It was 3:33 A.M.

The tv was on in the background, muted and forgotten, the pinkish light of the 24/7 convenience store's neon sign, which hung leveled with the one room apartment's single window, filtering through the gaping blinds and spilling onto the unmade bed bellow before clashing with the flickering blue hue of the screen, blending together in the darkness of the room before stopping harshly where the pure white light of the desk lamp overpowered them both. In the far corner, the disc turner was skipping over the end of the vinyl that had been placed in it hours ago, creating a faint static noise that could only be heard if one tried to do so, much like the deep hum of the refrigerator, the ticking of the clock above the bed or the soft pattering of the rain against the glass of the window.

The furious sound of panicked scribbling and the hurried tapping of fingers on the plastic keys of a cheap calculator dictated the rhythm of the otherwise near silent room, the occasional screech of a metal chair against the cold wooden floor and the breathy puffs of frustrated growls sometimes joining them in their tempo. A cold mug of coffee laid forgotten next to the small cactus on the far corner of the work desk, the dark liquid shaking slightly with every tremor of the table as Byulyi passionately scratched out yet another row of numbers, adding them to the lengthening list in the middle of the page of her notebook. If a calculator could overheat, it would've done so a long time ago with how many time the poor girl obsessively double and triple checked everything, furiously scratching at the top of her head and biting the end of her pen so hard it left little dents in the plastic.

"No no no no no...." Byulyi muttered as she verified the numbers yet again, tense fingers combing through the dark strands of her hair before grabbing a fistful and pulling harshly when she was forced to accept that the squared digits on the small screen of the calculator were, in fact, the right ones. "...."

The word fell from her chewed lips in a defeated sigh, barely audible, as she she slumped back against the cold metal of the desk chair, hands coming up to rub at her face harshly before she slung one arm over her burning eyes, forcing them shut as she allowed a strangled groan to escape through the lump in .

Byulyi felt like crying, but she was too exhausted to even force a tear, so she just lay there instead, motionless, any fighting spirit she might've had left sapped right out of her by the cold, cruel slap of reality. She was about 60$ short. Even after getting rid of anything she thought she could do without, anything she wouldn't absolutely need this month, she was still 60$ off from the rent money she owed. She knew her landlord wasn't going to give her an extension this time. No reason he should with how much she's been struggling to pay him off. Losing her part time at the cafe had really hurt her income and she wasn't good enough of a producer yet to hope for anything more than cheep contracts from underground musicians and rappers or the occasional party deejaying she did on the side for a couple of buddies and acquaintances.

Byulyi wouldn't lose this apartment. She wouldn't allow it, couldn't afford it. It was the closest thing she'd ever had to an actual space for herself and her art and she couldn't let it slip though her fingers. She let one last whimper escape her as a new wave of anxiety washed over her before she forced herself into a sitting position once again, weakly grabbing the discarded pen taunting her on the scribble darkened page of her notebook. On the kitchen counter behind her, her old flip phone started buzzing, the plastic rattling against the tiles as it did, obnoxiously alerting her of an incoming call. Though she probably could've used the distraction, Byulyi ignored it as she halfheartedly scratched the line labeled "food" off the page, trying not to think about how she'd manage that loss later on as she added the meager number to the "rent" list. She punched the new addition into the calculator, fingers landing onto the keys heavily, before writing the new total at the bottom of the paper, circling it a couple times. It was barely enough, but it would do.

Byulyi finally felt some of the tension leave her shoulders for the first time that night, allowing her to breathe a full inhale without feeling like her lungs were going to explode. She allowed all the pent up fatigue to take over for a brief moment as she laid her head onto the cold wooden surface of her desk, enjoying the way it slowly cooled the overheating skin of her cheek. Her eyes, glossy from the pull of sleep, roamed over the few scattered objects laying atop the table with her, jumping from an old stapler to a badly painted pottery glass containing various pens and pencils to the cactus she absolutely adored before finally landing onto the half empty coffee mug that had been passively watching her stress about for the past couple of hours. 

