Seolhyun was up half the night cooking food, baking dessert, and getting everything ready for her final task. The ice cream was store bought, but surely that was ok. Her alarm went off at six on Sunday morning. She staggered from her bed, got the fish and beef out of the refrigerator and nearly dropped it on the kitchen floor. Who knew meat would be so heavy?

Because she’d methodically planned every detail of the dinner preparations, she was right on schedule.  If anything, Seolhyun could consider this her Christmas miracle. The fact that everything was edible and looked presentable was a first in her life. She wore a white dress that compliment her radiant skin and a simple ring on her finger.

Hyejeong arrived a full hour before her guests were due, carrying a bouquet of flowers for the centerpiece. She handed it to Seolhyun almost as if she was grateful to be rid of it.

“How nice,” Seolhyun said delightedly. “Thank you.” She put the flowers in a vase on the table and stepped back to examine it. “I love it, Hyejeong.” Rising onto the tips of her toes, she kissed the taller girl's cheek.

Hyejeong was frowning when she stepped back. “That was inappropriate,” she said disapprovingly. Seolhyun didn’t point out that Hyejeong had kissed her a few weeks ago. But to prove how wrong the other girl was, Seolhyun kissed her cheek a second time.

However, when she started to move away, Hyejeong clasped her by the shoulders and pulled her into an embrace. Then she lowered to Seolhyun's. Before Hyejeong could account for her response, Seolhyun threw her arms around the girl's neck and kissed her back.

They both seemed to realize at precisely the same moment what they’d done. They leaped apart; Hyejeong shoved her hands in her pockets, while Seolhyun turned around in an effort to regain her composure. As they faced each other again, Seolhyun made a sweeping gesture toward the table, hoping to bring the blush off her face. “Well, what do you think?” she asked.

Hyejeong nodded. “You’ve done a wonderful job.” “Do you want to see the korean barbeque?” she asked. She noted with pride how tender and brown it looked. According to her calculations, it would be finished in forty minutes. Hyejeong could remove it from the oven and it would sit for an additional fifteen minutes before being served.

“Very nice,” Hyejeong said, when she closed the oven door. “Smells delicious, too.”

“Did I surprise you?” Seolhyun asked and knew she had, which was what she’d hoped.

Hyejeong smiled. “I admit that you’re one surprise after another.”

Which was exactly the thought she’d so recently had about Hyejeong…. She managed to restrain herself from dancing a small, happy dance jig.

She handed Hyejeong a bowl with ice cream while they waited for the rest of her company. “Store-bought,” she confessed as she joined the blonde in the living room.

They sat on opposite ends of the sofa. That wasn’t the only similarity to the way Yuna and Mina had behaved the previous day. Like her sister and her friend, Hyejeong and Seolhyun hardly looked at each other. Neither seemed inclined toward conversation, either.

“I was thinking…” Seolhyun began.

“It seems to me…” Hyejeong said.

They both stopped, then Hyejeong gestured toward her to speak.

“No, you first,” she insisted.

“Please."

Seolhyun didn’t get a chance because the doorbell rang just then. Eager to break the unexplained tension between them, she hurried to answer. As she might have guessed, Chanmi arrived first. She stood in the hallway dressed in her finest. For the first time in Seolhyun’s memory, she wasn't wearing sneakers.

“This is so nice of you,” the younger girl chirped. Her eyes flew instantly to Hyejeong and widened with appreciation.

“This is…” Seolhyun wasn’t sure how to introduce her. “Hyejeong. My friend. Shin Hyejeong, Kim Chanmi.”

“How are you? Call me Chanmi. I didn’t realize Seolhyun had a girlfriend,” Chanmi said ever so sneakily. “And a hot one too."

 Seolhyun excused herself and disappeared inside the kitchen while she prepared the finger food. She’d leave Hyejeong to fend for herself. When she heard the two of them chatting amicably, Seolhyun sighed. Hyejeong possessed a few social graces, after all—but none that she was willing to display for her benefit.

Seo Youkyung showed up next. “I have band practice in 4 hours. This isn’t going to take longer than that, is it?” she asked as she went past her and into the apartment. She looked around and when she saw Kim Chanmi, a frown darkened her face.

“Youkyung,” Chanmi greeted her stiffly.

“Chanmi.”

They glared at each other like alley cats with hackle