“Do you see them?” Rosie asked, craning her neck as she stepped on her tiptoes as if that would somehow allow her to see through the wall that was between the baggage reclaim and the main hall.

“Nope,” Lia shook her head, wringing her hands together nervously.

She couldn’t remember the last time she was this stressed out. Her girlfriend, god even after they’d been together for almost two months, she still couldn’t believe Ryujin is her girlfriend and it’s about to meet her mother for the first time, and sure they spoke on the phone a few times when Lia's mother called and they were together but this was different.

Nothing Lia did was ever good enough for her mom. And she was terrified that her mom wouldn’t approve of her girlfriend, even though she’d told her Ryujin seems like a very sweet girl, and that she was glad to see that Lia had finally found someone. But Lia knew her mother, and she was just waiting for her to drop the act and tell her how much she disappointed her this time.

And if her mom told her she was disappointed in her for dating Ryujin, Lia knew she wouldn’t hold back this time. Because Ryujin was just amazing, she was so smart, and kind, and tough and just gorgeous, the best thing that had ever happened to her, and she would rather die than not stand up for her.

The only thing that kept her remotely calm was that her mom wouldn’t come home until around five, which meant that she’d get to spend around two hours with Ryujin on her own.

“Lisa texted me they landed like ten minutes ago, what’s taking them so long?” Rosie asked, pouting.

Lia chuckled, shaking her head at her sister’s antics, “Probably waiting to get off the plane? Waiting for their luggage?”

“I haven’t seen her in like a week, Lia,” Rosie whined, “One week!”

“I know, Rosie.”

“It’s been a week since you last saw Ryujin, how are you this okay?”

The truth was she was nowhere near okay, but she knew that if she let herself deal with any other emotion than the panic caused by the thought of her mother meeting her girlfriend, she wouldn’t be able to cope with anything. So she just did what she did best and pushed everything down.

That, of course, didn’t mean that her heart wasn’t hammering like crazy at the thought of finally seeing Ryujin after the first week they spent apart since they started dating.

“We skype a lot,” she shrugged, not even looking at her sister.

“Lia, I’m your sister, I know you, and I know you’re freaking out right now.”

“Not helping, Rosie…”

Rosie sighed. “I’m just saying, you- oh my gosh, Lisa!”

Lia sent a quick thanks to the universe for getting her out of having this conversation with her sister right now. She knew if she wanted to survive the next couple of days, she couldn’t dwell on her emotions.

Her eyes followed the direction in which her sister ran, her heart skipping a beat when she spotted Ryujin, wearing Lia’s Seoul university sweatshirt, a duffle bag on her shoulder.

Lia didn’t run like Rosie, knowing she’d trip because her knees just felt weak, even after those two months of dating her, when she saw the way Ryujin smiled at her, making her way over to her.

Dropping her duffle to the ground she threw her arms around Lia’s neck, hugging her tightly as Lia s her arms around her waist, pulling her closer.

She felt Ryujin bury her nose in her neck, taking a deep breath, “Hi.”

“Hi,” she breathed out, letting herself relish the feeling of being in her girlfriend’s arms again.

“Not to be cheesy,” Ryujin grinned as she pulled back, ducking her head a little, “but I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Lia sighed as she leaned in to kiss her, unable not to smile into the kiss because she was just so damn happy her girl was with her again.

Ryujin pulled back from the kiss, a dopey smile on her face, “Yeah?”

Lia nodded, running her fingers through Ryujin’s hair, tucking it behind her ears, “Of course.”

They were pulled out of their little bubble by Lisa who didn’t bother to let go of Rosie’s hand while hugging Lia with the other one, “Good to see you, Lia.”

“You too.”

“Come on guys, let’s go,” Rosie whined, pulling Lisa by her hand.

Chuckling at her sister, Lia picked up Ryujin’s bag and slung it over her shoulder, ignoring Ryujin’s protests that she’s perfectly capable of carrying it on her own, and took Ryujin’s hand into hers, bringing it up to her lips and kissing her knuckles.

“I’m happy you’re here,” she smiled, looking into her girlfriend’s eyes.

“Me too.”

“Lia! We’re gonna leave without you!” Rosie yelled.

“We should go,” Ryujin laughed, pulling Lia towards the exit.

