#lua scenarios

“I’m telling you, (Y/N) is whipped for you!” Yoojung’s voice, as always, was loud, and Lua was glad that the campus was too busy and noisy for anyone to hear this conversation. She could feel the start of a blush creeping up into her cheeks, but she tried to fight it away, rolling her eyes and shifting her backpack on her shoulders. Hopefully this conversation would be over before the group reached the library, where everyone, including you, would be able to hear.

“Whatever,” she said, making a point not to make eye contact with any of her friends, instead glancing down at her phone. “You guys are just being dramatic.”

“Not really. You can get them to smile, nobody else can do that. They’re whipped,” Doyeon added.

“(Y/N) smiles all the time!”

“Yeah, around you!” Lucy laughed as she spoke, pointing at the older girl, and Lua realized that her blush must have grown. “You like that though, don’t you?”

“I don’t know what you guys are talking about,” she said stubbornly, holding her head high, even if the idea of being the only one to make you smile did make her feel a bit more giddy than usual. “This is stupid.”

“You’re a lot more fun to tease than (Y/N),” Yoojung said with a grin, poking Lua’s cheek. “They just glare at us. At least you react like a normal person!”

“Don’t talk about them like that.” Lua pouted and swatted the other girl’s hand away. “Maybe they just doesn’t smile around you guys because you’re so mean!”

Doyeon shook her head and put her arm around the younger girl’s shoulders, despite Lua trying to shove her away. “No, they just never smile. I’m pretty sure it’s just their resting face but they always look scary. That’s why I was surprised when I heard you guys were dating.”

Well, you seemed normal enough to her. Sure, your resting face was kind of intense and you could glare really well, but you were plenty bright and talkative around her. She’d never noticed anything different around you. “Really?” She said, trying to think back to when she’d first met you in class. “I never saw them as scary. They usually just looked bored in class, I guess. But they smiled and talked to me plenty.”

“It’s because they’re WHIPPED,” Yoojung whooped just as they reached the library stairs, and Lua punched her in the shoulder, her face turning red as people turned to stare at them.

“Shut up! You’re so embarrassing! Plus, you can’t be that loud here, we’re at the library!”

“We aren’t inside yet!” Yoojung whined as she rubbed her arm, and Lucy grinned.

“Hey, since she doesn’t believe that (Y/N)’s whipped, we should try something. We’ll approach (Y/N) first to show how they don’t smile at us, and since Lua’s short we can hide her behind us.”

“I’m taller than Yoojung,” Lua pointed out as she opened the library door. “Plus, that’s just weird.”

“No, it’ll definitely work.” Doyeon moved in front of her and linked arms with Lucy. “Let’s move out, girls!”

“You guys are so weird.” Lua sighed and rolled her eyes, but fell into step behind them, knowing that she didn’t really have a choice. She couldn’t talk Doyeon out of something when she put her head to it.

You were seated on the first floor near the cafe, and she felt her heart pick up as they approached you, glancing at you through the gap between Lucy and Doyeon. You were calmly reading through your notes, your headphones on, so you didn’t hear them approaching. You only looked up when Yoojung skipped close to the table and caught your eye.

Sure enough, you didn’t smile, just giving them a little nod as you glanced around the group. “Hey. You guys are late,” you said, and Yoojung huffed, sliding into one of the chairs.

“Well, hello to you too!”

“What?” You blinked at her, expression still not changing. “I said hey.”

“See? We told you,” Lucy said, and Doyeon finally stepped away to reveal Lua behind them. She felt silly for hiding from you, but when your face brightened and you finally smiled, her blush was no longer from embarrassment.

“Oh, there you are. I was wondering where you were,” you said, standing from your chair, and Lua found herself laughing softly. “What do you mean by ‘we told you’?” You asked, and she shook her head, walking over to give you a tight hug.

“It’s nothing,” she assured you, her heart swelling with affection as she grinned up at you. “I was just talking about how much I like your smile.”

“Gross,” Lucy muttered as she took her seat, but Lua didn’t care. She didn’t really care about the teasing either. Knowing that she was the one to make you smile made her feel like she was floating from happiness, so she couldn’t bring herself to focus on anyone other than you.

“Thanks, I guess,” you said, your smile widening as you rubbed at the back of your neck, a bit embarrassed by her compliment. “How has your day been?” Sure, you could look a bit intimidating at times, but Lua knew how cute and sweet you could be. And she loved it, leaning up to give you a kiss on the cheek to show it.

Reactions

Weki Meki to their s/o knowing their dances.

WEKI MEKI reaction to their gf having tattoos

Scenarios

 Suyeon (Ji Suyeon)

  none

 Elly (Jung Haerim)

  none

 Yoojung (Choi Yoojung)

  Lazy Day

 Doyeon (Kim Doyeon)

  Her Love

 Sei (Lee Seojeong)

  When You Wake 

  Make You Mine

 Lua (Kim Sookyung)

  none

 Rina (Kang Soeun)

  none

 Lucy (Noh Hyojung)

Lua was not the type to get distracted from dancing. Sure, she’d look out the window for a cute dog if she got bored or might take a break from memorizing lines to watch a new music video, but when it came to dancing, she was passionate and nothing could tear her away. She loved dancing and threw everything she had into it, getting tunnel vision until she’d memorized the moves and the dance was natural to her body.

So when she found herself getting distracted by you, it was a shock. This had never happened before, but all of a sudden, even when you weren’t there, she found herself getting distracted by thoughts of you. She’d forget the next move after thinking about your smile, or she’d look away from the practice video to look at you instead. It was weird, and she didn’t know when this had started, but it was starting to drive her a little bit crazy. She had a show to get ready for, but she couldn’t concentrate because of you.

She’d met you a short time before, as a mutual friend of Yoojung’s, and the two of you had immediately hit it off, quickly moving to hanging out with just each other. And then the feelings had started. Lua wasn’t sure what to name them, and honestly she was a bit scared of them, so she tried to just ignore them. But it was hard to ignore her feelings when you laughed at her jokes and smiled brightly and interrupted her thoughts during her private practice time. The feelings kept jumping into her thoughts, until they blocked out the dance she was learning and made it hard to think about anything else. That was when she realized that this was getting out of her control.

She leaned against the mirror in the practice room, closing her eyes and wishing that the mirror could cool her warm skin, breathing hard. The other girls milled around to room, tired and moaning about practice, and it was weird. Lua never got tired out this easily. She could usually dance for hours on end without feeling tired. But now, she felt exhausted and frustrated with herself, just from a few rounds of practicing. What was going on with her?

“Lua, we’re going to take a break for lunch!” Suyeon’s voice rang through the practice room and Lua opened her eyes, blinking at her group mates before nodding and putting on a smile.

“Okay. I think I’m going to stay here and practice a little more.”

Suyeon sent her a little look, but didn’t say anything, just shrugging her shoulders. “Just don’t hurt yourself and make sure you eat.”

“I will, don’t worry.”

As the rest of the girls shuffled out the door, Yoojung hung back. She looked torn between leaving and staying before eventually sighing and walking back over to Lua. Eyebrows raised, the younger girl looked up at her.

“Lua.”

“What’s up?”

“We need to chat.”

