3rd POV

Sua hugged Siyeon tighter when the doorbell rang. The latter tried to escape her grip again.

“Don’t go~ Who on earth could be at the door now…” She whined, snuggling into Siyeon. 

“I’ll pick it up, stay in bed hun,” Siyeon kissed her good morning, trying to wiggle out of her tightening grip. “I’ll be back in a flash.”

Sua reluctantly loosened her grip and pouted under covers. 

‘Whew I planned it well…’ Siyeon mumbled to herself as she got to the door. The delivery man handed her a huge parcel, the size at least half her body.

She signed the pick-up confirmation before sliding the box into the living room. She opens it swiftly.  

Walking back into the bedroom, she finds Sua under the covers with only half her face poking out. Her eyes open expectantly. 

“Sing~ Who was it?” She mumbled, squishing her girlfriend’s cheeks the moment she perched herself atop of her.

“Umph!” Siyeon felt hands grab her cheeks. “A delivery man.”

“Ooh~ What did you order?” Sua was curious.

“That, you have to get out of bed to see.” Siyeon prompted.

Sua raised a brow. “Is it for me?"

“It sure is.” Siyeon pulled the duvet away to get her out of bed. “And I hope you’ll like it.”

Too curious to stay in bed, she follows Siyeon to the living room. She didn’t know what she was looking at until Siyeon motioned to a huge C-shaped pillow that probably covered the length of her body.

“Oh my god, I have so many pillows I didn’t even realise that was new.” Sua giggled. 

Siyeon lifted up the pillow so that Sua could feel it. Seemingly satisfied, she lies her body against the pillow. 

It was a cloud-like comfort, the pillow easing the pressure off her back and her shoulders didn’t hurt despite laying on her side. It was so comfortable that she became unbothered to move. 

“Bora…you okay there?” Siyeon was amused to see her glued to the pillow.

“I…” Her voice was muffled, she turned her head slightly. “I think I need help getting up.”

Siyeon chuckled heartily. She first squats down to kiss her forehead endearingly. The sweet smile she received made her day, even though it had just started. 

“I love you.” Siyeon murmured.

Sua took her hand in hers. “I love you too.” 

:

At the library, a neat layout of stalls had been arranged to showcase the different genres of books ranging from horror to sci-fi. Sua was in charge of manning the reception, but not for the same tasks she usually does; this time she was to hang out goodie bags to the visitors and sell books. Which was why Siyeon would be a great help. 

There was an absence of people when they walked in, Sua quickly figured they must be in the staff room and pulled Siyeon along. 

The latter caught up, circling an arm around her lover’s waist to keep close.

Sua opens the staff room door and all eyes shift to her. Particularly, the person next to her. 

In her usual work outfit, Siyeon would look very formal and chic in her suit. But the casual appearance of her green sweater and loose beige pants gave her a chill vibe. No wonder that Yeri and WInter immediately approached her with squeals.

“ARE YOU SUA-EONNIE’S GIRLFRIEND?” They exclaimed in unison, both crowding Siyeon. 

“Yeah.” She coolly replied. “I’m lucky to have her.” She continued with a wink. 

The two girls start squealing again, gushing over her.

“That sounds about right.” Siyeon hears from her left. It came from a girl with a charming face. She stared at Siyeon in a way that made her uneasy. 

Sua laughed. “Hyejoo-ah~” She hugged her tightly. 

The kid’s face lit up easily, a 180 from the expression Siyeon received which put her in a confused state. 

“This is Siyeon everyone,” Sua announced properly, patting Hyejoo’s head affectionately.

The kid was bold enough to look right at Siyeon as Sua did so, a smug look on her face. ‘My eonnie’, her eyes expressed.

Siyeon frowned but had her attention diverted when the adults greeted her, two of three she recognised from the last time she picked up Sua from the library. 

“Hi Siyeon, not sure if you remember me and Hongseok. It’s been a while.” The woman greets her, with her dimpled smile.

“Seulgi right? Of course I remember, Sua tells me about you and Hongseok occasionally.” Siyeon replied with a friendly grin.

Hongseok nodded curtly and clapped her shoulder. “Are you doing alright handling her temper?” He whispered.

“I heard that Hongie.” Sua spoke sharply from their right, before turning back to the kids with a motherly smile. 

