Mina is, as most people would say, a professional. Being a lifeguard isn't exactly the most exciting job, especially on this coast where the waves barely get excited themselves. Not that Mina's complaining about how safe the beach she's working at is, but honestly it's hard staying on watch for too long without losing focus.

 

"Hi, Mina. Good luck today." Momo passes by, throwing a towel over her shoulder as water drips from her shiny blonde hair.

 

Hirai Momo might be one of the reasons she loses her focus. But no one on this beach (except for her boss) would blame her on that one. Momo is just so lovely. Her shy smile, her confidence and strength, her stubbornness about keeping her bangs even though they get ruined in the water every day without fail...

 

"Oh and hey! Maybe we could race like old times after our shifts are over!" Momo shouts, walking backwards as she faces her with a grin and Mina has to constantly remind herself not to drool this time.

 

With her gaze sliding down to Momo's glistening abs every now and then, Mina replies. "Sure!"

 

Momo gives her a thumbs up before she turns around and runs towards the water. Mina watches as Momo ties her hair up, admiring how much the red crop tank top fits her friends body.

 

Before her gaze can wander further down her back, Momo gets in the water and starts to swim. Mina swallows and adjusts her cap. The sun sure is bright today.

 

The beach isn't crowded. Not in the slightest. There is a group of elderly people on Mina's left and she can hear them laughing. Very few people are in the sea, and most of them seem like they don't know how to swim, considering how very close they're sticking to the shore. Mina suddenly thinks the hotel is paying her more than they need to for a job like this.

 

Mina looks to her right. The first thing she sees is tanned skin. A tall woman– absolutely gorgeous, is putting on sunscreen, her hands gently sliding down her long legs. She looks like a model out of a magazine, with her defined body in a pretty bikini and her lovely face Mina can't fully see. Red dusts the lifeguards cheeks and she looks away. There are enough creeps on this beach without Mina being one. And she needs to focus.

 

It really is ridiculously hot today. Mina sighs before she grabs her water bottle and watches the people swimming. Although the job is boring as hell, she refuses to take it easy. She's a lifeguard. It's a serious job. Anything can happen.

 

"I found the ball!" A girl yells as she passes right in front of the lifeguard post where Mina is sitting. Mina's eyes follow the giggling blonde as she runs towards the probably-a-model girl. She then starts posing ridiculously with the beach ball in her hands and the tall girl seems amused at her enthusiasm.

 

Mina takes off her cap, fans herself a bit with it before she throws her blonde hair back, wiping the sweat off her forehead. Putting her cap back on, she brings the water bottle to her lips. After she takes a few sips, she turns her attention back on the shore. The waves gently play with the sand back and forth as a warm breeze hits Mina's cheeks. She observes the people having fun in the ocean like any other day, wishing time would pass quicker.

 

A few minutes later she notices that Momo isn't there. Mina guesses she already completed her morning laps and as usual, went to get something to eat. She smiles to herself when a happy Momo comes out of the restaurant, munching on a burger just like she predicted. 

 

"I can't..." Mina hears someone whining, and throws a quick glance towards the voice. It's the girls from before. The blonde keeps tugging the other's arm, trying to pull her towards the ocean.

 

"Look, the waves are always so small here. It'll be okay! Come on," Mina notices the way their hands interlock. "Please?"

 

Another girl from behind them, with short curly black hair, secures her camera in her bag before joining the two. She doesn't say anything, just patiently looks up at the tall girl with her pretty eyes as she waits for her to answer.

 

"Fine."

 

The two girls cheer as they run on the hot sand, the blonde holding the beach ball as the one with the short hair pulls the probably-a-model, gorgeous girl towards the ocean.

 

The other two girls are quite beautiful too Mina notices, once she manages to tear her eyes away from the tallest of the trio.

 

Mina observes them a little more as they play in the water until she eventually loses her interest and gets back to aimlessly looking around the beach.

