It’s been a long time since her last race. Too long. She hadn’t been counting, but now that she thought about it, the length of time surprised her. In the past, if anyone had asked her if she could go without racing for more than a month, she would’ve laughed at how ludicrous the question was. Who would’ve known…

“Tae, you ready?” Tiffany’s voice came through the ear piece.

“Ready.” Taeyeon was confident. It didn’t matter that Tiffany knew the roads better. She was just that much better a driver than Tiffany. She was going to win. She was going to be the one to put the ring on for Tiffany.

“May the best racer win.”

Taeyeon smirked. That would be her.

–

Tiffany was determined to win. She had a good chance, since she knew the roads inside out but she hadn’t raced since The Roulette. It was an uneasy feeling that accompanied her when she revved up her engine. The effects of the crash still haunted her in a way, but she pushed the doubts aside and focused on the task ahead. To win, and…

The countdown had begun. Red. Amber. Three, two, one, green. Brakes off, acceleration on. She was off and zooming.

The trick with these roads were the curves. Negotiating curves had always been her strength, mainly because she’d trained on these winding roads. The first acute turn came at the cross junction where Carbon Canyon Road met Hillside Drive. Braking only at the last possible moment, she managed to inch Taeyeon out of the lead and take the first position as she swerved left and pelted down the road.

The road curved to the left, then right, before splitting into a fork. There, she made another acute turn, this time, to the right, continuing the zoom down Hillside Drive. A relatively gentle inverted S-curve later, the road straightened out somewhat, with negligible curves down to the next left turn. It was a U-turn to the left, the road turning into the opposite direction from which she came from and another U-turn to the right awaited her at the end of the short stretch.

All this time, Taeyeon’s bumper was nose to nose with her. It was pressurizing but this was what she lived for—the challenge. Only Taeyeon could give her a challenge like this.

The road was straight as could be before it took a quarter turn to the right. The road after that was fairly straight as well. And that was all it took. She had no idea what Taeyeon did but she was losing the little ground she had and Taeyeon was close to overtaking her.

There was a quarter right turn at the end which she managed to oust Taeyeon just a nudge and she held on to the lead, just barely. Down she drive on Oak Way Lane and she floored the accelerator so hard she could feel it straining, switching to the brakes at the very last second to negotiate the quarter left turn back into Carbon Canyon Road.

She tore down the road, a gentle right and left curve not challenging her in the least and made the right turn and a quick left into Francis Drive. This was the tricky part. She had barely five seconds to slam on her brakes to complete two consecutive quarter right turns before hitting the straight down Hay Drive and two more quarter rights before a straight greeted her again.

Somehow, Taeyeon had not lost ground even after all those turns. How did Taeyeon manage all those turns with just a quick drive through and notes she’d given? How did Taeyeon keep up with her so well, given that she had trained on these roads since years ago? How in the world did Taeyeon get so good at racing?

There were no answers to that but answers weren’t what she was after. The win. That was what she wanted. The proposal, she would get, she knew. It was what Taeyeon wanted to do—that much she could see in her eyes. But this would be a dream come true for her. She had to win.

Taeyeon pulled up bumper to bumper with her and she could see the woman at the wheel when she sneaked a quick peek. That cost her too, for Taeyeon pulled ahead somehow and managed to stop her from hitting the apex. It was an insane turn, double apex and she focused her hardest on braking just in time to hit the acceleration again, without losing too much time and speed. Two left turns came after that and each time, Taeyeon would cut her off from the entry, forcing her to fall back.

The last stretch brought her through Rosemary Lane and taking the right fork let them back into Carbon Canyon Road. From then on, Taeyeon took the lead and she had to fight her darnedest to keep the distance between them to a minimal. The road was mildly curvy, and on the third curve left, she threw caution to the wind and nudged Taeyeon, touching their bumpers, to get the edge on the entry point. She managed to get it, forcing Taeyeon out of the racing line and from then on, she was fully focused on closing Taeyeon’s windows each time they popped up. Knowing every nuance of the road certainly helped.

Finally, she made the turn to get off Carbon Canyon Road and into Onyx Street, speeding down the short road to the end where she made a quick left and right turn, entering Diamond Street. That was it. She’d done it! She screamed internally as she pulled to a stop at the end of the street. Taeyeon was right beside her, reaching barely a second later.

Holy . She’d won. She’d won a race on her home turf.

“You nasty . You actually nudged me.” Taeyeon was striding towards her, with eyes aflame. “Did you have to resort to that dirty move to win?”

“Street racing is all about dirty,” she replied with a grin, standing her ground as Taeyeon advanced. “I won.”

“Yes, you ing won. So what do you ing want?”

Tiffany leaned in and gave her a good, long kiss. Pulling away with a smile, she reached into her car to retrieve her present for Taeyeon.

“What’s this?” Taeyeon asked, staring at the handsome velvet that covered the rectangular box. Tiffany refrained from explaining, allowing Taeyeon some time to process the situation. It didn’t take long. Two seconds later, Taeyeon opened it and gasped. “. This is beautiful.”

