Ladies, gentlemen and my non-binary siblings... welcome to the Present.

Mina is tired beyond comprehension.

Flopping onto the bed, she doesn’t even bother worrying about the outfit she’s still got on and the makeup that still cakes her face. She’d removed the eye makeup in the van on the way back to the dorm and that, to her, is more than enough. 

She flops around in the dark room until she finally gets her blanket on top of her and she curls into herself, feeling the world fade away.

The day—yesterday, in fact, Mina recalls faintly; it’s 3 am now, a whole new day—had been a very hard one for Mina. It was the penultimate day of promotions, so they had to work extra hard. They performed at a music show for this new song, held a fansign in SinChon, then rushed to record appearances at two separate variety shows. Mina’s thankful to be busy and meet fans, don’t get her wrong, of course she is. Her social battery just… drained beyond what it’s used to: they had all agreed on promoting this new album for longer, about a month and a half, and it’s been taking a huge toll on Mina. They aren’t a rookie group anymore and promotions this long aren’t as common for them.

None of that matters anymore, though. Promotions are nearly over and right now, Mina is in bed, safe from prying eyes and flashing cameras. She yawns once and snuggles deeper into her mattress, ready for a three hour nap before she’s forced to wake up and do it all over again.

Or, well—that’s what she thought she’d get. But then the door creaks and a sliver of light cuts the pitch-black room in half. 

Next to Mina, the bed shifts and dips. It’s Sana. Mina knows by how gently she moves.

“Minari?” her friend asks in a cotton-soft voice. “Did you wash your face?”

Mina grumbles, causing Sana to burst into soft giggles.

“Okay, well, I’ll take that as a no—“ she lifts up Mina’s blanket—”and hey! You didn’t even change out of your clothes!”

Mina huffs and twists until she’s able to talk comfortably, no pillow to muffle her voice. “It’s pointless. We’ll be up in three hours anyway, might as well stay in them and save time.”

Sana chuckles. “Minari. We’re not going to wear the same outfits, silly. What would the fans think?”

Mina mumbles and grumbles until Sana lightly taps her bottom. “C’mon, Minari. Wash your face and dress comfortably.”

The room is silent, as if Mina wants to fight her a little more on this. Finally, the younger girl speaks.

“I’m so tired, Satang. I just want to sleep.”

Sana’s smile fades from her face, though nobody would ever see how drastically it does so. She knows Mina’s been getting increasingly tired from these unusually long promotions. She knows that though the performances are fun and Once scream at the top of their lungs, loud and proud, it doesn’t mean that it won’t be heavy. Do this, do that, refrain from saying this, stay here, act like you’re not tired. TWICE have lived this life for more years than Sana can count on one hand. They knew what they were getting into when they signed those contracts, that it really the life out of you sometimes. It’s especially hard for Mina, as Sana can see now, and her mental health. 

“Let me help you,” the tenderly spoken words float out of Sana’s lips, making Mina’s sleepy eyes flutter open. She sees nothing but Sana’s silhouette, relaxed and true.

“Help?”

The silhouette nods. “Here—let me get you out of those shoes.” The bed shifts again and Mina feels tugging on her feet.

“Do you want your favorite fuzzy socks, Minari?”

Mina peeks from under her covers. She blushes. “Yes…” 

Sana slips off her socks and replaces them with comfortable fuzzy ones Mina had gotten from a fan in Manila. She immediately feels better, much to her surprise. Can socks really do that? Just make everything feel better?

“Okay, now let’s get you out of these clothes,” Sana continues, but Mina stubbornly rises from the bed and holds up a hand to stop her.

“I can do this myself, Sana, thanks. It’s fine.” 

The older girl sighs, but she nods and steps back to let Mina pick out some pajamas. 

Huffing, Mina shuffles out of bed and to the closet, but feels a sudden heavy weight, which she recognizes immediately as exhaustion, making its way back into her mind and her body. Mina drops her head and doubles over, weak. What if she just lays down on the floor and stays there for the entire night? Mina thinks that that sounds great right about now. Just as she’s about to do it, just pass out on the floor and lay there until it’s time to get her makeup done, a firm grip on her shoulder wakes her from her stupor. 

