a/n: Hey, sorry it took so long! life got in the way.

this isnt the last chapter there's still one left, maybe 2 left. 

----------------------------------------------------

“I’m so sorry baby.”

“It’s ok.” Mina replied. 

“I’ve just been so busy lately and I don’t know, I guess it just slipped my mind. I was hoping this would be a good start to making it up to you.”

A small black box was placed in Mina’s hands and as she removed the lid, a beautiful rose colored watch was revealed from underneath. She is by no means an expert when it comes to watches but from the way it looked and how it felt in her hands, she suspected it to have cost a pretty penny. 

“It’s beautiful, thank you.” Mina whispered.

“You know I love you, right?”

“Of course.”

As Mina’s eyes fell upon the small jewellery box on her desk, she thought to herself just how ironic it was. Her former girlfriend bought her an expensive watch, yet had no time for her. 

If anything, it only further solidified what she had come to realise as the issues of their relationship started to unfold; they barely knew each other. The physical attraction was there, certainly, but there wasn’t much past that. If they did know each other well, she probably would have gotten something that she actually likes, a video game or a knitting kit. It was a sweet gesture, but it was more of a ‘I don’t know what the the get you because I have no clue what you like so I’ll just buy you a watch’ kind of gift. 

Unfortunately, relationships like these were not foreign to Mina. The repetitive motion of putting in 100% to only receive 30% back has become somewhat of a theme in her love life and despite her best efforts to keep things under control, it has slowly taken a toll.

Loneliness is her biggest fear.  

--

Anxiety. As the day of their departure drew closer, this became a more common feeling for Momo. The thought of the trip looming constantly in the back of her mind, it was inescapable. They were going to have a good time, of that, she was sure. But she couldn’t help but worry about what was going to happen when they returned, she couldn’t just leave forever. Eventually, she would have to go back to the real world and figure out what she was going to do with her life. The addition of Mina only cemented this fact. Now she wasn’t going alone so there was a level of responsibility on her part. Momo couldn’t keep Mina away from everything in her life for too long and Mina for sure wouldn’t go back without Momo so she wouldn’t really have a choice. Another reason for Momo’s worries, Mina. They were friends, yes, but they’ve belonged to such a large and tight-knit friend group for so long that they would seldom spend time with each other without the presence of someone else, whether it be Sana or Jihyo or whoever. So the thought of it only being the two of them was a little nerve-wracking. What if they had personality clashes? Where Momo can be brash and make hasty decisions, Mina is more careful and often takes time to think things through (If you ignore the fact that she made the decision to put her entire life on hold so she could gallivant around the world on the toss of a coin).

The thump of the front door closing indicated that someone had arrived, followed by the sound of a pair of heels clacking against the floor tiles. Momo didn’t need to look up, she knew who it was.

“You’re home early.” Momo said, attention still fixated on the folding of her favourite track suits.

Sana sighed. “Yeah, class finished early. How are you feeling?”

“Fine, I guess. Just finishing up packing.”

“Do you think you have room for one more item?”

“I don’t think you’re gonna fit in my suitcase.” Momo sniggered to herself, it was a lame joke but those were always her favourite.

Sana rolled her eyes. “Not me. I bought you something.”

Momo’s eyes lit up as she had a penchant for gifts. “Oh? What is it?”

Sana reached down at her purse and fished around until she located what she was looking for and pulled it out. A book.

“Here.” She said, extending her arm out.

“A book?” Momo asked confusedly.

“It’s a journal.” Sana answered.

“What for?”

“For you to write in of course!"

“Why would I? I’m not really a writer.”

“You don’t have to be a writer. It’s a good way to express your feelings.”

Momo realized the direction this was going and shut it down, almost instinctively. “No. No thanks, I don’t need it, I’m good. Thank you for the generous thought but really its o—”

“Just give me a second so I can explain, alright?”  Sana pleaded.

Momo surrendered, noticing that Sana’s serious expression was unwavering. “Okay, fine.”

