Love at first sight.

This was the most common theme in a romantic film or literature – courtesy of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet where Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet felt love at first sight when they first both saw each other at a party and the rest was history (not really a spoiler alert: in which they both killed themselves at the end when they realized they couldn’t have each other). William Shakespeare successfully portrayed that love at first sight as a believable situation and it could happen to anyone even if the world was against them – wherein it’s no doubt that Romeo and Juliet was considered to be one of the greatest love story of all time for the reason being people loved the idea that they wanted to experience love that extreme, strong, and deep to the extent that they thought it was worth dying for.

But despite of the timeless popularity of Romeo and Juliet throughout the centuries in which many various works in film, theatre play, music, television series, and literature drew main inspiration from it during classical to modern contemporary times – even though Chaewon was into reading books and watching movies or series, she never became a fan of such weird romantic concept every time she would encounter those.

As a matter of fact, Chaewon never believed in love at first sight because for her, it’s just a mere fragment of one’s imagination where one felt that strange phenomenon just by looking at someone for the first time then recklessly coined that feeling or emotion in an umbrella term which was “love” when it shouldn’t be for Chaewon believed that love was more than a gaze although she never experienced falling in love with someone else before.

And now here’s our clueless and hopeless romantic protagonist, Kim Chaewon, who was slouching on a couch at the living room in her medium-sized loft apartment with her arms lying freely beside her as she might have her head in the clouds while the smart TV was playing a well-known classic romantic movie in the background; but all she could hear was just a flat noise for she was suffering from a terrible headache from binge-watching several movies with love at first sight concept these past few days.

The movie entitled “Titanic” where Jack Dawson, a poor third-class artist, and Rose Dewitt-Bukater, a first-class socialite, also felt love at first sight when they first saw each other on the ship. The movie was near on its end when Chaewon used the last ounce of her energy to finish watching it even though she had enough cringe from watching romantic stuffs for the day but at least she’s trying; the ship sank and Jack was freezing in the water while Rose was on a wooden raft floating on the ocean. Jack made Rose promised to live as he told her that she would die an old woman feeling the warmth of her bed and not in the frigid ocean when Jack knew he would die any minute from hypothermia – in which Chaewon couldn’t help but to roll her eyes intensely as she acted on reflex to pick up the remote control on the coffee table and turned off the TV without dithering. She just couldn’t take it anymore, not because the movie was such a tear-jerker and it was so tragic yet romantic but because she thought that part was such a total bull for Chaewon believed that Jack didn’t have to die because he could fit on the wooden raft with Rose. Well of course, it’s a romantic tragedy movie so what’s there to expect, right?

“Does love at first sight really requires tragedy to happen?” Chaewon groaned in annoyance as she picked up the last slice of pepperoni pizza from its box on the coffee table that she ordered last night via home delivery. She took a bite while rubbing the temple of her head as she came to think of that tragic moment in that movie, wherein Minju also experienced a tragedy and now Chaewon was in a big internal dilemma if she ever truly experienced that love at first sight to Minju. Her headache wasn’t getting any better as the result of lack of sleep nowadays for she was thinking too much. Thankfully, today was her day-off from work so she had a lot of free time for herself which was why she decided to binge-watch romantic movies overnight for her special research that she had been doing since she met Minju.

Due to extreme curiosity about Minju’s rare condition, Chaewon spent a lot of her spare time after doing her work at home to search about it all over the internet. She’d been watching documentaries and reading medical research and articles about it. She found out about that Minju had an anterograde amnesia when she had that "talk" with Eunbi few days ago – in which she would rather forget.

Minju's memories probably rebooted yesterday as Chaewon wondered what must be Minju doing after she learned the truth about her condition and how Minju would spend the rest of the 48 hours for her cousins didn't know either. They just let Minju do her own thing in the whole 48 hours as long as she would return home safe every night especially at the last hours before the 48 hours would end.

The feeling of frustration to figure this thing out was eating Chaewon alive. It's her first time to feel this way and she didn't have a clue what to do. She didn’t know if she should act on it or just let it go away as she was getting disappointed at herself for her level of understanding couldn’t comprehend what she had been feeling these past few days – to the point she would spend countless hours thinking to herself and watching a lot of romantic movies with love at first sight concept because she wanted to know how this such crappy idea work in the first place for she didn't want to admit that she felt love at first sight when she first saw Minju and it could be something else. Sure thing, Chaewon knew watching fictional movies about love was sometimes not a good basis for her special research about her feelings lately because it could be way too far-fetched from the reality – talking about desperation, but what else she could do? She already watched and read almost all whatever she could find in the internet about love at first sight to the point she barely even realized that she reached the last page of her search whether it's from a scientific explanation, advices from love gurus, and so on.

"Is it really love or is it just a strong feelings for a crush?" Chaewon spoke her thoughts out loud as she clenched her hand into a fist, desperate enough to find answers.

But Chaewon still had a last resort that she didn't want to consider doing before but she might reconsider doing it now which was to ask some of her close friends about it. It's not because she didn't trust them or whatnot but because she's just having a hard time to express her true feelings for she preferred to figure things out on her own and to bottle it all up to herself. She was the go-to person in her circle of friends, who always listened to their worries and problems; but Chaewon rarely shared hers and it had been in a long run to do it once more - but as long as the days kept passing by, her sanity was slowly slipping away about this whole fiasco in her head for she needed to have an outlet.