Sana eases her grip once she sees that Mina has snapped out of it. “Let me help you,” she says again, but this time it’s said in a certain tone. Mina is awake enough to recognize it as a tone she uses when there’s nothing that will change her mind. And so Mina lets her, because she has no choice.

She’s sat on her bed and raises her arms to make it easier for Sana to undress and redress her. 

Now fully dressed in sleepwear, Mina crawls into bed once more, the simple fabric of the comforter now feeling like the finest of satins, fit for royalty.

Sana watches Mina fall asleep again, emotions bouncing around in her chest, emotions she pushes down as she rises and enters the dorm’s kitchen to find bowls large enough to carry a good amount of water. Mina still has makeup on her face and Sana would feel too guilty if she let her stay like that. She also grabs Mina’s face wash on the way back to the room.

Sana eases herself into her bed and carefully brings the two bowls over. With care, she picks Mina’s head up and rests it on her leg, positioning it in a way that Sana can easily clean it. She works the cloth all over Mina’s face, wiping off as much makeup as she can. Sana applies the face wash onto her clean fingers and massages it across Mina’s face. Using a separate cloth, she wipes that off too, rubbing Mina’s forehead, her soft cheeks, her strong jaw… She shakes her head. 

Focus, she reminds herself.

Sana’s not sure how, but not once was Mina bothered out of sleep by this until the end, when her head is being set back down.

“Sana?” asks a croaky voice.

Sana flinches, having thought that Mina wouldn’t wake up again. “Yes?”

The soft yellow light creeping in allows Sana to see a wave of confusion enter Mina’s face, but before she can say anything, the heavy curtain called sleep crashes into her and she’s out like a light again. 

Sana bites her lip and adjusts the blankets on Mina, making sure she’s comfortable and sleeps as much as she can.

Two sets of footsteps approach, two pairs of eyes land on the two girls on the bed.

Jihyo and Nayeon wave at Sana. “Hey,” Jihyo greets in a whisper, “Is she asleep?”

Sana nods. “She is.”

“Did you get to tell her?” Nayeon asks, the anticipation in her voice clear even though she’s whispering.

“No. She’s been too tired to really listen lately. I thought I could today but she’s even worse. I had to wash her face—she could hardly even stand long enough to change out of her clothes.”

Nayeon frowns as she walks to her wardrobe. “You changed her clothes, too? You should be sleeping, Sana. We have less than a couple hours to sneak in a nap.”

“I know,” Sana replies tiredly. “But Mina needed help.”

Jihyo slips out of her dress as she speaks. “Sana. We’ve been staying up for the past three weeks working on the gift. You need to sleep when you can.”

“I’ll sleep right now, thanks. Don’t worry about me.”

Nayeon’s eyes narrow, trying to get a good look. The way Sana is sitting, the light hits her face and her eye creases sparkle. “I see the glitter of your makeup,” she whispers, hoping Jihyo sees the worried glance she throws her way. She probably doesn’t.

Sana clears . “Right. I’ll wash up and change. I promise I’ll sleep as soon as my head hits the pillow, though.” She rushes out of the room.

When Sana is out of earshot and as Nayeon lays down, she smiles and says, “Hyo? We made the right decision, didn’t we?”

Jihyo settles next to Nayeon, a bittersweet smile on her lips. “Yeah,” she agrees, and though she thought there’d be envy dripping from that lone syllable, she finds there is none. She continues, even softer this time, “Sana really always has been the perfect one for Mina.”

The arrival back to the dorms is only short of a karaoke machine, it’s such a riot—the girls are celebrating one more successful end of promotions and everyone is smiling so big and wide. The buzz wears off a little as they spill into their living room but it picks back up when Jeongyeon pulls out a few expensive-looking bottles. Everyone knows where this is going and they love it.

Mina purses her lips as she checks her phone. It’s not late at all, just barely 4 pm, meaning she has time.

As the TWICE members start lining up (or try to… TWICE are not known for being orderly) to get a sip of alcohol, Mina weaves between the mass of limbs to grab hold of Sana, who’s giggling into Momo’s shoulder.

“Sana?” Mina calls for her in her usual voice, light and airy. Sana, despite all the noise in the room, hears.

“Minari! Have you gotten a cup yet?”

