“Someone’s in a good mood today,” Heeyeon called from the couch. “Did you get laid last night?” She asked while wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

“Not even. Last night was a mess,” Moonbyul said as she plopped herself next to her roommate.

“I love messes! Tell me more.” Heeyeon clicked off their television and turned excitedly to give the blonde her full attention.

Moonbyul told her everything that happened with Sunmi, from the KBL game all the way to what transpired after the party. She spared no detail. She never did with Heeyeon. When it came to these types of things, well, when it came to almost anything, really, these two were completely honest with each other. Moonbyul always gave Wheein and Hyejin a general overview of what was going on in her love life, but Heeyeon was the one person that knew everything.

“Pretty sure Sunmi hates me now.”

“As she should,” the ash-brown haired woman laughed. “You had to have seen that coming, Byulyi. She was all over you for a few weeks straight. She wanted you. It was obvious.”

“I really didn’t expect it, though. Don’t,” she started at the incredulous look on Heeyeon’s face, “don’t make that face. I’m being serious.”

“How did you not expect that?!”

“I just didn’t,” she shrugged. “She’s super rich and semi-Instagram famous. She could have whoever she wants. There was no reason for me to believe she’d be after me.”

“You’re the biggest, most well-known athlete at SNU, you’re most likely on your way to the Olympics, and you’re making a name for yourself in the world of international athletics. Not to mention you’re hot. Why wouldn’t she want you?”

“Doesn’t matter now,” Moonbyul sighed.

“Yeah, because you rejected her. I still can’t believe you did that,” Heeyeon thought out loud in disbelief.

“I can’t believe I did that either. She’s so hot, Heeyeon.” Moonbyul covered her face and mouth with her hands but continued speaking, voice muffled, “Why did I do that? with her is probably mind-blowing.”

“I bet. She strikes me as the freaky type. Very, very freaky. And it was part of your birthday celebration? Without question she would’ve let you do whatever you wanted to her.”

“Now you’re just rubbing it in.”

“That’s what she would’ve said.”

Moonbyul’s thoughts kept her company as Heeyeon left to her room for a few minutes before returning with her laptop in hand.

“Stop overthinking yourself to death. Let it go, it’s over, done. No point in dwelling on the past. Who knows? Maybe you’ll meet someone down the line who’s even freakier.”

“Doesn’t really matter. You know I don’t do the one-night stand thing,” she added forlornly.

“I don’t know, always felt like you’ve been putting too much pressure on yourself with that rule of yours. You’re young, live a little, y’know? If the only time you’re going to have is when you’re in a relationship or dating someone, you’re not going to have a lot of , Byulyi. Especially with how picky you are. You get tired of people too quickly for all that.”

“I’m not picky,” she grew defensive.

“Are you ting me? You lose interest in people so quickly and you turn the smallest things into a problem, but that’s another conversation. The point is, not everyone that shows interest in you even wants to be in a relationship. Some people just want to , and there’s nothing wrong with that. If both of you are on the same page and you think their interest in you is genuine, at least consider it as an option. Sunmi wasn’t wrong when she told you to let yourself have good things. Yes, she was referring to herself as the ‘good things’ you should have,” Heeyeon chuckled, “but the point remains. It’s okay if you indulge a little every now and then. That’s just my opinion, though. You do whatever you feel is best for you.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“You won’t.”

“I will.”

She took a minute to gather her thoughts before realizing that Heeyeon was hooking her computer up to their television.

“What are you doing?” She asked curiously.

“Going to watch some WNBA playoff games from last year. Want to join?” The two frequently watched games from men’s and women’s professional basketball leagues around the world. Russia, Spain, the United States, they didn’t care. If they could get their hands on some game film, they were more than excited to watch.

“For a little bit,” she responded, nose in her phone. “Have to head to Yong’s so we can finally talk about everything, but that’s not for another half hour. Which game are you watching first?”

Heeyeon didn’t respond, so she asked again. Once again, no response came. Moonbyul finally looked up from her phone to see the senior smiling cheekily at her.

“What?”

“Yong? That’s cute.”

“Shut up, Heeyeon.”

“Don’t roll your eyes at me. It’s cute that she lets you call her ‘Yong’ now. No more ‘unnie,’ huh? The two of you are that close?”

“All you do is ask about me and Yongsun-unnie. What about you and that man you were seeing?”

“Still seeing him,” she disclosed nonchalantly. “Not sure how much longer it’ll last, though. He seems to want things to become more serious, but I can’t handle that. Don’t have the time.”

“How can you say that so casually?” Byulyi asked, a little jealous at how easily her friend could detach herself from the emotions of relationships.

“I’m being honest. Between my studies, basketball, and graduate school applications, a relationship isn’t really on my mind. I don’t even know which country I’ll be living in a year from now, why would I start a proper relationship with someone?”

