It took five months for Eunha and Sowon to get together.

Sinb saw them liking each other from a mile away, probably even before Eunha and Sowon knew it themselves. She spent too much time with both of them to not notice their growing affection for each other. She wasn’t even surprised when Eunha finally admitted to her that she was in a relationship with Sowon a week ago.

The first telltale sign was when Sowon, a huge workaholic when Sinb first met her, reduced her late nights in the office to have more free time. She still stayed back in the office sometimes, but she made a conscious effort to leave work at a sensible hour. Sowon did so in order to meet up more with Eunha, whether it was having dinner together or dropping by SourceM to accompany her.

Eunha began disappearing from the house more often as well, and each time she did she came back with a blissful smile on her face. She was apprehensive of Sowon in the beginning—Sinb could tell from her anxious expressions whenever she got ready to leave the house for a meetup—but she gradually saw Sowon in a better light. She stopped worrying about her “friend dates” with Sowon and looked forward to them instead.

Three months after they met, Sowon began showing up at their apartment. Sinb almost suffered a heart attack when she came back home and bumped into her in their kitchen, cooking up a meal. They started taking their meetups into the shared apartment Sinb and Eunha owned, watching movies together on the sofa or working on their own things beside each other. It was stupidly domestic, and Sinb tried her best to avoid them whenever Sowon was at their apartment.

Sowon and Eunha kept inviting her to watch movies or sit together with them, or whatever they were doing at the time Sinb came upon the soulmate pair. Sinb rejected all of those invitations, hiding in her room to wallow, but sometimes they were persistent and she would get dragged into their hangouts. And when she managed to swallow down her jealousy, Sinb found that she loved spending time with them. Sometimes, she would forget that Eunha and Sowon are soulmates and lose herself in the conversations they had, or cringing at horrible movies together.

Reality would hit her whenever that illusion was broken, such as when Eunha would cuddle against Sowon on the sofa, attempting to hold her hand subtly under their shared blankets when she thought Sinb wasn’t looking. She noticed every little thing—Sowon’s fond smile as she watched Eunha, the suffocating tension in the air when they looked at each other—and Sinb wished she didn’t.

And finally, last month, Eunha kissed Sowon outside of their apartment. Sinb was the unfortunate witness, having walked into the living room to stumble upon them at the entrance kissing. The sight of Eunha tiptoeing just slightly with Sowon's arm wrapped around her waist to support her, a hand cupping her face,was too much for her. Sinb bolted away into her room before either of them could notice her.

Sinb cried for the first time in years that day. Crying like a pathetic child was the only way she could relieve the crushing hurt that clenched her heart. It was when Sinb knew she had to force herself to move on, rid her feelings for Eunha, because she was truly unreachable now.

Eunha was strangely tight-lipped when it came to talking about Sowon in front of Sinb, so Sinb had to outright ask if she and Sowon were dating. And when she confirmed it with a shy nod, Sinb congratulated her with a smile on her face. She had to be happy for her. Sowon and Eunha deserved each other.

Sinb was trying to distance herself from Eunha by staying out of the apartment more often in order to move on from her feelings. Eunha made it incredibly hard for her to do so, even ganging up with Sowon to persuade her into spending time together.

It was how Sinb found herself on the sofa, trapped by Eunha’s legs thrown over lap to keep her there. Eunha was lying on the sofa between Sinb and Sowon, with her back against Sowon’s side and using Sinb’s lap as a leg pillow. Her eyes were halfway closed as she was close to nodding off, fighting sleep to focus on the drama playing on the television.

“I hate him.” Sowon remarked from the side when the douchebag character came on screen. She shifted and wrapped an arm around Eunha’s front, preventing her from sliding off the sofa. “What an .”

“Agreed.” Sinb grunted, turning her eyes to the television. She picked up her cup noodles, nibbling on the food to distract herself. “Eunha-unnie wanted to watch this, but why is she the one falling asleep?”

Eunha jerked at the mention of her name. “Huh? I’m not.”

“What was happening in the last ten minutes?” Sinb poked her foot.

“Um.” Eunha paused, taking a look at the current scene. “ was confessing to the main girl?”

“Wrong. It was her birthday celebration, came and crashed it. Do you even know their names?”

