Irene is 35, Seulgi is 10

 

Irene takes a deep breath as she opens her eyes. She sits up carefully and looks around her, wondering where she is and hoping that she landed somewhere safe. She tries to discern where exactly she is, both in time and location, and prays silently that she can go soon.

 

“Who are you?” Irene has never been particularly religious.

 

She squints her eyes and turns to where the voice came from. She sees a girl peeking at her from behind one of the trees. She is short and her hair goes to her shoulder. She is young, probably nine or ten years old, considering the way worried eyes tried their best to glare menacingly.

 

It’s Seulgi, Irene realizes. She’ll recognize those lovely eyes anywhere. It’s Seulgi of another time and another place, when she hasn’t yet met Irene. This is the youngest Seulgi she has seen yet.

 

She slowly brings her arms to cover her exposed body the best she can. She recognizes the place now. She’s been here only a handful of times in her travels and once in her chronology, Seulgi’s childhood home in Seoul before the Kang family became millionaires.

 

“Hey, who are you?” Seulgi calls out again, stepping out a bit from her hiding place. It registers to her for the first time that Irene is and her and hands fly to her face, shielding her eyes. “Y-Yah! You’re !”

 

Irene couldn’t help but giggle. Seulgi has always been cute. “I am, yeah.”

 

“You shouldn’t be outside.” Seulgi scolds her. “Especially in houses that are not yours. Are you a bad person? I’ll tell on you!” She threatens even as she takes a moment to shake off her jacket and throw it to Irene before covering her eyes again.

 

Irene shakes her head and wishes that Seulgi never has to encounter a bad person in her life if this is how she’ll go about with meeting one. Not that she is bad, becaus hurting Seulgi on purpose is the last thing she'll ever. She grabs the jacket, uses it to cover as much as she can and whispers a small thanks. She smiles as Seulgi gives one nod. “Please, don’t. I’m not bad. My name is Irene. We know each other, you know? We are friends.”

 

Her hands move and Seulgi peeks from behind her fingers to give Irene a doubtful look. “But I don’t know you.”

 

“Trust me, you do.”

 

“Then tell me how I know you.” Seulgi insists with a small frown. “And be honest. Lying is bad.”

 

Irene tilts her head and feels a warmth in her chest. This little kid is definitely her Seulgi, the Seulgi she loves in her own time, the one who values honesty and loyalty the most. She has only ever lied to Seulgi a handful of times, most of them out of sheer necessity (or when it could potentially ruin time for them) and Irene has a strong gut feeling that right now isn’t one of those times. She could lie, it would be easy, but Seulgi doesn’t like lies, and Irene needs this to go right if she wants things to unfold the way they are supposed to.

 

"I’m a time traveller,” Irene says, looking at Seulgi straight in the eyes to let her know she isn’t lying. “I have a condition that pulls me to different points in time. I can’t control it, though, so it’s kind of troublesome.”

 

Seulgi is quiet for a bit, her hands dropping to her side as she looks at Irene thoughtfully. “How do I know you’re not lying?” She asks.

 

“I can prove it.” Irene smiles. “You are Kang Seulgi. Everyone says you look like a bear, and it’s true. You like singing a lot. You’re an only child but you wish you have siblings because you’re lonely most of the time. You like to sketch in secret. You draw whatever you see, from things to people, because you like their story and you wish you can capture them. But you don’t think you’re good at it so you hide your sketchbook. You hide it between the animal encyclopedia books in your shelf.”

 

By the time she finishes, Seulgi is staring at her with wide eyes. There is silence for several seconds until Seulgi breathes out. “You do know me.”

 

“I do. I know you very well, Seulgi-yah.” She says affectionately as the little girl draws closer to her.

 

“I-Irene.”

 

“Joohyun.” Irene corrects. “That’s what you call me. Everyone calls me Irene but you call me Joohyun.”

 

“… Joohyun.”

 

“Seulgi.” Irene says. She feels a tug in her chest, the familiar sensation that tells her it’s time to go. Her vision gets blurry at the edges and she shakes her head.

 

“I’m going now, Seulgi-yah. We’ll see each other soon, okay? Be a good girl now, my Seulgi.”

 

“Wait—“ Seulgi says as she reaches her hand out.

