During the school year, Tiffany’s Sundays were normally reserved for two things: early cheer practice and hangover recovery. However, that particular, surreal weekend - one in which she glided through on the winds of her semi-requited crush like a clueless starling - had the added bonus of a Monday off, and of course someone had to throw a party that night. It shouldn’t have surprised her at all, but given the events that had transpired lately, she was quite distracted as she marched off the football field after practice that morning.

    “Hey,” Sunny said, jogging up, falling into step with her. Like Tiffany, the shorter girl was covered in a sheen of sweat, hair tied back in a ponytail, sporting a wrinkled purple and gold uniform. “You coming to Jin’s party tonight?”

    Tiffany blinked, trying to remember if she’d been invited to such an affair in the first place. She thought she’d gotten a text last night about something going on at the soccer player’s house, but it had been an insignificant thing, overshadowed by things that had been far, far more important to her.

    “Uh, I haven’t decided yet, actually,” Tiffany said uncertainly, “I wanted to see what Taeyeon was up to, maybe?”

    Sunny’s eyes took on a mischievous cast, and she began to speak in a conspiratorial whisper. “You know, you could bring her with you. I’m assuming your study date went well?”

    Even with the sun beaming down on her face, Tiffany still felt her cheeks growing warm. She looked away, unable to think of a proper response.

    “No way,” Sunny said, taking Tiffany by the shoulder, pulling her away from the tide of girls marching back to the locker room, “What happened?”

    Briefly, Tiffany considered keeping quiet about everything. She didn’t particularly enjoy discussing events that she was still processing. However, she knew that if she said nothing, Sunny would never give her a moment of peace until she came clean. So, reluctantly, and in a tone so low that she could barely hear herself, Tiffany told Sunny about what had happened yesterday.

    “Holy ,” Sunny said at the end of it, running a hand across her forehead and through her hair, “You really did it. You convinced her to be gay.”

    Tiffany felt her jaw slacken, and she struggled for words. “I- What? No, I didn’t make her gay. I just told her about my feelings, and she said she wanted to try kissing me. So we kissed. That’s it.”

    “You kissed three times,” Sunny said with a grin, holding up three fingers, all bunched together in a crude innuendo, “You even rubbed your s together.”

    “We did not-” Tiffany stopped herself as she realized she was yelling, then continued in a quiet voice, “We didn’t rub our s together. People get close when they kiss, Sunny. Of course our chests are gonna touch.”

    “Well, whether you’re willing to admit it or not, you guys made out,” Sunny said sagely, crossing her arms over her chest and nodding as if that settled the matter. “And knowing you, you have no idea what to do next, do you?”

    Tiffany wanted to argue, but she couldn’t. Her one other relationship - if she could call it that, it was more of a fling - had been filled with uncertainty, terrible communication, and incongruent feelings.

    “No, I don’t,” Tiffany said with a sigh.

    “Have you texted each other at all since you guys kissed?” Sunny asked, ushering Tiffany along so they wouldn’t be seen hanging back from the rest of the group.

    “She texted me to make sure I got home safe, I told her I did, and we said goodnight to each other,” Tiffany said somewhat forlornly, “That’s it. She’s probably trying to figure out what the even happened. Or maybe she never wants to talk to me again.”

    Both girls stopped walking, standing beside the thick metal door into the locker room. They would be the last ones to enter, and it was clear that they were having a secret conversation, but there was no reason for anyone to suspect that it was about Tiffany’s infectious lesbianism.

    “Listen, Fany,” Sunny said solidly, taking Tiffany by the shoulders and meeting her eyes. “She said that your kiss was ‘perfect’. The only reason she would never want to talk to you again is because she’s a masochist, or a really devout Catholic or something.”

    Tiffany couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “That would just be my luck, right?”

    “But, aside from those two very unlikely circumstances, I think there’s a solid shot that she’s into you,” Sunny continued, “Or, at the very least, she thinks she might be into you. Either way, you gotta make a move, if you really want this girl.”

