4 - Not A Dream

Among many nights, this was the most peaceful sleep Yerin ever had since Yuna's passing. She didn't realize it but there was no more nightmare about Yuna's scarred face from the accident, cold body in the freezing operation room, none of her tears fell on the lifeless body of her wife hunting in her sleep. There wasn't anything, just blank mind slept the night away without disruption.

Feeling too cold from the aircon in the bedroom, Yerin just rolled her body into a ball before completely pulling the blanket above her head to get some more sleep. She was almost sure the time was still early for her to wake up.

Her blanket however was pulled back down, her face getting blown from the coldness of the room temperature. "Eunbi, is that you?" she asked half asleep with her eyes closed. A soft finger touched her cheek and Yerin felt sudden warmth overwhelmed her body.

"Yennie honey, wake up! It's breakfast time!"

Upon hearing Yuna's real voice had Yerin jolted her eyes opened, fully awoken.

Last night wasn't a dream. It was real life event. Yuna was still breathing, alive and beautiful before her eyes.

Her wife was staring down at her. Yerin found herself mezmerized and charmed by Yuna's beauty, drowned in her pair of pretty eyes. Her smile was to die for. If Yerin wasn't completely healthy from any heart attack illness, her life would already be ended by then.

"Go and shower. Are you aware you're not wearing anything right now or not?" Yuna teased with her smirk.

Ooops, so Yerin was feeling the cold because she was completely before falling asleep last night. Now she understood.

Grinning sheepishly, she took the blanket to cover her body before getting up from the bed. She was suddenly shy at the thought of Yuna peeking at her bare body and her face was flushing red.

"Yerin"

She glanced up before she could close the door of the bathroom when Yuna called her name gently. The latter smiled softly at her. "Last night was wonderful. Thank you."

Last night was indeed not a dream. Yuna was real.

***

With Yerin having the day off and Yuna decided to ditch her work since it's Saturday, the pair agreed to spend the day with and at Yerin's family house. Yuna missed her friend slash sister in-law Eunbi while Yerin missed her family's dog that they had started to raise a few years ago.

"Milky~" Yerin started searching for the dog as soon as they got in through the front gate and came out of their car. A maltese puppy ran and barked welcoming the pair and Yerin squatted to hug the puppy happily with wide opened arms.

She carried the fluffy puppy with ease and played with its fur. There was something strange about the puppy that it bothered her. "How did you get so small, my Milky?"

"Uhm...Yerin?" Yuna's timid voice drew her attention away from the puppy.

"Because that's not Milky," there was someone at the front door to welcome them like the puppy did. "That puppy is mine, his name is Myuchi." Yerin glanced up at the unexpected visitor with a frown but Yuna was obviously ecstatic.

"Yein??!"

Leaving her wife behind alone, Yuna ran to the said girl's side and began to hug her tight. "I miss you so much!" The pair then got into the house while Yerin was left with the puppy alone, dumbfounded.

Yein was Yerin's younger cousin which became acquainted with Yuna because they attended the same gymnastic club or something alike back in school days. The younger then flew oversea since she's been into magic lessons and attended shows of sorts, so she hadn't been around for a couple of years. Yerin knew the pair knew each other longer than she thought but she wasn't aware her wife and her cousin were this close to each other.

"So your name is Myuchi, huh?" Yerin quietly murmured to the puppy before following the previour pair's tail into the house. She saw those two were chatting up each other in the lounge room then ran into Eunbi who just came down from the steps. Yerin put down Myuchi before having her eyes on her sister. "Where's Milky?"

Eunbi narrowed her eyes. "Have you gone mad?"

"Yerin," the sisters were joined by their mother. "I heard Milky. What's wrong?"

"Yennie unnie just asked about Milky's whereabouts," Eunbi sounded like she was making fun of her sister. "I think she hit her head or something."

Yerin was frowning after Eunbi left and her mother stared down at her. "Oh honey, do you miss Milky that much?"

"Of course I do. I didn't take him with me and Yuna because you guys didn't let me!"

"Unnie, are you sick or something?" Eunbi shook her head. "Milky died like a year ago while you were chasing him in the street. You need to check your head!"
 

Yerin's pale face fell after she heard what her sister had said. Milky, her favourite dog that she took in before marrying Yuna, died in an accident in the street? The last time she remembered, it was that dog who came and slept with her when Yuna passed away. But now her wife was alive and Milky was the one who died?

Although occupied with catching up with Yein, Yuna couldn't dismiss the sad look on Yerin's face when she heard about her dog. She raised a hand at Yein signalling the younger girl to stop talking and turned to Eunbi.

"Eunbi, there's something about my wife that I need to share with you."

Sojung had come over and kept Yerin company in the lounge room. Yein had gone to the kitchen to give a helping hand to Mrs. Jung in preparing lunch while Eunbi and Yuna went upstairs to Eunbi's room in the second floor to have a talk.

It was a wonderful morning with Yerin met the new puppy Mongchi while she talked to Sojung. But she soon started to miss her wife and was sure her taller friend was eager to see Eunbi too.

While she ascended the stairs to join the younger pair, Eunbi already came out alone and saw her sister at the hallway of the upper floor. "Yuna's napping in that room. I'm going down to see my girlfriend!"

Unlike Yerin and Yuna, Sojung and Eunbi still hadn't settled for marriage for some unknown reason. While she knew Sojung had a plan to propose her sister before, Yerin hadn't yet to know the answer from Eunbi. Maybe her wife knew something since they are best friends.

