Jimin wakes up feeling a crack of sunlight peaking onto her eyes. She must've fallen asleep leaning on her kitchen counter.... is what she thought at first... but as her eyes focused on familiar ceiling of her room above.... the soft comfort that embraced her body and back registered immediately.

Leaning up slightly... there was no doubt about it... She was on her bed... under her blanket as well...

But how...?

She couldn't sworn last night-

"Urgh," Jimin groaned, allowing herself to fall backwards onto her mattress. She gently held onto her temple, the throbbing pain in her head feeling like a drum solo gone rogue. With a groan, she rolled over, expecting the familiar emptiness beside her....

But instead, her hand landed on something pleasantly warm, yet very unexpectedly present....

Snapping her eyes completely open, Jimin immediately sits up right with a rush of panic spreading across her chest so fast, it completely replaced the searing pain she had felt in her temple earlier...

Taking a shaky breath... her body comes to a halt as the familiar sight of bleached blonde hair graces her right on the edge of her bed.

There sat her manager on a chair right beside her, head leaned forward, using her own arms as cushioning, while her back rose and fell with calm breaths, obviously deep in slumber.

Did Minjeong carry her here and tuck her in...?

Without thinking... the girl slowly raised her hand and reached out to touch those light yellow locks... allowing the soft hair to feel her sense of touch...

Yeah this wasn't a dream... Minjeong really was here with her...

Then that means...

last night when she had imagined the shorter with her in her kitchen...

Did that mean...

It wasn't her imagination after all...

She quickly retracted her hand... memories of yesterday filling up her brain to the brim...

Oh that's right...

It's all coming back to her now.. why she was here in the first place that is...suffering from a poor life choice of borderline alcohol poisoning....

but even so...

How did the blonde get in... slowly pushing the blanket off herself, she noticed she had changed into a new set of clothes... and her leg had a tiny hello kitty bandaid on it....

Now she knows she definitely didn't get here herself... so... blinking at her manager once more... the only thought that rushed to mind then was...

Had she been here all night...?

In that moment, a rather confusing concoction of emotions began spreading in the pits of her stomach. On one hand, she couldn't deny the warmth of waking up to see the shorter woman had been by her side this entire time...

but on the other hand...

As her memories rush back to her... Minjeong being here only served as another prick directed at her heart.

What was she even meant to do now... like... what exactly is even the appropriate thing to do in Jimin's situation?

Should she wake the blonde up?

Should she go hide in her bathroom somewhere until the shorter leaves..?

Jimin just really didn't want to deal with this right now...

and also...

Wait DOES THAT MEAN SHE CHANGED ME TOO!?

Her thoughts, however, were quickly interrupted as she watched the woman beginning to stir in her sleep...

"Minjeong.....   ah" that name came out of naturally... without even thinking... so quickly.. the moment it did, Jimin had to press her hand against her lips...

"Huh?"

The blonde finally lifts up her head, rubbing her eyes as she did so whilst sleepy bubbles around her began slowly to pop one by one.... until they all just busrt all at once the moment she locked eyes with the actress. 

"Jimin!" Her back was straight now.. and she was fully awake having seen the older woman conscious again "How are you feeling? Are you alright? Is your head hurting at all? Hold on!"

Jimin sat there silently, observing as the shorter scrambled to her feet, darting outside momentarily before returning in a flash, holding a water bottle in one hand and a small packet of medicine in the other.

"Here!" Minjeong popped open two pills, placed them in Jimin's hand, and handed her the water bottle. "Take two. You lectured me last time about not being prepared, right? I told you I'll do better."

Her smile was warm...

Warm as the sunlight that shone around them...

But Jimin couldn't feel it's warmth... not at all

Her heart is just too caged in ice...

"Minjeong..." She said instead, putting the pills away to the side on her night stand... all the while the blonde just stared at her action... with a small confused expression.. before locking eyes with the older again.. waiting for her to continue. "How did you get inside?"