Mina shakes her head. She wants a sip, sure, as Jeongyeon has the best taste in wine among the members, but there’s something more imperative on her mind. “No. I don’t think I should drink right now.” She’s got a smile that says a lot more, though, so Sana leads her away from the group to a more secluded section of the living room. “I’ve been thinking, Sana. It’s been a while, right? I think I’m ready.”

“Ready?” Sana briefly wonders what this could mean. 

“For the second date. I’m ready.”

Sana raises an eyebrow, though it’s mostly to hide the rush those words make her feel. Would it be silly if she looked too excited? Winkingly, she asks, “Wasn’t I the one that was supposed to ask you?”

Mina playfully punches Sana as she says “I flipped the tables this time. So, will you go out with me today?” She looks over at their members raising their cups in cheers. “I know it’s all of a sudden, but…” 

But nothing. Mina knows Sana would drop anything for her. 

And she does. Sana wraps her arms around Mina. “Of course, Minari. Where are you taking me?”

Mina looks like she’s trying really hard to hold back a smile and pulls Sana into their room, and when they enter, she tosses Sana a jacket. 

“I’ll give you two hints. Or three, actually. One, you’ll have to dress warmly. Two, it’s around thirty minutes from here. And three, it has one of the prettiest holiday light displays in Seoul.” Those are some of the most obvious hints she’s ever given, but it seems Sana needed a few more by the way she taps her chin. Her brain’s gears work hard to put the three hints together, but it takes her a while, so much so that Mina is about to roll her eyes and give her the answer when Sana gasps and throws her hands into the air excitedly, almost smacking Mina in the face.

“Everland! We’re going to Everland!”

Mina nods enthusiastically. “Yeah! Is that fine..?”

Sana hops a few times before she starts rummaging through the closet for warm accessories. “Are you kidding me? I’ve been dying to go to Everland during the winter! I’ve only seen pictures online and each time I told myself ‘Oh, I should totally go there!’ but I never did! Until now!”

Mina grins at how ecstatic Sana seems at the date idea. She’d been watching the ticket sales for the theme park all day, begging for them to not sell out before she could get her hands on a pair. 

Mina reaches around Sana to grab a scarf, since her phone said it would also be windy today, but Sana spins around and grabs her arm before her fingers can even brush the fabric.

“No!”

“No?”

Sana blinks rapidly, then glances over at their bed. Mina follows her gaze and spies a cream canvas bag laying on top, the opening conveniently facing away from them. She looks back to Sana with a questioning look. The older girl shakes her head.

What’s going on..?

“Trust me, Minari. Please don’t wear that scarf.”

Mina looks over at the bag once more before retracting her hand slowly. Sana never does something for no reason, so she decides to go along with whatever she’s up to. It seems not just Mina had a surprise hidden up her sleeve today. “Okay. I trust you.”

Sana breathes out, possibly in relief, and gives her a thankful smile. “Thank you.”

“You know,” Sana says as she holds onto her canvas bag tightly, “I was just thinking of asking you out sometime soon too. As a kind of celebration of the end of promos, I guess?”

Mina looks away from the van window, a blush tinting her cheeks. Sana wants to squeeze them and kiss them so badly, but she holds back to be able to have a normal conversation. “We’re so in sync, huh? Kind of like…soulmates,” Mina observes, the red cheeks darkening dangerously into tomato territory.

“Kind of like soulmates,” Sana repeats in agreement. Then she lets go of her bag with one hand to intertwine her fingers with Mina’s. Like soulmates, their fingers fit perfectly too. 

Mina wistfully eyes the bag in Sana’s lap. “What’s in there, by the way?”

Sana hums, a playful smile growing. You’ll see, her demeanor says, and Mina starts to feel a slight buzz within her. What could be inside the canvas bag?

It’s ice cold outside, but both girls dressed warmly, knowing what to expect. 

Everland has always had a certain special air to it, being one of the biggest theme parks in Seoul and all, but tonight, the whole place is beautifully decorated with string lights and holiday figures, and paired with the waning light as the sun sets early, Sana feels the magic in the air.

Quickly, she glances at Mina, who’s doing that ballerina-like walk she does subconsciously. Sana laughs, pure joy just from watching Mina seeping into the sound.

“What?” 

