“They’re looking at you again.”
Minji just casually chuckles and keeps walking beside her friend. “I know.”
Minji is both the most loved and most hated person in her class. She grew up with rich parents, who spoiled her to death. Minji says she isn’t, but she knows she’s the snobby bitch everyone says she is.
Not only is Minji rich, she’s extremely beautiful and smart too. She has it all, which is why so many hate her, because they’re jealous of her. Minji can’t say she doesn’t enjoy the attention. It doesn’t matter to her if it’s of the negative kind or not. She doesn’t care what people say about her as long as she’s the topic of their conversation.
She enjoys the stares she gets when she enters the classroom, her uniform without a single wrinkle and her hair laying so perfectly over her shoulders that not only the guys in her class get weak.
Her best friend Bora is just like her. They both don’t have to worry about anything, especially not money and power. They didn’t have to do much to gain respect from everyone on their first day of school.
--
“Who’s that?” Bora asks, getting Minji to look up from her phone and in the direction Bora’s pointing to. Minji hums. There’s a girl sitting at the very back of the class, someone she’s never seen before.
Judging her posture and the way her gaze is fixated on the books in front of her, that’s probably exactly what the girl wants. To not be seen or heard. A pity, Minji thinks. She’s pretty. Not even close to Minji’s beauty, of course, but she’s pretty. Even with her messy hair and her eyes looking like she hasn’t slept for days.
Minji decides to get up and walk over to the girl’s desk. “You,” she says, making the other girl look up reluctantly.
“What’s your name?”
“Yoohyeon,” the girl replies without any intention to ask a follow up question.
Minji frowns as Yoohyeon just looks at her, as if she’s expecting her to leave.
“Is there anything else you need?”
Minji scoffs and shakes her head. “Do you know who I am?”
“No,” Yoohyeon says. Her calm tone riles Minji up for some reason.
“Listen you bitch,” Minji says through gritted teeth as she leans closer to Yoohyeon. “You better learn to have some respect or I’ll get you expelled in an instant.”
Yoohyeon’s expression turns to one of realization and she chuckles dryly.
“Now I know. Kim Minji, right? The rich brat who thinks she’s better than everyone else. That’s you right? For someone with that kind of confidence I thought you’d be...I don’t know...prettier.”
Gasps echo through the classroom before it becomes dead silent. Minji’s face turns red from anger and Bora considers stepping in, for Minji’s and the new girl’s sake.
“What did you just say?”
“You’re not as great as you think you are Minji,” Yoohyeon says. Her tone is still calm and that fact makes Minji even more furious. “Money doesn’t make you a good person.”
“Of course someone like you would say that,” Minji laughs. “Look at you. Your uniform is wrinkled, your hair looks like it hasn’t been washed in weeks and that perfume on you is the cheapest shit I ever smelled in my life.”
Not even ten seconds pass before Yoohyeon is up on her feet and slaps Minji across her cheek. Minji is too shocked to register the way Bora runs over to her side and Yoohyeon gets thrown to the ground by one of the guys.
Their teacher barely arrives in time to stop Yoohyeon from almost getting killed. Yoohyeon gets sent to the infirmary with a bloody lip and a glare from Minji.
--
Yoohyeon doesn’t go to school the next day. Minji thinks Yoohyeon realized she messed with the wrong person. She’s glad she doesn’t have to see her, at the same time she wants to get revenge. No one messes with Kim Minji, especially not someone as pathetic as Yoohyeon.
Unfortunately, she’d have to think about her revenge plans later because there’s an exam she has to study for with Bora. They go to the library after class, staying there until late in the evening.
Minji gets in her car, ready for a relaxing bath and maybe she’d ask Yubin for a massage too. She passes by a bus stop and spots a person lying on the bench. Probably just one of the drunk people again. She slows down a bit, just to make sure no one would try to do anything unexpected and rob her. The person is female, Minji notices. She frowns as she takes a closer look. The person looks oddly familiar and she swears she’d seen those clothes before.
Then it clicks.
The person sleeping on that bench is Yoohyeon.