Eunha gave her a sheepish look that told Sinb everything she needed to know. She moved from Sowon’s side to put her head on Sowon’s legs, lying on both Sowon and Sinb. “Talking about birthdays, Sowon-unnie, yours is coming up soon right?”

“Mhm. December 7th.”

“What do you want to do for your birthday?”

“I don’t usually celebrate my birthday. We don’t have to do anything.”

“You sure?” Eunha frowned, before her eyes lit up with an idea. “What do you think about going out, all three of us? We could go watch a movie, go to an arcade, do something fun!”

Sowon seemed intrigued, and she agreed easily. “Actually, that sounds great. Sinb, what do you think?”

Sinb almost choked on her noodles. She wasn't paying much attention to their conversation, thinking it wouldn't concern her. “Wait, me too?”

“I don’t think we’ve gone out with the three of us before on an outing. It sounds fun, I want to do that.”

“But aren’t those date things?” Sinb questioned. While an outing with Sowon and Eunha did appeal to her, she didn't like the idea of being the third wheel to the soulmate pair.

“Who says so?” Eunha sat up, and she leaned towards Sinb with a pout. “Come on, it’s to celebrate Sowon-unnie’s birthday! Besides, we haven’t hung out outside in a while. I miss going out with you.”

Sinb gulped. Ever since Eunha dyed her hair back to black and cut her hair short, her cuteness level intensified to an impossible level. It was unfair, honestly. Sinb hated how one mere pout could crumble her defenses and restraint into dust.

She glanced past Eunha’s ridiculously cute face, and was attacked by Sowon’s sad puppy dog eyes. She looked so forlorn that it tugged at Sinb’s heartstrings. Are they soulmates because they have impeccable persuading tactics?

“Fine.” Sinb gave in, and Eunha flopped back on Sowon’s lap with a triumphant grin. Sowon perked up at her agreement.

“I already have a movie in mind that I want to watch, it’s a horror movie called—”

“Never mind, let’s do something else!” Eunha paled along with Sinb, for a good reason. The last time Sinb and Eunha tried to watch a horror movie together in a cinema, Eunha threw her popcorn up in the air and they created a mess that disturbed everyone sitting around them. They behaved so disorderly they almost got kicked out of the theater.

“Unnie, a horror movie is a very, very, bad idea,” Sinb said, “we will ruin your experience by deafening your ears. You should watch it with Yuju-unnie instead, she loves horror movies.”

“But,” Sowon’s puppy dog eyes returned at full force, her voice wavering, “I want to watch it with both of you…”

Eunha and Sinb made eye contact with each other, an unspoken conversation between them. They came to a decision.

“I’m going to regret saying this, but we’ll watch it with you.” Eunha groaned and she covered her face with her hands. Her next words came out muffled. “Don’t blame me if we get banned from the cinema.”

“No take backs, okay?” Sowon beamed. She took Eunha’s hands away from her face and held both of them. “You can hold my hands in the cinema, and you won’t feel scared any more.”

“Really? Would Unnie protect me?” Eunha answered back in a cutesy voice, giggling. They swung their entangled hands around playfully.

Sinb tore her gaze away. This is why I didn’t want to go.

Eager eyes shone at her, sparkling with excitement as he eyed the treats in Sinb’s hand. A tail wagged non-stop, the golden retriever before her sitting patiently on his haunches.

“Why are you such a cute boy?” Sinb melted at the dog’s cute behaviour, opening up her palm to let him nip up the treat. As he did so, she checked on what Sowon and Eunha were doing and stifled her bubbling laughter as yet another dog scurried away from Sowon.

It was Sowon’s birthday, and like they agreed to, they decided to go out together. Sowon’s first wish was to go to a dog café as she had never experienced going to one before. Sinb and Eunha took to the idea instantly, both of them being huge lovers of dogs and animals in general. They scoured the internet for a dog café that was peaceful and ethical in their treatments of the dogs, and went in the morning to avoid the crowds.

Eunha was hesitant when it came to petting the dogs, preferring to admire them from a distance. Sowon, on the other hand, was like the opposite of a dog magnet. The dogs didn’t seem to go to her except when she had treats in her hand, but even then they would snatch it and run away after a short while. Sinb had the brunt of their affections, the dogs gravitating towards her and cuddling in her lap.