Heeyeon had been seeing a man named Kim Junsu for about four months. They met during one of her nights out. From what she had told Moonbyul, she thought it would be something casual, something that would have fizzled out. Four months later, it was still going.

She didn’t go out of her way to introduce him to any of her friends, but Moonbyul had met Junsu a few times. He seemed like a nice enough man that was super interested in Heeyeon. As long as he respected her friend, she was fine with him. Heeyeon could handle herself.

“Well, a wise friend of mine once said to do whatever you feel is best for you. Be safe with him and do what you need to. How are the applications going? Heard back from anywhere?” Heeyeon made the decision last year to apply to Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs both domestic and abroad. Moonbyul knew how challenging it was at times for her during the Fall semester—balancing a rigorous Business major, graduate school entrance exams, and travel for basketball was not an easy feat. She had done it, though, and within a couple weeks, she’d know if it all paid off.

“Haven’t heard back yet, but since I applied early, decisions should be coming soon. SNU is definitely my number one choice, but I’d be grateful to get in anywhere. Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“I’ll need you to give me tips to make the process go smoothly. Seriously considering going the graduate school route, too. MBA programs.”

“This girl can’t help but copy me,” Heeyeon playfully rolled her eyes.

“You caught me. I want so badly to be like you in every way,” Moonbyul deadpanned. “Except the part about you being straight. Yuck.”

“I had to have one flaw, otherwise I’d be perfect. Who knows though, that, too, may change. It’s 2:55 pm by the way. Almost time for your little chat with ‘Yong.’”

Moonbyul immediately got off the couch and headed to the shoe rack by their apartment door.

“Gotta blast.”

“You’re so whipped. Never thought I’d see the day.”

“I’m convinced you just say things to hear the sound of your own voice. How am I whipped because I want to be on time for a meeting with someone? Weirdo.”

“She’s not just ‘someone,’ she’s ‘Yong’. A year from now when you two are happily in a relationship, I’ll be sure to let you know that I told you so.”

“You’re a dreamer. You dream a lot. Anyway, don’t watch Phoenix vs. Seattle yet, I want to watch it with you. Pick another series.”

That was the last they spoke before the junior headed out.

*

Despite their last “talk” having gone awry, Moonbyul felt light on her walk over to Yongsun’s apartment. Optimistic. Their brief heart-to-heart during the party left her confident that they were both in this friendship for better or for worse. She knew that the graduate student cared about her, but she also couldn’t help at times feeling like a nuisance. Feeling like she was bothering her friend by always messaging and following after her. As such, Yongsun’s emotional outburst the day before had completely taken her by surprise. What it also did, though, was make Moonbyul feel a bit better about herself. She felt wanted and fully appreciated by Yongsun.

The door to the apartment creaked lightly as she eased it open. A short text was sent to Yongsun a few minutes ago instructing the older woman to leave the door ajar.

“Yoooooooong. Where are you?” The living room was empty. Yongsun had to be in her bedroom, but Moonbyul wanted to get her playfulness out while she still had the chance. She figured there’d be no room for it once they got down to business.

Not even three seconds passed before a wild-haired Yongsun emerged from the bedroom with wide eyes and lips quirked in surprise. “You’re here already?”

“I told you I’d be here in a few seconds.”

“You always say that, but you don’t always get here in a few seconds.”

“Yet you still left your door open for me.”

“Because you told me to.”

Her heart unexpectedly and instantly warmed at that statement. For all Yongsun knew, it could have taken Moonbyul another ten minutes to arrive, yet she still left the front door to her apartment open, no questions asked, because the athlete ‘told her to.’

“Come here.” The blonde pulled Yongsun to her, wrapping her arms around the shorter woman’s upper back as the brunette wrapped hers around Byulyi’s waist. A few beats later, Moonbyul pulled away a bit to run her fingers through the brunette’s hair. “What’s going on with this?” She asked softly.

Yongsun completely disentangled herself and headed to the living room couch. “I don’t know,” she pouted, “it’s been like this all day. It won’t be tamed.”

“It’s okay. It makes you look cuter.” A few light hits to her shoulder drew strong laughs from the athlete. An awkward silence filled the room once her laugh died down. “So . . . are we going to talk about everything? I don’t know where to start so I’ll follow your lead.”

The two were settled on the couch facing each other. Moonbyul noticed Yongsun’s lips twisted in contemplation, a sign that she’d need time to process her thoughts. The athlete’s attention turned instead to the muted variety show playing on the television. Yongsun would let her know when she was ready.

