🧣 

 

“Happy birthday, Sana!” I shouted over our friends as I handed her the gift I had found especially for her. 

Sana jumped up and down excitedly, giggling that giggle that everyone loved so much, then finally settled back down, gently rattling the gift box to hear what was inside. When she couldn’t figure out what it was that I got her, she gave up and opened it, finding the tea set she’d been wanting for ages nestled in 10 oh-so-carefully placed newspaper layers.

“I knew you’d rattle it, so I took precautions,” I winked, and after Sana finished laughing, she immediately ran into her kitchen to make some tea and break in her new set.

“Hey,” Momo protested from her spot on the floor, “You haven’t finished opening your presents!” 

Tzuyu silenced her; both she and Sana were the tea lovers in the friend group, so she wanted to break in Sana’s new tea set just as badly. Besides, it was one of the last days of December. Cold, cold December, when hot tea was always welcome.

Daeul got impatient and reached for one of Sana’s unopened presents, but I pulled him back just in time before he could snatch it up. I told him, as careful as possible, “Hey, no, that’s aunt Sana’s. Your birthday will be soon, you’ll get presents then, okay?”

Sana peeked in from the kitchen. “No, it’s okay! He can help me open one present while I’m busy! Just one, though!”

“He can open mine,” Dahyun said as she pushed the glittery red bag closer to him. We were all excited to see what she had gotten her best friend, so we all leaned in to get a better look.

Daeul looked back at me and when I nodded, giving him permission this time, his toddler hands immediately went to work on the gift. He pulled out the box from the bag and untied the bow around it. Before we knew it, in his hands was a pretty faux fur coat, long and golden brown, just like Sana’s hair.

“Wow, Dahyunnie,” Mina said, holding her girlfriend, “it’s gorgeous!”

Daeul tried to put it on but the classic coat was obviously much too large for him—it fit him more like a long, long dress. The sight caused a round of good-natured laughter from all of us, which caught Sana's atttention. Sana stepped out of the kitchen and snapped pictures of him, cooing at Daeul and telling him how cute he looked in her new coat. Daeul, satisfied now that he opened a present and got praises, sat back down on my lap.

As we waited for Sana to come back with tea, I took the time to look around, taking in the decorations spread throughout the living room, and, oh yeah, it was totally all Momo’s doing. There were drawings of presents and pretty pink streamers taped to the walls. I had no doubt in my mind that Sana loved the decorations. She was always proud of her girlfriends’ hard work after all.

When Sana returned and finished opening all of the presents, Nayeon gently pushed Daeul closer to her. “Wait,” she said, “Daeul has something for you too! He's been waiting all day to give this to you.” She gave her son another push and he stumbled his way into Sana’s arms. She giggled and pressed kisses onto both of his cheeks. Embarrassed, he handed her an envelope. She opened it to find a drawing inside. It was of her and Momo, drawn in orange and yellow, respectively, holding hands and smiling wide.

Sana picked Daeul up and said, “I love it! It’s the cutest thing ever! Let’s put it on the refrigerator with auntie Momo’s drawings, shall we?” Daeul clapped and pointed at the kitchen.

After opening her presents, we had dessert made specially by me. It was one of Sana’s favorites: Yoo Family Apple Pie.

After eating a forkful, Jihyo melted into her seat, a blissful expression on her face. “I don’t know if I did something in a past life to deserve this, but I’m so lucky for having a pro baker as a friend,” she commented as she immediately sat up straight and got another forkful. I blushed down at my cake, pleased by the praise.

“What’s got you all smiley?” Tzuyu asked, sending a wink my way.

"Just basking in the praise, Tzu. I worked hard to make it extra good for Sana's birthday." I turned to a very pleased Sana. "You're lucky you're my best friend. I don't usually bake outside of work!"

Sana took a forkful of pie and fed Momo. "Does it taste like Jeongyeon's love, Momoring?"

"It tastes like heaven," was Momo's only response.

Sana looked incredibly satisfied. "Of course I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I mean, look at Jihyo. The stress practically disappeared from her shoulders and face. If that’s not a miracle considering Jihyo is made of stress and worry, then I don’t know what is. Your desserts are like edible therapy, Jeongie.”

Trying to take the back-to-back compliments in stride, I turned to Mina, who said, "It's delicious. Can I ask what’s in the pie that makes it better than any other pie I've ever had? Or is that a family secret?” She had already finished her slice and was reaching for more.

