Yongsun’s first kiss went like this:

It was spring, warm enough not to need a jacket but it was cool enough that even after an intensive round of chase Yongsun, in a weird mix of heaving and giggling, had barely broken a sweat. Her playmate was a boy older than her, or so he says in that weird accented voice that reminded Yongsun of those cartoons on tv. He was a bit special in that his hair was lighter, lighter than even Yonghee’s yellow jacket that she never let Yongsun borrow, and the shade of his eyes reminded her of a clear pond. He didn’t look like the rest of them and it made her wonder if this boy was even human. So it was remarkably easy to remember this peculiar boy with his wide gummy smile and flush cheeks against his pale face.

He was also very kind and he didn’t mind playing with Yongsun even though there were other big kids around for him to play with. At that time even Yonghee didn’t want to play with her and they were sisters.

The kiss itself wasn’t that remarkable, it was a quick peck to the lips, an unexpected one, but not unwelcomed. It was as innocent as they were and didn’t really mean anything deeper. Kids mirror the same thing they see with their parents after all. So when Yonghee pulled her aside to berate the both of them Yongsun couldn’t say she didn’t feel a bit annoyed with her sister. It was just a kiss, after all, mommies and daddies do it all the time. It wasn’t a big deal. Yonghee thought differently and loudly announced that their playtime was over and they were leaving. So now all Yongsun could faintly recall of that small moment was the memory of a young, nameless boy, with the lightest of hair and the unique eye colour who’d been her first kiss.

The second time was not much different than the first. Yongsun was in primary school, a little older, a little wiser, but still curiously innocent in the way kids are.

Her second kiss had been a stolen one, snatched from right under her nose, so to speak, by a boy she didn’t really have much thought about. The suddenness of it all shocked her into immobility, staring right after the retreating figure of the boy as her closest friends were hot at his heels, a few choice words hurled at him, and maybe a shoe or two, for good measure.

They were icky, boys, or at least her friends told her so. Something about cooties that at that young age sounded equivalent to getting the bubonic plague. Yondo disagrees though, and of course, he would, and thinks it was the other way around, much to the other girls’ disagreement. Still, Yongsun finds that thought strange since she never thought anyone was gross unless they looked dirty with greenish boogers leaking from their noses.

That stolen kiss by that boy who she never really talked to, who it turned out was dared to snatch a kiss from her, didn’t seem gross at all. She didn’t feel anything from that stolen kiss, or maybe because it was too abrupt that she couldn’t properly comprehend it fully. Still, there wasn’t much to think about except that everyone else was mad for her, which she guessed was nice to know people had her back.

Nothing much happened during high school. The most popular topic at the time had been what the most popular drama was, who the most popular actor/actress was and who shipped who, and for girls, boys. For the boys: sports, and likely girls, in that order, usually, or so Yondo says. But it was mainly college and which university one would go into. As if memorizing the history of the world, trying to understand the system of economics, plus the different forms of sciences and maths wasn’t hard enough, now the choice for their career path that was going to be the source of their livelihood was already something to be worrying about in addition to the idea of if they were going to get married and buy their first house during their 20s, as their parents have.

Yongsun wasn’t even sure why bow is pronounced differently from bow yet beau was pronounced as bow but was nowhere near the same meaning. The English language was definitely on top for being one of the strangest things on Earth. And Yongsun thinks that took more precedence over dating and marriage.

Romance was the last thing on Yongsun’s mind, so when Yondo asked her out one day she really didn’t know how to respond to him. They had been friends for so long that she didn’t really see anything romantic blossoming for him, not when she knew this was the same boy who climbed the largest tree during 4th grade and fell off it after his foot slipped off a branch. Or that this was the same boy who used to pick his nose and wipe it on the nearest wall, or that he tried to catch a bee, after everyone else’s warning him not to, only to bawl his lungs out after being subsequently stung by said bee.

She never did answer him and he pretended he never asked her in the first place. They continued being friends but it was never the same being in the same space with only the two of them. Yongsun constantly felt awkward, expecting for him to ask again despite her still having no answer for it. Him, well, Yongsun really didn’t know what was going through his mind and she guessed it was better that way.

Eventually, high school comes and goes with little fanfare and she’s into a new school, new faces, and a new variety of experiences.

It was her first day of intro to logic when she gets into a heated debate with another student over the pros and cons of public transport. She’s all for private vehicles if one is able to afford it, and though carbon emission is a problem those same public transport system still emits their own carbon print and run longer than private vehicles. The other student vehemently disagrees and Yongsun nearly slips and calls her a before the debate ends.

She’s surprised to see the same student in three other classes and what was once a begrudging standstill turned into a blossoming friendship after 3 more months of catching each other in the same building and meeting each other in the same classes. Freshman Yongsun wouldn’t have ever thought of Bae Joohyun as anything other than just another rival in her goal to achieve the top of the dean’s list but she’s proven wrong.

