The studio apartment does little to filter out obnoxious sounds beyond the walls when a harsh knocking on her door wakes Tiffany up from her well-needed slumber. The door opens to reveal a strawberry blonde with her back straight and with both arms hugging a clipboard.

"Hello, are you Tiffany Hwang?" The girl perkily asks.

"Ah... Yes I am... And you are?" Tiffany replies hesitantly at the stranger in front of her.

Tiffany's eyes scan the woman within a millisecond. In her arms held a clipboard and she was dressed in professional yet comfortable-looking clothing.

Not another solicitor. Tiffany groaned in her thoughts.

"My name is Jessica. It's great to meet you! We had a session scheduled for twelve-thirty?" The woman - Jessica - answers with a burdensome amount of enthusiasm for only a few minutes after midnight.

Tiffany's head tilts in confusion. She had just woken up to the sound of her door being knocked on at a time of day where there shouldn't be any visitors. More so that she wasn't expecting any.

"Session?" She mumbles.

"Yes, you signed up for a CuddleBuddiez service a few days ago with express scheduling for today at 12:30am. It's fine if the session slipped your mind," Jessica says as her large eyes locked onto Tiffany's. "However, I am still your cuddler for tonight. Let's get started with the paperwork, shall we?"

The woman then brushes past Tiffany into her apartment without a need for invitation and makes herself comfortable on the couch. Tiffany, still half asleep, shook her head in attempt to ward away some of the grogginess that was left in her after the abrupt awakening.

She turns, facing Jessica and says, "Listen, I don't know what you're talking about but I didn't sign up for whatever..." her voice trails as she makes sloppy gestures with the hand that wasn't holding onto the doorknob, "this is."

Jessica sat herself down in the middle of the couch and placed the clipboard on the glass top of the coffee table in front of her. She turned her body to face the squinting girl that was in her pajamas and bunny slippers.

"I'm not sure if you're trying to get rid of me or just have a really bad memory because on my schedule it lists you as my first client and this address," Jessica patiently explained, "is where I was supposed to show up for a twelve-thirty session. You said so yourself that you are Tiffany Hwang, am I incorrect?"

Tiffany groaned, "Look, lady, I don't know who you are or whatever service you are about to provide but I just need some sleep because I have work tomorrow. Will you leave or should I just call the cops?"

"I apologize, Tiffany - if I may call you that - but you already paid for the service. It would be wrong of me to leave," the infuriating woman replied slowly.

With a huff of indignity, Tiffany asked, "What service did you say this was again?"

"CuddleBuddiez. We're cuddlers for hire."

Then it hit Tiffany.

Did you know that there were such things as professional cuddlers? The amused voice replayed in the brunette's mind. You should probably get one. It will do some good for those wrinkles forming on your forehead.

Tiffany was definitely awake now.

Taeyeon. That god forsaken oompa loompa took it upon herself to hire a professional cuddler for her? The nerve of some people. Tiffany quickly ransacked her brain for ideas on how to get rid of the lady without seeming too rude.

"Ah!" Tiffany exclaimed. "I remember now."

Jessica's eyes lit up, hearing this. She nodded her head eagerly.

"But - ah - unfortunately I'm too embarrassed in my current state to have you-" Tiffany coughed, "-cuddle me. Go home today and I will reschedule a session some other time."

"Ah ah," Jessica said as she slowly stood. "We have a 'no canceling' policy after you've scheduled a session and paid for it."

The shorter girl took slow strides to get to Tiffany's side and as she spoke with her frustratingly calm voice, Tiffany found it hard to focus anywhere but her plush lips that shone with its peach colored lip gloss.

Tiffany frowned, "What kind of policy is that?"

"Ours," Jessica replied. "Also, I'm sure you have read the terms of agreement beforehand before you had made an appointment, am I wrong?"

Tiffany panicked a bit, "No no, of course I read the terms of agreement." She breathed a forced laugh.

"Good," Jessica said as she pulled the doorknob from Tiffany's death grip and closed the door. "Let's look at the paperwork now."

