New Scenario Prompt
"Jihyo... I'm sorry I didn't mean to exclude you at all" Nayeon whines outside Jihyo's hotel room, sitting on the floor as she pushes her ear to hear if Jihyo answers.
She did not plan to go to Japan for 2 weeks in the middle of Summer. Hell, she did not even file for a Vacation Leave and good thing Jihyo's her boss (which all of them forgot including herself) or else, she's jobless the moment she comes back.
But why is she pleading Jihyo to let her in? What is even an emergency for Nayeon to barge inside Jeongyeon's room, only to be ultimately scarring her eyes and innocence that she excused herself and ran to Jihyo's room as comfort?
Poor Nayeon, she did not know Jihyo's been watching the moment she entered Jeongyeon's room and misunderstood her as someone who is only a second choice.
"Jihyo... I'm sorry. I planned to call you to Jeongyeon's room but... You know what happened" Nayeon closes her eyes in an attempt to clear her thought, trying to forget what happened inside Jeongyeon's room and sighs as she continues to hesitate. "Just please... I badly need to release this. I am CURRENTLY PANICKING!" she says from a whisper to a scream.
Silence.
Jihyo did not hesitate to let her know how she's not convinced with her and Nayeon greets a deadpan look from her as soon as the doors open wide.
And not even a millisecond after the door opens, Nayeon tackled Jihyo to the room and closed the door quickly like a madman.
"What the fuck?! " Jihyo's shocked from the sudden aggression.
This is it, Nayeon thinks. She already made up her mind because she's going nuts over what happened earlier in their room. Regrets are for later, she really needs to get the overflowing feeling inside her and just get judged by god herself.
"Tzuyu and I... "
"You and Tzuyu what?" Jihyo answers still in monotone.
"Tzuyu and I..."
Nayeon ended up screaming like a lunatic on the floor.
-2 days earlier-
Nayeon wasted a total of 100 sheets of paper by the time Spring ended.
Her feelings for Tzuyu started to haunt her when Spring approached and all she can think about 24/7 is her and the story started to hit a wall. She doesn't blame the girl though, it's her own fault after all. And as the days go by and the Spring breeze disappears in to a warm Summer cruise, Nayeon just realized how stupid she is to burry those budding confused feelings she always gets years before. And what's the worst thing she always did after burying them? Distance herself from Tzuyu like nothing happened in the most questionable and unusual way.
Jeongyeon appealed this to Jihyo and decided that the public should miss Kim Tokki for a while and sort things out.
Jihyo can say that Nayeon looked like a zombie the moment she gets a glimpse of her in the airport. This whole trip was a surprise after all so why is Nayeon and Tzuyu looking like a dead corpse walking unbound inside?
Blame the wrestle and chokeholds last night is what Tzuyu has been thinking but that scenario is not necessarily the reason why the older girl looks so miserably undead. They did fight while preparing things at 3am but Tzuyu was already done preparing hers at 1am while Nayeon wasn't even done picking her clothes when the clock strikes 6 when they were supposed to leave for their flight at 6:30. Being undead is actually better than being dead from lack of sleep.
But for Nayeon, it is more than that.
"Jinyoung oppa's not here yet?" Tzuyu noticed that Jihyo's alone.
"He's picking up his girlfriend" ending it with an eye roll, Jihyo seems to be not fond of this girlfriend... Which is the same with Nayeon.
It just sinked into both of them. Slowly, Nayeon started to fidget her way to the bench and silently scream internally by herself while Tzuyu has also been slightly regretting her decision to let them even come.
Both of them can't sit still for the same reason— Jisoo is Tzuyu's ex, something Nayeon can't let go of for 10 straight years.
And the fact that she lied to Jinyoung about Kim Tokki is haunting her alive. What if Jinyoung suddenly brings it up? She knows Tzuyu would jump in and save her sorry ass but what would she even think of her? a big baby pathological liar in the body of a 30 year old woman?
"You're going to Japan looking like a zombie?" Thankfully for a while, they find themselves, especially Nayeon, distracted by the unannounced arrival of Jeongyeon with two other girls with a girl in pink hair clinging to her.
