A/N: No TWs for this chapter! But just to make it clear: Whenever Minjoo is speaking her words will be in bold italic. Flashbacks are in italic. Text messages/notes are underlined. I think it's pretty easy to understand in the chapter, so I hope you enjoy it!

It wasn’t a surprise really, it happened at least once a week and Minjoo was used to it by now – used, but not comfortable with it. Boah was the kind of person that takes joy In embarrassing others, although her sadistic ways had considerably grown within the last couple of months, turning her occasional mean comments in downright insults and threats – perhaps she wanted to break Minjoo, wanted to see Minjoo completely humiliate as if her usual bullying sessions weren’t enough to please her.

Minjoo could only shrink in her seat, trying to brace herself for what was about to happen, to try her best to not shown how hurt she was inside, to not break down.

There wasn’t anyone there to save her, even if there was someone left, she knew they wouldn’t do anything – they didn’t have a reason to, siding with a bullied kid will only make you a target as well. It had always been like this. At first people would have three kind of reactions to her: curiosity, pity and despise. Boah was the perfectly example of the last one. Meanwhile her other classmates would initially pity her condition and even try to include her, but as soon as they realized that it would take a little more effort, they would leave. Even the curious ones, the ones that would bother her with all sort of questions and even try to get a reaction out of her and check if her condition was indeed true – those would quickly lose interest. After years dealing with the same people, she knew all too well she was alone in this now.

That’s why she had found ways to stay as far away as possible from Boah and her friends – hiding during lunch break, leaving early and coming to class just when the teacher was already there. Still, once in a while she wouldn’t be quick enough and then she would get punished for it.

Today was one of these days. Minjoo got distracted and when she realized, the teacher was already leaving the room and everyone following suit, making her have to hurry up to catch up. Her seatmate had left already and in a matter of seconds it was only her and the bullies in the classroom.

She took a long, painful breath, trying to keep calm and finish putting away her stuff. She knew better than try to make a run for the door, so she didn’t even bother to stand up, her ears picking up the sound of Boah’s snickers and her lazy steps coming close.

Boah’s hands pressed hard on her shoulders, making it hard for her to hide the pain – recently the bully started to get physical and Minjoo could only pray she wouldn’t go much further than this, she wasn’t sure what she would do if it happened.

Luckily, she didn’t get to figure out for herself.

The light, high pitched and familiar voice of her new seatmate pulled her out of her suffering. The girl’s words weren’t gentle, but the touch on her arm was – warm, gentle, safe. Chaewon was trying to help her.

Minjoo was shocked to see her there, facing the other girls so adamantly when she didn’t need to. It’s been so long someone tried to help her, so long someone was willing to take a risk for her, that she didn’t know how to react.

Before she knew it, they were outside the classroom, and soon out of the school.

The way to the bus stop passed in a blur, her mind unsure of what was happening.  Chaewon kept talking, lightly scolding her for not standing up for herself and then proceeding to offer to be there for her in the future as well – she didn’t have a way with her words, they were abrupt, almost awkward, but the sincerity in it was clear. She caught herself nodding and smiling. Ever since their first meeting, she had thought the girl’s voice sounded nice, the kind of tone she wish she had, but now it sounded even sweeter and pleasant to her ears.

She didn’t understand why Chaewon was helping her so suddenly, why someone who wouldn’t even talk to her in class, was now so willing to protect her. Still, she was so, so glad.

That day, on her way back home, she couldn’t help but smile to herself as she stared at the contact name on her phone – Kim Chaewon, with no emoji or anything to make it any less formal, but still, the simple name gave her a warm feeling.

“Thank you. I’m glad I met you.”

The text didn’t convey how grateful she really was, but it was the best she could type as her feet led her to her house and her confused thoughts tried to rearrange themselves.

Kim Chaewon was a very unique person, not an easy one to know or to approach. Ever since their first meeting, they had barely interacted even though they spend most of the day sat side by side. Chaewon wouldn’t say anything unless it was related to school work, and even like this, she would refuse to copy her answers after the first day – she claimed she had her own book now, so it was fine; Minjoo wasn’t sure if she just didn’t want her help or if she was genuinely trying to do things on her own, most people would just take the easy route. The slightly shorter Kim wasn’t as rude as in the first day, she didn’t try to make friends with her, but she would greet her with a nod and not even once she sent her one of the dirty looks Minjoo would often get from other students for not answering to roll call or never being asked to read out loud like the others students – this ‘special treatment’ came with a price too big to be a real advantage.

Although the girl wasn’t as unpleasant as some of her other classmates, it seemed unrealistic to expect from a newcomer to step in and save her Boah when they weren’t even close. Still, it happened. Not only Chaewon had intervene, but also had make sure to get her home safely and even offered to help again in the future…It was almost too good to be truth.