“Do they hate me?” Sowon sulked, the last of her treats running out. She got up from the floor, slinking back to their table.

“Maybe it’s because you’re so tall,” Sinb joked and gave a fond pat to the golden retriever that was bouncing around her.

“Eunha’s small but the dogs avoid her too,” Sowon said without thinking, before realising she just insulted Eunha’s height which was bound to set her soulmate off, “Oh no.”

“Hey!” Eunha stomped to the table. She plopped on the spot beside Sowon, also giving up on petting the dogs. “I’ll have you know, I’m the average height for women. It’s the two of you that are giants for no reason.”

“There’s a reason for it though?” Sowon muttered, and her next words were too soft for Sinb to catch amongst the barking dogs. Eunha’s cheeks reddened, lips quirking up into a shy smile, and her anger dissipated in a flash. Sowon dipped her head and pressed a chaste kiss to Eunha’s puffy cheeks, a similar blush tinting her face.

As if sensing her tumbling mood at the couple’s flirting, the golden retriever rested his snout on her crossed legs, finally settling down. Sinb took a deep breath and relaxed. You can survive the entire day, Sinb. Stop being a jealous brat, she chided herself. She fixated her attention on the affectionate dog and ran her hands down his coat, the soft fur providing comfort.

“Look at Sinb,” she heard Sowon say, “I’m envious of how the dogs all go to her, but they look so cute cuddling up to each other.”

“Right? Sinb’s a huge softie for dogs. Maybe they can sense how much she’ll spoil them,” Eunha cooed. Sinb rose her head up, self-conscious at the sudden attention on her. The soulmate pair were focused on watching her and the golden retriever on her lap. Sinb halted her petting.

“Why are you idiots just staring at me?” Sinb said. The dog pushed his snout into her hands, demanding her to continue her petting.

Sowon let out a dramatic sigh. “Well, the dogs won't come to us, so we’re living vicariously through you.”

“And you’re cuter than the dogs in the café!” Eunha quipped.

Sinb grew shy upon hearing their words, ducking her head back down. An idea came to her then. It was Sowon’s birthday, and it would be a shame for her to leave the café without having the chance to cuddle with one of the dogs.

She gently lifted the golden retriever’s snout off her legs, standing up and walking back to their table. “Eunha-unnie, let me sit beside the birthday girl.”

Eunha tilted her head, but she moved away. “Sure, but why?”

The seats weren’t individual chairs, but rather they were joined together and formed one whole line where the customers could sit. It was perfect for Sinb’s plan and she sat close to Sowon, till their sides were pressed against each other. “You’ll see.”

“Miss, what’s the golden retriever's name?” Sinb asked as a staff walked past their table.

“Oh, it’s Goldie.”

“I see where this is going.” Sowon commented as Sinb called the dog’s name and patted her lap. Goldie perked up and bounded towards them. He leapt up and settled on Sinb’s lap. With a bit of coaxing and some treats, he draped himself completely on both their laps.

Sinb was thankful that Goldie wasn't a full fledged adult, or he would have been too large to cuddle on their legs. She glanced at Sowon, taking in her reaction. Her team leader had a look of awe in her eyes, her touch light and hesitant as she petted the dog. She was stiff as a board, afraid that her slightest movement would send the dog running.

She was starting to be aware of how close she was to Sowon, feeling the soft press of her thighs against her own. Warmth emitted from both the dog on their laps and Sowon’s side, and Sinb felt her heartrate quicken when Sowon bent down to take a closer look at the dog. Her eyes were drawn to Sowon’s face, captivated by her goofy grin and perfect features.

“This is such a cute sight.” Eunha’s voice broke Sinb out of her trance, and she flinched. Did she just check out her team leader? Sinb hid her trembling hand in the dog’s fur, her thoughts going haywire at what she did. She bit her lip and concentrated on what Eunha was saying.

“Three puppies cuddling together, I need to save this moment!” she whipped out her phone and raised the camera at them. Sowon chuckled and slung her arm around Sinb’s shoulder, pulling her close till their cheeks squished each other. Sinb went rigid, and her stomach flipped over on itself.

