“I was right! It is Hyoyeon unnie!” A cute looking girl with wide eyes squealed happily clapping her hands like a seal.

“Nicole!” Hyoyeon grinned back and was almost tackled with a hug. It had been a while since she saw her dongseng.

“Watchuyoudoinghereunnie? Isn’titfun? Haveyoubeenherelong? Whatridesdidyougoon? Willyoubuymefoodunniee?” Normally a fast talker, the Korean American girl was even harder to decipher when she was in an excited mood.

“Not long. We got here arou-“

“Oppa!” a confident clear voice interrupted Hyoyeon even though the word was obviously not directed at her. Hyoyeon turned to look at the speaker – she already knew she must be Gyuri – and found a girl not much taller than herself – with long straight hair and prominent features. She was striking!

“Annyeong Gyuri,” Hyukjae replied with a smile. “Came to play?”

Gyuri nodded and then turned her gaze to Hyoyeon, “Who is .. oh! Is she the best friend you were talking about?”

The boy smiled widely and pulled Hyoyeon’s hand – tugging her out of Nicole’s embrace, “Yes I’m glad you two can finally meet! Hyoyeonah, meet Gyuri. Gyuri-Hyoyeon.”

Both girls bowed politely.

“Nice to finally meet you, Gyuri sshi,” Hyoyeon smiled at her genuinely – she wasn’t going to ruin it for Hyukjae. “I’ve heard so many wonderful things about you!”

“Oh really?” Gyuri seemed flattered as she laughed lightly, Turning away from Hyoyeon, she threw a beaming smile at Hyukjae, “I’m happy oppa is talking about me.”

“Uh.. eh.. of course,” he almost stuttered. ‘What was Hyoyeon talking about?’

“Hi oppa, I am Jung Nicole,” the effervescent girl smoothed out the awkward silence even though she was completely unaware of it. “Since you guys are by yourselves, how about we go play together!”

“Actually we-“ // “Sounds goo-“

Hyukjae and Hyoyeon responded simultaneously and then paused to look at each other.

Obviously, they had different opinions.

‘Sounds good? Really?’

‘Duh!’

‘Are you high?’

‘What do you mean?’

“What’s happening unnie?” a confused Nicole questioned Gyuri as her eyes darted back and forth between the best friends who had their eyes locked on each other. “Why do they look frozen? Is this some delayed mental trauma from the Gyro Drop? P.S we are so not going on that ride – never ever, no no no!”

The minor changes in their facial expressions and the subtle narrowing and widening of eyes were lost on her. Gyuri, on the other hand, was highly perceptive and what she was seeing was not to her liking. There seemed to be an argument going on between Hyukjae and Hyoyeon about hanging out with her and Nicole and from the looks of it, her boyfriend was not on her side.

‘Ya, Kim Hyoyeon, do you really want to spend our BFF time with them?’

‘No.’

‘That what the hell did you say “sounds good” for, you dumbo!’

‘I meant – I’ll spend my time with Cole. And you can spend your time with Gyuri shi.’

‘Mwoh ra go?’

‘You probably haven’t had a lot of time together because of practice so go on! Enjoy it! Thank me later by buying ice cream!’

‘You rea –‘

“Ommo unnie? Oppa? Please get back into your right mind! Wake up! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Nicole yelled loudly, jumping in the middle and waving her arms in front of them both.

Hyoyeon was the first to blink and look away. She smiled brightly at the younger girl while linking her arm through hers and then spoke to the whole group, “We’re going to ride the Atlantis!”

Hyukjae gaped after her in annoyance.

Meanwhile,

“Ahem!” Gyuri cleared trying to catch his attention. When he finally turned to her, she shot him a dazzling smile, “Shall we go ride the Balloon ride then, oppa? It’s so romantic up there!”

Hyukjae’s brows scrunched up in genuine confusion. “Balloon? But didn’t Hyo say Atlantis? Humm… I’m sure she did. Come on, let’s hurry and catch up to them. I owe that punk a flick on the forehead!”

Having caught sight of the two girls in the distance, he hurried his footsteps leaving Gyuri trailing behind as she tottered on her high heels.

“Hey.. Nicole? right? Do you mind if I sit with Hyoyeon?”

Hyoyeon’s head snapped back in surprise and this time, even the clueless Nicole seemed slightly taken aback too.

“S.. sure oppa…”

“Ya” Hyoyeon elbowed him violently, “go sit with Gyuri shi!”

“That hurts woman!” he glared at her before slipping into the line-up next to her. “But it’s our BFF day. She will understand.” He said it like it was the most normal thing in the world and perhaps, in the simple mind of Lee Hyukjae it was; but that left Hyoyeon b with confusion and overwhelming emotions.

On the one hand, she wanted to jump up and hug him tight for caring about her (even if it was just as a best friend), but on the other, she was just setting herself up for a bigger fall, wasn’t she?

“Hey daydreamer! It’s our turn.”

“Uh.. oh ok..” Hyoyeon glanced back briefly as Hyukjae grabbed her arm and pulled her towards their seats. Her stomach sank with guilt noticing Gyuri whose eyes were trained on their close contact with a blank expression on her face.

“Puhahahahhaa” Hyukjae clutched his stomach, exploding with laughter while pointing at the instant picture of the two of them on the ride. “What’s that face, Hyo? You look like a rabbit!” He squeezed her cheeks together to recreate the image and Hyoyeon quickly swatted his hand away. Even with her back turned to Gyuri, she could feel the heat of the older girl’s gaze on her.

“Ehem… Hyoyeon.. Hyoyeonnie?”

Hyoyeon was surprised that Gyuri was addressing her. “Yes, Gyuri shi?”

“Oh just call me unnie,” the older girl smiled, and the tension from Hyoyeon’s shoulders disappeared at the friendly gesture. “Ok, unnie!”

“Nicole has run off somewhere looking for cotton candy. Do you mind going to the ladies room with me?”

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hi readers! if i have any left, that is :( apologies for not updating for a long time. i was busy with school work and AP exams. that is not an excuse for not updating since april and this is not a good return chapter but i hastily wrote something up to end the dry spell. i will be back soon with another update so please read and comment. your support is forever loved and appreciated. thankyou