Another Instagram picture. It seemed that’s all Moonbyul was doing these days, posting breathtaking pictures of her adventures in Japan. Yongsun was sick of it. It had been almost one full month since she’d last seen her best friend in person and it was wrecking her.

It also served as a bit of a wake-up call. The graduate student knew that she and Byulyi spent a lot of time together, but until now, she hadn’t realized just how dependent she was on the younger girl for her daily dose of physical touching. Yongsun was severely touch deprived. It was driving her mad. Granted, none of what she and Moonbyul did was beyond platonic—she made a mental note to come back to this thought later because she desperately needed to cuddle right now and it dawned on her that she didn’t do that with any of her other friends, just Byulyi—but it met her needs. She was content with what they had and what they did. But now she had nothing because Moonbyul was in Japan, living it up. Ugh.

yongsun: We get it, you’re having a great time. Can you hurry up and come home, please?

^{1m      Reply}

Maybe Byul was also only now waking up and starting her day by checking all social media sites for updates on whatever there may be updates on because a reply came almost immediately.

yongsun: We get it, you’re having a great time. Can you hurry up and come home, please?

^{1m      Reply}

|byulyi @yongsun You miss me?

|yongsun @byulyi Yes 🥺

|byulyi @yongsun On my way ✈️ 🛸 🚀 🚁 ⛵ 🚤 🚓 🚊 🚣‍♀️ 🏊‍♀️ 🏄‍♀️ 🏃‍♀️ 🏇

Please. Byulyi was the cutest. The absolute cutest. Yongsun didn’t dare stop the ear-to-ear smile that gradually grew.

|yongsun @byulyi You know the apartment code. Let yourself in when you get here.

|byulyi @yongsun 😅 🥰

|hyejin @byulyi @yongsun Can you two stop, please? This is gross.

|wheein @hyejin @byulyi @yongsun I second what Hyejin said.

|kisum @wheein @hyejin @byulyi @yongsun I third what Hyejin said.

|heeyeon @kisum @wheein @hyejin @byulyi @yongsun idk, it’s kind of cute?

|wheein @heeyeon leave

|hyejin @heeyeon leave x2

|kisum @heeyeon leave x8372728

From: Hyejinie

When I said to flirt with people, I didn’t mean with Byul-unnie. Stop. 10:03 am

Was she flirting with Moonbyul? They were just talking like they normally did. Playing around.

To: Hyejinie

I’m not flirting with her? 10:03 am

From: Hyejinie

You are. And she’s flirting back. It’s disgusting. Stop. 10:04 am

To: Hyejinie

You’re overreacting.

It’s not that serious.

That’s how we talk to each other. 10:05 am

From: Hyejinie

You don’t listen. 10:06 am

To: Hyejinie

I’m not doing anything! 10:07 am

From: Hyejinie

k. 🙃 10:08 am

She was going to have to talk to Hyejin about this later. Her back and forth with Moonbyul was how they sometimes spoke to each other, and although maybe recently there was a growing part of Yongsun that meant a little bit of what was said, Byulyi was just being Byulyi. Yongsun knew that the younger girl cared for her, that much was obvious, but it was a platonic kind of care. If Moonbyul liked her as more than a friend, she would’ve said or done something about it by now.

Coming to that conclusion stung a bit.

The type of beauty and sensuality that ensnared any and every one? The way Hyejin, Wheein, and even Moonbyul walked into any room and commanded attention and hearts? Yongsun wanted that. It was a bit superficial and slightly embarrassing to admit, even to herself, but it was true. That was something she was realizing and coming to accept. She wanted to be wanted. So, yeah, it stung a bit that it seemed Moonbyul didn’t want her like that.

This, of course, led to her questioning everything about herself. Never mind the rational reasons for why the athlete wouldn’t think about her ually or romantically—the biggest of all being that they were best friends, and best friends didn’t usually creep on each other—Yongsun convinced herself it was because she wasn’t attractive enough. They cuddled and hugged and touched more than she’d ever done with any other friend of hers, yet not once had Moonbyul made a move. If she were attractive enough, the athlete wouldn’t be able to resist and would have tried something. But Moonbyul hadn’t, because Yongsun wasn’t. In Yongsun’s mind, it made sense. The logic was foolproof.

