"Yuri, Hyewon, this place is... Glorious." Eunbi declared in awe.

"It really is," Yuri replied while looking around. "It's a surprise I didn't notice it when I was a child."

It is already 2 in the evening when the squad arrived at their destination. It is a mansion painted with silver on the outside. And when they went inside, the house is just surreal. Antique furniture, paintings, and sculptures from famous artists, gold cabinets, fancy chandeliers, and a large staircase... Everything screams luxury.

"Our grandparents worked very hard to buy this property so that they can give this to us," Hyewon said, matter-of-factly. "It's saddening that we stopped going here because of some financial problems. But now, I'm sure that our grandparents are happy seeing that Yuri and I are back."

Then, as if on cue, Yuri caught a glance of an old man walking from the storage room.

"Ahjussi!" She called. 

The two hamsters ran and hugged the guy.

"Welcome home, Ms. Jo, Ms. Kang!" The man greeted them enthusiastically. "The house missed you two."

"We missed it, too," Hyewon answered. "Wait, why so formal, ahjussi? It's like you never took care of us as a child during Christmas time."

The old man chuckled. "Sorry, I thought you wouldn't want me to call you on your nicknames."

"Why would you think of that?" Yuri asked. "Here, let me introduce them to you, ahjussi."

She got hold of the old guy's arms and pulled him to their group of friends.

"Guys, this is Byungjoon-ahjussi, the caretaker of the house." The hamster introduced. "He also took care of Hyewon and me when we're little."

The other girls smiled and bowed politely. 

"It's great to see that these two grew up well and they now have many friends." The man said gently. "Wait, what are you going to do here again?"

"About that," Hyewon chimed in. "We're having a two-day vacation here in the province, ahjussi. We are staying here at the mansion for today and then we hit the streets tomorrow."

"I see," The man responded. "What do you want to eat then? I might need to go to the main market to buy the ingredients-"

"Oh, no, no..." Yuri declined. "Don't worry about us. We can buy and cook food on our own. You've already done so much for the past years, we can handle ourselves, ahjussi."

The man just stood there, moved and smiling.

"One question though," The hamster said. "Can we still use the back door? We want to get to the swimming pool as fast as we can."

"To the where?" Chaewon interrupted.

"Yuri and Kwangbae used to think that the sea is their swimming pool that's why."

"Wait, did I heard it right..." Sakura wondered. "Kwangbae!? Hyewon's nickname is Kwangbae-"

"It's so hot in here, we should go to the pool right now," The girl tried to stop the ruckus about her. "Just drop your luggage there, I'll go now, Bye!"

And she ran to the back door, causing all of her friends, including her cousin, to break into laughter. They decided to change into their rashguards and followed Kwangbae.

***********

"Good thing I wore my swimming outfit underneath my clothes," Hyewon said, trying to float in the sea. 

Yena smirked. "You made a good decision, Kwangbae."

Hyewon was flustered. She splashed the salty water to the duck. "Yah! This is the reason why I don't want you guys to know."

"It's true," Yuri agreed, scribbling letters in the sand. "The first day I went to Enozi she told me to stop calling her that in public."

"Yuri-ah! I thought you're on my side!" Hyewon shouted.

Eunbi is far away from them but she can hear her friends teasing each other. She can't help but laugh at their antics. 

"Hey, is there a problem?" Her attention is diverted when Chae sat beside her. She just got off the water and is wiping herself with a towel.

"Huh? What did you say?" Eunbi asked.

"I noticed you're too far from us. We are all enjoying the waves but you're just sitting here. Is there a problem?" Chae repeated her question.

She casually reached Kwon's hair and tucked it gently on her left ear.

"I'm fine, don't worry," Eunbi responded. She doesn't know that Chae can see her fidgeting. Her girlfriend scooted closer.

"I know you're confident in lying but you're not really good at it, you know," Chaeyeon said, grabbing Eunbi left hand. "What's wrong, love?"

