Dreaming of the object of her desires in someone else's arms had never been a problem for Tzuyu, but it had been since Mina had opened the door to Nayeon and Jeongyeon's apartment for her. She had told herself that she had not been the victim of lightning at first sight, yet every memory she had of her from the night she had first seen her always showed her the opposite of what she had thought.

She had fallen in love for the first time in her entire life and, despite the pain caused by the long period spent away from the girl with the face studded with moles, she was certain that in a hypothetical rewinding of time she would do it all again to get her back in her arms.

Though the fear of the dream that she had woken her up and the empty bed weren't the best "Mina?" she asked in a low voice, as if afraid of not getting an answer. Her hand was still on the pillow that the brunette had used "tell me this was not a dream too"

"Sorry, I needed to wash my face" Mina was back in the room and she was more beautiful than ever despite her wearing only a T-shirt that Tzuyu didn't even remember having in the closet "don't look at me with wide eyes, you frighten me"

"Are you really here?"

"In flesh and blood, apparently" she gave her a short smile, working hard afterwards to pick up her expensive red dress "luckily it didn't break, it's more delicate than it looks"

Tzuyu had joined her to give her a warm hug "if it broke I would have bought it back for you, it fits you too well and you should wear it on other occasions too"

Being in those arms again was like heaven for the shorter girl, who she hadn't waited a second to hold back "I'll wear it for you, if you like it so much"

"I would also like you dressed with garbage bags on"

"Now you are exaggerating" that moment of lightness had given her the courage to loosen the embrace and look into her eyes "we have to talk, tell me when you feel like it"

"Just give me a few minutes to wake up completely, we've put off this conversation for too long" she kissed her nose before heading to the bathroom. The short time she had required was necessary to calm at least a little the anxiety that was crushing her stomach.

However, her efforts had been in vain the moment she saw the person she loved making toast for breakfast, causing her heart rate to rise in a way she didn't think possible.

Mina had been the first to sit down at the table and take a bite of her breakfast "first of all I wanted to apologize for not giving you the opportunity to explain the question of the bet, I let myself be overwhelmed by grief and I behaved immature. I'm so sorry"

Tzuyu was initially speechless, but she felt compelled to say something "I appreciate your apologies, but you don't have to apologize and we both know it. I was the one who hurt you"

"So I'm sorry for forgiving Chae and not you, is it better this way?"

"Definitely, there's no way I'm going to let that faded highlighter beat me. Sorry, that's not a nice line to say after what happened"

"Don't worry, I understand what you mean" the calm transmitted by Mina was enveloping and contagious "I forgave you and I don't think you are the kind of person who takes advantage of the feelings of others; I think I know who the person I'm talking to is and this awareness is pushing me towards you. I want to be with you"

The blonde had stopped eating and was looking at her with shining eyes "do you really want that?"

"You have saved me from myself and my misery, you have taught me to love in a healthy way and if these are not valid reasons for wanting to be with you then I really believe that I will be alone for the rest of my days"

The chair on which Tzuyu was sitting ended up on the floor given the speed with which the girl got up to reach the brunette and kneel next to her "you will never be alone, not as long as I am with you"

"Are you giving the green light to our relationship?" Mina was smiling and crying at the same time.

"Is it enough for you to know that I would marry you tomorrow to understand how great my love is for you?" she was wiping away her tears, heedless of the ones that were wetting her face "I've never felt so calm and safe in my entire life"

"The same goes for me, my heart is pounding but not because of anxiety" she leaned over to kiss her briefly on the lips "I love you"

"I love you too, more than words can express"

"I'm ready to hear your apologies for what happened yesterday at the party" Jeongyeon was filing her nails with extreme care: she hated to keep them too long and she had just cut them, so as not to have any impediment during cleaning or in any other manual activity.

"It wasn't my fault that that chick was just like you" Nayeon hadn't stopped whining since she woke up "and I've already apologized a hundred times"

The blonde had given her a grim look "how could you even think that I, Yoo Jeongyeon, could approach another girl and kiss her in front of you? And then you know very well that I don't even see the others"

"This is why I have repeatedly apologized to you, but you keep insisting that you want more excuses. Do you want me to kneel over chickpeas and beg your forgiveness?"

