Dusk arrives just as the snow flurries begin— white flakes glistening against the streetlights and neon signs, creating the illusions of soft, tiny clouds wafting through a wintry Friday evening.

 

The cafè was closed for today, which meant it was also the perfect day for them to spend the rest of the evening on yet another 'date'— as per Yunjin's request a few days back.

 

From the other side of the crosswalk, Yunjin spots a freezing Sakura hunched by a street lamp that was just outside their workplace. Her lithe figure made it look like she was drowning in her winter padded jacket, slim fit jeans hugging slender legs which seemed to be doing a rather bad job at keeping the shorter woman warm, judging by how Sakura kept walking in place.

 

There's a displeased look on her face, perturbed by the biting cold no doubt, a cloud of smoke occasionally escaping her lips whenever she exhaled.

 

Even from afar, Yunjin's sharp eyes captured the streaks of pink dusting Sakura's cheeks and the way the shells of her ears reddened. Surrounded by all the bustle in the streets, Yunjin's gaze never once strayed from the cherry blossom.

 

The redhead smiles to herself, feeling as if she was looking at a diamond in a sea of glass.

 

On the other hand, Sakura only spots Yunjin when she was in the middle of crossing the road, that red hair impossible to miss even from her periphery. Only then Sakura feels a sudden surge of embarrassment from within, her mind involuntarily reminding her of her own misinterpretation in Yunjin's car the other day.

 

Believe her when she says she holds an impressive amount of wit, but right now it feels as if her IQ hit an all-time low the moment she saw Yunjin beaming at her, because she finds herself slapping her hands to her eyes in self-induced visual impairment, thinking she would magically be invisible if she couldn't see Yunjin and vice versa.

 

Her cheeks are already red from the cold, and then having to hear Yunjin's laughter gradually growing louder as she draws near, Sakura feels her entire face heating up.

 

"No, what is this- Are we playing hide and seek??"

 

Despite her vision being a roaring black, Sakura is miffed by the fact that she could still perfectly picture Yunjin's face— nose crinkling and smiling too widely. Her hunch is right when she feels a tug on her elbows and for a split second, she sees the exact image through the small gaps of her fingers.

 

And then she's back to staring into the black abyss, hands glued to her face.

 

"Open your motherduckin' eyes,"

 

"No,"

 

"Open it!"

 

"You'd have to pry my fingers open with a crowbar."

 

The grip on her elbows loosens, leaving Sakura confused for a while thinking the redhead had given up but in the midst of her lowered guard, Yunjin's fingers creep up to hers before prying her hands off her face with ease.

 

A face too close greets her then and the proximity has her breath hitched. So close that Sakura could count every single eyelash.

 

"Boo," Yunjin mutters nonchalantly, corners of her lips curling up in a grin.

 

Sakura thinks Yunjin has developed a new habit recently. One that involves going all up into her face and barely leaving space for the lord. It's funny how it's happened more than once, and certainly more than it should...

 

Why do I feel like I'm constantly being put through a test...

 

Sakura muses internally, wondering just how much the universe loves to toy with her.

 

"Are all Japanese people this cute when embarrassed?" Yunjin's boisterous laughter enters her ears again, and she pushes gently on Sakura's shoulder.

 

"Bring up my embarrassment one more time and I'm shoving my entire foot up your nostrils." Sakura grumbles, eyes narrowed into slits.

 

"Aw you're so full of affection, I'm melting!" Yunjin juts out her lower lip and clutches her chest, chuckling when Sakura flips her off.

 

"So what did your dad say?" Sakura asks, pulling Yunjin by her sleeve and drags her to the side of the pavement, against the walls of the closed cafè.

 

"I'm here now, so he obviously didn't say no when I asked if I could go out with you." Yunjin points out, earning a hum from the shorter woman.

 

"What was he like?" Sakura tilts her head, curiosity peaked.

 

Yunjin scoffs, out of awe or disbelief, probably both, Sakura doesn't know which is it but the redhead is looking at her with wide, crazed eyes and a crooked grin.

 

"No glares, no homophobic remarks, no nothing! He was literally calm and cool like he was nonchalant about it..." Yunjin trails off, shaking her head in disbelief because for the first time, her and her stepdad had a conversation without breaking out into an all-out yelling competition in the middle of it.

 

It was a state of peace finally made known to the both of them, Sakura was just glad they both managed to come to a truce.

 

"Wow holy ... problem solved then?" Sakura marvels when realisation hit, staring blankly at the pavement as if trying to process whether all of what she had went through for the last few weeks were real.

 

"Problem ing solved, dude!" Yunjin squeals, evidently the most ecstatic of the two, grabbing and shaking Sakura's shoulders vigorously to release her excitement.

 

Halfway after getting treated like a protein shake, Sakura shoves Yunjin away with a dazed look. Yunjin laughs without a care in the world, a broad grin etched on her face.

 

If Yunjin's smile was a generator, Sakura is pretty sure she could power up an entire town.

 

(Or: Yunjin has a radiant smile.)

 

"So, what am I doing here then? Am I getting a bonus paycheck? You know I should be, this side hustle took a toll on my mental health. You and your dad gave me trauma." Sakura rambles, grousing as she thought about the mental torture she went through.

 

At least it was worth it, and truth to be told, it went beyond Sakura's expectations. She's not a pessimist by any means (just a super realist) but she couldn't deny that she initially thought that the probability of Yunjin's plan being successful was a near zero.

 

Needless to say, they were victorious and she managed to bail Yunjin out of her misery of a psychological prison.

 

"This is your bonus, going on a night walk with me! Ooh~ fun!" Yunjin teases, rubbing her palms together and giddily nudges Sakura with her elbows just to irk her.

 

"Boo..." Sakura huffs at the idea, feeling lethargy taking over already and they haven't even started walking yet.

 

A sudden thought pops into her head as she looks around, before looking back at Yunjin with an arched brow.

 

"Wait, where's your car?" Sakura squints her eyes and abruptly starts looking around the roadside for any sign of a familar car.

 

"Home, I took the bus."

 

"So we're actually going for a literal walk... my legs are crying already..." Sakura whines, letting herself be pulled along by Yunjin who rolled her eyes.

 

Sakura was like a grumpy cat who refused to leave the house while Yunjin was the hyperactive owner who would constantly treat her as if she was a puppy. And even if Sakura was a puppy, her traits would hardly change— a husky probably being her perfect match.

 

Stubborn, has selective hearing and won't ever heed your words all the time if you tell them to do something as silly as pretending to be dead. Honestly, Sakura would spend her puppy days dozing off and enjoying free food without ever having to worry about rent.

 

"If you're tired and your knees start hurting, I'll just drag you by the collar, no biggie." Yunjin shrugs indifferently, a mischievous smile drawn on her lips.

 

Sakura grunts in annoyance at her answer, sending a lazy smack on Yunjin's arm only for the redhead to return her hit just as quickly.

 

Going on a normal walk? What's that? They've never heard of that.

 

"I'm gonna freeze to death, you hear me?"

 

Sakura thinks she's got a bit of an issue with saying 'No' to people.

 

She also realises that when it comes to pretty girls, that issue gets just a tad bit serious. She tries and tries to wrack her brain of instances where she had firmly declined favours, unaware that it's only making her look more and more constipated as she slowly comes to a realisation that she, in fact, rarely says 'No'.

 

Because if she really possessed that ability, she could've just gone back to catch up to her beauty sleep instead of helping Yunjin unclog her stupid toilet that one time, she could've gone about her monotonous days making tons of coffee to sleep deprived customers and caffeine addicts instead of having to deal with Yunjin's stepdaddy issues while simultaneously putting herself through the mental torture as a (useless) lesbian. Oh there's definitely more, but Sakura is having a hard time trying to wrap her head around her own behaviour of acquiescing to every single damn thing Yunjin has ever asked of her.

 

To add on to that, if she could've just said 'No' to Yunjin's ridiculous idea of taking a walk in this -clenching wintry night, she probably would have been much more cozy at home by now, with her favourite duvet wrapped around her body and binge watching Christmas specials while an ASMR of a three hour fireplace video played on her laptop.

 

At this rate, Sakura is convinced that if ever someone offers her lollipops in a van that has Chaewon's face plastered all over it, 'No' wouldn't be in her vocabulary anymore.

 

Granted, that's obviously not being a people pleaser but being utterly ing stupid.

 

Wow, I'm actually so pitiful. Sakura subtly shakes her head at her own musings, hugging herself tighter with hunched shoulders.

 

It's only been 30 minutes and all they've done while walking is window shopping— well, Yunjin did, Sakura was mostly focusing on not being cryopreserved throughout.

 

"Want a big ol' bear hug to warm you up?"

 

Yunjin offers wholeheartedly as she bounces on her toes with anticipation, arms already spread out with beckoning fingers.

 

"Ew, get away from me." Sakura flatly responds through chattering teeth, side stepping Yunjin but to her dismay, the redhead's grips on her jacket before reeling her in a side hug.

 

Sakura's thanking the lord that there aren't much people walking in this part of the streets, else she'd have to deal with countless pairs of curious eyes besides a tall, red-haired hugging monster. Not that there aren't curious onlookers now, just an amount she could handle.

 

"Consider this a thank you for what you've done for me." Yunjin sighs in content, a chuckle escaping her lips when Sakura starts mumbling incoherent complaints within her arms.

 

Sakura hums mindlessly, letting herself be cocooned by Yunjin without much resistance. The redhead is as warm as expected, so she might as well bask in the temporary body heat she's being provided before her goes back to the freezer.

 

"Money is another nicer form of thank you."  Sakura teases, side-eyeing Yunjin with a raised brow.

 

All she gets is a tighter hug, feeling Yunjin's head bumping into hers, her chin digging into her shoulder. Sakura looks ahead throughout, not moving a single muscle in her neck. She purses her lips, unable to distinguish whether the heat on her neck was coming from herself or Yunjin's breath.

 

"No seriously, thanks a whole bunch." Yunjin firmly says.

 

"Don't make me experience that ever again." Sakura awkwardly glances at Yunjin, using a stiff hand to tap one of Yunjin's arm that coiled around her chest reassuringly.

 

"But it was fun while it lasted right?" Yunjin pulls away with a grin on her face, and the warmth instantly dissipates.

 

Sakura feels the cold creeping up her spine again.

