As expected, the mall was bustling.

 

 

 

There were only a few days before Christmas but today was the day that a certain group of nine girls were going to have their party. They all decided to have the Kris Kringle game early in the morning and reveal their presents and outfits at the party later in the day.

 

 

 

Not everyone had arrived at the meeting place yet. Seohyun, Yoona, Sunny and Taeyeon were the only ones exactly on time.

 

 

 

Taeyeon was looking at the map carefully as she reviewed possible presents for whichever girl she got while Seohyun did the same. They decided to share ideas since they were still waiting for the others anyway.

 

 

 

Yoona and Sunny didn’t think of that possibility and just chatted away.

 

 

 

“You need to treat me next time,” Sunny stated as she crossed her arms, “You always seem to get me to pay for you when we go out for lunch. Even when we were kids.”

 

 

 

Yoona laughed as she rubbed the back of her head, “Sorry about that, unnie. It always slips my mind to bring my wallet. Besides, we only had some cake when we talked the other day.”

 

 

 

Sunny nodded and put her arm around Yoona’s neck, “Oh, about that,” she said as she closed in on Yoona’s ear, “Are you going to do it tonight?”

 

 

 

Yoona blushed immediately and shifted her eyes to see if Seohyun was still distracted by the directory of the mall.

 

 

 

“Kind of? I’m going to do what we agreed on and kind of tell her subtly,” Yoona whispered. She shrugged and let out a soft sigh, “You and I both know that she’s a little oblivious when it comes to that kind of stuff.”

 

 

 

Sunny nodded swiftly in agreement, “Yes, but I think it’s better than nothing. Maybe it can set you up for something in the future?”

 

But before the two could continue their conversation, Hyoyeon appeared out of no where, placing her head inbetween the two girls.

 

 

 

“What are we whispering about over here?” she asked innocently.

 

 

 

“Ah, nothing!” Yoona yelled as she and Sunny parted instantly.

 

 

 

“You two better not be sharing ideas,” Hyoyeon said as she wagged her finger, “Because if you are you should share them with me too!”

 

 

 

Unfortunately for Hyoyeon, Yuri had also arrived, followed by Jessica, Tiffany and Sooyoung.

 

 

 

“Sorry, Hyoyeon,” Sungmin apologized with a laugh, “Maybe if you came earlier.” He gave her a peace sign as she sighed in defeat.

 

 

 

“Is everyone here?” Taeyeon asked as she and Seohyun tore themselves away from the map.

 

 

 

Everyone called out yes at once and the girls created a tight circle.

 

 

 

Seohyun pulled out a sack, “Okay unnies, all the names are in here. We’ll each take turns picking names and at 10:15AM exactly, we’ll start the game and you have until 11:15 to meet back here. Is that clear?”

 

 

 

“What’s the money limit again?” Yuri asked as she shuffled through her purse.

 

 

 

“30,000 won,” Seohyun answered calmly with a lovely smile. She thought that she made a perfect hostess.

 

 

 

Opening the sack in her hand, she went around and each of the girls picked out a name. Thankfully, no one got themselves through the first go. No one in particular wanted a certain girl since they all knew each other that well. They were mostly only worried about getting Sungmin.

 

 

 

Luckily, the one who knew him best got him. Taeyeon snickered at her piece of paper and waited for the right time.

 

 

 

As soon as Seohyun’s phone hit 10:15AM, the girls ran off.

 

 

 

[Tongue Tied Playlist - All The Pretty Girls by Fun.]

 

 

Chaos erupted in the mall as the girls sped through the crowds and giggled and screamed. Well, all except for one.

 

 

 

As passerbys watched her friends speed past them, they stared at Jessica curiously.

 

 

 

“Even if I was late, I wouldn’t run,” Jessica said as if answering the question settling in their head. They nodded and continued to watch her as she walked into the closest store.

 

 

 

Her paper read Hyoyeon and luckily for her, the hat store was nearby. The girl had an obsession with fitted caps. It fit just perfectly into the money limit and she remembered Hyoyeon fanning over several hats the last time they went to the mall. Jessica snicked to herself as she picked a hat. One hour, huh? The line didn’t look too long so she’d be done in 10 minutes flat. She could easily take a nap at the meeting location.