“You realise doing the assignment now would free your afternoon up for any other assignments, right?” Joohyun says, using the end of her pen to push the stapled paper towards the middle of Yongsun’s desk. 

Yongsun lifts her eyes up from the novel she was reading, a small frown on her face as she looks between the assignment and then up at Joohyun who had her glasses slipping down her nose, looking much like the lead of some cheesy romance-comedy show, and rolls her eyes at her. “Professor’s not here so it’s effectively free period, Joohyun-ah. Which means I can do whatever I want. And right now I don’t want your nose butting into my peaceful reading time.”

She doesn’t need to look up from her reading to know Joohyun had pulled a face on her, the one that looked much like her father’s when she announced to them she wasn’t going to study Korean Medicine like they had wanted her to. Joohyun was good at that, making you feel like you were a disappointment when you don’t act like a model student. Not like she was a model student herself- at least not in the sense of being the goody-two-shoes one would normally associate with a model student. Despite the angelic-looking youthful face, Joohyun was notorious for going to parties to “mingle with the crowd” as she claims. She went to more parties than Yongsun cared to count. She knows because Joohyun had never once forgotten to ask her to accompany her- as if Yongsun didn’t have school work to do.

“You can have more free time after school if you take advantage of the free period we have during school hours.” Joohyun points out, as if reading her mind, and taps her pen against the paper again. “If you start now we can help each other figure out the answers. Two heads are better than one and we’ll finish faster. So, what do you say?”

“I say you’re annoying,” Yongsun huffs, finally closing her novel with a heavy heart. She was just getting to the good part. “but you make a valid point.”

“Of course I do.” Joohyun scoffs, turning up her nose in the air, a teasing glint in her eyes “I’m not top of the dean’s list for nothing.”

Yongsun resists sending her a glare. Though they were in different departments Joohuyn lorded over the fact that Yongsun merely came in second, right under the most annoying senior with a unfair advantage of having an eidetic memory who never seems to break a sweat. “Yeah, yeah. Future Ms prosecu-“

“Lawyer.” Joohyun butts in, correcting Yongsun’s words.

Yongsun turns a querying gaze at her, flicking away the pen that still rested on her paper. “I thought you said you wanted to be a prosecutor like your dad?”

“That was until I realise I would earn more as a lawyer. Private practice pays a lot more and you’d have more freedom as compared to working for the government. Sure, I may have to kiss being a judge goodbye if I want to keep having a high pay, but aiming to become a partner of a popular firm is equally satisfactory.”

“God, you sound just like those greedy lawyers on those dramas.” Yongsun scoffs, not maliciously, and Joohyun seems to catch on to the teasing tone and merely shrugs her shoulder.

“We can’t always be the good guy. But to be fair, the movie villains actually do have valid points for doing the things they do.”

“So what? You’re going to start playing the mean girl?”

“No way! Do you know what happens to the mean girls in the movies? I’m not going to ruin my chances of earning my millions. I’m going to be the smart, fun girl who everyone looks up to.”

“Smart and fun don’t mix very well..”

“No one asked your opinion.” Yongsun chuckles as she pulls the paper towards her, reading through the first few problems. It wouldn’t be so bad, she think, befriending someone like Joohyun. At least she can count on someone to be real with her.

Doe-in-headlights was the first thing that pierced through Yongsun’s shock. On her , her final thesis fluttering everywhere around them and her first thought were of how funny it was that the woman who bumped into her looked like the typical doe-in-headlights. Triangular mouth agape, eyes were blown wide, on her hands and knees as she froze in shock at what had just transpired.

Yongsun was the first to react, lifting her stinging wrist up to her chest to manipulate and cradle. Her left wrist had taken the brunt of the force as she fell backwards, something she deemed was fortunate as she would be screwed in three ways if she ended up injuring her dominant hand. She had three more final exams to take in within the week, which reminds her, there was still that group report that needed revision.

“I am so sorry!” The woman squeaked, rushing to collect Yongsun’s papers into a haphazard pile. With her possibly strained wrist, Yongsun figured it would take an extra few minutes to fix the pile back to its numerical order, and if she’s quick enough she could do so right before the bell for her next class began when she actually had to submit the paper. She cursed her past self for forgoing putting everything in an envelope knowing she needed to first find a puncher before she could safely put everything in a folder. Blame it on last-minute editing and printing, but such was uni life.

“Ah, ! Final paper? I am really, truly sorry! I wasn’t- I should have looked where I was going.” The other woman continued to ramble and- oh. Yongsun silently watched as the woman, unprompted, began going through the pile of papers, putting them back in their numerical order, her eyes flickering to the bottom pages where the page numbers were printed. Once done, she hurriedly scrambled to her feet, the soles of her vans squeaking from rubbing at the floor. Her body bending into a low bow, the girl presented the papers back right in front of Yongsun’s face, earning herself a yelp at the sudden movement. “Again, I am so sorry.”

