it is way past 10 in the evening. jeongyeon has left a good while ago; and nayeon is well aware of how empty the library is, which is news, for nayeon never really pays attention to her surroundings.

her time is running out, and it’s not the 11 more chapters she has to go through, nor the 11 thousand dates she has to know by heart that are stressing her out; but rather the fact that the clock is ticking down to 11 pm, which also happens to be the time the library closes on sundays; and nayeon hasn’t had her cigarette of the night yet.

from her spot in the library, she can see jihyo on a lollipop as she flips the pages of a text book, taking notes every now and then. it has become a routine for the younger girl to attend to her own suffering, another word nayeon calls studying -both start with s anyways- when things slow down in the library.

she diverts her gaze a little to the left, trying to be as subtle as possible, to check if the girl that has been occupying her thoughts is at her usual table. she is.

nayeon mindlessly tucks her hand into the pocket of her hoodie, her fingers caressing the only cigarette she has left. in fact, she had two before walking into the library, smoked one when she walked jeongyeon to the school gates, leaving her with only one to burn down before she leaves the library. however, nayeon still feels like she hasn’t had her cigarette of the night yet.

after fumbling with the cigarette for a bit more, she decides to put an end to her misery before it’s too late. she carefully leaves her seat, cautious not to bother the dozen other students filling the vast space. she walks towards the door, shooting a smile to a tired-looking jihyo, who smiles back before paying attention to the matters she has in hand again. on the left, there sits mina, diving head first in an abundance of papers and books, and a forgotten half empty cup of coffee.

she walks closer to the girl, clutching and unclutching her sweaty hands -god she is sweating in the middle of a december night- with every step she takes.

she leans closer to the girl, close enough for her to hear her, but far enough not the startle the younger one; and she whispers, “i think i might need me a hoodie, miss myoui,” before she walks out of the large library door.

the december breeze never disappoints, slapping nayeon across the face like a wake-up call. and for the the first time in 7 semesters, nayeon is not beating herself over abandoning school, but for an entirely different cause. what the hell did i just do there? oh god, nayeon what’s wrong with you? i think i might need a hoodie miss myoui? couldn’t i just normally ask her to come out with me or something? jeongyeon would’ve laughed her off at me if she were there, but then again she herself is a sore loser she can’t even ask jihyo-

“hey!” a soft voice calls right before she rounds the corner, almost making her jump; but she recognizes who it is and she lets out a shaky breath.

the senior turns around, “hi,” she greets, catching a whiff of the younger girl’s jasmine perfume. she waits for mina to catch up to her before they proceed through the bush, and into the place where they first met.

for the first time, nayeon finds herself nervous around the other girl. she plops herself down on the cold dirty floor, not fearing getting her pants muddied as much as she’s fearing her knees giving up on her.

mina, like a broken dvd playing the same scene over and over again, leans against the wall, a few feet away from the damsel in distress, and although nayeon is far from being a passive, naive, innocent, easy target; she’s for sure a damsel, and obviously in distress.

“i think what you need more than a hoodie is a good amount of nicotine wrapped in paper to set on flames and warm you up,” mina teases, offering the older girl a cigarette.

“i prefer calling it a death stick.” nayeon deadpans, her cold fingers reaching for the said object. she thanks mina, and flicks her lighter for a flame.

she deeply sighs after her first inhale, offering her lighter to the girl standing beside her.

in her mind, she’s trying to process how is mina making her feel very nervous and very relieved at the same time; and when exactly did she become more of a relief than her precious cigarettes.

usual silence falls upon them, seconds flowing past them to turn into minutes, tabaco burning at the tip of their cigarettes to turn into ashes, smoke escaping their lips to turn into little clouds of fog.

mina is not wearing her usual hoodie, and nayeon doesn’t expect her to wear it like a uniform, or a piece of herself that she carries around in the shape of a cloth.

she recognizes the hoodie mina is wearing as the same one the girl offered her a few nights ago, and she smiles, a smile that she is not aware of, nor would she be able to pinpoint the reason behind it.

“you know..i’m sorry if i came off a bit rude, or offensive, the other night.” mina softly utters. and nayeon is pretty certain that she knows what the younger girl is talking about -and it’s not because she has repeated what mina told her in her mind again and again,- but she raises a questioning eyebrow nevertheless.

“huh?”

“you know, about partying less and studying more. i don’t know why i said that. i don’t even know you well. it was wrong of me to just assume things about you, let alone voicing them in such a manner.” mina explains. pausing to take a drag, and waiting for a response.

nayeon doesn’t say anything in return. she just sits there, staring at the stick between her fingers.

“i’m sorry,” the other girl adds.

nayeon inhales, chuckles, and says, “do you wanna know why i don’t attend classes?”

“what? no you don’t have to explain yourself to me, really. it’s your life af-”

“but if i tell you, i’d have to kill you.” nayeon jokes, interrupting mina.

“huh?”

“can i trust you with my secret, miss myoui mina?” nayeon asks, turning to fully look at the underclassman. she notices the confusion on the girl’s face, for her smirk only to grow bigger. she waits for an answer, and when she is on the verge of giving up, mina nods.

“i’m very pretty that i’m afraid my presence would only be of distraction to my fellow students.”

silence.

mina snickers, and nayeon watches it turn into a full laugh; and suddenly, they’re no longer in the dim hideout behind the library, they are no longer hiding behind bushes and pressed against cold walls. suddenly they are swimming between the galaxies and the stars, strolling down the milky way, each puff of smoke they have exhaled is a cloud watering the earth, bringing it back to life, bringing nayeon back to life.

a/n: i'm sorry it has been taking me too long to update. i got caught up with lots of stuff, and writer's block is a bih. i wish i could write something better for nayeon's bday but that's all i've got now. happy birthday to the girl with the cutest bunny smile ever.
comments and feedback are always a great motivation. thank you ^^