Minjoo wasn’t sure whether the girl just had a big sense of protectiveness and it prompted her to act, or if she had some other reason. Nonetheless, she was glad that for once she had someone to rely on, even if only for today.

Entering her house, she looked around the place in search for her mother, finding her in the kitchen as usual.

“Minguri! You’re home!” The woman greeted her with a smile and she would have given her one of her typical bear hugs wasn’t it for all the icing in her hands – Minjoo was pretty sure her mother always showered her with so much affection whenever she arrived home not only because she loved her, but also because she knew how much of a hard time she had at school. Minjoo was thankful for it.

Returning the smile, she gestured the cake her mother was currently decorating and asked. “What’s that? We have a new order?”

“Only this cake. One of the neighbors has a church event or something.” Her mother said, making a little bit of a mess in the counter as she used sign language to reply – force of the habit, whenever she spoke to Minjoo she would try to signalize as well, it was her way to make it seem more natural for the girl. However, in the moment it wasn’t necessary and her movements made the icing go everywhere.

With a soft, silent chuckle, Minjoo told her to stop. “Do you need any help? I don’t have much homework today.” The younger brunette offered and as expected her mother shook her head in a negative.

“I’m nearly done here. Thanks for the offer, sweetie.” The reply came with yet another smile, a proud one this time – her mother and her worked together many times, baking was one of the activities that allowed them to make some extra cash and spend quality time together. “You can give me a hand with things on the weekend, I think we might get a bigger order from one of the girls that works at the office down the street.”

Nodding, Minjoo rested her chin on her hands and watched as her mother skillfully finished up the cake. She was a good baker herself, but her mother was the one to do the decoration most of the time.

It was just the two of them. Their house placed between two very contrasting neighborhoods, wasn’t the biggest, but they had made it a comfortable home. Her mother worked as a waitress, what meant that sometimes Minjoo had to be on her own, but since they started to sell some of their baked goods and taking some orders, her mom wasn’t taking as many night shifts. Her mom once wished to own a bakery, yet baking cakes with her only daughter was the closest of it she ever got. The money they made wasn’t that much, but it was enough to allow the older woman to work less outside the house and Minjoo was glad to be able to help out.

They still didn’t make enough to pay for some more expensive things, like Minjoo’s therapy – it didn’t help that the health care was so expensive in their country, and mental health care was even more expensive as it was still considered as an alternative therapy instead of a real treatment. Minjoo tried to keep the money her mom gave her – because Mrs. Kim insisted on rewarding her even if she said it wasn’t necessary –, hoping she could use it eventually.

As a child she had received treatment to some extent, but when her dad left them, her condition got worse gradually until it reached her current state. Her mother still tried to look for help, yet all she got from the doctors was that it was most a psychological problem, not a physical one – it made her feel guilty that she was once more causing trouble to her mother, however, the woman never let her feel like a burden or allowed her to lose hope. Now, she knew that her hopes weren’t very realistic, still she wanted to give it a try and repay all her mother had done with her own effort.

When it was just the two of them at home, her problem wasn’t something that really bothered her. Mom could understand her words, be it through sign language or just a quick exchange of looks. When she was younger, she would walk around the place with a small notebook and write down everything – sometimes her notes would be so long, and even a little bit confusing – but her mother would always read it and answer every single question and remark she made.

At their city there were a couple of special schools specialized in dealing with special students like her, the curriculum including sign language classes and other specific subjects besides the basic ones. Nonetheless, it was far too expensive, so Minjoo would always talk her mom out of it whenever the woman suggested on sending her there – her school was a terrible place to be at, but she would feel even worse to be at a special school on the other side of the town meanwhile her mother had to struggle working overtime to pay her school fees.

Luckily for the two of them, a school nearby had a course on sign language that was open to the community and cheap enough for them, it was through it that they started to learn – it was very basic and sometimes Minjoo still struggled to express herself properly like this, especially when she didn’t have contact with other people that knew how to use it.

“Did anything good happen today? You seem…At ease.” Her mother curious question took her by surprise. Was it that obvious? Maybe. After all she would usually just march to her room to change out of her school uniform and into her normal clothes, anxious to get rid of any remind of her school day.

“It was better than usual.” Minjoo answered frankly, still unsure about how much she should tell. Her mother was no fool, she knew things weren’t easy for her at school, however she wouldn’t want her to worry unnecessarily or harbor too much hope on a potential new friendship for her daughter – it’s been a pretty long while since the last time she met one of her friends. “I’ll tell you later, okay?”

“Alright, alright. I’m not going to try to pry into your life…Although I’d like to know if you finally met a guy…Or a girl. Anything is fine, you know?”

Minjoo’s eyes grew wide and she was quick to deny it, shaking her head strongly.

Her mother only laughed at her reaction. “I’m just glad you seem happy today. That’s all.” She handed her the now nearly empty bowl of icing – luckily for Minjoo, there was enough frosting left for her. “Now here, go ahead and it clean, kiddo. But don’t forget to wash it properly after!”

