“So, what did your dad say about it?”

 

Seulgi asks with a mouthful of waffle to Irene who’s sitting across her with a chocolate parfait in front of her.

 

“He said that it was a misunderstanding.” Irene furrows her brows as she recalls the conversation she had with her father. “He said that the reason he sent me to a new school was not because of I’m gay, but because he doesn’t want me to have anything to do that that school and that teacher anymore.”

 

“He told me that it’s not that he didn’t accept me, but he was worried about what I might encounter in the future with…my gayness.” Irene says with a shrug and Seulgi almost chokes on her waffle when she tries to stifle her laugh. “My mother is…still in the process of accepting, but she keeps telling me that she loves me. I guess it’s a good thing?”

 

“My mother also had a difficulty to accept me at first, it’s hard to believe since I thought that my father would be the one having problems with it.” Seulgi shakes her head with a smile before lifting her head up again when she remembers about something. “What about…the way they put their attention to your siblings instead of you? Did you talk to them about it?”

 

“Ah, that one,” Irene points with her spoon and nods her head, “I talked to them about that, and they told me that…they knew I was different from my siblings, as in I was never interested with the company and business related stuff. Apparently, my father planned to hand me a position once I grew up, but my mother kept telling him not to force me to take care of the company.”

 

“Now that I think about it with my clear head, I do realize that I was never interested with the company to begin with. I was just jealous because my brother and sister got to work on something that I wasn’t a part of.” Irene frowns and nods her head as if letting her own words sink into her head.

 

“But their way of abandoning you is not really pleasing.” Seulgi huffs before putting another piece of waffle into .

 

“I looks like abandoning if I see it from my side,” Irene chuckles, “but in their side, they’re simply giving me freedom.”

 

“Parents and their weird way of thinking.” Seulgi scoffs lightly before she continues to eat her waffle.

 

Irene rests her head on her palm and stares at Seulgi, watching her as she munches quietly on her waffle, how her cheeks puffed full, how she tucks her hair behind her ear when she leans for another bite, how her tongue darts out slightly to the sauce on her lips. Irene blinks dazedly at the sight, wondering how can she end up with someone like Seulgi.

 

“What is it?”

 

Irene blinks rapidly, gathering her focus and looks at Seulgi who’s giving her a weird look.

 

“Nothing,” Irene shakes her head with a smile and drops her gaze to the melting parfait on her table. “Have you thought about which nursing college are you going to attend?”

 

“I have,” Seulgi nods, “I can’t choose between the National University or Yonsei University though…”

 

“They’re both prestigious university.” Irene raises her brows in awe.

 

“They are.” Seulgi nods with a laugh before looking up to the other girl. “What about you? What are you planning to do?”

 

“I’m planning to attend a beauty school or something…” Irene says, poking the melted ice cream with her spoon. “I’m thinking about becoming a makeup artist or anything related to beauty, maybe a hairdresser will work too.”

 

“Wow,” Seulgi blinks. “I thought you’re going to study business or something related to that.”

 

“I told you I’ve never been interested with those things.” Irene snorts softly.

 

“Alright, which beauty school are you planning to attend then?”

 

“I—haven’t thought about it.” Irene trails off as she darts her eyes away.

 

Seulgi drops her gaze and stares at her empty plate before lifting her head again to look at the girl across her.

 

“Then find the beauty school that’s close to my university, that way we can probably…live together…” She says before dropping her gaze again and her lips nervously.

 

Irene whips her head and blinks rapidly at Seulgi, trying to register the words into her head, wondering if her ears are betraying her. “Live…together?”

 

“Well, if you want to.” Seulgi gestures nervously her hand. “I mean, we can save money that way and…it’d be nice to live with someone rather than alone, right?”

 

Lies, of course for Seulgi, she prefers to live alone rather than living with someone who’s not Irene. But the images of living together with Irene fill her mind with flower field and fluttering butterfly. She can already imagine herself waking up in the morning to see Irene preparing for breakfast in the kitchen.