“She wouldn’t do that,” Lia shook her head. “Plus I have the car keys so…”

“Wait, that means you’re driving?” Ryujin asked as they walked out of the airport, making their way across the parking lot to where their car was.

“Yep.”

“But babe,” Ryujin whined.

Lia frowned at her in confusion as she opened the trunk of the car and threw Ryujin’s duffle in. “What?”

“I can’t sit close to you when you’re driving,” she pouted, making Lia laugh.

She shut the trunk, walking over to open the door for Ryujin. “I’ll hold your hand the whole way, I promise,” she smiled as she kissed her cheek before Ryujin hopped in.

“Okay,” Ryujin nodded, a dimpled smile making its way on her face.

“And trust me,” Lia leaned in closer as she intertwined their fingers together when she was seated behind the wheel, “it’s better this way, at least we don’t have to suffer through Rosie’s terrible music choices.”

“Hey! I heard that!”

~~~

“I know we said no gifts,” Lia started once they were sitting on the bed in her room, moving to pull a neatly wrapped gift out of her bedside table, “but I couldn’t help myself…”

A couple of days after the photoshoot Lia went to see Yuna, to get the pictures she took. As they went over all the pictures, debating which would be the best for the Christmas card, Lia’s eyes landed on one particular shot, the last one. She swore her heart stopped for a second when Yuna showed the picture to her in full size. The picture was unedited, unlike all the other ones, but it was the most perfect picture Lia had ever seen.

It was a picture of their first kiss.

Without having to think twice about it, she had the picture printed and framed, knowing it would be the perfect gift for her girlfriend, albeit a bit cheesy.

“Lia,” Ryujin frowned as she failed to hide the smile that was making its way on her lips.

Lia bit her lip nervously, handing the gift to Ryujin. “I know it’s cheesy,” she chuckled, her heart beating like crazy in her chest as she watched Ryujin unwrap it with slightly shaky hands.

“Lia,” she breathed out once she had pulled all the wrapping off, fingers tracing the photo frame.

“It’s okay if you don’t like it! I know it’s stupid, but when I saw it I just, I don’t know… I thought it was pretty great, and that you might like it? But it’s okay if you don’t! I mean-“

“Lia.”

“Yes?” Lia looked up at her, seeing the soft smile and unshed tears in Ryujin’s eyes.

“Shut up and let me kiss you?”

Lia nodded leaning in to meet Ryujin in a soft kiss, not unlike their first. “So you like it?”

Ryujin looked at the framed picture she was still holding tightly in her hands. “It’s perfect, I love it, Lia. I lo…. thank you…”

Lia’s heart skipped a beat at the words that had nearly slipped out of her girlfriend’s mouth. They hadn’t said it yet, after all, they’d only been together for two months. And even though Lia did not doubt the fact that she was in love with Ryujin, she hadn’t told her, scared it was too soon.

And it wasn’t like she hadn’t come close to saying the words herself because she had, so many times she’d lost count. But she’d rather choke on the words for a little while than screw this up.

“Don’t think I didn’t get you anything,” Ryujin grinned smugly, standing up to put the picture on Lia’s desk.

“Oh?”

“Well, I didn’t get you anything but I did get it for you…”

Lia furrowed her brow in confusion. “I don’t think I’m following.”

Ryujin walked over to the bed, standing between Lia’s legs. “How long do you think we have before Rosie and Lisa come back from the beach?”

“I’d say more than half an hour.”

“Perfect,” Ryujin grinned before she pulled Lia’s sweatshirt off, along with her shirt, and Lia’s throat went dry.

Her girlfriend was standing there in a lacey black bra and Lia had no idea what oxygen was. Sure, she’d seen her topless before, she’d seen her in underwear that was all lace, hell she’d seen her before, but this was different. Because Ryujin said she got that just for Lia, and Lia’s brain couldn’t form any other thought.

She her lips, swallowing roughly, as she forced herself to look into her girlfriend’s eyes instead of looking at her s. “Now I’m following,” she rasped.

“I take it you like it?” Ryujin asked, a smug grin on her face.

Lia just nodded, clearing , “Do the, uh, I, is it like, uh…”

“Use your words, Lia,” Ryujin chuckled, tangling her fingers in her girlfriend’s hair.

“Do the match?” Lia blurted out, her cheeks burning.

“Well,” Ryujin bit her lip, her voice dropping lower as she leaned closer to Lia, “only one way for you to find out.”

