CH. IV

 

‘What are you doing here? I thought you had a date with Ryujin?’ 

 

‘Something came up. Mind if I sit with you for a bit?’ Heejin said. 

 

Hyunjin shook her head. Hyunjin didn’t mind at all. She was honestly just confused. What could have gone wrong with Ryujin that she would cancel a whole date? She would never do that unless it had something to do with soccer, Hyunjin or Yujin. But if it was something to do with soccer, Hyunjin would know because she and Yujin were always the first people to know when Ryujin had exciting soccer news. And of course it wasn’t Hyunjin because, well, Hyunjin was right there. And it couldn’t have been Yujin because any problem Yujin had she would contact both of them, and on rare occasions, only Hyunjin. 

 

‘I didn’t know you play guitar.’ Heejin said. ‘You like Ed Sheeran?’ 

 

Hyunjin shrugged. ‘He’s okay. Not my favourite but everyone else seems to like it so I learn it for them.’ 

 

‘What kind of music do you like, then?’ Heejin said. 

 

Hyunjin smiled instinctively. 

 

‘I know it sounds crazy, but I really appreciate all genres of music. But, I guess my personal favourite would have to be songs that are led with the acoustic guitar and has some nice jazzy type chords.’ 

 

‘Oh, same.’ Heejin said. ‘I love jazzy chord extensions on the guitar, something about it is nicer than on the piano. Maybe it’s because of the timbre because I like them better on an acoustic rather than an electric. But some major seventh chords sound super nice on electric if it has a clean filter on it.’ 

 

Hyunjin looked at Heejin dumbfounded. Heejin suddenly went red, bowing her head. 

 

‘Sorry, I went all geeky there. You probably don’t know what half of those words mean.’ 

 

‘No!’ Hyunjin said a little too quickly, causing Heejin to jump a little bit when Hyunjin abruptly put her hand up as if telling Heejin to stop. 

 

Hyunjin put her hand down. 

 

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.’ Hyunjin said. ‘It’s just that, I’m really happy you know what those words mean because I’ve been dying to talk about it with something. Ryujin’s pretty good at dancing and Yujin can sing and play some instruments but I can tell when I talk about theory it kind of goes over their poor heads.’ 

 

Heejin laughed. ‘My friends feel the same. Especially Jinsoul, she just kind of screams at me.’ 

 

‘Jinsoul.’ Hyunjin shook her head at the thought of her softball team member. That girl was so smart in academics and her engineering stuff but when it came down to it suddenly she’d become incapable of functioning like a proper human being. But that’s fine, Jinsoul’s smart will probably make some kind of invention in the future that will help her with basic human things. 

 

‘Do you play any instruments?’ Hyunjin asked. There was no way Heejin could know about some musical theory if she didn’t at least play something. 

 

‘Piano and guitar. But I’m mostly a singer. I play instruments to assist with my singing but I wouldn’t say my skills were good enough to play them on my own.’ 

 

‘That’s so funny because I’m the exact opposite.’ Hyunjin said. 

 

‘I’m sure you can sing.’ Heejin said. ‘I’ve heard that you and the other two Jins are pretty much perfect. Got your whole lives already set with your coming sports scholarships and stuff. I bet you basically have Universities falling at your feets begging you to play for them.’ 

 

Hyunjin pursed her lips, causing Heejin to study her face inquisitively. 

 

‘I’m sorry, did I say something wrong?’

 

Hyunjin shook her head, forcing a small smile onto her face. ‘No, you didn’t.’ 

 

She handed Heejin the guitar. 

 

‘Can you sing something?’ 

 

Heejin looked at the guitar, then she looked to Hyunjin’s face. She tentatively took the guitar, a sly smile on her face. 

 

‘I can never say no to singing.’ Heejin said, a small smile on her face. Hyunjin thought that that was probably what she looked like when people asked her to play. At least when she wasn’t trying to melt girl’s hearts. 

 

Hyunjin turned her body so that she was facing Heejin and she sat cross legged, leaning her weight onto her elbows. She had to admit, she was excited to hear Heejin sing. 

