Taeyeon’s POV

“Remind me, why am I here again Princess?”

I was trailing behind Jessica, dragging my feet. We were on our way to her friend’s place for her birthday party, just a few houses down the road.

“Oh please, stop whining. A promise is a promise.” She turned around, grabbing my arm, forcing me to catch up with her.

“And why did I promise you in the first place?” I grumbled.

“Come on darling, it’s just meeting a few people. Why are you being such a chicken? I met your friends last Christmas didn’t I?” She removed her grip on my arm, moving downwards to intertwine our fingers tightly. “They are really nice people, I promise.”

I pouted.

“Okay, let’s make a deal then.” Jessica raised her free hand up, reaching over to my face. “If you still don’t feel comfortable 2 hours into the party we’ll leave earlier. Is that alright?”

I kept silent, thinking through it. It sounded reasonable enough.

“Pleeease? I really, really want to introduce my girlfriend to my besties…but I’m not going to force you if you don’t want to come.” She added in the last part hastily, withdrawing her hand and folding her arms across her chest.

Now, if she put it that way...

“Deal.” I told her.

I was fighting a losing battle from the start, I could never resist her, especially when she played the ‘make Taengoo guilty’ card.

“Yes!” She cheered, finding my hand, letting our fingers intertwined again.

‘It’s just her friends, Taeyeon. You can handle it. They are not going to bite.’ I chanted to myself repeatedly as we came to a stop in front of her friend’s house.

I was getting nervous all over again as Jessica pressed the doorbell, praying with all my might that her friends would be one of those people who I find it easy to talk with.

The gate opened a second later and Jessica pulled me in with a reassuring smile. A long haired girl was at the door, waiting to welcome us in.

The two friends greeted each other with a hug, jumping like little children, while I stood at the side, stiffly waiting for Jessica to introduce us.

“Hara, meet Taeyeon, Taeyeon, meet Hara.” Jessica sounded excited, pulling away from her friend.

“Nice to meet you, Taeyeon. I’m Jessi’s friend from secondary school.” The girl who I now know as Hara extended her hand out.

I took it, smiling awkwardly.

“I’m Jessica’s girlfriend. Nice to meet you too. Happy birthday!” I handed her the wrapped gift that Jessica had bought previously.

It felt so right when it rolled out from my tongue and it suddenly drawn on me that it was the first time ever, that I had introduce myself as her girlfriend officially. With the gang, we had merely informed them of the fact that we had gotten together. Besides, our family found out about us before we could confess and we had always introduced each other as a close friend from school to our parents’ acquaintances. 

“Thank you!” Hara accepted the gift and ushered us in. “Come on in, Rachel and Nicole are already here. Food’s gonna be serve as soon as the other two arrive, dad’s barbequing the steak.”

Hara was friendly and I was already getting comfortable around her. If the rest of Jessica’s friends were like her, I would probably survive the night.

I was taking off my shoes when Jessica nudged my side. Hara skipped ahead of us into the living room, unaware of what was happening behind her.

“Relax will you. You were as stiff as a wooden plank outside.” She joked, rubbing my back.

“Don’t worry, I’m starting to like her.” I winked.

Before Jessica could reply, another girl appeared around the corner, shrieking when she saw us.

“Jessi! Oh my god, you’re finally here, woman!”

I froze upon the sudden intrusion of the enthusiastic girl.

“Gosh, is this your girlfriend? The one you’ve been talking about?” Without waiting for Jessica’s reply, she tackled me into a hug, almost choking me.

“Hi, I don’t know if Jessi ever mentioned me, but I’m Nicole.” She rattled away before turning to Jessica. “Why didn’t you tell me you’ve got such a cute girlfriend?”

“I did.” Jessica chuckled. “Why are you so hyper today?”

“She’s had a few sips of the fruit wine and got high. Pardon her. I’m Rachel by the way, nice meeting you, Jessi’s girlfriend.” Rachel greeted me, trying to pry Nicole away from me.

“Hi, my name’s Taeyeon.”

*BURP*

We all turned to look at Nicole, who covered up in embarrassment.

