birthday
HARBORED"since when, seulgi?"
you swallowed a lump in your throat, unable to look at your girlfriend.
you were having dinner with the club members when jisoo suddenly stood up and told everyone she's going home. you followed her out with the excuse of walking her to the bus stop.
and now, there you two are, talking about your joohyun unnie.
"answer me, seulgi. don't give me the that 'i don't see her the same way' bull. i don't believe that."
"how many times should i tell you it's not like that?" you took a step towards your girlfriend, but she avoided your touch. "unnie and i are just friends. you've seen our conversations, right?"
"but it was only chat conversation. it's totally different when you two are together. have you seen how you looked together?"
you groaned. you know she's talking about how joohyun had been clinging on you like a koala.
"unnie has been like that with all her friends. not just with me," you said.
"oh, really? does that include her getting all the veggies from your plate without you two talking about it? and you just picked the chicken meat from hers like you've been married for a long time now, huh? how sweet."
"because that's what we've been doing ever since!" you flailed your arms, getting a little annoyed now. "i've known her since i was twelve! we practically grew up together."
"you could have at least avoided her clinging too much on you. i'm your girlfriend, seulgi. you should have at least considered that!"
you sighed, biting your lip to control your emotions. "look. i'm sorry. it is my fault. unnie doesn't know about us. please don't blame this on her. it is my fault."
"and now you're defending her." jisoo shook her head. "you know what i realized today? you didn't want us to go public, not because you were afraid of people judging us. you were afraid she'd find out."
you cast your eyes down, not answering.
"do me a favor, seulgi," said jisoo, making you look up. "admit it to yourself first. you will end up nowhere if you'll keep running away from that feeling of yours."
you felt your heart beating fast. your eyes are warm. for a moment there, you wanted to cry and tell jisoo how you've tried to fight your feelings for years. but you can't do that. not in front of her. the best you could do now is save her from getting hurt any longer.
"and please, the next time you'll get yourself a girlfriend, make sure you're really over your best friend." jisoo turned her back at you. "bye, seulgi."
that was the last time jisoo talked to you.
---
it has been a week now since you and jisoo broke up.
you didn't make an effort to reach out, not wanting to hurt her any longer. jisoo and seungwan were right; you haven't moved on from joohyun.
you shed a few tears the night you broke up, but it wasn't as painful when joohyun told you before about her first boyfriend.
it made you realize it's still joohyun all this time. it's always her.
your phone buzzed. you smiled when you saw a message coming from 'baechu' demanding you to go to her house.
and since it's her birthday today, who are you to say no to this princess of yours?
---
"seulgi, i'm bored."
your shoulder felt heavy when joohyun rested her head. you adjusted your position so she can lean comfortably. it's just you and her in the house. her parents went out to get some food for her birthday.
"but you're the one who picked this movie, unnie. do you want to change it?"
"no. i don't want to watch anymore. i want to do something."
"and that is?"
she smiled. "i want to dance."
"dance? like dance around here?"
"yeah. i still haven't moved on from your performance last week, especially your duo dance. teach me how to dance, seul."
"a-are you serious?"
joohyun gets to her feet and held her hand towards you. "i haven't tried dancing before. it's fascinating for me, but i haven't really thought of doing it."
you held her hand. "don't tell me none of your ex-boyfriends asked you to dance?"
joohyun shook her head and pulled you up.
"aish. those es," you muttered. "you're lucky you have a dancer for a friend."
joohyun chuckled. "yes, i'm so lucky to have you, my ddeulgi."
you went on and taught her some dance moves from your performance. your laughter filled the house. after about an hour, she felt tired. but instead of stopping, you opted for a bolder move by asking her to do a sweet dance with you.
"are you comfortable?" you asked after you felt her body stiffened when you touched her waist.
"y-yeah... i'm just... i just haven't done this before..." she blushed a little. she wrapped her arms around your neck. "like this?"
you hummed. "step on my feet."
she looked down, stepping her little feet over yours gently. "this looks painful, seulgi."
"it's not. trust me. now, follow my lead, okay?"
she nodded. you swayed her slowly around the house with your hum serving as the music.
"this is so cool." joohyun looked up at you. "and really sweet."
you smiled at her. you pulled her head closer to your shoulder. "happy birthday, unnie."
joohyun sighed as she relaxes against your shoulder. she buried her face deep in the crook of your neck.
"thanks, seul. thanks for making this day special."
you continued humming as you sway her around slowly, getting lost in this blissful moment.
"when did you become this tall?" she whispered. "i haven't seen you in a year, and now you're already taller than i am."
you chuckled. "i'm already eighteen. i may stop growing now."
"it's not just the height though. you've changed. you've matured. you're no longer the baby bear i used to remember."
you looked around the room. you knew the reason for that change and maturity she was talking about. getting intimate with jisoo made you more comfortable with joohyun. you know where to touch her. you finally learn how to handle her.
"is that something good?" you asked.
"definitely good."
you stayed like that for minutes until she starts dosing off. being the naughty kid you are, you scooped her in your arms, bringing her out of trance.
"seulgi? what are you doing?" her hand on your neck tightened to support her weight.
"you're about to sleep on me, so i'll bring you to your bed."
"but i'm heavy!"
"no, you're not!"
joohyun laughed as you carried her bridal style to her room. you threw her on the bed, you followed suit as she pulled you down on top of her.
"you're crazy!" she laughed.
you propped your weight on your elbows and looked down at her. "i take that you enjoyed it."
"i did!"
you raised an eyebrow. "so, none of those es carried you like that before?"
joohyun shook her head, still smiling at you. her fingers are tracing your nape.
"your exes were all boring," you snorted.
"yeah. maybe i should be with you, huh?"
you felt your world stopping at that, asking yourself if she's joking or not. you wish you could find out because if there's one thing you'd want to do at this very moment, it's to kiss her.
joohyun's face shifted from being playful to serious. she blushed after realizing what she said. you don't know if you imagining it, but you felt her heart beating fast against your chest.
but the honk of the car's horn outside disturbed the moment. joohyun's parents are back.
she pulled away from you without saying a word and went down to open the gate for them.
you ate dinner with her family. although joohyun treated you normally, you noticed how she kept avoiding your eyes.
you never talked about what happened after.
Comments