Lua felt a chill run through her spine as she thought of the possibilities. Was she going to be scolded for not being able to memorize the dance? Had Yoojung figured out her feelings for you? Had she made too many mistakes? Every thought was scary, and she shivered, but tried to keep a poker face. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Yoojung sat down beside her, knocking her head gently back against the glass of the mirror as she pursed her lips, thinking of what to say for a moment before turning to the younger girl. “So. Your dancing. Something has been distracting you.”

Lua could feel her cheeks color as she pulled her legs up to her chest, holding them tight. “Sorry. I’ve been trying to do my best as always but I just can’t focus.”

“What’s on your mind? Maybe if you talk about it, I can help you.”

She bit her lip, weighing her possibilities. Technically, Yoojung was right. Talking to someone about it might help her be able to focus better. Getting those feelings out would only be beneficial. But at the same time, you were good friends with Yoojung, and although she doubted this would happen, you might end up hearing about her feelings if she admitted them. Still, she had to focus. For the sake of her team. So she sighed, and pressed her forehead against her knees.

“Just promise not to judge me or tell anyone else, okay?”

“I promise.”

“I.... Recently, I haven’t been able to get someone out of my mind. I thought I could ignore the feelings I have for them because honestly I was kind of scared of what that would mean but I can’t and now I can’t think about anything but them and those feelings. I keep seeing their smile and, if they’re around, I can’t focus on anything but them.” Lua sucked in a deep breath. “I know, it’s dumb. But I can’t help myself. I’ve tried.”

“It’s not dumb,” Yoojung said, and then, after a beat of quiet, “it’s (Y/N), isn’t it?”

Again, Lua’s face colored, and she closed her eyes, wishing she could melt into the floor. “Am I that obvious?”

“Not to anyone to doesn’t know both of you well. But the two of you have been spending a lot of time together, and I noticed that sparks flew as soon as I introduced the two of you.” She paused and reached over to wrap a comforting arm around the other girl’s shoulders. “Why don’t you just tell them?”

“I can’t do that, what if they don’t feel the same? I don’t want to ruin our friendship.”

“Trust me, you wont do that. (Y/N) literally talks about you all the time. They adore you.”

Could Lua’s face get any more red? She doubted it. “But do they like me? Like that?”

“They haven’t told me anything, but let’s just say that I would be really, really surprised if they turned you down.”

Lua opened her eyes and stared down at the floor. Could you really like her back? She’d noticed some things, too, but she’d been too afraid to get her hopes up. Her heart skipped a beat and she shivered again, turning her head to look at Yoojung. “I really, really like them, Yoojung.”

Yoojung smiled, fond and friendly, and gave her a little hug. “I can tell. Thank you for confiding in me. Do you feel any better now?”

She did feel better, somewhat, but her feelings were still crowding her mind, and she bit her lip. “Kind of? But now I’m thinking about how I should tell them.”

“I can help you with that!”

Warily, Lua raised her eyebrows. “You can?”

“Yeah! I’ve got a great idea.” Yoojung was basically glowing now, and nerves twisted in Lua’s stomach, but she swallowed them down.

“What is it?”

“Let’s invite (Y/N) to the showcase for our new song!”

-

A few weeks later, Lua paced behind the stage, listening as fans crowded in and the venue tested the microphone and played some of their songs. It was almost time to perform, and she was nervous. You were out there in that crowd, there to watch her (and the rest of the girls, but mostly her) perform, and she had to get this perfect. After confessing everything to Yoojung and planning her confession, she’d been able to focus more on the dance at hand and had gotten it down, but she was still nervous. What if she got distracted by you during the show and messed up? What if she couldn’t remember the dance?

“You’ll do great,” Yoojung said from behind her, knocking her out of her thoughts as the smaller girl threw her arms around her. Smiling, Lua turned around to look at her.

“Thanks. For everything.”

“Listen, that’s what friends are for! You’re going to kill it and (Y/N) is going to totally fall for you even more than they totally already have, and then your confession is going to be adorable. I just know it.” Yoojung beamed and patted the taller girl’s head. “I’m excited for you.”

“I’m nervous,” Lua admitted, looking down at the ground.

“That’s okay. I’m nervous, too, and I’m not even confessing. It’s normal to be nervous. But I know you. And I know you’ll be great on stage like you always are.”

“Thank you.” Taking a deep breath, Lua squared her shoulders. “I can do this.”

“That’s the spirit! Let’s go rock this place!”

It took Lua about five seconds to locate you in the crowd as she walked onstage, and butterflies immediately started up in her stomach as her heart flip-flopped and she felt her face heat up. Thankfully, the makeup artist had done a good job of concealing the blush, so she doubted anyone would noticed as she breathlessly took her place next to Rina on the stage. You smiled up at her and her heart jumped, but she managed to smile back, ignoring the pounding in her chest.

Just as she thought, she couldn’t take her eyes off of you. You were distracting her from the audience, and once again, she felt like she couldn’t focus. But as she got into formation and the music started, she steadied herself and threw her nerves to the wind. She was Lua of Weki Meki, and she could do this, even if she was only putting on a show for you. There was no way she was going to mess this up.

-

The showcase had gone well. The entire time, Lua had felt a bit breathless and nervous, with her heart pounding in her chest, but as she stepped off the stage, a huge smile spread over her lips and she leaned against one of the walls.

“I did it. I really did it.”

“You killed it,” Suyeon said, supportive although she seemed a little clueless as to why Lua was so relieved. Beaming at her, Lua thanked her before steadying herself on her feet and walking off to find Yoojung. They’d planned that Yoojung would run from the stage to the side door after the performance to let you come backstage, and sure enough, as Lua walked over to that side door, she heard your voice.

“You guys were amazing out there tonight,” you were saying with a smile as you gave Yoojung a quick hug, and she took a deep breath before walking over to the two of you. Your eyes lit up when you saw her walking over, and she gave you a shaky smile.

“Hey, (Y/N). Thanks for coming.”

“Of course, I wasn’t going to miss it! You did amazing up there tonight.”

Lua’s heart jumped once again in her chest, and when she glanced over at Yoojung, the smaller girl gave her a wink and a thumbs up.

“Oh, I need to go take off my mic, I’ll be right back.” With that, Yoojung was gone, leaving the two of you alone. For a moment, it was a bit awkward, and Lua cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck.

“I really appreciate your support tonight.”

“I’m always here to support you,” you said, giving her a smile. Was it just her imagination, or did you seem nervous too? “I love watching you dance and sing. Although I keep saying that they should give you more lines!”

Lua had to admit, she was glad she didn’t get too many lines this time. If she had, this showcase could have been a disaster. Still, she grinned, happy at your words. “Awe, thanks! It was Lucy’s turn to get lines, I think.” With a laugh, she shrugged. “We trade them off every comeback.”

“No kidding.” You stepped back to look her over, and she felt her face heating up again. “I like the styling this comeback, though. Your hair looks super cute with the darker color.”

“Thanks,” she said softly, touching the ends of her hair. This was just busy talk, and she knew she had to get to the original subject, so she cleared her throat again and planted herself. “Um, I actually wanted to ask you something tonight.”

“Really?” Your eyebrows raised, and something sparkled in your eyes. Hope, maybe? “What is it?”