 

Her eyes find Momo again, and she stops breathing. Momo's eyes were already on her, she realizes. Momo's hands that are holding the burger stop halfway to when she gets caught, and with her lips slightly parted, she blinks at Mina. The calming sound of the waves and the constant drumming of her heart are the only things Mina can hear as they continue their little staring contest. Momo tries to supress a smile before she finally looks away shyly, the most beautiful shade of pink coloring her sun-kissed cheeks. Mina feels her heart skip a beat if not two.

 

Maybe if Momo had ever contacted her besides when they work together every year in summer, on the very same beach, Mina would have asked her out already. Maybe they would have already started dating. Gotten engaged at some point. Married. Mina wasn't sure about having kids but she felt like Momo would want to. And honestly Mina wouldn't really mind a tiny Momo running around.

 

"Yo! Your shifts over, Myoui. Come on!"

 

Mina almost jumps off the post at the loud voice right behind her, startled. "I will kick you, Jeongyeon. That's the fifth time this week!"

 

Jeongyeon smugly crosses her arms and leans against the lifeguard post, looking up at Mina with a grin. "Not my fault you're a scaredy-cat."

 

Mina rolls her eyes so hard they hurt. She climbs down from the post and stomps away before Jeongyeon grabs her wrist with both hands. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry! I love you." She pouts, trying to look cute. And she does, sort of. Mina would never tell her that though. She's sure Jeongyeon hears that enough from Sana. "Minari~"

 

"Fine. You're forgiven–" Mina can't help but giggle when Jeongyeon wraps her arms around her neck and pulls her close. 

 

Then they hear it. The sound of a big wave, some gasps, screams and laughter. Jeongyeon lets go of her and watches with her as the wave hits. Mina hasn't seen one that big in years. Not on this beach. 

 

People in the ocean pop up one by one after the wave washes over, most of them laughing. Mina counts the heads with her eyes as cold water brushes her feet.

 

The blonde girl from before swims towards her shorter friend, wiping her face and rubbing her eyes. And Mina's eyes widen when they look around frantically, searching for her.

 

"Oh no..." Mina runs. She runs as fast as she can towards the ocean, grabbing the whistle between her lips and blowing it loudly. Just as she's dragging her legs through the water, ready to dive deep and fast–

 

Momo resurfaces, holding the tall woman Mina couldn't stop staring at before. She swims calmly even as the unconscious body weighs her down in the water.

 

Mina runs and helps Momo as she reaches the shore, holding the victim as she pants. Mina gently grabs under the womans knees and back, carrying her towards the sand as Momo takes a deep breath, blinking the water out of her eyes.

 

The womans eyes are closed as Mina lays her down on the sand. Her friends kneel beside her, holding each others hands. Helplessly watching Mina.

 

"Hey! Hey, can you hear me?! I'm Mina, a lifeguard. Can you open your eyes?" Mina shakes the girl's shoulder, desperately waiting for a response. There's none.

 

One of the girl's friends, the blonde one, starts to sob. Mina tilts the unresponsive girls head up and leans down, trying to catch any signs of her breathing. She isn't. No rise and fall of her chest, no breath hitting Mina's cheek.

 

"I'll get help!" Mina distinctly hears Jeongyeon say when she pinches the girl's nose and leans in, covering fully with hers. She slowly blows air into her lungs and pulls back, watches the unconscious girls chest fall before she leans down again. She repeats this a few times.

 

When she starts doing chest compressions, Momo crouches down across her. Their eyes meet and Momo nods, waiting. 

 

Mina focuses on counting, her own heart beating a lot quicker than the pace she's setting for the girl lying down. "26. 27. 28. 29. 30."

 

Once Mina stops, Momo doesn't waste any time to press her lips firmly against the girls, filling her lungs with valuable air. She pulls back and breathes deeply before leaning down again, giving her another rescue breath.

 

They repeat the cycle again and again until–

 

"T-Tzuyu?" The girl with the snow-white skin sighs in relief with tears still streaming down her face when her friend starts coughing up water, gasping into Momo's mouth. Momo immediately lets go of her and with Mina's help, they turn the coughing girl, Tzuyu, to her side. Jeongyeon wraps a towel around her while Mina holds her still, kind of hugging her since Tzuyu doesn't have enough strength to hold herself up. She's so tense and Mina can feel it as Tzuyu's whole body shakes, clearly in shock.

