I raised my hand and tried to reach for the shining bright light above me. I finally figured out that it wasn’t the sun because if it was, I should be warm right now. I tried to touch it but it kept on moving up and down, escaping my grasp.

“Hajoonie!” I shouted, calling my sister. “Why is your light moving up and down? You should get it fixed”

“You’re drunk”

I pouted at my oldest sister beside me and shook my head. “No, I’m not”

“Exactly. You’re drunk”

“I’m not!” I shouted, stomping my foot on the floor.

The owner of the house suddenly showed up right beside the light. My mouth formed an O, amazed that my sister looked so tall. Then I furrowed my eyes and pouted at her when she looked like she was bouncing with the light.

“Stop bouncing”

“Sit up” Hajoon said while I only shook my head.

I pointed at the bouncing light and then pointed at her face. “You’re bouncing”

Her face flew down close to me while I giggled at her. She looked like an alien. She forced me to sit up on the floor.

I had to close my eyes and hold my head because it made me so dizzy. “Ow… Ow… Dizzy” I whined while my sister helped me lean on the table in front of me.

“I told you not to drink too much. You brought this upon yourself because you’re so stubborn”

I closed my eyes some more and waited for the stinging feeling to go away. Then I hugged my sister and buried my face on her neck as I started sobbing. This is probably the third time, fourth maybe, I’m not sure anymore. I have been sobbing since the alcohol had its influence on me.

My sister sighed heavily but still held me as I cried in her arms. “It’s okay…”

I shook my head vigorously and tried to stop myself from crying. It was so hard. “I made a mistake… I did something wrong”

“Yes. You’re so stupid sometimes”

I cried harder and snuggled on my sister’s neck further.

“Way to comfort her, Hajoon. Very good” Hyunjoo said across from me.

“Sorry…”

I pushed away from my sister and wiped my tears with the back of my hand. I reached for the bottle of soju and poured myself a drink. Then I pouted at it when nothing came out. I closed one eye and looked at the bottom of the glass. I reached for the other bottles and did the same, clumsily dropping a bottle or two as I reached for the other bottles. They’re all empty.

I looked at Hyunjoo across from me and said, “Can I drink some more? Please…”

Hajoon pushed a cup of yellow drink in front of me and I gagged because I didn’t like the color. It’s like the color of urine. I don’t like it.

“Drink this to sober up”

My nose scrunched up on its own as I said, “It looks like Aecha’s pee. I don’t like it”

“It’s your favorite tea”

“Tea?” My ears perked up as I turned to look at the pee color drink. “This is tea?”

I bent forward and took a sip of the tea. My eyebrows shot up as I smiled at Hajoon. “It is tea!” I bent forward again and drank my tea without using my hands. I closed my eyes and moaned as the warm liquid traveled down to my tummy tummy.

“Use your hands,” Hyunjoo said in front of me.

I shook my head and said, “Heavy.” Then I bent forward again and drank more tea. “Yummy…” I whispered before practically kissing the cup nonstop. I grinned at Hajoon beside me and whispered, “It feels like I’m kissing the cup. Look!” I bent forward again and drank my tea but I couldn’t reach the tea anymore.

I pouted at my cup and thought hard for the tea to rise. I think I can control it. People have powers. I have powers and one of those is to raise the tea to the brim of the cup so I don’t have to lift it anymore. It didn’t move so I stared some more. “Move tea” I mumbled like an enchanted spell.

I’m a witch now!

“Did it move?”

I shook my head as I said, “It wouldn’t”

“Why didn’t it move?”

“Maybe I just need to focus. I’m kind of losing my focus because of too much soju. Give me a sec.” I closed my eyes as I took a deep breath before staring at the cup and tea again. “Move…” I whispered between clenched teeth as I held my breath.

When my head started to hurt, I groaned so loud and closed my eyes as I rested my forehead on the table. “Owie… My head hurts”

My sister rubbed my back and I sighed because it was so soothing. “You shouldn’t have drank so much so your head wouldn’t hurt”

“But Byul…” I whispered, my lips shaking again as I sniffed back my tears.

