“How do you get someone to like you?”

It would've been like any other normal Sunday afternoon if it weren't for Minjoo suddenly blurting out her question to her two friends that were sitting across her in the bubble tea store.

Chaeyeon in particular, had the biggest reaction out of them. The drink that she had barely sipped on several seconds ago spurts out of immediately upon hearing it, compelling Hyewon to head to the counter to ask for napkins. “You, out of all people is asking that?”

“And why can't I ask that?” Minjoo says after a moment of hesitation. She unknowingly toys with her straw, trying to mask her feelings.

“Wow, you really have changed. Haven't you?” Chaeyeon replies, dabbing the remnants of her drink off herself using the napkins that Hyewon had taken for her.

As usual, the latter doesn't seem to be bothered with how the way things were and instead, silently kept her eyes on Minjoo. She would be lying if she was not intrigued by the way Minjoo was acting, though Hyewon somewhat has an idea on where the conversation was going.

Everyone around them does, but a little confirmation from the person who is directly involved in the whole ordeal wouldn't hurt.

“I guess so,” Minjoo slowly nods her head as an answer. “Now, answer me.”

Chaeyeon sighs exasperatedly. Clearly, she's not the best person around for Minjoo to ask from when it comes to questions like these. “I can't answer that. It differs with each person, but I guess... the most important thing is to communicate well?” Chaeyeon stares directly into her friend's gaze. “Tell that person your feelings. There's only two ways that it's going to go anyway. It either works out or it doesn't.”

“That person doesn't seem to be the type that deals well with confessions. I don't think that they've ever dated before.”

“You're scared of scaring her off?” Chaeyeon's tone softens a little.

It's only a minute later that Minjoo places her full attention on Chaeyeon once more upon realizing how Chaeyeon was referring to subject of their conversation.

Truthfully, at this rate Minjoo is not surprised at all at the fact that everyone around them knows. Just because she refuses to acknowledge them all along doesn't change that very fact. “Yeah. I am.”

“From the way I see it, she seems to feel the same for you.”

“Does she?”

“You'd be blind to not notice that.”

A small wave of relief washes over Minjoo when she hears Chaeyeon's reassuring words. “...Thank you--”

Minjoo's words were cut off with her own sneeze, barely managing to cover with her palms in time.

Well , she thinks that she's catching a cold-- Oh.

Her face flushes at the memories of her stealing a kiss from the sickly Yujin while she was asleep, and the chances of her getting it from that time was pretty high.

“Bless you,” Hyewon then slips the extra napkins that she had gotten earlier into Minjoo's hands, oblivious to the faint blush on Minjoo's face.

“T-Thanks.”

-

Exam season finally kicks off a few weeks after and because of this, Minjoo and Yujin starts seeing each other less often - occupied with their own schedule and revisions. That however, does not stop them from occasionally exchanging texts on KakaoTalk when they can.

At first, Yujin wasn't sure on whether she misses the older girl or not.

Now that she's done with her finals, she finds herself staring at Minjoo's profile on KakaoTalk without doing anything and it had been roughly an hour since she started doing so.

She does know Minjoo has more papers coming up soon and Yujin doesn't really want to distract her.

But a little goodnight text wouldn't hurt right?

Yujin shifts her gaze to the time showing on the top corner of her phone's screen. It's seven minutes until midnight and she doubts that Minjoo is even awake at this hour so maybe she should just scratch this idea off and go to sleep.

Of course, her finger betrays her soon after and instead of closing Minjoo's KakaoTalk profile, Yujin accidentally presses the call button.

She panics at first, wanting to instantly cancel the call but much to her chagrin, Minjoo was quick to pick up the call.

“Hello?”

“Uhh... Hi there,” Yujin awkwardly clears . There was a small pause on the other line.

“Is something wrong?”

“Well... yeah... I accidentally pressed the call button, I didn't mean to bother you--”

“…By accident?”

Yujin could imagine the other girl raising her brow on the other line, but she tries to ignore that image of Minjoo in her mind.

“It just... happened.”

Minjoo replies a few seconds after. “You're not sleeping yet?”

“Oh, I was about to actually,” Yujin hesitates. “...What about you?”