After a few seconds of silent staring, Byulyi reached for the cup with a sigh, lazily sitting back up before standing just as slowly to bring it to the kitchen sink. She'd planed on just abandoning it there to deal with in the morning, but the ominous pile of dishes waiting for her had her backtrack on that plan. She halfheartedly took out the dish soap and a sponge, quickly making work of washing everything before leaving it all in the drying rack. She wasn't about to dry and place everything tonight. Not when she felt like she could collapse any minute.

As she slowly made her way around the counter in order to reach her bed, Byulyi snatched her phone off of the cold tiles to check her call logs, flipping it open and squinting at the brightness of the small screen.

1 missed call from: Youngsun <3
2 new text messages from : Youngsun <3

3:33 A.M.
Go to bed, I know you're still awake...

I love you <3

Byulyi smiled softly, warmth suddenly spreading from her chest, welcomed in all of its familiarity. She closed her phone, dropping it on the nightstand before shuffling to the window, watching that familiar pink sign flicker through the droplets clinging to the thick glass, lazily dripping down when they became to heavy to hang around. She'd call Yongsun back tomorrow. No sense in tormenting her girlfriend with all of her worries this late at night when Byulyi knew she already had plenty of her own. Still, she took solace in the fact that the other woman cared enough to message her so late. She probably knew Byulyi wouldn't be in the best state of mind at the moment. She always seemed to know.

Everything was still for a couple of seconds, the disc turner, the fridge, the clock and the rain still passively keeping the silence company as Byulyi stood and simply breathed, eyes still locked onto the pink neon sign on the other side of the narrow street. She'd always found it funny that the sign belonged to a convenience store when it would've been better suited to a strip club. She imagined owner to be pretty eccentric or maybe just plain weird. Either way, she enjoyed the color.

Movement in the corner of her field of vision had her eyes drifting to a hurrying figure below, hood pulled low over their features as they rushed through the downpour, hauling what looked to be some sort of picture frame covered by black garbage bags and wrapped up in a mess of packing tape under their arm. Byulyi watched as they repeatedly paused to adjust their hold on their package, visibly struggling to keep it secured in their grasp. She smiled slightly at the sight, a strange feeling of calmness washing over her as her gaze now moved upwards towards the jet black darkness of the clouded sky. She was gonna be okay. She had to be.

It was 3:33 A.M....

----

Wheein huffed and puffed as she did her best to carry the heavy canvases under her arm, cringing at the way cold rainwater had managed to slide beneath the hood of her coat to glide down her neck, sending a chill down her spine. She just prayed the makeshift raincoat she'd crafted for her artwork was going to be enough to protect the canvases from the flood.

"Almost there," Wheein whispered under her breath as she hurried down the deserted street, the familiar pink of Hyejin's convenience store sign, reflecting off of the wetness of the ground, urging her to pick up the pace as best she could. The slow beat she had playing in her earbuds had managed to somewhat soothe down her building annoyance, allowing her to make the walk from the bus station a couple block away to the store without too much complaining or cussing, but now that she was so close, she was damn near ready to snap.

Finally reaching the front of the store, Wheein quickly took refuge underneath the small roof that kept the area of the entranceway somewhat dry, taking off her hood and putting her music away before going in. As she did so, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a lone figure, standing at the first window above the door of what the girl assumed to be a small apartment complex on the other side of the street, it's outline stark against the dim lighting emanating from within. Their face was angled upward, towards the unified darkness of the night sky, and when Wheein followed their gaze curiously, she found a lone star hanging above, it's bright light piercing through the thickness of the clouds. 

The artist smiled at the sight, her eyes going back to the dark figure in the window for a few seconds. They stood there, unmoving, looking at that lone star like it was the only thing they ever wanted to do and when Wheein finally turned around to enter the convenience store, she couldn't help a fond chuckle from escaping her outstretched lips, brightening her mood considerably.

When she pushed the door open, Wheein was greeted by the familiar chime of the store's bells alerting the workers that someone had come in. At this hour though, the artist knew there would only be one employee watching over the business and that employee, to her mischievous amusement, was currently slumped over the cash counter, phone in hand, looking entirely dead to the world. The tanned girl barely even raised an eyebrow at the entrance of one of her rare nighttime customers, much too engrossed in what was happening on her screen to acknowledge a disturbance to her peace.