 

“That’s a great idea.” Irene suddenly says, snapping Seulgi’s attention to her. “I think it would be nice to live together,” she lifts her eyes to Seulgi, “with you.”

 

Seulgi can feel her cheeks burn at the words as she drops her gaze again, planning to distract herself by eating her waffle, only it realize that her plate is already empty. She slowly lifts her gaze up to see Irene trying to stifle her laugh.

 

Frowning, she reaches her spoon and takes a mouthful of ice cream into , earning another laugh from Irene.

 

 

____________________

 

“Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.”

 

Yeri says out loud for the third time since she held the biology book in her hands, which was half an hour ago.

 

“Are you still stuck on that page, seriously?” Joy raises a brow as she flips her own biology book.

 

Seulgi lifts her gaze to glance over between Joy and Yeri before focusing on her own book again. She glances over to see Irene focusing on her own biology book with a pencil in her hand, poking her lips with it once in a while as she reads.

 

“The cell nucleus acts like the brain of the cell.”

 

“Yeri, can you shut up?”

 

“I’m doomed, I won’t be able to graduate.”

 

Yeri sighs heavily and leans over to Joy, resting her head against the other’s shoulder. Joy brings her hand to pat on Yeri’s head, eyes not moving from the page of the biology book. Seulgi raises her brow slightly at the interaction before darting her eyes back to the words on the page.

 

It’s unbelievable how it felt like yesterday when Irene introduced herself in front of the class as a new transfer student and now, they’re preparing themselves for the final test. Soon, they’re going to graduate and probably part ways to reach their own dream.

 

It’s unbelievable how it felt like yesterday when Seulgi was an ice queen who barely talked to anyone and never bothered to care about anything except graduating high school and pursue her dream as a nurse, but now, she’s sitting together with her best friends and her girlfriend.

 

It’s unbelievable how it felt like yesterday when Seulgi was so obsessed with perfection and incredibly insecure about her own flaws, but now, she has learned to embrace herself and realize that no one is perfect, no matter how perfect they might seem.

 

Irene teaches her everything about it.

 

Seulgi perks up when she feels a stare directed on her, only to see Irene peeking at her from her thick biology book. She raises her brows questioningly, giving an expression of what.

 

Irene chuckles in return and gives Seulgi a wink before dropping her eyes back to the book.

 

Seulgi blinks rapidly at the absurd action before shaking her head with a light chuckle and goes back on reading.

 

It’s unbelievable how they’re going to stay together after this and pursue their dreams together.

 

Meanwhile, Wendy, Joy and Yeri have been watching their not so discreet flirting action behind their own books. They exchange glance with each other and share a knowing smile before they go back on studying.

 

 

____________________

 

“I’m fine, Mom. I’ve got a hang on biology already. I think I can do the exam pretty well.”

 

Irene speaks into the phone as she packs her textbooks into her bag for tomorrow’s class. 

 

“Well, that’s a relief. Oh by the way, you once told me about wanting to study in some kind of beauty academy, right?”

 

Irene freezes momentarily before her lips nervously. “Yes… Does dad…not allow it?”

 

“No, no, no. He’s glad that you can find what you really want to do in life.”

 

Irene lets out the breath she’s been holding and chuckles into the phone. “And? What did he say about it?”

 

“Oh actually, he has a connection with that, uhh… Beauty academy in U.S… What is it called again? Beau… Beauty institute?”

 

“Beau Beauty Institute!” Irene yips into the phone, eyes twinkling in excitement at the name of her dream college. “Dad has a connection with them?”

 

“Yes! And guess what? He wants to enroll you there!”

 

“Oh my God! Are you serious, Mom?”

 

Irene beams and stands up on her feet, barely containing her exictement. Who would have thought that her father would send her to one of the best beauty academies? She didn’t even think that her father would be at least happy about the career she planned to pursue.

