Going out in the afternoon in the winter cold wasn't the best for most people, but Dahyun and Mina seemed somehow immune to the freezing wind that swept over their faces.

"Tzuyu didn't want to go out, but she asked me to bring her something sweet to eat" the brunette seemed to be in a good mood, but her dull eyes betrayed her "I'll buy something for Jihyo and Nayeon too, it might lift their spirits"

Mina took her hand and put it in the pocket of her jacket to warm it with her own "you should stop thinking about others and pretend to be fine or you will collapse. Let it out with me, you will feel a little better" they were walking in the park, giving the semblance of being a couple. The blonde liked to give that idea, but she knew that on the other hand it wasn't the same.

"As you know the situation at home hasn't been the best lately, between pregnancy and bullying the mood of my sisters is always hanging on thin threads; then there is Nayeon who, although loving and willing to help us, suffers a lot. I would like to help them, but none of them seem inclined to allow me to do it and this saddens me a lot"

"Can I be honest with you?"

"You are my friend, sincerity is important in these cases"

Mina stopped, still holding her hand in her pocket, and looked at her seriously "you shouldn't expect clarity from others when you are the first not to be helped. You are suffering too and your face isn't completely healed yet, yet you continue to put aside yourself and your feelings"

"I'm down in the dumps because my sisters are in pain, because everything is crap at school, and because the person I like does everything to stay away from me. Is that what you wanted to hear me say?" she spoke calmly, unperturbed "I appreciate your concern, but these aren't things that depend on me and I cannot make the sadness I feel away"

"You could solve one of these things if only you decided to open your eyes"

Dahyun looked at her sincerely confused "I don't understand what you mean, they are all things that depend on other people and not on me"

A sigh escaped from Mina's mouth, who took her free hand "uou shouldn't seek attention from someone who doesn't want you when I'm here" she looked into her eyes and couldn't resist the urge to step forward and place her lips on her friend's.

The delicacy of that simple contact broke the brunette's heart, leading her to push the other girl away "I'm so sorry for not having understood this before and for telling you something about Sana all the time, I feel a horrible person for being blind, but I don't feel the same and kissing wouldn't be right for either of us. Don't do it again, please"

"I don't understand why you persist in thinking about her, she is much older than you and she doesn't even want you" her eyes were teary and her cheeks red from the cold wind "why not try it? I really care about you, I like to dedicate my time to you and when I'm with you I feel good. It doesn't matter if you don't feel the same also because we haven't known each other for a long time, but feelings can change and mature"

"No Mina, you are my friend and I will never be able to see you in a different way, I won't be able to love you in that sense" she put her hands in her pockets after freeing them from the ones that were holding them "let's forget what just happened and let's move on, okay? I care a lot about you and I don't want to lose you, you are my only friend"

"As you prefer, it's always better than nothing for me. I'm going home, we're no longer in the mood to have fun. See you at school" the words that the blonde left behind were colder than the wind that was ruffling Dahyun's hair.

Living alone wasn't at all to her liking, but for Jeongyeon the main problem was the constant absence of the person she loved. The physical presence had great importance to her, but it could never overcome the mental one and of the latter there was the most total absence.

Nayeon had closed all contact with her, agreeing to see her only when it was her turn to hold their baby, but she didn't even talk to her in those cases, even avoiding looking her in the face.

The knowledge that she deserved that treatment was weighing on her shoulders like a school backpack filled with stones to the brim, giving her a feeling of perennial stillness.

Nana was sleeping in the bed next to her: she was curled up on herself as if to form a circle with her small body and her cheeks were flushed. She looked a lot like Nayeon, but Jeongyeon features stood out to the point of making her a perfect mix of her moms.

The sound of her phone interrupted the flow of her thoughts and the message from her colleague seemed very inviting: she had invited her to drink, thus giving her an escape from her miserable existence for a few hours.

Immediately after replying affirmatively to her message the phone screen changed, signaling an incoming call from her ex. She immediately replied "hello?"

"Can I pick up Nana? I've just finished work and I'm in the neighborhood" car horns could be heard in the distance "by doing this I will prevent you from taking her to my apartment later"

That 'my apartment' sent Jeongyeon's heart straight into , but she swallowed that bitter morsel "no problem for me, but she's having an afternoon nap and I haven't packed her bag yet"

"Look where you go, !" she slapped the horn button a couple of times, giving herself a demeanor immediately after "no problem, I can do it when I arrive"

"Okay, in the meantime I'll try to wake her up so you don't have to put up with her during her nervous moments" she said jokingly, hoping for a laugh from the other girl.

Nayeon had ended the call without even saying bye, and even though Jeongyeon knew she deserved it, it made her feel insignificant. However, that feeling faded as the older set foot in their apartment and later in their bedroom, replaced by the relief of being under the same roof.

Nayeon approached the still sleeping girl, showering her chubby face with kisses "the princess of the castle must wake up if she wants to go have fun with her mother"

Nana, in response, squeezed her with all the strength she had in her little arms "here mom"

"If you want to stay here I'll pick you up tomorrow" she kissed her head, sitting on the bed to be more comfortable.

