Hyewon and Minju both flopped on the couch, they just got home from their spontaneous pizza dinner courtesy of Yujin and they feel full. The older girl grunts, feeling herself slowly falling into some food coma.

“I don’t think I can have another pizza in the next 2 weeks.”

Minju just chuckles adjusting her position on the couch, “Ditto.”

The both of them really had a good time with the others, with Yujin and Yena keeping the atmosphere. Yujin spilling the tea about Sakura and Chaeyeon dating, and Yuri dramatically whines over to her girlfriend for not telling her sooner.

Minju just laughs because she already noticed it the first time that she spent time with the friends – during the game night at Eunbi’s house. Though the glances were discreet, she still didn’t miss it – and judging from Hyewon’s reaction earlier, the latter seems to already know it.

But then Minju wanted to vanish the moment they started teasing Wonyoung and Yujin being together, it’s not like she doesn’t like the pairing but the two of them are like her little sisters – well except for Yujin, she’s too annoying to be a little sister. But that’s beside the point, because it’s just awkward for Minju.

It seems like Hyewon felt her awkwardness and she’s grateful for the latter that she changed the topic – asking about Eunbi and the others, and it just went on from there.

They also didn’t expect for Sakura to order another big pizza, so they basically shoved it in their mouths without chewing because as what Yuri and Chaeyeon said ‘We don’t waste food!’.

“Hey,” Hyewon calls for Minju, “I think my friends are planning to celebrate my birthday.”

Minju looks at the girl who’s just staring at the ceiling, it was just her sister’s death anniversary yesterday – that means, “When is it?”

“On the 5th of the month.”

Six days, exactly six days before their birthday. Minju suddenly feels sad with the thought, the older girl must be holding a lot of emotions. “Oh.”

Hyewon weakly chuckles of course, it’s not usual to know personal things in a span of a day. “Oh.” She repeats.

“What are they planning to do?”

Hyewon shrugs, not having any clue because her friends are so secretive but they’ll tell her 2 days before her birthday. “Not really sure.”

“Do you want to watch your anime?” Minju decided to change the subject, grabbing the remote from the table.

Hyewon is thankful for the subject change, she’s just giving the girl the heads up anyways. She smiles as Minju puts on a random anime on the television – 5 Centimeters Per Second, a classic anime. Hyewon sits properly and sees Minju doing the same, seeming like she’s about to watch it too.

“You’re going to watch with me?” Hyewon asks in amusement, and the younger girl nods.

“It seems interesting enough.” Minju shrugs trying to find a comfortable position, being too full is such a pain.

“Do you want some spoiler?”

“Shut up Kang Hyewon.”

Hyewon just chuckles, turning to watch the anime. Minju does the same but the difference is that she doesn’t have any idea how the show would go while Hyewon knows it already. “Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.”

“Would someone die?”

Hyewon just smiles innocently shrugging her shoulders, “You can just watch it Minju.” With that, she turned her head to the front – ignoring the curious look of the younger girl.

/

“What the hell was that?”

Hyewon just chuckles, stretching her body from all the sitting and she could hear a few bones cracking. She has watched the anime for a number of times already mainly because of the ending and it just hurts to good.

“That’s the end.”

Minju just couldn’t believe what she watched, an hour of getting into it and then nothing? That’s just unacceptable for her, “There’s even no closure!”

Hyewon chuckles at the agitated younger girl, it is very much amusing to see. “There’s none?”

“Hyewon!”

“Minju,” Hyewon softly calls her, obviously the girl doesn’t get the message of the anime – well, it’s very a hard pill to swallow in first watch but the message is very clear. “Sometimes not getting a closure is closure.”

“It’s growing up,” Hyewon points out at the rolling credit, “No matter what happens, you’ll drift away at some point.”

Minju tries to let what the older girl said, she thinks about the miss chances the characters had. How near yet so far they are to each other, and then she thinks about what Hyewon’s last statement was. She then looks at the older girl, a question on the tip of her tongue.

“Well, would you?” Minju doesn’t know why she’s even asking this question; it might be because of all those emotions that that stupid show triggered. Hyewon looks at the other girl questioningly, and Minju elaborates.