Kwon let out a deep breath. There's no escape in Chae's eyes.

"I'm actually... scared of the sea."

"Really? I don't know that," Chaeyeon said in a concerned tone, rather than a surprised one. "Since when?"

"Well, we haven't really talked about our phobias. My parents are so busy taking pictures of Wonyoung building a sandcastle, they forgot about me. I just watched 'Little Mermaid' back then and I thought I can be a mermaid so I kept on swimming until I got on the deep part."

"Good thing that my father is also a professional diver so he was able to save me. Since then, I was scared of even setting foot on the shore. I thought I'm done with it and I can handle it now that I'm all grown up... I guess not."

Silence. Chae suddenly stood up.

"Do you trust me?" She asked, reaching out for older's hand.

Eunbi chuckled at her girl's cheesiness. "Is that you, Aladdin?"

"You can say that," Chae jokingly replied. "Let me show you a whole new world."

Kwon grinned, gave her hand to Chae and stood up. "What kind of world, miss?"

"A world with me."

And Chaeyeon ran and pulled Kwon to the sea. Eunbi was numbed by the adrenalin that she didn't realize she's already on the water. As soon as she looked, she felt the fear again.

"I-I'm scared," Eunbi said, hugging Chae and closing her eyes. "I-I don't want to drown-"

"No, no, you won't... Babe, I'm here," Chae tried to comfort her. She caressed her cheeks, making Eunbi slowly open her eyelids.

The feather smiled. "See? You don't have to be scared... I won't leave you here."

Their faces are only an inch closer when...

"We're here, you know!" Wonyoung said, even waving at them.

"Guys, look at Chaeyeon," Hyewon pointed. "She's frowning 'cause she missed the perfect chance-"

"Shut up!"

All afternoon, the only thing you can hear at the shore is what seems like endless teasing and laughter. This, somehow, made Eunbi feel at ease. For once, she forgot about her phobia. She looked at her squad, splashing around, having fun. She then discovered that aside from her fear of the sea, there is something more that scares her.

In this world where nothing is permanent...

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... She's scared of saying goodbyes.

***********

"Umm, Minju..." Wonyoung started. "Can we talk for a moment?"

After their fun swimming, it's time to go home. Kwon, as the oldest, divided the tasks they need to do. Yuri, Yena, and Hyewon are in charge of going to the market. Chaewon and Yujin are on the garden, setting up the grill and stove. Minju and Wonyoung are tasked to clean the plates and utensils. Sakura and Nako are assigned to fix the bedroom they will use while Eunbi and Chae are the ones in charge of cooking.

"Hmm?" Minju replied. She stopped washing the plates and turned to the tall girl. "What is it?"

"I... just want to apologize about what happened in the hospital," Wonyoung said. "I should be more sensitive about your feelings and I shouldn't have told you those words. I was just driven by my emotions that-"

"You don't have to say sorry," Minju answered, leaning on the kitchen counter. "You did nothing wrong. To be honest, you actually knocked on some sense to my brain."

Wonyoung slowly nodded. 

"The one that you love fighting death because of someone's fault... If I were in your place, I would be mad, too."

"W-What do you mean?" Wonyoung asked. "Y-You... Know?"

"Yes, I know that you love her the same way as I do."

For a second, Wonyoung's brain malfunctioned.

"W-What? H-How?"

"It's obvious... From the way you smile at her, the way you took care of her, and the drive to always make her happy. It's clearer than water that you love her, too."

Wonyoung remained quiet. This is going to be more awkward, she thought.

"Are you mad?"

Minju shook her head. "I'm not mad, I never did. There's nothing to be mad about, anyway."

"B-But I tried to-"

"Make a move?" Minju continued her sentence. "Wonyoung, you did that after we broke up and not while we're together. Also, a person trying to get the others attention, isn't that normal? I think that it's just bad if that person is with somebody. And that time, we're not. I felt a little jealous deep down, I'll admit. And that made me think that maybe, just maybe, I still have feelings for Yujin."