To: Eric

Am I attractive? 10:17 am

From: Eric

Go to sleep, Yongsun. 10:18 am

To: Rongie

Am I attractive? 10:18 am

From: Rongie

Obviously. 10:18 am

To: Rongie

Am I hot? 10:20 am

From: Rongie

What it seems you are is bored.

Anyway, come out of your room. Made breakfast. 10:21 am

To: Wheeinie and Hyejinie

Am I attractive? 10:18 am

From: Hyejinie

No friend of ours is unattractive. 10:19 am

To: Wheeinie and Hyejinie

Am I hot? 10:21 am

From: Wheeinie

Fishing for compliments.

You’re better than that, unnie. 10:23 am

Her friends were about tough love, she understood this, but she had hoped her yearning for reassurance in that moment would be clear through her words. It seems that was not the case.

Yongsun was desperate enough to ask Byulyi, and was halfway through drafting the message when another text dropped from the top of her screen:

From: Seungyeon

Hey, good morning. Sorry I didn’t respond last night. I fell asleep. Had to be at work earlier than usual today. 10:25 am

Since their first texts over the weekend, Yongsun and Seungyeon hadn’t stopped messaging each other. They weren’t texting each other nonstop, all day long—both had lives to live—but communication was constant, both doing their part to maintain the conversation.

Despite being the same age, the two weren’t close during their time at SKKU, only first interacting during their senior year when Yongsun became manager of the Women’s Basketball Team. Seungyeon was the captain. She was also in a relationship at the time, so, outside of official team trainings and events, most of her time was spent doing relationship things with her partner. It wasn’t like Yongsun spent much time with the team outside of her required duties either. They were cordial when around each other, though, and when she was around, Seungyeon did her best to make sure Yongsun felt included.

Reconnecting now was nostalgic. It felt good building out a potential friendship with someone from her past life—that was a bit dramatic, but Yongsun had a flair for the dramatic at times. Her life in Seoul right now consisted solely of SNU and her family. Adding another layer would serve her well.

To: Seungyeon

No worries.

What do you do for work? 10:38 am

From: Seungyeon

I work in marketing at an e-sports startup. 10:39 am

That sounds exciting. 10:40 am

It is. I love it.

Weeks like this week tho? Hate.

Going to be busy until the weekend. 10:41 am

We could always reschedule our meeting tomorrow.

Sounds like you should rest. 10:45 am

Please no. Meeting w/ you is the only bright spot. 10:46 am

If you say so. 10:47 am

I say so lol. 10:50 am

I guess that’s settled then lol. 10:51 am

*

When the decision to dye her hair was first made, Yongsun was content with doing it at home. She’d seen several YouTube videos of people purchasing products at beauty supply stores and doing everything on their own. The results, for the most part, were perfect. They made it look easy. The steps were always easy to follow and, having always viewed herself as capable, Yongsun figured she’d be fine.

During a phone call with Yonghee earlier in the week, her older sister asked about plans for the week ahead. Yongsun happened to mention that she’d be dying her hair on Wednesday.

“You’re an idiot.”

It seemed that was all she would have said about the subject had Yongsun not dug deeper into what exactly the problem with her plan was.

“Why am I an idiot?”

“You’re going to dye your hair on your own?”

“Yeah. What’s wrong with that? I’ve watched a ton of videos that explained everything.” Yonghee’s reaction seemed excessive.

“What color are you dying your hair?”

“Blonde.”

“You’re an idiot.”

“Again, I ask: why am I an idiot?”

She still didn’t get a proper answer.

“I’m going to call a friend of mine. She’s a hairstylist. I’ll call you back later.” With that, the line went dead.

Her sister could be so frustrating at times. Yes, she was older, but Yongsun wasn’t some helpless little kid. The way Yonghee dealt with her at times was as if she was incompetent. It irked her. When her sister called her back, Yongsun would have a word with her.

Half an hour later, Yongsun’s phone rang. Yonghee.

“My friend is booked on Wednesday but she’s going to take you during her lunch. Because you’re my sister, she’s giving you a discount. I’ll go with you. Will text you the details.”

As with earlier, the line went dead.

It was funny how Yongsun had never before said a bad word about Yonghee. Literally the best sibling to ever walk this planet.

Yongsun to: Byulyi & Her Fan Club

At a fancy hair salon!

