of statistical probabilities… So what's one more?" A hand reached towards Dayeon’s back, softly rubbing small circles to comfort her, before the woman finally lifted her head enough to look at the blonde.

"I am feeling a lot of different emotions pouring inside of me. Is this what they call 'cringe'?"
"Mmm… I’m not sure if ‘cringe’ is the right word for this."

She’d seen first hand how deep the feelings of Dayeon had been back then, so Valeria could only imagine the turmoil that her unnie was currently in after the unexpected news. At least it was all in-game…? Thoughts she once again didn’t place into words, and the sound of glasses clinking against the table soon pulled her attention towards her boyfriend.

Three glasses awaited them, each having a generous amount of whiskey poured inside. The blonde carefully picked up two of them, one of which was placed in front of Dayeon, before she raised an eyebrow towards Ari as he spoke.

@Dayeon | @Ari

 

[Lune]

"R-Right, we’ve already fucked over a bunch of statistical probabilities… So what's one more?"

"That's not reassuring." The idol shook her head while sporting a small smile, looking at Val as she rubbed her back.

"Wait a second, are you implying you don't want me as your brother?"

Dayeon shrugged. "I would have preferred to find out about this before things happened."

She looked at the whiskey and the three glasses before her hand slowly took one. Never been a fan of alcoholic drinks, but maybe for today....

"Which, we should just agree just to wipe it off our collective memories." Raising her shot glass, she invited the other two to a toast, before downing the alcohol in one go. It came down rather smoothly. "I am happy, though. More especially because it's you."

Who knew that warm feeling was just somehow recognizing your own blood and being comfortable in each other's company? "Halmeoni would've been delighted if she was still alive." She definitely never found out before she died, and would be really happy if she knew Dayeon had at least one family left in this world to take care of her.

Placing the glass back on the table, Dayeon scratched the back of her head, looking around back and forth toward Ari and Val. Her face slowly turned red, as the effect of the alcohol started to kick in.

"I'm still at a loss for words," She exhaled.

@Ari | @Valeria

 

[Yugam]

"I would have preferred to find out about this before things happened," Dayeon explained with a shrug as Val continued to try and comfort the older woman.
"Oh...right..." Ari murmured, a faint look of disgust on his face as he lifted his glass of whiskey and took a sip. The burning liquid sent a flood of warmth through his stomach, despite his grimacing at the taste.
"Which, we should just agree just to wipe it off our collective memories." Dayeon added before apparently knocking back an entire glass of whiskey and not just a shot. Fucking alcoholic.
"Agreed. Besides it's not like that was our fault." Whether they'd known or not at the time would have hardly made a difference in the face of hallucinogenic aphrodisiacs.

Well. On the bright side, at least Ari was related to someone famous. There were worst people in the world to be related to. That it was a friend was a blessing if nothing else. And things felt somewhat normal once the initial shock passed. Despite that, the faint buzz of anxiety still crawled beneath Ari's skin, and the man pressed his leg against Val's in search of comfort.

"Halmeoni?" Ari echoed, not recognizing the word. "What's that mean?"

@Luthien | @Lune

 

[Luthien]

"That's not reassuring."
"Look, I tried okay?"

An apologetic smile was given to the idol, but she was glad to see that between Ari and her they’d been able to get the older woman to smile a bit… and then the elephant in the room was dragged forefront and center. If there was ever a time for drinking it was definitely today. She’d love nothing more than to forget it had ever happened, but there probably wasn't a drink strong enough to wipe her memory clean of that event.

"We should just agree just to wipe it off our collective memories."
"Agreed. Besides it's not like that was our fault."
"I’ll drink to that."

The knowledge of her memory being sharper than usual when it came to in-game events didn’t stop her from toasting with Dayeon, her glass clinked with the idol’s before Val also downed the contents of hers in one go. It went down smoothly, leaving a trail of fire that paled in comparison to the buldak they’d been eating not too long ago.