 

Her friends sit down and Momo gives them as much space as she can while still holding Tzuyu's back to keep her on her side. The brunette reaches to wipe Tzuyu's wet hair back, doing her best to keep her tears at bay.

 

It's not hard for Momo to see the fear rising in Tzuyu's eyes. She decides to act fast; speaking in the calmest voice she can manage. "It's okay. You're alright, you're safe. Just breathe."

 

***

 

The first few days after the incident, Chaeyoung and Dahyun do their absolute best to keep her entertained in their shared hotel room. The one they booked with their savings from working here and there.

 

Tzuyu appreciates their effort, she truly does. But honestly she just wants to go home.

 

But she can't bring herself to say it to her friends. They've been dreaming of a vacation like this since they were freshmen and Tzuyu would just hate to ruin it.

 

Chaeyoung and Dahyun don't ever want to leave her alone in the hotel but Tzuyu just knows they want to go out and enjoy the sun, swim in the ocean and get a few gorgeous shots of the sunset like they planned to. She feels guilty for keeping them from enjoying all of that so one day (only a few days before their stay at the beach resort will end), she just blurts it out that the wants to go to the beach again.

 

It's a complete lie that both of her friends raise their eyebrows at, asking softly if she's sure. They know how scared Tzuyu is of water. Her fear now on a different level because of her near-death experience which they still shudder at the thought of. Tzuyu lying down, motionless and so... lifeless is a terrifying sight they will never be able to take out of their minds. It's only natural they get a lot more protective of Tzuyu after witnessing something like that.

 

In the end, Tzuyu manages to convince them by saying she just wants to bathe in the sun and wouldn't go near the ocean.

 

So, under the glaring sun, Tzuyu is back on the beach. That she almost drowned. Where she would be lying dead if it weren't for the lifeguards Tzuyu can barely remember. 

 

She really, really shouldn't think about it anymore. It's making things worse.

 

Tzuyu sighs. Then stop. thinking about it. 

 

But she can't, there are so many what ifs that terrify her and Tzuyu wishes she was braver. 

 

It's okay. You're safe. A foreign voice whispers in her ear and Tzuyu instantly calms down. Whose voice it is, she doesn't know. But it's fine anyway, she decides, thanking the owner of the voice in her mind and giggling when she feels a bit silly about it.

 

Dahyun and Chaeyoung glance at her when she giggles. It must be contagious because they immediately mirror her soft laughs.

 

Dahyun sits up on the towel and takes off her sunglasses, "I love you guys."

 

Chaeyoung pouts, her curly hair falling over her cheek when she turns to Dahyun. "Awww,"

 

Tzuyu smiles and pushes herself up. Her eyes are bright with pure sincerity when she replies. "I love you too."

 

Dahyun dramatically looks away like she's about to cry, pinching the bridge of her nose. She groans and Chaeyoung lets out a loud laugh at her antics.

 

"Yeah, we love you too bro!" Chaeyoung leans over Tzuyu for their special handshake that Dahyun eagerly reaches for.

 

"Wow, bro! Amazing." Dahyun puts her sunglasses on before lying back down slowly in an attempt to be y.

 

Tzuyu's eyes disappear as she laughs, scrunching her nose. Dahyun's ridiculous. 

 

Chaeyoung's laughter fades away and she suddenly leans in. "Hey, isn't that one of the lifeguards that saved Tzuyu?"

 

"Oh yeah," Dahyun confirms, looking at the direction Chaeyoung is staring at. Sure enough, a blonde lifeguard is walking along the shore. Dahyun blinks and the lifeguard is...looking at them? She's getting closer? "Am I trippin' or is the hot lifeguard walking over here right now?"

 

"Oh my god, she is." Chaeyoung says, grinning at Tzuyu teasingly.

