| Chapter Eleven |

“You tried to do what?!” Never in Taeyeon’s wildest dreams did she think it possible for the world to be so small. Or maybe it was just Seoul, whatever. Who would have thought her girlfriend and best friend worked in the same company?

“Calm your , Taeng. I was playing around. Don’t worry; she did not fall for any of my lines… which kinda makes her weird but as long as you love each other, I don’t really care.” Yoona zipped her jacket up a little tighter and stuffed her hands into its cozy pockets.

“She also called you ‘short’.” By Taeyeon’s side was Tiffany, who intertwined their fingers as she threw the annoying gooseberry a playful glare.

“Come on, do you wanna see Taengoo and I fall out that badly? You’re dealing with ten years of solid bond here. Give it up.” Yoona rolled her eyes, glancing at the many other couples that crowded the mall and shuddering a little.

“Yah, I’m seriously starting to regret allowing you to tag along on our date. Hitting on Fany was not okay, is not okay, and will never be okay, you hear?” A threatening look made a rare appearance on the girl’s face but faded soon after. She simply could not find it in herself to get mad at her best friend.

“My, my. Protective, aren’t we?” Yoona snickered, obviously not the least bit daunted.

“Im Yoona.”

“Alright, alright. I get it.”

Turning her attention back to her girlfriend, Taeyeon asked, “Is there anything else you’d like to do?”

“Mm, not really. I do have a stack of reports waiting to be vetted, though.” Tiffany scrunched her nose up at the thought.

“Can you two get more boring? You’re out on a date, for Heaven’s sake. And it’s barely evening. There’s so much to do.” Inevitably, ideas of what she would do with Jessica instantly popped up in Yoona’s mind. They would visit so many places together, go on delicious food escapades, shop for hours on end, and so much more.

It slightly surprised her that she actually thought of wanting to spend time with a girl doing proper, fun, and meaningful activities other than just having all day long. Come to think of it, she had never been on an actual date before.

“What would you suggest then, genius?” Taeyeon paused in her tracks and shot the girl a questioning look.

“Seriously? You’re asking a third party to spice up your date for you?”

“Why not?” Tiffany replied.

“Hmm…” Eyes skimming the surroundings, Yoona snapped her fingers the moment she spotted an arcade, “That’s it!”

The couple stared on, waiting for her to continue.

“Now, I’m gonna assume Tiffany’s into teddy bears. I’m also gonna go ahead and say that Tae’s good at that claw game thing, though I’ve never seen her play. Look at that giant teddy sitting there. Isn’t that the cutest thing? You’d want one for yourself, wouldn’t you Tiffany?”

“Uh, honestly… nope.”

Taeyeon hastened to add, “Wrong assumption. As a matter of fact, she hates teddy bears. One time I tried to--”

“We are going to that arcade right this minute and you’re gonna get her a teddy bear, Taeng. Let’s go.” Yoona marched off. The pair could only shrug and follow since they had no better ideas.

---

Inspecting her watch for the third time, Yoona chuckled to herself, watching Taeyeon’s brows knit at another failed attempt, “Okay, I take back what I so carelessly presumed about you being good at this game. You stink. Big time.”

“Oh, don’t listen to her. Hwaiting, Taetae! I know you can do it!” Tiffany cheered the girl on as she agitatedly slammed another coin into the slot, all ready to take another shot at the ridiculous game. She squared her shoulders and rubbed her hands together before grabbing the joystick once more.

“Aww… look at that, how sweet,” Yoona cooed, feeling mildly jealous that the couple was so loving.​

“Almost there… almost… just a little bit more… yes, come on… oh, man, no!” Taeyeon pounded her fists against the glass box agitatedly. Seconds later, she slipped a hand into her pocket to pull out another coin before dunking it into the slot.

“Three days later…” Yoona cracked a joke, which earned no response since the duo was focused on getting Mr. Teddy.

“So, uh, Tiffany, how long have you known Jessica for?” Started the girl again.

“Known her since high school. Why?” The redhead answered, eyes still on the soft toy.

“I just… well, you know… I…”

“She has a ginormous crush on your best friend, that’s why,” Taeyeon interjected, grunting in annoyance when she was unsuccessful again.

“Pretty obvious considering all the silly things you’ve done in the office trying to get her attention. All that late-coming and those less than perfect reports you’ve been turning in – uh-uh, not gonna work.”

“Yah, I didn’t mean you should compromise the standard of your work when I told you to strategize, Yoong.” Taeyeon took a break from the game to comment.

“It seemed logical at that time, alright? I’ve sorted that out with her already,” the girl argued, crossing her arms.

“Look, Yoona, I don’t wanna be a wet blanket here but I don’t think Jess is ready for a relationship. At least not at the moment,” Tiffany stated as straightforwardly as she could, watching the girl’s expression grow a little dim.

“She told you that?”

“Not exactly. But from what I’ve gathered through my daily conversations with her, that’s what it seems.”

“Has she ever been in a relationship before? I mean, ever since you got to know her,” Yoona probed deeper, expecting to milk as much valuable informat