Bomi awakes to find herself alone in bed. This whole not being able to sleep without Chorong thing was quickly getting old. Her eyes crack open and she instantly groans against the head splitting pain she feels pulsing through her head. "I'm gonna die," she chokes out.

Alarmed, Chorong runs into her bedroom to see Bomi lying on the bed, one hand cradling her head and the other covering her eyes. She sighs in relief before walking over to a nearby window and closing the curtains. She swiftly walks back over to the bed and hands Bomi the pill and glass of water she had sat on the nightstand earlier, having anticipated the brunette's hangover.

She takes the offered pill and chucks it down before chasing it with a swallow of water. Her lips glisten as she places the cup back on the nightstand and she looks up to Chorong to see her looking back down at her.

Dark eyes bore into hers and it takes Bomi by surprise the amount of emotions swirling in their depths. Relief, anger, pain, anxiousness, sadness, and love. She can tell by the set of Chorong's mouth that she's having a hard time deciding which emotion to lash out with. opens and closes. She swallows hard before speaking. "I'm glad you're safe."

Before Bomi can even respond Chorong is out the door. She slumps back against her pillow, digging the heels of her palms into her eyes. Much of last night is a blur, she doesn't even remember the walk to Chorong's house, but she does remember Chorong's protective arms wrapped around her as they both slept.

A wave of nausea washes over her as she remembers why she had been drinking in the first place. Chorong's leaving her. To move to New York to jump start a career that she apparently loves more than her. She rolls out of bed before trudging into the bathroom. She frowns at her unkempt face in the mirror before opening Chorong's medicine cabinet to retrieve a spare toothbrush. After brushing her teeth and grabbing a washcloth to wash her face she walks into the kitchen.

She sits opposite Chorong at the table and a warm cup of coffee is slid towards her. "Thank you," she whispers. They sit in silence, both lost in their own thoughts. Bomi's leg bounces up and down with nerves and Chorong's tired eyes track the movement, picking up on the brunette's aggravation before she even voices it.

Cradling the mug of coffee in both of her hands for warmth, Bomi removes the cup from her lips and places it against the table. "Are you moving to New York?" she says quietly.

Chorong tenses, having expected the question but still being ill prepared to answer it. There's so much more at stake than simply moving to New York. "Bomi, it's more complicated than that."

"Well I would know just how complicated it is if you would have told me in the first place about that letter."

"I'm sorry. I neglected to tell you about the letter but only because I didn't want to put unnecessary stress onto our relationship."

"Look how well that turned out," she snaps, hopping from her seat. Her head hurts from the loud sound of her chair sliding across the floor but she soldiers on in her frustration.

"Bomi, sit down—"

"I don't want to sit down." She paces the floor of Chorong's kitchen, all of the anger and hurt she was feeling yesterday coming back to her full force. "We've been together for almost three months now, Chorong," she says evenly. "Were you –was I really that forgettable and insignificant enough for you to pack up your and leave me without even having the courtesy to tell me?"

Chorong feels her anger flare up at Bomi playing the victim when she wasn't exactly innocent the night before. "You think you're forgettable? Pardon me, Bomi, but it seems that whenever we have an argument you go out to party with Hayoung and Naeun and you spend your time drinking copious amounts of alcohol and encouraging easy women to hang all over you the entire night. Seems like the only forgettable one in this relationship is me!" she fires back, out of her seat to come face to face with Bomi. She feels sick to her stomach as she remembers having to bear witness to the girl's obvious advances and Bomi doing nothing to stop them. And then when they almost kissed –she wants to vomit.

Bomi swallows thickly. "I didn't do anything with her," she lamely defends. Her hackles rise at Chorong's tone and she's fired up again. "And don't say 'whenever we have an argument.' This is our first one! And I thought you were leaving me. Which you are by the way."

Chorong crosses her arms across her chest, against the barrage of claims flying from Bomi's mouth. Her eyes leave Bomi's as they travel to the floor. "I'd never forget about you," she whispers softly. "Did you…did you sleep with her?" she asks in a small voice.

Her shoulders slump in an unconscious display of sympathy for how small and fragile Chorong sounds. "No," she answers. "No –I…Chorong, I promise I didn't."

"Bomi, please don't lie to me."

