--

Date Four with Im Yoona was a success.

And it was about time.

The first date was Krystal’s idea. A “coming out present for my dearest Jessica Jung”, her younger sister called it. Little did the clueless heteroual know the best present for coming out was to simply treat her normally. Alas, Krystal went above and beyond to cross Jessica’s comfort levels.

According to the matchmaker/busybody, this Yoona chick was a year younger than Jessica, quite charming, Krystal’s planking buddy at the gym, and most importantly-- “into vajayjay”. A game of twenty questions later, she found out Yoona herself came out to her family recently. Two mid-twenties baby-gays in the world and Krystal already had them married with multiracial babies in her head.

Both having the spirit animals of timid woodland creatures, Jessica and Yoona took things slowly on account of “not being well-versed in the gay”.

Date One and Two reached unfathomable heights of uncomfortable: lulls in conversation, accidental elbow grazing, arguing over bill payment, and an endless bounty of asinine giggles. On the third, Jessica even screamed when she thought Yoona bent in for a kiss. The girl froze in shock, pointing down at her untied shoelace. Awkward wasn’t strong enough of a word.

Though, through the misery, they kept seeing each other. Call Jessica shallow, but Yoona was too attractive to forget. Had some god of potential lovers offered an à la carte checklist of ideal qualities, Im Yoona possessed them all.

Thank the stars for that shallowness. By the fourth outing, they caught their stride.

“What’d you think about the drummer?” Yoona asked in a hasty laugh, fumbling through her purse for keys.

The live show--an all-girl punk band--really impressed Jessica. Not her usual go-to music. “Killed it on the the drums. The headbob thing she did was pretty funny. And all those faces she made.” She shook her head, amused. “Why?”

“Do you think she’s gay? I noticed her eyeing you and wondered..”

“Oh, did you?” They stalled at Yoona’s front step, swaying from the summer wind.

“I don’t blame her. You’re a doll.”

Jessica played with the ends of her hair to mask a grin. “You’re not bad yourself.”

“Thanks.” Yoona spun a ringlet of keys on her pointer. “Hey, Jess…”

“Hey, Yoong.”

“Would you pee yourself if I went for a goodnight kiss?”

Jessica mentally slapped her past self for unparalleled stupidity. “My bladder’s under control.”

“Cool.”

“Yeah, cool.”

The taller woman continued spinning metal as she leaned closer. “Ready?”

Yoona’s lips were a pale pink and very inviting. Jessica blushed. “Yes.”

“I’m going to kiss you now. Don’t scream.”

Jessica’s eyes closed right as the velvety plushness met hers. Two shot pecks at first, testing the waters. When the blonde didn’t shrink away, the contact pressed harder.

Sparks didn’t go off. A better feeling coursed through her bones--like a bubble bath or a downy comforter. Perfect. Fireworks scared her anyway.

Yoona smiled into their short kisses and Jessica joined her. They’d been silly for being so nervous, as if going out with a girl meant putting on a show of fortitude. Acting naturally--Jessica chanced a soft grip around Yoona’s neck--made the dating process much more enjoyable. Dinner, a show, tender kisses at the door…

“Want to come inside?”

Jessica dipped her head a bit, meeting Yoona’s gaze. “What?”

“Oh , no!” Yoona straightened her stance, putting a fist to her forehead. “Bad timing. I wanted to ask you in before we kissed.”

“What?”

“Damnit! No, I--! To hang out; to--. No, not , but....spend more time together. Platonically. ”

Jessica hadn’t seen this swearing, blubbering half of Yoona yet. Cute. “Calm your , sailor. I’m up for talking.”

“Really?”

“Do you want me to change my mind?”

Shaking her head bashfully, Yoona unlocked the front door and held it out for her date. “Awesome. I have something special to show you.”

“Are you trying to sound erted? What is it?”

The door slammed shut.

“My .”

Before Jessica put her three days of Taekwondo lessons to task, a furry presence glided along her leg. She looked down and, indeed, a pussycat’s amber eyes regarded her warmly. “I didn’t know you owned a cat!”

Yoona bent to flick a couple fingers at its tail. “Neither did I. I got home from work last week and she was sitting on my welcome mat in a cardboard box.”

“Like in the movies.”

“Exactly like the movies,” Yoona agreed. “You’re not allergic, right?”

“Nope.” Jessica ran a thumb through the short black hairs around her ear and trailed it around the orangey fur at the bottom of her round face. The cat purred brazenly, flipping her head almost upside-down to egg on the petting. “She’s gorgeous. Does she have a name?”

“She’s obviously not a wild one, but the person left no tags.”

“What do you call her?”

Yoona blushed, swatting the tail again. “Miss Fluffypaws.”

