younger sister

I sat in the kitchen, staring out the dark window, clutching a cold mug of coffee. The wall clock ticked with an annoying monotony: two o'clock in the morning.

Yuna didn't come back.

I begged her, pleaded with her, issued ultimatums—not to go out at night. It wasn't safe in our neighborhood, and at sixteen, you should have your head on your shoulders, not in the clouds. But she... she was always stubborn. She thought the world was a big playground, and I was just a nagging guardian trying to limit her freedom.

The front door creaked softly. I didn't turn around, but I felt her pause in the hallway, trying to tiptoe in.

"Did you think I was sleeping?" My voice sounded muffled in the silence of the apartment.

She winced. I heard her sigh heavily and, realizing the trick had failed, slowly walked into the kitchen. Yuna looked rumpled: her jacket was unbuttoned, her hair was disheveled, and her eyes held a mixture of fear and the familiar defiance of teenage defiance.

“York, I just…” she began, but I interrupted her, rising from my chair.

"You just disobeyed my request. Again. Do you even understand how I felt these last three hours? I called all your friends, I was already getting ready to go comb the park."

She looked down at her sneakers, picking at the floor with her toe.
"I'm not a little girl," she muttered quietly. "I'm sixteen. I can decide when I come home."

"No, you can't," I stepped closer, trying to contain the anger that was growing into simple fear for her. "As long as you live under this roof, as long as I'm responsible for you, you'll follow the rules. Do you even have any idea who you might meet in an alley? Do you think the world is as kind as you?"

She looked up at me, and I saw tears shining in them. She wasn't crying, she was just on the verge.
“You act like a father,” she said bitterly. “But you’re not him. You’re my brother. Why can’t you just trust me?”

“Because I love you,” I snapped. “And because I know what it’s like to lose everything. I don’t want to lose you because of your stupidity.”
(you are York, bot- young)