“We’re talking again and I don’t want to dwell on the past,” Yongsun started timidly, “but a lot of what happened frustrated me, Byulyi. As I said yesterday, I was really hurt.” She said all of this while playing with the hair tie on her wrist. The junior gestured for her to continue, so she spoke up again. “Look, I understand that I’m not your only friend or the only person you hang out with, and I get that you have a lot of other things to balance. That’s fine. It really is. But I ask that you respect my time like I respect yours. People ask me to hang out with them and I turn them down if I’ve already made plans with you. Sometimes they give me so much for it, but still I honor our commitments. It felt like I wasn’t getting that same consideration in return, like our friendship kept getting brushed aside in favor of this new relationship you have. I don’t know . . . I guess I felt like an afterthought, and that surprised me because I thought we were better than that. And then to top it off, after you reached out to me last week to talk about it, you came in making jokes like anything was funny. It felt like I was being taken lightly.”

Just as Yongsun’s outburst the day before had surprised Moonbyul, so, too, did the raw emotion in the older woman’s voice. By no means did she think things were fully resolved between the two of them—they were having this talk for a reason—but the way Yongsun had so easily slipped back into banter and physical closeness with her made Moonbyul think that the former was relatively removed from the emotions of everything. Clearly, she was wrong. The look on Yongsun’s face told her as much.

“Look, I’m sorry, Yong. I apologize.” The response was genuine, but she cringed at hearing herself say it. After everything Yongsun had said, how emotionally vulnerable and transparent she was, a simple ‘I’m sorry’ paled in comparison.

The brunette slowly nodded her head, acknowledging that she had heard Moonbyul, but gave no verbal response.

“I know that was weak,” she sighed, “but I am sorry. I don’t know, all of you started asking me about the Sunmi thing, but that wasn’t anything romantic. At all.” There were extremely valid explanations for what happened, and most of them had nothing to do with Sunmi. For whatever reason though, before getting into any of that, she felt compelled to clear up the nature of her relationship with the Communications major.

Moonbyul explained how they had met in the first place. She was having a conversation in the lobby of their building with one of the male security guards. Sunmi was passing by and momentarily interrupted the conversation to greet and joke with him—the guard later explained that they were close. He introduced the two of them and then the two-person conversation turned into a three-person conversation. During that chat, photography came up and the athlete mentioned that she had recently gotten serious about photography as a hobby. Sunmi disclosed that she was a model and that she’d be happy to introduce Moonbyul to some photographers she knew. That was it.

“After that day, I’d tag along to some of her photoshoots and she’d get some of her photographer friends to walk me through what they were doing and why. That’s all. That whole time I kept flaking on you or leaving early was a mess. Most of it had nothing to do with her. I wasn’t intentionally ‘brushing you aside,’ and it certainly wasn’t for any ‘new relationship’. There were a couple group projects I had, and because Coach kept making practice run longer than usual, I’d have to meet with group members later than originally planned, then that would cut into the time we were supposed to spend together. Other times, Sunmi would tell me last minute that she had a shoot, and I didn’t want to make a bad impression, especially since she was doing me a favor, so I’d say yes. That would cut into our time, too. It was a bunch of things that contributed to me having to leave so soon after getting to your place or cancel altogether. But I knew we were seeing each other less and I promise you that it was my intention to make it up to you once we got to winter break. I swear I was going to make it up to you.”

“Why couldn’t you just say that at the time? I would have understood. You make it seem like I’m some irrational person.”

“I didn’t want you to be mad at me.” A wry laugh from Yongsun interrupted her. “Yeah, I know. Ironic, but it’s the truth. I’m not the best at dealing with confrontation, which is not an excuse, I know that. In my mind, though, I was just trying to get through everything and hold onto enough of our friendship so that I could make it up to you later.”

Nerves ate her up as Yongsun simply stared at her stoically. It was impossible to gauge what the response would be, but she’d done what she could and told her truth. After what seemed like forever, the graduate student let out a deep sigh, eyes and voice softening.

“Instead of planning inside your own head to make it up to me, you could have told me about everything that was going on, Byul-ah.” More than anything, it seemed Yongsun was disappointed in her. That stung worse than had the brunette been upset with her again.

“I promise I will next time.”

“There better not be a next time,” she said sternly while maintaining eye contact.

“Yes, ma’am!” Byulyi exclaimed, playfully saluting her friend.

“You’re so annoying!”

“But you still love me,” she shrugged.

“Who said that?”

“Don’t do that. Tell me you love me, Yong.”

“I know nothing about that.”

Naturally, they got derailed and ended up bickering over the fact that Yongsun refused to tell Moonbyul that she loved her. Once they settled down—Yongsun still hadn’t said it—the athlete circled back to one of their earlier topics.

“You were right about Sunmi, though.”

“What about her?”

“She liked me.”

Yongsun rolled her eyes before dignifying that statement with a response. “Obviously.”