“You mean besides apples?” Chaeyoung teased, full.

“Don’t be mean, Chaeng," I chided, wagging my finger. "Mina, this is my dad’s apple pie recipe; he thought to include walnuts into the streusel one day, completely unaware that he was about to create the most popular menu item! I think it adds more flavor, don't you?”

Everyone hummed their answer, thanking my dad for the genius idea.

After dessert, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu surprised us all by announcing that they had been dating for two months now, though, to be honest, it wasn’t much of a surprise; we had all kind of figured it out (they had been giving each other those kinds of looks all afternoon). Still, we acted like this was unexpected and all of us cheered as enthusiastically (but quietly, keeping Daeul’s sound sensitivity in mind). Tzuyu was bright pink and Chaeyoung’s smile was wider than the crescent moon in the sky. Proud of my friend for finally confessing to Tzuyu, I pulled out my phone to capture the moment. 

Through the phone camera, I saw Momo and Sana whispering to each other, almost like they were playing rock-paper-scissors to decide who would speak first. One of them nodded and, after we all finished congratulating Tzuyu and Chaeyoung, Momo announced that she and Sana were thinking about getting married some time next year. At that, Dahyun and I looked at each other, grinning.

I'll tell them to name their first kid after me, Dahyun mouthed across the table.

 

❄️

 

I peeped through the crack of my office door, past the bakery floor, and barely spotted Chaeyoung's car pulling in to park.

Finally.

I locked the door behind me and waved goodbye to the employees that were at the registers when one of them stopped me at the door.

“Hey, wait!” It was Jisoo, the employee that had worked for me the longest. “Where are you going? You don’t usually leave at this time, boss.”

I looked outside and motioned for Chaeyoung to wait a bit. She gave me a thumbs up. I walked up to Jisoo, who wasn’t attending any customers at the moment. “Good morning, Jisoo! Chaeyoung and I are going to double-check to make sure the hall we rented for the wedding reception is good. Nayeon’s stressed out and begged me to.”

“Oooh, I get that. My wife was the same, actually." Jisoo got a happy, faraway look in her eye before shaking her head and returning to Earth. "She just wanted everything to be perfect, you know? Don't hold it against Nayeon.”

“I won't,” I said, thinking about the night before and the talk Nayeon and I had. Thanks Jisoo.”

Jisoo and I both turned when we heard a customer enter. Quickly, before they reached the register, she said, “Good luck, Jeongyeon! Hope everything is well at the hall! Thanks for inviting Jennie and I, by the way!”

“Of course,” I said, just as the bored customer reached the register. “Why wouldn’t I? You two are my friends, Soo.”

She grinned and shooed me away, hating it when I started saying cheesy things.

When I entered Chaeyoung’s car, she asked me why I took so long.

“Oh, I was talking to Jisoo about the hall," I answered as Chaeyoung peeled out of the parking lot. "You remember her, right? She’s the employee that you used to have a crush on.” 

Chaeyoung swerved off the road before correcting herself and swearing under her breath.

 

The hall was, as expected, just fine. Jihyo looked stressed out and not happy about being dragged out of her office, but she managed to keep her bad mood at bay. Once finished, Chaeyoung and I decided to visit the library we used to hang out at when we were teenagers. It had a small coffee shop inside it, which served the best hot chocolate around. We invited Jihyo as well, but she rubbed her forehead and turned down the offer.

“No thanks. I’m…admittedly still stressing about the final details of your wedding,” Jihyo said to me, the hint of a rueful smile on her lips. “How about next time? The three of us can hang out then.”

Chaeng and I agreed and waved goodbye as we watched Jihyo leave, then hopped into Chaeng’s car to go to the library.

We each got ourselves a piping hot cup of hot chocolate and sat outside the steps, feeling like the day wasn’t cold enough to stop us from sitting at our favorite steps just outside. 

For a few minutes, neither of us said anything. We just sat in silence, people-watching as the cold wind blew in our ears. After a few minutes of shivering, I sensed Chaeyoung wanted to say something to me. Her eyes would land near me, but she couldn’t seem to go any further than that.

“What’s up?” I asked after seeing that she’d never speak up if I didn’t intervene.