Chaewon freed a sharp sigh as she picked up her phone beside her and went on to her messages. She already had someone in her mind to ask about it for she knew this person for a long time and was currently in a long-time relationship with someone also in her circle. Chaewon thought this person could give her some advice despite of their small as she tapped the contact of her last conversation with Wonyoung which was almost two weeks ago then proceeded to send her a message.

Chaewon:

"Hey Wonyo. Can I ask you something?"

Chaewon shut her eyes to rest it for a bit as she anxiously waited for her reply. Fortunately, it didn’t take long enough for her phone to beep in her hand as she read the message.

 Wonyoung:

“Wait. Chaewon unnie??? Anyway, sure, what is it?”

Chaewon bit her lip as she was subconsciously feeling the texture of the fabric of the sofa with her fingers. She took her time to construct different versions of her sentences – deleting back to a blank text and then typing a new one again consecutively for the reason she didn't want to ask Wonyoung something straightforward that could give the younger girl any idea that Chaewon was actually having a “love” dilemma until she came up an idea.

Chaewon:

“Look, I just wanted to know about your thoughts on love at first sight.”

"Do you believe in it?"

“I mean, is it possible?”

“By the way, it’s not about me.”

“Don’t get me wrong.”

“I swear it’s not about me.”

“I’m just asking on behalf of a friend.”

Wonyoung:

“???”

Chaewon:

“What?”

Wonyoung:

“i’M jUsT aSKiNg oN bEHalF oF a FRiENd.”

“By the way, this is us right now ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)”

Chaewon squinted her eyes, making sure she read it correctly as doubt washed over her for she knew this was not Wonyoung’s usual text pattern but before Chaewon could ever prove her gut feeling as she was about to reply back, her phone’s screen suddenly switched to incoming call from Wonyoung. Chaewon had a mini panic attack so she just tossed her phone beside her on the couch as she just stared at it and waited for it to end – like she usually did every time a friend or an unknown number was calling her and she knew it wasn't that important especially if it's just about her for Chaewon preferred texting over calling, or at least sent her a message to ask permission first before calling her. Her phone rang again as Chaewon did the exact same thing; but this time around, she heard loud banging on her front door followed by the sound of the doorbell as a familiar voice called her attention from there.

"Hermit unnie! Open the door! I know you're just watching your phone for the call to die right in front of your eyes," Yujin shouted.

Chaewon never saw it coming as she sprinted her way to the security mini LCD beside her door to confirm her nightmares as checked at the screen and saw Yujin, who was actually the one who was Chaewon texting to all this time, holding Wonyoung’s phone on her ear while a plastic bag full of food containers in her other hand, posing adorably at the security camera with a mischievous smile across her face; and beside Yujin was her girlfriend, Wonyoung, who’s shaking her head in embarrassment because of Yujin as she lifted a take-out paper tray with hot drinks in it to show it to their favourite unnie. "Chaewon unnie, we brought breakfast," Wonyoung smiled.

Chaewon couldn't believe it as she hastily opened the door and let them in. "Wha- What are you guys doing here?"

"Don't you remember that you promised us before you moved in to the city that all three of us would meet but ever since you set your foot here, you never even contacted us once that's why we decided to pay you a surprise visit,” Wonyoung answered as she took the plastic bag from Yujn’s hand and went straight to dining table.

“We're supposed to visit you before but we thought you're might be busy with things so we postponed it but you didn't contact us the following days and we're worried you're becoming a hermit again so that’s why we’re here." Yujin wrapped her arms around Chaewon to give her a sideways hug without any intention of letting her go as Yujin rubbed her cheeks against the top of Chaewon's head due to her tall nature.

Chaewon didn’t have a chance to complain about the physical contact for her mind was also fogged at the moment. "But how do you guys even know my address? I didn't give-", she took a pause and realized. "Oh, right."

Yujin and Wonyoung were Chaewon's friends since way back in the countryside. The couple both moved in the city and lived together in an apartment a year earlier when they both also got hired by the same company as Chaewon was also currently working on. Yujin was assigned in the marketing department which was perfect for an extrovert like her while Wonyoung was assigned in the Human Resource department that's why she knew Chaewon's address because her solo apartment was provided by their company as well. Even though they're working in the same company, Yujin and Wonyoung never saw Chaewon at their office because the couple didn't have the work from home perks which Chaewon had.

"Chaewon unnie, have you eaten anything yet?" Wonyoung asked as she transported the food containers from the plastic bag onto the table.

"I just had a slice of pizza and a bad headache," Chaewon complained.

"And a love problem," Yujin added.

 Chaewon nudged Yujin with her elbow which made the taller girl laughed. "I already told you, it's not about me," Chaewon denied wherein the couple exchanged glances at each other with a sly look on their faces.

Wonyoung continued. “Anyway, good thing we brought salad alongside with pancakes and waffles today. Eat something healthy because it looks like this first love of yours is stressing you out lately.”

"But it's not what you think it is. It's really not about me," Chaewon shook her head, trying to persuade the two but she was a terrible liar and the couple could easily right through it.

Yujin hummed in an unconvinced tone as she broke the hug and led Chaewon in the dining area. Yujin pulled a chair for Chaewon and for herself as she sat beside her. "So hermit unnie, who's this person you felt love at first sight with?"