"Is that how you normally greet your customers, Hyejin-ah?" Wheein scolded amusedly as she struggled to hold the door open whilst simultaneously trying not to drop her paintings, a laugh bubbling out of her chest happily when said Hyejin suddenly jolted out of her stupor, cheeks flushed from embarrassment as she rushed around the counter to help the artist hold the door, suddenly much perkier than a few seconds ago.

"Wheein-ah!" Hyejin greeted the laughing artist, hugging the girl hello when she'd finally managed to get the god forsaken paintings inside and put them down on the cash counter in the back of the room. "I really wasn't expecting you today."

"Me neither," Wheein laughed, returning the hug conservatively in an attempt to spare her friend from the rain water soaking her coat, "Am I a bother?"

"Not at all. You have no idea how glad I am for the distraction right now."

"Good," Wheein smiled, taking off her coat and handing it to Hyejin who hung it behind the cash register to dry.

"I am curious though," the tan girl chimed, pulling out a stool for her friend to sit on while she hoped on the counter, "Why are you visiting so late?"

"I wanted to see you," Wheein squeaked, innocently batting her eyelashes before snorting at Hyejin's skeptical eyebrow raise. "I was also finishing up some work and needed more space in my apartment so I decided to bring these over to you," she then continued, patting the haphazardly packaged paintings she'd hauled with her, sending Hyejin an apologetic smile when the girl groaned.

"Of course you did..."

"Is there still room left in the back?" Wheein asked, hopeful, sending her friend one of those puppy looks she just couldn't say no to.

"Barely," Hyejin sighed, rolling her eyes when the artist squealed happily and hugged her quickly before scrambling to unwrap her paintings from the wet layer of their packaging, revealing the gorgeous works underneath. "When are you gonna finally start selling these, anyway?"

"I told you I wanted to have a showcase exhibition," Wheein answered as she grabbed the canvasses, carefully bringing them into the back and storing them one by one, her friend following. "I put a couple of my older ones for sale on some art site though. Some guy seemed interested enough by one of them but..." Wheein trailed off, catching her breath as she finally put the last of the paintings away.

"But?" Hyejin urged as she raised an inquisitive eyebrow before going to fetch herself a drink, grabbing one for her friend as well and handing it to her.

"But I was too stubborn and refused to budge on the price when he offered less than what I asked," Wheein confessed as she accepted the outstretched bottle with a small thanks, cracking it open and taking a sip. "He said he'd think about it, but I don't think he's gonna say yes."

"Well that's his fault," Hyejin said with a reassuring smile, "I'd pay any price for one of your pieces to be on my wall."

"That's such bull!" Wheein laughed, gently punching her friend on the shoulder, ignoring the tan girl's whines of protest as she cut her off, "You asked me for a canvas for your bedroom and as soon as I said I'd charge, you retracted your request!"

"That's cause I'm broke, Wheein-ah!" Hyejin whined, a cute pout on her dark lips, "I thought we were friends..."

"Yah! Don't you start!" Wheein admonished gently behind a laugh before taking another sip of her drink, Hyejin joining her in her laughter and doing the same, allowing a comfortable silence to settle over them both. The soft noise of the rain on the roof was comforting, the gentle drumming like an irregular beat to some song that wasn't playing, and if it weren't for the uncomfortable stool or the harshness of the neon lights hanging overhead, Wheein might've thought they were back at her place, sitting on the couch after a long day of classes, sharing caring glances and small, happy smiles with a beer in one hand, snacks in the other.

After a while of simply enjoying one another's presence, they fell back into small talk and friendly conversation, gossiping about Hyejin's stranger clients or Wheein's art school drama. They took their time, not really minding the passing minutes as they slowly nursed their drinks to very last drop, enjoying each other's company like they never did anyone else's. Eventually though, they had to throw their empty bottles away and Wheein grimaced when she glanced at her phone.

"I have classes in a few hours," she sighed, accepting her still damp coat from Hyejin when the girl offered it to her. "I'll se you soon, yeah?"