 

Realising what she blurted out, Yunjin's smile dropped, guilt slowly filling her chest. Calling her own scheme 'fun' probably wasn't the best way to put it, not when she practically dragged Sakura into this knowing full well how it might affect her as someone who liked girls. And it was in no way a considerate statement.

 

"Sorry, that was insensitive-" Just as Yunjin was about to apologise, Sakura cuts her off, craning her neck to look over Yunjin's shoulder with a furrowed brows.

 

"Hey... isn't that your boyfriend?"

 

Yunjin freezes, ears perked at the mention of her boyfriend. Sakura's frantically hitting her on her arm alarmingly, beckoning her to look back across the streets where her gaze was set.

 

Yunjin unconsciously gulps, wondering why she's suddenly feeling dread creeping in her chest. She glances at Sakura's face for any sign of teasing, perhaps she's pulling a prank, but when all Yunjin finds is a worried look, she's slowly feeling her world close in.

 

"Who the is he with..." Sakura mutters under her breath, squinting at the distant scene inside a bar through the big windows.

 

When Yunjin dares herself to turn around, it's deathly slow, and when she draws her eyes where Sakura was pointing at— a bar just across the street with big windows that lets you see what goes on within, Yunjin feels a bile rising in .

 

There's a man with a familiar haircut, familiar built conversing with some unknown woman, his back facing them. For a moment, Yunjin tries to convince herself that it could be a mere coincidence— a lot of men tend to sport the same slicked back hairstyle, in a 6:4 side part, coincidentally small star tattoos which traced up his shoulder blades to his nape.

 

"Oh - that's..." him. Sakura threw a quick glance at Yunjin, feels like she's swallowing a hard pill the moment the man turned and everything was confirmed at that moment.

 

Yunjin has a hand over , watching helplessly as her boyfriend drew closer to the woman by his side, too close for them to be friends, too sober for them to possibly realise later that all the intimacy was under the influence of a couple drinks, too comfortable with each other to be mere acquaintances who met each other just tonight.

 

Sakura reacted first, swiftly pulling Yunjin away by her hand from the foul sight with a clenched jaw. She guides her around a corner by a convenience store, pushing Yunjin gently against the brick walls and scrutinised her with a concerned look.

 

Sakura holds her arms then, unsure if her gentle touches was enough to comfort Yunjin even just a little, struggling to say something. She could only watch with upturned lips, Yunjin has her head down buried in her palms, hair curtaining her face.

 

Sakura opens to speak but Yunjin raises her head.

 

"Don't," She sniffles, "s-say anything."

 

So Sakura doesn't. Only looked on with furrowed brows as her eyes studied every single upset crease marring Yunjin's face, there were tears in her eyes that she refuses to let trickle down her cheeks, her jaw is clenched because she doesn't want to start bawling about someone who wasn't worth her tears, her knitted brows showed anger more than sorrow.

 

At the very least, Sakura is glad that Yunjin's not letting a stupid man waste her tears. And she'd probably let him go unscathed, not without chanting an endless mantra of 'go yourself' in her head though, Sakura could see it behind her glassy, piercing brown orbs.

 

Sakura inhales sharply, the sight of an upset Yunjin causing her stomach to churn in the worst ways possible. She's always used to a smiling Yunjin, so seeing her like this, wearing a look that doesn't suit her usually exuberant features, Sakura wants to rid of the cause of it until Yunjin's smiling again.

 

Sakura steps back with a frown, wordlessly turning with gritted and was about to round the corner before Yunjin caught her desperately.

 

"H-Hey- Where are you going?!" Yunjin worriedly pulls on her sleeves.

 

"To disintegrate someone's balls," Sakura scowls, trying to wrest her arm from Yunjin's hold but the latter was stronger.

 

Yunjin tugs hard once and Sakura comes stumbling in front of her with a dissatisfied look on her face.

 

"It's not- it's not worth it okay? I just... I just need you here," Yunjin swallows, gripping Sakura's arms tightly, looking at her through teary eyes, "with me right now."

 

Sakura doesn't answer immediately, eyes flitting across Yunjin's face, wanting to wipe away the tear that threatened to fall but she smiles slightly when Yunjin is quick to swipe it away with her palm.

 

"Ugh - fine, do you..." Sakura gently pries off Yunjin's fingers on her jacket, jerking a thumb towards the convenience store, "...do you want water? I can buy-"

 

Yunjin breathes in deep, shaky and vulnerable, but she merely shakes her head. She frantically rubs her eyes with her sleeves, face screwed up seemingly upset at herself now for almost shedding tears for an loyal jerk. After a while, when the back of her eyes aren't burning anymore, with Sakura's tender gaze never leaving her, Yunjin scoffs.

 

"Sakura," Yunjin sniffles, slipping her hand in Sakura's, and with a rather tremulous but malevolent grin, she spoke.

 

"I know what'll hurt him more than disintegrating his balls."

 

---

 

Sakura watches with an utterly unimpressed look as Yunjin swipes a key under a potted plant from someone's (Yunjin's EX-boyfriend) porch.

 

The redhead jingles the keys in her fingers with raised brows and a crooked smile, her peculiar yet evil gesture causing an amused smirk to stretch upon Sakura's lips.

 

Just about 15 minutes ago, Sakura had let herself be dragged along by Yunjin, who mentioned that they were headed to a certain destination. Sakura didn't need to know where, it was obvious in Yunjin's actions and the last sentence she spoke just before that.

 

So here they are, outside of stupid ex-boyfriend's house, loitering around like a couple of burglars. Yunjin's got the key to stupid ex-boyfriend's bike and now she's attempting to infiltrate the garage by pondering about the passcode with her lower lip between her teeth.

 

"Which ing idiot keeps his motorcycle keys under a potted plant?" Sakura scoffs in disbelief, hands shoved in her jacket pockets as she watches Yunjin thinking hard about the passcode.

 

"This one apparently," Yunjin mumbles, rolling her eyes before getting back in action, a sly smile on her lips.

 

"You need to seriously re-evaluate your tastes in dudes." Sakura shakes her head, feeling boredom hit.

 

An error sound was heard, Yunjin's glancing at Sakura with an embarrassed look, clearing before going back to squeezing her brain again.

 

"I swear they're not usually this bad." Yunjin tries to defend herself, dropping her forehead against the frame of the garage, wracking her brain for a stupid six digit password.

 

"Given how you've been in three different relationships in a month alone, I'd say otherwise." Sakura points out ruthlessly, shrugging absentmindedly.

 

Yunjin releases a long groan, throwing a glare at the shorter woman. Despite the harsh truth, she couldn't deny anything.

 

"Don't attack me like that, jeez."

 

"Maybe it's time you date women and actually seek real happiness." Sakura tells her as a matter of fact, chuckling at her own answer.

 

Joke or not, Yunjin finds herself musing about it for a split second. Her eyes darted to Sakura's bored self kicking pebbles with a face that says she would rather be at home, yet here she was, tolerating Yunjin's bull when she could have just dipped on her own accord.

 

Yunjin huffs, looking back at the passcode with a finger hovering over the numbers.

 

"Volunteer yourself then," she says a little too loudly, quickly pulling her lips between her teeth when Sakura hums in question.

 

"What?"

 

"What."

 

Yunjin coughs deliberately, finally punching in the code with determination in her eyes and rosy cheeks.

 

Sakura, on the other hand, brushes off Yunjin's incoherent mumblings and stared incredulously as the redhead punches in a series of 6s and 9s into the code. And when the small screen turns green and beeps lively, Sakura rolls her eyes while Yunjin claps enthusiastically.

 

"Of course... that should have been the first sign for you to break up with him. The hell is he? 15 years old?"

 

Yunjin laughs at Sakura's diss, ushering her inside the garage where a lovely looking, modified street motorcycle sat in all its glory, practically gleaming at her. She understood perfectly why Yunjin's ex had so much love for this beauty. Too bad it was in the hands of an .

 

Because holy , I'd bag this baby in a heartbeat.

 

Sakura her lips, feeling a rush of adrenaline which she hadn't felt in a long time, the corners of her lips curling up in a smile as she circles the bike like an eagle eyeing its prey.

 

"So, he recently sent his bike for maintenance and a paintjob a couple days ago and he just got it back this morning. And us, being the karma angels," Yunjin snickers, slyly picking up a lone screwdriver sitting at the tinker station, "...are going to it up."

 

"Like destroy it with a metal bat?" Sakura tilts her head, grazing her fingers across the body of the bike.

 

She's a hundred percent sure Yunjin's ex would cry his eyes out with a shattered heart, and it's a holographic paintjob too, yikes.

 

to be him, Sakura laughs internally.

 

"What? No! When I said it up, I meant scratch this new ty paintjob! I didn't say anything about being behind bars..." Yunjin pouts, forehead creasing with a hint of worry.

 

"Lame." Sakura chuckles at the irony, knowing they probably should be behind bars right now for merely trespassing.

 

"Wait, you'd do it for real?" Yunjin turns towards her with an open mouth, clutching the screwdriver against her chest.

 

Sakura shrugs, "When someone hits you once, you hit them back twice as hard."

 

"Is that why you always... nevermind-" Yunjin frowns, thinking about the times Sakura would retaliate when she would subconsciously hit the shorter woman, "Okay, now I know not to freaking hit you anymore."

 

Yunjin jokingly threatens her with the screwdriver, eyes in slits as she points it towards Sakura, who simply rolls her eyes.

 

"You're dramatic, I don't even hit you back hard. You should see how you're always hitting me like I'm your sandbag, especially when laughing." Sakura jabs an accusing finger at Yunjin's direction, before crouching and momentarily disappearing behind the bike.

 

Yunjin saunters toward the bike, holding the screwdriver as if it was nail polish. It might as well be since she's going to give this motorcycle a little makeover.

 

"Okay damn, sorry. Just in case we're forgetting, I'm kinda in my retribution arc right now? Be my hype girl while I-" Yunjin gasps when she sees Sakura already off to a headstart the moment she looks over the bike, "Hey! I was supposed to start first!"

 

"Haha look, he has a little wiener on his bike now." Sakura giggles, pointing with her own housekeys which she had used as her weapon, to her little wonky artwork of a scratch on the paint, where a little 'banana' was.

 

Yunjin leans over and catches a glimpse of it. That and the little series of giggles Sakura keeps letting out is slowly drawing a smile on Yunjin's face. And when she couldn't contain it anymore, Yunjin goes all out and releases a big laugh that echoed throughout the garage, earning a surprised look from Sakura for a brief moment.

