As expected, the bear-like girl came on time to pick Irene up for their night-out. She was glad that Irene suddenly called and asked her out. Wait, that counted as asking Seulgi out, right? Even though during the call she could hear some giggles aside from Irene’s voice. It seemed that there were some people who tried to make Irene called her. Nevertheless, it kind of showed Irene’s initiative. The thought got Seulgi smiling again and she was startled with some knocks on the passenger side window. There was Irene, smiling, wearing an oversized sweater which automatically made Seulgi hold her squeal because of the cuteness.

A bunny!

Seulgi quickly opened the door lock and let Irene in. Unknowingly her scanning gaze was caught by the older girl, making the owner of a pair of monolid eyes flustered. “Something wrong with me, Seul?” she asked. Seulgi shook her head and started the car engine. “N-no! You look beautiful...” she praised Irene. It was really a praise since Irene was adorable and it was only the truth.

What the younger didn’t know that Irene blushed at her words. The girl was too busy steering and trying to calm herself down. Thankfully, Irene didn’t further. With some music on the radio, both of them started the conversation. Of course they got to decide where they wanted to go. “Myeongdong? There would be a lot of people there, right?” Irene suggested while looking up some places through her phone. “Oh? Myeongdong sounds nice. There are a lot of street food that we can try!” Seulgi said in excitement. As she claimed, she really liked eating and was very good at it.

With the phrase ‘street food’ Irene’s eyes lit up and her smile got wider. “I want to buy rice cake! Tteokppokki please! Can we please have that?” And Seulgi has never heard Irene asking for something in a very cute way before. The girl’s face redden but she nodded anyway. “S-sure! I would like that as well!” Seulgi added. She changed the direction to a faster lane to reach Hongdae.

The first thing they do after they arrived was holding hands. The reason was so that they wouldn’t get lost, but Seulgi just really wanted to hold hand with Irene. They visited some stores selling accessories and hats. There were some ridiculous hats and even wigs and they tried it on then took some selfies together. “You look stupid! HAHAHA!” Irene laughed like she never before. How could she not? Seulgi was wearing a half bald wig and smiling brightly per usual.

“Hey! At least this stupid is going to buy you snacks!”

They ended up getting matching bracelets and promised that they would wear it every time they went out together. Seulgi led the way to some food stalls which made both pairs of eyes widened. She looked to the older girl and found that her attention has been fixed to the rice cake snack. That she found very cute and if she could, she really wanted to cup Irene’s face with both of her hands and firmly exclaim: ‘You are very cute, Rene.’ Yes, she was being serious, like... dead-serious.

“Can I have two servings?” Irene asked her half whispering. Seulgi needed to get closer to hear her better. “Can I please have two servings of tteokpokki?”

Nothing could beat that shy request. It was the cutest thing Seulgi has ever heard all of her life. “Excuse me! I want to buy two servings of tteokppokki and one serving of fish cake please!” She then showed Irene her big grin which the older girl always found silly but also endearing. “You’re going to finish it all, right?” Seulgi asked. She really didn’t know how much Irene could eat. This time, Irene was the one who grinned. Oh, no, she smirked.

As they sat in a street food tent, Seulgi’s was left agape when Irene finished her two servings of tteokpokki and they were about to eat some sundae, fried kimbap, and deep fried octopus! “Is this a night out or an eating out?” Seulgi asked with pure curiosity which made Irene laughed. “Why not both? Both sounds great, no?” she asked Seulgi who then closed and rest her hands on the table. “Well, yea, I mean...” she scratched the back of her head, “this is a date anyway, right?”

Irene flushed and tried to look away because of the word ‘date’. Seulgi noticed that and was confused because usually Irene didn’t really react with the term anytime it was said. It was always Seulgi who turned out flustered and all red like a ripe apple.

“Yeah, a date.”

Seulgi smiled. “Is this a proper one?”

“I... don’t know? Let’s find out.”

