Hyunjin woke up with a lack of warmth beside her. Where was Heejin? It was Sunday, and Hyunjin could use some cuddling right now. 

She jerked up. Did she scare Heejin away? She stood up from her bed and found a note on the dining table. 

Sorry for falling asleep on your bed, I slept really well, tho, thanks to you 
I had to leave earlier, have work today! I’ll be back later 
Don’t miss me too much, but if you do, you know where to find me. <3 

P.S.: I want you to know a secret. Fresh bread @ ViViD 8am, 13pm, 6pm ;) 

Hyunjin blinked, once, twice, then sat down, and read it again.  

She clicked her tongue. Miss her? It was just a few hours, for god’s sake, Hyunjin wasn’t that weak. 

It was not because she missed Heejin that she was dragging Jinsol to the coffee shop where she worked. It was because they just had lunch and Hyunjin had a sudden craving for their chocolate bread. 

“You really missed me that much,” Heejin said, with a big, evident smirk plastered on her lips, as soon as Hyunjin stood in front of her. 

“I missed the chocolate bread, and it’s just past one, and you said it was going to come out fresh around this hour, so...” 

Heejin irked an eyebrow and leaned forward on the counter. “I’m afraid people really crave dessert on Sundays, because this batch is already gone.” 

Hyunjin’s features died down, and Heejin laughed. 

“It isn’t funny.” She pouted, crossing her arms. 

“It is, you know why?” Heejin asked as she fetched something from a cabinet, then turned and Hyunjin widened her eyes. “Because I knew you would be coming, so I saved you one.” 

“You...” Hyunjin looked down at her bread, then up at Heejin, and repeated a few times, until someone cleared behind her. 

“Are you done flirting?” Jinsol asked near her ear. 

Hyunjin shot her a glare that could burn through her skull, and returned her attention to Heejin. 

“I’ll ignore the fact that you’re completely right, and thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for saving me this bread. How did you even know I would want this one?” 

“You mentioned it like, five times yesterday.” 

“Oh.” Hyunjin lowered her head, scratching her neck.  

Then, her body was pushed away. 

“Hi Heejin! I’m Jinsol, I’m assuming Aeong told you about me already. Can you please get me an iced latte, please? She pays.” Jinsol winked at her. 

“Hey, when did I say I would buy you coffee?” 

“I did, and I’m gonna get us a table,” Jinsol winked at her. “Bye Heejin!” 

Hyunjin shook her head. “See what I went through? I’m happy you replaced her.” 

“So this is the Jinsol whose room I occupied?” Heejin shrugged, holding a laugh. “Well you did say you were the one taking care of her.” 

“Yeah... This is not taking care, it’s taking advantage of my kindness.” 

Heejin held her laugh for a little longer as Hyunjin took her card from her wallet.  

“And she called you Aeong?” 

“Oh, yeah, my friends call me that. I make that sound often. It’s supposed to be like a cat, or whatever. You know, it could mean anything I want and they always understand.” 

“A cat that also barks.” Heejin laughed at last, giving her card back. 

“If you put it that way.” 

“Then let me hear it.” Heejin said while holding her bread in her hand. 

“W-what?” 

“I want to hear that ‘aeong’ thing, I bet it’s super cute. I won’t give you your bread unless you do.” She smirked. 

Hyunjin’s eyes widened and her head tilted back in shock. No way, not in front of all these people. But how could she not when Heejin asked? 

“Aeong,” she whispered, her head low to hide her red cheeks, as she extended Heejin a hand. 

“It’s even cuter than I thought!” Heejin squealed and brought her hand to . “Okay, I could do this all day, but there’s customers in line, so I guess... Enjoy your meal, Aeong?” 

Had she just called her- 

“Right, of course. We’ll be right there, so... yeah, take care. And thank you again for the bread.” 

Heejin nodded and Hyunjin went to sit with Jinsol, still not ready for the incoming teasing. 

“Kim Hyunjin,” Jinsol started, shaking her head. “Look at you.” 

“What?” Hyunjin rolled her eyes, Heejin’s voice calling her ‘Aeong’ still ringing in her ears. 

“She’s really pretty.” 

Hyunjin took a bite on her bread. “Is that all?” 

“Do you want me to tease you more? I was going to spare you that, but if you insis-” 

“No, I’m fine.” 

Jinsol chuckled. “Seriously though, you look cute together. It seems like your efforts are paying off.” 

“What do you mean?” 

She sipped on her coffee. “I mean, the way she looks at you says something. It reminds me when me and Jungeun were at this stage. All the flirting, you know.” 

“You really think... I have a chance?” 

“Have you barked at her?” 

“Uh... yeah.” Hyunjin scratched her neck. “Don’t judge me.” 

“If she hasn’t stopped talking to you after that, then you definitely have a chance.” 

Hyunjin stole a glance at Heejin, as she took a costumer’s order, and when she felt the warmth in her heart creeping into her lips, she looked down at the bread in her hands. 

“I’m proud of you, kid.” Jinsol reached forward to pat her head. 

“Kid my .” 

--- 

The week went by faster than Hyunjin could grasp on, and she missed sleeping with Heejin already. She was glad that she was sleeping better, after that night when Heejin arrived late and Hyunjin was having tea. 

“Why don’t you drink some tea before going to bed? It helps you fall asleep faster and sleep better. And sleeping more and better means that waking up is not so hard, and that you’ll have more energy, and therefore, you don’t need so much caffeine. Caffeine addiction is a vicious cycle. The more you drink, the harder it is for you to fall asleep, making you need more of it during the day.” 

