Euijoo

"Nǐ hǎo," says the stranger standing in front of me.

This must be the elusive Nicholas. He arrived early. He smiles at me.

“I’m guessing you know who I am?”

“Yeah,” I say, sitting up. “Nicholas. The older brother.”

“And you're the babysitter,” he says matter-of-factly. “Sorry to wake you up.”

“It’s okay,” I mumble sleepily, dragging a hand down my face.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be my age,” he says. “How old are you?”

“Seventeen,” I reply. “Senior.”

He nods. “Me too.”

“I’m the neighbor, by the way. I live next door.”

He looks intrigued and gestures toward the houses on either side.

“Jo lives at the end of the cul-de-sac,” I tell him. “I’m on the other side.” I point toward my house.

He suddenly comes closer and sits right next to me on the couch. He’s too close, so I scoot over a little.

“Are you busy?” He asks.

I stare at him, confused. I was just woken up by you, and it’s the middle of the night. I should still be sleeping.

“Do you mind showing me around the house?” he asks. “Since you’re familiar with it?”

He scoots over again, filling the space between us.