"Wheein, will you bail me out of jail??" Hyejin's voice was muffled from the sheets that she buried herself under. 

"That depends on what you did," Wheein continued to sketch whatever popped into her mind. Her view of the lion was nothing but a lump in the bed sheets that nestled next to her. Only a part of her worried about any potential carbon dioxide poisoning. 

"How ‘bout a minor misdemeanour?" The lion continued the train of thought.

"I'm sure my mom would bail you out," Wheein stared at the drawing before her. The nonsensical swirls beckoned her for judgement and yet she couldn't. She was neutral about it all. Which of itself frustrated her. 

"Wait, but I asked you though," Hyejin shuffled around just enough to pop out her head from underneath the blanket. Making her look like a human faced blanket worm. 

"Is it my money that's bailing you out?" Wheein looked at her lion with a cocked eyebrow. Carefully placing the art pad and pencil on the nightstand. Diligent in ensuring that there's no risk of a fall. 

Hyejin opened before fully digesting Wheein's words. In a way Wheein was right, but it's the principal of the matter. 

"Ok, so you're mom pays for my bail, will you pick me up then?"

Wheein gave Hyejin a quizzical look.

"I don't have a car?"

"Wheeinie!!"

Wheein laughed before she reached a hand out to ruffle Hyejin's hair. Curious as to why Hyejin is asking such questions but also expected such questions. It's always been a Hyejin specialty to say or do things out of the blue with no context. It's what makes life exciting. Even though it's a bit more subdued than how it used to be, Wheein's not complaining. They're both older now, and so some of their old selves must be laid to rest. 

THe lion could only huff and pout as she gladly accepted Wheein's touch.

Hyejin could only stay playfully mad at Wheein for so long under her touch. Before Wheein's hand could pull away she buried her face into Wheein's delicate and soft palm. Savouring the sensation of Wheein's fingertips brushing against her face and getting lost in Wheein's nightly scent. The scent of a tranquil flower bed of jasmine. Alluring and intoxicating yet shy. A sweet temptation that Hyejin wanted to drown herself in.

They stayed like that for a couple minutes longer. Both mesmerising the fleeting feeling before them as if it's their last. For somewhere in the jungles of their subconscious both are aware of the fragility of the life before them. 

"So, are you gonna explain?" Wheein's curiosity won out in the end. 

"Ah, just wanted to know in case I do a crime in the near future," Hyejin blatantly answered as she cuddled closer into Wheein's frame. Her head is just at the right placement to enjoy Wheein's stomach as a pillow. 

Wheein nodded in acceptance out of habit before the meaning of Hyejin's words fully registered in her brain. 

"Wait, what?!" Wheein jerked much to the lion's dismay. 

"I just got comfortable on my favourite pillow in the world, excuse you," Hyejin whined.

"Oh, so my s aren't good enough for you?" The opportunity was too good to pass up.

"Hey!! It depends on my surroundings. Stomach when we're at our parents houses and s when we're alone," Hyejin explained with a straight face. 

"That--!!" Wheein paused, "That's actually pretty reasonable...."

"I have my moments of genius that I save specifically to not get murdered by an angry mom and or dragon," Hyejin flashed a proud smile. 

"I'll let my mother know that you don't fear her," Wheein sat up a bit straighter as she captured the fleeting thread of thought before she got distracted. Much to Hyejin's dismay, "Oh that's right. What crime are you thinking of committing?"

"You know," Hyejin moved to sit up as well to meet Wheein eye to eye. A sitting blanket worm, "Just some mild assault."

Wheein blinked.

Hyejin stared.

The silence was only broken by the sound of her parents yelling. Yelling at each other to catch whatever managed to get stuck in the pool. Maybe it was another frog that they are trying to rescue. She's told them time and time again to put up a fence around the pool not only for liability reasons but also for the wildlife. But alas....

"....Hyejin-ah...."

"Yes?"

"You know I love you right?"

"Yea, I love you too." Hyejin cocked her head to the side. 