Wonyoung stood there, analyzing everything.

"Actually... I should be the one apologizing."

The tall girl stared at the other gal's face, confused. "What? Why?"

Minju let out a sigh. "I'm sorry if I'm one of the reasons why you're hurting right now. I know how hard it must be for you, and believe me, I don't want this to happen, too. I'm just... I'm so sorry."

"No, no, you don't have to," Wonyoung said, stepping closer. "You're not guilty of anything. You're just loving her as I do... And she chose you. I just want you to promise me something. Promise me that you'll love her twice as much."

"You don't even have to ask me," Minju said smiling faintly. "I know it looks like I'm still not deserving of Yujin's love, but I promise to give her everything I can... That's what I can promise."

"That's good to hear then," Wonyoung answered, smiling. "So, we're okay now, right? Finally, officially, friends?"

Minju nodded and thumbs up. "Of course, we do."

The tall girl just looked at Minguri. Even after everything, she stayed to be happy and continued her life as if nothing happened. Maybe that's one of the reasons why Yujin loved her. Her heart is so forgiving... so loving... so powerful.

"I'm sure you can find your happiness one day, no doubt." Minju declared.

"Actually, someone is knocking on my heart right now," Wonyoung shared to the lass, looking at the small girl through the open door of the bedroom. "And now that I've started to let go..."

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"I think I'm now ready to give it a chance."

************

"I'm so full right now," Yena commented, rubbing her stomach. "That steak is so good."

"It is," Yujin second the motion. "Chaeyeon and Kwon, the most powerful cooking couple."

"But honestly though," Hyewon joined the conversation. "The first time you told us that you have a girlfriend, I thought you're just pranking us. I mean, who would have thought that you will have a girlfriend before me?"

"You're kinda right, I'm a lot more awkward thank you back then," Chae agreed. "It's good to know about that. We've been friends for so long but you just told me that now."

An imaginary bulb lit up inside Yena's mind.

"Hey, guys!" She called the others. "Let's play a game of truth or truth."

After the squad has circled in the garden, Yena spun the bottle immediately. 

"Hyewon!" The duck exclaimed. "Who do you want to ask?"

"Hmm... I choose Kwon." she replied, gathering an 'oooohhhh' from the other girls. "What would you do if your parents will know about you and Chae? I mean, why did you hide it anyway?"

"My parents are very strict, that's why. They're also scared about things that may ruin their name."

"Same, girl, same," Sakura side-commented, receiving a chuckle from the others. 

"I hid it to my parents because I'm scared of what they can do. I also hid it from Wonyoung because I don't know if she can keep a secret well. And about the first question..."

Chaeyeon can see how Eunbi is having a difficult time so she decided to answer it for her.

"Eun doesn't have to worry about her parents finding it out from other people," Chaeyeon replied. "I'll go to them next week."

The whole squad, even Kwon herself, is startled at Chae's answer.

"W-What did you-"

"I'm tired of hiding, Eun. I want to love you freely, and if that means that I should tell your parents personally, then I will. I want to prove to them that I have the courage... Because only brave knights get to be with such a brave princess."

"Chae..." Eunbi muttered before hugging her girl.

Wonyoung, on the other hand, high-fived the YouTuber. "Now that's what my sister deserves."

After that, they continued playing.

"Your turn to ask, Yuri," 

"Yujin... Have you ever thought of giving up on Min? Or maybe finding someone other than her?"

Minju froze to her seat and secretly shared glances with Wonyoung, asking through their eyes if she should stop the question. The tall girl gave her a faint smile and lightly shook her head.

"Well, I did think of giving up, but I didn't look for someone other than my Minguri. I'm loyal, ya know," Yujin kiddingly answered. "Next, please."

"Our Wonyoungie!" Yena beamed. "Who and what do you want to ask?"

