“So what you’re saying is I’m working too hard?”

 

If she were completely honest, Mina would say that she finds herself lucky to have a boss that’s as chill as Sana Minatozaki, but she’s not going to say that.

 

Not when the said boss’s hand is now resting on Mina’s laptop that Sana rudely closed while the other girl was still using it, that is.

 

“I’m saying you already did 38 hours of overtime this month,” Sana says, leaning closer to Mina who’s still sitting down in her office chair. “That is 8 more than the limit the company just set, remember?”

 

“So you’re saying I am working too hard, but for some reason, you’re not pleased about it,” Mina replies as she crosses her arms. In the process, she bumps her elbow into Momo, who’s clearing Mina’s desk and packing up for Mina under Sana’s command. That makes Mina drop the serious expression on her face, uncross her arms, and apologize to Momo, all before turning back to Sana.

 

“I’m saying your job is complicated, and you still manage to do it well, so I don’t understand why it’s so hard for you to do one simple task!”

 

“I don’t know, maybe it’s because I don’t want to do what you want me to do?” Mina supplies, and when she sees Sana glare in response, she suggests, “Can’t you just apply the rule to me next month? I’m already over the limit anyway.”

 

“Go. Home.” Sana orders Mina for the nth time as she lifts her hand from Mina’s laptop so Momo can get it and lock it in Mina’s drawer. “Momo, make sure she’s out of the office before 5:30.”

 

“Yes, Ma’am,” Momo says with a nod. Sana gives Momo a smile and narrows her eyes at Mina before turning her back. As Sana walks away, Momo grabs her own bag and slings Mina’s backpack on her other shoulder. “Come on, Mina. You heard her.”

 

When Mina refuses to move, Momo grabs her arm to force her to stand up and doesn’t let go to drag her even further from her cubicle.

 

“Why are you holding me?” Mina asks in protest. “I’m not a child!”

 

“If I let your hand go, will you go back to your desk to work?”

 

“… Yes?”

 

“You’re a child,” Momo decides as she pulls Mina inside the elevator with her.

 

As the elevator descends, it occurs to Mina that there is a reason why she doesn’t want to go home early everyday.

 

She tries not to think about it. Maybe if she doesn’t think about that one thing she doesn’t want to happen, maybe it won’t happen.

 

And so she decides she should take her mind off of it. She tries to focus on the first thing she sees—Momo. Mina gets an idea as Momo drags her out of the elevator and out of the building.

 

If Momo is gonna call her a child, then she might as well act like a child.

 

“So when are you gonna tell Sana that you like her?”

 

“When she’s not my boss anymore,” Momo answers calmly, surprising and disappointing Mina. “Or when you confess to Nayeon. Whichever happens first. I’m guessing it’s not gonna be the latter.”

 

Mina freezes briefly at the mention of her name. She should have known that would backfire.

 

“So you’re just gonna ‘yes ma’am’ her until she takes the hint?” Mina asks, only acknowledging the first part of Momo’s reply, and tries to disregard the rest of it.

 

“So you’re just gonna avoid Nayeon until one of you dies?” Momo counters.

 

“Or moves away to somewhere super far,” Mina suggests. “You didn’t have to be so dark about it.”

 

“I’ll take that as a huge cowardly yes.”

 

“Yes, that’s exactly my plan,” Mina confirms. “Please cooperate and walk faster so I can get out of here.”

 

“Walk faster? Really? Because I can see Nayeon over there.”

 

Momo gestures her head towards the compound gates, and sure enough, Mina does spot the one person she didn’t want to see.

 

“Did I say faster? I meant slower. Very much slower.” Mina corrects herself and tries to hold herself back despite Momo’s tight grip on her wrist. “Better yet, we should walk backwards. I heard that’s good exercise.”

 

“No, no, you said walk faster, so we’re gonna walk faster,” Momo insists as she succeeds at pulling Mina forward then shouts, “Hey, Nayeon! Wait up!”

 

At that, Nayeon looks back and sees the pair. Momo waves at her, and Nayeon waves back rather awkwardly as she waits for the other two to catch up with her.