Nayeon's familiar with Mina, and the only thing she noticed from the last time they have seen each other is that she has gotten way prettier. Instead of the short & orange hair, she now sports long flowing blonde hair. Though they only had a few hello's as an exchange of conversation, she knows that she and Tzuyu goes way back in college up to now in their current work. They could have been friends too if only Tzuyu stopped her rule of not letting her circle of friends overlap.
But the girl that clings to Jeongyeon has something she's uncomfortable with that she can't point out. The stares and the smirks, Nayeon wonders if the pink-haired girl is naturally sultry and intimidating.
"Nayeon, Sana. Sana, Nayeon"
Just as simple as that. No other description or what but it is still obvious that this Sana girl, the pink haired vixen in front of her, is Jeongyeon's current girlfriend.
Poor Nayeon's sanity, pressured to find a relationship after learning she's one of the few in her circle of friends other than Jihyo that lacks a partner in presence. Don't state her age, her appearance will age rapidly in a span of an hour.
Both reached a hand out and shook with a huge smile on their face. This Sana girl might be a charming person contrasting to her very pretty face that made her a little hard to approach.
"So you're Tzuyu's house mate!" she beamed with a smile
Ahhhh yes, she is Tzuyu's house mate. That made her heart crack for a little. She chuckled dry at the realization that Tzuyu, her childhood friend and mayhaps to be better called as the love of her for most of her life, only considered her as the trusty housemate that has been clumsy every single day to be the source of her entertainment and migraine.
"I didn't know you two are close enough to travel together!" Nayeon irked but didn't let it be physically visible. How can this Sana girl, with an angelic innocent smile, rub salt to a freshly cut wound like a devil's incarnate.
Mina can smell it. Tension. It's the battle of Nayeon's invisible petty temper versus Sana's devilish smirk hidden under an angelic smile, and to be honest, Mina's quite entertained. The only thing that makes her interfer is facts and the need for a peaceful flight.
"Well, they are really close" Mina intervenes with a giggle but soon turns mum when she sees Sana's harmless smile.
"But Tzuyu doesn't talk about her at all" another one of her smiles that this time it sends shivers down Nayeon's spineless body. Mina seems to be on the same page as her.
"O-okay. Maybe you're not with us when she talks about her"
For some reason, everyone is suddenly scared of this Sana girl. Literally every word that she releases triggers Nayeon. The girl has a dagger for a tongue while she has an invertebrate body as guts and a pea-sized temper. The result? She's pissed but too scared to retaliate. Somehow Jihyo has hinted she doesn't like this girl. Nayeon catches this after the exchange when she sees her stern and looking displeased.
Well except for Tzuyu, she's not scared at all.
"We're very close childhood friends along with Jihyo unnie and Jeongyeon unnie"
There it is again! The thumping feeling of her heart as if she's being lifted up to cloud nine by the little naughty cherubs version of Tzuyu. She can't blush now, not when the reason is just because of a fact that everyone knows already.
Ahhh shit. she groans, finding the younger girl running inside her head again.
It is all coming back to her. Every single time Tzuyu made her heart beat like crazy flashes like a flickering camera flash inside her head that just intensifies the headache.
She blames the marker. One stupid marker that she badly needed. One stupid marker really did break the barely—holding wall that she built just to stop her feelings to grow. One fucking marker, Nayeon screams. It only took her one fucking marker to break down and swoon— as if she doesn't already before everything happened— at everything the younger girl do.
"You don't look good" Tzuyu asks. Nayeon perked up and tried to hide a blush. No one should know that she's crushing hard on Tzuyu or she will get the butt of the jokes again.
"Just need some sle—" But Nayeon didn't even get the chance to finish the sentence when out of nowhere, Tzuyu placed her hand and gripped tightly on her waist to guide her to a nearby seat to let her rest.
Fuck it Nayeon hates how the girl even multiplied inside her head like a naughty little cherub messing up the controls inside her brain.
Nayeon sighs and just waits for their flight. At least she's distracted from Jisoo for a while.
-Present-
"Are you done being scandalous?" Jihyo sat on the floor beside her for almost 3 minutes of Nayeon continuously screaming her lungs out. Nayeon shoots Jihyo a look but proceeds to clean her butt from the imaginary dirt and stands fully.
But before she can even get into her own problems, Nayeon decided that it may be a good time to confront Jihyo about something that has been bugging her since this trip started.
