Yoona was halfway through dolling up when Taeyeon returned to her room. From her long, silky straight hair to the flowing dress of emerald green parting nicely to flash a portion of her thigh, her sister-to-be was a vision of charm and devastating femininity.

“Yoong, you look stunning. You’re going to be the prettiest girl at the party tonight.”

Yoona blushed, her lips curling into a shy little smile. “Do you really think so?”

“I don’t just think so. I know so.”

“Thanks, unnie.”

Taeyeon grinned. “Now, help me out with the dress up. I need to impress people.”

“You? Impress people? When did you start caring about things like that?”

“Ever since I fell in love with Tiffany.”

It was Yoona’s turn to grin. “So it’s just one person you’re looking to impress—seduce, you mean?”

“The one and only. So help me, okay.”

“You can count on me.” Yoona gave her a once over and nodded. “Let’s get started.”

–

An hour later, Taeyeon looked into the mirror and saw somebody else. Somebody else with lovely curled lashes lining artfully drawn out eyes. Lush hair cascading down her shoulders like a dark, dark waterfall frozen in time. Pink lips, begging to be kissed.

“Holy . What did you do to my face? And my hair?”

“I know I’m good,” Yoona replied, wearing a smug grin. “You can thank me after Tiffany unnie is seduced. Do you want me to clear out of the way? I can always spend the night at Seohyun’s.”

“Like you weren’t already planning to do that.”

“I wasn’t.”

“Liar.”

“I stand falsely accused by my sister,” Yoona clapped her palm over her chest, feigning an expression of pain, “and it hurts so deep.”

“Yeah, yeah. Go. Run along to your girlfriend and ditch me.”

“Coming from you…”

Taeyeon grinned and burst out laughing. “Oh my God. Your face. I will need you to stand in front of me with that twisted look and make me laugh when the reporters show up.”

“Oh, about that—”

“I know, I know. Tiffany scolded me for it earlier.”

“The smiling thing?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, ‘cos Dad wanted me to remind you to be polite to the reporters.”

Taeyeon sighed. “I’ll smile. I promised Tiff I would.”

“Good. Which means we’re ready for the party,” Yoona chirped and linked arms with her. “”Let’s go!”

–

The place was already swarming with people when Taeyeon arrived with Yoona. She walked down the red carpet to the big white tent and looked for Tiffany along the way but didn’t spot her.

“We have to look for Daddy at the VIP table,” said Yoona.

“Why don’t you go look for him. I’ll hang around here and—”

“No. You’re coming with me.” Yoona looked at her seriously. “Daddy will want to see you.”

Taeyeon obliged, albeit rather reluctantly, and found herself in the company of automobile and racing industry heavyweights. CEOs, directors and chairmen, all of whom seemed pleased to see her. Remembering Tiffany’s words, she put on the best smile she could and shook everybody’s hand. She managed to make her escape after enduring some small talk and left the VIP area with Yoona in tow.

“You must come to every event with me in future, Taeyeon unnie.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re my passport to freedom. If it weren’t for you, Dad would never have let me leave his side.”

“Why do I have this feeling I’m being made used of?”

Yoona simply grinned. “Take it as a form of rescue, okay? It’s a good deed.”

“Right. So I’m done with my good deed quota for the day. Now, may I look for Tiff?”

“Sure,” Yoona giggled, “go ahead. I’ll be looking for Seohyun too.”

“The two of you are playing with fire.”

“What’s life without a little excitement?”

Taeyeon looked on as Yoona skipped off in search of her girlfriend. She smiled. Tiffany was out there, somewhere. Her girlfriend was waiting to be found.

–

The number of people who recognized her and approached to talk to her had more than doubled. This was somewhat troubling for her since it hindered her search for Tiffany. Natsushima nodded and smiled as she passed her by. She was a humble opponent Taeyeon would have liked to be friends with, but conversation with her was difficult as they did not share a common language that both were proficient in. Cara and the Jung sisters were within sight as well but she was focused on finding Tiffany first.

It was hard to search for a person in this crowd. Not to mention the dim surroundings. And the heavy bass coming through the amplifiers around them. She headed to the bar and flashed the stamp on her wrist to get a drink. Some tequila would be nice. Armed with a drink, she resumed her search for Tiffany. Strangely, the woman was nowhere to be found. She was sure she had walked a full circle round the tent by now. Just then, Hayeon came running up to her.

“Unnie! I’ve been looking for you!”

“Hayeon.” Taeyeon opened her arms and welcome her sister with a warm hug. Then, she pulled away and frowned. “Why are you running about by yourself.”

Hayeon rolled her eyes. “Unnie, I’m not a kid anymore. I can take care of myself.”

“It’s dark and people are drinking which means some are gonna be drunk. Where’s Uncle Im? Where’s Mother?”

“Mummy is with Uncle Im and the other boring people,” Hayeon pouted, “I don’t wanna hang around them.”