"I don't work tomorrow night," her friend acquiesced, accompanying Wheein to the door. "I'll join you at your place when you're done with classes."

The artist nodded enthusiastically, hugging Hyejin goodbye before stepping out into the night. The rain had somewhat subsided, only a light drizzle now poured from the sky when Wheein set foot onto the dark street, puddles and wet brick basking into that same pinkish glow. The girl couldn't really help it when she curiously glanced at the single window above in front of the store, finding it dark and empty, the mysterious figure probably gone to bed.

When she glanced back at the sky however, the lone star was still there, bright and proud and full of hope, as if it were still 3:33 A.M. Wheein smiled sweetly before finally starting to walk towards the bus stop, a weird reassurances washing over her as she hopped towards her destination, eager to finally get some sleep and somehow excited at the idea of tomorrow.

----

Hyejin watched Wheein's retreating back as she left, quickly disappearing in the darkness of the street. She'd be lying if she said she didn't feel a hint of bitterness at the sight. Or maybe it would be more appropriate to call it regret? Nostalgia? Maybe....

They used to always leave together, walk together, play and go to school and do stuff together. Hyejin had never had to look at Wheein's back before her father died, leaving her aging mother to take care of their family store all by herself. Hyejin could've been selfish, could've ignored her mother's increasing struggles and stay in school, study performance arts alongside Wheein who was in fine arts, but when the older woman fell ill, her silent plea for help was too painful to ignore.

So now, with her mother gone for good after a few painful years of futile struggle against cancer, Hyejin had to stay behind, watching as Wheein kept moving forward with her life, her passion. The sight of her friend's back was now a common occurrence and the store clerk would be lying if she said the sight wasn't at least a tad bit painful. She was proud of her friend, she really was, and she supported her unlike anyone else, but sometime, she'd wonder why life had to be so unfair.

She could've sold the store, used the money to pursue her studies, catch up to Wheein, but every time the thought entered her head, she felt a painful ache in her chest. This was the place she she grew up in, the place her parents had dedicated their lives to upkeep and she felt like she'd be doing them dirty by selfishly disregarding their legacy and pursue studies she had no idea would amount to anything. Hyejin was a big believer in following her heart and right now, her heart was telling her that it wasn't time to go just yet.

With a heavy sigh, the tan girl promptly shook herself out of the gloomy thoughts she had somehow spiraled into, tearing her eyes away from the empty street her friend's back had disappeared in once again before walking back to her counter. She pulled out her phone, desperate for a distraction now that Wheein was gone and the night was the only one to keep her company once more. The brightness of the screen was aggravating, the flickering buzz of the neon light above grinding on her nerves and in wasn't long before she put the device away, having refreshed every possible social media page at least a dozen times before finally giving up on it.

Hyejin frustratedly started to walk around the isles of the small store, facing the shelves and occasionally going to the back to fetch some products that were empty or soon to be, plugging holes and making everything as pretty as it could be. She glanced at the clock, barely even holding in her groan as she saw practically no time had passed at all.

The silence was suffocating, the constant frosty atmosphere of the brightly lit store was barely tolerable and there was nothing else Hyejin could think of to keep herself occupied as every second was starting to feel like an entire hour. She dragged her feet to her counter, deciding that cleaning the floor was about as good as it was going to get before the bell at the door chimed again, signaling the arrival of a new costumer. Wheein's light scolding from earlier was fresh in her mind when she smiled at the beautiful girl that entered the place and greeted her, noticing the lack of raincoat or umbrella as she nodded in return, casually starting to browse through the couple of isles the store had. It must've stopped raining.

Hyejin settled behind the cashing counter as the girl looked around for a bit, piercing eyes following her every move as she picked up a couple cups of instant ramen, examining them closely before putting them into the shopping basket she'd grabbed at the door. The store clerk recognized that client as somewhat of a regular, recalling how she often came here late at night, always looking the way she looked now with her tracksuit, combat boots and long, messy blond hair pinned to the top of her skull in a messy bun, the same dirty gym back that looked way too heavy for her strapped around her slim, but solid shoulders.