Even in the dark-lit backstage area, almost drowned out by the loud sounds of music and people yelling back and forth and under the neon “EXIT” sign, you looked incredible. She was so head over heels for you and your smile and everything about you that it wasn’t even funny. Once again, she named those feelings. She liked you. So, so much. You had mixed up her life so much since she’d met you, and yet she wouldn’t have it any other way. Not when you brought her so much happiness.

“When we were preparing for this comeback, I couldn’t focus. I kept getting distracted. Distracted by your smile or by your voice or your laugh, or by you actually being there. I couldn’t focus on anything but you.” She swallowed, a bit too scared to look at your face as she focused on your shoulder instead. “It made me realize that I really, really like you. So I wanted to ask if you would go out with me. And if it’s a no, then don’t worry, I can-.”

“Of course it’s a yes, silly,” you interrupted her, laughing softly, and she finally looked up at your face to see you smiling widely, cheeks flushed. “I really, really like you too. I’m sorry for distracting you, though.”

“Oh, no! It wasn’t your fault! I just needed to work through my feelings and everything, it totally wasn’t your fault....” Realizing that she was rambling, she cut herself off and felt herself breathe a sigh of relief. It was okay. Everything would be okay. You liked her too. “Um, so will this weekend work? For a date? There’s this cool garden that just opened up, if you want to go there. And then we can go get dinner, wherever you want. If that sounds okay.”

You smiled and reached out to shyly take her hand. Giddy, she giggled, bringing her free hand up to cover her mouth and making you laugh too as you shuffled closer to you, bumping her shoulder with your own. Her manager was probably going to scold her for taking so long later, but she couldn’t care less right now. She just wanted to spend a little more time with you, finally able to just focus on you like she’d wanted to for so long.

It was a normal Thursday, like any other. You had everything set up and ready to go, your headphones on the desk beside a bottle of water and the Sims loading screen on the computer. Lua was somewhere in the house, but you weren’t too worried about it as you sat down and stretched your arms up over your head. She’d showed up in a couple of your streams, so your followers wouldn’t be that surprised if she walked in.

After taking one more sip of water, you put on your headphones and moved in closer to the computer, clicking the screen recording option before starting the stream. It always took a few minutes for everyone to get on, but since you’d announced the stream on Twitter, quite a few of your followers were already there. You grinned and waved before clicking into your Sim house, greeting everyone.

“Hello, welcome back to my stream everyone! Is everyone in the mood to do some Sims challenges?” You opened up the chat, reading the comments. Most of them were just cute gifs, but people had responded, making you laugh. Your fingers were itching to get playing, so you sat up straight and clicked onto your character. “Alright, let’s get into this. This week, we’re trying to start the zombie apocalypse, so buckle in tight because it’s about to get crazy!”

 -

The first half of the stream went smoothly, with your stream gaining more hits than usual and your character successfully beginning the virus through the mod you’d installed. As you were obsessing over a zombie dog, though the door to your room opened. You didn’t hear it, headphones blocking out the sound, so you didn’t notice anyone was in the room until a hand touched the back of your neck, making you jump and squeak, spinning around only to see Lua there, laughing softly.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I was just curious about what you were playing.”

You cleared your throat, trying to play off being scared even though you knew chat was going crazy by the sounds of pings in your headphones. With deft hands, you reached back and closed the chat, an idea popping into your head. “I’m playing the Sims,” you said, turning the chair back around.

“The Sims? The Sims isn’t scary. Why did you jump like that?” She didn’t notice the blinking light on the side of the screen as she sat on your lap, peering at the screen. “Wait, is there something wrong with that dog?”

“It’s a zombie dog.”

She blinked and turned back to look at you, confused. “What? How did you get zombies in there?”

“I installed a mod that makes it possible to have zombies.”

“There’s a mod for that?”

“There’s literally a mod for everything, babe. How long has it been since you played the Sims?” Chat was going crazy even more, and you hoped that she couldn’t hear the sound as you wrapped your arms around her waist.

“Um, a long time. I played with you that time!”

“That was months ago. And that was just the normal game with no mods.”

“It was still the game.” Her eyes widened as more zombies appeared on screen. “That looks scary.”

“Only if someone is sneaking up behind you while you’re playing it,” you said, making her whine and turn her head to look at you again.

“I told you I didn’t mean to scare you! You just had your headphones on so you didn’t hear me.” She kissed your cheek, a peace offering, and the sound of the chat went nuts again, making your face heat up. You weren’t expecting her to go that far.

“Alright, you’re forgiven,” you said, gently touching your cheek with a smile. “You need to learn more about gaming, though.”

“I know a little bit, don’t act like that. I can play Skyrim.”

“Everyone can play Skyrim.”

“I played Outlast with you!”

“That game came out ages ago!”

“Still, it was scary.”

“True, true. Have you played any games recently?”

She leaned back against you, thinking. “Tetris and Mario Kart.”

“Those don’t even count,” you teased with a grin, and she huffed, sitting up.

“You’re so mean. Can you do a split, (Y/N)? Can you do a cartwheel? Can you do rhythmic gymnastics from memory?” She raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms, and you put up your hands.

“Okay, point taken. I’m sorry for teasing you.”

“Apology accepted.” As she went to look back at the screen, you turned back on chat, and her eyes widened. “Wait. Is that....” She spun back around. “Have you been recording this whole time?”

“You walked in while I was streaming,” you said, giving her your best innocent voice. “This is payback for scaring me.”

“You play dirty, oh my god, that’s so embarrassing.” She covered her face with her hands and you laughed, wrapping your arms around her again to keep her from getting up and leaning forward to read the comments.

“They think we’re cute, though. Look. ‘omg goals’ ‘why are they so cute’ ‘wow they make me feel lonely’ and then there’s a lot of hearts,” you pointed out, and she peeked out through her fingers.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” she said with a sigh, shaking her head, but there was the hint of a smile on her lips, and you knew she wouldn’t stay mad at you long.

“You’re the cute one, not me.” Chat erupted again, and she wiggled out of your arms.

“Just for that, I’m revoking your cuddle privileges for the rest of the night.”

“Babe! That’s not fair!”

She grinned and leaned towards you, and you gulped. “Then give me a kiss. On the lips.” Chat was going insane, and you knew you had to do it. Damn your girlfriend for being just as mischievous as you.

“Fine.” You leaned forward, making it quick, and when you sat back, lips tingling and face red, she grinned.

“Thank you. Cuddle privileges are no longer revoked.” She turned on her heel and headed out of the room, and you were almost afraid to look back at the chat as you cleared your throat and put back on your headphones. The amount of people on the stream had almost doubled, and your eyes widened at the sheer amount of comments coming in.

“Woah. Maybe I should invite my girlfriend onto every stream,” you joked, shaking your head as you looked the chat. Most of them were saying that you’d ‘lost at your own game’ and ‘took the L” but you just grinned. “I definitely lost to her this time. But I can’t say I mind.”

The chat erupted again, making you laugh as you turned back to your game, but a new stream idea was already blooming inside your head.