 

From her talking voice alone, Hyunjin could tell she probably had a nice tone to her voice. 

 

And Hyunjin was right. 

 

‘This is an original that I’ve been working on.’ Heejin said. ‘Don’t judge the guitar playing, I’m better at the lyrics than the music.’ 

 

Heejin had a deep talking voice, but when she sang her voice sounded a little bit higher. But it wasn’t nasally or high pitched. It was very sweet and Hyunjin loved how much character she had with her voice. There were moments in the song where it was like Heejin was talking singing but the way she would flex with her pitch was so interesting to Hyunjin and she was so captivated by Heejin’s voice. Even when Heejin sang ‘Oh my God, yes!’ about 50 million times, Hyunjin still enjoyed and she didn’t get sick of hearing it. 

 

When Heejin finished singing, Hyunjin clapped. 

 

‘I’m calling the Grammys, right now.’ Hyunjin said. 

 

‘You’re exaggerating.’ Heejin laughed and went to hand the guitar over to Hyunjin. 

 

‘No, but seriously.’ Hyunjin said. ‘I genuinely think it’s really good.’ 

 

Heejin’s voice was gorgeous. Heejin’s lyrics were gorgeous. 

 

Heejin, was gorgeous. 

 

But Hyunjin told herself that she still didn’t like Heejin like that.

 

Sure, Heejin’s shared love for music got Hyunjin excited. Maybe her heart beat a little faster the moment Heejin started singing. And maybe talking to Heejin was kinda easy for Hyunjin, maybe Hyunjin could tell they had really good chemistry. Maybe Heejin was kind of the perfect girl for Hyunjin. 

 

But strictly as friends. 

 

That’s what Hyunjin told herself. 

 

That’s what Hyunjin tried to convince herself. 

 

So, why did Hyunjin still feel guilty? 

 

………………..

 

‘Chaeyeon unnie.’ 

 

‘Any luck?’ 

 

‘No, I’ve tried all of her favorite cafes and I tried the park where we used to play soccer.’

 

‘My Mom and Dad are coming home soon. They’re going to freak out but I have to tell them the truth.’ 

 

‘Just tell them that she’s staying at my house. I’ll find her.’

 

‘Ryujin, it’s getting late. It’s almost 5 and it’ll be dark soon. You should go home and rest, my parents will handle it when they get home. I’ll call Yeji and Lia to go home, too. They’re still looking, as well.’ 

 

‘No.’ Ryujin said. ‘I will find her. I promise.’ 

 

…………...

 

Ryujin checked her watch. It was 6pm and it was getting dark. Her stomach growled but she ignored it. She hasn’t eaten since breakfast. 

 

She had to find Chaeryeong. 

 

After texting her boss, informing him of what was going on and letting him know she won’t be able to attend her shift, she had gone everywhere she could think of to find Chaeryeong. 

 

She’d even gone to Chaeryeong’s school, climbing over the fence of the football field to try and find the girl. Obviously, no luck. 

 

She even went to Han River, knowing that was usually the place people would run to to yell into the sea all of their problems and worries. 

 

Ryujin had one more place in mind, and she was praying that Chaeryeong was there. If she wasn’t, Ryujin was running out of ideas. 

 

She stepped into the carpark for her High School. Standing in the middle of all the empty car slots, it  reminded Ryujin of the first time she met Chaeryeong. 

 

………………

 

ONE DAY BEFORE FRESHMAN YEAR

 

‘Ow.’ Ryujin rubbed at her head. She was laying face down on the gravel, a throbbing pain on the side of her temple.

 

‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry!’ 

 

Ryujin felt someone crouching down next to her, a hand on her shoulder. 

 

She turned over and sat up, finally being able to see the girl. Ryujin was able to come to the quick conclusion that she was pretty. Very pretty. 

 

She picked up the soccer ball, tossed it in the air and caught it again. 

 

‘It’s okay.’ Ryujin said, grabbing the girl’s outstretched hand. She helped pull Ryujin back up onto her feet ‘What’s your name? You have a pretty decent kick.’ 

