Hyejin was stressed.

She had been preparing her upcoming comeback for the past three months. To say that this new album was taxing would be an understatement. Hyejin was used to uplifting music, portraying herself as the strong heroine South Korea admired. But behind closed doors, she was anything but. She had seen the plethora of negative and downright degrading comments she had received online. But instead of letting those comments affect her, she used them as fuel to write her new masterpiece, Maria. But of course, working on this new album required her to explore topics she would rather sweep under the rug.

The weight of the topics weighed her down heavily. So much so that she would spend most nights crying because of how much pain she realised she had been holding onto. The creative process was bittersweet. She would spend some nights reflecting on her difficult past and how far she had made it in her career despite it, and other nights she would simply cry in Yongsun's arms.

The truth was, she was tired. She was tired and angry at everything she'd had to deal with. If only I had channeled that anger differently, she thought, I wouldn't have hurt the one person who was always beside me.

She pulled her knees tighter to her chest as she felt a fresh set of tears coming. She would always regret the words that left that day. "I'm so sorry Yong," she whispered to the empty space beside her. Their once warm and comfortable bed now cold and too big for her liking.

Yongsun had opted to stay with her sister for the following few weeks, afraid that she would only be a burden to the younger girl as she prepared for her long-awaited comeback. Even if they weren't on good terms, Yongsun couldn't find it in herself to completely avoid Hyejin. After all, she still was and always will be the love of her life. And nothing would change that.

As she lay on the couch with Yongkeey, she mulled over what happened that day. What could I have done differently? she asked herself. She had been asking herself this question for weeks and still couldn't come up with an answer. I guess she was right.  Defeated, she picked up her phone to check the time. It was 1 pm. "Time to drop off your aunty's lunch Yongkeey," she announced to the pup as she picked her up and headed to the kitchen.

It had been three weeks since their fight and neither of the two lovers had made a move to reconcile, Yongsun still hurt by her girlfriend's words and the latter not knowing how to address what happened. Yongsun hadn't planned on staying away for so long, she was only meant to spend the night at her sister's. But when she returned home the day after, she found Hyejin crying in Wheein's arms. She felt guilty for putting more stress on Hyejin's shoulders and so decided to stay away until her promotions were over. Despite this, Yongsun's mother continued making food for the two and Yongsun would drop it off. It was her only excuse to see the singer (as if being her girlfriend wasn't a good enough reason).

She walked into their shared apartment holding two bags of food in each hand. She would've brought the pup with her but Hyejin was allergic. She put on her slippers and made her way to the kitchen to place the food in the fridge. When she was done, she sat at their dining table overlooking the living room. How badly she wanted to curl up on the couch with her girlfriend. But as quickly as the thought came, it left once she was reminded of that night. She sighed as she closed her eyes, a lone tear running down her cheek.

Hyejin was tired. As soon as she arrived home she fell into her girlfriend's arms who was sitting on their couch watching the latest drama.

"Jinnie what's wrong?" she sat up, worried.

"I'm so tired unnie, I'm so tired." she cried. "Why are people so cruel? I just don't get it."

Yongsun rubbed her back as she tried to soothe her girlfriend. "I'm sorry Jinnie." She continued comforting her girlfriend as she pressed soft kisses to her temple.

"It's just so overwhelming," she continued crying, "it makes me so mad."

Yongsun just whispered comforting words into her ear, "everything will be okay babe, you've got me and everyone else who love and support you."

But Hyejin wasn't having it. She pulled away from her girlfriend, seething with anger. "How do you know that? Oh, everything will be okay?! It hasn't been for years!" She shouted.

"Hyejin-ah I know but-"

"No! You don't know!" Hyejin stood up and paced around their living room, her anger getting the best of her.

"Hyejin-ah... I know their words hurt but we can't let them rule our lives. They're miserable people with nothing better to do with their lives other than attack others online." 

She scoffed. "Coming from someone who sits at home all day because they let those words rule their life."

Yongsun paused, disappointment evident in her face. The silence that surrounded them was so loud, you could hear Hyejin's heart breaking at the words that just left and the look on her girlfriend's face.

The singer stood up and looked her girlfriend in the eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Yongsun I-" but the words died in .

"You're right. I'm the last person who should give out advice, Just look where I'm at." Her eyes became glossy and her voice cracked.

"That's not what I meant-"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I just..."

"No that's okay. I won't understand anyway."

When Hyejin coul