"Okay. First of all, what's with you and Jeongyeon? Like... I know you two roast each other on a daily basis but aren't you too invested roasting her?"
"Just like you said, it's normal" Jihyo shrugs and continues her way to a small coffee table on the side. Nayeon follows suit behind her like a little curious dog that will definitely bite if she does not get the answer she wants to hear.
"Roasting each other playfully. Yeah, that's normal. Then what was the day before yesterday for?"
2 days ago
"Why did we get the room with separate beds!" is Jeongyeon's first words after finding out that she did not get the key she's eyeing for.
"Womanizer's karma" Jihyo mocked, unlocking her shared room with his brother's girlfriend, and taunted her with a smile.
Jeongyeon is definitely triggered, something Jihyo is aiming for, and huffs "I am not a womanizer" as she looks at Sana just behind her, not minding Jihyo's teasing and is actually enjoying it.
"Yeah, sure. Everyone knows you fucked all women in our office"
"I did not!"
"Ahhhh. Right, you haven't fucked me yet"
The door closes before anyone can react. Jisoo stifles a chuckle while Mina and Tzuyu try to be as composed as possible and bite their lip to hold their laughs as they see Jeongyeon fuming over both the bed and Jihyo's remarks.
"Stop that" Nayeon said with a grin, actually holding her laugh as she looked at Jihyo's door.
"Oh please Nayeon, you're the one eyeing for this the most" Jisoo replied followed by a chuckle, "You look like you are enjoying it yourself"
Present
"It's completely normal, Nayeon. Don't take things too seriously"
Nayeon just can't let it slide. If she's going to open up about her feelings for the first time, she won't be going down this line alone and she's definitely determined to let Jihyo spill some tea.
"Normal or maybe you're too petty and bitter that Jeongyeon won't even consider you as someone she would date"
Silence...
A bull's eye. The staring contest between them invites chaotic energy as Nayeon refuses to stop her brow twitching, purposely taunting an already dark eyed Jihyo, glaring at her ready to chop down heads.
But Nayeon's reflexes are poor and taunting is only applicable for her if she's not going to receive a flick on the forehead. She rather have rebuttals and roasting than get a flick from Jihyo.
And now she's in pain.
"Is that what your writer's mind has been doing to you? Being delusional?!" Jihyo continues another round of flicks all over her body and all Nayeon could do is just shield her face.
"Okay stop! I'm sorry" Nayeon surrenders and Jihyo stops but warry and is alert for another attack. "I'll believe you for now"
And another flick for Nayeon's forehead.
"Don't pretend that you didn't benefit from that too"
But Nayeon can't tell if it was a benefit or just pure torture for her.
-2 days ago-
Perhaps Nayeon is indeed cursed by the love gods and wants her to suffer in pure dilemma and finally wants to set a few certainties in her life. She just thought of being in love with Tzuyu just earlier in the airport and now she's denying her whole feelings for the girl. Maybe that's why the gods decided to scramble their hotel keys, the receptionist doing a bad job telling them which one is which, and let the beds do their thing.
And Nayeon realizes that she shouldn't play with fire if she doesn't want to get burned. Teasing someone for not getting what they want, lowkey judging them for assuming it is to have proper babe time, when she wished hard not to get the couple's bed just slaps karma to her face (and a making her heart happy).
They got the queen size bed.
"Mina do you want to share rooms with Tzuyu?!" she immediately runs to the next door and knocks obnoxiously loud while Tzuyu looks at her bemused.
Mina opens the door with a smile, "I'm fine with my room already" and peeks to see Tzuyu's reaction.
"Are you sure? I don't want you to be lonely" Nayeon fakes a sentiment.
"Oh, don't worry. I also hate sharing sheets and sleeping beside someone"
Oh fuck
Nayeon is so screwed. She can't disrespect Mina's pet peeves just for her confused feelings. Screw them keys and the beds, she's sleeping on the floor.
What if she asks to swap rooms with Jeongyeon and Sana? Nayeon suddenly has hope and brightens up. She is sure that they would like to swap so they can do their thing properly. What if—
"You don't want to sleep beside me?"
Fucking fuck my fuck
It only takes Tzuyu for Nayeon to reconsider her thoughts.
