Hey! It's been a while haha. Sorry for taking this long, lots of things happened irl and I sort of went through a blank page phase. One thing though, this fic went from 2 chapters to 3! I don't know when I'll get to write the last one, but sooner than later I hope.

Thank you to everyone who read and commented on the first chapter. If you liked this one, don't hesitate to share your thoughts here as well. Have a nice day and see ya!

***

The first thing she did was to delete her number and block her on all social media. It had hurt in the same way a torn out limb would, however, she had deemed it a necessary pain. Everything so she wouldn’t have to think about Han Dong’s smile again. 

It wasn’t fair that things had to end like this. 

It wasn’t fair to feel like she had lost her only true love when she never really had it to begin with. 

Work had been able to put her back on her feet, at least during the day, but when she came home at night, Yoohyeon was empty. She had cried all her tears the first week, or so she thought. It was always a surprise when she found herself weeping again as if she hadn’t spent enough of herself in this dead relationship. 

Despite what she had said, she wasn’t mad at Han Dong. She understood her own part in their downfall. It was as Gahyeon had said, she should have asked more questions. And more importantly, she should have stopped herself from falling in love before it was too late. 

But Gahyeon hadn’t said everything, now, had she? 

I was hoping it wasn’t the same person.  

Yoohyeon remembered how painfully sorry her friend looked when she confessed everything. 

I know Minji-unnie and Han Dong-unnie from Singnie. I learnt that they were in an open relationship when you started dating, but I didn’t know if it was my place to say anything at the time. Since you two had an arrangement and all… But when I saw how deeply you were falling, I actually told Minji-unnie that if she didn’t sort this out, I would. I guess that’s when Han Dong-unnie decided to tell you everything. 

It hadn’t been easy for her, to be put in the middle of a situation that shouldn’t have concerned her. Yoohyeon agreed that it wasn’t the young woman’s place to say anything about her friends’ privacy without their consent. She also agreed that her thing with Han Dong wasn’t supposed to involve any kind of commitment anyway. Gahyeon had tried to warn her. She was the one who hadn’t listened. 

Her phone screen lit up in the dark. 

Binnie:  

Hey! Wanna hang out tomorrow? We’re going out for drinks with the usual gang. 

Yoohyeon knew just from reading the text preview appearing at the top of her lock screen that she was going to say no. She appreciated the thought though. She knew her best friend was trying her best to get her mind away from the separation. 

It had been a month already. She shouldn’t be such a mess.  

Hey, sorry but I’ve been working late all week. I just want my bed right now TT

It was such a lame excuse. Everyone worked late. That was the reality of adult life.

Binnie:  

Haha I feel you. You’ll come another time!

Yubin’s kindness hit her in the gut. Why was she acting like that? She knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep properly anyway. She knew she had nothing else to do. So why couldn’t she enjoy going out with her friends? Why was she stuck in place when everyone else around her had moved on?

Had Han Dong moved on too? 

The pit in her stomach grew larger thinking about it. It would be rich coming from the woman who looked like she was about to cry when she left her apartment. Or had Yoohyeon only seen what she wanted to see? No, she knew what she had felt. There was love in the end, between them. The sort of love that refuses to go away. The sort of pain that grips the heart and refuses to let go. The kind that makes you think “what if I had listened?”

She didn't go out with her friends that day. She didn’t text anyone about what she was doing because she knew they would have told her to stop. It wasn’t that bad though. Trying fate was all it was. If things were meant to be, as people often said, they happened no matter what. 

Yoohyeon stepped inside the coffee shop more confidently than she once did. Her heart was racing in anticipation—what if she were there? But of course, she didn’t recognise anyone inside, not even the barista. Maybe she should order to drink inside. Stay a while. Would an iced americano be too desperate? It wasn’t as if anyone was actually watching her anyway. 

“... Kim Yoohyeon?”

That was her name. Why was someone saying her name?

“Excuse me. Are you Kim Yoohyeon?”

The woman looking at her had wide expecting eyes. It made her look like a cute baby deer. Or a bunny. Something small and innocent. 

“Who are you?” 