Hyejin watched her customer pick out a couple of other essentials, taking her time and carefully considering every item before adding them to her basket. The stranger's elegant movement as she moved about, slow and deliberate, managed to calm some of the tan girl's earlier annoyance, a pleasant melody now filling the heavy silence of the place instead of the grinding buzz of machines and equipment, following the customer as she hummed softly. 

But even though the girl might've seemed happy to anyone casually glancing, it didn't take take long for Hyejin to notice something was amiss. She could tell the girl was distressed as the bright, dimpled smile she knew the customer to wear on the daily was gone in this moment, a hard line set between her slightly furrowed brows, and she seemed unusually distant, her eyes glazed over slightly by what seemed like both fatigue and worry. Guess she wasn't the only one having a rough night.

The blonde finally seemed satisfied with her small selection, slowly heading to the wine fridge for her last pick before selecting a bottle of red, examining the price tag closely. Hyejin recognized the label as one of the cheapest bottle they carried and when the other girl hesitated to add it to her basket, promptly taking out her wallet and checking its content before deflating slightly, moving to put the bottle back, the tan girl felt a strange bit of sadness grip at her chest. Hyejin was a gentle soul, soft and compassionate despite her hard exterior. She'd never liked the sight of other people struggling. It never felt right to look at.

"Bring it here," the words tumbled from her lips before she even realized, a small smile pulling at her dark lips when the stranger clutched at her chest, visibly startled. When the girl didn't move, simple looking at her with wide eyes a a gaping mouth, Hyejin beckoned her forward encouragingly, watching as the other cautiously made her way to the counter, bottle in hand, grasped between loose fingers.

When she was close enough, the stranger hesitantly handed the wine over to Hyejin who took it with an encouraging smile, not bothering to scan it before putting it in one of the grocery bags she had laying behind the counter. She waited for the girl to start handing her her items to scan an pay, but she just stood there, staring, clearly confused. It was kind of cute in a strange, dorky way.

"It's on the house for this one," Hyejin chimed with a warm smile, watching in amusement as the other seemed to get startled all over again.

"Are you sure?" a soft voice asked shyly after a few seconds of silence, the girl finally starting to unpack the content of he basket for the other to scan.

"This is my store," Hyejin offered behind a mischievous grin, "I can do whatever I want."

"Thanks," the blonde whispered after a few seconds of silence, a small smile finally stretching onto he previously downcast lips.

"Rough night?" Hyejin asked casually as she started to take care of the other's purchases, the loud beeps of the scanner soon punctuating their small exchange as she made quick work of inputting everything into the cash register, mumbling the total before starting to put everything in the bag where the wine already waited.

"You could say that," the stranger blurted with a bitter laugh as she handed over what she owed, Hyejin raising an inquisitive brow at the response, but when the other failed to elaborate, she didn't pry, offering one of her casual smirks instead.

"Well I hope that bottle will help you with all of that," the tan girl joked, handing the other the small bag over the counter along with the meager amount of change she owed. A small laugh bubbled out of the blonde as she accepted everything with a grateful nod.

"Thanks again for that one by the way," the blonde said behind the bright smile she'd been missing that night, gathering her things before quickly glancing at the time on the wall. "I should get going."

"Of course," Hyejin chuckled, "Have a good night!"

The other nodded, walking backwards as she waved the tan girl goodbye, the latter following suite with another small laugh, a strange feeling of satisfaction filling her up when the other exited the store. 

Silence fell around Hyejin once again, but this time, it wasn't as heavy as it was before. It felt warmer, more comfortable and as she watched the stranger cross the street and input the code to enter the apparent building in front of the store, she wondered why it was that the night was still so dark when she suddenly felt as bright as when Wheein was with her.

When it was around 3:33 A.M.

----

Yongsun sighed when she exited the small convenience store, a small smile still stretching her lips as she recounted how surprisingly nice the scary looking store clerk had been, the encounter having somewhat subdued her earlier worries. After the night she'd had at the bar, she wasn't entirely prepared to receive such kindness from a stranger. It felt nice.

