Sorry for taking a while to update! I've been busy with life in general but I'm still working on future updates, thanks for waiting ❤

A month later.

Change was inevitable as time passed, waiting for no one. The “leaders” in town were looking forward to somehow expanding their home, perhaps further down the road or on the beach. There hadn’t been another mission since the last prison infiltration, all of them wanting to stay low for the time being until heat died down and the government wasn’t witch hunting. But still, they wanted to continue saving those still trapped. At this point, no one was sure whether or not the world would recover from this madness. It’s been almost a year since everything started, even though it felt like only days had passed. Just the realization of this was surreal enough in itself. Who would’ve thought that, in a modern world, this kind of madness would be unfolding. New Years was right around the corner, but constant cloudiness only served to dampen the mood. To lighten that, Ruann decided to host some evening fireworks displays, hoping the temperature would allow for it. After checking the weather, Zoa suggested they light up some bonfires to help with out-door heating. At the moment, Jihan and Jaehee were hanging out with Ruann and some friends at the elementary school, chilling with some board games. Meanwhile, Zoa was working alongside May and Jisung to find some sort of signal, hoping to come in contact with kids like them. With the military still dealing with their internal problems, things should be easier at least for a little while. On the other hand, Monday and Jiyoon were fixing up another car at the garage. It’d been not as hectic the last few days, so now everyone could do whatever they wanted at the moment. Even better, this also marked a month since the two had been dating and taking things slow.

“Do you think pudding would mix well with Lays?” Jiyoon randomly questioned right after replacing a tire, making Monday chuckle. Because these types of moments occurred so often, she couldn’t help but take a liking towards it. 

“And you’re asking me this because?” 

“It’s an important question. The puddings that Jihan had brought along during the RV trip were really good, so I’m thinking, since sweet and salty stuff are the best combination ever, Lays and pudding would be immaculate.”

“Well, we’ll see about that when we get home.”

“You wanna try it with me?” Jiyoon asked, full of hope as her puppy eyes practically sparkled. 

“Sure, maybe just a tiny bit.” 

She practically squealed before wrapping her arms around Monday’s neck, tightly embracing her. “Yaaay! No one’s ever wanted to try stuff with me until now, so thank you.” Her voice muffled in her shoulder.

Jiyoon seemed very happy about it, which made Monday feel content as well while rubbing the girl’s back. “Of course. No problem at all.” They stayed like that for several seconds, just enjoying the moment before separating, then gazed at each other. How cute. Monday thought to herself while getting lost in Jiyoon’s eyes. 

She smiled, reaching up to gently wipe a smudge of dirt from the younger’s cheek. “So um, the car’s just about done now. We can test it tomorrow, if you want.” 

“Yep, that’s the plan.” 

“Oh hey, wanna head to the roller skating rink? I just want to go backstage and play some songs, but you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.” 

“It’s alright, I’ll come along.” Because you’re adorable.  

“Let’s go!” Jiyoon smiled even wider then held her hand, wasting no time to head there. But while on the way, Monday began shivering from the freezing air, which didn't go unnoticed by Jiyoon. She immediately wrapped her arms around the taller girl, instantly warming her up.

Monday chuckled. "Thanks! I really needed that." Jiyoon smiled and blushed. Thankfully, it didn’t take long to finally arrive inside, the heaters as numerous kids were hanging out inside. Several of them noticed the two, not hesitating to greet them as they both head backstage, their instruments safely kept in lockers. After ping the cases, Monday tuned her guitar first before strumming it, mindlessly playing something catchy as Jiyoon joined in. 

“Huh, even a little over twenty years later, this thing is still well kept and intact.” 

“Yeah, they truly last forever if taken care of.” She smiled while agreeing. “I’m thinking of a slow, calming song about love. You know, those kinds of cheesy, romantic ones.” 

Monday laughed. “Sure, we can go with that.” They then spend the next hour or so coming up with lyrics on their phones, jotting down music notes, and so on. It was thoroughly more enjoyable when they started to get somewhere, feeling like this could definitely be a hit. The two harmonized numerous times, testing how it would play out with just the right pitches and slowly, everything came together in the end. After recording with their phones, Jiyoon was overjoyed by how enchanting the song sounded. The girls were going to freak when they heard this. Monday took the liberty to try and sing it fully live while strumming her guitar. Taking some gentle coughs and a deep breath, she began.