“What about Byul?”

“She left already… I made a huge mistake and she left me already. I regret what I said last night. I thought”—I sniffed back my tears and bit my lips to stop them from shaking—“I thought it’s… I thought I needed clo—closure”

“Then call her”

I shook my head and said, “She hates me now”

“She said she loves you last night, right?”

I cried harder as I shook my head again. “I don’t know anymore… I think she hates me”

“No, I don’t hate you”

“What?” I pushed myself off the table and wiped my tears as I glanced at my sister beside me.

Except it wasn’t my sister. Someone who looked uncannily like Byul was sitting beside me.

“I don’t hate you” imposter Byul said.

“You look like Byul. Aish…” I closed my eyes and shook my head as I mumbled, “I’m hallucinating. You’re not real. Byul’s already in New York.” I opened my eyes again and saw that she was still there. I closed my eyes again and heard her laughing softly in front of me.

“It’s me”

I closed my eyes tightly and said, “No, it’s not”

“My flight’s tomorrow night, Jin. Not tonight”

“Huh?” I opened my eyes again and imposter Byul was still staring right back at me. I pointed at her cheeks and said, “You don’t have dimples. Byul have dimples”

She chuckled softly and then smiled so wide. “Did you see them?” she asked before smiling again.

“What’s your favorite photo of me?” I asked, testing her because I still couldn’t believe my eyes. I sobered a little bit with the crying and the tea but imposter Byul was still bouncing in my vision. “A real Byul should know that”

“The one of you on the beach. It’s my lockscreen photo.” She grabbed her phone and showed it to me while I pouted at her.

“Where did you take me on our first date?”

“We ate at a restaurant. Went to get your first tattoo on your back, which is your baptismal name ‘Maria’. Then we ate dinner by the Han River” she narrated perfectly in order.

My eyes widened as I gasped loudly. “You’re Byul?”

An amused smile was on her lips while her eyes sparkled with glint. She nodded at me and said, “Yes, Jin”

I gasped again while she laughed in front of me, showing me her dimples. I pouted at her while my lips started to tremble from another sob. I held them back and asked, “Why are you here?”

“Because you didn’t call me and decided to get drunk. Your sisters called me to come here.” She cupped my cheeks and caressed her thumb on them. “Let’s go. I’ll drive you back to your place. You’ve drank enough already”

“Okay…”

My sister and Byul helped me stand up. Byul let me lean on her because I was having a hard time standing on my own. I refused to let my weight on her because of her back. I went to my sisters instead. They helped me out of my sister’s house and half carried, half dragged me towards Byul’s car. Byul opened the passenger seat door for me while I climbed in, my sisters were still assisting me.

They put the seatbelt on me while I kicked off my shoes and raised my legs on the seat. I turned towards the driver seat and curled up as I waited for Byul. I blinked my eyes several times while the earth finally stopped bouncing. The tea really helped a lot but now I’m very sleepy.

The door on the driver side opened and Byul came in next. She checked on me first and tucked loose strands of my hair behind my ear. “Is your head hurting?” she whispered softly while I shook my head. “Okay… Let’s get you home”

I watched her so focused on the road.

She took her eyes off the road and glanced at me. She saw me looking at her and smiled at me before she turned her attention on the road.

“You don’t hate me?” I asked her, blinking my eyes when they felt so heavy.

“I don’t”

“And you love me”

She smiled at me again, her lips curling up wider. She reached for my hand and held it while still driving. “I do. I love you, Hyejin”

I pouted at her while she squeezed my hand and chuckled at my pout.

“Cute…”

“How would I know you’re telling me the truth? How do I know you really love me?”

She breathed deeply and didn’t answer my question right away. She held my hand tighter and squeezed it gently several times, thinking. She didn’t have to give me a long answer. She just has to tell me why.