Sana shakes her head, trying to stop smiling, but she can’t because Mina is so pretty and gorgeous and sweet and cute and it’s overwhelming her. They haven’t been at the park for five minutes yet and already Sana wants to stop everything and bare her heart to Mina right here and now, theatrics be damned. She wants to scream her love and let the whole world hear it, show Mina what’s in the canvas bag and take the next step in this relationship they have. But Sana doesn’t. She’s been planning this for weeks with Nayeon and Jihyo, staying up for hours on end to work on this gift. Even though she’s rushing now that Mina took her here out of the blue, she’s still not going to throw out the grand speech she’s mentally prepared. All of it needs to be said to make her feelings and intentions clear. Sana clears and says, with only a few hitches, “You’re just so perfect.”

Mina frowns cutely, trying to bury her red cheeks under her jacket. “You’re cute. And sweet,” she retaliates.

“Sweet? Where’d that come from?”

Mina jumps at the chance now that she has it. It’s been on her mind all day, ever since she found out. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed, Sana. ”

“Noticed?” She tilts her head curiously. “Noticed what?”

“What you do. What you’ve done for me. Everything, really, but specifically what you did last night. I woke up from one of the best naps of my life in pajamas, fuzzy socks and with a clean face. I don’t remember much, but—“ Mina pantomimes what she says says next— “I remember you...above me. My eyes are barely able to stay open, so you help me out of my shoes. My socks. You’re cleaning my face… Softly, carefully, it feels like you’re caressing me. I feel your love in every touch.” 

Sana freezes, as if Mina had just accused her of something, but she’s just surprised, because she didn’t think Mina would remember anything. She was too exhausted, hardly had her eyes open half the time. 

Mina shakes her head in amazement. “Why did you do all that? We didn’t have much time to sleep. You wasted your precious time helping me, who couldn’t even find the strength to take care of herself.” Mina steps closer, the slight breeze picking up her stray hairs dramatically. “Why? Why were you being so sweet to me?” she repeats, her features revealing that she really doesn’t understand. Who would sacrifice resting time for someone despite the possibility of not being thanked? 

“Why wouldn’t I?” Sana begins, sighing as she looks around. “You couldn’t take care of yourself because you were tired, Minari. Of course I stepped in to help.”

“There’s no way you weren’t tired too,” Mina notes. 

“Sure I was,” she says, shrugging it off like it’s nothing. “But your brain and my brain work differently. It wasn’t hard to see that these promotions were wearing you down and I watched you slowly sink into a different kind of tiredness. It was bone-deep, not like the way I was. I sleep it off and will be fine the next day. You can’t. So I helped you. You’re resting your mind, leaving this plane of existence for a while and no longer heavy with worries and stress.”

Mina pauses. Sana is right. Not only did she sleep last night; it also served as a temporary break away from the harsh life she’s living, the kind that she loves but tires her relentlessly. Even if it was only two hours, she woke up refreshed and with more energy than she had felt in weeks. Mina sighs, not frustrated, but in relief, because she understands a little more now. 

“As idols, we have big social batteries,” Sana adds as she takes Mina’s hand in hers and continues their stroll. They walk under an illuminated bridge, passing by couples holding onto each other tightly. “But even then, our social batteries depend on us, on our emotions and mental health. And I know your mental health is super different. That’s why I do what I do. Cause I love you and want to take care of you.”

“Thank you,” Mina says, wholeheartedly. She wants to say more, but how do you express such never ending gratitude to someone that understands you so deeply? 

“No problem. You know you don’t have to thank me at all.”

“It’s still nice to be thanked, even when nothing is expected in return, though.” Mina sees Sana nod in agreement. “Thank you. Really. You show your love to me in so many different ways, and I can only hope to one day show it back to you in a sincere way.”

Sana watches the last rays of the sun dip below the skyline before she turns to Mina with a slight frown on her face. “You’ve done many things for me,” she says, but Mina shakes her head.

“Maybe the bare minimum but nothing that could ever show how grateful I am for being so considerate throughout the years.” 

“Mina, I’m serious. I do everything for you because I love you. I don’t do it so that you have to owe me.”

Mina shrugs, still feeling upset. She really wants to pay her back for all the kindnesses. Sana understanding that Mina’s mental health is different and that she gets tired at different times than her is overwhelming, more than she could ever have hoped for in a friend. Some people in the world only wish they could have this. 