Lua first realized something was wrong on a rainy Wednesday. It was something about the tired smile and collapse onto the break room couch, something about the bags under the eyes and the way she could tell you weren’t sleeping enough, that made her realize that something was going on. She didn’t know you well enough for you to tell her if anything was wrong, and she doubted that you would tell anyone anyway, usually too shy to talk much, but she still somehow knew. Mostly because the shy smile you always gave her in the mornings didn’t quite reach your eyes.

“Hey, is everything okay with (Y/N)?” Doyeon looked up at the sound of Lua’s voice and then glanced over at your desk.

“I don’t know, they didn’t mention anything. Why?”

“They just seem a little down today.”

“Maybe it’s because it’s been a rough week. The workload has been crazy.”

“True....” Lua wondered if that was really all, but then again, it wasn’t any of her business. She just wanted to see you smile. That shy smile you send her way was one of the reasons she’d fallen for you in the first place, and she didn’t like it when it was gone.

“Why don’t you just ask them?”

“I can’t do that!” She hoped her cheeks weren’t red as she quickly looked away from Doyeon. “Anyway, have a good day! Good luck with your work!”

“Sure, whatever you say. Good luck to you too.” The sly tone in the other woman’s voice told Lua that she’d definitely blushed a bit, and she groaned as she walked towards the coffee maker. It was going to be a long day, and she desperately needed coffee. As she pulled down the cups, she realized that you were gone from your desk, and she turned back to the coffee machine, biting her lip. How did you like your coffee again?

She remade your typical drink as well as she could, hoping that she’d gotten it right, before walking over to your desk. You were back again, and she readied herself, putting on her best smile as she approached.

“Good morning, (Y/N)!” You looked up and gave her a smile, but it looked tired, and her heart hurt. “Um, I made you some coffee. It’s been a long week, so I thought you might need some.” Your eyebrows raised as you reached out to accept the coffee. “I hope I made it the way you like it?”

“Ah, thank you,” you said, voice as soft as ever, ducking your head. “I was just about to go get some myself. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Good luck today!” She smiled brightly, and the smile that came to your lips after you tasted the coffee was real, making her beam as she walked away, your quiet voice stuck in her head.

“Good luck to you too.”

-

Thursday morning, Lua came in with her own specially-baked cookies, wrapped carefully in her lunch bag. Really, she wasn’t the cooking type, but when she’d seen you leave yesterday, still looking a bit down, she’d wanted to do something special for you. Attached to the bag of cookies was a cute little note with a smiley face in the corner, and she hoped that it would at least make you smile again.

You weren’t in the office when she walked in, so she took the opportunity to quickly place the cookies on your desk before walking away to her own desk, cheeks red. She hoped she wasn’t too obvious as she took a deep breath and sat down, readying herself to get to work.

You came in a couple minutes later, and your eyes widened when you saw the wrapped cookies on your desk. As you picked them up, you glanced around the room, and Lua tried her best to seem unassuming. Then your eyes moved down to the letter attached as you sat down, and a small smile slipped onto your lips, making Lua smile as well before she ducked down to try and focus on her work again. The cookies had been a success.

Later, at lunch, you stopped her as she walked towards the break room.

“I just wanted to say thank you for the cookies. They’re delicious.” You were smiling for real again, and she grinned back at you, nodding her head.

“You’re welcome! I’m glad they were good.”

“Um, the note was cute too.” You ducked your head again, but she saw the blush on your cheeks. “Thank you again. I needed it today.”

“Of course. I hope you have a better day today!”

“Ah, you too!”

-

“You’re so whipped,” Suyeon, Lua’s roommate, said from the kitchen table as she watched Lua wrap up another batch of cookies. Lua just ignored her, focusing on tying the ribbon just right. This time, there was both a candy and a letter attached, and she bit her lip, wanting it to be perfect.

“Is it bad of me to want them to have a good day?”

“No, but usually coworkers don’t go this far to cheer each other up. Coffee, sure, but baking cookies? You don’t even bake cookies for me!” Suyeon took a loud sip of her tea, and Lua rolled her eyes, finishing the ribbon. “It’s because you like them, isn’t it.”

“Maybe I do, so what? They were happy with the cookies today, and I want them to smile more.”

“You might as well get them flowers and confess your undying love.”

Lua hummed in thought. “What kind of flowers do you think (Y/N) would like?”

“I was being sarcastic. You don’t have to get them flowers.”

“Maybe they’d like flowers! Everyone likes some sort of flower. They brighten up the room and make you feel better. That’s actually a really good idea. Thanks, Suyeon!” Lua put the cookies up and grinned, waving at her roommate as she grabbed her rain jacket and bounded over to the door. “See you later!”

She disappeared out the door, and Suyeon sighed, but there was a smile on her face as she shook her head. “That girl.”

-

On Friday, Lua was nervous, shifting the little cactus with a tiny flower from hand to hand as she rode the elevator up to work. Was this too much? Would you think she was weird? She’d wanted to cheer you up, but now she was kind of worried. She didn’t want you to be put off by it, and she bit her lip, looking at the little note she’d attached as the doors opened. Could she really do this?

She was pretty early today, so the office was empty other than her and two other workers, yawning as they shuffled around getting coffee and setting up everything. She never got to work early, but this was an exception. Maybe Suyeon was right and she was whipped. That would explain why she didn’t mind waking up early if it was for you.

Your desk was as tidy and clean as ever, and she took a deep breath, staring at the gifts in her hands. Finally, she put them both town, setting the cactus down beside your computer and placing the cookies where she left them yesterday before heading to her own desk, jittery and nervous over what would happen next.

You got there soon after, and this time, you smiled as soon as you saw the cookies, picking them up to read the note. Then, your eyes landed on the cactus, and Lua swallowed. Would you like it?

Thankfully, your smile only widened, and she saw you take off the note and read it before you began walking over to her desk. She panicked a little bit (mostly because you were too shy to do things like this and seeing you walk towards her made her heart do things in her chest) but you seemed happy.

“Hey. The cactus is really cute. Thank you.”

“Ah, I’m so glad you liked it! I saw it and thought it might be good, especially since it has a little flower on it.” She gave you a little smile and rubbed the back of her neck, and you nodded, biting your lip.

“Actually, the truth is... I’ve been having a rough week because of, well, a lot of things. But you’ve really been helping me get through it with your gifts, so I really appreciate it. Thank you.”

Lua could feel her heart beating in her ears, but she was happy. “You’re welcome. I noticed that something was up and I didn’t want to intrude, but I wanted to make you smile.”

“That’s really sweet of you.” There was a slight blush on your cheeks, and you laughed softly, twisting your hands together. “Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you. Have a good day today.”

“You too!” She gave you a little wave and watched as you walked away, fighting with herself not to squeal like a crazy person. As she turned back to her work, Suyeon’s words echoed in her head. She was totally whipped.

-

As Friday came to a close and the two of you ended up at the door together, Lua made a split second decision. “Hey, (Y/N), would you like to go out tonight? There’s this new strip mall nearby, and a lot of new restaurants. My treat.”

You seemed to think for a minute as you stepped outside, and she held her breath, clutching at her bag. But then you smiled, that shy smile that she loved so much, and the sun peeked out from behind the clouds for the first time that week.

