[ Present-day ]

A new week of a new month had started. Jungeun flipped over the calendar to reveal the month of April and its schedule.

Great, she thought. It was Jiwoo and Haseul’s wedding month. Only a few weeks left. The big day was approaching with every second and Jungeun was dreading it.

She had not been in any sort of contact with Haseul for over two weeks now. Ever since the encounter in her car, she had not heard a word from the other woman.

Jiwoo on the other hand wouldn’t stop calling and texting her about the wedding. It was driving Jungeun insane. Did it not occur to her friend she had a life of her own? Jungeun was tired of the midnight texts about the color of her napkins and the size of her bridal bouquet. 

Jiwoo had always been a self-absorbed person. While she was the starring role, Jungeun had been the supporting act throughout the entirety of their friendship. Somehow Jiwoo needed the extra attention to feel good about herself. Jungeun had always given her that, she would do anything for her friend to be happy.

Only now Jungeun wanted some distance. She didn’t want to be thinking about her best friend’s wedding every second of the day. She had her career and things between her and Jinsoul were going well. Jiwoo had no interest in anything other than herself and expected Jungeun to be there for her whenever she needed it.

“Don’t you have your assistant for that?” Jungeun had asked her one day.

“Don’t be silly Jungeun. I need a second opinion of course. There is no one else I can trust,” Jiwoo had spoken.

“What about your fiancé? It seems like Haseul has no part in any of this at all,”

“Haseul trusts me with the arrangements. She knows how important this is to me. Don’t worry Jungie, It is all going to be perfect,” Jiwoo was ecstatic.

Jungeun thought about the last conversation she had with Haseul.

“I wish it could have been different,” Haseul had whispered against Jungeun’s lips.

Jungeun had thought about the words. She wished things were different too but she was not in the position to make any changes now. She had to move on with her life, there was no other solution.

Thinking of the words Haseul had spoken sent shivers down Jungeun’s spine. She wanted to shake it off, but the line of words lingered in her mind.

Entering the office that day she was fully focused on completing her tasks. She knew what she had to do. Wasting no time she dove into her project.

It was a slow day for Jungeun. She finished her work on time. Had a meeting in between and ate with Hyunjin during her lunch break.

Finally the end of the day had approached. Jungeun was meeting Jinsoul for dinner. They had been on a couple of dates and enjoyed each other's company.

Jungeun was looking forward to relaxing after a long day of work. Waving goodbye to all her colleagues working late, she exited the office together with Hyunjin.

“So KJ tell me is it serious between you and Jinsoul?” Hyunjin friend.

Jungeun thought for a moment. She really enjoyed Jinsoul’s presence but hadn’t over-thought it much. She still wanted to take it slow. 

“I don’t really know. We have been out a couple of times and it’s really nice,”

“And?” Hyunjin asked.

“And, what?” Jungeun looked over at her friend.

“You haven’t done anything yet... since that drunk kiss?”

Jungeun sighed of course Hyunjin would go there.

“Why is everything about with you?” Jungeun rolled her eyes

“It’s not. It’s just been too long since you got laid, Jungeun,” 

Jungeun froze at the words. She had not told Hyunjin about her one-night-stand with Haseul, for obvious reasons. She could not let her friend know.

“Yeah well, I want to do things right this time,” Jungeun said.

“Come on KJ, live a little. You deserve to have a good time for once,”

The women had exited the office building and walked towards the parking lot. 

Jungeun felt chills creep up her neck. She had tried to bury the night with Haseul, pretend like it never happened. Now this conversation with Hyunjin had unlocked this memory and she could not seem to shake it off.

The two journalists walked to their cars in silence. Finally reaching her car Jungeun looked over to her friend.

“Don’t overthink it too much Jungeun. Just let your guard down and have fun,” Hyunjin said.

“I will try my best. Thank you Hyunjin,”

The two friends said their goodbyes and Jungeun drove off. She had agreed to meet Jinsoul at the restaurant.

After a hustle through the busy traffic, Jungeun finally reached her destination 30 minutes later.