That sounded rude, Yoohyeon was aware. Almost as rude as a stranger coming up to her and knowing her name. The woman narrowed her eyes and offered a tight-lipped smile as a form of apology. 

“I’m Kim Minji. I wanted to talk to you, if you don’t mind.”

It was Yoohyeon’s turn to be wide-eyed. What was that woman doing here? There was nothing she wanted to say to her. Just knowing they had both shared Han Dong’s bed was embarrassing enough. According to Gahyeon, Minji knew the whole time. Did they also talk about her? She felt so much shame thinking about all the times Han Dong had invited her in their home to do all the things they did. Why would Minji want to face her when she couldn't even face herself? 

“My table is over there,” the older woman continued, pointing at a table for two not too far from the entrance. 

Her voice sounded like she was giving a choice and yet Yoohyeon felt trapped in that situation. Not even Minji’s smile could shake away the nasty feeling that she had been played with. Her feet followed the direction. She sat on one of the chairs without saying a single thing. 

The other woman just studied her. She acted so calm. So different from what the younger girl had in mind when she tried to picture her. 

“I didn’t know she was already with someone. We had an arrangement, and I never asked why, but I never meant to come between you two.”

Yoohyeon must have sounded really scared because the eyes that set on her were full of compassion. 

“Yoohyeon-shi… I have absolutely nothing against you,” Minji said with that sweet voice of hers. It sounded gentle. Everything she said. It sounded so gentle. “Dongie and I aren’t in what you would call a traditional relationship. She told me she had met someone and I gave her my consent to follow through. You did nothing wrong.”

It was too good to be true, but there was no trick to it. The nickname hurt. The confidence in which she said those words hurt. She sounded so sure that Han Dong would never leave her. It only served to shatter whatever hope Yoohyeon had when she had walked in that shop. 

“Is that what you wanted to talk about?” she asked, on edge. She would do anything to cut that conversation short.

Minji's features visibly tensed. She let out a breath, closing her eyes to school herself. 

“Partly, yes.” Her eyes opened again to study Yoohyeon's reaction more closely. “I also wanted to make sure of certain things.”

Yoohyeon shifted in her seat, anticipating what was set to be a trying time at best. At least, honesty was always preferable. In theory.

“I'm under the impression that you don't really know how an open relationship works. I don't want you to think that Han Dong is cheating on me, or that she chases after every girl she meets. You weren't some toy in her eyes or in mine.”

Her audience was looking at her with a stun expression. What she was saying was nice—reassuring even. Something Yoohyeon had wondered about endlessly after the break up. She hated the fact that she had been the only one who didn't know there was a third person in their relationship. She had had nightmares about Han Dong making fun of her behind her back, rating her performance in bed, belittling her with her sarcasm. 

But why was it coming from Minji? Did she not deserve those explanations directly from the main perpetrator? 

“Is she sending you? Is that what this is?” She scoffed to hide her pain. “I’m not even worth her time anymore?” 

Her voice was sharp, each sentence meant to be a bite. It would have been difficult for anyone to imagine such a frail woman being able to radiate such contempt. Even Minji was starting to lose her composure. opened to say something but Yoohyeon went on before she could get the chance. 

“She lied to me. Good for you if you don't care who she sleeps with, but I was hoping…” tightened when she thought of the words and who she was saying them to. She had come this far, surely she could say it to her. “I was hoping…” The sentence died out miserably in her thoughts. 

“You were hoping she loved you back,” Minji said for her, calmly. How she could keep up that smile of hers after saying that was beyond Yoohyeon. “It's okay, you can say it.” 

“She has you .”

It sounded so much like a reproach. Yoohyeon couldn't help it. She envied what Minji had, it was true. The other woman stared at her in silence. 

“She does. And she always will. But her heart doesn’t only belong to me.”

“How can you be okay with it?”

“I trust her when she says she loves me. I know that even when she’s with other women, what she gives them doesn’t take away the feelings she has for me. It all just adds up.” 

Yoohyeon was still listening carefully. She admired the way Minji was able to handle that kind of love. She wondered if it was a proof of maturity or if the other woman had always been this selfless with everyone she had loved. Could she be like her if she tried? 