Jeongyeon placed her baby's backpack on the floor, looking at them "I think she wants to stay at home with both of us, not that she doesn't want to come with you"

"I know, but I certainly can't give her an explanation. She's smart, but she's still two years old" they were talking in a low voice, taking advantage of the fact that the little girl was mostly asleep.

"I remain of the opinion that this is also your home and that we are a family"

Nayeon gave a fake smile, pointing to the younger's cell phone on the pillow "you keep getting messages from your colleague so it seems to me that you are okay. I didn't want to peek, but every time you get a message the screen lights up and my eye fell on it" 

"I have nothing to hide at this point and as far as I'm concerned you could very well check all my messages. Stay here with us" she sat on the opposite side of the bed, as despite the situation she was unable to get too close to her "Nana needs both, she needs a family"

They finally looked into each other's eyes "don't put our daughter in the middle to try to soften me, do you think it doesn't make me feel bad knowing that she would like to be in the presence of both of us?" she was still holding the baby in her arms "she is everything to me and the very thought of hurting her wears me out, but I don't expect you to understand what I feel" she got up slowly so as not to make Nana nervous, taking her to her room to dress her up.

Jeongyeon went after her, intending not to give up "we can solve everything, we will find a way to manage things"

"No we can't, you made your decision to let your fears win and now you have to respect mine regarding our separation. Don't insist, you know very well that you too wouldn't be able to change your attitude towards me" she took her little girl, let her now ex to greet her properly and then took her away without looking back.

The arrival of a roommate hadn't been all that traumatic for Tzuyu, but she couldn't say the same for the little human-shaped creature who roamed their apartment every other day, summoning the devil with her imprecise language and destroying the peace of all the girls.

"Don't you ever turn off?" she sighed after yet another attempt by the little girl to hug her, prompting her to curl up against the back of the couch to prevent her from reaching her.

"Yuyi!" Nana yelled as she tried hard to reach her, with no success.

The girl raised her eyebrows "who would be Yuyi? If you really want to call me you could at least get it right, my name is Tzuyu"

The smile on the little girl's face got wider "Yuyi!"

"You're hopeless" she put the earphones in her ears, focusing on her cell phone and ignoring her.

Nayeon joined them shortly after, taking her daughter in her arms "don't disturb Tzuyu, she is resting because she is tired"

"Tired Yuyi" pointed a little sadly, resting her head on her mother's shoulder and greeting the girl with her little hand.

Tzuyu watched them as they were leaving the living room, feeling sorry for ignoring that little pest. She sighed loudly and joined them in Nayeon's room, entering only with her head after knocking "may I come in?"

Nayeon gave her a smile "of course you can, but watch out for the toys scattered on the floor. I don't want you to hurt your feet"

She was used to the care of her sisters, but not to that of strangers and she felt a little strange, like hot but not hot. She put a hand to her chest, realizing that the feeling of warmth was coming from there.

Nana dropped to her knees in front of her, showing her the multitude of soft toys she was playing with "Yuyi play with me!"

"I don't know how to play" she took one of the soft toys, using it to touch her face "is this okay?"

"She likes it all the same, but she loves it when someone moves her puppets and makes them talk in funny little voices" she gave a short demonstration, making the little girl laugh to the point of lying on the floor "see? It doesn't take much for her to have fun"

Tzuyu decided to give it a try, but failed to make a nice voice and immediately demoralized. When she was about to give up a chubby hand landed on hers and her eyes met those of Nana, who was smiling.

"She adores you, in fact I think I can say that she is crazy about you" the older took a picture of that special moment "do you like her?"

"Not at all, she's a smelly and annoying brat" she didn't say it in her usual cold tone of hers and that was enough for all three of them.

"Who helps me with the shopping?" Jihyo's scream triggered Nayeon.

"Are you crazy? Two full envelopes are too heavy for you!" she quickly took them out of her hands, making sure to scold her with her gaze before going into the kitchen.

The other girl followed her to help her fix everything "they weren't that heavy, I'm fine. Where are the girls?"

"Tzuyu is playing with Nana and Dahyun is out with one of her friends, she should be back soon"

"I'm really happy, being with your daughter will do Tzuyu a lot of good and Mina is acting like a true friend to Dahyun" she was smiling.

"Did you say Mina?" she looked at her immediately "do you also know her surname?"

Jihyo had to think about it for a few seconds "I think her name is Myoui Mina, why are you asking me?"

The older smiled fondly "she's my ex's sister. I'm glad to know she's friend with Dahyun" she was washing her hands, intending to make dinner "she's a good girl, although sometimes she acts without thinking. What do you want for dinner?"

"Good question, I don't want anything in particular" her face lit up as Nana arrived in the kitchen "princess, I've been waiting for you"

"Hyo!" she waited to be picked up in her arms to kiss her cheek, sitting on her legs to play.