“Umm,” she grumbled, looking deep into her cup. Her face was flushed. She thought about what she was going to say for a few more seconds before finally saying: “So… I’ve been thinking, and I want to ask your opinion on something. Do you think it’s a good idea to study Japanese? I’ve got some plans to become a bigger model, not just in Korea, but maybe...Japan too, you know?”

I took a sip of my drink. This definitely wasn’t what was on her mind, I could tell by how she rushed the second half of that sentence. Still, I decided to bear with her for a moment. “Yeah, of course! Make your plans as big as you want, Chaeng.” Using my free hand, I ruffled her long black hair and continued. “You can ask Sana for help, if you want. I don’t think there’s a better Japanese language professor out there.”

Chaeyoung nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah. You’re right. Thanks, Jeongyeon.”

“No problem, Chaeng,” I replied sincerely.

“You know,” she began, and I sensed that she was finally going to tell me what was on her mind. “I’m really glad that you’re still here for me even after things have changed so much.” She stared into the distance, avoiding my eyes. Her empty hand played the hem of her sleeve.

“Hey, of course I’ll always be here for you! What’s wrong?” I slid even closer than I already was to her, bumping my right shoulder to her left one. Her coffee sloshed a little, spilling onto the steps, but she didn’t mind. 

“Even when you’re married?” She asked in a hushed tone. Finally, her eyes slowly traveled to mine, and I saw that there was a tiny bit of fear. I frowned.

“I suppose nothing much is really going to change from here on out, Chaeng. If you really think about it, Nayeon and I have been married for a while now, just without any legal stuff to prove it. That’s the only thing that’s going to change; we’ll be legally bound. Do you feel we’re a lot less closer nowadays?”

Chaeyoung shook her head. “No, I guess not.”

“See? Don’t worry too much about it. Nayeon loves the out of you, too, you know, so she wouldn’t let you and I drift apart. In fact, I think she’d be the first to freak out if you and I did,” I joked, trying to cheer her up.

Chaeyoung nodded, looking comforted now. After another sip from her drink, she spoke again. “Sorry about that. I’ve just been thinking a lot. Before, I wasn’t too worried about losing you. But now that we’re a month away or so from your wedding, well… I can’t help it. It was just you and me for so long, you know? Then I became friends with Dahyun, and you met Momo, then we merged together and made a large friend group. Then you met Sana at her graduation party, who introduced you to Nayeon, and suddenly, Mina, Jihyo and Tzuyu were added to the mix.”

I was about to ask if she didn’t like having so many friends, but she jumped forward before I could. “And—and it’s great! I actually love having so many friends! I’m glad, don’t think I’m not. But it happened so quickly. Suddenly, I was busy doing modeling stuff, not able to hang out with you like we used to be able to, and now, you’re getting married. Like...I’m shocked at how fast things have changed. You pretty much have a family now, I have an amazing girlfriend, and it’s—it’s…”

“Wild?” I finished for her after seeing that she didn’t know how to finish. Chaeyoung took a deep breath and nodded, glad I knew what she was trying to get at. “Yeah, things have changed for us, but that’s okay. We’re still the same, Chaeng. You’re still always going to be my best friend forever. That’s why I made you my personal maid of honor, or best man, whatever you call it. That’s always reserved for the closest of friends.” I could see the tears threatening to spill in Chaeyoung’s eyes. Wow, I thought at that moment, she was really worried about things changing for the worst. That pushed me to crush her in a huge hug, which she reciprocated immediately. She laughed into my shoulder, her voice sounding free and happy now. 

“You better write the coolest speech ever,” I whispered into her shoulder before letting go. “You’re going to be delivering it in front of twenty people.”

Chaeyoung sniffled a little bit and took her phone out of her coat pocket, wiggling it in front of us. “Are you kidding me? As soon as you gave me the honor, I got to writing it immediately!”

I snatched her phone and tried unlocking it to read her speech when she snatched it right back. “Oh no you don’t! I’m not even done with it yet. It’s, like, 75% there. It’s still in the first draft. And I still have to write the whole speech on some flashcards.”

I begged her for a sneak peek, wanting to see how much she’d embarrass me in the speech, but she shook her head adamantly. “You’re going to be hearing it in less than a month! Can’t you wait?”

I took a deep breath, and with the exhale, I said, “Nope!”