Jeongyeon immediately changed the subject, only partially touching on what her girlfriend said "it could be funny, but then I should hear your complaints for at least two days and I don't want to. You have to apologize properly because you have shown that you don't trust me"

"You also said that that girl looks a lot like you, you can't accuse me of not trusting you" Nayeon's sulking was always the blonde's weak point and the older was aware of it "next time I'll check before accusing you of having done something, okay? I'm sorry and, to be honest, after seeing her face I have to admit that it doesn't hold a candle to a stratospheric beauty like yours"

"You are a pimp"

"But you are smiling with satisfaction"

"It's an optical illusion, imagine if I let myself be convinced with so little"

Nayeon had started to giggle "you keep pretending to be detached, but we both know you love receiving compliments as much as you like cleaning"

"Speaking of housekeeping" her eyes lit up like light bulbs "last night you made a mess in the bathroom and you'd better clean up if you want to continue to have a roof over your head"

"It's not that bad, you're exaggerating"

Jeongyeon threw the nail file on the bedside table and, after taking her girlfriend's hand, she headed for the bathroom "you left your hair on the brush, your clothes are on the floor, you didn't dry the shower glass after washed and the sink is stained with make-up. Are you sure I'm overdoing it?"

"Maybe I really messed up a bit, but it's nothing unsolvable or so urgent"

Jeongyeon's eyes were staring at her with extreme attention "if you don't hurry to fix this disaster I swear I'll send you at the house of your parents with lots of money and a letter in which I ask them not to let you near me anymore"

The older one, sulky like a child, had immediately started cleaning and tidying up without saying a word. Being a messy person and living with a neat freak wasn't a big deal, but love was truly blind and irrational to the point that it made their discussions on the subject a routine.

The car ride to the airport had been silent until Momo had taken the courage to open "you don't have to leave, you still have time to reconsider"

Jihyo was sitting next to the brunette, her gaze turned outward and her thoughts focused on the events of the last few days "I'm sure of my decision, don't make it even more difficult. Please"

"Okay, I won't add anything else"

"Thank you" there was a pause, during which the redhead was busy on the cell phone "they are all there waiting for us, I said I did not want a further greeting" despite her harsh expression she was refraining from crying.

"They do not know when they will be able to see you again and it is right that they are there until the end if they wish, I understand them perfectly and it is for this reason that I have prevented you from taking the taxi"

Breathing deeply, closing her eyes and placing a hand at the height of the heart was one of the methods that Jihyo used to stay calm in any situation and Momo knew that habit very well.

"Can I take your hand?" she had asked in a very sweet tone of voice, without that hint of hostility that had been there a few seconds before.

The redhead had only nodded and, as soon as their hands touched, a pang in the head followed by blurred memories had brought out the tears that she had struggled so much to hold back "do you still have the tattoo design we wanted to do together?"

"It's in my nightstand drawer, how did you see it?"

"I haven't seen it, I just remembered it" she was looking at her as she used to do before the memory loss "two intertwined hearts, nothing more obvious"

"We never had a lot of imagination, but we drew it together and this makes it different from other tattoos done in the same way" she was smiling "if I didn't get my hands on it it would have been one of the ugliest tattoos in history"

"You have always liked drawing and now I know that it was you who made the drawing that I keep in a picture in New York; I have always felt a particular attachment to the two bears that are depicted there and now I understand why"

Momo seemed on the verge of tears "you're remembering a lot of things"

They talked a little more about their shared moments, interrupting that little journey into memories to give space to their friends, who seemed to be competing for who had the strongest grip.

Many of them had been crying the whole time and, after seeing Jihyo disappear from their sight, Jeongyeon had placed her hand on Momo's shoulder "you finally let her go"

"Yes, I did it"

"Are you sorry for this choice?"

The brunette had taken a few seconds to think about it "I only regret not having known how to love her as she deserved. Letting her go, however painful, was perhaps the only decent decision I have made since I know her and I fervently hope she is happy"

"You too deserve to be happy and I'm sure Jihyo thinks so too. Do you want a hug? You seem to want to cry and I would like to avoid showing your horrible face to all the poor passersby"

"Go to hell" she gave her a pinch before walking away from the group, greeting them with a wave of her hand. She hadn't turned to look at her friends, she didn't want to show her red eyes to anyone because that pain could not be shared, she had to be strong and not let anything leak out.

"And our Jihyo left, the three of us remained" Sana invited herself to Mina's house, followed by the older of their small group "I feel empty"

"It will be enough not to lose communication and do everything possible to see each other every now and then" Nayeon was sipping coffee, her gaze fixed on the wall "we are adults, we should be able"

Mina was looking at them with her eyebrows raised "girls, Jihyo went away because she wants to feel good and do what she loves. We must give her all our support"

"You're right, we have the possibility to make video calls and we can always keep in touch, it shouldn't be complicated to manage" the older had suddenly recovered her good mood, albeit with a thin veil of sadness in her eyes, and was ready to enter a conversation full of gossip "so little scoundrels, is there something you need to tell me?"

