Wendy didn't know exactly how she had reached a point where texting as Seulgi had become more or less normal, but she did.

The arrangement had technically only lasted for less than two months, but it felt like a lot longer.

Since her conversation with Irene on the swings, the older girl’s messages had taken a different turn. She seemed more open and communicative, often initiating conversations on her own and asking more questions about Seulgi’s life.

Even Seulgi came up to her one day, asking if she had something to do with Irene acting differently. Of course, Wendy being Wendy, she had innocently shrugged and suggested that Irene was finally recognizing what a great person Seulgi was.

Whatever the reason was, Wendy was happy for them. The increase of small talk and personal questions meant that Seulgi could slowly get more involved with the conversation. Part of her was relieved that her friend would soon be doing everything on her own, but a small part of her would miss speaking to this Irene.

She had to admit that she found some respite from Irene by texting Irene. The idea was ridiculous, but it made logical sense at the same time.

Hence, messaging her became a reflex. Whenever Irene got on her nerves in real life, she would text her as Seulgi, and somehow it made all her annoyance go away.

It wasn’t as though they were enemies. The animosity between them had decreased steadily since the start of the project, and they were probably closer to acquaintances who respected one another than enemies. However, they still had their differences.

For example, they quickly realized that although their paper had been submitted, they had very different ways of handling a presentation, which led to numerous squabbles over what to include and how they should be included.

Disagreements were just another part of the way they communicated. They would get annoyed at one another, take a breather, and then get back to work. Sometimes an apology was involved. If not, one girl would normally break the silence and the other would take it as a victory.

She knew for a fact that Seulgi had never seen this side of Irene. Hence, at some point, explaining to her worried best friend why their messages sometimes had passive aggressive undertones turned into Seulgi sighing and shoving her phone into Wendy’s face, imploring her to make up with Irene before she took out her frustrations on her. She wanted to tell Seulgi that she didn't have anything to worry about, but no one wanted to feel the wrath of Irene Bae.

Seulgi wasn't with her at the moment, but she could imagine her unamused expression as she lamented “why are the two of you like this?”.

She reached for her phone and typed to Irene on instinct.

‘Latte is stronger than cappuccino. True or false?’

‘I don’t drink coffee.’ Irene’s brief reply made her annoyance all the more evident. Wendy waited. As she expected, another text message appeared.                                                                                                                                     

‘Sorry, I’m just in a bad mood.’ She could picture Irene’s delicate frown as she typed that. As far as she knew, Seulgi hadn’t done anything wrong and Irene wasn’t someone who would lash out and not feel guilty afterwards.

‘Apology accepted. I’m more of a tea person myself anyway.’ She replied.

She looked at Irene’s second message and hesitated. It might be too weird to talk to Irene about herself in another context but it’s something Seulgi would do, so she sent the message anyway. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’

‘Not really. It’s just my groupmate being troublesome. Nothing important.’

Well, that stung.

Wendy pursed her lips in a grimace. She must be more annoyed than usual, since Irene already knew that Seulgi and her were close.

‘We’ve all been there. I hope the problem gets solved soon.’ She texted back.

‘Thank you. I hope so too. She’s just being stubborn.’

The irritation within her flared up.

“Me? Stubborn?” She muttered out loud, blinking in disbelief. “This girl... she’s the stubborn one.”

It’s okay. Just breathe, she told herself. Think of Seulgi.

Seulgi, her best friend, who would most likely have a laughing fit after she found out about this conversation. She sighed.

‘Oh no, that must be difficult to deal with. Have you tried talking it out with her?’ She hoped her message didn't sound sarcastic.

‘She doesn’t listen to me when we’re like this, so there’s no point.’

“What?!” Wendy’s jaw dropped. “What is she even saying...”

‘We’ll be back to normal soon. This always happens, don’t worry too much about it.’

If Seulgi wasn’t already her best friend and well aware of the tension between them, she could only imagine how bad an impression she would have of her. She huffed out a breath. Part of her was itching to break her cover and defend herself but she took a long exhale and decided that it wasn’t worth it.

‘It’s false by the way.’

‘What?’ Wendy scrolled up, wondering if she had missed a message somewhere.