Chaeyoung smirked. “Fine, fine. I guess I can give you a slight idea of what you’re going to be dealing with at your wedding.” Chaeyoung paused for a moment, reading her notes, and her face twisted ridiculously as she tried to hold in her laughter.

“What?” I impatiently asked.

“Sorry, I’m just laughing at my own jokes,” she said with a quirk in her voice,  “Okay, okay, let me read it to you. Ready? It starts like this… ‘Hey, everybody! I think I should preface this speech by saying…’”

 

🌨 

 

“...that none of us would be sitting here today, at this wedding, without divine intervention. Other people call this phenomenon Sana's Meddling." To my right, I could hear Sana's signature giggles. She was hiding behind her hair, shy because all eyes were on her for a moment. Chaeyoung continued, flashcards completely abandoned on a table nearby. "Years ago, Sana wanted the best cake for her graduation party and knew exactly where to get it. Jeongyeon's bakery was hired, and as a show of thanks, not only did Sana pay for the cake, but she also invited Jeongyeon herself to the celebration! Not one to turn down an excuse to party, Jeongyeon agreed, and—well, quite literally bumped into Sana's best friend Nayeon. The two got to talking, exchanged numbers, and the rest is history! Time flies, doesn't it?"

Nayeon wrapped an arm around one of my own, her dazzling eye makeup shining especially brightly with the thoughtful look she had. “I remember that night so vividly,” she whispered to me as Chaeyoung continued her speech. "I couldn't take my eyes off you. I'd never seen you before, so I wondered how you got invited."

"Thought I snuck in, did you?" I teased, but before I could continue reminiscing about that fateful night, Chaeyoung’s voice boomed from the speakers.

“Time flies, and things change quickly. Jeongyeon... For years, it was just you and me against the world, two best friends struggling to make ends meet after high school. Then, suddenly, it felt like in the blink of an eye, you were dating Nayeon and making wedding plans! We never drifted apart, never stopped being best friends, but I don't know, I got scared of you forgetting me. Recently, I opened up to Jeongyeon about this," she continued, now addressing the crowd, "and wouldn't you believe it, she took the time to listen to me and allay my silly little fears. All while still balancing work life and planning a wedding."

Nayeon reached out and her gloved hand gripped mine tightly. Everyone in the hall turned to me at that moment, I knew this, but one particular pair of eyes landed on mine. Nayeon’s smile was full of delight, and it told me she was proud of me. As I smiled back to her, Chaeyoung finished up her speech with a few closing words. 

“She's patient. She's selfless. So, Nayeon, you really couldn't be in better hands. Thank you for listening." Chaeyoung sent us one final smile before bowing and stepping away from the mic.

I don’t know if this is common, to cheer for the maid of honor’s speech, but we sure did. Chaeyoung took her seat to my right, a bright smile on her face. I wrapped my arms around her and wrestled her for a while, unable to express how grateful I was that she spoke so kindly of me to everyone. By the way Chaeyoung wrestled back with a grin on her face, I’d say she knew exactly what I was trying to convey. 

As one could probably tell, our wedding was like most standard Korean weddings; lightning fast and no reception. There was one little tweak, though. One that was only known by me and the guests, thanks to the wedding invitations Mina printed out for us. Our wedding had a small dance section, unbeknownst to Nayeon. 

As a hidden DJ started the music, I saw Nayeon look up from fixing her beautiful dress. I stood up, catching her attention, and she gave me a questioning look. With my index finger, I gestured for her to stand up. Sana, next to her, caught on and helped me by gently pushing Nayeon up. 

“What’s going on?” Nayeon asked, clearly very confused. She looked to Sana for an answer, but Sana zipped her lips and motioned for her to follow me. “What’s with the music?”

“Looks like there was a surprise in the schedule, hmm?” I asked, watching her expressions shift from confused to...well, more confused. 

“This song,” she started, recognizing which one had come on. Frankly, I don’t know what the song name is, but it’s easily recognizable; apparently it’s popular among the gay community. “I know it. It’s a Carly Rae Jepsen song…but why are they playing it? You—”

You don’t dance, she was going to say, but she was so lost that she let the sentence drift off.

I extended a hand out to her, feeling a bit self conscious about what I was doing. “I know. But I wanted to give you this.”

Slowly, Nayeon understood what was going on, and a soft smile spread across her face. She took my hand and allowed me to lead her to the dance floor just large enough for both of us. 