 “Good morning :)”

Chaewon frowned slightly at the text – the same kind of message she had been receiving throughout the weekend. She had given her number to Minjoo for emergencies, instead, she received only this kind of useless – yet cute – messages, and her lack of proper replies didn’t seem to bother the other.

The brunette was in a dilemma: she didn’t want to make friends, but Kim Minjoo was becoming a constant in her life. Push the girl away wasn’t a real option since she had already offered her help – and perhaps also her friendship, even if she didn’t realized at the moment –, turning her back on the girl would be awful thing to do and she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if something happened to Minjoo because she didn’t have anyone to rely on. Therefore, she couldn’t simply ignore the fellow Kim like she originally had – not so well, but still.

Yet, Chaewon didn’t want to become too close, and something told her that getting attached to Minjoo would be incredibly easy. The fact that she couldn’t simply ignore her situation made it pretty clear that part of her was already attached – this thought made her feel uneasy. She didn’t like to think too much about her feelings, but the younger girl was pretty good at getting to them without even trying.

Chae already had friends, she didn’t need another one. She had her small group of trustworthy people and she was happy with it, she didn’t want to let anyone else in and have to deal with the constant worry of being disappointed or hurt – and she had a feeling that being close to Minjoo would make her a pretty vulnerable person, in more than just one way.

Grimacing to herself, she quickly typed a reply.

“Morning.”

Simple and direct, cold enough to not encourage more messages…Too cold, she couldn’t help but complement it with a more friendly “See you at school.”

She would probably have beaten herself to send something more – something embarrassing like an emoji – if her mother hadn’t knocked on the door lightly, the white light over it blinking for a moment before Chaewon could open it.

Exchanging the usual morning greetings, she gave the older woman a smile and ran back inside the room to grab her backpack before following the shorter brunette to the kitchen where breakfast waited for them. She took a seat, narrowing her eyes slightly when she noticed the absence of the third member of their small family, but her expression soon changed as she felt a hand playfully ruffling her hair before a kiss was placed on her head – her other mom was right in time.

“Mom!” She complained, but there was a smile on her face as she watched the woman greet her wife with a quick kiss and take a seat.

“Good morning, Chaewonie. Eat fast, I’ll take you to school today.” Jiyeon said with a wink, knowing fully well the younger Kim would protest – Chaewon didn’t mind getting a ride, but Jiyeon was a little too mischievous to give her one without including any embarrassing questions about her school life and maybe even try to sneak a peek at her new friends.

“It’s four blocks away, I can just walk there.”

“And this is ten minutes of walk that you can use to eat instead, so just accept it. You’ve been leaving pretty early lately.” Luda intervened, sounding like the protective and logical mother she was.

It was a lost battle and Chaewon knew it, moreover, she was never the type to argue with her parents – Embarrassing or not, she loved them and the fact that they would always go an extra mile for her, even when it wasn’t needed like now.

Nodding, she started to eat, gladly accepting the bowl Jiyeon was offering her.

They ate in relative silence, her mother’s going through their schedules for the day and planning out the week, just like always. Chaewon concentrate in her food, she rarely participates in these kinds of talks, first because her school schedule was pretty boring, and second because she enjoyed just listening to her mothers’ voices that were so familiar and comforting always. It was silly, but she appreciated these little moments they had.

“Oh, my briefcase! I forgot it upstairs!” The older Kim said when they finished the food, standing up to go and grab it meanwhile the rest of the family just watched it with smiles – Jiyeon often forgets things and she is always running around with a pile of documents on her.

Standing up as well, Chaewon placed her backpack on her shoulders, watching as her mother did the same to her purse – Luda would be going to the opposite direction, a children’s hospital downtown.

Her mom’s small hands reached out to fix her hair, fixing the little mess Jiyeon made earlier. She touched her ears carefully before covering it with her hair, making sure she looked presentable. “You haven’t told us about the new school yet. Is it nice? Anyone giving you a hard time?” Luda asked in her usual quiet and gentle voice that reflected so well her petite silhouette, her smart eyes that were only a shade darker than Chaewon’s, observing her daughter’s face in the search of something.

Chaewon gave her a smile, shaking her head slightly. “No one is bothering me. I know how to take care of myself, mom, don’t worry.” She reassured even though they both knew the older woman would never not worry about her – after all, that’s what mothers are supposed to do.

“If you say so…Remember you can always tell us if you need help. You may be a little taller than me now, but you’re still a baby.” Being called a ‘baby’ by anyone other than her moms would make Chaewon go into instant rage, however, when it was about her parents she was nothing but a baby indeed. Therefore, she only chuckled lightly as her mother patted her head and she flexed her knees so they would be at the same level.

“Sure, mom. But I’m more than just a little taller now.”

