Sooyoung

I sighed as I leaned against the cream-colored wall. What am I even doing here? People were dancing and drinking as I observed my surroundings. I'm just some kid compared to all the university people surrounding me. "Tiffany!" I called out when I finally found her. Her eyes met mine and she raised a brow. 

"Hey little cousin! Having fun!?" She let out a wide smile. I eyed her demeanor and instantly knew that she was drunk. Why couldn't I have a cousin who was normal? She's the average party girl but she's family.

"Why did you drag me here? My father is going to kill me if he finds out!" I snapped at her. My father thought that I was spending the weekend studying for finals with Tiffany but here I was at this party. This party just made me feel so young since I'm a couple of years away from going to university.

"And who's gonna tell him? Chill and have something to drink," she chuckled. I shook my head at her, and my eyes landed on a girl who was leaned against the wall on the opposite side of the room. She had dark hair but that's all I could really make out in this lighting.

"Who's that?" I asked my cousin. Tiffany followed my eyes and scoffed. That was a sign that she had a problem with her. Tiffany usually had a problem with half the female population at her schools.

"That's Bae Joohyun and you need to stay away from that girl. She's nothing but trouble." She rolled her eyes and walked off. I stared at Joohyun as she talked to someone. I'm attracted to girls but only my best friend and Tiffany knew. I didn't have the courage to come out to my family just yet. I feared what their reactions might be. My mom would probably be supportive, but my father would disown me. Joohyun looked over and her eyes locked with mine. I quickly looked down and tried to act as if I wasn't staring at her like she was a goddess. When I looked back up, she was gone.

"That's just great," I sighed. I heard a throat clear from behind me and it made me jump slightly. I turned and saw Joohyun standing right in front of me. A small smirk appeared on her face as she eyed me.

"I haven't seen you around here before and I usually know everyone. What's your name?" She asked.

"Joy," I gave her my nickname. I didn't need my name floating around this campus and then somehow it gets back to my father.

"Well my name is Joohyun but I'm sure Tiffany already warned you about me." I looked at her with shock written on my face and she chuckled. That meant that she had to have been looking at me too, right? Or maybe she was just looking at Tiffany.

"How did you know that?" I mentally slapped myself for confirming that Tiffany had indeed been talking about her.

"Tiffany always warns people about me. It's not like I ever did anything to her. The poor girl just doesn't stop." I stared at her and noticed her beauty. she was gorgeous, and it was making me feel a little self-conscious.

"She's a little judgmental," I admitted. Tiffany judged everyone based on his or her appearance. I used to be like that until I grew up and realized how stupid it was. Why judge someone when you don't know anything about them? Everyone has his or her own story.

"A little? Sure, let's go with that. So, what's someone like you doing at a party like this? It doesn't seem like your type of environment." She leaned against the wall and her eyes scanned the room, observing people around us.

"It's not my type of environment. I was dragged here. I'd rather go back to the dorm, but Tiffany has the keys," I sighed.

"Are you and Tiffany related?" She questioned.

"Yeah, she's my cousin," I nodded. Just when she was about to say something else, a guy walked towards us and smiled at me.

"Hey babe. You new around here?" He invaded my personal space and I smelled alcohol on his breath. My face automatically scrunched up as I tried to back away. Joohyun noticed my discomfort and stood slightly in front of me.

"Back off," she warned him. He took one look into Joohyun's eyes and backed away. She intimidated the hell out of him.

"My bad Joohyun. I didn't know that she was off limits." He held his hands up in surrender.

"Just go away," Joohyun huffed at him. He quickly left almost as if he was afraid of Joohyun.

"Thanks," I spoke softly. Her eyes darted to mine and then she nodded.

"He's an when he's drunk," she brushed it off. I could tell that she was thinking about something as she looked at me. "How old are you?" My heart dropped as I thought of an answer. How bad can lying really be?

"Eighteen," I lied easily. Noticing her lip inch up, it gave me the indication that she was happy with my answer.

"I could give you a lift back to campus if you can get the keys to Tiffany's room. I was about to head out anyway. Parties aren't my thing either," she offered.

