She’s Joohyun’s friend.

 

Which shouldn’t mean anything, except, well, it’s Joohyun and Joohyun’s crowd has always been on the weirder side of the spectrum. That says a lot too because as pretty as Joohyun is, she doesn’t surround herself with very many people. That’s probably why Joohyun coming in with someone who isn’t Sooyoung or Chorong is more surprising than the fact that the girl looks like something straight out of Wendy’s high school fantasies.

 

Who wears eyeliner that thick when they aren’t even famous anyway?

 

“Can’t I just get water?” she asks, throwing in a pout for good measure. In an alternate universe, Wendy might think it was cute, but in this one it’s just annoying—attention seeking almost.

 

Wendy sighs because technically she can just get water, but it’s a bakery and Wendy didn’t wake up at five am for someone to come in and not order something that she’d spent hours making.

 

(“We’re a coffee shop,” Youngji informs her later, “customers are allowed to ask for water.”

 

“She wasn’t a customer,” Wendy points out, and then they argue over whether or not Joohyun and her friends really count as customers because they know them and they only come in for the abundance of study tables and free cakes Wendy always gives them.

 

“Customers,” Youngji says.

 

“Freeloaders,” Wendy argues and that’s that.)

 

“No, you have to order something off the menu if you want water.”

 

She frowns, crossing her arms, and maybe it’s the eyeliner or the all black or the intimidating combination of both, but Wendy has a brief moment of internal panic where she wonders if the other girl might start a fight.

 

“Seulgi, are you harassing Seungwan?”

 

Joohyun steps towards them with an easy smile. She’s wearing white and her hair is a shade lighter than Seulgi’s is, and when she puts a hand on Seulgi’s shoulder and Seulgi’s eyes soften, Wendy realizes with a jolt that oh, they’re together.

 

“Seungwan?” Seulgi asks, eyes narrowing at the name tag on Wendy’s shirt.

 

“My korean name,” Wendy answers, though she doesn’t think there’s really a need to explain anything.

 

Seulgi nods and then Joohyun invades her vision. She’s not not a sight for sore eyes, but Wendy already knows what Joohyun looks like and it’s not nearly as exhilarating as gazing up at narrowed eyes and squishy cheeks.

 

“Can we get two iced coffees?” she asks, pushing Seulgi away to return to their table.

 

Wendy only watches her go for a second, asking casually, “What about the water?”

 

Joohyun dismisses it with a wave. “It’s all right, I have a water bottle.”

 

So they’re at the level of sharing drinks, of sharing spit. Wendy shudders.

 

“Okay, give me a sec.”

 

Wendy doesn’t bother with putting it through the register. Joohyun’s too close of a friend for Wendy to charge her for something as simple as iced coffee. Now if it was one of her baked goods, that would be a different story. Friend or not, Wendy expects to be paid for her labor.

 

Joohyun takes the drinks back to their table where Seulgi has already set up an assortment of books. She moves her chair so that she’s next to Seulgi instead of across, and Wendy grimaces because, of course, they’re that couple.

 

Wendy doesn’t mean to watch them, but the bakery is empty and Youngji takes over the register eventually, leaving Wendy with nothing else to do but pretend to clean and try not to seem like a creep.

 

Seulgi says something at some point that sends them both into a fit of laughter, and it’s so loud and obnoxious it’s impossible to ignore. Seulgi has a nice laugh, Wendy decides, and then she notices the way Joohyun leans into her and Seulgi leans back. They’re not even studying, and their drinks are untouched.

 

Whatever, Wendy thinks, and wipes furiously at an already clean table.

 

Who cares about girls in dark clothes and thick eyeliner anyway?

 

--

 

They come in every Tuesday and Thursday at exactly 2pm, order two iced coffees, and spend more time laughing than they do studying. Not that Wendy is keeping track or anything, but routines are easy to spot, and they sure do follow theirs to a tee.

 

They’re obviously close, which is only a little bit suspicious because Joohyun’s allowed to have her own life sure, but aren’t she and Wendy friends? Isn’t there some kind of friend code that states ‘must at least mention when dating a hot girl?’ Speaking of which, are they even dating?