Tiffany picked up the platinum silver chain and swung the ring that was on it. It sparkled under the bright headlights, its little diamonds encrusted all around reflecting light off them, and looked even more spectacular than it did at the store. “A gem for a gem.” She unclasped the chain and stepped closer to Taeyeon to put it around her neck. “It’s yours, like how I’m yours.”

“Tiffany, this must be ing expensive.”

“Paul got me a good price for it.”

“Paul?”

Tiffany grinned. “He’s back here in LA, you know. I got the recommendation from him.”

“You’re such a sneaky sly fox.”

Tiffany laughed. “I won’t deny the fact. But please, accept the ring and what I have to say.”

Taeyeon held the ring, entranced by its sparkle. “What do you have to say?”

“I want you to promise me you’ll always be good to yourself. No matter what.”

“What? Aren’t you going to ask me to marry you?”

Tiffany shook her head.

“Why the not?” Taeyeon’s eyes were wide open, stunned.

“I’ll leave that to you. I like the idea of you doing all the work to propose.” Tiffany winked.

Taeyeon narrowed her eyes. You know exactly what I planned, don’t you.”

Tiffany blinked. “W—What did you plan?”

Taeyeon grabbed her hand and she followed the woman around to the back of her car. “Stand here,” she instructed and Tiffany did just that. Her heart was thumping, wild with excitement. It was getting hard to breathe. There was a click and the boot opened as Taeyeon lifted it.

She couldn’t breathe.

The boot was full of roses, pink and red, clustered into pink and red hearts. It was romantic. And disgusting. How was Taeyeon even capable of doing something as disgustingly romantic as this? She couldn’t handle it.

Taeyeon pulled her closer and that was when she realized, a little blue box was attached to the boot cover. “Get it down,” said Taeyeon.

With trembling hands, she reached for the box and pulled it from its fasteners. . This was a ing engagement ring. Holy . Did she dare to open the box?

“Open it.”

Tiffany inhaled. She opened the box and found herself staring at an elegant, simple ring with a beautiful rock sitting right on top of it.

“Do you like it?”

Tiffany stared at it, unable to speak.

“You still want to marry me, right?”

“It’s beautiful. Oh my God, Tae. It’s so beautiful.”

“As a winning racer once said, a gem for a gem.” Taeyeon grinned. “So, the lady likes the ring, it seems.”

Tiffany nodded, unable to take her eyes off it. Taeyeon plucked the ring from the box and took Tiffany’s left hand.

“You’re gonna marry me,” she said, sliding the ring onto Tiffany’s finger. Their fingers interlaced and they held their hands tight, smiling uncontrollably.

Tiffany pressed her palm over the ring resting on Taeyeon’s chest. “Promise me you’ll always be good to yourself. You’ll come to me when you need help. You’ll yell at me when you’re angry. Promise me you won’t hold back. You’ll share everything with me, because I’ll share everything with you.”

Their eyes held fast and Tiffany felt as though she were falling into a galaxy of stars as Taeyeon blinked and said, “I promise. I’ll share everything with you because you’re gonna be my wife.”

“I love you,” Tiffany whispered.

“I love you too,” Taeyeon whispered back.

And like a pair of swans, drawn inexplicably to each other, they kissed.

–

Later that night, they fell into Tiffany’s bed and went to sleep in each other’s arms. Taeyeon wasn’t sure what to make of her feelings as she lay there, their heads side by side. She thought it was something beautiful when her breaths fell in sync with Tiffany’s. She thought it was something wonderful when Tiffany’s hands slipped into hers. She thought it was something incredible when Tiffany’s lips found hers, meeting briefly for a goodnight kiss. But beyond all that, what she couldn’t fully comprehend, was the miracle that gave her the chance to meet Tiffany, her wife-to-be.

–

Morning came as it was expected to. The most ethereal morning too, in Taeyeon’s opinion. Sun rays had seeped into their room, illuminating everything around them in a warm, orange glow. And Tiffany never looked more beautiful as she slept on. For a moment, she was reminded of the time when Tiffany couldn’t respond to anything she said or did. That thought gripped her heart with an icy cold hand but Tiffany shifted and the cold hand released her heart from its prison. Tiffany was alright now. The worst was over. She had gotten her back from the precipice of forever goodbye. Taeyeon closed her eyes and thanked the miracle that had returned the love of her life to her.Thank you. Thanks for giving her back to me.

–

She must have fallen asleep again because Tiffany was shaking her.

“Wake up, sleepy girl.”

Taeyeon smiled and stretched and yawned. “I woke up earlier, okay.”

“Oh? Why didn’t you wake me up then.”

Taeyeon scratched the itch on her . “Couldn’t bear to. You looked so peaceful.”

Tiffany leaned down and give her a loud smacking kiss on her lips. “I love you. So, so much.”

Urgh. Tiffany was going to kill her with cheese and mush. Taeyeon grabbed Tiffany, pulling her down so that she collapsed onto her chest. “I know. That’s why you bumped me into second place last night, right?”