After her shift had ended with some dunk girl cussing her out for refusing to give her more alcohol and her boyfriend following suite, threatening to beat her up in an alley or whatever he'd said, Yongsun had been understandably on edge. She'd walked to the bus stop with the gym bag she kept her work clothes in pressed tightly against her, the familiar weight of the pocket knife Byulyi had offered her a couple years ago after one particularly bad incident resulted in someone nearly shanking her somewhat comforting.

The blonde had tried to call her girlfriend when she was finally seated on the bus, wanting to remind her that she was coming over tonight, but the phone had rung on for a lot longer than it usually did only to bring her to the automatic voice messaging system. She had ended the call, a small frown on her brows and a bad taste in . Her girlfriend always answered her calls. Even this late at night, she would still answer if it was Yongsun calling, if only to groggily mumble that she was sleeping and would call her back later. The few times she didn't were when she wasn't feeling well or was stressing out over something and that thought had added a little worry to the blonde's already wound up emotions.

Yongsun had checked the date, a sudden suspicion brewing under the surface as she thought about it some more before the numbers on her phone's calendar confirmed what she'd suspected. It was rent week. Byulyi always got particularly antsy around that time, especially for the last couple of times now that her income wasn't as stable as it once was.

Yongsun had released a small, worried sigh, sending a couple of text messages to her girlfriend before putting the device away, resting her forehead on the cold glass of the bus' window, letting the sight of the wet streets and late night partygoers lull her into a state of semi calmness. No sense in stressing over what Byulyi was already stressing over plenty. All she could do was be there for her girlfriend and try to get her through it like she always did. 

Maybe buying her dinner will help out with that, Yongsun had thought with a small smile.

So when she had finally reached her destination after a few bus transfers and a long, very long ten minutes of walking, she'd walked into the small convenience store that stood in front of Byulyi's apartment building, finding everything she'd need and more as the usual grumpy clerk seemed particularly cheerful that night.

As all these thoughts and feelings danced around in her tired head, Yongsun struggled to input the entry code on the small panel next to the apartment complex's entrance, juggling both her bags around while trying to type the correct combination on the smaller than it needed to be keypad. She eventually succeeded after a couple more tries than she would've liked, the door buzzing as she pushed it open with her shoulder, stumbling into the building and breathing a sigh of relief when she finally managed to reach the elevator, setting her bags down temporarily as she waited for the lift to come down.

When the door lazily opened to let her in, Yongsun got in as best as she could before she pressed for the first floor, the short ride up giving her enough time to collect her bags and her thoughts. She walked out of the elevator as soon as the doors opened once again, somehow managing to pull out her copy of Byulyi's keys as she walked to the small apartment's door, stopping in front when she finally managed to reach it. She took a few seconds to catch her breath, ignoring the worry settled deep in her stomach as she unlocked the door, slowly pushing it open to find the room behind it was dark. Byulyi must've gone to bed.

Yongsun entered the apartment as quietly as she could, the busy silence greeting her not entirely unexpected, but still somehow unnerving. As she stilled for a few seconds however, straining her ears, she could hear the soft, slumbering breaths of her girlfriend, peaceful and deep and bordering on snoring. She smiled fondly, finally stepping into the apartment, careful not to make any excessive noise.

The lights were off, but the tv was still on, flickering blue against the walls and furniture like some sort of weird candle, competing with the warmth of the pink shining through the poorly closed blinds of the window. Yongsun sighed, softly closing the door behind her before removing her shoes and shoving her gym bag to the side, making an effort to be as silent as she could as she brought the bag of food and essentials she'd bought earlier to the kitchen, placing it on the counter to deal with in the morning. She did unpack the wine bottle the girl back at the store had been generous enough to offer however, placing it in a way that made it easy to notice. Yongsun was confident Byulyi would be happy to drink it together with her when they woke up again.