“So what do you want from me then?” she breathed.

For some reason it made her interlocutor chuckle.

“I wanted you to know that, that’s all,” Minji said softly. “So that you can have the full context before you decide to move on or not.”

The fact that this stranger acted as if she could read her perfectly irritated Yoohyeon to no end. Even more so when she managed to put her finger on something real.

“What makes you think I haven’t already?” she challenged her, tilting her chin up. 

“You walked in there, didn’t you?” Minji replied confidently.

I decided it on a whim. This means nothing, Yoohyeon wanted to say, but she clenched her teeth. She wasn’t going to answer that. She believed her reddened cheeks were already enough of an admission. She was hoping to see Han Dong, and instead Minji was there. Minji who was waiting for her. Minji who was patiently explaining the extent of her relationship to someone who had mostly shown contempt thus far. It had to mean something somehow. 

“How did you even know I would be here?”

“I tried my luck,” the woman brushed off.

Yoohyeon didn't quite believe that. Her eyes stopped on the other’s drink just to find a distraction. It wasn’t in a plastic cup like hers but in a nice white porcelain mug. She had noticed it before but she hadn’t properly taken in what it was. 

“These cups are for people with a subscription,” she noted. 

Her eyes went back on Minji’s own to observe her reaction. Without surprise, the older woman looked like she had been caught. She smiled awkwardly, passing a hand in her hair.

“I may have tried my luck a few times,” she said innocently. 

The smirk she sported when she admitted it broke completely from the image she had built of herself before. She didn’t look so much in control now, but it didn’t seem to matter. She was… surprisingly goofy.

It took a moment for Yoohyeon to deal with this sudden change. She thought she had known everything there was to know about Minji when she saw her leading the conversation without ever losing her calm. Now there was another side of her that made her look more real, less overwhelming. No more idealized. 

Now, Yoohyeon had the image of that woman buying a subscription to a coffee shop she would otherwise never go to and waiting there every day for a perfect stranger to show up, and it changed a lot of things. 

“What made you think I would ever come back here?” she asked, more interested than before. 

“Oh it wasn't really knowledge on my part.” The older woman waved the idea away. “I was just hoping.” 

She reached for a piece of paper in her bag and flattened it on the table. Yoohyeon bent over to see what was on it. Her chest clenched around her heart when she recognised a sketched portrait of herself. She recognised those quick drawn lines, the special attention given to the eyes… Han Dong had told her portraits weren't her forte, but Yoohyeon never agreed. 

Many things were resurfacing now that she was looking at herself on that page. She was loved, wasn't she? Yoohyeon bit back some tears before they could well out.  

“She's still thinking about you,” Minji commented. “I was hoping you were still thinking about her.”

“And if I don't change my mind?” Yoohyeon asked even though her words broke at the end. 

“She will never know we had that conversation and I won't judge you for it,” the other comforted her. “Dongie and I are outside the norm in more ways than one, we've learnt to thrive in it. But you don't have to put yourself in a situation that doesn't make you happy just for her sake.”

Yoohyeon sniffed, still hoping that her impending tears weren't too obvious. It all seemed so simple now—and safe— whatever she chose. 

“I deleted her number,” she blurted, embarrassed. 

“Here.” Minji slid a small card towards her. It had her contacts printed on one side, but when Yoohyeon flipped it, she saw a number written down carefully at the back. 

“Only do what's best for you,” the older woman slipped past her as she rose from her seat. 

Yoohyeon was too confused to try to stop her. She didn't even have time to say thank you before Minji vanished through the door. All she had now were a sketch of herself and a visit card with Han Dong's number on it. 

***

She couldn't quite tame the exhilarated feelings of joy and giddiness coming over her when she read the text. It took every last bit of resolve inside her to not reply immediately. Firstly, because she still had some pride. But also because she couldn't do it alone. 

If she was given another chance, she had to make it right from the start so that no one would get hurt this time. Minji was coming home at nine. She would want to eat something first and rest while Han Dong took care of everything. They could find a moment to have a talk after that. 