Heejin thought for a bit, and Hyunjin couldn’t be happier that she accepted having tea. Since then Heejin had indeed slept a bit better, and was trying to reduce the amount of coffee she drank daily.  

And as a way to thank her, the next day Heejin arrived home with two matching keyrings, one being a cute cat, for Hyunjin, and a rabbit for herself.  

It was Friday now, and wouldn’t it be great to watch a movie? Hyunjin knocked on Heejin’s door and after an answer, she peeked inside and was glad she was holding on the doorknob. Heejin stood in front of the mirror, buttoning up a white shirt, pulled inside a red skirt. Her hair was pulled back at the sides, and she had clearly put some effort in her curls. 

“H-Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie or something.” 

“Oh, I’m going to Ryujin’s birthday party tonight. She’s a friend from high school. I’m sorry, I think I forgot to warn you,” Heejin said, turning to face Hyunjin. 

“Right, it’s okay! I’ll go watch something then, and let you finish getting ready,” Hyunjin said, taking a step back and closing the door. 

By the time she had chosen what to watch, a new anime that released that season and really got her attention, Heejin’s door opened. If Hyunjin thought that Heejin already looked gorgeous in her everyday casual and kind of boyish style, with baggy pants and sweaters or plaid s, this chic Heejin left her breathless. The makeup, not too heavy, but enough to make her eyes even prettier, with coral eye shadow, and red lipstick.  

“I’ll be back late, so, this time, you don’t really need to worry or stay up waiting.” 

“R-Right, noted.” 

“See you tomorrow,” Heejin said, waving at her as she opened the front door. 

“Have fun at the party!” 

Heejin gave her a smile before leaving, and Hyunjin sighed. She really didn’t feel like spending her Friday night home alone, but maybe it could be a good opportunity to finally finish her finance assignment that she had been delaying for too long. After a few episodes, of course. 

If only she could. She did, until a certain point. But she forced herself to push Heejin to the back of her mind, and put all her focus on her laptop, forcing her fingers to type.  

But when the thought of Heejin started becoming too much to bear, she gave up. Instead, she grabbed her pen and scribbled on her book some random things going thought her head.  

She didn’t intend to, but those thoughts somehow came in the form of lyrics, so she took the momentum to move to her keyboard. Maybe she could make them fit to one of the melodies she had composed. Hyunjin let her fingers play the song they knew too well for her too need to look down, and as she played, she sang what she just wrote. 

Hey you, do you know my heart? 
These days, I’m like a child every day 
Hiding as I look at you 
You, are you hearing my words? 
I’m still not brave yet 
So I’m silently leaving again 

I close my eyes but I still think of you 
What do I do now? 
Everyone calls me a fool 
But I don’t expect anything 

She wouldn’t wait forever. She didn’t want to, because she wanted to spend even more time with her, in a different way. Without the need to watch a thriller movie to hold hands, without the need for Heejin to have nightmares so Hyunjin could sleep beside her. She wanted to hug her, cuddle on the couch watching a cringey romantic comedy, tell her lame and sweet nothings, then laugh at herself, but it would be worth it because Heejin would laugh as well. 

Hyunjin wanted to know the feeling of Heejin's lips on hers. 

She cringed at her herself, standing up and hiding her face in her hands. There she was, having a mental breakdown at almost one in the morning, while Heejin was at some party, having fun, and of course Hyunjin wasn’t something on her mind right now.  

It felt like her heart was going to explode if she didn’t let her feelings out--- 

The sound of the front door opening echoed in the walls, and a rush of adrenaline pulsed thoughts Hyunjin’s veins. 

It was now. She was ready to pour out everything she had inside, and she would let Heejin know about all of her feelings. Without thinking twice, she opened her door. 

And as fast as the courage took control of her body, all of her hopes were crushed right in front of her eyes, as she watched Heejin kissing a girl she had never seen. They were so immersed in it, they didn’t even notice Hyunjin standing, staring at them as they stumbled on each other's feet, trying to find their way to Heejin’s room, until they entered and the door closed, the sound of the key locking it too audible for Hyunjin’s ears.  

Shame seemed to crawl through every blood vessel in Hyunjin’s body. 

Shame of ever believing that Heejin could feel the same for a weirdo like her.  

Using the remaining strength her legs could gather, she dragged herself to bed. If shame was the only thing she could feel, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. But the sadness that squeezed her heart was so much stronger, it went overboard through her eyes.  

Hyunjin didn’t know why she was so surprised, disappointed, or sad. It was her fault for having such high hopes. Her friends’ as well. The ones who told her what she wanted to hear, but for what?  

She didn’t remember ever crying for someone. Maybe because all the crushes she had before were only that, mere crushes. This time was different. She had fallen for Heejin way deeper than a crush, but now she had to deal with the consequences. 

Her cat plushie was squeezed against her chest, and Hyunjin still could faintly feel Heejin’s scent on it, but nothing compared with what that girl felt of Heejin right now. 

With every giggle she heard from the other side of the wall, her tears flowed freer. With every thump on the wall, her body shook and curled tighter over itself. With every faint noise that escaped along with their breaths, her will to take everything she owned and move away overnight without ever saying a word to her or having to see her again grew. 

But there was one thing Hyunjin wanted right now more than to disappear into a black hole, and it was to be the girl who had no idea how lucky she was to feel Heejin’s body that close to hers. 

---

A/N: c':
keke