Chapter five: Proximate

            There is a fine line between like and love. I wasn’t even sure I had liked her in that way and love, well love was an obstacle I wasn’t ready to conquer. It seemed dreading and horrible. Maybe I had read too many books, maybe I had watched too many movies but without a doubt in my mind I could say love was such a serious matter. Love is different for everyone though, isn’t it? me, I haven’t even known her that long and yet here I am. Thinking about love and liking her.

Taeyeon didn’t say anything, she kept quiet by kissing my lips. Kissing me on my open mouth as her tongue touched mine. And all the coldness that had enveloped me earlier faded as my body was consumed by fire.

I melted into her, sort of like the waves crashing onto the shore. It just seemed right. Taeyeon’s hand rubbed my numbed waist as she suddenly dipped them down wrapping them around the back of my thighs and lifting me up. I wasn’t as shocked as I would be because the water gave the effect that I was as light as a feather. My legs came to slither around her small waist as I continued to kiss her. It was far better, far sweeter than our first shared kiss.

It wasn’t a spur of the moment, it wasn’t leaving me in confusing utter shock. It was just Taeyeon kissing me and me kissing back.

She backs away, indicating that in fact it is far different than our first kiss.

“Tiffany…” she breathes out only to gasp when my legs bring her closer; tighter to my body. I was feeling exasperated because I had never felt so wild before in my entire life. And I couldn’t help to think it was all because of Taeyeon. Taeyeon, Taeyeon, Taeyeon.

I never really had this effect on anybody. The effect of having them gasp in need, or gasp in shock. The effect of having them not really knowing what to do with me or where to place me in their lives. Sort of like how Taeyeon was to me.

“We should go before it gets too late” she says but pushes harder against me “I don’t want to drive home so late at night.” My arms rest around her neck and for a moment when I stare into her eyes I think to myself; what the hell am I doing? Kissing someone I don’t really know. And wanting to kiss them again, again, again, and again. I was starting to think that I was losing it, my sanity and she was to blame. It gnawed at me and nagged me.  

“Okay.” The thought before renders me to defeat, I should just stop. Even though the action doesn’t erase away just like that. You can’t just stop your heart from beating fast. You can’t just stop the churning in your stomach, you can’t just stop yourself from wanting to kiss her. Because life isn’t that easy; oh if only it were that easy.

Taeyeon lets go of me and immediately I miss her warmth. The coldness seeps back into my skin and hugs my bones and the amount of time that had passed us is unknown, but the loud screams of joy from afar where the life of the party had been seemed to die down.

------

“I forgot towels.” I speak sifting through the purple backpack.

Taeyeon shrugs “It’s fine.” she says as she squeezes the water out from her hair. “You’ll just have to dry me up…” she stares at me as I raise an eyebrow before she breaks out in laughter that fills the summer night air. “I’m joking” she says as her laughter dies down and she shakes her head. “That was stupid” she mumbles under her breath.

It was a cute attempt I wanted to say, but kept my mouth shut.

“Crap,” I sighed.

“What?” she asks.

“I forgot my spare underwear and clothes, I didn’t think I’d actually get in the water today,” I paused—since I hate it.

“Your shirt is still dry and you brought an extra pair of shorts.” She points out.

I look at her “Then what am I going to wear underneath? I hate being wet.” I huff out, looking down at what we have to work with.

“Just do what I’m going to do.” I look at her and my eyes trail down to her tattoo, it’s pretty and it looks nice against her skin.

“What are you going to do?” my eyes fall back on her face.

For a moment she stands still, the light of the moon caressing her as her hands grip the hem of her bikini bottom.

“Commando!” she yanks her bikini underwear down as I quickly look away.

“Oh my gosh Taeyeon!” I squeal as she chuckles and I hear something zip, which I’m assuming to be her jean shorts. I can’t believe she was right behind me.

I cover my face with my hands as if she was standing right in front of me, I felt my heart do flips in the cavity of my chest.

“I’ve got my shorts on Tiff.” I hear her chuckle again as something goes flying over ending up in front of me.  The wet sound takes my attention and I notice it’s her bikini top.

“There,” she huffs out “All dressed, you can look now.” I turn my body not before picking up her top and handing it to her, I feel my face flush at the smirk she gives me.

“Your turn,” my eyes widen.

“What?” I utter out.

“You heard me, now strip Hwang. Let me see you strip!” I smack her on the arm trying to look angry as I point to the vast space behind her.

“Around Kim Taeyeon.” it was the first time I said her full name in scolding and it was oddly satisfying “Around.” I repeat.

She rolls her eyes and slumps around, “Okay, okay.”

“Don’t look!” I say quickly riding myself of my wet top hastily putting on my shirt.