“They actually let you roam about by yourself?” Taeyeon asked in disbelief.

“Well, unlike you, they know that I can take care of myself.”

“Well, unlike them, I’m not gonna let you roam about. Stay close to me.”

Hayeon slipped her arms around Taeyeon’s and grinned. “That’s the plan!”

Just then, the music was muted and a voice announced the prize giving segment of the after party. Various prizes were to be awarded: Miss Congeniality, Miss Jaywalker, Miss Traffic Officer and more. It was for nothing more than jokes and Taeyeon wasn’t that interested but Hayeon insisted on squeezing past the crowd to get closer to the stage.

“And Miss Congeniality goes to…our second runner up, Cara!” the host announced. “Voted by our panel of judges—mainly me, myself and I—she is chosen for her gorgeous smile!”

Taeyeon watched as Cara made her way up the stage to the host. She accepted the little trophy and prize envelope with a killer smile and made a short but cheeky thank you speech. More laughs rang out as they awarded Miss Jaywalker to a racer who had legs that went on forever.

“Equipped with the lengthiest legs ever…the winner of the Miss Jaywalker trophy and prize is none other than…Jodie!”

The racer mentioned went up the stage with an exaggerated stride and drew more laughs from the audience. Appreciative applause was given when she displayed her long legs (indeed, she was much taller than the average person, standing at almost 1.9 metres tall) and cheers were heaped on as she thanked her parents for gifting her with such a wonderful body part.

Taeyeon was about to ask Hayeon to leave with her when she heard her name over the amplifiers.

“And next, winning the title of Miss Mystery for being just so deliciously mysterious, Taeyeon!”

What? Me? Miss Mystery? What?

“It’s you, it’s you. Oh my God, this is so cool. Unnie, you won a prize!” Hayeon was beside herself with excitement but Taeyeon wasn’t at all keen to go up the stage and face everyone. Her sister didn’t give her a choice, however, and she was pushed up the steps and onto the stage by a beaming kid sister.

“Congratulations, Taeyeon! The trophy and prize are yours!”

Taeyeon accepted the trophy and prize envelope, not knowing what else she could do.

“Now it’s time for Miss Mystery to unravel some of the mystery. Tell us something about yourself that nobody knows.”

Taeyeon blinked under the bright lights. Tell them something about herself? Something that nobody knows? That would be a secret. She didn’t want to share her secrets. But the microphone was in her hand and eyes all over the tent were staring at her and her innards shook. What could she possibly say?

Her eyes scanned the crowd below as her mind tried not to panic. All these strangers were staring at her, waiting. Tiffany! She was right there. Their eyes met and the frantic mess that was her mind was calmed in that instant. She knew what she could say now.

“I’ve never told anyone about this.” Taeyeon paused to take a deep breath. “The reason why I decided to join Ssamyoong and become a professional racer. It’s all because of one person.” She smiled at Tiffany. “This person has become very important to me. She brings happiness to me and if she ever leaves, it’s like she’ll take all my happiness away with her. She has always given a lot of herself to me and scolds me when I don’t give back to her in return. She makes me wanna be a better person. She makes ‘trying’ worth it. So I decided to try something that I had said I’ll never do.” Taeyeon exhaled and inhaled. “I wanna thank this person.” She flashed her brightest smile at Tiffany and said, “Thank you, Tiffany.”

All eyes followed her line of vision and turned to where Tiffany stood…quivering? The sudden roar of applause startled her, snapping her out of her little trance. Driven by a force unknown to her, she walked down the stage to Tiffany and threw her arms around the stunned woman looking absolutely beautiful in a velvety black dress.

“I love you, Tiffany. I love you so much,” she whispered in Tiffany’s ear.

The arms that had wrapped around her tightened their grip and drew her even closer. “You just made me love you even more, Taeyeon, my love.”

Taeyeon smiled and buried her face in Tiffany’s curls, ignoring the flashes of light all around the two of them. them all. This was her life, her moment. With Tiffany, her love.

–

About a year later…

With a hand resting happily on Tiffany’s thigh, Taeyeon drove the pink Cadillac they had rented towards the drive-thru window. Out of the thousand different ways they could have chosen, this felt the most suitable. Taeyeon couldn’t keep her grin off her face as they approached the window. It had been such a random moment when she chanced upon this on the internet. The idea had stuck the instant she saw the pictures and she’d even gone as far as to make reservations even before discussing it with Tiffany.

But just as she’d expected, Tiffany loved the idea too and looked through the list of options they were given with the excitement level of a child who’d just won a year’s worth of their favourite ice cream.

1. Choice of transport – Pink Cadillac (of course)
2. Bouquet – #2
3. Colour of flowers – Pink (of course)
4. Additional – Bag of petals
5. Photo options – 75 digital
6. DVD – Yes

They decided on a date, booked it and reserved plane tickets to Las Vegas. And now, here they were.

“Oh my God, Taeyeon, I can’t believe we’re actually doing this.”

