The first time she saw her, she thought her eyes reflected fire, her voice bore power and stance signified dignity.

And that she was a cocky, little .

That came from Myoui Mina, the timid girl who didn’t seem to be able to say anything but good things in the world.

(She also couldn’t lie, and that had been one of her greatest expense so far)

That day began with her standing under the humongous pillar in the corner of the university’s auditorium. A bundle of script with the title ‘Alice in Wonderland’ was tucked neatly under her arm as she rehearsed her line continuously, muttering each word like incitation and trying to picture how she wanted her character to express the emotions the original writer intended in the first place. She paced around as she did so, the older woods of floor creaked under her feet whenever she added weight.

And then she entered the scene just like that, unceremoniously, but with a soft bang as the pair of doors shut close behind her, cladded in a simple white t-shirt and jeans, bringing the attentions that weren’t yet asked from her end. Mina guessed it’s one of her quality, to draw people’s attention without even trying.

Mina wondered whom that person was, setting herself comfortably on the seat designated for their director who was non other than Park Jihyo, with similar script on her lap and eyes scanning each occupants of the room, totally not deterred by the return of gaze from Mina’s peers.

Speaking about Jihyo, Mina hadn’t seen the big-eyed girl since this morning and the latter seldom late for their rehearsal. She was about to ask about the director to her friend, a black haired, bunny-like girl who played as Alice, Im Nayeon, when the slightly older girl too shot a similar questioning look to her direction. The answer ended up given by the newcomer instead.

“Hi, my name is Tzuyu, second year from business major. Just to inform you, Jihyo has some urgent family meeting coming up this afternoon,” She said calmly despite the countless mumbles from others. She cleared and silence once again lapped above them like a fabric. “She appointed me to fill in her position, just for today.”

“Why don’t she just cancel the rehearsal instead?” A courageous boy named Ravi asked as he looked down to the second year from the stage, his hands crossed arrogantly. “No offense kid, but I think Jihyo made a mistake by asking you to be the director. You aren’t about to direct a play with sparkly vampires and stingy werewolves after all.” Ravi smirked and his group of friends tittered from behind him.

“The play is in a week you fool!” Nayeon chided. Mina backed up her friend’s action with a quiet nod, glaring at the snickering boys who faltered just a bit when they saw it.

She might be timid but her glare could probably freeze just anyone to death.

Amidst the tension, there was a distinct chuckle and Mina titled her head just in time to see the second year rose to her feet, tossing the script to Jihyo’s chair and ascended up the stage swiftly. Her steps were light, as though she was walking with clouds under her soles, and Mina blinked repeatedly when she realized that, oh, the junior was pretty… cute.

“I’ll handle it.” Tzuyu said as she ambled passed them, seemingly ready to entertain whoever these provocateurs were.

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?” 

Everyone fell into a stunned silence, surprised with the fact that the second year just quoted one of the most popular psragraph of the book. Mina, especially, couldn’t help but to be in awe, because that exact paragraph was definitely one of her favorite.

“So,” Tzuyu started off, a lazy smile plastered on her lips and she clasped her hand together in front of her, looking expectantly to Ravi who wasn’t amused that his taunt didn’t work for his favor. “Just like what she said,” She briefly pointed at Nayeon. “The play’s in a week, although, really, I couldn’t care less if you fail because there’s got nothing to do with me. Hell I’m not planning to watch the performance. It’ll be a waste of my time.”

Mina’s growing impression of the second year slowly started to deteriorate. She glowered, watching from afar as the exchange unfolded. She didn’t like how the junior choose her words and certainly didn’t appreciate how she sound like she was putting down the whole course. And she knew she wasn’t alone when there was a series of grumbles coming from the people within her area.

(“Now she just seems like a jerk.” Nayeon had promptly whispered to her ear and Mina couldn’t agree more.)

“But, unfortunately, as much as I want to enjoy a better company of my friend and her new PS4 game, Jihyo asked me for a favor. You can dislike me, you can haunt me once this session ends but there is a rehearsal today and I am the one in charge.” She said flatly and yet sternly and for once, even Ravi looked like he couldn’t win the argument.

The junior turned her heels around, her white sneaker made some soft thuds as she crossed from one end of the stage to another, which was just two meters away from where Mina and Nayeon had been standing. No one dared to speak after that, not until a harsh sigh was exhaled from Tzuyu, her voice was booming so loud when she spoke next that Mina flinched a little.

“Well what are you waiting for then? Get on your positions!” She ordered curtly.

*

It took five scolds to focus and endless jeers for Mina to think that, yes, Chou Tzuyu was a cocky, little with no courtesy.