"I'm not!" she yells back, wanting to pull her hair out in frustration. She settles for pushing it back from her face. "I didn't do anything with her, Chorong. I swear to you. I told you I wouldn't lie to you about things like that."

Chorong nods her head, feeling tears in her eyes. "Then why did you just stand there and let her touch you while I was watching you? Her hands were all over you and you did nothing to stop her!"

"I was angry! I thought you were leaving me and I had nothing to lose! But Chorong, the second you left I was stumbling all over the place trying to get my coat and to tell Hayoung and Naeun that I was leaving. And then I walked back here. It just…it just took longer because I was drunk and stupid and couldn't find my way."

Chorong's mind instantly flies back to how relieved and happy she was to have Bomi stumble through her door step the night before, no matter how upset she was at the time and still is she was just happy that she was safe.

"But none of that seems to matter," she mumbles. "You're still leaving." Her voice hitches and Chorong steps closer to comfort her.

Bomi shakes her head, backing away from Chorong's outstretched hand. Her hand curls into itself as it falls limply her side and Chorong backs away to put the distance that Bomi obviously wants between them. "Bomi, you don't understand wh—"

"Why are you leaving?" she asks. "Wasn't your dream to teach drama and help raise the Korean theatre community to new levels? Hell you're the one that wants to be a referent of the Korean drama formation so badly. You aren't going to get it in New York."

Chorong runs her hands through hair, frustrated with Bomi's almost condescending tone of voice. "My father is in New York, if you must know. You know? My father? The one that I've never had a chance to know?"

"Oh, I don't know that father," she growls. "The father I know of you having gave his own daughter up because he wanted to make a name for himself and couldn't possibly deal with the struggle of taking care of the life that he created."

Everything seems to stop as Bomi's words soak in. Chorong inhales a sharp breath, her heart shattering at words that she wasn't prepared to hear. "Get out," she whispers. "Just leave. Please."

Bomi's breath hitches at the quiet command. They stand there for a few moments more, both silently begging the other to say something. When Chorong doesn't say anything further Bomi just spins on her heel, heading towards the bedroom. She grabs her dress and fumbles to put it on as quickly as possible, changing her shoes and heading towards the apartment door.

She passes by the kitchen to see Chorong standing there, arms wrapped tightly around her middle as she stares at the floor.

"He's using you, Chorong."

Chorong doesn't look up at her and Bomi just walks out of the door, slamming it loudly behind her.

Once the door is closed Chorong sinks down to the floor, allowing her tears to fall freely.

"Same dress as last night, Bomi? You haven't done the walk of shame in a while," Hayoung drawls from the couch with her arms full of Naeun.

Bomi storms through the apartment angrily, ignoring Hayoung's comment and bypassing the couple making out on the couch without a word as she walks into her room and slams the door. She's never felt like this before. It's a trend she's realized over the entire course of dating Chorong. Chorong's always managed to make her feel things she's never felt before but they were normally positive and sometimes embarrassing emotions. But what she's feeling now; sadness, despair, anger, these aren't feelings that she's ever experienced while being with Chorong.

Deciding to be a little more proactive in her sulking, she decides to take a much needed shower. She reaches into her closet to pull out the pink, plushy towel Chorong bought for her. Her girlfr –Chorong had told her about a month ago that Bomi's bathroom towels of choice did not have the optimum thread count to properly dry off the traitorous water molecules on her body. And that was probably the reason why she contracted such infectious illness, like mono for example.

She showers and towels dry, regret sinking in about how she left things with Chorong as she uses the towel that the black-haired girl gave her to dry off. Simple things like how soft, feminine, and how good the towel smells remind her of Chorong.

When she walks into the room she finds Hayoung and Naeun looking back at her from their place on her bed. She chooses not to greet them, dropping her towel and getting dressed as if she's the only one in the room. And she really, really wants to be.

"Gross, Bomi-ah."

"That's not nice, Hayoung. Or true. Bomi has a really nice 'cause of squats and her s are really perky."

"Whatever. Stop checking her out, Naeunnie."

She grits her teeth, trying not to say anything scathing. Her eyes prick with tears and she almost wants to stomp her foot with the absurdity of it all. How unfair everything is.

Her thoughts fly back to Chorong crying. Tears of sadness and hurt falling down her cheeks. Bomi feels sick. If it's one thing she's come to hate in such a short amount of time, it's not only Chorong crying, but her being the cause of Chorong's tears.