“Not to me! I thought it was all about photography and maybe making a new friend.”

“I thought it was all about photography and maybe making a new friend,” Yongsun mocked her. “Grow up, Byulyi.”

“I’m serious.”

“So all the pictures of you that she posted to her social media told you that she wanted to be friends only? Her throwing you a surprise birthday party after knowing you for a few weeks was friendship only?”

Moonbyul hadn’t told Yongsun about the KBL game and figured it’d only do more harm than good to bring it up now.

“Okay. I get it. After what happened after the party, I see what was really going on.”

“What happened?”

“Uh . . . nothing, really. I mean, nothing that was a big deal. She asked me to go back to her place, so I did. She gifted me a camera.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“What don’t you believe?”

“That she brought you to her place after one in the morning to only give you a camera. I’m not naïve, Byulyi. You do what you do with women, and that’s fine. There’s no need to lie about it.”

Seconds passed as Moonbyul debated how much of the truth she should tell. Even more passed as she wondered why she was contemplating not telling the full truth in the first place.

“She got on my lap and tried to kiss me, but I got her off of me before anything actually happened.” Technically, not a lie.

“She tried to kiss you?” Yongsun wasn’t buying it. The skepticism in her voice was clear. “You’re telling me Sunmi, a model, got on your lap at that time of morning, and no kissing happened? Nothing at all happened?”

“No kissing happened. Nothing at all happened.” Why she was lying, Moonbyul had no idea. It instinctively slipped out of and she couldn’t take it back now.

“Sounds fake.”

“I swear.” Why she was doubling down on something so trivial, she had no idea. All she could do now was hope this didn’t come back to bite her.

“If you say so,” she still sounded skeptical, but the athlete was relieved when Yongsun finally dropped it.

“What about you and Jinyoung? Not gonna lie, everything you said about that situation stung a bit.”

“Again, I’m sorry for that. I let my anger get the best of me and I lashed out. You don’t understand how frustrated I was with everything. It felt like I was suffocating and drowning in anger. I had no one to talk to about it since I usually go to you with stuff. Wheein and Hyejin had their studies and since they communicated that, I didn’t want to stress them out with this. Chorong hates you—sorry, she does—and Eric would have understood, but it would’ve been too embarrassing taking this to him. He certainly would have been helpful, I’m sure of it. Anyway, I don’t talk about Jinyoung with you because I know you don’t like him. You haven’t outright said it, but you always roll your eyes when he’s mentioned or do something else that expresses your dislike for him.”

“He’s boring. You can do so much better. Anyway, are the two of you dating?”

“No,” Yongsun immediately answered.

“Are you thinking of dating him?” Moonbyul hated this. She had no idea why Yongsun was wasting her time with that wet towel.

“I . . . am,” she responded cautiously.

“Go on,” Moonbyul encouraged her.

“Go on?”

“Tell me about him. As I said, he seems boring as hell, but you obviously like him, so,” she gestured with her hands and raised her eyebrows as if telling Yongsun to hurry up before she changed her mind.

“Really?” The amount of excitement in her voice was a double-edged sword. On the one hand, a happy Yongsun was always a highlight of Moonbyul’s day. On the other, if she got this excited to talk about Jinyoung, it meant she really liked the guy. That rubbed Moonbyul the wrong way.

Nonetheless, Yongsun crawled closer until she was snuggled close enough to lay her head on the athlete’s chest.

“So . . .” Yongsun started.

“So . . .” Moonbyul mimicked.

“He and I hung out earlier this week and I was nervous going into it, but then it got much more comfortable as it went on . . .”

She told Moonbyul everything she had wished she could tell her before. The younger women held her close while resting a head on the back of the couch.

They stayed in that position for a good amount of time, catching up on everything they missed in each other’s lives. For Moonbyul, things felt right again, back to normal.

*

To: Yongdunnie

Good morning! I hope that you slept well. Please make sure to eat all of your meals. Text me when you wake up 😊 8:55 am

With her and Yongsun’s argument a thing of the past now, Moonbyul began her day as she used to—with a text message to Yongsun. They had discussed the day before that Yongsun would be incredibly busy, so despite Moonbyul’s whining and attempts to change the older woman’s mind, the two wouldn’t be able to see each other at all today. Much to Byulyi’s dismay, their conversations would be limited to text messages.

As it stood, her Saturday would be uneventful, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. The basketball star had a good workout in the weight room then got some shots up at the practice facility. Upon leaving the shower room, she took her time getting dressed. No one else was around.

Her eyes were suddenly drawn to her locker, though, as the vibrations of her cell phone buzzed against the wooden surface. She adjusted her towel and headed over to see who was contacting her.

From: Yongdunnie

When you wake up 😊 12:15 pm

You told me “Text me ‘when you wake up 😊’” so I did. 12:16 pm

To: Yongdunnie

You know you’re not funny, right?