“I just need to finish reviewing a couple of papers then I'm done for the night. I still have one more finals this week.”

“Ah... Well... Good luck then,” a quick pause from Yujin. “Don't wear yourself out too much.”

“...Thank you.”

Yujin could hear a small rustling of paper on the phone. There's a certain softness to Minjoo's voice as the older girl speaks into the line. “You should sleep soon. It's late.”

“…Yeah, I should. Goodnight then.”

“Goodnight Yujinnie.”

Yujin could feel the warmth spreading across her chest upon hearing the older girl calling her name affectionately.

And it did not stop even as the call ended.

-

Fast forward to a few weeks after, Yujin soon found herself going on a trip with Minjoo alone.

It was Minjoo's idea at first, who mentions that an overnight stay at a traditional homestay in the countryside that she saw in an online blog would be a good stress relief after their finals, and it really didn't take much for Yujin to agree with it.

So they both got on the bus ride to their destination a few days later, managing to book the last room available at the said homestay - which then somehow brings her to this situation.

Wearing an 'ahjumma' styled pants after having her jeans peed on by a rabbit in a petting zoo.

To put things into context, they decided to stop by a small petting zoo that was set up near the village for visitors after lunch, and for some reason Yujin must've done something to piss off the huge white rabbit for it to run away while they were in the rabbit’s enclosure, though not before leaving his ‘mark’ on Yujin.

“...Please stop taking pictures of me in these pants,” Yujin grumbles at the sight of Minjoo pointing her phone towards her, snapping a few shots of Yujin in her current appearance while cackling with laughter.

The bright purple flowery patterned pants were the only choice available for her to buy and change into earlier at the small shop, and since she's not going to spend the rest of her day walking around and smelling like , she might as well get it.

“Okay don't be so stingy now, it's not as if I'm posting this anywhere,” Minjoo's laughter finally comes to a stop as she scrolls through her gallery with a grin. “Should I send some of these to you later on?”

“...Well, just do whatever you want then,” Yujin clicks her tongue in feign annoyance, crossing her arms as she spares a glance at Minjoo. “Where are we headed to after this?”

“I'm not sure actually,” Minjoo says as she tears her eyes away from the screen. Her face lights up upon recalling something off her mind. “I almost forgot about the lake. The blog mentions that there's a lake nearby the homestay that we can check out, so we can go there before calling it a day.”

Their evening passes by without a hitch.

The walk on the trail leading to the lake took them slightly longer than they initially expected but nevertheless, the view at the lake was worth the trip.

By the time they were there, another couple were already on their way back.

“Wow, this place looks great,” Yujin says as she marvels upon the view.

“Yeah, it does,” Minjoo sneaks a glance at the younger girl, somewhat glad with the way Yujin was enjoying the trip so far. Her hand reaches out to tug on Yujin’s sleeve, gently pulling her along to sit on the small wooden bench near the lake. “Are you tired yet?”

“Just a little I guess, it’s been a while since I’m outside for this long.”

“Mm, let’s enjoy the view for a little. Then we can go back and rest,” Minjoo replies, leaning her back against the bench.

Silence filled the air a few seconds after, though it was soon broken by Yujin’s voice. “Thank you, by the way.”

“Hm? For what?”

“This trip?” Yujin suddenly realizes how ridiculous she sounded at that very moment. Her words were followed by her own laughter. “Sorry if it’s out of nowhere. I just feel like saying it.”

Maybe it’s the way the moonlight was casting its reflection on the lake that sets the mood for her— for the two of them, as a matter of fact.

Somewhat, somehow, there was something about the whole atmosphere that draws out the hidden feelings or unspoken words left unsaid, because Minjoo too appears to be thinking about something else afterwards instead of replying Yujin.

“Yujin-ah.”

“Hm?”

“What do you think you’ll be doing in the future?”

“I’m not sure to be honest. I can’t see myself yet in the future, on how I’m going to turn out,” Yujin’s smile was rather bittersweet. “Most likely, I’ll probably be doing whatever my father wants me to do.”

Right, there’s that.

For a brief moment, Minjoo had forgotten Yujin’s family background.

On how rich her family is and how pushy the wealthy ones are but still, Minjoo wants to know.

If there’s space for her in Yujin’s future.

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