side b

Zoey nearly tips herself off balance with how quickly she jerks herself upright, but by the time she’s reaching for Rumi’s hand, the other girl has bowed instead. For a moment, Zoey is left staring at the top of her head, at the way her braid hangs off her shoulder like it was arranged purposefully.

And then Rumi straightens, eyes looking as wide as Zoey’s feel. A pause. A breath. And then the corner of her mouth tilts upward, her eyes crinkle, and she puts her hand on her stomach as she laughs.

Zoey knows the sound of people laughing at her; that’s not what this is, and the sound tosses aside all her nerves until she finds herself giggling along with the other girl.

“Sorry, sorry!” Rumi apologizes, laughter still escaping her despite her obvious attempts to swallow it back. “Start over?”

“Why?” Zoey asks. “I think that was the best intro we could’ve had.”

“I’d like to, though,” Rumi says, her voice sounding almost… wistful. “Can we?” She holds out her hand again, and okay, okay, refusing and crushing Rumi’s hopeful little smile would make Zoey feel like a monster.

So she takes Rumi’s hand in hers, and gasps as color blooms between them. Starts at their hands, Rumi’s skin paler than her own, and rolls outward, over the black sleeve of Rumi’s jacket, up to her warm brown eyes and then her—

“Your hair’s purple!” Zoey delights, before noting the way that Rumi’s eyes have squinted.

“And your shirt is… very bright,” her soulmate responds, and Zoey looks down and laughs again because yeah, apparently her favorite shirt from a local conservation group is a striking neon green. And then she remembers what Celine had said, just before she left the room. “We have the whole day now? To get to know each other?”

(Later on in the week, Zoey will remember that again and wonder at it. Almost like Celine knew what would happen as soon as they touched.)

At Rumi’s nod, Zoey tugs her eagerly toward the door. “Can we go to the zoo? Or the aquarium? Walk, talk, eat ice cream, see all the animals in color for the first time?”

“Do we have time for both?” Rumi asks, her head tilted to the side, matching that crooked smile that Zoey already melts at. All the anxiety of this meeting — her? They wanted Zoey? For a K-pop group? Really???? — dissolves like mist in the morning sun.

“If we hurry,” she says, picking up the pace and half-dragging Rumi with her until the other girl laughs and half jogs to keep up with her. “No waffling over ice cream flavors, no dawdling at the baby animals, only thirty minutes at the turtle exhibit!”

Rumi inhaled as she stirred to consciousness. The air was warm with sleep and the morning sun as its rays crested through the gaps in the mostly drawn shades of the bedroom window. She lay there, eyes closed, as the rest of her senses came into focus. 

The birds chirped and twittered about outside, children chattered and yelled at the bus stop. She could hear the spray of the sprinklers watering the grass of the field of the nearby park. Her mouth felt dry, tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth.

Finally stirring awake fully she shifted slightly, preparing to reach out for her water bottle on the bedside table. But a grumble and a pair of limbs wrapping around her prevented the movement. 

Rumi couldn’t help the smile that graced her face. Craning her neck to see her captor, she spotted a mop of black locks loosely tied in a low pony and a splay of bangs sticking out in every direction. The swell of her heart at the sight was involuntary.

Releasing a deep breath, she leaned down to place a kiss on the crown of Zoey’s head, the owner of which hum-grumbled and hugged her closer.

“Zoey, jagiya- I just want a drink of water,” Rumi said into her hair. “And maybe to go to the bathroom.”

Zoey grumbled again. Rumi huffed a laugh. Zoey retaliated by squeezing her harder, Rumi’s bladder protesting the pressure. “Okay, love, you can’t do that or we’re both gonna have a problem.”

With a huff Zoey released her, flopping dramatically into the pillows and pulling the covers over her head as she rolled over. Rumi took the opportunity to slip into the bathroom. When she returned a few minutes later Zoey was snoring quietly beneath the comforter. With a happy smile and feeling of contentment Rumi tucked herself back under the covers and into Zoey.

It had taken time and a bit of training for Rumi to stay in bed long past the time she would wake. She usually preferred to get a jump on the day, starting coffee and chores or errands. But laying in with Zoey made the sacrifice to her productivity worth it. 

In Rumi’s expert opinion morning Zoey snuggles were the best, while Mira specialized in couch cuddles. Rumi was grateful mornings like this for the two of them weren’t uncommon. Twice a week their class schedules aligned to allow them to lie in together. 

They stayed tangled up in each other, Rumi dozing in and out of consciousness for another hour until Zoey stirred a bit more. Eventually she managed to extricate herself from Rumi’s arms and their bed, padding off to the bathroom. 

Rumi rolled over and scrolled on her phone, checking social media and texts only to be cruelly interrupted by cold, wet hands on the bare sliver of skin exposed by her rucked up tanktop.