“Of course, she took after my elegant human genes, instead of your fairy ones, babe.” Jiyeon interrupted them with her usual smirk, taking the chance to pat both women’s heads and take advantage of their slightly height difference now – Chaewon just snickered at her antics.

Now she was around the same height as Jiyeon and taller than Luda, however, it was very different when she first met them over ten years ago.

Visitation day was like going shopping for adults – but instead of picking different foods or clothes, they would pick kids to take home with them; at least that was what Chaewon’s seven-year-old mind thought it looked like. Chaewon was used to being alone in days like this. For a variety of reasons, people wouldn’t bother her like they did to other children – at first, she cried about it, but like with everything else in life, she learned that it was better to just adapt herself and pretend that she was better off like this. She was better off on her own, she had learned that it was better to not rely on anyone – a harsh reality for a child, but the one she was raised on.

That’s why she was now sat inside a room at the very far back on the third floor, a place most visitants wouldn’t bother coming in – the ‘aunties’ would let her stay there as long as she was a good girl and didn’t make a mess, and Chaewon was a good girl most of the time. She had a puzzle in front of her, a bunch of pieces already lost, but there were still enough for her to play with and try to recreate the image on the toy box – a little orange tiger that one of the aunties said looked like her once. It was difficult, a little too much for her age, but she still worked diligently on it, trying to ignore the vibration under her feet from the people walking and the kids running on the other floors.

Chae had managed to start to form the tiger’s head and make the picture a little easier to recognize, when the door was open with a crack – it didn’t make her look up, nor the steps coming closer did. The little girl only noticed the presence when someone lightly touch her shoulder, making her stand up quickly, surprised.

The woman gave her an apologetic smile, her brown eyes staring at Chaewon with attention as she took a sit in front of her. The woman was young, maybe even younger than her mother, and she had a light, comforting quality to her presence that almost made Chaewon at ease – almost.

The adult spoke, but Chaewon only understood half of her words, still a little taken aback by her presence, her nervous eyes roaming around the room making sure the door was open and no one else was coming in. This attitude of hers usually annoyed people, made them impatient and they would give up on talking to such a ‘disrespectful’ kid. The woman, however, kept her smile with a hint of pity in her eyes as she leaning in a little bit closer so she could repeat her words slower this time. “Hello, Chaewon. I’m Luda,” She pointed out the name tag made out of paper where her name could be read in green letters written with a simple calligraphy. “It’s nice to meet you. I’d like us to be friends, if that’s okay for you.”

Luda gave her an encouraging and hopeful look, and Kim moved on her seat, unsure of how to react. Chaewon didn’t know what to do, and part of her just wanted to push that stranger away before she could hurt her, however, another part of her was desperate for attention and care – and gods, how much she missed having it, how much she missed receiving that kind of warm smile and hugs, to have someone who would be willing to stay long enough to actually talk to and be heard…She could barely recall a time where it was a reality for her.

Hesitating, she looked up to meet the woman’s gaze. She opened to answer, but closed it again, only nodding instead – her words didn’t do any good to her.

Luda’s smile grew a little sadder at it, too subtly for the kid to notice, but the woman took note of it – she took note of everything, from Chaewon’s defensive posture, to her small frame and skinny body, to her chestnut eyes that were so intelligent but lacked the light a child’s eyes should have…She notice it all, and she took to herself the mission of fixing it.

Leaning in, she rested her elbows on the table and eyes the puzzle Chaewon was working on. “What about I help you with it?” She spoke slowly, making sure to keep eye contact as she did.  Chae nodded once more, looking a little more at ease with this than the conversation – Luda’s profession was based on words and her duty there was to make sure that kid was able to communicate properly, but only for today, she would let Chaewon do things her way.

Maybe, just maybe, she could get the kid to trust her a little more, and maybe it would be enough to allow her to help.

It was.

Jiyeon brought them to a tight hug, taking Chaewon out of her memories and back to a much more pleasant present – back then, she could never imagine she would have a caring and loving family like this, nor that she would accept them so whole hearted as she did. Hugging her moms back, they squeezed Luda between the two of them until the shorter woman complained in between chuckles.

“Enough with that! Let’s getting going.” Luda said as soon as she was out of the hug, readily grabbing both women by the wrists and making them follow her to the exit. “Bona, don’t let Chaewon be late for school. Chae, don’t let your mom convince you to grab fast food on the way there.” She nagged – she knew her family all too well. With another hug and a kiss on the cheek, she sent them off. “Now see you later, take care!”

Minjoo stole a glance at her seatmate, watching her working on her notebook, writing something with the intricate, hard to read calligraphy that the younger girl already knew well by now.

Today was being…Odd.

She would always come in late to avoid bumping into bullies in an empty classroom, however it seemed little likely to happen now with Chaewon around – the other brunette was early, sat on her seat, busy reading a book by the time Minjoo arrived. She noticed the way the chestnut eyes had checked her out quickly, as if looking for something off, before the girl answered her greeting with a nod and stiff smile. Chaewon was back to her reading before she could try to say anything.