“Would you drift away?”

Hyewon paused and looks at the younger girl, the question surprising her. But she thinks about what to answer, would she? She just smiled and softly shakes her head.

“No, I won’t.” Hyewon says, “I think I couldn’t leave them; I’ll always look for a way to have them in my life.” She answers, thinking about Sakura, Yujin, Yena, and the others. The people who have been there through her best and worst moments.

Minju looks up, and she’s just craving more answer from the older one. Blame her and these newfound feelings of her, “How about me?”

As soon as she uttered out the question, she could only wince – the embarrassment now creeping up on her, she sounds desperate with her tone. Minju wanted to take back the question and just sleep – or even make an excuse that it’s just the alcohol talking, but they didn’t drink any.

Hyewon didn’t expect to have a follow up question, she looks at the younger girl who seems to be embarrassed with it. But then again, she thinks about it. Despite the short time they’ve spent together, Hyewon could feel a big part of her is being drawn to the younger.

She doesn’t know why, but it’s much easier to talk to Minju – her other friends had a hard time to just make her open up, but with Minju – it just comes to her. Hyewon wants someone to talk about it with, this is the time she hopes Sora is still with her. Her sister knows her too well, and would always have answer for her.

 Hyewon thinks about it and if Sora is here with her, she would say that she should just be honest. And if Hyewon is being honest then, “No.” She smiles at Minju who looks at her with surprise.

“I think even if the time comes that we should be apart,” Hyewon continues thinking about her words but she just decided to just say what she wants to, “I’ll forcefully drift my way back to you.”

Hearing the answer, Minju just wants to tell her heart to slow down – it’s beating a million times faster and that’s just because of Hyewon’s simple answer to her. She nods trying to hide the fact that she’s maybe blushing.

She then grabs the remote and turned off the television, “I think we need to sleep now.”

Hyewon keeps quiet, thinking that it is too early for her to sleep. She keeps having trouble with it, and she knows she just can’t always ask Minju to sleep with her.

“You can go first; I think I’ll be staying here for a minute.”

The younger girl stares at Hyewon for a second, contemplating if she should volunteer to sleep with Hyewon – but she might seem too pushy. “You can always call me okay?”

Hyewon nods smiling slightly, “Okay.”

Minju looks at her for a moment with Hyewon returning it, and she just sighs. She doesn’t want to force her offer to the girl, just because Hyewon opened up doesn’t give her the right to do so. As long as the latter knows she’s just a call away, it’s Hyewon’s choice from there on.

“Okay, I’ll go first.” Minju said and walks away from the living room, turning back she check on Hyewon and she could see the latter just staring at the now turned off television.

/

Hyewon has been flipping from one position to another just to find the most comfortable one where she can sleep. But she’s been laying down on her bed for a whole 2 hours already and she’s not even close to dozing off.

She just managed to watch two episodes before she decided to just lay on her bed, thinking that maybe she’ll find it easier to sleep since she just had a hearty dinner. But she thought wrong.

Hyewon is just there staring at the dark, her head laid on her pillow. Her mind has been running around, now that she’s alone she thinks about everything again. About Sora. She misses her dearly; she just couldn’t accept the fact that she’s gone just like that.

While Hyewon is alive, living. Though broken, but still – it is much better is Sora is there with her. She never deserved to die, not her. Sora is an angel but maybe that’s why that happened, the heavens are calling for her already.

But it doesn’t erase the fact that it’s unfair.

Her parents.

As much as Hyewon avoids thinking about them, she knows the thought will come to her. She doesn’t know why they came back, 3 years of not seeing her and then they suddenly come back. Hyewon has no idea what they are planning, who are they visiting.

Hyewon just shakes her head wanting to get rid of her thoughts. It’s starting to go where she doesn’t want to go. Just because she said it and let it Minju get inside her life doesn’t mean it will just vanish in an instant.

She closes her eyes, and she remembers everything again.

“Sora! Look at me!”

“Sora! Look at me! Don’t ing close your eyes!”

“No, don’t ing laugh! Look at me! Please, I’m sorry!”

Hyewon feels herself shaking, the memories started flooding in again consuming her as second passes by.