“We are. And it’s ing cool.”

“It is.” Tiffany’s smile was blinding. “I love that it’s just the two of us right now.” She giggled. “I love that our families have to wait till tomorrow for the chapel.”

“Me too.” Taeyeon squeezed Tiffany’s thigh and grinned. “You ready for this?”

“I’ve been waiting for weeks and weeks for this. I’m ready.”

“Alright. We’re doing it.” Taeyeon pulled the car to a stop and propped her left arm out the window. A smiling woman was leaning out the drive-thru window with a piece of paper in her hands.

“Taeyeon and Tiffany, hi girls.”

“Hi,” Taeyeon and Tiffany replied.

“I’m Dr Anderson and I’ll be your master of ceremony. Have you got your rings ready?”

“Yeah,” Taeyeon and Tiffany replied.

“How long have you been a couple?”

Taeyeon looked at Tiffany and smiled. “About two and a half years.”

“Alright, it’s time to hold hands.”

Taeyeon took Tiffany’s hand with pleasure. Those delicate, tough hands that knew no mercy both on the track and in the bedroom, or living room, or kitchen, or bathroom…

“Taeyeon and Tiffany, you’ve come today to celebrate one of life’s greatest moments, to be joined in holy matrimony. A wife and wife, to not only be each other’s best friend but lovers, confidante, teacher as well as student. Taeyeon and Tiffany, may you spend each day of the rest of your lives creating wonderful memories together and cherish the love and joy that you bring to each other.”

The exquisite expression of love on Tiffany’s face was almost more than Taeyeon could handle. Tears were blurring her vision and she had to blink to clear it, to see the warm glow of love in Tiffany’s eyes.

“Today, Taeyeon, do you take Tiffany to be your wife and promise to love, honour, cherish and protect her, forsaking all others as long as you both shall live?”

Taeyeon could only hope that her voice wouldn’t break as she answered, “I do.”

“And Tiffany, do you take Taeyeon to be your wife and promise to love, honour, cherish and protect her, forsaking all others as long as you both shall live?”

“I do.”

The blood in Taeyeon’s body rushed to her head and roared in her ears. I do! Tiffany said I do!

“You may exchange your rings.”

Taeyeon could barely hear what the master of ceremony was saying anymore. She blinked as she plucked Tiffany’s ring out of its box and tried not to tremble as she held up Tiffany’s hand. She repeated the vow read out by the master of ceremony and slipped the ring onto Tiffany’s finger when she was told to. When it was Tiffany’s turn to do the same, Taeyeon stared at the ring as it hovered near the tip of her finger. Everything was so real yet so surreal.

Her life with Tiffany after returning home from T.I.T.S was one that was filled with lots of laughs and smiles. Her confession had rocketed them to worldwide recognition as all the press present at the after party published an article about it the very next day.

RACERS IN LOVE
THE T&T LOVE STORY
EPIC LOVE ON THE TRACK
SSAMYOONG TAEYEON TELLS ALL
MISS MYSTERY TELLS HER SECRET
HYUNDAE AND SSAMYOONG LOVE AFFAIR

It turned out to work in their favour. They were surprised to receive well wishes pouring in from people from different countries. Their coverage in media helped to promote woman’s racing and thanks to that, the achievements that female racers had amassed was cast into the limelight for the first time. The industry rallied on Taeyeon’s success at T.I.T.S and hammered home the message that female racers were bringing glory to the nation, which cushioned impact of their relationship exposure at home.

“You may put her ring on now, Tiffany.”

Ring. yes. Taeyeon watched as Tiffany slipped the ring on her finger. Adjusted its position to that which she was satisfied with. She couldn’t stop staring. The ring looked so right, sitting there on her finger. A nudge brought Taeyeon back to the present, blinking. “Huh?”

“You may kiss your star-struck bride now,” the master of ceremony sounded amused.

A kiss had never tasted sweeter than this. It was as though a star was glowing from within her, and a fire, warming her. She opened her eyes when their lips parted and nothing could have stopped her lips from curling up into the most heartfelt smile she had ever smiled.

“I love you,” they said to each other, at the same time. Yes, she loved her wife with all her heart.

–

With their marriage certificate tucked safely into her bag and a smile that wasn’t going to end any time soon, Taeyeon took Tiffany’s hand, squeezing it, her eyes gleaming with pleasure. “Ready for our celebra-ing-tory spin, my wife?”

“Abso-ing-lutely, my dear,” Tiffany answered with a nod, beaming sunshine and rainbows.

And off they went, racing into the sunset.

– the end –

a/n: I striked out ‘the end’ because to me, no story ever truly ends. their lives continue in my head, i can see them squabbling, fighting, racing, getting through life together. but the story has to end somewhere and i think i’ve told the story of taeyeon’s journey with tiffany; said what i wanted to say. i’d like to thank all of you for reading and supporting this long, long race all the way to the end :)