 

“Of course I am, so just do you best on the exam and you will fly to U.S. as soon as you graduated, how does that sound?”

 

Irene’s smile falters immediately at the words. The conversation she had with Seulgi weeks ago crosses her mind in that moment.

 

I mean, we can save money that way and it’d be nice to live with someone rather than alone, right?

 

“Um, mom…” Irene says softly, “can you let me think about it for a while…?”

 

“Huh? You still need to think about it?” Her mother’s voice sounds both surprised and confused, probably wondering how Irene sounds so excited earlier yet still hesitates about it.

 

“Yeah, there are…some things I need to think about…”

 

She ends the call a moment later and looks down at her phone screen, catching the message notification from Seulgi.

 

From: Seulgi

I’ll teach you calculus tomorrow after school. You better memorize all the formulas tonight.

 

Irene laughs at the message and shakes her head before her smile falters again as she recalls the phone conversation earlier. She takes a seat on her bed and thinks about which offer to take, pursuing her study in her dream school or pursuing her dream of living together with Seulgi.

 

 

____________________

 

 

“Irene?”

 

The said girl snaps out of her trance and turns over at the call, blinking at Seulgi who’s giving her a weird look.

 

“What is it, Seulgi?” Irene says with a smile, but Seulgi can see through that smile. She knows that there’s something bothering Irene’s mind.

 

“You seem to be bothered my something.” Seulgi furrows her brows and tilts her head as if trying to see through the other girl.

 

Irene laughs quietly and shakes her head. “I’m just nervous about the exam.”

 

“Don’t be, you’re doing well until now.” Seulgi reassures her with a smile and nuzzles against her shoulder.

 

“Am I?” Irene chuckles and kisses the side of the girl’s head, wrapping her arm around the other’s waist as the cuddle on the floor of Seulgi’s bedroom, books sprawled in front of them.

 

Seulgi lets out a soft hum and wraps her arms around the older girl, curling herself comfortably.

 

“I’ve decided on the National University.” Seulgi mumbles softly, closing her eyes as she inhaled Irene’s floral scent.

 

“Yeah?” Irene hums questioningly as she plays with the locks of Seulgi’s black hair. “That’s good. You’ll do great.”

 

“I’ve search for a living place too. There’s a small apartment not so far from the university, just 3 station away.”

 

Irene’s hand freezes notably at the words before she continues to the other’s hair. “O-Oh… That’s nice…”

 

Seulgi hums softly, unaware of Irene’s stuttering movement. “It looks like a nice place, I think you’ll like it too.”

 

Irene closes her eyes and in a deep breath, hand moving to press Seulgi’s head closer against her.

 

“Seulgi, there’s something I need to tell you about.”

 

Seulgi lifts her head and looks up to the other girl, smiling softly. “What is it?”

 

Irene opens , only to close it again a second later. She looks down at Seulgi’s questioning smile and shakes her own head, smiling back at her girlfriend.

 

“I’ll tell you after we’re done with the finals.”

 

In that moment, Seulgi catches the glint of sadness and hesitation in Irene’s eyes. It reminds her of that time when Irene used to hide everything behind her smile, pretending that she’s happy and fine.

 

Seulgi decides not to push on that matter as she nods her head with a smile.

 

 

____________________

 

 

Seulgi holds the pencil in her hand before she glances around her seat to look at the other students.

 

The first person she meets gaze with is Wendy.

 

Wendy has a beautiful voice. Seulgi notices it on the music class where they have to perform the group project by singing together in front of the class. Wendy plans to take the audition for an entertainment company once she graduates high school. Seulgi thinks that with a voice and face like her, Wendy would definitely make it. She has a cheerful and strong personality, she’s not afraid of anything and never hesitates to speak up. She also has a strong sense of justice like a warrior in her shining armour.

 

Seulgi darts her eyes to Joy and Yeri who seem to be staring at each other as if communicating with their eyes.