--
“I couldn’t care less,” Minji says to Bora the next day. She’s telling her about Yoohyeon. At least she thinks that’s who she saw yesterday.
“She probably fought with her parents and they kicked her out. I wouldn’t want to keep her near me either.”
Bora hums in agreement. She knows better than to disagree with her friend, although her thoughts are different. She hasn’t spoken a word to Yoohyeon that day, but she’s just a bit worried about the fact Yoohyeon disappeared as quickly as she came. But it’s not her problem, she reminds herself. Rich people don’t care about anyone other than themselves.
--
It’s cold. Even Minji’s expensive jacket isn’t enough to keep her warm. Bora just had to pick today to go shopping for her date.
“I need to look good for Siyeon,” Bora states, dragging her friend into her car.
Minji doesn’t know what Bora sees in Siyeon. She’s not wealthy and she wastes her time singing noisy rock songs. Other than her questionable hobbies and fashion taste, Siyeon is nice though, which is why Minji tolerates her at least.
“You better hurry up, I’m freezing,” Minji says and not wanting to get her head ripped off by her best friend, Bora actually tries to find an outfit as quickly as she can. It only took a bit more than two hours, for Bora that was a record. Bora treats her to a coffee at least before she drives her home.
--
“Shut the fuck up.”
Yoohyeon is back in school. For the past hour, the girl kept sneezing and coughing, not only disgusting everyone but being unnecessarily noisy, much to Minji’s annoyance.
Yoohyeon only glares at the girl sitting in front of her, turning her focus back to her notes.
--
As if Minji’s day isn’t horrible enough, their teacher gave them an assignment the students have to work on with a partner. It wouldn’t be bad if she could just work with Bora, but the teacher decided who would work with whom.
Minji’s partner was just as excited as she was about the project. She would have to work with Yoohyeon.
“We’ll meet at your home after school,” Minji says. There’s no way she’d let that girl anywhere near her home. Yoohyeon was nothing but a stray dog to her and she’d even treat a dog better than her.
“Let’s just meet at the library,” Yoohyeon responds. Of course, Minji thinks. Yoohyeon is probably ashamed to show her her likely way too small apartment. Who knows what kind of things she’s hiding there, Minji would probably step on empty beer bottles and other shit if she entered Yoohyeon’s apartment.
“Sure,” Minji agrees, not wanting to talk to Yoohyeon more than she has to. She still has to make her pay for slapping her a few days ago.
--
Minji hates to admit it, but working with Yoohyeon isn’t as bad as she imagined. The girl is actually pretty smart, probably smarter than her, not that she’d ever tell Yoohyeon that. They didn’t talk much throughout the hours they spent together, probably because they’d only be arguing instead of working. They would have been kicked out of the library for screaming at each other and bothering everyone else, so Minji is glad they worked in silence.
Minji considers offering Yoohyeon a ride home, but the other girl is already out of the library before she can even ask, which Minji is glad about because on second thought, she doesn’t want her car to get dirty.
--
Bora is walking home after her date with Siyeon. It was great and Siyeon wanted to walk the girl home, but Bora didn’t want to bother her.
She’s walking quite fast as it’s dark and still extremely cold. She doesn’t really pay attention to where she's walking until she trips over something, or rather someone.
Bora wants to apologize when the words get stuck in her throat as she looks down at the ground.
“It’s fine,” Yoohyeon mutters. “Just leave.”
“What are you doing here?” Bora asks. It probably sounded more judgemental than she intended, judging from Yoohyeon’s expression.
“None of your business,” Yoohyeon says as she gets up, about to leave when Bora grabs her wrist.
“Let me go.” Yoohyeon tries to free herself from Bora’s grip. It’s not too tight and if she actually tries, she’d easily get away, but the warmth of Bora’s hand is actually quite welcome at the moment. Bora seems to notice too as she places her other hand on Yoohyeon’s arm.
It surprises Bora that Yoohyeon hasn’t died yet. Her skin is cold, no wonder, since the girl isn’t even wearing a jacket. She notices how Yoohyeon tries to control the trembling of her body and how she’s unable to meet Bora’s gaze.