 

Great, Mina thinks, her heart beating faster with every step she takes. She bets it would be a lot easier for her if she can’t feel Nayeon looking at her intently as they walk, but nope.

 

For a moment, she asks what she’s done to deserve to suffer like this.

 

Then, she remembers.

 

“Hi,” Nayeon greets with a nervous smile, her eyes still on Mina. “You’re out early today.”

 

“Only because it’s not her choice to make anymore,” Momo explains, and Mina sees Nayeon raise her eyebrows in confusion.

 

“Overtime limit,” Mina elaborates, and Nayeon nods.

 

“Oh, right, you’ve been working really late,” Nayeon replies, and Mina wonders why she says it so sullenly.

 

“Hey, you live near Mina’s, right?” Momo asks Nayeon, even if they all know that Momo is fully aware of this information by now.

 

“Momo… you’ve been to my house,” Nayeon reminds her. “Multiple times.”

 

“My point is she’s your responsibility now. Make sure she gets home.” Momo says as she pushes Mina lightly towards Nayeon.

 

“What? No, I’m your responsibility,” Mina tells Momo.

 

“Sana said get you out of the office,” Momo recalls. “You’re already out of the office. My job here is done.” Momo turns to Nayeon. “It’s your time to shine.”

 

“Wait, you can’t just order her around,” Mina complains for Nayeon.

 

“Why not? She’s from HR. That means I can literally use her as a human resource.”

 

Nayeon snorts. “Does it?”

 

“No, it doesn’t,” Momo relents before continuing with, “but I’ll buy you a Gundam if you do this for me.”

 

Oh no.

 

Mina is not even looking at Nayeon, but she knows that Nayeon’s eyes are shining at Momo’s proposition.

 

She never really understood it, how Nayeon developed such a questionable hobby. She’s been to the girl’s room, and one moment, you’ll be looking at a pair of pink bunny slippers, a pink bunny-printed towel, a huge bunny plushie, and the next, you’re looking at a shelf full of DIY robot action figures.

 

She never really understood it, for Nayeon isn’t even good at assembling all of those tiny pieces to create a smaller version of the giant anime robots she remembers seeing on TV when she was younger.

 

She never really understood it, but there were times when she stayed up to help Nayeon build some of those action figures.

 

(What Mina means by “helped Nayeon” is “built it myself while Nayeon watches.”)

 

“Will you build it for me?” Nayeon asks Momo.

 

“Why do you buy it if you’re not gonna build it yourself?”

 

“Can you help me build it?” Nayeon changes her question.

 

“Sorry, I don’t use my brain outside of work,” Momo declines.

 

“You have a brain?!” Nayeon counters. “On second thought, I guess you can’t help me out with building the Gundam after all.”

 

“I design buildings for a living, Nayeon. Don’t insult me.”

 

“So it’s a deal? You’ll buy it and help me?”

 

Momo glares as Nayeon smiles at her sweetly. “I know I’m being tricked, but okay, deal.” Momo reaches out her hand, and after Nayeon shakes it, she replaces her hand in Nayeon’s with Mina’s arm. She slings Mina’s bag on her friend’s other shoulder before turning to Nayeon. “Don’t let go of Mina. We both know how stubborn she is. Take care and good luck!”

 

With that, Momo sprints away and leaves the two standing together.

 

Moments pass with just awkward silence, and Mina wonders if it can get any worse than this.

 

“Let’s go?” Nayeon breaks the silence.

 

“Do I have a choice?”

 

“I guess not,” Nayeon answers. “Do you need to stop by anywhere?”

 

“No, you?”

 

“Not really. Do you want to get dinner?”

 

“I’m not hungry.”

 

“Okay, I’ll just get you straight home, then,” Nayeon decides before pulling Mina towards the direction of the nearest bus stop.

 

“You’re really not gonna let go of my wrist?” Mina asks as she follows Nayeon’s lead.

 

“Sorry, can’t risk it,” Nayeon says, then looks back at Mina in concern. “Is my grip too tight?”

 

“No, it’s fine.”

 

That’s not the problem, Mina wants to say, but she doesn’t.

 

“Okay.”

 

“Okay.”

