Chapter Playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4GXlmIRNju67Vz8oQbKz9E?si=Lhla6rV3RqaiD6jQstQ8kg&dl_branch=1

Fiji Blue - Outside

Lifehouse - You and Me 

Jake Scott - Like No One Does (Acoustic)

Ben Rector - It Would Be You (Acoustic)

 

 

—————

 

 

“Ahhh finally!! We’re back!”, Joy screamed as the sailboat finally stopped and landed on the port.

 

“Oh my god. I missed the feeling of walking on land and finally feeling the SUN!!!”, Yeri joined in.

 

 

They arrived at the port around noontime, where the sun was at it’s highest.

 

Irene, Suho, and Sehun just watched the two youngest ones jumping around the boat’s deck while they were setting up the small ramp.

 

 

“I really thought I was gonna lose my fingers to frost bite!”, Joy said in exaggeration while they were all descending down the boat.

 

“Tell me about it. We thought we knew what we’d be setting ourselves up for. But man, I never would’ve thought it’d be that cold.”, Sehun chimed in.

 

“I never thought that I’d be saying this, but I kinda already miss being surrounded by walruses.”, Suho added as well.

 

They all laughed at this.

 

“You can always visit us in the park oppa. Lots of animals there for you to befriend.”, Yeri joked.

 

Suho suddenly shivered and got goosebumps, remembering an incident where he almost got hounded by a big walrus.

 

“On second thought, I don’t really miss them that much.”, Suho replied causing them to all laugh again.

 

 

Irene just chuckled at her team and muttered more to herself,

“At least we’re finally back.”

 

 

 

—————-

 

 

 

Admittedly, Irene had one of the best times. She’d been on a few research trips in the past, but none like what they’ve experienced.

 

Bringing Joy and Yeri along, made things so much fun and light, especially with the two rowdy boys. Well, it was just Sehun mostly, since Suho was pretty chill like her. They often got teased as the ‘parents’ of the team, aside from them being the oldest. They were also the ones doing the scolding often times, because the other three were always pulling pranks on each other.

 

But aside all the ruckus, Irene was proud to say that their research trip was successful because they were able to observe never before seen and documented behaviours of not only walruses but also pacific seals and some Alaskan penguins. They were able to get lots of raw footages of these animals and their herds both inland and underwater. 

 

She was able to capture all their findings in her ‘special’ notebook.

 

 

They were welcomed by the team from the Sea Life Park to help them bring back some of the equipments they brought along with them. They were also welcomed with a small festive lunch to congratulate them on their successful trip and their safe arrival.

 

 

After Suho and Sehun said their goodbyes, Irene told them they can stay for a while and invited them for lunch the day after tomorrow to celebrate their successful trip since everything went so smoothly. She insisted that they could just return her dad’s sail boat at the port in California that coming weekend to also get some needed rest.

 

Joy and Yeri joined in to offer the two boys a free tour around Hawaii if they wanted to explore the place before they leave.

 

 

 

Irene, Joy and Yeri came back to the office to report to their boss and give them a brief update on their trip.

 

Dr. Park gladly gave them a full week off to rest, which really made the two younger ones jump in glee.

 

 

—————

 

 

Irene called her parents the moment she came home to update them that they’d arrived safely.

 

Though it was just a quick call, because her parents insisted that they catch up some other time knowing she needed to rest. 

 

Irene missed them badly because they didn’t have enough signal most of the time. They just communicated through radio and this was usually with the nearest coast guard.

 

They were only able to get in-touch with their families once or twice month when they restock on supplies and fuel at the nearest port in Southwest Alaska.

 

She was surprised to know that Tiffany had already moved out the day before she arrived, hearing from her parents that she’d found a place of her own already.

 

 

Irene was too tired to pack everything, despite being the neat-freak that she was and just decided to sleep it off. 

 

She badly missed her bed. A year and a half of sharing a bed with two other people was a feat she didn’t imagine herself adapting to. Especially with Joy snoring and Yeri hogging the blankets every night without fail.

 

She used to just hang outside the boat during night time, tolerating the cold, just to have some alone time.

 

 

 

Just when she was about to doze off her phone suddenly rang

 

“Hello?”

 

“Hey little sis. What’s up? I missed you!”

 

Irene smiled.

 

“Hey Unnie. I missed you too. How are you? You didn’t tell me that you moved out already. I had to find out from Mom and Dad.”

 

She heard Tiffany giggling. “It was a surprise!”

 

Irene rolled her eyes at her sister’s reply.

 

“Where are you staying then? I was really hoping we could catch up, but I guess I’ll just have to see you whenever.”

 

“I’m living with my girlfriend now.”

 

“What?! Your- your girlfriend??!”