Her glass was carefully placed back on the table before the girl chuckled softly, somewhat amused at all the odds they continued to defy again and again. From meeting Dayeon while in the crowd for Despacitwo, only to come across one another again within the confines of TerraSphere, and now it turned out that her boyfriend was the brother of said idol… "Man, the world really is a small place."

The leg pressing against her own brought her attention over to Ari, a soft smile on her lips before she shifted on her seat to lean in his direction. Her left hand rested atop his leg just behind his knee, giving him a comforting squeeze as she listened to their conversation.

@Dayeon | @Ari

 

[Lune]

Maybe she shouldn't have drunk a ~40% ABV glass of whiskey in one shot. But if there was a right time to drink, this probably was one. A rare occasion where there were so many wheels running inside her head that she didn't instantly slip into the usual drunken stupor after one drink.

"Halmeoni?"

"Grandmother. My—our last known living relative." She died when she entered high school, forcing Dayeon to drop out to fend for herself. "Only God knows where our parents went." It was weird even when she went on to become one of the most-known idols of the sixth generation, they never reached back to her.

Perhaps they also died. Probably the only logical reason.

"Man, the world really is a small place."

"A small and a weird place." The idol sighed, resting her head on top of her hands on the table. She opened her eyes, slowly looking at the couple back and forth. "I'm not complaining, though. Now I have two siblings instead of just one."

"Welcome to the Song family, I guess. We'll think of a Korean name for you." Pointing to Ari, she quickly added a tip. "Oh yeah, and somehow the media will find out soon about this. Prepare for the paparazzi and fangirls."

@Ari | @Valeria

 

[Yugam]

"That's not reassuring."
"Look, I tried okay?"
"Try harder," Ari teased, before taking another sip of his whiskey.

Ari paid careful attention as Dayeon began to explain not only what halmeoni had meant, but also that their parents were as much a mystery to her as they were to him. "Wait, so she's our biological grandmother?" Ari asked, sorting through the information. "And our parents just...dropped off the face of the earth? What, like they were spies or something?" At this point, even that wouldn't have surprised Ari. Weird things begot more weird things, he was beginning to learn.

"Man, the world really is a small place."
"A small and a weird place. I'm not complaining, though. Now I have two siblings instead of just one."
"Those are both starting to feel like massive understatements," Ari added.
"Welcome to the Song family, I guess. We'll think of a Korean name for you. Oh yeah, and somehow the media will find out soon about this. Prepare for the paparazzi and fangirls."
"Pfft, well if they wanna fight off an angry latina, I wish them luck," Ari joked, taking another sip of whiskey. This time, however, he could not keep the grimace of disgust off his face. "Okay, fuck this, I'm getting a mixer. You guys want anything?" he asked as he went to stand, stopping halfway. "Wait, did you say two siblings? There's another?"

@Luthien | @Lune

 

[Luthien]

While she certainly had plenty of thoughts about the matter running in her mind the blonde kept them to herself, quiet as the newly discovered siblings discussed their halmeoni and what fate could have befallen their parents. It was probably a lot of information to take in at once, and certainly far more than any of them had bargained for when the kits had been sent out weeks ago.

"I'm not complaining, though. Now I have two siblings instead of just one."

The words of the idol snapped the blonde out of her own head, the surprise in that pink hued gaze hard to miss as the meaning behind them sunk in. Despite some of the ups and downs they’d experienced Valeria truly thought of Dee as family and, although no blood tied them together, her unnie’s words made it clear that the feeling was mutually shared. Her hand reached for Dayeon’s, giving it a soft squeeze, when the words that dropped out of Ari caused a chortle to escape before Val covered her mouth.

"Wait, did you say two siblings? There's another?" She carefully nudged her glass towards him in a silent acknowledgement of his offer, currently too busy stifling her own amusement to properly answer, before her gaze shifted back to Dayeon with an unspoken question as she wondered how long it’d take for him to finally catch on.

@Dayeon | @Ari

 

[Lune]

"Wait, so she's our biological grandmother?"