There is really no problem for them to sleep beside each other. The only problem here is Nayeon's fragile feelings and her decision that leads to avoiding them as much as possible. What if she gets addicted to her scent? Or what if she hugs her accidentally.
"No! It's just—" Just what, Nayeon?!
"It's just that I thought you might want to sleep beside Mina, that's all"
It's just that I think you two are dating and I don't want this confused state I am in now to get worse
"Why would I want that?" Tzuyu is as perplexed as Nayeon trying to come up with more excuses.
"Well... Y-Y two look really close"
"But... It's not like we're not sleeping beside each other before regularly, right?"
Ahhh shit her heart started to pump faster and her palms were sweating.
She ended up sleeping together with Tzuyu while she's on the edge of the bed, not wanting to feel her heat or smell her scent.
-Present-
"Shut up. You set this up didn't you?"
"If that helps you sleep at night—Oh! That was witty"
Nayeon could only roll her eyes. It is one witty remark but that doesn't mean she likes it.
Every second on that bed with Tzuyu is like fire and ice playing tricks on her.
"Anyways. Let's get down to business . You and Tzuyu what?"
The tickles inside her stomach come back and it is more annoying than before. Nayeon breaths deep, palming her face and exhales in exaggeration as an attempt to calm those butterflies.
"We almost kissed accidentally" Nayeon starts fidgeting and suddenly had another breakdown. Jihyo seems to be unbothered. Sure, she almost kissed all of her friends because accidents can happen and compromising positions are part of them.
"What's the big deal? It's not like your lips touched. Unless you—"
And suddenly her brain finally unlocked a code that had been trying to decode for a long time.
"Bitch that late?!"
-20 minutes ago-
When Nayeon found herself lost in the middle of Akihabara when Sana gave them free time for their city tour, walking among those cosplayers that thankfully distract her for realizing she's walking without direction, She found herself in front of an Apple store with the strong urge to buy anything that caught her attention.
But Nayeon without sleep and Tzuyu is just a pure mess. She can't function properly, her little to no sense of direction completely vanishes, and out of all those things, the worst thing that Tzuyu's disappearance can do to her is loneliness. She questions herself why did she even forced Tzuyu to go with Mina in the first place if she's going to feel like the world has suddenly shut off their lights for her and cast an eternal loneliness that only a doe eyed girl's sweet, Sweet dimple and giggles can only break that curse.
And now she has an iPad after that dramatic monologue inside her head. Thank God Jisoo found her wandering. Chatting with her like the old times really did stop her buying impulse.
"Tzuyu!" Yes, she can call her now since she already had a Tzuyu breakdown earlier that day.
"Did you finally spark a fire?" Tzuyu teases as she continues to sketch on the brown notebook Nayeon had given her years before.
"You know I can kick you out of the house since I pay the rent"
Tzuyu closed her notes and smiled in tease. "Great! Can't wait for you to find a new assistant that can do everything for free"
"I... Take that back"
No, Nayeon did not burn a building nor sparked a teeny tiny fire. She actually made progress already and found herself doing rough sketches that can be part of her story.
But something is still missing for her. This romance business is really something she lacks experience but she did manage to write 3 years worth of updates that seem to be keeping those love hungry, hormonal teenagers on the edge every update, starved for a week and all noisy on social media for harmlessly demanding for a new chapter.
So why is she struggling these past few months when these feelings of hers are currently the very most thing that drives her day-to-day joys and excitement of life?
Nayeon may have known the answer from the beginning. She's just too oblivious and in denial to fully name the reason why.
The thought of Tzuyu leaving her for good lingers more than what she expected. She spaced out for that matter too long enough that she forgot the events before her worries started creeping in, presence of the tall girl beside her unnoticed and unidentified by her as if she completely forgot everything for the sole purpose of the girl (that is currently unnoticed).
"Hmmm... I think it is a great start" Nayeon finally escaped the daze from the touch on her shoulder as the younger stand beside her.
And praise Nayeon's heart for this night as it experience such horrid rollercoaster ride separated by a thin line to euphoria. She looks over her shoulder only to find Tzuyu beside her, not realizing that the girl bent down to her face level with her head almost touching her shoulder...