The home designer stared at the clock. 7:40pm. Manageable .

Her girlfriend arrived slightly after nine, offering an exhausted smile and a quick peck on the lips. 

“Welcome home,” Dong whispered when they parted. 

“I'm back,” Minji sang. She inhaled through her nose and grinned. “Do I smell dinner?”

Her girlfriend hummed. “Soft tofu stew.”

“I love you.”

There was a small chuckle. “Don't say that before you get a taste… Ouch!”

Dong received a light punch in the arm. 

“Don't take my love so lightly,” Minji pouted. 

She got wrapped in her lover's arms. “I'm not,” she heard as a mumble. Paying attention to the woman's heartbeat, she noticed how loud it was, as if it were going to explode. Something was going on. She could tell even from the way Han Dong was holding her. 

She pushed on her palms to break away, slowly, her eyes peered into the other woman's with concern and care. 

“Is there something you want to tell me?” she asked in as little a voice as possible, as if that would make the problem smaller too. 

Her lover heaved a sigh she seemed to have been holding for a while, and Minji thought she saw the corners of her lips curling up just a bit before she schooled her features again. 

“She texted me,” she let out. “Yoohyeon. She texted me.”

It was difficult to reign in the excitement this news broke, for the both of them. Only, Minji wasn't supposed to know this could happen. 

“She did?” the lawyer rejoiced candidly. “What did she say?” 

Han Dong narrowed her eyes, she wasn't expecting such a positive reaction. To be honest, she didn't know what she was supposed to expect from her in regard to this situation. 

“She's inviting me to her place, Saturday evening. She says she wants to talk about what happened. I don't know if it's to start anew or to get her truth out. But…” 

She stopped mid-sentence, suddenly aware of what she was about to ask of her partner of four years. Her lover tilted her head on the side, wondering what the hesitation was about. 

“Minji, I want to take this chance.” 

“I know.” Han Dong heard her take a deep breath. “She means a lot to you, doesn't she?” 

Minji’s eyes were serene when looking at her. Dong was pretty sure hers were not. She never thought she would feel so much for someone who wasn’t the woman in front of her. When she had adventures outside their relationship, they were short-lived, closer to friends with benefits than actual lovers, nothing like what she had with Yoohyeon. 

“I… she does. She does mean a lot. But never more than you. No one. No one will ever mean more than you to me.”

But she wasn’t really saying that to Minji. She was mostly telling herself. Her girlfriend sported a rueful smile, her open palm warming Han Dong’s upper chest.

“I’m scared too, you know,” she hummed. “It’s okay to say it. It’s okay to be honest with yourself.”

She wasn’t as calm as she was leading on. Her hand above her partner’s s was sweaty and fidgety. She did need to be reassured. However, she didn’t want to be reassured with empty words. She wanted to hear everything that was on her lover’s mind, not just the things that she thought she wanted to hear. Everything, as long as it was true. 

Han Dong took a series of slow, shaky, breaths, trying to calm her mind, finding the clearest way to express the mess that were her feelings at that moment. 

“I love her,” she whispered, “and I love you . If she ever asks me to make a choice I will always choose you .” 

Minji exhaled in relief, resting her forehead against her girlfriend’s chest. “Thank you,” she breathed out the words on the other’s skin. “I love you too. So much.”

Dong held the back of her head, keeping her close, taking as much solace as she could from their embrace. It was a leap into the unknown she was about to take and there would be many things to consider if Yoohyeon agreed to be with her as more than something casual. All three of them would have to take an active role in defining their relationship. No more secrets or holding back fears. 

She hadn't foreseen how much she'd want to hug the person in front of her as soon as she opened the door. Yoohyeon's movements were stiff when she let her in, but Han Dong knew that they had both missed a breath in that split second when their eyes met. 

She was led inside. She could have seen herself in without the younger one's guidance given how many times she had been to this place, but it would have been disrespectful to act as if she were still welcome here, as if she still had a right to claim it as a shared space for just the two of them. 

Yoohyeon weaved her way to the sofa. There were already drinks and snacks on the coffee table. 