“Ah, yeah…” Yongsun responds, taking the papers back. She takes the time to size up the other woman as she straightens back up. She looked like the laid back type: relaxed fit jeans paired with a white button-up with the sleeves haphazardly rolled up, her things safely kept in a low hanging sling bag, and to top it all up, her dark hair tied in a low ponytail, a little ruffled along the sides looking cute in that messy kind of way. “It’s fin-”

Before she could finish her words, however, the girl was off, her vans squeaking as she scrambled through the halls, dodging fellow schoolmates with the grace of a newborn foal. Yongsun watches long after the girl turns the corner, chuckling when she catches sight of the girl nearly smacking her face against the wall as she momentarily lost her footing. Funny girl, she thinks. She wonders if she’ll see her again. Her stinging wrist certainly deserved more than a sorry and though she’s grateful the other woman had the decency to pile her papers back in their numerical order she still owed her at least a drink for the pain Yongsun would have to endure the next few days.

With a huff, Yongsun turns on her heels. The need to find a puncher and formally submit her work at the forefront of her thoughts.

She forgets the clumsy, doe-in-headlights girl for the next few months, busy working part-time during summer to have a little pocket money for when Joohyun would once again inevitably drag her into another party. Joohyun did say she needed a new outfit.

The next party is just as loud as the last one. Yongsun guesses that much is expected from a party full of university-aged kids. They could have done better and hired a proper bartender- or at least someone who knew what they were doing- instead of the free for all alcohol bar that just about anyone can man. She was sure by the end of the night there were going to be some who will need to have their stomachs pumped to save them from alcohol poisoning. No doubt with the wide array of choices there would be some poor noob who would just randomly grab a drink or worse, ones dumb enough to accept dares to drink alcoholic drinks like they were juice packs.

Yongsun tersely smiled at the guy trying to give her flirty looks over the bar, accepting the red cup that he claimed was just punch and a dash of vodka. Though parties like that were not Yongsun’s style it wasn’t her first rodeo. She pretends to take a sip of the drink, nodding her head in appreciation to the poor sob, and she turns her back to him, eyes quickly searching for either Joohyun or a place she could subtly dump the possibly toxic drink into.

She was careful to keep along the outside of the mosh pit of bodies jumping up and down to the music in the tiny living room. A large party in an actual house wasn’t at all like the movies made them out to be. It was so loud Yongsun couldn’t really comprehend if what was thudding into her ears was the ratchet song choice or the mix of human noise that did not make any sense to her at all, never mind that she couldn’t even hear herself think. The air around them was thick with the smell of sweat, perfumes of differing brands, hot breath, and maybe a little vomit but that could have been just someone’s overwhelming body odour. She wonders how everyone could even still breathe as she struggles to squeeze herself past the living room to the hall and finally out into the crisp air of the autumn night.

She greedily inhales the fresh air, arms wrapping around her bare midriff, mentally cursing herself for refusing to bring along a jacket because it would cramp her style. The athletic, cool cheerleader look she was going for was supposed to wow the crowd, after all, she did make use of her free time toning her abdominal muscles for the reason of showing them off at a party. Like Joohyun, at school, she still had to keep up the good girl aesthetic so parties were the only time she could really show off her well-maintained body. At that kind of party though the only kind of eye she caught was that of the leery guy at the bar and she had to make a hard pass for him. Definitely not her type.

“You look cold.” Yongsun’s thoughts are interrupted by the extension of a black bomber jacket coming close to her face. She flinched back out of reflex, the short scream and the wild slap that was Yongsun’s flight mechanism startling the other woman who pulled her jacket back, eyes blown wide at the over-the-top reaction. And- oh! Doe-in-headlights was staring back at her, expression froze in surprise, clutching the jacket close to her chest as if it would shield her.

“I mean, a no thank you would have sufficed.” She says awkwardly putting back on her jacket, eyes darting towards the group of drunk boys having a chugging competition at the far left side of the front lawn- and again Yongsun is surprised the cops have not been called yet.

“I’m sorry. You just- I was caught off guard.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t have-” her voice cuts off, eyes narrowing at Yongsun and she wonders if she had dip on her face from how hard the other girl was scrutinizing her. Then her eyes grow wide and a smile began playing at her lips “Ah! The hallway girl I bumped into! Hi!” she greets enthusiastically, a hand shooting up for what Yongsun thinks was supposed to be the universal open-palmed gesture for hello. If the deck of cards she had been holding hadn’t scattered all around them like over-sized confetti. 

“Aw, !“ she hisses, immediately crouching down to get her deck back in order. Yongsun hides a chuckle behind her hand. She intended to help but the other woman held a hand up at her, waving her help away as she hastily sweeps the cards back into a haphazard pile. She rights herself up, still fiddling with the pack of cards, searching around their feet, even humorously turning around her spot.