Tiffany with no choice but to follow the cuddler to her makeshift living space. Jessica sat herself down and pulled the clipboard from the table to hand it to the now seated Tiffany.

"Please read over this agreement and all I'll need is a signature from you at the bottom," Jessica said.

Tiffany skimmed the paper and noticed that it seemed to emphasize a professional relationship with nothing of romantic or ual nature.

The girl was, again, patiently waiting for Tiffany to finish reading and sign the paper when the frustrated girl let out a sigh and asked, "Remind me, how long of a session did I sign up for?"

Remembering that she had read and reread through her first-ever client's request, Jessica recited, "It's an eight-hour service with an overnight stay."

Of course, Tiffany inwardly groaned. Leave it to Taeyeon to not only get her a professional cuddler but schedule it for overnight as well.

"I see," said Tiffany.

"This should be signed as soon as you finish reading, it's already 12:35 and you haven't told me about the arrangement yet," commented Jessica as she eyed the profile of the girl in front of her.

Tiffany raised an eyebrow at the seemingly impatient comment but said nothing as she dragged the pen across the paper, signing her name. The moment the pen lifted from the paper, Jessica was already reorganizing her stationary to be pushed far from the coffee table.

"So where did you want to do this?" asked Jessica.

"What?" Tiffany mumbled as she blankly stared at the papers she had just signed, wondering where her sanity had vacationed off to.

"Where are we having the session?" Jessica elaborates. "Here on this couch, your bed, or elsewhere?"

"Ah..." Tiffany sighs after remembering that this was, indeed, an overnight session. "Let's just do it on this couch."

Jessica was already shifting her position to become more comfortable as Tiffany said so. After she was settled, she looked at Tiffany expectingly.

"Ah. Um... yeah. You want me to lie down?" Tiffany asked.

With amused eyes, Jessica answered, "That would be the purpose of my services, Tiffany."

"O-okay," stuttered Tiffany as she slowly brought herself down on the couch next to the cuddler.

When Jessica wrapped her arms around Tiffany, spooning her and bringing her closer to fit both of their bodies on the rather narrow couch, Tiffany immediately felt a shiver run up her spine when her body fitted into Jessica's like a puzzle piece. She stiffened in an attempt to ward the unwelcomed feeling away.

Tiffany wasn't able to think of the last time she was held like this by someone. Her family was halfway across the globe in Korea and her last relationship was Taeyeon.

They ended on good terms, they were just too busy to see each other. They also agreed that there were no longer sparks when the two met up together, so they decided to part ways as lovers but remained close friends.

Taeyeon seemed to realize that Tiffany, after a year of their breakup, was buried far too deep under her work as a handbag designer.

Thus, Jessica was called.

"Tell me about how you got this job," mumbled Tiffany as she snuggled deeper into Jessica's embrace. She tried her best to break the awkward tension in the air, creeping up the back of .

She felt an inaudible sigh on the back of her neck and she shivered a bit.

"Well, my friend's cousin runs this service. I needed a job and they said I would be a good fit for a cuddler so they offered a position to me," replied Jessica. "I took it right away because I love the idea of being a companion for someone in need."

The apartment was soaked in silence for a while until Tiffany pulled away from Jessica's embrace.

"Would you like some water?" asked Tiffany nervously as she stood from the couch, already feeling the chill of the rather empty studio hit her back.

"No thank you."

Jessica sat up from her position on the couch. Her eyes followed Tiffany's hurried figure as the said girl pours herself a glass of filtered water. Tiffany didn't know why she was suddenly so affected by the feeling of the stranger's arms wrapped around herself. She didn't hate it. God, no, she loved the idea. However, the thought of being trapped in someone's warm embrace was so foreign to her that she felt herself heat up at the thought alone. Even her past relationship with Taeyeon was endearingly innocent. They've held hands as they went on walks and hugged as goodbyes but Tiffany hadn't even been kissed before.