 

Yeri is a playful and childish girl, she often acts impulsively and ends up making a fool out of herself, but maybe that’s why she’s the most adorable and Joy always seems to be rather protective over her. Talking about Joy, she almost has the opposite personality as Yeri, but they seem to get along just well.

 

She isn’t sure if this is just her feelings or whatsoever, but she has noticed how Joy and Yeri have gotten closer. They’ve been close to begin with, even when Seulgi started to know them, but they seem to be closer now. She can’t seem to point out which part that makes them look like they’re closer, but the way they hold their gaze together tell something else. Seulgi knows, because she does the same with Irene.

 

Deciding to forget about that matter, Seulgi turns her eye to that one girl who apparently has been staring at her for a while.

 

Bae Irene.

 

The girl that pissed her off on the first day of her arrival, the girl who made her aware of her flaws, the girl who made her jealous to the bone.

 

The same girl who pointed out her good points, the same girl who gave her confidence, the girl who pulled her to the new world, the girl who taught her about so many things.

 

The girl she came to love.  

 

“Alright, begin the test.”

 

Flashing Irene a quick smile, Seulgi flips the paper on her table and focuses on the test, mentally praying for her friends to pass the test.

 

 

____________________

 

 

Seulgi gets the highest mark on the exams and is one of the candidates of scholarships for the university.

 

 

____________________

“So, what do you want to tell me about?”

 

Seulgi asks from her swing, turning her head to Irene who’s sitting on the swing next to her.

 

The sun already set hours ago, leaving them with starry sky and crescent moon when they head home after spending hours of karaoke with the other girls as the celebration for passing the finals. Yeri secretly stole her father’s soju and they ended up drinking a bit, not enough to make them lose their head though, except for Yeri who can’t seem to hold her drink well.

 

Irene perks up at the question and turns her head to Seulgi, opens and closes in attempt so speak, but no words spoken, leaving Seulgi tilting her head questioningly as she tries to figure out the meaning behind Irene’s hesitation.

 

“I know which beauty institute I’m going to attend.” Irene starts, her voice coming out smaller than she intended to.

 

“Oh?” Seulgi raises her brows and smiles. “That’s good. Which is it?”

 

“Beau Beauty Institute.” Irene presses her lips into a thin line.

 

Seulgi frowns lightly, trying to recognize the name, only to shake her head a moment later. “Never heard of it. Where is it located?”

 

Irene in a deep breath and turns her head to the front, avoiding Seulgi’s eyes as she chooses to stare at the empty seesaw in front of their swing instead.

 

“It’s in the U.S.”

 

There’s a heavy silence follows and Irene still doesn’t dare to move her gaze from the see saw. Seulgi keeps her eyes on her, mouth slackens as she lets the information sink into her head.

 

I know which beauty institute I’m going to attend. It’s in the U.S.

 

Suddenly, her body feels numb, so numb that she can’t feel anything even when she’s gripping on the swing so tight that her knuckles are turning white.

 

“You’re going to the U.S…”

 

It’s not addressed as a question, it’s more like a statement of realization that Irene is going to the US instead of living together with her like they promised before.

 

“I’m sorry, Seulgi.” Irene mutters quietly and bites her lower lip, slowly turning her head to face Seulgi’s stunned expression.

 

“You’re sorry?” Seulgi repeats, raising her brows slightly before she stands up abruptly from the swing. “If you’re sorry, then you wouldn’t even plan to fly there!”

 

Irene widens her eyes and reaches a hand, trying to explain her thought and clear the misunderstanding between them.

 

“I really wanted to study there, I never told you because I thought that I won’t ever get the chance, but—“

 

“But what?” Seulgi spits, tears burning behind her eyelids as she frowns at Irene. “But now that you get the chance, you’ll just—leave me?”

 

“I’m not leaving you!” Irene stands up from her swing too to face Seulgi.