“Ah- I think I’m short one.” She mutters, quickly rifling through the deck, mouth moving though no sound comes out as she quickly counts the cards. 

Feeling a bit sympathetic, Yongsun does her own cursory checking, giving their immediate periphery a brief look over, checking for the familiar flash of laminated paper along the grass.

Choking on her side halts her search and she gives doe-in-headlights a concerned look. The hand on her chest and the hacking that sounded much like how one would choke on a large piece of food had Yongsun quickly piece together what was happening and a surge of adrenaline pulsed through her system, tensing on the spot. She had enrolled in a first-aid course- out of competitiveness when she found out Joohyun had done the same- but everything that was taught to her for those short couple of days flew out the window now that she was faced with an actual situation.

She knew the Heimlich was what she needed to do, but she couldn’t remember where the hand placement was supposed to be or how much pressure she needed to do. Was she supposed to beat the back first? Or was she actually supposed to ask the woman if she was choking- which looks like she obviously was- but at what? She wasn’t even eating, didn’t even have anything on her except her jacket and cards. Was she even chewing earlier?

The continuous coughing and the movement of the frat boys pausing on their fun to check up on them snap Yongsun out of her stupor and she reaches out, firmly patting the woman’s back to help her dislodge whatever it was that caught in . The woman’s coughs abruptly stop as Yongsun gives her back her fourth- or was it her sixth?- firm whack. She sees her reaching to grab something in to pull out. Something red. Something that didn’t look like it should be in a grown woman’s mouth.

Eyes wide, Yongsun let her hand fall slack as she watched the woman pull a folded-up card from , whipping it a bit to flick away the bits of saliva clinging to it. She unfolds it, checks it over then nods her head, lifting it up for the cheering boys to see better, a -eating grin on her face. “Ah, there it is.”

Yongsun scoffs, half impressed, half in annoyance as she looks over the woman. A magician. That was a bit unusual. Not that Yongsun believed women couldn’t do those same party tricks to impress others during gatherings but it was the first time she was actually approached by one and have an unhindered view of the trick up close. Though a little warning would have been nice – she thought as she pressed a hand up against her wildly beating heart. Yongsun didn’t do well with scares.

“You’re not actually going to put that back into the deck, are you?” She says, watching with unhidden disgust as the doe-in-headlights magician puts the saliva-coated card back on top of the deck like it wasn’t the least bit repulsive. She made a note to herself not to touch anything from this woman without a hand sanitizer on the ready.

“I’ll clean it later.” Was the unbothered response as she puts the stack back into a deck and pocketed it. Her eyes meet Yongsun’s and, Yongsun guessed, she might have picked up on the revulsion and she clasps her hands in front of her, shoulder raising up and down as a sheepish grin finds its way to her lips “Or.. I’ll throw it out later. Those were pretty old anyway, cheap too… I cleaned it before putting that in my mouth, mind you. I’m not a cavewoman.”

“Sure..” Yongsun lets the word trail off, her gaze flickering back to the entrance to the house. Which would be better, possibly suffocating in the house full of rancid smell or suffering through whatever magical bull this one has under her sleeves?

“Nice night out, huh?” she says. Yongsun turns to her and notes that her eyes are fixed up to the sky. She follows her line of sight, squinting at the vast darkness of the light-polluted night sky.

“uh… well, the air is nice.” She responds conversationally. She hears more than see the other woman breathe in deeply and she does the same, in a more muted way.

It was a bit awkward, standing out in the front lawn alone with a strange.. stranger. The drunk frat boys had gone back to loudly cheering each other in the background, the slightly muted sound of the party song thudding in the background only to be outdone by the steadily growing sound of police sirens..

“Oh, boy…”

“And, that my cue to run. Pleasure seeing you again, miss.” The magician swivels around her, doing an over-the-top bow before turning and running straight towards the line of cars parked on the streets.

Yongsun glances over the flash of red and blue in the not too far distance, phone already out and speed dialling Joohyun’s phone. She just hoped the paid attention to her phone because she wasn’t going to be caught in a loud house party with god knows what kind of substance they could find. She was getting out of there with or without Joohyun. Preferably with, since she did not want her phone blowing out with an angry lawyer to be.

She wasn’t bad. Her actions were big and flashy, her tricks unseen unless she wanted you to see. It was like watching someone commit robbery in broad daylight but with the charisma of a newscaster and a face of a magazine model- if oversized white pullover and bright red track pants were magazine-worthy. She took the stage by storm and commanded the audience like it was the 10th inning, scores tied on the board, all three bases loaded and it was her turn up to bat. And she knew she could hit that ball right out the park.