She wondered if Chaewon was coming early just to make sure she wouldn’t be caught in a bad situation again…But she tried to suppress those thoughts, she was becoming a little too self-centered and seeing too much into such a simple action, Chaewon probably only hated being late.

Minjoo wasn’t reading too much into it.

The slightly shorter Kim made sure to arrive early, and although she indeed hated being late, her major reason was to make sure that scene with her seatmate and Boah wouldn’t repeat itself. Chaewon was the type of person that has a hard time speaking about her feelings, or even thinking about it, but she was also the type that couldn’t overlook things and Minjoo was pretty hard to ignore. During the weekend she couldn’t help, but replay the scene in her mind and it made her annoyed every time – more than this, it made her overthink about some aspects of it.

At least Boah hadn’t bothered them so far, although she would shoot dirty glances at the pair often, Chaewon had only returned it with her own glare before ignoring the girl and her annoying minion – she made sure to stay close enough of Minjoo to guarantee the other would be able to leave for lunch without trouble; she was tempted to ask to follow her, but Minjoo seem to have her own fixed schedule and Chaewon wasn’t sure if she should try and break it by inserting herself where she wasn’t invited.

Therefore, lunch was less pleasant than usual. She ate in the canteen while keeping an eye on Boah to make sure the bully wouldn’t go looking for Minjoo. Awesome, she had become a guard dog.

Now, back at class with the end of the day getting near, she could feel Minjoo’s insistent gaze on her, the girl had greeted her with a sincere smile and taken her usual seat after lunch – Chaewon only gave her awkward smile in return, the best she could do when she felt so unsure about what to do.  

She thought their texts were bad, this was in a new level. And it was her fault. Minjoo was trying her best, in her silent way, to reach her, but she also had to make an effort …Did she even want to do it? Peeking at the brunette quickly, the answer was made pretty clear.

Perhaps they were connected somehow, that’s the only explanation Minjoo could give to what happened next.

She was struggling to write a note, thinking about what to say to start a conversation without making the other girl uncomfortable – by the way Chaewon always texted, she was either a shy person, or she just didn’t like talking, but Minjoo was trying to be optimistic here –, when a neatly folded mint green piece of paper was left on her desk. Blinking, Minjoo looked at the small piece of paper and to Chaewon who had her attention on her notebook again.

Fighting a hopeful smile, she carefully grabbed the paper and unfolded it, finding a simple message written on it.

“Do you want to walk home together today?”

It wasn’t much really, but Chaewon could feel her ears growing red under the protection of her hair and more than ever it was hard to fight her desire to touch them – she could only hope her blush wouldn’t reach her face. It took a lot of courage to do it, it wasn’t like her to take the first step in a friendship, and gods know how much she enjoyed the comfortable silence, but the silence now was just awkward and it was making her uneasy. It was hard to admit, yet she couldn’t deny she wanted to talk to Minjoo – in whatever way they could. Perhaps like this she would be able to understand things.

For Minjoo it was more than enough, it meant Chaewon also wanted to be her friend – isn’t that how friendships start? It’s been a very long time since she made a new friend and it made her feel a small, almost childish, happy feeling. Maybe she was indeed too naïve, yet life had taught her to be always kind and to have hope, otherwise she would only sink into her own doubts and fears.

She might regret later letting Chaewon in, but she would regret even more not trying.

With a smile, Minjoo passed back the paper, an expectant look on her face.

It took Chaewon a moment to open the message, the shorter girl trying her best to not show her eagerness as she swiftly accepted the paper and unfolded it when the teacher wasn’t looking their way.

“I’d love to. Can we grab ice cream too? It’s my treat :)” 

Biting on the inside of her cheek, she forced a neutral expression on her face as she nodded, showing Minjoo a thumbs up. She would play it cool, it wasn’t a date – not even a friendly date – no reason to feel so…How she could even call it? Chaewon wasn’t used to that feeling, but it was there again, and it was hard to ignore.

Luckily for Chaewon, the teacher demanded their attention, giving her time to get rid of her embarrassment and focus on studying.

Meanwhile Minjoo kept a small, genuine smile on her face as she took notes of what the teacher was saying. She didn’t have many reasons to smile at school, but Chaewon made it easy. She had seen the way the girl was embarrassed, perhaps she was indeed a very shy person, however the fact that she was trying to communicate and even willing to spend time with her outside the school was a big deal for Minjoo – growing up between people that would ignore her often, it was something new and exciting.

The ending of the school day came quickly, the bell signalizing it was time to go home. Usually, Minjoo would be waiting nervously for it, with her things packed and eyes fixed on the exit. Today, however, she waited for Chaewon to get her stuff – of course her gaze would roam around the room once in a while, searching for Boah and her friend, her old fears menacing to break her excitement; She saw Boah glare at her, but the other didn’t come closer, leaving without a word for the first time.

