seven.

                                    

                                          
"You look much more lively today," I told Kitty on our way to the Outdoors club hike. She'd had a skip in her step all morning.
"I feel lively." She smiled with all her teeth. "Florian and Q are doing well, I'm going to see Dae, and there's a half-sibling of mine somewhere in this country. Maybe they're even in this city." She looked at me with wide, happy eyes. "It's all so exciting!"
Kitty didn't need to verbalize the euphoria she felt when she radiated it already, which was why I didn't feel like dampening the mood with my thoughts about her half-sibling; that I felt attempting to seek them out on her own to reveal the truth was a mistake.
While it had been fleeting, it was the first thing that had come to mind when we found the baby bracelet in her mom's diary last night. Discovering such a thing about her mother was a thrilling experience for her, and it had put her in a certain mood for a while last night. We'd even called my mom to ask her if she knew anything about it, but unfortunately she didn't.
This happened years before we even knew each other, she'd told us, and Eve never mentioned anything about another kid besides you three girls.
Perhaps there was a reason why.
"You look so cute," Madison complimented as soon as she saw me, "especially with the little bows to match."
It was rude to talk over Q's speech but I couldn't not acknowledge her kind words. "Thanks, Madison, you look very chic as well." She struck a pose in response which I assumed was her way to say thanks.
"All right, let's get started with some stretches."
"Hi," Marius greeted once it was okay to talk. "I see you're going all in as usual, with the tracksuit and braids and all."
I had definitely stuck closer to the dress code than most of the other students present, but only because I liked to follow the dress code to the T. The braids were a poor attempt to keep the hair out of my face when I currently donned a bob, but I tried to do as much as I could for the hike. Even if I was bound to be a sweaty mess by the time we were done, I'd still like to look as put together as possible.
"If you're going to do something, you should do it right," I answered while stretching as instructed, my eyes drawn toward where Kitty was talking to Daeheon.
"Very you." He nodded as his eyes followed where I was looking. "You came here for Kitty, didn't you?"
"I felt like we hadn't done anything together since we came here. I guess this will be the same."
I was saddened watching her and Daeheon from afar. She was trying so hard to be close to him when he was clearly in need of some space. Perhaps if she could give him some room to breathe, he'd realize her absence and approach her on his own. Kitty could also find some time to focus more on school and adjusting to being in Korea. Not to mention, it must be worrying for Yuri that another girl was constantly scheming to be close to her boyfriend, fake or not.
"Hey! Kitty or no Kitty, hiking is still great for you," Marius pointed out. "You could even manage to get yourself a fraction of this if you're lucky." 
He flexed his muscles before scooping me up, making me laugh from the giddiness of being closer to the sky for even a few seconds.
"All right." The drawled declaration caught my attention as Marius set me down. "Who's ready to go on a," Minho's voice grew quieter as his eyes met mine, "hike?"
"Oh!" Madison's exclamation had all eyes swinging toward her, which she redirected to Minho and I by pointing her finger between us to and fro. "You two are matching. It's like a couples outfit!"