 

It was enough for her to forget the anguish she felt prior to this, just having Sakura (bad but also good influence) by her side seemingly makes everything easier. And now she's grinning so widely, Yunjin's never felt so pumped about committing mischief in her life than now.

 

So with the trusty screwdriver in hand, she promptly gets to work, gliding it across the body of the bike with a vice grip and ruthlessly producing scraping sounds without as much as a stop.

 

At some point, Sakura had to peak over her side to make sure she wasn't turning psychotic. When Sakura finished her part, she walks over to Yunjin's and when her eyes catches the big letters engraved into the bike, she chuckles in amusement.

 

'CHEATER' was carved mercilessly in big, messy letters, and that being more eye catching than the brand logo which was just beside it, made it even more thrilling.

 

"He's got a bike worth more than my tuition fees but not a single camera in his garage." Sakura points out as her eyes look up and around.

 

"'Cause he didn't bother replacing his old, broken one." Yunjin snorts, grunting as she gets off her knees and takes a couple steps back to admire her artwork with a lopsided grin on her face.

 

"Gotta say, this is better than a plain rainbow paintjob or... whatever you call this light refraction colour thingy. This is a masterpiece begging to be placed in a museum!" Yunjin cheers, all smiles and nodding in approval.

 

While she was busy admiring their grandiose of a vandalism, she barely feels it when Sakura's fingers grazed her hips and unhooked the motorcycle keys out of her beltloops.

 

Sakura jingles it in the same teasing fashion Yunjin did earlier, a sly smile spreading across her lips. Yunjin scoffs, mindlessly watching the shorter woman.

 

Sakura taking the keys from her sneakily is one thing, but when Yunjin is suddenly witnessing something she's probably deeming legendary in her book, her mind slowly stops working.

 

In one swift motion, Yunjin forces her widened eyes to gawk as Sakura effortlessly swings a leg over the bike seat while holding the handlebar with one hand for support. Then the magic happens when Sakura slots the key into the ignition, not forgetting to glance at Yunjin with a smug look, before engaging the clutch and turning the ignition on.

 

Yunjin doesn't know, she doesn't understand a single damn thing that's going on in front of her eyes just as Sakura flicks a couple more buttons on the right side of the handlebar before she gets a mini heart attack hearing the engine suddenly purring to life.

 

"Hear that? So y." Sakura sighs dreamily and leans back.

 

And it's a new kind of expression that Yunjin is seeing on her right now, and a new side of her that Yunjin somehow has never been introduced to until now. Baffled, Yunjin became motionless, eyes unblinking with her jaw on the floor. Then when Sakura lets out a playful laugh, chest puffed up, Yunjin grabs the roots of her own hair and gasps sharply.

 

"What, from the bottom of my heart, the ?" Yunjin almost yells out in disbelief, "Where'd you learn how to do all that?! How do you know- why was that so natural of you?!"

 

"Ehh... I may or may not have a motorcycle license." Sakura says, complacent, drumming her fingers on the bike.

 

"I beg your ing pardon- you WHAT?? You ride one of these bad boys?!" Yunjin exclaims incredulously, her posture seemingly shrinking the more Sakura discloses unexpected facts about herself.

 

Sakura flinches and presses her ears, feeling her eardrums ringing after Yunjin's outburst.

 

"Used to, for like two years? Then I got into an accident, ed up a leg..." Sakura wiggles her left foot playfully while chuckling, Yunjin gasping yet again, "...aaaand got a metal implant since then and my mom told me to never ride one ever again."

 

Yunjin blankly stares at Sakura's alleged, was-ed-up foot,"...Damn, I bet you land a hard kick."

 

Sakura doesn't even bother to respond, she could practically feel the jokes Yunjin's trying to pull out from the pit of her stomach.

 

"Not funny enough?" Yunjin laughs by herself, before it subsides into an awkward cough.

 

"What? That was supposed to be a joke? You could have done better." Sakura raises a questioning brow, putting on a bored expression as she leans forward to place an elbow on the bike and palming her chin.

 

Yunjin lets out a wicked smile, looking at Sakura like she had fallen for a trap.

 

"I could but I'm TWO-TIRED right now."

 

Oh my god... Sakura groans as per normal, but she shifts her head so that she could hide the incoming smile on her lips.

 

"You're such a dolt," she mutters through a simper.

 

"Ha! You smiled!"

 

Of course, Yunjin isn't letting that one go, continuously pointing at her and gesturing how she had caught Sakura grinning in 4K before she turned away.

 

"I didn't, you're hallucinating." Sakura pretends to clear before sitting back up, biting her lips to prevent the slightest smile from showing.

 

Yunjin whines, shoving her on the shoulder persistently.

 

"Aw come on, let me have this one!"

 

"Fine, that was a little funny." Sakura rolls hers eyes before yielding and letting her lips stretch into an amused smile.

 

She pushes Yunjin away but she simply comes bouncing back to her side to join her in laughter.

 

"You're so cute, Chaewon's honestly missing out." Yunjin points out of the blue, earning a weak glare from the shorter woman.

 

Just as Sakura was about to hit the killswitch and get off the bike, Yunjin quickly holds her down by the forearm, beaming at a startled cherry blossom.

 

"No wait! Don't kill the engine-" Yunjin tugs on her sleeve, brown eyes sparkling with intent, "Take me on a ride!"

 

Sakura instantly snaps her head towards Yunjin with a horrified look on her face, eyeing the latter as if she grew another head.

 

"It just snowed earlier and the roads are slippery, are you crazy??" Sakura tries to warn her, eyebrows pinched the moment she heard Yunjin's suggestion.

 

"Come on~ You know you want to!"

 

Yunjin wriggles her eyebrows continuously, putting on a smug smile as she teasingly prods Sakura with her fingers like an annoying fly that refuses to leave her alone. Sakura, being the more (usually) rational one, wanted to decline Yunjin's request but with how the redhead kept giving her pleading looks with her hands tightly clasped in desperation, denying would feel like a committing felony.

 

Added to her list of yet another one of her moment of incapabilities to say 'No'. Just the fact that it's becoming a list was already alarming.

 

"My mom will flip if she hears about this."

 

To Yunjin's delight, Sakura eventually succumbed to her request. She looks on as Sakura mounts off the bike just to grab the helmets hanging on the wall, ambling while Yunjin gives her an excited applause. Finding out that her own big brown eyes was what drove away Sakura's tentativeness bestowed her a kind of powerful feeling.

 

All this time, she had a secret weapon to tame the beast (Sakura) and only now had she learned about it. Mentally, Yunjin thanks her ancestors, grandparents and parents for passing on their best facial features — a pair of clear brown eyes so irresistable that it's got someone like Sakura to yield.

 

Now, with Sakura helping her put on her helmet, she simply couldn't erase the broad grin on her face.

 

"What are you smiling about? I can see it behind the helmet. There's literally impending doom." Sakura an eyebrow, tugging on the straps of the helmet playfully that caused Yunjin to jerk forward slightly.

 

"I'm just excited, why'd you hide such a crucial information?!" Yunjin exclaims, voice muffled by the helmet. She looks at Sakura with narrowed eyes.

 

"I'm banned from riding one, what's the point of telling anyone about it?"

 

"Aw, what a good daughter you are."

 

Yunjin yelps when her head jerked down at Sakura's relentless tugs, glaring down at the shorter woman who gave her a nonchalant look. The scowl on her face dissolves into an ecstatic grin with the reminder that Sakura, of all people, was going to bring her out for a ride on her piece of of an ex's motorcycle. The thought inevitably filled her with an inexplicable amount of excitement, her chest feeling like it's about to combust from the anticipation of it all.

 

(She could probably die, but hey, it's a once in a lifetime experience and Sakura is probably never touching no damn motorcycle after this stunt they're pulling.)

 

"Are you this smiley when you go on a ride with your ex?" Sakura questions her, there's an amused look on her face as she's looking at Yunjin's cheeks working their muscles.

 

"Not really, I'm just smiling because it's you! Hello?! This is big for me!" Yunjin claims enthusiastically, grabbing Sakura by the shoulders and shaking her lightly.

 

"Do you at least smile when you ride him ?" Sakura gives her a sly glance, lips pressed in a thin line trying to suppress a smile. Yunjin grunts behind the helmet, hitting her lightly on the arm.

 

"Ugh drop it, we're talking about a cheater. Everything about him is invalid now." Yunjin spitefully says with a scrunched up expression, folding her arms across her chest as she turns her head and huffs in annoyance upon the reminder of her of an ex.

 

Sakura chuckles at a sulky Yunjin, decides to drop her teasing before giving the redhead's helmet one last check.

 

"Too tight? Not too tight?" With her dainty hands, Sakura directs Yunjin's head back towards her, palming the sides of the helmet and giving it a little tap to get her attention.

 

Yunjin blinks, not uttering a single word, staring at a perplexed Sakura in front of her with an unreadable look in her eyes. Many a time Yunjin would mention how impressively big Sakura's eyes were and praise the way they often reflect like pretty disco balls under the light. Yunjin had always thought that it was easy to notice their brilliance from afar.

 

And with the few times she's had Sakura this close— merely a ruler's length apart— Yunjin is only really gazing into those doe eyes resembling pearls looking back up at her now. At first glance, it was easy for anyone to mistake Sakura as someone cold and distant, maybe because it's the way her sharp eyes held a certain enigma that many would rather not go through the conundrum of having to unravel layers upon layers of unspoken boundaries.

 

But Yunjin is always easily intrigued, she looks at mystery in the eye with unwavering determination, bent on unveiling what lies under such pretty gaze. And when Yunjin really pays attention, none of that stone-cold or aloof bull was ever really true, not when Sakura's eyes are looking up at her so delicately, like a florescent flower held within her palms.

 

Who's to say Yunjin wouldn't cultivate an entire garden of them?

 

Under her transparent gaze, she doesn't really realise how Sakura has slowly turned meek, yet the Japanese doesn't say anything. She clears a few times and breaks her eyes away from Yunjin's only to fixate them on the helmet straps again.

 

She gets a curt hum in response and dares herself to glance up once more. Not once has Yunjin looked away, this only reddened her cheeks a shade deeper.

 

"Which is it?" Sakura murmurs with pursed lips, weakly glaring at the taller woman. With how demure she is, there's little to no threat in her glare.

 

"Yes." Yunjin answers vaguely once again with a clear teasing tone this time, eyes folding into crescents.

