Hayoung loved the sun.

The girl laid on the flat rooftop of the six-storey tall school, a sweater sandwiched between her back and the granite top. She had her arms bent behind her head, her earbuds blasting music in her ears. She loved the way the sun felt on her sun, the way the warm wind caressed her face, the way she could watch the blue and the white of the sky blending together. She was happy.

A spot of black appeared in the corner of her vision, suggesting her to turn her gaze. A tall figure climbed through the ladder entrance, long black hair falling effortlessly across her back. She smirked as the two girls made eye contact with each other, and tossed a carton of milk towards the younger girl gently.

Hayoung sat up and caught it with her palms. “That could’ve been dangerous, Naeun unnie.”

“You caught it, didn’t you?” Naeun sat down next to the younger girl, straightening her skirt as she brought her knees to her chest. “This one is on me.”

“Thanks, unnie,” Hayoung grinned, pulled the plastic straw free. She let out a sigh as the taste of the cold, sweet chocolate milk touched her tongue. It was those little things in life, the ones that could bring you small butterflies to your stomach.

Noticing the longing gaze from the older girl, she held out the carton as an offer. Naeun took it eagerly, her face lighting up like a Christmas tree as the milk washed over her tastebuds in the same satisfying way it did for Hayoung. The younger one chuckled.

“Remember when you wouldn’t even share a spoon with me, unnie? You’re a er for chocolate milk now.”

“This is your fault, you’re the one who got me hooked on it.” Naeun’s smile was wide, her eyes gleaming with amusement. “And what, I can’t share a straw with you now? Who have you been kissing, Hayoung-ah?” Naeun teased, pinching the younger’s cheeks and ruffling her hair.

Hayoung laughed as she pushed Naeun’s hands away from her face gently. “No one, unnie, I swear.”

“You better not be, you’re too young for that.” Naeun watched empathetically as Hayoung continued to sip on the milk.

For some reason, Hayoung’s favourite drink always seemed to taste even better after Naeun’s lips had touched where hers lay.

“What’s our kid genius doing, skipping class again today?”

Hayoung frowned. “I’m not a genius, unnie.”

“Oh yeah? Then how’d you manage to skip a grade, and managed to get into the gifted class while still skipping lessons?”

Hayoung ignored her question. She didn’t like being labeled as a genius. “I just didn’t want to go to class.”

“Why show up to school at all, then?”

Hayoung shrugged.

“When I have kids one day, I’ll make sure to keep them away from you.”

“Hey!” Hayoung’s eyes creased into two lines, playful but not offended. The corners of her lips had etched themselves upward without her consent.

“Unnie, you’re not in class either!”

“Hey, I’m a senior, I have self-study blocks.” Naeun defended herself.

“I’m studying too, unnie,” Hayoung retorted playfully, the corners of her lips rising teasingly. “I’m studying the clouds, look.”

So she did. Tilting her head back, Naeun momentarily lost her balance, and almost crashed the back of her head onto the hard granite, if Hayoung’s steady hands hadn’t caught her. Chuckling at her clumsiness, Hayoung gently helped Naeun lay her body down, still holding her head until she stuffed her sweater under her neck. There was a sudden warmth between Hayoung’s fingers, an odd sense of pride in having to handle something so delicate.

And then the two girls laid there side by side, their bodies next to each other and sharing the same temperature.

Hayoung listened intently, to the way Naeun talked about how the clouds melted into the skies and how the waves of their outlines could dance to the rhythm of the wind. She loved the fact that she didn’t have a single clue as to what Naeun was talking about - something like art and colours and all that blending in between - but she loved to watch the way her lips parted over those perfect teeth, and the odd little scrunch she would do with the tip of her nose when the sun shone a little too bright. And the way her eyebrows would twitch in amusement and the way Hayoung could count the distance between the creases of her cheekbones. So she didn’t mind.

Sometimes Hayoung would fall asleep in the embrace of the warm sunlight, but there was something special about the company she was having today. There was something about the way she could hear the smile in Naeun’s voice, and the way that her heart would get a little too excited as she could hear the soft ruffles from Naeun’s shoes as she wiggled her toes against her socks.

And Hayoung could swear that the goddamn Sun was no match for the warmth of the stars that were dancing in her eyes.

•

Namjoo tugged at the sleeves of her school uniform as she hurried along the road. Taking a look at the watch on her wrist, she sped up her footsteps and focused her balance so she wouldn’t trip down the slope of the alley. It was her first day at her new job and she was not one to show up late.

Panting her lungs out, she had to grasp onto the metal rod of the door handle to try to catch her breath, her calves already sore from running up the three storey building. She scolded herself mentally, reluctant but forced to admit that her stamina was no where close to where she was before.

First days were always rough. They were all about doing the absolute most to prove to your new boss that you’re an employee worth keeping, while doing work that’s worth much more than the stupid minimum wage of 7530 won. Nevertheless, she was attracted to the job posting by the flexible time hours, and the owner had liked her so much that he promised her full access to the snack bar whenever she was working. It wasn’t much, but to an eighteen-year-old high school student, it was the perfect job.

Her heart was beating fast, but she couldn’t tell if it was from the cardio or from being nervous on her first day. Either way, she tried to ignore her strong, thumping heartbeats, straightened her skirt and pushed the door open, greeted by dark blue hues of the gaming cafe.

The owner was a dark-skinned man named Ildong, in his thirties with small eyes and a warm smile. With his baggy t-shirts and careless hair, Namjoo thought that he looked like he had always just woken up. But he spoke in a kind tone as he took her around the small gaming cafe, showing her the various facilities through the mazes of computer desks. 

Her job was quite simple: as the snack bar operator, she would have to serve food items to customers who had access to ordering tablets on their desks, and help with food delivery orders as well. Her counter was tall and offered a spacious work space as well, which her boss had assured that it would be okay for her to use for studying or doing homework. It seemed easy enough, and offered her perks that even better than she had hoped for.

“Thank you, thank you!” Namjoo bowed several times, still incredibly grateful that she had been hired. Ildong waved his hand to stop her from the excessive motion of gratitude. “It’s not a problem, kid, stop thanking me! Now, come along because I still have to show you the last part of the place. Come now!” He motioned her impatiently, leading the way toward the back end of the cafe.

At the very end of the corridors, a door opened up to a separate hallway, smaller and much more quiet than all the other areas of the gaming cafe. Individual rooms were shut tight on either sides, with very faint lights seeping through the semi-transparent door frames. If she focused her ears hard enough, Namjoo could hear the familiar faint rhythms of fingertips against keyboards.