The lake was pink. She’d almost called it an ocean but Taeyeon caught herself just in time. It was a lake. An enormous lake. A lake so vast that it was almost like an ocean. And it was pink. Her favourite colour. And by her, she meant the girl fast asleep on her shoulder. The sleeping girl was oblivious to the pink lake that they had travelled so far to see. From Seoul to Australia. All the way to Australia.

They had been looking forward to this trip for a long time. Just the two of them. And pink, being her favourite colour was the main reason why they were here at Lake Hillier, Western Australia. She’d always wanted to see a pink lake. So here they were. At a pink lake.

They’d gotten lost while driving here. She didn’t want to drive but she had insisted that they drove. She wanted more alone time. So they drove. And got lost.

“I told you I have no sense of direction,” Taeyeon said to her best friend as they took another turn that led them to nowhere.

“Have faith. We’ll get there. And we’ll get to see the pink lake.”

“We could have hired a guide and saved all this trouble.”

“But we wouldn’t be alone. You know that I want it to be just the two of us. We’ve talked about this. You agreed.”

“Reluctantly. I’d give in to you. You know that. I always do.”

“What are you trying to say? You’re not helping at all. It’s no use getting angry over this. It’s not going to help us to find our way.”

She opened to speak but her friend interjected, “And don’t even say that you’re not angry. I can hear it in your voice. I know when you’re angry or grumpy or just plain PMSing. I know you.”

Taeyeon had no comeback for this and it pissed her off even more. “Whatever. Just find the way and get us to that freaking pink lake okay.”

“I’m trying! I’m not that good at reading maps but I’m trying my best, Taengoo-ah.”

And that calmed her down immediately. Hearing her calling her Taengoo in that sweet voice always made her cringe and smile at the same time. She cringed because it was so sweet and cute. Cute things always made her cringe. She smiled because it was so sweet and cute. She had no explanation for that.

After several more turns, her friend shrieked in her high pitched voice, “We’re on the right track! We’re not lost!”

She jumped in her skin and her heart skipped a beat but she was oblivious to everything in her excitement and she couldn’t help but smile.

“Are you sure? Is this the right way?”

“Yes! Just keep going straight!”

“Okay.”

And here they were, after driving for almost two hours. She had fallen asleep shortly before they reached the lake. It was a long drive and the roads were long and straight most of the time. It was little wonder that she had fallen asleep. It didn’t take much for her to fall asleep.

The view was marvelous and she was glad that she had listened to her.  It was certainly worth the drive. And yes. She was glad that they were alone. That no one else was there to share this moment with them. It would be their secret. Theirs and theirs only. Just the two of them. Somehow, it had seemed very important to her. Truth be told, it was important to her too.

Her head was bent at an odd angle. It looked uncomfortable so she scooted closer and gently moved her until her head was resting on her shoulder. She traced her jawline lightly with her fingertip and tucked the loose strands of hair behind her ear. She was lucky to have such a beauty with her. A beauty both inside and out.

Her feelings swelled. Her heart pounded. Maybe this was the best time to say it. To say it when she can’t hear it.

“Sica-yah, you may not know this…but you’re much more than a friend to me. I wish I could say it to you when you’re awake but I can’t. I hope you understand,” she whispered softly as she looked at the angel resting on her shoulder.

“I understand,” her sweet voice answered and her eyes widened as her heart raced at triple speed. “I understand.”