But before Chaewon could ever violently react to it, Yujin asked a question again to another question and another one. "Where did you meet this person?"

“Are you already dating?”

"Does this person know that you're always at home and you rarely take a bath because your reason is you're not going outside often so what's the point? Right?"

Wonyoung chimed in as she finished setting the table where she placed the dark roast coffee and a salad in front of Chaewon.  "But Yujin unnie, isn't it that last thing you said about not taking a bath perfectly described you?"

"I know, babe. I'm just finding an accomplice," Yujin explained.

"But I'm here. How about me?" Wonyoung pouted.

“Are you willing not to take a shower for me?” Yujin anticipated.

“You know that I love you so much Yujin unnie but my answer is still no” Wonyoung chuckled.

Yujin hissed as she let out a smile eventually. “I love you too.”

"Ugh! Gross," Chaewon rolled her eyes for she couldn't take the cringe that these two lovebirds were actually flirting literally right in front of her salad.

"Hermit unnie, what's so gross about it? If you're in love you would do crazy things like you've never done before for that person without even noticing it," Yujin complained while Chaewon burst out laughing from the sight of Yujin's violent reaction and disappointment.

Wonyoung joined Chaewon from laughing as she butted in. "Yujin unnie, but taking a bath is never a crazy thing to do."

"Wait a minute. Which side are you on?” Yujin protested when Wonyoung kept cracking up as she grabbed her girlfriend’s arm to move her away from Chaewon and led Yujin to the opposite side of the table just across the older girl.

"Of course, I’m always on your side but let’s give Chaewon unnie some room to breathe and let her eat first," Wonyoung pulled a chair for both of them as she leaned closer to Yujin and whispered something in her ear. “Then you can do whatever you want but just don’t make Chaewon unnie freaked out,” Wonyoung winked at her girlfriend after in which Yujin smiled and nodded as they sat together.

Chaewon had a bad feeling about it but she was thankful at the same time that Wonyoung was always there to save the day every time Yujin was becoming too overwhelming to handle. Wonyoung was an ambivert so she knew how things were working in the world of the both spectrum. She’s like the mediator of the group where she was always the one who reached out and pulled them back to their natural places whether if Chaewon was becoming too quiet and Yujin was becoming too loud.

They ate together as they caught up in each other's lives to make up for the lost time with endless teasing, chatting, and laughing echoed throughout the apartment – in which believe it or not, Chaewon was the loudest when she’s around them – even if the couple was getting itchy to pry about Chaewon’s love problem, they saved the best for last.

After they ate, Chaewon stood up, still enduring the throbbing pain in her head. “I’ll just get some medicine for my headache. I’ll be right back.”

“Okay, catch up on us at your couch,” Yujin replied as she exchanged mischievous glances with Wonyoung for the time had finally come.

The couple tidied things up then transported their hot drinks including Chaewon’s from the dining table to the coffee table in the living room as they threw themselves on the couch, whispering at each other’s ear on how they would squeeze some juice out of Chaewon, and leaving enough space between them for their unnie to sit on. After a while, Chaewon came back wherein she was greeted by a playful smirk from the couple as the two patted the gap between them inviting her to sit there.

“Oh crap,” Chaewon wanted to run but before she could even turn around, the two giants grabbed both of her arms and gently dragged her to the couch as they forced her to sit between them, squeezing her and leaving her little to no space which made her movements limited as they made sure Chaewon had no way to run – wherein Chaewon came up an immediate scheme that she would just stick to the plan of being in denial at all cost. She heaved a sigh as she sat there anxiously and told prayers in her head.

Wonyoung initiated the conversation, or should we say – interrogation."So Chaewon unnie, a while ago you asked us about what were our thoughts on love at first sight. Right?”

 “Yes, but it’s for my friend. I swear. It’s really not about me.”

“Why are you being so defensive unnie? We’re just asking a yes or no question,” Yujin remarked slyly in which Chaewon looked at her in disbelief but the couple seemed enjoying it.

Wonyoung advised as she placed an arm on the older girl’s shoulder. “I just wanted to remind you Chaewon unnie that we can't help you if you won't tell us the truth so I suggest if there’s something you wanted to confess before we start, now’s the right time.”

"Wait. But I-" Chaewon exchanged glances with the couple beside her but as much as she wanted to hold back every detail, the couple was just staring at her poor soul like they already knew the truth and they’re just waiting for Chaewon to admit it and to become honest with her feelings as she cracked under pressure. "Fine! It's about me and I need your help."

The couple finally let out a celebratory smile as they both hugged her and patted her head in happiness. Wonyoung remarked. "We're proud of you, unnie.”

Yujin broke the hug first as she got stirred up to pry. "So how it all started?"

Chaewon was burning in passion to tell them every detail in one go since the very beginning at the moment she woke up that day – this might be the side effect of keeping everything to herself that when she finally got the chance to let it out, she became relentless to the point that she even stood up in front of the couple as she kept pacing back and forth with over the top hand gestures just to express her thoughts and feelings because her brain couldn’t keep up.