Minjoo sighed in relief, jumping on her seat when she felt Chaewon’s hand on her shoulder.

“Let’s get going.” There it was again, the quiet, yet warm tone on her voice – the one meant to put Minjoo at ease, to make her feel safe; this wasn’t her mind tricking her, her ears couldn’t fool her this much.

As expected, it worked well and she nodded, giving Chaewon an embarrassed smile as she stood up to follow the girl.

“Where to?” Chaewon asked when they stepped outside the school, waiting for instructions.

Minjoo looked around, making sure they were alone before reaching out to grab Chaewon by the wrist – she stopped mid-way, glancing at the girl as if asking for permission.

Chae didn’t reply to her silent question, instead she took hold of her sleeve. “Lead the way.”

With a nod, the taller brunette did as she was told, taking a shortcut that would lead them to a small ice cream parlor she would visit at least once a week for some cheap, yet delicious ice cream.

The place was relatively full, but it didn’t make Minjoo nervous – she knew most people there, old customers that would come religiously. One of the reasons she liked this place so much was the fact that she didn’t have to worry about bumping into school kids, like she would’ve in the trendiest places.

Chestnut eyes watched as the taller girl relaxed as soon as they stepped foot inside the place. The ice cream parlor wasn’t very impressive for her, the decoration was outdated and didn’t have a ginormous list of ice cream flavors like most places did – it looked like it was stuck in time. ­­­Still, it had a welcoming atmosphere, not noisy and impersonal like some other places, therefore Chaewon couldn’t really say she didn’t like it.

She allowed Minjoo to guide them to the counter, sneaking a peek at the list of flavors places on the wall opposite – she frowned slightly at the sight. “No mint choco?” She muttered to herself, but Minjoo must have caught it because she felt the girl tugging on her sleeve to grab her attention.

There we no words, just the expressive chocolate brown gaze on her, a hint of disappointment painting them grey. Minjoo probably thought she was upset for not getting her favorite flavor – how silly it wasn’t? Still, Chaewon didn’t find it pathetic, but rather endearing that the other was so eager to make her happy in such a basic way.

Shaking her head, she let out a soft chuckle. “What about you recommend me another flavor? What is your favorite?”

The taller girl’s lips curved into a smile again, her elegant hands touching the transparent glass as she crouched down to see the ice creams on display. Her index finger pointed the pink one with black dots – strawberry with choco pieces – before she used her other hand to point at herself, indicating it was her favorite flavor.

Not being able to speak was more than a simple hassle most of the time, but Minjoo had found ways to communicate, as long as people were patient enough to pay her attention – Chaewon was willing to do so.

“This your favorite? Is not mint-choco, but It’s not bad.” Chaewon commented, leaning in to watch closely. “And what about your recommendation? The same one?”

Minjoo pouted her lips slightly, her expression becoming contemplative as she pondered about what flavor would be the best one for Chaewon when she knew nothing about the girl’s taste – liking choco-mint wasn’t a good hint. Chaewon’s lips curved into a soft smile as she watched the other brunette looking so concentrate in such a simple task, seeing her relaxed like this was a very welcome change from her scare-cat expression back at school or even the shy, hesitating smiles the girl would risk once in a while – Chaewon liked this expression much better.

“I recommend this one. It’s the house special.” Another voice sounded, making Chaewon avert her gaze to meet the eyes of a short old lady that smiled at them calmly – the owner of the place. She was pointing at a purple ice cream, the tag in front of it saying ‘Lovely’. Chaewon never heard of such flavor, but Minjoo clapped happily and nodded with enthusiasm. “It’s vanilla, grape and our special ingredient. Minjoo here likes it a lot, so why not give it a try?”

It didn’t seem like such a bad combination, and Chaewon knew better than judge an ice cream for its look, so she only returned the old woman’s smile with a polite one and nodded. “Okay, I’d like to try it.”

Minjoo also picked the same, simply showing two fingers to the woman who readily nodded in agreement. By the woman’s words and their actions, was easy to tell Minjoo came here often. Chae’s suspicions were proved right when the other brunette tried to pay for their order and the older lady refused to receive the money.

“It’s on the house. It’s the first time you bring a friend here, it’s a special occasion.” The woman smiled warmly at them like they were her own grandchildren, handing their orders and telling the girls to take a seat at one of the free tables.

A light shade of pink colored Minjoo’s cheeks as she thanked the woman, Sung-Yi, for the ice cream with a short bow before heading to the table. Her mother brought her there ever since she was a kid and Sung-Yi was like family by now – and just like family, she was able to embarrass her in front of her new acquaintance. It probably wasn’t a surprise to Chaewon that she didn’t have many friends, still it made her embarrassed to admit it when she was trying to befriend the girl.