Thinking that she had kept Jessica waiting for too long, she quickly took the last gulp of water in one mouthful and returned to the couch, only to find Jessica in her tank top. She spluttered a bit of un-swallowed water back out and it splattered hazardously around on the floor. Immediately, the embarrassing gurgles caught the cuddler's attention and she turned to find Tiffany spitting water and coughing violently, hunching and grabbing at her chest.

"Tiffany!" exclaimed Jessica as she made her way over to the wheezing girl.

"I'm fine," Tiffany hoarsely said. "I'm fine."

Jessica's hand smoothened her back and patted her. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Tiffany nodded rapidly.

She started wiping with the back of her hand when Jessica abruptly caught her wrist. The slightly shorter girl was staring at Tiffany's lips – no – chin.

"You missed a spot," said Jessica matter-of-factly as she brushed her thumb over the stray droplet.

Oh.

"Ah– thanks," said Tiffany softly.

They stared at each other for a moment before Jessica broke the contact and walked toward the couch again. "Well, who knew that Fany Fany Tiffany would be so bad at swallowing things," she teased with a twinkle in her eye.

"Wait, what?"

Horror dawned on Jessica when she realized the innuendos in her words. "No no no! I didn't mean it like that!" She waved her hands, arms outstretched, toward Tiffany. "I– well, um. I didn't–"

"It's okay," Tiffany laughed. "I wasn't asking about that. I meant 'Fany Fany Tiffany.'"

"Ah," sighed Jessica, relieved. "It was written in on the 'nicknames I would like to be called' part of your app. You entered it in, did you forget that too?"

"I did? HAHA, oh yeah. I did," said Tiffany through gritted teeth. Now she really was contemplating on seriously throwing Taeyeon off a bridge.

Jessica nodded, and thankfully Tiffany's forced laughter went unnoticed. Jessica gestured at the bed. "Would you like to move this session? Oh, and I hope you don't mind that I took off my blouse. It was getting a bit hot in here."

"I should turn down the temperature a bit, shouldn't I?" Tiffany stated rather than asked and turned the knob of the thermostat so that the temperature was lowered a few degrees. "Also... yeah. Let's move to the bed so that there's a bit more room."

"Sure."

A silence overtook them as they climbed onto the bed with Jessica taking the lead. Tiffany gathered up as much courage as she had and asked, "Can I be the big spoon this time?"

Slightly startled, Jessica answered, "I don't see why not."

Tiffany laid herself down on her side and snuggled into the sheets as she tried to get comfortable. She noticed the other being in the room watching her every move. "How about some music?" The brunette asked as she reached for the remote on her nightstand.

With a click, soft melodies filled the room from the stereo that was at the foot of the bed and under the mounted TV. Tiffany laid down and outstretched her arm as an invitation for the young woman to lay in. Jessica scooted herself closer and did just that. As an effort to be less awkward, Tiffany tentatively wrapped her free arm around the woman's small frame. The strawberry blonde moved the arm lower on her body to wrap around her waist instead as she tried to get comfortable.

Her tank top had ridden up a bit without either of them noticing and Tiffany let out a gasp when her hand grazed the other's stomach, bare skin to bare skin. The cuddler - er cuddlee as of the moment? - seemed less jumpy about the ordeal and casually pulled her tank top down as Tiffany hovered her hand above to avoid getting caught in the fabric.

"Sorry," apologized Tiffany. "I didn't mean to." She placed her hand down back on the now clothed stomach.

"Don't worry about it."

Her arm was dangling loosely above the stomach, unsure of whether to hug the other woman closer or to politely keep her hand at a centimeter distance. However, Jessica made the decision for her and pushed the hand closer to her body. She kept the hand in hers and snuggled closer to Tiffany, causing the big spoon's face to heat up.

"Do you want to talk a little bit? Break the silence a little," offered Jessica.

"Not really. I'm not much of a talker. Sorry," replied Tiffany, honestly answering the question.

"That's okay. I'll be quiet."

"I'm kind of tired too, might as well try to get some sleep," mumbled Tiffany as she nuzzled her nose into the back of Jessica's neck.

Jessica hummed and closed her eyes.

