Taeyeon just smiled as her girlfriend kept complaining about those things that she would never be.  They had been together since freshman year.  They met when Taeyeon was looking for roommate at her newly bought apartment.  It was two bedroom apartment and she was living alone, so she thought that it would be better to lease the other room. 

That was how she met Tiffany. 

Later they found out that they were going to the same university. Tiffany was in business major while Taeyeon in art, majoring in painting.  They had different personalities. They didn’t share any single friend, they were in different world.  Despite all of that, they clicked with each other. They liked to lay down at their apartment's rooftop garden to star gazing and spent hours to talk randomly. 

After six months of living together, Tiffany confessed to Taeyeon.  At first Taeyeon was reluctant to accept Tiffany’s confession because of her condition.

Taeyeon lost one of her legs when she was 10 years old because of an accident.  Her family was wealthy enough to provide an artificial leg for her but she still needed walking stick to help her walked properly.  Sure she could take care of herself just fine, she just couldn’t move that fast or walked for a long time. 

Taeyeon was afraid that her condition could be a bother to Tiffany as she was an active girl, unlike Taeyeon who liked to spend most of her time in a quiet place with her sketch book.  Tiffany was a member of the university swimming team, she liked to party all night at weekend.  Basically she was the complete opposite of Taeyeon. 

But Tiffany was pretty consistent.  Finally Taeyeon gave up and accepted her.  They decided to ‘hide’ their relationship because they didn’t want unnecessary attention from others. They wouldn’t deny their relationship but they wouldn’t announce it either

At one afternoon, Taeyeon and her bestfriend, Sunny, was watching their university sports event, particularly  swimming race, because Tiffany was one of the athletes. 

There were so many people watching.Taeyeon got pushed from time to time as she couldn’t stand properly, thanks to Sunny though, that girl helped Taeyeon moved and because of her they were able to get seat at good place.

Taeyeon was cheering for her girlfriend at her best.  She ignored the weird stares that came from others around her as they were barely heard Taeyeon talked before, and now she was cheering like one of Tiffany’s crazy fans.

It seems like God heard what Taeyeon had prayed for.  Tiffany won 1^st place.  But the latter action was hurting Taeyeon.  After Tiffany knew she won, she ran to Yuri, one of her teammates, hugged her and pecked her lips.  People were cheering at them.

Sunny scowled, not liking the view in front of her.  She looked at Taeyeon who was having the same expression as her.  Taeyeon realized Sunny was staring at her so she looked back at Sunny and smiled

“It’s nothing Sunny-ah.  Fany loves skin ship. She's just happy and Yuri is one of her senior in their team. She must feel thankful for her.”

“Well, if you say so..”

The night came and Taeyeon was waiting for Tiffany at their apartment.  She prepared simple diner and a bottle of champagne to celebrate Tiffany’s victory.  She was arranging the table when her phone lit up.  She unlocked her phone and read Tiffany’s message.

Taetae, can I use the apartment for our team celebration?

Taeyeon smiled and reply with simple; Of course baby. Do you need any help?

Taeyeon smile vanished at the moment she read the reply from her girlfriend.

No need to Taetae. Well could you do me a favor? I’m not ready to introduce you as my girlfriend, so can you sleep at Sunny’s place just for tonight?

A week after that, Taeyeon and Tiffany were laying at their bed, side by side.  As usual, Tiffany did the talking while Taeyeon was listening.

“I wish you could be as awesome as Yuri. Today I watched her swimming and she was literally took my breath away.”  Tiffany spoke nonchalantly at her girlfriend.  She didn’t realize that what she said was hurting Taeyeon.

Taeyeon chuckled to hide her true feelings, “Well I was never good at swimming, even before the accident.  But I feel thankful for God as He sends me a beautiful girlfriend who’s very good at swimming so she can safe me from drowning.”  Taeyeon ended it with simple kiss at Tiffany’s temple that made her eyes smiled.

Taeyeon was sketching and sitting at one corner of the cafeteria. She felt a light tap in her shoulder so she turned her head and there were Tiffany, Jessica, and Yuri.  Jessica asked her permission to join her, she wanted to reject it politely because she noticed the uneasy look in her girlfriend’s face but Jessica was already sitting across her and looking through her sketch book, admiring her works.