 

‘Lee Chaeryeong.’ The girl said. ‘I was actually vice captain of my soccer team in middle school.’ 

 

‘No way!’ Ryujin exclaimed excitedly. ‘I was the captain of my soccer team, too! Are you going to tryout?’ 

 

Chaeryeong nodded. ‘That’s why I’m here. I wanted to get some practice in before school started. Get to know the soccer field, you know?’ 

 

‘Definitely.’ Ryujin said, happy to finally find someone who she could vibe with. Her other friends who played soccer would for doing things like that. ‘I’m here for the same reason.’ 

 

‘It’s kind of scary.’ Chaeryeong said. ‘We’re in High School now, the stakes are so high and we’re back to being the kids again.’ 

 

Ryujin handed Chaeryeong her soccer ball back and she eyed her curiously. There was something about the girl that made Ryujin feel the need to want to protect her. She thought it might have something to do with how adorable Chaeryeong’s nervous face looked. She looked so innocent and protectable. 

 

Ryujin held out her pinky towards her. 

 

‘I promise to have your back.’ Ryujin said. ‘Do you promise to have mine?’ 

 

Chaeryeong stared at Ryujin’s pinky. Then she smiled and Ryujin swore it was the prettiest smile she’s ever seen. 

 

‘I promise.’ 

 

Not once did those two break their promise.

 

………………

 

As Ryujin jogged around to the back of the High School, she knew she didn’t want to break that promise now. 

 

‘Please be here.’ Ryujin repeated under her breath over and over again. 

 

She turned the corner and onto the soccer field, stopping at the edge to survey the area. Breath panting and heart beating fast, Ryujin scanned the entirety of the field, from the fence by the boundaries all the way to the edge of the bleachers. 

 

Then she saw her. 

 

Ryujin thanked the heavens that Chaeryeong was there, seemingly unharmed. 

 

She was just sitting there, crossed legged on the side of the field and staring out into space. Ryujin took note of her casted leg. 

 

‘Chaeryeong!’ 

 

The girl jumped at the noise, not expecting someone she knew to actually find her. She stood up in shock, leaning on the leg that wasn’t broken while Ryujin used the last bits of energy she had left to sprint over to Chaeryeong. She had been running all afternoon and it wasn’t until now that she finally found Chaeryeong that she realised just how exhausted she felt. 

 

‘How did you find me?’ Chaeryeong asked. 

 

But Ryujin didn’t even answer her back. As soon as she was in front of Chaeryeong she threw her arms around the girl, pulling her into a tight hug. Her arms were around Chaeryeong’s waist, pulling her as close as she could into her body. One hand made its way to the back of Chaeryeong’s head as she felt the girl bury her face into her neck, almost as if Chaeryeong had been craving a hug all day long. 

 

‘I had an inkling you’d be here.’ Ryujin said. ‘Also, I checked every other place you could have been and this was the last place on that list.’ 

 

Ryujin had pulled Chaeryeong out of the embrace by then, but her hand had made her way down the length of Chaeryeong’s arm and was now fiddling with Chaeryeong’s fingers. 

 

‘I really appreciate you trying to find me.’ Chaeryeong said and Ryujin could feel the sincerity behind her words. She handed Ryujin her drink bottle. ‘You must be exhausted.’ 

 

Ryujin gulped at the water, not realising how thirsty she was until Chaeryeong showed her the bottle.

 

‘But, if you’re just here to convince me to go home, don’t.’ Chaeryeong said, sitting back down on the grass where she previously was. ‘I kind of just want to be in my thoughts right now.’ 

 

Ryujin nodded and sat down next to Chaeryeong. 

 

‘Then I’ll keep you company while you think.’ Ryujin said, placing one arm behind Chaeryeong to lean against it. She made sure she was pressed up against the girl. ‘Besides, it’s kind of cold out.’ 

 

As if on cue, Chaeryeong shivered a little. Ryujin laughed and adjusted her position so she was even closer to her. She took note of the darkening sky. 

 

‘If you want, you can think in my house?’ Ryujin said. ‘I already told your sister to tell your parents that you’re staying over.’

 

There was a beat of silence. 

