‘You made sure you haven’t left anything behind?’

Mina nodded at Momo’s question but took one last look around to double check. She’d brought some of her favourite things to wear on the trip with Momo and having shoved everything into her suitcase, she worried that something might have gone astray in the process. She patted her suitcase and stood, covering as she yawned. They’d woken up early to pack and check out of the hotel. She pulled her suitcase up and walked to where Momo was waiting. She pressed a dial for a bellhop to take their bags then looked behind her to make sure that she and Momo hadn’t left the room too undignified. Aside from the crumpled bed covers, their room looked fine and she took Momo’s free arm and walked towards the elevator.

On the ground floor, the receptionist thanked them for their stay and handed back a receipt. She bowed then apologised for the room mix up once more. Mina just smiled politely at the apology and wheeled her suitcase along the footpath to the taxi ranks. In her head, she fondly recalled how annoyed she’d been on their check-in. The room booking had turned out to be a good thing in the end, having allowed her to spend more time with Momo. She hailed a taxi and let the driver load their luggage into the trunk, taking a seat in the back. Momo sat beside her and she gave the driver their destination then looked back at the hotel one last time as the long drive began.

Momo dozed against her as they pulled away from the hotel, hugging Mina’s arm. There was a faint smile on her face as she slept and Mina watched her, uncaring of the dorky grin she felt spreading. The drive passed in a flash despite the slow traffic and they soon arrived. Nudging Momo awake, Mina unbuckled her seatbelt and checked her watch. They were in good time. Momo awoke with a yawn, stretching her arms over her head. She stepped out onto the kerb and thanked the driver as he ducked his head into the trunk. They took their suitcases and entered through the airport doors. The place was quieter than when they had arrived and they easily made their way towards their gate for departure. A cheery attendant stamped their passports, wishing them a quick return and let them pass through to the boarding bridge.

They lifted off soon after taking their seats and Mina watched Momo this time as the plane began its ascent down the runway. There was still some residual guilt at how uncomfortable Momo had seemed on their flight to Okinawa. It didn’t look to be a problem this time as Momo looked too sleepy to notice or care. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was even. Thinking about the flight over, Mina reached for her hand and the blonde opened her eyes at the contact and flashed her a grateful smile. Pleased with herself, Mina settled back in her chair and looked outside as the plane lifted off.

~

Momo was awake by the time they touched down in Korea a few hours later. They collected their luggage then navigated their way through the bustling airport to outside. They walked outside and stopped on the kerb as they looked out to the many cars that were making the rounds to pick up or drop off people. A cold wind reminded Mina that it was late autumn and she huddled deeper in her coat. She raised her hand to hail a taxi then froze as she remembered that her father was coming to pick her up. She hadn’t told Momo yet and turned to her, worried. “Momo, are you going to be alright taking a taxi home by yourself?” she asked. To her surprise, Momo nodded, looking unconcerned.

‘It’s fine. I called Heechul before the flight and he should be waiting in the carpark to pick us up.’

Mina relaxed, knowing that Momo had a ride and wouldn’t be left to wait by herself.

‘That’s good then. My dad actually came to pick me up so I can’t go with you.’

‘Oh, okay. See you then.’

Momo didn’t say anything and took a deep breath, looking hesitant. She stepped forward uncertainly, then seemed to muster up her courage for something. She gave Mina a quick hug then pressed a kiss to her cheek, so fast that Mina had no time to react. She stepped back before Mina could say anything and pulled her suitcase behind her as she headed towards the underground carpark. Stopping mid-stride, she turned and waved shyly to Mina who returned the wave before continuing on her way. Feeling a hand to her cheek, Mina felt a smile spread over her face as she watched Momo disappear around a corner. The holiday really had been worth it.

‘Mina!’

Mina turned at her name, recognising the voice as that of her father’s. She ran forward and hugged him. She hadn’t realised she had missed him, preoccupied with Momo for the last week. He embraced her warmly then stepped back after a moment, looking her over. “You look well. A bit tanner,” he said, taking her suitcase. “Yeah, I spent some time at the beach,” Mina replied.  She followed her father to where he had parked his car and buckled herself into the passenger seat. They pulled out of the carpark and onto the freeway, merging into the midday traffic. Mina’s father glanced at her briefly, keeping his attention on the road and asked, “So how was the trip?”