 

She heard Tiffany laughing before hearing some shuffling on her end of the call.

 

Irene sister.

 

“Don’t tell me you’re free-loading again?”

 

“Augh! Excuse you! I’m sharing half of the rent with her. Wait! Let me introduce her. Open your cam sis!”

 

Irene lost the previous traces of sleepiness she was previously feeling.

 

She followed Tiffany’s order and removed the phone from the side of her face before holding her phone properly to be able to see the screen properly.

 

“Open your camera too silly! I want her to see you!”

 

“Unnie!! I look horrible!”

 

She saw Tiffany rolling her eyes at her before hearing the sound of laughter from her sister’s phone. She must be sitting beside her alleged ‘girlfriend’.

 

“She won’t care! And she’s dating ME. Not you!”

 

Irene sighed before she opened her front camera as well.

 

“There. Now you see me.”

 

“Aww! My baby sis lost a lot of weight. Have you not been eating and sleeping properly the whole time you were on your trip??”

 

Irene rolled her eyes playfully at her sister’s concern.

 

She did lose some weight. Well, everyone in her team did because they had to manage the stocks of food they brought with them.

 

They usually just eat twice a day because they were too busy to cook properly. Their constant meals were composed of milk and cereals, canned goods and instant noodles. Although they had stocks of rice and bread with them, they had to manage the inventory. Their main source of protein was just fish and some seafood. Although the meat was always fresh, courtesy of her team fishing every weekends. 

 

Admittedly, Irene couldn’t catch a fish to save her life. She was too impatient to wait. Even before, when she used to go with her dad on his fishing trips, she just opted to enjoy the ambience of being in sea. Preferring to just watch the sunrise or the sunset.

 

But she did learn a new skill on how to clean, dress, and cut a fish courtesy of the two boys teaching them how to.

 

They were all pumped to eat fresh sashimi on their first few weeks, but after having it almost every day and every week, it’s novelty eventually got lost.

 

Irene shivered at the thought of eating one more bite of fish. She missed the taste of chicken, pork and beef badly.

 

She noted to buy some stocks of it the first thing tomorrow.

 

 

Her thoughts got broken when she saw the screen backing farther to see a familiar face beside her sister.

 

“Taeyeon??!!”

 

“Hey little sis! In-law!”

 

She saw Tiffany and Taeyeon laughing.

 

“Oh my god! You’re THE girlfriend??!”

 

“Yep! Nice to meet you again Irene!”

 

“How and when did this happen??”

 

“We became official last year, and now we’ve decided to take the next step.”, Tiffany explained.

 

“Wait a minute.. Is she your reason for moving here??”

 

She saw her sister blushing.

 

“Nooo! I told you. I was bored in LA and I wanted to experience living in some place new. Plus I’ve always loved coming here!”

 

Irene rolled her eyes.

She knew her sister was a die-hard romantic. She had a feeling that Tiffany had already liked Taeyeon the first time she saw her. But she just kept this to herself. Well, for now at least. She didn’t have the energy to sister yet.

 

“Whatever. But I’m glad you guys are happy. Congrats on moving in together! I’m really happy for the both of you.”

 

She saw them smiling at each other before thanking her.

 

Irene felt just a tiny bit envious of them.

 

 

“Let’s catch up soon little sis. Get some rest. We’ll visit you there soon, okay? Good night. I love you! Muah!!!”

 

Irene chuckled. “Love you too Tiff. Good night.”

 

She remained lying in bed and just looking at her ceiling.

 

 

Irene forgot about her tiredness and decided to make herself some coffee.

 

After walking around the house, she was finally able to take in her surroundings. She remembered Tiffany telling her that she kept her house neat and clean the whole time she stayed there and that she also made sure to return all the things she borrowed from her.

 

Irene chuckled to herself since it was typical of her older sister to be borrowing her stuff. 

 

Since she’s lost her drowsiness already, she decided to just unpack her things to lessen her work load tomorrow. Plus, she was stumped with a lot of laundry to do.

 

 

 

Just as Irene finished upacking the last of her things, she saw the last remaining box. She had an idea that this was full of her books and notebooks that she took with her for the trip. 

 

Irene carried it off the floor and walked towards her office.

 

As she was placing everything back in her shelf, she noticed a familiar leather notebook.

 

 

Irene smiled at this.

 

 

—————

 

 

Irene woke up to one of the best sleeps she’s had. It’s been so long since she felt this well-rested and energized.

 

She looked at the time and noticed that it was still early.

 

Irene decided that instead of cooking breakfast for herself, she’ll have it in one of the places she badly missed.