“I’m serious!” I grab my bottoms giving Taeyeon one last suspicious look.

“I’m not! Just hurry up!” she retorts and I take the chance and take off my bottoms hurriedly putting on my shorts and zipping them up.

I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding “I’m done.”

I realize the entire skit was so damn childish, we were both girls, we both had the same parts why be so embarrassed? I didn’t know.

We sat on the sand placing the shoes on our feet before Taeyeon stretches her legs out, letting out a tired sigh.

“What a long but nice day.” I hear her say as she lets her hands play with the sand, watching the tiny grains slip through her fingers.

“You didn’t even enjoy your party.” I say in return looking out onto the calm now dark ocean, hearing the wave’s crash against the shore, over and over again.

“Yeah but I enjoyed you.” she said it almost romantically “I mean your company here with me, I didn’t want to come but you made it worthwhile.” 

I didn’t ask why she didn’t want to come, it had been evident all day that she was dreading this party. But if she wanted to tell me, I’d like to think that she would. So there was no point in asking.

“Yeah it was a nice day huh?” she nods at my agreement.

I felt a rumble in my stomach, but the look on Taeyeon’s face told me she didn’t even want to go and say her goodbyes to anybody, let alone get me some food that was bound to be there.

“C’mon.” she stood up dusting the sand off her bottom as she held a hand out to me, I grabbed it as she pulled me up next to her. I felt so close to her today. It was almost scary.

“I’ll buy you food on the way home.” I silently said my thank you as she led me off the beach and away from the place where she had kissed me for the second time.

------

I stood by the Kawasaki bike waiting for Taeyeon to return, surprisingly she had went to say her goodbyes.

I waited and waited till I saw the black silhouette of a girl headed towards me. It wasn’t hard to notice it was Taeyeon.

The smile on her face had led me to believe everything had went okay and I was thankful for that.

“Ready?” she held the keys up, jingling it in the air as I nodded my head.

“Ready” I replied, watching her slip on the back, as I slid behind her. This time way less anxious. The roar was all the same, leaving butterflies in my stomach.

“What do you want to eat?” I heard her say before she slowly made her way out of the lot.

“Anything.” I said in reply, I was fine as long as I was with her. And that was the absolute truth.

Taeyeon took a left on the empty long road leading back to beating organ called Tokyo and this time I didn’t raise my hands up in the air, I didn’t yell with excitement, I just wrapped my arms around her waist tightly, holding on to her, resting my head against the warmness of her back.

------

We got home and the room was dark, pitch black.

“Ouch!” Taeyeon banged her toe against the bedpost.

I busted out in incontrollable laughter, she just sighed out to me laughing softly “Shut up” she giggled.

My laughter died down and the silence consumed us both. It felt like we were staring at each other for the longest time.

Her eyes boring into my own and I felt my heart beat hard against my chest bone.

I saw her bottom lip jutting out and I just had an urge to pull it between my teeth. So lunging forward I did so, I heard a loud groan from Taeyeon who squealed as she fell back onto the bed.

It was almost animalistic the way I crawled on her, pinned both her wrist above her head and kissed her. I kissed her hard, so hard I felt our teeth clashing. I felt her skin brush against mine from below, her thighs touching mine. She bent her knees upward as she lifted her head slightly to get more of my lips on her own.

Grazing my bottom lip with her tongue, I let out a sigh. Like I needed to kiss her all along and in a way I did. It felt right to kiss her, it felt new, but it felt right.

Slowly I let go of her wrist, my body pressing against her own as her hands crawled down the sides of my body resting at my waist.  She tugs at my shirt and I allow her to lift it up and over my head.

The cold air hits my body and I gasp. I forgotten I had nothing protecting me underneath.

I’ve never been too proud of my body but being so vulnerable like this in front of Taeyeon, to her eyes, it didn’t seem to matter.

“Tiffany…” she breathes out staring at me with soft eyes, lust. Lust was all I saw.

She kisses me slowly, her arm reaching out and grabbing my shirt once again as her lips let mine go.

“Here” she brings the shirt to me and places it back on my body. She moves her own body a little to the left, taking the side of the bed that’s touching the wall as she pats the spot next to her.

I was left a bit confused but surely I understood, though a big part of me wanting to be able to know what Taeyeon was thinking in that moment.

I lay myself in that spot, her arm under my head as she scoots herself more towards me this time. I feel her head rest against my own as she breathes out.

She doesn’t say anything and neither do I. We just enjoyed having each other close I suppose, or at least I did.

And soon all I see is black, I had fallen asleep in Taeyeon’s arms. The proximity almost fatal.

------ 

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Hope you liked the chapter~! Tell me what you thought.