Nayeon took one of my hands and placed another at my waist. She still looked star struck. “Are you sure?”

“Of course,” I said reassuringly, “because I know how much you’ve wanted to dance with me. I’m sorry for refusing up to this point.”

Nayeon’s lip quivered. “Yoo Jeongyeon, you are so corny.”

“Try saying that without looking like you’re falling deeper for me next time,” I said, not able to stop my grin. Nayeon curled her fist into a ball and lightly hit me with it, a cute blush forming on her cheeks. We began to sway to the music, which was too poppy for a slow dance, but I suppose, in retrospect, that everything was okay. She liked the song and we were dancing, just like she'd always wanted to. Nothing else mattered.

“Oh, you—I feel like a teenager again, with this song, and how you’ve been making me blush all day with every single little tease.” Nayeon rested her head on my shoulder; I instantly recognized as her way of showing that she really, truly appreciated the gesture. She leaned on me the same way nearly a year ago, when she told me she was happy I was trying my hardest to connect with Daeul. I held her tighter.

“So, who taught you how to dance?” Nayeon asked after the song began the final chorus. “I know you didn’t know how to before.”

“Who do you think? Momo, of course,” I snorted, looking briefly to the side to peek at said friend. She was cooing over Daeul with Tzuyu.

“I didn’t know she knew about slow dancing. I thought all she knew was, like, krumping or b-boying.”

“Oh, she didn’t. She watched two videos and then figured it out immediately. Turns out it’s not that hard. Well, at least for her. I’m not sure how many times I’ve stepped on your toes already.”

Nayeon laughed and said it wasn’t a big deal, that I could carry her home afterward. “I do wanna tell her that I’m thankful, though,” she said, something like a wistful look in her eye. “I’ve wanted to dance with you for so long, and honestly I gave up hoping you would one day.”

“For how long have you been waiting to dance with me?” I asked, guessing it would be only a few months. She’d only recently mentioned it.

She thought about it, then answered, “Since the first time. At Sana’s party, in fact. I remember spotting you from the makeshift dance floor leaning against the wall, drink in your hand. You were all alone, and I wanted to ask you to dance because I was wanted to see your smile.”

I remembered that day very clearly. Sana had invited me to her graduation party, none of the rest of the crew from the bakery, so I knew absolutely nobody there. I was, as Nayeon had so aptly observed, very alone. “Glad you didn’t ask me to dance, though, or else you would have been flat-out rejected.”

Nayeon lifted her head off my shoulder and raised a slim eyebrow. “Oh? You would’ve rejected me? The prettiest girl at that party?”

“Yeah,” I admitted, hugging her closer. Her laugh tickled my shoulder. “But hey! Look at us! Now you’re dancing with the prettiest girl at the party.”

Nayeon guffawed at that, breaking away for a few seconds to properly laugh at my joke, then took my hand and shook her head as she placed her hand at my waist again.

“Jeong.” Nayeon stared at me until I looked into her eyes again. “Jeongyeon, I’m not dancing with the prettiest girl at the party. I’m dancing with the prettiest girl in the whole world.” 

I tried rolling my eyes to feign annoyance, trying to act like that compliment didn’t make my heart dance too, but I felt my ears burn slowly, giving me away for sure. I just hoped the camera crew didn’t capture that. 

“Who’s the corny one now?” I asked in reply, loving the proud smile on her face. It made her eyes sparkle in the dimmed dance floor lights, and she looked much more beautiful. 

“Next time, say that without looking like you’re falling deeper in love with me,” she said, sending me a sly wink before boldly spinning me around. 

Before I could counter, we both felt Daeul tug on our dresses, asking to be held. Nayeon picked him up and squealed happily, asking him if he wanted to dance with us. He didn’t say a word, just hugged her neck, and Nayeon pulled me close again.

I waved my arm to catch the DJ’s attention, asking her to play the same artist, but a different song. She complied, giving me a hearty thumbs up before the next song played, this one much more spirited. I held Nayeon as she held Daeul, and we spun across the dance floor when we could. Sometimes he’d giggle and want to switch between Nayeon and I, but for the most part he wanted me to hold him, which I did happily. 

 

 

---

 

 

one last chapter, just a epilogue that jumps ahead a decade <3 thank u for reading!!