When Lua was born without a name on her wrist, her parents weren’t too worried. After all, it was normal for kids to not get their name until puberty sometimes. Both of her parents had been late to get each other’s name on their wrist, so it was hardly something to make a big deal about. They took her home and didn’t notice anything was wrong. Her classmates didn’t notice, either, not at first. She just figured she was a little late.

But as she started to get older and nothing showed up, people began to notice. Her friends started to ask her where her soulmate’s name was, and she noticed her parents whispering behind their hands when they thought she wasn’t listening, voices worried. On her fifteenth birthday, her parents took her to the doctor, and she knew something had to be wrong.

They ran tests on her, rubbed at the skin and made her look at photos and spit into tubes, only for the doctor to come back and sigh as he flipped through his papers.

“Well, it could either be that she doesn’t have a soulmate,” he said, shaking his head, “or she could have a disorder we call Carpi Praesent. Basically, this would mean that the name on her wrist won’t show up until she’s shared a kiss with her soulmate.”

“A kiss?” Her mother let out a little cry and sunk into the chair, face white. Immediately, her father took her hand, trying to calm her down, while Lua stared at the papers in the doctor’s hand, her mind reeling. She didn’t have a soulmate. Tears pricked at the sides of her eyes and she found herself crying as the doctor reached over to put a hand on her shoulder and her father handed her tissues.

“This doesn’t mean you can’t be happy one day, Lua. But it does mean that your life might be a little bit harder than everyone else’s. You’re a strong girl, aren’t you? You’ll be okay.”

She wasn’t a strong girl. She knew she wasn’t, because these words hurt her, and looking at her parents hurt even worse, because she knew she might never have this. But she had to be strong, so she nodded her head and willed herself to stop crying as her mother asked the doctor if it was because of something she did while she was pregnant.

After the doctor’s visit, Lua told her friends that she had a disease where the name wouldn’t show up. What she didn’t say was that she might not have a soulmate, because she didn’t want anyone else to know. It made her mother cry at night, and it made her father’s hair go grey in places, and it made her grandmother look at her with pity in her eyes, so Lua couldn’t bear for anyone else to know. If anyone had to be hurt, it should be her, not her friends.

So she grinned and pretended that everything was okay, even if she was crying inside.

-

Years later, Lua had gotten a lot more used to not having a soulmate. Sure, she looked at her coworkers and her friends and saw them with their soulmates and felt a little bit jealous, but she didn’t take it so personally anymore. She worked hard to gain respect and not be known for her lack of a soulmate. Medical school was hard, but she didn’t have to worry about love or a relationship or anything outside of school, so she didn’t really mind it. When people asked her why she was going into medicine, she just shrugged and told them that it was because she was interested in it. She didn’t say that it was because she didn’t want anyone else to suffer like she did when she was younger.

Then she met you.

It was pure coincidence, really. You weren’t in medical school, but somehow, the two of you had ended up volunteering for the same school fundraiser and had been put at a table together. You were a fairly upbeat person with a nice smile and a friendly personality, and Lua found it amazing how quickly the two of you clicked. It was just easy to talk to you, almost like she’d known you her entire life. The two of you spent the entire fundraiser talking, and after it was done and the sun had long disappeared, you typed your number into her phone and told her to text with you a smile. And as she walked back to her dorm, looking down at your name in her phone, she found that she really wanted to.

Even though the two of you were in completely different areas of study, it just became habit to meet up in the mess hall for lunch between classes. Sometimes the two of you chatted, complaining about professors and homework loads, and other times the two of you studied together, just happy to be with each other as you worked. It was a weird dynamic, but it worked. Lua never felt awkward around you. The two of you could sit silently in a room together and still feel comfortable, and Lua liked that. Liked being around you. She tried not to think too much about what that could mean.

A few times, the thought of dating you popped into her head, and she realized that she’d never seen your wrist mark. But she would quickly dismiss it as coincidence every time, not wanting to get her hopes up over nothing. So the two of you danced around each other, staying friends even if her other friends thought it was weird, neither of you taking the next step.

That is, until the party.

“Hey, are you busy Friday night?” You asked her, looking up from your textbook to lock eyes with her. She was laying on her bed, reading up on terms for her next exam while you occupied her desk, a normal setup for the two of you whenever you studied in her room. She blinked, trying to think about what her schedule looked like. She was pretty sure she was free, but....

“Why?”

You looked a little bit nervous as you shrugged your shoulders, but she hardly recognized it. “Oh, one of my friends is throwing a party to celebrate the end of midterms. I thought I’d ask you to come with me. It’s cool if you’re busy though.”

“I think I’m free. Is it going to be a big party?” She closed her book, biting her lip. She’d never been to anything other than small parties with her friends where they all drank a little bit and played games and watched movies. When it came to big college parties, she was in the dark. You laughed softly and nodded your head, making her heart jump a bit.

“Yeah, she’s in a sorority, so it’s going to be pretty huge.”

“I’ve never been to a party like that,” she admitted to you, giving you a sheepish smile. “I guess I’m a bad college student.”

“Don’t say that! I’ve honestly only been to a few myself, but they were both fun so I thought I’d ask you to come along this time. But if you aren’t comfortable I’m not going to force you to come.”

She looked down at her sheets and thought about it for a moment. As intimidating as the idea of a big party was, she found herself wanting to go with you. What was the worst that could happen? “No, I’ll come. What time is it?”

-

It took her a while to decide what to wear, but she decided on a pair of skinny jeans and one of her favorite pink crop-tops, pulling her newly-dyed hair back into a ponytail. She was in the middle of deciding how to do her makeup when her roommate came back and gave her a look.

“Where are you going?” Elly asked, tossing her bag onto her bed. Lua had known Elly for a while, since high school, so she knew that Elly knew she didn’t do these things. Still, she let out an awkward laugh and picked up a lip gloss, carefully applying it to her lips. Did she look kissable? Why did she even care?

“(Y/N) invited me to a party their sorority friend is throwing,” she said, turning her attention to her earrings. “So I’m going with them.”

“Oh. That’s interesting. Have fun and don’t get too smashed. Call me if you need someone to pick you up.” Elly didn’t sound too surprised, which in turn surprised Lua. She turned around, eyebrows raised.

“You aren’t going to tell me not to go?”

“Nah. They’re fun, I’ve been to a few. Plus you’re going with (Y/N) and I trust them,” she said, sitting down on her bed, and Lua slowly put her earrings down.

“Oh. Uh, is my outfit okay for a party like this?”

“Yeah, only freshmen get really dressed up for parties. You look good, don’t worry about it and get out there. Just stay safe and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“Didn’t you drunkenly make out with Suyeon before you knew she was your soulmate at a party once?”

“Hey! Shut up, who told you about that?”

“Suyeon.”

“Goddammit, I told her that I’m supposed to be the responsible one so she can’t just go airing my party animal freshman year to you guys!” Elly huffed and pulled out her phone, and Lua laughed, quickly grabbing her phone. It was always fun to tease the older girl. It made her nerves calm down a little, and she took one last look at her appearance before heading to the door.

“Bye, I’ll be home eventually!”

“Oh whatever. Go get laid!”

“Elly!”

The air was a little more chilly than she’d expected it to be, and she shivered a bit as she walked out the door. You were standing in front of her dorm building, and you smiled as you saw her. As she stepped down to stand beside you, she swallowed slightly. You looked nice, hair done and wearing tight pants much like she was. She tried to chase Elly’s words from earlier away.

