Jung Eunwoo may seem slow, but she was actually a very diligent learner. She caught on to the rules of the two cities before she could even learn to talk.

Which may or may not have happened due to her aunt getting breached while she was still in diapers, but that was beside the point.

She also caught on to the fact that she was head over heels for her best friend, and the fact that said best friend only had eyes for their group leader. With a heart broken so early on, there wasn’t really any sense in being sad over it. Nayoung was a good person and she'd take care of Jieqiong well. She accepted this. 

Still, it bled through sometimes. On manageable days, she just brushed it off as being tired. It was understandable, they were college students. 

On the worst days, she'd call her aunt (the one that wasn't breached) and get picked up.  

It was, conveniently, on the absolute worst day that said aunt was busy and she had to walk home alone. 

It was only the worst for her— she was sure Jieqiong would be happy for the rest of her life. and there was no way Nayoung wouldn't be happy, with a girl like that. It was only the worst for her, and only for that day. As Jieqiong's best friend, she had to put aside her feelings and be supportive.

She just needed a little time to do so.

"I already see enough mushy couple things from Yebin and Minkyung," she said, laughing it off as she turned down an afternoon with them. "Besides, you two need some time for just each other now, hmm?"

Before Nayoung could blush, before Jieqiong could whine, she had turned and left. 

**

The way back home was quiet. Her neighborhood was a little wonky in its layout, and it made her have to go behind the local craft store to get to and from campus. The path split into two, one way leading home and the other to a dead end— or rather, a dead end her city. This made for light foot traffic, and gave plenty of opportunity for alone time with friends. That day, she was only alone with her thoughts. There was no one around to see her, to distract her.

There shouldn't have been. 

A voice called out, sending a ripple through the silence. Eunwoo wasn't prepared to block anything out, and the stranger's words hit her ears with precision that could only be intentional. A praise, unprompted.

Her breath hitched and her walk wavered. She knew whoever was there noticed too. But there was no way she would breach for something as random as this; she kept moving forward. 

Moving forward was all she could do.

** 

  In the days to follow, things went back to normal. Nayoung and Jieqiong simmered down after the initial high of a new relationship, and the group went back to walking together. Eunwoo found her arm linked with Jieqiong's once more. 

Except after that encounter, Eunwoo noticed what she shouldn't. 

It was a lie to say anyone could turn a complete blind eye to the other city. You couldn't turn off your ears and nose, and you couldn't help what fell into your peripherals. You certainly couldn't ignore something when it came to your attention. 

There was a whole world out there, beyond the city and the city. Eunwoo knew this. When she was young she would daydream about life beyond her home, before she learned to accept things. Before she knew better. 

But she still felt it; the presence of another, the pair of eyes on her that weren't from her friends. 

To say it wasn't confusing was a lie. Why was this stranger breaching for her? She could assume this person was her age and safe from abduction, but that wouldn't be the case forever. Why commit a useless crime like this?

The thought plagued Eunwoo until she pushed it to the back of her mind, and it remained there for months. It took the day she walked into Minkyung's lair and saw the stranger's face for the first time to remember those eyes on her.

**

Never in Eunwoo's life had she had she interacted with someone from the other city, much less one that breached. Walking the stranger home was something she couldn't have seen herself doing till that night.

Everything about the situation was illegal. But in the dark of night in Minkyung's part of town, with nothing but the stars and the moon as witness, they were just two people. Two people walking the same path, existing in the same space, breathing the same air. 

She could feel her gaze; it burned her, dried up her brain and any rational thought she had. There was a conversation that needed to happen, and they both knew it. There were too many moments without dialogue between them for there not to be.

Thank you, is what Eunwoo wanted to say before she sent the stranger off. It was the only opportunity to do so. 

"Jieqiong," is what she ended up saying, and her resolve crumbled after going strong for so long. 

She held her face in her hands, unable to look at the girl, or anything else.  

She didn't expect the stranger to sit beside her, with a voice as gentle as it was. 

"My name is Yewon," she said, brushing Eunwoo's hair back and wiping her tears. "You don't have to tell me your name. Just know that I'm always on your side, even when you can't see me. Can you remember that for me?"

Eunwoo held back more tears as she sniffled and nodded. She was rewarded with the stranger— no, with Yewon's smile. 

Looking back, Eunwoo knew Yewon lied during their first encounter. 

If there was a smile like hers in these twin cities, in this world, nothing could ever compare. 

The next time she felt Yewon's presence down that alley, she nudged the person walking beside her playfully. "Zhou Jieqiong!"

Jieqiong looked at her like she grew a second head. But there must've something in Eunwoo's eyes— the small embers of something that hadn't been there before. Curious but willing to play along, Jieqiong nudged her back. "Jung Eunwoo!"

There was a sudden, distinct clattering noise that came from the dead end. Eunwoo watched her friends flinch and attempt to hide it, but she let a smile freely settle on her lips. 

A/N: If I say this was initially a oneshot does that excuse how rushed it is? Ha ha ha... Anyway. This is the end of the stuff that has already been written (with tweaks). Now that our two protagonists are more or less set up, from here on out I'll be winging it! I stand by my earlier estimate of 3 chapters. Let's hope this works~