 

“Then what do you call it? Flying to the other side of the world to study something that you can find here, if that’s not leaving me, then what is it?” Seulgi snaps, her breathing turns ragged as she tries to hold the emotion that threatens to burst out of her chest.

 

“We can still send messages, I can call you every night, video chat on weekend and everything.” Irene explains, trying to calm the other girl down.

 

“Yeah? How much is it—fifteen hours of different time zone?” Seulgi shakes her head with a humorless laugh. “Why, Irene? It’s the same here, there are beauty institutes all around the country.”

 

“They’re just alternative for this college of my dream.” Irene mutters softly, her eyes tearing up as well as she stares at Seulgi who seems to be trying so hard not to cry.

 

“Am I an alternative too?”

 

“No!” Irene snaps and shakes her head, making the tears trail down her cheeks in the process. “You are my beloved, you have no idea how much you mean to me.”

 

“Really? I guess your U.S. plan still means so much more than me.” Seulgi huffs out a humorless laugh and step back from the other girl.

 

“Seulgi, please… It’s just 2 years.” Irene takes a step closer and holds onto Seulgi’s hand, preventing her from taking another step backwards. “Two years and then I will come back and we will live together like how we promised.”

 

“We promised to stay together after we graduate, not waiting for you to come back from somewhere that you didn’t even tell me before!”

 

Seulgi pulls her hand away from Irene’s hold and grits her teeth, feeling her chest clenches in pain.

 

“I can come back on holidays and semester breaks too, Seulgi.” Irene says, her voice starts to shake as she tries to bite back a sob. “Will you wait for me, please?”

 

Seulgi stares at her quietly, feeling the tears dribbling her face as she forces herself to take in ragged breathing.

 

“Now I know what my mother meant about future and how can we be so sure about this, about us.” Seulgi takes in a deep breath and swallows the knot in . “You and I, Irene, are walking through different pathways…”

 

“Seulgi, no, we don’t.” Irene steps closer, only to have Seulgi takes a step back.

 

“We decide to open the different doors from each other. You with your door and I with mine.”

 

With that, Seulgi turns around and runs away from the park, leaving Irene calling for her name.

 

She keeps on running until she has to stop to catch her breath. She expects Irene to follow her and talk to her again, but when she turns her head over her shoulder, she doesn’t see anybody following her.

 

Seulgi chuckles a humorless laugh at the empty street behind her before deciding to walk slowly to her home.

 

“What promise…”

 

She mutters under her breath as she walks down the sidewalk.

 

“What living together…”

 

She huffs out before stopping in front of her house gate. She reaches the key in her bag and unlocks the door to get inside the house.

 

“Why U.S…”

 

She takes off her shoes and heads upstairs, ignoring her mother’s greeting as she steps into her room and locks the door.

 

“What about us…?”

 

Seulgi flops down her bed and buries her face into the pillow, feeling her body starts to shake along with the sob she’s letting out.

 

 

____________________

 

 

From: Irene

I’m sorry.

 

From: Irene

Pick up my call, please?

 

From: Irene

Can I go to your house?

 

From: Irene

What dress are you going to wear for the prom?

 

From: Irene

Let’s go to eat some ice cream.

 

Seulgi reads through the message before putting her phone aside and sighs heavily. It has been three days and her eyes are no longer as swollen as before, which is a good thing. Her mother didn’t ask anything about it despite the fact that she’s aware that her daughter was crying for the past 3 nights.

 

Seulgi is pretty thankful for that since she knows she needs a time for herself and not to be reminded about how Irene broke their promise.

 

Though after she calmed down a bit, she starts to realize that she’s being such a over this matter. Irene clearly said that it’s the college of her dream and she forced her to choose between her and her study. But Seulgi can’t help it, she’s really looking forward for their future together, living together and everything, of course she gets shaken by the fact that Irene has planned something else in mind.