 

--

 

Mina deals with the awkward silence again, only this time, it’s a bus ride and a train ride long, so apparently, yes. It could get worse.

 

She goes to bed with the dreadful thought that things could still get way worse.

 

--

 

For Mina, work is work.

 

If she’s in the office, that means she’s there to work, not to slack off, so she takes minimal breaks.

 

By minimal breaks, that means lunch and the morning break, if you can even call that second one a break.

 

Every 10:30 in the morning, instrumental music plays across the entire building. The song is always different every day, and they’re all supposed to sound soothing because that’s it. That three-minute song is their break. People usually go down to get food during the afternoon break, but no, Mina figures taking that break would break her focus and affect her productivity.

 

The morning break, however, Mina actually respects, so for three minutes, she leans back in her chair, closes her eyes, and relaxes.

 

Often, it just sounds like the usual elevator music, but sometimes, including today, Mina finds the music... melancholic.

 

It kind of makes her think of Nayeon and how they were before and how they could have been by now.

 

Just for three minutes, Mina lets that happen.

 

Just three minutes.

 

The music stops.

 

Mina gets back to work.

 

--

 

She doesn’t like thinking too much about it, what happened between her and Nayeon.

 

Sure, she opened up to Momo because she trusts her friend with her life, but she couldn’t even tell her the whole story. She just told Momo the short version.

 

The short version is this.

 

Nayeon recently transferred to their company from their HQ in Korea armed only with the little Japanese knowledge she acquired from learning the language for less than a year. Since Mina is fluent in Korean from the five years she spent studying there and also happens to live in the same neighborhood as Nayeon, naturally, they’d be friends.

 

That was the problem.

 

They were only meant to be friends.

 

Of course, Mina just had to go and develop feelings, hadn’t she? To be fair, she didn’t even realize the said feelings were there until Nayeon was asking her for advice about the girl she likes.

 

That simple question knocked the wind right out off Mina and made her forget how to breathe.

 

She caught the phrases “want to ask her out” and “scared I’ll ruin our friendship” and “don’t know what to do” and drowned everything else out.

 

Mina stared at Nayeon blankly for a few moments, and when she finally remembered how to speak, she advised Nayeon not to pursue the girl, then said nothing else.

 

She didn’t understand it, why everything started hurting like she just lost something she never even had.

 

When she finally understood why, she did what she does best.

 

She ran.

 

--

 

“On a scale of 1 to this karaage, how tough was the ride home for you yesterday?”

 

Mina scowls at Momo from across the table. She swallows her food before answering, “It’s not that bad.”

 

“You and Nayeon weren’t awkward?”

 

“I was talking about the food,” Mina clarifies, taking another bite of the fried chicken. “Maybe you should learn how to chew.”

 

“Maybe you should learn how to stop deflecting,” Momo retorts. “Have you at least apologized for avoiding her for the last three months?”

 

“I didn’t know you were counting.”

 

“She was also probably counting,” Momo guesses.

 

“Please. I doubt that she even missed me.”

 

“You’re dumb, Mina.” Momo shakes her head. “You’re really smart, but you’re dumb.”

 

Instead of thinking of a comeback, Mina just goes back to eating her lunch in silence. She knows Momo is right anyway. It is dumb to say that Nayeon was not affected by what she did. It was a selfish move, and she’s not proud of it.

 

Still, she doesn’t regret it.

 

She doesn’t need to get hurt more than she already did.

 

--

 

It’s easy for Mina to avoid Nayeon at work. They work at different departments in a fairly huge company, and they don’t have the same allotted time for lunch either.

 

In the office, Mina doesn’t have to worry. The real challenge is not running into Nayeon on the way to and from work.

 

However, since Nayeon never goes to work early or goes home late, Mina just has to do these two things to make sure she won’t run into Nayeon.

 

She still does the first one, and she used to work overtime everyday just to do the second one. However, now that she doesn’t have control over the second one, she just hopes she won’t see Nayeon outside their building even if she has to leave on time.

 

Of course, when Momo drags her out of the building, they see Nayeon leaning against a pillar, waiting for them.

 

“I’m glad you figured this wasn’t just a one-time thing,” Momo tells Nayeon.