Chaewon told them that her internet connection got y at that time and she had an urgent job applicant interview to be done so she just went out to find a place to do her work while she’s in her sleepwear attire where she looked like a fashion terrorist. She stumbled upon this local coffee shop called “Forelsket Cafe” so she settled there until the three employees of that establishment, who happened to be cousins, began to act in an odd manner and then a majestic pretty woman named “Minju” magically appeared out of nowhere at exactly 8 am where Chaewon felt something and everything became weird. Chaewon acted super awkward around Minju and had a short interaction where Minju even lend Chaewon her earphones because the latter forgot to bring hers.  Chaewon didn’t have a chance to return it because Minju always ran away every time Eunbi would broke down the news to her, not to mention that it also slipped off her mind when she had that “talk” with Eunbi where Chaewon developed a traumatic experience as she felt like she was being suspected as a stalker or a creep that had predatory intentions to Minju which in fact there was none - which again, Chaewon would rather forget that conversation.

Yujin leaned closer to Wonyoung without removing their sight at Chaewon who looked like presenting an intense sermon in front of them that seemed like wouldn’t end in any minute yet, as Yujin whispered. “Did you bring popcorn?”

"I didn’t. But at least we have tea,” Wonyoung whispered back as she picked up the two hot tea drinks on the coffee table and handed the other one to Yujin. “And Chaewon’s unnie hot tea,” she added as they both nodded and took a sip.

Chaewon continued, still feeling the fire burning inside her as she was kept pacing back and forth, "And Minju’s oldest cousin, Eunbi, is really scary. Every time I remember our last conversation, I'm getting goose bumps," Chaewon felt the hair on her skins bristled as she shook the thought out of her head. “Nope, not today Satan, I don’t want to remember it anymore.”

"But what's the reason why you had that talk with her older cousin in the first place?" Wonyoung asked.

"It's because Minju asked me if we even met before and I honestly answered it,” Chaewon replied in confidence wherein she already searched at the deepest and darkest part of her brains but it never jogged into her memory that she met Minju once.

"So did you actually meet before?"

"No. I swear over my dead body that we never met before. Not even once,” Chaewon added. “Then there’s this one scenario where she asked me if she could touch my hand so I let her. After that, she asked me if we ever touched hands before so I answered that in all honesty, I said no.”

"So I guess you’re thinking that you know she is the one from the moment you held hands,” Yujin sipped her tea.

"Yes!”Chaewon gushed as she got swayed by her emotions but quickly recovered with her cheeks covered in red. “I mean, no.”

Wonyoung suggested. "Maybe you met before back in the countryside since this is just your first time here in the city."

Chaewon believed her recollection of memories without hesitation as she responded. "But I swear I didn't. I believe both of you know that I'm like a wallflower during my school days and I rarely hangout outside so if ever I saw Minju before then I eventually felt love at first sight at Minju back then."

"So you're admitting that you actually felt love at first sight?" Yujin sipped her tea again.

"Yes!” Chaewon knew she ed up again at that moment as her emotions always got the best of her and Yujin was taking advantage of it but Chaewon recovered once again. “I mean- no. Not necessarily like that. I don't know."

Yujin asked for Wonyoung’s tea because her cup was now empty as Wonyoung handed it over and proceeded helping Chaewon out. "Maybe you just forgot it?"

Chaewon replied. "I don't think so. How can I forget if I ever held hands with someone special before?"

"So Minju is your special someone?" Yujin took a sip from her girlfriend’s tea.

"Yes!” Chaewon stopped. “Wait. I mean-“ Chaewon couldn’t believe that she fell from Yujin’s tricks again, whispering something to herself which the younger failed to hear. ”I mean, not necessarily... yet.”

Chaewon raised an eyebrow at Yujin as she told her. “Also, can you please stop butting in the conversation like this?"

"Why?" Yujin asked, grinning from ear to ear.

"Because I can't think straight”

"Oh, are you?” Yujin punned as she sipped the last drops of tea then placed the empty cups on the coffee table after.

Chaewon rolled her eyes, clicking her tongue as she suddenly threw herself at Yujin and messed up the younger girl’s hair – they were wrestling each other at the couch while Wonyoung was sitting pretty beside them, occupied in her thoughts on how to help Chaewon.

"That's weird. Maybe she got you mistaken with someone else?" Wonyoung queried as she rubbed her chin, still unbothered by the chaos beside her.

"I don't know," Chaewon replied as the two took a timeout and went back to their original seating position in the couch.

 “But we need to know first, what are your thoughts about it? Do you believe that what you felt about her is love at first sight?”

Chaewon answered in confidence. “For me personally, my answer is no.”

“Why?”

 “I believe love at first sight is just a product of an instant strong physical attraction at someone.”

“Why?” Yujin chimed in.

“I mean, Minju is so damn attractive like her face is exactly my type,” Chaewon reasoned out as she recalled the first day she met Minju.

Wonyoung continued. “Okay, then how about those beautiful people that also suits your taste that you passed by the streets or you saw somewhere else? Did you feel some sort of strong attraction when you saw them for the first time?”

“I mean sure, they are pretty and all in their own ways but I never felt like this at them compared to what I felt when I first saw Minju.”

“Then maybe it’s not just because of the looks but rather a connection,” Yujin suggested, finally contributing something helpful throughout the whole conversation.

Chaewon kept quiet for a moment as she thought about it. She spoke up again with a hint of hope in her tone. "If there's some sort of connection, does it mean she also felt that way or she felt something inside her when we had that interaction?"

