“Smile, Jeong! The bird's about,” a loud ‘click’, a flash, a photo crawls out of the polaroid, “to fly out.”

She wears a funny headband with round black Mickey Mouse ears. Or Minnie Mouse... to be honest, Jeongyeon doesn't distinguish them much. The only one she likes (except Pluto, of course) is Donald Duck, and that's only because he quacks funny when he talks. Nayeon pulls the picture out of the camera and waves it from side to side — it's said, this way it will show up faster. Well, all right. After all, who is Jeongyeon to argue with Nayeon, who even sleeps on the right side of the bed, because she is always right.

Nayeon smiles as she gets closer to Jeongyeon to show the photo. Jeongyeon picks it up, her thumb over the unpleasantly creaking glossy paper. The face on it is smiling, smiling happily, and the hands show Vs, with their index fingers buried in both cheeks. It's cute. Jeongyeon likes the photo. The only thing she doesn't like is that there is no Nayeon on it.

Nayeon wanted to go to Disneyland for a long time, just dreamed about it and, it seems, watched all the cartoons released by the studio. She spoke especially flatteringly about Mulan and Anastasia. That's probably why Jeongyeon now also knows their stories by heart as well as she knows how Nayeon's hands feel to the touch or how much her engagement ring glitters under the sun beams (“so always, because I'm your sun, babe”).

“I want a joint photo.”

Jeongyeon looks at Nayeon, purses her lips. Of course, Nayeon won't refuse. On the contrary, she will smile gently, maybe even ruffle her hair, ruining the styling. Jeongyeon knows her too well, so she neutralizes Nayeon in advance by peck on the cheek.

Nayeon catches an elderly couple with a child passing by. She greets them affably, even squats down and high-fives the boy — he looks about four years old — and asks them to take a picture. She has to explain how to use polaroid for another ten minutes. In the end, she finally happily runs back to Jeongyeon. Apologizes for making her bored alone, and hugs her shoulder, and smiles widely, looking at the camera.

"Say cheese!"

click

In the next picture, she lowers her hand and Jeongyeon's palm with her fingers. Nayeon intertwines their fingers and squeezes Jeongyeon's hand harder than she probably should.

Nayeon smells like peach, a little like menthol and some flowers. Nayeon has always smelled like that for as long as Jeongyeon remembers her. It's good. This is very good, because such perfume can't be mixed with anyone else's in the crowd. Jeongyeon knows that Nayeon has been deliberately not changing it for years to make it easier for her. Probably, they have already become annoying for Nayeon herself, but

click

Nayeon thanks the old man, says goodbye to the boy and his grandmother, who holds his hand. As soon as she turns away, the boy begins to whine about cotton candy and pulls grandma by the hand to the carousel. Nayeon doesn't pay attention, she looks at the pictures, hanging the camera around her neck.

Mom was wrong after all — she and Jeongyeon look good together. Just like the engagement ring on her finger, and her domestic t-shirt on Jeongyeon, and Jeongyeon in the kitchen of their rented apartment, preparing the morning coffee do. All the joint photos in each room also look good, not as visual noise, no matter what Momo says. And no, hanging them in the bathroom is not too much. Momo can put her professional design opinion anywhere and hide her long nose out of their apartment.

Jeongyeon walks up to Nayeon from behind and puts her chin on her shoulder. She looks at the resulting pictures. They don't show clasped hands and the fact that Jeongyeon poked Nayeon in the side (only because Nayeon knows how to restrain laughter. And it's good — because the film is actually not infinite).

"You're beautiful," Jeongyeon says, standing beside Nayeon so that she can see better.

Jeongyeon chooses one of the pictures — the second one. She puts the photo in her passport, which she always carries with her because she looks too young — at least, that's what everyone tells her. It's a ritual that repeats every time.

Nayeon waits patiently while Jeonyong arranges the rest of the photos so that each of them is in its place. Jeongyeon has her own ideas about order.

Nayeon with her parents' dog.

Nayeon on their first date, in a cafe, where she spilled coffee on herself a minute later.

Nayeon in a witch costume for Halloween the year before last.

Nayeon at Disneyland goes under the fourth page.

Nayeon waits patiently until Jeongyeon is satisfied. And when she finally closes the passport and puts it in a bag in which she seems to carry everything in the world, Nayeon offers to go to the “haunted mansion” (she knows for sure what she is condemning herself to with this offer). Jeongyeon nods happily.

Nayeon smiles and squeezes Jeongyeon's hand in Morse code as they walk to the amusement. Jeongyeon wants to remember her like this for a long time.

She'll try.