 

Tzuyu hides her face behind her hands and whines. She just wants some peace and quiet. The last thing she needs right now is a reminder of–

 

"Hey," 

 

Tzuyu lets her hands fall on her lap, finally getting a good look at the woman that saved her life. And oh wow.

 

"So glad to see you're doing okay. I haven't seen you around since the incident..." The lifeguard smiles, wet strands of her hair falling in front of her eyes.

 

And Tzuyu just...stares.

 

"Oh, uh I'm Momo. A lifeguard that was with you on that day. You might not remember–" The lifeguard keeps talking after she introduces herself but Tzuyu can only focus on her name, lost in her bright sparkling eyes. Momo.

 

"I'm Dahyun! Nice to meet ya' bro."

 

Chaeyoung laughs when Dahyun strikes a 'cool' pose. "Ignore that idiot. I'm Chaeyoung."

 

Momo laughs at Dahyun and nods, kindly smiling at them as her gaze falls on Tzuyu.

 

Tzuyu just...continues staring.

 

It's only when Chaeyoung nudges her she blinks, gulping down her nervousness before she opens to speak. It's a horrible attempt. "Oh, uh...Tzuyu. I'm Tzuyu."

 

Momo takes a deep breath and smiles wider, and just as she's about to say something someone calls her name, sounding quite angry. The lifeguard winces and starts walking backwards, "It was nice meeting all of you. I'm gonna go and try not to get fired now. Enjoy your stay!"

 

Dahyun shouts, "Thank you! Good luck~"

 

"Bye," Chaeyoung smiles, waving at her.

 

Once Momo is out of ear-shot, Dahyun turns to the girls. "Oh, uh..uh I-I'm Tzuyu." She imitates the way Tzuyu just spoke, and Tzuyu whines loudly, smacking a giggling Dahyun's shoulder.

 

Chaeyoung holds her stomach as she laughs. She joins Dahyun in copying Tzuyu which makes the tallest of the three cross her arms.

 

"Someone has a crush~"

 

"Must be a huge one," Chaeyoung says, "I have never seen Tzuyu stare at someone like that before."

 

"I wasn't–"

 

"Like a full course meal?" Dahyun wiggles her eyebrows, ignoring Tzuyu and her red face.

 

"Nah, more like," Chaeyoung clasps her hands together and throws her head back quite dramatically. "'Can I please hold your hand? Can I love you forever? Will you marry me? Please marry me!'"

 

Dahyun jokingly gets down on one knee, "Will you perform CPR on me for the rest of our lives?" Her goofiness throws Chaeyoung into a laughing fit.

 

Not being able to take it anymore, Tzuyu stands up and starts walking away before Dahyun grabs her in a backhug, laughing uncontrollably at Tzuyu's reaction. When Tzuyu wiggles to get out of Dahyun's arms, Chaeyoung joins in, fully trapping their tall friend in a warm hug full of love.

 

"Let me go! I hate you two!" Tzuyu whines, her cheeks burning.

 

"No you don't, cutie. You love us." Chaeyoung kisses her shoulder and hugs her tighter. Dahyun tries wrapping her legs around hers like a koala, grinning widely in a way Tzuyu finds just adorable. 

 

Tzuyu really can't stay mad at them for more than two seconds. It's impossible.

 

***

 

"I wouldn't go there if I were you."

 

Tzuyu turns around. It's Momo. "Why?" She asks, and immediately feels stupid because of course it's not safe to climb on the rocks. But then again, the beach ball is just a few rocks away, stuck. Much thanks to the wind.

 

"You could slip." Momo brushes her hair back and smiles as she gently grabs Tzuyu's arm, pulling her back.

 

"But the ball–"

 

"I'll get it for you." "I'll get it."

 

When Momo's voice echoes, Tzuyu looks to her right to see yet another blonde woman, wearing the proud lifeguard swimsuit unlike the crop top Momo is wearing. And...double wow.