 

 

 

Yuri and Yoona were busy racing each other to…who knew where. They were pushing and shoving each other and giggling until Yuri fell down.

 

 

 

That’s when the girls realized that they reached their limit. They were running for no reason for a total of 10 minutes around the mall.

 

 

 

Yuri huffed and puffed as Yoona pulled her up from the ground.

 

 

 

“What were we doing again?” Yoona asked through giggle fits. Yuri was also laughing as she tried to catch her breath.

 

 

 

“We just wasted 15 minutes, let’s go buy our present now, yeah?” Yuri suggested and the two went arm in arm into a toy store.

 

 

 

Hyoyeon stared at the directory then back to her paper, then back to the directory. She happened to have Seohyun and while she already had a present ready for her, she didn’t want to switch her out. She and Seohyun were most definitely close. She felt very protective of the maknae despite the fact that Seohyun was the one who usually looked out for them. Their personalities were opposite, but the two got along very well.

 

 

 

She knew that she was working really hard on making their Christmas night perfect so she wanted to get the girl something to thank her for her  hard work.

 

 

 

A familiar bakery finally caught her eye on the directory. It was the place that Seohyun often raved about! Hyoyeon was absolutely sure of it. She would get a nice cake there and maybe get a cute scarf as well. She felt it was a good idea and nodded at herself. Turning around, she ran off the direction of the bakery.

 

 

 

Taeyeon had already bought her present since she had a plan for what to buy depending on which person she got. Since Sunny was running out of guy outfits, she bought her an outfit. Taeyeon liked thinking ahead and wanted to put a note for him to wear it on a special occasion, for example maybe Sooyoung’s birthday or Valentine’s Day.

 

 

 

Since she was already done, she wandered around the mall to see what the others were buying.

 

 

 

And then she spotted Sungmin who was frantically looking back and forth between two dresses.

 

 

 

“Yah!” Taeyeon called out, placing her hand firmly on Sunny’s shoulders. “Are you sure those are in the money limit?”

 

 

 

Startled, Sunny practically jumped at Taeyeon’s voice. She was so immersed in her decision that she didn’t hear her coming at all.

 

 

 

“Taengoo! You’re going to give me a heart attack!” Sunny exclaimed as she clutched her chest.

 

 

 

“These are cute dresses,” Taeyeon commented as she felt the material for both of the outfits before her. They were both cute summer dresses that would most definitely look good on tall and slim girls like Sooyoung.

 

 

 

“They’re summer dresses so they’re on sale,” Sunny stated as she showed Taeyeon the price tags. “I think they’d both look really cute on Sooyoungie, but I can’t pick between this lavender one or this rose coloured one.”

 

 

 

Taeyeon nodded, “It seems like a difficult choice, oppa. But wow, you got your girlfriend, eh?” She elbowed her fellow short friend and watched amused as Sunny’s cheeks turned a soft rosy colour.

 

 

 

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Sunny retaliated softly as her attention focused on the decision before her. “We’re just dating.” Sunny tried her best to calm her heart and pull the heat away from her face.

 

 

 

Taeyeon just continued to jab Sunny with her elbow playfully, “I bet you already got her a present, huh? Huh? Yoona was gushing to Seohyun about it.”

 

 

 

“Why does she tell Seohyun everything?” Sunny complained, but she wasn’t realy surprised. She knew Yoona told absolutely everything and anything to her best friend and love of her life. But still, it was annoying how it all got to Taeyeon in the end.

 

 

 

“Hey, I’m your best friend! You should be telling me everything too,” Taeyeon said with a pout.

 

 

 

“I didn’t choose to tell Yoong that, she just kept asking and asking,” Sunny responded as she held the dresses in both hands. “You know you’re always the first person I tell anything to. It’s just…embarrassing.”

 

 

 

Taeyeon smiled widely at the concentrated face Sunny had on as she carefully looked at both of the dresses. She could tell that the girl felt tortured by the choice.