 

Sakura gives in just as the heat starts rising up her neck, giving Yunjin a bonk on the head as a little revenge for messing with her. Yunjin's slightly swollen eyes catches her attention again and it brings a frown to her face.

 

Wordlessly, Sakura reaches out and let her thumbs caress the spot under Yunjin's eyes, her touch as soft as the graze of a feather. Yunjin slightly twitches under her cold fingertips, eyes widening just a fraction at Sakura's rare initiative before they relax again, never once pulling away.

 

Rather, Yunjin finds herself leaning into the mellow touch. A sudden feeling of calmness takes over, and whatever sadness she felt earlier starts to disappear. Yunjin thinks that, no matter how saddened she was with this reality, she's certain that all of it would be easily alleviated under Sakura's tender gaze and gentle touch.

 

"You barely cried but your eyes are still swollen." Sakura tells her, tone light and teasing, chuckles to herself when Yunjin almost chases her hands just as she pulls them away to shut her visor.

 

It ultimately brings the redhead out of her dazed state, and Sakura starts putting on her own helmet just as Yunjin regains her composure.

 

"Alright princess, fair warning, I'm a little rusty so we may or may not die."

 

Sakura raises her voice against the blaring sound of the engine once they both mounted the bike. From the side mirror, Sakura could see just how excited Yunjin was despite the helmet covering her face.

 

"Fine with me, at least I'm dying with a hot Japanese chick by my side!"

 

Sakura shakes her head and laughs anyway, "Swear to god, you're just so unserious."

 

"Woohoo! Rev this baby up, Kkura!" Yunjin cheers, clinging onto Sakura's waist with one arm while the other was punching the air like the happy little loser that she is.

 

If God is on their side, Sakura wouldn't have to see the last of a super excited golden retriever that was Huh Yunjin.

 

"Hold on tight! Hope you have life insurance!"

 

"I don't have one!"

 

"Me neither! that !"

 

---

 

Shifts on Monday make her feel like absolute .

 

Sure some of it has to do with the Monday blues thing, where every single soul on this planet dreads the start of yet another gruelling week. Most of the time, Sakura is able to it up and face the day because despite how much one would complain, time still passes and we'd all have to go through the day anyway.

 

You come into terms that you're stuck in a time loop of the same damn seven days throughout your entire life and eventually adapt, maybe with a little bit of fun here and there but most of your life is inevitably spent working your off just to make ends meet.

 

To Sakura, last Friday was that little bit of fun that was bestowed to her. Good times pass by faster than we want them to and then bad times haunt us relentlessly.

 

Sakura hates that, because the weekend that came afterward had been nothing but bad to her. In a sense that's got her emotions riled up and now she's left like a hollow shell from the aftermath of overthinking and feeling.

 

She should be happy, celebrating in fact, that the whole ordeal with Yunjin's stepdad was pretty much over. But then comes the unsettling feeling that sits heavy in her chest and she's honestly dumbfounded.

 

The fact that Yunjin even pointed out her eyebags when she clocked in this morning made it crystal clear that whatever was bothering her made her lose sleep. Sakura also realised that she's been awake longer than usual these nights, her own thoughts keeping her awake.

 

And while she befriended with the darkness, she became enemies with sleep.

 

To top it all off, Chaewon turned up to the cafè for the first time in weeks— with a smile bigger than her heart and strides too joyful for a bleary Monday morning. It made Sakura want to see the world through her pretty Bambi eyes, or maybe in another life, she simply wished to be the reason why Chaewon could face Mondays with a cheery smile on her face.

 

Looking as pretty as when Sakura first saw her, brown bob now growing out into a wolfcut—

 

And she's got no idea she was the cause of my mental breakdown last night, Sakura smiled sweetly then, served Chaewon her usual two cups of coffee and being blinded by her smile and mellifluous voice afterwards was always worth it.

 

Kind of.

 

Yunjin told her that she tends to cling onto the shortlived happiness that Chaewon gives her a little too much. Told her that her stare would linger at the door right after Chaewon left, as if searching for any bits and pieces of the latter just to keep riding her high. And when there was none, Sakura would simply come crashing down.

 

"You know, to some degree, I respect you,"

 

It's lunch time and they're hanging out in the staff lounge. Yunjin doesn't seem to know the concept of intrusive staring and has been at it since the start of their break— right after Chaewon left actually.

 

Meanwhile, Sakura is awkwardly shoving spoonfuls of cup jellies into to make it seem like she's focused on eating instead of looking lost in her thoughts. Clearly, Yunjin isn't having any of it.

 

"I don't know how you're so composed around someone you like, if it were me I'd be having my nails gripping the out of my thighs, breaking out into cold sweat trying to hold back from professing my love for the person I really like."

 

Sakura shifts uncomfortably in her seat when Yunjin spoke, she wonders what kind of face she had been making for Yunjin to prompt such a statement. Well, probably because she's seen her being lovelorn more than anyone else in their friend group since they're together most days.

 

"How do you do it?" Yunjin scoots a little closer on the couch they shared, close enough that Sakura could smell the mint in her breath from some candy she ate earlier.

 

Sakura deliberately shifts her eyes away, swirling her little plastic spoon in the empty cup, only the juicy remnants of the strawberry jelly left. Yunjin also doesn't know that she happened to be half of what caused Sakura's inner turmoil last night too.

 

"Do what?" She feigns obliviousness, knows that it's something Yunjin's not easily fooled by, and the fact that Yunjin's been quieter than usual today possibly trying to be  considerate to a zombie like her shows that her misery was really showing.

 

Upon her brittle reply, Yunjin's eyes soften and her lips drew up in a considerate smile.

 

"Keep your feelings at bay, live day to day knowing you're getting nothing back?" Yunjin mutters carefully, and with every word she says, she scrutinises Sakura's face just so she wouldn't miss any flitting emotions.

 

Sakura bites her inner cheek, feeling a familiar dull throbbing arising somewhere within her chest.

 

"I just..." She shrugs, it's pointless trying to hide anything from Yunjin, not when she's openly encouraging her to let it all out because it's always better than letting it all build up, "I thought that if I acted like it didn't matter, then it wouldn't."

 

The cup lays still in her hands, Sakura looks at it through half-lidded eyes and gritted teeth. It's annoying when something gets stuck in , she pokes her tongue around while letting humourless chuckles escape now and then because she simply refuses to cry.

 

Yunjin offers a comforting hand on her shoulder wordlessly, lightly squeezing and Sakura is honestly glad that it's Yunjin who's beside her now. So she let herself be pulled in a side hug, and it feels warm and safe and Sakura wants nothing more than to be confined in such serenity that could be only offered by Yunjin herself.

 

"But Yunjin," Sakura mumbles on firm shoulders, closing her eyes and sighing shakily, "most of the time, it feels like I'm drowning and I just can't die."

 

There's a lot of things that Yunjin wants to do right now.

 

To phone up their manager and call in sick for Sakura just so she could get the rest of the day off and sleep her worries away. To ditch the cafè right then and now and bring Sakura out for fresh air, to the arcade even just so she could make her forget all these ugly little feelings that's been bothering her to no end. To tell Chaewon to kindly disappear off to another continent just so that she would stop running in Sakura's mind and forget about her and find someone else.

 

But the best Yunjin can offer her right now is a place of solace, a safe sanctuary that Sakura could easily find in her embrace.

 

It makes Yunjin ponder, how someone could cling onto one person for so long, endure unfathomable heartbreaks and battle inner turmoils yet still liking that very same person. That just having a fraction of their time spent on you could make or break you.

 

She's observed Sakura all this while and it makes her rethink on all her past relationships.

 

Was she ever really in love all this time?

 

Yunjin tightens her hold around Sakura, fingers gently clawing into the back of her shirt as a small smile appears on her lips.

 

"You won't," she suddenly says, Sakura perking up at the sound of her voice.

 

"Huh?" Sakura gives Yunjin a confused look when the latter suddenly pulls way from the embrace with a confident smile on her lips.

 

She squeaks in surprise when Yunjin abruptly pulls her up from the couch and yanks her close. She frantically glances at the fallen jelly cup on the linoleum floor, bits of red splattered on the leather couch but a hand cups her cheek and gently beckons her to look forward.

 

When she does, Yunjin's looking at her with bright eyes and a beam for a smile.

 

"You won't die," Yunjin starts by refuting her words earlier, her thumb rubbing Sakura's cheek and it feels all too familiar— almost like that Friday night but they've switched positions.

 

"Maybe at some point, you'll look down at the bottom of the sea..." Yunjin raises her eyebrows and casts her a sly look, and it's how Sakura knows she's trying to lighten up the mood by being silly again, feels her own lips curling up into a smile.

 

Honestly, she wouldn't have it any other way.

 

"...You'll see a pretty silhouette in a shape of a fish..." Yunjin continues with a dramatic storytelling tone and it easily has Sakura just barely suppressing her chuckles in the next second, "...then you'll realise it's a hot mermaid swimming to your rescue! With her fiery red hair contrasting the ocean blues, she wraps her arms around you-"

 

Yunjin scoops her up in her arms instantly, evoking yet another shriek from Sakura who immediately held onto her shoulders for life as she was lifted off the floor.

 

"-and brings you up for air! Finally!" Yunjin spins them around once, the grin on her face widening the moment Sakura breaks into laughter, "Then tada~ You're alive!"

 

Yunjin lets that familiar laughter ring in her ears, eyes fixated on Sakura's blissful face even if it was for just a short moment, she takes it all in and finds herself wanting that expression to stay on Sakura's face for a long, long time.

 

"Then you won't drown anymore, 'cause I'll save you!" Yunjin sets her down, her hands never straying way from the small waist, just as the Sakura's hands that rested on her shoulders never moved.

 

For a while, Yunjin merely watches with a warm smile on her face as Sakura giggles at her actions. It's a heartwarming sight, Yunjin finds it hard to believe that this woman in front of her wasn't anyone else's. The thought feels like a pinch on her arm, it makes the smile on her lips drop just slightly.

 

"You're so corny. And don't talk like that, you're walking on thin ice as a straight woman trying to rizz up a lesbian. It's detrimental to me you know." Sakura tells her when her giggles dwindled, patting the redhead on her sternum twice before stepping away.

 

Yunjin doesn't say anything, just feeling the warmth slowly leaving her arms and the cold afterwards suddenly feels alien. There's the peculiar urge to feel the curve of Sakura's waist in her palms again, to feel the comfort that the gentle Sakura's dainty fingers had given her again.