She can smell Tzuyu's minty lavender shampoo penetrating every curve and pits of her brain, making sure to imprint it on every corner like a shot of cocaine in her system. Tzuyu's flawlessly smooth tan skin of her cheeks that she wants to poke is inviting her to come closer and just plant one peck on them. And her lips? Nayeon's losing too much brain cells from the short circuit caused by staring at her pair of smooth, kissable lips.
But a single kiss can change everything in an instant. Cheek or lips kisses, everything will still change. The severity of the effect is only what it differs from each. Even if she would like to kiss her in just pure curiosity or letting her feelings break loose, Nayeon just can't do that.
She's too much of a coward but much of a dreamer to close her eyes waiting for Tzuyu to move closer.
"But still not good enough like your previous works" Tzuyu finally stopped and everything went silent for Nayeon who only has her sense of touch to predict every movement they do. Her breath becomes ragged, she keeps swallowing her spit that keeps building up from the nervousness, and her palms are getting sweaty after 10 seconds of silence.
Should I open my eyes?
But Nayeon swears she feels another warm air that is not coming from her. She bet her story's success that Tzuyu's getting closer to her.
And she fucking bet her identity that their lips brushed for a millisecond there.
How is she supposed to open her eyes if this is happening already?
"What are you doing?" suddenly all of the warmness and the intoxicating scent disappears the moment Tzuyu questions her.
She can hear the imaginary cracking sound of her broken heart shattered to pieces. It breaks even more to micropieces when she opens her eyes and sees Tzuyu's reaction as if what happened was only one big imagination of hers.
It's not an imagination, right?
But she can't say that she's expecting a kiss from her.
"O-oh. Sorry! I think I fell asleep" nervous chuckles escapes her lips and avoids eye contact with Tzuyu. She doesn't even see her face after all those very much obvious lies of hers.
But Tzuyu makes every lie of mine true
and I don't want that to be true... I want that ki—
"I-I will lie down for a bit" another nervous round of laughs flies around the air as Nayeon pulls herself away from the younger girl, plopping on the bed making sure not to face her.
"Ooookay? I'll go to Mina's room for a while. Don't lock the room. I'll give you ideas later"
Nayeon can only nod and not even give a glimpse of Tzuyu's back as she leaves their room. The door closes and footsteps start to fade away until she hears another door close from nearby is the sign for Nayeon to finally breathe and start going insane from the sensation of Tzuyu's breath on her lips.
"I am fucked!"
She did not think twice to go out of the room and pranced her way to Jeongyeon's room in the next hall and literally barged inside uninvited, yelling hard without looking at what's currently in front of her.
"Jeongyeon let's talk! Call Ji—"
There is a reason why knocking was invented. And maybe the reason it was might be the same sight the prehistoric man had seen.
"Oh... Oh my god! My EYES!"
The first thing Nayeon sees as soon as she looks at them is Sana's glistening shiny pearls hanging out in the open air as she dives deep in—
"Nayeon! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU—"
"LOCK THE MOTHER FCKING DOOR!" she did not even dared to stay inside for a second after seeing that deep sea search-like sight. She doesn't need to know what Sana's peaches look like with a tattoo and she doesn't need to know what a naked Jeongyeon looks like.
"Fucking itchy horny boomers" she cusses under her breath and walks towards Jihyo's room. She definitely heard the locks turn at the very moment she was about to turn the knob.
"Jihyo!!"
-Present-
Caffeine has been doing wonders to Nayeon's body the moment she starts another wave of breakdowns and doubts. The cup starts to get slammed on the table with trembling hands in every titillating detail. Better yet expect to be asked to pay for the hotel table and mug at this point.
"Jihyo, I am fucking confused!"
"Well... That's definitely confusing given how silent it was for 10 seconds. But the proximity is near, it can be definitely an accident on her side too. Maybe she's shocked that's why she didn't move"
"That's not what I meant. I mean yes it is confusing but I mean my FEELINGS!"
Jihyo sips her coffee, dragging a long slurp as she maintains eye contact with the distressed girl and Nayeon can see what's coming to her. With that smirk on the rim of the mug, she can already see the foreseeable minutes.
"Everyone already has a hunch, Nayeon. Admitting won't kill"
"I am not!"