But now that Yongsun was seeing her in the intimacy provided by the tight space of the closet they were unglamorously shoved into she found that flashy card girl was actually a lot cuter this way: uneasily fidgeting, eyes roaming everywhere but at Yongsun, pressing herself as far back into the walls as she could. With the little light provided through the cracks, Yongsun could see her hands pressed up against her chest, cocooning herself as if she was trying not to make the situation any more uncomfortable as it is. Yongsun would have snorted if she hadn’t found it a bit endearing.

She wasn’t expecting the other woman to jump her or go through the whole 5 minutes trying to make a move. She wasn’t really sure she even swung that way. At least, she didn’t seem like she did judging by their sparse interaction with each other. Still, she could faintly feel the other’s harsh breath brushing against the side of her cheek and she thought: maybe, just maybe.

“You don’t have to press yourself that far back. I’m not going to bite you or anything .” Yongsun says in hopes to ease the tension. She really didn’t want to have to drag a semiconscious woman out of the closet, despite the hilarity it could carry over for the rest of her uni years. She didn’t want to break flashy card girl’s reputation over a stupid truth or dare turned 5 minutes in heaven. Again, she wondered why she even agreed to sit in on the game.

“Ah..” she responded, swallowing so hard Yongsun could pick up the sound over the slightly muffled hushing and giggling coming from the other side of the door. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. Sometimes uni students were more childish than high school kids though they were supposed to be more mature.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what? You didn’t put us in here.”

Flashy card girl shrugs her shoulder. There was a soft clatter when her movement dislodged something to which she scrambled to push back into place, nervously checking their overhead. Yongsun does the same and feels a bit silly afterwards at the reminder that they slid the clothes back to make room for them.

“I guess..” she says hesitantly, pausing a bit too long that it was starting to annoy Yongsun  “that the.. that it landed on… you?”

“Are you asking or are you telling me? Also, unless you can manipulate even a spin as hard as that- which honestly would be a freaky trick- it was just-” Yongsun breaths harshly through her nose. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling a bit annoyed with flashy cards girl and this weird tension. “look, it’s not a big deal. You don’t have to apologise for anything.”

“They’re talking. I hear a lot of talking. When did kissing involve talking?” a voice whisper yells at the other side.

Yongsun huffs under breath and delivers a firm pound against the door. It gives away a little, as flimsy closets often do, but is quickly pushed back by whoever was standing guard outside.

“I’m sorry for that idiot. That idiot is one of my annoying friends. I swear, I didn’t put them up to this. They just- they’re really annoying but they’re good kids.. mostly. Well, some of them are mostly… normal.”

“Are you implying you’re hanging out with a bad crew?”

“No. Not bad. Just a bit stupid and insane. It’s the alcohol. Probably. Makes them a bit dumber. A little bit more.. weird” She motions something against her head, probably twirling her finger in the universal gesture of crazy.

A strong pound against the door makes them both jolt to attention. Yongsun was half hoping someone slapped some sense into the group outside and set them free from their stuffy prison, but the declaration that came soon after squashed any hope of that.

“We’re opening the doors in the next 40 seconds. If there’s no lipstick transfer then you two will be staying there for another 5 minutes.”

“Cut it out!” Flashy cards girl hollers and attempts to push against the door. It doesn’t budge. So she slams her fist against it in irritation. “You ! Why did truth and dare turn into this?”

“Someone dared you two to do 5 minutes in heaven. So do it.”

“But it was supposed to be my turn!”

“Hey, the faster you comply the faster you two can come out of there.”

“But that’s not the rules!”

“Rules were meant to be broken, Byulyi. 25 seconds.”

Yongsun wasn’t in any hurry to leave. All the needed reading material read, homework done, in no small part of Joohyun basically forcing her to get all uni work out of the way to enjoy the big parties occurring during the weekend, there was nothing in Yongsun’s to-do list for the next coming days except relaxing.

So she wasn’t sure why she did what she did.

When the closet door opened to 5 or so expectant faces fighting to be the first to see them Yongsun let her hand drop from where it fisted around the soft fabric of the white pullover. She her lips, tasting the faint residual bitterness of the beer that had come from the bottle they were spinning and the mix of raspberry lip gloss. She could still feel the lingering warmth from the plush lips pressing against her own and the thought sent a little tingle of giddiness through her skin, warming up her neck, cheeks, down to her chest where her heart rate picked up. She slipped past the small gathering and headed straight towards the exit.

She casts one last look over her shoulder catching Byulyi’s wide, surprised eyes staring after her, fingers hovering above her lips- the perfect picture of an idiot. Yongsun grins, feeling satisfactory at the effect she left and turned the corner.

Her third kiss was also a stolen one, but she thinks this one is one for the books. And she doesn’t forget to write it in her journal that night when she gets back to her room, feeling lightheaded and a spring in her steps.