    Tiffany swallowed, picturing her tiny blonde angel, of that little fairy that she’d been so lucky to kiss. The flavor of Taeyeon’s lips had lingered on her own for so long afterward. They had tasted of mint and saliva and familiarity and everything good in the world. Tiffany could still smell the light perfume that had lingered around the older girl, could still feel the petite frame of Taeyeon’s face as she held it in her palms. Could still recall how badly she’d wanted to move her hands downward, to run her thumbs along the taut flesh of that beautiful neck, to listen to the hitched inhales as Taeyeon melted into her touches… 

    “Yeah, I definitely want this girl,” Tiffany said, hating the way she spoke, hating the filth that filled her head. “I can’t deny that.”

    That evil, terrible tone seemed to encourage Sunny, because the shorter girl gave a brisk nod and a hum of satisfaction. “That’s the Fany I know. So you text her, tell her she’s coming to that party with you tonight, and seduce her with your homoual charms. You did it before, you can do it again.”

    Sunny gave Tiffany a hardy pat on the shoulder before turning and disappearing into the locker room.

    For a few moments, Tiffany stood there in her uniform, hands at her sides, staring at a spot on the ground, dwelling on both everything and nothing at once. It took her nearly a full minute, but she was able to stuff down the bitter bite of self-loathing before moving to follow her best friend.

***

    “You know, I wouldn’t have agreed to DD for you if I’d known you planned to start drinking seven hours before the party,” Tiffany said as she sat on her bed, watching as Sunny got started on her fourth cup of orange Gatorade and vodka. Since neither of Tiffany’s parents would be home until the next morning, the majority of their friend group had decided to crash at her place. That meant that everyone would drive over to hers, pregame there for a bit, and then head over to Jin’s. However, no one else but Sunny had taken the liberty of showing up at one in the afternoon.

    “I said you could get high if you wanted to,” Sunny said with a shrug. Despite the amount of liquor she’d put away, the older girl showed no signs of intoxication whatsoever. It was honestly impressive.

    Tiffany pursed her lips. She preferred not to smoke weed and drive, but in her limited experience it had always been a much easier time than drinking and driving. Either case was stupid, reckless, and an easy way to get herself a DUI.

    “I’m fine. Maybe I’ll smoke at the party,” Tiffany said with a dismissive wave, glancing at her phone to see if she’d gotten a text yet.

    “You can’t smoke at the party, silly,” Sunny said, shaking her head sagely, “I know how you are. You’ll just get all quiet and lame. How are you supposed to court your princess if you’re on the moon?”

    Tiffany laughed hard at that; she couldn’t help herself. Sunny’s jokes usually elicited little more than an eye-roll or a pitying snort from her, but in the afterglow of Taeyeon agreeing to come to the party with them - and even to sleep over at her home - was enough to keep her mood sky high.

    Of course, that also came with its own complications. Namely, intense anxiety.

    “Then I’ll just be sober tonight,” Tiffany said, “Simple as that.”

    Sunny shook her head, took a sip of Gatorade, and grimaced at the doubtlessly potent flavor of cheap vodka. “You have to at least have some kind of substance in your system. If she’s drunk and you’re not, then it’s creepy. Illegal, almost. You gotta be careful with those things.”

    “That’s… vaguely predatory of you to consider,” Tiffany said, narrowing her eyes. “Why did you think of that?”

    “It’s just the rules,” Sunny said, wagging a finger, “I don’t make them, I just follow them. Trust me. Remember when Sooyoung hooked up with Kibum last year?”

    Tiffany did in fact remember that particular incident. Kibum, who’d had a girlfriend at the time, had gotten drunk and hooked up with Sooyoung, who was sober. All hell had broken loose, and Sooyoung had been accused by numerous parties of taking advantage of him.

    “That wouldn’t happen with Taeyeon,” Tiffany said assuredly, “For starters, she’s single. And I would never try to make a move on her when she was drunk or vulnerable.”

    Sunny cocked an e