Saturday evening came faster than Joohyun would have thought. She was so nervous, to the point where her heart was stuck in . Seulgi and her texted during the rest of the week, talking about absolutely nothing and yet about everything at the same time. One of them would bring up a completely random subject and it started at least an hour of conversation. Seulgi even sent her some pictures that she had taken. Joohyun never felt more at peace. She was excitedly going to school in the morning and locked herself in her room when she would come back in the evening, playing happy music in her headphones. Something she hadn’t done for a very long time. But she tried to tone it down because she saw the looks Kyung-Mi and Hyun-Woo gave her. They couldn’t be suspicious of anything. Joohyun didn’t want to lose her sole source of happiness. She told her parents that she was sleeping at a friend’s house and her mother almost gave her a heart attack when she asked if it was ‘the girl from your literature project’. Under the intense gazes of her siblings, she had denied, telling her that she wasn’t that close to her and thankfully the conversation changed direction. 

That was with a suppressed smile that she left her house on Saturday evening with a large handbag that contained her pajamas and all her necessities. However, once she was in front of Yeri’s house, the fact that she and Seulgi wouldn’t be alone came back to the front of her concerns. How was she supposed to interact with them? They’ll surely look at her with eyes full of hatred. Coming was a mistake. She had never once addressed them in a nice way. How could she be here? Was she supposed to act as nothing happened during all these years?

She was on a verge of a panic attack when the image of Seulgi came to her mind. She could imagine her reassuring words and it managed to slightly calm her nerves. She took small steps toward the house until she stood in front of the door. She lifted her hand, knocking with apprehension. A middle-aged woman opened the door, immediately smiling at her. 

« Hello, there! You must be Joohyun? » The said girl nodded anxiously « Come in » The woman gestured for her to enter her home and Joohyun did as told. She saw another woman around the same age walk up to them and she stood next to the first woman, smiling welcomingly at her. 

« Welcome to our home, Joohyun. I’m Yeri’s mom, Tiffany » She then turned her head toward the other woman with a smile « And this is my wife and Yeri’s other mama, Taeyeon » She introduced. Joohyun’s eyes widened. The picture from Seulgi’s wall now took a whole new meaning. Yeri’s t-shirt, which read ‘I love my moms’ on the pride picture, wasn’t referring jokingly to Seungwan and Sooyoung but her actual mothers. She quickly put herself together and smiled at them. 

« It’s nice to meet you. Thank you for letting me stay for the night » She gave them a small bow. 

« It’s our pleasure » Taeyeon said « And it’s nice to see that Yeri made a new friend » Joohyun forced a smile because Yeri certainly didn’t consider her a friend. Only Seulgi might, and it might be a reach from her part.

« Speaking of the little devil » Tiffany walked to the bottom of the stairs and yelled « Yeri, Joohyun is here » 

« The others already arrived » Taeyeon informed her « And the pizzas will be here soon » Footsteps rushing down the stairs caught their attention and a second later Yeri in her cute light pink pajamas appeared. She smiled a bit awkwardly at Joohyun but appeared cool about her presence. 

« Hey, girl! Ready for the most mind-blowing party. We’re playing Jenga » Her mothers shook their heads, embarrassed but smiling « What? At my age, you went to nightclubs. Aren’t you happy I’m here? »Yeri said dramatically. 

« That’s why you’re the best daughter » Taeyeon grinned at her. 

« That’s not hard since I’m the only one » She teased and her moms laughed. Their interaction made Joohyun smile. She wished her parents would be that cool with her « Come on, Joohyun! » Yeri got her out of her thoughts, gesturing for her to follow her upstairs « You should get into your pajama before the pizzas arrive » Joohyun exchanged a shy smile with her mothers before following her upstairs « So… » Yeri started as they made their way down the hallway to her bedroom. She turned around and stopped, making Joohyun almost bump into her « I know that we started on the wrong foot and that we don’t know each other but tonight I want you to know that you can relax and be who you are….and maybe we can even become friends » Joohyun was very surprised by that sudden surge of sympathy but something bothered her.

« Did Seulgi ask you to say this? » She questioned to know if she was genuine about what she said. Yeri snorted.

« To be honest, she lectured us to be nice to you but we…uh….we want to start anew with you. Seulgi says that you’re a good person so I believe her. I hope I can get a glimpse of the Bae Joohyun she got close with » She sent her a soft smile that Joohyun awkwardly returned. 

« Thanks…for giving me a second chance » 

« You’re welcome. Just…don’t blow it » She said seriously. 

« I’ll do everything not to » She promised confidently. 

« Good, I… » 

« YERI! Are you scaring Joohyun there or what? » Sooyoung’s voice reached them from the bedroom. Yeri rolled her eyes and began walking toward her room. 