Chaewon was actually amused by Minjoo’s candid reaction, it was cute when she wasn’t the one blushing for once. She followed the girl, resting her backpack on an empty seat and focusing her attention on her ice cream.

“It’s not mint-choco good, but is definitely not bad!” The ice cream had a unique flavor, a little weird at first, but rather nice – somewhat like their relationship in the moment.

 Minjoo smiled, looking both relieved and happy by her words, her emotions were so clear on her face always, completely unfiltered. Chaewon wanted to ask her a lot of things, but she didn’t want to ruin their peaceful moment and she knew Minjoo would need to use her hands to communicate – be it by writing or gesturing –, therefore she decided it was better for them to eat quietly before asking anything.

For Chae’s surprised, Minjoo was quick to finish her ice cream, while herself was still only halfway through the small mountain of purple gelato.

Minjoo was particularly quick eating today thanks to the fact that she wanted to talk to Chaewon, and unfortunately for this, she would need her hands – just like Chae presumed. Getting her notepad from her bag, she was ready to use her pencil to write down anything that was needed.

She didn’t expect Chaewon to be such a slow eater though. And almost unconsciously, her hand started to move, sketching something as she waited for the girl to be done.

“What are you doing there?” Chaewon interrupted her, and Minjoo quickly turned the pages of the notepad to hide the sketch for now, shrugging her shoulders and giving the girl an innocent smile.

“Hm.” Narrowing her eyes slightly, the older brunette pushed her cup aside, resting her elbows on the table and leaning in. “Minjoo, can I ask you some things?”

The girl nodded slowly. Minjoo already expected it, curiosity was a normal thing and although she hoped it wasn’t the only thing that made Chaewon interest in her company, Minjoo knew some questions were bound to be asked.

Those questions, however, weren’t the ones she expected to hear.

“Do those girls always bother you?” Was the first one, Chaewon’s expression becoming darker at the mention of the topic, as if it was something that bothered her as much as Minjoo who was the target of the harassment.

She would rather to forget about Boah and her harsh words and actions, but she had agreed on answering, therefore she did it by simply nodding again instead of writing it down.

“No one intervenes? No one from class or the teachers?” Chaewon insisted, her voice was neutral, but her sharp eyes showed signs of the same emotions Minjoo saw that day – frustration and rage. While she herself could float through a variety of emotions quickly, making it harder to hold grudges, Chaewon was clearly the opposite.

Holding a sigh, she shook her head again, forcing a small smile to try and ease Chae’s frustration – it was no use as the other girl let out a sigh, a very annoyed one.

“Why don’t you fight back? Did they ever hurt you or…?”

Shaking her head, Minjoo tried her best to not sigh again. It wasn’t a simple matter to her, nor something she really knew how to handle. Her good nature could only go so far, yet she was trying her best to never let her most volatile emotions take over.

Getting her notebook, she started to write a more elaborate answer.

“I can’t. Violence leads to more violence always.” It was something that her mother always said and although it may sound like an overused and useless phrase, she tried to live by these words – tried. “They never hurt me. If I react badly, things may become worse.”

Chaewon pursed her lips as she read it, she still was frustrated, but she could see why Minjoo would act like this. It was easy to give in to her emotions and act recklessly, she was more prone to it usually, but not everything can be solved with a punch, especially when you’re alone and untrained like it seems to be the case. Still, not fighting back could also have the opposite effect and make the bullies grow more abusive for knowing she wouldn’t try to defend herself…It wasn’t a simple situation and Chaewon couldn’t help but feel annoyed about it. If anything, this answer made her decision of sticking around Minjoo even more concrete.

Pushing aside her annoyance for now – part of her would probably always want to kick Boah and her friend for what they did –, she tried to focus on something else.

“Am I…” Noticing Minjoo’s gaze on her, she moved on her seat a little uncomfortable about the question that just popped into her mind. She silently prayed she wouldn’t get embarrassed for no reason again. For crying out loud, Minjoo should be the one feeling uncomfortable with all her scrutiny. “Am I your only friend there?”

Something new shined on Minjoo’s brown eyes, making them darker and somewhat more alluring, making Chaewon miss the sight of it when the girl lowered her head to write.

It was quick, maybe even a little rushed, but the message was there now. “Do you consider us friends?”

That hopeful sparkle was on the younger Kim’s eyes again, and even if she wanted to, Chaewon wouldn’t have been able to deny it.

“I suppose we are.” She tried to shrug it off, averting her eyes to her own hands for a moment, but quickly going back to face Minjoo. Deciding to change the topic, she asked: “Where do you go every lunch break?”

Minjoo didn’t fight her smile, she was starting to appreciate Chaewon slightly awkward, yet sweet ways. She didn’t think she had ever met someone like her before and the fact that she was her friend was almost amusing. Maybe it was silly even for her, but she felt grateful again, luck wasn’t on her side often and this seemed like one of the times it was.  

