A/N - This is a prompt from Kawaiiwolfgirl_

I love a challenging prompt: Satzu Just a super long uber ride

Ya’ll wanted Satzu so here you go - new poll below for the next prompt :D

Stop Lights (SaTzu)

“It’s here.”

Tzuyu’s voice was cold. Monotone. Matching the grey of everything around them, the pavement, the apartment complex in which their home of the past four years had been, the car itself was a grey Fiat. Everything around them was just grey. Even Sana, who always lit up a room with her optimism and cheery disposition, looked glum and void of any joy. Both women were shells of themselves, they’d been hollow for such a long time now they couldn’t find it within themselves to fake it any more. That routine had become tired, rigid. They never had to pretend with each other before, why bother doing it now? Tzuyu held the door open for Sana to get it but the girl ignored her, instead walking around the car to get in on the other side. With a sigh the younger girl followed suit, the middle seat between them might as well have been a canyon. This wasn’t the first time they had felt so distanced from one another.

“Sana?” The uber driver asked as they got in,

“Yes.”

“Yoo and Im Legal Offices?”

“Yes.”

Bland answers were all Tzuyu heard from the girl nowadays. Long gone were nights where they’d sit up and talk for hours, the nights they’d spend wrapped up together. Tzuyu had been on the couch for the past two months, forbidden from resting in her marital bed. They’d been seeing a marriage counsellor, their last ditch effort to save what had once been so sweet. But eventually, as Dr Park herself had told them, they both gave up on trying to save it. Both were stubborn, never wanting to admit they were the one in the wrong. Sana would argue until she was blue in the face, while Tzuyu would just do what she thought was the correct course of action without telling her. What’s left when even a trained professional says it can’t be saved? Something had to change but neither of them would.

The only thing they had agreed on in a year was that it was time to end things.

Sana had come in smelling of alcohol at four in the morning, the time Tzuyu would get up for work. Tzuyu had watch her stumble into their---her bedroom with no emotion or expression. It no longer bothered her that Sana would go out and drink most evening with other women, it made Sana happy to do that and lord knows Tzuyu hadn’t been making her very happy lately. When Tzuyu had come home from work that day she and Sana had sat at their table,utter silence. Sana couldn’t take it, so she said the four words that they both knew were coming.

“I want a divorce.”

“I agree.”

It was sad and both girls had wept privately about it but they shared no emotion with each other. It was like they felt they couldn’t, like if they were to do so it would mean they had lost the sick game they had created for themselves. Sana couldn’t even look at her, she was too close, so she settled for keeping her gaze out of the window as they travelled through the grey streets of the business district. The driver pulled to a stop by the light and Sana recognised the building next to them. It was the company Tzuyu worked for, the company that in her mind had ruined everything. Sana would never fault her soon to be ex-wife for her hard working nature, Tzuyu was the type of person who wished to provide. All she wanted was for Sana to never have to worry about money, something the older woman viewed as sweet but unnecessary. Sana had never cared for money, she worked her own job and never had want for anything. Yet her wife kept working, from six in the morning until eleven at night.

Not hours she was meant to do but rather ones her employer requested of her.

Night after night Sana would go to bed alone, purely because her wife could not say no to her boss. Sure they had everything they could ever want but that wasn’t a good substitute for the attention Sana wished to have from her wife. Watching Tzuyu curl up next to her in bed when she thought she was asleep, seeing how tired she was - how worn down, it all hurt Sana. She couldn’t watch Tzuyu like that and so she started to go out, almost to avoid her to stop the pain in her chest whenever she saw her. Bars were the best choice since they were open late, she’d invite her friends out and they’d sit in the bar for hours until Sana knew Tzuyu would be home asleep. It may have been selfish of her but she just couldn’t watch Tzuyu slowly kill herself. Tears rolled down her eyes as she remembered the nights Tzuyu couldn’t even come home because of work, or that one time she fainted in her office for skipping lunch.

“Hey, Sana?” Tzuyu whispered,

She leaned over to wipe away Sana’s tears but Sana looked away. She couldn’t look at her, she knew that if she did she’d fall back into the trap. The truth is that sometimes Sana felt…no…KNEW that Tzuyu loved her job more that she loved Sana. If that wasn’t true she would’ve been there. The light became green and they were moving again. Heading further and further away from the business district and Tzuyu’s work. Sana reclaimed her mask and wiped away her tears with her hands. A tissue appeared in her vision, Sana took it to stop her mascara from running. She looked at Tzuyu for a moment to thank her but Tzuyu herself was already looking out of her own window. The scene around them changed as the journey continued, the dull grey getting a bit more colour as they entered a residential area. The grey landscape replaced by brown brick and colourless paint.