 

“A Gundam isn’t worth just a day’s work.” Nayeon shrugs. “If I do this everyday, will you buy me one every week?”

 

“Absolutely not.”

 

“Ah, then I guess this is just a one-week thing,” Nayeon says with a chuckle.

 

“Why do you need an incentive?” Momo questions. “Don’t you care about Mina?”

 

“Of course I do,” Nayeon replies without missing a beat.

 

“Then I don’t need to bribe you,” Momo concludes. Before walking away and leaving them, she tells the two, “Take care of yourselves!”

 

Here we go again, Mina thinks.

 

“I need to buy dinner,” Nayeon says when Momo is out of sight. “I’m gonna get a bento from the grocery. Is that okay?”

 

“Sure.”

 

When Mina gives her confirmation, Nayeon smiles lightly and reaches for Mina’s wrist before walking to the nearby grocery.

 

Mina almost forgot that they do the holding thing.

 

She wishes Nayeon could’ve just forgotten, too.

 

“Can I stay here?” Mina asks when they reach the entrance to the grocery. “I won’t buy anything.”

 

“You’re not gonna leave, are you?”

 

“Why would I leave?”

 

“I don’t know, Mina. Why would you?”

 

There’s something in way that Nayeon says it, something that makes Mina’s chest feel tight.

 

(She thinks that feeling is called guilt.)

 

She looks away from Nayeon’s gaze and gestures towards the capsule toy machines lined up against the walls surrounding the grocery.

 

“There’s a ton of gacha machines here. I think it’s safe to say that I’m not going anywhere.”

 

Nayeon used to scold Mina when she spends too much on capsule toys, so she would know that Mina would be too engrossed with the machines that Nayeon could literally shop for hours and be back before Mina even notices she’s gone.

 

“Okay.” Nayeon says, releasing her hold on Mina. “Don’t go.”

 

“I won’t.”

 

As Nayeon walks inside the building, Mina catches her looking over her shoulder. It makes Mina feel like Nayeon doesn’t trust her.

 

She figures Nayeon shouldn’t.

 

She’s meaning to keep her word though, so she busies herself with looking at the capsule toy machines and limits herself to only getting one today.

 

It’s been a while since the last time she was here, and she doesn’t recognize any of the new machines anymore. She walks back and forth, carefully deciding which one to get before settling for one that dispenses little animal keychains.

 

There are six different designs, and all of them are cute, but Mina really, really, really wants to get the penguin one.

 

She’s not counting on it though. Knowing her luck, she’ll probably get Nayeon’s favorite animal instead.

 

She inserts two coins and hopes for the best anyway.

 

When she opens the small plastic ball holding the keychain, she scoffs.

 

She got a bunny.

 

Of course.

 

Mina tells herself that she’s not annoyed, but she takes out two more coins and gives the machine another spin. Besides, statistically, it’s five times more likely that she’ll get anything other than the bunny this time.

 

Anything other than the bunny.

 

She opens the second ball, and it makes her want to cry.

 

“What did you get?” She hears Nayeon ask from behind her, and she turns around to show Nayeon the two bunny keychains on her palm.

 

“You can have them.”

 

“Thanks,” Nayeon says with a smile, taking one and hanging it on the zipper of her bag.

 

“I said you can have them,” Mina repeats, reaching her open palm towards Nayeon. “As in both of them.”

 

“Why would I want two of the same thing? Just keep the other one.”

 

Mina shrugs and was just about to put the keychain in her pocket when Nayeon grabs it from her hands and makes her turn around.

 

“There,” Nayeon says after a minute, and Mina figures the keychain is hanging on one of the zippers of her backpack now. “It looks cute.”

 

“Okay,” Mina agrees. “I can’t see it, but I believe you.”

 

For the first time in a long, long while, Mina sees Nayeon smile a wide, genuine smile.

 

It makes her feel something she can’t place, but before she can overthink it, Nayeon’s hand finds its way back around her wrists, pulling her towards home.

 

---

 

Nayeon is never early.

 

Mina knows for a fact that she’s the type who would come to work a minute late at the timeliest, so when she sees Nayeon on the same train the next morning, she’s so shocked and disoriented that she sits next to the girl without even thinking about it.