“To the roof.” She replied without hesitation. Usually she wouldn’t talk about it, treating the place as her own safe haven. The ice cream parlor was also something like this to a certain extent. And here she was showing her world to Chaewon.

Furrowing her eyebrows slightly, Chaewon tried to recall ever seeing the rooftop, but all that came to mind was an isolated place used to dispose old desks. Students weren’t even supposed to go there, not that anyone even bothered to do so for what she knew. “There is nothing there.”

“It’s peaceful.” Was Minjoo’s quick reply, as if she already expected her statement. “No one goes there, it’s my place.”

“Well, I guess it makes sense.” Nodding, Chaewon went silent for a moment. It was easier to picture Minjoo’s life now, no wonder the girl had such a well planned out routine for school, she needed it in order to live quietly and not be bothered by bullies. Chaewon could relate to her to some extent, after all she liked to be alone and many times she would find ways to escape social engagements, however, for Minjoo it wasn’t an option or a pleasant thing to do.

In the short time they were together, she could tell that Minjoo was far from being similar to her, she may be shy, but she was friendly and by the range of emotions that she would show on her face so easily, she also had a bubbly, sincere personality that was being overshadowed by her circumstances. Maybe, at least to some extent, she could help her.

“I’m not good at texting…Or talking. I enjoy my silence.” Chaewon said, her voice quiet and a little hesitating as she tried to come up with her words. “But I still want to talk to you more.” Straightening her back, she raised her right hand to signalize. “I can understand you. No need to use write anymore.”

Minjoo’s round, beautiful chocolate eyes grew wide in surprise. She couldn’t recall the last time she had seen someone other than her mother using sign language, at school any attempt she ever made of using it would only make people confused, or worse, mock her gestures.

Chaewon wasn’t mocking it, very much the opposite, her hands elegantly draw lines and created shapes articulating words perfectly, with so much fluidity that it was almost as if she used it every day.

“You know sign language?” She returned in a rush, her gestures quick and a little ungraceful – she didn’t get to practice much outside the house, so her knowledge was relatively limited to what she had seen in class.

The brunette gave her a smirk, nodding. “Of course.” Her chestnut eyes stared at Minjoo for a moment, her smirk turning into a small smile as she looked down to Minjoo’s notebook. “Why did you draw a tiger?”

“I didn’t know you saw it.” Grabbing her notepad in a protective way, Minjoo gave her an apologetic look. “It’s because it reminds me of you…I’m sorry, I…”

Chaewon cut her off by shaking her head, and reaching out to the notepad – Minjoo resisted at first, but end up letting go of it and allowing Chaewon to search for the drawing. The shorter brunette found it easily, her sharp eyes taking a good look at it for a moment too longer before she handed it over to the other Kim. “It’s fine. It’s my favorite animal and you’re not such a bad artist.” Her words were gentle, but there was something more in her voice that even Minjoo’s fine hearing couldn’t quite define.  

“It’s your turn. Go ahead and ask me anything.” The change of subject was abrupt, Chaewon’s expression becoming a little lighter as she made the offer. “I’m not good with friendships either, but I’ll try my best to not scare you away.”

Minjoo was a little flustered, unsure of what to do now that she was given the chance – Chaewon wasn’t the only one that was bad at making new friends. Nonetheless, the idea of getting to know Chae better was nice and she didn’t want to waste any more time. Therefore, she tried her best to come up with useful, yet not very invasive, questions.

“Why you transferred here now? Where did you live before?”

“My mother got a new job, we didn’t live that far away from here, but my parents thought it would be better to get a place closer to the hospital.” Chae used both her words and hands to speak, so fast that it almost confused Minjoo.

Nodding, still a bit in awe, she tried another question. “What about you? You wanted to move?”

“I don’t really mind it. My other school was pretty boring.” Chaewon shrugged her shoulders, emphasizing her words. The people she liked at that place had already graduated, therefore she didn’t mind having to change schools.

Deciding to not go much further into the topic, albeit her curiosity told her to ask more, Minjoo changed the subject. “Is mint-choco your favorite flavor? They don’t have it here, but I know a place we can get it.”

And like this their conversation progressed, little by little as they got to know each other – not deeply, but slowly, like it was supposed to be. One day they might talk about more complicate, intimate matters, but for today, they were just school mates trying to take the next step into the right direction of creating a friendship.

One day, maybe not too far away, this friendship might blossom into something more. But this was something none of them could possibly predict at this point.

A/N: Hi again! This didn't take that long, right? Hopefully the other updates will be like this too...What did you guys think about 2kim's families? I think bonlu being parents might surprise some of you xD I hope this chapter made things a little more clear, as some of you already know, I love giving my stories some background and for this one, it's very important to show how the girls became who they are now.

Thanks a lot for reading, I hope it didn't disappoint too much! I'm sorry about all the mistakes. See you soon!