“Opps! Sorry, must be the coke.”

It was then I burst out laughing. If there’s anything I could not resist besides Jung Jessica, it would be burps and farts. Everyone else started laughing along with me and I immediately felt at ease with Jessica’s friends.

“What are you all doing at the entrance?” Hara came back with a can of beer in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other.

“Nothing, greeting people.” Rachel shrugged, pushing Nicole down the corridor.

We followed behind the duo and Hara held the alcoholic drinks up.

“Fruit wine or beer? Mum said to finish this baby by tonight, she doesn’t want to keep it.” She told us, shaking the bottle.

“Wine will do then.” Jessica took the beer can over, turning it around to inspect it while scrunching her nose up. “Taeng will have the same.”

I nodded my head, just the smell of the beer itself was a turn off.

“Okay, it’s gonna be served in paper cups though.” Hara laughed.

We settled ourselves down in the living room munching on salad while waiting for their friends who were not here yet. My worry about being left out soon disappeared as we chatted, they felt like friends that I had known for a very long time. By the time the others arrived, the alcohol had slowly wear off on Nicole and she started to calm down from the high. Rachel had refused to let her take another sip of the wine, saying something about not wanting Nicole to be wasted before the main course. Coincidentally, one of the two late comers happened to be my classmate from primary school so there wasn’t much to introduce, while the other was just as nice as Hara and the rest. Jessica was right, they were really nice people. The deal we had made earlier was long forgotten.

Dinner was served and I must admit that Hara’s father was a good cook. Knowing that I had a low tolerance for alcohol, I took my time to finish the cup that Hara had poured me initially, refusing the refills politely. Jessica had added some ice in to dilute it, not that I minded anyway, I was already turning red even before the cup was half empty.

Jessica’s POV

Taeyeon was all wishy washy earlier in the evening before we came but by dinner time she had already fit in with the group and that made me smile a little as I watched her converse with Nicole, glad that she had gotten along with my friends.

After the birthday song was sang and the cake was cut, Hara rushed us all into her bedroom, closing the door behind us, making us sit down in a circle. She took out a bottle of Chivas from under her study table, placing it in the middle.

“There. Dad collected too many of this and he decided to donate one to us today. For those who are just a little short of being legal we’ll just turn a blind eye to it.” That got her quite a lot of cheers from our friends. “Truth and dare? You take a shot whenever the bottle points to you before choosing.”

Taeyeon was not a big fan of alcohol and neither was I but she did not say anything and I did not want to be a party pooper.

‘It’s just for tonight, tonight will be an exception.’ I told myself.

The bottle was spun and the game begun. Taeyeon managed to avoid taking any shots for the first 10 minutes while poor Hara had to change her clothes after getting dunked into the pool and Nicole was stoned just after 2 shots. It did not last for long since the girls noticed that she was the only one that had yet to drink and started targeting her, wanting to get her drunk since her tolerance for alcohol was no better than Nicole’s. I was getting worried about her as the minutes passed. Like Nicole, the alcohol was slowly getting into her system after 3 shots and she was swaying slightly as she stood up when I told her to unplug my phone from the charger, barely 3 steps away from where she was. She was as red as a steamed lobster from head to toe. It did not help when the bottle head pointed at her again and she drowned her fourth shot, frowning as the bitter liquid travelled down , leaving behind a burning sensation.

“Urgh...this taste disgusting.” Taeyeon groaned.

“Truth or dare?” Ji Eun asked.

“Truth." Taeyeon answered without hesitation.

“Heey, you’re no fun. Alllrightie. Answer! Why, just why doo you love little Jessi overrr here? Andd! I dare YOU, to kissh Jessi just because you are toooo borrring.” Nicole slurred.

I started to protest about it being unfair but was cut off by Nicole.

“Shht! Don’t talk! You’re gonna benefit from it anyway. Besides, we don’t havee a fix rule, woman.”

I could not say anything about it since the rest were very supportive of Nicole’s suggestion.

“Her ?” Taeyeon suggested.