 

"Oh, It's you." The woman says, completely gorgeous and breathtaking. Tzuyu watches as a look of recognition passes on the woman's face, quickly looking her up and down. "I assume you're feeling better now. Considering–"

 

"Yes." Tzuyu ducks her head, shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. "It's all a little bit blurry but...you're the other lifeguard then? My friends uh, told me about you two."

 

It might be Tzuyu's insane imagination, but Momo perks up after she says this, looking happier than before. 

 

"Yup," the other woman chews on her bottom lip and puts her hands on her waist, dragging her foot back and forth on the sand. She seems uncomfortable. "Name's Mina. It's nice to meet you, Tzuyu."

 

"How do you know my name?" Tzuyu looks right into her eyes and Mina blinks, almost looking flustered as she averts her gaze and walks past her, towards the rocks.

 

"Your friends. They called your name back when..." Momo sheepishly rubs her nape and for a second Tzuyu's attention is drawn to her abs. Blushing and hoping she wasn't caught staring, she turns away and Mina's right there. So close. Tzuyu holds her breath.

 

Mina looks up at her, her lips parted and her eyes captivating– and then she hands her the beach ball, smiling in a way that makes Tzuyu shiver. "I'll see you around then," she says before Tzuyu dumbly watches her walk away.

 

"Bye Tzuyu!" Momo does a small wave before running to catch up with Mina, throwing her arm around the other lifeguards shoulders.

 

Funny. They were lifeguards, and yet Tzuyu thought they were dangerous. 

 

***

 

"What was that about?"

 

When Momo's teasing voice reaches Mina's ears, they're already walking along the shore, keeping an eye out for people that might need their help.

 

"What was what?"

 

Momo laughs, one hand on Mina's shoulder as she leans in close. "Don't play dumb. I know what I saw."

 

Mina refuses to turn her head so their eyes can meet, instead looking around as if this close proximity didn't just take her breath away. She hums. "Well, she's gorgeous."

 

To her relief Momo pulls back, tucking her hair behind her ear as she nods. "I know right? She's probably a model or something."

 

Mina stops walking and turns to where Momo is standing, glancing behind her at Tzuyu who was insisting for her pale friend to use more sunscreen. Dahyun, if Mina remembers correctly. 

 

Dahyun thanks the tall girl and Tzuyu smiles in a way that causes Mina's heart to quicken. She shakes her head. No, it doesn't make sense. Why would the butterflies appear because of her when all these years they've only showed up for Momo?

 

"Do you like her?" Mina asks.

 

"Maybe," Blushing, Momo plays with her bangs, shyly stealing a glance at Tzuyu. "I do wanna get to know her."

 

"Talk to her then," It scares Mina how much she's fine with the idea of Momo speaking to another girl. Momo seems surprised by this too, taking a step closer.

 

"Are you sure?" Momo mumbles, as if asking for her permission. It's ridiculous, both of them know it is. But when Momo's fingers brush against Mina's, gently grabbing her hand, they couldn't care less that this doesn't make any sense.

 

"Why not?" Mina finds herself saying, perhaps urging Momo to say what she desperately hopes her to.

 

They stare into each other's eyes for a while, Mina running her thumb across the back of Momo's hand. When Momo leans in, Mina stops breathing. Soft lips brush against her cheek, lingering before Momo pulls back. The smile on the older girl's face is unlike anything Mina had ever seen, so full of... love and admiration.

 

The corners of Mina's lips twitch. She presses her lips together and finally averts her eyes, wondering what that really meant for the two of them.

 

Momo grins at her, delighted by her reaction. Maybe a little too delighted because before Mina knows it, she leans in again, landing another kiss on her other cheek.

 

With blood rushing to her face, Mina is unable to hold back her smile this time. She giggles and hides it behind the hand that isn't holding Momo's. "Okay, okay. Go! She's not going to be here all day."

 

"Right! I uh, I'll go...?" Momo seems to panic a bit.

 

Mina laughs, letting go of Momo to push her slightly. "Yes, go."

 

"Love you!"

 

Mina's heart jumps and she shakes her head with a fond smile as she watches Momo run towards Tzuyu. "Love you too."