“Ready?” You asked, and she nodded, giving you a grin.

“Ready.”

She hadn’t been ready. She liked to think that she had a pretty high alcohol tolerance, but whatever had been in the red cups shoved into your hands at the door had tasted like cleaning fluids and already had her feeling tipsy. The music was loud, and she didn’t even know where it was coming from, but it made the entire house shake every time the base was played, and she already had a headache, but the alcohol made it a little more bearable.

She found herself in the kitchen alone, blinking in confusion over how she’d gotten there and where you’d gone. But a girl who looked vaguely familiar named Sejeong shoved another drink into her hands and yelled “get turnt” so she felt like she had to drink again. When you reappeared at her side, your cheeks were slightly flushed, and she was much less in control of her thoughts and feelings.

“How’s the party so far?” You asked, yelling over the music, and she grinned, leaning back against the counter.

“It’s fine. Better since you’re back.”

“Are you helpless without me?”

“Yeah. I’ve never been to one of these before, you know?”

“Okay, then I’ll stay by your side. But you have to promise to dance with me.” You caught her wrist, and her skin felt like it was on fire from the feeling of your fingertips.

“Dance?”

You giggled, and she liked the sound. “That’s what you do at these things.”

“Oh. Sure.”

The living room was a sea of bodies dancing to the music, and as you tugged her towards it, she felt a little nervous. But the liquid courage must have kicked in, because as soon as the song changed to something she knew, she let you pull her in closer. She knew how to dance, professionally, but this wasn’t anything like that. This was something much more sensual, bodies touching and pressing, and the air felt so hot that she was dizzy. But you were there in front of her, so she just let her foggy mind take control, her body moving, out of her own control.

The next thing she knew, the two of you were giggling and tripping into one of the rooms upstairs, and she fell back onto a bed that wasn’t hers and wasn’t yours, staring at the ceiling and trying to steady herself. Where was she again? She felt your weight sink into the bed beside her, and your head rested on her shoulder, making her feel hot all over again.

“(Y/N)?”

“I’m right here.” You sounded sleepy, and when she glanced over, she was able to make out that your eyes were closed, even in the darkness of the room.

“You’re a sleepy drunk.”

“No I’m not. I just wanted to close my eyes.” As if refuting your own statement, you yawned, making her giggle.

“Sure.”

“Well, you’re a weird drunk.”

“You have no proof.”

“No, I have lots of proof. This is the first time I’ve seen you let go. You’re always so serious and focused on school.”

Lua fell quiet, staring back up at the ceiling. It was true, she didn’t usually let herself go, not like this. She was always nervous, always worried about what people would think. It probably came with the fact that she’d been different all her life. “I let go all the time. Just the other day I danced to Gangnam Style with you.”

“You know what I mean.” She did know what you meant, so she shut up, closing her own eyes. She felt your hand come up to rest on her stomach, and her heart spiked. It was a gentle touch, but it was still too much, because she’d never felt anything like this before. She shouldn’t let herself fall like this. But she laid there and let you, blaming it on the fog in her head.

“Why do you hang out with me if I’m so serious and boring?” The question spilled out, and she regretted it for a moment as you stayed silent, drawing circles on her bare skin.

“I like you. We’re a lot alike.”

“Are we?”

“Yeah. You know, I was born without my soulmate mark too.” At your works, she froze, opening her eyes again. Suddenly, it made sense. Why you were always wearing long sleeves or something around your wrist.

“Really?”

“Really. I thought I was going to be alone forever. I thought I was the only one. But then I met you, and... I just had this connection to you. I wanted to be close to you forever.”

She swallowed as she felt her stomach twist, a strange yet familiar feeling welling up in her chest. It was fear. She was afraid. Just because neither of you had a name, that didn’t mean that you were the one for her. What if she got in the way? What if she hurt you? What if it didn’t work out? She felt like crying, because it was all so much. But also because she felt the same way about you, and she’d just never wanted to admit it. She’d never wanted to get her hopes up.

“There’s so many scary things,” she said aloud, voice soft and shaky, and she felt you shift your weight beside her.

“But if we don’t challenge those scary things, we might never know.” You were right, of course. You were always right. But that didn’t make it any less scary.

“I know. I want to. I’m just afraid.”

Your hand stalled on her stomach, and she closed her eyes tight again, waiting.

“Let me kiss you.” Your voice was firm, and it made her heart jump again.

“What?”

“Let me kiss you. Please. If we really have that disorder, you know the one. The one we’ve been told about our whole lives. If we really have it, kissing our soulmate is the only way to find out.” She opened her eyes to see that your face was only inches away from hers now, and your eyes were open and clear. She suddenly felt sober again as her mind ran through her options. She could be scared. She could back away, run away, run back to the not scary side of things and ruin what might be forever, but save herself from heartbreak. But she didn’t want to. She wanted to kiss you so bad it hurt.

So she turned her body to face you on that unfamiliar bed and faced her fears. “Go ahead. Kiss me.” You looked almost shocked at her words before you lunged forward, pressing your lips against hers. The feeling was foreign, because she’d never been kissed before, but she liked it. Slowly, as the need built up in her chest again, she began to kiss you back, moving her lips even though she was unsure and scared.

As soon as she began to kiss you back, you brought your hand up to the back of her neck and began to kiss her harder, pressing your body closer, and all her fear went out the window, lost in the fact that she was kissing you. You, who she’d fallen for so long ago and had been too afraid to admit it. She wrapped her arms around you, and let you climb on top of her, giving you more access to her mouth as her heart threatened to explode in her chest. Her entire body was hot, but there was something weird, a strange sensation on her hand. You must have felt it too, because you finally pulled away, both of you breathing hard. Even though you’d told her not to be afraid, she could see worry in your eyes as you paused, staring into her eyes.

“Should we check?” This time, Lua decided to be the brave one. She took a deep breath and pulled her hand from behind you to look. There, on her wrist, was your name in small letters. This time, when she felt like crying, she actually did, and you gasped. “Really? It’s really there?”

“It’s really there,” she whispered, showing you, and you slowly looked at your own wrist, only to burst into tears when you saw her name on your dominate hand.

“I’m so happy I don’t know what to do,” you said, wiping at your tears. She smiled and leaned up to press her forehead against yours, basking in this new feeling. She had a soulmate. She wasn’t broken after all. And she didn’t have to be afraid to love you anymore.

“Just stay here with me and kiss me some more.” The words made her feel giddy, and they made you smile through your tears, wrapping your arms around her again.

“I love you,” you said, closing your eyes, and she caressed your face before moving in to kiss you. She didn’t care about anything else but you: not the loud music, the sounds of people outside of the room, or how much Elly was going to gloat when she came home. She had you in her arms, and nothing else mattered as she turned to press you into the mattress, determined to show just how much she loved you, even if it took all night.

“Guess what happened to me today.” You looked up as your friend Hyunjin dropped her backpack onto the floor and plopped down at her desk, eyes wide and a grin on her face. How the two of you had become friends, you really didn’t understand. She was quite popular, pretty, funny, and loud, and she was in multiple clubs around school. You, on the other hand, were a bit of a nerd. You spent most of your time in the library, where it was quiet (which was how you liked it), and you’d never been to a real party. The only club you were in was the math club, and you prioritized your studies, unlike Hyunjin, who was a solid C and B student.