“Look, I know you’re going through a tough time at the moment and I also know that you like to bury your emotions, never letting them see the light of day. And that can be really unhealthy. So, I bought you this diary… or journal… whatever you want to call it, it doesn’t matter. The point is, you can use this however you see fit. You can use it to vent your feelings or express your emotions, whatever you want, just don’t keep them bottled up inside.”

“I don’t know about this.” Momo said, running her finger over the textured cover.

“Please just give it a try, I promise you will feel much better, it’s what I used when my dog passed away.”

“Really? I had no idea.”

“I kept it a secret, you know better than most that I was so heartbroken when he died, it felt like a piece of me had died with him. I was having a really hard time and could barely cope with daily life. That’s when I got a journal and just started writing in it.”

“What did you write about?” Momo questioned pensively.

“Anything and everything, it differed from day to day. Some days I would just pour out all my anger towards the world and life onto the page and afterwards I would burn it. I know it sounds cheesy but it was kind of like a symbolic way of releasing my emotional burden.”

“A little cheesy.” Momo chuckled. “But it’s actually kind of beautiful.” 

Sana smiled. “Other times I would just write about my day, no anger, just my own thoughts. I kept those entries and every now and then I would go back and read them to see the progress I had made.”

Momo thought deeply about it, maybe it was a good idea.  

“I don’t even know where to begin.”

Sana spent a moment pondering what Momo said. “Maybe start with your day, the best part the worst part. The most important thing is to be honest with yourself, this is your journal after all, no one is going to read it but you.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready to do that.”

“Well, okay, how about you write about something that makes you happy? Why don’t you write about Mina?”

As fate would have it, Momo was middle of drinking her Boba tea in this moment and subsequently proceeded to spit it out when Sana’s words registered in her brain. “What?” Momo nearly screamed as she wiped the Boba tea residue from her chin.

“Okay, gross.”

“What do you mean write about Mina?”

“She makes you happy, doesn’t she?”

“Well… sure but—”

“Then write about her.”

Momo was seconds away from going off on Sana who had noticed as such and decided to pry further. “What’s wrong?”

“You know what’s wrong!”

“No I don’t? do I?”

“You’re pretending like your question wasn’t loaded with implications!”

“What was I implying exactly?”

“Don’t play dumb! You’re implying that I have a crush on her!”

“On who?”

“Sana!” Momo shouted as she leaped towards Sana from her previous seated position on the couch.

Sana was half expecting a reaction like this and wanted to tread the fine line of Momo’s temper. A failure, she was unable to surrender to explain before she was tackled to the ground and assaulted with an onslaught of tickling to both her ribcages. “Okay okay! Wai- ouch! Stop okay I’m sorry!”

Momo ceased fire before speaking. “Explain yourself.”

“It’s just, there’s this weird sort of tension between you two and I’m pretty sure you guys are the only ones who don’t feel it, as weird as it sounds.”

Momo found that her patience was wearing thin when Sana stopped speaking but clearly had more to say.

“And? Continue!”

“Okay, um, well… for starters, you listen to Mina far more than you listen to anyone else.”

“Not true.”

“Yes, it is! I know you Hirai! She is the only person on this planet that could have convinced you to not leave Korea and I’m certain that if she told you to stay, you would.”

“Okay, so I respect her opinion, what about it?” Momo hissed.

 "It's not just that. You smile at the mere mention of her name and-” Sana was summarily interrupted when Momo’s phone started buzzing from her coffee table.

“Who is it?” Sana asked as she stared at Momo who had quickly removed herself from atop of the younger girl.

No answer but Sana noticed a slight smile on Momo’s lips as her eyes were glued to her phone screen.

“Oh, uh, no one.” Momo stuttered, placing her phone into her pocket.

“It was Mina wasn’t it?”

“No.”  

“Liar.” Sana smirked.

It was. Mina had sent her a selfie at work.

—

 Dear diary:

So, like, I don’t really know how to start this, I’ve never owned a diary before. Today was rather boring, I just finished up the last of my packing. We leave in 2 days. Mina sent me a selfie of her farewell lunch at her part time job. I’m glad she’s coming with me, truly. But part of me feels guilty for stealing her away from everyone and everything.

I’d be lying if I said I’m okay, I’m not. I want to explain everything, but I don’t think I can right now. Baby steps, Sana said.