"I hardly know you. How do I know that you're not going to try to kill me or something?" I eyed her suspiciously. She smirked and took in my appearance.

"You're too cute to be murdered. I'm very trustworthy. I promise," she assured me as blush crept onto my cheeks. She thinks that I'm cute? I thought for a minute before giving in. What's the worst that could happen? I went around people and found Tiffany.

"I need the keys to your dorm. I'm going back," I told her. She didn't even question me as she handed over her keys. I was about to say something else, but she was already grinding on some guy, so I walked away. I met Joohyun outside and she handed me a helmet. "Do you have like a bike or something?" I joked but there was some seriousness in my voice.

"Yeah let's go with that," she nodded. We walked for a minute before stopping in front of a motorcycle.

"That's your ride?" I asked timidly. She expects me to ride on that? Those things are dangerous. I'm sure the papers would love to catch a picture of me on here just to ruin my family's uptight and perfect reputation.

"Yep," she smiled proudly. "Just hold onto me and you'll be fine." I took a deep breath and nodded. She helped me on the bike and before I knew it, we were off. I held onto her for the life of me as my hair flew back in the breeze. We arrived at the campus shortly after and she slowly came to a stop. Joohyun hopped off and reached out her hand. I grabbed it and slowly got off. I saw her smile slightly as she took the helmet off my head.

"I've never been on a motorcycle before," I said softly. She chuckled and nodded.

"I kind of figured."

"Well thanks for bringing me back," I thanked her. She truly didn't have to go out of her way to bring me back to the dorms.

"It's no problem. I actually used to live in this dorm," she said as she eyed it.

"You moved?"

"Yeah, to an apartment a couple blocks away from here," she answered. She had her own apartment?

"Why?" What could be so bad about living in a dorm?

"I didn't like dealing with a roommate. Mine was kind of judgmental." She sent me her signature smirk.

"You were Tiffany's old roommate?" I looked at her a little shocked. Tiffany used to complain all the time about her.

"Guilty. I couldn't deal with her and they didn't have any other rooms, so I just moved out and rented an apartment." I looked at her and got lost in her eyes. They were just so mesmerizing. "You've been staring at me all night."

"You noticed that?" I blushed out of embarrassment. Maybe I wasn't being as discreet as I thought I was.

"That's why I approached you. Most people know better than to stare at me," she shrugged.

"People are scared of you?" I didn't find her that terrifying. She seemed like a chill person as long as you didn't get on her bad side.

"I intimidate people easily. Somehow you're not intimidated even after your cousin gave you a warning. Why is that?" She looked at me curiously.

"I don't judge people based on other people's opinions. You seem misunderstood," I answered honestly. A strong pained emotion flashed across her face, but she pushed it back.

"That's exactly how I am. Most people just judge me without trying to figure me out. I guess I got used to it. Why even bother trying to change their minds?" She looked down at the ground with a slight frown on her face.

"I want to figure you out," I spoke without thinking. I don't know what caused me to say that but there's no point in taking it back now. Her head snapped up and looked surprised by my response.

"You do?" I heard the slight vulnerability in her voice.

"I do," I nodded. We fell into a stare and it seemed like neither of us could break from it. She placed her hand on my cheek and stared at me as if she was trying to figure me out. I thought about all the reasons why I shouldn't kiss her because it was the only thing stopping me.

1. I knew that Tiffany would flip out on me.
2. My parents would lose their minds.
3. Joohyun could slap me and never talk to me again, but you only live once so it.

I moved in and kissed her. She seemed shocked but recovered quickly and wrapped her arms around my waist while responding to my kiss. I weaved my hands through her hair as I felt myself being pressed against her motorcycle. She pulled back slightly, and we stared at each other again.

"," she whispered while staring at me in disbelief. I've never been kissed like that and from that moment I knew that Joohyun was about to change my life.

"Are you ing kidding me!?" I heard Tiffany's voice. Joohyun broke out of her trance and chuckled while turning to face her.