"So why the ??" Wheein didn't even need to complete her thought or sentence in order to convey the meaning. Hyejin knows Wheein's tones as if it was her second language. 

"I didn't tell you??" Hyejin looked mildly alarmed. She could've sworn she told Wheein. Or maybe she thought she did. She thought about it so hard that it felt real in her mind and memory. 

"Hyejin-ah....." Wheein's voice was low with mild concern. Ever since Hyejin accepted that position in Spain she's been on the go figuring out the logistics and even contingencies. Between that and learning a new language has been taxing in ways Wheein never imagined. It's gotten to the point where Wheein had to physically drag Hyejin out of the office in the apartment in order to free her from the burden of madness. That's why they're back home now. To remind Hyejin that no matter what, no matter the changes of the future, that there's always something to come back to. That there are arms ready to welcome her no matter the success or failures.

Hyejin grimaced before she sighed. 

"Someone or someones have been dumping their trash....." Hyejin's voice was soft but there was a hardness on the edge. A rage that Wheein recognized. It's been forever since she's heard it. It was almost scary.

As much as Wheein's mind immediately went straight into possible solutions for such a horrid act she kept quiet. Now wasn't the time to jump in and offer ideas. Now was the time to listen.

"We don't know who is doing it," Hyejin's voice began to harden, "And we both know how useless the Environmental Police are."

Wheein continued to listen. She held a hand out for her lion to grab in order to ground herself. A hand that was quickly snatched and caressed. Who knew a blanket worm had paws.

"We're waiting for the cameras we ordered to come in but...." Hyejin stopped herself as she caught her rage. 

The sanctuary she loved and tended to was being vandalised by lazy pieces of . The righteous side of her wanted immediate justice. Justice to the highest extent of the law. But her rational side knew better. Thus, she was in a stalemate. A stalemate that could only be broken by talking it out with her other half. 

"You just wanna beat them up, huh?" Wheein swiped her thumb over Hyejin's hand. Erasing a layer of rage and replacing it with a layer of calm. 

Hyejin couldn't even speak. She let her touch do the talking again. Her hand was static as she did everything to stop herself from squeezing Wheein's hand too hard. Her rage needed an outlet. 

"As much as I also want you to beat those people up, I also don't want to be separated from you longer than I have to..." Wheein moved her face closer in order to look Hyejin in the eye, "Also, having a record would taint your chances of a future."

Wheein's logic was chipping away at the illogical fortress that anger built in Hyejin's mind. Her thumb continued to erase the layers with each swipe and squeeze. Slow and steady to ease the lion into a serene state of mind. 

Hyejin met Wheein's gaze with an expectation. The expectation that Wheein will drag her out of this river of emotion and back to reality. After all, that's their unspoken promise to each other. 

"And knowing what you can do, that's going to be lasting damage that could result in either more time or more money or both," Wheein continued to talk. Her gaze unyielding as her other hand covered Hyejin's hand. Sandwiching Hyejin's hand in a comforting warmth to remind her what really matters. 

Silence welcomed them again as the background yelling was replaced with loud splashing followed by strained voices that were tired of said yelling.  

"Don't drown it Byul!!"

"I'm trying not to but it's not recognizing me as its saviour!!"

"Then maybe don't tower over it like a menace!!"

Hyejin broke her gaze to look at Wheein's hands. She still wanted to catch the offenders and teach them a lesson herself. But that was the old her speaking, wasn't it? The old her that just solved things by either her fists or barreling through obstacles with only a mild thought. The old her that was selfish. The old her that didn't want to grow up despite it staring at her in the face. The old her that she had to let go. 

Wheein observed every nuance on Hyejin's face. The shadows that rippled when Hyejin's face contorted with thought. A frown here. A twitch of the brow there. A nose scrunch in between. A beautiful shadow play that reflected Hyejin's inner world.

"Wheein-ah...."

Hyejin's voice broke Wheein out of her stupor. 

Wheein focused back onto Hyejin's eyes. Eyes that were sparkling with love and relief. 

"Thank you."