 

"Thanks, I do feel a lot better though. You're like the happy pill everyone needs." Sakura chuckles, smiling genuinely for the first time today and sighing in relief.

 

She goes back to work then, squeezing Yunjin's forearm before she leaves with a grateful smile on her face.

 

And then Yunjin is left to ponder about why that particular spot on her arm where Sakura had just held, tingled. She briefly turns to look out the door, smiling to herself when she sees Sakura brewing up some coffee for herself with a small smile on her face, looking better than she had previously.

 

And while Yunjin slowly cleans up the small mess Sakura had left behind, she reminisces the short yet significant conversation they shared last Friday right after their little perfect night ride.

 

It honestly still baffles her how they're still in one piece after that crazy evening.

 

( "Honestly, he's gotta be the dumbest motherer to cheat on someone like you."

 

"You think so? Do you ever think... that it's a me problem? I mean... maybe relationships aren't for me, look how many failed ones I've been in."

 

"Woah slow down, maybe you just haven't found the one."

 

"Pshh, look at you talking like we're in a fairytale."

 

"I'm serious though, just... I don't know, wait a little longer and the right person will come? I honestly don't know what else to say."

 

"You're starting to sound cheesy... and waiting sounds hard. I'm the impatient and inquisitive type... what kinda person do you think would fit me?"

 

"Hm, someone who could understand your sentiments and tolerate your humour, someone who would remind you of your worth and won't ever take you for granted, someone who just... loves you for being the sunshine that you are and never wants you to change, really."

 

"What about you, Kkura? Are you just waiting? What kind of person are you looking for?"

 

"Me? I don't know, I've never really looked. I just tend to go with the flow and it's always people finding me instead. Probably why I'm lovelorn right now, I just never take the initiative."

 

"Woah, we're literal opposites."

 

"..Don't make a magnet joke."

 

"Wanna be the North to my South pole?"

 

"Oh my god, that was even worse than I imagined."

 

"Just realised it sounds like a gay joke, 'cause you know... two poles..."

 

"Yunjin, I think my ears heard enough."

 

"Sorry."

 

"You are sooo not."

 

"Heh." )

 

---

 

Sakura is more of an idiot than Yunjin had taken her for.

 

She's usually rational and is always on her toes but it seems that when it comes to Chaewon, all of that intelligence disappears somewhere out of the Earth's hemisphere.

 

Chaewon had mentioned something about a gathering tonight at some bar that Yena's reserved for them, something Yunjin would attend if only she had a plus-one but she's a free bird now and would rather enjoy the peace without unloyal motherers bugging the corners of her mind. It was also something that Sakura would rarely show up for— social gatherings aren't her thing but even Yunjin admits that the woman was a pretty strong drinker. Probably the only other reason why she would attend one, free booze.

 

Back to the whole Sakura being a dimwit thing, said dimwit surprisingly told the group that she was attending the gathering.

 

It of course, caused an uproar in the groupchat. With a clueless Chaewon sending out enthusiastic emojis while all Yunjin sent was a million question marks both in the groupchat and in Sakura's DMs.

 

 

yunjin:??????????????????????????????????????????????????? what is wrong witchu??????????? u crazy????????????

 

sakura: yes

 

yunjin: ur an idiot

 

sakura: ure* literally not going why are u all up in my business sending ??? like a ? loan shark

 

yunjin: im going

 

sakura: what? why the sudden change lol

 

yunjin: cuz u

 

sakura: can u speak in full sentences

 

yunjin: to be ur +1 duh

 

yunjin: theres gotta be someone to drag ur back home safely

 

yunjin: idiot

 

sakura: idk why u keep calling me that i just want free drinks

 

yunjin: bro u are so

 

yunjin: nvm ure an idiot

 

sakura: pick me up 7 bye

 

yunjin: ill be late on purpose just to give u time to rethink ur decisions about going to that gathering

 

yunjin: hello?

 

yunjin: GURL RETHINK??? CHAEWONS GONNA BE THERE WITH HER GF

 

yunjin: ...ure insane and a masochist

 

yunjin: and a certified freaking idiot i cant believe im the one saying this

 

sakura: let me get hurt just so i can learn my lesson

 

sakura: everyone needs a wake up call haha

 

sakura: then maybe i'd stop liking her u know?

 

yunjin: dont u 'haha' me i AM ur wake up call this conversation is a sign for u to NOT go to that gathering

 

yunjin: can you not hurt yourself?

 

yunjin: please

 

sakura: its okay, just salt in the wound

 

yunjin: then im the one patching it up

 

sakura: im not asking you to, why are you even going??

 

yunjin: cause i wanna be there for u even at ur worst

 

sakura: that makes u an idiot too

 

yunjin: ???

 

sakura: cuz ure putting up with my bull lol u really dont have to do this i can go myself

 

yunjin: i told u i wont let u die

 

yunjin: be ready before 7 sharp

 

sakura: ure weird but thanks

 

sakura: and also sorry because of the person i'll become lol

 

yunjin: miyawaki idiot sakura

 

yunjin: u cant spell SMART without SAKURA

 

sakura: ?? u really cant tho

 

yunjin: thats the point

 

 

That's how their whole private conversation went.

 

Now they're both at the bar, one already drowsier than the other. Yunjin was right, Chaewon brought her girlfriend along and Sakura can't blame Chaewon for how smitten she was for this woman.

 

Jet black silky hair, has the face of an angel, has the vibes of an actress, smiles like she restored world peace, even her gestures were soft and gentle that Sakura can't find any fault in the woman.

 

Oh she's literally perfect. Sakura huffs in defeat as she swirls her shot glass mindlessly, palm digging into her cheek as she dolefully stares at the way Chaewon's arm s around Minju's waist, fingers curling into her beltloops as she laughs in her shoulder.

 

Sakura forces herself to look away when Chaewon's face starts leaning closer to Minju's, gulping down her glass swiftly.

 

"Hey, you tipsy?"

 

With Yunjin scurrying off to find the washroom minutes earlier, Sakura's left alone at her table. Everyone else was either drinking their asses off since Yena's paying for all of it or talking animatedly with one another.

 

Just then, a deep, calming voice greets her and Sakura looks up to a face she's never seen before. Probably another one of Yena's acquaintances— that duck is always making friends.

 

How does Yena find all the pretty ones... Sakura internally marvels at the stranger who sidles up to her with a charming smile on her lips. One without bad intent, Sakura thinks this woman bore a face too innocent to be in a place like this.

 

"Want a drink?" Sakura half slurs, shaking her head when her eyesight blurred for a split second, miraculously pouring a drink for the pretty stranger with barely any spills.

 

"Thanks, I'm Kazuha." Pretty stranger chuckles, taking the offered drink and deliberately letting their fingers touch.

 

Sakura hums languidly, letting a small smile stretch across her lips before she leans into Kazuha's ear and whispering her name instead.

 

A few minutes later, somewhere in the distance, as Yunjin was zigzagging her way through the small crowd after exiting the washroom, she's stumped to see her seat taken by another woman by Sakura's side. She could see the way Sakura's swaying in her seat and slurring in her words more than the last few minutes she's left her, moreover talking a little too closely to the stranger.

 

Without hesitance, Yunjin strides up to their table with upturned lips and knitted brows. Her presence startles the stranger, which Yunjin rolls her eyes at.

 

"Sakura?" Yunjin calls out and Sakura peeks her head behind the stranger.

 

"Oh~ Yunjinnie!"

 

Looking down at the two empty bottles, immediately, Yunjin casts a glare at Kazuha.

 

"What'd you do?" Yunjin scowls, tone accusing as she places a palm on the table.

 

Kazuha raises a questioning brow, moving to rise out of her seat to stand up against the redhead, not liking the tone being used on her.

 

"Me? Probably being a better girlfriend than you. You shouldn't leave your girl unattended intoxicated like this." Kazuha scoffs in disbelief, folding her arms across her chest.

 

"What was that? You got a problem?" Yunjin snarls, jabbing a finger on Kazuha's shoulder which the latter immediately slapped away with annoyance.

 

"Don't touch me."

 

"But it was fine for you to touch her huh?" Yunjin threw a glance at Sakura, who was clutching her head and frowning at their exchange.

 

"I didn't even do anything, watch it." Kazuha bites back, invading her space to show that she wasn't daunted even when Yunjin towered over her.

 

"Woah woah, what's going on here ladies?! Let's all relax!"

 

Fortunately, before anything serious could happen between the two, Yena saw the commotion from afar and immediately took action. She pulls the two tigers away from each other before they could start tearing off each other's throats, everyone in the gathering now looking curiously at them.

 

Yunjin sighs, bumping her shoulders with Kazuha who clicked her tongue in annoyance as she was making her way to grab Sakura out of her seat.

 

"We're leaving, sorry. She's a lost cause." Yunjin says as she swings Sakura's arm around her shoulder and firmly holding her waist with another.

 

She doesn't wait for replies, dragging the Japanese towards the exit, not forgetting to make a sour face at Sakura's new 'friend' before ultimately leaving.

 

"Hey, take care!" She hears Chaewon in the distance, notices the way Sakura slightly turns her head at the voice.

 

"Drunk as and all you can think clearly of is her." Yunjin sighs, grunting when Sakura tripped on air and almost pulled both of them down.

 

"Ugh, I need to... sit down..."

 

Yunjin has half a mind to hurl her over her shoulder thinking it would probably be easier but she really didn't want Sakura to decorate the ground with everything she's consumed.

 

In the car, after making sure Sakura downed a bottle of hangover cure she had prepared, Yunjin bites her lip as she decides where she was heading— her own house or Sakura's.

 

Well, the smarter idea would of course be Sakura's, she didn't have any other occupants and Yunjin really didn't want her parents to see her bringing home a dazed Sakura. Not when her stepdad was just starting to warm up to her.

 

After the cafè incident, the two never really saw each other. And Yunjin doesn't have any plans for it to happen either because for one, their whole fake dating thing is supposedly over even though no one really 'ended things'.

 

On the other hand, she didn't want to leave Sakura alone in a state like this.

 

Yunjin spares glances at Sakura every now and then, with how silent she was the redhead thought she was probably sleeping. But she catches a glimpse of Sakura's half lidded eyes looking out the window absentmindedly, cheeks and ears red, lips devoid of even the tiniest smile.