“I figured we should talk first, before getting on with dinner,” she said in a breathy voice that betrayed her uneasiness. 

The apprehension was shared. However, Han Dong liked to believe she was able to hide hers slightly better. 

“You're right. Let's clear the air first.”

She studied the other's features, trying to guess if she was expected to speak first even though Yoohyeon was the one who had sent the invitation. The young woman looked far from composed, but she was going over some things in her head, maybe trying to remember the speech she had prepared. She was the type to do that— prepare . Dong wished she had done more of that herself, but she hated anticipating things too much. 

“This past month, I kept thinking about how things ended between us,” Yoohyeon began, stammering on a few words. “I… I really hated that you lied to me about such an important thing, even if I wasn’t supposed to get as attached as I did— I recognise that .” She made eye contact on that particular sentence. “But you know how insecure I am, and you know honesty is important to me.” 

Han Dong felt the shame building in with every word, she couldn’t look the young woman in the eye, even though she could feel her burning gaze on her. 

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. 

She had already said it and she would keep saying it until her actions could match her words. Yoohyeon took a pause while keeping her reproachful eyes on her.

“You’ve said that,” she said flatly.

“What more do you want?”

That sounded wrong somehow, like the bad boyfriend’s line in an average tv show. Han Dong knew she hadn’t done enough, she wasn’t trying to say she had. She genuinely wanted to know what she needed to do, how far Yoohyeon wanted her to go, and she was praying the other wasn’t about to say the one thing she would never give up on. 

If she ever asks me to make a choice I will always choose you .

She heard the young woman sipping in a breath nervously. 

“I want you to answer a few questions honestly. Please.”

Han Dong parted her lips to say something that she hadn't really thought up yet but closed them just as soon. The request sounded so innocent, so light in comparison to everything else Yoohyeon could have asked of her. 

She nodded. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

The resentment still sounded so clear in her voice, it was a wonder why she never asked that question before they parted. It had to be the shock value, Han Dong presumed. The young woman’s disappointment had been too great, she only thought of it after Han Dong was gone. She took a deep breath in. 

“I wanted to tell you after a few dates. But then I got scared,” she revealed in a small voice. “I didn't want to lose you. And the more time passed the worse it became and I couldn't say anything anymore because I knew you would be rightfully mad at me. I was trapped in my own mistake and, sadly, so were you.” 

Han Dong searched the other woman’s eyes for any trace of understanding but couldn’t find any. It was hard to read the expression on Yoohyeon's face as she took in the answers. It was as if she had made a point to make it as uneasy as possible as she kept going through her questions. 

“How does it happen usually, when you meet someone?” 

The older woman couldn't help but look away as soon as she heard that. Now that was something she wished she didn’t have to answer but always knew she would have to. Not because she was ashamed, but because she knew Yoohyeon would compare herself. She averted her eyes back onto the young woman. This wasn’t the time to act shy. 

“My other relationships so far have mostly been about . I meet them on an app or sometimes at parties and we just hang out for a night or two.”

Yoohyeon was trying her hardest not to flinch, not to give anything away now. She swallowed some saliva to try to undry , but she couldn’t shake off the nervousness and the irritation that were brewing inside her. 

“Do you keep seeing them afterward?” 

“Some of them,” Dong admitted quietly. “When we have a night to spare. But it's not a regular thing.”

“And not with me.” Yoohyeon watched the other woman raise an eyebrow at her. “You didn’t do that with me,” she repeated sternly.

“I didn’t want to do that with you. I wanted to actually know you.”

“And I wanted to know you too,” the younger one replied with a rueful smile. 

There was a beat then silence dropped. The accusation fell like cold, harsh, rain on the pavement at night. Deafening and unforgiving. 

“You know me now,” Han Dong breathed out. 

She was staring hopelessly, looking for forgiveness in the other’s eyes, tightening at the realization that this could be goodbye and yet she felt like she hadn’t fought hard enough. 

“You can ask anything,” she added, her voice but a faint whisper. 

Yoohyeon held her gaze, eyes glinting with the understanding that she had all the power in this situation. She separated her lips to utter the next words:

“What kind of commitment can I expect from you?” 