~~~

“Belated Merry Christmas I guess,” Ryujin chuckled as she kissed Lia’s collar bone, resting her head on her chest.

“Hmm,” Lia hummed contently, tangling her fingers in Ryujin’s hair. “Merry Christmas indeed.”

“How did you like your gift?” Ryujin asked as she traced circles across Lia’s ribcage.

“Babe, I’m pretty sure even the neighbours could tell how much I loved it,” Lia laughed.

Laughing, Ryujin snuggled deeper into Lia. They fell into a comfortable silence, enjoying the feeling of their bodies tangled together.

Lia felt so content. This whole week she spent home didn’t feel like home. Lying there, in Ryujin’s arms, feeling the gentle circles Ryujin’s fingers drew across her ribcage as she carded her fingers through her hair, felt like home.

And even though the thought should’ve probably terrified her, she’d never felt happier, more at ease, than right now in that moment, as she craned her neck to kiss the top of Ryujin’s head, burying her nose in her girlfriend’s hair, just breathing her in.

Ryujin propped herself up on one elbow, looking down at Lia. “I missed you.”

Lia felt her heart stutter when she saw the way Ryujin was looking at her, soft eyes and a gentle smile on her lips, looking so gorgeous and vulnerable.

“Ryujin,” Lia couldn’t say much more than her name, knowing it wasn’t the right time to blurt out the three words that she’d been dying to say.

“I mean,” Ryujin started, a lopsided grin on her face and Lia knew she was feeling too vulnerable, needing to lighten up the moment. She used to do that a lot, retreat into her shell after exposing her feelings, and Lia noticed how sometimes she tried not to, but always ending up retreating. She never pushed her, she could never do that, but she couldn’t help but wonder what made her girl so cautious with her feelings. “My family is pretty great, but I couldn’t do this with them,” she leaned down, closing the small distance that was between their lips with a soft kiss.

Ryujin deepened the kiss, making Lia moan as she slid on top of her. Lia brought her hands to Ryujin’s back, pulling her closer, whimpering as Ryujin slotted one of her thighs between her legs.

They were pulled out of the moment when they heard the front door slam. Ryujin pulled back quickly, looking down at Lia with wide panicked eyes when they heard a yell, “Hi girls!”

“,” she whispered, scrambling off of Lia as fast as she could.

“Well someone’s home early,” Lia chuckled as she got up of the bed, starting to pull her clothes on.

Her mom never walked in on her and her high school girlfriend, never even interrupted her like this, so of course, it would happen to her now, when she’s a grown woman.

Ryujin pulled on her jeans and bra, pulling a shirt out of her suitcase. She smiled when she saw Lia’s disappointed look when she didn’t put on her sweater. “I need you to wash it and wear it cause it doesn’t smell like you anymore,” she explained chucking it at Lia.

She couldn’t see herself but Lia was pretty sure she had the dopiest smile on her face as she caught the sweater, looking at Ryujin as she pulled on the shirt.

“How do I look?” Ryujin asked after tucking her shirt in, trying to smooth her hair down.

“Like you just had in your girlfriend’s childhood bedroom,” Lia grinned as she pulled her shirt over her head.

Ryujin’s eyes went wide with horror. “Lia, I’m about to meet your mother for the first time,” she whisper-yelled, “I can’t do that if I look like I just ed her daughter in her house”

Lia got up off the bed, walking over to where Ryujin was standing, she tucked Ryujin’s hair behind her ears. “Don’t worry, babe, you look amazing,” she smiled at her softly, kissing her cheek. “She won’t know.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Ryujin took Lia’s hand into hers, squeezing it tightly, “Okay.”

“Ready to meet my mom?”

“After I ed her baby girl like five seconds ago? Yeah, totally,” Ryujin scoffed.

Lia squeezed her hand reassuringly, tugging her towards the door, “She won’t know. Well, if we don’t get down there in the next ten seconds, she’ll know…”

Ryujin’s eyes widened almost comically, her grip on Lia’s hand tightening and for a second Lia thought she might break her fingers, but didn’t comment on it, needing the contact just as much as Ryujin did as she dragged her downstairs.

They found Lia’s mother in the kitchen, unpacking some bags with grocery. She smiled broadly when she noticed the girls walk in, and Lia’s stomach tightened, waiting for the smile to fade away.