"Give me back my pencil case, I didn't give you permission to take it" Tzuyu had joined them in the kitchen, reaching out to take the object that belonged to her "don't pull"

Jihyo looked at her seriously "she is a child, you risk hurting her hands"

The girl sighed before lowering herself to keep up with Nana "that's mine, can I get it back?"

"Yes Yuyi!" she immediately released the object, reaching out to receive a hug that never came, as Tzuyu was already gone. She made a little lip, but she didn't cry and devoted herself to the demolition of the living room to pass the time.

The first thing Dahyun saw upon her return was her precious earphones on the floor, destroyed "Nana, what have you done!" she dropped to the ground on her knees, resting her forehead on the floor and pretending to cry.

The little girl immediately stopped her destructive activity and reached her "sorry Hyun" imitated the girl, putting herself in the same way.

"You're adorable, come here" she took her in her arms to tickle her "now I take my revenge for all the things you did to me!"

Nayeon, after hearing the noise, had reached them and picked up the earphones from the floor "I'll buy them back tomorrow, I beg your pardon"

"I always have a spare pair and it's my fault that Nana took them, what matters is that she didn't get hurt" she was still sitting on the floor with the baby in her arms "but if you care so much about buying some new to me there is no problem" she smiled angelic.

Jihyo came out of the kitchen and looked at her grimly "I'm afraid I didn't hear right, repeat what you just said to Nayeon"

"I told her I can't wait to have dinner, I'm running to take a shower!" she ran into the hallway, coming back to kiss her belly "hello to this baby too. Tzuyu, I hope you don't need the bathroom in the next hour!"

"I like all this noise" Nayeon was smiling.

After the fight the week before, Tzuyu was even more afraid of being alone in school, especially that day because both Dahyun and Mina wouldn't be able to reach her until lunchtime due to the tests they had to carry out.

She sat with her back straight and her gaze focused on the notebook she used to draw in moments of despair, but her tranquility was interrupted by the collision of a pencil case against her head.

She touched the painful spot with her hand, not turning for fear of suffering something even worse, and she resumed drawing with a trembling hand. A paper plane landed in her notebook and a death wish was written on one of the wings.

She swallowed hard, doing her best not to look too scared. She forced herself to go to the bathroom, walking with her head down so as not to attract attention. She decided to freshen up her face, feeling slightly better, but that sensation didn't last long.

The insults didn't hurt her particularly and for that very reason the girl couldn't understand the reason for her trembling and the feeling of emptiness in her stomach. Her head was spinning and she felt like she was about to fall.

She staggered out of the bathroom, focusing on the path to follow and not on the giggles of her peers. She took her things and did one thing that surprised her: she ran, running away from school.

Getting home wasn't difficult. Entering the code to open the front door wasn't difficult. But throwing herself on the ground was among the most difficult and painful things she had ever done.

"I'm tired" she said in a low voice, putting her hands to her hair "I'm so tired"

A sob escaped her lips, followed quickly by others, and in no time her face was streaked with tears. She had never cried in her life and that strange reaction scared her a lot "make it stop!" she kicked the apartment door, screaming uncontrollably.

She felt pain with each sob and her head was threatening to explode; screaming and squirming was the only thing she could do, other than crying out of control.

A footstep made her jump, but it couldn't stop her desperate crying "Tzuyu, what have you got?" Nayeon joined her on her floor, taking her hands.

"Don't touch me!" she kicked her unwittingly "don't hurt me too" she added desperately as she was trying to wipe her face.

The older sat at a safe distance: she was far enough not to make her feel oppressed, but still close to her. She looked at her without betraying any emotion even though she wanted to cry too "is this the first time this happens to you?" she asked her in a low voice.

Tzuyu nodded frantically, still shaken by sobs "I don't know what's happening to me, I just know it hurts"

"You are experiencing emotions in all their intensity for the first time, being negative it is normal for them to destabilize you to such an extent. Breathe deeply and look at me, I am calm and it will help you calm down"

The girl did what she was told, sniffing "you're still in your pajamas and your hair is messy"

Nayeon smiled amused "it's my day off and I was taking advantage of it, I'm sorry to be so ugly and to scare you. Next time you run away from school I'll dress elegant, I promise"

Tzuyu's tears had finally stopped running down her cheeks and the tightness in her stomach was gone. She closed her eyes, enjoying that tranquility "how did you do it?"

"This is a question you should ask yourself, you did great" she stood up to put her backpack well and write a message in their group chat, warning Jihyo and Dahyun that she went to pick up Tzuyu from school due to stomach problems of the latter "all settled, I suggest you go to sleep a little to recover from all these emotions"

"Can I sleep with you? I don't want to be alone" her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment "I would like a hug like the ones you always give to Nana"

The older held out her hand to help her get up "do you want the hug of an ugly woman with pajamas full of bears?"

Tzuyu let herself be helped, immediately leaning on her "no, I want a mother's hug"

Nayeon knew very well about Tzuyu's problems and in those few days of living together she had learned to understand her behaviors, but her sudden need for affection surprised her a lot. She hugged her tightly to herself, kissing her head "go put on your pajamas, I'll get something good to eat and turn on the TV in my room"