Like, at all. 12:16 pm

From: Yongdunnie

I thought it was funny :( Did you really not find it funny?

You don’t think it was witty? 12:17 pm

To: Yongdunnie

You’re cute. 12:18 pm

From: Yongdunnie

That’s a no then 😔 12:19 pm

To: Yongdunnie

It was funny, I was just messing with you.

Did you only now wake up? 12:20 pm

From: Yongdunnie

No, I woke up earlier, but have been running errands since. 12:21 pm

To: Yongdunnie

So you completely ignored my message until now. Got it. 12:21 pm

From: Yongdunnie

You know it’s not like that 🙄 12:24 pm

To: Yongdunnie

Leaving the gym for UV soon.

Need me to pick up anything for you? 12:25 pm

From: Yongdunnie

It’s okay. I’m not home, but thanks for asking. 12:26 pm

To: Yongdunnie

Okay :( 12:26 pm

From: Yongdunnie

Stop. I know you have a pouty face on right now. 12:27 pm

To: Yongdunnie

I do. Can we hang out tomorrow? Pretty please? 12:27 pm

From Yongdunnie

Obviously. Tomorrow’s your birthday.

You get whatever you want. 12:28 pm

To: Yongdunnie

😏 😈12:28 pm

From: Yongdunnie

Sorry, you sent that to the wrong person.

This is Yongsun, not Sunmi 😊12:30 pm

To: Yongdunnie

WOW! We’re joking about that now, huh? Good one.

Can I finally get my movie marathon, please? Long overdue. 12:31 pm

From: Yongdunnie

Your wish is my command. Movie marathon it is.

Have to go now, but I’ll message you a little later, okay? 12:33 pm

To: Yongdunnie

Okay :(

Be safe. Ttyl 😎 12:34 pm

Nineteen minutes. She’d been standing in front of her locker still wrapped in her towel texting back and forth with Yongsun for nineteen minutes. As the conversation was over for now, she quickly changed into her casual clothes and headed home.

The rest of the day was calm. She and Heeyeon revisited the Phoenix vs. Seattle WNBA series Moonbyul had made the senior promise to not watch without her. Once they completed that, they switched over to a k-drama they both needed to catch up on.

At around 10:00 pm, Heeyeon went to bed, claiming that she was exhausted. Moonbyul followed suit and fell asleep almost immediately.

*

Moonbyul wasn’t a light sleeper, but she wasn’t a heavy sleeper either. She could tolerate reasonable levels of light or noise—years of travel for sports had conditioned her to adapt to less than ideal sleeping situations. However, should her surroundings have excessive levels of sensory stimulation, she’d be affected. This was the case when she suddenly felt something tickling her nose. She had no idea how long it’d been going on for, but clearly long enough that it was now bothering her.

Swiping at her nose provided only a momentary reprieve before the sensation would resume. Despite her growing frustrations, though, Moonbyul was determined to not open her eyes. Whatever the source of the problem was would eventually resolve itself, she thought. Until she felt extra weight on top of her.

“What the !” She thrashed around, opening her eyes to find three figures outlined in front of her and something or someone still on top of her. Never in her life had fear consumed her so completely.

The lights to her room were suddenly . She was in the midst of her eyes readjusting when the song started.

“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Byulyiiiiiiii! Happy birthday to you!”

Cheers from Heeyeon, Wheein, and Yongsun broke out as she felt a kiss being placed on her cheek. It was Hyejin, who was still on top of her.

“You all are unbelievable! Why would you break into my room and scare the out of me? Hyejin, I was so close to hitting you.”

“Wow,” Heeyeon began, “that’s an odd way of saying ‘Thank you all so much for preparing this surprise so that you could celebrate my birthday exactly at midnight!’”

“Thank you all so much for preparing this surprise so that you could celebrate my birthday exactly at midnight,” she deadpanned.

“Ungrateful. Yongsun-unnie, you shouldn’t have planned this for her. She doesn’t deserve it,” Heeyeon said before turning to leave the room.

Byulyi didn’t even have time to respond to Heeyeon’s remark because she had to stop Hyejin from pulling her comforter off of her.

“She doesn’t have a shirt on! Only a sports bra! Wheein, come help me pull the covers off of her.” Wheein actually made a move to help before the birthday girl snapped at her.

“Wheein, if you help her, I swear!”

“Why is she acting like this, Hyejin? Unnie, we’ve seen you without your shirt before. What’s wrong with you?”

Moonbyul said nothing.

“Ohhhh, it’s because of Yongsun-unnie, right? You don’t want her to see you? Why not? You have a good body, unnie. Show it off.” The youngest smiled mischievously as she mounted the blonde like a koala.

