"This will be your training schedule for the whole month, and we will have a practice game with the other school after that," Yeji sternly said to the members of the basketball club.

She's standing in the middle of the court beside a whiteboard showing their schedules. The coach who rarely shows up is spectating at the side, and the ten players are sitting on the floor listening intently at the announcement.

Chaeryeong stood up from her seat and joined Yeji at the front to talk about their routines at practice. Chaeryeong's the team captain, she's well respected because of her outstanding leadership skills, and her dream is to make it Nationals with her team.

Ryujin, on the other hand, is the opposite of Chaeryeong— she doesn't care about recognition; Ryujin just wanted to join the basketball team because she's good at it. Many sports clubs had already tried to scout her, but she decided to join the basketball team because the cheerleaders practiced inside the same gigantic gymnasium. Choi Lia's part of the cheerleading squad, and Ryujin desperately wants to gain her attention.

After the quick meeting, the players gathered at the court to start their afternoon practice. Ryujin sat in one of the benches at the court's side beside Yeji, who was attentively watching practice. Ryujin drinks her bottle of soda, earning her an earful of Yeji's nagging.

"You should hydrate properly. I told you so many times to drink this and not that carbonated one," she passed Ryujin a bottle of water.

Ryujin just sighed while accepting the drink. "Okay, okay," she murmured as she glanced at Yeji and looked towards the older's line of sight.

"You're whipped as hell, aren't you?" Ryujin teased. Yeji was startled by Ryujin's remarks.

"What??!" Yeji felt warmth on her cheeks with the realization of what Ryujin meant.

"You're too obvious, you know. Then again, Chaeryeong's too dumb to notice." she continued and stood up, removing the towel wrapped around her neck.

"After practice, in the usual place?" Ryujin said without looking at Yeji as she turned to the group of players to start practicing.

"Okay," she answered.

Yeji knew what that meant. She's been secretly meeting Ryujin after the practice— it started a few weeks after Ryujin joined the basketball club. Ryujin was the first to notice her big fat crush on Chaeryeong, and Ryujin admitted that she joined the team because of Lia.

Since then, they became each other's confidant and one day, Yeji became a bit too curious and decided to try something new.




 

("It's funny how unfortunate we are, you know?" Ryujin chuckled, "What are the odds that both of our love interests have a thing for each other?"

"They are not together yet," Yeji objected, trying to be optimistic.

"I know... I should step up my game, and so should you," Ryujin suggested. Yeji suddenly became quiet.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while inside this small storage room, wiping down the basketballs and sitting on the ground.

"Can you kiss me?" Yeji asked all of a sudden. Ryujin's eyes widened at the words Yeji just said.

Maybe it was a slip of the tongue, but Yeji was curious and wanted to know how it would feel.

"You can think of me as Lia, and I'll think of you as Chaeryeong. No feelings involved." Yeji continued as she looked closely at Ryujin, who was now facing her.

"Deal."

And so, Ryujin leaned closer, landing her lips against the older's. Yeji closed her eyes upon feeling the soft lips of the short-haired girl. She thought of Chaeryeong, imagining that she was the one kissing her. Her heart pounds hard, and she feels her face start to heat up.

It was intoxicating.

They pulled away when they ran out of breath. Yeji found herself panting at the lack of oxygen.

"You should breathe," Ryujin teased while looking at the flushed face of Yeji.

"How would I know when I should breathe, you should've told me." Yeji retorted.

"Okay, let's do it again.")


 

~


 

After the practice, the players gathered at the benches to pack their things, preparing to go home. Chaeryeong approached Yeji while everyone was busy.

"Yeji, you want to walk home together?" Chaeryeong offered since they are neighbours, but the two childhood friends stopped walking home together ever since Chaeryeong started to stick with Lia all the time.

Yeji was surprised by the sudden question. "Why? Where's Lia?" the words fell out of without thinking. Chaeryeong became suddenly flustered with the mention of Lia's name, and her face started to blush.

"She's staying at her friend's house today, so I can't walk her home today," Chaeryeong admitted.