 

 

Once Irene got off her car and walked towards the familiar diner, she noticed that the outside had changed into a different color. From it’s previous plain brown colored walls, the paint outside was now color purple with lots of different flowers on it. It also had a new and better signage right above the entrance.

 

She smiled knowing very well who had done this.

 

 

—————-

 

 

 

There were already lots of people inside. Maybe because of the morning rush.

 

Irene went straight to the counter and greeted Sue.

 

“Oh my god. You’re back!”

Sue went over the counter to give Irene a hug.

 

“How have you been? My! You look so skinny! Haven’t you been eating properly?”

 

Irene chuckled out of guilt. This was the third time she’d heard this. Once from her parents, the second one from Tiffany and now Sue.

 

“I’m good. I’m really glad to be back. I really missed it here.”

 

“We’re really glad to have you back too.. Doug!!!”

 

Sue suddenly shouted, surprising Irene a bit.

 

“Yeah?”

 

They both saw Doug peeking from the kitchen window before he smiled and walked towards them.

 

“My, my, my. Look who’s finally back from the North Pole. You brought us any presents from Santa?”

 

Irene rolled her eyes at him before laughing at his joke.

 

“I went to Alaska you big dufus!”

 

Sue and Doug laughed at Irene.

 

“Same, same. Welcome back Madam! We missed having you around.”

 

Irene grinned.

 

“I missed you guys too! Especially the food!!”

 

They laughed at Irene’s remark.

 

“Though, I really did bring some presents back with me. My team and I caught a lot of pacific salmon—some sockeye and chinook on our way back. I figured we can give them to you guys.”

 

They both thanked Irene but not before hugging her again.

 

“You’re breakfast is on the house okay?”, Sue offered and assured Irene. She couldn’t reject out of politeness so she just thanked them.

 

“So, what’ll it be? Waffles or pancakes?”, Doug asked.

 

Irene grinned. “Do you even have to ask?Waffles, scrambled eggs, and bacon please! Oh and a cup of hot chocolate!”

 

Doug repeated her order before grinning back at her and playfully ruffled her hair.

 

 

Irene looked around before sitting down on the only vacant table. She couldn’t sit on her usual table since it was already occupied.

 

She waited for a bit before she finally got her order served.

 

Irene took a good look at the plate in front of her before having a playful thought.

 

She cut the waffles into quarters, some in smaller pieces to make her own waffle house.

 

Irene was really concentrated in building her waffle house. She opted to make the house have 2 floors, because bungalow waffle houses are overrated.

 

 

—————

 

 

[Fiji Blue - Outside]

https://open.spotify.com/track/4C685FuFbEE7YGQy8mi3Zw?si=QKXGtcyZR_6Xmso82nSl4g&dl_branch=1

 

 

Irene was about to place a toothpick to hold the window before she felt a small tap on her shoulder.

 

 

“Hey miss. Are you alone?”

 

Irene raised an eyebrow at this.

 

She noticed this girl looked a bit taller than her and had a unique hair color. Ash brown maybe? Irene thought.

 

 

“Uhm, all the tables are already occupied and I noticed you were alone so.. uhm, would you mind sharing a table with me miss?”

 

 

Irene looked around to confirm what the girl said. All of the other tables were indeed already taken, even the chairs at the bar.

 

“Uhm, I don’t know. I’m actually waiting for my girlfriend.”

 

“Oh?”

 

This person slowly gave her a smirk. Before sitting down across from her without waiting for her permission.

 

“So you’re already taken huh? Too bad.. You’re just my type.”

 

“Excuse me? A-are you flirting with me?”

 

“Not really. Just being honest. Cute waffle house by the way.”

 

The girl shrugged before slowly standing up. But just as she started to walk away, Irene spoke again.

 

“You know… You actually look familiar.”

 

“Really?”

 

“I think I’ve seen you from somewhere.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

 

 

Irene slowly smiled.

 

“Yeah.. You look awfully a lot like my girlfriend.”

 

The stranger laughed.

 

“Is that so?”

 

“Yeah. But I’m sorry to say that she might be coming in any minute now. That’s why I’m building this waffle house so I can show it to her.”

 

The stranger laughed at what she shared.

 

“Okay then. I guess I’ll just leave you alone before she sees you talking to some stranger. See you around miss. Good luck in building your waffle house.”

 

 

The stranger was about to walk away again, when Irene suddenly stood up to pull her arm until the taller girl was seated beside her.

 

The stranger laughed again before looking at Irene.

 

“I really missed you.”

 

 

 

Irene let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding before finally smiling.

 

The stranger’s face softened.

 

“I missed you too Seulgi. More than you can imagine.”

 

Irene finally wrapped her arms around Seulgi and they remained like that for a while.

 

She felt Seulgi giving her a kiss on the side of her head.