“Tiffany said that you are her roommate, why didn’t you show up at our winning celebrations at your place last week?”  Yuri asked her.  Yuri was charming, she had toned, tall body and tanned complexion.  Basically the opposite of Taeyeon, who was small and pale.

“I had to finish my painting with my partner for next week art exhibition.”  Technically Taeyeon didn’t lie as she and Sunny did working at their painting for the art exhibition.

Jessica’s eyes lit up at Taeyeon, “So you are chosen as one of those lucky students to show your own painting? What is your painting about?”

Taeyeon eyed Tiffany for a second as her girlfriend was oddly quiet, “Well, I have one individual painting and one that I do with Sunny, my partner.  For the collaboration one, Sunny and I use palette technique and we draw the Han river’s night view. As for my individual one, it’s a surprise! You must come if you want to know.”

Taeyeon had been waiting for 2 hours in her car when Tiffany finally came.  She waited for her girlfriend to put the seatbelt before she drove the car away.

“I’m sorry Taetae, there is this rumor about Yuri and the girls in our team were talking about it, so I kinda lost the time.”  Tiffany squeeze Taeyeon’s hand that were on the gear.

“What rumor babe?”

“Well, they say that Yuri is some kind of play girl. At first I don’t believe it but then Jessica says that it’s true and she was one of her girlfriends! Can you believe it?” Tiffany seemed overly excited over this matter.

“Wow.. and they are still friends? Good for them then. I don’t think I could stay friends with you if we ever broke up.. Awwww!” Tiffany slapped Taeyeon’s right arm. “Yaah I’m driving here Fany-ah”

“You deserve that! How could you say that you won’t be friends with me if we broke up?” Tiffany crossed her hands in front of her chest and pouted

Taeyeon pinched Tiffany’s cheek lightly, “That’s because I love you. I don’t think I can stand to watch you with other people.”

Taeyeon and Tiffany was watching a movie in their bedroom when Tiffany broke Taeyeon’s attention.

“Why are you so nice all the time? I wish you could be a little ‘bad’ you know? I think bad boys or girls are interesting.”

“Do you want me to cheat on you and go home to you like nothing happen?”

“Yaaah I’m not saying that.”

“Fany-ah..you are confusing ”

“It’s just you’re too nice.  Sometimes I feel that our relationship just too flat.”

Their conversation died down as the movie reaching the ending part where the man carried his girl bridal style.

“I want to be carried in bridal style too..” Tiffany said absent mindly.

Taeyeon looked at her artificial leg and smiled sadly.

Tiffany supposed to be at Taeyeon’s art show.  She should be standing beside her girlfriend and showed her support.  She knew how hard Taeyeon worked these past months to finish her painting that no one allowed to look at before it finished.  Taeyeon said that it was surprise and Tiffany would really love it once she looked at it.

But here she was, locking lips with Kwon Yuri at swimming team’s locker room.

Tiffany was curious.  She wanted to feel how it was like to have a normal lover who could accompany her walked around for hours at their date.  Someone who could carry her in bridal style just like what she dreamt of.  The idea was getting more vivid as they said Yuri was a play girl and she felt lucky because Yuri chose her over those girls. She was young and she wanted something dangerous yet sweet. That’s the idea given by every movies that she watched before.  At this time Yuri was giving her everything that she couldn’t get from Taeyeon, or that was she thought.

Sunny signed for the ninth time as she noticed her bestfriend still stood there beside her painting alone, waiting for her girlfriend.

“Taengoo, let’s go home. Tiffany won't come. It’s already an hour after the closing.”

Taeyeon exhaled loudly one more time.  She looked for the entrance one last time before packing her belonging.  Sunny helped her as Taeyeon wouldn’t be able to carry those alone.

“This painting is really beautiful you know. If only it’s not her portrait, I would like to take this home with me.”

Taeyeon grinned at Sunny’s remark. Indeed, she got a lot of compliments tonight because her portrait painting of Tiffany was, like what other had said, amazing.  They were questioning Taeyeon though, why did she choose Tiffany as her model and she simply said that Tiffany agreed to help her as her roommate.