“Yoong, you softie!” Jessica giggled and quietly appraised the girl. A dirty mouth as well as a squishy heart. She never thought about it, but it was quickly becoming her favorite combination.

“Check out her feet. She has seven little white toes on one front paw and six on the other. Google says she’s ‘polydactyl’.”

“And ‘Fluffypaws’ is the best option?”

“Can you come up with anything better?”

Jessica scratched along its multicolored back, trying to make sense of the tan-on-black markings. Familiar, if only she could put her finger on it.

“Does this require deep thought?”

“Shh.” Jessica pressed two fingers of her other hand onto Yoona’s lips. They smiled shyly, averting their eyes. That is, until the image named itself in her head. “Chanel!”

Lips still held closed by narrow fingers, Yoona expressed bemusement with dark brown eyes.

“The tan fur on her back is a dead ringer for the Chanel logo. You have a designer cat on your hands, Yoona.”

Yoona puckered, scaring Jessica’s embarrassed fingers away from . She snickered and stole a quick kiss to her cheek. “Is that okay?”

“Mmhmm.” The blonde reciprocated, placing her lips onto Yoona’s dimpled chin. “She’s purring; I think she likes the name, too.”

“Miss Chanel Fluffypaws. Has a classy ring to it.”

“You’re not going to let that goofy name go, are you?”

“She answers to it!” Yoona turned back to the cat, nudging her tiny nose. “Isn’t that right, Miss Fluffs?”

On cue, the animal began purring. Jessica whined in defeat.

“Hey Jessica, no worries.” Yoona put one hand to Miss Fluff’s head and pinched at Jessica’s ear. “You two have the same Scottish Fold ears. You’re kindred spirits.”

She waved the hand away, subtly aiming a breeze to her face. She’d been blushing all night. “Do you even know anything about caring for a cat?”

“No. Do you?”

“I’m never around pets. Unless you don’t count my coworker Tiffany’s little mess of a dog. It’s gross and yaps at everything.”

“Chanel Fluffypaws is so easygoing. I don’t know if I’m doing anything right because she’s happy 24/7.”

“She’s grateful you rescued her. I would be.”

Yoona met Jessica’s eyes and smirked. “Oh yeah?”

“Without a doubt.”

“Are you free tomorrow?”

They hadn’t made back-to-back plans before. Jessica shrugged off her excitement. “If I say, ‘No, Yoona, I have no plans on a perfectly good Saturday.’, will you consider me uncool?”

“A little.” Miss Fluffypaws meowed in agreement.

“I’ll risk it. What are you up to?”

“So far, I’ve only gotten the essentials--vaccination, holistic cat food, comfy bed, a bank-breaking self-cleaning litter box…”

“Essential.”

“...but, the toys are I got her are a no-go. Mind meeting me at the pet supply store nearby to snag some new ones? Then, we could come back here, see what doesn’t bore her, and I’ll make you lunch.”

Nothing ever sounded more excellent. “I’d make time for that.”

“Sweet.”

Yoona headed to the front as Jessica bid Miss Fluff goodbye through a well-received chin rub. It lasted longer than she anticipated, enlivened by the deep, rolling purrs. “Thanks,” she whispered to the blissful creature, “for getting me a fifth date.”

Miss Chanel Fluffypaws rolled onto her namebrand back, willing the praise to reach a very fluffy tummy. Jessica gladly gave into her whims.

“Gee, I wish you’d pet me like that,” Yoona snarked with a pout as Jessica finally crossed the door’s threshold.

“Jealous of a cat, are we?”

“My belly’s not furry, but just as nice to touch.”

A smiling Jessica Jung balanced on her tiptoes, joining their lips in a farewell kiss. She parted her lips this time, giving Yoona a taste of deeper connection and pulled back. “That’s something the cat will never have.”

“May I have another?”

“Goodnight, Yoong.”

“Another, pretty please?”

That cheeky Im smile was dangerous; it’d probably get more than a kiss out of her. She allowed Yoona to tug her closer by a belt loop and eagerly claim her probing lips. The liplock sealed budding confidence with even a lingering nibble to warm flesh. Yoona brushed the bite indention with her bottom lip. “I’m getting good at this gay stuff, huh?”

Jessica collected her bearings, smiling despite herself. “Ugh, you. Goodnight, Yoong.”

“Night, Sica.”

…

“Do you think we bought enough?”

Jessica hurried behind the brunette, hauling one of two paper bags stuffed with goodies. “Chanel’s bound to like something.”

“--I think I found it.”

She stopped short at Yoona staring daggers into the side of her couch. Stepping around for a better view, she gasped. An arm of the furniture had been reduced to shredded fabric upholstery foam. As if they needed more evident of the perp