I love Yonghee 💁‍ 1:15 pm

Hyejinie

Oh! Forgot that that’s today. 1:16 pm

Wheeinie

Can’t wait to see the final result! 1:17 pm

Yongsun

I’m nervous but super excited. 1:17 pm

Wheeinie

You’ll look great. 1:19 pm

Hyejinie

You’re welcome for the idea btw 1:20 pm

Yongsun

Thank you, Hyejin and Wheein for the idea 💞 1:21 pm

Byul-ah

? 1:25 pm

Wheeinie

Unnie, you didn’t tell her?

LOL 1:27 pm

Yongsun

Byul-ah: It’s a secret.

Wheein: change the group name back, pls. 1:30 pm

Yongsun had to give most of the credit to the young girls. Before they left for Jeonju, they posited that a change in Yongsun’s physical appearance would perfectly complement her new “attitude”. She wasn’t exactly sure what physical change they would recommend—knowing them, it could be anything—but had contemplated dying her hair in the past, although never seriously. Thinking it the perfect time to bring it up to the group, Yongsun asked for their thoughts on changing her hair. Wheein and Hyejin loved the idea and immediately concluded that blonde would be her color. It was even more perfect, they said, because Moonbyul had just recently posted a picture of her newly dyed hair. She was a brunette now.

“It’s perfect,” Hyejin said. “Now that she’s brunette, you going blonde would be hilarious. Also, you’d look great as a blonde.”

Checking out the final result in the handheld mirror that the hairstylist offered her, Yongsun gasped.

“Yongsun, you look phenomenal,” Yonghee exclaimed.

If Yonghee was saying that, it meant it looked great, and Yongsun couldn’t disagree. She looked good. More than good. She looked hot. And that was the first time she’d ever called herself that.

Confidence flowing through her, Yongsun couldn’t hide her smile for the rest of the day.

This was going to be a fun school year.

*

From: Byul-ah

Yong.

Yong.

Yong.

Yong. 7:01 pm

She’d been doing this ever since Yongsun mentioned her visit to the salon the day before.

To: Byul-ah

What? 7:01 pm

From: Byul-ah

Send me a pic.

Pretty please? 🥺 7:02 pm

Byul-ah. I’m out right now. 7:02 pm

Perfect. That means your hair’s done.

Send me a pic. 7:03 pm

I’ll text you later.

Words. I’ll text words. Not a pic. 7:03 pm

Moonbyul was cute, but she was also annoying sometimes. In addition to the incessant text messages begging for pictures of her new hairstyle, the athlete had tried spontaneously video calling Yongsun several times. It was excessive. There were only three more days until her return. Yongsun had promised that she’d reveal her hair then. Instead, Byulyi continued pestering her as if that would suddenly make Yongsun cave.

“Sorry I’m late.”

So caught up in her amusement over Moonbyul’s antics was the graduate student, she hadn’t even noticed Seungyeon’s arrival.

“Hey!” She stood to hug the girl. They’d been talking for days now and knew each other in college. That was grounds for hugging, right? Halfway over to Seungyeon, Yongsun started doubting if she was being presumptuous by imposing her hug on the other woman, resulting in an awkward arms-up-then-down-then-up-again routine. Thankfully, Seungyeon enthusiastically opened her arms to receive Yongsun.

They’d never hugged before, but Seungyeon was a great hugger. Maybe it was her height—she was tall, taller than Moonbyul even—or the length of her arms. Whatever it was, her hug was solid. It felt great. She wrapped Yongsun up completely.

“Again, my apologies for the tardiness. Got caught up at work.”

“No worries. It’s only a few minutes, I wasn’t waiting long.”

“I feel a bit better then. Let’s leave our things at this table so that no one takes it, then we can go order.”

Yongsun did as she was told. Something about Seungyeon made her someone that people listened to without questions. She’d been like that in college, too, which was probably why she was the captain, but the taller girl had grown into herself over the past couple years. She had a commanding presence. It was attractive. Yongsun liked it. Then again, Seungyeon was attractive. Objectively. There was no questioning that.

Making their way to the counter at a leisurely pace, the two made small talk, not wanting to get into anything too substantial before being seated. They talked about the weather—it was August and hot—and about their excitement over getting ice cream—they were both excited.

Seungyeon insisted that Yongsun order first, so she did. It took her an embarrassing amount of time to decide on which flavors she wanted to try, but she eventually settled on salted caramel and vanilla. Her card was almost into the cashier’s hand when Seungyeon’s voice rang out, “Oh, no. We’re together. It’s on me.”