He yelped and staggered back in fear. “She still has her spidey senses.” 

Seulgi facepalmed. “Why do you always ask dumb questions?”

“Haha,” Siyeon was enjoying the chemistry of everyone. “I’m doing perfectly fine…” she coughed, “handling her temper.”

Seulgi and Hongseok burst out laughing at her bumpy response, side-eyeing Sua to see if she heard.

“You better be.” Sua joined her side again, allowing Siyeon to drape a comfortable arm around her waist again. “It’s going to get tougher these coming months.” She warned.

Seulgi and Hongseok smirked at each other.

“Jonghyun-oppa! Come over here, why are you standing there alone??” Sua noticed someone hovering at the back of the room, and called to him. 

Jonghyun, who must be the boss, approached Sua with a sincere smile, Siyeon observed. 

“Sua, I’m happy you made it to the festival.” He then turned to Siyeon, his warm brown eyes reminding her of her own father’s eyes. “And this is Siyeon? The lady that brought you to the clinic?” He picks out the memory that felt like ages ago to them both. A special one nonetheless.

“Yes, she works at MinTech down the road. She didn't have any schedule today so she decided to help us out.” Sua introduced her proudly, which touched Siyeon. 

Jonghyun nodded and kindly said, “We all welcome you here. If you need anything, let me know, I’m Jonghyun, the one who runs this place.” 

Siyeon shook his hand and he left to re-run a check of the stands. They were to be posted to their stations soon. 

“Eonnie! Eonnie!” Winter ran up to her, Yeri, Geonwoo and Hyejoo trailing behind her. She held a cute bag in her hands. “Last weekend we went on a trip downtown to shop and bought you two couple items, hoping that you would bring her one day.” She addressed Sua, before turning to Siyeon with a nervous yet shy smile.

“They’re so adorable,” Siyeon whispered into Sua’s ear as they took the bag. “Thank you, you’re all so thoughtful.” She gave them a dazzling smile.

Sua excitedly opened the bag to see what was inside - a matching set of MLB Korea Beanies, both cream-coloured with the iconic Yankee logo in glazed bronze. It folded nicely at the seams, making it a fashionable accessory for the upcoming winter while being versatile. 

“Oowahh~~” The couple reacted in unison, impressed by the items. They immediately exchanged satisfied glances.

“We made a good choice.” Geonwoo wiped invisible sweat off his forehead. 

Yeri nodded victoriously. “It suits them very well.”

Siyeon was the first to put it on, as a personal lover of such accessories. She received reactions of approval quickly.

“Wahhh! It looks so pretty on you~!” Yeri gushed, clapping her hands. 

Sua wore it as well, facing Siyeon to see her reaction. “How does it look?”

“It looks like we need to get our winter baby a matching one.” She smiles sweetly.

Siyeon didn’t know it, but Sua skipped multiple beats at the statement, even though it was more evident that the kids were impressed by the line. 

“Our winter baby…” Sua mumbled to herself, as Siyeon continued conversing with the kids.

“Looks like we’ve got a keeper.” Hongseok grinned happily, happy for her.

Seulgi hugged her. “She’s your soulmate girl, soulmate.”

Sua smiled gratefully, her demeanour turning shy. “I know, I feel it, I feel that everyday.”

An announcement came through to the speakers, getting the team to move to their positions, getting ready to welcome the public. 

Jonghyun and Hongseok open the doors and a crowd of people flood into the space, more faces than Siyeon had expected.

It must be a huge highlight for families in this small town. A corner of the space was now bustling with children, their animated faces scrutinising the balloon twister’s mastery. In one swift motion, he turned it into a dog. He inflated another and turned it into a rabbit. Even the adults were captivated, watching closely from behind. The magic went on and on, the awe never leaving the children’s eyes.

Sua was tasked with the reception, but unlike her usual tasks, she was to process book purchases and answer questions of guests, regarding the books or library. Siyeon’s task was to hand out the goodie bags to each visitor, but more importantly be by Sua’s side.

For the first 20 minutes, Siyeon had simply observed the happenings, feeling somewhat elated to see people having a fun time in their own way; a few families had been seated in a circle, their children in their lap to listen to a fairytale read by Yeri, another group of kids played sticky-darts onto a backdrop with books pasted on them, assisted by Geonwoo and Winter. Hyejoo was in charge of patrolling the awaiting players. 