Cricket sounds.

"Wonyoung, you're just going to ask anything," Yena reminded her yet she's still silent.

"Maybe we should just skip her," Nako suggested. "She can-"

"Since when?" Wonyoung suddenly asked.

"What?"

"You told me before that you like someone. Since when Nako-chan?" Wonyoung said, glaring directly at Nako. 

The short girl reciprocated the gesture.

"Ever since the beginning."

Wonyoung tried to hide her panic but her eyes tell a different story. 

"At first, I thought it's normal. You know, just friends. Then, time passed by and... Feelings grew. I don't know how, I don't know exactly when, but it just passed on my mind like 'I think I like her'. But just like how every story goes, she loves someone. And I tried to support her, to push her, because I thought that it will make her happy, but it didn't. All it did to her is to hurt her every time."

"Did you confessed to her?" Chae asked, getting curious about the girl's story.

"I did, actually. But when I told her what I really felt, she's still confused, so I gave her time."

Chaewon added another question. "But are you willing to sacrifice your friendship for love?"

"I don't think it will come to that state. I know her, I know that she's just surprised. She won't throw away our friendship just because I confessed to her. And if ever that happens, I'll choose friendship. I'd rather love her secretly than shouting that I like her but she's far away from me."

The squad was left in awe. They don't know that Nako has this romantic side.

"Tell us, who's the girl?" Yujin snickered.

"I already answered three questions, so nope," Nako said, zipping .

"How about you Wonyoungie? Who's the girl?" Yena continued the interrogation.

The tall girl blushed. "I-I'm just going to wash hands." 

"Hey, come back here!" Hyewon yelled when Wonyoung stood up and ran back inside. "Wonyoung!! Wonyoungie-"

"Quiet, Hye!" Chaewon said in a controlled voice. She showed her phone to everyone. "Hii's calling."

The musician tried to silent the group but she really can't. Yujin, Hyewon, and yena are already teaming up on wrestling poor Nako just to make her confess.

"Chaewon, just go inside the bedroom, you'll get peace there," Eunbi advice and the pink-haired girl just followed. 

Kwon just looked at the chaos happening in front of her. Not gonna lie...

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She'll miss it.

************

"You're on a vacation trip!?" Hiichan's voice boomed in the room.

"Yes, we're at Yuri and Hyewon's family's resthouse," Chaewon replied. "We went for a swim today and then tomorrow, we're going to the lighthouse."

"That sounds fun, wish I was there," The cheerleader said in a frustrated tone. "I miss you guys so much. I... I miss you so much."

Chaewon can't help but smile. "I miss you, too."

"I want to be with you all again but I don't think I can," Hiichan said.

"But you're going back here, right? You promised me."

"Yes, I will, I won't forget that. But it's still 1 year from now, it's too long." Hitomi whined like a baby.

"Don't worry, we'll meet again. I know we will." Chaewon declared confidently.

Actually, she already talked with Hyewon, Sakura, and Yena if she can come to Japan with them since it's the venue of the Gaming Championship. Fortunately, it is allowed to bring a plus one in their overseas contest. 

"Promise?" 

"Promise, Ms. cheerleader..."

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"I can't wait to see you again."

***********

Eunbi is now at the veranda, looking down at the sea. She's still can't believe she was able to face her fear. She was then shocked when she felt arms hugging her from the back.

"What's the matter, Eun?" Chae asked. Kwon turned around to face the girl.

"Nothing, y'all are just so noisy at the garden I have to get some peace of mind," She answered, wrapping her arms around the girl's neck.

Chae shook her head. "I know something's bothering you since earlier. You can't lie to me, love. What is it?"

Silence. Eunbi doesn't know how to explain.

"Are you scared?" Chae questioned. She made eye contact with the older and she knew that it is the problem. "Why? What are you so afraid of?"