“Zoey!” Rumi cried out, scooting away with a jerk to little avail as Zoey’s fingers played at her sides. 

“What?” Zoey asked, faux innocence dripping from her voice. Her icy fingers grazed along Rumi’s skin, wriggling into the waistband of her pajama pants.

“Zoey Marie Seo-Daniel!” Rumi scolded, flipping around in bed to face her attacker and grabbing her by the wrists. “Don’t you dare.”

The younger girl used her leverage as she kneeled on the bed, fighting a little against the restraint, “And what if I do dare?”

“I’ll make you regret it,” Rumi warned, meeting Zoey’s eyes. Something beyond mischief flashed in her eyes.

“Promise?” Zoey asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“You’re a menace,” Rumi told her, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips regardless. She tugged at Zoey’s wrists, pulling her girlfriend on top of her.

Zoey giggled, hair coming loose to cascade over her shoulders. The rays of morning light caught her just right and Rumi was left in awe at the sight.

“You’re so beautiful,” she breathed, the words coming straight from her thoughts to her mouth.

A shyness seemed to overtake Zoey at the compliment. Rumi only pulled her closer, arms closing around her waist. 

“Hey,” Rumi said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, “You are. And I’m so lucky to have you. You and Mira were the best thing to ever happen to me.”

Zoey flushed and hid her face in Rumi’s shoulder, allowing her full weight to press into Rumi as she groaned.

“It’s true!” Rumi said insistently with a laugh. She leaned in, pressing her lips to the side of Zoey’s head in a kiss. One arm still encircled Zoey’s waist while the other traced patterns into her girlfriend's back. 

“I don’t know who I’d be without you two,” she breathed, voicing the words aloud that had rang in her head for the past couple years. 

Zoey lifted her head, searching Rumi’s face. A flicker of concern pulled at her brows as she raised a hand to wipe at Rumi’s temple. “Hey,” Zoey said softly, “What’s wrong?”

Rumi hadn’t realized a tear had slipped from the corner of her eye. She shook her head, “Nothing, I just love you.”

Zoey melted. Their lips met in a soft, tender kiss, brief but full of so much affection. When Zoey pulled back a whisper escaped her lips, “I love you too.”

Rumi’s hand on her back pressed her back in, their lips meeting again, this time with a spark of heat. Zoey’s tongue brushed against her lip and Rumi answered parting her lips with a sigh. Breaths mingled and hitched as hands wandered over cloth and skin. 

When Zoey pulled back again, Rumi unconsciously chased her lips. Too far out of range, Rumi’s head fell back to the pillow. Zoey shifted, moving a leg over Rumi’s waist to straddle her. She tossed her hair over her shoulder to one side and Rumi’s brain stuttered to a halt at the sight. 

“Fuck,” Rumi breathed in awe.

A smirk instantly came to her girlfriend’s face. “That’s your one for the day, jagiya,” Zoey said, voice teasing as she leaned in. “But something tells me you’re gonna break Celine’s Cursing Compact in the next few minutes.”

Rumi didn’t have a chance to process the mention of her aunt while in bed with her girlfriend, because in the next moment Zoey was trailing open mouthed kisses along her jawline and neck. Her eyes fluttered shut. Zoey nipped at her earlobe, stealing a gasp from Rumi’s throat, then traveling south. She sucked a bruise into the collarbone before placing a delicate kiss on the top of her breast. 

“Zo,” Rumi husked, trying to regain her composure, “We h-ave class-”

Zoey hummed in response, continuing her journey across Rumi’s bare skin. As she nibbled at Rumi’s pulse point, Rumi swallowed.

“Those aren’t until this afternoon,” Zoey murmured against her skin. “And,” Zoey sat up, tone dripping with sass, “I’m being careful. Just wear a t shirt- no one will know.”

She crossed her arms, an expression of challenge on her face as her head cocked to the side. “Any other objections?”

Rumi found none. She shook her head. An impish grin spread across her girlfriend’s face.

“Good.”

* * *

Zoey’s lips found hers once again before she flopped back against the pillows with a happy sigh. Rumi’s mind still felt hazy, but she was slowly returning to herself. She felt Zoey shift, cracking an eye open to see the girl checking her phone.

Zoey gasped and Rumi’s eyes shot open in panic, now fully present. Her girlfriend turned the phone to show her screen. She searched it for the source of Zoey’s alarm, but found nothing but the time, 11:17am, and a notification from Zoey’s email that was most likely spam. 

“What?” she asked.

“This is officially the longest I’ve ever gotten you to stay in bed with me,” Zoey said with a pleased smile. 

Rumi groaned, flopping an arm over her eyes, “You’re the worst.”

