“So, how’s it going between you two?” Sakura was the first one to break the silence in the car on their way back to sending Minjoo back home, after taking their leave from the Ahn Residence and Minjoo figures that it’s only time until Sakura pops up that question to her.

From what Minjoo could recall, she had somewhat fallen asleep earlier on the beanbag while waiting for Yujin and the next thing she knows, she was already snuggled up against Yujin on the cramped up space, only waking up a few hours later – with Yujin still next to her, much to her surprise.

Of course Sakura is about to question the status quo of their relationship, especially after witnessing that sight firsthand.

“We’re friends, I suppose,” Minjoo replies, tugging her lips into a brief smile before shifting her gaze outside of the window to look at the scenery for the night. The traffic was not as bad, despite of the night still being young since the sun barely sets moments ago.

She would rather not touch on the topic of her and Yujin as much, as of right now. Minjoo has dealt enough of her own circle of friends interrogating her back then, which fortunately has lessened a little but the fact that some of them would take the chance to with it still remains until now.

It never bothered her as much back then and so does it now, but Minjoo had seen on how Sakura treats Yujin like her own biological sister and she doubts that Sakura was about to let it go that easily.

“Really now?”

“Yeah. A friend,” Minjoo reaffirms her words once again. Sakura appears to be dissatisfied with her answer, lips pursing into a disappointed pout, followed by a deep sigh as she turns to the corner of the street, driving down to the direction of the building where Minjoo resides in.

“Anyways, the event. Has Yujin told you on what it is?”

Minjoo’s brows creased in confusion for a split moment. “She said that it’s an important one and that she needs to attend it?”

“Oh. Well, it’s actually her father’s company’s annual dinner and this time it’s a special one, the thirtieth anniversary since the founding of the company?” Sakura drums her fingers on the leathery surface of the wheel, waiting for the light to turn green. Her foot presses on the accelerator when it does.

Minjoo isn’t exactly sure on where the conversation is heading off this time. Her gaze drifts back to Sakura, paying full attention to the older girl this time.

“I see. And you’re telling me this… because?”

The smile on Sakura’s lips looks unsettling and foreshadowing, at the very least. “I’m normally invited to these kind of events, you know. Especially anything related with Yujin’s family. Our parents had known each other for a while and I usually have to attend in their place, with how busy they are.”

Minjoo blinks for a few times as she digests the information that Sakura had chosen to tell her, waiting for the latter to proceed with whatever it is that she was saying.

“The point is, I have an extra invitation to that. My plus one, if I were to say?” Sakura finally stops the car in front of the entrance of Minjoo’s apartment building, her eyes meeting Minjoo’s curious ones. “Do you want to come with me? I think Yujin would be happy to see you there. It would be fun to meet other people too.”

“Oh… I don’t think I should? I don’t think I belong to those kind of events,” Minjoo hesitates, unsure of what to say. Minjoo doesn’t even think that she should be there in the first place but Minjoo knows what Sakura is trying to do. She’s not dumb, after all.

A part of her feels flattered with how Sakura had grown to trust her when it comes to Yujin.

The older girl seems to be trying hard in trying to get them to be closer but still—

“Please? The kid’s been through a lot. And for some reason, I have a feeling that your presence there would soothe her nerves a little. Her dad would be parading her around for that night and this is the least I can do to help Yujin out. Without her knowledge, of course,” the smile on Sakura’s face this time is genuine, unlike the previous ones that Minjoo had seen so far and Minjoo’s resolution falters a bit at this. It only took a little more push from Sakura for Minjoo to actually agree to her. “You’ve seen how she looks like, right? With how hard she works to please her dad.”

“…Okay then,” Minjoo nods her head in agreement at long last.

Sakura reverts back to her usual demeanor, a wide grin plastered on her face and it amazes Minjoo in some way, on how easy it was for Sakura to switch the air around her almost instantly. “Great! Now, let’s get you a nice dress—” 

“Wait, what?”

“Girl, I know that your face could give you a free pass to anywhere but you’re going to have to doll up a little with how the event is going to be filled with pretentious people,” Sakura sighs dramatically and leans back against the driver’s seat, arms crossed over her chest. “We’re gonna have to do some shopping beforehand.”

“…Alright then. Maybe I’ll ask Hyewon or Chaeyeon to help me out.”

Minjoo is amused once more when she sees Sakura’s face perking up upon the mention of her friends’ name. Does Sakura have a thing for either one of them or—

“When are we doing the shopping?”

It’s Minjoo’s turn this time to be on the teasing party. Minjoo quizzically raises a brow at Sakura. “We? I’m only planning on going with my friends though?”

Her face falls as quickly as it perked up earlier. Sakura’s lips protruded into a sulky expression. “Hey, why aren’t you bringing me with you guys?”

“You might be busy no? With adult stuff and all.”

“Well… I’m not that busy. Besides, you can use an extra opinion on the dress. I can pay for it too, since I was the one who suggested on bringing you with me? Yup.”

“Does that mean I don’t have to call them then?”

“…But like, I wouldn’t mind doing it with them too, you know?” Sakura’s lips protrudes even more but she pauses when she comes to a realization of what was going on all along. Kim Minjoo had been toying with her and she – the almighty Miyawaki Sakura had just been outwitted by some high school kid, a senior she may be. Minjoo is still a kid, in comparison to her.  “Oh wow. You’re good at this, aren’t you?”

“I know that they’re both legal adults but I hope you know what you’re doing unnie,” Minjoo unbuckles her seat belt with a laugh, hopping out of the SUV before bidding her goodbye. “Drive safe. And thank you for taking me home.”

To say that Kim Minjoo is not used to being the center of attention would be a lie.

She is in fact one of the most sought-after figure in the school and Minjoo too had stood on the stage in front of a huge crowd countless of times but for some reason, receiving attention from a bunch of working adults who is currently a part of the ‘real world’ doesn’t seem to feel quite the same.

Was it the dress that was making her more self-conscious of her appearance?

Minjoo was never a fan of dresses in the first place.

But for the sake of the event, she had decided to wear what Sakura and Hyewon picked out for her during the shopping trip – which turns out to be more of Sakura flirting with Hyewon for all its worth by the way, as Chaeyeon was unable to join them due to her babysitting duties so of course Minjoo was eager to end the trip and just agree to whatever her shopping buddies got from the store.

Maybe she should’ve thought twice on her decision back then.

Because the off-shoulder black dress that she has on right now hugs her body just too perfectly and showcases more skin that Minjoo would like to, but there’s no going back now since she’s already in the ballroom of the five star hotel that the company had rented out for the night for the annual dinner.

And from the looks of it, they had probably rented out the whole floor too to themselves with how tight the security was.

Minjoo isn’t exactly sure on whether she should be flattered with the way most men were leering at her as soon as she makes her entrance with Sakura, but what she does know is that she’s probably going to stick to the older girl for most of the night.

If the girl doesn’t bail out on her first, that is.

As much as the attention annoys her, Minjoo tries to remain calm and remember the reason why she was there in the first place.

It was solely for Yujin’s emotional support – if that would be the correct way to phrase it, from what Sakura had told her before and so far, she hadn’t caught any sight of the younger girl in the room.

Until her gaze lands on an older woman, whose features look strikingly similar to what an older Yujin would look like when she’s in her forties and it was then that she realizes that Yujin herself too was standing next to the woman.

It doesn’t take Minjoo much to put the pieces together for her to tell that the woman was none other than Yujin’s mother.

And the older man with the sleek appearance not far away from them could only be Yujin’s father, with how Yujin’s mother seems to be linking arms with him in an endearing way. <