Han Dong shot up her eyes, traces of a smile forming on her lips, asking silently if this meant what she actually thought it meant. Yoohyeon smiled back. 

“What would you do differently if we were in a more serious relationship?” 

The younger girl paused to think. “Would you mind meeting my friends?” 

“If they don't want my head on a spike, sure, I'd like to meet them.”

Yoohyeon chuckled. Yubin had indeed said something about never forgiving the woman who made her cry. But she would understand, would she? 

“I can't promise anything, but I'll do what I can to talk them out of it.”

Han Dong smiled at the small antic. “I appreciate it.”

It was natural that people close to Yoohyeon would have bad prejudices about her. They weren't exactly wrong to have them. Her eyes stayed on Yoohyeon, signaling her to keep going. 

“I want you to be honest, in regards to your other engagements. I don't want you to hide your relationships to spare my feelings or whatever. If you can't make plans because you're with one of them, I want to know.”

Han Dong took a bit more time before nodding. Implicitly, this meant Yoohyeon agreed to let her see other women outside Minji as well. And although she didn't want to doubt the statement, she had the feeling that this would need ampler reflection and an actual discussion to see if the younger woman was actually ready for that or if sharing with one was already enough. 

“And… I want to spend more nights with you,” Yoohyeon added shyly. “Like, actual nights, when you sleep over and we get to spend the morning together.”

Han Dong felt a twinge in her chest. It was her fault. If she had been honest from the start, she would have been able to explain why she couldn't stay, why she couldn't let herself fall deeper than she already had. But instead she left the younger girl alone all those nights. 

“Yoohyeon?” She watched the young woman perked her head up, looking with curious eyes. “Can I hug you?” 

Han Dong was able to see the moment all the toughness the other one had managed to gather vanished. Yoohyeon's lips curled up but her smile looked wry because of the tears she was fighting. She almost leapt the distance that separated them to land in the older woman's arms. 

“I missed you,” she blurted between harsh breaths. “I missed you so much, Dongie.”

“I missed you too. There wasn’t a day I didn't blame myself for what happened.” 

She cupped the girl's face between her hands, peering adoringly into her watery eyes, left a soft kiss on her forehead and whispered: 

“I'll spend all the nights you want with you.”

***

Yoohyeon woke up being held at the waist by her girlfriend, a warm presence in her back, a slow breathing accompanying her own. She stirred just slightly to wake her numb limbs, but enough to disturb the woman behind her. 

“You're awake?” Handong whispered with a raspy voice. 

“I thought you would be up before me.”

“Hmm…” The arms around Yoohyeon's waist brought her closer to the woman's front. “I had a tough week,” she whispered in her ear. 

“But who's gonna make breakfast?” the younger one asked with a smirk that the other couldn't see, yet very clearly heard.

There was a deep ominous chuckle over her shoulder. “Are you sure you wanna go there, Kim Yoohyeon?” 

Yoohyeon didn't back down, for better or worse. A first tickle along her side made her jump away from Han Dong's grasp in a yap. However, she was firmly held in place while the other took pleasure in harassing her, making her laugh out of breath and plead for her life in the name of everything that was good in this world. 

Eventually, her lover took pity and stopped the tickling, still holding her thin, panting, frame, placing her lips on her temple, leaving a kiss there. 

“I’ll go make the toasts,” she whispered before Yoohyeon was able to formulate anything. 

Yoohyeon was glad she had agreed to try again. And she was glad she had been able to tell Han Dong everything that had been on her mind. The older woman had listened to all of it and made the changes necessary for the both of them to feel comfortable in this new relationship they had. 

She took the time to take a shower before walking into the living room where the smell of cinnamon and breakfast tea was waiting for her. Behind the stove, her girlfriend was grilling the last French toasts on a pan. They were the main reason why Yoohyeon loved when Han Dong made breakfast. 

“Just on time,” the woman sang when she heard the younger one approaching.