Sana frowns and leads Mina to what seems to be the center of the holiday section of Everland, where grand statues stand wrapped in pale blue string lights. Mina is mesmerized by the atmosphere, which feels almost celestial, but what catches her eye most are the lights reflecting off Sana’s eyes, creating a new galaxy, new stars to wish upon. Mina finds herself wishing on said stars,  imploring for a way to make it all up to Sana somehow. Can the universe do that for her? Can it help her show Sana gratitude that no words ever could?

Sana finally speaks after two minutes, her words puffs of smoke in the air. “I have the perfect way to explain to you why you don’t ever owe me anything.”

Mina knew it. She was still thinking about what she said earlier. “Sana…”

“Please listen. You’ll understand.” Her eyes beg her to listen, and Mina has never been one to deprive Sana of her desires. 

“Okay…”

“Okay! So, Minari, what is a ‘love language’?”

Always asking seemingly random questions, Mina says inwardly, but she answers anyway. “It’s the different ways people prefer to express and receive love...right?”

“That’s right! So, what's your love language?”

Mina doesn’t even have to think about it. “...I love it when people hold my hands. It makes me feel safe, like I’m not alone. I love being cared for. I also live off words of affirmation.”

“And I’m sure you know what mine is, right?” Sana continues, pulling Mina close, the embrace tight and full of love.

“Hugs. Kisses. Cuddles. You’re a very touchy person,” Mina mumbles into Sana’s shoulder.

“That’s right,” Sana giggles. “I love showing affection that way, and I love receiving it like that too. Despite our languages being a little different, you and I still love each other and show it. Holding hands means ‘you’re safe with me’, hugs mean ‘thank you’ or ‘you mean so much to me’. Kisses mean ‘I love you’. When you let me hug you and kiss you, it’s you communicating with me, letting me say all those things. And guess what?”

Mina is blushing now, thinking of how true everything that Sana’s said so far. All the hugs they’ve shared, every kiss on the cheeks, nose, forehead have always said something words never could. But she still doesn’t know why she’s mentioned all of this so far. What is this leading up to? “Hmm. What?”

“It all makes me feel so loved. So, so loved, Mina. You hug me back and kiss me back and I feel so warm inside. That’s all I’ve ever wanted from life. To be surrounded by love and feel safe. To belong.”

Mina feels a pang in her heart. Sana, who grew up the lone child of her parents but has always been surrounded by love, is getting exactly what she’s ever wanted...from her? From Mina?

“So don’t even worry about ‘paying me back’, Minari.” Sana leans in and presses a kiss to Mina’s cold cheek, instantly warming it. “I don’t need anything but you.”

Mina sighs as she presses her cold fingers to where Sana’s lips rested only seconds ago. 

“Okay… If you’re so sure.” She’s not doubting Sana’s words, but her mind is going kilometers per hour now and she’s unable to slow it down. 

“Of course I am. I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life. You’re really all I need, Minari.”

Mina shivers. Her wish came true, because it's always been true... She’s all Sana needs.

Something inside her chest begins to grow, swirling bigger and bigger, but she can’t quite name the feeling. It needs a little push. An extra cold breeze mixed with a bit of snow rips past them, cutting Mina’s face painfully. She frantically covers her nose, feeling the burn work it’s way to her brain.

“Oh,” Sana says, making Mina’s watery eyes move back to her. “You’re so cold! I nearly forgot to give you your gift! I’m so terrible!” She pulls something out of the canvas bag Mina’s been so curious about all afternoon; it’s a soft-looking scarf made up of many different colored yarns. Sana’s pink hands unravel it slowly, letting Mina’s eyes look it over carefully. She spies a couple blue, white and green ones. It doesn’t take her long to spot all of the many colors and realize this scarf is made of yarn using the official colors for each TWICE member.

Sana drops the bag to wrap the gift around Mina. “I’ve been working on this for a while. Nayeon and Jihyo helped me, of course. Resident grannies and all.”

Mina’s cold fingers brush against the warm scarf as she feels that vortex build up in her. “The three of you made this?” 