 

It was thirty minutes later when Tiffany realized that she was still awake, but her arm fast asleep. The even breathing coming from the woman she had her arm wrapped around told her that she was sleeping peacefully. Tiffany had been inhaling the scent from the other being - a soft mix of roses and pomegranate.

The sleeping woman shifted her body to face Tiffany with her fast asleep face. Pins and needles immediately shot through Tiffany's arm and she stifled an uncomfortable cry. Jessica grinded her teeth once or twice as if she was eating something and smacked her lips. A small smile adorned Tiffany's face and she suppressed a laugh that was making its way out of , completely forgetting the static-y feeling that was running up and down her arm.

Her eyes drunk in all the features of the other woman that were visible. Soft eyes, a straight nose, plush lips, and silky skin all fitting together like puzzle pieces for an incredible beauty.

Before she knew it, Tiffany's hand reached up on its own and brushed a stray strand of hair out of Jessica's face. Her fingers traced down Jessica's jaw, hovering a centimeter above her face lest she wake the sleeping beauty. She laid there and watched the girl's mouth curve up in a smile.

Probably a good dream, thought Tiffany. She's over there dreaming butterflies and rainbows while I'm stuck here not able to sleep.

The sleeping woman her back and mumbled a few Hi's and How are you's. Tiffany just smiled at her acts and took a deep breath. She moved to rest her cheek on the other's shoulder but instead the cuddler reached out and wrapped her arm around Tiffany's head, pulling her closer.

Damn, even her armpit smells good, Tiffany thought.

She looked up at her captor and blinked rapidly every time the woman's breath hits her face. Feeling uncomfortable in the current position, she slowly tried to back out from the intense grip that Jessica had on her neck. However, the movement was too much for Jessica made a couple noises and woke up from the other who was trying to wiggle free.

Immediately she let go when she realized that she had hugged Tiffany's head in an awkward way. "Sorry," she mumbled in her half-asleep state. 

"All good," replied Tiffany as she stood from the bed. "Do you want to get under the blankets? It's getting a little cold."

"Yeah, sure."

Jessica stood up as Tiffany was flipping the covers open and both of them climbed back in, covering themselves with the sheets. The soft music was still bouncing off the walls of the studio and they laid there in melodic silence.

Tiffany was first to break the silence when she said, "You know, I actually didn't hire you. My stupid best friend did."

Jessica turned and faced the other woman. "Really?"

"Yeah," affirmed Tiffany. "But now, I don't mind it. I actually appreciate that she did this for me. She knew exactly what I needed."

"Come here," Jessica said and opened her arms up to invite the brunette in.

Tiffany immediately responded by scooting her body flush against Jessica's. Heat was traded from warm body to warm body. Jessica the brown locks and twirled it around her fingers.

"I really like it when people play with my hair," revealed Tiffany. "I just don't have anybody to do it for me anymore."

Jessica hummed and said, "Try to get some sleep, okay princess?"

Princess?

"Was that one of the nicknames too?" Tiffany braced herself for the answer, maybe she will throw Taeyeon off that bridge. With a rock tied to her ankle. Yeah.

"No," Jessica said, surprising the other. "It just felt... right."

"Oh."

"But yeah, try to sleep some, okay? You said that you have work tomorrow. Sleep."

"You said 'sleep' like three times. Will you be here when I wake up?" Tiffany didn't know why, but she felt afraid that Jessica might leave without a goodbye. She felt oddly close to the stranger laying next to her in her bed, maybe they spent so much time being intimate that her brain actually believes that they were close.

"I will. Don't worry about that. What time do you work tomorrow?"

"Eight AM. So I leave at seven-thirty."

"I was booked for you until 8 so that will work out fine. I'll leave when you do."

"Okay," said Tiffany. "Let me turn off the music so we can sleep."

"Alright."

Jessica let Tiffany out of her embrace and the brunette reached over Jessica to grab the remote for the stereo. Her balance was wobbly, however, and she fell straight on top of the other girl.