But somehow, the two of you had sat together in homeroom freshmen year, and ever since, the two of you had been friends.

“What happened?” You asked, only mildly interested as you looked up from the book you’d been reading. In the past two years, you’d come to realize that she often found weird things to be exciting. Like the time she’d cried out of happiness over a girl giving her a piece of bread.

“Lua hit on me. The Kim Lua. I almost died.” That.... That was different. Your eyebrows went up and you put down your book, giving her your full attention.

“Wait, for real? I thought she only hit on hot girls like Lisa or Yves.” Pouting, Hyunjin kicked at your leg, but missed.

“I’m hot! Shut up!” You grinned and moved further into your desk so that she couldn’t reach you.

“Seriously, though. I guess she’s really making her rounds. What popular girls hasn’t she hit on yet?”

“She hasn’t hit on you.”

“I said popular. I’m not popular.”

“You’re friends with me!” You shook your head.

“That doesn’t mean I’m friends with your friends. I’m not in the popular group. I’m not cool like that.” Hyunjin sat back in her seat, pout gone.

“I think you’re cool.” You laughed.

“That’s just you, Hyunjin. Anyway, don’t you have a thing with that Heejin girl? Why are you so excited about Lua hitting on you?” She shrugged and unzipped her backpack, pulling out her notebook.

“I do. But having Lua hit on you is exciting! She’s really cool when she talks to you and she has a really nice smile. I’m not saying I’d date her like I’d date Heejin, but it was nice to talk to her.” You didn’t really get it. Honestly, you’d be fine if you never spoke to Lua. Her group of friends was not one that you liked being around. They cared nothing about school and thought they were so cool, pushing the dress code with their crazy outfits and hair and jewelry and throwing wild parties. Plus, they were plenty scary. Suyeon, one of the upperclassmen in the group who was on the basketball team, was known for having a quick temper and cursing a lot. Doyeon, also on the basketball team, was known for her cool and almost emotionless demeanor. 

“Whatever you say,” you said, just as the teacher opened the door and walked in.

“Alright everyone, I’m going to need you to pass in the homework I assigned over the weekend once we start class.”

“Shit! I forgot, can I copy yours really quick?” Rolling your eyes, you passed over your homework. This wasn’t an uncommon occurrence.

“You’ve only got few minutes, you’d better hurry.”

-

Later in the week, you were sitting next to your friends outside, eating lunch. The cafeteria was much too loud and crowded for you to want to go anywhere near it, and it was a nice day outside anyway. It was a normal day: you’d made yourself a sandwich for lunch, Hyunjin had forgotten her math homework again, you’d helped your seatmate in chemistry understand hydrogen borrowing, and then you’d gathered with your friends away from the loud cafeteria to eat lunch. It was going like every other day of your life since you’d started high school.

It was normal. That is, until Chaeyoung skipped up to the group, eyes sparkling.

“You’re late,” Seoyeon said, giving her a suspicious look. “What in the world were you doing?”

She tossed her hair over her shoulder and sat down, a grin on her face. “I was talking to Yoojung. You know, the cute, short girl who’s friends with all the delinquents?”

“Why were you talking to her?” Chaewon asked quietly, curious as she peeked over her book.

“It’s a long story, but basically I tutored her in math and ended up saving her from failing, and she ended up being really nice, so we talk now.”

“I really don’t understand why she’s dating Doyeon,” you said, shaking your head. “That girl doesn’t seem like she has any emotions.”

“I know you’ve never heard of it, (Y/N), but it’s called love,” Chaeyoung said, making you scowl and throw your napkin at her.

“Oh, shut up, it’s not like you’ve ever dated anyone either.” She shrugged.

“Good point. Anyway, I was talking to her and guess what?”

“What?” Seoyeon asked, scooting a bit closer with wide eyes. Everyone else was listening well too. Even Dami had put down her book to listen.

“She invited me to the party this weekend.” The entire time she’d been talking, Chaeyoung had been hiding her hand behind her. But now, she pulled it out to reveal two “tickets” in hand, grinning widely and wiggling her eyebrows. “She told me to bring a friend too. How crazy is that? This math club member just got invited to one of Doyeon’s exclusive parties.” Everyone’s eyes widened, and Seoyeon’s mouth dropped open.

For a moment, the air was still and silent as everyone stared in shock. You wondered if you were dreaming. There was no way one of your friends has just gotten invited to such a thing. Surely, this was some kind of joke.

“Is there a catch?” Seoyeon asked gingerly, voicing your very own thoughts. Chaeyoung shook her head.

“Yoojung wouldn’t do that. I’m telling you guys, she’s actually really sweet.”

“I know she’s sweet, but what about the others?”

“She said that she’d talked to them already and they were cool with me coming. Apparently Doyeon was the one to suggest inviting me.”

“That’s so weird,” Chaewon said, shaking her head in awe. “Why?”

“She’s thankful to me for saving her girlfriend from failing, I guess? I’m supposed to meet both of them for science tutoring next week, actually.”

“The resident genius,” you said, shaking your head. “Only you, Chaeyoung.”

“So, who wants to come with me?” She asked. Immediately, Dami and Chaewon shook their heads.

“No way,” Dami said, “I’m not a party person.”

“Me neither. I’m way too shy for that.” Chaeyoung looked at Seoyeon, but Seoyeon shook her head.

“I have to babysit that weekend. Sorry.” Before you knew it, everyone’s eyes were on you. You were the only left.

“Come on, (Y/N), I don’t want to go alone,” Chaeyoung said, giving you her best puppy dog eyes.

“I-.”

“Plus, you know Hyunjin, right? She’ll probably be there so it’s not like you wouldn’t know anyone.” This was an awful idea. You had no idea how to act at parties, because you’d never been to one. Plus, the music would be so loud, and you’d heard how these parties usually went down. Still, you didn’t want to make Chaeyoung go alone.

You sighed. “Fine. I’ll go with you.”

“Yay! Thank you (Y/N), you’re my new best friend.” You rolled your eyes as she hugged you, already regretting that you’d agreed. You just hoped that Hyunjin would be there too.

-

“What?! You’re going to the party this weekend? How?” Hyunjin looked just as shocked as your friends had been when Chaeyoung had announced she’d been invited. She was so shocked, she’d actually sat up from her beanbag chair, where she was usually impossible to move. You sat across from her on the smaller beanbag chair, nodding your head.

“My friend Chaeyoung tutored Doyeon’s girlfriend Yoojung and ended up being friends with her or something. Now she’s tutoring both of them, so she was invited and told she could bring a friend.”

“Wow. That’s crazy. How did she convince you to go? You’re, like, super against partying.” You sighed and leaned back, looking up at her ceiling.

“None of our other friends could go and I wasn’t going to make her go alone. She’s better than most of us at socializing but she’s still awkward.”

“True. I’m going, so I’ll totally come over and talk to you. It’s going to be weird seeing you there though.” You laughed.