"Hi Tiffany." She put on her signature smirk while I tried to break out of the shock I was in from the kiss.

"What the are you doing!? I told you to stay away from her!" She directed her attention to me.

"Um we were just talking," I tried to play if off, but it was obvious of what we were doing.

"Yeah talking," Joohyun grinned at me causing my cheeks to heat up.

"Follow me. We're going back to my dorm," she snapped. I looked at Joohyun as she grabbed my phone and put her number in it.

"I'll see you around Joy." She gave me a genuine smile before hopping on her motorcycle and disappearing into the night.

"Sooyoung!" Tiffany snapped me out of my trance. I turned, and she dragged me into her dorm. "What the was that!?" She asked as soon as she closed the door.

"I really don't know. We were just talking and then that happened," I answered honestly.

"I told you to stay away from her. Why would you do the exact opposite?"

"She approached me. I wouldn't have talked to her if she didn't. I don't get why you don't like her. She's nice, gorgeous, and she has a beautiful soul," I smiled.

"Okay Jesse McCartney, I didn't ask for all of that. I don't even see how you ended up talking to her. She stays away from everyone and I mean everyone. She doesn't open up to people and she sure as hell doesn't let anyone on her motorcycle. What did you do to her?" She eyed me suspiciously.

"I didn't do anything. I like her a lot," I confessed. I've never met someone like Joohyun, and I wanted to get to know her better.

"You know that your parents will flip," she pointed out.

"They don't have to know," I shrugged.

"She's nineteen Sooyoung. You're only fifteen," she reminded me.

"So?"

"She's a sophomore in university and you're a freshman in high school."

"And? I don't see what the big deal is," I shrugged.

"Sooyoung," she said sternly.

"I've never liked someone the way I like her. We just had this weird connection and she opened up to me. I want to try this out," I spoke up.

"She called you Joy. You didn't even tell her your real name and you want to try this?" She let out a dry chuckle.

"I don't want her to know who my father is, so I thought going with my nickname would've been the smartest choice."

"Do whatever you want Sooyoung but if this all blows up in your face, don't come crying to me," she warned.

"Fine," I smiled happily. I think everything will end up just fine.

One Year Later

"Close your eyes," Joohyun told me.

"Come on Joohyun! You know that I don't like surprises," I pouted but she just chuckled.

"You'll love this one. I promise. Just close your eyes." She locked her eyes with mine and I instantly gave in, letting my eyes close. I heard her rustling around before all the sounds stopped. I felt her presence near me and then she placed something in my hand. "Open your eyes," she whispered. I looked down at the framed photography and my jaw dropped.

"Is that me? When did you even take this?" I looked at the picture in shock.

"You weren't paying attention and the light hit you perfectly. I usually don't do silhouette photography, but this just looked so perfect. You looked perfect." She let out a shy smile.

"This is amazing Joohyun. You have an amazing talent and I can't wait to see what you'll do after university," I smiled at her. She looked at me for a minute and then I felt her lips press against mine. I smiled against my girlfriend's lips before kissing her back. Joohyun and I have been dating for the past year. It's been the most amazing year of my life and I truly love her. No, I haven't told her the truth yet. I wanted to, and Tiffany has been getting on me about telling her, but I can't. She would hate me, and I can't handle that. Joohyun has even been getting along with Tiffany because of me. They've been setting aside their differences. She pulled back and sent me a soft smile.

"I love you," the words flew effortlessly out of my mouth. Her eyes widen, and it looked like she was having an internal battle in her head about this. "I mean you don't have to um love me back. It's fine. I actually um have to go do something," I tried to come up with an excuse to leave but she placed her hand on mine to stop me from getting up. I looked back at her and noticed tears in her eyes, but she never let them fall. I knew she wouldn't because she rarely cries. I've never seen her this emotional.

"What have you done to me Joy?" She questioned softly.

"I don't know," I answered honestly. I couldn't tell what she was thinking but that was most of the time. Joohyun is a closed book and it's hard to read her. The only way you'll know what she's thinking is if she tells you.