Two arms wrapped around her waist cautiously, while Yoohyeon nuzzled in the crook of her neck. She smelled of sweat with the vague trace of her fragrance still lingering, a scent that brought comfort and peace to the young woman whenever she woke up and was able to sense it. 

Han Dong’s perfume had also made its way through the fabric of her sheets, and in the shelves of her bathroom where she applied it every morning before leaving. Without really noticing, the older woman had begun to create a space for herself within Yoohyeon’s home. 

I love you, the girl wanted to say, but she knew she shouldn’t. It was too soon, too naive. And no matter how much she wanted to hear it back, she wasn’t sure how much of it the other could really mean. 

“Thank you,” she said instead, placing a quick peck on Han Dong’s cheek before settling at the kitchen table. 

Her lover joined her, putting the plate of still fuming toasts between them to share and immediately digging in. Mornings were usually quiet. Han Dong, especially, needed time to mentally prepare herself for the day. 

The fact that she committed to making breakfast was actually an achievement and an honor, her girlfriend found out. Though, usually they both still woke up earlier than that. It was already ten-or-so-ish when she took her shower, it should be ten thirty by now. 

“You could stay for lunch,” she piped up. 

She saw the moment Han Dong's smile fell. 

“I'm sorry, hyeonie…”

“It's alright,” the other cut in with the most genuine smile she could manage. “You told me you had plans, I was just hoping they were later in the afternoon.”

Her girlfriend's eyes were staring with the intent to say something, yet, whatever it was, it stayed there. All she let out was a strained breath. She could see it wasn't alright no matter how hard Yoohyeon worked to hide it, but talking about it now after such a nice morning would bring nothing but frustration. 

And yet at some point they would have to address it.

“I don't know if it would make things better or not, but you could meet her if you'd want,” she said quietly. “Minji, I mean.”

Yoohyeon shot up her eyes, trying to discern whether she had dreamt this morning or if she was awake and actually hearing this. Han Dong seemed to realize how awkward that was and retreated her gaze towards the toast on her plate, mumbling a weak “forget that” as she took a bite. 

She didn't know, of course, that Yoohyeon had already met Minji, and that, in fact, she was the reason they were together again. The impression the other woman had made on her was not quite lost yet, actually. A twenty minute conversation was enough to understand why anyone would be attracted to her and why Han Dong, in particular, would always choose her. 

She was confident in a way that was reassuring. She offered stability and unfaltering loyalty to a degree that Yoohyeon found even hard to believe despite the fact that she was proving to be the same herself in that regard. 

Maybe if she could learn to handle this situation the way Minji was, she could also bring herself to say the words that had been weighing at the back of her mind…

“Would she agree? Minji, I mean.”

Han Dong tilted her head up to look at her with wide hopeful eyes and seemed relieved to see the tentative smirk on the youngest's face. 

“She's not opposed to the idea, but only if you're okay with it.”

Yoohyeon hummed, nodding accordingly. 

“It could be good, actually.”

It wasn't one of those times when she didn't dare formulate her doubts or when she wanted to be braver than she was for the other's sake, which elevated a real burden off Han Dong's shoulders. 

“I'll put you two in contact then,” she said with a serene smile. 

***

It was easy to decide on a date and place. Yoohyeon agreed to let it happen at her apartment. That way it would be easier to talk about more private matters. They considered whether they should meet on neutral grounds or not, but the young woman did need a comfort zone for this. Minji could understand that. 

Even for something that was meant to be casual, the lawyer was overdressed, wearing the kind of fabric that immediately looked the expensive high quality type, even if it was just a blouse and a pair of light brown pants. She couldn’t help it, she wanted to look nice for this meeting. Why, she couldn’t determine. To leave an impression… maybe. 

She knew she accomplished that when she watched Yoohyeon’s eyes widening slightly at her sight. Yet all the girl said was a quiet “come in” as she welcomed her inside. She was living in the type of apartment that immediately felt warm. Minji had often heard from Han Dong that there were two types of homes: the ones that showed what the owner wanted others to see and the ones that reflected perfectly who the owner was. In both cases they revealed more than what people thought. 