"Don't lie. Wanting that kiss is a big evidence already"
"Why are you dictating how I feel?"
Jihyo sighs for the longest in a while that she has ever done. She starts to think how did even Tzuyu manage Nayeon when she's in a contradicting state of herself. Because if she's being honest, she wants to kick Nayeon out of her room and let her suffer from a not-so dilemma of hers.
"Have you heard your question earlier? Do you want me to drag you back to your room and burn down in shame?"
Chills. Nayeon perks up and apologizes in her fast-paced world brought by the caffeine as she keeps on bowing. Jihyo's temper unleashing is not a nice sight to be seen. She'd rather go back in shame than to let all hell go loose in this luxurious Japanese hotel room.
"When did you even start feeling that"
For Nayeon, it might be that time when she's having a hard time during her last days in college. Final exams left and right, submitting requirements from time to time, Nayeon just wanted to release all the bad vibes through something new yet familiar for her. She didn't know how to do that and just barged inside Tzuyu's room and hugged her until she fell asleep. Tzuyu did not even try protesting, and Nayeon knows how the younger one hates this kind of skinship that she's just thankful for having Tzuyu in her life at that moment. She's thankful that she found that safe place just by going home and taking a shot at hugging her.
The little stunt of hers became a normal comfort gesture to something a habit the both of them developed. They found themselves hugging each other on the bed until both of them fell asleep. It became a normal thing with little celebration to just a normal movie night. Nayeon did not realize that this harmless release of stress would cause her this. She's already that messed up by thinking if she has a crush on her tall childhood friend or just really consider her damn attractive, and if she would have known that by doing that stunt will complicate those feelings, that would never happen in the first place.
"You know that's not normal, right?"
"No, I don't! " Nayeon whisper screams "I won't be confused if I knew"
"Are you telling me you're this confused for like... 10 years?"
Nayeon turns silent. Jihyo watches her hands fidget and avoids any eye contact made to the point she has to follow her head movement in every dodge she does.
"Nayeon!"
"Yes! And I go distant whenever I get confused again. Are you happy now?!"
After all those fluttery feelings in Nayeon's chest whenever Tzuyu does her little things, Nayeon tends to stay away as much as possible from her. She did notice the lack of attention being given to her as the days passed by and suddenly after maybe a month that things have died down, Nayeon will come back as if nothing happened. She will give the unwelcomed affections to her younger friend like old times and be a handful again much to Tzuyu's annoyance. The cuddle hobby started to get infrequent until it was gone from their mind and became a distant memory, and for the first time in those 10 years, Nayeon is haunted by the fact that she did not consider what Tzuyu felt.
But she asks herself why did she even get those butterflies for something too normal?
Why did she feel them when Tzuyu secretly put her own umbrella when she lost hers back in college? The flutters intensified when she found out Tzuyu went out to buy her another one but ended up going back empty-handed and soaked in the rain. She blames Jisoo for dating Tzuyu and used that opportunity to finally distance herself and put up a temporary wall. Everyone must be crazy to even consider Jisoo betrayed Nayeon for dating because they used to have something. At the end of the day, it was all about Tzuyu.
Or that time when her car broke down and she had to take the subway to work but Tzuyu surprised her off work by picking her up at her office when she's supposed to be having fun since it was her day-off.
But there were days that it was so intense that Nayeon had to go home to her parents just so she could hide the blush on her cheeks. One of those days was when Nayeon, Jinyoung, and Momo went out for dinner together and coincidentally saw Tzuyu and Mina enter the same restaurant. She thought that she didn't even see them until they left. Nayeon was even ready to take the subway until she saw blinking headlights trying to catch her attention in the parking lot. And oh how Nayeon's heart leaped through her ribcage, Tzuyu came back for her even though Mina's house is already near theirs. Nayeon ended up sleeping for a week in her parents' house and tried to avoid any skin contact or anything that would trigger those weird feelings fluttering inside her stomach to her throat for almost 2 months.
"Oh God... This story is getting worse every second" Nayeon can't really blame how all slumped up Jihyo is with her hand rubbing her temple as she sighs every now and then.
She's the worst. And all of that just because she can't admit her own feelings.