The two girls were suddenly silent and rather inclined to get distracted by staring at the most disparate objects. They felt embarrassed, albeit eager to shout their happiness to the world and this Nayeon knew well, in fact she had limited herself to slide her gaze between them while waiting.

It was Mina who gave in first "on the night of the party a few things happened, I guess Dahyun told you about the message Tzuyu sent me" she waited for a statement from her friends before continuing "Chae and I ran from her and we found her quiet watching TV, I won't tell you the amount of insults we would have liked to say"

"We already know these things, go to the point" Sana had her eyes twinkling with emotion "what happened next?"

"Chae pretended to have forgotten the keys inserted in the car and left in a hurry, leaving us alone. Initially I didn't realize the situation, but Tzuyu pointed out that Chae would not be back and we talked briefly"

"And then? Stop being so slow to tell!" even Nayeon couldn't wait to get to the interesting part of the tale.

"I gave in, I couldn't take it anymore to pretend I didn't want to have anything to do with her. We spent the night together and, I must admit, it was the best ever" she blushed, but she had no intention of leaving out the most important part "the next morning we talked seriously and we decided not to part anymore. That's all, I'm really happy"

The other two girls had literally overwhelmed her to hug her and congratulate her, complimenting her and encouraging her to continue like this. Then, with all the ease in the world, the older turned to Sana "what about you? I know there's something you haven't told us yet and we're all ears"

"I'm not going around like this idiot did and I'll tell you right away that Dahyun has said she has serious intentions with me, more serious than I can imagine in her opinion" she had a stupid smile and was deliberately ignoring the annoyed look of Mina.

"The only thing that comes to mind is marriage, she wants to marry you?" Nayeon was suddenly thoughtful.

"As far as I know it's part of her plan, but I don't think my parents would approve of our union. Those two just want a good match and that's why they gave me that of Sam"

Mina had smirked immediately after getting the big picture of the situation "I think I understand and, if so, know that Dahyun really cares about you"

"Tell me, I'm not understanding anything and the wait is eating me alive" she took her face in her hands "talk or I'll steal all your clothes"

"Take them if you want, even if I doubt you will like them considering our completely different styles"

Nayeon was enjoying the scene while she ate some peanuts "maybe I understand too and I wonder how you haven't gotten there yet, her intentions are so obvious"

The auburn was starting to get impatient "come on, I'm the one who should be aware of the situation and you should tell me!"

"Don't act like a child and be patient until Dahyun tells you everything, I assure you it will be worth it" Mina was smiling at her "it looks like we have found all our soul mates"

"If someone had told me that I would have fallen in love with my best friend I would have punched that person because, let's face it, Jeongyeon is beautiful and kind but she is a real pain in the "

"Try to tell to her face if you dare, cowardly" Sana pinched her on the thigh "and anyway you can't fool us: we know very well that you love having her attentions"

"Who doesn't love them? All you do is annoy our poor Dahyun"

"Try repeating it and I'll pull out those rabbit teeth"

Mina had sighed and got up from her chair "I'm going to call Tzuyu, I won't stay here to endure every single bickering of these two"

"Forget it, we decided to spend the whole afternoon with friends and nothing and no one will stop us from doing it, so sit down and join forces with me to beat this slap face" Sana had poked her tongue out, hiding behind Mina right away after.

Nayeon had rolled her eyes "sometimes I feel like I'm spending time with a kindergarten child, what patience"

"Repeat it if you dare!"

"Kindergarten girl with her diaper still on!"

"Someone come and save me from these two or I think I'll start butting the wall" Mina had sent a voice message in their group chat, immediately followed by another "I beg you, they are unbearable and immature"

It hadn't been long since those messages had been sent and the doorbell had rang a couple of times. They all came with food, except for Momo and of course Jihyo, and they were betting on who could win a possible fight between the two quarrels.

"Nayeon has giant hands and I assure you that her slaps can be lethal" Jeongyeon wanted to bet everything on her girlfriend.

Chaeyoung was not of the same opinion "Sana knows how to be more decisive in things, I really think she could win"

Even Tzuyu, with Mina in her arms, had taken part in that speech "what if it ends in a draw? It's possible. Hyun, what do you think?"

The girl threw herself on the couch, her head abandoned on one of the pillows and her eyes closed "I don't care, the important thing is that there is no bloodshed or that at least no one involves me in the cleaning"

That said, totally oblivious to the people around her, she had fallen asleep to the sound of the screams and laughter of the people she had come to love.

~~~

-2 chapters and we are at the end of the story👉🏼👈🏼