 

 

 

When Taeyeon and Sunny were together, everything was easy. They knew what they liked, they knew each other perfectly and even if they got something the other didn’t like, they’d laugh it off easily. But Sunny was really trying to impress Sooyoung, despite saying that she didn’t want to get serious with her. Taeyeon knew that Sunny was just afraid of rejection once the truth came out, and honestly Taeyeon wasn’t sure how Sooyoung would respond.

 

 

 

Sunny moaned in frustration and shook her head furiously, “I can’t do this! Can’t I just go and find her and ask her which one she likes more?” Sunny almost reached out to grab Taeyeon and shake her, but instead her hand came into contact with someone else.

 

 

 

Jessica stood there with her eyes wide, “Your voice just now...” she mumbled to herself.

 

 

 

She was going to relax and take a nap after finishing her shopping, but she noticed the sale as she walked past. Hearing a commotion and a familiar voice, she couldn’t help but wander over.

 

 

 

Jessica stared at Sungmin who, along with Taeyeon just stared back. Sunny wanted to mentally slap herself for not being more careful.

 

 

 

“Ah, sorry Jessica,” Sunny spat out nervously. She started scratching her neck and could almost feel herself shaking. “I got sick recently, if my voice startled you or anything.”

 

 

 

Jessica narrowed her eyes and reverted her stare to Taeyeon who seemed at a loss of words.

 

 

 

“Do you think I’m stupid, Sunny?” she asked as a smirk formed on her face, “I knew there was something up from the beginning. And that selca with the wig? Nice.”

 

 

 

Taeyeon still couldn’t form any words as she turned to Sunny who was now rubbing the back of her neck.

 

 

 

“So you caught me,” she stated as she let out a sigh. She then folded her hands together and looked at Jessica with pleading eyes, “Please, please don’t tell anyone!”

 

 

 

Jessica felt like dancing at her victorious discovery. She was suspicious of Sungmin from the beginning and it felt good to be right about him.

 

 

 

“Am I the only one who knows besides Taeng?” she asked as she placed an arm around Sunny’s shoulders. “It’s been so long and you come back with this disguise?” She ruffled Sunny’s pointy hair and hugged the girl tightly.

 

 

 

Sunny thoroughly enjoyed the warmth of Jessica’s hug for the girl had been hostile to her as Sungmin. She never felt a good connection with Jessica until now.

 

 

 

“No, Yoona and Seohyun found out pretty early, but you’re the only other person who knows,” Sunny said in a hushed tone. She placed a finger over Jessica’s mouth, “You need to promise to keep this a secret!”

 

 

 

Jessica nodded and squeezed Sunny a few more times, “My God, you haven’t grown at all! I’m actually surprised I didn’t accuse you earlier of being Sunny. I’ve never met a guy this tiny.”

 

 

 

Sunny groaned as Jessica continued to treat her roughly and affectionately at the same time. The girl must have missed her a lot since it was rare to hug her for so long. Even Taeyeon knew as she smiled at the two reuniting friends. But as Sunny stopped being able to breathe properly, she started to regret welcoming Jessica’s intimacy.

 

 

 

“So is this some kind of game?” Jessica then asked when she finally let the smaller girl down.

 

 

 

“It’s Sunny’s idea of an elaborate prank,” Taeyeon answered for the girl who was dramatically trying to reclaim her breath. “She came to my house one night like this, thinking I wouldn’t recognize her.”

 

 

 

Jessica nodded slowly, “Looking at her or well, him now I wonder how I could have not seen Sunny right away. I mean, look at those lips! I’ve never seen a guy with such gorgeous lips.” And then it dawned upon Jessica. So Taeyeon knew it was Sunny this whole time? She turned to Taeyeon who was watching Sunny fix her hair with an amused smile.

 

 

 

“Wait so, were you guys really dating?” Jessica then asked, extremely curious about the answer.

 

 

 

Both Taeyeon and Sunny blushed at the question before simultaneously answering, “Yes.”

 

 

 

“I never would have thought,” Jessica replied with a small smile, “I might have been less jealous if I knew it was Sunny.”

 

 

 

Sunny scoffed which invoked a glare from the other girl, “What? You totally would have been just as jealous.”

