when it started

joohyun has been staring at her call logs for two minutes before she drops her phone and releases a loud exhale.

it's been three days now. seulgi hasn't called her yet again.

she's been constantly seeing her soulmate these past two months to chat and eat out. after that unplanned shower-visit from weeks ago, most of their meet-ups are spent within her apartment's confines, accompanied by the warm mugs of chocotea.

joohyun prefers it that way. it's safer for the two of them.

not that they are doing something mean or immoral. as far as her memory goes, they have been plain friends. and despite the apparent growing tension between them, they have never done anything sensual even if they had been alone several times in her apartment.

which proves how clear the boundaries are between them.

but it has been three days now since she last heard from her soulmate. seulgi has never been this silent in the course of their so-called friendship.

joohyun wonders what happened.

they don't talk through sms or instant messaging. it's seulgi who always calls first.

they never agreed to it. it's implied that they have to be careful not to raise any suspicion.

but this total silence from seulgi is weird. it's killing joohyun.

does seulgi want them to stop whatever it is they are having?

she could have at least told joohyun, right?

or has eunae found out already?

joohyun shudders at the thought.

knowing this won't let her rest, she decides to take action.

---

"miss joohyun?" eunae says on the other line. "good evening."

"hey. um. good evening." joohyun scratches the side of her neck. "i'm sorry for calling at this hour. i hope it's not a bad timing?"

"no. it's totally fine. we just had dinner."

we. joohyun breathes in.

"um. i was finalizing some reports and wondered if you've received the email i sent you?" joohyun asks.

"oh. i haven't looked at it. do you need my input on something?"

"i have a few recommendations about some assets we can sell and obtain. will need you to review that and approve so i can implement the changes tomorrow morning."

"ah. it's okay. you can proceed with whatever you think is right. i trust your skills, miss joohyun."

joohyun smiles. "i see. thank you. sure, i'll proceed with those recommendations, but i will still need you to respond to that email as confirmation."

"i surely will," eunae confirms, then a sigh follows. "i'm sorry if i haven't been able to look at my emails. it's been hectic these past few days."

that's the window joohyun's been waiting for. "same here. i hope everything's okay with you and your wife?"

"yeah. well, i took leave from work. seulgi's been sick."

"what?" joohyun shifts the phone to her other hand. "is she okay? do you need help with anything?"

eunae chuckles. "you're so cute, miss joohyun. thank you. but seulgi's fine. she caught chickenpox and would need to stay at home for ten to fourteen days."

"chickenpox? at her age?"

"yeah. she never had one before. we initially thought it was flu, but the spots appeared the day after. i caught it when i was a kid so i'm immune to her now. i had to take a leave from work as the doctor advised for the passengers' safety."

so, that was the reason seulgi wasn't calling her. eunae's probably by her side always.

"i see. well, you should stay home so you can look after seulgi."

"yeah. and seulgi's always acting like a baby when she's not feeling well."

there's this urge inside joohyun that wants to take care of the sick seulgi too.

"i suppose i'll leave you to that. you can call me if anything urgent arises, okay?" joohyun says.

"sure. thank you for checking in, miss joohyun. i'll send you that confirmation either tonight or tomorrow morning."

"gotcha. have a great evening to you and seulgi. i hope she gets well soon."

---

"why does bae joohyun looks like she has dysmenorrhea?"

joohyun looks up from her phone to glare at seungwan who's standing on the side of her table, holding a coffee. "what the hell are you saying, seungwan?"

"not on your period?"

"not."

"what is it then? why do you look like you're plotting to murder someone tonight?"

shaking her head, joohyun reclines on her chair and sighs.

"ooh. has miss soulmate disappeared again?" seungwan sips from her coffee.

"no. it's not like that. she's... sick."

seungwan almost spits her coffee out. "what! she's dying???"

"no, she's not!" joohyun pushes herself up, realizing she raised her voice a bit. "she... she caught chickenpox," she whispers.

"chickenpox? awe. your soulmate's still a baby, huh?"

joohyun snorts.

"you miss her, don't you?"

joohyun doesn't answer.

miss? that's an understatement. she's been longing, craving, and yearning for her soulmate's presence.

joohyun relaxes back on her chair, hands clasped on her tummy. "i got scared actually. i thought i lost her again." she inhales. "i'm already used to her calling me daily even for a quick catch up, just to say hi and ask about my day. but when she suddenly disappeared, i felt frightened. i don't think i can handle any more of what happened when we first ignored each other."

seungwan hums, smirking.

"what?" joohyun asks.

"did it ever cross your mind that maybe you've already fallen for your soulmate?"

joohyun let's out a dry laugh, ignoring the butterflies in her stomach. "what are you saying?"

"i am saying that you are blushing." seungwan gestures a hand to her.

"it's just hot." joohyun fans herself with a hand.

"whatever." seungwan sips from her coffee again. "you know what, i'm actually amazed and disappointed at the fact that you two have not ed each other yet. what are you guys waiting for?"

"what the hell are you saying, seungwan?"

"you've already said the same thing for like three times now, joohyun. 'what are you saying?' or 'what the hell are you saying, seungwan?'," seungwan mimics joohyun's voice with a funny expression on her face.

"seulgi and i are not like that. we're just friends. and she's married, for pete's sake."

"right. friends my . and don't talk like not a lot of people nowadays are cheating on their spouses."

joohyun glares at the other woman.

"why don't you just accept it? it's inevitable," seungwan says. "it was written in the stars by the spirits themselves. no matter what you do, you two will fall in love with each other."

it sounds romantic and dreamy, joohyun thinks. but has she already fallen for seulgi?

maybe, or maybe not.

or maybe she's not acknowledging the feeling yet knowing it will lead to problems.

is there a chance seulgi's feeling the same way now?

seungwan's voice disturbs her train of thoughts. "no matter how hard you try, sooner or later, you two won't be able to fight it. if it's the spirits who fated it. no one can go against it."

"wow. thank you for that enlightenment, shaman seungwan."

"at your service, child." seungwan bows.

joohyun chuckles, ending it with a loud sigh. "i don't know anymore. seulgi and i are trying to bend the rules here. who knows, maybe we can go around fate."

"hmm." seungwan sips her coffee silently before she speaks, "i don't know about that. all i know is no one has ever ditched fate. i tell you, there are no other options but to embrace it with wide arms."

"aren't you too supportive of me for an ex-girlfriend?"

"eh. what should i do? curse the spirits?"

with a smile, joohyun shakes her head. she takes another deep breath and looks away.

how she wishes it was easy as it sounds.

because embracing her fate would not affect her or seulgi's lives alone.

it would mean leaving a dent in eunae's life too.