The blonde stood still for a moment, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness a little bit better before quietly shuffling to the tv, stepping around the key board and the guitar propped up next to the desk to grab the remote off of the nearby bookshelf and turn the device off, allowing the room to be lit only by the convenience store sing outside. As she moved to put the remote back onto the shelves, Yongsun caught a glimpse of the open notebook laying on the table, dark scribbles strewn across the page in a way that was very uncharacteristic of her girlfriend's usual neat handwriting. Curiosity getting the better of her, she move a little closer, eyes now roaming the rows and rows of crossed out numbers and haphazard calculations.

Yongsun suddenly felt a wave of sadness wash over her as she witnessed Byulyi's struggles laid out on the paper, messy and harsh and cruel in their very existence. Her heart ached at the thought of her girlfriend having had to write all of these numbers down, scratching and hashing out the pros and cons of everything just to make sure she'd still have a roof over her head the next day. 

Yongsun let her emotions fester for a few moments, staring at the pages with glossy eyes before she closed the notebook a little more forcefully than she had intended to, the loud clack of it making her wince. She turned towards the bed where she knew her girlfriend was resting to make sure she hadn't disturbed her, her eyes roaming over her darkened silhouette, still peacefully slumbering as if she never had a single care in the world. The pleasant sight somehow managed to soothe the ache in her chest, pushing her raising distress to the back of her mind, and with one last resigned sigh, she tucked the notebook away in the desk's small drawer, stowing it away to forget for the time being.

She silently made her way to the small bed, smiling softly as the peaceful face of a sleeping Byulyi finally cut through the darkness, half hidden underneath the mess of covers keeping her warm. Yongsun simply stood there for a while, watching as her lover rested, allowing their breathing to synch up and not really minding the fact that she might've looked like a total creep. It felt good to see her like this, still and carefree like it should always be, if only for the time being. The blonde hated it when Byulyi was hurting. It never felt fair. 

After a few minutes of silent contemplation, Yongsun finally tore her eyes off of her girlfriend, moving away to remove her pants, socks, sweatshirt and bra before stealing one of Byulyi's oversized shirts from the small dresser at the foot of the bed. The garment was way too big for her (and her girlfriend for that matter), enough to drape down all the way to mid thigh and so Yongsun didn't bother to grab any pants, the pull of a bed and the warmth of her girlfriend inviting her to just lie down and finally sleep.

The blonde quickly glanced at the clock, doing a double take as the tiny arms indicated 3:33 A.M. when she knew it had to be much later than that. A quick glance at the time on her phone confirmed her suspicions. The clock must've stopped at some point during the night. After a few seconds of internal debate, Yongsun decided that for now at least, she'd leave it as is. 3:33 A.M. Wasn't such a bad number after all.

The girl finally allowed herself to close the blinds fully, blocking out the pink light of the store sign, before lifting the bed covers gentle, watching in amusement as her girlfriend stirred in her sleep, a halfhearted groan tumbling from her lips. Youngsun slowly laid down next to her, moving as close as she could without risking to disturb her any further, enjoying the warmth she suddenly felt surrounding as she draped one arm over the slumbering girl's hip.

"Yongsun?" a groggy voice suddenly growled, the blonde's heart skipping a beat at the sound she so adored.

"Hey, love," Yongsun whispered, gently cupping the waking woman's cheek before laying a soft kiss on the underside of her jaw, enjoying the way Byulyi pulled her closer in response, wrapping her in a mess of limbs and burying her face in her neck.

"What time is it?" Byulyi mumbled in a sigh, humming contently when she felt Yongsun's fingers gently threading through her hair.

"It doesn't matter right now," Yongsun breathed before kissing her once more. "Go back to sleep."

Byulyi simply nodded with a yawn, squeezing her girlfriend against her briefly before settling once more. It didn't take more than a minute for her to be gone once again, Yongsun soon following, a serene smile on her lips. The outside world couldn't have been any less important in that moment. It could keep going as much as it wanted, but for the both of them, it would still be 3:33 A.M.

-a/n-

Eclipse... My God! *dying screams*

So yeah, I tried to make this chapter very cyclical in the way it flowed, but I feel like it came out as forced? I don't know...

I really hope you enjoyed the read and thank you so much for indulging me XD 

Stay safe and wash your hands kids!

Thanks again and have a wonderful continuation~