100th day

"hyunnie, hurry up. we don't want to miss the bus this morning."

joohyun smiles in the middle of brushing her teeth. seulgi sounds too excited. well, couldn't blame her. even joohyun herself is ecstatic. today happens to be the first time the two of them will go out on a trip together--to celebrate their one-hundredth day.

yup. one-hundredth day.

yes, joohyun thinks they are too old for that. but how can she not agree if it's seulgi who's eager to celebrate it together and have planned everything ahead of time?

besides, this will be the first time joohyun will go hiking. with seulgi guiding her along, she's looking forward to this new experience.

joohyun steps out of the bathroom and sees seulgi in her hiking attire; zip-off nylon pants, hiking boots, and an orange rain jacket. then her eyes dart towards the tall gray bag sitting on the couch.

"are we seriously hiking a mountain today with that on your back?" she asks, closing in to inspect the said bag. "it looks heavier than me."

there was a chuckle before seulgi places her arm around joohyun's shoulders. "don't worry. it's less than sixty liters. it only looks bulky because of the tent, food, water, and the cooking wares but it'll be lighter tomorrow once we descend."

"maybe you can put some in my bag so we can lighten up your load?" joohyun gestures to her newly-bought purple hiking bag that's half the size of seulgi's.

"no need. just bring extra clothes and a blanket. that would be enough."

"or maybe we should just drive there instead so you won't have to carry that to the bus station."

seulgi shakes her head. "i told you, it won't be fun if we drive there. i want you to experience the whole journey with me sitting next to you."

it sounds cheesy, but joohyun finds herself smiling. seulgi pulls her in for a hug and kisses her forehead. they stood there in silence, feeling each other's warmth.

joohyun pulls back to look at her lover. "won't eunae... find it weird... you're going out to hike... alone?" she asks, kissing seulgi in between her phrases.

"she won't." seulgi's hands travel to fix joohyun's jacket. "i do this regularly, once or twice a year, to think and just reflect. i usually schedule it if she has longer overlays. i'm just glad this day landed perfectly on our little celebration. perfect timing to bring you along."

"have you tried bringing her before with you?"

"once. but she didn't enjoy it. i decided never to bring her again." after making sure everything's zipped properly, seulgi cups joohyun's face. "shall we?"

"should i be scared? i told you i haven't done this before."

"you already bought the right equipment. you have the right attire. plus, you have me." seulgi taps her chest. "i know that trail like it's the back of my hand. don't worry. we won't get lost. i can even trek that backwards if you want--you know, just for an additional challenge."

joohyun playfully slaps seulgi's arm. "yah! don't do that. i don't want you falling there somewhere."

seulgi grins and quickly kisses joohyun on the cheek. "come on! come on! we don't want to be late!"

---

where could seulgi have been all her life?

the question pops once again in joohyun's head when she sits down to rest as she watches seulgi amble around the camp area, figuring out where to pitch their tent.

she always had secretly admired seulgi's toned body. it's one of the things she enjoys staring at and feeling whenever they make love. but the sight of a sweaty seulgi in a black tank top should never ever be underestimated.

joohyun finds herself her own lips.

it doesn't matter if they are soulmates or not. she's sure if they were given a chance to meet in different circumstances, she'd definitely seduce seulgi.

"are you hungry?"

joohyun blinks, not realizing seulgi is talking to her.

"are you okay? you look hungry," seulgi says. "or are you thirsty?"

well, she may be hungry and thirsty... for something else.

"um. no. i'm fine. just a bit tired from the walk, i guess." joohyun scratches her neck. "you need help there?"

"nah. i'm trying to figure out the direction of the wind, so i can pitch this tent properly." seulgi twists her body away. "and i think it's going this way, so i'll put the tent over here."

"you sure you're okay doing it alone? i can lend a hand."

"all good. just relax there. it'll be sunset in..." seulgi checks her wristwatch. "in about thirty minutes. you better be on standby."

"how is it different from the sunset in the city?" joohyun asks when seulgi proceeds to assemble the poles. "why can't we just watch it from my apartment?"

"you'll find out later," seulgi says. "the best thing and the most magnificent event in every hiking is watching the sun set and rise. i swear, you wouldn't realize how much you're missing in your life until you witness it."

"what?" joohyun gawks. "are you saying we traveled 2.5 hours on bus and trudged our way up here for 3 hours just to witness sunset and sunrise?"

"and maybe have here later?" seulgi gestures to the tent. "you know, for a different experience."

"yah! what if someone hears us?"

"it's a weekday. hikers usually come in packs on weekends. if someone comes in later, they would camp far away from us."