“Sinb, can you smile and not look like a statue?” Eunha ordered, and Sinb willed herself to crack an awkward smile at her command. Eunha eagerly snapped pictures of them, whining when the shot turned out blurry or failed her standards. Is my heart racing because of how cute Eunha looks?

Sinb felt like she could finally breathe when Sowon released her from her hold and leaned back against her seat. Her forced smile for the camera dropped and her lips curled into a frown. Why was she reacting so oddly to Sowon’s skinship? It’s not like Sinb wasn’t used to people being touchy with her, especially when she had Eunha who couldn’t live without skinship as a childhood friend.

“Is something wrong?” Sowon asked, placing a hand on her shoulder to get her attention.

Sinb shook her head. “No, nothing.”

Sowon stared at her with suspicion in her eyes, not believing her. Eunha unknowingly saved Sinb from an interrogation by flipping her phone screen towards them and showing the pictures she took, diverting Sowon's attention to her.

It really was nothing to be concerned about. Sinb had noticed that Sowon had jaw-dropping features and was gorgeous from day one. It was natural of her to admire that sometimes—friends did that, don’t they? Compliment each other on how good they looked. That was what she was doing, and the fluttering in her stomach was because of Eunha’s antics. She was overreacting for no reason.

After taking a quick lunch, the next intended activity on the “Celebrate Sowon’s Birthday” agenda was watching the horror movie. Eunha and Sinb dragged their feet as much as possible when they were heading to the movie theatre, while Sowon was exploding with excitement. No matter how much they dreaded the scares they would suffer from later, they could never go back on their promise and ruin Sowon’s anticipation.

The tickets were bought, and they were smacked in the centre of the theatre with the nicest view of the screen. The excellent seats were mostly for Sowon’s benefit, since Sinb would be covering her eyes to protect herself from jumpscares the entire way through the movie.

“Why do you even like horror movies that much?” Sinb asked with a genuine need to know. They were already seated in the cinema, waiting for the advertisements to start. Sowon sat at the centre, with Eunha by her right and Sinb by her left. A tub of popcorn was balanced on her lap, and she was relaxed as she sipped her soft drink.

“It’s fun to predict when the jumpscares will come. I like the thrill.” Sowon paused. “And it’s amusing to watch everyone get scared.”

Eunha crossed her arms. “Is that why you wanted us to come with you?”

“Maybe?”

“Is this an excuse to hold my hand?”

“No, I hold your hand whenever I want to.”

Sinb sank back in her seat and interrupted them. “Just don’t let Eunha-unnie hold the popcorn.”

“Actually, I think I’ve gotten much better at watching horror mov—!”

Eunha cursed with a yell when the advertisement popped on the screen and the speakers blared with noise. Sinb jolted as well because of her shout, biting back her own shriek of surprise. She buried her face in her hands, feeling a sense of foreboding deja vu.

“This is what happened last time. Eunha-unnie would get scared by every little noise and I would get scared by her screaming. It’s like an endless cycle.”

Sowon’s body shook as she tried to hold back her laughter. Eunha murmured an apology to the other movie goers around them for her foul mouth, and then she smacked Sowon’s arm.

“Is this funny?” Eunha glared daggers at Sowon, but she wasn’t intimidating at all. She was absolutely adorable with her oversized sweater on and her hands hidden by the long sleeves.

“N-no,” Sowon stuttered as she struggled not to laugh.

“You get a pass because it’s your birthday.” Eunha grumbled, letting her soulmate go. Sowon schooled her face into a neutral expression and cooly offered her hand to Eunha.

"Squeeze my hand instead of swearing when you get scared," she said. Eunha smiled and she took her hand with a content hum.

Sinb reached over to grab a popcorn, and she munched on the snack while listening to the advertisement. Sowon nudged her and she turned to the side, confused when she spotted her team leader's other hand, facing palm up, on the arm rest between them.

"You can hold my hand too."

"Huh?" Sinb answered with a dumbfounded expression on her face. "How are you going to eat and drink? Not that I'm considering it or anything."

"We can feed her." Eunha helpfully supplied.

Sowon nodded. "That works."

Sinb eyed Sowon's hand, tempted by it. Then she knocked some sense back into her head and refused. "Thanks, but I'll be fine. I'm not as scared as Eunha-unnie."