 

“You look like you lost a lot of weight Hyun.”

 

Irene smiled at the nickname.

 

 

“I was longing for you.”

 

Seulgi laughed, it sounded sweet and but a bit cheesy.

 

“I’m serious.”

 

She felt Seulgi giving her a kiss on her forehead this time.

 

A minute of silence passed by before Irene spoke again.

 

“Weren’t you the same?”, Irene let out softly.

 

Seulgi pulled back a bit and held one of her cheeks.

 

“Yes. I was yearning for you too. Every. Single. Day.”

 

Irene bit her lip at Seulgi’s reply.

 

“I’m here now.”

 

 

—————

 

 

Irene and Seulgi made sure to catch up.

She told Seulgi all about her “adventures”, her new discoveries and the pranks she experienced from Joy, Yeri and Sehun.

 

Seulgi told her all the things she did during her stay in the facility. It’s been two months since she got released, but Irene knew all about this since she was always updated by Tiffany about Seulgi’s progress.

 

Her sister Tiffany made her own breakthrough about the brains functions how each part can be optimized in cases where the temporal lobe cortex was damaged through accidents— cases specific to anterograde amnesia, where the person could not initially retain long term information.

 

She’s currenly finishing her paper from this case study with Seulgi as the main subject of her research. Once this gets published, patients with anterograde amnesia can receive the same treatment (albeit still depending on the gravity of the brain damage) she applied with Seulgi.

 

Basically, her main discovery was that it’s not only the cortex of the temporal lobe (outer part) that can store long-term memory but also the amygdala (inner part). Tiffany had proved that with the help of her constant sessions or what she calls “brain-training” sessions with Seulgi, her brain can still adapt to retain long term information even after the accident— specifically related to people or events with emotional significance.

 

It’s like when you cut off a man’s right hand, he can still adapt to using his left one. Or when a person becomes blind, their body adapts by heightening all the other senses left to cope up with living. The brain could still adapt despite having damage. Well, still to a certain extent of course.

 

With this, Seulgi was now able to wake up remembering all about her accident, some parts of the previous day and significant events that happened previously. Though still can’t remember mundane things such as the food she ate or the clothes she wore the day before— at least things without any real significance from her day to day.

 

But the main thing here, she knows Irene. She remembers her vividly out of all the things she could remember— because she wants to, and because Irene was already ingrained in both her mind and her ‘entire being’, as Tiffany termed it.

 

Seulgi would still need to keep a journal if she wants to remember certain things or the names of new people she would meet. 

 

Unlike Irene’s case and Tiffany’s, they’ve already been instilled in Seulgi’s memory because of their impact or significance in her life. But for the new people she would meet, she needs to log them in her journal since the storage of her long term memory is related to emotional attachment. It’ll take her a while to remember them.

 

Tiffany suggests that Seulgi try to memorize them as what she had been doing with Irene as she constantly reads about her through her journal. Well, if Seulgi wants to remember these new people that she gets to meet that is.

 

Tiffany also encourages her to still log her dreams just in case this could bring her memories in the past she forgot.

 

They found out that with Seulgi’s condition, the things she forgot from the past tend to get stored in her subconscious. It’s there, but it’s like stored at the back of her mind. 

 

 

————-

 

 

Irene noticed that the whole time she was talking, Seulgi was just focused on her. If people were to look at them or observe Seulgi, they would just think that she was just a good listener, but it was beyond that. 

 

Irene had never noticed this before, how Seulgi was not just intently listening, but it’s also as if she was memorizing everything she was saying in that moment. 

 

From what Tiffany told her, Seulgi was able to jot down everything that happened the entire day in her journal— up to what Irene was exactly saying to the the smallest of things you wouldn’t take note of, like her expression or her hand gestures in that exact moment.

 

That maybe why Seulgi would usually repeat some parts of the story.

 

Like for this case, Irene was telling her about her team always telling her to relax. Irene had never noticed this before, she thought that it was just one of Seulgi’s habits.

 

“Yeah, that’s why they want to meet you so bad. ‘Cause the boys couldn’t believe that someone like me, who in their term was such a ‘tight-’ could be so romantic.”

 

Seulgi laughed while softly muttering, “They couldn’t believe that a ‘tight-’ like you can be romantic, huh?”

 

“Yeah. After I told them the story of how we met, they couldn’t believe that I make you fall I love with me everyday.”

 

“Well, Yeri and Joy already know this but the rest of our team— Suho and Sehun had no idea. Joy and Yeri were the ones that made me tell the story since it would make a good ‘bedtime’ story for them.”

 

Irene rolled her eyes at the last part.

 

“I guess the boys were also curious why it takes me a long time to catch up with my sister when we have the