"Mm-hmm, from the side of our father." Ari was a couple of years younger than her, so it's safe to say that after dropping her off with her grandmother at the age of one, they at the very least were alive to drop Ari somewhere else. "Do you remember your earliest memory?"

Disappearing like a spy was accurate, because there were never any records of them ever appearing in any part of the world, not even death records.

"Yes. I am this famous and yet no one has ever found them. At this rate, they either changed their identity or the mob put concrete shoes for them to sleep with the fishes." With how ridiculous things developed, it could be either. Though as far as she know, her parents were just normal people.

"Okay, fuck this, I'm getting a mixer. You guys want anything?"

"I'll skip. I can already feel the headache and I don't want to feel the hot sauce coming back up." Already resting her head on the table, Dayeon soon added. "Unless you have cola."

"Wait, did you say two siblings? There's another?"

She just chuckled, sporting a coy look toward Valeria before explaining to Ari. "I adopted this one last year." Lune pointed to the blonde.

@Ari | @Valeria

 

[Yugam]

Ari shook his head at Dayeon's question. "Not really. It's a black void that far back, but I was adopted pretty young, so..." Ari shrugged. Aside from the amnesia, Ari still couldn't be certain if he'd have any memories from far back enough to be relevant. "What's yours?" he asked his now-sister.

On the point of their parent possibly dining with Davy Jones though, Ari was again uncertain whether or not Dayeon was joking or not. Ari's brow shot upwards as he asked, "Are you being serious? We're not gonna have enforcers coming to bust our kneecaps anytime soon are we?" Because that was one more thing Ari needed to worry about right now.

At the mention of some cola, Ari nodded. "Ask and you shall receive," he said as he went to the fridge and got three cans, noticing the way Val began to stifle a laugh. "What?" Dayeon joined in the laughter, before pointing at Val. "I hate you both."

@Luthien | @Lune

 

[Luthien]

She’d remained quiet throughout most of the exchange, unwilling to butt her mouth into the conversation as Ari caught up on the status of the family he’d never known. A grandma that had passed away, and parents that had been missing long enough that not even Dayeon knew much of them. She’d hoped he would eventually find them, but Val hadn’t expected that solving the mystery would yield more questions than answers.

"At this rate, they either changed their identity or the mob put concrete shoes for them to sleep with the fishes."
"Are you being serious? We're not gonna have enforcers coming to bust our kneecaps anytime soon are we?"
"Yeah, I’d rather deal with a bunch of paparazzi instead of the fucking mafia."

She’d rather be shot by a camera than a gun, thank you.

A couple of chuckles finally escaped her as Ari returned to the table with three cans of cola, the look on his face priceless as Dayeon clarified what she’d meant. The finger that now pointed towards her was met by her index and thumb as the blonde emoted a small heart, tongue sticking out before she retorted. "Sucks to suck, ‘cause you’re stuck with the both of us~"

@Dayeon | @Ari

 

[Lune]

"Hmm, we're outta clue, then." Too bad, it seemed like Ari doesn't even have memories of his birth parent. "What's yours?" Dayeon shook her head, not recalling anything that could be a hint about their parent's disappearance. "Nothing important that comes to my mind."

"Yeah, I’d rather deal with a bunch of paparazzi instead of the fucking mafia."

"Trust me, once you get into the spotlight, you'll wish that those camera flashes were muzzle flashes."

She might be joking, but as a celebrity, you feel like you instantly lose all privacy, and there are always people following your every move.

"Thank you," Grabbing one can of the cola, she promptly opened one and drank the soda a bit, before pouring half a glass shot of cola into her own glass. The idol then took the whiskey bottle and offered to pour another shot into Val and Ari's glasses and then filled hers.

"I'll ponder about all of this later when my mind is clearer. For now..."

She raised the shot glass up and forward, inviting the other two to tap the glasses all together with a small smile.

"... how about another toast?"

@Ari | @Valeria