 

At a red light, Yunjin cautiously reaches out and lightly grabs Sakura's hand but continued looking straight with a tightlipped smile on her face.

 

It's the assurance that Yunjin would be there for her no matter what, and Sakura merely responds by squeezing her hand back.

 

The walk back to Sakura's apartment from the parking lot was akin to helping up a grouchy drunk zombie return to its grave. Sakura often loses her bearings when she drinks a little too much, so Yunjin was mostly doing all the guiding as the sober one between them.

 

After shoving Sakura into the toilet and telling her to freshen up, Yunjin is left to stare at the tiny slip of paper she had found in the pocket of Sakura's coat, glaring at the numbers written on it before crumpling it up and chucking it into the bin.

 

She hopes Sakura wasn't ever planning on getting in touch with that woman ever again.

 

"She's so pretty, no wonder Chaewonie likes her, you seen 'er?"

 

Sakura starts mumbling nonsense later on as soon as she's sprawled on her bed like a starfish, eyelids heavy.

 

Yunjin chortles at the sight, arms akimbo. It draws a small smile on her face, seeing Sakura being a little out of it. She wonders if she's 'learned her lesson' yet.

 

"Jeez, how drunk are you?" Yunjin plops down on the bed and stares quizzically at the dazed woman, wondering if that hangover cure has taken effect yet.

 

"Sober enough to recite the alphabet, c'mon, try me." Sakura challenges her with a drowsy look, shifting to one side of the bed and tapping the vacant space beside her to beckon Yunjin over.

 

The redhead chuckles, bringing herself over where Sakura wanted to and lies down on her side facing the cherry blossom.

 

"Okay champ, go for it." Yunjin encourages her with a smile on her face, it's a little amusing trying to see how long she could handle a dazed Sakura until the latter would finally fall asleep.

 

"Ha.. Okay, uh let's see... AB or AB or.. AB AB-"

 

"Idiot, you said the alphabet not multiple choice!" Yunjin laughs out loud, sending a light smack on Sakura's shoulder, who giggled along with her.

 

"Oops... bet I can spell your name though." Sakura mutters lazily, turning her head to give Yunjin a smug look.

 

Yunjin shrugs, nudging the other encouragingly.

 

"Go ahead, redemption chance." She says, attentive eyes gazing at Sakura's lithe figure that's suddenly scooting closer to her.

 

Yunjin takes in her drunken giggles, her languid movements even as Sakura slowly reaches out and uses a slender finger to trace the letters of her name on her cheek, fingertips brushing across her skin, touching her gently as if Sakura was afraid she'd break.

 

Sakura is pretty— flustered like this, the red on her face has gone away and is now pinkish, the eyes that Yunjin has gotten herself eager to look at is at the verge of dozing off, the orange light is giving her almost an angelic outer glow.

 

If angels even get drunk and look this pretty.

 

Then her eyes finally settled on the pair of lips she's kissed before. With every letter that Sakura breathes out, Yunjin's eyes follow the red of her tongue that swipes across soft lips, every curve that shapes words into seemingly enchanting spells.

 

Yunjin isn't sure who's the drunk one now.

 

"...I ...N. Did I get it right?" Sakura finishes with a crooked smile gracing her lips.

 

The warmth on her cheek leaves, and like that Friday night, Yunjin inches forward to chase after the feeling, stops herself when reality hits and lets herself be content with the tingles that linger instead.

 

Her eyes flickered from Sakura's alluring eyes to her parted lips back and forth. At that moment, she feels her stomach hollowing out and then a strange hunger pangs. It gnaws her from the pit of her stomach and then crawls up, her diaghram aches. Then her chest feels tight and Yunjin doesn't know what kind of face she's making while all of this is happening to her.

 

All she knows that something's urging her to close the distance between their lips, just so she could remember how it felt. She grips on the sheets and just barely holds back.

 

"Sakura," Yunjin croaks, her resolve broken.

 

"Hm?" Sakura hums, looking at her with sleepy eyes, can't really make out Yunjin's hardened face looking back at her.

 

"Date me," Yunjin blurts, eyebrows pinched and eyes full of determination.

 

Sakura doesn't apprehend it seriously the first time, merely chuckling at Yunjin's sudden statement.

 

"Am I not right now?" Sakura jokes, but Yunjin grabs her hand firmly and continues gazing at her with an intent look.

 

"Date me seriously, be my girlfriend."

 

"Not funny yunjin, you're straight-"

 

"Well not anymore,"

 

"What?" Sakura frowns, eyes scanning Yunjin's face for any sort of lies or pranks she has under her sleeve.

 

She's confounded when she sees none, giving Yunjin an incredulous look realising that she had, in fact, been serious.

 

"At least I don't think so..." Yunjin mumbles out meekly and Sakura sees pink coating her cheeks, pressing her face further into the pillow in an attempt to hide her embarrassment.

 

Silence, and then Sakura abruptly breaks into uncontrollable laughter while holding her stomach. Yunjin is confused but doesn't say anything, perhaps the alcohol's gotten to Sakura's head and not knowing how to comprehend Yunjin's words, she ends up going bat insane now. How much of it does Sakura believe, Yunjin doesn't know, probably none of it.

 

"No way... am I your gay awakening??" Sakura bursts into giggles, patting Yunjin on the shoulder, more like smacking with how she's making her shoulder ache now.

 

"Honestly, I don't know. I don't like other girls but I think I like you. The hell do you call that??" Yunjin huffs and pouts, she's unsure herself, but one thing she's certain about was that she's definitely attracted to Sakura in a way more than a friend should be.

 

What kind of person looks at their friend's lips, imagine what it feels like to have them against their own, kissing in a rhythm only they both know? There's that craving that bubbles inside her after, when she closes her eyes, all she pictures is that very moment when she had Sakura's lips all to herself.

 

That's definitely not normal... Yunjin thought, the memory causing her to blush red.

 

Nobody fantasizes about their friends like that.

 

"Sleep Yunjin, you're just confused. Maybe you'll wake up tomorrow and it'll all be a silly dream." Sakura's evidently tired, but she offers her a kind smile, lightly tapping Yunjin's cheek before turning around and curling into a ball under the sheets.

 

"I kinda don't want it to be." Yunjin doesn't say it out loud, staring at Sakura's small back with pursed lips.

 

She moves closer to Sakura with caution, until she feels the body heat emanating and slowly coils an arm around Sakura's stomach. Yunjin gives it a few minutes, waiting for any kind of repulsion or gesture telling her she wasn't welcomed, knowing Sakura wasn't fully asleep yet. Then when she gets no sign of disapproval, Yunjin pushes herself closer to Sakura's back and tightens her hold on the latter, burying her nose in her nape.

 

On the contrary, Sakura has her eyes closed, lips pressed in a thin line and she doesn't dare to move. Her whole body burns and the tips of her ears are back to its reddened state again, feeling like something lighted up a match and put it on fire. She's still drowsy but she wasn't deaf, has most of her wits with her and all she keeps thinking about now is how the hell she managed to cause a dent in a straight freaking pole that was Yunjin.

 

What Wattpad story did I manifest myself into...?

 

---

 

Something inevitably changed between them after that night.

 

Or perhaps to be more accurate, Sakura should say that everything changed from the moment they both brought themselves in that whole fake relationship ordeal. Sakura knew she would be doomed to hell from the start so that wasn't really surprising on her part, but never would she have expected to literally be someone's gay awakening.

 

That night felt like half a fever dream. She felt like she was in a state where she was standing between two worlds, not knowing which was real and which wasn't. Yunjin's words continued ringing in her ears and a part of her had a hard time believing anything.

 

So I guess I wasn't the only one dealing with mental breakdowns. Sakura mused that night, realising that Yunjin probably had to face her own emotional conflicts days before and Sakura wouldn't have known.

 

Sakura still had her doubts but Yunjin, as loud and obvious as she is, never failed to anchor her.

 

The morning after, Sakura had only just realised that Yunjin crashed at her place with a plan. She tentatively had let the cat out of the bag and then hoped that Sakura wouldn't scurry off to another region upon her disclosure— and they were at her house, so Sakura couldn't run away if she wanted to.

 

The whole morning, Yunjin kept her eyes on Sakura, afraid that if she let her out of her sight for just a second, she'd lose everything. She followed her around like a lost puppy, bit back the urge to ask if the cherry blossom recalled anything that happened the night before.

 

Of course she ing does, Sakura was half sober by then and could barely catch a wink of sleep. She spent the entire night wondering what was going to happen between them then and that if things get awkward, she would honestly kermit sewerslide.

 

She didn't want their dynamic to change, she liked how they were with each other all this time.

 

By a of serendipity, to her relief, nothing much changed afterwards— no one was awkward and there hasn't been any situations where there was 'an elephant in the room'.

 

Yunjin has gotten weirder though, by Sakura's definition of weirder, she meant the woman stays glued to her side more than often, grants her smiles brighter than the sun and looks at her a little too excessively. Clearly, Yunjin has no intentions of hiding her blossoming feelings for her, especially with Sakura basically giving her the green light by not pushing her away.

 

These days, Sakura finds herself being more flustered than ever. And for what it's worth, Yunjin's doing a superb job at keeping her mind away from some things... someone .

 

It feels easier, like she's inhaling a breath of fresh air for the first time in a while.

 

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

 

Sakura's just trying to take a sip of her own self-brewed coffee, they both just opened up the store and are now awaiting customers. And instead of double checking the machines and the ingredients, Yunjin's busy checking Sakura out in broad daylight.

 

Yunjin has an elbow on the counter, cheek within her palm as she stared openly at the Japanese. With a serious face, Yunjin nods firmly once before standing up properly. She puts her chin between her fingers, her current posture making her look like an art critic.

 

"I know you probably heard this a million times but you're seriously so ing pretty." Yunjin shoots out facts.

 

Sakura almost chokes on her coffee, urgently putting down her cup before she could burn her tongue.

 

"What the... get out of my face with those cheesy lines!" Sakura blushes madly at the compliment, covering with her back of her hand, "And don't curse in front of my coffee!"

 

She hunches protectively over the cup, giving Yunjin a playful glare.

 

"If my words were incantantions, your coffee would have been a love potion right now."

 

"You're full of nonsense," Sakura chuckles in amusement, finally able to take more than a sip afterwards.

 

Yunjin stays by her side, eyes pleading, when she places her cup down again, she tugs on Sakura's sleeve meekly.