It doesn’t take as long as the last one when she sees her again, Byulyi, talking to Joohyun- or were they really just talking? She had cut them off mid-conversation so she wasn’t 100% sure she hadn’t just cut them off flirting. Wasn’t sure Joohyun even knew how to flirt, doesn’t seem like she does anyway. Plus wasn’t there something with Seulgi? Or maybe there isn’t?

Yongsun wasn’t sure but at the moment there were more pressing issues at hand, like Yeri possibly getting alcohol poisoning. The last thing she needed was to explain to the emergency nurses why they were wheeling a minor with a blood alcohol level high enough to kill a grown- man. She doesn’t pay too much attention to her this time, too consumed with worry for the youngest of their group. But she does throw one look over her shoulder, just catching a glimpse of those same eyes staring right after her.

It must be true, what people said about the mind catching things a bit more once its focus is shifted to a certain idea or, in this case, a certain person. She sees Byulyi a lot more along the halls, even though she isn’t bringing attention to herself, just mindfully listening to another friend or idly shuffling whatever prop was available in her hand. She sees the way her eyes seem to light up when their gazes accidentally meet, a hand halfway up in a lazy wave just as Yongsun forces herself to cut her looking and shuffle quickly to her next class.

Eventually, she becomes aware of the other girl gradually easing herself into Yongsun’s little friend group- mostly with Joohyun and though she knows it shouldn’t bother her but the thought of the two getting a tad too close doesn’t settle well with her. She did find it amusing when Byulyi found out that Yongsun was, in fact, older by a whole year, something she gloated over her flustered stuttering of apologies. Still, the fact that Joohyun seems to find herself comfortable dragging the poor girl around like she owned her rubbed Yongsun the wrong way.

Mostly because of the forlorn look poor Seulgi gives her at their retreating backs- at least, Yongsun lets herself believe it to be. Truth be told, she isn’t quite sure why this irritation bubbles up in her chest at the sight of the two and isn’t quite keen to figure out why. So she lets them be, directing her attention to something else, something more productive, more worthwhile. Like helping out the kids with a subject, or to her studies, or anything just so the annoyance would be a bit more bearable.

Why was Joohyun even hanging out with Byulyi?

“If they were a family with a picnic basket then you’re Yogi Bear.” Startled, Yongsun pulled back from the straw, hand against her chest as she coughed the bits of milky goodness out of her lungs and back up to her nasal tract. She hastily grabs the offering of brown tissue papers, covering her nose and mouth as a mix of saliva and the black milk tea rushed back out, one hand clutching Wendy’s wrist in a firm grip as the younger gently patted her back.

“What the hell, Wendy? Don’t walk up on me like that. You know I hate people sneaking up on me.” She rasped as soon as her breathing calmed, fixing Wendy a glare from her still hunched sitting. She could still feel the burning sensation from her chest to her nose and the watering of her eyes.

“Sorry, I thought you saw me. I wasn’t exactly being quiet or anything.” Wendy shrugged, dropping unglamorously down the unoccupied seat next to her. “Anyway, I didn’t peg you to be a stalker, unnie.”

“I’m not stalking anyone.. and what do you mean by that Yogi thing? Who’s that?”

“I-“ Wendy stared, her face a painting of disbelief before she shook her head and settled with a wry grin “Never mind. I was just saying you were staring- blatantly at that. It’s creepy.”

“I wasn’t staring!” Yongsun hissed, her gaze shifting uneasily back at the duo she had been watching since they entered the coffee shop, chatting animatedly like they were long-time best friends finally able to catch each other up after years of being apart.

Of course, she wasn’t stalking. Stalking would have entailed that she knew exactly where they were going and if they were together- or that she followed them. No, she was there first. Yongsun had planned to waste her day with school work and the coffee shop just happened to be where she and Joohyun spent most of their allowances to find some peace in the stress that was school work. She didn’t know they would end up there. And when they entered, well, Yongsun initially was just wondering why Joohyun had been hanging out more with Byulyi than with the rest of them. Not that she could blame Joohyun, Byulyi had a very handsome face and an easy smile, and seem to be a very sincere woman. Just with the added party tricks that Yongsun wasn’t quite interested in.

She was losing her train of thoughts once again and so she refocused her gaze on Wendy’s expectant face. She leaned back on her seat, tried to play it cool- as the kids would say- crossing her arms over her chest, mindful of the tissue still scrunched up in her fist. “I was just- I was just lost in my thoughts. About the project, you know. Been stressed about it since yesterday.”

The all too wide smile Wendy wore only further irked Yongsun and she stiffened when the younger threw a look at Joohyun and Byulyi, their heads now together as they spoke quietly at the other end of the shop. “You were also grinding your teeth while staring daggers at them, but hey, sure, whatever helps you sleep tonight.”

“I do not grind my teeth!” she grumbled under her breath that not even Wendy could hear. She waves away the quizzical look Wendy passes her, her focus going back to the laptop’s screen in standby mode. Well, .