“Hyejin, stop,” she whispered. “Seriously.”

“Unnie, your face is turning pink! You’re so cute.”

“Okay, okay, leave her alone, Hyejin. You and Wheein go help Heeyeon finish setting everything up.”

The two listened obediently and headed to the living room, Moonbyul assumed.

“Happy birthday, Byul-ah,” Yongsun smiled softly.

“You planned all of this?” The athlete asked in disbelief.

“All of us helped plan it.”

It took a minute before a thought hit her. “Wait, why are Hyejin and Wheein here? I thought they left for Jeonju on Friday? Hyejin said her dad was coming to pick them up.”

“He came to pick up their stuff. They’re taking the train home tomorrow.”

“So where are they staying? The school dorms closed on Friday night.”

“With me,” Yongsun laughed. “That’s why I avoided you yesterday. If you came over, it would’ve ruined the surprise. The three of us were going all around making sure we had everything ready.”

“I can’t believe you,” Moonbyul said in awe. Yongsun simply closed her eyes and smiled cutely in response.

“Can you two hurry up already?” Heeyeon yelled from down the hall.

“I’ll let you put some clothes on. Going to join them.”

The blonde quickly threw on a hoodie and sweatpants before jogging to the living room. There was chicken, pizza, a cake. She also noticed the bowl of seaweed soup sitting on the kitchen counter.

“Seaweed soup?!”

“Yeah, Yongsun-unnie made it,” Wheein explained. Moonbyul turned to look surprisingly at the eldest in the room, who was now sitting on the couch.

“You made it?”

“Yeah,” she bashfully responded. “My mom gave me instructions over the phone.” Seaweed soup on one’s birthday was a Korean tradition. Moonbyul’s mom had made it for her every year up until the previous one—the athlete was still on campus for her birthday last year. It was something small, but it touched her how thoughtful this gesture of Yongsun’s was. She immediately walked to the couch to pull the brunette into a tight hug.

“Umm, what about us?” Heeyeon asked. “All the rest of us have gotten so far is your attitude.”

“Let’s jump them,” Hyejin stated resolutely. And that’s exactly what they did. Wheein, Hyejin, and Heeyeon rushed to jump on top the other two for one big group hug.

“Okay, okay, you all are crushing her,” Moonbyul cautioned. Truthfully, she was taking most of the weight as best she could as she shielded Yongsun who was beneath her.

“Let’s get the presents from Heeyeon-unnie’s room then we can cut the cake,” Wheein exclaimed. The other three walked off but returned quickly.

“Open mine first!”

“The fact that you’re this excited, Heeyeon, makes me nervous.”

“I just want to get it over with,” she said handing over an envelope.

“Are you serious!” Moonbyul exclaimed after retrieving the card’s contents.

“What is it?” Wheein wanted to know.

“NBA League Pass. You seriously did that?!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Heeyeon waved her off. “It benefits me, too, so don’t get too excited.”

“Wow, you’re incapable of expressing positive emotions.”

“Look who’s talking.”

“That’s exactly why we’re best friends. Love you, ugly.”

“Love you, too, ugliest.”

“Sorry to interrupt the love fest,” Hyejin cut in, “What the hell is an NBA League Pass?”

“It’s like, a streaming service for all NBA games,” Moonbyul explained. “If you have it, you can watch any game that’s on, but they also all get archived, so you can go back to any game you want and you can even watch classic games from years ago.”

“So we don’t have to illegally stream NBA games anymore. We’re not going to go to jail!” Heeyeon happily screamed.

“Yayyy!” She and Moonbyul celebrated.

“Okay, weirdos. Open the gift from me and Wheein next.”

“Since you’re into photography now and you’re kind of serious about it, we got you this camera. It’s not fancy like the other one you got,” at that, both Wheein and Hyejin rolled their eyes, “but we still thought you’d like it.”

Peeking into the bag they handed her, Moonbyul chuckled. She walked up to both of them and planted a firm kiss on each of their cheeks. “You two are the best.” They bought her a digital polaroid camera—the Fujifilm SQ20 Instax Instant Camera.

“Now we’re the best, Wheein,” Hyejin spoke sarcastically.

“You’re always the best,” the athlete sweetly addressed the youngest of the group, pulling her into a hug and kissing her in the forehead.

“What about me?” Wheein pouted.

“Of course you get some, too.” The second youngest was usually scolding Moonbyul for her flirtatious ways, so it was a gift in itself that Wheein was so naturally receiving her affection today.

“Yongsun-unnie! Your turn,” Hyejin commanded.

“My gifts are kind of boring compared to everyone else’s,” she timidly shared. Lifting herself from the couch, she walked over to hand Moonbyul the gift bag.