It shouldn’t be a problem for her, Yoohyeon managed to get into arguments with Minji on a daily basis and keep her head up.
Bora keeps wondering why Yoohyeon is spending time on the ground in the middle of nowhere at this time, remembering what Minji told her earlier. Then her eyes widen in realization.
“Yoohyeon…”
Before she can say more, Yoohyeon turns around, running away, leaving Bora stunned and sad.
--
“Can we talk?”
Classes had ended and everyone had left the room already. Bora waited until everyone, including Minji, was gone. She hadn’t told her best friend about her encounter with Yoohyeon last night.
“Why?”
“I know it’s hard to believe, but you can trust me. If you need help-”
“I don’t need help,” Yoohyeon cuts her off in a harsh tone. “You don’t have to pretend to be nice. You’re just like your bitch of a friend, you probably had a great time telling her about yesterday, right? You can laugh at me all you want, you can insult me, I don’t fucking care. But don’t pretend to be a good person when you’re just rotten.”
Bora tries not to be hurt. After all, Yoohyeon has every reason to despise her and it’s not like she tries to keep a good image at school.
“I didn’t tell her,” Bora replies. “And I’m not going to. I know I wasn’t too nice to you and I didn’t defend you once when Minji or any of the others attacked you. So you have no reason to trust or like me. But just know that you can tell me if there’s anything I can do for you.”
Bora leaves the room after handing Yoohyeon a bag.
Yoohyeon just frowns and opens it after the other girl is gone.
“Oh you bitch,” she mutters to herself when she sees what’s inside the bag. A jacket and some other clothes. They’re too big for someone Bora’s size and look like they’ve never been worn before, which means Bora really made the effort to buy her clothes.
--
Bora has to suppress a smile when she sees Yoohyeon enter the classroom, wearing the jacket she got her. When Minji isn't looking, Yoohyeon nods at Bora in thanks and that's enough for her for now.
--
Bora hasn’t told Minji, but that doesn’t mean she’s not planning to talk to someone about Yoohyeon, that someone being her girlfriend.
“I’m proud of you,” Siyeon tells her and that alone makes Bora feel like she made the right decision. When she’s with Minji it’s usually the older girl that decides how they treat other people. It’s sad if she thinks about it and Bora feels pathetic for not sticking up for herself or anyone that has been insulted by Minji and Bora too. The only reason she didn’t say anything yet is because she needs Minji. She doesn’t have any friends apart from her, one more horrible thing about being rich. People either hate you or are intimidated by you. Or they want to use you, which, unfortunately, Bora has experienced way too many times too.
She’s glad she has Siyeon, someone she can feel normal around. Even though it took her a bit until she could trust her completely, a result of those unpleasant experiences.
“What’s her name?” Siyeon asks as she takes a sip of water.
“Yoohyeon,” Bora says and Siyeon almost spits out the water in her mouth.
“Kim Yoohyeon?”
Bora just nods at the question, worried about Siyeon almost choking and confused because of her reaction.
“Remember my best friend I told you about?” Siyeon asks, to which the other girl nods again.
“Do you also remember how I told you about her disappearing?”
“Yeah, you told me she ran away,” Bora hums.
She doesn’t get why Siyeon is asking her about her again until she takes another look at Siyeon and no other words are needed.
“Where is she?”
--
“Yooyheon’s not here,” Bora remarks as she looks around the classroom.
“Good,” she hears Minji mutter beside her. “I’m glad I don’t have to see that pathetic human.”
It hurts Bora just a little. But as always, she keeps quiet. Coward, she thinks to herself.
Bora makes it her mission to find Yoohyeon after school. She knows Minji is busy this afternoon, so she doesn’t have to worry about being seen by her, not that this is something she should be ashamed about.
She spends about an hour walking around before she spots the girl.
“You look horrible,” is the first thing that slips out of Bora’s mouth and she wants to slap herself.
“If that’s all you wanted to tell me, thank you Bora, you can leave now.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Bora says quickly and shakes her head. Yoohyeon looks sick and it worries her. “Come with me.”