“That’s not what you said just a few moments ago,” she teased. “In fact, I believe your words were something like ‘fuck, Zo, you-’”

Her words were cut off as a hand clamped down on her mouth. Zoey just shot her a smug look and ran her tongue across Rumi’s palm, who reeled back with a disgusted groan. Zoey cackled as Rumi rubbed her hand across the sheets. 

“You also said I was the best thing to ever happen to you,” Zoey said cockily, chin propped up on her palm. But there was something hidden behind the playfulness of her words. 

“You are,” Rumi answered, trying to put as much weight and meaning into the two words as she could. 

The playful expression on Zoey’s face melted away with her words, softening as her eyes roved over Rumi’s face. She lowered herself to rest her head on Rumi’s shoulder and laid an arm over her waist. Rumi could feel the movement of Zoey twisting a lock of her long lavender hair in her fingers at her side. Rumi pulled Zoey in just a little closer. Her mind wandered and her eyes traced shapes in the texture of the ceiling above her. 

“Do you believe in soulmates?”

Rumi blinked at the unexpected question.

“I guess I never really thought about it,” she answered. 

They both grew silent for several seconds as Rumi processed the thought. “If you had asked me that question prior to moving to Honmoon I think I would’ve said no, but after meeting you and Mira…” Rumi trailed off as she searched for the words. “I’ve never had a connection with anyone like I have with you. Even now, I have friends apart from you guys- and they’re good friends, I like them- but I… don’t feel drawn to them the way I’ve always felt with you and Mira in a way that feels so natural.”

She stared into the ceiling as the moment ticked on, waiting for Zoey to weigh in. She was quiet longer than Rumi expected, but eventually Zoey said, “I’ve always thought that there was someone out there for everyone- not necessarily romantic, but that there are people we are destined to love in every lifetime. Or at least I’ve always found comfort in that idea…”

Zoey fiddled with the lock of Rumi’s hair. The air turned on and hummed through the vents of their apartment. A dog barked somewhere in the building. 

When Zoey spoke again there was something more pensive in her voice. “I knew Mira was one of them, but for a while I thought it was just in the way that we were meant to grow old as friends. And then I got a crush on her-,” she shifted against Rumi’s shoulder and Rumi could picture the way Zoey’s brow furrowed with thought. “Or I guess, I realized I liked her more than friends. But I resigned myself to being just friends- I didn’t think she liked me like that. And then you came along-,” Zoey poked Rumi teasingly in the side. “And messed things up.”

“Hey!” Rumi laughed, grabbing Zoey’s hand to prevent any further jabs to her side. She laced their fingers together and her girlfriend’s hand relaxed. Rumi trailed her fingers up and down Zoey's, running them along her hand and wrist. 

“Personally, I think you like the way things turned out,” Rumi said. 

“I mean- I don’t know about you, but I could’ve done without the near-death experience…”

(tho i do think the big climax at the end wasn't %100 percent earned IMO. i'd say that as a stand alone movie I cant really consider Zoey and Mira having complete character arcs since i read that for Zoey the lie she believes is that "too much/not enough" ie A grade people pleaser caught between 2 identities has to prove her worth etc so when she's like "i thought my ideas and lyrics were weird but yall like them" "why did cover up the colours stuck inside my head" it doesn't really land for me bc was she covering up the colours? not really to me? and w Mira the lie she believes is that she's "highly aggressive short fused blunt etc" but i mean give me an example dog honestly she seemed pretty patient in the movie w all the shit rumi was pulling. and also if "let the jagged edges meet the light instead" is supposed to be the resolution it's kind of the same issue w Zoey's line since when did she cover up jagged edges? (if anything those lines mostly apply to rumi not Z&M). I mean i get what they're going for but it doesn't land %100 for me as is? Since when analysing text i don't like to infer too much u kno like you gotta look at was is presented (art history degree was a fkn trial sometimes i swear some of those readings were just rage bait). But knowing there's a sequel coming it makes sense that not everyone's character arcs were %100 resolved ie more to work with. and even if there wasn't a sequel it's still an interesting note to end on ie not to have everything tied up open ended stories are just as interesting. But i doubt sony greenlit the sequel before the absolute bonkers streaming numbers came in so i do see how people can say that m and z were a bit underdeveloped. To be clear I'm not saying it was unsatisfying or anything.

(also i know that the lie the character believes / realisation of thematic truth is not the only framework to judge a character arc on but i feel like it was set up with the healer's office bit and the discussion before the idol awards etc etc)

And also writing is hard lol i cant imagine how hard it would be as a director to get ur vision out while complying with studio contraints/ stipulations.

so i think it's a good idea that they kept the movie pretty tight and condensed to as to not bite of more than they can chew u know