“I had plans on where to confess and how to confess it to you” Byul suddenly said, bringing me away from my thoughts. “I ran the reason in my head several times. I had it memorized. I did not expect I’ll be saying this to you in a car, when you’re drunk and you’ll probably forget this tomorrow. It’s so not romantic, Jin”

She shook her head, laughing to herself as she sighed heavily. “Now my head’s empty from those memorized lines. I’ll just have to wing it tonight. I don’t think you’ll remember this tomorrow anyway”

I was already sober by then. Sleepy but sober. Whether I’ll forget this or not, at least I have the assurance that she doesn’t hate me. If I won’t be a coward tomorrow, I’ll run to their place and demand for her to tell me why she loves me. Or else I’ll forever regret everything.

“I don’t know if you’ve read the cards and pictures I’ve sent with the flowers and cacti. That was a detailed version of how I was slowly falling in love with you without me knowing”

She had a faraway look on her face while a small smile was dancing on her lips every time a post light got inside the car. She squeezed my hand before retrieving her hand to turn the wheel. My pout was on until her hand came back to hold my hand again.

“A woman once said that cigarettes disgusted her. She hates it. I stopped smoking because I don’t want her to be disgusted by me. The pot I was smoking that night was the first time I smoked again. And that would be the last time too. I dumped the cigarettes without a second thought because of you. I wanted to impress you because you are my type.

“The fact that I wouldn’t look at anyone else, abstained for such a long time, never tempted to kiss anyone else, and not even affected by people flirting at me. I could honestly have in New York and tell you that I didn’t do it. Fool you so bad, but no… Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. I only want you.

“I flew here to be with you because I find your presence comfortable. You put me at ease, kept me grounded, and made me the happiest woman alive just because I was spending time with you. If this isn’t love, Jin, then I must be crazy” she said, laughing to herself again while I smiled at her.

“I waste fourteen hours on air to spend just a day with you. I ditched my own birthday celebration with more than ten cakes for me to blow and a huge buffet with a diverse cuisine just to eat seaweed soup, tanghulu, ramyeon and your really bad frosted cake. I love the cake but it was really ugly. Still, I didn’t care. I love my celebration in your apartment more than the one in the company. If I could even spend Christmas with you that time, I would’ve done it too but you insisted for me to celebrate it with my family. I was still glad though… That was our last Christmas with Mom”

The sadness in her eyes instantly turned my smile upside down at the mention of Mrs. Moon.

“Mom loves you. She wanted me to marry. Told me not to let go of you. Dad said that I should be consistent and persistent in courting you. I even asked Wheein on how to take someone out on a date… I mean, she’s better at this than me. I had to ask for a professional opinion.” She raised our joined hands to her lips and kissed the back of my hand. “Every single day, I come up to your door to give you flowers and then my pots of cactus, thoughts of giving up crossed my mind but I just told myself that I’ll make you think I’m worth your time”

She stopped the car and turned to face me. She gave me a full smile, dimples asking to be poked. “I love you, Ahn Hyejin. You made me believe that love is not so bad at all. That love is the greatest feeling in life. You made me feel loved and so I’m willing to return it to you for the rest of my life”

I stopped fighting for my eyes to stay open and just closed them. I took a deep breath and sighed in content. My heart is all settled now. I have nothing to worry about anymore.

Byul laughed softly before I I felt her press a kiss on my forehead. “You’ll forget this tomorrow but I’m glad to know that you regretted the closure” she whispered softly before letting go of my head.

I wanted to protest but everything in my body felt like jelly already. I could not lift my eyes and could not move my mouth. My curled up position on the passenger seat was way too comfortable already.

“Aigoo… This kid really” Dad whispered exasperatedly behind me before he lifted me off the seat. “How much did she drink?”

“Her sisters told me she finished two bottles of soju by herself”

“She could barely even handle two shots” Dad commented, hearing Byul laughing close by.