 

 

 

“Just probably a little less scary,” Taeyeon added as she grabbed Jessica’s hand. “You probably would have been less hostile, but not less jealous.”

 

 

 

Jessica rolled her eyes as she accepted Taeyeon’s hand and played with her small fingers. But then another realization dawned upon her and she turned to Sunny who had finally decided to pick the dress with her eyes closed.

 

 

 

“Wait a second,” Jessica started as she let go of Taeyeon’s hand and grabbed Sunny’s shoulders, “Do you really like Sooyoung?”

 

 

 

Sunny sighed since she was so ready to randomly choose a dress. She wasn’t incredibly fond of the question Jessica asked too, but there was no point in lying now.

 

 

 

“Yes,” she answered simply, her cheeks burning a little. She avoided Jessica’s excited gaze and brought her attention back to the two dresses that were driving her crazy.

 

 

 

“This is exciting!! No wait, but what if Sooyoung only likes Sungmin and not-“

 

 

 

“There’s someone else?” another voice chimed up.

 

 

 

Tiffany appeared as if out of no where and smiled at the three who were looking at her as if they saw a ghost. “Ah, Jessie, I didn’t think you and Sungmin oppa were so close!”

 

 

 

Jessica quickly backed away from Sunny and began to clear . Taeyeon and Sunny exchanged glances of relief seeing that Tiffany didn’t seem to catch Sunny’s voice.

 

 

 

“There isn’t anyone else,” Taeyeon answered, trying to salvage the moment from its awkwardness. She moved up to Tiffany and took her in an embrace.

 

 

 

“I’d hope not!” Tiffany replied with a giggle, “I’m really cheering for you and Sooyoung, oppa!”

 

 

 

“Thank you, Fany,” Sunny replied with a nervous smile. She could feel her heart getting ready to explode at the close call. It would have been a disaster if another of her friends found out her secret.

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

Meanwhile, Seohyun was treating Yoona to some cookies as they waited at the meeting place for the rest of the girls. The two managed to finish at exactly the same time and Seohyun offered her friend a snack. Of course, Yoona would never refuse free food.

 

 

 

They sat at the couches near the main directory of the mall and happily discussed the kinds of presents they wanted that year.

 

 

 

“I wouldn’t mind any type of clothing, but I would really love some more clothes appropriate for my dance practices,” Yoona went off as she thought of presents from the top of her head, “It’s not the weather for it right now but I’ve wanted a new mitt for softball as well.”

 

 

 

Seohyun frowned, “Aw, I wish we had this talk earlier! I would have gotten you just that, unnie.”

 

 

 

Yoona just laughed, “Come on, Hyunnie! You know I’ll love anything you give me. You always think of the greatest gifts.” Without warning, she grabbed Seohyun’s hand and played with her fingers before intertwining them with her own. “You’re always so thoughtful in everything you give anyone.”

 

 

 

Seohyun basked in the light that seemed to seep from Yoona’s bright eyes and smile. Even though she was feeling a little doubtful about the gift she had already bought for Yoona, it instantly went away with her words.

 

 

 

“You didn’t happen to get me for this, did you?” Yoona then asked with a soft chuckle, “Because you did a horrible job hiding it.”

 

 

 

Seohyun shook her head before giggling herself. It was a sound that Yoona couldn’t help but feel immersed in.

 

 

 

“I actually got my unnie! I got her a new journal and some really pretty pens since she’s been really into writing songs lately,” Seohyun explained as she let Yoona peek into the contents of her shopping bag. “Mum and I bought her a new outfit for the talent show as well so I’m really excited for her to open them later tonight!”

 

 

 

Seohyun was so excited that she was nearly bouncing in her seat. Today was going to amazing and she knew it, not just because she was the one who planned most of the party but because of her costume which she worked on diligently and the song she prepared for her unnies. All of her hard work was going to show at the party! She just hoped that they would be received soon.

 

 

 

“Who did you get, Yoona unnie?” Seohyun asked with a hopeful smile, “You’ll tell me right?”

 

 

 

To Seohyun’s displeasure, Yoona shook her head. “Nope! You can’t know! It takes out the fun, you know? But, it’s not you! I swear on my life.”