"I don't know... Goodbyes?" Kwon replied, playing with her girl's hair. "I'm the only one who graduated in our group. That means that I'll transfer school, look for new friends, miss the new inside jokes, and I probably won't be able to meet you and the other girls almost every day. How can I adjust to that? I'm not friendly or clingy before... But now, I can't even eat outside the school without inviting any of you. I'm scared about all of that."

"There's nothing to be scared of, Eun. We will not forget you. Yes, you'll spend lesser time with us but that's okay. We understand it."

Eunbi slowly nodded. Chae then got hold of her hands.

"And just like what I told you earlier, you don't have to be scared, because we won't leave you...

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"I won't leave you."

***********

"What happened to you?" Wonyoung worriedly asked. 

"This is nothing... just had a wrestling match with three ladies," Nako said, drinking a glass of water she got from the ref.

"Why would they do that!?"

"Umm... Cause they want to know who I like?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere turned awkward. 

"D-Did you tell them?"

"Of course, not," Nako assured her. "I wouldn't do that to you. But thanks for the questions... At least I got to tell you what I feel for the second time."

Wonyoung looked down. Is it time to tell her?

"I should get going then! Go to sleep early... I know you're tired-"

"I'll take it." Wonyoung suddenly blurted. 

Nako was confused. "Wha-"

"I'll take the chance... About you and I," Wonyoung repeated. "I'm so focused on Yujin I didn't notice everything that you've been doing for me. And until now, you still continue making me smile. So, I decided to give it a shot. Don't worry, Nako-chan..."

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"My eyes are now on you."

************

"Hey, mermaid," Yujin called her girl, who is sitting near the shore. "What are you doing here?"

"Just thinking and stuff," Minju shortly replied. "A lot happened this school year."

"Yeah, right," The runner agreed. "We fight, we break up, we kiss, we make up~" 

"The use of that lyrics is quite brilliant," Minju kid.

"Thank you," Yujing said, standing and bowing as if she's performing on stage. She sat quickly after doing her skit. "Why look at me like that?"

"Thank you... for not giving up on me." The frog said, snuggling closer to the other gal. "Thank you for loving me."

Minju rested her head on Yujin's shoulder while the latter rested hers above Minguri's.

"I'm the one who should say that," Yujin said, looking at the sea in front of them. "You're the ever calm water, very soft, very kind. But for me? I'm the wave, so energetic and full of jokes and pranks."

"But you thought me to have fun..." Minju added.

Yujin smirked. " And you thought me to have fun but be mature enough, so thank you Minguri. Thank you for accepting me in your life again..."

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"And for waiting for me until I'm completely healed."

************

"That's the Polaris!" yena pointed at the bright star.

"No way that's it... It's not even a bright star, Yena." Yuri countered.

"Really? I guess my eyes are not that good anymore." 

After everybody left, they stayed in the garden. They laid and just watch the stars and the night sky above them.

"Who would've thought that I'll be here with you today?" Yuri said deeply.

"Why change the topic?"

"Nothing... I just thought that fate really is true. I mean, there are many stars in the galaxy, yet these are the ones chosen to be seen." The hamster answered. 

"Just like me. There are thousands of people who can attend to Enozi and meet a bunch of weirdos, create a mini-concert, got into a lot of drama, even kidnapped, and lastly, to be with you... Yet the universe chose me."

"You must have done something good in your past life," Yena replied. "Being with a Choi is a privilege, you know."

Typical Yuri rolled her eyes and released a 'tch'.

"Okay, okay, I'll be serious." Yena surrendered, throwing her hands up. "What you said really is true. And I'm happy..."

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"I'm happy that out of all people, they chose you."

Sometimes, we don't give much care about what we choose in life. Sometimes, we just let others do it for us. But we also have to think of what may happen next. Like what some people say, life is all about choices. We can't just decide on something based on fear, anger or any temporary emotions. We need to be careful in choosing the right thing to do. Who knows? Maybe a little decision...

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... Can be the Start of Something New.