Lia let go of Ryujin’s hand, missing the contact immediately, to hug her mom, but standing beside her right after, putting a reassuring hand at the small of her back. “Mom, this is my girlfriend, Ryujin,” she smiled, still feeling giddy when she introduced Ryujin as her girlfriend.

“So nice to finally meet you, Ryujin,” she extended her hand for Ryujin to shake.

“Likewise, Miss Choi,” Ryujin smiled, shaking her hand.

Lia watched the whole interaction with bated breath. Sure, it wasn’t like they hadn’t talked before but this was different. She started rubbing soothing circles with her thumb across Ryujin’s back, seeing how nervous she was. She watched her mother closely, for any sign that she didn’t like Ryujin, but she was smiling, and it seemed genuine, and Lia was taken aback. She watched as Ryujin’s shoulders relaxed a bit when her mom smiled at her warmly, asking her about her flight.

She watched as the two of them talked, not saying anything herself, just observing. Noticing how Ryujin got more and more relaxed the longer they talked, and how her mother seemed to like her, feeling a wave of relief wash over her. Although there still was a small part of herself, telling her not to get her hopes up just yet, even though Ryujin was laughing now at something her mother just said, both of them seeming to bond rather quickly over whatever they were talking about.

“Lia?” her mom pulled her out of her thoughts.

“Yeah?”

“Be a dear and unpack the bags?”

“Uh, sure?” Lia shrugged, walking over to the kitchen island where her mom left the groceries.

“Come on, Ryujin, I’ll show you the pictures.”

Lia froze on her way to the fridge, nearly dropping a yoghurt. “What pictures?”

“Third-grade science fair,” Ryujin replied grinning, as she winked at Lia over her shoulder, following Lia’s mom into the living room.

“Mom, no!”

~ ~ ~

After dinner, Ryujin and Lia volunteered to do the dishes, to get some time alone, while the others went to the living room to pick some board game.

The dinner went pretty well. Well, Rosie and Lisa ate dinner with them as well so of course, the dinner went well. But her mother seemed to enjoy Ryujin’s company while she embarrassed Lia with a mix of her baby and teenage pictures. And as embarrassing as that was, Lia was feeling genuinely happy, seeing her mom and her girlfriend, gushing over how ‘adorable’ she was, even in her punk rock phase.

“Thanks for helping me with the dishes,” Lia smiled, wiping her hands on a towel, dropping a kiss to Ryujin’s lips as she handed it to her.

“Anytime,” Ryujin grinned, placing the towel. “Plus, it doesn’t hurt to get a few good points from your mom.”

Lia crossed her arms over her chest, leaning against the counter she frowned. “Did she say something to you while you guys were alone?”

“No,” Ryujin shook her head as she stepped in front of Lia, placing her hands on her hips. “Haven’t even gotten the talk yet so…”

“Is that good?”

“Wouldn’t know, never really met anyone’s parents.”

“Wait?” Lia asked. She knew Ryujin had dated plenty of girls before her so she assumed she’d done this whole meeting the parent thing.

“Yeah,” Ryujin nodded, smiling softly at her. “You’re pretty special to me, Lia.”

She could feel the few tears that welled up in her eyes, feeling the meaning behind Ryujin’s words. Knowing what she meant from the way Ryujin said it, the way she was looking at her. Knowing Ryujin felt the same way she did but wasn’t ready to say those words out loud just yet either. “You’re pretty special to me too, Ryujin.”

Lia watched as Ryujin smiled her dimpled smile, her eyes shining with happiness, as she leaned to kiss her, stopping mere inches from her lips as Rosie burst in through the kitchen door.

“Oh my gosh, Lia, help!”

Lia groaned as she pulled back from Ryujin’s lips reluctantly. “What’s wrong Rosie?”

“Okay so mom just asked me to go get a bottle of wine, but there’s already one in the living room! And it hasn’t even been touched yet!”

“So?”

“Mom’s shovel talking Lisa,” she whisper-yelled.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Lia felt her stomach sink. Why would her mom shovel talk Lisa but not Ryujin? Maybe she liked Lisa better. Or maybe she didn’t care about Lia enough to give the talk to her girlfriend. Thinking about it, the latter seemed more plausible to Lia, considering she seemed to enjoy Ryujin’s company.