 

‘I have a really cool spot on the roof that’s perfect for star watching. I find it’s the best place to think.’ 

 

Chaeryeong didn’t say anything but Ryujin could see that she was thinking it over. 

 

‘I can make kimchi stew?’ 

 

Chaeryeong didn’t have to be told twice. 

 

……………..

 

‘Hey, ryeongie. Can you cut the meat for me?’

 

Currently, Ryujin and Chaeryeong were at Ryujin’s house, preparing the kimchi stew. Both girls didn’t realise just how hungry they were. 

 

Ryujin was extra hungry because she had offered to piggyback Chaeryeong all the way to her house, since she had a hard time walking on her broken leg. The cast was pretty tough against Ryujin’s hip but she was able to manage, especially with Chaeryeong making cute comments in her cute little voice. 

 

‘I was waiting for you to ask.’ Chaeryeong jumped or more like, hopped up. 

 

Ryujin smirked and handed Chaeryeong the knife. 

 

‘Just like old times?’

 

Chaeryeong nodded. ‘Just like old times.’

 

Ryujin and Chaeryeong weren’t just the dynamic duo on the soccer field. They were also a force to be reckoned with in cooking class. 

 

They both were natural cooks and they worked really well together, Ryujin being good at the more technical things like beating, whipping, stirring etc while Chaeryeong was good at seeing the bigger picture, sometimes straying from the recipe to add her own flavor. Their teachers were always impressed with their dishes and they didn’t mind that they were always partners in that class, because they themselves were curious as to what they could cook up.

 

They cooked in silence, Ryujin secretly stealing a glance at Chaeryeong every so often.

 

At least she thought she was being secretive.

 

‘Is there something on my face?’ 

 

Ryujin quickly turned away, as if Chaeryeong wouldn’t notice her staring at her. 

 

‘I was just thinking about how much I missed having you around.’ Ryujin said. 

 

‘Same here.’ Chaeryeong said, a soft smile on her face and Ryujin couldn’t help but smile to herself too.

 

Chaeryeong finished the last of what she was doing.

 

‘Okay, it’s on you now.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

Then she pushed herself onto the counter and sat on top of it so she could watch Ryujin cook. 

 

Ryujin almost dropped her wooden spoon. 

 

Chaeryeong doing that simple action caused a memory to come rushing through Ryujin’s head. 

 

………………

 

SOPHOMORE YEAR

 

The soccer team were at Ryujin’s house celebrating Ryujin being chosen as the captain for the next year as they had just finished their season and had won the finals. Ryujin was unanimously voted as the captain, making this the first time a junior had been elected as a team captain. (Though Hyunjin held that title first, a few days ago when she was elected as the softball captain for the next year). 

 

They decided not to have a vice captain, as the only person they wanted to vote for was moving schools the next year. The team came to the decision that there was no point in having a vice captain for Ryujin. 

 

Ryujin and Chaeryeong were the babies of the group, along with their friend Jeon Somi, who were the only sophomores on the team. The rest of them were seniors and juniors. Currently, their seniors were talking about how far they’ve gone with their partners. 

 

Somi caught Ryujin’s eye, knowing all about her hoe activities. Ryujin had just started becoming popular with the girls, and she was an ecstatic 16-year-old who was eager to kiss any sophomore that would look her way. That phase died quickly though, when Ryujin started to crush on a certain someone. 

 

Poor Somi had the unfortunate fate of walking into the locker room one too many times to find Ryujin making out with a new girl. That’s what Somi got for always forgetting stuff in her locker. After a few times, Ryujin got used to it so much and so did Somi that the latter would just walk in unphased. She would just get her stuff and leave silently, avoiding looking at them at all costs. 

 

Chaeryeong shuffled uncomfortably in her seat, seeing Ryujin smirk knowingly at Somi who seemed to want to gag remembering what she had seen. 

 

Ryujin hadn’t told Chaeryeong directly about her experiences, but she’s definitely heard about her having them from various people. She didn’t mind, it was Ryujin’s life and Chaeryeong wasn’t the boss of her. It’s just that Chaeryeong had a funny feeling in her stomach while thinking about it. 