 

“You’re early today,” Mina says in blatant disbelief.

 

Nayeon laughs shortly before explaining, “I didn’t finish something I was supposed to do yesterday, so I’m just gonna do it before the work hours start.”

 

Now, Mina is even more confused.

 

“If you still had something to do, why did you leave in time?”

 

Nayeon was waiting outside before Mina and Momo even left, and Mina doesn’t get it.

 

“I didn’t want to miss you,” Nayeon replies. When she realizes what she just said, she turns a bit red, and hastily adds, “I meant miss you as in I won’t get to go home with you. Besides, it’s no big deal. I can finish it in less than half an hour.”

 

Mina can’t help but laugh at how flustered Nayeon seems to be. “You don’t have to do this, you know? No need to be scared of Momo.”

 

“I’m not doing it for Momo,” Nayeon clarifies. “I care about you, Mina. I don’t want you to overwork yourself.”

 

It doesn’t make sense to Mina, how someone can still care about her after doing what she did. Thinking about serious things like this isn’t really the most comfortable thing for Mina, so she tries to keep things light and jokes, “So are you gonna hold my wrist to stop me from going to work now too?”

 

“Nah. I won’t even try. I know there’s only one thing that can stop you from going and it’s flu.”

 

“Oh, God, please don’t remind me,” Mina pleads, burying her face into her hands as she recalls the day she got sick and had to call Nayeon. In response, Nayeon came running to her house and lectured her on how she should take care of herself and how she shouldn’t be too stubborn to ask for help and how she should stop insisting that she’s ‘fine’ when she’s not. “I regret calling you that day.”

 

Nayeon snorts. “You would have died if you didn’t. Or at least that’s how you looked.”

 

“Stop!” Mina exclaims in embarrassment. “I’m done talking about this!”

 

“I don’t know why you’re embarrassed. You’re more adorable and likable when you’re sick and needy.”

 

Mina knows Nayeon is teasing her, so she just says in jest, “Ah, that means you still think I’m adorable and likable even when I’m not sick.”

 

“Well, you are,” Nayeon agrees with a shrug, and okay, that’s not what Mina was expecting.

 

She doesn’t say anything because Nayeon looks like she wants to tell Mina something, but she doesn’t say it throughout the rest of the train ride.

 

She doesn’t say it throughout the bus ride to work, either.

 

When they reach the entrance of the company’s main building, Nayeon reaches for Mina’s wrist from behind to make her stop walking.

 

The way Nayeon takes a deep breath before saying what she wants to say makes Mina tense, but then—

 

“If you got sick again, you would still call me, right?”

 

Mina blinks.

 

That’s it?

 

“I know things haven’t been the same lately,” Nayeon continues, “but you’ll still think of me when you need someone, right?”

 

Maybe it’s the way that Nayeon is looking at her like she just wants to take care of her and keep her safe.

 

Maybe it’s the way that Nayeon has always been taking care of her and keeping her safe.

 

Maybe it’s the way that Nayeon still wants to do that even after Mina pushed her away.

 

Mina doesn’t know the exact reason, but something is making her want to hug Nayeon, but she knows she couldn’t.

 

She doesn’t deserve it.

 

“Of course, I will,” Mina answers simply, and she wonders what she did to deserve to see the way Nayeon smiles at her like she made her genuinely happy just by letting Nayeon take care of her.

 

--

 

“You fixed it in two days, huh? I must say, you did so much better than I expected. Well done.”

 

Mina drops her backpack on her desk and sits, turning her chair to face Momo. “What are you talking about?”

 

“You and Nayeon. Saw you two walking to work together.”

 

“Oh. I didn’t notice you.”

 

“Well, I noticed you,” Momo assures. “You know what else I noticed?”

 

“What?”

 

“Your couple keychains,” Momo answers with a mischievous smile. “That’s so adorable.”

 

Mina shakes her head. “We’re not a couple, and you know it.”

 

“Uh huh,” Momo sarcastically agrees. She only drops her teasing smile when she sees that Mina doesn’t seem fazed about it. “For real though, you guys are doing okay, right?”