It seemed like both of them ate a lot. Seulgi kept on complaining how her tummy would blow up anytime soon. Irene was not any different but she teased the younger about her ability in eating. “I am a very good eater! I finished everything when you said you couldn’t have anymore,” Seulgi said in her defense. The girl then wrapped her hand around Irene’s shoulder when some people passed by and pulled her closer. “What the hell? Why are they rushing there?” She turned her head and found a big crowd in the opposite direction.

“There seem to be an event or something,” Irene said, holding Seulgi’s hand on her shoulder.

“Huh? Oh, they’re shouting—aah! It must be a guerilla date with an idol group. No wonder.”

“Do you want to go there?”

“Why would I? I’m on my date with you.”

Irene chuckled, “Okay, then. Let’s go. Seems like the street becomes clearer now that almost everyone go towards the crowd.”

Seulgi looked around and realized that people looked like they were distracted with the event. She smiled and pulled Irene to a quiet street with some street lamps as light sources. The stood underneath one and Irene looked up to her confusedly. “What are we doing here? Your car’s over there, Seul.” She pointed another direction. “We’re on a date, right?” Seulgi asked with a hint of shyness heard in her words. “Like... this one’s different from the other dates we had, right?” She was hoping for reassurance. Irene’s red cheeks and a little nod got her melting.

“You are very cute, Rene...”

“S-stop! You’re making me shy!” Irene hit Seulgi’s arm playfully.

“No, but really. Can we have more dates like this?”

“Well, if we have the time... we can.”

Seulgi took both of Irene’s hand and suddenly planted a kiss on her lips.

“...?!”

She pulled away slowly. “I’ve always wanted to do that.”

“W-what? Kiss me?”

“Y-yeah, but I mean... like in dramas! Kissing underneath the street lamp?”

Irene burst into laughter after hearing Seulgi’s reasoning. “Are you serious?!”

“Yes...?”

“Wow, Kang Seulgi. You are very romantic,” she said. Again, she gave Seulgi a light punch.

It was lie but she had to come up with something to kiss Irene. The older girl was really cute and she just couldn’t help herself. She couldn’t do it in front of a lot of people. She didn’t want anyone else to see. And perhaps to ease the awkwardness which might come right after she broke off the kiss, she made up a stupid reason. “You should’ve done that in winter,” Irene said and took the lead towards Seulgi’s car on the other side of the street.

“Was that a hint? That was a hint, right? Should we come back here in winter?! Irene! Hey! Wait for me! Why are you so fast?!”

She managed to match her steps with Irene’s walked proudly beside the raven haired girl. Oh, she also smiled proudly. It looked like Irene didn’t mind the kiss. When Seulgi looked at Irene, there still some red-pink blush on her cheeks. She wondered when she could do that again. When they almost reached the car, Seulgi stopped and Irene turned around. “Something wrong, Seul?” she asked. Seulgi shook her head and smiled, walked closer and took Irene’s hand. “Nothing’s wrong. I just delayed us going home a little bit.” She heard Irene chuckled and that warmed up her heart. “Drive slowly, then, Seul.”

“Yes, Ma’am!”

They were already on the way home again. She regretted that she had to prepare for tomorrow’s photoshoot. But the thought of a photoshoot suddenly gave her an idea. “Hey, Rene. Would you pose for me here in the car? I have my camera in my backseat. Jisoo returned it the other day.” She looked at Irene whose gaze she couldn’t really decipher. “You’re going to take a picture of me?” she asked. Seulgi nodded and raised her left eyebrow. “You don’t trust my skill? I’m a very good photographer. Believe me!” she grinned widely thinking that Irene would love the result.

She didn’t expect Irene’s answer. It was not a ‘no’. It was question.

“Can you not be a photographer when you’re with me?”

Never in her life, had someone asked something like that. Seulgi never thought that among all of people she knew, Irene was the one who threw the question. “W-what? But that’s... me? I am a photographer, Rene.” None of Irene’s word in her question was comprehensible for Seulgi. “You don’t like me being a photographer?”