She gave the mouse pad a couple of swipes, reigniting the monitor and taking her back to the half-filled word page which she had been working on before Joohyun and Byulyi appeared. She could feel the muscle under her right eye begin to spasm.

So maybe she was staring at them. Who cares? Was she not allowed to look at people now?

A low growl comes out of her chest and Yongsun quickly closes the app and switch her laptop off.

“I can’t concentrate here. I’m going back to my place. Do you want to tag along or are you meeting with dumb and dumber over there?” she jerks her head stiffly at the duo, unmindful of the wide-eyed look Wendy fixes her. She doesn’t wait for an answer and starts standing up, rechecking her mental list of the things she had pulled out.

“Yongsun?” Yongsun’s breath hitched and she stiffly turns her head to meet the sparkling brown eyes of a grinning Byulyi. Her jaws felt stiff and she could do nothing to raise the heavy frown on her face, so she lets her quivering eyes glance over Byulyi’s shoulder, her irritation doubling at the sight of the slight smirk pulling up at Joohyun’s lips as their gazes meet.

“Yongsun- unnie, I mean. Hey, uh… Wendy too!” Byulyi lets out a little laugh, clapping her hands together and rubbing them, “uh.. you-you-would you two like to – uh, join us. Me and Joohyun-unnie, I mean. We-er… we haven’t been here that long. Just-uh over there.” She turns her body a little, to give them a better view of Joohyun who now had a pretty smile on her face and gave a little, girlish finger wiggle of greeting. Yongsun wanted to throw her the middle finger so badly, but kept her fisted hands around the strap of her bag, working her jaw to loosen up a little bit to be able to answer.

“No thanks, I have to go.” Yongsun managed to push out, smiling stiffly at the crestfallen face Byulyi was giving her at the decline. She almost felt bad. Almost.

With one last glance over at Joohyun, Yongsun turned, filling her mind with assignments to distract herself from the thoughts of turning back just to see the smile on Byulyi’s face.

.

She liked Byulyi. No, no like was too weak. Byulyi was her type and it drove her crazy trying to figure out how that came to be. Though she did find the extent of Byulyi’s capabilities to trick other people’s minds and leave them guessing a pretty impressive feat, that wasn’t what drew her eyes towards the other girl. It wasn’t her face or physique either, though it didn’t hurt that Byulyi was actually good-looking and had the body fit that most women would die for, no, she didn’t feel this attraction the first few times they’ve met- not even when she kissed her. No, the fluttering feeling was just a kneejerk reaction to the thrill of kissing someone for real. She couldn’t exactly pinpoint when these stupid feelings of affection came but she knew exactly what that irritation with Joohyun actually was-much as she hated to admit it- just plain old jealousy.

Yongsun wasn’t perfect, as much as she strived to be exactly that, so as she sat on what was going to be her work desk for the coming semester, idly nibbling on her lunch of peanut butter and strawberry jam, she lost herself in her thoughts trying to figure out why? Why Moon Byulyi when they hardly talked for more than their typical greeting. Why does she have this strong desire to be by her side, though another part of her thinks it is absolutely ridiculous to feel this strongly for a person? Why her eyes sought for Byulyi’s with the ridiculous scowl that was almost a perpetual expression on her face, completely the opposite of what she actually wanted to show the woman.

Too lost in her thoughts she doesn’t notice the yellow top, plastic cup set on her table a little harshly or the inquisitive look being passed to her by the woman now tapping her nail against her desk.

“You look constipated. And that sandwich isn’t going to help you pass, especially since half of its content is practically dripping down to your sandwich container.” Yongsun finally blinks owlishly at the dry delivery, looking up to meet the cat-like gaze of a new face in the office. She hadn’t been there long enough to remember everyone’s name or their position in the hierarchy, but Yongsun was pretty sure she would remember the woman’s face, especially with the heavy eye make-up that gave her a more mature look.

“Sorry, I was uh-“ She looked between the sorry piece of mushed sandwich between her hands, to the scattering of tissue paper all over her table, the pile of documents haphazardly stacked to the side, then back to the brunette who was still watching her face. “It’s my break.. Uh.. can I help you?”

The brunette tapped a perfectly manicured finger atop the yellow pot, the hollow sound of the empty pot as loud as the background noise of the office chatter. “Random drug testing. Bosses orders. Please don’t collect the urine from the actual toilet. Not only is that unsanitary but that would also invalidate the testing- unnie.”

“Ah..” Yongsun sounded, even more confused than ever. She hadn’t heard anything about a drug test during the morning minutes, didn’t recall reading about it when she went through her emails either. What confused her more was the honorific she used. The woman seemed so sure Yongsun was older despite her only starting not too long ago. She didn’t recall ever meeting, much less spoke to the other woman until that moment. “Um.. do I know you?”