 

***

 

"Hi,"

 

Tzuyu can't do this. She's not strong enough. Each time Momo pops out of the blue like this, she feels like she's having a heart attack. And somehow her friends aren't with her this time either, which is...weird because they were right there like a second ago–

 

"Uh..Tzuyu?"

 

It's only when Momo waves her hand in front of her eyes Tzuyu comes back to earth. She realizes she must have been staring blankly at Momo the whole time. She hides her red face with both hands before speaking, embarassed. "Right, hi. How may I help you?"

 

Momo giggles and grabs her wrists, pulling them down to reveal her flushed cheeks. "Kinda feels like you're the lifeguard here, asking that."

 

A nervous chuckle escapes Tzuyu before she can stop it and with the silence that follows after, the awkwardness between them grows.

 

Momo drops her gaze with a small smile. "I'm sorry. I'm bothering you, aren't I? I'll just...go.."

 

Just as Momo turns away, Tzuyu grabs her shoulder. "No! No, I like you!" At Momo's surprised expression, Tzuyu lets go and shakes her head. "I mean, I like uh.. talking with you..."

 

Trying not to focus on the fact that she literally just confessed, Tzuyu closes her eyes briefly to process her own stupidity and presses her lips together before looking back at Momo.

 

Momo's eyes are bright as she looks up at her, her smile sincere. "I like talking with you too," she says, tucking a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. 

 

Through Tzuyu's parted lips, a sigh of relief escapes. As Momo keeps staring at her, she fidgets with her hands and tries to supress a shy smile, biting her lower lip.

 

"I would... love to talk more?" Momo offers, tilting her head cutely to the side. "There's a pretty sweet pool inside the hotel. We could meet up there and talk and–" Momo clears when she notices that Tzuyu froze, not even blinking. Momo panics. She has to make this date more...appealing! At least more appealing than the original date she had in mind which was literally just eating burgers together near the pool and talking. Burgers there were her favorite, but she thought Tzuyu might prefer something a little more exciting.

 

See, Momo could tell Tzuyu didn't exactly feel comfortable at the beach due to obvious reasons. But the pool should be fine, right? Pools are nice. And Momo is the most confident when she's near water. So it's either the beach or the pool until she trusts herself enough to not make a fool of herself around this amazing girl.

 

"A-And while we're there, I could give you a lesson or two about swimming? If you want– of course. I totally understand if you don't want to... "

 

"I-I want to! It sounds...fun."

 

"It does?" Momo asks in disbelief before she chuckles and shakes her head. "I mean, great! Great. I'll uh... see you there at 7am tomorrow?"

 

Tzuyu nods, smiling. "Okay."

 

"Awesome. I'll see you then!" Momo waves at her with a grin before she runs back to Mina who high fives her as they laugh together, once again walking along the shore.

 

Before she even realizes, Tzuyu finds her eyes fixed on Mina's gummy smile. And as she watches the two blonde lifeguards, the waves gently washing over their feet, Tzuyu can't help but smile...

 

..before she starts to freak. out.

 

After endless teasing from her friends, a nervous Tzuyu makes a quick escape back to her hotel room with a somewhat believable excuse. She hops in the shower with a sigh and throws her head back with a groan, water hitting her face.

 

Sometimes Tzuyu really wishes she wasn't so whipped for girls she just met. Swimming lessons? At 7am? While she was still pretty much terrified of water? Yeah sure, that sounds 'fun'.

 

She probably wants to make sure you don't drown again. Not a good first impression I'm afraid, Tzuyu.

 

She groans again, banging her head against the wall. Tomorrow was going to be a disaster and Momo, the adorable buff lifeguard was never going to speak to her ever again. 

 

And if Momo doesn't speak to her, Mina wouldn't either. Tzuyu didn't know why Mina suddenly popped into her mind but she didn't think much about it. She couldn't, not when she was freaking out about her...date? Was it even a date? Or was it just... lessons? The more Tzuyu thought about it, the more she spiraled and somehow convinced herself it wasn't a date. 

 

Sleep didn't come to her easily that night.