"You gonna put some clothes on soon or—"

"Shut up!" She growls as she spins around to face them both. "Shut up and get out, Hayoung. I don't even want to see your face right now."

Hayoung stands slowly, a retort on her tongue, but Naeun stands up with her and places a placating hand on her arm. "Hayoungie, can you go order us a pizza with lots and lots of cheese," she asks pleadingly. And even though she knows she's being played she can't help but oblige. "If I hear you in here yelling at my girl I won't hesitate to kick your , Bomi."

She ignores her roommate's threat as she buttons her jeans before pulling her white, cotton shirt over her head. Today doesn't feel like the type of day to play dress up. She offers Naeun a disarming smile before sitting down on her bed, the taller girl following soon after.

Naeun wraps her up in a tight hug and for the first time in the past couple of hours Bomi just breathes. A shuddery breath that borders on painful, but she hugs her back, refusing to cry another tear.

"I think it's over, Naeun," she whispers. "I'm such an ."

Naeun just hugs her tighter.

Chorong slides out of bed when she hears a loud knock. Having peeled herself from the tiled floors of her kitchen a half hour ago, she was content to spend the day moping in her bed, maybe eating ice cream and watching a movie if she was feeling up to it later. Her hope that it's Bomi on her doorstep and that the brunette has come back so that they can both apologize and forgive each other is short lived when she finds her mom and her husband at the door.

"Hi mom…Joongi." Her head tilts to the side in confusion as she leans heavily against her wooden door. "Not that I am not happy to see you, ecstatic even, but…what are you doing here?"

Jieun and Joongi share a smile at Chorong's puffy eyes, red nose, and slightly dishevelled appearance. "Well your mother told me that you called her last night crying over the phone about your girlfriend. What kind of father would I be if I didn't come here to take care of our baby?"

Chorong spares Jieun a dirty look at her betrayal. One she deflects by her refusal to look at her. "Anyway," Joongi says exaggeratedly, focusing his wife and Chorong's attention back on him. "Since it's only a six hour drive—"

"Only," Jieun scoffs quietly. "You weren't the one that had to make the drive."

"—We decided to make the trip down here to see you," he finishes, successfully ignoring his wife. "We're worried about you."

Joongi's concerned face tears through her and before she knows it she's shuffling aside to let them in. They both pull her into a big hug and Joongi gently wipes the tears from her eyes as Jieun places a kiss atop her head. She pulls back, clearing and gathering her bearings as she leads them to the living room. They all sit down and Jieun and Joongi wait in the tense silence for Chorong to speak.

"She was right," she whispers with a small shrug of her shoulders. "She was an arrogant. But she was right."

"I was right," Bomi insists as she stares into Naeun's clear brown eyes. "Her father is using her and I just know it. And when I told her that, she told me to get out." She tosses her arms up in frustration. "She kicked me out, Naeun-ah."

Naeun watches Bomi pace back and forth in front of her. They had begun talking and the brunette had gotten so riled up that she chose to pace the room instead, needing to do something other than just sit around and talk about her feelings. "I don't know anything about the situation," Naeun admits as her eyes track Bomi's pacing. "But maybe you talking about her father hurt Chorong's feelings. People like their fathers, Bomi."

"But her father doesn't care for her!" Bomi yells. "Not like I do!"

Moments later Hayoung is bursting through Bomi's door. "What the hell did I tell you about yelling at her?"

"Hayoung, calm down."

"This is not happening to me right now. You wanna ing go, Hayoung?" Bomi asks as she swiftly closes in on her roommate. "Because I don't have anything to lose right now."

"Don't test me, Bomi, because I'll knock you right through this ing—"

"Both of you stop it!"

Naeun quickly moves to stand between the two before they're able to tear each other's throats out. "You've both been friends for a really, really long time. Don't fight over this. Over nothing." She turns to Hayoung with a weary expression. "Hayoung, Bomi is really going through a lot right now. Either sit in here with us to help or go outside and eat the pizza."

Bomi exhales loudly as her shoulders slump. Adrenaline gone, she sits heavily on her bed, her chin resting in her hand. If Chorong ever forgives her for the way she talked to her, Bomi would count it as a miracle. She wouldn't even forgive herself in she was in Chorong's shoes. Naeun gives Hayoung a gentle nudge and they both walk to the bed, sitting on either side of Bomi.

