//

soccer practice occurs three times a week after school, stretching until six in the evening. the girls would be utterly exhausted after a whole afternoon of endless running, friendly matches and physical conditioning. yena dislikes the latter because at the end of the day, she ends up showering in her own sweat. 

well, after every practice she sweats buckets but whenever their coach makes them go through hell (a.k.a physical conditioning), she perspires like a mad dog. and she would end up spending a whole thirty minutes in the school’s shower room.

she would be the first to enter the shower but she would be the last to exit. and to be frank, sakura doesn’t have much patience built inside her petite frame. she loathes waiting— she gets fed up watching the buffering icon constantly spinning and spinning even when her game just starts to load, she gets irked having to stand in long queues, she gets even more riled up when teachers hold her class back after the dismissal bell rings... you see, she simply detests waiting.

but somehow, choi yena makes waiting bearable. sakura would often wait at the empty, dimly lit cafeteria after her quick shower (dusk prevails and everything becomes calm) while yena takes her time. miraculously, she’s able to wait without an ounce of impatience found in her blood. there’s not a sign of irritation or aggravation gnawing at her insides. 

and sakura takes this opportunity to appreciate the air of tranquility thriving in the school’s atmosphere, there’s barely any students walking around at this timing. evenings in school are probably the only timings she could endure there, because it’s when everything is almost noiseless and secluded.

“i’m all set! oh, kkura-ya... are you sure you washed up?” 

after what felt like an eternity, yena comes jogging to her with that megawatt smile of hers dancing on her plump lips. her towel rests on her damp hair, and sakura swears yena has never looked more child-like.

“uh yeah? are you blind? i’m literally wearing a new set of clothes.” sakura gives her shirt an assertive tug, forehead creasing into a frown as she looks at yena weirdly.

but it seems yena doesn’t want to let her live, pretending to scrutinise her as she taps curiously on her chin.  

“are you reeaaally sure? let me smell your hair-“ yena leans in to take a sniff as a tease, but she’s actually surprised and captivated when the sweet and pleasant smell of sakura’s shampoo invades her nostrils.

she pulls away with arched brows, lips slightly parted in disbelief. she scoffs, smiling at her girlfriend who shoots her a sly look as she shoves her towel inside her bag.

“oh wow- i was actually going to clown you but your hair actually smells really good. what shampoo did you use?” yena asks with eagerness, looking at the ravenette with anticipation reflecting in her eyes. 

like yena, sakura doesn’t plan on giving her the easy way either. the cherry blossom only shrugs, slinging the straps of her bag across her shoulders with a hand holding her shoebag. with a frisky smile, sakura glances behind her shoulder.

“sorry love, i ain’t tellin’.” she replies curtly before beginning to walk out of the cafeteria.

when her girlfriend whines, sakura stifles a laugh before turning to the brunette who jogs towards her to catch up. she rolls her eyes when yena puckers her lips, there’s no way she’s giving in so easily.

“aww... c’mon! now that’s just being mean!” yena grouses, grabbing her arm lightly. 

and the cherry blossom watches as the sly hand slowly slides down her arm to intertwine their fingers together. it tickled, evoking goosebumps all over her body, and sakura narrows her eyes at her playful girlfriend who merely sports what looked like a seductive grin.

“at least give me a peck? i haven’t had my daily kiss for the day... pretty please?” yena begs with her cutesy voice with pinched lips, swinging their interlaced hands back and forth.

okay, that (adorable) pitiful look yena pulled honestly almost got her but sakura still refuses to let her off easily. every single day, she grants her girlfriend kisses and she realises that yena has become really spoilt for them, frequently asking for more than a mere peck.

(she yields to her endless requests because her fondness for the sensation of yena’s lips against hers is off the charts, but she won’t admit this out loud.)

“you made me wait for nearly half an hour and you’re easily asking for a kiss? you think i’m that easy?” 

miyawaki sakura doesn’t think of herself as an easy girl. but then again, it’s choi yena... and suddenly, she sort of wants to take back that question as embarrassment starts to sprout in the depths her core.

yena doesn’t seem to understand (which is very fortunate), taking her questions literally. she frowns as she scratches her cheek lightly, and like always, whenever she’s confused, her already puckered lips seem to enhance in plumpness.

“hm? but you always wait for me after practice every time, even when i told you not to?” yena’s response ended up being a question rather than a statement.

(she didn’t fully grasp the context but that’s okay.)

her response renders the cherry blossom speechless for a few seconds, realising her silly slip-up. well, it is true that she insists on waiting even when the duck tells her not to... 

(this is only between you and me, but sakura definitely prefers walking home with her girlfriend to walking home alone. it’s also because she doesn’t really like parting with her annoying girlfriend.)

“...d-date revoked.” sakura blurts out in panic, her cheeks and ears visibly turning a deep shade of red as she swiftly turns her back on yena before brisk walking towards the school gate.

and yena is left completely dumbfounded as she rushes to catch up to the flustered cherry blossom. she had zero idea of what she did or said wrong and out of the blue, her girlfriend is cancelling their after-school date. 

“wha-huh?? but what did i do?! babe, wait-”

“stupid duck, you’re embarrassing me!”

when it comes to who gets flustered the easiest, it’s always the cherry blossom.

///

sakura memorises the days when yena has extra classes, which happen to be tuesdays and fridays, and both days are for science. yena isn’t the best at the said subject, she doesn’t understand why she has to balance ludicrous equations (which she deems useless) because it’s not like she aspires to be a goddamn chemist in the future. she also doesn’t understand why she has to grasp the concept of energy theories and how they interact.

as if having to memorise the various parts of the whole human anatomy isn’t enough...

but at the end of the day, her body eventually forgets the weariness that tormenting subject bestowed her. because every time she finishes her extra classes, she turns into an eager duck, sprinting her way towards the school gate—where her lovely girlfriend calmly waits for her arrival.

yena takes her time to examine her well-defined side profile, her endearing prominent ear, her sharp jawline, her pointed nose... 

sakura is merely standing there, leaning against a pole as she busies herself with her phone. it’s enchanting how the japanese is able to make standing look like she’s posing for a photoshoot, or maybe yena is just too whipped.

then she runs towards the older girl while yelling out her name with her whole chest, earning her girlfriend’s attention at the last second as she tackles her in a tight hug. 

sakura stumbles back a few steps as yena flings her arms around her shoulders, unable to suppress the grin forming on her lips. she gives her back a few gentle pats, letting her girlfriend rejoice in the short-lived bliss of the embrace.

“could you have been any more louder, idiot?” sakura teases, pulling away from yena’s warm clutch.

yena sheepishly grins, the fluttering feeling in her stomach is getting slightly out of control. but what can she do? blame it all on the japanese beauty beside her of course, for instilling these feelings inside her. don’t get her wrong, she isn’t complaining.

“sorry, i just got excited seeing you. so? still up for the ice cream date?”

“okay, but you’re paying.”

“unfair! i paid the last time!”

and sakura laughs heartily as she drags her sulky girlfriend along towards the ice cream shop downtown. 

“ it up, babe. let’s go.”

sakura definitely loathes waiting— but when it comes to choi yena, she makes everything bearable.

(in the end, yena always ends up treating her.)

—