I blushed at Taeng’s answer, not believing the words that came out from . She was sitting beside me with an idiotic lopsided grin on her face as whistling and cat calls sounded. It was amazing how 5 girls together can be that noisy.

‘Yup, she’s definitely stoned.’

“Come on Taeyeon, just kiss her. It’s no biggie.” Hara urged, clapping her hands as if she was waiting for a show to start.

I glared at her playfully and she pretended to cower behind Rachel.

“Aww, Jessi, don’t be so mean to me. You guys probably kissed each other a lot of times before this.”

I huffed and turned to face Taeyeon who was staring blankly back at me. As much as she was the one wearing the pants most of the time in our relationship, there were still certain things she would not dare to do without my permission.

We seldom display such level of intimacy whenever we were around people but it was probably because of the Chivas I had previously that made me give in to them easily, which was so unlike me. I tilted my head upwards and closed my eyes, giving Taeyeon the go ahead, wondering where the courage came from. My face was heating up and I had no idea if it was because of the blood rush or the liquor.

I felt Taeyeon's lips moving against mine seconds later and I parted them allowing her to gain entry. Her tongue twirl around mine playfully and I could taste the alcohol on it. Taeyeon smirked as I pulled her closer by the neck to deepen the kiss, she was liking every second of it. Feeling bold all a sudden, I shifted and straddled Taeng on her lap, not breaking contact, wanting to be aggressive for once. I continued to ravish her till my lungs were burning for oxygen while Taeng started struggling underneath me.

“Yo…Go Tiigerrr!” Nicole shouted drunkenly.

I had pulled away from Taeng and the both of us were trying to catch our breaths with me still on her lap.

“Wow Jessi, we asked for a kiss but you gave us more than that.” Hara shook her head at us, beaming. The rest were still gawking, probably waiting for a part 2. “Are you drunk already?”

“I’m not. And show’s over.” I removed myself from Taeyeon, stretching out for my phone to check the time.

“Well, you’re right, we’re almost through with the whole bottle anyway. Let’s just take a shot each and end this game.” Jiyoung suggested, pouring us our share and handed the shot glasses out.

“To Hara.” Jiyoung raised her own glass up. “Happy birthday.”

“To Jessi and her girlfriend!” Hara winked at Taengoo, blowing a kiss in her direction, raising her glass up.

Ji Eun who was Taeng’s primary school friend followed suit, smirking at us.

It took all of my self-control to not pounce on the birthday girl, reminding myself that Taeyeon knew perfectly well that she was mine and only mine.

“To new friends.” Taeng added dorkily and I laughed, looking at her trying to find her balance on her knees.

By the time we left Hara’s house, Taeyeon had problems walking straight though she was still conscious. Her footsteps were getting heavier and heavier by the next second, bumping into my shoulder every now and then. My grip on her hand tighten as she tripped over a pebble on the pavement.

“Princess? Remind me to not drink so much next time, my stomach feels weird.” Despite being so unsteady on her feet, her speech was clear.

“You could have refused them darling.”

“Not when it’s a game…”

“Eish, you and your ego.” I knocked on her head lightly and she giggled.

“You knowww…I didn’t mean what I say just noww.” She started to talk in a weird way, leaning into me.

“Which part?” I asked, trying to make sense of what she was saying.

“Butts.” she stated.

I racked my memory, recalling back on the incident where the word was mentioned.

“On why you love me? What about that?”

“See…your is just a bonus…I love you for who you are, your smile and allllll. It made my day just seeing you. There’s still more, but I’m not gonna tell you now.”

We finally arrived home and Krystal met us at the door. I had texted her earlier to make sure that our parents were in their bedroom before we got back and for someone to open the door for us.

“I know baby, you can tell me next time. Let’s get you up to bed, you’re pretty wasted.”

“I’m not drunk.” She declared proudly as she staggered up the stairs.

“Sure. Says you who can’t even walk properly.” I retorted.

“Am not!”

Krystal helped me dragged Taeyeon into my room since she was too heavy for me to handle alone. The alcohol had finally taken over her senses and she was a mumbling mess by the time I came out from the shower.