—

“That’s it, now stay there, don’t move!” Momo called as she shifted backwards to get a better angle. “Now point to the sign and smile-- No, smile at me, not the sign you fool.”

“Is this really necessary?” Mina huffed, unenthused and a little embarrassed about her current state.

“Yep, the girls collectively decided that they were going to disown me if I don’t take enough photos of you.”

“They wouldn’t actually do that you know.” Mina protested.

“Perhaps.” Momo shrugged. “But I think I’d miss Dahyunnie’s hugs far too much to risk it.” 

Mina pouted. “I don’t think you understand how humiliating this is for me. We haven’t even boarded!”

It was true. They were still at Incheon Airport awaiting their flight. Momo insisted she get a photo of Mina standing underneath a sign of the airline they were flying with.

“Where did you even get that camera from? Did you buy it specifically for this trip?”

“No of course not. It was a Christmas present from my sister.”

Before the two could continue their conversation, the boarding call for their flight was announced over the loudspeaker.

“This is it then I guess.” Momo sighed.

“Let’s go.” Mina said, reaching her arm out

Europe was their chosen destination for this trip with Germany being the chosen starting point. It was a 12-hour flight from Seoul to Berlin. Luckily the pair we able to score a direct flight as Momo was dreading the thought of a two-hour layover in another country. 

As they boarded their flight, Mina’s phone buzzed from inside her purse. After moving quickly to store her carryon bag into the overhead luggage compartment, Mina pulled her phone from her purse to see who would be trying to contact her at this time of the morning. 

“Hey, Momoring, look at this, Nayeon sent it to me.” Mina said, facing her phone screen towards Momo. 

It was a group photo of the rest of their friends. Tzuyu was holding the phone with Chaeyoung and Dahyun hanging off of her other arm pulling silly faces. Jihyo had her arm slung around Sana’s shoulder while Sana’s arms were wrapped firmly around Jihyo’s waist. They were both looking in Jeongyeon and Nayeon’s direction, sending the pair judgemental stares, probably because from what Mina could tell, they were bickering. 

A snapshot that encompassed the overall dynamic of their friend group rather perfectly. “Those two are going to murder each other one day.” Mina giggled.

Momo could only nod at that statement. “Can’t they just get married already?” She whined.

Mina hummed her agreement, still staring at the photo. “My money is on Jeongyeon to make the first move.” she said as she began typing a reply.  

Momo shook her head. “Nah no way, Jeongyeon is oblivious to Nayeon’s advances and believes them to be nothing more than friendly. Nayeon’s frustration will burst one day and she will let it all out.” 

--

“Hey! What is that?” Momo whined, grabbing Mina’s attention back from the device in her hands.

“My switch.” Mina replied as she zipped her purse back up before placing it back underneath the seat in front of her.

“You packed your dumb console? If you’re going to be playing that game the whole time, then what am I gonna do for 12 hours?” Momo pouted.

Mina let out a dramatic sigh before asking. “Didn’t you bring anything to keep you occupied?” Earning a sad head shake from Momo. Another sigh from Mina as she reached once again for her purse. “I was going to power through Zelda, but I guess, since I’m nice, we can play Mario Kart.”

Momo rubbed her hands together in anticipation. “You’re making a grave mistake Myoui.”

--

Unfortunately, it didn’t last long. Both girls grew bored of Mario Kart after five races. For different reasons, Momo was tired of losing and Mina was tired of winning despite putting in virtually no effort.

“You’re just a nerd.” Momo yawned, stretching her arms above her head. “I think I’m gonna take a nap.”

“Good idea, all that losing must have you exhausted.” 

The moment of finally taking the Zelda cartridge out of its case was something she had been waiting for since she sat down. 

Unfortunately again, it didn’t last long. Her switch was out of battery after only 90 minutes of playing. Mina conceded that it was past time she got some rest as well. She turned to look at Momo who was still out like a light beside her.

