“Don’t say anything weird in front of her later,” Eunbi frowns as they go up in the elevator. 

“What, what kind of person do you think I am?” Yewon chuckles.

“I mean, I know, it’s just— weird. That you’re here and you’re the only one who knows that…”

“That you have this huge crush on her? Yeah,” Yewon laughs as she completes the sentence for Eunbi, who is feeling strangely uneasy it amuses the both of them.

Eunbi clicks her tongue as she narrows her eyes at Yewon. “See, this kind of stuff. But okay, I know you won’t do anything weird.”

The elevator door opens and Eunbi leads Yewon to their apartment.

“Unnie, we’re here,” Eunbi calls once the door is unlocked.

Yuna emerges from the hallway, “Ah, annyeonghaseyo!”

Yewon greets Yuna with a smile and a small bow, “Annyeonghaseyo!”

“We finally meet,” Yuna chuckles, “Eunbi mentions you a lot.”

“Likewise,” Yewon laughs as well.

“Really?” Yuna raises her eyebrows in surprise.

“Kim Yewon…” Eunbi shakes her head and heaves a sigh.

“I hope there aren’t complaints about living with me,” Yuna continues as they seat themselves down on the sofa. Yewon shakes her head and they chuckle. Eunbi returns from the kitchen with a jug of water and some cups.

“Do you two ever fight?” Yewon asks, curious.

“Well,” Yuna stifles a small chuckle, “what do you expect from two girls living together?”

“And it’s this Hwang Eunbi you’re living with,” Yewon wrinkles her nose as she answers. The two girls share a burst of laughter. 

“Kim Yewon!” Eunbi huffs, narrowing her eyes at her friend.

“So, I hear from Eunbi that you’re teaching,” Yuna starts the conversation.

“Yeah,” Yewon nods as she takes a sip of water, “been teaching for a few years now, I think I started one or two years after graduating?”

“Oh, I see,” Yuna answers, “How’s that going? How are your students?”

“Well, kids,” Yewon says and the three of them laugh.

“Fancy hearing you talk about kids like that,” Eunbi chuckles, tickled by Yewon’s expression.

“Well, it’s only since I started teaching that I realise how nice it is watching children grow, though we only see them for an hour a week, sometimes that goes on for a few years and we see them go from preschool to middle school, go from playing Ode to Joy to Chopin waltzes,” Yewon’s eyes trail as she talks, “it’s not much, I guess, the impact we leave in their lives, unless they really come to love music or the instrument they’re learning, but it’s worth so much to us when we think about it sometimes.”

Yuna nods, her lips pressed together in a thoughtful smile. “Well, it can be a handful to get them to practise sometimes, but as you said, it can be pretty rewarding. Seeing them upgrade from 1/16 cellos since they were children to the full-sized ones when they progress into puberty, and unfortunately dropping lessons because they cannot handle it with the rigour of high school especially if they’re aiming for national universities,” Yuna ends with a pitiful chuckle.

“Oh, that’s a pity, really, is that what brought you here?” Yewon asks, to which Yuna nods, “well, I’ve lost many students along the way as well, yes, the education system is terrible.”

Eunbi and Yuna nod in agreement. “Well, at least there’s an alternative for people like us,” Yuna says.

“Sometimes I just feel so lucky, to have had the chance to learn the piano since I was a kid, excel in it, and still have the option of switching to the clarinet due to my temperamental shoulder, and still being able to progress in it to make it into my career. It makes me feel fortunate, yet guilty sometimes,” Eunbi voices, to no one in particular.

“Well, everyone has worked hard or gone through difficulties to get themselves to where they are now, haven’t they?” Yewon says before a reflective silence falls upon them. Have I? Eunbi asks herself, releasing a soft sigh, inaudible through her nostrils.

“We should get dinner soon,” Eunbi suggests when the sky starts to lose the colour of the sun.

“Yeah,” Yewon nods, “I’m hungry,” she laughs.

“You guys can go ahead, I think I’ll have to stay the night to practice for the week’s ballet lessons,” Yuna says.

“Oh, oh no,” Yewon frowns.

“You’ll still have to eat something though,” Eunbi scowls as she stands herself up. Making her way to the kitchen, she checks on the stocks in the refrigerator, “Well, there are still some side dishes in here, you can cook some rice and stuff,” she says from the kitchen.

“Yeah, I’ll do that, thanks,” Yuna smiles at the gesture. 

“Or should we get something back for you along the way?” Eunbi is still unsettled.

“No! It’s alright, you two can go have fun, don’t need to worry about coming back early for me to have my dinner,” Yuna is rather assertive.

Eunbi eyes Yuna, a grimace on her lips. “Please remember to eat,” Eunbi’s speech is somewhat weary, laced with concern.