‘Your question. Latte is thicker and more filling than cappuccino because there’s milk and then steamed milk. Cappuccino is made with espresso and frothed milk. However, the amount of espresso in both drinks is actually the same.’

‘I thought you didn't drink coffee.’ She typed, a smile slowly blooming across her cheeks.

‘I don't. I do use Naver though.’

Wendy let out a string of laughter before she could stop herself. She was alone at home, anyway. The only one who could judge her was herself.

In that moment, she felt all the frustration that had been built up over the afternoon dissipate. She let out a sigh as she opened the window, letting in the sunlight, breeze and the sounds from the world outside. She felt better already.

Just then, a notification popped up on her computer.

‘So, are you still sulking or can we get back to work?’

Wendy rolled her eyes. Maybe just this once, she would let Irene get away with that.

~

“How was your date with Joohyun-unnie?” There was a flash of blonde as the younger girl sat down next to her. “I’m still waiting for a thank you, by the way.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Kim Yerim.” Her cheeks were warm and she internally wished she had stayed out in the sun more so that her blush wouldn’t be as noticeable. Yeri held her gaze, challenging her.

She could still remember the feeling of the rusty swing creaking below her, and the fading sunshine turning a blaze of gold before dimming. The wind had been chilly that evening and Irene had been shivering on the way home.

They had stayed at the playground until the sun completely set. Irene had been mostly lost in her own thoughts after their conversation about Seulgi. She hadn’t even realized the sun had set until her stomach growled. It was just as well, because Wendy needed the time to calm her thundering heartbeat. When Irene had brought up the topic, almost closed up in surprise. Part of her had been terrified that she would get found out. The other part was expecting, anticipating, it.

Despite her worries, Irene seemed to take her words seriously. After her conversation with Seulgi the other day, she could sense that things between them were unsteady. The trouble with being in her position meant that she was essentially powerless despite knowing how the situation was progressing from both sides. She couldn't stand seeing two people she cared about be miserable.

Yeri rolled her eyes at her silence. “Fine, don’t tell me. I don’t need to know the details, but I should at least get some thanks for setting up the date.”

“It wasn’t a date.” She glared at her, checking their surroundings to make sure there was no one else within earshot of their conversation. “Don’t say this kind of thing.”

Yeri waved her off dismissively. “Don’t worry, no one’s here.”

“Unnie’s at dance practice; but I bet you already know this.” She grinned mischievously.

“That’s because Seulgi’s at the same dance practice…” Wendy replied with a dead-pan look. The younger girl was thinking too much. Yeri had the crazy idea that Wendy should be acting on her supposed feelings for Irene. It was ridiculous.

Wendy was conflicted because of how close she was to the situation, but she was also loyal. She would never do anything to hurt any of them.

At least Yeri had the sense to not bring up any of this when anyone else was around, but it didn't stop her from teasing her every time they were alone. She was the only one who knew about her feelings, which made her the most dangerous person on earth, aside from Irene Bae herself.

The two of them had cleared things up after her conversation with Sooyoung, but the flippant way she seemed to treat Irene’s relationship with Seulgi bothered her. While she couldn't exactly reveal how much she knew about the relationship, she still found herself lecturing the younger girl about boundaries.

As far as Yeri knew, the only involvement she had was being Irene’s groupmate and Seulgi’s best friend. Wendy would very much like to keep it that way.

“I’m fine with you two, by the way. I think you’d be cute, even though it’s also a bit disgusting to imagine my cousin like that.” The younger girl shrugged. “But you have my blessing.”

“Not that we need it, since we’re not and never going to be a couple.” She deflected, biting her lip. She had never been so glad to be alone with Yeri. “Anyway, in case you forgot, she’s dating my best friend.”

There was a soft “tsk” from beside her. The blonde was unamused. “Is she though?”

“Yes.” Wendy said firmly, whether it was more for herself or Yeri, she didn't know.

Yeri hummed as though she knew something she didn’t. “You know, unnie, there are times when you should admit that you’re wrong, but there are also times you should open your eyes and give yourself more credit.”

Wendy didn't know what she meant. She usually took what Yeri said with a pinch of salt, especially with how cryptic she was being.

“Yeri, it’s not none of our business to meddle in someone’s relationship.” She reminded her. “Considering this involves your own cousin, for that matter.”

