AUTHOR'S POV

“Hey, we’re here.” A low whisper and a gentle nudge wake Mina up from her deep short slumber, she quickly stands up as she realizes where she is, “Hey hey, easy, I’m here, Minari.”

The backpack is already on Chaeyoung’s back, she holds Mina’s hand firmly and leads the sleepy girl out of the bus, Mina follows the younger girl as she is not in her 100%.

“You can walk?” Mina rolls her eyes, “Of course, just give me a moment.”

A water bottle is being held in front of , “Your lips look dry.”

Reddened cheeks become the answer, Chaeyoung has been staring at my lips?! 

Just when their moment is becoming a bit sweet, “You ready?” But it is also Chaeyoung that shatters the moment into pieces.

Chaeyoung holds the college girl’s hand, she clasps their hands together, “Let’s walk slowly, okay penguin?”

“I’m okay. But yeah, let’s walk slowly.” I want to spend more time with you.

“Tired?” Of course, the oblivious girl.

This wakes Mina up, entirely, please Son Chaeyoung why can’t you be sensitive for a while, “No.”

“Then we should walk faster, it will rain soon.” Mina has nothing to say as a counter, she nods and follows Chaeyoung to quicken their steps.

No one knows how but Mina has made Chaeyoung promise that the girl would never ask Sana regarding her homework. All of sudden she has a free pass to enter Myoi’s household for that, “Promise me.”

Though she is confused, Chaeyoung nods, “Alright, I promise.”

A pinky is being held, “Seal it.”

Chaeyoung groans at the older girl, they stand in front of Mina’s porch, “Too childish, don’t you think?”

Mina still holds her pinky up, “I’m older than you.”

“Ultra childish, then.”

“Son Chaeyoung, please?”

“What is it? Why can’t I ask Sana? I mean, if it’s possible, I would ask Jihyo, she is really good at keeping her notes, I believe she still has all the notes from high school.”

“Alright, go ask Jihyo but no Sana.”

“Why?”

“Am I not enough?”

“What?”

Mina bites her lips a bit, then she repeats, “Am I not enough?”

“Minari…”

Mina sighs, “Alright, Sana plays with a lot of younger girls’ hearts, I don’t want you to be one of her victims.”

“Mina, it’s your best friend, our friend, we are talking about.”

“So? Still doesn’t change the fact that she is a player.” Mina presses on and Chaeyoung chuckles, “Yeah you’re right. Alright, no Sana, no Jihyo.”

“Alrig- wait, you can ask Jihyo, she is one of the best in our yea-”

“You are enough.”

The pinky promise is sealed, Chaeyoung kisses the older girl’s back of the hand, “Hmm, okay.” Simple answer, then the older girl quickly retracts her hand, turns around, and unlocks her door.

“You are red.”

Mina doesn’t answer, she tries her best to open the door as fast as she could, “How about tonight?”

Chaeyoung is watching Mina’s back when she hears the question, “What about tonight?”

“Your homework.”

“I don’t really have a pending homework for today, there will be final exam soon, and I-”

“Let’s study for your exam, then.”

Chaeyoung raises her brows, something is going on, “Where is your parents’ car?”

Mina clears , “They are going out of town until this weekend.”

A chuckle slips out of Chaeyoung’s mouth, “You are afraid to sleep alone, right?”

The door is about to be closed but Chaeyoung holds it, “Wait-wait, sorry, alright, I’ll accompany you later...scaredy cat.”

The door is being pushed making Chaeyoung laughs louder, “Sorry, sorry, alright, teach me later.”

“Okay, go take a bath, you stink.” 

Immediately bringing her armpit closer to her nose, Chaeyoung shrieks, “I’m not!!” but the only thing that is heard by her is her best friend’s fading laughter, Chaeyoung sneers before turning her body towards her home, taking notes to apply some perfume later.

--

She was combing her hair when the bell rings, Mina glances at the wall clock, “Why is she so early? Missing me so much, aren’t you?” Mina laughs by herself as she talks to the mirror.

With a big smile, Mina descends the stairs, “Wait up, dummy!” 

The bell dies down, it doesn’t ring anymore, does Chaeyoung mad that she takes long?

Quickly Mina opens the door, “Don’t be mad, dum-”

A smiling Eunha shows up, “Am I your dummy now?” Quickly Mina shakes her head, “N-no, sorry, I thought you are- a pizza delivery! Yeah, but I remember, I haven’t ordered, yeah, mmm, come in.”

How can I forget that Eunha is coming tonight…?