Yoohyeon raises a brow in confusion. “What?”
“You look like you haven’t eaten in days, come with me and I’ll cook something for you.”
“You want me to go to your house?” Yoohyeon asks, just to make sure the cold air isn’t getting to her and she’s completely going crazy. Bora’s nod makes her think exactly that, though.
“Are you insane? What do you have in mind? Is Minji waiting there for me? Did you think of a plan to humiliate me?”
“No. Minji’s not there, but someone else is waiting in there for you. I need you to trust me Yoohyeon. I promise nothing is going to happen to you. As I said, I just want to help.”
There’s a part of Yoohyeon that still dislikes Bora, even if it’s only for the fact she’s friends with Minji. But the other part thinks that Bora has been pretty helpful and nice in the last days and she doesn’t have much to lose anyway. Besides, if she stays in this cold for just a second longer, she would probably not wake up the next day. So, she gets up from the park bench she has been sitting on and nods.
--
Yoohyeon regrets her decision as soon as they’re in front of Bora’s house. Everything makes her feel sick to her stomach. The expensive cars, the people (most likely working for Bora’s family) looking at her and judging her, the size of the mansion.
“It’s fine,” Bora tries to calm her. Even she is overwhelmed by their mansion sometimes, she doesn’t want to imagine how Yoohyeon is feeling. She remembers the first time Siyeon visited her. Her face was as pale as a ghost and Bora was worried she would faint. That, or leave her and run away.
Yoohyeon doesn’t know how they managed to get to the living room, but she’s glad to be somewhere warm at least. She’s about to ask who is waiting for her when Siyeon comes downstairs and Yoohyeon almost chokes on her own spit.
Neither of them says anything for a while and Bora knows not to break the silence either.
“Hi,” Siyeon says quietly. It’s been about two years since she has last seen Yoohyeon and while she still looked like back then, the change was noticeable. Whatever happened in those two years, it affected Yoohyeon, and Siyeon is worried. She doesn’t know where to begin. Hearing all the things Bora told her broke her heart, made her feel guilty for not being there for her best friend.
“Hey,” Yoohyeon replies. She tries not to feel bad, but she notices it. The way Siyeon looks at her, like she’s the most pathetic person in the world. She probably is, she figures, but she doesn’t want to admit it.
Siyeon, not knowing what to say, wraps Yoohyeon in a tight embrace, even when the younger girl tries to push her away, feeling gross and also ashamed.
“I’m so sorry,” Siyeon whispers, not even trying to prevent her tears from rolling down her cheeks.
Yoohyeon tries to be strong, to tell Siyeon it’s okay and that it’s not her fault they haven’t been in contact for two years. But seeing her best friend, the only person she trusts, after such a long time of thinking they’d never meet again, makes her break down.
It’s the first time Bora sees her that vulnerable. In school, Yoohyeon always pretends to be strong, not to let anything get to her, not even Minji’s harsh words. She’s rude not because she’s an asshole but because she doesn’t want to seem weak. Bora realized that.
“What are you doing here?” Yoohyeon asks after a few minutes pass and she pulls back to take a look at Siyeon.
“Let’s sit,” Siyeon says. Yoohyeon hesitates, glancing at Bora, who notices and leaves to grab some things in her room.
She returns about a minute later, holding some clothes and a towel in her hands.
“Here,” she says as she hands the things over to Yoohyeon. “You can take a shower and change. We can talk afterwards.”
Yoohyeon can’t even say anything to protest before Bora takes her arm and leads her to the bathroom. One of the many.
Bora had grabbed some clothes that are too big for her, so they fit Yoohyeon, fortunately.
Yoohyeon feels better after the shower. The clothes are comfortable, even though she’s scared to get a single wrinkle in them, knowing how expensive they are.
The three are sitting on the couch. Bora offered to give them some privacy to talk, but Yoohyeon told her it’s okay to stay, much to the girl’s surprise.