The air was pushed out of Jessica and she let out a sharp yelp. Tiffany was horrified with her own clumsiness and scrambled to push herself off of Jessica. Unfortunately, her hand used Jessica's chest as a leverage and Jessica yelped again as she shoved Tiffany off of herself.

"Um?! OW!" exclaimed the indignant Jessica.

"I am so sorry!" Tiffany profusely apologized. "I am such a klutz. I don't know how I survive in this world."

"Okay, let's calm ourselves down first of all," Jessica said as she tried to regain her composure.

They both had heavy breaths due to the ordeal. Jessica grabbed the remote off the end table and handed it to Tiffany.

"Here," she said.

Tiffany pressed the power button and the music clicked off. "Well, that was a bit more complicated than it needed to be."

Jessica huffed a laugh as Tiffany returned the remote to the end table on her side. The brunette snuck a peek at the clock and 2:05 AM was displayed in glaring red digital bars.

So much for sleep.

"How about you tell me a story, Jessica," said Tiffany.

"What would you like to hear?"

"Hmm... Tell me about your experience with cuddling."

Jessica thought for a minute before she said, "You are my first client. I started training last week and now you're my first gig. So I'm not sure if I'm doing anything right, but let me know where I can improve and I'll appreciate it."

"Okay... Hug me," whined Tiffany as she held both her arms out like a child.

Jessica cocked an eyebrow but did what was asked.

"Jessica?"

"Yes, Tiff?"

"Have you ever felt like there was no one that understands so you just bury yourself in work to forget everything?"

Jessica was quiet, but listened.

"I make a lot more than I ever thought I would be able to. I get to do what I love - designing handbags - but I just feel like there's something missing. I feel like I want someone in my life because I'm ready for one but nobody ever fulfills that role to the fullest. You know what I mean?"

"Yeah," said Jessica softly.

"Anyway, thanks for listening to my rambling. I think I'll be able to sleep now."

"Okay. Good morning, Tiffany," Jessica bid due to the time.

"You're an odd one, you know that?" said Tiffany after she understood the reason why.

"I'm sorry, not funny?"

"Haha, don't apologize. Don't you change yourself one bit. Good morning, Jessica."

 

Tiffany was rudely awakened by the loud digital beeping from her alarm clock. She blindly waved her arm to smack the clock on its "snooze" button and turned back to her sleeping position. She heard a soft sigh and slowly opened an eye to see the sleeping face of a stranger.

"AH!" Tiffany screamed, causing Jessica's eyes to bust open and yell as well.

"WHAT?! WHAT?! WHAT IS IT?!" exclaimed Jessica.

Tiffany stopped shouting at once when she realized that it was the cuddler who came to her studio in the night.

"Sorry I woke you, I was just startled and thought some random stranger climbed into bed with me," explained Tiffany.

"Geez. I thought a fire started or something."

"Sorry."

"Stop saying sorry, silly. It's alright. It's understandable."

Tiffany placed a hand over her heart which was still going at a rate of 100 mph as she tried to calm herself.

"It's just about 6:30, you wanna go get ready for work?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah let me take a shower and then I'll make us breakfast," Tiffany said as she nodded.

Tiffany noticed a shiver running through Jessica's body and she shuffled her way toward her open closet. Eyes scanned left and right, finally settling on a hoodie, she grabbed it and tossed it on the bed.

"Here, put that on. You seem cold."

Jessica looked at Tiffany gratefully. "Thank you," she said before she slipped the hoodie over her tank top. The morning brought a chill of cold air and she had tried to hide her tremble but it went noticed by Tiffany thanks to her handbag designer eye for detail.

"I'll go shower now," said Tiffany. "Do you want to too?"

"Excuse me?" Jessica coughed at the absurd idea.

Tiffany's eyes widened in shock. "I meant after me. Whoops, haha," she nervously laughed.

"I'm fine, thank you," Jessica replied with a small smile.

"Alright..." Tiffany pointed in the direction of the bathroom with two finger guns. "I'll just... go now."

"Yeah," laughed Jessica. "You do that."

"Okay."

"Okay."