I whined, finding my voice but not my words.

“Yeah… Yeah… I’m putting you down now. You’re not a child anymore, Hyejin-ah. Dad can’t carry you like before” Dad scolded lightly while I whined in his arms.

“I’m really sorry, sir. If my back was already healed, I would’ve carried her myself” Byul hurriedly said, defending me from my Dad.

“Nonsense…” Dad grunted as he laid me down on the bed. He sighed heavily from exertion. “I’ll leave you two, okay? Drive carefully on your way home, Byul”

“I will, sir. Thank you”

“Thank you too”

I felt gentle hands brushing my hair off my face before I was tucked under a blanket. I felt a kiss on my forehead next and another kiss on my cheek.

“Good night, Jin. Don’t drink too much again, okay? I couldn’t carry you by myself yet.” Byul kissed my forehead again before she whispered, “I love you. I hope you hear that in your dreams”

“I love you, Byul” I managed to whisper with my eyes still closed. My words were a collective of slurs but maybe she could make out the words I said to her.

I heard her giggling lightly before she said, “Go to sleep, Jin…”

I woke up today with the sole purpose of going to Byul. I remembered she said that their flight is tonight and I only have today to settle things between me and her. I remembered all her words. How could I forget it? I wanted to hear her say it again now that I’m sober. I am still sleepy but I have the energy to form words with my mouth now.

“I’m borrowing your keys, Dad!” I shouted and grabbed his car keys from their room without waiting for his answer.

I jogged towards the front door, passing by Mom on the dining table on my way out.

“Where are you going? Have breakfast first, Hyejin-ah!”

I haphazardly pushed my feet onto my sneakers. “I don’t have much time! Byul’s flight is tonight! I’ll come back later. Bye, Mom!”

I ran to my parents car and opened the door, hearing Mom shout behind me, “We’re packing them eggs. Wait for this first!”

“I’ll come get that later!”

I went inside and shut the door, muting the rest of Mom’s words. I didn’t bother putting on a seatbelt as I backed the car out and drove it out of our front yard. Byul’s house is just close to our house. I might not need the car anymore but I simply could not waste time walking the distance. I never bothered brushing my hair and just tied it in a ponytail. Put some sweats on and gargled mouthwash to get rid of morning breath.

She’d seen me , eyes dark with bags, and with a path of drool from the corner of my lips down to my chin. If she loves me, then my tired face shouldn’t bother her at all.

I parked the car by their driveway and sighed in relief when I saw Byul’s car was still there. I shut the engine off and pulled the keys before climbing out of the car. I went to their front door and rang the doorbell, fidgeting with the keys as I waited for someone to answer the door.

When the door opened, I looked up to see Jihye staring right back at me. “Where’s your sister?” I asked while a teasing grin was slowly forming on her lips.

“Which sister?” she asked, suppressing a laugh.

I narrowed my eyes at her while she grinned sheepishly and opened the door wider.

“Good morning to you too. She’s upstairs” Jihye said, laughing softly at me as she let me in. “You’re way too early for a visit”

I ruffled her hair as I left my shoes by their doorstep. “Good morning. I don’t have much time” I mumbled and went inside the house barefoot.

Hana was by the kitchen with Seulgi watching over her. There was a huge smile plastered on Hana’s face while showing off that she’s helping Jihye make them breakfast. I went to them first and kissed Hana’s cheek before giving Seulgi a quick hug.

“About time” she whispered as she returned the hug.

I just shrugged at her and she returned it with a satisfied smile. I went to Hana and pinched her cheek. “Let me get to your sister first, okay?”

“Did you forgive her already?” she asked, eyes opening wide, hopeful.

I softly chuckled at her as I patted her head and whispered, “I forgave her a long time ago. Go finish cooking”

I left the two of them at the kitchen and headed upstairs to the bedrooms.