 

“We’re…” Mina trails off before settling with, “We’re doing better. I think.”

 

“Good,” Momo smiles. “Just take it easy on Nayeon, alright? You’re my best friend, and she broke your heart, but she’s my friend, too. She’d never hurt you on purpose. You know her better than I do, and you know I’m right.”

 

“I know.”

 

“And take it easy on yourself, too,” Momo adds. “Don’t ever forget that part, okay?”

 

“I don’t work overtime anymore,” Mina reminds her friend. “What more do you want from me?”

 

“I wasn’t talking about work,” Momo explains. “You’re allowed to feel things, Mina. You just have to think carefully about what you’re gonna do about those feelings.”

 

Mina hears the bell sound, signaling the start of work hours, and Momo pats her head before turning her attention to her laptop.

 

--

 

It’s 10:30 in the morning.

 

The music starts playing, and Mina thinks about how she felt about Nayeon back then and how all of this changed three months later.

 

The music stops.

 

Mina realizes that her feelings never did.

 

--

 

“Can we stop by the arcade?”

 

“I’m sorry?”

 

“Arcade. I wanna go.”

 

“I’m sorry, I don’t think I’m hearing you right.”

 

“You’re hearing me right. It’s just that I went to work early for the first time. I think today is a good day to do other things I haven’t done before, so can we go?”

 

Mina stares back at Nayeon in disbelief. The arcade is the last thing Mina thought Nayeon would drag her into.

 

Nayeon hates losing. Playing crane games isn’t exactly what you should do if you hate losing.

 

Still, Nayeon is looking at her expectantly, so Mina just mutters, “Umm sure. If that’s what you want.”

 

When they get there, Nayeon asks, “Can you promise not to let me leave without winning a prize?”

 

“I’ll promise no such thing.”

 

“Mina, please,” Nayeon starts, “have I ever asked you for anything?”

 

It wasn’t fair. Mina just wants to spare Nayeon from the inevitable frustration, not to mention the waste of money, that her plan entails.

 

It shouldn’t have anything to do with how Nayeon has always been the perfect friend and how Nayeon has always treated her well without ever expecting anything in return.

 

It really wasn’t fair.

 

“Fine,” Mina relents, and Nayeon smiles triumphantly. She’s so excited that she practically sprints into the arcade, and when Mina finds her, she’s already playing in front of a crane machine.

 

“You want this one?” Mina questions as she eyes the stuffed penguin inside the machine. She could’ve sworn she passed by four machines with stuffed bunnies when she was following Nayeon.

 

Nayeon just shushes her in response, trying not to break her concentration. Not that you even need concentration to win crane games. You just need enough luck to be playing when the crane is set to have a tight grip.

 

It becomes apparent that Nayeon does not have said luck because she still fails to get the prize on her nineteenth try.

 

“Maybe you should try the smaller ones?” Mina suggests.

 

“But I want to win this one,” Nayeon whines.

 

“And I want to go home,” Mina counters. “Ideally, on this day.”

 

Nayeon sighs. “Fine.” She pouts until they reach the machines with smaller prizes.

 

“How about this one?” Mina says, guiding Nayeon to a machine that is filled with tiny stuffed Kirby’s. “You like pink, right?”

 

Nayeon doesn’t even answer and just gloomily inserts a coin and plays the game.

 

However, her mood completely changes when the tag of one of the prizes gets caught by the crane on her second try.

 

Nayeon squeals and literally jumps before retrieving the small and soft Kirby she won.

 

“I won! We can go home! On this day!”

 

Mina knows that Nayeon just spent 2100 yen today and only got a super tiny prize that looks even tinier now that Nayeon is holding it in her hands, but she can’t stop herself from feeling as thrilled as Nayeon is, not when Nayeon is grinning like a child.

 

This is the one thing that Mina misses the most from being around Nayeon. She misses seeing her smile and laugh like that moment is the happiest one of her life.

 

As they walk out of the arcade, Nayeon asks Mina to stop walking for a while, but the latter doesn’t know what for because the former is behind her. She only gets it when she hears Nayeon say, “This looks cute with the bunny keychain.”