"You know that's a lie!" Eunha protested, and Sinb pretended she didn't exist.

Sowon respected her choice and retracted her hand. The cinema dimmed its lights at the same time, coating the place in darkness and signalling the start of the movie.

As the opening intro ran, Sinb could feel the tension settling within her and she watched with shifty eyes. She kept stuffing food into to have something other than the movie to focus on.

The movie Sowon chose to watch was about a doll possessed by a demon that haunted a family in the shape of a gruesome ghost. The premise didn’t seem anything unique, but Sinb found herself stiffening in her seat when the ghost flashed on the screen. Eunha screamed—as expected—but at least she didn’t curse this time. Sinb glanced over and she saw her clenching Sowon’s hand in a death grip, with said soulmate calmly snacking on the popcorn as she watched.

Sinb had her hand permanently fixed in front of her eyes as she peeked through the gaps of her fingers to glimpse the current scene. She flinched in her seat whenever there was a deafening sound, like the sudden slam of a door, or when Eunha reacted to every small thing that happened. She held back her own need to make a sound, hellbent on keeping up a tough front with Sowon beside her.

Halfway through the movie, a squeak escaped her when there was a particularly horrifying jumpscare. Sinb felt her cheeks warm and she raised a hand to , mortified by the sound she just made. Her poor heart rate was over the roof from the adrenaline coursing through her and her rising embarrassment.

Something touched her arm placed on the arm rest. She was so close to letting out another squeak until she processed that it was Sowon’s hand. Her team leader was still looking ahead at the screen, but her hand was offered to her as a wordless comfort. Sinb’s resolve wavered and held her hand, and Sowon entangled their fingers together in a firm hold.

The smoothness of Sowon’s palm and her natural warmth distracted her from her fear. Her heart rate refused to slow down and she was worried her hand would get clammy, but Sinb found herself loosening her stiff muscles and relaxing. Every time a jumpscare came, Sowon would squeeze her hand in a comforting manner—and it did help. During the , she was idly caressing her thumb over Sinb’s, and the sensation was so soothing that Sinb blanked out for a good chunk of the film.

She wasn’t even aware the movie ended until the lights came back up and she squinted from the change in brightness. It slapped her back into reality, and she pulled away with a soft “Thanks”. Sowon gave her a small smile in return, and then she stretched in her seat, her legs probably feeling cramped.

“That was fun.”

“I think I had enough thrill for the year.” Eunha shuddered, taking off her sweater now that the movie was over. “I don’t actually know what the whole movie was about.”

“Me neither.” Sinb mumbled. She was following the plot until she held hands with Sowon when her focus went off into nowhere.

Did friends hold hands like that, with their fingers entwined together? The intimacy of holding hands didn’t make her feel uncomfortable, rather, it was pleasing to hold her hand. Sowon didn’t seem like she minded either since she was the one who took the initiative. Maybe they were just comfortable with each other after being work partners for so long.

Eunha was terrifyingly good at arcade games.

They had decided to stop by a nearby arcade after the movie at Eunha's request. Eunha had said that she needed to take her mind off all the jumpscares she saw back in the theatre, and apparently playing arcade games was the quickest way.

Sinb supported the idea initially. She rarely came to arcades, probably coming only twice in her entire life. Once with Umji as a date, and once in the past with Eunha who decimated her in most of the games there. Now that Sinb was an adult with police training under her belt, she thought she would fare better in the arcade games that require fast reactions.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Eunha was still a goddess at arcade games and she trashed Sinb and Sowon in all the games they played thus far. She even won in a shooting game, which didn’t make any sense to Sinb when she was a literal detective who went through shooting courses. Sowon graduated at the top of her shooting class and she also lost, to her confusion.

There was also a basketball throwing game, and Sinb had to avoid this particular game as her shoulder was sore from a recent injury in the field. However, she had full faith in Sowon to win against Eunha because of her advantageous height and Eunha was horrendous at sports.

Sinb was let down in the most comical way when Sowon tossed a basketball and it promptly bounced off the hoop and smacked her in the face. Her team leader gave up and squatted down to the floor while covering her face, too embarrassed to continue throwing. So Eunha won that game, too.

Needless to say, both Sinb and Sowon’s pride took a beating at how easily Eunha was beating them. Sinb had one last hope to squeeze a win against her arcade-maniac childhood friend.