 

 

 

Seohyun tilted her head before giving Yoona a pout in disappointment. But before the girls could further their conversation, Hyoyeon, Jessica, and Sungmin had arrived at the meeting area.

 

 

 

“You guys done too?” Yoona asked as she eyed their shopping bags ecstatically. “Ohhh, I wonder if any of you guys got me??”

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

On the opposite end of the mall with only 15 minutes remaining, Yuri and Sooyoung were in line at a book store. The two girls were groaning and constantly checking their phones for the time as the line moved slowly and painfully.

 

 

 

“This is all because you couldn’t pick a bookmark,” Yuri complained at Sooyoung who was holding about three bookmarks in her hand amongst two other books. “And I can’t believe you still haven’t decided!”

 

 

 

“Shut up! Fany would appreciate my thoughtfulness so I’m choosing carefully! Besides, the girl probably has a million bookmarks so I need to choose carefully,” Sooyoung defended herself as she shifted her eyes between the bookmarks and her phone.

 

 

 

“At this rate we’re going to have to teleport back to the meeting place,” Yuri whined into the books that she had picked out for Jessica. The girl was always complaining about using money on art supplies rather than on reference books so she decided now would be a good opportunity to buy them. It was a little burdensome to get Jessica seeing as she already got Jessica a pretty intense gift for Christmas. She hoped that this wasn’t going over board.

 

 

 

Suddenly the family in front of them left the line and Sooyoung and Yuri could have sworn that the Lord above heard their desperate prayers. It looked like they were going to make it if they sprinted after purchasing their gifts. And then to their luck, another register opened up and truly they were saved from having to race back.

 

 

 

At a few stores closer to the meeting place, Taeyeon and Tiffany were looking in a sports store.

 

 

 

“We only have 10 minutes Fany,” Taeyeon mumbled worriedly as she browsed through clothes made specifically for training.

 

 

 

“I know! I already picked a really cute pair of shorts,” Tiffany replied as she walked over to Taeyeon, “Are you sure Yoona needs these? I was thinking of buying her a cute outfit for going out, not clothes for working out.”

 

 

 

Taeyeon nodded as she found a matching slim fit sleeveless shirt for the shorts, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure. Sooyoung mentioned a while back that Yoona’s been complaining about a lack of these sorts of clothes.”

 

 

 

Tiffany managed to drag Taeyeon away from Sungmin and Jessica after she finally brought herself to pick Sooyoung’s dress. She didn’t exactly ask for permission as she literally grabbed Taeyeon’s hand and dragged her out of the shop they were in.

 

 

 

“Thank you so much for your help Tae,” Tiffany said as the girls fast walked out of the store. They had 5 minutes left to get back to the meeting place. “I was just going to buy her a CD and a bunch of her favourite chocolates but this is a much better idea.”

 

 

 

“It’s hard to think on the spot for a good present, huh?” Taeyeon asked as she turned the two sharply at a corner, “I mean chocolates?”

 

 

 

“Hey! You know how much shikshin junior loves her sweets,” Tiffany pouted at Taeyeon’s teasing. They picked up their pace, “Aren’t we walking a little too fast?”

 

 

 

“You have a point, haha I guess it would’ve still been a good present,” Taeyeon replied a little out of breath since she was focused on getting to the meeting place on time. She held onto Tiffany tight as she almost tripped over through their rushing. “I’m pretty sure one of the other girls bought chocolates for everyone.”

 

 

 

Tiffany stopped replying as their speed walking turned into jogging and then to running. Taeyeon didn’t even have time to look at her phone for the time. As soon as the meeting place was in sight, the girls practically sprinted as Hyoyeon, Yuri and Sooyoung stood up on a couch and waved them down.

 

 

 

The other girls were cheering as if they were racing down the hall. They yelled, guessing who would cross first but Tiffany and Taeyeon never let each other go. All that could be heard were their screams and giggles as the two managed to make the time limit. They didn’t care that many passerbys were staring at them as if they were crazy and commenting on how they looked like children and not the teenage girls they seemed to be. But they didn’t care, they couldn’t hear them as the girls were in their own little world.