“Baby, aren’t you going to wash up before you sleep?” I shook her lightly, hoping to get her to respond.

She laid sprawled out on the bed, not moving an inch.

“Baby? Taengoo?”

I might as well be talking to the wall.

“You leave me with no choice Taengoo-ah.”

Standing up, I headed to my drawer, rummaging through it for her sleep wear and grabbed one of her face tower off the shelf. Placing the clothes on the bed beside her, I then headed to the bathroom to fill up a pail of water. I dipped the towel in and squeezed the water out, starting off with cleaning her face before moving down to her arms. I hesitated for a while looking down at her t-shirt and jeans, wondering if I should trying waking her up again.

“Baby wake up. Please don’t make me do this.”

She groaned but went back to sleep.

‘Oh, gosh. Can I do this?’

I turned my head aside, lifting her shirt up just enough to expose her abs; taking in a deep breath, I tugged it off her head in one shot, trying hard not to stare. With trembling hands, I moved down to unbuckle and her jeans, removing that piece of clothing from her as well. There she was, half in front me and I was too embarrassed to look at her even though we had been together for almost a year. The alcohol effect had kicked in and my head was throbbing slightly but my senses had never been so alert. I hastily rolled Taeng over and removed her bra since she did not have the habit of sleeping in it and quickly rubbed her down before I flipped her over and repeated the same process, averting my eyes elsewhere. With much difficulty, I finally forced her into her pajamas and managed to tuck her in.

“Whew…that was…weird. You’d better not blame me for this, you asked for it, darling.” I sat down on my side of the bed after putting the pail away, staring at her mumbling in her sleep adoringly.

I was her cheek mindlessly when she suddenly caught my wrist making me jump a little.

“Stop staring…come sleep.” Taeyeon tugged on my wrist, not bothering to open her eyes when she spoke. “Like what you saw?”

Saw?

“Damn it, you were awake and yet you made me undress you? Baby! Don’t you know how embarrassing it was for me?”

“I was drifting in and out. A little compliment…would be nish, Princess.” She chuckled, slurring over her words a little. “My muscles…are getting too heavy to move.”

I sniggered at her answer as I snuggled under the cover with her, switching off the lights with the remote, leaving only the night light on.

“Say, what do you like most about me? I’m curious, Taengoo-ah.”

“I forgot. My mind’s too fuzzy right now.”

I snickered, deciding to question her again tomorrow.  The room was silent besides the soft humming of the air conditioner and I thought that Taeng had went back to sleep.

“Thank you for staying by my side all these while Princess.” Taeyeon muttered as I her hair. “I want you beside me every day. Can’t you be selfish for once? Just say it. Say it, and I’ll take back the withdrawal form. I won’t go anywhere. You just have to say the word.” She blabbered on.

“I can’t, baby, I can’t.” I stopped her hair and shook my head.

She opened her eyes, looking at me pleadingly.

“Why? Don’t you love me?” A tear escaped from the corner of her eye and I caught it with my finger before it could fall. It was the second time she asked me that.

“I do, which is why I can’t hold you back.” I caressed her face, rubbing her cheek with my thumb. “And we promised not to talk about this anymore.”

“But I want you to be selfish.” She pouted.

“Everything will work out fine, you just have to believe it.” Here I was telling her this when I was the once crying about missing her a few days ago. “You’re drunk, baby. Let’s sleep.” I shuffled further up the bed, wrapping my arms around Taeng, letting her head rest against my chest.

“I’m not drunk.”

“You are, look at how flushed your skin is.”

“It just means that I’ve got good blood circulation.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. Sleep.” I ordered her.

She closed her eyes and stopped talking immediately.

“Baby?” I called.

“Yea?”

“Do you want me to switch the night light off?”

“Nope. It’s getting too comfortable to move.”

“Nights. I love you.” I kissed her hair.

“I love you too.”

Falling asleep that night was easy. The alcohol made me drowsy and most of all, I had Taengoo in my arms.

New chapter! Hope you enjoy reading (: