finnerty?

⋆ 𐙚 ̊.CHAPTER 11 ✶⋆.˚

🇽​​🇴​, ​🇪​​🇻​​🇪​​🇱​​🇾​​🇳

BY THE TIME Evelyn returned to the dorm, Minho had gone off somewhere on his own, leaving her with more questions than answers. The air was still thick with unresolved tension, but for now, she had other things to focus on.

She found Q sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone with a dreamy smile.

"So," she plopped down beside him. "How was the big movie date?"

Q's grin widened. "Perfect. We watched the movie, shared popcorn, and I think he totally knew I was flirting."

Evelyn smirked. "That's progress."

Before Q could respond, the door swung open, and Kitty stepped inside, looking more serious than usual.

"I need to tell you guys something," she said, shutting the door behind her.

Evelyn exchanged a glance with Q before sitting up straighter. "What happened?"

Kitty took a deep breath. "I went to the hospital today."

Q frowned. "Why?"

Kitty pulled a small piece of paper from her pocket and unfolded it carefully. "I found information about the baby bracelet—the one that fell out of my mom's diary."

Evelyn's eyebrows shot up. "Wait, the baby bracelet?"

Kitty nodded, her eyes searching theirs as if willing them to understand the gravity of what she was about to say. "I was right. The records show that the baby was adopted... by Australian parents."

Silence stretched between them before Q blinked, connecting the dots. "And...?"

Kitty hesitated for only a second before saying it out loud. "Our chemistry professor, Professor Finnerty... He was adopted by Australian parents."

Evelyn's heart pounded. "Are you saying—"

Kitty nodded, barely able to contain the whirlwind of emotions flooding her. "I think he might be my stepbrother."

Q sat up, rubbing his temples. "Okay, what?"

"The facts add up!" Kitty insisted, eyes alight with newfound certainty. "It makes sense. Why else would he be here at KISS? Maybe he's looking for answers too. Maybe... maybe we're meant to find each other."

Evelyn chewed on her bottom lip, trying to ground Kitty's excitement with a dose of realism. "Kitty... this could be a huge coincidence. A lot of Korean kids were adopted by Australian families."

"But my mom kept that bracelet for a reason," Kitty countered, her voice thick with conviction. "I think she always intended to find him one day."

Q sighed, carefully choosing his words. "Look, you could be right, but if you're wrong? That's a lot to put on him. You're not just telling him that you might be his sister, you're also dropping the bomb that his birth mom is... gone."

Evelyn nodded, placing a gentle hand on Kitty's arm. "You need to be sure, Kitty. You don't want to give him hope only to rip it away. This isn't something you can take back once it's out there."

Kitty swallowed hard, glancing at the paper in her hands as if it held all the answers. "I know. I just—" she exhaled sharply, her voice dropping to a whisper, "I feel like it's him. I don't know how to explain it, but I just know."

Before anyone could say anything else, the door flew open again, the sound of footsteps and laughter spilling into the dorm, signaling the return of their other roommates.

Minho and Dae strode into the dorm, their laughter fading the moment they noticed the tense atmosphere. Minho arched an eyebrow, tossing his bag onto his bed. "Okay... what did we miss? Why do you all look like you just saw a ghost?"

Dae's expression shifted to concern as he glanced between Evelyn, Q, and Kitty. "Is everything okay?"

Evelyn sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Kitty went to the hospital today."

Minho crossed his arms. "What? Are you sick?"

Kitty shook her head. "No, nothing like that. I was looking up something important."

Dae sat down, sensing the gravity in her tone. "What did you find?"

Kitty inhaled deeply, her hands tightening around the piece of paper she still held. "I found records about the baby bracelet that fell from my mom's diary. The baby was adopted by Australian parents."

Dae's brow furrowed, but Minho was the first to react. "Okay... and?"

Kitty looked directly at them, her voice quiet but firm. "Professor Finnerty was also adopted by Australian parents."

Minho blinked, then scoffed. "Wait, hold on. Are you seriously saying you think our chemistry professor is your long-lost brother?"

Kitty squared her shoulders. "I don't think—I know. I can feel it."

Minho let out a short laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. "Kitty, you can't just go around deciding people are related to you because of a feeling. That's not how DNA works."

Dae, on the other hand, leaned forward. "But if the records match... it's not impossible."

"Thank you!" Kitty said, throwing him a grateful look.

Evelyn sighed. "No one's saying it's impossible, but we're saying you need proof before you bring this up to him."

Minho exhaled loudly, rubbing his temples. "This is ridiculous. Do you even know how many Korean kids were adopted by Australian families? It's not exactly a rare thing."

Kitty crossed her arms. "Then why is he here? At KISS? Out of all the places in the world, he ended up at the same school as me. What if he's searching for answers too?"

Minho opened his mouth to argue, but Dae spoke first. "I think the bigger question is... what do you want to do with this information?"

Kitty hesitated. "I don't know. I want to talk to him. I want to know for sure. But... I don't want to get my hopes up."

Evelyn placed a hand on her shoulder. "Then let's figure this out the right way. No assumptions. No jumping to conclusions. Let's find real proof before you say anything."

Kitty looked around at her friends, each of them watching her with a mix of concern and support. Finally, she nodded. "Okay. You're right. I'll get proof first."

Minho threw his hands in the air. "Finally, some common sense."

Dae smiled gently. "We'll help however we can."

Kitty let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Thanks, guys."

Evelyn nodded. "We're in this together."

Minho rolled his eyes. "Great. Another mystery. Just what we needed."

Despite his sarcasm, there was an unspoken agreement in the room: whatever came next, they would face it together.

ruka:

short filler part again, js bec I wanted to double update haha. next part's going to be chuseok so be ready for all the drama hahahaha