“I kissed Eunha-yah.”

While Yerin was mildly surprised by the news, SinB looked completely uninterested as she said, “So?”

“So?” Sowon repeated incredulously. “I kissed Eunha-yah!”

SinB rolled her eyes. “We heard you the first time, Sowon-unnie. What’s wrong with you kissing Eunha-unnie?”

This made Sowon pause, giving Yerin the chance to ask, “Why don't you tell us the whole story, Sowon-unnie?”

“There isn’t really a story,” Sowon said as she began to pace in front of the couple. “We were just hanging out. We’d just finished watching a movie, and Eunha-yah just looked so beautiful with the sun setting behind her…  So I kissed her! Then I realized I kissed her and said I had to go. Now I’m here.”

Yerin tried not to laugh at Sowon’s story, but SinB was merciless and burst into laughter. She laughed so hard that she clutched at her stomach, and Yerin swore she even saw tears in her eyes.

“Yah!” Sowon cried. “It’s not funny!”

“In what world,” SinB taunted in between laughs, “is you having some gay panic attack and running away after you kiss Eunha-unnie not funny?”

Sowon’s face turned red and she let out a pitiful wail. She plopped herself on the other side of Yerin, blankly staring up at the ceiling. “What am I going to do?”

“I’d start with not running away after you kiss Eunha-unnie,” SinB snorted. Her smugness faded when Yerin smacked her shoulder and gave her a warning glance. “What I meant to say was you should start with figuring out your feelings, unnie,” SinB amended, suddenly being serious. “Did you kiss Eunha-unnie just because she’s pretty, or did you kiss her because you have feelings for her?”

Yerin was surprised by SinB’s wisdom, but then she realized SinB probably had to sort out her own feelings for Yerin when things were still jumbled up and as vague as could be.

“I do like Eunha-yah,” Sowon said firmly but then hesitated, “but I’m not sure if it’s as a friend or more.”

Yerin couldn’t relate, having fallen for SinB romantically the moment she laid eyes on her, but she did her best to remedy the situation. “That’s okay,” she reassured Sowon. “However, you can’t go around just kissing girls. You can take the time to figure out what you want with Eunha-yah, but you still need to apologize for kissing and running as well as telling her you need time to know what you want.”

“What if this ruins things between us?” Sowon’s voice was uncharacteristically small and fearful. For as long as Yerin had known her, she couldn’t recall a time Sowon sounded so defeated. She’d always been the oldest and mom of the group, making sure everyone else was okay before herself.

Yerin wasn’t sure how to respond. She thought back to SinB in the beginning of things. This she could understand. Not knowing how the other person felt was terrifying, especially with a friendship on the line. Yerin wasn’t sure what would’ve happened if SinB had rejected her.

“Then ask yourself if it’s worth it.”

Both Sowon and Yerin looked at SinB in surprise, not expecting the maknae to say anything more. SinB was fairly notorious for being good at everything except emotions, but here she was, helping Sowon with her very emotional crisis.

SinB quirked an eyebrow at the both of them. “Is it worth the risk, Sowon-unnie? Is the mere possibility of having Eunha-unnie as something more than a friend worth the potential awkwardness that could happen if you can’t?”

Yerin got the feeling SinB was speaking from experience and couldn’t help but stare at the serious look on her face. Was this what SinB was thinking before they made up?

Sowon seemed to get the message though because she smiled and nodded. She playfully scowled at SinB and said, “When did you get to be so smart, SinB-ssi? Aren’t you supposed to be asking me for advice?”

“It’s not my fault you happen to at dating,” SinB teased.

“Yah!” Sowon laughed. She shook her head and stood up. “Alright, I’ve got a lot to think about apparently. I’m gonna go ahead and go home. Thanks for the talk, and sorry for barging in.”

“Anytime you need us, Sowon-unnie,” Yerin told her, “we’re here.”

“Yeah, maybe next time I’ll knock though,” Sowon smirked. She said good-bye and left the girls to themselves.

“What a mood killer,” SinB whined as soon as the door closed behind Sowon. “That giraffe ruined our moment with all that panicking.”

Yerin rolled her eyes. “You’re not allowed to complain when you were the one who gave her good advice, Eunbi-yah.”

“Of course I am. She interrupted and I still gave her that good advice,” SinB said smugly.

Yerin frowned at her and pinched her side. SinB yelped and looked at her in mock betrayal. It was cute that she was still playful, but after talking to Sowon about her feelings, now she wanted to hear SinB’s. “Come here, Eunbi-yah.” She held out her arms and SinB easily went to them, tucking her head under Yerin’s chin. “We need to talk.”

Immediately, SinB tensed and tried to move, but Yerin kept her in her arms. They needed to talk about this.

“We need to talk about Eunseo-ssi,” Yerin said, and she could feel SinB freeze. She continued quickly before SinB could freak out too badly. “I’m still sorry for how I acted that day, and I’m not going to do anything crazy like forbid you from seeing her. You are your own person, Eunbi-yah, and you are allowed to have your own friends. I just wanted to let you know I may still get jealous of her from time-to-time, but I’m working on it, just like I’m working on this relationship with you. Does that sound good?”

Much like how Sowon had sounded earlier, SinB’s voice was very small but also filled with relief when she replied, “That sounds good, Yerin-ah.”

“One more thing,” Yerin said. She hesitated before asking, not entirely sure she wanted to know the answer. She took long enough that SinB moved to look at her inquiringly. Yerin her lips nervously before asking quietly, “What are your feelings for me, Eunbi-yah?” SinB sat up, staring at her in confusion, making Yerin elaborate. “That night at Source, I may have confessed to you, but you never confessed to me. I don’t want you to feel like you have to declare your feelings for me all the time, but just this once, I’d like to know how you feel.”

Yerin could tell SinB felt something for her with the thoughtful gestures and meaningful smiles and wonderful kisses, but she was still insecure from not hearing it aloud. She spent weeks agonizing over whether SinB actually had feelings for her, so having it be real still felt like a dream.

“Oh, Yerin-ah,” SinB sighed. She cupped Yerin’s face like she did the night Yerin confessed. She leaned forward and pressed their foreheads together, squeezing her eyes shut. “I wish I could explain everything you make me feel,” SinB whispered. “You make me so happy. I was nervous to move schools, but when I met you, it felt like everything would be okay. That day I told you someone would catch the stars for you? I was talking about myself. You make me feel like I can do anything when you look at me sometimes. And I know I can be a bit of a downer sometimes, but you brighten my day, Yerin-ah. You, not anyone else. I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but I hope you’ll let me be a part of your life for a very long time.”

SinB jumped when she felt tears hit her cheek because she knew she wasn’t the one crying. She pulled away, and Yerin couldn’t stop the tears from falling down her cheeks. SinB’s confession was more than Yerin could have ever dreamed of. She’d expected a ‘you’re pretty’ and hoped for a ‘I really like you.’ But this? Yerin felt like she now held SinB’s heart in her hands.

Yerin tugged SinB into a tight hug, sniffling into her shoulder as she wiped away her tears. “I really like you, Eunbi-yah.”

SinB smiled and said, “I really like you too, Yerin-ah.”

A/N: I'm here for healthy communication and happy couples. Thanks for giving this chapter a read and feel free to let me know what you thought in a comment! Until next time.