Such simple words pierced her heart like a torpedo. She knows that she didn't talk Hyejin out of doing something stupid. No, Hyejin is beyond that. All she did was talk a dark thought out of Hyejin's mind before it could fester and grow like a tumour. 

Wheein only smiled as her hands squeezed Hyejin's.

They looked at each other for a brief moment before both of them started to lean in. 

Hyejin's other hand broke free from the blanket prison and caressed Wheein's face. As rough and tough as her calluses were, Wheein always reassured her that she didn't mind. The moment Hyejin's palm cupped Wheein's cheek a satisfied sigh escaped her lips as she leaned into her lion's hand. 

A part of her wanted Hyejin's hand to explore the rest of her body but another part of her wanted to keep Hyejin's hand where it was. The warmth comforted Wheein beyond her understanding. As if Hyejin's touch comforted a deeply hidden need that she herself barely recognized. No, that's a lie. She did recognize it. It was a need that she thought would never get any satisfaction until she met Hyejin. 

The need for love.

"Wheeinie..."

Hyejin's voice was music to her ears. A beautiful melody that is forever etched into her soul. 

"Your parents went silent." 

It was Wheein's turn to huff and groan in annoyance. Her limbs flailed in annoyance. Mindful of Hyejin but the victim was her art pad. It fell onto the floor with a sad thunk.

"I swear if we go out there and they're either in a compromising position or trying to bond with a frog AGAIN," Wheein ranted as she walked over to her door, "I will personally fight both of them."

"Didn't we just learn to not solve things with our fists???"

Wheein opened the door with a flourish and the sight before her was worse than she could've imagined.

"What the actual fu--"

"WHEENIE!! GET BACK!!" Yong's voice easily overpowered Wheein's ears, "IT'S AN INVASION!!"

The pool was surrounded by frogs and her parents were stuck in the middle of the pool on the giant squirtle floatie. 

"So what's--" Hyejin peered over Wheein's shoulder and sighed.

"I think your bonding backfired, mother."

"Maybe it was because I kept calling them toads??" Byul said she twisted her head to look at Wheein. The tube's rotation was making it hard though. 

"Can we misclassify them again? I don't have an invasion by frogs on my bingo card," Hyejin wrapped herself around Wheein. Ready for retreat at a moment's notice. 

"Can you two clear a path at least? Then we can fix the bingo cards," Yong said as she used her hands to paddle the floatie around so she could look at the duo.

"Depends. Will you guys bail me out of jail?" Hyejin's voice was full of mischief.

"If it's a minor misdemeanour then yeah," Byul was the first to answer as she didn't fight her wife on the control of the floatie.

"How ‘bout assault?"

"Assault?!" Byul jerked just enough for the two of them to almost capsize. 

"I taught you better than that!!" Yong berated, "Remember to always have your ducks in a row before you do anything stupid."

Byul's head snapped towards her wife.

"Yong, what the are you teaching our children??"

"Couldn't that be construed as being premeditated though?" Wheein pointed out as she slowly began to close the door, "Or, just straight up premeditated." 

"Don't be a buzzkill Wheeinie," Yong's voice was only dampened due to the floatie rotating her around.

"Says my MOM on a SQUIRTLE FLOATIE in the middle of the pool SURROUNDED BY FROGS."

"Can this count as 'arguments on floatie'?" Hyejin asked.

"Go ahead and cross them both of Hyejin," Byul's voice was tired and defeated. She just wanted a nice evening with her wife. But, shouldn't she know by now?

"Oh thanks! Then that's bingo for me!"

"I can't believe you mesmerised the bingo card my parents gave you...." Wheein said in mild amazement.

"What can I say? I mesmerised everything your parents created down to the finest detail with hands-on experience," Hyejin gave Wheein a slight squeeze as she nuzzled her face into the crook of Wheein's neck. Earning a light giggle in return.

"You two can be gross after you help us!" 

"Ugh, fiiiiiine" Wheein opened the door back up, "But let's talk terms and conditions first."

"WHEENIE!!!"