‘It was fun. I enjoyed it a lot; the food and attractions. And I brought back souvenirs.’

‘I look forward to that. So did you go with anyone? Trips are never fun when you go by yourself.’

Mina hesitated before she answered, dreading her father’s reaction to her answer. She took a steadying breath then said, “I went with Momo.” As expected, her father’s brow furrowed but he didn’t say anything, focusing on switching lanes. Taking the opportunity, Mina quickly added, “I asked her to come. We made a bet on the exam results and the loser owed the winner a favour so I asked for her company on the trip.” Her father remained silent for a further moment before he replied.

‘I see. Did you take her to see the aquarium?’

Mina blinked at the unexpected reply. “You don’t mind that I brought her along with me?” she asked, frowning. Her father raised an eyebrow at her question then shrugged.

‘I guess not. I saw your results. You did very well, more than I could have expected and I suppose that if it was due to being motivated by the bet, it wasn’t a bad thing. You deserved a holiday after your hard work and effort.’

Mina sighed in silent relief, glad that her father wasn’t outwardly opposed to her having been with Momo for the trip. It meant that he wasn’t totally against the idea of her spending time with Momo and that boded well for the future. She held the seatbelt as she stared at the car in the lane next to them where a toddler was playing with a toy airplane. She smiled when the child looked back at her then turned as she remembered her father’s text the night before.

‘Um dad, was there anything you wanted to talk about?’

Her father hummed in question, distracted as he drove.

‘Well I know that you don’t have much time off from work so I was wondering if you wanted to tell me something when you came to pick me up.’

Her father turned to her with a hurt expression. “Can’t a father care about his daughter?” he asked. Mina waved her hands to say that it was alright but stopped when she saw her father’s face turn serious.

‘I missed you and wanted to see you but there is something that does come to mind. Do you remember that presentation that I had you prepare as a project?’

Mina nodded, thinking about the hours of work she’d put into the concept and design of a new product. “I do. What about it?”

‘The company’s mid-year evaluation is coming up and I wanted you to present your idea in front of the board. I’ve taken some time to think about your future and I think that this is a great opportunity to put yourself forward for them to see you as a potential leader of the company.’

Mina took a second to digest the news, surprised at the turn of things. Feeling a mix of excitement and worry, she asked, “So when’s the eval? I think I need some time to read over my stuff again before I can present it.” Her father nodded in understanding.

‘Don’t worry, there’s still a week to go before the evaluation is due. You should have more than enough time to prepare.’

Mina nodded to herself, thinking over what she remembered from her project. She’d mostly put it in the back of her mind after sending it to her father and forgotten it. She worried that even a week wouldn’t be enough time for her to remember a speech but took a deep breath to calm herself down. She tried to focus instead on the fact that it was a chance for her to prove herself to her father and that if he thought she had enough time, she probably did. She rested her head against the window and closed her eyes as the sound of a raindrop falling echoed through the glass.

~

Momo shifted a leg as she leaned forward from her kneeling position to reach for her cup of tea. She sipped the warm liquid and sighed as it ran down , warming her insides. She took another sip then peered over the rim to Mina. The brunette was sitting across the table from her and was busy at work on her laptop, moved silently as she went over her speech. She had turned up at her apartment the day before and said that since studying with Momo had gone well, she would work on her project in her apartment. Mina was probably lying but it wasn’t far from the truth. They’d set up Momo’s kotatsu in the middle of the room and now her fingers danced across the keyboard as she typed. She murmured something then her arms flew into the air as she huffed out a breath. “Everything alright?” Momo asked, taking a biscuit from the tin on the table. Mina nodded, stretching her neck.

‘I finished editing my speech. All I have to do now is memorise it.’

Momo voiced a word of encouragement then set her cup on the table and lay onto her back. She stared up at the ceiling and ran over a mental list of her grocery shopping needs for the weekend. She’d seen a sign that said there was a temporary increase in the cost of rice and that meant she would be eating more noodles in the meantime. She heard the blanket rustling and didn’t have to look to know Mina had crawled under the table to rest beside her. They lay there in silence for some time, staring up at the ceiling together before Mina finally spoke.

‘What are you thinking about?’

