Yongsun was staring at her phone, completely shocked. She hadn’t been oblivious to her little Wheeinie liking all of her Instagram posts; she hadn’t been oblivious to how often the younger woman’s gaze found her nor to the oh-so-soft smiles the younger woman always seemed to keep safe just for her. But never in a million years would she have imagined receiving the texts she was reading as she waited for Byul to finish her scenes for Save Me. With the rain pouring on the windows, it really didn’t help the situation. 

Unnie, the pictures you’ve sent on the group chat

of today’s shoot… You’re gorgeous… I wanted to…

Unnie, I wondered if 

Unnie, it’s going to seem to come from nowhere, but…

Do you want to go get coffee sometime?

What do you mean, Wheein-ah? 

Coffee’s not your thing…

But it’s your thing, unnie

I want to go out with you.

You can just come over when you have time, Wheein-ah

Like usual

No, you don’t get it, unnie 😩

I want to go on a date with you.

That’s what Yongsun was currently staring at, at a loss of what to reply. She was shaken out of her shock as they called her over for her scenes. She didn’t receive another text from Wheein while she was busy, and she only looked at the conversation again once in the car back home, Byulyie by her side. She didn’t know how to handle the situation at all and somehow felt like she couldn’t talk about it with Byul, not wanting to expose Wheeinie.

Sorry, Wheein-ah… I had to work.

Don’t worry, unnie, I figured. So…?

Wheein-ah, it’s very flattering, but I can’t…

Can’t?

Yes, can’t. I… I didn’t even expect any of this.

Just, forget about it, unnie. 

Fighting for the comeback!

I… You’re not angry, are you?

Me? Angry with you? Never, unnie

Don’t worry about it.

So that’s precisely what Yongsun decided to do: not worry about it. Her Wheeinie just wanted a date because she found her beautiful on a random Tuesday; it’s not like she was professing her undying love… Yongsun nodded to herself, resolute, deciding to forget the matter altogether. 

A couple of days passed, filled with rehearsals and schedules, before she finally relaxed with the unfortunate cancellation of her schedule in Japan. For once alone at her apartment, as Byul hung out with her younger sister, Yongsun started texting with Sodamie, catching up on their respective lives. The singer decided to share one of her pictures from the Save Me shoot that she had received a few days prior for review. 

Wow… You’re stunning, Yongsun-ah.

Thank you, Sodam-ah!

I’m happy with how the pictures turned out!

Do you have more to share? ;P

Yongsun chuckled at the request and sent a couple of pictures, glad her enthusiasm was shared. She sometimes still wondered how she could have made such a good friend in the outstanding actress Sodamie. She had been quite starstruck with her at first, but soon enough, their chemistry melted away Yongsun’s nerves, and they quickly became close after Gamsung Camping.  

You’re too beautiful, Yongsun-ah, it’s hard not to fall for you!

Stop it, Sodam-ah 🤭

I’m not kidding, Yongsun-ah

You would think twice about it if you saw me

right now… I’m washing my hair as little as possible

so the dye doesn’t completely wear off.

You’re drop-dead gorgeous even with 

greasy hair, you know

Aigo… You’re always so cheesy, Sodam-ah…

Has Byulyie told you to be that way or something?

You think I don’t mean it??

Yongsun-ah….

Yes?

When are we going to meet again?

I’m pretty busy these days… but maybe I can try next week?

I’ll be free! What about a nice dinner? 

I know this place in Gangnam

Oh, dinner…? I don’t think I’ll be able to go for dinner.

Oh, I don’t mind doing anything else, 

It’s all about what makes you happy.

That’s very selfless of you, Sodam-ah 🤭

Anything for my unnie ;D

Unnie??

You’re very “unnie,” to be honest, Yongsun-ah

What does that even mean??

That you’re hot. So what do you want to do for our date?

Wait… what date??

Next week? 

It’s just a friendly gathering, right? 

Not a literal date.

Oh… Yeah, sure! 😅😅

Right… I’ll get back to you on that when I know

when I am free! We can go to that place in Gangnam,

just, not for dinner… lunch would be great, though!

Fresh out of Wheein’s strange request for a date, Yongsun wanted to make sure of Sodam’s intentions, not knowing if she was joking about the date or not. So the very next day, after rehearsals for the RBW concert, Yongsun invited Byul back to her place so they could have dinner and finally worked up the courage to ask. 

“Byul-ah?”

“Mmh?” The younger woman replied, mouth full, looking up right away at the hesitance in her voice.

“I need your opinion on something… Yesterday, I was texting with Sodamie, and she sent me a few texts about meeting up, but… I don’t know... it feels like she was asking me out?”

“What??” Byulyie instantly grabbed Yong’s phone and started reading the texts. “Yah, unnie! Why were you being so flirty??”