“Make yourself comfortable, Eunha.” Mina gestures to the couch and Eunha sits as she stares at fidgeting Mina, “You okay?”

“Uh, yeah, sure. Why won’t I be? Mmm, I’m thinking of the pizza flavor, what do you want?” Quickly Mina opens the pizza delivery apps, alright think Mina, what should we do?

I can’t send Eunha home just like that, right?

“Anything but pineapples is good. I’m not picky.” Oh, but the ones with pineapple are mine & Chaengie’s favorite…

Mina hates how the world revolves at the moment.

“Okay, do you want anything else? Soda?” Eunha smiles as she pulls out a bottle of wine, “I think we can dig this? I mean, I can’t come empty handed, right?”

Mina curses inwardly, why are you so sweet Eunha, why can’t Chaeyoung be like you?! 

“Y-yeah, sure, but let’s order soda too, I kinda want cola.” Eunha nods as she walks closer towards Mina, the girl stiffens right away as Eunha peeks on her phone screen.

Mina knows what is up, she is not an innocent girl, she watches romance and too, especially since Sana used to tell her relationship escapades.

An arm sneaks on her waist, a chin gently sits on her shoulder, “What do you want to watch later, pretty?”

Just right after Mina presses the ‘order’ button, the bell rings, that surprises Eunha, “That fast?”

Mina just shrugs as she chuckles awkwardly, she walks to the door with Eunha following, oh no why does she follow me..

The door is opened, revealing Chaeyoung with her backpack, “Hi, I have biology an- oh hi Eunha!”

The host curses inwardly when Eunha back hugs her, she cannot help but smiles a little, she steps aside as she squirms politely out of Eunha’s arms, “Come in, Chaeng.”

“Son Chaeyoung.” Eunha greets, a bit grim, everyone can tell and Chaeyoung gets it, “Uh, I’ll come back another time, I guess?”

But Mina subtly shakes her head, she doesn’t want to be alone with Eunha right now, especially if the other girl is being quite aggressive like earlier. 

A hand softly holds Chaeyoung’s arm, “Come in, I have compiled my notes from last year.”

For once, Chaeyoung gets the signal, she nods, slowly making her way into her best friend’s house, “Y-yeah, I really need it.”

As Mina gets her notes from her room, Eunha glances at Chaeyoung, “You won’t take long, right?”

Chaeyoung looks up with a questioning stare, “Hmm?”

“Chaeyoung, you gotta help me here, I kinda want to get into the next level with her.”

The younger girl stares at Eunha quizzically, “What game?”

The innocent question almost makes Eunha’s jaw drop, “No, no, you know, we haven’t kissed, and I think tonight is the perfect chance for us to kiss.”

Chaeyoung doesn’t know why but the statement makes her feel something unfamiliar, “Mmm, does she want to be kissed?”

“Mina?” Eunha doesn’t expect this kind of question

Chaeyoung shrugs, ”Depends on who you wanna kiss. If it’s my best friend, does she want it?”

“Well? Only one way to find the answer??”

“Yeap, sure. By asking her directly. If she wants to, I’ll go.” Suddenly Chaeyoung becomes protective, though deep inside she fears what Mina will say.

Why do I fear what Mina’s answer will turn out to be?

“What do you mean? It doesn’t happen like that, it just goes with the flow and-” Steps are heard, Mina walks back to the couch, “These are the notes, mmm? What did I miss?”

The youngest girl points at Eunha, “She’s been wondering if she could kiss-” A hand grips her forearm tightly, “Chaeyoung wants to buy something in the minimarket later, so I will accompany her later, right?”

A questioning look is directed to Eunha, both from Chaeyoung and Mina, the latter hums as she puts the notes on the coffee table, “Hmm? Okay? You guys bond well.”

Chaeyoung shrugs, “Yeah, sure.” She sits on the ground and starts getting her notes, books and pens ready on the coffee table.

Soon, Chaeyoung is studying Mina’s notes and Mina has her full attention at Chaeyoung, even, unconsciously, the older girl has her body closer to the studying girl, even the direction of her shoulder indicates that she only looks at Chaeyoung.

Eunha tries to get Mina’s attention, she puts a hand on Mina’s thigh, “Your handwriting is pretty, just like you, pretty.”

Mina and Chaeyoung turn her head simultaneously at the mention.

Mina smiles a bit, feels her thigh is being burnt at the moment, not really sure how to feel about the hand, “Oh thank you, Eunha.”

“What did you call her?” Chaeyoung doesn’t know why she asks, she heard it well.

“Pretty, she is pretty, isn’t she?”