"are you sure? what if they want company?"

seulgi stands up to pull the tent body, threading the poles through the sleeves. "there is a silent rule in mountaineering: always give the other hikers some privacy. they would greet us, but they will not camp here. and honestly, i think, we'll be alone here tonight."

joohyun looks around the area nervously. "isn't that dangerous? what if some bad people attack us, or a wild animal gets into our tent?"

"easy. i'll let the bad people take you away, or i'll feed you to the wild animal."

"yah!" joohyun picks the nearest object in her reach and throws it to seulgi--but fails because it was a dried leaf. "what kind of a girlfriend are you?"

seulgi stops and turns to her. "say that again?"

"huh? what?"

"that thing you said just now. say that again."

confused, joohyun still obeys. "i said what kind of a girlfriend are you?"

seulgi smiles. "awe. that's the first time you called me that."

joohyun raises an eyebrow. "isn't that kind of implied already? i mean, we've exchanged i love you's and has been seeing each other, sleeping with each other. we're even celebrating our 100th day today, aren't we?"

"yeah. it's just that it's nice to hear it coming from you."

joohyun smiles warmly. "come here."

"hm?"

"come here." joohyun raises an arm this time, beckoning her soulmate to come over. "sit here beside me."

"but i gotta--"

"it will be quick, i promise."

seulgi shakes her head, and follows. "you better have no naughty thoughts going over that head of yours."

"you'll see." joohyun giggles. she shifts up to sit on seulgi's lap when the latter drops beside her.

"okay, woman. what are you planning?" seulgi circles her arms around joohyun's waist.

"nothing naughty. i just wanna kiss my girlfriend on top of this mountain."

seulgi hums, their faces an inch apart. "just kiss?"

"well..." joohyun runs her fingers on seulgi's shoulder. "i don't know."

"why are you such a tease?"

"because i know it's working..."

seulgi lets out a chuckle before she closes the gap between their lips. they exchanged kisses for a minute or two and only parted when it feels like they need to take it to the next level.

"can you at least wait until i pitch the tent?" seulgi says. "i know. i want it too. but it'll be cold and itchy later if we're here in the field."

joohyun bites seulgi's lower lip gently. "soulmate time."

"are we still doing that?" seulgi asks as joohyun pulls her lip.

joohyun ends it with a quick peck. "of course!"

"okay. shoot me."

"you stink, but i still love you."

"oh, really?" seulgi chuckles. she leans in, planting kisses on the side of joohyun's neck--one of her weak spots.

"seulgi-yah, stop!"

---

she ends up helping seulgi pitch the tent to make sure they get it set up before the dark.

as the sun sets over the horizon, joohyun couldn't believe what an indeed awe-inspiring experience it is.

she feels tiny compared to her surroundings as she overlooks the miles of scenery from that mountain range. she takes her time to absorb every detail of the nature around her.

it's magical, she thinks. on one side it's already dark; the stars are appearing. on the other side, the sun is still setting. joohyun's starting to feel the warmth of the sun slowly getting replaced by the cold of the night.

how can she take such a magnificent event for granted all her life?

joohyun closes her eyes for a second, soaking her senses in the wind and the warmth and fresh air passing through her lungs.

she's never felt so alive.

---

they cooked and ate dinner, talked more under the stars, and made love that night.

inside the tent, joohyun stares at the sleeping seulgi who's hugging her close, hoping moments like this won't end.

as much as she wants to think this will last forever, seulgi would eventually have to come home to her wife. joohyun will be left again, waiting.

joohyun doesn't know how long she can endure this setup. but she understands that seulgi needs time. she can sense how seulgi's been always careful whenever she talks about her wife or her need to go home. in return, joohyun's trying her best not to show how sad she feels whenever seulgi leaves, or how much it annoys her to think that her soulmate is spending the night with another woman.

joohyun always wishes they could just fast-forward everything, skip the hard part, and get to the place where she and seulgi can live happily ever after.

but it's not that easy.

because even if seulgi breaks it up with eunae, joohyun knows it will hurt her soulmate in the process. she doesn't know how that would affect their relationship.

it's too messy and hard and confusing. even joohyun doesn't know what they need to do.

seulgi suddenly snores, disturbing joohyun's train of thoughts and causing her to silently laugh. she pushes seulgi's chin to close and arranges their position. she nuzzles herself against seulgi's chest, basking in the warmth of her soulmate's jacket and her scent.

she closes her eyes.

maybe she should focus on the present for now so she can enjoy this whole experience. like sooyoung said, perhaps they can leave it up to the spirits to find a way for them to have their happy ending.

for now, she'll cherish this moment with seulgi and will surely make the most out of it.

besides, she's got a sunrise to look forward to tomorrow.