Sana nods as she keeps looking at Mina and only Mina. She adjusts the scarf a little and pokes Mina’s red nose. “Yes. Well, mostly it was them hovering over me, not wanting to help too much so that I could learn to knit well.” 

“Why?”

“Why?” Sana’s eyebrows raise. “Hmm. It’s getting cold. I wanted to gift you something that would allow me to tell you that I will always be here to take care of you. Whether it be as your friend or…” Sana coughs into her fist quickly before continuing. “This scarf is exactly that. When you wrap it around yourself, think of it as Twice protecting you. As me protecting you. The wind can be cold and can harm you, and so can the world, if you think about it. But I, like that scarf, will serve as a barrier, a refuge. Use me all you like to escape the harsh winds of the world, Minari.”

Another breeze blows past right between them suddenly, icy and sharp, and Mina realizes something deep, deep within her as Sana’s gift stays put, keeping her face guarded and warm this time.

The stars in Sana’s eyes seem to shine brighter. Mina’s knees go weak at that moment and she falls onto the freezing concrete, her heart pounding so loudly in her ears she’s almost sure Sana can hear it too. Thoughts rush to her head, replaying the words Sana said during their date all those weeks ago, the things she did last night and the love she’s shown today. It’s all coming together, and it makes Mina shake harder than any gust of wind ever could.

In less than a second, Sana is holding her, pulling Mina upright, looking worried. “Minari? Are you okay?” Her voice sounds strained, worried. She crouches and dusts the dirt on Mina’s knees. Mina holds onto Sana’s steady shoulders and nods, a smile growing on her face. The worried lines on Sana’s face smooth out too as she stands back up to look at Mina face-to-face. 

“I’m fine. I’m fine. Actually, I’m better than fine. I’m feeling...a lot right now.”

“Feeling a lot? Like, as in you’re overwhelmed? We can go home if you’d like.” Sana tugs on Mina’s arm, very serious about taking care of Mina. Still, the latter tugs back, stopping Sana in her tracks.

“No,” Mina says, shaking her head. “I meant—I’m just realizing a lot.”

Sana doesn’t understand, it’s obvious by the way her eyebrows are furrowed. Then again, Mina isn’t being very clear about what she’s talking about. “You know, we can continue this date some other time. If you’re tired, I don’t mind. We can go back to the dorms and get in bed, maybe watch a movie. Whichever one you…” Sana doesn’t finish her sentence. Mina is shaking her head.

“No, no. You don’t understand.” If it weren’t for Sana, she wouldn't even be out here. She’d be alone, in her room, watching Endgame for the tenth time in a row. “Sana, I just realized that I’m in love with you.”

The swirling winds die down then. It’s like the world stops upon hearing the words tumble out of Mina’s lips, just to see what happens next. The calm before the storm.

The older girl gasps, her eyebrows higher than Mina’s spirits right now. Sana almost yells out a “What?”

“I’m in love with you!” 

Sana’s wide eyes shake as she looks down at the ground as if she’s searching for something, but quickly they rise back up to look at Mina’s. “I’m—I’m in love with you too.”

“I remember you told me already,” Mina admits, holding her arms out to Sana, who quickly jumps in them. “The night we went cycling, you said you loved me, right? Or did I dream that?”

A snowflake lands on Sana’s hair, then another one and one more. “You didn’t dream that. I did tell you I love you.”

Snow begins to fall at a steady pace and the wind seems to have heard enough because it starts picking up bit by bit, so Sana cuts the conversation short and grabs Mina’s hand to begin heading back to the van.

They reach the van faster than Mina can process but before Mina’s shivering fingers can grab the door and pull it open to escape to the insides of the van, Sana pulls her back, not wanting to enter yet.

“Wait. But—but you mean it the way I do, right?” Sana gasps out, the wind pushing both her and Mina. The scarf, once again, shields Mina’s face. Sana’s teeth clatter as she studies her. 

“Of course!” The words are screamed, but they’re inaudible due to the wind roaring in Mina’s ears, and she’s sure Sana didn’t hear either.

It’s freezing cold and the right words are failing to come to mind. The wind is picking up, clearly building up to be a proper snowstorm, and the cyclone within Mina is raging too. How can she let Sana understand what kind of love she means? Any words spoken will be carried away by the wind, weightless and useless. She needs to do something. 

