Hyejin had finished her schedule earlier than expected and she had wanted to walk home.

Eunbi was understandably reluctant because the sun had set and it was getting too dark for Hyejin to be out alone, but Hyejin managed to convince her to stop just around the corner from her apartment building where the street was brightly-lit and the people were bustling about, closing shops and going back home from work.

Hyejin skipped along the street, humming an upbeat song under her breath and greeting the shopkeepers who were ready to close their shops; they were always friendly and warm whenever she passes by.

As she came nearer to her apartment building, her steps slowed as her gaze was drawn to a singular figure standing under a lamp post near the entrance. Her eyes widened when she realized who it was.

“You’re back!” she exclaimed and ran over to the dark-haired woman to embrace her.

Byulyi was a little startled, but then she let out a soft chuckle when she realized that it was Hyejin and returned the embrace.

It had been two days since they had met at the photoshoot and like she had promised, Byulyi was here to see her.

“I wanted to see you as soon as possible,” Byulyi murmured into Hyejin’s hair. Then, she pulled away and looked at Hyejin with worried eyes. “That’s…not a problem, is it?” she asked hesitantly.

Hyejin shook her head, beaming from ear to ear. “Not at all. Come on in,” she stepped back from Byulyi’s arm and interlaced their hands, “I’ll give you a grand tour.”

Byulyi laughed and let Hyejin pull her into the building.

It was the perfect opportunity for Hyejin to show off her cooking skills, but she had forgotten to stock her fridge and the only food she had were side dishes prepared by her mother.

“We can just order takeout,” Byulyi suggested with a gentle smile.

Hyejin pouted, but took out her phone anyways and scrolled through her favourite delivery app. “But I want to cook something for you,” she whined. “It’s not every day that I get to have you over…”

“It’s okay, Hyejin-ah. You’re a busy woman, after all.”

Hyejin sighed. “It’s true,” she reluctantly admitted. “But one of these days, I’m going to cook for you, unnie.”

“I can’t wait,” Byulyi said softly.

An hour later, their dinner arrived and they plated everything together before setting the dishes on the low table Hyejin had set up in the back room.

There was something that had been bothering Hyejin for a while now, so she let Byulyi take a few bites before she started her inquiry.

“Unnie, how did you know Yong-unnie?” she asked casually before shoving a spoonful of rice into .

“College,” Byulyi answered without looking up, her hands and mouth busy tasting every single dish in front of her. “She was a senior and she helped me out when I was struggling. She’s also the one who helped me fill up the scholarship application.”

“So…you two didn’t date?”

Byulyi choked on her rice and quickly drained half of her drink. Then, she looked at Hyejin in disbelief. “Why would you think that?”

Hyejin shrugged. “You two seemed close, so I wondered if you dated or something…”

Byulyi hesitated. Then, she sighed. “Well, Yongsun is beautiful and I did have a tiny crush on her, but she was straight so-”

It was Hyejin’s turn to choke on her food. “Wh-what do you mean she’s straight?”

“Straight as in she likes boys.”

“But she dated Wheein.”

Byulyi blinked. “Oh.” Then, something dawned on her face. “Is that why you were so mad at Yong? Because she dated Wheein?”

“No, that’s not why-” Hyejin quickly caught herself and let out a sigh. “I’m pissed at her because she broke Wheein’s heart, but I don’t know the full story. I just know that Yong-unnie chose to leave the company instead of Wheein and I’m forever grateful to her for that. But now she’s back and I don’t think Wheein is over her yet.”

“That’s not what I saw,” Byulyi said thoughtfully. “Wheein and your manager…they look close.”

Hyejin scoffed. “Wheein’s like that with all my managers. She’ll go on one date with her and then dump her.”

“Have they gone on that date yet?”

Hyejin didn’t answer. It wasn’t like she kept tabs on what Wheein did or didn’t do, but it was strange when Eunbi wasn’t asking after Wheein; usually, she would be pestered with questions of Wheein’s whereabouts and why her best friend wasn’t picking up her phone.

Hyejin let out a tired sigh. “I honestly don’t know, unnie. Wheein prefers to keep her dating life private…even from me.”

Byulyi nodded and said nothing.

They resumed eating in silence. After they were done, they quietly cleaned up everything before grabbing two can of beers and went into the living room/bedroom, settling themselves on the ground in front of the TV.

“I like this one,” Hyejin said eagerly as she picked out her favourite movie and pressed play. “I think you’ll like it too.”

Byulyi just smiled and stretched out an arm, silently gesturing for Hyejin to come close to her. Hyejin hesitated, suddenly feeling shy. Then, she realized that Byulyi would probably stay like that even if her arm falls off. She quickly scooted closer to the older woman and leaned her head against Byulyi’s while Byulyi let her arm settle loosely around Hyejin’s waist.

Hyejin couldn’t concentrate on the movie. She tried keeping her eyes on the screen and occupied by drinking her beer, but her mind kept going back to how warm and soft Byulyi was against her and the next thing she knew, her face was buried in Byulyi’s neck.

“You smell good,” she whispered, breathing in Byulyi’s scent.

Byulyi chuckled. “Stop distracting me,” she said. She noticed how dangerously close Hyejin was to spilling her beer and quickly took it out of Hyejin’s hand, setting it aside. “I thought you want me to watch this movie…”

“Watch it then,” Hyejin murmured as she swung a leg over Byulyi’s thighs and placed one hand over Byulyi’s clothed stomach, slowly making its way up. “Don’t mind me.”