“Would you really care if I told you?” Momo asked, turning. Mina shrugged, facing her. “That depends,” she said. “Is it about me?” Momo thought about the fish she would be buying at the market the next day and laughed. “No. It’s about grocery shopping. And unless you’re interested in how much a gram of salt costs, I’ll keep it to myself.” Mina sighed and reached for Momo’s hand.

‘That’s boring. You should think about something more interesting.’

‘Like?’

‘Like me.’

Momo grinned and tweaked Mina’s nose with her free hand. “Nah, milk and eggs sounds more interesting right now.” She laughed at Mina’s offended expression and sat up.

‘I should think that my shopping should be interesting to you too. If I don’t have enough ingredients, I can’t cook any delicious dishes.’

At that, Mina perked up and her eyes sparkled. She’d grown to be just as fond of Momo’s cooking as Sana and looked forward to whenever she was able to stay over for a meal. She pulled herself out from under the kotatsu and looked at Momo. “Are you cooking now? Do you want any help?” she asked, looking eager. Momo shook her head and stood up with a soft groan. “Don’t you have a speech to memorise?” she pointed out, walking to the kitchen area. Mina sighed audibly but crawled over to her laptop and reluctantly began working again. Momo hid a smile then rolled back her sleeves as she went over the recipe for stir-fried noodles.

She defrosted some fish balls then opened a pack of noodles to rest in a bowl of warm water. Chopping up some vegetables, she tossed them into a wok to fry. She crushed a clove of garlic then diced the thawed out fish balls. Stirring them into the wok, she set aside the noodles to drain through a colander. She idled for a moment, finished with preparation and peered over to Mina. The brunette was engrossed in her work again, a look of fierce concentration fixed on her face. Smiling to herself, Momo returned to the stove thinking that the thought of a hot meal made any work on a cold day more bearable. She shook the drained noodles and added them to the wok with a few pinches of salt and a teaspoon of soy sauce for flavour. Mixing the ingredients together, she frowned when she heard loud knocks on the door. Not wanting to disturb Mina’s study, she turned down the fire then wiped her hands on a towel to see what the fuss was about.

She hadn’t been expecting any visitors and was surprised when she opened the door and was immediately wrapped into a big hug. “I’m back,” Sana announced as she released Momo from the hug. A wide smile was spread across Sana’s face and her happiness was infectious. Smiling herself, Momo pinched Sana’s cheek affectionately, glad to see her best friend again. “This is a pleasant surprise. When did you come back?” she asked. “We got back earlier today but I was busy unpacking and depositing all my red packet money into my bank account,” Sana replied smugly, rubbing her fingers together. Momo grinned then stepped back, making room for Sana to enter the apartment.

‘You want to come in? I was just cooking dinner when you knocked.’

Sana’s eyes lit up at the mention of food and she nodded eagerly. She moved into the hallway and removed her shoes. She followed Momo towards the kitchen then stopped as she noticed Mina seated on the floor. “What are you doing here?” she asked, pointing. Mina looked up from her laptop, blinking in surprise.

‘Oh hey Sana. How are you doing?’

‘Good. Are you trying to steal Momo’s food from me?’

Sana joined Mina on the floor and Momo left the two girls to their conversation, tending to her wok. She covered it with a lid to slow cook then reached into her fridge and took out a pot of miso soup she’d made the day before. Reheating it on the stove, she washed her hands and caught the last of what her two friends were talking about as she served up dinner.

‘-it went well?’

‘Yeah. I’m really glad I went through with it.’

‘Told you. I should be a love guru. People will pay me thousands to-’

Sana cut herself off as she noticed Momo approaching, sharing a guilty look with Mina. The look disappeared as quickly as it had come and Sana smiled as she sniffed the plate. She jumped up to help Momo transport the rest of the food and couldn’t resist a sip of her bowl of soup, receiving a swat on the backside for her trouble. She grinned unashamedly and they sat down to eat. Momo watched as her two friends dug into their meals, pleased to know that they enjoyed her cooking. She ate with more restraint, smiling as she saw splashes of sauce around Sana’s mouth. Mina showed more class though ate just as fast as Sana. She drank from her bowl of miso soup and sighed contently as steam escaped . She glanced towards Momo and her cheeks tinged with pink at Momo’s smirk.

When all the bowls were empty and Sana had finished her third helping, they cleared the table and Momo let her two friends chat as she filled the sink with soapy water. She put the soup pot back into the fridge then took