“Tekken! We’re playing Tekken!” she dragged Eunha and Sowon by their hands to the fighting game, and they followed her without a protest. “Unnie, I swear I can beat you in this. I’m a Tekken god.”

When she came to an arcade with Umji, she did great at the fighting game. Sinb beat her almost every time except when she lost on purpose so that Umji wouldn’t be so sulky. To say the truth, Sinb had no idea what she was doing when she played Tekken—she just smashed buttons and somehow she would win. She was going to rely on that luck to beat Eunha.

“Tekken god?” Eunha raised an eyebrow as Sinb dumped her on one of the seats. “You really want to play that?”

Sinb nodded eagerly. Her childhood friend grinned at that, and she grabbed Sinb’s wrist before she could go sit at the opposite machine. “You think you can win?”

“Of course! I’m good at Tekken.”

“Want to have a loser's penalty?”

Sinb didn’t quite like how Eunha was smirking, like she knew she was going to win. But she had confidence in her button mashing, and besides, Eunha didn’t play Tekken to her knowledge. “Sure.”

“Sinb…” Sowon lacked the same confidence, her voice laced with doubt begging her to not to agree to a penalty.

“Trust me, Sowon-unnie.”

“Okay, loser has to act cute to the winner and up to her until the winner’s satisfied,” Eunha said, her smug grin still on her face. Sinb rolled her eyes at what she wanted. She always wanted Sinb to be more affectionate and be cute towards her, something about how she missed young Sinb, who was a ball of cuteness.

“That’s unfair, you’re always cute.” Sinb huffed, and when Eunha’s grin seemed to grow even wider, she corrected her words. “I mean, you’re always trying to act cute.”

“Fine. If I lose, you can ask me to do anything you want.”

Sinb blinked. “Anything?”

“Yep! You’re not going to win, anyway,” Eunha said as she held the joystick and rested her hand on the buttons. She navigated the game menu with ease, starting up a new two-player match. “Still want to go through with the penalty?”

Her haughty actions rose Sinb’s competitive streak, and she hurried to the other machine. “Watch me kick your !”

Sowon hovered by her side, preferring to watch her screen than her soulmate’s. She knew her team leader was rooting for her to win even if she didn’t say it out loud.

They selected their characters and Sinb randomly picked the strongest looking one. The moment the game started, her fingers spammed the buttons like she had a vendetta against them, eyes fixed on the healthbars.

For a moment, Eunha’s healthbar dipped from her attack into the yellow range. Sinb’s confidence grew as she pummelled the opposing character. Then, the turn tables flipped when Eunha’s character started executing moves she had never seen in her life, knocking her health bar down into nothing.

Sinb stared with open as the words “YOU LOSE” showed on the screen, mind barely processing what just happened. Sowon rubbed her shoulders with a sympathetic sigh. “She’s too good. We’re commoners compared to her.”

Eunha did a happy skip as she walked over to her. Sinb dropped her head on the machine, regretting her every decision. “My cute Sinb, please fulfill your penalty!”

“I don’t want to,” she sulked.

A weight settled against her body as Eunha wrapped her arms around her, whining into her ears. “You never go back on your words!”

When Sinb remained immobile, Eunha started to blow air into her sensitive ear, and she jerked up in response. “Ah—okay, unnie, I’ll do it!”

Eunha removed her arms from her, stepping back next to Sowon. Sinb got up from the chair with reluctance.

“Unnie, have you seen Sinb acting cute before?”

“No, I haven’t. She doesn’t need to act cute when she has a natural cuteness in her daily life. Like you.”

“Why are you such a smooth talker?”

She coughed on purpose. “Excuse me, I am not an adorable person. I’m a beast, a tiger—”

“More like a feisty kitten,” Eunha interrupted, and Sinb pouted. “Oh, are you starting already?”

Might as well get this over with. She puffed out her cheeks and gritted out in the most nasally, cutest voice she could muster, “I’m not cute, Eunha-unnie!”

Sowon was gaping like a fish at her, frozen in place while Eunha squealed. “Say Ttinb.”