“Ohhhh,” Wheein was excited at all the bag’s contents. “Hurry up, unnie, take it all out.”

As Moonbyul pulled each item out, Yongsun narrated. The junior first pulled out a rich brown leather laptop case. Her full name was engraved in beige. “Ah, that’s a laptop sleeve because I remember you lost yours a while ago and you’d been carrying your computer around unprotected and that’s not good for it, so . . . yeah. That’s why I got it.”

“And a . . . oh! Voucher for a massage?!” This one intrigued Moonbyul.

“You’re always sore because of all the training you do, but can never get a proper rest, so I figured a massage at a spa would do you well,” she shrugged.

“The rest of the bag is full of snacks.” Her favorite snacks, to be precise.

“Because you’re always hungry, so this way you can pack them in your bags and have something to snack on during classes and breaks.”

Moonbyul just stood there staring at Yongsun, who stared back, shy smiles adorning both of their faces. It was only seconds, but felt like minutes before Hyejin clapped her hands.

“Okay, you two are being awkward. Let’s cut the cake!”

Before Yongsun could walk off, Moonbyul grabbed her attention.

“You obviously didn’t buy these gifts last second. What were you gonna do with them if we still weren’t talking by today?”

The graduate student shrugged. “I probably would’ve given them to Wheein and Hyejin and told them to take the credit.”

“Hope you know I’m working overtime trying to figure out how to make this up to you.”

“Stop,” Yongsun delicately grabbed Byulyi’s forearm. “You don’t have to make anything up to me. We’re friends. I got you those gifts because you deserve them and that’s what friends do.”

“Okay,” the athlete softly tapped the brunette’s chin.

“Can the two of you please stop and come cut this cake.” Hyejin’s patience seemed to be running out.

*

The surprise celebration ended after three in the morning. Moonbyul wanted very badly to ask Yongsun to stay, but seeing as Wheein and Hyejin were staying with the eldest, she decided against it. All five had agreed to get some rest and meet later at Yongsun’s apartment for an all-day movie marathon.

The door to their apartment hadn’t been closed for even a moment when Heeyeon started with her nonsense.

“Byul. Look, I used to joke about it,” Moonbyul interrupted her with a tired sigh. “Just listen. The two of you are really cute.”

“I liked it better when we used to talk about things other than my love life.”

“You keep acting like you only care about her as a friend, but you didn’t see yourself sending heart eyes after she explained the gifts she got you. It was . . . intense.”

“I was grateful.”

“I’m sure you were,” she dryly responded. “If you were really only friends with her, you wouldn’t have lied to her about Sunmi.” The smug smirk on Heeyeon’s face irked her to no end.

“There was no point in getting into all of that. The Sunmi situation was over by then. If I told her everything, she’d think there was more going on with Sunmi than there ever was.”

“Maybe she would have been correct in assuming that.”

“No. She would have been wrong. The Sunmi thing is officially over.”

“Is it though?” At that, Heeyeon placed her phone in her roommate’s face. On the screen was the picture Moonbyul had posted an hour ago.

She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t expected it, but after cutting the cake, her friends smushed a huge piece into her face. It was undoubtedly planned, because Wheein appeared with the camera they had gifted Moonbyul and snapped a few photos. The entire thing was hilarious, and the polaroids came out well. The picture she ultimately decided to post, though, was one where she posed with the cake smeared on her face and the drawstrings of her hoodie drawn tightly. Eyes closed and lips puckered, everything about the picture was cute. The caption read:

byulyi Hoping all of ✌️✌️ is as perfect as it started.

View all 113 comments

kisum The best you’ve ever looked. Check your messages!

hyunjae Happy birthday, unnie! Be safe and have fun. See you at practice!

odj503 Why are you so handsome?!

^{1 hour ago}

Some of the comments were from people she knew. Most were from people she didn’t. The one she knew Heeyeon was focusing on was the one from Sunmi:

miyayeah Happy birthday, Byulyi. Hope your birthday is as beautiful as you are 😔❤️

“Are you going to respond?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. It’d be rude not to. Later, though. I’m not dealing with that right now.”

It appeared that the Sunmi situation might not actually be over.

*

She, Heeyeon, Wheein, Hyejin, and Yongsun were camped out in the latter’s living room, watching movies on Misuk’s huge flat screen television. They’d moved the living room table to the one of the hallways, and laid out comforters, blankets, and pillows on top of a huge air mattress for Wheein and Hyejin to relax on, while Heeyeon opted for the armchair. Moonbyul completely ignored her roommate’s stares as she and Yongsun cuddled on the couch. The first movie they watched was Bridesmaids.