Taeyeon and Sunny were walking towards Taeyeon’s car when they overheard some girls talked.

“I saw that myself! I saw Kwon Yuri and that girl were making out in their locker room.”

“OMG! another girl?? Well, who’s the girl? Did you see her face?”

“Yes!! You won’t believe who I saw!”

“Who? Who? Who?”

Somehow those silly gossip girls conversation lured Tayeon and Sunny.  They stopped for awhile, wanting to know who the girl that made out with Kwon Yuri.

“It’s Tiffany Hwang! The swimming team’s new star!”

Taeyeon froze after she heard her girlfriend's name. Her grip at her Tiffany portrait painting tighten.  

Sunny took Taeyeon’s hand and pulled her away.  She gritted her teeth.  She wanted to cry out of anger as she couldn’t believe what that girl did to her best friend, but she couldn’t. She had to stay strong as Taeyeon must need her the most at this time.

Still high from the endorphin, Tiffany came home in the morning after.  She spent the night at Yuri’s place.

She prepared herself to break up with Taeyeon. She was so sure that Yuri was the one.

Tiffany opened the apartment door slowly.  She furrowed her eyebrows as the place was oddly quiet.  It was already 9, Taeyeon usually had awaked and busy prepared breakfast.  She entered their bedroom and found all of Taeyeon’s things were gone.  The things that left behind were the one that hers and what she bought for Taeyeon.

She found a piece of paper at their bed

Tiffany.

I know.

I took my name off the apartment lease. Now it’s yours.

Don’t find me. Remember what I told you if we break up? I really meant it.

PS. I wish happiness for both of you.

I hope she could carry you in bridal style. I hope she would accompany you walking around on your date like you always wanted. I hope she could be the girlfriend I wouldn’t ever be.

“Hey Monalisa!”  Jessica giggled as she greeted Tiffany the morning after Taeyeon left.

Tiffany wasn’t in the mood to joke around.  She spent the whole day to call Taeyeon or Sunny but she only got to the voice mail.  She wanted to at least apologize to Taeyeon. She shouldn’t cheat on her as Taeyeon never mistreated her. She should be the one who left the apartment, not the other way.

“Please Jessi, I’m not in the mood.”

“Why? Is it because Taeyeon gave away your painting?”

That got Tiffany attention. “What painting?”

“Your portrait painting Tiff, that one that placed in the art faculty’s hall way.”

Tiffany ran to the hall way.  There, she saw her face drawn in a beautiful painting hung beside other paintings that won as the best painting at the art exhibition from year to year.  She approached the painting.  It was framed, so she could only touch the glass that covered the painting.  Taeyeon draw her as an angel.

Was it what Taeyeon always think of her? An angel? An angel that broke her heart with the lowest sin that any human could ever did.

Months after that, she found out that Taeyeon and Sunny were offered scholarship to France because of their impressive painting and they took it.

She also found Yuri cheated on her with another girl two months after that night.

She got what she wanted, not what she needed.

She got what wanted. She wanted a hot girlfriend that looked dangerous and could carry her around the campus.

She lost the kind of girl that she truly needed.  The girl who was too kind. The girl who could only walked slowly from her apartment to her class.

Tiffany was standing alone at Taeyeon’s gallery opening.  Finally after years of searching, her old friend Jessica gave her an invitation to the opening.  Tiffany was living in grief all these years.  She couldn’t forgive herself at what she did to Taeyeon.  So here she was, hoping to meet Taeyeon, she wanted to talk. She wanted to apologize.

She wanted Taeyeon back.

“Tiffany?”

She heard the voice that had gone from her life, calling her name.  She turned around and she saw Taeyeon, looking so stunning in simple black dress still, with her walking stick.  She noticed Sunny who’s equally beautiful in matching dress, with her hand hooked with Taeyeon.  She was contemplating to ask Taeyeon to talk to her somewhere alone when she saw the ring in Taeyeon and Sunny’s fourth finger.

Then she heard someone in her mind, laughing at her foolishness. She got her chance and she blew it. She was too late. 

Someone took her angel away and wouldn’t give it back.