« I’m not a monster, Young » She groaned as she entered the room but Joohyun disconnected from the conversation right there. She was in awe at Yeri’s bedroom. She thought her room was big but Yeri’s room was more of a playroom than an ordinary bedroom. It was a long room where on one side there were shelves full of books and figurines and on the other was her desk and other shelves with schoolbooks and notebooks. Her bed was at the very back of the room, a couch was in front of it, and facing it was a blank wall where a projector on the ceiling was showing a Mario Kart game that Seulgi and Seungwan were playing. She saw Seulgi’s kart drove into a ravine and turned her gaze to find her eyes on her. Her heart skipped a beat, however, she became very quickly aware of Seungwan and Sooyoung’s eyes also on her. 

« H…Hi » She waved shyly. 

« Hi, Joohyun! » Sooyoung greeted happily « Glad you joined us » She elbowed Seungwan who paused the game and Seulgi looked at her best friend with anticipation. Seungwan was still very cautious of Joohyun because she didn’t want her to get hurt. They had talked about it for hours the previous night. Seungwan had called her, checking if she was alright about spending the night with Joohyun at the sleepover. Seulgi didn’t hesitate when she answered and she heard Seungwan sigh on the other end. ‘I hope for your sake that she’ll make you the happiest woman on earth. You deserve it’ was what she said to her and Seulgi, that time, didn’t even deny she was crushing on Joohyun. 

« Hey, Joohyun! Hope you like pineapple pizza? » Joohyun was going to stay polite and say she didn’t mind even if she didn’t like it but the slight scrunch of her nose gave her away and Seungwan chuckled « I’m just messing with you, we got pepperoni, ham and cheese, and veggie » Joohyun instantly relaxed and smiled at the playfulness that she had never experimented before. Seulgi smiled at Seungwan’s joke and stared happily at Joohyun, melting from the sight of her smiling. 

« The bathroom is across the hallway » Yeri pointed outside the room « You should change fast because my moms called a while ago already » Joohyun nodded, exchanging one last look with the cute Seulgi in her black pajama pants and baggy grey t-shirt, and locked herself inside the bathroom. She let out a sigh, a reassured one. It already didn’t feel as awkward as she thought it would be. She changed into her grey pajama pants and her large white t-shirt with a bunny drawn on it. She got back to Yeri’s room and the girl looked up at her as the three others were racing. She patted the spot next to her and Joohyun sat quietly « So, there are a few things you need to catch up on if you want to join our group. These losers are big nerds » 

« Hey! » Sooyoung exclaimed. 

« Says the girl who has shelves full of anime figurines » Seungwan scoffed. 

« I never said I wasn’t one either » She smirked proudly and turned back to Joohyun « Also, we’re gay as hell » Joohyun was shocked by her bluntness but it also made her heart warm a little « And before you ask, no I didn’t inherit it from my moms. I was just born awesome » 

« And cocky » Seulgi snorted. Joohyun met her eyes and inhaled deeply as she drowned in their warmth. However, Yeri threw herself at her friend and the two began to wrestle. Sooyoung face-palmed and Seungwan took out her phone and began recording it. Joohyun grinned at the happy and playful atmosphere as Sooyoung moved closer to her. 

« And sometimes it feels like they never grew up » She joked. 

« Says the one who pouted for two hours because she couldn’t see her girlfriend » Yeri exposed her from on top of Seulgi, and Joohyun snorted. Seulgi smiled softly while looking at how relaxed she seemed but groaned when Sooyoung threw herself on top of Yeri and crushed her. 

« Girls! The pizzas are here » They heard Tiffany yell and their footsteps coming up the stairs. Sooyoung and Yeri got off Seulgi who released a deep breath. Her eyes met Joohyun’s eyes and mouthed a ‘Are you okay?’ to make sure it wasn’t too overwhelming for her but Joohyun nodded with a genuine smile. Yeri caught on to their little interaction as her moms came into the room with the boxes of pizza in their hands « Alright » Tiffany put hers on the low table in front of them as well as a stack of napkins « Make sure to use the napkins, we don’t want an accident that would stain your cute pajamas » She looked accusingly at Yeri who groaned. 

« That was one time » She complained. 

« And we still can’t get the stain out » Taeyeon remarked. 

The girls burst into laughter and Tiffany winked lovingly at her daughter as a small smile spread on her face. 

« Have a good night, girls! Put your trash in the kitchen when you’re finished » Taeyeon told them. As they exited her room, Yeri glanced at Joohyun who was watching them with a curious gaze. It gave her an idea. 

« Moms! » She called the two women who turned around « Do you want to eat with us and maybe tell Joohyun how you met and how you got married? » They looked at one another in surprise. 

« Oh, yes please. I love your story » Sooyoung encouraged them and Seungwan nodded. Seulgi looked at Joohyun who seemed to remain genuinely curious and relaxed about it even if she was still shy. Taeyeon shrugged at her wife and Tiffany moved back into the room. 

« I do love to talk about the love of my life » She cooed as they sat down on the other side of the table and in front of the girls « And about the birth of my other love » She smiled at Yeri who grinned. Joohyun’s torso subconsciously leaned a little forward, ready to hear a love story that she was already jealous of.

____________________________________________________

Hey, guys! 

Hope you enjoyed this chapter? 

See you next week :)

-J