Then, it hits Mina. 

Kisses mean ‘I love you’.

The storm around them and the one inside Mina reach their peak as she presses herself against Sana, pushing her against the cold walls of the van. She stands on her tiptoes and closes in slowly, giving Sana time to realize what’s happening. She kisses her. The kiss itself is quick, maybe a little rushed, but it gets the message across, judging by the way Sana’s lips tremble when Mina pulls away. 

“I love you like that.” Mina shivers. “It took me too long to realize it. I hope it’s not too late.” 

“I didn’t hear a word that you just said,” Sana shouts over the wind, “but I love you too.”

Truth be told, Mina didn’t hear that either.

They shake and shiver in each other’s arms as the van drives them home. It’s warm in the vehicle, but the two girls aren't shaking because of the temperature anyway. 

“I can’t believe it.” Sana’s said this a million times already since they entered, but the wonder in her voice hasn’t lessened due to use. “You love me?”

Mina has her eyes closed, hearing the thumping in Sana’s chest. “I do. And I think I have for a while. I guess it needed time to sink in.”

Sana settles deeper into the seat and nods. “That day we went on our cycling date—god, was it almost a month ago?—I first realized it, did you know? I’d always harbored a crush on you, but you know how it is. You confuse it for something else, or you kinda push it down. You don’t know what it is you’re actually feeling until it’s time.”

“Yeah. You know, when I realized, it kinda felt like there was a hurricane inside me. Almost as if the love I have was trying to escape, manifest itself by leaving my body.” Mina absentmindedly taps Sana’s chest.

“When I realized, it felt like a star exploded in my chest.” Sans giggles. “Kinda cheesy, right?”

“A little.” Mina suppresses a laugh, but the teasing is still apparent in the grin she gives Sana. A yawn interrupts the grin and Mina leans away from Sana to cover it up.

“Tired?” 

Mina nods. “Shivering really takes the energy out of you.”

“When we get to the dorms, we should go directly to bed,” Sana suggests, feeling a bit sleepy herself. “Tomorrow we can sleep in and let the members make breakfast for us.” The plan sounds great to Mina, so she nods in agreement and decides to go ahead and take a little nap on Sana’s shoulder.

Upon their arrival, however, they see they made a mistake in assuming that anyone would let them rest. 

The TWICE members are still awake and in the kitchen, spending time together and drinking wine from cute glasses Momo had picked out. When the two girls walk through the door, Jeongyeon stands up merrily and beckons them over, telling them they missed a funny story from Tzuyu, something about almost tripping on stage. Sana and Mina take a seat and a glass, the drowsiness they had felt earlier dissipating. It’s kind of hard to be sleepy when you’ve got seven loud girls laughing all around you.

“Hey! The takeout is here!” Chaeyoung says suddenly, apparently having heard the doorbell despite the noise. She dashes over to the door and produces two large bags that are practically bursting from being so full of food. “You came just in time!”

“Oh, I see how it is! If we hadn’t gotten here in time, you would’ve eaten without us, huh?” Sans pouts as she sets down her glass to help Chaeyoung split the food between all nine of them. Dahyun spreads out the side dishes as Jeongyeon does her best to pass out the eating utensils.

“Duh,” Nayeon says, leaning over all of them to grab her chopsticks. “Not like you two lovebirds even remembered us! We were gonna cope with our loneliness by eating with gusto!”

“Don't listen to her.” Momo rolls her eyes at Nayeon and shakes her head, a little smile growing on her face. “She‘s the one that told us to order a little more for you girls.”

“M-my reputation, Momo!”

A smiling Tzuyu turns to Sana and Mina. “How’d you ladies’ date go?”

Mina raises an eyebrow. “How did you know we went on a date?”

Dahyun snorts. “Besides the fact that you guys were gone when we turned to give you your cups of wine? Nayeon wouldn’t stop whining about it!”

Above the sounds of Nayeon scoffing, Momo asks if they can start eating already so Jihyo stands up and raises a hand; the shouting ceases in an instant and everyone looks at her expectantly.

“Thank you. Let’s eat! Give the babies the biggest portions,” Jihyo says, though no one needed to be told. It’s become a custom for them to give Tzuyu, Chaeyoung and Dahyun the most food—to help them grow. Sometimes Jeongyeon likes to point out that it hasn’t helped Chaeyoung at all, much to the latter’s chagrin.