Oh~ 

You don’t know, baby, when you hold me and kiss me slowly, it’s the sweetest thing~

And it don’t change, if I had it my way. You would know that you are~

You’re the coffee that I need in the morning, you’re my sunshine in the rain when it’s pouring.

Would you give yourself to me? Give it all~

I just wanna see, I just wanna see how beautiful you are. You know that I see it, I know you’re a star. Where you go, I follow, no matter how far. If life is a movie, oh you’re the best part~

Hmm, you’re the best part.

Hmm…best part~

Monday sang the last line while gazing at Jiyoon, who almost teared up because of how beautiful she looked. “That was really beautiful….” The older girl muttered softly, having no other ways to describe it. 

“Thanks. i-it was…for you.” Monday nervously responded, instantly feeling too shy to gaze back at Jiyoon. She was definitely going to cherish this forever.

“I love it very much, thank you.” The two stayed there until the firework show started, just singing together and alternating to different covers for fun. It almost felt like destiny since they both had a lot of things in common: loved music, were equally chaotic crackheads, had the best sense of humor, always said the weirdest things at the most random times, could draw better than professional artists, and many many more. They were just perfect for each other overall, no one could argue otherwise. So tonight, Monday planned to show that it was all worthwhile.

Through the speakers, the firework show was finally beginning at last, with everyone gathering at the beach as some were still setting up. Lucy and Jisung directed all of them carefully and helped prepare so then a freak accident wouldn’t happen. While kids waited patiently by chatting all around, the girls finally arrived, except for Monday and Jiyoon, who opted to stay at a safe distance and sat on the hood of a car. Soeun and Soojin were holding hands while Jihan and Jaehee linked arms, anticipating. Zoa stood on the side with May, both huddled together near a bonfire to fight off the bitter cold. Ten minutes later, Ruann appeared before the audience on a tall platform, announcing that the first rounds were ready for launch. Everyone cheered on before taking out their phones to record this epic moment. Then, with a suspenseful countdown, fireworks shot into the sky and exploded with beautiful colors. This was certainly one of the best ways to celebrate the New Years. Pretty soon, more fireworks erupted, but there were many that varied in different, unique shapes to form iconic characters from movies, games, TV shows, etc. The audience considered themselves lucky for being able to have this moment and still have fun despite their world falling apart. It gave a sense of hope that maybe things will change for the best in the future. For months, stress and terror rained down on them, but tonight dragged them away from that. They couldn’t be happier to be here.

In the distance, Jiyoon admired the fireworks, being absolutely speechless. “This is so cool…I never thought I’d be able to see this again.” 

“Me, too. The usual New Years would’ve definitely been crazier than this.” 

“Oh absolutely.” She laughed along while agreeing. “I could imagine myself and my school friends building snowmen, then using the heads for snow ball fighting.” 

“That would’ve been really fun.”

“Mhm! By the way, do you think we would’ve met? If…all of this didn’t happen?” 

“Hm…I’m not sure.” Monday couldn't imagine it at all, but it was unfortunately true: the chances of her meeting Jiyoon before this were unlikely.

“I always wished that everything didn’t escalate out of hand, but then it’d be horrible to not know you and the girls. Had it not been for the world collapsing, I wouldn’t have met any of you.”

“Yeah, I get that. And it’s ok to be afraid, like sometimes, I wished to go back in time and you know, start all over.” 

“It really we have to even say that….”

Monday stayed silent, before speaking. “Life is just built that way, unfortunately. But that’s how we learn to grow stronger. We experience good and bad stuff, then learn from it.”

Jiyoon pondered on, before agreeing. “That’s true. It really determines who you are as a human being.”

“Exactly. We may be living in this hole world right now, but it’s always possible for us to change it, which is what I’m looking forward to.” 

“You’re right!” She smiled. “We’ll change it together.”

After the rant, they both continued watching further in silence for a few seconds, until Monday spoke up once more. “You know, um…we’ve been sort of dating since last month, so I was thinking…I’m ready to be official.” Jiyoon’s heart rate drastically increased as she slowly smiled.

“I was actually thinking the same, I just didn’t know when to bring it up.” 

“Oh, well that’s great! I’m really glad I’m not the only one.” 

The two broke into laughter before intertwining their hands. “To us.” The older girl slowly leaned in with Monday quickly following.

“To us.” Then they kissed right as more fireworks exploded in bright rainbow colors. Things felt like it was getting much better for them.