"Are you going to let her leave, Bbom?" Hayoung asks. "Because the Bomi I know wouldn't give up on anything without a fight. If she wants something she gets it. No questions asked."

"Yeah, well Chorong's determined. If she wants New York then she's going to get it. Besides, after the way I treated her, she doesn't want me," she replies, feeling wholly defeated.

Hayoung nods, before placing a hand on Bomi's shoulder. "Say goodbye? And apologise?" she offers. "You're a pansy so you're the type to want a final goodbye and like that. And I'm sure Chorong would appreciate the apology."

She smiles a little. "I guess I could do that. I owe her that much."

"I told him that this would be great for us. And that we'll finally get the chance to be a family." She sniffs slightly as she recalls her conversation with her father over the phone earlier. "He said…he said that's not really what he's looking for. He already has a family. A loving wife and a daughter. And he loves me. He loves me very much. But taking his scholarship would strictly be a help to my professional matters. He only wanted to wash his guilt."

"I never liked him."

"Joongi, honey, calm down—"

"I will not calm down."

The couple share a look as Chorong dabs her eyes with the tissue. Joongi instantly calms after looking at his wife, understanding that he needs to put his own feelings about Jihoon aside to support Chorong in her time of need. "I'm sorry this had to happen to you," he says sincerely as he Chorong's hair.

"Chorong, you know we love you more than anything and that you're my daughter," Joongi begins. A crumpled up tissues is held tightly in Chorong's grip as she prepares for the one thing she hates the most. Being told she's wrong. "But I agree with Bomi. I don't like the way she treated you and if I ever see her she's getting a stern talking to," he says coldly. "But she is right about your father. We're all able to look at the situation objectively. And from our points of view, if you fly to New York with your heart on your sleeve then it'll get crushed, sweetheart."

"Your father loves you," Jieun promises, glaring mildly at her husband's grumbled, "Well, that's questionable."

"But I agree with Joongi for agreeing with Bomi." Jieun begins. "It's just that…you don't want to star in a western show, Chorong. You want home. You want to act and teach. And you also need to finish this school. I know you want your father but I think that if he really wanted to be in your life then he would have at least flown here once to see you. Has he done that?"

"And we're not ganging up on you," she continues warmly, knowing how sensitive her daughter can be when she's told she's wrong. "We just want what's best for you."

"And we don't want to see you get hurt," Joongi adds.

She opens to somehow formulate some kind of protest but a firm knock at the door stops her. "Did you invite grandma too?" she asks Jieun as she gets up to open the door.

"Don't be silly," she jokes lightly. "I'd never call Joongi's mother."

She peers through the tiny peephole. "Hey, honey. There's a girl outside your door. Could it be Bomi?"

Chorong's head perks up, whirling around to face her mother with wide eyes. "Is it her?" she whispers.

"I don't know," she teases. She looks through the peep hole again. "It could be."

"Mom, open the door before she leaves," she whines in return.

She unlocks the door –not nearly as hasty as Chorong would like— before opening it. The brunette in front of her looks just as dishevelled as her daughter does and she offers her a sympathetic smile. "Hi, I'm Jieun, Chorong's mother. You must be Bomi."

She gently takes her offered hand into her own, surprising her with a deep bow. "Yes, ma'am," she says with a shaky voice. "I –It's nice to meet you, ma'am." Jieun gently pulls on the hand in her grip until Bomi is wrapped up in her arms.

"Don't worry, I won't stand here and berate you for making my daughter cry." Bomi's shoulders instantly slump as she relaxes in her arms. "However, I can't promise the same about my husband." Jieun leans down to whisper conspiringly. "He's the tough one."

She gulps loudly and Jieun's laugh is just as loud. She pulls back to wrap a supporting arm around Bomi's shoulder. "I'm joking, honey. My husband couldn't hurt a fly."

"I heard that!"

She leads her into the living room where Chorong and Joongi are and Bomi's eyes find Chorong like a heat seeking missile. She doesn't even notice when Jieun releases her hold on her to sit down on the couch. Bomi's steps stutter as she walks toward Chorong slowly, an array of emotions swirling inside of her. She comes to stop in front of the coffee table, the only physical obstacle standing between her and the pair of dark, puffy eyes staring intensely back at her.