 

"Date me, please?"

 

Sakura bites her lips as she glances at Yunjin, who has been blatant in showing her interest and showering her with verbal affections. Sakura finds herself being tongue tied often, new to all of it and on the other hand, she's not sure if they were ready to be official yet, or at all.

 

With Yunjin who had only recently recovered from her of an ex, and then Sakura having her own emotional turbulence regarding Chaewon. The feelings weren't as much now, but they still linger and leaves a bitter aftertaste.

 

She wouldn't want to hurt Yunjin like that yet the redhad has been nothing but adamant about making Sakura hers, however slow the process would be.

 

"It's weird enough seeing you freak out over your million crushes, now you're being all chummy to me and I honestly don't know how to feel about it." Sakura sighs, shoving her hands in her pockets.

 

"Okay but do you dislike it though?" Yunjin asks carefully, rubbing her neck in uncertainty.

 

"Um... I guess not..." Sakura looks away, shyly scratching her cheek as she mumbles out her answer.

 

Her demure response was enough to get Yunjin smiling and giggling to herself like a maniac. That morning, Yunjin served customers with a smile so radiant, if one were to look closely, there were probably flowers floating around her head.

 

Hours later, when everything seemed fine and peaceful, the universe decides to put Sakura on a trial. In the midst of making an order, she catches a glimpse of Chaewon walking in the cafè with Minju clinging to her arm.

 

Yunjin, who was manning the cash register, gave her a worried glance, to which Sakura responds with by lightly shaking her head and giving her a reassuring smile.

 

Sakura starts making the same two orders Chaewon usually requests before she could even tell it to Yunjin, flashing the couple a warm smile behind the counter. She successfully refrains from glancing at them too much, knowing she didn't need any sort of heartache in the morning that would haunt her until the end of the day.

 

Ignorance is bliss after all.

 

"You okay?" Yunjin places a hand on her shoulder just as they watch the couple leave after taking their orders.

 

Sakura smiles gently up at her, placing her hand over Yunjin's.

 

"Yeah, I... think it's the most I've felt at ease," Sakura sighs in relief, as if the weight was finally lifted off her shoulders, "Wow..."

 

"You'd think I'd feel like seeing her with someone but... I'm okay, yeah I'm okay." Sakura reassures both Yunjin and herself, it's easier to smile now, her eyes doesn't linger at the door desperately anymore.

 

"Hmm... thanks to me?" Yunjin turns it into harmless teasing, wriggling her eyebrows upon hearing Sakura's response.

 

On the other hand, she was genuinely, really happy that Sakura is slowly learning to move on.

 

"You're so full of yourself." Sakura pushes her away with a chuckle escaping her lips.

 

Yunjin smiles back at her, clearly smitten. Then she makes a show of leaning her back against the marble counter, elbows propped on the edge trying to appear snazzy while one of her apron straps slowly slid down her shoulder comically.

 

She looks at Sakura with a puffed up chest, deliberately clearing , her silly gestures giving Sakura a hard time trying to contain her laughter.

 

"So... dinner date after?" Yunjin cooly asks, looking at her from the corner of her eyes.

 

Sakura huffs but the smile on her face remains, she gives Yunjin a onceover before rolling her eyes.

 

"Fine, you dork." She relents, figures she might as well just give it a shot.

 

It's Yunjin, and that alone was enough to put her at ease. Yunjin breaks her cool persona way too suddenly, bliss overcoming her entirety and Sakura feels like she's watching an excited puppy jumping for joy.

 

"Yes! I'm gonna be the best girlfriend everrr!"

 

"Girlfriend? Hey now, you're moving way too fast! Court me first??"

 

That shift was truly the happiest Sakura had seen Yunjin behind that godforsaken counter.

 

---

 

Yunjin never loses her smile once throughout the day, Sakura wonders just how much one person could grant another such happiness. Hard to believe that all of it was because of her. But then again, she's glad because she's able to make Yunjin this happy.

 

"Didn't you say to take it slow because you didn't wanna be in another possible failed relationship?" Sakura curiously asks Yunjin when they clocked out, sauntering towards the redhead's car.

 

"You think we're gonna fail?" Yunjin arches a brow, lower lip jutting out in a pout.

 

"No no, I don't know, I'm just... bringing up what you said that night." Sakura frantically waves her hands in front of her face, referring to their conversation on the night after their ride.

 

"I considered it but... I figured that waiting would just be a waste of time. You might find someone else, not a fan of that idea. I just wanna try things out with you." Yunjin admits, fishing out her keys just as they were nearing her car.

 

Sakura hums mindlessly, side-eyeing the redhead with curled lips.

 

"I see, so I'm like a free trial before you find other girls?"

 

Yunjin suddenly drops her keys, a gasp escaping her lips as she whips her head towards Sakura at the speed of light with an offended look.

 

"No- what?! I told you the only girl I like is you!! YOU!" She swipes the keys off the ground and tells it straight to Sakura's face, who evidently turns red upon her straightforward answer.

 

Seeing Yunjin's dead serious face slowly turning into an upset expression, Sakura laughs airily and squeezes Yunjin's arm to reassure her once more.

 

"You're playing a dangerous game, I still have lingering feelings for Chaewon." Sakura truthfully says, and it serves as a caution for someone as tender as Yunjin, that she might get hurt somewhere in the process but Sakura makes it clear that she's taking baby steps.

 

Baby steps as she's moving on from a love that never recognised her. Baby steps as she's slowly reciprocating Yunjin's sincere feelings.

 

"We'll be even then, you played in mine, did a miraculously good job, quite literally changed my life and now I'm head over heels for you. It's my turn now." Yunjin points out, grinning cheekily.

 

"Okay lovergirl, don't go crying to your dad if I ever break your heart, he's gonna hire a hitman after me." Sakura scrunches up her face at the thought.

 

If they become official, wouldn't that mean she might start meeting Yunjin's stepdad again? And this time, the two of them would be in a genuine relationship. Sakura still finds it bizarre considering that Yunjin's stepdad was basically the one that led to all of this.

 

"Wait wait! I have a very important question to ask right now!" Yunjin stops her, palms out with utmost urgency.

 

"Ask away." Sakura shrugs, noticing the way Yunjin's eyes glinted with anticipation.

 

"Have you ever... had a crush on me before this? Like even a teensy weensy bit?" Yunjin quizzes, eyes unblinking at she awaits Sakura's answer.

 

"No, because I knew Chaewon before you. You think I'd be head over heels for you as soon as you showed up? That's so straight of you." Sakura lets out a fruitful laugh, finds it endearing when Yunjin frowns and grunts in response.

 

"Aw shucks! Now I'm really annoyed at Chaewon for some reason..." Yunjin grumbles, glaring at the ground, probably picturing Chaewon's face on it.

 

"But I did think about what it'd be like to date someone like you," Sakura chirps, wanting to alleviate whatever little jealousy that was taking over Yunjin.

 

She was horrible at hiding it.

 

(She didn't even bother hiding it).

 

"Someone like me?" Yunjin perks up in curiosity, head tilting in question, and then her eyes do that thing where it widens and sparkles like gems again.

 

Sakura hums, then puts on a look that showed that she was deep in thought.

 

"Yeah, you're like a... dreamy song. As much as your presence lightens up the room, you also emit a kind of... comfort? Your softer side pulls people in and that gentle and caring temperament of yours is just easily likeable." Sakura tries to articulate her thoughts, every word from her constantly putting Yunjin in a state of awe.

 

A warm feeling surges in her chest, Yunjin is left breathless with the heartwarming insight of herself from Sakura's point of view.

 

"Woah... that's a first, I've always been referred to as a golden retriever or sunshine girlfriend..." Yunjin trails off, looking at Sakura with gleaming eyes.

 

"Well, I like the quieter, softer parts of you,"

 

"Aww because it comforts you?"

 

"No, because the other part of you is just really ing noisy." Sakura deadpans.

 

Yunjin's smile drops. Then she proceeds to give Sakura a nasty glare, spending the next few minutes poking the older woman as revenge. From a distance, they probably looked strange circling around each other, jabbing each other with their fingers and their laughter could be heard from afar.

 

"I'm gonna be honest with you,"

 

Yunjin says between ragged breaths, somehow the whole thing ends up with Sakura being sandwiched by Yunjin and the passenger door.

 

Seeing the way Yunjin's eyes kept flitting over to her lips, Sakura feels the butterflies building up in her stomach— perhaps she could get used to being looked at ravishingly like this, like she was wanted.

 

"Ever since you kissed me back then, I've been thinking about it nonstop..." Yunjin bites her lower lip, inwardly sighing at the image of Sakura's pretty little mouth pressing firmly against her own.

 

Compared to the guys she's dated, Sakura's lips were unmistakably softer, more plump and molded against hers the best. It felt like taking a perfect bite out of a fully riped fruit, and the satisfaction it grants her after leaves her craving for more.

 

"Just say you wanna kiss me right now, is that so hard?" Sakura urges her, one side of her lips pulled up in a taunting smirk.

 

Yunjin rolls her eyes, brushing away the strands that curtained Sakura's face behind her big, red ear. At least she knows she's being wanted the same way.

 

"Yes... 'cause this is my first time with a girl and I-"

 

"You're so silly, just treat me like any other dates you've been on." Sakura lifts her shoulders in a half shrug, suppressing her giggles when Yunjin's face screwed up at her too simple of an answer.

 

"That's the thing. You're not like those any other dates- I can't treat you like that!" Yunjin whines, Sakura pushing her away when she was about to drop her weight on her in a mini tantrum.

 

"Okay so... roll down a red carpet for me somewhere when I walk, open every door for me- I don't know, treat me like a princess then." Sakura prods her jokingly, laughing against Yunjin's shoulder.

 

Yunjin gives her a pleasantly surprised look, corners of her lips curving up at the array of ideas Sakura had kindly listed for her.

 

"I kid you not, I would actually do all that." Yunjin says in a low tone, fingers tracing over the shell of Sakura's ear.

 

It tickled but Sakura would be lying if she said she didn't like the soothing sensation it bestowed her. Her eyes roam across Yunjin's face, tracing the redhead's captivating features like she was drawing out a live masterpiece with just her two eyes.

 

Yunjin looks at all of her friends warmly, her bright presence itself sets a cordial atmosphere wherever she goes. Right now, Sakura thinks the way Yunjin's looking at her feels vastly different from that, not just benign but more than that— Sakura feels as if the morning sunlight has kissed her face, and eradicated all traces of dejection that once hollowed out her heart.