"Me?" She pointed at herself animatedly. "Honestly... I thought your message was sudden, so I looked all over the place for you... until I got here last night and saw that you left your front door unlocked."

"unlocked...?" Right Jimin had been so deep within her own sorrows... she didn't even remember how she was able to open her door.. let alone closing.

"Actually, Jimin..." Minjeong's smile from before was long gone now, replaced by furrowed eyebrows and a small downturn on the corner of her lip. "What happened last night? Why did you leave so suddenly... yet..." The blonde began fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, not sure if she was crossing a line by asking her next question. "Why were you so drunk... and on the ground... did something happen? If it did.. Jimin.. you can tell me... don't just keep it to yourself.. if it's too much.."

"It's... nothing, really," Jimin mumbled, avoiding Minjeong's gaze as she shifted uncomfortably on the bed. "Just... too much to drink, I guess."

 

Minjeong's expression of worry grew, and she hesitated for a moment before speaking again. She wasn't sure what it was about Jimin just then... but it felt unfamiliarly distant.

"Jimin, I'm here for you," Minjeong said softly, reaching out to gently touch Jimin's hand. "If something's bothering you, you don't have to face it alone. You can tell me, I won't judge."

Jimin withdrew her hand subtly, her eyes flickering with a hint of uncertainty... but soon.. remembering her reality one more time... those uncertain eyes turned ice cold.

"I said it's nothing Minjeong, now stop asking."

"..."

No, it's not me overthinking, she's definitely upset...

"Jimin-"

"I said stop asking," Jimin's words were final. Lying back down, the actress pulled her blanket over her eyes. She really just couldn't bring herself to look at the younger woman any longer. "I'm tired... and my head still hurts, so kindly, can you leave my building.."

"Jimin seriously, you're acting weird, I just want to help-"

"I don't need your help Minjeong"

...

Okay... yeah... Minjeong won't lie.. this interaction was starting to hurt her in more ways than one... she understood she shouldn't overstep if the issue was something sensitive to her... but it really did just hurt to see someone she cared about so much pushing her away... especially since everything that's unravelled between them...

And especially since the promise she made to herself last night.

"Then... could you at least take the medicine I brought for your headache? It would give me some peace of mind."

"Don't..."

"I'm sorry?" Minjeong wasn't certain of what Jimin had said as the blanket muffled her soft voice. 

"Don't keep pretending you care that deeply about me Minjeong, I'll eat it when I feel like it now seriously.. Leave."

The blonde was taken aback by what she had just heard. Was it something she did? Had she unknowingly hurt Jimin in some way? What could she have possibly done to warrant such treatment from Jimin?

"Jimin- did- did I do something wrong..?" Minjeong finally squeezed out... trying really hard to swallow down her own erupting feelings.

...

...

"No... you didn't, I'm the one who was wrong"

⋇⊶⊰❣⊱⊷⋇

Shoulders slumped, Minjeong slowly closed the door to Jimin's bedroom and paced her way towards the exit of the building...

She didn't want it to be this way... in fact. she couldn't even begin to comprehend what's going on with Jimin.

Just what in the world had gotten into the girl to act in such a mannerism....

Certainly, one might argue that the older woman wasn't actually behaving much differently than she had been in the beginning. Considering everything, this demeanor was far more pleasant than the Jimin from the outset—no abnormal yelling or tantrums, just straightforwardness.

However, there's a significant flaw within that argument that hasn't been taken into account at all.

And it's the fact that Minjeong has come to know Jimin much better now—far more intimately.

She wasn't sure if it was just one-sided before, but recently, she could've sworn an unspoken understanding had been established between them.

She believed she was making significant progress, thought she was gradually breaking through Jimin's walls, one brick at a time.

How is it now, when she hadn't seen the woman for a couple of hours, suddenly all those bricks were constructed back up again...

Tougher than ever.

Before, Jimin had been closed off, but that was when Minjeong was a stranger. Now, things were different—too different.The cage Jimin had placed herself within wasn't the usual one she reserved for just anyone.

This time, it felt specific,