She parked the car and hiked up to the restaurant which was a few blocks down. It was a small place downtown. From the outside, Jungeun could already hear people's laughter and chatter and the sound and smell of delicious soul food being prepared.

She entered the place and was greeted with a warm blanket of the aroma of delicious smells. She had not been to a simple place like this in a long time. 

Finally, she spotted Jinsoul in the crowds of people. She was seated in the back at a tiny table for two.

Jinsoul waved in Jungeun’s direction. With a bit of a struggle, Jungeun managed to wiggle her way over to the table.

“Hey Jinsoul,” Jungeun sighed in relief.

She leaned forward and placed a kiss on the other woman’s cheek. 

“Hi, Jungeun, busy day?” Jinsoul asked

Jungeun landed herself in the plastic seat across from Jinsoul and took off her jacket.

“It was not the hardest day, just a deadline I needed to reach. Thank you for asking. So happy to be here with you now though, so no more work talk,”

Jinsoul chuckled. 

“Don’t worry we don’t have to talk about work.”

The night prospered. They ordered food and enjoyed a glass of cold beer. Jungeun knew that meant she had to leave her car here and come pick it up tomorrow. Right now that was the least of her worries. She was having a good time with Jinsoul who was telling her a story about the pets in her salon today.

She was only half-listening. Thoughts about Hyunjin telling her to get laid crossed her mind. Her friend was right, why hadn’t Jungeun slept with Jinsoul yet? Because she wanted to take it slow? Or was there a different reason?

Jungeun tuned the thoughts out and focused her attention fully on Jinsoul again. Just as Jinsoul was about to ask Jungeun something the server brought in their food. 

Starving they dug into the meal. They enjoyed it in silence while stealing glances at each other. 

Jungeun caught sight of Jinsoul eyeing her. Jinsoul was incredibly beautiful. Long brown locks. A dazzling smile and eyes so deep you could get lost staring into them.

Jungeun certainly felt a strong sense of attraction towards the other woman. She could sense the tension between them was rising.

The two of them continued to enjoy their meal. Both of them lost in their own thoughts after the eye contact that was just made. Gradually they both reached forward for the pepper sauce, their hands briefly touching. Shocked, they both pulled back and stared at each other. 

Jungeun looked flustered and could sense sweat breaking out. Jinsoul held her breath for a second before she pulled herself together.

“You wanna get out of here?” She asked

Jungeun just nodded in reply, she couldn’t even speak.

The two of them paid and ran off into the darkness of the night. Hand in hand running down the hill, laughter breaking out between them. Both women were a bit tipsy and Jungeun could barely make out where her car was until they reached it.

She unlocked the door and wasted no time pushing Jinsoul inside. Following Jungeun rushed herself into the vehicle as well, landing on top of the other woman. In the darkness, she managed to shut the door behind her. 

The two of them broke out in laughter about the clumsiness of it all. Slowly their laughter died out as they became more aware of the position they were in. Jungeun looked down at the woman below her and for a moment she froze. Even in the dark with only the light of a street lantern shining upon them, Jungeun was mesmerized by Jinsoul’s beauty.

Jinsoul softly placed her hand on Jungeun’s cheek her skin. Melting at her touch Jungeun looked away from her gaze. 

“It’s okay. Look at me,” Jinsoul whispered.

Jungeun slowly turned her head back greeted by a soft stare of Jinsoul who was still pinned underneath her. 

A smile reappeared on Jungeun’s face and she leaned forward. Only inches between their mouths, their lips close to touching. Jungeun closed the gap between them. Their breaths grew louder as the passion between them awakened.

Jinsoul’s lips were so soft and she tasted so good too. Jungeun completely got lost in the kiss biting down on Jinsoul’s lip hearing her moan in response. 

Feeling Jinsoul’s warm hands creep underneath her shirt. Jungeun pulled away briefly, ing the shirt completely. She reached forward once again. Jungeun could feel Jinsoul’s warm breath on her face. 

For a moment the image of Haseul and her being the same distance apart from each other shot through