Without knocking the door, Yerin came inside Eunbi's room where she had a talk with Yuna at a few minutes ago. True like Eunbi told, Yuna was napping in the bed while her head lied on her long arm instead of the pillow. It would be such an uncomfortable position and her arm surely would get sore, but Yuna looked so peaceful that Yerin was instantly whipped for a small smile too.

Slowly moving and stretching her body into the bed, Yerin copied Yuna's position while facing her sleeping wife and stared at the latter's face. Yerin had said many times about her wife being beautiful and still counting because to her, Yuna was indeed a beautiful angel that descended from the heavenly sky.

She felt a moment of peace whenever she looked at Yuna's face. The sound of her breathing along with the sight of her chest raised and fell steadily almost brought tears to Yerin's eyes. She felt grateful she still had the chance to see Yuna like this again.

"Yuna, I love you so much," Yerin started to whisper as her hand moved to touch her wife's smooth cheek. Her lips stretched into a thin smile and her heart was too content.

"I love you too," she suddenly heard Yuna whispered back, likely sounded half-air that Yerin thought she was dreaming. But her wife slowly began to open her eyes then Yerin believed Yuna was awake when she said that.

Yuna began to smile. "I always have and will always love you, Yerin," she breathed and that made Yerin flew into a cloud nine.

Scooting closer and closed the gap between them, Yerin moved to kiss Yuna's tender lips. Indeed nothing made her happy than having to kiss her wife with so much passion like this.

"Ehem ehem!"

The pair heard someone cleared by the door and glanced to see Yein. Yerin was almost annoyed but Yuna was shy for being caught red-handed.

"I hate to interrupt but I need you two to come down. We're having lunch!" The younger cousin then fled, but not before giving her wink to Yerin which she managed to catch before Yein disappeared. Was the wink necessary? Yerin was even more irritated rather than confused.

***
 

While they ate lunch, Yein became the center topic of the family talk. Everyone gave her attention included Yuna who was really ecstatic to hear about her journey for magic shows across the country, much to Yerin's annoyance.

"How long are you planning to stay here?" Yuna asked while her eyes sparkled after Yein said she came back to Korea after her magic show ended.

"I'm staying for good," Yein said which had the family cooed happily. "I don't want to stay outside of my own home country anymore and it feels good to be back here."

"Glad to hear that," Mrs. Jung smiled contently and rubbed the back of Yein's hand.

Not minding much about her cousin, Yerin was more interested in her puppy. "How old is Myuchi?"

"Oh he's still a baby. I only started to take him home yesterday."

"Can he stay with me?" Yerin only wanted the puppy as a replacement of her dead dog which was so regrettable, but only if Yein allowed it.

She felt a nudge on her elbow and saw Yuna gave her a look. Yerin mouthed what back but her wife just shook her head.

"I know you're still upset about Milky but Yerin, that's your cousin's puppy. You could just take another dog," her father didn't sound pleased after her request. Yerin pouted and began sulking with her family, who apparently didn't realize how she was feeling, sad and annoyed.

Aware of the tension, Yein cleared to ease up the atmosphere a little. "I plan to stay with my girlfriend along with Myuchi, but if you want him, you can take him," the girl smiled at her older cousin before taking another bite of her remaining food.

Yerin's mood enlightened when she heard that but Yuna seemed to disagree. "Don't spoil my wife. Think about your girlfriend." Eunbi and Sojung seemed to agree with her words that had Yerin sighed loudly in silent anger.

"It's okay, Yerin unnie can have him. On another note, I think my girlfriend might actually like kitten more," Yein said happily that once again made Yerin silently rejoiced. She was elated at least someone was on her side, though a part of her still annoyed that certain someone also had her family against her.

Done with lunch, Yerin took over the task to wash the dishes after the hardwork her mother and Yein made when they prepared the food. She was accompanied by Eunbi while the others were still catching up with Yein now at the lounge room.

"So, I heard some weird events that happened between you and Yuna," Eunbi started while she rinsed the dishes. Yerin's hands stopped moving for a brief moment as she thought, did Eunbi feel what she felt too? That her wife slash Eunbi's friend, Yuna had rose from the dead too?

"She said you came back home from work crying something about your nightmare. Then there's this morning about Milky thing. Mind to explain?"

Nope, Eunbi didn't realize how she actually felt.

"I felt...just something. Something about..." Yerin found it hard to say anything. If she did say it, would Eunbi understand her? "Something about Yuna, and it's very bad. I'm not sure if it's just a dream, but it felt too real that it made me scared."

The sisters turned to face each other and Eunbi could see the tears began to form in Yerin's eyes. She didn't understand what her sister tried to say, but she was ready to listen. "What it was that you felt?"

Yerin could only shake her head in denial because she was too caught up in emotion about losing Yuna that she couldn't say anything more. Also a part of her refused to say anything as she had a feeling Eunbi would ridicule her words.

Then there's a voice that interrupted the sisters' alone moment.

"Death?"

Yein appeared from the hallway of the kitchen entry.

***Lovelyz's Jung Yein is here \(^_^)/ I love Yein and writing her character as a nosy friend/cousin is fun! She has always been a mischievous maknae in my eyes and to add her in this story will help lighten up the angst moments for sure :)) Don't worry guys, YeJu is still happening and it's not the end just yet. Be patient while waiting for my next update. I try to write new chapter soon.