The swelling was now almost gone and the lip was healing well, she looked like some badass character in a action movie, moving around with a broken lip as if it was an accessory. Life flow normally, Sunny smiled at her and waved when their eyes met in the school, but that was it, she didn’t have the guts to approach.

Her now only problem was that damn mandatory extracurricular activity. After thinking a lot on the options she saw that all of them were horrible, couldn’t they do something like “let’s help clean the ocean”, she would’ve signed in an instant.

No, her last resource was the theatre with Mrs. Marinelli, she hated the woman. She was cunning, always smirked as if she knows something you don’t and she was trying to get her to do one of her spectacles from the first year, gods know why.

This was the last day to apply, so Taeyeon with dropping shoulder and a scowl on her face presented herself to the auditorium. Mrs. Marinelli was there in the seats smiling from eye to eye, her voluminous hairstyle always on point and she was staring at her with an air of absolute superiority. “Ah, Kim Taeyeon I knew you would give in, at least!”

Taeyeon grimaced and crossed her arms tight on her chest, there on the spotlight, picturing the full auditorium watching her act made her insides contort in protest.

“Not really, Mrs. Marinelli, I am in only as an help behind the scenes. I am not going to act.” She shacked her head to support her words, tapping the stage with one foot, waiting for the answer.

“Now I am disappointed, fine come here, as a punishment, you will help me with the auditions.” The tone was firm and Taeyeon huffed rolling her eyes to the ceilings.

“Why I deserve a punishment? I am just don’t adequate to acting. I am doing you a favor.” She said collapsing in one of the comfy seats near her teacher.

They always had this kind of relationship, this cool and informal way to talk with each other. Mrs. Marinelli was also a terrific literature teacher, particularly Greek and Latin ones. Taeyeon enjoyed her lesson so much, she got into the cult of mythology and the poems. The teacher noticed her interest and they transformed a lot of her lessons in discussions, she gave her insights and suggest poems to read. And from that she got the insane conviction that Taeyeon could be capable of acting.

“Oh shush, now take script, we’ll start with the protagonists.”

She took the copy and read the title “EROS AND PSYCHE”. It is the poem from the “Metamorphosis” of Apuleius. She liked that book, sure there were better ones, with more action and more glory. This was love, lust and sacrifice. Very poetic.

“Eros and psyche? Are we going to see on the stage? Why not the Odyssey? Or Romeo and Juliet, the normal choice of every teacher.” Mrs. Marinelli scoffed and shacked her hands in dismission while looking at the list of the auditions.

“It is original and I love it, it’s romantic and passional, just focus on helping me choose the actors.” Taeyeon watched the ceiling trying to find a way out of her suffering but found none.

“Al right we start with Psyche, the most important role of the play, I want her incredibility sweet and deeply in love. I adore it already! Let’s go!”

There were few candidates, all cute girls, but that didn’t convince nor the teacher or the student. Mrs. Marinelli was losing hope and grimacing looking at the last name on the list. “Oh would you look at that, the last one is your Council President, Lee Sunny, please come and save us.”

Taeyeon became white, her eyes wide open, watching the girl approach the center of the stage with a secure walk, trying to mask her insecurity, but the white knuckles gripping on the script gave her away. The temporary assistant growled internally, her ing luck, why did she choose the theatre? She tried to hide herself collapsing even more in the seat but Sunny saw her, she raised an eyebrow and huffed from deep inside her chest.

Karma is a .

Her hair was loose in waves today, framing the tiny face that now started to get pinkish from the embarrassment. Taeyeon lost herself for a moment trying to define the exact shade of pink, but it changed too fast to catch up.

“Hello Miss Lee, are you sure you have the time for the play? Being the Student Council President and all?” The assistant watched her teacher, her sparkling black eyes, the determinate look on her face and the easy smile. Damn it, she already was her choice and she didn’t even speak a word.

“Hi, sure Mrs., I got plenty of time and when I chose to do something I dedicate my whole self to it.” Her cheeks got pinker and her voice was higher then her already high voice, maybe for the nerves. Taeyeon wanted to bang her head on the front seat for finding it cute.

The teacher nodded pleased with the answer, then glanced at the student at her side, noticing the strange behavior. She was curled in the seat with her eyes wide as saucers, staring at the girl on the stage.

“Did you prepare something from the script?” Sunny nodded quickly.

“The first meeting of Eros and Psyche in his palace.” She took the script in her hands, gripping it tighter trying with all her might to not look at Taeyeon.