The other brunette shrugged, leaning an arm against her table while her gaze roamed about the office floor “I don’t think so, but I sure do know you.”

“Excuse me?”

Yongsun watched, wide-eyed, as the brunette squared her shoulders, a deep, judging look on her face as she placed one hand on her hip while the other was firmly planted on her table, helping her lean forward and look a little more tyrannical despite her obvious lack thereof the intimidation front. The mature make-up and the scowl with the pout and her height are not exactly the best combination to frighten anyone. She looked more like a kitten with tiger stripes acting the part of the big cat. 

What is it with your deal with Byulyi-unnie?”

Yongsun’s jaw went slack at the name and it took her more than what would have been a reasonable amount of time to gather her thoughts back. She eyed the brunette up and down, trying to recall if she’s ever come across her or seen her around Byulyi. 

“How-?” was all she could manage to squeak out.

The brunette doesn’t seem to like her answer as her eyes narrow and she scoffs in response, rubbing her tongue along the inside of her cheeks. “Seriously, do you like her or not? If not, can you please just tell her to off so that we can finally move on from helplessly pinning to the 5 stages of grief? But like, do it gently. My Byulyi-unnie is a big softie and I don’t think her heart can handle an outright harsh rejection.”

Yongsun sputtered, dropping her sandwich, her neck and face heating up while her brain was still trying to catch up to their situation. She thought it was a bit funny that they were all of a sudden talking about the woman who she had just been thinking of, but at the same time horrified that someone may have picked up on her body language around Byulyi. She was just getting around to accepting that she’s developed a liking to the woman but she wasn’t ready to put all of that out into words and make it real. Not yet.

“Who the f-“ she cut herself off, remembering where they were. She threw a cautionary glace around them, smiling stiffly at the few curious gazes looking at the both of them. She waved them off, walking around her desk to pull the brunette closer towards her and a little away from the curious neighbours.

“How do you know Byulyi?” she hissed, a little too venomously judging by the way the brunette flinched, her mask of superiority dropping for a second, just long enough for Yongsun to pick up. She delights at the obvious switch of power in their confrontation but keeps her expression stern as she watches the brunette reel back her expression.

“She’s my precious unnie. Who is she to you?” Unwilling to back down she juts her jaw out and stood a little straighter, adding a bit more height though not by much.

Now that Yongsun wasn’t looking up from her seat what little apprehension she had eases when she realises the brunette was likely mostly bark and no bite. She lets go of the firm grip she had of the brunette’s wrist, leaning casually against her desk, showing the other woman her tactics wouldn’t work on her.

“A friend, I guess. She’s more Joohyun’s but by extension, we’re friends.. well- acquaintances.” Who just so happens to take up most of her mind in the recent months, but the woman didn’t really need to know that.

“Do you like her?” Brunette asks without hesitation, her lips curled into a frown, eyebrows arched, waiting for her reply.

Yongsun hesitates, her confidence wavering at the question. She purses her lips together, absently tapping a tuneless rhythm on her desk as she mulled over whether she should answer or leave the question open.  She doesn’t miss the way the brunette leaned forward as if hanging on to her every breath. “I don’t dislike her.”

Her face scrunches at the answer, obviously not liking the safe reply. Her arms cross over her chest, eyes narrowing at Yongsun the way one wouldn’t expect from practical strangers on a first meeting “It’s a simple question. Do you like her or not?”

Yongsun purses her lips, grinding her teeth in annoyance. When she came into work that morning she never thought being interrogated about her personal life could be part of her day. Then enter this woman. “Who are you exactly?”

“Hyejin, and like I said, Byulyi is my precious unnie and I would rather know now whether to prepare her for a heartbreak or let you continue this little weird game you two have been doing for- Jesus it’s been over two years now.”

Yongsun remains silent as she scrutinizes the woman- Hyejin- further, letting her mind go over everything that she had said- that she had implied. She her head to the side, a coy smile starting to pull up a corner of her lips.

“Did you say she was pinning for me?” The stern features soften into one of confusion, Hyejin staring back at Yongsun like she was a curious little trinket up on display, for the eyes to see but not to touch.

Yongsun thinks this new development was going to be fun. She pushes off the table, reaching for a nearby, empty chair. She offers it to Hyejin, going back around her desk to pry open her drawer, pulling out a stash of her favourite chips as an offering. “It’s still my break. Would you like to join me, Hyejin-ssi?”

Hyejin's eyes dart to the chips, Yongsun could see the subtle movement of bobbing as she swallows and she extends the whole, unopened pack for Hyejin to take. Hyejin does, with apprehension, lowering down on the seat as she eyes Yongsun warily. “I have a feeling I’m going to regret ever opening my mouth while solving unnie’s problems for her.”

Yongsun grins toothily. Oh yes, this was going to be fun.