 

Irene’s hand goes up to meet it, and their fingertips touch but then Irene gets pulled completely and she is gone, the image of Seulgi’s wide eyes and outstretched hand burned into her mind.

 

Irene is 25, Seulgi is 14

 

Irene first registers the melodic voice and she smiles. She turns her head to the side and sees Seulgi leaning against a tree, singing softly to herself as she sketches absentmindedly.

 

“Seulgi.”

 

Seulgi’s singing stops (Irene almost regrets calling her name) and she smiles when she sees Irene. “Joohyun-ah! You’re here!”

 

Irene watches as Seulgi scrambles for the backpack near her feet. She pulls out a white dress and hands it to Irene. She turns around, and Irene smiles at the polite gesture before putting the dress on.

 

“I’m decent now.” She announces and barely had a time to stand up properly before she is being tackled back to the ground by an energetic Seulgi.

 

“It’s been a while.” Seulgi says as she hugs Irene close to her. “How have you been?”

 

“I’ve been well,” Irene answers as she gives Seulgi a pat on her head. They both sit properly, Seulgi guiding Irene to sit on the blanket she has spread out under the shade of the tree. They’re in the childhood home again, and Seulgi looks so carefree. “And how are you?”

 

“I’m okay. School is taking up most of my time.” She says, as she hands Irene a box of cookies from inside the bag. She watches for a while as Irene eats before asking, “How old are you? For my record.”

 

“25,” She has seen the so-called record back in the present. It’s a yellow notebook Seulgi always keeps in her purse. It’s old and tattered but Seulgi holds it dear to her as it contains every record of Irene’s visit to her. It’s something she doesn’t let anyone see, not even Irene, as she fears it might disrupt the flow of time.

 

Seulgi hums and continues to watch her. Irene feels Seulgi’s gaze on her face and her body. She’s about to call her out on it, maybe tease the girl a little bit, but there’s a small blush creeping up Seulgi’s cheeks as she stares some more. Irene briefly wonders how old this Seulgi is. She looks 14 or 15, in the midst of her puberty and Irene kind of understands the way Seulgi is looking at her right now.

 

“What’s wrong, Seulgi?”

 

Seulgi shakes her head. “N-Nothing’s wrong. It’s just…” She trails off and shifts closer until they’re sitting side by side, with their backs against the tree.

 

Irene feels a weight on her side as Seulgi leans on her, her forehead resting on Irene’s shoulder. “It’s just what, Seulgi?”

 

“You look so beautiful, Hyun-ah.” Seulgi whispers.

 

Her breath is warm against Irene’s skin and Irene feels her heart flutter. It’s amazing, she thinks, how Seulgi can always make her heart beat twice as fast no matter what age she is and no matter what point in time they are in. She moves so that she can put her arms around Seulgi and pulls her close. She is still a few inches taller than Seulgi in this point in time so she tries to enjoy it as much as she could, enveloping Seulgi in her arms and tucking her head under her chin.

 

“You’re sweet,” Irene whispers back.

 

“I’m being honest.” Seulgi mumbles, and Irene nods because Seulgi is always honest. It’s one of the things she loves most about her. “You are the most beautiful person I have ever seen, Hyun.”

 

“You’ll see more people in your life.”

 

“But never anyone as beautiful as you.” Seulgi says in a tone that leaves no space for argument and Irene just smiles. She knows Seulgi means it and Irene's heart soars at that knowledge.

 

Several minutes of silence pass by before Seulgi timidly whispers, “Hey, Joohyun?”

 

Irene hums.

 

“Are you happy? In your present, I mean, from where you came from.” Seulgi says quietly as she shifts so she can look at Irene.

 

Irene thinks back to her present, how she fell asleep holding Seulgi close with Seulgi’s lips press against her collarbone. “Yes, very happy.”

 

“Are you in love?”

 

The question surprises her, wondering where it came from. She searches Seulgi’s gaze and sees worry and insecurity. She gets the strong urge to kiss those away but Irene holds herself back. She knows she can’t, and she shouldn’t, because this Seulgi is not yet hers and she can’t take advantage of her like that. She wants to say that yes, she is in love, so madly in love with Seulgi, and she is ready to spend the rest of her troublesome life with Seulgi. But there are limits and rules and Irene pushes down the urge.

 

She nods once to answer Seulgi’s question and prays that Seulgi asks no more. She feels the familiar tug and she blinks her blurring eyes rapidly.