“Calm down, Rosie” Ryujin smiled as she leaned into Lia’s side.

“How can I stay calm when my mother’s interrogating my girlfriend in the other room?”

“I’m pretty sure she’ll be okay.”

“She was nice to you when she gave you the talk right?”

Lia felt Ryujin tense up at the question, squeezing her shoulder reassuringly. “She hasn’t talked to me yet.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

Lia could see the panicked look in her sister’s eyes as she looked at her. She was pretty sure she had the same look in her eyes, her heart beating like crazy.

“Well, I’m gonna get that wine so I can go save Lisa,” Rosie pointed at the door as she backed out of the room. Lia was so grateful Rosie didn’t continue the conversation, clearly reading the pleading look Lia sent her when she felt Ryujin tense up even more.

“I’m ing this up, aren’t I?” Ryujin asked, swallowing thickly when Rosie left the room.

“Hey, no,” Lia stepped in front of her, taking Ryujin’s hands into hers. “You’re doing amazing. My mom’s just, well, my mom… She’s always been more protective of Rosie, maybe it’s cause she’s adopted, I don’t know. But you’re doing amazing, trust me.”

“I don’t wanna this up, Lia,” Ryujin looked down, playing with Lia’s fingers. “Don’t have the best history of impressing parents of the girls I like... And I like you a lot, and I’m terrified your mom will think I’m not good enough for you.”

“Look at me,” Lia said softly, waiting for Ryujin to look up at her. “I don’t care if my mom approves of this,” she said pointing her finger between the two of them, “besides she’s more likely to think I’m not good enough for you.”

Ryujin chuckled, shaking her head, “That’s bull.”

“Nope, she showed you the most embarrassing of my childhood pictures after she knew you for like five minutes. Trust me, she likes you.”

“God, I hope so,” Ryujin sighed as she rested her head against Ryujin’s chest.

“Wait, didn’t you say you’ve never met parents of any of the girls you were dating?”

“Yeah,” Ryujin nodded against her chest, her voice small.

“Then what did you mean when you said you don’t have the best history of impressing parents?”

Lia felt the shuddering breath Ryujin took in before she pulled away and looked up at her with sad eyes. “I promise I’ll tell you everything, but not now, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Now let’s go,” Ryujin grinned, pulling Lia out of the kitchen. “It’s time for me to kick your at monopoly.”

~ ~ ~

After the game of monopoly, Lisa kicking all of their asses, leaving Ryujin and Rosie grumbling about how it’s unfair since she studies economy, they agreed that it had been a long day and getting some rest would be nice.

Lia brushed her teeth, listening to Rosie ramble about how her mother wasn’t that bad to Lisa while talking to her, only warning her not to break Rosie’s heart because not even being a Manoban could help her then.

Once she brushed her teeth she went back to her room where Ryujin was waiting for her, sitting on the bed with her back against the headboard, knees pulled to her chest.

“I was fourteen.”

“What?” Lia frowned in confusion as she looked over at Ryujin, noticing the blank look on her face.

“When I was outed. I was fourteen.”

Lia took a shuddering breath, walking over to the bed, she sat down at the edge, looking at Ryujin, waiting for her to continue.

“Her name was Dahyun,” Ryujin chuckles bitterly. “She was, god she was amazing. We always hung out together, usually in her basement. She’d steal her father’s alcohol and we’d drink when her parents weren’t home. It felt, rebellious, even though we coughed like crazy… We used to watch a lot of horror movies, neither of us would admit that we were scared less. And after a while, I started looking forward to watch those movies with her, even though it meant I probably wouldn’t sleep at night because it meant that I got to hold her.”

Lia moved closer to her when she noticed the tears shining in Ryujin’s eyes, placing a reassuring hand next to her, but not touching her, just barely brushing her with her pinky.

“And then it hit me, I liked her. I was falling for a girl. And it scared me less cause my little village had never seen a gay person before me. But I somehow got the courage to tell her… Well, I put a card into her locker and asked her to the stupid dance, told her I loved her.”

“Ryu,” Lia tried to swallow down the lump in , feeling a few tears roll down her cheeks as she watched how Ryujin tried not to cry.

“When I came home that day,” Ryujin paused, taking a deep breath, “well, it wasn’t pretty. Dahyun showed the card to her parents, and they called my parents, and my parents kicked me out.”