 

“You’re giving it to me?” Mina asks, figuring Kirby is now hanging on one of her backpack’s zippers. “Don’t you want to keep your first win?”

 

“I’d rather you have it, so you’ll always be reminded of me, your awesome friend, master of crane machines,” Nayeon says and stands beside Mina. “I really wanted to get you the penguin, but maybe next time.”

 

“No, no more next time,” Mina protests. “Crane games are a scam.”

 

“And capsule toys aren’t?” Nayeon quips. “Isn’t that a game of chance, too?”

 

“It is, but it’s a sure win!” Mina defends. “Even if you don’t get what you want, you still have something!”

 

“Sure win, yeah,” Nayeon says, nodding slowly. “Remember when you spent over two thousand yen on that one anime gachapon just because you couldn’t get the character you liked?”

 

“Shh, I don’t want to talk about it. Today’s a good day. Let’s not ruin it.”

 

“Alright, alright,” Nayeon yields, putting her hands up while laughing. “Let’s just go home,” she adds, then reaches for Mina’s arm.

 

“Is this still necessary?”

 

“You’re a flight risk, Mina,” Nayeon answers and holds Mina’s wrist just a little bit tighter. “I can’t let you go again.”

 

“Again?” Mina asks in confusion. “You’ve never let me walk on my own for the past three days.”

 

“I wasn’t talking about this week.”

 

Oh.

 

“I…” Mina stops. “I just think this is weird.”

 

“What is?”

 

“This,” Mina says, raising her arm, the one that Nayeon is holding. “Is this not weird for you? Do you hold your friends at the wrist all the time?”

 

Nayeon doesn’t answer Mina’s questions. She just slides her own hand down from Mina’s wrist to her hand.

 

“Is this less weird for you?”

 

Mina doesn’t answer.

 

She doesn’t let go either.

 

--

 

Mina wants to ask about the girl.

 

She wants to ask if Nayeon followed her petty advice or didn’t.

 

She wants to ask if they got together and if the girl is just the type who doesn’t mind it if her girlfriend held hands with somebody else.

 

She wants to ask, but she’s not entirely sure if she wants to know.

 

--

 

Nayeon holds her hand instead of her wrist again on the way home the next day.

 

Mina still doesn’t ask.

 

--

 

Developing a habit has always been easy for Mina. Most of the time, it's convenient since this way she doesn't have to worry about forgetting something if she wants to or has to do something on a regular basis.

 

Right now, it's simply inconvenient.

 

It's only the third day since Mina and Nayeon spent their time going home while holding hands, but Mina is already scared about getting used to it.

 

It doesn't help that Nayeon suggested walking to the train station instead of taking the bus, prolonging that part of their trip to more than double the usual time.

 

Mina just tells herself that today is a Friday, so she'll be free from all of this tomorrow.

 

(She tells herself she's anticipating it, but she knows deep down that she's actually dreading it.)

 

“Do you have plans for tomorrow?” Nayeon asks when they're near Mina's place.

 

“No, you?”

 

“Not really. Momo is not coming over until Sunday to build the Gundam she bought me.”

 

“What, you don’t have a date?”

 

Mina didn’t even realize what she just said until Nayeon was asking, “Why would I have a date?”

 

Oh.

 

“You didn’t ask her out?” Mina voices her comprehension out loud. “When I said you shouldn’t ask her out, I didn’t think you’d actually listen to me.”

 

“Why wouldn’t I? If anyone knew what to do, that would be you.” Nayeon stops walking and drops Mina’s hand before facing the other girl. “Besides, it’s kinda hard to ask someone out if they’re avoiding you.”

 

“Why is she avoiding you?”

 

Nayeon lets out a short, unhappy laugh. “I don’t know, Mina. You tell me.”

 

“Me? Why me?”

 

“Why do you think?”

 

Mina stares at Nayeon, wondering what she’s got to with how the girl Nayeon likes was avoiding her, and—oh.

 

Oh.

 

“You didn’t know,” Nayeon concludes when Mina stays silent a minute too long.

 

“How would I know? I thought you were talking about someone else!”