Byulyi chewed on her bottom lip; there was no way she could concentrate on anything except Hyejin’s mouth and hand over her body.

Hyejin kissed, and nibbled her way from the spot below Byulyi’s ear and down her long neck. Her hand made its way into Byulyi’s hair and she grabbed a fistful of her dark locks, gently guiding Byulyi’s head back until she had access to Byulyi’s sensitive spots. Byulyi whimpered her name when she and those spots and it made her smile with pride.

Hyejin moved her body until she was straddling Byulyi’s hips, peppering soft kisses up Byulyi’s neck and along her jawline while her hands busy ing Byulyi’s shirt.

Suddenly, Byulyi grabbed her wrists. “Whoa, whoa, stop,” she said breathlessly.

“Why?” Hyejin asked with a frown. “I thought you wanted this.”

“I do,” Byulyi quickly said. “I do want this, but I think we’re moving too fast…”

Hyejin let out an incredulous laugh, trying to hide the hurt and humiliation she felt from Byulyi’s rejection. She twisted her wrists from Byulyi’s grip and scrambled to her feet.

“What do you mean we’re moving too fast?” she asked, angry tears b in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around her body. “I thought we agreed that we’re done being just friends.”

“Yes, but I thought we could start with, I don’t know, a date?” Byulyi looked down at her shirt, half-opened, revealing the lacy bra underneath. She sighed and started buttoning it up. “This is how those friends-with-benefits stuff start, you know. I don’t want that with you, Hyejin-ah,” she said quietly. She looked up at Hyejin and added, “I want more than just with you.”

Hyejin could hear the sincerity and intensity in Byulyi’s voice and she could also see it in her eyes. Then, without warning, Hyejin’s tears fell.

Startled, Byulyi swiftly stood up and pulled Hyejin into her arms. Hyejin wrapped her arms tightly around Byulyi and sobbed into her chest.

“I’m sorry,” Byulyi said when Hyejin had calmed down a little. “I didn’t mean to reject you like that.”

Hyejin shook her head. “You don’t have to be sorry,” she mumbled. “It’s my fault, no, it’s these feelings inside of me. I don’t know what to do with them. Touching you made it better, so that’s why…”

Her words faltered; suddenly, she felt ashamed and silly for acting out on her feelings when she wasn’t even sure what they were about.

Byulyi pulled away and cupped Hyejin’s cheek, looking deeply into her eyes. “How long have you felt that way?” she asked, concern evident in her voice.

“Since we met,” Hyejin admitted. “I don’t understand it either, but after remembering who you are, those feelings became even more intense. It was unbearable,” she added, her voice cracking slightly.

Byulyi’s face was contorted in a mix of pain and sorrow. “I won’t try to pretend that I understand what you’re going through, Hyejin-ah, but things will get better,” she whispered fiercely. “I promise.”

Hyejin nodded in response, but she wasn’t convinced; it felt like she would go crazy if she didn’t do something about these feelings inside her, but the most frustrating thing was that she had no clue what to do.

“Thank you for telling me,” Byulyi said softly, pressing her forehead against Hyejin’s. “I hated to think that you’re going through this alone.”

“Why are you so sure I’m alone?” Hyejin asked amusedly. “I have Wheein, remember?”

Byulyi chuckled. “I will cry the day you tell Wheein about us.”

Hyejin frowned. “Wheein…doesn’t know?”

From the way Wheein talked about Hyejin and Byulyi’s relationship that day at the photoshoot, it seemed like Wheein really didn’t know; she had assumed things, but nothing concrete…until Hyejin told her about it.

“You wanted it that way.”

“Isn’t it weird? Why wouldn’t I tell my best friend about us?”

“Because you were in love with her, remember?”

Byulyi said it like it was the obvious thing in the world, but it just made Hyejin even more confused.

Why was I with you then if I’m in love with Wheein?

Hyejin winced when she felt a throbbing in her head. Byulyi noticed and moved her hand to rub Hyejin’s temple.

“Do you want me to stay?” she asked when she felt Hyejin relaxing into her.

Hyejin nodded, her eyes fluttering close and a sigh escaped her lips. “That would be nice,” she murmured. “I haven’t had anyone to sleep with in a long time.”

Byulyi stiffened. “You…” her words were stuck in , but she forced them out, “…slept with someone? Here?”

“Hm? Yeah. With Wheein. Before she got her own place.”

It took a second for Byulyi to process Hyejin’s words before she sighed in relief. “O-Oh. Wheein. Of course it’s Wheein...”

Hyejin lifted her head and smiled teasingly at Byulyi. “Why? Who do you think I slept with?”

Byulyi blushed. “I-I thought you had a girlfriend, or a boyfriend, and, uh…”

“I did go on dates, but none of them made me feel the way you do, Byul-ah.”

Byulyi’s smile was soft and so was her gaze when she leaned down and pressed her lips gently against Hyejin’s. “Me too,” she whispered. “No one makes me feel the way you make me feel, Hyejin-ah.”

Hyejin smiled.

For the first time, she could feel the storm inside her heart slowly calming down and she started to believe that everything will be better – just like Byulyi promised.