Tiffany quickly maneuvered to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. Phew, that was quite embarrassing. She was clumsy throughout the entire night and then said some weird things.

 

After Tiffany had gotten out of the shower and blown her hair dry, she re-entered the studio with her work clothes on.

"Ooh, sophisticated yet making a statement. y," commented Jessica.

Tiffany was wearing a black blazer and bright hot pink trousers to top it all off. Her face turned a shade similar to her pants due to the other woman's remark.

She headed toward the cozy kitchen ignoring the butterflies in her stomach and prepared scrambled eggs and bacon. She plated the two foods onto separate plates and brought one over to the waiting woman sitting on the couch.

"Thank you, you made them just right," said Jessica after she tried a piece of the scrambled eggs.

"You know, I could be a chef in disguise," joked Tiffany.

The two of them shared short stories of their lives while eating. Tiffany shared the one time she accidentally measured a piece of a handbag wrong and her company had to recall the design after it was sent out to the makers. Jessica traded a story about one of her numerous part-time jobs as a waitress where she spilled orange juice over a customer's crotch and tried to wipe it off with a napkin, unknowingly creating quite an awkward situation for her, the customer, and his date.

"Thank you for coming, Jessica," said Tiffany after she finished off her plate.

"My pleasure. It's also my job," Jessica responded with a slight giggle.

"Would you like to meet me for coffee sometime?"

"We aren't allowed to meet with clients outside of a session if we're at an appointment. Sorry, Tiff," explained Jessica.

"Oh," Tiffany said, disappointed.

Jessica looked at the clock. 7:23 AM. "Well it looks like that's my cue to leave. I'll let you have a bit of time to yourself before leaving for work."

"Wait. Stay."

"Hm?"

"I mean, you were booked until eight, right? Stay with me until then."

"Wouldn't you be late for work?" Jessica asked, confused.

"It wouldn't hurt to be late for just today. Cuddle me a bit more," Tiffany said with newfound confidence.

"I mean, if you think that's a good idea."

"Yeah."

"Alright," said Jessica as she placed her plate on the coffee table.

They laid together on the couch, Tiffany atop Jessica, for a while. When the minutes passed by, Jessica saw that it was 15 past eight.

Tiffany had fallen back asleep and Jessica shook her slightly to wake her up.

"Tiffany, it's eight-fifteen. Wake up you gotta go to work."

"No," whined Tiffany as she wrapped her arms around Jessica tighter.

"I was supposed to be done 15 minutes ago as well," Jessica giggled.

"Oh," Tiffany let the girl up from underneath her and sat up.

Jessica picked up her blouse and headed toward the door. "I guess I'll just have to return this hoodie to you next time we meet. I have your info so I'll contact you."

Ooh this girl was a sly one. Tiffany understood what she was trying to do, so she played along.

"Oh I guess. That's a shame I can't wear that hoodie for a while. Get it back to me asap!"

Tiffany opened the door for her and said, "Thanks for coming, again. Have a great day."

"Thanks, Tiff. Also, thanks for being such a great host."

They both grinned at each other for a while and then Jessica turned to leave. Tiffany watched her walk through the apartment's corridor before shutting the door.

Well, that was an eventful night.

When she went to pick up the plates to wash them, she noticed a slip of paper on the coffee table with numbers written on it.

Call me ;) it said.

Having a sneaking suspicion about who it was, Tiffany picked up her phone and dialed the number written on the slip.

"Hello?" the smooth voice she'd learned to listen to the past night answered.

"Hi. It's Tiffany."

"Oh, hello. Haha, did I forget something?" Tiffany could almost hear the smirk through the phone. Almost.

"Yeah. Your number."

"Haha, you're silly."

Tiffany smiled.

"Jessica, would you like to meet me for coffee? You said you aren't allowed to schedule anything during your appointment, you didn't say anything about after."

"Are you asking me out on a date?"

Tiffany breathed. Was she?

"Yes." She held her breath as soon as the word slipped .

There was a silence from the other line for a while. Long enough for Tiffany to think that the line cut off.

"If you don't want to-"

"Then yes."