Wonyoung slightly tilted her head to the side as she answered. "I think she's the only person who can answer your question. But I guess from the outsider’s point of view, I think maybe there’s something because she wouldn't ask you if you two already met before or you both held hands back then if she didn't feel it, right? Who knows?"

"I agree,” Yujin nodded as she discreetly picked up Chaewon’s drink on the coffee table and was about to take a sip when Chaewon quickly grabbed her drink from the younger girl’s hand, which caused Yujin to sulk but Wonyoung saw it so she extended her arm and tickled her girlfriend’s chin as they both smiled at each other – even if Chaewon was in between them.

Chaewon shook her head as she slightly bent backwards so she could drink her coffee in peace. She wanted to believe them but it’s too risky at this point; but what mattered now was she felt some of her burdens were lifted up away from her. She decided to change the topic as she asked them."But how about you guys? Do you believe in love at first sight?"

"For me, I think maybe." Wonyoung answered first.

"Why?"

"You know, love really moves mysteriously and sometimes it hits people differently. Love is the greatest intangible which means it is also the hardest to explain where sometimes lead to lots of complications. But I believe love is not that complicated because love is pure, only the people could make love complicated.”

"Hermit unnie, that's my baby right there." Yujin, teary-eyed, was clapping her hands slowly as she proudly told Chaewon.

"I know, buddy. I know," Chaewon patted Yujin’s shoulder as she asked. "How about you? Do you believe in it?"

"Of course, I believe in it."

"Why?"

"To be honest, I don't believe in it first but when I told Wonyoung that I don't believe in love at first sight, she kept walking in front of me until I get convinced."

Chaewon protested. "But that's not love at first sight, it's love at multiple sight. Where's your first in it?"

"Where's my first? There," Yujin pointed at Wonyoung.  "My first love and will also be my last."

"Chaewon unnie, that's my future wife right there." Wonyoung, teary-eyed, was clapping her hands slowly as she proudly told Chaewon.

"I know, buddy. I know,” Chaewon patted Wonyoung’s shoulder. “But I think whether it is love at first sight or not, how about let’s not just put a label on it for now? Let’s see how things go with its flow.”

“I agree,” Wonyoung nodded.

“But you better make sure first that she’s single before you make a move because it’s better to become a third wheel rather than a third party. Take it from us. You’re the best third wheel we ever have.” Yujin reminded as she gave Chaewon a quick side hug.

"Wow. I didn't sign up for that but thanks for the reminder. I'll keep that in mind." Chaewon replied in with a bit hint of sarcasm in her tone.

“But I think we should work on your confidence first, Chaewon unnie. I know you hate small talks and such but sometimes you need to do it especially in times like this. You can’t start the conversation with a stranger like playing charades, you know,” Wonyoung suggested.

“"I think the charades is a good idea," Chaewon thought to herself just to avoid having a conversation with a stranger.

"Unnie, don't."

“But how can I do it?”

Yujin chimed in as she picked up the remote control to turn on the TV. "Maybe you can start practicing to greet her good morning first or to greet her back when she greeted you first.”

"You're right,” Chaewon smiled sincerely. “By the way, thanks for coming by. I really appreciate it, you two."

"You're welcome unnie,” Wonyoung replied.

“By the way Hermit unnie, when are you going to return her earphones?” Yujin asked.

“If I find the right time.”

“Can I borrow?”

“No.”

THE NEXT DAY...

CHAEWON’S ATTEMPT NO. 1:

Chaewon threw herself away from the bed a bit early than the usual for she was extremely strung out on her agenda for the day. She didn't get the right amount of sleep last night for her head couldn’t stop processing different possible outcomes about seeing Minju again, and of course, her older cousins as well whom Chaewon was traumatized of especially by Eunbi –  but Chaewon understood where it was all coming from, because Minju always cried alone and ran away after she learned the truth; and her cousins don't want to see Minju’s heart broke again because Minju had enough heartbreaks every 48 hours. But after Yujin and Wonyoung’s visit yesterday, Chaewon gained courage to see Minju again.

Chaewon wore something casual and decent with a gray statement t-shirt, a bleached high-waist slim fit pants, and white sneakers, as she also brought her sling laptop bag with her. She left her apartment just in time before 8 am in which every step she took as she got closer to the coffee shop, her heart was pounding fast. She carefully crossed the street and entered the coffee shop where she already expected the reactions that she would get from the three people inside – they failed to foresee Chaewon’s arrival at this hour which left them quite stunned for a second.

Eunbi gave Chaewon the benefit of the doubt so she just let Chaewon in as she ordered her go-to coffee shop dessert and drink – her eternal love for cheesecake and dark roasted coffee. Eunbi was almost done processing the transaction when she broke the silence and asked Chaewon.  "So you're not here for Minju, are you?"

Chaewon cleared as she avoided the eye contact. "No. I'm here for work"

Eunbi dropped her sight at the laptop bag slung on Chaewon's shoulder. "Okay," Eunbi ripped the receipt from the receipt machine and handed it to Chaewon. "By the way, I'm just letting you know that we got our eyes on you," Eunbi smiled. "Here's your receipt. Enjoy."

Chaewon let out a slightly uncomfortable smile as she took it, feeling the chills at once from just a simple statement from Eunbi. “Tha- thanks,” She went to her now favourite corner in the coffee shop just right next to Minju’s usual spot.