Well, it’d be a lie if she said she hadn’t doze off in the middle of the rehearsal and that her mind did wander somewhere else unnecessary but in her defense she wasn’t usually like that. The new presence made her find it difficult to concentrate, especially with those piercing stare and scrutinizing eyes, which resulted in all her memorized lines and practiced expressions to escape her brain like a smoke with a waving paper.

It frustrated Mina so much whenever she stumbled on her words or whenever her gesture was off, but what frustrated her most were the snarky comments made by the junior and how totally correct they were.

“You might not be Alice but you are the white queen for goodness sake.”

“Come on, even Jinyoung and Jaebum did better than you, and they are the Tweedledum.”

“You sound like you’re reading out a textbook. Repeat.”

“Are you sure it was Jihyo who gave you the approval to take a part in this play?”

The word disliked didn’t justified what she was feeling about Tzuyu and Mina had categorized her as someone who didn’t have at least a trait of those who were listed on her record of nice people.

And judging from the above phrases, Mina assumed the ugly feeling was mutual.

Therefore, it caught her off guard when she felt this oddly growing attraction she could just barely decipher from irritation that shot up like a hushed rocket without her consent or approval. It felt like a tickly poke on her rib, and a of flapping wings of a tremendous butterfly inside her stomach.

She was able to figure this out from the way her heart skip a beat whenever their eyes met, or when she noticed how the junior’s countenance was so indifferent and yet passionate at the same time, or whenever she had her arms crossed, those muscles on her forearm would contracted and would be visible for anyone to gawk at, from what Nayeon had commented.

Or… or when a minute after the second year had announced dismissal, she proceed to make her way toward Mina in an agonizingly slow motion, hands on the pocket of her jeans and, like a one-eighty degree turn, shyly asked for her phone number.

And somehow, or maybe it was just Mina being, well, Mina, (she’s the timid girl who didn’t seem to be able to say anything but good thing in the world, remember?) couldn’t find a proper way (or willingness), to reject her.

Contradicting to what she had stated, Tzuyu ended up watching the play and a month later, Mina was Tzuyu’s girlfriend and Tzuyu was hers.

*

It was a drizzly September, and September meant dreaded exams and lack of leisure time.

Mina was diligently setting up her notes, her desk strewed with books from fat to thin, from new to worn out, along with pens and a couple of purple and pink highlighters in each gaps. Her body was arching, her face was might as well glued to her notebook at this rate and her ponytailed would dangle whenever she bobbed her head up and down while reading.

She was tired and sleepy and still on her yesterday’s oversize, baseball t-shirt. Furthermore, it was past noon already and she hadn’t had a proper breakfast aside from the banana Nayeon had forgotten to bring for her study session in the library. She actually would like to join to the front Nayeon today but unfortunately, (that’s what she had convinced herself to view it as, an unfortunate occasion) her girlfriend decided to drop by unannounced, bookless, worriless and foodless.

“Where did you get this strawberry again?”

Mina’s eyebrows twitched at the interruption and mumbled. “At the shop around the corner.”

Tzuyu shifted on her position, her back resting on the wall Mina’s bed was put against, her long legs dangling and swinging a little as she munched Mina’s strawberry supply at the same time playing Flappy Bird on her phone.

“Are you sure you don’t even have a pack of ramyeon? You know I’m okay with anything.”

“Tzuyu, if you want a brunch then go to the café downstairs. Don’t bother me.”

As though she hadn’t heard her, Tzuyu hummed. “Do you want some strawberries?”

“No, thank you.” She muttered, flipping furiously between each pages of one of her arm-thick book. She couldn’t believe she had forgotten to put the date when Charles Dickens published his second novel Oliver Twist.

Tzuyu said nothing afterward and Mina thought she had given up.

So when the book was wrenched from her grasp a moment later, she was really close to screaming. She could barely catch herself before she did so, curling her fingers inward and looking exasperatedly to Tzuyu who she didn’t realize had been standing on her side for a while now. She didn’t look as pleased as what Mina remembered when she emerged from behind her doorstep though.

“What?”

“It’s been hours Mina. Take a break.”

Mina didn’t answer, her brain filled with all possible set of numbers that could perhaps be the one she was searching for in that damned book. She planned to ditch it and continued with what she had left of.

Alas, she failed to reach her standard of certain point. She tried to seize the book away from Tzuyu’s possession, which led her to rise to her toe because Tzuyu had deliberately lifted the book to the air, putting their height difference to her advantage.

“Give it to me!” Mina hissed, jumping like mad in attempt to get ahold of her literature book though with no avail. Tzuyu didn’t respond, merely lifting the book even higher to the air, smirking widely until a part of her set of pearl white teeth shown. Mina plopped back to her chair sulkily and threw weak punches on Tzuyu’s abandonment, stripping off from her elegant and uptight image whenever she was within the company of the younger girl.