I’ve been here once when Byul was in Seoul for a meeting with Yong. Jihye invited me to eat with them just as I finished my schedule then. Yejun and I dropped by their place and joined them for dinner. They gave me a tour but there’s not much to see. Byul bought a simple two-storey house far from the luxurious mansion they had back in New York. The dogs have an ample backyard to run on. There’s TV and a couch in the living room, a dining set, and a fully equipped kitchen. The rooms were just like mine except they’re bare.

Even when I was just here once, it’s not difficult to memorize my way around here. The master bedroom, which was the biggest and the one closest to the stairs, was shared by Hana and Seulgi. Across from the master bedroom is Jihye’s room. Byul’s room was right beside Jihye’s room at the end of the hallway.

I headed to Byul’s room straight away and saw that her door was open. “Byul” I called right away as I reached her door. I don’t want to waste time second-guessing and give myself room to be nervous.

She stood up from her crouch position in front of her suitcase and turned to face me. Her eyes widened while her eyebrows hidden under her cap in surprise.

I invited myself inside her room and closed the door behind me.

“Hyejin… What are you doing here?”

“Say it again” I whispered as I walked to stand in front of her.

She blinked her eyes several times and asked, “What?”

I took a deep breath before I said, “I remembered everything you said last night. I was a little bit drunk but I remember them. Say it again”

“Everything? You want me to say everything?” she asked, her eyes sparkling in glint.

“Skip to the last part”

“Okay…” She softly chuckled at me before her shoulders drooped down in relief from her sigh. “I love you, Ahn Hyejin. You—”

“Say that again” I said as I stepped closer to me.

“I love you, Ahn Hyejin” she complied while I leaned closer to her. She placed her arms around my waist while I had mine around her shoulders as I snuggled to her neck.

“One more…”

She placed a gentle kiss on my temple before she whispered, “I love you”

“I’m sorry”

She instantly pulled back, her eyes blinking in confusion as she asked, “Is that your reply?”

I shook my head and nestled my face back to her neck. “I’m sorry about last night and the other night”

“It’s fine… I understand, Jin. I wasn’t that clear from the very beginning. I’m sorry for causing confusion and doubts.” She hugged me earnestly, pressing her cheek to the side of my head. “But I’m really telling the truth when I said that I love you”

“You really do?”

There’s that soft chuckle again as she pressed a kiss on my temple. “I really do”

I sighed in relief as I nodded on her neck. “I love you too, Byul.” I could feel her smile on my cheek when she pressed a kiss there.

“It’s good to hear that…” 

I pulled back and playfully glared at her while she raised her eyebrows in a silent question. “I was ready to say that to you for a long time already. It was you who’s not ready to hear that from me”

She gave me a sheepish grin as she softly pinched my cheek. “You've loved me for a long time already?”

“Yeah and you returned it by offering to be exclusive with you”

She softly chuckled from embarrassment while rubbing her hand on my back. “But I paid that off by pursuing you for two months now…”

I grabbed her cap and took it off of her. I used that to smack her arm as I said, “You stupid spoiled rich Moon heir bad spirit!” I smacked her arm again while she took a step back away from me and nursed the arm that I hit as she laughed at me. “You made me wait for a year!”

“Babe…”

I threw the cap at her and hit her chest. She acted like it hurt her more than it hurt her back from her fall from her bike. I grabbed the pillow from her floor mattress and threw it at her. “Don’t call me that!”

She caught the pillow, her smile from ear to ear as she said, “Hey… You threw me a pillow on our first night together too”

“And I would not hesitate to throw your suitcase at you this time too”

“I love you” she suddenly said, laughing at my blushing face while I pursed my lips and tried to glare at her. She threw the pillow back to the mattress and walked closer to me. “Say it to me again”

“No.” I turned around and went to lie on her bed. “I’ve done all the things in my to-do list today. I’m going back to sleep now” I mumbled as I tucked myself to sleep.

“You’re sleeping in my bed”

I turned to look at her and asked, “Do you have a problem with it?”

“No. Gosh… You’re