"A simple greeting won't hurt. I practice saying this a lot overnight so I better not screw this up," she reminded herself. "I just need to greet back if ever she would greet me, and if she won't, then I need to greet her first – but I’m too nervous to greet her first,"  she scratched the back of her head where uneasiness was evident in her face. “Ugh. This is hard but I can do it,” she thought to herself as she set up her laptop on the table, taking deep breaths in interval, and waited for Minju to come by at exactly 8 am.

(( FAST FORWARD  ⏩ ))

Minju was now approaching to her usual spot and Chaewon did her best to pretend that she didn't saw Minju was coming – she started typing random words in her laptop with her earphones stuck in her ears. Chaewon saw out of the corner of her eyes that Minju glance at her for about one or two wearing her best smile as Minju squeeze herself in between the round tables then scooted to the other side without greeting Chaewon.

Taken aback from the outcome where Chaewon expected a greeting from Minju as Chaewon thought maybe she radiated the “Don't Disturb Me” aura too much which caused Minju failed to greet her. Since her plan A didn't work, the time had come to do the plan B where Chaewon would be the one who would initiate the greeting even if her heart was thumping loud for Chaewon rarely started a conversation with a stranger, how much more with someone whom she's a bit interested with.

Chaewon removed her earphones out of her ears, as she slightly faced Minju who's occupied in her phone – probably changing its date settings. Chaewon was about to utter a word but halted when she heard someone cleared in a loud manner that her eyes searched for its source where she saw Eunbi was watching the whole time as she sipped from her cup.

The rushed of chills quickly seeped through her skin which made Chaewon sat properly as she glued her eyes on her laptop screen where she thought maybe she could try again another day, but for now she didn’t have a choice but to wait for the 48 hours to pass for she needed to reconstruct another plan in her head.

TODAY'S ATTEMPT RESULT:

Eunbi: Won

Chaewon: Lose

Minju: Kim

Yena: Choi

Hyewon: Kang

CHAEWON’S ATTEMPT NO. 2:

Necks were turning and jaws were dropping – those were the reactions Chaewon drew from the crowd as she walked down the streets, not because Chaewon’s pretty small face was definitely eye-catching (well, no questions asked), but because she was wearing her famous mint green ankle pajama pants again that she looked like a fashion terrorist in which she didn’t mean to standout from the crowd. Chaewon wasn't conscious at first when she wore this pajama when she went out before to find an internet connection for her urgent work for she didn't give a damn about how she dressed outside; but today, it was different and she's becoming a bit bothered by it.

For those whole 48 hours after her failed first attempt, Chaewon thought about where she went wrong so that her second attempt today wouldn’t hit the skids. If Chaewon couldn't initiate the first greet and conversation, yet in addition to Eunbi's glare, maybe she could make Minju the one who would greet her first and if Minju was the one who would initiate the greeting, then Eunbi couldn’t say anything because Minju was the one who made a move first. Since Minju was an extrovert, and extrovert relies on lots of social stimulations, then Chaewon thought maybe she needed to appear not to be too much aloof like she did last time so maybe this second attempt could work.

Chaewon entered the coffee shop and went straight to the barista counter where she was faced with Eunbi again.

(( FAST FORWARD  ⏩ ))

Minju was now approaching to her usual spot and Chaewon re-enacted the very first time they met. Even if Chaewon was having a hard time to never break the eye contact with Minju, she stared at Minju and Minju noticed it just like the last time as she greeted Chaewon with a warm smile. "Hi! Good morning!"

"Good morning," Chaewon beamed her brightest smile as she greeted back successfully. All her practices of saying “good morning” in front of the mirror or even while she's taking a shower paid off. But now she needed to maintain the conversation even though she didn't practice this one that much, at least she managed to greet back for taking the first step that could make small things took her to greatest achievements – as she believed.

Minju squeezed herself in between the round tables as she noticed Chaewon's pants when she sat down before scooting to the other side. "By the way, I like your pants. I think it's cool.”

"Oh, really? Thanks," Chaewon smiled but at the moment she locked eyes with Minju, she was mesmerized by it and got lost in it in just a split second where she unintentionally blurted out what’s inside the part of her subconscious mind. "And I like you-"

Minju chuckled. "What?"

"No! No! No!" Chaewon shook her head violently and waved both of her hands frantically in front of Minju. "I mean, I like you- your uhm," Chaewon needed to think fast or else she might blow this whole thing up again as she pointed at Minju's top, blushing hard. "Your t-shirt. I like your t-shirt."

"Oh, my tee?" Minju checked her tops as she giggled, shifting her sight back to Chaewon. "But it's just a plain black t-shirt."

"Oh, right," Chaewon chuckled as she scratched her nape. Surprisingly, she felt comfortable in Minju's presence that fast like she was just talking with an old friend or with her closest friends. She felt like they knew each other for a long time as the small talk went on, she never felt any awkwardness in her as Chaewon thought that she might be wrong about not meeting her before somewhere – but she really couldn’t remember anything about it.

Chaewon continued, smiling at her. "But I don't understand why you like my pants. It’s just the same way I like your t-shirt and the way you like my pants when in fact mine is just actually a plain mint green ankle pajama."

"What? No way! Can I take a closer look because it really looks like pants or something?" Minju got animated and Chaewon couldn’t hide her smile.