“It’s not... that, Seul. I just... have something with photographer.”

“What? Tell me.”

“N-no. I don’t want to talk about that.”

“Light me up, Rene! I really don’t understand! You see photographers a lot!”

“I avoid being in the studio or a photo session one on one. That’s all I can tell you.”

Seulgi pulled over and she turned to Irene, “So you forced yourself? All of this time, you forced yourself?”

“I, w-well, I kin—”

“You could’ve just say no. What’s with me being a photographer anyway? You don’t like me being a photographer? Can you accept that?”

“It’s not—” Irene sighed, “it’s not that I don’t accept you being a photographer, Seulgi. I just... I just don’t want to remember that you are when you’re with me.”

“Why?! What’s wrong with that, Rene? Even your best-friend is a photographer!”

“Jennie’s different, okay? Don’t bring her up here...”

“And why is she different? We have the same occupation!”

“Seulgi, please...”

“You... don’t accept me as who I am, do you? Why can’t you tell me why?!”

“Seulgi!! Please!” Irene never thought that she would raise her voice, “please...”

Seulgi turned quiet.

“Could you just... take me home?”

The taller girl didn’t answer. She just started the engine again and drove away. It was all silence in the car. Suddenly her heart was aching again. Never thought that Irene would not see her as what she is, a passionate photographer. Jennie’s different? Why? Why is that?! Why can’t I be another exception too?! Seulgi didn’t turn her head once to check on Irene. She was too... disappointed. The girl thought that it would be a good evening, a good night. How did it turn like this?

Arrived at Irene’s apartment, none of the girls spoke. There were only deep and heavy breathes and engine sound. “Seul,” Irene called her. Reluctantly, she turned to find Irene looking wounded when she was the one who should look like that. “I... I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that. I like you for who you are... there’s just this something. Something I can’t get myself to tell you yet.” She then saw the other girl was a bit shaking. Irene’s question surely hurt her but seeing Irene like that, her heart broke. “I should’ve told you... but I’m not ready, Seul.”

Seulgi saw how Irene reached out to her hand. She immediately gave her hand and felt how Irene was literally shaking. Was I too harsh? A tear rolled on the bunny-like girl and Seulgi reacted fast. She wiped the tear and cupped Iren’s face with one hand. The older girl was really about to cry.

“I’m sorry I hurt you again. I’m... not good for you, am I?”

Irene needed to shut up because Seulgi really dislike that ‘I’m not good for you’ statement. Since Irene was about to say something else, Seulgi shut the girl herself. Irene broke into tears and that got Seulgi prolonged the kiss. She felt the crying girl kissed her back and all she wanted to do was to hold her close. Seulgi broke the kiss and wiped the tears away. “When will you tell me, then? I... I need to know your reason so I can understand,” Seulgi said. Irene blinked and sighed, apparently still affected from the kiss. “I promise I will tell you. I promise I will not make anymore misunderstanding. Not again.”

“Can I keep that promise?”

“You can. You can keep my words.”

Can I keep your heart, Irene? Will you let me take care of it?

“Okay, then. Have some rest now. I’m sorry for... snapping earlier.”

“It’s... it’s okay. I’m sorry too.”

When Irene got off the car, Seulgi quickly followed her and gave the shorter girl a tight hug. She was still hurt, of course. She needed remedy. Ironically, the girl who hurt her was the healing she needed. At least for now, Seulgi could hug Irene as tight as she wanted. This should be enough for now. “Night, Rene.” She didn’t know how Irene’s night was going to be, but she knew that she wouldn’t be able to sleep right away. How would she spend the night without replaying Irene’s question in her head over and over again?

Hello, everyone! Thank you for patiently waiting for this fic update! I hope that this update don't disappoint you! Since I'm on my holiday, I will try to finish this fic before going on my family vacation! Hit me up on Twitter @yrene2219 if you have anything to ask me or you just want to talk to me! My DM is open for anybody!