“To explain what I’m doing here,” Siyeon says, picking up Yoohyeon’s question from earlier. “I’m Bora’s girlfriend. We’re dating.”
Yoohyeon nods, processing the information. It explains why Siyeon is here. She doesn’t really know what to think about them dating, but if Siyeon has feelings for Bora, then she can’t be bad. And she isn’t, Yoohyeon has to admit. When she’s not hanging out with her worst enemy, Bora is a warm person, who helped her more than anyone else has the last few years. She sucks at expressing it, but she’s grateful for everything Bora has done for her so far and that she hasn’t told Minji.
Yoohyeon knows that both, Bora and Siyeon, have one question in mind. How she ended up like she did. And she knows they aren’t sure how to ask, but the least Yoohyeon can do is be honest to them.
“So…” Yoohyeon begins to speak, taking a deep breath to collect herself. “You know what happened to my parents, right?” she asks Siyeon, who nods. She sees Bora’s confused look and turns to her.
“They were on their way home when some rich, drunk asshole killed them,” Yoohyeon says and Bora nods, her heart breaking for the younger girl.
“After that, I didn’t have anyone left in my family. No one who cared about me at least. Siyeon was my only family. But I didn’t want to bother her and her parents, so I...left...ran away, tried to get along on my own. It was stupid, but I couldn’t stay. Not in that apartment, not in the city. I just couldn’t take it. I tried to work, to afford a place to live, but that didn’t work out for me. So I ended up on the streets, struggling, but somehow managing to survive.”
Seeing how Bora and Siyeon are staying silent, she decides to continue. If she’s already telling them about her story, she might as well say everything.
“Sometimes I went days without eating. Some people were nice enough to help me out, give me water and food. Others would only help me in return for some...favors.”
Tears prickle in Siyeon’s eyes, anger rising within her.
“The people that used me like that were mostly the ones who had a lot of money,” she says and looks at Bora, who nods in understanding. She didn’t blame Yoohyeon for hating people like her before, but now she really understands. They took her parents from her and then they used her for whatever sick fantasies they had when she just wanted to survive.
“I was desperate, so I did whatever they told me to. As long as I would have some water, maybe a place to sleep and shower, I was fine with it.”
Siyeon doesn’t say anything. She just sobs into Yoohyeon’s shoulder as she holds her tightly, afraid to let her go. Even Bora struggles to keep her tears in check.
“I’m sorry,” Bora says when she collects herself. “I’m sorry for treating you so badly the first day we met and the days after that. I’ll help you. We’ll help you. You can stay here as long as you want, Siyeon pretty much moved in here too.”
“I don’t know if I can accept that,” Yoohyeon almost whispers and Bora shakes her head.
“I’m not letting you spend one more night out there alone. You can have one of the rooms here. You can sleep here, you’ll get food, and we’re going to buy some clothes for you. I won’t take no for an answer. I’m sorry for all the horrible things you had to endure because of people like me. I get that you’re careful and wary around us. But you can trust me, Yoohyeon. I promise. I would never try to hurt you or humiliate you. Just let Siyeon and I take care of you, please.”
Siyeon mumbles something in agreement that Yoohyeon can’t quite decipher, but she hesitantly nods. She doesn’t want to be a burden, but even if she hates to say it, she needs the help.
“Thank you.”
--
Bora’s family is nicer than Yoohyeon thought. They didn’t judge her at all when Bora told them about her and also told her she can stay as long as she wants without having to worry about paying them back.
Yoohyeon is grateful and she doesn’t know how she deserves this. Since she’s spending more time with Bora at home (not at school, because Minji makes it hard for them to interact), she gets over her distrust towards the girl. They actually have quite a lot in common and with Siyeon, the three have a lot to talk and laugh about every day.
But just because she likes Bora, Yooyheon doesn’t have to be friendly to Minji too. It’s not just that Minji brags about her wealth, Bora was able to prove that this wasn’t the problem, but Minji is just a complete bitch. And nothing would ever make her change her mind.
--
A few weeks go by with Yoohyeon living with her new friend Bora. She still feels overwhelmed from time to time, but she’s quite comfortable around Bora’s family and the others working there. She gets along well with one of the chefs, Handong.