“Sore loser.”

“Dirty racer.”

“Dirty lover.”

Taeyeon grinned. “That’s true. I’m very, very dirty. Downright dirty. But you love how dirty I am. You want dirty. You crave dirty,” she quipped, fingers slipping under Tiffany’s tank top to grip her lover’s waist and slide up her back. Tiffany grinned back and nuzzled her neck.

“Mmm, I want some dirty right now.”

“First thing in the morning?”

“Yes, I want my pre-breakfast snack.”

Taeyeon closed her lips around Tiffany’s and playfully held her bottom lip between her teeth, tugging it, teasing her. Meanwhile, her hands slipped down and under Tiffany’s cotton boyshorts. “I like your,” she breathed, cupping Tiffany’s derriere with her hands, “pre-breakfast snack idea. But your father will be waiting for us downstairs.”

Tiffany wiggled her . “We have time for a practice lap.”

“A practice lap?”

“You know. A qui—”

Taeyeon kissed her and she said no more.

–

Taeyeon went down the stairs with Tiffany for breakfast after their ‘practice lap’. It had been unbelievably surreal to wake up and see the ring on Tiffany’s finger, right in front of her eyes. Holy , they’d just proposed to each other last night. With rings and ing promises. She’d done the very thing that she hadn’t planned on doing before. How did she end up engaged? It was unreal.

Tiffany on the other hand, was acting like a shopaholic thrown into a mall the size of a World Cup stadium, armed with a limitless credit card.

“Daddy! Look!” she chirped, wriggling her fingers in her father’s face. Taeyeon sat at the table and buttered a toast. Tiffany would do all the telling.

Uncle Hwang stared at the rock on Tiffany’s finger. Then, he turned to Taeyeon, who was focused on buttering her toast and smiled. “You proposed last night.”

Taeyeon looked up as Tiffany grinned. “Yes, she did! With a boot full of roses, Daddy. You should have seen it.”

“I’ve seen it, hon’.”

“You have?” Tiffany looked from her father to Taeyeon who was now buttering her second piece of toast with the straightest face she could muster.

“Taeyeon came to me for help. I helped her to find a florist.”

Tiffany’s eyes opened wide. “So that’s how you did it.” She bent and kissed Taeyeon’s cheek. “You little sneak.”

“She told me about her plans and I was worried she couldn’t beat you because she would be too nervous about it to focus on the race.”

“I did wonder how Taeyeon managed to get the flowers into the boot without letting me find out. Oh my God, Daddy, I can’t believe you knew all this time. You knew this entire week.”

“I’m good, aren’t I.”

Tiffany flung her arms around her father and hugged him. “You’re the best. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, honey.”

–

Stephanie came over to join them for a picnic in the park later that day and Tiffany flashed the rock in her face as well. Taeyeon watched as Stephanie stared at it. The woman held Tiffany’s hand and turned it this way and that, studying it for a fair bit before finally sitting back.

“It’s really beautiful.”

“I know, right!” Tiffany chirped—she’d been chirpy from the moment she woke up. “I was really surprised by her proposal. I didn’t expect her to do it right there. But it’s the perfect proposal.” Tiffany’s smile was close to outshining the sun. “It’s everything I never knew I wanted.”

“Sounds perfect! I’m happy for you, Steph.” Stephanie hugged Tiffany and patted her head. “You’ve got your happy ending at last.”

“Taeyeon, she’s my happy ending.”

“Aww, you two are too sweet. Let me look at the ring again.”

Taeyeon busied herself with the egg salad, they had brought. She still wasn’t entirely sure about Stephanie but Tiffany had explained things and she had to accept it. She would give Stephanie the benefit of the doubt for now.

“So what’s your next step? When are you officiating it? Are you gonna move here? Uncle is going to miss you if you go back to Seoul.”

“I have to go back to Seoul. I have a job there.”

“You can always get a job here.”

“Taeyeon’s job and family are in Seoul too. Our lives are in Seoul.”

“What about your dad then.”

Tiffany shook her head and sighed. “I know he misses me. I miss him too. But it can’t be helped.”

Taeyeon didn’t like where this was going. “Tiffany knows what she’s doing,” she snapped.

Stephanie turned to Taeyeon. “You don’t have to be so sensitive. I’m not stopping her from doing what she wants but I’m the one who sees how much Uncle misses her. He doesn’t say it, but I can sense it.”

“Are you trying to make Tiff feel bad and give up her life in Seoul and stay here because her dad misses her?”

“I’m not trying to make her give up anything. I’m just telling things as they are.”

“And what’s that supposed to do for Tiff?”

“Taeyeon. Stop it.”

Taeyeon turned to Tiffany, a rising anger threatening to spill over. “What?”

“Stop it.” Tiffany took her hand. “This is between me and Steph.”

“Fine.” Taeyeon pulled her hand away. “Then I’ll leave you two to it. I’m outta here.” She stood, swatted her legs free of dirt and strode away. Steph and her emotional blackmail meddling.

–