“It is when the parties involved are insufferable and blind.” Yeri groaned dramatically, shooting Wendy a look. “And especially when some are in denial.”

She narrowed her eyes. “There is nothing to be in denial about.”

“Wendy-unnie, it was so obvious with the way you raced after her the moment she walked away. You aren’t fooling anyone.”

Wendy coughed, her cheeks turning pink. “I didn’t race after her.”

She had seen Irene’s crestfallen expression, felt guilty, packed her things at a normal pace, and walked after her calmly. She happened to reach Irene as she was descending the staircase, but she wasn't rushing at all. Yeri was exaggerating.

“You almost left your laptop on the table in your hurry to pack. Sooyoung had to remind you.” Yeri pointed out. “There’s no use denying it.”

Wendy sighed. There was no convincing her. “Shouldn’t you be studying?”

“Unnie, don’t you remember? I had my final exam yesterday. I’m done for the term.” Yeri’s smirk widened. Wendy then noticed the lack of school textbooks by her side. Her normal backpack had been swapped to a purple sling bag that hung lazily on her shoulder.

“But then-“ She was about to ask why Yeri was even in school when she stopped. Wendy took in the younger girl’s appearance. She had recently done her nails. Her hair was styled and she was sporting a pair of earrings. Wendy’s eyes widened.

“Kim Yerim, are you going on a date?”

“No.” The younger girl grimaced, but she could see her cheeks colour slightly.

That was unusual.

“You ready to go, Yerimmie?”

Wendy raised her eyebrows at the slim brunette who appeared behind them. It was the first time Yeri ever exhibited any form of panic when she turned to Wendy.

“Don’t give me that look: We’re going to study.” She hissed. “At a cafe.”

“With what books?” Wendy couldn’t help the disbelieving scoff. “Didn’t you mention that your exams were over?”

“Future assignments!” A flustered Yeri asserted at the same time the other girl turned to Wendy and bowed.

“You must be Wendy-nim. It’s nice to meet you. I’m-“

“Leaving!” Yeri stood up abruptly, ending the conversation before Wendy could respond in kind. “We’re going to be late for our reservation if we don’t leave now.”

She pushed in her chair forcefully; the legs screeching against the wooden floor painfully, which unintentionally drew more attention to herself. The librarian was glaring at them, as if she didn't already recognize Yeri the moment she entered the premises.

Yeri mouthed an apology and gestured to the other girl that they should leave.

“Don’t tell unnie.” She added quickly to Wendy, while nudging the girl towards the exit. She had the decency to wave at her, unlike Yeri.

Wendy could hear the hushed whispers back and forth as the two girls walked away. She waited for them to leave before she allowed herself to burst into giggles, not caring whether people would think of her as strange.

She couldn't wait till Sooyoung got wind of the situation.

~

Of all the words she could use to describe Irene, she wouldn’t have imagined that “jittery” would be one of them.

“Sunbae?” She asked the quiet girl. “Are you listening to me?”

Irene didn’t respond. Wendy frowned in concern. Clearly, her groupmate hadn’t been listening to her for a while, considering that she had been suggesting gibberish ideas for the past minute and Irene hadn’t so much as blinked.

Normally, the other girl wouldn’t shy away from telling her how wrong she thought she was. Hence, the sudden change in her behaviour was a cause for concern. It would be fine if they weren’t literally days away from presenting. Wendy resorted to scooting over and waving a hand close to her face. “Sunbae?”

The dark haired brunette let out a surprised yelp and jerked away, nearly losing her balance in the progress. She recovered quickly though. After which, she shot Wendy a sharp glare. Wendy had to stifle a laugh at how much she resembled an angry bunny. Irene was easily startled. She made a mental note to remind Seulgi of that if the latter wanted to surprise her.

“We’re supposed to be concentrating. Our presentation is coming up.” Irene chided. Although that fact that her cheeks were pink and she wasn’t meeting her eyes made Irene a lot less intimidating. “We don’t have time for games.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying for the past three minutes...” Wendy mumbled. “I asked when you’d like to go through the presentation.”

Irene glanced through her calendar while Wendy waited patiently. When they first met, she h