The car once again stopped at the next set of traffic lights. Tzuyu remembered the road, she once had a friend that lived down this road. Kim Dahyun had been a friend of Sana and Tzuyu’s in college and it had been no secret that there was competition between the two youngsters for Sana’s heart. Dahyun had also liked Sana and had tried to woo her herself only for Tzuyu to get there first. They had all remained friends but over the past year or so Sana and Dahyun had become drinking buddies. Every time Tzuyu spoke with her wife all she would talk about was Dahyun, it hadn’t started like that - it had started with Sana and Dahyun hanging out without her due to a particular project Tzuyu had to do one week. The week after Sana continued going out with Dahyun and getting drunk, it ended up making Tzuyu so jealous that she didn’t want to know what Sana was up to. She wanted to be able to imaging Sana was at home while she worked, which is why she started working as long as possible. It worked for a while, Tzuyu would come home and find her wife already in bed but when Sana started getting closer to Dahyun she would go out later and later.

The light went green and the car began moving again.

Tzuyu felt a rage bubble in her chest as she entertained the thought of Sana looking at Dahyun the way she used to look at her. But could Tzuyu blame her? No. Dahyun was everything she wasn’t. Funny, bright, laid back and emotive. Tzuyu could never be like that, she was reserved and quiet - nowhere near as bright as Sana and Dahyun. That is why she never wanted to be at home, she couldn’t watch Sana drift away from her so she’d rather ignore it. Tzuyu knew Sana wouldn’t do anything whilst they were together, she may have been a snake when they were younger but she had never given Tzuyu any reason not to trust her. If she were to stay in that house a moment longer and watch her wife’s face light up when Dahyun texted…it hurt her. All she wanted was Sana to be happy, if it wasn’t with her that was fine but she couldn’t watch it happen. The rage bubble slowly disappeared as a lone tear rolled down her cheek.

“How much longer?” She asked the driver,

“Ten minutes ma’am.” He replied,

“Eager to get rid of me?” Sana joked, or tried to,

Tzuyu shook her head, “I just know you probably have plans with Dahyun tonight.”

“She’s our friend,” Sana snapped, “Besides, not like you’re ever home anyway.”

“I’m sorry for having a job.” Tzuyu responded blandly,

Sana scoffed, “You don’t even care, do you?”

“Of course I care Sana, we’re getting a divorce.”

“No you don’t,” Sana sniffled, “I’m over here balling my eyes out and you’re just over there stone faced.”

Tzuyu went to say something but stopped herself and turned back to the window. Sana sighed and looked back out the window. She watched the streets pass by like a blur, leaving the residential area behind and entering a quiet street. They passed by an old church, it had aged quite a bit since they’d last seen it. The marble arches dirty and in need of a good clean, the stain glass windows beginning to fade in colour. One step through the door was cracked, while the statue of the Mary above the door way was missing her baby Jesus - probably being repaired. It was a fitting metaphor. The church that had married them was also falling apart. It had been the happiest day of their lives, both had kept secrecy surrounding their dresses to surprise one another. Sana remembered walking down the aisle and stopping, she stopped dead centre to just stare at Tzuyu - thinking in that moment that she looked the most beautiful. She was wearing her own dress and had the biggest smile on her face, Sana herself smiled at the memory. She couldn’t remember the last time Tzuyu had smiled like that, or at all.

They had spent the whole day next to each other, ready to do it for the rest of their lives. Neither of their parents accepted them so the whole church, who had to be gifted a rather large donation in order to perform the ceremony, was filled with their friends and those who had supported them. That was one thing that never changed, every time Tzuyu looked at her she always had this overwhelming love in her eyes. Even after all this time, only now it had an underlying sadness. Maybe Sana shouldn’t have run away like she had been doing, maybe she should have stayed to tough it out. She loved Tzuyu, she still did. Their wedding day had been the best day of their lives, maybe they’d both played a part in its demise. Sana wanted to cry again. She wished she could go back to that day, back to when they had said: I do. Their reception had been perfect, they danced their first dance and she had twirled around in Tzuyu arms feeling like a princess. Sana just wanted to feel like that again, maybe Tzuyu deserved closure.

“I have never had a romantic interest in Dahyun.”

Tzuyu’s gaze didn’t leave the window, “Sure.”

“I’m serious,” Sana snapped, “There was this barmaid, Momo. Dahyun’s liked her for ages so when she goes to try and see her I join them so she doesn’t look weird lurking on her own.”

Tzuyu turned to face her, “Really?”

“Yeah,” Sana sighed, “I just wanted to get out the house, helping Dahyun was a way to do that.”

“Why do you want to get out the house?”