 

“Seulgi—“

 

“Is it with me? Are you in love with me?” Seulgi asks suddenly.

 

The tug becomes stronger and before she can answer, Irene is gone.

Irene is 25, Seulgi is 22

 

Irene wakes up in her own bed. She glances to the side and sees Seulgi lying on her back, her head tilted to the side. She is snoring softly, her chest moving up and down with each intake and release of air. Irene props up her head on her arm and watches Seulgi for a moment, marvelling at how peaceful and serene the younger girl looks.

 

She moves her hand and places it on Seulgi's stomach, under the tank top she is wearing. She feels Seulgi's toned abdomen under her fingers and Irene lets out a sigh. Who would have thought that the clumsy bear looking child from the past would grow up to be this gorgeous and charismatic world artist?

 

"Mhmm... Hyun... More sleep."

 

Irene lets out a laugh as she feels Seulgi's hand grab hers and intertwine their fingers. Irene moves and swings her leg over Seulgi so she is straddling the younger girl. She locks their other hands together and pins Seulgi down.

 

Seulgi blinks several times as her eyes adjust to the light before grinning at Irene. "Hey there." She greets.

 

Seulgi's voice is rough and husky with sleep and Irene leans down to kiss her briefly.

 

"Ugh, morning breath." Irene scrunches up her nose.

 

"No such thing." Seulgi snorts. "Please, I'm perfect."

 

Irene laughs and kisses her again. "Yes, you are." She mumbles against Seulgi's lips before trailing her lips down to her neck.

 

"Not that I don't appreciate waking up like this, because I so do," Seulgi says in between whimpers. "But is something the matter, Joohyun?"

 

Irene pulls back and looks at Seulgi. Her hair is a mess, her cheeks are flushed red, and she does have a bit of morning breath. She is perfect, Joohyun thinks.

 

She shakes her head and lets Seulgi hug her close. "I'm so in love with you, Kang Seulgi." She says against Seulgi's lips.

 

There's a gentle nip on her lower lip and she feels Seulgi's tongue caress the spot. Irene groans.

 

"I love you, Bae Joohyun ."

 

She is happy, Irene thinks, very much so

 

Irene is 27, Seulgi is 15

 

Irene lands on a big bed. She hears muffled voices, probably coming from outside of the huge room she is in. She fumbles with the covers and wraps it around her body. She wait for a while, she knows she is safe, this is Seulgi's room in the Kang mansion and nobody but Seulgi enters it.

 

The voices stop and Irene hears footsteps before the door swings open. Seulgi enters, a frown on her face and she doesn't take notice of Irene as she rests her forehead against the door.

 

"Seulgi-yah." Irene calls gently.

 

Seulgi whips around and her frown becomes a smile. She runs to the bed and tackles Irene down.

 

"Joohyun!"

 

Irene chuckles and hugs the younger girl close. They stay like that for a minute until Seulgi pulls back. She blushes as she takes in Irene's state and quickly grabs a shirt from the nearby chair to give to her.

 

Irene puts it on and inhales. It smells like Seulgi. It's a very comforting smell and Irene smiles at it.

 

"I'm so happy to see you, Joohyun." Seulgi says as they sit side by side against the headboard.

 

Seulgi's voice is tired and her eyes are red. It makes Irene frown as she takes Seulgi's hands in hers.

 

"What's wrong, Seulgi?" She asks.

 

Seulgi shakes her head, her eyes on their hands. "I don't want to ruin our time together."

 

"Nonsense." Irene says as she uses her other hand to direct Seulgi's face so they're looking at each other. "Seulgi, you can tell me anything. I want you to talk to me about things that bother you too, okay?"

 

Seulgi nods and she is quiet for a moment before she speaks up again.

 

"I hate this. I hate this mansion, and all the money my parents suddenly have. They're never here. I never see them. This house is too big... I'm lonelier than ever, Hyun."

 

Irene hates seeing Seulgi like this, hearing how broken she sounds and feeling the sadness radiating off of her. She hates it more that there is nothing she can do about it. It's only a slump, Irene knows, the Kang family will eventuallu go back to how happy they were before all the money and Seulgi will be on good terms with her parents again. But it will take some time and Irene's heart hurts at the thought of Seulgi having to go through this painful period.

 

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