 

Perhaps Chaeryeong was jealous. 

 

Jealous because Chaeryeong had never had her first kiss before. 

 

(Definitely not because she was in love with Ryujin and she didn’t know it yet). 

 

‘Chaebin sure had some funny stories.’ Ryujin said while washing the dishes. It was getting late and most of the soccer team had left by then. Chaeryeong was the only one remaining. 

 

‘Yeah.’ Chaeryeong said. She had been unusually quiet for most of the night. Chaeryeong was usually pretty quiet, but tonight it didn’t seem like her normal. It didn’t feel like she was herself.

 

‘Are you okay?’ Ryujin placed the plate she had just finished rinsing to the side. She turned off the water to look at Chaeryeong. ‘You’ve been acting kind of weird.’ 

 

Chaeryeong shrugged and pushed herself up to sit on top of the counter. 

 

‘Promise me you won’t judge me?’ 

 

Ryujin stared at Chaeryeong, as if offended by that question. Chaeryeong and everyone knew that Ryujin was the last person on the team who would judge someone. Especially Chaeryeong. Ryujin was always soft for that girl. 

 

The upcoming soccer captain held out her pinky, nodding towards it for Chaeryeong to take. She chuckled lightly to herself and took Ryujin’s outstretched pinky in her own, curling the small finger around Ryujin’s. 

 

‘I haven’t,’ Chaeryeong said, ‘I haven’t had my first kiss yet.’ 

 

Ryujin stared at her wordlessly, tilting her head to the side to let Chaeryeong know she was waiting for her to continue. Chaeryeong just stared at her blankly. 

 

‘That’s it?’ Ryujin said. She laughed softly, ‘you thought I would judge you for that?’ 

 

‘Stop it.’ Chaeryeong said, hitting her playfully. ‘It’s embarrassing, okay?’

 

Ryujin shook her head. It wasn’t embarrassing at all. Some people start kissing people as a sophomore, some in college, some don’t kiss someone until they meet their soulmate at 32. There was no set date on when you should have your first kiss. 

 

‘What’s it like?’ Chaeryeong said, dreamily. 

 

‘What do you think it’s like?’ Ryujin said. 

 

Chaeryeong pursed her lips and thought for awhile. She up at a spot on the wall, thinking hard about her answer. What did she think it was like? 

 

‘The books and the kdramas make them sound so special.’ Chaeryeong said, a soft smile on her face. ‘It’s like the world stops and everything around you is sparkling and you feel really warm and fuzzy inside and your heart beats really loudly and it just feels all magical.’ 

 

Ryujin sighed, pitying Chaeryeong’s fantasy. 

 

‘Hate to break it to you, but the books and kdramas kind of lied.’ 

 

Chaeryeong turned her gaze back to Ryujin. ‘So, what is it really like?’ 

 

Ryujin shrugged. 

 

‘Your lips just kinda…’ she balled her hands up into fists and brought both thumbs and pointer fingers together with a thud, ‘and sometimes they kinda,’ Ryujin imitated making out by rubbing the side of her fist against the other, ‘and sometimes there’s a little… tongue.’ 

 

Ryujin shuddered a little. 

 

‘It’s kinda… slimy.’ 

 

‘Awww. So, it’s actually really gross?’ Chaeryeong said, a disappointed look on her face. 

 

‘Gross? No, it’s nice.’ Ryujin said, turning back on the water and resuming washing the dishes. 

 

‘It doesn’t sound very nice.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

‘It is. Very enjoyable, why do you think I do it a lot?’ Ryujin said. ‘All I’m saying is that the whole sparkly fuzzy ? Doesn’t happen in real life.’ 

 

‘Maybe you haven’t met the right person yet.’ Chaeryeong stuck out her tongue. ‘My kdramas would never lie to me, I trust them.’ 

 

‘It’s hard to fully understand the feeling unless you’ve actually kissed someone, ryeongie.’ 

 

The sound of the water flowing onto the dishes were the only sounds heard after that. Ryujin was absentmindedly scrubbing at the grime on the dishes while Chaeryeong sat pouting on the kitchen counter. 