God, Sinb wanted to dig herself into a hole. She couldn’t believe Eunha would bring up the old nickname she gave her when they were younger, when Sinb went around referring herself as that weird name. She took a deep breath and flashed her brightest smile. “Ttinb is not cute.”

Eunha hugged her, and Sinb almost lost her balance from the sudden move. “You’re the cutest in my eyes,” she muttered under her breath, a quiet voice that made Sinb wondered if she imagined her saying that. Eunha then kissed her cheek, lips pressing softly, and let her go.

“You pass!” She gave her a thumbs up, but Sinb’s mind was just static noise. Her cheek burned at where Eunha had kissed her, and she could honestly combust into flames in any second. Eunha was affectionate, but she rarely kissed as a form of skinship. And should she really be kissing people on the cheek right in front of her soulmate?

Sinb checked Sowon’s reaction, and she swallowed her nervousness down when she approached her.

“You have lipstick on your cheek.” Sowon pointed out with an amused look on her face. Then, she gently rubbed Sinb’s cheek to rid the mark, giving it a fond pat afterwards. “You’re adorable.”

“T-Thanks?” Sinb dumbly replied. Eunha and Sowon were the weirdest pair of soulmates, probably trumping Yuju and Yerin. They were both so touchy and dropped compliments that were borderline flirtatious to her on a constant basis.

“Sinb, why don’t you go against Sowon-unnie?” Eunha suggested, and Sinb latched onto the new challenge.

“With the same penalty?”

“I’ve never played before,” Sowon blurted out in a panic. “I don’t even know the controls.”

Eunha hooked her arm around Sowon’s, guiding her to the chair. “I’ll teach you. Sinb doesn’t know the controls either, she just smashes them.”

Sinb felt called out. “I know the controls! And let’s ditch the penalty. I don’t want to risk my life again.” If Eunha was going to help her soulmate, there was a high chance she could lose.

One match later, Sinb was relieved that they chose to not have a penalty because she lost to Sowon. She slumped in the chair and crossed her arms, sulking like a petulant child. “I don’t want to play anymore,” she mumbled.

“Go one more round with Sowon-unnie,” Eunha urged, and she gave Sinb a wink.

“I’ll just lose again.” She shook her head and continued pouting..

In the end, Sinb got coerced into going another round. Eunha seemed to be plotting something, leaning close to Sowon as the game started. She kept an eye on them, changing her usual smashing button tactic to a more careful approach.

Sowon barely got one attack in before she heard a yelp from her. “Hey! Eunha, don’t—” She burst into an uncharacteristic fit of giggles as Eunha tickled her sides to sabotage her. Sowon took her hands off the controls to stop Eunha, and they batted their hands at each other, laughing as they did so.

Sinb halted her own movements as she watched them, an unpleasant bitterness building in her. went dry as the soulmate pair were off in their own world, one where she couldn’t intrude in. But why did she long to be a part of their little bubble? To be included in their small private moment, where Eunha is laughing so brightly as a flustered Sowon struggles to handle her.

Am I jealous? She forced herself to look away from them, absent-mindedly controlling her character to beat Sowon’s unmoving one. If I’m jealous, then why do I not hate Sowon-unnie?

Sinb didn’t understand her own confusing feelings. So, she did what she knew best. Bottle it up, stuff it in a chest, and hide it in the darkest corner of her mind where she didn’t have to think about it.

The three of them were all dead tired after going out for so long, so after the arcade, Sowon suggested to have a simple dinner at Eunha and Sinb’s apartment. Eunha insisted on getting a cake for Sowon—despite her soulmate’s protest—and she forced her to wear a party hat with giraffe prints.

Even as they lounged on the sofa after eating dinner and the cake, Sowon was still donning the hat. It made her look ridiculously cute, and Sinb ended up taking a few secret pictures of her when she was unaware. They were currently letting the television play in the background as they did their own things. Sowon was going to leave soon, after idling for a while more.

Sinb hissed when she moved her arm and her right shoulder ached in response, garnering concerned looks from the soulmate pair. Her muscles felt pinched together, her previous muscle strain probably aggravated by the activities she did throughout the day. It wasn’t anything to be concerned over.

“Just sore,” Sinb said to placate Eunha and Sowon’s worries, reaching over her own neck to rub at it.

Eunha waved her over. “Come here, I’ll massage it.”

