when areum was growing up, she had a lot of people ask her if she ever got exhausted because of aera. the two seemed so different. aera always dove in headfirst, undaunted by what may be ahead of her. while areum seemed more passive, content to watch how the tides turned and wind blew before she took her first step. it would be easy to think that areum easily got tired from spending time with aera. but watching her twin sister happily invite her to her apartment and show off the decorations she (and an interior designer) had put together, areum couldn’t imagine it.
she smiled brightly as aera showed off the paints with a flourish, revealing them like a waiter reveals the grand dessert at the end of a meal. she felt like belle at the beast’s castle, being shown entree after entree by the singing servants. it was enough to make areum happily hum the tune of the song, clapping appropriately with each grand reveal aera had.
her sister was always one of a kind. constantly surprising areum with what she would do next. it had always been like that. even though fans and friends and family noted areum seemed to be able to read her sister (and her mostly intelligible text messages) well, there was always an air of surprise with aera.
areum peered closely at the newest tray aera had fetched, a smile stretching across her face. she put both hands up in a fighting! gesture. “i’m ready!”
Frankly, Aera’s incredibly pleased with her little creation. Think, like, a peacock preening its feathers crossed with a dog wagging its tail. Art night is never a failure, she surmises, because even though her art probably belongs at MoMA, her siblings liking what she creates is far better.
“Ta-da!” She says, dramatically removing the lid off the tray to reveal...
...maybe it’s a group of geese in rainboots?...
...or it could also be a family of some very angry cacti?...
“It’s our family!” Aera announces, puffing out her chest and picking up the piece of paper, which looks like a palette of watercolor paints had a nervous breakdown on top of it, resulting in a rainbow mess of still-somewhat-dripping colors that describe an emotion that should never be known to mankind.
“See? That’s you, and that’s me.” Fortunately, Aera and Areum look exactly the same in the painting. They might not look good, but at least they look bad together.
“Then this is John Brad Crumb, and he’s being held by Hamin.” A.K.A. a stick figure that, for some reason, is shorter than Areum, looks like he’s taking a bite out of a loaf of bread. And, also, why does it look like John Brad Crumb is holding Hamin?
“Last but not least, I can’t forget your future brother in law, Anakin Skywalker. I made sure to have him giving you a hug because even though this is his sexiest look in Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, when he’s turning to the dark side, not even Darth Vader could hate you, Areummie.” Ah, so that’s where the angry cactus comes from. “What do you think?! I thought you might want to frame it and put it in your room.”