Sana decided that if this was going to be it she was going to tell the truth, not just talk nonsense like she had done with their therapist.

“I couldn’t stand the silence,” Sana confessed, “You were never home. I couldn’t just sit in an empty house day after day. But I want you to know there was never anyone else, despite how much you believed there was.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“I believe you.”

The silence descended again, only this time Tzuyu found it suffocating. She hadn’t lied, she truly believed that Sana had not cheated on her. It came as a relief, but also made her feel guilty for believing her wife was capable of causing her that amount of pain. Tzuyu had never been good with words, even if she’d wanted to she had no idea how to begin explaining her side. It’s why therapy didn’t work, Tzuyu could give a board meeting or close a deal but when it came to expressing emotions, real emotions, she couldn’t. would dry up and she wouldn’t know enough Korean to start. The car stopped by yet another red light and Tzuyu huffed, she was used to the fast paced lifestyle of the business world and this was killing her. She turned her head and immediately felt a wave of nostalgia hit her. It was a local cafe, nothing special to most but to the young couple it had been a very important place. It was closed, a dull flickering light still on under one of the letters on the sign. The orange and black colour scheme faded, dull but still the colours stood out.

It was there that Tzuyu had got on one knee and proposed to her.

They had fallen in love with that little cafe a year into their relationship. Sana had been introduced to it by her best friend, Mina, one afternoon and had dragged Tzuyu there the very next day. It became their place, every Friday they’d pop in for coffee and a cake without fail. No matter how busy they had been they would go every single Friday. One day they had been sat there talking about something Tzuyu couldn’t remember and she had stopped listening and just watched Sana as she laughed at her own little anecdote. She remembered that moment without any fault in detail, the way Sana’s eyes had crinkled, her high pitched squeaky laugh, her hand in front of to prevent any food in her teeth being visible. The moment Tzuyu decided she wanted to spend the rest of her life with her. The young girl was very rarely impulsive but this was the one time she didn’t regret choosing to do it. She had plucked an onion ring off the plate and proposed then and there. Sana had been shocked to say the least, she hadn’t expected it plus it had been a very unorthodox proposal. She had said yes though, squealing and kissing Tzuyu all over her face - not caring that the onion ring was leaving grease between her fingers.

The car continued moving again.

They’d gone to get the ring the next day, Tzuyu looked over at her wife’s hand - where that ring still sat on her finger underneath her wedding ring. It was a tiny diamond, Tzuyu had only been a poor intern at the time and the proposal had been so spontaneous that she hadn’t any money saved towards it. But Sana hadn’t cared, she wasn’t one for material things - she didn’t need them to survive. It was never about the carat of the ring or the size of the diamond, it was about the meaning behind it. A fact Tzuyu felt stupid to have forgotten, after working so hard to earn enough money for them to live company she had forgotten that she didn’t have to spoil Sana. All Sana ever wanted was her time. Tzuyu let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding, Sana had been honest with her…maybe she should show the same kindness.

“I’m sorry.”

Sana’s head snapped to her, “Huh?”

“For working all the time,” Tzuyu mumbled looking at her hands, “At the start it was just because I was taking extra work to raise more money. I always liked treating you, getting you everything you could ever want…”

“But I didn’t need all that.”

“I know,” Tzuyu rubbed her face out of frustration, she didn’t know how to do it, “That’s how it began and then it just became me not wanting to be at home. I didn’t want to think about where you were, who you were with. If I was at work I could assume you were sat at home watching television. When I got home and you’d not be there, I could say you’d only been out for ten minutes before I got home. I couldn’t handle you….moving on.”

“Oh…”

“So….yeah…I’m sorry for that.”

“It’s alright.”

The silence settled again, but this time there were no elephants in the room - or car - to suffocate them. The vehicle made a left at the end of the road which led to the entertainment district there were lit up signs all over, bowling alley’s, diners, cinemas the lot. Sana smiled to herself as she recognised where they were, she and Tzuyu used to come here all the time during college. The uber rolled to a stop by a zebra crossing (or cross walk for my American friends) to allow some college students to pass. Sana remembered being like them, watching as they messed with each others hair and chased each other down the pavement towards the arcade. Sana hadn’t seen that arcade in a long time, it had been where she and Tzuyu had their very first date. It had been awkward, Tzuyu was never much of a talker and for once Sana couldn’t find anything worth discussing. After a few seconds of silence Tzuyu had gestured to some of the vintage machines.

Tzuyu had said that she had always been good at Pac-Man.