 

Then she had an idea. 

 

‘Can you kiss me?’ 

 

Ryujin almost dropped the spoons she was washing. She thought that maybe she had imagined that. 

 

‘I mean, you’ve kissed so many people before. It won’t hurt to kiss another one, right?’ 

 

Ryujin raised an eyebrow. ‘You want me to kiss you? Are you very sure? Your first kiss?’ 

 

Chaeryeong looked determined and she sat up straighter, as if her decision was final. Ryujin knew that Chaeryeong had made up her mind. 

 

Ryujin turned off the water and dried her hands on a tea towel. She didn’t see anything wrong with it. Kissing her didn’t sound too bad. Ryujin liked kissing, anyways. Remember? She was a sophomore who had just discovered the art of kissing, she was up for kissing any pretty girl. And Chaeryeong was definitely pretty. But she definitely wasn’t just any pretty girl. Chaeryeong was her closest friend (she, Hyunjin and Yujin were friends but not as close as they would be later on). 

 

Ryujin made her way over to where Chaeryeong was sitting patiently on the counter. Chaeryeong made a move to come down from her spot but Ryujin shook her head, signaling to her that she could stay where she was. 

 

‘You can back out anytime.’ Ryujin said, standing in front of the girl. 

 

Chaeryeong just nodded. 

 

Then she closed her eyes and Ryujin could feel just how much Chaeryeong trusted her. She had to have trusted her, this was her first kiss that she was giving to Ryujin. 

 

Ryujin leaned in slowly, standing slightly on her tiptoes since Chaeryeong was just a tiny bit taller than she usually was. And Chaeryeong was slightly taller than Ryujin as it was. Chaeryeong’s lips looked smooth and soft but they weren’t shiny like other girls Ryujin had kissed, due to her lack of lip gloss. Ryujin was kind of happy about that, lip gloss tasted and felt kind of gross to her. Ryujin was close enough that she could smell Chaeryeong’s shampoo, a scent Ryujin was familiar with since Chaeryeong would sleep over frequently and end up cuddling with Ryujin. 

 

Ryujin closed her eyes too when she was closer to Chaeryeong’s face. 

 

Then she tenderly planted her lips on Chaeryeong’s. 

 

And suddenly, Ryujin saw stars. 

 

She only meant for it to be a short kiss. Longer than a peck but not too long that it was like an awkward kdrama slow motion replay. But the minute Ryujin’s lips touched Chaeryeong’s, something clicked inside of her and she realised that she did not want to stop kissing Lee Chaeryeong. 

 

She disconnected their lips only briefly so that she could turn her head to a different angle, but just as quickly as she pulled away, her lips were back onto Chaeryeong’s, this time moving with more desire than before. She kept the pace slow and steady so that Chaeryeong could follow along with her, knowing this was the girl’s first kiss, but there was so much intensity to the kiss that it shocked Ryujin. Ryujin had to place her hands onto Chaeryeong’s waist to steady herself. 

 

And it was when Chaeryeong started to kiss her with more force, Ryujin had to remove one of her hands from Chaeryeong’s waist to bring it up to her jaw, cupping it and angling her head into another position so that Ryujin can deepen the kiss even more. 

 

She’s never felt this way before. Kissing girls was just a bit of fun for Ryujin. She kissed them for the sake of kissing. But with Chaeryeong, Ryujin kissed her because it felt like her whole body was screaming at her to kiss this girl. The warm and fuzzy feeling Chaeryeong mentioned before? Ryujin had it all and more. 

 

And as Chaeryeong opened slightly to let Ryujin slip her tongue into , Ryujin realised just how fast she was falling for Lee Chaeryeong. 

 

………………

 

‘There’s a scout coming,’ Chaeryeong’s voice interrupted the calming breeze. 

 

Chaeryeong and Ryujin were laying side by side on Ryujin’s balcony wrapped up in blankets and their bodies sagging into a few beanbags. Their eyes were trained up at the sky, watching the stars shine above them. They had been sitting in silence, quietly thinking to themselves until Chaeryeong finally interrupted the silence. 