"I love you too. I love you so much." She let out a smile. I felt a wide smile appear on my face as she pulled me into a hug. "You're so ing amazing. I don't understand what I did to deserve you," she whispered. My heart hurt slightly knowing that I was lying to her. I needed to tell her the truth and sooner is better than later. I was about to confess but then she kissed me. She kissed me with a passion that I've never felt before. She pulled back and grabbed my hand, leading me to her bedroom. She closed the door and pushed me back on her bed. Yes, we've fooled around but we never went all the way.

"I'm nervous," I whispered. I haven't been with anyone.

"Don't be. It's just us." She looked down into my eyes. I let out a soft smile as she brought her lips down to mine. Throughout the night, I never felt pleasure that way before. I didn't even think that it was physically possible to feel this way. The way my body responded to her was indescribable. She held me in her arms for the rest of the night and I had never felt better.

I woke up to the smell of breakfast and a smile appeared on my face. I just had with Joohyun. I couldn't believe it. I hopped up and brushed my teeth before I walked into the kitchen just as she finished cooking. "Hey sleepyhead." She smiled at me once she looked up.

"Hey." I felt like I was cheesing like an idiot, but I couldn't help it. I've never been happier.

"Someone sure is happy this morning," she teased.

"Well I had an amazing night," I grinned.

"Oh, did you now?" She sent me a smirk and let her arms wrap around me. I nodded as she pulled me closer. "Well maybe you can have a good morning too," she whispered before her lips met mine. I pulled back and let my hand run down her cheek.

"I love you so much," I told her.

"I love you too Joy," she smiled. I felt a tug on my heart when she said Joy. Joohyun meant the world to me and she deserved to know the truth.

"I have to tell you something Joohyun." I prepared myself for this conversation. Maybe she'll forgive me for lying to her about everything. I doubt it, but it doesn't hurt to hope.

"This sound serious. What did you do? Murder somebody?" She joked with a laugh.

"No but you might wanna murder me after this," I mumbled.

"What's going on baby?" She sat me down on the couch before sitting next to me. Her hand grabbed mine as I worked up the courage.

"I haven't been entirely truthful this past year," I admitted.

"What do you mean not entirely truthful?" She asked slowly. I knew she had trust issues, and this was just gonna worsen them.

"My name isn't Joy," I said but then I felt my face scrunch up as I thought about what I just said. "Wait it is but that's my nickname," I corrected myself.

"What do you mean your name isn't Joy? Why wouldn't you just tell me that from the start and why do you look so damn guilty?" She instantly let go of my hand and put some space between us.

"That's not all." I looked down ashamed. Tiffany was right, I should've been truthful from the start. We probably wouldn't be together, but we could've been friends until I was legal.

"How old are you?" She demanded. I went silent under her glare and was afraid to answer her. "How old are you!?"

"Sixteen," I confessed. I felt like the world froze as I eyed her. She stood up and paced around the living room.

"You're sixteen!? You're sixteen years old!? ! And you wonder why I don't let people into my life easily. like this happens. Why wouldn't you just tell me!? I could go to jail!" She snapped at me. She looked at me in complete hatred and it made me feel like . I've never seen her this mad.

"Who's gonna find out? You're not going to jail baby!" I assured her.

"Don't call me that. !" She ran a hand through her hair and that's when I finally noticed tears falling down her cheeks. I have never seen Joohyun cry, and this was honestly scaring me. She leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. I could see how much I was breaking her, and it killed me. The sight of her made tears swell up in my own eyes.

"I'm sorry," I apologized but I knew that it wouldn't change anything. The damage was already done.

"I need you to get out," she said softly.

"Joohyun," I started but she cut me off.

"Get the out Joy or whatever the hell your name is! Get dressed, get your , and never come back," she ordered me.

"I just think that we should talk this out," I tried but when she looked at me, I stopped talking. Tears stained her cheeks and she looked broken as she stared at me.

"Leave," she said simply. I sighed and went upstairs to get dressed before getting my things and walking out the door. Maybe she can forgive me one day.