"You even made everyone think that Jisoo betrayed you because you two almost had something" The fear starts to creep up her spine. Nayeon gasped at the realization that she just painted Jisoo as one sly snake just because of her petty ass. "Thank God you two did not ended up together because she does not deserve to be used as a cover up for an indecisive bitch like you"
Nayeon took everything full of offense, but she really can't retaliate. She knows she deserves worse than being called an indecisive bitch.
Both of them have a question in mind. The truth. The secret that has been covered in lies that Tzuyu cannot even make it true.
The real feelings that Nayeon keeps hiding.
"Is there a day that you did try to consider that you might be in love with her once and not act all confused?"
Jihyo already knows the answer. The way Nayeon's silence means a thousand yes screaming through her glassy black eyes as her whole body rests still in calmness tells how much more than the surface can tell how deep this is.
"I did..."
-3 years ago-
It came back.
Those feelings from years before haunt Nayeon again like the old days and it gets worse. Thanks to that day back in the restaurant where she came back for her, everything seems to be restless for her. Just simple gestures worsen the stomach discomfort and nothing alleviates the symptoms at all.
No medicine can cure Nayeon's indecisive self.
And she thought that this company outing would take her mind away from that certain girl. It did not, and it is even worse.
All she can think about is why did Tzuyu come back for her and why did that even make her heart skip a beat. The fact that the trip is ending unexpectedly a day early worsens Nayeon's stomach grumbles. Yes, she wants to see Tzuyu but she does not want to feel like fire and ice battling for dominance when she meets her again.
Maybe she really does like Tzuyu. It won't hurt, right? But what if she's just adoring Tzuyu at everything?
Nayeon shakes her head. At least she's home for Tzuyu's birthday and that is what is important. She can finally give the long hidden notebook inside her luggage since last winter.
Her stomach churns the moment she finds herself in front of their door. What if she finally understands this feeling the moment she enters? What if the conclusion that she reaches is the fact that she has been liking her childhood for God knows how long?
What will Nayeon even feel if that is her realization?
Nayeon shakes her head. "Of course, life will still go on"
She twists the doorknob and enters quietly, scared of the next thing that can happen. It is not as quiet as Nayeon imagined for a 2AM atmosphere. There are inaudible noises, lights turned on, and what's weirder is that her room's door is open.
Of course her first instinct is to quietly investigate. As she goes closer to her room, those inaudible noise gets louder.
Nayeon freezes. All emotions she questioned earlier suddenly disappeared and got replaced with maternal instincts as what she called.
In her bed lies Tzuyu, all naked, while a girl in orange hair diving—
-Present-
"Stop— no details please"
And Nayeon did immediately after a sudden realization that it is not the right time to talk about positions and such when they can clearly hear Jeongyeon scream in pleasure next door.
Nayeon remembers everything like a fresh citrus fruit's juice stinging her eyes. Every detail and every feeling she experienced with such sight, and Jihyo really can't blame her. With a heavy heart she has that night, Nayeon quietly pulls out ther gift for Tzuyu and places it down on her table inside her room. No card nor sender information, she just left it there alone, might need a few days to be noticed.
She quietly left for Jeongyeon's house lifeless, no feelings, and just pure numbness all over her body, only for her to return in the morning, pretending she just got off the plane.
"I totally lost all the fluttery feelings after that! I avoided her since I assumed she is with someone and I don't want to ruin that for her. In all honesty, it convinced me that all I have for her is just a big sister-like admiration"
One thing Nayeon forgets about Jihyo is that she's the one who is the most brutal and eye opener for the 3 of them. With her eyes as beautiful as the bright sun on a Sunday morning, those eyes can also see through facades and lies.
"That's feeling crushed and being petty, not the other way around" Jihyo sounded as straightforward and frank as she can, raining down on her parade, feeling the irritation building up on Nayeon's expression.
"Fine. Okay, I liked her" Nayeon raises both of her hands in the air to admit defeat "But I can't fall in love with her, Jihyo. No I can't. She's our little sister!"
Nayeon lost to herself the moment a single tear escaped the ducts of her eyes and softly flowed down to her cheek, trailing a distinct mark for Jihyo to see. She swears that she is not in the mood to cry, even her voice is not shaky to say that she's having a breakdown, but why create a single tear? Why did it even break free at that specific line?