Until one day, Minji decides to show up at Bora’s home unexpectedly. Having known Minji for years, they let her in without asking.
Minji heads upstairs to Bora’s room when she sees someone who definitely doesn’t belong here in the hallway.
“What the fuck!?”
Minji’s yell is enough to make Siyeon and Bora come out of the room.
Minji glares at Yoohyeon before she turns toward Bora. “What is this?”
Bora just stares at Minji, horrified. She should just tell her the truth, but it’s not as easy as she had hoped for.
“I see what you’re doing,” Minji says, laughing at Yoohyeon. “You pretend to hate us, but you still want to be close to us, don’t you? What, are you trying to get into her pants? She’s dating someone, should have tried it with me,” she adds, a grin on her lips. “Slut.”
Bora’s eyes widen as she looks over at Yoohyeon and just like she feared, it seemed to trigger Yoohyeon, who’s clenching her fists.
“Maybe you’d be able to afford a mansion like this too if you didn’t spend all your money on drugs and alcohol.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Yoohyeon breathes out, glaring at Minji, who only responds with a challenging glare.
“Can’t take the truth? You’re pathetic Yoohyeon. You’re poor, you’re worthless.”
Yoohyeon doesn’t think twice before she rushes forward and punches Minji square in the jaw.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Siyeon says as she grabs Yoohyeon’s hand and drags her to her room, despite Yoohyeon’s attempts to free herself from her grip.
Once the door slams closed, the hallway is silent, only Minji’s heavy breathing can be heard as she looks at Bora with an expression of shock and anger.
“Minji…” Bora says quietly. She planned to talk to her friend about this, but definitely not like this.
“What’s all this about?” Minji asks, raising her voice. Bora stays calm as she explains everything to her.
“You let that girl live with you?” Minji asks in disbelief.
“She needs help Minji. It’s not her fault she’s not as wealthy as we are. We’re fucking lucky actually. She’s a good person.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Minji mutters and Bora starts to get frustrated as well. This time she wouldn’t back down. She would stand up for Yoohyeon and for herself because if she’s honest, spending time with Yoohyeon and Siyeon made her realize what a real friendship is. What she and Minji have is not even close to it.
“No, it’s true. She’s funny, she’s nice and she’s smart. Maybe you would see that too if you weren’t too focused on being a complete asshole to everyone. All you care about is money, status and power. Isn’t that the only reason you’re friends with me? Because I’m the only person you know whose financial situation doesn’t make you embarrassed to be associated with?”
Minji doesn’t believe her ears. Did Bora really say that to her? After all those years?
“Fuck you,” she snaps. “Have fun with your new friend.”
And with that, Minji is gone.
Bora stays still, not moving from her spot for minutes. She doesn’t know what to think. It felt good telling Minji the truth, but she just lost the person she called her best friend for over ten years.
She can’t deny it hurts. But it was the right thing to do.
She gently knocks on the door of Siyeon’s room and her heart breaks at the sight in front of her when she opens the door.
Siyeon is holding Yoohyeon in her arms, the younger girl sobbing in her embrace. She’s shaking while Siyeon rubs her back, trying to comfort her as best as she can.
“She’s just like them,” Yoohyeon says in between sobs.
“I’m sorry,” Bora whispers. “I’m so sorry Yoohyeon.”
--
Minji and Bora don’t talk to each other at school, which gives the people in their class enough reasons to speculate about the reasons, one of them being Yoohyeon. They leave her alone because Bora is with her and Yoohyeon is surprised that even Minji refrains from throwing any insults at her. She didn’t even confront her about the punch, which Yoohyeon doesn’t feel one bit sorry for.
Minji thought she didn’t need Bora. The moment she left Bora’s house, she thought she didn’t need anyone.
But she was wrong.
She sees how Bora talks to Yoohyeon, how Bora’s laugh is much more genuine than with her. How Yoohyeon smiles, contrary to the glares she gives Minji. How everything just seems so much more peaceful.
It hurts.