 

She asks Youngji about it one day, when they’re both in the break room eating some of the failed batches of cupcakes Wendy had made earlier.

 

Youngji only raises a brow. “I thought Joohyun unnie liked Sooyoung?”

 

Wendy’s eyes must widen considerably because then Youngji is waving her hands frantically, bits and pieces of cupcake flying as she does.

 

“I mean, that’s just what I heard. Not that I heard anything, I just meant-- I mean, I thought-- I--”

 

Wendy shuts her up with a rag to the face.

 

“So they aren’t dating?” Wendy asks, attempting to be casual. Fortunately, Youngji doesn’t pick up on anything. Not that there’s anything to pick up on. Wendy’s only curious, really.

 

She shrugs. “I don’t know. They have been spending a lot of time together though…”

 

Wendy nods, acting like the knowledge that Joohyun and Seulgi may or may not be dating isn’t affecting her because it isn’t. It shouldn’t. It’s not any of her business, and it shouldn’t matter, so it doesn’t.

 

“Interesting,” she says, finishing her cupcake. It tastes dry, and she knows that has nothing to do with how she made it.

 

“Interesting,” Youngji echoes, and they sit in silence.

 

---

 

“You’re a masochist,” Sooyoung tells her.

 

Wendy swats at her limply, eyes resting on the two girls sitting in the middle of the bakery.

 

“Shut up, I’m just observing.” Sooyoung snorts and Wendy clucks her tongue. “Aren’t you curious? Our dear Joohyun unnie might be dating this girl and we know nothing about her.”

 

Sooyoung sighs, picking at the brownie in front of her. She was supposed to pay for it, but Wendy had somehow ended up giving it to her for free. Wendy doesn’t know; Sooyoung can be sly like that sometimes.

 

“I don’t care about things that aren’t my business,” Sooyoung says, eyes trained on the small treat.

 

It’s a very Sooyoung thing to say. She’s so mature sometimes, it usually feels like she’s the older one between them (she doesn’t even bother with calling Wendy unnie anymore and Wendy would be lying if she said she wasn’t at least a little bit sad over it).

 

“I wish I had your mindset,” Wendy says just as Seulgi breaks into a raucous laughter, Joohyun hitting her feebly.

 

It’s cute. They’re cute. The ideal couple for a bakery setting, and Wendy would fawn if she wasn’t busy feeling bitter for reasons she doesn’t want to bother identifying.

 

Maybe she’s just tired of being single. When was the last time she even went on a date? The fact that Wendy even has to think about it is probably a sign that it’s been too long. At least she has baking.

 

“They look good together,” Sooyoung declares and Wendy’s sure she isn’t imagining the grudging tone. She remembers what Youngji told her in the break room the other day and thinks, amusedly, that maybe there is something going on there she didn’t notice before. Interesting.

 

“I guess,” Wendy agrees, “but personally, I think they’re kind of gross.”

 

They both laugh, and when Wendy looks back she’s met with two sets of narrowed eyes.

 

--

 

Logically, it would have made sense to talk to Joohyun first, seeing as she’s the one Wendy’s actually friends with, but Joohyun isn’t the one that orders their drinks that Thursday and Wendy just can’t hold it in any longer. Plus, Wendy’s been watching Seulgi for way too long not to make a fool out of herself the first time they have a real conversation alone together.

 

“Are you and Joohyun unnie a couple?”

 

Wendy regrets the words as soon as they leave , but it’s too late because Seulgi is looking at her like she just asked her for the meaning of life.

 

Seulgi, to her credit, gets over the initial shock quickly, clearing as she leans against the counter, teasing smile and all.

 

“Why? Are you interested in her?”

 

Wendy almost chokes on her own spit. “What? No!”

 

Seulgi nods, smiling to herself. She already has the drinks in her hands, but she lingers by the counter anyway.

 

“Good,” she says, “I don’t like sharing.”

 

She leaves with a smirk, and Wendy feels confused because she didn’t even answer the question.