 

She rolls to her side and glances at the teddy bear next to her pillow, the one Irene won for her in the arcane machine months ago. She picks up the bear and squeezes it’s tummy as if venting her frustration out on the poor plushie.

 

A buzz from her phone cuts her action as she reaches over to the phone, staring at the screen lazily, assuming that it’s another message from Irene, only to have her eyes widen when she sees the sender name.

 

From: Soojung

Seulgiiiiiiiiiiii, are you free today?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“So you’re angry because she never mentioned about it before and suddenly, she told you that she’s going to U.S?”

 

Soojung hums questioningly as she eyes Seulgi who’s sitting on the seat across her with a glass of lemon tea that she hasn’t even touched since the time it arrived on her table.  

 

“Kind of.” Seulgi sighs and stares out of the window of the café. “It just hurts me to see that she prefers to fly so far away instead of staying with me…”

 

Soojung rests her head on her palm as she sighs and stares out of the window too as if there’s something interesting outside aside from a plain street with few cars passing by once in a while.

 

“I’m going to study aboard too, you know.”

 

Seulgi blinks at the words before turning her head to look at Soojung who still has her eyes stuck on the window.

 

“You are?” Seulgi blinks rapidly. “Where?”

 

“Hmm, England.” Soojung darts her eyes from the window to Seulgi. “I want to be a therapist you know… It’s very popular in Europe.”

 

“That’s so far…” Seulgi hums thoughtfully.

 

“It is.” Soojung chuckles lightly as she stirs on her own fruit tea. “But she lets me go.”

 

Seulgi raises a brow at the words before catching a name. “Your girlfriend?”

 

“Uh huh.” Soojung nods with a smile. “She said that she will wait for me so I have to come back for her.”

 

“She let you go just like that…?” Seulgi blinks in disbelief, unable to understand how Soojung’s girlfriend can let her go so far away just like that.

 

“Well, she told me that a flower must be placed on a suitable land so it can bloom beautifully. That’s pretty poetic, but she has a point. I mean we only live once and we probably only get one chance to chase out dream just like a flower get its chance to grow, so when there’s still a chance, that flower must be moved to a suitable land so it can bloom perfectly, something like that.”

 

Soojung ends her words by slurping on her own fruit tea, easing her thirst after talking too much. When she hears no response from the other girl, she perks up to see Seulgi staring blankly at her.

 

“Hello? Kang Seulgi?” She tilts her hand and waves it in front of the other’s face.

 

“You’re right Soojung…” Seulgi suddenly hums, her eyes still blank and dazed. “I have to let the flower bloom…”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“You still need to think about it? What are you waiting for, Irene? The only thing left for you is just that—what do you call it—prom night!”

 

“I know, Mom.” Irene sighs into the phone as she rolls lazily on her bed. “But I still need to think about it, I mean I’m going to leave Korea and my…friends…”

 

There’s a moment of silence from the other line before a soft sigh is heard. “Well, life is about choice, Irene. You can’t simply have everything without sacrificing anything, think the best for yourself, okay?”

 

“Okay, Mom…” Irene mumbles into the phone before ending the call a moment later. She lifts the phone to her face and stares at all the unreplied messages that she sent to Seulgi.

 

Seulgi has the right to be mad since she’d be mad too if she’s standing on Seulgi’s shoes right now. This is selfish, she knows, but she just can’t seem to let go of this chance that’s offered right in front of her. If only Seulgi can understand…

 

No, how can she blame Seulgi about this, she has the right to be angry, it’s basically her fault. Why would she promise something that she couldn’t keep? God, imagine how much she has hurt Seulgi.

 

Irene sighs heavily and places a hand on her forehead, feeling her head spinning at all the thoughts inside her head. She wonders what should she do now, maybe she should forget about going to U.S… But that means she would also throw away once in a lifetime chance.

 

The ring of doorbell snaps Irene out of her thought as she steps out of her bedroom and heads to the front door, briefly wondering who would be visiting her house right now, probably some sales or package delivery.