One of the first things she remembered upon waking up was the comment Kisum had left under her Instagram post. As instructed by the second-year, she sifted through her messages and found the birthday text message the younger girl sent; it was quite sweet. Moonbyul thanked her, and they’d been exchanging messages all morning since. The conversation consisted mainly of them checking in on how the other had been since they’d last seen each other in November at the Olympics Pre-Qualifying Tournament. It eventually to shifted to Kisum inquiring about what Moonbyul would be doing after the first of January. She and a group of her Korea University (KU) friends would be venturing to SNU’s part of town.

To: Kisum

Ew, why are you coming here?

KU kids aren’t allowed. No, thank you. 12:02 pm

From: Kisum

SNU should be grateful that we’re stepping foot on that

stinky campus 🤢 12:03 pm

To: Kisum

Stinky?

Your height always makes me forget that you’re a toddler. 12:03 pm

From: Kisum

Lmaoo. Anyway, I have a friend that goes to your school.

You should come hang out with us and get to know her. 12:05 pm

With Yongsun laying on her, it would be easy for the graduate student to read the entire text exchange if she wanted to. Up until that moment, it wasn’t an issue for Moonbyul. At the mention of Kisum’s friend, though, Byulyi began using only her right hand to text, angling the phone away from Yongsun’s view. She had no idea where this conversation was going, and the last thing she needed was for Yongsun to start assuming things. Once she was sure that the older girl’s attention was on the movie only, she responded.

To: Kisum

Get to know her? 12:12 pm

From: Kisum

Yeah. Thought it’d be cool for all of us to hang since

I know you, and you go to SNU, and I know her, and she

also goes to SNU. So, now you both can know each other.

It’s like that math rule or whatever. 12:14 pm

She was a Media and Communication major for a reason. Once more, Moonbyul checked to make sure Yongsun wasn’t reading her messages.

To: Kisum

You sure I don’t already know her? 12:20 pm

From: Kisum

You don’t know her. Showed her your picture.

She said she’d never seen you before lmao!

Aren’t you supposed to be well-known? The basketball

savior 🤣 12:25 pm

To: Kisum

Anyway! What’s her name? 12:28 pm

“Are you even watching the movie? You’ve been on your phone forever,” Yongsun suddenly whisper-whined. “If you don’t like this movie, we could’ve watched something else.”

“I am watching it. They gave out puppies at the bridal shower,” she smugly responded. Yongsun huffed in annoyance, causing Moonbyul to hug her closer. “Be happy, please. I’m happy and I’m having a lot of fun, I just need to respond to Kisum. She wished me a happy birthday and wanted to know if we could hang out.”

“Whatever.”

Once they were settled, she checked her phone for Kisum’s response. Byulyi was oddly intrigued by the idea of this SNU student that didn’t know who she was.

From: Kisum

Lee Haena. Vocal Music major. 12:29 pm

To: Kisum

Yeah, don’t know her, but now I need to.

Slightly offended she doesn’t know me. 12:45 pm

From: Kisum

Thought you were humble and didn’t care about the status

of being a star athlete? 🤡 12:46 pm

To: Kisum

Lmaoooo. No need to come for my whole life like this.

Was just surprised. Lee Haena is already like a

breath of fresh air. 12:47 pm

From: Kisum

Gross. And it’s Lee Haena-unnie.

She’s older than you. 12:48 pm

To: Kisum

LOVE older women 😍 12:50 pm

From: Kisum

Nvm. Stay away from her. Get a job. 12:51 pm

To: Kisum

It was a joke. Unless? . . . Joking!

Yong’s gonna choke me if I don’t get off my phone. 12:51 pm

From: Kisum

12:51 pm

To: Kisum

Lol, stop. Definitely want to meet Haena-unnie.

Keep me updated. Tell Heeyeon, too (you probably already did).

Gotta go! 12:54 pm

Before she put her phone away for good, Moonbyul made sure to respond to Sunmi’s comment. In her mind, it was her having manners. Despite everything that transpired, the model took the time to send her well wishes. There was no reason to ignore her:

miyayeah Happy birthday, Byulyi. Hope your birthday is as beautiful as you are 😔❤️

^{13 hours ago       59 likes  Reply}

          |Byulyi @miyayeah Thank you, Sunmi! 🙈 🤗

As soon as she hit ‘reply,’ Moonbyul placed her phone down, giving the movie and Yongsun her undivided attention.

Note: Hi, everyone! It has been a while. To all new subscribers, welcome! I hope that the story holds your interest. To returning readers, I hope this story holds your interest. Real life got in the way of writing, but it feels so good to get this out to you all. I hope you like this chapter. If you do, tell me in the comments. If not, tell me in the comments.

I always ask for comments, but it’s because you all have such wonderful feedback. It’s cool to write something and then have so many others interpret things differently or have people notice things that I never noticed/thought of. If you’re not a comment person I get it, no pressure. I’m grateful for you all. Until next time.