She was impressed by their diligence, only understanding better why Sua was so fond of them. She couldn’t wait to do activities like these with Sua and Gahyeon.

Sua was on the busier side, handling purchases and questions from her left and right. Seulgi and Hongseok did their best to assist her by asking those in line. 

When the lines cleared up and she had space to breathe, she turned to Siyeon. 

“Sing~ You alright there?” Sua held onto her pants pocket to pull her closer.

Siyeon snapped back from her trance, facing Sua. “Yeah I’m good, happy to see things going well.” She interlocked her hands with Sua, squatting down to level her as she was sitting down.

“You looked a little surprised,” Sua commented knowingly, “Even I’m surprised, I think the crowd has doubled from last year.” She admitted.

Siyeon hummed in agreement, resting their hands on Sua’s belly. “Next time we’ll do all kinds of fun activities with the little one.” Her eyes shined with an emotion Sua could only register as love.

Her heart warmed. “That’s so sweet…”

Siyeon gazed up at her, with a more serious expression. “I mean it Bora.”

Sua would have kissed her right there and then if it weren’t for the awkward cough coming from the front.

Their heads snap around to find a girl with headphones around her neck, her dark-coloured outfit standing out among the colourful attire of the children. Sua recognised her as the music student.

“Yubin-ah!” Sua stood up, pulling Siyeon up with her. “I haven’t seen you in a while.” She patted her shoulders gently. “How are you?”

“I’m doing well eonnie, I just finished a big project and wanted to drop by. But I certainly can’t study today.’’ Yubin chuckled.

Sua congratulated her on her project and introduced Siyeon to her. “Yubin-ah, this is my girlfriend Siyeon.”

“It’s nice to meet you, I’m Lee Yubin.” Yubin half-bowed, with a respectful smile.

Siyeon greeted her back, interested in her career choice. She must be in her twenties from the sound of it, but seemed younger from the looks of it.

“So Yubin, have you found anyone?” Sua asked teasingly, but didn’t expect the girl to avert her gaze.

“I guess so…?” She murmured. “We’re still getting to know each other, she works at a Tech Company down the road, I forgot the name.” She continued.

Sua and Siyeon exchanged looks in an instant. “She must be working at MinTech.” She deduced.

Yubin shrugged, not remembering much of a name. “Probably, I don’t know any other tech company in this area.”

Just when Siyeon was going to ask for a name, Yubin was taken away by a phone call. Siyeon remained curious about who it could be but kept it in, a few people were exiting the library, she had to hand out the goodie bags. Sua resumed her librarian duties, but also wondered who Yubin’s mystery girl was. She was glad to know she found her own relationship.

“Siyeon-ssi?” A voice comes from the left, floaty yet authoritative. 

Siyeon whipped her head round from the ‘visitor’ she last handed a goodie bag to. “Irene-ssi, hello,” She greeted her friend. 

“What a surprise to see you here, congratulations on the successful funding for MinTech’s new cyber security project, I’ve heard much about it.” Irene continued in her business tone, despite having dropped the formalites with Siyeon when they were alone.

Siyeon gracefully thanked her. “The support of the committee allows us to give back to the community as we’ve aimed for. Welcome to ChungMyung Library Book Festival.” She lifted an arm to motion her into the festival space. 

Irene giggles, “Thank you Siyeon-ssi. How did you begin volunteering here?” She questioned curiously, not moving from her spot.

Siyeon leaned a little closer to her, “My girlfriend is a librarian here.” 

Irene leaned back to say in her ear, “Mine is too.”

Siyeon is taken aback. “Who?”

“That bear right there.” Irene gestured to Seulgi with a tone that dropped from the business eloquence Siyeon was used to, to an innocent schoolgirl tone. Seulgi stood next to Sua, both looking at them intensely. Or was. They averted their eyes as soon as Siyeon and Irene caught them.

Siyeon laughed, soon joined by Irene, who immediately ran into Seulgi’s arms. 

It was not funny to Sua and Seulgi, who were cautiously watching them moments ago…

Sua had yanked Seulgi from the nearby booth to get her close. 