“Tzuyu, I have history tomorrow.” Mina pinched the bridge of nose tiredly, her head throbbing at the mention of the subject. “And I’m not even halfway to finish.”

“Come on! Five minutes of break won’t hurt.”

Tzuyu grinned and Mina was having a difficult time to stay angry because the way the corner of Tzuyu’s lips curved upward and the crease of dimples it created was something she couldn’t resist, like a pull of magnetic force on her steel-made skins. Tzuyu put the book on Nayeon’s bed once she sighed in defeat and said,

“I can’t escape this, can I?”

“Nope.” Tzuyu said nonchalantly and grabbed Mina’s hand to drag her to the bed. Mina, who was caught off guard by the gesture, could only follow her wordlessly, her heart skipping a beat as she tried to imprint the way Tzuyu’s line of fingers matched against her own. And oh, how warm it was.

They had been dating for approximately two months now but any form of skin-ship, even as simple as holding hand, was a bit rare to them. Tzuyu wasn’t as rude as what Mina had pictured her to be after all. She respected Mina’s space and treated her like a valuable painting in a museum. She was always there for her, catered her needs and didn’t pressure her to do anything she didn’t want to. Mina thought it was really sweet of her but sometimes she just wanted to tell Tzuyu to stop hesitating and go by her instinct.

Tzuyu let go of her hand, and Mina fought the frown that was insisting to appear because her long-awaited moment was short-lived and she carved for more, as much it’d make her sound greedy and all. But then Tzuyu lay on Mina’s bed as though it was hers, and Mina felt like she wasn’t in her room for a second, especially when Tzuyu tapped the spot beside her, beckoning Mina to join her.

Unsurely, she made her way to the bed, and lay a couple centimeters away from the younger girl. Her breath, however, hitched when Tzuyu reduced the distance between them into nothing, their thighs touching and upper arms bumping. The heat radiating off Tzuyu’s body pierced through the material of her clothes and she squeaked internally when she was then scooped to Tzuyu’s protective arms, her hands on Mina’s back and chin on top of her head.

“You’ve been very stressful lately, hm?” Tzuyu murmured gently, ducking slightly to face Mina properly. She looked away, having the urge to hide her reddening cheeks on the crock of Tzuyu’s neck, inhaling a faint scent her vanilla scent perfume by instinct. “Nayeon told me to check on you.”

“Is that so?” Mina whispered back because it was just the two of them on the bedroom she shared with Nayeon, close enough to have her hoped the younger girl couldn’t hear her hammering heart.

She twiddled with the hem of Tzuyu’s blue hoodie and sighed once again, her cheek resting on the bony shoulders as she melted into her embrace and suddenly, all those anxiety and distress from the exam tripped and stopped chasing her. “Well, I really need to do well on this term. And I’m graduating soon.”

“There’s still time. It’s not the final exam.”

“I know, I just… I don’t want to break the momentum.” Mina admitted and exhaled a long breathe, eye trailed up to gaze at the dewy window, sighing once more when a group of oranges leaves descended from their respective branches like sad confetti. “I’ve been working so hard for the past semesters, I don’t wanna waste my efforts just like that.”

“Your effort will not betray you.” Tzuyu assured, sweeping the fringe of Mina’s forehead. Mina looked up and felt her inside turning into mush, because she could feel the love radiating from the brownness of Tzuyu’s irises that reflected the doubt and exhaustion of her own. It swirled like a stirred coffee, cream twirling along the current. And she let Tzuyu’s simple words sunk to her system faster than anyone could ever achieve.

“Thanks.” Mina muttered, shifting her head comfortably on Tzuyu’s arm. “Thanks a lot.”

“You know what else Nayeon told me?” Tzuyu smiled, putting her finger under her chin so that their gaze would meet. “That someone apparently craves more affection from her girlfriend.”

Mina froze on her spot, blinking so fervently that it left her a bit dizzy. When Tzuyu nudged her shoulder playfully and chuckled, Mina plastered her palms to her blushing face. She whined and intentionally collapsed to the front of the younger girl’s body to muffle out her laugh. Tzuyu trashed under her while Mina tried so hard to keep straddling the latter, giggling all the while. Finally, Tzuyu was able to flip their position that both fell back to the mattress heavily, breathless from their little moment.

Mina was smiling so hard she couldn’t point out the last time she did. Tzuyu grinned back to her and the atmosphere turned mellow for a second, with Tzuyu seeking for Mina’s hand only to trap theirs in between them as she leant closer and closer to the point Mina could just imagine their noses brushing if she were to move.

“Is now the right time to kiss you?” Tzuyu mumbled quietly, her eyes flickering downward constantly. Mina shivered when she could feel Tzuyu’s hand on her back, rubbing circle and climbing above