Everyone digs in, chattering excitedly as they talk about this and that as they pass around the plates and trade side dishes. Mina looks around the room, observing the faces of the girls that were already her friends, but who she has since formed an even stronger bond with. Mina had her own struggles to fight, but so did they, so in each other they found help.

Nayeon, charming as ever, unsuccessfully tries sneaking a piece of food off Momo’s plate. She gets caught and gets a swift kick to the shin. Mina remembers the insecurities Nayeon secretly fights due to terrible articles. She hopes Nayeon will always remember that despite what’s in the news, there’s more to her than meets the eye.

Jeongyeon steals a forkful of Nayeon’s  noodles while she’s distracted and shoves them into , slurping so loudly it’s somehow audible over the shouting. It’s funny to Mina that Jeongyeon really believed she was unreliable just because the company didn’t give her a set role. She’s one of the most reliable girls in the group, the metaphorical rock everyone needs and loves.

Momo kicks Nayeon’s shin under the table as she simultaneously looks for her glass of wine, which is right next to her trusty (and nearly empty) bottle of mayonnaise. What could Mina say about Momo that wouldn’t end up being an hour-long speech about how intelligent and caring she is? Momo has never been the idiot everyone paints her to be. Their date proved it.

Sana reaches over Jeongyeon’s head to load her chopsticks with noodles and accidentally places her other hand in Tzuyu’s plate, mashing half of it in the process. Being the catalyst of all of this, Sana has no idea how much she means to Mina. Hopefully, Mina thinks, she’ll be able to show her gratitude through her actions, the way Sana will surely understand it.

Jihyo tries her best to stuff with as much food as she can before Chaeyoung’s unappealing way of eating ruins her appetite. She’s such a strong person, mostly likely that’s the reason why everyone unanimously voted for her to be their leader. Mina only hopes that Jihyo takes her advice and leans on others when responsibilities become heavy.

Dahyun has nearly finished her food somehow and is trying to feed Tzuyu a piece of the meat on her plate. She’s so caring, thinking about everyone else before herself. She’s an amazing person and Mina will spend the rest of her days praising her and reminding her to love herself too.

Chaeyoung is trying to take a picture of the scene with her phone, leaning back as far as she can so she can fit the whole family. They’ve been painting together ever since they promised to, and Mina has been asking for gardening tips like Jeongyeon suggested. The result has been a stronger bond, the kind Mina never imagined to have with the younger girl.

Tzuyu is doing her best to follow the chopsticks in Dahyun’s hands but since the latter is across the wide table, the chopsticks miss and Tzuyu gets a bunch of sauce on her face. She’s been lighter lately, so much happier and Mina can’t help but feel so proud of her. She’s everyone’s baby and her happiness is theirs.

Mina feels the love in her swell again. All eight of these girls were brave enough to try and get Mina out of her room, knowing there was a chance she’d turn them all down to remain in the comfort of her room. In little over a week, they all expressed their genuine affection for her and never made her feel like she had to change anything; they simply encouraged her to spend time with them, slowly getting her used to stepping out and enjoying herself. It’s overwhelming, really, thinking about all the support she’s had right here in the dorms. Mina’s only regret is that this didn’t happen earlier.

She feels a hand slip into hers. Sana smiles at her, and it’s a questioning one. She must’ve seen Mina’s faraway look and gotten worried.

“I’m okay.” She squeezes Sana’s hand reassuringly and turns to look at the chaos at the table. “Just thinking about how much I love you girls.”

Dahyun overhears Mina and smiles widely, waving her chopsticks in the air. “We love you too, Mina!” A chorus of affection follows soon after, each voice honest and happy. 

Normally, when all eyes are on Mina, she feels nervous, sweaty, like whoever is looking at her is expecting something from her. 

This time, she feels none of that. She feels safe, cared for and loved.

THE END!!!!!!!!!

This is theeee first multi-chap series I've ever finished in my life! Literally all my other series are either hiatus or still incomplete, so this feels...good! Tell me your fav moment in the comments or tell me about ships that would have been good endgame options too!!! I'd love to hear your opinions :D

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