 

They laugh more than usual that day, grating sounds that Wendy tries to drown out by making every smoothie on the menu (they don’t even have smoothies on the menu). Seulgi catches her eyes from her table, lips quirking up into some kind of fiendish smile before she drapes an arm over Joohyun, and Wendy huffs in annoyance.

 

“I’m taking my break,” she tells Youngji, nearly running her over in her haste to get to the break room.

 

“But you still have one more hour!”

 

Wendy makes a noncommittal noise. “Cover for me!”

 

She ignores Youngji’s sounds of protest, rummaging through her bag to find her earphones. The music blasts in her ears, and by the time she’s finished all of Beyonce’s latest album, Wendy realizes the only thing she can still hear is the ringing sound of Seulgi and Joohyun’s happiness.

 

She groans.

 

--

 

Fate is cruel to Wendy, and she runs into Seulgi, alone, at the library of all places.

 

She has a paper due in a week she hasn’t even thought about until now, and while she’s sorting through a book detailing the Joseon dynasty, Seulgi drops down next to her.

 

“I didn’t peg you as a history nerd,” she says and Wendy snorts.

 

“Yes, in my spare time I like to read up on the history of Korea and reminisce the good old days.”

 

Seulgi smirks. “I wouldn’t put it past you.”

 

Wendy rolls her eyes as Seulgi shuffles closer. She smells like vanilla and some kind of spray from Bath & Body Works, which shouldn’t be a shock, but the overall lack of color in her wardrobe the last few weeks made Wendy think she’d smell like something equally dark and depressing. (Not that Wendy thinks about what she smells like—it was just a passing thought she had once. Or twice.)

 

“Paper?” Seulgi asks, nodding towards the book.

 

Wendy hums in acknowledgement. She tries to concentrate on what she’s reading, but Seulgi is too near and her korean is a little lacking for all of the unnecessarily large words and for once, she isn’t wearing the dumb uniform for the bakery—something that’s making her self-conscious because she can literally feel the way Seulgi is staring at her.

 

“I’m not good at writing,” Seulgi reveals after a moment, and Wendy nods. She doesn’t seem like the type to be.

 

“What are you good at then?”

 

Seulgi grins. “Why don’t you find out?”

 

She doesn’t give Wendy time to try and decipher what she’s implying, picking up Wendy’s phone from where it’s on the ground next to her. She hands it over to Wendy to unlock and when she does, Seulgi takes it back again, dialing her own number before setting it down. Wendy stares, confused, as something akin to butterflies settles in her stomach.

 

Did she just-

 

“I thought you were dating Joohyun unnie?” is the only thing Wendy can think of to say.

 

Seulgi laughs and Wendy blushes immediately.

 

“Unnie? No, she’s head over heels for some kid. She’s just tutoring me in Calculus.”

 

Wendy feels her entire face burn in shame because those weeks of pining could have easily been weeks of flirting if she had just asked Joohyun right away. Whatever, it still worked out in the end.

 

“So,” Seulgi starts, grinning widely, and Wendy decides the aisle could shut her in and she wouldn’t mind, “I heard you’re good at baking.”

 

---

 

Seulgi, as it turns out, is not good at baking. Wendy learns later that Seulgi isn’t actually good at anything that doesn’t have to do with the arts. It’s okay, Wendy thinks, because she’s cute and she has a nice smile that makes up for all the nonsense that tends to come out of .

 

“I don’t know how this happened,” Seulgi explains, pathetically eyeing the mess that’s become of the bakery kitchen.

 

There’s flour everywhere, frosting all over the table, chocolate on the floor, ice cream dripping from the...ceiling? Wendy shakes her head; she doesn’t want to know.

 

Youngji would have a heart attack if she saw.

 

“Let’s just clean this up,” Wendy sighs, handing Seulgi a mop.

 

She wonders if this is Seulgi’s idea of a date, or, more importantly, if they’re even at the level for Wendy to consider what constitutes as a date or not date. Seulgi is a slow texter and half the time her replies aren’t even relevant to the conversation. Wendy would be annoyed, but it’s kind of endearing in a weird way.

 

“How about next time,” Seulgi says, wiping flour from her forehead, “you bake and I clean.”