But she doesn’t need Bora.
--
Minji spends a lot of time in the music room at their school. She plays the piano, to pass the time and distract herself. It’s lonely without Bora. She misses her. Her parents told her she did the right thing, just like they told her how worthless people are, who don’t have money. They started to teach her about those things early. When she was a kid, she’d always have the most expensive clothes and her parents would show her off in front of the other kids and their parents. She was told that poor people didn’t work hard and didn’t deserve any help or respect. She was taught to hate them, not to treat them like humans, definitely not like friends.
You had to be popular by wearing the most expensive clothes, looking the best, not by being a good person. Personality didn’t matter in the world of the rich.
Minji starts to realize something and her hands start to tremble as she does, starting to mess up the notes of the song she’s playing.
Not the others are the problem.
She is.
Bora was right. Bora is always right.
Minji is the prettiest girl in school. She has the most money. She drives the fanciest car. But that doesn’t get her anywhere because she just lost her best friend. Because she was selfish and stupid.
“Oh, sorry.”
Minji turns around to face the owner of the voice. Yoohyeon.
The girl is just about to leave again when Minji stops her. “Wait.”
“Listen Minji, I’m really not in the mood to fight today-”
“I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry,” Minji repeats. Yoohyeon looks at her. She doesn’t see a sign that Minji isn’t serious, but she still takes a look around the room, just in case the girl planned something.
“I’m sorry for everything I said. I was...god, I was such a bitch. You know, when I saw you that day and when I fought with Bora, I thought you guys were in the wrong. I thought Bora was crazy for helping you. But the truth is, I’m the stupid one. I’ve been stupid my whole life. I followed what my parents were telling me because I thought they were right. But after losing Bora, I realized it’s not like that. I’m not asking you to understand or forgive me. But I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you,” Yoohyeon says. From everything she expected from Minji, an apology was the last thing she thought of.
“Do you play?” she asks, motioning towards the piano.
“Yeah,” Minji replies and nods. “Do you?”
“I do. I come here to write songs often.”
“Can I hear one?”
It’s awkward because the conversation feels awfully peaceful, something they both aren’t used to.
Yoohyeon nods and hands her a sheet of paper. “Can you play this?”
Minji takes a look at the paper and nods, placing it in front of her.
She starts to play the first notes and soon, Yoohyeon joins in with her voice.
Minji almost forgets to play as she hears Yoohyeon sing. Her voice is powerful, filled with emotion, the combination of her voice and lyrics projecting all the pain Yoohyeon felt. Pain Minji would never be able to relate to.
She barely finishes playing the song with shaky hands.
“I’ll see you tomorrow Minji,” she hears Yoohyeon say before the girl leaves. The door closes and Minji breaks down.
--
Minji texts Bora, asking if they could talk. The texts stay unanswered at first, but eventually Bora agrees.
They meet at the park, sitting on the bench Bora saw Yoohyeon sleeping on one time.
“You were right,” Minji says, unable to look up at Bora, her gaze focused on the ground. “I was wrong. I treated you unfairly and Yoohyeon too, fuck, even Siyeon. I realized that. The last few days were hard for me, believe me. I realized that money doesn’t make you happy. I know it didn’t help me when I was without you. I’m sorry.”
“You’re a bitch, you know,” Bora says. Minji is ready to get up and leave, knowing there’s no way she could fix this situation. But before she can make any attempts to escape, Bora hugs her and relief washes over her.
“But I’m glad you realized you were wrong. I’m ready to give you another chance.”
Minji doesn’t know how often she thanks Bora, but they stay like that for a while until Bora pulls back.
“I heard you apologized to Yoohyeon. I hope you weren’t just joking. That girl went through enough already.”
“I was serious, I promise. She’s not like I made her out to be. I was just dumb.”
--
Minji starts spending time with Bora again, and with Yoohyeon. It took a while until Yoohyeon felt comfortable around the girl, especially after showing her vulnerable side that day in the music room. But after putting their differences and prejudices aside, they get along well now.
--
“You like her.”
“I do not.”