"Su-sure," Chaewon heard the trembling of her own voice as she quickly cleared when Minju scooted closer and examine her pants – it’s Minju’s side profile that always got her.

"Wow, it really is a pajama," Minju left flabbergasted like it’s her first time to see an actual pajama when in fact she had plenty of that at home. "I didn't notice it, because I think it looks good on you. I mean, I think anything you wear look goods on you,” she praised.

"Tha- Thanks," Chaewon felt the butterflies on her stomach from just a simple and innocent friendly compliment but she couldn't help but to blush wherein she got caught in the moment as she asked. "But do you know what also looks good on me?

"What?" Minju replied with her eyes still locked at Chaewon's pants.

Chaewon whispered. "My smile every time I see you."

( ͡°( ͡° ͜ʖ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ʖ ͡°) ͡°))

"What? I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you properly," Minju looked up at Chaewon as she tucked her hair behind her ears. "I'm actually wearing Yena unnie's wireless earphones because I couldn't find mine. I think I lost it somewhere in the party last night or at home," Minju chuckled as she removed the earphones from her ear. "Sorry, what is it again?"

Chaewon snapped out of her cringey pick-up line for she couldn't believe that this could be the side effect of watching too much romantic films from those days as she quickly recovered. "I said, look at my mismatched socks. – it goes well with my pajama and it also looks good on me," Chaewon bragged in a cute manner.

Minju laughed. "Oh my gosh, you're right. That's really cute," Minju smiled as she extended her hand. "By the way, I'm Minju."

Chaewon shook her hand, smiling back as she had never been happier than she was now. "I'm Chaewon"

TODAY'S ATTEMPT RESULT:

Eunbi: 0 point

Minju’s Black T-shirt: +1 point

Chaewon’s Mint Green Pajama Pants: +1 point

Yujin’s Influence: +5 points

Cringey Pick-up Line From Wattpad: -10 points

(a/n: I skipped the attempt numbers 3 to 13 because what happened there was they just had casual conversations and small talks plus Eunbi’s glare)

CHAEWON’S ATTEMPT NO. 14:

Blissfulness was evident in Chaewon’s face when she entered the coffee shop – not to mention the wave of euphoria that she had been feeling these past few days, even if Minju couldn't remember her, neither the conversations they both had, she had been living on cloud nine as she also built confidence in herself more. But despite how happy she was as the days moved forward, the coffee shop manager in front of her wasn't.

Eunbi was always there and she witnessed how things unfolded between the two – but she never said anything because she got respect for her cousin, Minju – as long as Chaewon wouldn’t do anything out of ordinary that could bring harm to her younger cousin. But sometimes when Eunbi was in the mischievous mood to annoy Chaewon, she would cut their conversation short to borrow Minju to tell her the truth about the accident and her condition wherein Minju’s common reaction was to cry alone then runaway somewhere, in which they didn’t have any idea where as long as Minju would return safe home every night.

"So I'm guessing you're here again for work in your-" Eunbi remarked in a sarcastic tone as she took a quick scan of Chaewon's mint green pajamas and her mismatched socks. "-modern office uniform,” she continued.

Chaewon just released a soft awkward laugh as silence took over them. Eunbi didn't need to ask what Chaewon wanted to order because it’s always her eternal love for cheesecake and dark roasted coffee so Eunbi just proceeded with the transaction.

"Look, I don't know what you're up to but I just wanted to tell you that I always got my eyes on you so if you're doing something that could hurt her, you should stop now. Do you understand?" Eunbi warned with a hint of concern in her tone as she handed Chaewon her receipt.

"I understand but I also wanted to clarify that my intentions are pure," Chaewon assured as she took the receipt in which Eunbi spoke again.

"But we just wanted to clarify too that we're also not letting our guard down. It's not over yet," Eunbi smirked.

Chaewon didn't understand what Eunbi meant so she just let out an awkward smile as she went to her spot to wait for Minju to come where in at exactly 8 am, Minju arrived in a great mood – and she’s glowing than ever before where she was humming in high spirits as soon as she entered the coffee shop.

(( FAST FORWARD  ⏩ ))

Before Minju went on to her usual spot, Eunbi called her attention. “Hey Minju, I have something to tell you.”

 Minju came closer as Eunbi whispered something in her ear, subtly pointing at Chaewon who seemed occupied in doing something in her laptop. "Min, don't talk to the creep over there."

Minju glanced at Chaewon then quickly shifted her sight back to Eunbi. “Really? But she doesn't look like a creep to me."

"But she really is. I'm pretty sure she will come to you to introduce herself and then she will flex her mint green pajama pants."

"Should we call the police?" Minju asked anxiously.

“No, I don’t think we need to involve the police here but if she starts talking to you, just call me.”

"Okay, thanks for the heads up Eunbi unnie. I guess I’ll find another seat then."

Minju scanned the available seats that were far from Chaewon and she chose the table near the barista counter so she could easily asked for help if Chaewon would ever come to her.

Chaewon got confused as she put her hands inside the pocket of her pajama pants because her hand was slightly trembling to the fact that she would be the one who would initiate the conversation – for she didn't want to show it as she went to Minju and greeted her with a smile on her face "Good morning."

Minju just glanced at her and gave her a half-smile as she veered her sight back to her phone.