Lia didn’t know what to say, staring at her girlfriend, tears rolling down her face.

“My grandmother took me in and we moved to Seoul,” Ryujin said as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “She can’t wait to meet you by the way.”

“Ryujin I had no idea, I-“

“I’ve never told anyone before.”

Lia moved shuffled closer to her, pulling her into her arms. “Thank you. For trusting me.”

Ryujin sniffled, gripping Lia’s shirt with her hands. “I’ve told you, you’re pretty damn special to me.”

“You’re pretty damn special to me too.”

They didn’t talk any more that night. Lia just held Ryujin as she fell asleep, thinking about how everything made sense now, how much she hated Ryujin’s parents, and how she’d do anything to make sure no one would ever hurt Ryujin again.

~ ~ ~

Ryujin woke up first. Letting Lia sleep, she slowly disentangled herself from Lia’s arms. After last night’s events, she needed to clear her head, deciding to go for a run. She was happy she told Lia, it felt nice to finally tell someone, to cry her heart out. And knowing Lia was there for her felt even better, holding her when she sobbed into her chest.

She quickly changed into some shorts and a shirt, making sure to not make any noise as she opened and closed the door. She headed to the kitchen to drink a glass of water before heading out, only to find Lia’s mother sitting at the kitchen island with a cup of coffee as she read something.

Ryujin smiled when she noticed that crinkle on her forehead, the same crinkle Lia got whenever she was concentrating too hard on something.

“Good morning,” she greeted as she walked over to the cupboard to get a glass.

“You’re up early,” she smiled at her, taking her glasses off.

Ryujin poured herself a glass of water, drinking it all in one go. “Yeah, I thought I’d go for a run.”

“Is Lia still sleeping?”

“Yeah, I didn’t wanna wake her.”

She nodded, looking as if she was thinking something through, her forehead crinkling again. “Ryujin can I talk to you for a second?”

Ryujin felt her blood run cold but nodded, putting the glass into the dishwasher. She leaned against the kitchen island, putting some distance between the two of them.

“I think you know I talked to Lisa about what her, well, intentions are with Rosie,” she started, continuing after Ryujin nodded. “But I didn’t talk to you about Lia.”

“Why?” Ryujin heard herself asking before her brain could even process it. She clenched her jaw tightly, cursing internally.

“You see, Rosie’s never been good at picking her partners. The last guy she dated, Mike, was just awful, he abused her, emotionally. It took her so long to get herself together after she broke up with him. I wanted to make sure that it wouldn’t happen again. You know mothers, we’d do anything to keep their children safe.”

She didn’t. But she nodded anyway, unable to say anything.

“Lia’s always been so tough. Ever since her father passed away she’s been keeping this family together, taking care of Rosie and me, but she was never really herself again. There was always something missing… But now when she looks at you, when she’s around you, she seems to like her old self again, like she’s happy again…  I haven’t seen my daughter this happy in years,” Ryujin looked up at her, seeing the unshed tears in her eyes.

“The only thing I want in life is to make her happy.”

“Good,” she smiled lightly as she wiped her eyes. “Because I like you, Ryujin, and you don’t want to find out what I’m capable of if you hurt my little girl.”

Ryujin nodded, swallowing the lump in . 

“Thank you, Ryujin,” She pulled her out of her thoughts.

Ryujin frowned in confusion, tilting her head to the side.

“For making my Lia happy again.”

She smiled softly, clearing , not wanting to break down in front of her. “She does the same for me,” Ryujin shrugged.

She nodded, “I can see the way you look at her.”

“So, should I consider this a shovel talk?” she asked, knowing she wouldn’t be able to keep herself from crying any longer if they kept up the conversation.

She laughed, shaking her head. “I guess so.”

“Did I pass?” she was pretty sure she knew the answer to her question but she needed to hear it.

She looked at Ryujin with a serious face for a long moment,  in which Ryujin felt like she’d throw up before she nodded with a smile on her face. “Of course.”

Ryujin couldn’t keep the huge smile off of her face, ducking her head as she breathed out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

She barely noticed her getting off of the barstool she was sitting on, and walking over to her before she was engulfed in her arms. “Take good care of her.”

“Always,” she promised, her voice a little weaker than she’d like.

“There’s a nice jogging trail that leads down to the beach,” she said as she walked back over to the barstool, taking a seat.