“Aww, you’re blushing.”
“Shut the fuck up Bora.”
--
Minji’s parents are gone for the week. Which means she could invite Yoohyeon over. To study, of course. Not because she might have developed a crush on the girl.
Minji asks Yoohyeon, who only agrees after a lot of convincing from Minji.
If Bora’s home was huge, Minji’s was indescribable.
“Are you okay?” Minji asks when she sees Yoohyeon’s face start to get pale.
“It’s okay,” she adds and holds Yoohyeon’s hand in a comforting matter, trying to ignore the way her heart starts to beat faster.
Minji leads Yoohyeon to her room and they sit on the bed, actually studying. For about an hour until Minji has enough.
Yoohyeon is more interesting than those books anyway. Minji could faint every time Yoohyeon smiles because she just looks so…
“Beautiful.”
“What?”
Minji wants to curse at herself for saying it out loud. She blushes as her eyes meet Yoohyeon’s. She could get lost in them.
“Nothing.”
They sit in awkward silence after that. Yoohyeon didn’t want to get her hopes up, not even when Bora hinted that Minji might like her, knowing Yoohyeon feels the same way.
It’s funny if she thinks about it. How she went from hating Minji and slapping her to wanting to kiss and hold her.
“What are you thinking about?” Minji asks and Yoohyeon shakes her head.
“Just about our first meeting.”
Minji winces thinking about it. If she could, she would erase this day from her memory.
“I’m really sorry.”
“I know,” Yoohyeon says and has that smile on her lips that Minji fell for.
Minji doesn’t know how it happens or who leaned in first, but soon the two are kissing each other, both confessing their feelings that simply can’t be said with words.
“Wow,” Yoohyeon whispers when she pulls back.
“Yeah, wow.”
“You said your parents aren’t coming home tonight?” Yoohyeon asks and Minji’s eyes widen slightly. After knowing about Yoohyeon’s story, she doesn’t want to make the girl uncomfortable.
“It’s fine,” Yoohyeon says, seeming to know what’s going on in Minji’s head. “I want this. I trust you.”
Hearing this almost makes Minji cry. Gaining Yoohyeon’s trust after everything she had put her through is something she never expected to happen. She won’t take it for granted. After making sure countless times that Yoohyeon really wants this, which Yoohyeon finds very sweet, Minji goes in for another kiss, this one more heated than the last.
The more clothes come off, the more scars Minji discovers. She feels Yoohyeon tense slightly. She looks up at her with a soft gaze, before she places gentle and loving kisses on each one of them. Minji’s heart is breaking, knowing there is even more that she doesn’t know about Yoohyeon yet. But she wants to be there for her. She wants to comfort her, make her feel safe and loved.
And it seems she succeeded doing that, smiling as she holds a sleeping Yoohyeon in her arms.
--
They start dating. Minji’s parents, not wanting to let go of their old behavior, kick her out immediately after finding out. Yoohyeon feels guilty, but Minji assures her it’s not her fault and she knew it was coming.
Minji lives with Bora until they finish school. She feels bad for Bora’s parents, having two young couples living in their house, but fortunately it’s big enough to get some alone time without traumatizing anyone. Except for that one time Yoohyeon overheard Siyeon and Bora.
--
Years pass and Minji and Yoohyeon, much to the disappointment of Minji’s parents, are still in love as they were in high school.
“I knew you would fall for her the first time I saw her,” Bora says and Minji rolls her eyes playfully.
“But you were-”
“I was an ass, I know.”
--
“Baby?”
“Hm?” Minji turns around to face Yoohyeon, who is smiling nervously. She frowns. “What did you do?” she asks.
“Nothing, I swear.”
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, idiot.”
“No, I mean,” Yoohyeon says as she fishes something out of her pocket and gets on her knee, eliciting a gasp from Minji.
“I love you Minji. Even though we had our difficulties at the beginning, I knew you were the one for me, even during the time I didn’t want to love you. You proved that you’re a good person and for that I want to thank you and I’m proud of you. Thank you for loving me and for being my home. Marry me?”