 

She cracks the door open with a sigh and looks up to the person who’s standing in front of the door, only to have her breath caught up in at the sight of Seulgi in front of the gate.

 

“S-Seulgi?” She stutters in surprise before slowly steps over and unlocks the gate, eyes never leaving Seulgi as she blinks, trying to see if she’s real or it’s her brain playing tricks on her.

 

As soon as the gate in opened, Seulgi rushes in and throws herself to Irene, wrapping her arms around the girl and almost makes Irene stumbles backward in the process. She stays unmoving, trying to register the feeling of Seulgi’s warmth and the natural scent of citrus that invades her nose.

 

“Seulgi…” She mutters softly before bringing her own hands and wrap them around Seulgi, hugging her just as tightly.

 

“Make sure to come back…” Seulgi murmurs weakly.

 

“…What?” Irene hums questioningly, still having her face buried on Seulgi’s shoulder.

 

“Make sure to come back here after you finished… Don’t have too much fun in U.S without me…”

 

Irene freezes momentarily, unable to believe what she just heard. She slowly pulls away from the hug to stare at Seulgi’s face, eyes wide in disbelief.

 

“W-What did you just say…?”

 

Seulgi gives her a soft smile, though her eyes are glistening slightly.

 

“A flower needs to be in suitable land to bloom beautifully, I’ll be waiting for you to bloom… So make sure to come back…”

 

Irene stares at her for a moment, feeling the tears slowly b in her eyes as she in a deep breath.

 

“…Seulgi…” She mutters brokenly as tears start to trail down her cheeks.

 

Seulgi’s own eyes start to water at the sight as she tries to curl her lips into a smile. “Yes, Irene…?”

 

Irene snorts at the words, the action only causes the tears to spill down her cheeks even more as she lifts a hand to stifle her sob. She closes her eyes and tries to calm her breathing before she looks up to Seulgi again, smiling happily yet still unable to stop the tears from flowing.

 

Seulgi is in the same state herself, lips stretched wide in smile, yet her eyes are glistening with tears. She lets out a soft laugh when Irene throws herself over and pulls her into a tight hug.

 

“Thank you, Seulgi… Thank you so much… I love you…” Irene chokes out as she wraps her arms tighter, squeezing the air out of Seulgi’s lungs.

 

“I love you too.” Seulgi croaks out, only to wheeze a moment later. “Irene… Breath… Too tight…”

 

Irene pulls out with panicked gasp and blabbers of apology.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Half an hour later, they found themselves laying in bed comfortably, Seulgi on her back and Irene on top of her, laying her body comfortably above Seulgi’s as she peppers the younger’s face with kisses.

 

“Irene, that’s tickles you know.” Seulgi giggles lightly, eyes still closed as she enjoys the affection she’s getting.

 

“Tickles?” Irene raises her brows and stops her kisses. “This, is what you call tickles.”

 

With that said, she slips her hand under Seulgi’s shirt and moves her fingers against the sensitive skin of the other’s waist, making Seulgi screeches in surprise as she tries to get away from the elder’s hold.

 

“I-Irene!! Hahahaha! S-Stop—Yaaahhhh!!”

 

Irene laughs gleefully at the poor girl beneath her, moving her fingers teasingly as she straddles the other’s hips, locking her movement.

 

Seulgi takes a deep breath and tries to muster up all the energy in her weakened body before pushing the other girl and turning their position around, trapping Irene under her.

 

“Oops?” Irene fakes a gasp and raises her brows at Seulgi who doesn’t look so pleased at earlier action.

 

Seulgi fakes a snarl before leaning down and instead of tickling the other girl for a payback, she presses their lips together into a kiss.

 

Irene blinks at the kiss before closing her eyes and starts moving her lips, bringing her hands to roam them on Seulgi’s back. She slips a hand under the shirt and trails it up, brushing her palm against the soft skin on Seulgi’s back in fleeting touch.

