Haseul sat on one of the university's pavilions and opened her notebook. She flipped past her notes from her psychology, law, and social sciences class, and stopped on a blank page.

It was lunch break, and she had to wait at least a few minutes til her girlfriend gets dismissed from class, so she decided to do something, that someone told her to do, as she waited.

"Why don't you draw a tree?" She recalls her seat mate, Jinsol, suddenly say out of the blue. "You know, like, even just one made out of lines or something."

And she recalls staring at her seat mate in disbelief and curiosity, as if urging her to continue with a much expounded context.

"The tree represents your love for your girlfriend." It was just one statement but it made Haseul guffaw and cringe. Sure, she loves her girlfriend very much, but she never once thought she would actually consider doing something sweet and symbolic like that.

So after shaking her head to clear her mind from being internally flustered from such a cringeworthy idea, she lightly laughed as she aired a question. 

"Why a tree?"

"Why not?" Jinsol nonchalantly answers, as if it was the answer Haseul was looking for. 

So Haseul decides to play along with what Jinsol was doing, just to satisfy her curious mind as to why Jinsol would suggest her to do something sentimental like that.

"Okay, but... what kind of tree then?" 

"Any kind of tree would work, it's not about the kind anyway." Jinsol says. "You see, the body of the tree represents your love for your girlfriend."

Haseul nods, as if taking a mental note on what Jinsol was saying.

"The roots represent all the reasons what got you interested in her before you two started dating. Knowing you, the roots would probably be a lot." Haseul was about to argue that fact, but Jinsol continued. "Draw one root for each reason."

"I see..." Haseul says with squinted eyes, which prompted the taller girl to chuckle. "What's next?"

"The branches." Jinsol says, again, stating the obvious. "Draw one for each time she makes you more in love, or whenever you find something about her that's admirable."

"... I'd need a big paper then..?" Haseul grins as she says so, making Jinsol nod and laugh in agreement. 

The taller girl puts a hand on Haseul's shoulder, which was then a cue for Haseul to take her seat mate seriously (even though she can never take Jinsol seriously for a hundred percentage). 

"It's symbolic, you know?" Jinsol says, and Haseul murmurs a soft "I know."

"In real life, trees can be taken down by strong winds and big typhoons. It can take down branches, just like how problems between you two can make you feel distant to your love for her." The statement made Haseul temporarily stop from wanting to cringe. 

Somehow, without Jinsol finishing her explanation, Haseul already knew what her seat mate would say next.

"You're right..." Haseul mumbles. "But sometimes, a little rain is what would make the tree grow more... Like learning from mistakes..?"

"Yup! And you know... even if trees can be completely taken down and lose all of their branches, there's always the roots underneath... A reminder that no matter how damaged it may be, it can still continue to grow with a little patience, and lots of love."

It made Haseul smile. Right now, she can imagine a prosperous tree with leaves of a rich, green hue.

Jinsol gave her a reassuring smile. "Based from the baggies under your eyes, I can only infer you've been up late recently from overthinking things."

The shorter girl gave a guilty chuckle. "Perhaps, I have..."

"But you're strong!" Jinsol cuts her off with much more conviction; at least Haseul could see hints of motivation from within. "I know your love will outgrow those doubts, and will make your tree grow beautifully. Just always remember why you planted that tree in the first place."

With pursed lips, Haseul nods in agreement.

She truly loves her, genuinely cares for her, and she loves all the little things Jungeun does, no matter how dumb some may be.

With that in mind, Haseul believes that no strong wind can take down the roots of this relationship. At least on her side, she won't let it.

In the middle of drawing a tree, Haseul heard footsteps approaching her — pace increasing as it gets nearer.

"Wow, is that a tree?" Jungeun hugs Haseul from behind, as gently as she could so her girlfriend wouldn't be too disturbed to the point that she might ruin the drawing.

"Mhmm." Haseul hums in response.

The other girl then sits down beside Haseul, staring at the paper. 

"Why is there a lot of space at the top? Why is the tree so small in contrast to the space?" Jungeun animatedly speaks, eyebrows furrowed as she pointed the blank spaces. "Use all of the space! Trees get cut down to produce paper like that, so don't waste it!"

"I'm still making the tree grow, love."

Jungeun playfully punches Haseul's arm, laughing as she did. "Yeah, right!" 

The way Jungeun laughed and how she reacted was truly endearing to Haseul. It was what made Jungeun herself. 

With a small smile, Haseul drew another branch. "See? It grew!"

"Whatever~" Jungeun jokingly rolled her eyes. "Aaah, you're cute."

"Mhmm, and to me, you're cuter."

"And to me, you're the cutest." Jungeun attempts to cover Haseul's mouth to prevent the latter from continuing the endless chain of outdoing the other.

The older girl avoided the attempt as she softly giggled.

It made Jungeun smile. "Be my valentine?"

"Very funny, miss Jungeun."

"Hey, I'm serious." Jungeun crosses her arms over her chest, to put more emphasis on her statement.

"Ahh, you are?" Haseul hid the fact that somehow, it made her heart flutter. "Okay, I'll be your valentine."

Haseul closed her notebook. Jungeun stood up from the bench, as Haseul kept her notebook inside her bag.

"Let's go, let's have lunch!"

Haseul nods and takes Jungeun's hand into hers as they started walking.

"Maybe I can help you in coloring that tree when you finish drawing it." Jungeun continues.

Haseul sighs dreamily. 

"Oh, love. 

"I don't even know if I'll ever be done with it."