“Very well, Miss Kim why don’t you join our candidate on stage and read the lines for Eros.” The teacher smirked almost imperceptibly.

Taeyeon chocked on her saliva and started coughing. “What? No, I am not acting and I am not reading anything!”

To most it could seem disrespectful to talk like that to a teacher, but that was their relationship.

Sunny jumped in her shoes and watched the exchange with a deep frown on her forehead, deeply worried.

“Kim Taeyeon do you want me to get angry and leave you without the credits you need?” The two engaged a battle of stares for a few seconds, no one wanting to retreat, but the power of bureaucracy won and the girl got up, cursing under her breath.

Sunny palmed her face in stress, trying to stay focused on her part.

Reaching the spotlight a few steps away from the President Taeyeon sighed out lout, she found the point of the play and grimaced. Of course the worst of the worst.

“Now for this scene I would like to have Eros coming from the back, Psyche giving her back to him. Come on, let me see.” The teacher was enthusiast, and that was really a bad sign.

“We need to act it? It’s just an audition!” Taeyeon reasoned almost begging.

“Do as I say. I want to see it, and put sentiment into it!” The girl growled and went to the back of the stage, watching Sunny back.

She read the first lines in her head and tried to put herself in the character. Picturing the big and glorious white wings, imaging herself with broad shoulder and an eternal love.

She was going to be so bad.

Taking a deep breath she started:” It’s me my love, no need to be afraid.” The pet name burned on her tongue and she saw Sunny shivering a bit, her arms trembling slightly.

“Who are you then? And why you call me your love?” Her voce was strong but let transported deep emotion in it.

Taeyeon took a few steps, as was written in script. “Your husband, that’s what I am sweet girl and I won’t ever harm you. Hear my voice, isn’t it full of love? I could never hurt you.” She felt her cheeks burn in flames and stopped inches before the other girl back. Watching the excited eyes of her teacher.

Sunny tried to turn around, as indicated in the script, but Eros stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder, that slowly caressed all her arm until she met her shacking hand, intertwining their fingers. A shudder covered all her skin, and she signed. The hand in hers was warm, soft and so tiny, yet they fitted perfectly. It felt so normal and yet so strange, she didn’t know what to do with her emotions.

The air in the auditorium could be cut with a knife, it was so tense and thick that Tae started to sweat, her hands got sweaty and she grimaced thinking of Sunny feeling it.

“If you are my husband then let me look at you, so I can be sure of your heart, let me see your face.” Her voice was quivering and unsure, a great actress.

“I can’t my love, you must never see me, and I will only come at you at night. My love is sincere and I will show you in many ways, you don’t need to see my face.” Just thinking of what the words implicated made Taeyeon gulp hard, the hand in her tensed and then squeezed hers. Maybe trying to find some kind of comfort, she squeezed back and never wanted to let go.

Then Psyche tried to turn her head behind to look and Eros was quick to embrace her from behind, a hand under her warm chin, making her stare in front of her. Taeyeon felt the morbid curve of her tummy under her arm and of the hip under her hand, it fitted like it was supposed to. She felt Sunny gulp from the grip on her neck, it was all so soft, she smelled like if summer and spring were mixed together, she felt lightheaded for a moment. Her breath was hitting the shorter neck, that was now covered in goosebumps.

“But why? What’s wrong in your appearance? Why I must suffer like this?” Now it was a angry cry, one that Tae felt all around herself, if she was really Cupid she would’ve already give in and screw her, well his, mother. She wanted to cut the act and just hug her tight, bury her nose into the curve of her neck and stay like that for hours.

It scared her, that impulse that was so strong, she never felt something like that, so fully and so overwhelming.

She hated the real world.

She was ready to deliver the next line but the teacher stopped her. “Al right, perfect! Perfect, you girls did really good, I think I just found both of my protagonists.” Then she laughed a free and malicious giggle, terrifying.

Taeyeon prayed that it was a joke.

Sunny tensed even more under her arm and she remembered their embrace immediately letting her go, her heart dwindled a bit when the other girl let out a sign and relaxed.

“What? What do you mean both? I agree on her, she’s great but not me! I am not acting and I am a girl for God’s sake!” She was near to get her fisrt .

Her teacher grinned at her outburst, beaming at her suffering. “We’ll do something revolutionary, our Eros is going be female. Wouldn’t you like that? Come on you two have chemistry, I can feel it.”