“Wonnie, stop moving.”

Sora on top Hyewon, all bloodied, her face contorting in pain but she still musters up a smile. Hyewon remembers and feels it again – the weight of her sister on top of her.

“Don’t ing close your eyes Kang Sora!”

“Wonnie, stop moving,”

 “I’m sorry for not telling you, okay?”

 “No, no! I’m sorry! Don’t apologize, . Help! Just call some ing ambulance! Please!”

Hyewon could hear her own shouts that night, as if she’s watching it – as if she’s in the night of the event watching her and Sora. Hyewon feels cold, she feels pain.

“Wonnie, is this how you feel?”

“I should have done it much more,”

“I should have protected you too, Wonnie. I’m sorry.”

“Sora, please!”

Rain.

Thunder.

Shouts.

Cries.

Apologies.

“Look at me Sora, please.”

Hyewon could feel her tears already, the scene replaying in her head. The pain during that time is very much present but different. The weight of Sora on top of her, the way how her breathing slows down, everything. She could never forgive herself.

“I’m sorry Wonnie. Please play for me always, okay? I love you.”

“Wonnie, don’t move. I need to sleep.”

Hyewon started scratching her scars, she just couldn’t take it anymore. She just wanted it to stop but suddenly –

“But I don’t think it’s a punishment,”

“It’s just a reminder. Of how strong you are. That even the darkest of times, you’re still here. Telling your story to me.”

“And I think that you didn’t lost your passion, you just decided to ignore it.”

“But despite that, I think Sora will wait for you. For you to start playing again.”

“Because after all you’ve been through, you did well. You’re doing well.”

Minju. Hyewon remembers Minju, the girl who suddenly became her roommate, the girl she never thought would be able to break inside her just like that. The girl who Hyewon feels safe even in the most crucial moments for her.

Minju.

The person who she just knew a short period of time but now knows something important about Hyewon. The girl who made her realize things. Perhaps, the girl who Sora put into her path to help her live.

“You can always call me okay?”

That’s how Hyewon saw herself standing in front of Minju’s door, contemplating if she should knock or not. There’s a huge chance Minju is already sleeping, judging from the silence coming from the room – Hyewon is already sure that the younger girl is sleeping already.

Despite knowing that, Hyewon still knocked and she doesn’t know why she did so. She knocked three times, timid knocks. She waited for some sign of moving inside the room, she frowns thinking if she should knock again.

Just once more. Hyewon thought and knocked again. When she didn’t hear any sounds, she just decided to go back in her room but as she was on her 2nd step, she heard the door opening. She turns around to see Minju wearing as simple shirt and shorts – and the girl is wearing Gucci shirt, just like the first time she saw her.

It is very much obvious that the younger girl is already deep in her sleep, and Hyewon suddenly felt guilty.

“Hyewon?”

Hyewon starts looking around and rubs her neck out of nervousness, “I couldn’t sleep.” She quietly admits. Then Minju looks at her as if she wasn’t sleepy earlier, the younger girl steps forward and grabs her hand pulling her inside the room.

Hyewon just lets her.

Hyewon is then laying down on Minju’s bed and she realized that this is the first time she’s inside the younger girl’s room. She could smell the younger girl’s scent on the bed – strawberries, she finds it oddly calming.

Minju is on her side, seeming like she’s about to fall asleep again. Hyewon doesn’t want to bother her and so she flips on the other side, thinking it would be fine and she’ll find sleep too. But she just couldn’t and she tries to slowly flip on the other side but it seems like it disturbed Minju.

“Hyewon, sleep.” Minju says, and Hyewon just froze. With that, the former adjusted her position flipping to the other side, now facing Hyewon.

She opens her eyes slightly and closed it again, “Sleep.”

Hyewon just looks down, she then quietly said, “Can you hug me?” She then backtracks thinking it’s too demanding, “If that’s alr – “

“Shush,” Minju said and scoots over Hyewon closely, her arms wrapping around the latter’s waist just like before.

Hyewon exhales softly and found herself leaning to the touch and moving closer to the warmth that Minju is giving.

“Better?”

Hyewon smiles and she doesn’t know if the younger gi