“Okay, I’m gonna go so I’m back before she wakes up,” Ryujin smiled, walking out of the door and into the fresh morning air.

~ ~ ~

“Ryu?” Lia mumbled when she heard the sound of Ryujin ping her duffle.

She heard Ryujin curse before she heard soft footsteps, feeling the mattress dip when she sat down, brushing Lia’s hair out of her face. “I didn’t want to wake you, babe. I’m sorry.”

“Cuddle me,” Lia opened her arms without opening her eyes, waiting for Ryujin to lay down.

Ryujin chuckled softly and then Lia felt her thumb brushing over her cheek. “I’m all gross and sweaty, just came back from a run.”

“Don’t care.”

“I’m gonna shower real quick and I’ll be right back.”

Lia grumbled, pulling the covers tighter around herself. “Hurry.”

She felt Ryujin press a gentle kiss to her cheek before she got up of the bed, heading to the bathroom.

She didn’t even know how, but apparently, she fell asleep after Ryujin left. Blinking her eyes open sleepily she smiled when she felt Ryujin spooning her.

“Morning,” she breathed as she took Ryujin’s arm that was thrown over her middle, hugging it tightly to her chest.

“Good morning,” Lia shivered lightly when Ryujin’s breath ghosted over her neck, just before she placed a tender kiss just below her ear.

“How long was I out?”

“About half an hour.”

Lia turned around in Ryujin’s arms, smiling softly at her girlfriend. “Hi.”

“Hey,” Ryujin grinned, her dimples showing and Lia couldn’t help herself but trace them with her fingertips.

“How was your run?”

“Pretty good,” Ryujin answered, playing with Lia’s hair. “Your mom told me to run to the beach, and I have to admit it was pretty gorgeous.”

Lia’s fingers stopped on Ryujin’s cheek as she frowned. “My mom?”

“Yep.”

“She was awake when you went for your run?”

“That she was,” Ryujin nodded as she leaned in to kiss Lia.

“Wait,” Lia put a hand on her chest to stop her, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Like what?”

Lia bit her lip, studying Ryujin’s face for a moment. She had a huge smile on, her triple dimple on full display, eyes twinkling happily. “The way you did after our first kiss.”

“What?” Ryujin huffed out a laugh.

“You look, I don’t know…  Like you’re radiating happiness.”

“Well,” Ryujin started, pulling Lia closer, tangling their legs together, “it’s the morning of New Year’s Eve and I’m lying in bed, holding my girl, just enjoying the moment… No reason why I shouldn’t be happy.”

“Ryujin.”

“Lia.”

“That’s not it.”

Ryujin chuckled, biting her lip. “Well, I may or may not have gotten a seal of approval from your mother…”

“What?” Lia breathed out, a smile tugging at her lips.

“Yeah, seems like your mom likes me.”

“Good, cause I like you too,” Lia smiled, leaning in to kiss Ryujin.

Ryujin smiled at her softly when they pulled back, eyes shining with happiness. “I like you too.”

Lia buried her face in the crook of Ryujin’s neck, hugging her as tightly as she could, needing to hold her as close as possible.

“You smell nice,” she mumbled into her neck, taking a deep breath.

“Well, I did just take a shower…” Ryujin chuckled as Lia started to kiss her neck, pushing her onto her back and climbing on top of her. Ryujin tangled her fingers in Lia’s hair, failing to bite back a moan when Lia gently bit at that sensitive spot behind her ear.

Lia pulled back right after the sound left Ryujin’s mouth, looking down at her with wide, terrified eyes.

“My mom could’ve heard you!”

“She’s downstairs, relax,” Ryujin grinned as she leaned up to kiss her girlfriend, only to be stopped by Lia’s hand on her chest.

“You could have your approval revoked.”

“If Lisa didn’t get hers revoked, after the things I heard when I got out of the shower, I think I’m good.”

Lia faked a gagging noise, glaring at Ryujin, “Did not need to hear that. She’s my sister!”

Lia grabbed a pillow, putting it over Ryujin’s face before she could start talking again the sentence. “I’m gonna take this pillow off of your face now, and so help you god if you make one more comment about my sister’s life.”

She heard as Ryujin mumbled okay against the pillow, nodding her head. “All I’m saying,” Ryujin started with a -eating grin once the pillow was off of her face, ignoring the look Lia was giving her, “is that I wouldn’t be surprised if they needed to make a quick trip to IKEA to get a new bed.”