Chaewon held out a hand as she introduced herself, still smiling even though she couldn’t understand why Minju acted that way. "Hi. I'm Chaewon."

"Hi! And I'm leaving." Minju quickly stood up and ran away and hid behind Eunbi’s back where Minju assumed Chaewon was showing off her pajama when Chaewon let her hands out of her pockets based on what Eunbi told her.

"Wait. Wha-What?" Chaewon befuddled.

Minju glared at her. "Get away from me, you creep!"

“HUH?” Chaewon completely lost it.

Eunbi was trying to hold her laughter as she led Minju inside the office room together with Hyewon and Yena. Chaewon couldn’t believe that Eunbi played her dirty as she scratched the back of her head where she thought to herself that she would wait for another 48 hours to try again next time as she began to come up with a new plan and not relying on her mint green pajama and mismatched socks anymore.

TODAY'S ATTEMPT RESULT:

Eunbi: 2KIMphobic (lol jk)

Chaewon: Heartbroken

Mint Green Pajama Pants and Mismatched Socks: Eliminated

Cheesecake Crumbs: New Entry Below

a/n:

ANNOUNCEMENT: I think 3-5 chapters are not enough to cover the whole story because I think I gave too much emphasis at some points in the first few chapters (I’m sorry for that lmao) so I guess this fic will have more chapters than I originally planned to. Because of that, I replaced the #shortstory tag into an #angst tag ( ͡°( ͡° ͜ʖ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ʖ ͡°) ͡°)

WARNING: Shameless Plugging

Hi! I’m also writing a new 2KIM fic (because I’m such a er for this ship) and it’s called, “UNSPOKEN”, which had a different theme compared to this one and it would mostly contain fluff, angst, comfort, hurt, life and love decisions, and school life.

I already wrote the prologue and I will publish it as soon as possible.

Anyway, thank you for reading and I apologize for my shameless plugging and my cringey flopped humor lmao (I hope it won’t hunt you in your sleep) lol. Stay alive and stay safe everyone. ♡

- aurora ♡

Cheesecake Crumbs:

Chaewon stayed at the coffee shop for a while after her failed attempt today because of Eunbi’s dirty trick wherein she also witnessed Minju ran away again after she discovered the truth about herself. Chaewon resented that part at some degree because she couldn’t take to see Minju in a lot of pain and disappointment and she couldn’t do anything about it yet for Minju thought Chaewon was always a stranger to her because Minju couldn’t retain new faces in her memories. Chaewon wanted to go after her but Minju already thought that she was a creep in her mint green pajama pants so she decided not to do it or else she might be probably ended up in the police station.

Chaewon ate the cheesecake crumbs left on her plate before deciding to leave. Eunbi went out at this hour to buy some groceries so Hyewon and Yena were left in charge of the coffee shop wherein the two were just resting in one of the seats with round tables across the room since they're no customers coming in yet. Chaewon couldn't come up with a new plan because Yena was whining so loud that Chaewon couldn't help but to hear the whole conversation.

"This ! I can't wait another day. I miss my girlfriend so much," Yena groaned in irritation.

"Then why don't you meet Yuri later?" Hyewon asked while prepping the nails of her fingers.

"How can I meet her? Her university projects from her major subjects are keeping her away from me. It's been two weeks already since we last hangout," Yena slouched back as she got annoyed just by thinking of it. "Sure, I play computer games a lot but I don't know that much stuff when it comes to computer software technology or whatever you call it. I wish I can help her."

Hyewon just shrugged her shoulders while Yena buried her face on her arms on the table as she kept whining in which she didn't notice that Hyewon already left her.

A bright idea came inside Chaewon's mind as she sat on Hyewon's chair, tapping Yena’s arm to call her attention. "Hey"

Yena raised her head up and saw Chaewon. "Oh, it's the creep. Wait. Where's Hyewon?"

"She went to the office room. Anyway, I just wanted to propose something to you."

"Propose? To me? Well, if you're going to propose, you need to bend down on one knee but I just wanted to tell you that I'm not interested in someone who goes outside in her pajamas. And also, I already have a girlfriend."

"Huh? I didn't mean to propose to you. I mean, I want to propose an idea or make a deal with you."

"Sorry, not interested. If you wanted to involve me directly in your shticks to Minju, I would definitely hard pass. I don't want to see Eunbi unnie threw my stuffs outside the apartment." Yena yawned as she buried her face back again on her arms.

Chaewon remarked as she slowly stood up. "Oh, it's okay. I didn't mean to overhead your conversation a while ago that's why I'm here because I just wanted to offer my help to your girlfriend. I guess I will go home now because I remembered that I asked my assistant to arrange a schedule for a video conference meeting with my team today about the computer software application that we're currently developing. So as a team leader, I need to be on time so I will leave now. Thanks for the time by the way."

Chaewon was about to leave when she felt a grabbed on her wrist. "Wait," Yena looked up at her with a bright smile on her face like a puppy that saw a dog treat. "What is your deal again?"

Chaewon chuckled. "I can help your girlfriend out to finish her project early so you can spend time with her in exchange for something."

"Okay. What is it?" Yena paid her full attention.

"Just to be clear, I don't have anything towards your girlfriend, okay?" Chaewon sat back as she placed her hands on the table while setting the tips of her fingers together.

"I just want to borrow something from her."