Yuna wants to frown; she wants so hard to shake Eunbi and ask what is up with her and her recent behaviour that confuses and frustrates Yuna, but she doesn’t.

“I don’t forget to eat!” Yuna laughs anyway, “Don’t worry,” she adds, giving her words subtle emphasis, the words carrying the weight of the myriad thoughts that run in her mind about the new Eunbi. Yuna stands up and walks over, giving Eunbi a few rubs on her arm when she reaches the kitchen. 

Eunbi pushes the corners of her lips with little effort in a minimal attempt to smile. Yewon watches from the living room and beams, heartened by the way the housemates care for each other.

“Alright, then we’ll go eat?” Eunbi asks, making her way back to the living room.

“Sure, let me use the washroom for a bit?” Yewon asks, to which Eunbi points her the way. “I got it, thanks,” she smiles before going in.

Eunbi and Yuna settle on the couch in the living room again. “You seem busy, I hope your schedule isn’t tiring you out,” Eunbi breathes.

Yuna shakes her head. “It’s okay, I am grateful for my growing number of students too, since it’s what I’ve come to Seoul for. But,” Yuna her lips, wondering whether it’s right to reveal the rather new decision she has only been considering for a while at the back of her mind, “I might stop playing for the ballet school soon.”

“Oh,” Eunbi keeps her response mild, despite the unexpectedness. She doesn’t find it surprising, however, seeing the logic behind this consideration.

“Yeah, I haven’t thought about it much, but it crossed my mind once and since I didn’t completely shut it down I feel like I may be going in that direction. Well, it wasn’t meant to be permanent either, when I found the job before even settling in Seoul, and I think it’ll be a long consideration over the next few months. Next year,” Yuna ends with a soft chuckle.

“I see,” Eunbi nods, “But it’s okay, you should take your time too. In the decision, or in anything. There’s no rush at all,” she presses her lips into a smile.

Yuna nods, “Yeah,” she breathes, “thank you.”

Eunbi widens her eyes. “What for?” 

Yuna doesn’t answer but smiles. Eunbi thinks she understands too, and tries to reciprocate the smile. When they turn away, both realise the peculiarity in the atmosphere, that perhaps has been haunting them since their candid conversations in the afternoon, or perhaps even before, the girls don’t know. Perhaps since Eunbi has stopped being the Eunbi Yuna first knew, Yuna thinks.

Yuna watches as Eunbi's eyelids quiver a little, unsettling, yet not out of alarm. She thinks again about Eunbi's words, gestures, behaviour and character, since the mid-autumn holiday, replaying scenarios in her head like a videotape that she has watched countless times. She realises how weighted and seemingly excessively thoughtful Eunbi's actions have been in recent days, unlike when they have first met. Not that she wasn't considerate, but Yuna now sees that in her responses, each action seems to bear hidden burdens, calculated consciously and conscientiously.

For how long have things been different? Yuna tries to find an answer as she asks herself, and in the process of searching for one, she finds her heart overwhelmed; her breaths shorten as her hands curl up into fists.

"You've changed, Eunbi yah," she decides to say, softly, in an expressionless tone as she turns to face Eunbi.

Yuna tries to study Eunbi’s response as Eunbi inhales and almost gasps. 

Have I? Eunbi asks herself, and she realises so. Months ago, I would have asked this out loud and laughed. 

Eunbi exhales now, as if releasing a chuckle, and her lips curve into a smile. "Perhaps so." Eunbi wants to think about it; she thinks she knows why. 

Yuna finds a knot in her chest loosening, but the racing of her heart tells her that they’ve only just begun unpacking something that will eventually unfold before them.

“I’m sorry,” Eunbi says softly. She doesn’t know why she has felt like apologising, but something inside her seems to be pointing a blaming finger at herself.

The apology takes Yuna aback. “No, no,” she shakes her head. Yuna knows that eliciting an apology is the last thing she wants to do to Eunbi. “I’m sorry I said that. You’re good, we’re good.”

Are we? Both girls want to ask; but somehow, in their hearts, something tells them to believe in Yuna’s words. An unknown source of strength gives them both the ability to have faith despite the fuzziness that lies before them.

“Thank you, unnie,” it is now Eunbi’s turn to express gratitude.

Yuna has a soft yet heavy smile on her lips when she shakes her head and says, “No, Eunbi yah. Always.”

Yewon waits in the hallway when she sees the housemates sharing a brief yet tight hug.

a/n: hello! it's been a while right? i actl wrote the bulk of this chapter around the time i updated the last, which was why i thought i would update again very soon,,, but i couldn't find the time to complete it until now because the semester got really crazy. now we're on winter break so i hope to be able to use some time to update/bring you guys more works! i'm not that satisfied with this chapter tho i hope the update finds you well. been really inactive on twitter too so i really haven't seen you guys in a while haha hope everyone has been doing fine! i'll hope to update soon!