Chapter 8

The girl with golden locks traversed the path of the sky garden in one of the university's buildings. Dragging her feet to nowhere after looking all around the campus searching for one particular person that hasn't left her mind since last week's events, she decided to take a break in one of the vacant benches. She placed her messenger bag beside her and fished out her phone from her pocket. 

Kkangseul: Have you found her?

Doongdoongie: She isn't in her dorm unnie. I also checked in the library but negative TT.TT

Kkobugi: Same. I visited her coffee shop across the campus but there are no signs of her. I even asked the barista and he said she hasn't been there for the whole week which is weird since he said that Wendy unnie always drop by everyday to check on the business or even for just a cup of coffee.

Doongdoongie: It's been a week! Where could Wendy unnie be? =.='

Kkobugi: This is the first time this happened. I am becoming worried ㅜㅜ

Doongdoongie: Me too~ Have you talked to her, Seulgi unnie? Did you guys fight? What happened unnie? ㅠ

Her brows furrowed rereading through the conversation she hasn't replied. 

I don't know, I also don't know what happened.

Seulgi covered her face with her palms, racking her brain of places that she might have forgotten to look into. She hasn't been able to sleep for nights thinking of the whereabouts of her best friend, worrying that she must've caused the girl to act this way, to just disappear without contacting anyone, not even her. 

For her, Wendy has always been fragile. Behind her strong front is a vulnerable girl with a soft and pure heart. Growing up with her and witnessing each of her heartbreak, Seulgi has promised herself to protect her best friend, to prevent anything that might cause the girl to be hurt again. And it's ironic how the person who have sworn before to protect her is the exact person who is hurting her now. 

It frightens her that her best friend is bearing something that she doesn't know and it scares her more that she can't seem to do anything about it. She always thought that she knows everything about her best friend but with what's currently happening, she isn't so sure anymore. Seulgi's afraid that Wendy might be slowly slipping away and it hurts her; more because she's her best friend, her other half. But much more because she loves her. 

"I'm fine. You can breathe now." a voice from her side caused her to come out of her self-loathing-thinking.

She lifted her head from her side and turned to look at the owner of the voice. Her eyes widened as she comes face to face with the girl she has been looking for days. Relief has dawned upon Seulgi as she pounced the girl, locking her in a tight embrace. Her tears fell as she held the girl close, not wanting to let go. The thought of almost losing Wendy was just too much for her heart to take and now that the girl is within her arms reach, she can't help but pour out all the frustration and worry she has been bottling up. 

Wendy froze as her best friend hugged her. She can still remember the very last time she felt the arms of the girl around her - Christmas day, almost 6 months ago. And it pains her that it takes for her heart to break to be wrapped with those arms once again, to be at this close proximity with the person she has loved secretly for years. Just when she thought that she couldn't cry anymore after bawling her eyes for days, her tears started to fall as she threw all caution into the wind and hugged her best friend back. 

"Mianhae, Seungwan-ah."

Her heart broke. I am sorry too, I fell in love with you.

Wendy's sobs grew harder as she clutched the back of Seulgi's shirt. The past days have made her realize how complicated things have gotten because of her feelings for the other girl. Falling in love has never been a problem for her. But falling for her best friend? That would be last kind of headache she would want on a list. But love has always been a strong unpredictable force, it comes when you least expected, and to persons you never thought you wanted. Love is a force of gravity that when you try to defy, the more it pulls you back, to the person who's the source of that gravitational pull. 

Her absence gave her the time to think things through, rationalize and weigh the consequences should she take a leap of faith and take a chance with her best friend or just back out and bury her feelings. And Wendy had made her choice. She had chosen to keep Seulgi. She had chosen to keep her best friend.

"I-I'm sorry.. I left without.. telling you." Wendy said in between her sobs. "I felt the need to have a change of.." a sob. "...scenery to be able to think." she continued. "I'm sorry I made you worry." 

"It's fine, what matters is that you're here now." Seulgi replied as she brushes the hair of the shorter girl who was sobbing on her shoulder, feeling lighter each minute that she's holding her best friend. 

They continued to hug each other and by the moment their sobs had died down, Seulgi pulled back. She held the face of her best friend with her both hands, caressed her