It had become a habit really.

Ever since they had become an item, they found themselves sharing a bed increasingly often as time went by. 

(No, not like that… minds out of gutters please.)

This in itself was not a new thing, having shared a room and/or a bed as friends before, but the way they ended up entangled was completely new.

And Solar didn’t hate it.

In fact, she loved it.

     To the point where they would crawl into bed, and she would push a pliant and quietly amused Byul onto her back before curling into her side; her head resting against hers as they shared a pillow, one arm tucked underneath her and one hand resting just under a sharp collarbone (sometimes even clutching the collar if it had been a particularly trying day), and legs completely tangled until it was hard to separate the two.

Byul would quietly scroll through her phone, sometimes playing with Solar’s hair or drawing soothing mindless patterns on her back, lulling her to sleep. 

And sometimes, she would just hold her and press soft kisses into her face and her hair.

It was their little routine.

It was their little habit.

Solar wasn’t sure how it started but was damned sure she never wanted it to stop.

And Byulyi, being the great big softie that she was, wordlessly indulged her.

     The problem about being a couple in secret but great colleagues and better friends in public, was that there times where lines were (more than) slightly blurred, especially when they were tired. And whilst preparing for their much anticipated Mamamoo+ album, the pair of them had found this out the hard way, having their first couple fight and their first real fight in years, and over the most trivial matters… finally resolving it over the phone, with a Solar having been chased out of the bathroom and into her bedroom by an exasperated Yonghee.

Maybe there was a reason why people say couples shouldn’t work together.

But they were both more mature than they used to be and both of them wanted (and needed) this relationship to work, so they found a way and made it happen.

     And that was how they ended up at the Chico Malo MV filming and photoshoot set, dressed in subtly matching traditional outfits and performing slightly suggestive choreography. Their entire album was filled with double meanings, their love for each other hidden amongst their love for their fans, and it felt a little liberating to be able to hide behind a smokescreen of their own choosing. 

Perhaps it was the freedom they felt from this or perhaps it was because they were just tired from the long shoot.

But when Solar found herself pressed up against Byul’s warm side with her head resting against hers, her hand moved of its own accord.

Out of habit.

It landed on a familiar patch and then her fingers twitched, wanting to burrow its way under the collar like they would normally.

A bark of friendly laughter startled them both.

Solar couldn’t even speak as her heart pounded in , trying to brush it off as a joke, whilst Byul uncharacteristically stuttered and blustered as they both tried to move past it quickly.

     Luckily, all of the staff on set were longtime colleagues and professionals, so they smoothed over it without batting an eyelid. If they had noticed how natural it had looked for Solar or how unbothered Byul had been by the action until it had been noticed, they were kind enough not to mention it. 

And the rest of the shoot rolled by before they knew it.

     It wasn’t until the pair of them had shed their makeup and their clothes many hours later and had crawled into Solar’s bed many hours later that Byul remembered and let out a snort of laughter. 

“What?” Her girlfriend asked tiredly.

Byul merely gave her one of her charming lopsided grins and pointed down at her chest.

Kim Yongsun had curled into her girlfriend’s side and placed her hand in exactly the same spot as always.

“Aishi~!”

The younger of the two let out a huffed “oof” as said habitual hand curled into a fist and thumped her in the chest for teasing its red-faced owner.

But after a few apologetic kisses and a long cuddle later, they arranged themselves back into the same position and Solar’s hand was happily back on a lean but surprisingly strong upper chest, fingers curling into the collar of their matching pyjamas. 

“I don’t think they really noticed, you know… But we’ll be more careful, Ddun. Don’t worry.”

Solar melted a little at how Byul was trying to reassure her despite her teasing, especially in that deeper huskier tone her voice took on in the early hours of the morning.

(She’d never admit it publicly, but it was something she could never get enough of.)

But then, in the darkness of the room, lying in the arms of her soulmate; feeling safe and a little brave, Solar blurted out a truth she had been hiding all day.

“What if I don’t want to be careful, Byul-ah?”

She felt more than saw Byul go completely still for a moment and she hurriedly added, “I’m not saying we should like, come out or anything but I mean…” 

She trailed off, slightly frustrated that she couldn’t be as articulate as Byul could be about this kind of stuff, and her fingers tightened around Byul’s collar instead.

But she immediately felt a warmer and slightly larger hand engulf hers before bringing it up to a pair of familiar lips and there she felt soft encouraging kisses across the knuckles of her fingers.

And Solar melted a little more.

(That was a lie, she melted into a goddamned puddle.)

She cupped Byul’s small face and pulled her into a deep drugging kiss, trying to convey her love and gratitude all at once.

It must have worked because she was pleased to find a dazed Byul chasing her lips for another one the moment they parted and she wordlessly indulged her.

But a long moment later, Solar reluctantly pulled away to say what she needed to.

“Byul-ah… I think I’m ready to tell the kids and maybe some of the staff.” 

Her girlfriend tried to catch her breath and tried to catch up with their conversation.

“A-And if it goes well, I’d like to tell our parents…”

That got her attention.

“Y-Yong… Are you… Are you sure?” Byul asked hesitantly and Solar couldn’t blame her, given that the older girl had been the one to delay telling anyone about the change in their relationship for nearly a year now. 

“I’m sure…” She confirmed with a shy nod and then let out a little giggle when Byul excitedly attacked her with kisses all over her face and neck.

One day they would be able to be as open as they liked but until then, they would find joy in little secret moments like this.

And they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Because they were soulmates and no matter what they faced, they’d have each other.

Author's Note:

Hey~ *waves shyly*
So, this was totally inspired by that Mamamoo+ moment and of course the whole damn era because... well, look at them!
And to all those waiting on "The Operator" - I promise I haven't forgotten, life got in the way and so writing took a backseat for a while... I'm still writing a sentence here and a paragraph there, so I will FINISH that fic, don't you fret!