She already knows she's lying to herself.
"No she is not, Nayeon!" Jihyo slams her cup too hard after a sip. "And we both know that you know it more than I do"
Her cup is suddenly empty, no more caffeine to drive her system over, and Jihyo sees it. And if caffeine will help the helpless girl in front of her to calm down or at least be at ease while she seeks comfort, Jihyo doesn't mind making her 10 cups of it just for today.
Jihyo gets her cup and makes her way to a small station with coffee on the side and starts to prepare a cup for two. "Falling in love is not a sin, Nayeon"
Nayeon lifted her head on and looked at her with little glimmer of happiness masked in a vast pool of worry and insecurity. Jihyo reassures her with a smile, placing another cup of caffeine for her and continues "And falling in love with your friend is not a crime for you to be that scared"
But Nayeon still can't accept it. She shouldn't and she would not admit it even if they were the last people on earth.
"It's not your fault that Tzuyu's your type. We all have preferences. And it is also not Tzuyu's fault that people fall in love with her. Everything is a coincidence until you work on it to become a destiny"
Those wide eyes of Jihyo suddenly makes Nayeon finally feel like caffeine has never been in her body for a while. Those same eyes finally calms her and maybe even lets her thoughts and opinions flip dramatically.
Nayeon might consider saying it.
"Don't be afraid to love" Jihyo chuckles "I will be surprised if you're not in love with her after all of those things she did for you. Not everyone plans a trip for your stressed friend"
"SHE DID WHAT NOW?!" Oh curse her heart that keeps beating erratically like hell inside her chest. Tzuyu planned a whole trip for her because she's stressed? Nayeon doesn't know how to process that information.
"Oh shit" Jihyo curses under her breath. "Pretend you didn't hear that. She asked me not to tell anyone"
Nayeon finally feels it again. The butterflies built up for almost 10 years at the pit of her stomach starts to creep up to her throat like a large lump formed in discomfort.
She needs to release it.
She exhales deeply and stares right into Jihyo's eyes in all sincerity and truthfulness.
"I love Tzuyu" Nayeon breathes in and repeats "I love Tzuyu oh my god!" and proceeds to fan herself as if it was one tedious task, completely burying her head on the table as she shouts in another episode of her breakdown.
"Well, everyone knows except for you two" Jihyo is finally back being her mocking and sarcastic tone to annoy her again. "Why don't you make her the new character in your story?"
Nayeon immediately raised her head and looked at Jihyo straight in the eyes, sheepishly smiling and giggling like a crazy woman before gulping a big lump in her throat. It never dawned on Jihyo what might be the reason for Nayeon's sudden chaotic trance until she recalls how familiar Nayeon's stories earlier are.
"It's the protagonist, right?" Jihyo questions in an all-knowing tone in which Nayeon nods and answers "Yep..."
Everything died down. No more lewd noises from the other side of the wall and suddenly Jihyo is all silent with a soft half-hearted smile painted on her lips.
Nayeon knows that in any second now, Jeongyeon would probably barge in and join them with fresh sweat from a session
She wonders if it was even right for her to tell what she feels.
"Is it still a coincidence for you?"
Seeing Jihyo smile with a sigh already tells her the answer.
Jihyo shakes her head. "Destiny can also be cruel, Nayeon'' She sighs and chuckles "I tried to make a move— to confess for 13 years but fate and destiny are not on the same page for me. Jeongyeon keeps having girls when I try to"
The door suddenly swings open. Never in Nayeon's life has she seen Jihyo act like her. She has never seen her all flustered and anxious after repeating a confession from 15 years ago.
"Did someone say my name?" Jeongyeon didn't even stop on her tracks and immediately grabbed a seat between them.
But Jihyo just can't face her for now. Not when she just heard her reach nirvana in a room beside her. She stands up the moment Jeongyeon has seated and reaches out for her cigarettes inside her jacket's pocket.
"I'll go take a puff for a while to mask that orgasm smell"
Nayeon followed suit. She really can't stomach seeing Jeongyeon for now after witnessing her in such a state of euphoria
Nayeon takes note to not develop the character based on Jeongyeon too realistically like her for because she will get reported for violating the Content rating system if it is not safe for kids to consume.