"Bomi, this is my husband Joongi," Chorong hears Jieun say in an attempt to break the ice. Her eyes roam over the brunette in front of her. Her tense posture under her form fitting jeans and t-shirt, her arms folded tightly across her middle as a defence mechanism, her stormy, brown eyes, slightly puffy just like Chorong imagines her own are. She inhales a shaky breath, being hit full force with the emotions she felt hours ago as Bomi reaches across the table to shake her Joongi's hand.

"I –I'm Bomi," she says numbly, chastising herself moments later for the slip up.

"Yes, I know," he says. "You're the woman that made my daughter cry."

Chorong cuts him a sharp look as Bomi bows her head in shame. "Yes, sir. I actually came to apologize."

"Oh, you did, did you?" he replies sarcastically. "Yes, an apology will make it all better."

Bomi stiffens in front of the three pairs of eyes on her. Never having been in a situation quite like this before, she chooses silence, clasping her hands demurely in front of her. She feels very much like a child being scolded. And at the age of twenty, the feeling is kind of foreign to her. Her heart thuds against her chest as blood rushes to her ears. She takes her bottom lip between her teeth as she tries to think of something, anything to say. "The way I've treated her the past few days was wrong," she whispers, losing all bravado. "I was condescending, scathing, and just rude. I let my feelings control my actions as well as my mouth and I hurt the one person I care about most."

She finally gathers the courage to look up, her misty brown eyes meeting Chorong first before sliding to Jieun, then Joongi. "I love your daughter, sir," she says firmly. "I may not have shown it the best way I know how over the past few days, but I've never cared for anyone else as much as I care for her. I –I need her."

Chorong's eyes widen at the bold claim. She opens to speak but Bomi continues.

"But I'll let her go if she wants to move to New York. All I want to do is say I'm sorry. I just want her to forgive me because I can't handle her being angry or upset with me."

"May Bomi and I have a moment alone?" Chorong asks, cutting Bomi off from saying anything further. Her head feels like it's spinning. Joongi looks affronted as Jieun gracefully lifts to her feet. Bomi can tell where Chorong got her grace from. "Come on, honey," Jieun drawls, grabbing her husband's hand before he has a chance to protest. "We'll be on the stoop outside, Chorong. Try not to leave us out there too long or we'll find another daughter to latch on to," she jokes as she pulls her reluctant husband out of the door, closing it tightly.

Bomi her lips nervously as she shuffles around the table to sit beside Chorong. "I just have a few things to say and then I'll be out of your hair, okay?"

Chorong nods, her heart being gripped in despair with the knowledge that this is probably the last conversation she'll have with Bomi.

"Okay," she sighs. "First, I want to start off my saying I love you. And that—"

"I love you too, Bomi," Chorong whispers, meeting Bomi's eyes. "I love you so much."

Bomi nods with a small smile. "And because I love you, I want what's best for you." She reaches out and takes Chorong's hand between her own, watching intently as Chorong intertwines their fingers. "And I…I'm known to be selfish. I take what I want and I hold it near and dear to me and I never let it go. But I can't do that with you. I can't do that to you."

Chorong watches with awe as Bomi's face slowly crumbles, her bottom lip quivering and her eyes welling with tears. "I stand by what I say, Chorong. I love you more than your father does and I know that for a fact. But if you want the chance to have a functioning relationship with him and if you want that scholarship then I won't stand in your way."

She leans forward to kiss Chorong softly. Chorong inhales sharply against the tears she feels on her lips. Her hands release Bomi's own to tangle in her hair as she scoots closer to the brunette. Body incredibly starved for contact, she presses as tightly against Bomi as she possibly can, her chest heaving against the brunette's with each ragged breath. She cries. She cries for every tear she's shed over the situation, every time she's had to watch hurt blossom on Bomi's beautiful face, for the scene she walked in on in the kitchen at the party, for the letter she got from her father that started this whole situation.

Bomi pulls away, panting heavily into the air. Her forehead falls gently against Chorong's as timid hands cup her cheeks, wiping tear after tear away. "I'll let you go," Bomi sobs, even as her arms wrap around Chorong's waist and tugs her closer. "I don't want to. But if you want to move to New York, I'll let you go."