“Ah, okay. Sorry,” the cashier said.

Yongsun just stood there. They hadn’t discussed that. They’d agreed on Seungyeon giving Yongsun a ride home afterwards, but that was it. Still, she was grateful. It was a nice gesture by Seungyeon, but she’d have to wait a bit to thank her as the taller woman was still at the other end of the ice cream bar making her selection.

The blonde took the opportunity to take everything in. Seungyeon was hot. When she had first arrived, Yongsun acknowledged her attractiveness. They’d followed each other’s social media accounts so the graduate student knew what to expect, but seeing her in person made a significant difference. The way she moved, the commanding tone of her voice, the way she held eye contact, it was all a lot to take in.

Even the way she wore her clothes was noteworthy. Seungyeon’s outfit was simple: short-sleeved white button-up tucked into loose grey‑plaid slacks with a dark brown belt, but she made the outfit look chic. The top three buttons of her blouse were undone, allowing a tattoo on her right collarbone to peek out. Voluminous, long, dark brown hair perfectly framed her round face. Striking, almond-shaped eyes. Perfectly plump lips. Yongsun had thought it before, but it bore repeating: Seungyeon was hot. This was not a realization she had expected. This meeting was supposed to be a friendly reunion, and she was determined to keep it as such. Just because her acquaintance looked good didn’t mean she had to act on anything. Right then and there, Yongsun decided that she wouldn’t. She wasn’t going to make things weird. This was Wheein and Hyejin’s fault. Ever since they began conditioning her to find people attractive, she couldn’t stop. Example, her creeping on Seungyeon from afar. A mess.

“I paid for everything, we can go sit.”

“Oh,” Yongsun got out of her own head. “Thank you for the ice cream, by the way,” she shyly said.

“No problem. I like their stuff, but everyone’s different, so in the event you’re not a fan of it, I didn’t want you to have to spend money on it.”

“What about if I end up loving it?”

“Then . . . I treated you to some great ice cream,” Seungyeon laughed, stuffing a spoonful info . “How is yours? Have you tried it yet?”

“It’s really good. Much better than I expected.”

“This place is great. I come here about once a week. It’s kind of embarrassing.”

“Why? It’s okay to treat yourself occasionally.”

“Next time I’m debating on whether I should buy a sweet treat or not, I’ll call you for encouragement.”

“And I’ll gladly offer my encouragement. Plus, all those sweets don’t show. You look great.”

“Thank you. It takes a lot more effort these days to stay in shape. I’m losing it.”

“Losing what?” Yongsun asked.

“My body. My youth. It’s all fading so quickly.”

“Seungyeon, I never knew you were this much of a drama queen. You look amazing. Stop,” she chuckled.

“If you say it, I’ll believe it. I love your hair, by the way. Is it new? None of your pictures on Instagram had you with blonde hair.”

“It’s very new. Got it done yesterday afternoon.”

“Wow. It looks great. It fits you very well.”

“Thank you! I was nervous, but I’m happy with how it turned out.”

“You should be. It looks great. I know I keep saying that, but it’s because it looks that good.”

An hour and a half flew by before they both knew it. Initially nervous that they’d run out of conversation topics, Yongsun was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to chat with Seungyeon. They shared stories about their days in college and shared stories about their current lives. It seemed that Seungyeon could very well become a good friend.

“I feel bad, I’ve been talking your ear off for almost two hours,” Seungyeon started. “You probably have someone at home watching the clock and waiting for you to return safely.” Was she . . . fishing for information?

“No. Just my roommate, but she doesn’t keep tabs on me like that. What about you?” She had a girlfriend while they were in school. Only two years had passed since then. It was possible they were still together.

“Nope. Just my cat.”

Yongsun hummed her acknowledgement.

“She’s cute, though, so I can’t be too sad about it. Anyway, we should really get going. I don’t want to keep you out any later.”

The walk to Seungyeon’s car was quick, the silence comfortable. The taller girl helped Yongsun get settled before entering on the driver’s side and inputting the address for University Village into the GPS. Nothing else of note happened on the way back, but when they pulled up to the front of UV, Seungyeon stopped Yongsun before she left the car.