That woman was pure evil wrapped in an eclectic Italo American gentle vest.

Sunny just stood there, lightly agape, letting the tide sweep her away.

“We don’t, I am awkward and not a good actor, not doing it.” Taeyeon crossed firmly her arms on her chest a look of defiance on her stressed face.

“You’ll do it or I am not giving you credits. But besides that, think about it, we are going to do a lesbian Amore and Psyche, you should be ecstatic! It’s going to be revolutionary!” She was too excited for her own good.

The other girl barely twitched, still trying to follow the discussion.

Taeyeon decided to postpone the conversation with her teacher on how she knows her ual orientation and focused on the problem ahead. “It’s a high school play, how revolutionary can it be? And we can’t do it, she’s homophobic!” She indicated the President with both hands.

A hard blow hit her shoulder and she whined a little.

“Don’t you dare say something like that, I am not! I am fine with it, don’t bring me into this because you don’t want to act with me!” The little girl looked very angry, a vein pulsing in wrath on her neck.

She wanted to bite it right away.

The blond stared at her with wide open trying to find the words. She came up with a pathetic solution. “Because you want to act with me?” Now she was almost screaming at the other face.

Sunny breathed hard in and out for a few seconds before answering in a calm tone. “I don’t care who’s with, I just want the role.”

Taeyeon blinked fast a few times letting the words sink in. She was okay with it, the only obstacle was herself, she was being the Bastian contrary of the situation.

She was always the Bastian contrary of the situation, anyway.

“See it’s settled then! Congratulations!” Mrs. Marinelli was clapping happily staring at them with so much fondness that Taeyeon thought she just graduated.

She signed out loud, accepting her destiny, near to spill tears of frustration.

Sunny thanked the professor and got away not even glancing at her side, a frown on her pretty face.

Taeyeon observed her go biting her still healing lip, maybe she offended her for real, damn her big impulsive mouth. Now she was supposed to do an entire play with the girl and they couldn’t even have a full conversation without fighting. Mostly it was her fault, but she didn’t know how to behave when the shorter one was near.It was like her brain short circuited on its own, sometimes she was flirty and other times she was awkward and hostile for no reasons at all.

With her now red face in her palms she growled, restring herself from crying and screaming. Mrs. Marinelli brought her bag to her on stage and patted her shoulders. “You’ll do just fine Taeyeon, don’t worry about it.”

She tried to believe her.

“And you are unhappy because? This is your chance sis, it’s Eros and Psyche! And you are Eros and she is Psyche! If you are lucky there will be even a kiss!” Yuri augmented for the umpteenth times.

She didn’t want to think about the kiss, her mind was already flooded with her plump lips, she didn’t need to picture a kiss.

They were at the park near Yuri’s house eating an ice cream on an old bench. Jessica was finished taking pictures with the light that was supposed to be perfect for shooting, and now there were enjoying the quiet day.

“I don’t like her like that! And she is probably straight!” Jessica rolled her eyes shaking her head.

“Do you know how you look at her? It’s almost disgusting to me! And you tell me you don’t like her!” Taeyeon bite her minty icicle and glared at her friend.

“That’s exactly what I said. And I don’t look at her in a special way.”

Yuri and Jessi were past the laughing fit they got into to when Tae told them she was in the play. Now they were analyzing the situation.

“Come on, invite her over to learn the part, make your move, use your charms. Get the damn girl Kim Taeyeon!” Yuri punched her shoulder in her enthusiasm and she whined.

“Stop hitting me! I don’t want to make a move! I just want to survive this year.” She concluded massaging her shoulder.

“Fine, when your will realize you are in denial, because you are, you’ll slap you yourself!” And Jessi was back to snap pictures of the ice cream, still glaring at her with her side view.

Tae huffed, ignoring what was out in the open. She refused categorially to accept the elephant in the room, well now a park. She couldn’t crush on a straight violent little girl, no she promised herself she won’t ever do that mistake, her heart was to weak to support that.

She glanced at her hand and immediately pictured how their hands fitted together, like it was mean to. Then an hologram of how the girl would look like if she was with them on that bench, eating ice cream with a big smile on the tiny face, t-shirt and shorts without a care in the world, appeared on her side. Her heart lost a beat.

She kind of wanted to see it for real. 

Taeyeon bite her icicle with more strength, angry at herself for letting her brain and her heart betray her like this. She hated her friends for being right.