Yeji gripped the sling of her bag, still thinking about her decision. She promised Ryujin that they would meet up after practice. Yeji's eyes wandered at the group behind Chaeryeong and saw Ryujin looking at her and gave her a nod as if she's permitting her to go with Chaeryeong today. She felt happy seeing Ryujin's gesture, and she immediately accepted Chaeryeong's offer.

Yeji quickly sent a message to Ryujin before going home with Chaeryeong.



 

                                                                   YJ:
Thank you for today! Lia will be going to her friend's house. Maybe this is your chance to talk to her. :))

RJ: Alright, I'll try. But Don't ruin your chance. :P



 

Yeji chuckled at the remark, and she returned her mobile phone inside her sling bag. Chaeryeong grinned after seeing Yeji smile.

"It's been a while since I've seen your smile," the younger girl said, noticing the bright expression on her face. Yeji became silent, and all she could hear was the sound of their footsteps.

"Ah yes, It's also been a while since we last walked home together," Yeji reminisced.

It was easy for Yeji to fall in love with Chaeryeong. They've been neighbours since she was ten, and Chaeryeong has been helping her adjust to her new town when she first moved into her house.

But Chaeryeong only sees her as a family.

Chaeryeong left pats on her head, making her break from her thoughts. It was the younger's habit to pat her head when she feels sulky or down— even though Yeji's older than her.

"Why is our Yeji sulking? Don't worry. I'll come visit this weekend." Chaeryeong reassured the pouting girl and gave her a warm smile.

Yeji felt her cheeks burning and looked away to hide her flushed face. She's mentally cursing herself for feeling flustered with the sight of the younger's lips.

They parted when they arrived at Yeji's home. She made her way to her room and heard her phone beep. She picked it up and saw one unread message from Ryujin.


 

RJ: Can I come over right now?

Yeji stared at the message. She knew something unpleasant must've happened between Ryujin and Lia.

YJ: Yeah, sure you can. I just arrived.


 

As soon as she sent the message, she heard the doorbell ring. She hurriedly went down and let Ryujin in— who looked extremely tired. Yeji guided her into her room and let her sit on the bed.

Ryujin is the first person— other than Chaeryeong— who has entered Yeji's bedroom.

The short-haired girl broke the silence with a question, "So, how was your walk with Chaeryeong?"

"I think it went well, we talked a bit, and we did some catching." Yeji's usually the kind of person who keeps things private and rarely opens up to people, but she felt comfortable telling these things to Ryujin.

"Hmmm, that's great. You're one step ahead of me then," Ryujin chuckled silently.

Yeji noticed the hint of sadness in the Ryujin's words. She met the latter's sad eyes, and in an instant, Yeji felt a warm hand on her cheek and soft lips crashing against hers.

Out of habit, she kissed back, closing her eyes. It was passionate, yet sloppy as if Ryujin had been craving for her lips. Ryujin slightly leaned back against the bed's surface— the younger girl trailed her hands from Yeji's neck down to her waist.

Yeji couldn't think straight— they haven't done anything beyond a simple kiss.

When she felt Ryujin's hands slid inside her shirt, she held Ryujin's hand, stopping the younger girl from going any further. Ryujin immediately pulled away from the kiss, embarrassed, and sat up, realizing where her hands had been roaming.

"I-I'm really sorry. I just got caught up in the moment," Ryujin stuttered as she ran her hands through her hair.

Yeji fixed her shirt then sat up. She felt her heart beating normally again after the heated kiss a while ago.

"It's okay. You know, you can tell me everything." Yeji is eager to help Ryujin, the way Ryujin helped her—repeatedly by listening to her with the same Chaeryeong problems.

She saw the heavy sigh Ryujin released in response.

"I'm in love with her," Ryujin started. "I'm in love with her even though I know she's not good for me. And right now, it feels like I'm going nowhere with her."

Yeji comforted Ryujin in a tight hug patting her back. Yeji might not understand everything, but she knew that Ryujin was suffering just as much as she was with this one-sided love they have for other people.

They had the same sentiment, same need, and same situation.

They're both lost stars, just trying to keep each other warm.
 

"We'll be fine, Ryujin. We'll be fine as long as we have each other."