 

There’s chocolate on her cheek, and if Wendy wasn’t so focused on that she would have been stuck on the fact that Seulgi said there was going to be a next time.

 

Wendy lifts a hand to her cheek, mesmerized with the way Seulgi breathes in sharply at the touch of her thumb. The chocolate sticks to her skin and she it away, Seulgi watching her with dark eyes.

 

“I’d rather do everything together,” she answers and Seulgi swallows, pushing away strands of hair from her face.

 

“Together then,” she agrees, too flustered to meet Wendy’s eyes, and Wendy feels a tinge of pride at having broken her.

 

Just as Wendy thought, Youngji comes in later and nearly dies at the state of the kitchen.

 

She bans Seulgi from ever stepping foot inside again, and ‘next time’ takes place at Wendy’s apartment. Seulgi distracts Wendy so much she accidentally uses salt instead of sugar, and the cookies taste like Wendy’s worst nightmare come to life. (Seulgi still eats every single one and Wendy doesn’t know if she should swoon or be concerned. She settles on a little bit of both.)

 

They clean up the resulting mess side by side, and when the sun begins to dip behind the horizon, Seulgi presses her back into the kitchen table and kisses her.

 

--

 

“About time,” Joohyun says, dropping her things on the counter next to them, “I thought Wendy was going to end our friendship over you.”

 

Seulgi sighs against before pulling away reluctantly. She frowns at Joohyun, but Joohyun’s too busy looking at her phone to care.

 

“Unnie, you ruined a good moment,” Seulgi whines.

 

Joohyun rolls her eyes. “Stop being disgusting in public then.”

 

Wendy doesn’t have anything to say to that, and Seulgi doesn’t either. They shrug at each other.

 

“Are you guys studying today?”

 

They haven’t studied at the bakery since she and Seulgi started whatever it is they started, but Wendy watched Seulgi forget what two times two was yesterday so it’s probably a good thing that Joohyun’s helping her again.

 

Seulgi scrunches her nose. “No, we’re supposed to study tomorrow.”

 

“Then what-”

 

“Hey,” Sooyoung greets, entering the bakery swiftly and Joohyun drops her phone in surprise. She takes the seat next to Joohyun, and Wendy watches in fascination as Joohyun tenses, fingers fumbling as she tries and fails to function normally.

 

“I forgot I have to do something,” Joohyun announces and then she’s gone just as quickly as she came.

 

Sooyoung sighs, picking up a napkin to play with, and Seulgi gives her a look.

 

Interesting.

 

“So,” Sooyoung says, eyes darting back and forth between the two of them before settling on Seulgi, “I take it you aren’t dating Joohyun unnie then?”

 

Seulgi grins happily. “Nope! I’m dating Wendy!”

 

Wendy blushes, dropping her head onto the counter. Kill her now.

 

“Wait! You two are dating?!” Youngji yells, coming in from the break room, and Wendy wishes she could shrink down to microscopic size. “Wendy,” Youngji slaps her on the back, and it’s surprisingly painful for someone so tiny. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

 

Wendy sighs. She can feel a headache forming.

 

“I don’t know,” she answers truthfully. It’s not like she was being secretive about it. She can’t help it if Youngji was too wrapped up in the stupidity of Jackson Wang to notice the sudden change in Wendy’s love life.

 

Youngji and Sooyoung engage themselves in a conversation about the meaning of friendship and how important it is to fill each other in on the beginnings of new relationships. Wendy finds it a bit hypocritical because Sooyoung definitely hasn’t mentioned anything about her crush on Joohyun, but whatever; what does Wendy know.

 

“Now that it’s out in the open,” Seulgi mutters, leaning over the counter towards her, “can we go back to what we were doing before we were interrupted.”

 

Wendy feels her face warm, but she doesn’t protest when Seulgi cradles her cheek and presses their lips together.

 

“Gross,” Sooyoung comments.

 

“Disgusting,” Youngji adds.

 

Wendy laughs, shoving the two away so she can kiss Seulgi in peace. They’re that couple, she thinks, as Seulgi comes around to the other side of the counter to hold her closer.

 

Oh well, she decides, at least they’re cute.

--