When Hyejin agreed to follow Byulyi, she knew staying over was inevitable.

She also knew that she would have to show her bare face to a complete stranger; she had no problem with it, but people were often caught off guard by her bare face that it’s starting to make her feel a little self-conscious.

Hyejin stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and smiled wryly. Even she had to admit she looks different without her usual heavy makeup; she just hopes Byulyi wouldn’t care.

She took a deep breath and finally left the bathroom.

Byulyi was sitting on the bed, leaning back against the headboard, when Hyejin entered the room. Hyejin cleared loudly and Byulyi looked up with a wide smile on her face.

In a matter of seconds, that smile faltered.

Ah, of course. What was I expecting?

Hyejin forced a smile as she gripped the edge of her T-shirt tightly. “Are you surprised?” She hated hearing the tremble in her voice. “I look different, huh?”

Byulyi said nothing. She just jumped off the bed and marched towards Hyejin. Hyejin was a little surprised by Byulyi’s reaction and started backing away…until her back was against the closed door.

Byulyi came closer, putting one hand beside Hyejin’s head and stared down intently at her. There was only a little height difference between them, but Byulyi seems to tower over her right now.

Hyejin swallowed as she stared up at Byulyi. The intensity of Byulyi’s gaze was making her body warm all over and she felt a tremble of anxiety and anticipation running through her.

“How is this possible?” Byulyi murmured as she grabbed Hyejin’s chin with her forefinger and thumb, turning her face left and right. “How can you even have the same face?”

Hyejin blinked.

What is she talking about?

Byulyi shook her head and took a step back. Then, she smiled and held out her hand towards Hyejin. “I’m sorry if I scared you,” she said. “I was just…surprised.”

Hyejin nodded slowly and placed her hand in Byulyi’s. “I-It’s okay. People usually just exclaim or say they’re surprised, so your reaction is actually…refreshing.”

Byulyi chuckled. “For the record, you do look different. But I like it,” she said as she led Hyejin towards the bed. “I like you.”

Hyejin blushed. “Thanks. I like you too.”

“How about we play a game of twenty questions?” Byulyi suggested. “We still don’t know much about each other after all.”

“Okay, sure.”

They sat on the bed and started the game. They started off with the basic questions until Byulyi started asking more personal ones; it took Hyejin by surprise, but she still answered, happy that Byulyi is showing interest in her.

While answering one of Byulyi’s question, Hyejin suddenly felt a familiar throb in her head. “I-I’m sorry,” she mumbled as she held her head in her hands. “M-My head…It feels like it’s splitting…”

“A-Are you okay?” Byulyi sounded worried as she wrapped her arms around Hyejin. “Do you want to lie down?”

Hyejin nodded and Byulyi helped her lie on the bed.

“I’ll go get you some water and an aspirin.”

Hyejin watched through heavy-lidded eyes as Byulyi ran out of the room and reappeared minutes later with a glass of water and a pill. Hyejin swallowed the pill and then the water before laying back down.

“Sleep,” Byulyi said in a gentle voice as she tucked Hyejin in. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

Hyejin felt a smile tugging at her lips as her eyes fluttered close.

Byulyi kept her word. When Hyejin woke up, Byulyi was lying next to her.

Byulyi rolled onto her side, facing Hyejin with a wistful smile on her face. “Morning, beautiful,” she murmured as she gently swept a lock of hair from Hyejin’s face. “Did you sleep well?”

Hyejin rolled onto her side and smiled shyly at Byulyi. “I slept like a baby,” she mumbled. “What about you?”

The older woman looked like she didn’t sleep at all; her eyes were puffy, her face was pale and her hair was probably tousled from tossing and turning all night.

Byulyi shrugged. “I slept a bit. But mostly I’ve been staying up and staring at you sleeping.”

“That’s creepy, Byulyi-ssi,” Hyejin said with a grimace.

“Yeah, it does sound creepy now that I said it out loud,” Byulyi said, laughing. “If you want, you can stare at me in return. I won’t charge you, but I do accept kisses.”

Hyejin giggled. “Yah, are you always this greasy?”

Byulyi chuckled. “Only with the girls I like.”

“Can it be just for me?”

Hyejin hoped she didn’t come off as desperate. For some reason, the idea of Byulyi flirting with other girls was making her nauseous and irritated; she wanted Byulyi and her greasiness all to herself.

Byulyi just stared at her, making Hyejin feel a little too warm under the covers. Then, Byulyi surprised her by leaning in and placing a kiss on ; it was a different kind of kiss, like she was trying to tell Hyejin something.

“What’s wrong?” Hyejin asked breathlessly when Byulyi finally pulled away.

Byulyi shook her head and smiled. “Nothing. I just miss you.”

Hyejin raised an eyebrow. “You saw me just last night.”

That wistful smile was back on Byulyi’s face. “It just felt like I haven’t seen you in a long time...”

Hyejin immediately leaned over and kissed Byulyi; she looked like she was about to cry and Hyejin desperately wanted to assure her that there was nothing to cry about. Byulyi was a little startled, but kissed her back just as desperately.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Hyejin said after they parted for air. She didn’t know why she said it, but she felt like she had to. “I’m here to stay.”

“Thank you,” Byulyi murmured. She hesitated a little before adding, “But I have to leave.”

Hyejin looked at her, startled. “What?”

“I need to go out of town for a few days.”

“Oh.” Hyejin paused. “Will I see you again?”

“I don’t know. If I’m lucky enough to be caught on camera, then yes, you’ll see me again.”

Hyejin laughed. “Fine. I’ll rephrase that. Will we meet again?”

“I hope so.” Byulyi’s voice softened as she added, “I want to meet you again.”

“Then give me your number and we can make that happen.”

Byulyi chuckled. “We haven’t done that, huh? What do you want me to save your name as?”

Before Hyejin could answer, a loud rumbling sound interrupted her.

Hyejin blushed. “I think I’m hungry.”

“I think so too,” Byulyi said with a grin. “Come on. I’ll buy you breakfast.”

Hyejin’s face lit up. She pecked Byulyi’s cheek before jumping out of bed and scurried away to the bathroom.