“I almost forgot, Sirae was jealous that I was meeting up with you today. She and I are meeting up on Tuesday for drinks after work and she told me to invite you. You don’t have to answer now, but let me know whenever.”

“She was jealous?” Yongsun put no effort into hiding how puzzled she was.

“Yeah. The two of us always wanted to get close to you because we were all the same age, but we didn’t know how. I wasn’t around much because of my girlfriend and she’s very shy, so it was a lost cause.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. Why do you sound so surprised?”

“Because it’s surprising.”

“Well, it’s the truth. But we’re all in the same city again, which is great, because I need more non-work friends.”

“I’d love to be one of your non-work friends.”

“That’s perfect, because I’d love for you to be one of my non-work friends.”

Hearing Seungyeon say that so casually was heartwarming.

“Okay, I’ll let you go. For real this time.”

“Thank you for tonight. I had a really good time.”

“Me, too. I’ll have to thank Eric for reaching out and giving me your number.”

“He did something useful for once.”

“That he did.”

Before Yongsun could stress over whether to hug Seungyeon goodbye or not, the brunette reached over the console to pull her into a parting embrace.

“Text me when you get to your room.”

“Will do.”

*

Saturday was boring. Everything about it was boring.

Wheein and Hyejin were still in Jeonju and Chorong had gone out with the ’91ers. Of course, Yongsun could have joined, but Jinyoung would be there and no matter how amicable of a breakup they had, she wasn’t yet ready to socialize with her ex. Not even one month had passed since their breakup. It was nothing personal, she just needed to do her own thing for a bit before hanging around him again.

It was as if excess energy inside of her was clawing to get out. Not even watching movies was comforting for her in the moment, and that always did the trick. Remembering the way Seungyeon had joked about having to put in more effort to stay in shape, Yongsun suddenly thought of the gym located in the lobby of UV’s first tower. It was across the hall from the game room in the lounge, but was the one room in UV she had never utilized.

Figuring she had nothing to lose, Yongsun hopped off her bed and threw on the one sports bra she owned, a t-shirt, and some shorts, before heading for the gym. If she hated it, she could leave right away.

To: Seungyeon

Random, but your talk on Thursday inspired me to go to the gym. 11:19 pm

From: Seungyeon

On a Saturday night? 11:21 pm

To: Seungyeon

That tells you everything there is to know about my Saturday. 11:22 pm

From: Seungyeon

Well, doing better than me.

I’m out drinking :-/ 11:24 pm

To: Seungyeon

You deserve it. You’ve had a rough work week. 11:25 pm

From: Seungyeon

You’re so supportive.

I’ll drink a shot of water in your honor. 11:26 pm

To: Seungyeon

😂 Goodnight.

Have fun. Be safe. 11:27 pm

From: Seungyeon

You, too 😊 11:29 pm

By the time their conversation had concluded, Yongsun had already been on the stationary bicycle for four minutes. She had no particular goals, she was pedaling for the sake of pedaling. That lasted about twenty more minutes.

She wasn’t tired, not even close, but she was still bored. There was no one else in the gym and the room was full of complicated looking equipment that she had no idea how to use. Five more minutes. She’d do five more minutes before calling it a night and heading back up to her room.

Just then, a handsome man entered. She’d seen him around UV before, usually in the management office. They had many students work there. Maybe he was a student. He was buff. Yongsun was intrigued. Not because of how handsome he was—he was very handsome—but because she assumed he’d do a fancy workout that would require use of the complicated equipment that she knew nothing about. If she watched him for a while, there was a chance she’d learn some exercises to be attempted the next time she ventured down here.

Pretending to not pay attention to him proved challenging. It was only the two of them in the average-sized room and the bicycles were directly facing the part of the gym he was using. He was so wrapped up in his warm-up routine, though—it lasted fifteen minutes—that he didn’t notice her eyes boring into him. Eventually, the stretches were completed and he took his time heading over to a long metal bar. Yongsun was fascinated. He did several squats with only the bar before piling weights onto it. With ease, he continued doing a series of squats, always gradually adding more weight. Is this what Byulyi did as part of her training? She always talked about being in the gym, but Yongsun never knew the extent of her workouts, she just knew that the basketball player was exceptionally fit and strong.

The guy kept squatting and lifting heavy weights and, before she knew it, Yongsun had left the bicycle and wandered over to him. It took a few moments, but he eventually noticed her. The bar was placed back in its rack and he removed his wireless headphones.