 

Seulgi hums into the kiss as she starts to on Irene’s bottom lip, moving her own hands to ride the other’s shirt up and feel the soft skin with her fingertips.

 

Irene sighs contently into the kiss before bringing her other hand to the side of Seulgi’s face, tilting her head in order to kiss deeper.

 

The kiss is slow and sweet, not hurried and not rough, just enjoying each other’s warmth and pouring out their feelings into the kiss, tasting each other’s addicting lips. It’s a wonderful feeling, Seulgi can feel her chest getting warm and thousand of butterflies fluttering in her stomach, making the blood rush into her head and pounds in her eardrums, she can almost hear a crashing waves in her ears.

 

They pull away a moment later to catch their breaths, staring at each other’s flushed cheeks with heaving chest. Irene is the first one who breaks the silence with a soft chuckle.

 

“As much as I enjoy having you on top of me, you’re becoming kinda heavy.”

 

Seulgi blinks before rolling off the other girl to lie next to her, squinting her eyes in suspicion. “Are you calling me fat?”

 

“Whoa, wait a second, I didn’t say that.” Irene raises a defensive hand. “You said that to yourself.”

 

“You’re hinting at it.” Seulgi raises a brow as she continues to squint.

 

“Mhmm, maybe your s are the one that makes you heavy.”

 

“You can weigh my s?” Seulgi widens her eyes and gasps softly.

 

“Please don’t say something that makes me sound like a ert.”

 

Seulgi bursts into a gleeful laugh before she calms down after a while with a soft sigh, rolling to her back and looks up to the ceiling that she has come to like. Even if it’s not nighttime yet, Seulgi can see the tiny starts twinkling as if they’re real stars.

 

“I’ll call you.”

 

Seulgi pauses momentarily before turning her head to the girl next to her, eyeing her questioningly.

 

“I’ll try to call you everyday and if you can’t pick up, I’ll leave messages, bunch of messages. I’ll send you pictures of my meal and you have to send me back so I know that you’re eating well. I’ll send you pictures of the street that I took and you have to send me back. I’ll try to come back on breaks and by that time,” Irene pauses for a moment to turn her head, staring back at Seulgi. “I hope you’ll still be there for me.”

 

Seulgi curls her lips into a smile and nods her head. “I’m looking forward for your return, then.”

 

Irene flashes a smile in return, the bright smile that can compare to the sunshine itself, the smile that makes Seulgi thinks that it’s okay to be herself, it’s okay to be imperfect, the smile that probably made her fall in love with the elder without her realizing it.

 

In order to make the bird soar up in the sky, you have to let it out of the cage.

 

In order to make the flower bloom beautifully, you have to place it on the suitable land.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Have you thought about what dress to wear on the prom?”

 

“…No… Should I be worried about that?”

 

“Seulgi, I have a request.”

 

“What is it?”

 

“Will you let me do your make up and hair for the prom?”

 

“…With pleasure.”

 

Soft giggles erupted from under the blanket in a dark room, accompanied with tiny stars on the ceiling that seem to twinkle along with their laughter.

 

 

---

A/N

Eyoooo can you taste the ending already huehuehue decided to add a small pebble since real relationship doesn't have a smooth path :') 

For those who dislike the idea of Irene going to US, I’ll tell you my real story. I once got the chance to study overseas after high school and I turned it down because of my boyfriend (now ex), and if I have to admit something, it was one of the biggest regret I’ve ever had, I should’ve take the chance to go overseas and now I can only look back to the past. So please for you all who are thinking about your life, my advice is one, chase your dream. The people who are meant for you will stay, trust me on this, I’ve seen many things in life after all <3

Please do know that english is not my first language so you might find a lot of grammatical errors, typos and broken english, I am so sorry!

Comments, subscribes and upvotes are much appreciated, thank you so much!

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed the story!

♥