 

It makes Mina’s heart constrict when she thinks about how her immediate thought when Nayeon said she liked someone was that Nayeon was definitely talking about someone else.

 

She’s overwhelmed by the feelings she’s getting over the thought that it never once crossed her mind that Nayeon could have been talking about her, and now Nayeon is telling her that she does like Mina back.

 

“Why would you avoid me if you thought it was someone else?” Nayeon asks.

 

“Why do you think?”

 

At that, Nayeon pauses and takes a minute to process what Mina said just like what Mina did after her indirect confession earlier.

 

“I thought you hated me,” Nayeon starts when she finally breaks the silence. “Or at least I thought you hated that I liked you. I thought that you meant it when you said I shouldn’t pursue you. I thought you avoiding me was your way of saying it’s never gonna happen.”

 

Mina sighs. “I’m an idiot.”

 

Nayeon snorts. “I’m the idiot. Did you hear everything I just said?”

 

“Still,” Mina insists. “I shouldn’t have just left.”

 

“That we can agree on.”

 

Mina heaves another heavy sigh, her eyes pinned at the ground in shame and regret. “I don’t know what to say except I’m sorry, Nayeon. I don’t know how I’ll ever make it up to you.”

 

“You can let me take you out on a date tomorrow,” Nayeon suggests. “I’ll pick you up whatever time you want if you say yes.”

 

Mina looks up, and the way Nayeon looks so beautiful under the streets’ dim yellow lights with that small, hopeful smile on her face makes it easy for Mina to figure out the right response.

 

“Or you can just stay here with me,” Mina proposes as an alternative, “just until we go out tomorrow. You know, so you won’t have to pick me up.”

 

Nayeon’s smile widens.

 

“Staying sounds good.”

 

--

 

Nayeon stays for two whole days.

 

--

 

“You’re late,” Momo says, her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she watches Mina drop her bag and sit on her chair.”

 

“I’m not late,” Mina corrects. “I clocked in at 8:30.”

 

“If you’re on time, you’re late. Why are you late?”

 

“I’m not late,” Mina insists.

 

“She’s not late,” Sana backs Mina up as she walks towards the pair. “I would know. I did see her clock in at 8:30. I also saw her arriving with Nayeon and kissing her cheek before they parted ways, but my point here is that Mina is not late.”

 

Momo gasps. “You slept together, didn’t you? That’s why Nayeon cancelled our plans last Sunday, isn’t it?”

 

Ignoring Momo’s questions, Mina turns to Sana. “I thought you said no gossiping allowed in your department!”

 

“What? I was just defending you.” Sana answers innocently. “Which part of that was gossip?”

 

“You’re my boss, and I don’t want you to fire me, but if you weren’t my boss and you couldn’t fire me, I’d say I hate you,” Mina grumbles.

 

“Aww,” Sana coos and pinches Mina’s cheek. “You’re still my second favorite employee.”

 

“Am I your favorite?” Momo butts in.

 

Sana lets go of Mina’s cheek and tells Momo, “I’ll answer you over dinner.”

 

Momo blinks in confusion. “What dinner?”

 

“I don’t know, Momo. You tell me.” With a shrug, Sana start walking away, then looks back to add, “I’ll wait.”

 

“That means she wants you to ask her out,” Mina explains even if she knows Momo gets it judging by the way the other girl is still gaping in Sana’s direction.

 

That makes Momo tear her gaze away to look at Mina and tease, “Oh, suddenly you’re good at reading between the lines?”

 

“Hey, I’m trying my best!” Mina exclaims, and Momo laughs before patting the girl on the head.

 

“Don’t screw up again, Mina.”

 

“I’m sure I will screw up again,” Mina realistically presumes, “but next time, I’m not running away anymore.”

 

“Good,” Momo supports. “You’re smart, Mina. Stop being dumb.”

 

Mina grins.

 

“You, too.”

 

--

 

It’s 10:30 in the morning.

 

The music starts playing, and it makes Mina think about Nayeon and her warm hands and her warmer smile.

 

The music stops.

 

On Mina’s mind, it continues playing.

 

--

 

A/N: You can find me @ twitter.com/minamyowu.