Yoohyeon was spontaneous, she was looking for a form of balance between her different passions and her everyday life. She was also absent-minded sometimes. She left things where they were, probably forgetting that she had moved them. She wanted people to feel comfortable. The living room wasn't heavily decorated and the sofa was directly in sight when one entered. 

She was also very nervous, but was set on not showing it. 

“So… This is officially the first time we meet,” she piped up, bringing iced tea on the coffee table. “I guess it’s nice to meet you.”

Minji let out a small chuckle. She didn’t mind the irreverence as much as she appreciated the attempt to break the ice. 

“Thank you for not telling her. I know she would have felt bad if she had known I felt the need to intervene.”

“To be completely honest, I still don’t understand why you did this.”

Yoohyeon’s gaze was running away from hers. It was obvious she was already halfway to regretting asking the question. However, Minji could see where this was coming from, since technically they were rivals. Or at least that was how her host saw it. Han Dong would disagree whole-heartedly. She would tend to do the same. 

“When you watch the person you love suffering in front of you, it makes you want to try anything to make their pain stop. However, I feel like I should restate this once more: you don’t have to put yourself into a situation that makes you unhappy.”

Her eyes had managed to find Yoohyeon’s and she was keeping them focused on her, making sure her words had come across. They were a darker shade of brown than Dongie’s but still clearer than her own, and although she wouldn’t say they were b with confidence, it looked like the young woman was still driven by something. There was barely any hesitation before she answered: 

“My feelings for Dongie haven’t changed and I suffered more in the months we were apart than now that we’re together again. That much I’m sure.”

Minji said nothing. She felt a pit forming in her stomach and yet she couldn’t help but admire the strength coming out of the young woman in front of her. 

“But I’m not sure how much of those feelings she can reciprocate.”

“Because she has me,” Minji articulated slowly for her. 

She saw in the way Yoohyeon closed herself that she wasn’t doing a very good job at keeping all her emotions inside. It was a legitimate fear that the youngest had, and yet so inconsiderate of her own situation, her own hardships. Her jaw tensed, thinking over what she was about to say. By all evidence, Han Dong had not yet confessed her love fully. It would have been a lot easier if she had, of course, but Minji understood the necessity to build back trust before dropping that kind of revelation on Yoohyeon. 

She breathed slowly through her nose to cool herself. It would bring no good to get upset for something she had so little control over. Besides, she couldn’t stand the sight of Yoohyeon’s sad eyes looking at her like a puppy about to get scolded. So when she talked again, she did it in a poised manner:

“Do you think it was easy for me? To watch the woman I’ve loved for four years desperately needing someone else.”

“No, of course not. It couldn’t have been…” Yoohyeon muttered apologetically. 

“And yet all I can do is trust her, trust in her feelings for me and in my feelings for her. And you should trust her too.”

Those words sounded so simple once they were out of despite that it had required so many hours of doubt to get them out. Yoohyeon seemed calmer now as well, though she was pouty. 

“That woman better not be playing with us, I tell you,” she grumbled after a moment of reflection. 

The suddenness of the complaint made Minji laugh heartily. “Believe me, she’s not. And she’s certainly not playing with you.” 

She smiled fondly when Yoohyeon averted her curious eyes on her.  

“It’s easy to see why she would like you. You're smart and kind but you hide a strength within you, a form of authenticity that is hard to come by. You don't want to hide who you are to accommodate people around you, it’s… refreshing.”

The trace of a smile was still adorning her lips when she put an end to her musing. She only thought about what she had just said when she saw Yoohyeon’s cheeks suddenly flaming red. 

“Th– That’s very kind of you, what you just said…”

And right then and there, something melted in Minji’s heart. She wanted to correct herself, to say she had meant it from Han Dong’s perspective, but she would be lying. Those were her thoughts, her feelings that she had so casually displayed. 

“I meant all of it.”

Yoohyeon was looking askance, still blushing. One moment ago she still looked fierce despite the awkwardness and now she seemed so fragile. It was so easy to be drawn to her, to her smile, her sincerity. No wonder Han Dong had fallen for her. If she listened to herself, if she didn’t smother those feelings in the womb, Minji could fall too.