Lia hit her with the pillow she was still holding. “You’re such a dickhead.”

“Yeah, but I’m your dickhead,” Ryujin grinned up at her, taking the pillow Lia was still holding from her hands, throwing it to the side.

Lia couldn’t keep the soft smile off of her face, her heart fluttering in her chest. She leaned down when she felt Ryujin tugging on her hips, placing a soft kiss to her lips before she leaned down to her ear. “And yet, you’re still not getting any,” she whispered teasingly, chuckling at Ryujin’s whimper, as she sat up straight again.

“You’re the worst.”

“Can’t be that bad when you’re spending New Year’s with me.”

“Oh, did you think I was here cause of you?” Ryujin cocked an eyebrow, tilting her head to the side.

“Let me guess,” Lia laughed, “you’re only here cause of Rosie.”

“I was gonna say your mom…”

Laughing, Lia swatted at Ryujin’s arm, getting off of the bed. She grabbed Ryujin’s hand, pulling her up as well. “Come on, I’m really hungry, and since we’ve established that I’m not eating you, I was thinking maybe pancakes?”

“You’d trade me for pancakes?” Ryujin faked a gasp, clutching at the shirt over her heart. “You wound me.”

~ ~ ~

The whole town was gathered on the beach, waiting for the clock to strike midnight and the fireworks to begin.

Lia and Ryujin were sitting on the sand, Ryujin between Lia’s legs, leaning against her, Lia’s arms wrapped around her. They were a bit further from the big crowd of people, watching her mother and Rosie chatting with their neighbours, Rosie introducing Lisa proudly to everyone.

“You sure you don’t wanna go socialize a bit?” Ryujin asked, tilting her head to the side to look at Lia.

“Nope, all I want is to sit here with you, hold you and enjoy how great you look in my hoodie.”

“It’s mine now,” Ryujin chuckled.

Lia tightened her hold around Ryujin’s waist.

The last time Lia went to the beach to watch the fireworks was when her dad was still alive. They would always sit right here, where the two of them were sitting now, Lia leaning against her dad as they both watched the colours exploding in the night sky.

And they would always stay after the fireworks were over after everyone had left, just so they could watch the stars. Her dad would teach her the names of the stars and constellations.

On the last New Year’s that Lia spent with her dad, they sat at the beach till the sun came up. She remembered how he about her obvious crush on her best friend, how he told her she should do something about it, not just sit by and watch till someone else asks her out first.

After he died, she spent a lot of nights just sitting on the rooftop, watching the stars on her own, wishing he were there with her.

But this was the first time she was on their spot after all those years.

“Really?” Ryujin’s voice pulled her out of her musings.

“Huh?”

“Is this the first time you’re here since he passed away?” she asked, tilting her head to the side to look at her.

“Did I just say that out loud?”

“Yeah, you did.”

“Oh,” Lia cleared to get rid of the lump. “Yeah, yeah it is.”

Ryujin turned around in her arms so she was leaning against Lia with her shoulder, kissing the underside of her jaw gently. “Lia, I-“

“You don’t have to say anything,” Lia forced a weak smile on her face. “Just… hold me?”

Ryujin nodded wordlessly, leaning her head against Lia’s shoulder as she looped her arm around her waist. Lia rested her cheek on top of Ryujin’s head. Looking at the crowd of people, she noticed Lia’s mother, smiling as she watched the two of them.

Lia returned her mom’s smile, her heart feeling full, buzzing with happiness as she held her girl in her arms, knowing she finally did something right in her mom’s eyes, she was happy.

They sat there silently, just holding one another until they heard the crowd of people start the ten second countdown. Ryujin lifted her head from Lia’s shoulder, smiling at her softly as she brought one of her hands to the back of Lia’s neck, leaning in to kiss her.

They could both hear the crowd going wild, everyone yelling Happy New Year. They could even hear the fireworks go off, but neither of them could be bothered to pull away from the kiss, their lips moving together softly, the kiss conveying exactly what they both felt but were not ready to say out loud just yet.

Pulling back, they rested their foreheads against one another, both of them grinning like crazy.

“Happy New Year.”

“Happy New Year.”

They didn’t know who pulled who into the next kiss, but they both knew that it was going to be a great new year.