"I don't want to leave," Chorong begs. Her arms wrap around Bomi's neck as she burrows her face into her shoulder.

"But I thought—"

Chorong tightens her hold around Bomi. "I love you, Bomi." She pulls back to place kisses along the brunette's face before looking her in the eye. "I –the night of the party I called Namjoo and Eunji over to consult with them about it."

Bomi's face darkens at the knowledge that there were even more people that knew about Chorong moving than she did. Chorong continues before the brunette could voice her upset. "I had asked them to help me choose what to do and neither of them had an answer. But Namjoo gave me some pretty good advice." She a tear from her lip before continuing. "She told me to choose which one I can't live without."

Her brow furrows in confusion. "Chorong, I don't understand where this is going. Please, just tell me."

"It's you, Bomi." Chorong smiles softly at her. "I've arguably been without my father for twenty-one years and I have gotten along just fine. But I…" Her heart starts to thud in her chest as the weight of this moment finally comes crashing down around her. She can only hope that she won't scare the brunette away. Chorong knows that she feels things too intensely and that it can be intimidating for others.

"I love you," she says softly. "And although I can go the rest of my life without having my father being a part of it, I can't nor do I want to imagine being without you."

The words don't register right away but Chorong can tell the moment when they do. Bomi's jaw drops and her eyes widen, with this sort of faraway expression in them. Bomi's mind is fried. Chorong wants to be with her. Chorong isn't moving. Chorong wants to be with her. And Bomi doesn't want to get ahead of herself but she's sure Chorong's little speech had the undertone of a lifetime commitment tagged onto the end.

"You…" Chorong breathes a sigh of relief when Bomi's eyes refocus, having thought for a moment that the brunette had had a . "You want to be with me?" Her entire face softens with aching vulnerability and Chorong thinks she's just fallen in love all over again.

She nods enthusiastically. "I do. I really do. And I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that I made you feel like you weren't enough or that I don't care about you. I just—"

"That's your father. I get it. People like their fathers," she blushes a little, unconsciously mimicking Naeun's earlier words. "And I'm sorry, really. The way that I acted, everything I've said to you. It was childish and uncalled for."

Chorong nods her forgiveness before biting her bottom lip nervously. "I want to be with you, Bomi. I –if you'll still have me."

"Are you kidding me?" Bomi leans forward and wraps her arms around Chorong, sighing contentedly when Chorong returns the hug. "Of course I'll still have you." Her arms tighten around her girlfriend. "You're mine," she growls lightly and Chorong giggles at how light and free they are together once more.

Bomi pulls back to brush Chorong's hair behind her ear. Their lips meet softly, lovingly as their hearts repair themselves. Chorong's hands roam freely over the expanse of Bomi's body as if to reclaim her from that brief stint of their disconnectedness. When Bomi's lips pull away from her own to nip down the side of her neck, she suspects the brunette's doing the same.

"Do you think we can just stay here and do this all day?" Bomi rasps against Chorong's soft skin. She traces her collarbone with the tip of her tongue, reveling in the low groan that leaves her girlfriend's pouty lips.

"I don't think so," Chorong replies. "Joongi is very determined. And although I'm certain that mom wants to leave, they'll dutifully stand outside until I come down to tell them everything is okay."

Bomi nods as she slows down her ministrations, trying to calm the fire inside of her. She rests her head in the crook of Chorong's neck as she regulates her breathing. "I guess we can all go out to dinner. My treat?" she offers. "I mean, this is my first time meeting your parents and I've already made a ty impression by making you cry. I know for a fact that Joongi doesn't like me already."

"Language," Chorong admonishes as Bomi pulls back to look at her. She smiles fondly at the brunette, grabbing her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "But I would very much like that. And I have the utmost confidence in your ability to win Joongi over."

Bomi smiles back in relief at the pieces of normalcy already falling back into place in their relationship. She stands from the couch, tugging Chorong with her. "So is everyone on this little excursion a fan of salad but me?"

Chorong nods with a grin. "I hope that won't be an inconvenience."

"Great," Bomi groans wryly. "So no steak for me tonight."

She's comforted by Chorong's warm fingers laced between her own as they hop down the stairs to meet her parents. And suddenly, not getting to enjoy a steak doesn't seem too bad in comparison to enjoying Chorong's company.