“I wasn’t being flirty flirty.” Yongsun rolled her eyes. “It was just banter.”

“It totally sounds like you’re flirting, though, and that’s probably why she asked you out.”

“So she did ask me out?? It wasn’t, like, a joke??”

“It’s pretty obvious, Yong… Why? Do you want to go on a date with her??”Yongsun frowned slightly at the accusatory tone and snatched her phone back. 

“No! I just wanted to be sure I understood what was happening.”

“Well,” Byulyie snuggled against Yong. “I always knew Sodam unnie had a crush on you, to be honest.”

“What do you mean ‘always’??”

“Oh please, all her love messages in her Instagram stories and comments!”

Yongsun rolled her eyes. “That’s just friendly banter, Byul-ah.”

Byul frowned at her insistence in calling blatant flirting ‘friendly banter’ and put her hand on Yongsun’s thigh. As usual, Yongsun allowed her, so she her soft skin, snuggling closer.

“You’re being really clingy tonight.”

“Why did you say no to Sodam unnie?” Byulyie asked in a whisper, nuzzling Yong’s neck to inhale her scent.

“I…” Yongsun bit her lip, not wanting to say too much. “To be honest, she’s a very attractive woman, and in other circumstances, I would have said yes. I just… I’m not available.”

“Not available?” Byulyie asked, about to ask if she had hidden a relationship from her.

“Yes, and with our comeback coming up and all our performances around the world this summer, it’s not like I would exactly have the time anyway.”

Byulyie relaxed at her words. “Right, you’re stuck with me this summer.”

“When am I not stuck with you?” Yongsun quipped before patting Byul’s back. “You should soon head home, Byul-ah. We have to work early tomorrow.”

Yongsun ran off stage as soon as she could at the end of the concert. At a typical Mamamoo concert, she would have been one of the last ones to leave, but no matter how many years went by, she still had a hard time being around people she didn’t know. Of course, she knew all the other artists of RBW, but not well enough to feel comfortable hanging out on stage for long minutes without a clear idea of what to do. She smiled, bowed, and congratulated all the staff members she walked past on her way to the waiting room and gathered all her belongings. The sooner she was home, the better. She was almost on her way out when Byul erupted in the room with the biggest smile on her face. 

“Ah, unnie, there you are!” She said, coming to drape herself on her shoulders. 

“Ah, Byul-ah, you’re sweaty,” Yongsun mumbled, gently pushing her off. Byul pouted and nuzzled her neck in retaliation, spreading some of her sweat on Yong’s dry skin. 

“You’re no fun. But it’s okay, unnie, I still love you.”

Yongsun rolled her eyes but then frowned as Byul stood there with an expression that was hard to read. Somehow, the atmosphere of the room grew very serious. 

“Yong, you remember our conversation about Sodam unnie a few days ago?”

“Yes…” Yongsun replied, looking around the room to make sure they were alone. 

“Right… I hope I’m not wrong…” She mumbled to herself.

“What do you mean?” Yongsun inquired, having heard perfectly. 

“You said you weren’t available for her…. but you’re always available for me…”

Yongsun’s eyes grew as realization dawned on her. 

“Stop right there, Byul-ah,” Yong growled.

“What??” Byul looked at her with big round eyes, like a deer caught in headlights. 

“Is this a prank?!” She shouted, frantically searching the room.

“A prank?! This is not a prank, unnie! I want to date you!”

“You and the whole world, it seems?!”

“What world??”

“Wheeinie, Sodamie, now you! Just leave me alone! A girl can’t catch a break! I can’t believe this.” She stormed past Byul.

“The answer is no, then…?” She asked pitifully.

“Yes, the answer is no!” She glared at her and left the room, collecting herself in the few minutes that separated her from fans outside the venue. 

Byulyie stayed motionless for a few minutes, heartbroken. Why did the other two have to sabotage her chances like that?! She was furious at herself for choosing the wrong moment to bare herself. Someone knocked on the door, and a blonde head popped in. 

“Unnie, do you want to go out tonight? Kind of like an after-party?” 

Byulyie looked at Hyojung for a beat, then smiled slightly. “Sure! I’ll just get ready. Wait for me!”

Yongsun let out a deep sigh as she finished her Instagram live, leaning back on the red car seat with all her weight. The day after the concert had been fine with Byul, the younger woman acting as if nothing had happened at all. So, eventually, Yongsun relaxed, thinking that all the women in her immediate entourage were done trying to ask her out and that she would finally be carefree as she had been a few weeks before this whole masquerade started. Boy, was she wrong. 

For once, Byulyie was behaving, but now it was Wheeinie and Sodamie’s turn to flirt with her in her comments, through Instagram stories, and all the way to her Instagram Live. She thought she had been clear enough, yet they were still flirting with her. She was flattered, frankly. The three women were insanely attractive in her eyes. But… she turned her head to watch her personal driver for the day. She was already taken. 