“Is something wrong?” The voice was sweet and gentle. A surprise to her.

“No.”

“Is there something I can help you with then?”

Honestly, she was making a nuisance of herself, but when else would she have this opportunity?

“I was wondering if you could help me work out. You look like you know what you’re doing, and I don’t, so . . . yeah.” It probably would have helped if she thought this out further.

“You want me to teach you how to work out?” His eyes were kind and the way his face contorted, it seemed like he was taking her request seriously.

“Yes, please. I came down here with no goals in mind, but now I have a desire to learn how to use these machines properly.”

“Well, I don’t use a lot of machines. A few of them, yes, but not a lot of them. Bodyweight and free weight exercises comprise most of my workouts. If that’s fine with you, I’d be able to help you out.”

“That would be great. Thank you so much!” This was going much better than she anticipated.

“I’m Ok Taecyeon. What is your name?”

“I’m Yongsun. Kim Yongsun.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Yongsun-ssi.”

“Likewise. Are you an SNU student?”

“No. I’m actually in graduate school at KU, but I work full-time in the management office and the job comes with housing, so I live here instead of closer to KU.”

“That’s cool. I’m in graduate school at SNU.”

“Really? You have a baby face. I thought you were an undergraduate student.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“It was meant as one,” he laughed, showcasing his dimples for the first time. Overall, a delightful person.

Taecyeon cracked down after they introduced themselves to each other. He walked Yongsun through a proper warmup before they moved into the actual workout.

“We’ll have to figure out what you want to accomplish in the long run, but for today, you can just do what I do. I’m working legs, which most people hate, but it’s my favorite.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“That’s all we can ever do.”

Yongsun’s best ended up being not great at all. It was embarrassing to have Taecyeon encouraging her, but to be physically unable to do more than a few repetitions of each exercise. A humbling experience, for sure, but also a motivating one. As they progressed with the workout, the blonde grew more determined to outdo herself—it was her only option as there would never be a day that she would outdo Taecyeon.

Drenched in sweat and already feeling the soreness settle into her muscles, Yongsun internally did a fist pump when Taecyeon announced that they had reached the end of their session.

“Let’s exchange numbers. That way I can let you know when I’ll be down here. Honestly, I usually prefer later at night because it’s emptier.”

“I’m usually free at night, so that works.”

“Cool! Don’t feel pressured to come down here every day just because I’m here every day. After a few workouts, you’ll see that it’s a lot of the same exercises, so you’ll get to the point where you won’t even need me.”

“Um, no, I doubt that day will come. I will absolutely need you,” Yongsun clarified right away.

“I may have gotten a bit ahead of myself. That’s fine, too. It’ll be nice having a workout buddy.”

Workout buddies. She’d stumbled her way into having a workout buddy and she couldn’t be happier about it.

*

The weather outside perfectly matched Yongsun’s mood upon waking up. Beams of sunlight filtered in, illuminating her bedroom. The sky was clear and the humidity, which had been overbearing the past few days, had calmed, giving way to a refreshing August Sunday. The blonde felt great. Not even the struggle to move her legs put a damper on her spirits. Nothing could shake her—Byulyi was coming back today. Finally.

Reaching to her left and searching her sheets for her phone, she texted her best friend.

To: Byul-ah

What time do you get home today? 10:56 am

They’d briefly discussed Moonbyul’s return, but in her excitement, Yongsun forgot to ask for details.

From: Byul-ah

Secret. Just like your hair. 11:00 am

To: Byul-ah

Okay. 11:00 am

It was amazing how petty the younger girl could be, but after a year of friendship, Yongsun was better equipped in dealing with her antics.

To: Heeyeon

Hi, Heeyeon. What time is Byulyi supposed to arrive at UV today? 11:02 am

From: Heeyeon

Hi, unnie! 9:30 pm. Her family is dropping her off. 11:03 am

To: Byul-ah

See you at 9:30 pm. 11:05 am

From: Byul-ah

Heeyeon 🤬 11:06 am

To: Byul-ah

🤪 11:06 am

*

“I’m surprised you agreed to join me today on such short notice.”

“Truthfully, I wasn’t going to. My legs are dead from last night, but I enjoyed the energy that I had afterwards. I also thought about it before going to bed: I want to get into better shape. I like the idea of pushing myself and my body to new limits. I’m trying to challenge myself in other parts of my life right now, so I want to challenge myself in this way, too.”