As she stared at the older girl, Mina let her eyes wander and noticed things that she had never seen before. She had spared looks at Momo many times before in admiration, she was in terrific shape, being a dancer and all. But she never really focused on her face, she knew what Momo looked like, she was beautiful, and that was that. This time however, Mina noticed certain features she hadn’t paid attention to in the past from Her defined jawline, puffy cheeks to the small but prominent mole on the front of her neck. Mina was surprised that in the 6 years she had known Momo, she hadn’t noticed how beautiful she looked while asleep, partnered with the quiet, adorable little snores she let out every few seconds, Momo looked like she was at peace. A small smile played on Mina’s lips as she stowed away her purse.

Once she found herself comfortable, well, as comfortable as possible in an economy seat airplane, Mina plugged in her earphones and closed her eyes. Exhaustion had well and truly kicked in at this point and before long she drifted away to sleep.

--

A parched mouth, loud surrounding ambience noise and an arm tapping her shoulder is what wakes Momo from her deep slumber. It wasn’t until the tapping was accompanied by a soft “Uh, excuse me…” that Momo realised someone was trying to grab her attention. She looked up and spotted a woman standing at the foot of a trolley, dressed immaculately in uniform. The flight attendant. The lady waited a few moments for Momo to regain consciousness.

“Sorry to wake you but we are handing out the meals now.”

“Oh ok uh…” Momo stuttered, still a bit dazed. “What is it?”

“Well there’s two options, you can either have a spinach and bacon quiche or a vegetarian pasta.”

Momo turned to her friend beside her. “Mina what do you wa—oh…” She paused, realising Mina was turned, facing the wall with her head resting on the window, out to the world. Momo was reluctant to wake the younger girl on the assumption that she would still be exhausted, she didn’t get much sleep last night as they had to wake up at 3am to catch their flight.

 “Uhhh… just two quiches please.” A quiche was the safe choice in this instance, from what Momo remembers, Mina enjoys them, and it’s better eaten cold than a bowl of pasta which is helpful if she doesn’t wake up for a while.

“Two quiches coming right up.” The flight attendant whispered as she handed Momo two warm containers. “Careful, they’re still hot.”

“Thank you.” Momo replied with a grateful smile. “Do you have any ketchup?”

“Yes of course.” The standing woman said as she rummaged through the middle drawer of her trolley. “Here you go, enjoy.”

“Great, thank you.”

Not long after Momo began tucking into her food, she felt the girl beside her begin to shift and turn before slowly opening her eyes. Mina woke to the smell of cheese and bacon as well as the sound of someone beside her eating.

“I was going to wake you, but you looked like you were having a good sleep.” Momo said with a mouthful of quiche.

The younger girl hummed her agreement as she rubbed her eyes. “I was, as good sleep as you can get on an airplane.” Mina mumbled before glancing down at the fold out tray in front of her. On top sat a container with tin foil covering the lid and two small red sachets beside it.

“It’s a quiche, it should still be warm.”

“It comes with ketchup; they must have got my emails.”

“Okay first of all, you didn’t send them any emails. Second of all, I had to ask for it... You’re welcome by the way.”

“You know me well.” Mina chuckled as she ripped open one of the sachets before emptying its contents over her meal.

The rest of the flight was smooth and thankfully for both girls, went by very quickly. Once they finished their meals, they both agreed to try and get another hour or so of sleep before the plane landed. It would be 5pm when they arrived so if they both slept a little more, they would be able to explore berlin for a little, get a small taste of the city’s nightlife.

—

The sight of Momo standing in front of her, peering through the lens of her camera was something that Mina quickly realised she would have to get used to. 

Click.

“Wow! I mean it when I say that nobody on this mortal plane strikes a pose like Myoui Mina.”

Click.

A sign that read ‘Willkhommen In Berlin’ was the backdrop for this particular photoshoot (If you could even call it that). If it were up to Mina, this sign would have received nothing more than a passing glance but Momo insisted on stopping. “Can you explain to me again what’s so fascinating about a welcome sign?”

 “I’m creating a scrapbook of photos from this trip and the theme I’ve adopted is ‘travel vlog’. It’s imperative in travel vlogs to show something that indicates when you’ve arrived in another country and a picture of this sign is a perfect way to do so. I’ve thrown you in there to keep