She showed off and Sana had found it cute, watching her excitement as she collected all the little dots without the ghosts catching her. When Sana had a go they had decided to place a friendly bet, with terms to be decided upon the victory. The older girl was also good at Pac-Man and had easily beaten the other girl’s score, for her prize she had requested a kiss. Something Tzuyu had granted her. Their first kiss had been perfect, it made Sana feel all warm and fluffy, her toes curling. Had she been a cartoon character she would have kicked her heel up to show how wonderful the kiss was. The rest of the evening had been spent on the other games, both trying to get enough tickets to get a toy from behind the prize counter. Sana had been disappointed when they hadn’t gained enough and so Tzuyu had bribed the guy for a giant stuffed squirrel worth 10,000 tickets. Sana smiled at the memory, back when Tzuyu first started working late she would cuddle it to sleep - knowing that when she woke up the next day there would be Tzuyu in its place.

Now it was just collecting dust in the corner.

“We haven’t played Pac-Man in a long time.” Tzuyu commented,

“Hmm,” Sana hummed, “I was just thinking about that. Do you remember when you won that squirrel?”

Tzuyu chuckled, “I didn’t win it Sans, I bought it for what I still think was triple the actual price.”

Sans…

A nickname Sana hadn’t heard in a while, “It’s a shame we didn’t go back after we were married.”

“Shame we didn’t go before,” Tzuyu laughed, “I wouldn’t have proposed with an onion ring, I would have bought the oversized lollipop ring.”

Sana laughed with her and both felt weights leaving their shoulders. The car moved on the lights passing them by as they went. Then they turned the final corner, the top of the road on which the law office was located. The home stretch. Tzuyu and Sana thought they’d feel some form of relief at the knowledge that they were close to being finished, but they weren’t. Both girls felt dread course through them. This was it, after this meeting it’d all be over. Tzuyu felt saddened by this, they were finally able to have a conversation without killing each other and it was too late. Sana felt more tears run down her cheeks, she was going to miss her Chewy. Seeing the love of her life cry hurt her, so without thinking she took her seatbelt off and slid next to her. Wrapping her arms around her as she wept, keeping her own tears back.

Then the car stopped by the final red light before their arrival and both girls recognised the building next to them. There were lights covering it, it was light night - where students would make the college light up in as many colours as they could. Blues, greens, reds, yellows and every other colour that had ever existed. It was bright, colourful, beautiful. It was where they had met, JYP College, Tzuyu had been a business student and Sana was getting a psychology degree. They had been walking with their friends and had walked into each other, cliché yes, but it was how it happened. Tzuyu, ever the respectful girl, helped Sana lift up all the papers she had dropped as the older girl kept apologising for her clumsiness. Tzuyu had thought Sana was adorable, blushing with embarrassment. She looked like a squirrel and to Tzuyu that made the girl look even cuter. Sana was babbling, it was embarrassing enough bumping into a stranger but bumping into a girl who was as stunning as Tzuyu was had made the situation ten times worse.

“-I’m so sorry!”

“It’s fine sunbae.”

“Please,” Sana had said, “Call me Sana.”

“Tzuyu.”

“Chewy?”

“Close enough.”

Tzuyu felt her tears escape as she remembered how nervous she had been to ask Sana out, how elated she was when the older girl had said yes. How Sana had made her heart pound that day, how she made it pound like that every day since. Tzuyu had loved her then and loved her now, she cuddled Sana closer, scared that if her grip loosened the girl would be gone forever. Sana just sobbed into Tzuyu’s chest, having missed cuddling up to her wife. Missed her kisses she left on her forehead. Missed her. Missed them. She didn’t want to do this, she couldn’t do it. She could fight for their marriage, she wanted to fight for it. Everything was out in the open now, they could start over. They could go back to Dr Park, determined to fix things this time.

“We’re here.” The driver said,

Both girls looked at each other, properly, for the first time in years. Both were tired, both were so done with fighting, both feeling low and hopeless. But underneath it all was the love they shared, still present as it had been since they met. There was also determination, if they were going down they were going down with a fight. Leaning forward Tzuyu kissed Sana, their first kiss in a year and that was what they needed to heal the dull ache in both their chests. Sana felt overjoyed, happy, once again. Her sunny disposition back and her optimism ever present, because they could do this - they knew they could. Tzuyu felt the ice melt away, her feelings returning, her heart pounding in her ears again. She pulled away and smiled at her wife, her beautiful, beautiful wife.

“I’m done going to bars.” Sana told her sincerely and Tzuyu wiped her tears with her thumbs,

“I’m quitting my damn job.”

They’d be okay. They were Sana and Tzuyu, they were invincible. Sure they’d had a rough patch but now they were determined to fix it, stubbornness be damned.

“Take us back please.” Tzuyu requested,

“For sake…” The driver cursed under his breath.