“Well, you did a great job challenging yourself today. It’s never easy when first starting to work out consistently, but you take instruction very well.”

“Thanks, Taecyeon.”

“Want to head to the mart and grab a meal? I think we’ve both earned it.”

“Would love that. I’m so hungry.”

Yongsun’s original plan for Sunday was to lounge in her room and wait until Moonbyul returned. That quickly changed when Taecyeon pinged her about working out. In addition to wanting to push herself and take her fitness more seriously, Yongsun was touched by Taecyeon taking the initiative to include her in his plans. He didn’t have to, at all, especially with how suddenly she sprung herself on him, but he took everything in stride. She was grateful.

Their ensuing meal was a lot of fun. Yongsun had seen Taecyeon around UV before, but she would’ve never thought him to be as pleasant as he was revealing himself to be. The muscles and strong jawline belied his playful personality. The two shared life stories while chomping on their chicken sandwiches—protein post-workouts was key apparently. That’s what Taecyeon said. Hearing his life’s journey up until now made her appreciate the KU student even more. He was a hard worker. Be it coming back from injuries, enrolling in the military earlier than he needed to, or figuring out his studies, Taecyeon seemed to always find a way to overcome the obstacles he faced. He was a good man and potentially a good new friend.

*

From: Byul-ah

I’m back or whatever 🙄 9:45 pm

She had been waiting. Upon returning from lunch with Taecyeon, the graduate student showered and washed her hair. She tried to pass the remaining time by watching a movie, but it didn’t hold her attention. She and Chorong hung out for a bit, but her roommate left her to her own devices, growing tired of how “distracted” Yongsun was.

Her legs burned and her arms were sore, but when the text notification from Byulyi appeared on her screen, Yongsun didn’t let any of her physical discomfort stop her from running the fastest she ever had in her life.

The blonde’s fist connected firmly with the beige-colored door a couple times before it swung open, revealing in all her glory, Moon Byulyi. Not even the athlete’s cocky, crooked smirk could ruin the moment. Yongsun was ecstatic. Her best friend was back.

Ignoring her body’s protests, Yongsun launched herself into Byulyi’s arms. It was a foregone conclusion that the athlete would catch her. With her arms and legs wrapped tightly around the taller girl, Yongsun sighed contentedly into Moonbyul’s neck.

“I missed you,” she whispered.

“Oh, yeah?” Byul arrogantly questioned.

“Stop,” Yongsun smacked the back of her neck. “I’m being serious.”

“I know. I missed you, too. A lot,” Moonbyul responded sincerely.

“Don’t leave for that long again.”

“Not sure I have control over that.”

“Byul-ah, don’t leave for that long again.”

“Okay,” the younger girl chuckled lightly as she tenderly held Yongsun’s neck with her right hand. “I won’t leave my Yongsunnie for that long again.”

The two of them stayed by the apartment door, lost in their own little world, simply enjoying being with each other like this again.

*

“I thought your parents were going to be here.”

“They dropped me off and then left. Can you believe that?”

“I can. You’ve been back for a few minutes and the novelty is already wearing off. Can’t imagine how tired they must have been after spending a whole week with you.”

Yongsun had to give it to Byul, the athlete had grown stealthier. There were no signs to prepare Yongsun for the nimble fingers that attacked her stomach.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” She breathlessly cried out. “It was a joke!”

“You’re not sorry, you just want me to stop tickling you.”

Another minute passed of the two jockeying for position on the couch. Yongsun ended up on her stomach, trying her best to block the younger girl’s efforts; Byulyi somehow ended up on top of her, relentless in her attack.

“You win! You win. Please,” the blonde conceded through gasps. “I’m sore. I can’t take more.”

“Fine. I’ll pity you this time,” Moonbyul eased off of her. “Why are you sore?”

“You’ve missed a lot! I have a whole new life now,” Yongsun proclaimed, still trying to catch her breath.”

“I can see that,” Byul ran her fingers through the graduate student’s blonde locks.

“You didn’t say if you like it or not, by the way.”

“I love it. You look beautiful.”

Maybe it was the time away from each other, but everything felt more intense now. The way Byulyi held her gaze, the way she spoke to her, it all felt . . . different. Pushing all of that aside, Yongsun cleared , hoping that would also help clear the air.

