Tzuyu woke up before Sana the next morning, a small smile present on her face as she noticed how relaxed Sana looked while she slept. She never expected to let her guard down so easily in front of someone as she had with Sana. Something about Sana just made her feel like she could tell her anything she ever wanted to. She always struggled to talk to Momo and Jeongyeon; Chaeyoung was a different case. Why was she like this with Sana? She couldn’t find a reason.

She sighed as she thought about the request she made the night before. She’d just asked for one night where Tzuyu felt like someone would care about her but why did she want more? Tzuyu knew that things shouldn’t have escalated to the place they’d gotten to but she wanted to be selfish for once. She wanted to think about herself. Hadn’t she earned that at least? Though, things were going to have to go back to normal after this. That meant that everything had to be forgotten between them.

Unable to ponder on the issue any longer to find a solution, Tzuyu got out of the bed, careful in not waking Sana up beside her. She washed up and headed to the kitchen, finding a maid to sort out their breakfast. Sana most likely had classes in a little while and she had to up and ready before she was late. Tzuyu decided she’d be waking Sana up after breakfast was set, wanting her to have a good amount of sleep before she woke up.

Usually, by this time, she’d be out with her friends discussing on of their love lives’ but she knew all of them were busy. Chaeyoung was with Mina, Jeongyeon was with Nayeon and Momo was with someone as well. Though, no one knew who Momo was with. Despite that, the three of them could clearly tell the difference in Momo’s attitude lately. Less partying, more smiles and random disappearances they assumed were because of one person in particular. The four of them have yet to catch up on everything that’s been going on, mainly because the decision rested on Tzuyu. If one person wasn’t present, there wouldn’t be a meet up.

So lost in thought, Tzuyu hadn’t realised that Sana had woken up from her sleep, shuffling around her room in confusion. She walked out of her room, eyes widening upon the sight of Tzuyu sitting on a table staring at an empty space. She thought that Tzuyu had left to go somewhere; she didn’t expect to see her sitting there in front of her. Nervousness was building up again as she considered everything has been brewing between them.

She realised now that she should have been stronger in comforting Tzuyu the night before. Tzuyu needed to know that there are people there for her that will never leave her. Sana wanted to say so much more but their situation was too difficult and complex. She was never expecting to see Tzuyu put down her walls the night before but she was very appreciative of it. What would this bring for the two of them now? Where were they headed? She wanted Tzuyu to know that Sana was there for her no matter what but how was she meant to convey it?

Sana wanted to know more about what had happened to Tzuyu in her past but she already spoke so much about it. She didn’t want to make Tzuyu feel more uncomfortable by asking further. There was more to it; she knew that. Tzuyu had been hurt badly; she was bottling it inside and Sana was scared that it would become too much for her. But then again, Tzuyu had already come so far in who she is and who she has become. She has carried the burden of her past, moving past it and letting it shape who she was today.

When Sana’s parents had left her here on her own, it was the hardest thing she had to encounter. She struggled to keep her head up and everything was extremely overwhelming for her. With such treatment, anyone would want to sever their ties with their parents but Sana wasn’t one of them. Sure, she didn’t contact her parents because she knew they wouldn’t answer but even if she wanted to hate her parents, she couldn’t find it in herself to do so. It infuriated her; she went through hell to get a stable job.

She worked so many part-time jobs to earn enough to live a simple life. She pushed herself through college, managing to fund it with the help of her friends. If anything, the abandoning by her parents made her stronger and independent. But there were things that no one knew about, that she’d gone through. There were countless situations where she’d recall the harmful words that escaped her parents’ mouths as they cursed her for who she was. She suffered from the memory of the look of disgust and revulsion. Most of the time, she was able to ignore the thoughts in her head but they’d always be there to haunt her; to remind her of disturbing behaviour.

Sana didn’t want to make Tzuyu afraid of who she was. She didn’t want to snap at her because of her own past. She didn’t want to hurt her at all. Her past is a part of her but she didn’t want it to shape her. She’d let the anger manifest her countless times; but she would keep it in check. She didn’t want to make Tzuyu regret being able to talk to her and trust her. Sana wanted to continue being the person she is today, not reflective of the past she’d endured. And if there ever was a sign of it resurfacing, she’d eradicate it in a heartbeat. She has come to the point where she knows Tzuyu should be treasured with every fibre of her being.