 

‘She’s from UCLA and she’s choosing international soccer players to join a year long exchange.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

‘That’s crazy.’ Ryujin said. 

 

Chaeryeong hummed. ‘She was meant to come in two weeks. To attend our soccer practice since the season hasn’t started yet and she can’t watch any of our games. We’re going to scrimmage against each other during practice.’ 

 

Ryujin placed a comforting hand over Chaeryeong’s. It was like that with them. Ryujin wasn’t one to say a lot when it came to comforting people, she was better at calming people down with physical touch. Besides, sometimes she just didn’t know what to say. 

 

‘It just . This is my dream, you know? Soccer is all I have and to have it taken away from me really does wonders. It’s kind of like, now that I can’t play soccer, I’m practically useless.’ 

 

‘Don’t say that.’ Ryujin said, turning her head to forcefully look at Chaeryeong. ‘You are NOT useless.’ 

 

Chaeryeong squeezed her hand, an acknowledgment of what Ryujin said. 

 

‘I was so excited to finally be able to have something that I can be proud of, that my parents and my sisters and my family could be proud of. And I was so close. You know that feeling?’ 

 

Ryujin glanced quickly at Chaeryeong, her heart growing heavy. She definitely knew that feeling all too well. 

 

‘I understand. Letting go of something you were so close to having is the most painful thing.’ 

 

She’s experienced that feeling already with none other than the girl lying next to her in that very moment. 

 

Ryujin had fallen in love with Chaeryeong from the moment they kissed. After kissing Chaeryeong, Ryujin could not kiss anybody else. Everyone was shocked when Somi reported that she hadn’t in fact walked in on Ryujin for awhile. And whenever they asked Ryujin, she’d just shrug and say that she didn’t feel like it. The truth was, Ryujin knew nobody would be able to compare to Chaeryeong. After the kiss, Ryujin kept on falling hard for Chaeryeong. She had no idea how she hadn’t fallen for her before, Chaeryeong was the perfect girl for her, they complimented each other well and Ryujin always knew inside that Chaeryeong was different to all her other friends.

 

And the best part was? Ryujin knew that Chaeryeong liked her, too. 

 

She was so close to making Lee Chaeryeong hers.

 

But then, she didn’t.  

 

Ryujin shook her head to clear away the thoughts, that was a story she would dwell on some other time. 

 

‘Let’s go to bed.’ Ryujin said. 

 

Chaeryeong nodded and followed Ryujin back into her bedroom. They slept on opposite sides of the bed, their backs to each other.

 

‘Good night, Ryujin.’ Chaeryeong said. ‘Thank you for helping me.’ 

 

‘I didn’t fix your problem, though.’ 

 

‘But you made me happy enough to want to fix them myself.’ 

 

Ryujin smiled to herself. She was just glad that Chaeryeong felt the same happiness she felt when she was around her. 

 

Somewhere in the night, Chaeryeong had rolled over to lay her head onto Ryujin’s chest. Ryujin, in her sleep, gladly accepted her, wrapping her arms protectively around the other girl. 

 

In the morning, Ryujin woke up first to Chaeryeong cuddling into her chest. Ryujin debated getting up and cooking breakfast, but she didn’t want to disturb Chaeryeong’s sleep because she looked so cute. So, Ryujin hugged Chaeryeong a little tighter and closed her eyes once again. 

 

She might as well enjoy it, for now. It’s the only time she can. 

 

......................

 

A/N: And there you have it folks! The story of Ryuryeong. Hope you enjoyed that chapter and sorry Yujin/annyeongz stans, they'll come back next chapter.

Edit: ALSO SPECIAL SHOUTOUT TO @Ginger101198 ON TWITTER FOR THIS RYURYEONG FANART OF THAT MOMENT I'M SCREAMING THIS WAS THE FIRST FANART I'VE EVER GOTTEN I'M LITERALLY IN SHAMBLES AHHHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE FANART I REALLY APPRECIATE IT UWU IT'S SO CUTE AHHHHHHHH The talentry man, the talentry