“Thank you,” she softly accepted the compliment. “But yeah, a whole new life. I made some new friends while you were gone and I even started working out.”

The pride was clear in her voice and she made no efforts to tone it down.

“Wow. A lot of big changes. When did you start working out?”

“Yesterday,” Yongsun laughed. That led to her divulging the details of her awkward—due solely to her actions—encounter with Taecyeon.

“You creepily stared at a man working out, then you approached him and creepily stared at him until he noticed you, then you asked him to train you?”

“Yeah. And it worked!”

“You’re so strange sometimes.”

“Honestly, yeah.” Yongsun grabbed Moonbyul’s face and playfully shook it from side to side, “But you like my strangeness, so it’s okay.”

“Unfortunately, I do, yeah.”

“You mean fortunately. I’m the most exciting part of your life.”

“I literally just got back from the Olympics . . .”

“I said what I said.”

They sat on the couch catching up for a couple more hours. Byul gave Yongsun the present she brought back for her—it was a bracelet. The athlete had purchased one for herself, too. The idea, she said, was for them to have something that matched, because after a year of friendship, they still had nothing to commemorate their relationship. Maybe Yongsun’s heart skipped a beat or two.

A huge yawn escaped her suddenly.

“I’m boring you?”

“No. I’m just tired. It’s time for me leave. Didn’t notice it was after midnight already.” Standing to make her way to the door, Byul immediately grabbed her hand.

“Just spend the night,” she urged with a low, slightly raspy voice.

“I want to sleep in my own bed, Byulyi.”

“Yong. Please?”

It wasn’t even her smooth voice that made the blonde crumble, it was the cute pout adorning the younger girl’s face.

Looking to hide how eager she, too, was to cuddle with Byul, Yongsun dramatically rolled her eyes before conceding. “Fine.”

“Good. Come.”

They’d done this countless times. There was nothing new about it. Moonbyul led Yongsun to her room, they got in the younger girl’s bed, and the athlete spooned her from behind. They’d done it so many times, yet this was the first time Yongsun questioned what exactly it was they were doing.

None of her other friendships felt like her friendship with Byulyi. She did things with the athlete that she didn’t do with her other friends. She was emotionally honest and vulnerable with the younger girl in ways she had never been with anyone else. All of this Yongsun had acknowledged before.

It was the things she did with both Byulyi and her other friends that kept her up thinking that night, though. Because Chorong holding her every once in a blue moon was drastically different from cuddling every other day with Moonbyul. Listening to Wheein or Hyejin talk about a crush of theirs felt very different from listening to Moonbyul talk about girls she had dated or was interested in. And it was only now, as she was exploring her attraction to others, that the older girl understood the physical reactions she’d been having for some time now when around her best friend.

As she lay with the brunette at her back, Yongsun could say with certainty that she was attracted to Byulyi. It was a fairly anticlimactic realization, mostly because she’d been reflecting on it for almost a month, but also because at this point in her life, she had no desire to act on the attraction she felt. There was still no evidence that Moonbyul was attracted to her or saw her as anything other than a friend. The last they spoke about it, the athlete said there was no one she liked or wanted to date. There was also the fact that the two were best friends. Yongsun pursued something with a friend once before and it didn’t work out. She didn’t even want to think about the potential fallout if she made a move on Byul and completely ruined their friendship.

“I missed holding you like this,” Byulyi suddenly murmured into Yongsun’s hair as her grip on the older girl’s waist tightened. All Yongsun could do was laugh internally at how funny this all was. Absolutely hilarious.

Right now, no good would come from acting on her attraction. The best she could do was acknowledge that the attraction existed. She’d done that. That was enough. For now.

Note: Being sick threw off my writing schedule, which threw off my posting schedule. I think things should be back to normal, but I don’t want to promise and then not deliver. Thank you to everyone for the patience and well wishes. I’m feeling much better. Apologies for not responding to and upvoting comments from the last chapter.

Cannot explain the relief I’m feeling over this chapter. Yongsun’s building out her life and Byul is back. Chunks of later chapters are written/planned out and, from how things are organized at the moment, this chapter is the final hurdle before the fun begins (well, fun for me, maybe not so much for most of you)! Thank goodness. Sincere gratitude to all of you for reading.