“They know each other?” Sua spoke with disbelief, assuming Seulgi knew of it while she didn’t.

“I didn’t know either but I do not like the way Joohyun is smiling at her.” Her voice betrayed her, laced with jealousy. 

“Tell your girl to watch it.” Sua warned Seulgi, who narrowed her eyes back at her. 

“You tell yours to watch it.”

“Seul?” Irene finally addressed her, enveloping her into a hug. “Why were you hiding pabo-yah~”

Seulgi was embarrassed to be caught in such a position, having no choice but to respond to her love. “Hehe I um, didn’t want to interrupt your conversation with Siyeon.” She sheepishly replied.

Sua glanced at Siyeon expectantly. The latter only glanced back at her quizzically, planting a kiss on her cheek. She was confused when Sua didn’t reciprocate. 

“Ah,” Siyeon realised, “Irene is part of the town committee, I met her when the company opened years ago. I didn’t know she was dating Seulgi.” She smiled at the two.

“I didn’t know you two have been friends for years…” Seulgi glanced at Siyeon, and then at Irene. “But how come she gets to address you informally and I don’t??” She protested.

“Because I like it most when you call me eonnie,” Irene smoothly defended herself.

Seulgi tried to sputter a response but her cheeks did first, turning into a red hue. 

Towards the end of the book festival, the crowd had started to die down, left with a handful of people that wanted another go at the activities or wanted consolation balloons for their popped ones. 

Behind all the adults' eyes, Geonwoo and Hyejoo were waiting for an opportunity to get Siyeon away from the reception without Sua knowing. Yeri and Winter would cover them. 

Currently, Sua and Siyeon were conversing deeply, eyes never seem to come off one another, physically close to each other as well. It didn’t help that Hongseok soon joined the conversation, both kids knew that Hongseok could run his mouth like people ran marathons. 

Yeri nodded to them across the room, having found a way to get Siyeon away. She hurried to them the moment her booth’s visitors left. 

“Jonghyun-oppa says we have to move some tables. We’ll ask Siyeon-eonnie to help us since the Hongseok-oppa and Seulgi-eonnie are helping Sua-eonnie.’’ She rapped. 

Geonwoo and Hyejoo understood her though, initiating operation Siyeon takeaway while Yeri left to find Winter, somewhere in the bathroom. 

“Siyeon-noona!” Geonwoo spoke confidently as he walked over. “Could you help us shift some tables?”

“Sure.” Siyeon nodded, having run out of goodie bags to distribute. Sua and Hongseok didn’t seem to notice, hunched over the desk looking at the computer so she slipped away with Geonwoo and Hyejoo. 

They head to the room the team met up with in the morning, which has Siyeon looking for the tables she was told to help shift. Where would they shift the 12-seater table to?

“Actually, there’s no table to shift,” Geonwoo’s boyish smile put her at ease, but she was still unclear of what was going on. “We’re here to talk about Sua-noona.”

Siyeon nodded, unsure of how to feel. “What is it?”

“Please take care of her well.” Geonwoo’s voice raised an octave, his body folding in half. 

Yeri and Winter joined as Geonwoo straightened himself, rushing forward to hold Siyeon’s hands. 

“We would like to wish you the best with everything, and more than that, we all wish to see you and eonnie together in the future, raising the baby together. Please remind her to visit us occasionally!! We would love to see eonnie too~” They hugged Siyeon, Geonwoo following suit. 

Siyeon nearly choked up, smiling with her eyes. She didn’t know what to say. 

They pulled away when they didn’t get a reaction.

Siyeon gazed into each of their eyes, even to Hyejoo who stood behind, keeping her distance. ”I love her.”

Their squeals fill the air as they run away in a fit of giggles. Siyeon is really touched. She gets a cup of tea for her and Sua, an unreadable expression on her face. 

Hyejoo, the girl that had given her the side-eye earlier, hesitantly approached her, before leaning in to quickly hug her and spew a string of words,

“Thank you for loving our eonnie.” Before running off to catch up with the rest.

Siyeon didn’t feel pressured, as much as it seemed like she would. She felt light, light-hearted of her worries. She headed back to Sua with a newfound purpose in life…

To cherish Bora and Gahyeon to the best of her ability. 

~