She obeyed Eunha’s order, knowing better than to reject her help. Besides, the massage sounded great. Sowon moved away from Eunha’s side so that Sinb could settle beside her, with her back facing towards Eunha and her legs crossed on the sofa. She felt a tug on her shirt.

“Take it off,” Eunha demanded, which made her choke on her saliva. Her eyes immediately went to Sowon, who had shifted to the spot beside Sinb. She wasn’t ashamed of showing her body if it was just Eunha here, but something about having Sowon right in front of her made her hesitant.

“Is that really necessary?” she asked. “Do it with my shirt on.”

Sinb thought that Eunha would push her to take her shirt off, but she thankfully didn’t. Her hands rested on her shoulders, massaging the knots in her muscles. She let out a sigh and closed her eyes, relaxing immediately. Eunha was great at massages. She knew the perfect amount of pressure to put to help relieve the tension she felt, and she always helped Sinb whenever she was sore from trainings or fieldwork.

She daydreamed as Eunha continued to massage her, until Sowon received a call. Sinb opened her eyes just as Sowon ripped the party hat off her head and stood up from the sofa. She stared at her phone as it vibrated in her hands, falling open slightly. Then, she excused herself and rushed to the kitchen to pick up the call.

Sinb found the remote sitting on the arm rest of the sofa and lowered the televisions’ volume, sensing that it was important. The kitchen and living room were a joint open space, so Sowon's voice carried over and they heard her conversation.

“Father?”

Both Sinb and Eunha tensed when they realised who was on the phone, and Eunha halted her massaging. Over the months, they learnt that while Sowon loved her father immensely, her father did not seem to bear the same sentiment towards her. They loathed the cold treatment she received from him. There were countless times Sowon would speak to her father over the phone, only to be disappointed when he would talk solely about work-related topics like a supervisor would.

Sowon paced in the kitchen as she listened to her father, and she came to a sudden stop with a confused frown. “Yes, I ate dinner,” she spoke with hesitation in her voice, like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

A brief pause as Sowon listened to his reply. When he finished, Sowon’s eyes widened and she rested her hand on the kitchen’s counter, gripping it tightly. “Thank you. Have…have a good night too.”

Sinb turned to Eunha who was just as uncertain as her, because Sowon was happy, her voice taking a lighter tone. Which was the first time they had seen her that way after a call from her father.

When Sowon came back to the sofa, she was eyeing her phone with a look of awe on her face. Sinb thought that her father didn’t act like an for once, until she rubbed her eyes hastily with her arm. Never mind, she’s crying. I’m going to hunt that man down.

Eunha reacted in an instant, pulling her down to the sofa to squish her between them. Sinb shifted to give her space to sit, and she pressed close to her.

“Th-this is happy tears, I swear.” Sowon mumbled, but who could believe her when her chest was heaving with sobs? Eunha shushed her, curling an arm around her waist and wiping her tears off.

“He,” Sowon seemed determined to get her words out, speaking in a rush, “wished me a happy birthday. I…I never thought he could remember the date I was born.”

Sinb’s heart clenched at her words, her hatred towards Sowon’s father rising even further. He didn’t deserve Sowon as his daughter, not when the bare minimum a good parent should do sent Sowon into tears.

“I know it’s stupid. Here I am, a 29-year old adult, crying over a birthday wish from her father.”

“It’s not stupid,” Eunha interjected before Sowon could demean herself further. “Just because you’re an adult doesn’t mean you can’t seek your parent’s love, or appreciate your birthday.”

What’s stupid is your father’s neglect, Sinb thought, but she bit her words back. Instead, she gave a comforting squeeze to Sowon’s arm, offering a silent comfort.

Sowon gave her a shaky smile at the gesture, letting out a sigh that seemed to lift all the weight off her shoulders. “ I think today has been the most memorable birthday of my life. I don’t know what I would do without both of you in my life, so really, thank you.”

Sinb felt her heartbeat stutter at Sowon’s heartfelt words, registering how her team leader said both of you. Both of them. Sowon said it with so much ease, as if she would always consider Sinb as part and parcel of her life. Eunha—Eunha was Sowon’s soulmate. It was a given she would always be part of Sowon’s life.

But what was she to her? What did she even wish she could be to Sowon?