“Unnie, is everything alright?” Hyejinie asked, one hand on Yongsun’s thigh, the other confidently resting on the steering wheel. 

“Mmmh, just everyone decided to ask me out and flirt just when I’m not available anymore.”

“Regretting your decision?” Hyejin asked with no judgment in her voice, only tender softness. 

“No. Not at all, Jin-ah. It’s just exhausting to deal with when my mind is swimming with worries about the comeback.”

“We can cancel tonight if you need. We can have our date another day.”

“No, I want to unwind with you.”

Hyejinie smiled brightly, and Yong couldn’t help but smile in return. 

It was a bit before her concert in Seoul for Dancing Queens on the Road that Hyejinie came over to Yongsun’s to walk Yongkey with her. It was almost her only way to spend time with the adorable puppy, as being outside lessened her allergies just a smidge. 

It had been a couple of weeks since the end of My Con with the encore, and it had taken those few weeks of traveling with her sunbaes to realize that it would be quite a while before Mamamoo gathered as a group for their next activities. Looking back at the wonderful months spent traveling together and rehearsing for the encore, Hyejinie realized she wanted more. More of Yongsun specifically. 

It had taken her a while to realize just how deep her feelings ran for the older woman. Yongsun had changed from an intimidating older trainee to a demanding leader, to a loyal friend, to now a woman she wanted more with. 

Those hours in the pool in Glendale, just the two of them? Those hours playing their Nintendos Switch in every airport in the world (that’s what it felt like)? Those deep discussions in Texan bars while a little tipsy? Witnessing Yongsun completely let loose after one too many drinks after their last show in LA, in some small club? Hyejinie was hooked and wanted more. 

“How’s the comeback preparations going, unnie?” Hyejinie asked with a smile, taking the leash from Yong as they walked among the trees and the few other passers-by that didn’t seem to recognize them. Good. 

“Everything’s going swimmingly so far… But I’m about to be really busy.” Yongsun said with no sign of regret in her voice. Hyejinie knew how much Yongsun loved her job; she admired her for how relentless she was in her career. It had always been inspiring to her. 

“I will miss us four together for the next few months…” 

“Me too, Jin-ah. But we’ll make time to meet up with one another.”

“But I’m going to miss you, unnie.”

“I’ll miss you too, Hyejin-ah, but you know I’m always here when you need me,” Yongsun said with a smile in her eyes as her face was obscured by her mask. The maknae locked her gaze with her leader’s, stopping in their step as Yongkey was sniffing some flowers on the way. They were suffering from the heat, one of the last few flowers of the year. 

“Yongsun unnie,” Hyejin started with such a formal tone that Yong gaped at her in surprise. “I’m hoping that… with all the moments we’ve shared over the last few months… How even closer we’ve gotten… How playful we’ve grown with each other… That I’m not misguided in my feelings. Unnie, I feel more for you than a friend. And I don’t mean that special bond we all share with each other. I mean, I desire you, unnie, and I want to ask you out on a date.”

Yongsun was surprised, staring at the younger woman in silence. Hyejin held her gaze with that comforting calmness she often exuded in private. A little twinkle appeared in the maknae’s eyes as she noticed the blush peaking over Yongsun's mask. 

“I… Hyejin-ah…”

“Was I wrong, unnie? About what we’ve experienced these last few months?”

Yongsun looked down at Yongkey for a beat, trying to compose herself. “No…”

Hyejin let out a discrete sigh of relief. “So… how does a date sound?” She asked but was met with hesitation. “I’m not asking you to marry me, unnie, relax.” Hyejin supplemented with a little laugh that Yongsun found so adorable it melted her nerves. Right, it was just her Hyejinie. 

“Right, it’s just a date.”

“Yeah, just a date.”

“Okay.” Yongsun simply said with a bit of happiness shining in her voice. 

“Great!” Hyejinie said as they resumed their walk, though now standing closer together. 

When their first date (stargazing with a simple picnic) went by swimmingly… when their second, then third dates were even better than they had hoped… when they made love and fell asleep feeling at home… That’s when Yongsun made the decision to tell Byul. 

When Wheein saw Yongsun as her best friend’s phone background image and the blush on her face when she was caught red-handed, Wheein knew she would have to let go of her crush. 

And Sodamie? Sodamie noticed when suddenly Hwasa popped up in the likes of every single one of Yongsun’s posts and got her answer the next time they met up. 

Yongsun knew that 2023 would be filled with their world tour, with her subunit activities with her best friend…. but she hadn’t expected a sudden wave of suitors, and even less so to find her life partner in her beloved Jinie.