 

The way Yunjin looks at her is making something rekindle in her heart, maybe the ambers of hope. Momentarily, Sakura feels her face heat up again, then she dips her head to hide her shy laughter within her hands.

 

"You're really taking this seriously huh? Wanting to date me?" Sakura looks up at a starry-eyed Yunjin, playfully poking her belly button which caused the redhead to jerk back in surprise, warm chuckles entering Sakura's ears.

 

It's heartfluttering seeing the way Yunjin would bring herself back to her, like a magnet that could never stray too far from its partner. Sakura doesn't even have to move, yet Yunjin seeks for her. And all this time, she probably has been, it just took a while to realise.

 

"Of course! It's just... every second I'm spending with you makes me really giddy and happy right now. I seriously mean it when I say I like you, romantically." Yunjin smiles silly, her hands finding refuge in Sakura's.

 

"Yeah?" Sakura coyly says, tilting her head and tugging Yunjin's fingers that wrapped around hers, "How far romantically do you think you can handle me?"

 

"I... uh..." At the provocative taunt, Yunjin's brain suddenly shuts down, Sakura's gaze immediately followed the nervous bob of .

 

Yunjin breaks eye contact when the heat building up in her head grew unbearable, unconsciously smacking her lips as she darts her eyes up and down the woman in front of her.

 

"You're literally undressing me with your eyes, wow. That badly? Are you sure you were straight and not bi before this?" Sakura gasps and pinches Yunjin's arm, giving her a dubious look.

 

Yunjin opens and closes trying to come up with a proper response, face still red with embarrassment.

 

"You're... exquisitely attractive and I'm feeling like a moth being drawn to a flame right now."

 

Says the one with the orange fiery hair... Sakura rolls her eyes but couldn't stop herself from laughing afterwards.

 

With Yunjin behaving so uncharacteristically like this, extremely flustered and out of words, Sakura feels like she's been plunged into a whole new world.

 

Because seriously, where did that loud, extravagant puppy go?

 

"You confess your feelings to me and all of a sudden you forget how to flirt." Sakura pokes fun at her and inevitably, they start bickering.

 

That is if you could call one being kabedon-ed against a car by another, giggling to themselves, 'bickering'.

 

"So... can we romantically exchange spit now?" Yunjin bats her eyes playfully, earning a lazy shove on the shoulder.

 

"Not a single serious bone in you." Sakura groans.

 

The pretty little smile on her face was the signal, and Yunjin feels her heart soaring just looking down at the pair of inviting lips waiting for her. Just as she was about to lean in, she gets struck with a sudden thought.

 

Her abrupt recoil startled the hell out of Sakura, who's shoulders hunched as she pressed herself further against the car, looking at Yunjin with wide eyes.

 

"Wait wait! We have to do this when I'm sitting on the hood of my car, I think that's a very romantic first kiss!" Yunjin tells her enthusiastically as she pulled Sakura to the front of her car, essentially ruining the moment but she continues to rave on, "Well, technically it wouldn't be our first kiss since we kissed before but that didn't count because we were just messin-"

 

"Oh my god, do you wanna kiss me or not?" Sakura groans out loud, exasperated by Yunjin's incessant ramblings, smacking a hand against Yunjin's blabbering mouth which effectively stopped the latter from talking further.

 

Yunjin blinks, then she nods against Sakura's hand before pulling away with a broad grin.

 

"Yes yes! Please! No more joking!" Yunjin giggles uncontrollably when Sakura pushes her chest lightly and forces her to sit on the hood of her car— just the way she wanted to.

 

The situation hits them with a sense of déjà vu, with Sakura slotting herself between Yunjin's knees, her hands resting on top of them. When she scrutinises Yunjin once more, it feels like looking at an ecstatic puppy with its tail wagging somewhere, barely containing its happiness with an ear-splitting grin.

 

Sakura knew she was a lost cause the moment she finds Yunjin, her radiant yet hardworking coworker, her boisterous yet warmest friend and her precious soon-to-be-girlfriend, cute at this very moment.

 

So she saves Yunjin from more waiting, grabs a fistful of her shirt before crashing their lips together. This time, she makes sure to keep her senses on alert, wanting to really feel and soak in every movements of her lips dancing against Yunjin's until she has them memorised in the back of her head.

 

Feeling Yunjin sighing into her lips draws a smile on her face, she relishes in the way Yunjin's hands creeped around her waist, fingertips digging gently into her skin.

 

Yunjin's helluva good kisser, Sakura wouldn't have known because the first time, her own actions caught the redhead by surprise and she wasn't even allowed time to reciprocate (not that Sakura expected her to).

 

Now it's a different story, Sakura's beginning to feel lightheaded the more she consented to Yunjin's lips. Grinning against light kisses gently peppered on her lips, unable to take her eyes off Yunjin's lips, and then finally letting the redhead surge in with a tilted head, kissing her deeply.

 

Realising this was probably how Yunjin kissed her exes, Sakura grew a little bit annoyed. But it's useless crying over spilled milk, she belongs to Yunjin now anyway.

 

"Is this what your previous boyfriends do?" Sakura swipes her tongue across her bottom lip when they pull away, almost breathless as she stares up at Yunjin through her lashes.

 

"No actually, huh... now that I think about it, they were kinda plain." Yunjin hums questioningly.

 

Or maybe you were too ing good. Sakura had to hold herself back from rolling her eyes.

 

"You seriously at being straight." Sakura chuckles, sending a slap on Yunjin's shoulder before taking a step back.

 

Yunjin easily pulls her back in by her waist, smiling cheekily.

 

"Heh... one more?"

 

"Get your together, Jennifer. This is only our first date and we barely even started." Sakura replies firmly but the amused smile on her lips breaks her stern image, evoking laughter from Yunjin.

 

"Okay um, wanna go on another date after dinner? Like a late night drive date?" Yunjin clasps her hands together, eyes twinkling with anticipation.

 

Sakura scoffs incredulously, genuinely confused about this sudden pull she's got on Yunjin. Though she was flattered, seeing Yunjin quite literally being head over heels for her was... something.

 

(She secretly likes it.)

 

"Damn, what did I do to you?"

 

"Must be the Sakurizz."

 

"Pity Chaewon was immune." Sakura tries to slip in a joke, eyeing Yunjin carefully with a teasing smile on her face.

 

"And thank ing god." Yunjin exhales, throwing her arms up.

 

"Do you think if I kissed her once like I kissed you, she'd magically like me?"

 

A pouty Yunjin was definitely beyond adorable, never would Sakura imagine someone as hot as her would have such an endearing side but she wasn't complaining.

 

"I'm kidding I'm kidding, don't make that face. It's gaslighting me into thinking that I just kicked a golden retriever." Sakura laughs, cupping Yunjin's cheeks and pressing them playfully.

 

"I don't know, you might've done just that." Yunjin mumbles with pursed lips, eyebrows furrowed.

 

"Calm down, maybe that dinner date ought to erase all that jealousy, hm?" Sakura reassures her, gestures as sly as a fox as she traces a finger across Yunjin's jawline, and then planting a quick kiss on her cheek before stepping out of their bubble.

 

Between the (best) kiss (ever) and Sakura's flirting, Yunjin is undoubtedly left speechless and mesmerised, only able to watch with intrigued eyes as they trail after Sakura who was headed to the passenger seat.

 

Yunjin allows herself sometime to take a breather, kicking the air while smiling to herself like a dork as she thought about her intimate exchange with Sakura just seconds prior.

 

"I'm gonna love you sooo good, you're gonna wonder why you didn't fall for me first instead of Chaewon!"

 

"For God's sake, leave that girl alone..."

 

---

 

Bonus

 

They haven't told anyone else about their relationship yet, choosing to revel in the serenity of their own world before the world outside could perceive them.

 

Christmas is just around the corner and by this time, they're one week into their relationship.

 

Yena had reached out to them once more regarding a Christmas party, emphasised on a civil one when she told Yunjin about it. Unless Kazuha shows up to that party, Yunjin is sure she could be civil.

 

Chaewon's obviously attending so she really didn't need another competition, a more obvious one this time, to steal Sakura's undivided attention.

 

"Ugh- ack- Stop stop! What are you doing?!"

 

Trapped in Yunjin's arms, Sakura couldn't contain her laughter as she was being showered with kisses on the face mercilessly. She tried angling her neck away, covered her face with her hands but Yunjin still somehow managed to find openings just to plant her kisses.

 

"Applying a type of Chaewon repellent on you." Yunjin mutters when she finally pulls away, still holding Sakura captive in her arms.

 

Sakura laughs at a territorial Yunjin, her pinched eyebrows and pursed lips too endearing for the cherry blossom. She brings her hands up to Yunjin's neck, thumbs caressing smooth skin in a gesture of comfort.

 

"Yunjin, she has a girlfriend, she's not gonna look at me or anyone else."

 

"But you're gonna look at her." Yunjin mumbles, shoulders slumping as she looks at Sakura with pleading eyes, suddenly dispirited.

 

Immediately, Sakura palms Yunjin's face and gazes into her eyes intently, becoming tightlipped. Guilt began gnawing at her stomach but she remains resolute, determined eyes locked with Yunjin's soft brown orbs.

 

"I'm looking at you, and I'll only look at you from now on, okay?" Sakura mutters softly, smiling when Yunjin turns her head briefly to kiss her palms.

 

"Save me pretty blue-haired girl with big round eyes... Save me..." Yunjin whines dramatically, overwhelmed by the one in a million beauty in front of her.

 

The mood lightens up instantly, with Sakura breaking into soft laughter at Yunjin's dramatism while the latter couldn't tear her eyes away from her, basking in Sakura's melodious sounds.

 

"Are you in dire need of saving? What kind of saving? Pray tell." Sakura turns coy, locking her hands behind Yunjin's neck, voice turning sultry.

 

She couldn't resist biting her lips when Yunjin's fingers danced across her waist, those brown eyes already trained on her lips.

 

"Hmm... My lips feel pretty frozen these days, could you do something about it maybe? It's been longing for some type of..." Yunjin leans in to nudge her nose lightly against Sakura's, the two giggling simultaneously, "...warmth."

 

"Your remedy's right here, baby." Sakura hums in delight before tugging Yunjin in.

 

They ended up being late to the Christmas party but that didn't matter because, hey,  at least they still showed up.