Looking at Tzuyu as she remained in her own world, Sana couldn’t help but notice the changes from the night before. She looked more at peace, more calm and that brought a smile to Sana’s face. Tzuyu suddenly looked up, locking eyes with Sana. A grin was plastered on her face and Sana couldn’t help herself but to return it with one of her own. That rare grin that made her heart skip a beat; she wished she could see it more often.

“Morning. How are you?” Sana greeted shyly, sitting down on the chair opposite Tzuyu’s.

“I’m fine. I’m assuming you have classes soon, right?” Tzuyu asked, helping herself to the food on the table.

Well, the morning wasn’t as weird as Sana expected. Tzuyu was acting as normal as she always did, just seemed slightly happier. She did want to stick to that one night request she’d asked for. Nothing had changed between them as they interacted.

“Yes, I do.” Sana mumbled, nibbling on her toast.

“Do you need transportation?” Tzuyu offered, indicating to her car keys.

“Nope. I brought my own last night.” Sana shook her head.

“Alright.” Tzuyu answered, quietness present in the atmosphere between them.

Sana cleared as she finished, walking over to the sink. Flashes of the night before invaded her brain and she shook her head, basically running out of the kitchen. Tzuyu stared on in amusement as Sana frantically looked for her things around the place.

“Are you going to go to work in the same outfit as yesterday?” Tzuyu asked.

“What?” Sana said, whipping her head back at Tzuyu. She looked down at her clothes, groaning as she realised she’d be embarrassed if she went back in the same clothes.

“You can go to my wardrobe and find something to wear.” Tzuyu chuckled, pointing to her room.

Sana nodded, mumbling a thank you before she ran into Tzuyu’s room to get changed. hung open at the collection of clothes and she panicked for a few minutes.

“Do you need a hand?” Tzuyu called out as she knocked on the door.

“I – I think so.” Sana admitted, feeling overwhelmed with the number of outfits.

Tzuyu shook her head as she came in, smiling at the sight of Sana’s confusion. Sana blushed as Tzuyu looked her up and down, before scanning her racks for an outfit. She didn’t feel uncomfortable in the room, just self-conscious. Tzuyu had picked out an outfit in the next few moments, handing it over to Sana.

“Don’t be so self-conscious. You’re beautiful.” Tzuyu mumbled, a blush appearing on her cheeks as she disappeared from the room.

Sana was left frozen in her spot, mind gone haywire. Did she just receive a compliment from Tzuyu? And did she just leave blushing? She felt like a high school teenager with the way her heart was racing in her chest. Shaking her thoughts out of her head, Sana rushed to get ready, admiring the outfit Tzuyu had pulled out for her.

Tzuyu had escaped into another room of hers, fanning her blushing face and cursing herself under her breath. Why had she spurted out what was in her head? What if Sana thought of her weirdly now? Ah! So stupid! She stomped on her spot, wanting to pull her hair out for her rash actions. A pat on the back for being so smooth.

Once she was calm, Tzuyu left the room, sitting on her table in the lounge room to kill time. Her class was in a few hours but she was more nervous about Sana’s presence in her condo. She fiddled with her fingers, hearing rustling from her own room. Maybe Sana was done getting ready? A few moments later, Sana walked out of the room and Tzuyu could only stare. Now she regretted pulling out the outfit that she’d chosen because for sure, everyone was going to stare. She sounded like a possessive girlfriend right now, where was her mind going?

“Uh, I’m going to head off now. I’ll meet you in class.” Sana announced, clearing and pointing to the door. When it shut, Tzuyu could only groan, collapsing on the table. Just what was going on with her and her brain? And additionally, how was she even going to be able to concentrate in her class when Sana is dressed in a way that makes her mind muddled.

God help her today, she was going to need all the luck she could get to sit through that class. On the brighter side, it was the weekend coming up so she would be free from Sana and anything that related to her. Right now, Tzuyu felt like someone else had invaded her mind – a constant chanting of Sana and thoughts that she would rather keep at bay.

Just get through the day.

That’s all she had to do.

A/N: Guess who's still alive *waves hand frantically*
I know it's been quite a while since I updated this and I apologise deeply for that.
God, I was so frustrated with this chapter for weeks because I didn't know where to take it.
I hope you enjoyed it! I decided to give you all a little insight on Sana's struggles as well :]
(P.S: I don't know if it's weird, but I was squealing a little bit at my own writing o.o)

Sorry for any typos ⚆ _ ⚆