“No kidding. That’s not the kind of place I usually frequent.” She was back to her normal laying-down position on the beanbag, arms crossed.

“Anything I can do?”

“Yeah. Help. I have no idea what to wear or what to expect or how to act.” She laughed, loudly. Like she always did.

“How about I come over to your place, like, an hour before the party or something to help you choose an outfit?” You looked back at Hyunjin to give her a grateful smile.

“I’d appreciate that. Although I’m pretty sure I have nothing in my closet that’s party appropriate.” Her eyes sparkled, and you felt a sudden sense of dread.

“Then shopping time it is. Get your friend Chaeyoung to meet us at the mall. We’re going to get you party ready.”

-

The day of the party, the door rang an hour early, as promised. Chaeyoung was already there, picking nervously as her nails as you ran down to answer the door. Thankfully, your parents weren’t home, so you didn’t have to explain where you were going and why you were dressed like you were. And you were spending the night at Chaeyoung’s, since her parents were on a business trip, so you could avoid having your parents be suspicious.

You opened the door to two people instead of one. Hyunjin stood with Heejin beside her, and although you’d met Heejin before, a couple times, her beauty always took your breath away for a moment.

“Oh, um, hi.” You glanced at Hyunjin, and she gave you a sheepish smile.

“Sorry, I meant to let you know that I was bringing her over, but I forgot. She knows how to do makeup better than I do so I thought it would be good for her to be here too.”

“It’s okay,” you said, stepping to the side and giving Heejin a smile. “Welcome to my house. It’s not much but make yourself at home.”

“Thank you, (Y/N).” As pretty as she was, Heejin was also sweet. “What kind of makeup are we doing tonight?” She held up a bag that you could tell was full of makeup supplies, and you shrugged, leading them back to your room.

“Whatever goes with our outfits, I guess.” Chaeyoung stood up from the bed when Heejin walked in, looking surprised.

“Chaeyoung, this is Heejin, Hyunjin’s girlfriend. Heejin, this is my friend Chaeyoung.”

“Um, hello.”

“Hello! It’s nice to meet you, Chaeyoung! I’m going to help out with makeup, if that’s okay.” Chaeyoung was taken aback at first, but quickly smiled back at Heejin. You knew they’d get along well.

“That’s okay. Should we get started?”

-

Your outfit felt tight, even as you rode the elevator up to the rooftop party. You’d never worn a leather shirt before, and you were never going to wear one again, because this one was uncomfortable. The long eyelashes on your eyes also felt unfamiliar and heavy when you blinked, but they looked nice so you didn’t complain. Honestly, you’d been surprised at your own reflection. You looked different, and you weren’t sure you liked it.

The music could be heard before the elevator doors even opened, but once they did, it was even louder. The thumping base could be felt in your veins, and you winced, hoping your ears would get used to it soon.

“The only reason they get away with it is because Doyeon’s family is rolling in money and owns this building. Otherwise the police would be here already,” Hyunjin said under her breath, just loud enough for you to hear as the four of you walked up to the party.

Yoojung was there, standing at the door behind a small table, and she smiled when she saw the four of you walking up.

“Chaeyoung! You made it!” Chaeyoung smiled back and produced the homemade tickets from her small purse, handing them over to Yoojung.

“Yep! This is (Y/N), my friend who I invited to come with me.” Yoojung grinned and leaned over the table, taking Hyunjin and Heejin’s tickets before turning back to you.

“Hello (Y/N), welcome!” Hyunjin and Heejin were already moving over to a piece of paper, and you watched as they wrote down their names. Yoojung followed your gaze and then quickly explained. “Oh, I forgot you guys haven’t been here before! I just need you to both write your names down there. For a head count, you know?” It was a bit confusing, and you didn’t understand why a party needed people to sign-in, but you wrote your name down anyway. Once Chaeyoung was done, Yoojung gave her a little wave. “You guys have fun! I’ll come find you once I’m done here, okay?”

“Sounds good,” Chaeyoung said, waving back at her with a smile. Then the four of you turned and walked deeper into the party.

The first thing you noticed was the bar, and you winced. You should have known that there would be illegal drinking here. There was also the smell of weed in the air, although it was faint enough that it didn’t seem like a lot of people were smoking it. The music was loud and coming from a DJ in the corner, and there seemed to be an area designated for dancing.

“Wow, the scale of this is huge,” Chaeyoung said, eyes wide as she took everything in. Hyunjin nodded with a grin.

“Yep. Doyeon does everything with a bang.”

“Wait, didn’t Heejin drive us here? You’re not going to drink and drive, are you?” Heejin waved her hands.

“Oh, no! I don’t drink. They have non-alcoholic drinks at the bar too. Don’t worry!” You liked Heejin more and more as you got to know her. You let out a sigh of relief, and then another thing stood out to you.

“Hey, why did we have to sign in?” Hyunjin stopped and looked at you with her eyebrows raised.

“Wait, they didn’t tell you?” You and Chaeyoung looked at each other and then back at Hyunjin, shaking your heads. “At every party, there’s a drawing for some sort of prize. Sometimes, if your name gets drawn, you get to date one of the girls for a week. Of course, if you’re in a relationship, they respect that and draw someone else, but it’s cool to see.” One of the girls. She was referring to the group of girls that Doyeon hung out with: Suyeon, Elly, Sei, Lua, Rina, and Lucy.

“Seriously? That’s actually nuts!” Chaeyoung’s mouth dropped open. “What will we do if we get chosen? There’s no way I’d survive dating one of them!” Hyunjin laughed.

“It might not be a date this time, sometimes they give out, like, gadgets and stuff. The time my name was drawn I got a necklace and earrings, but they change it up every week.” You still didn’t like the sound of it, and you glanced back at the table, regretting writing your name down. It was like Chaeyoung had said: neither of you would survive dating those girls. Both of you were complete opposites of them.

“Try not to think about it and have fun,” Heejin said. “Come on, let’s go to the bar. We’ll show you how to order.”

They did end up having non-alcoholic drinks, and Heejin ordered you and Chaeyoung two virgin margaritas.

“They’re good, I promise,” she said as she passed them over to the two of you. And she was right. The drink was sweet, but not too sweet, and without the alcohol, there was no burn. You took a tentative sip and watched as Hyunjin drank her real cocktail, rather impressed. Hyunjin acted like an adult already.

You ended up sitting near the railing of the roof, looking down at the city lights below you with your drink in hand. Chaeyoung sat across from you, and Hyunjin and Heejin had disappeared somewhere after Hyunjin’s second drink. You kind of didn’t want to know.

The music changed to something much more up-tempo and you turned to look as cheers rang out from around the dance floor. Lua was there, with Yoojung, but your focus was on Lua. The way she moved was amazing, and you let out a little gasp as she did the splits like it was nothing, easily jumping back up and continuing to dance right afterwards. Normally you wouldn’t be interested in something like this, but somehow you couldn’t look away. She was just too good to tear your eyes away as she moved across the floor to the beat of the song, doing moves that you didn’t even know were possible.

You watched, eyes glued to her, until the music changed, and she stopped dancing and let out a laugh, hands coming back up to fix her hair as she walked towards the group of girls who had been cheering, grin so wide it showed her dimples. Quickly, you shook your head and looked back down at your drink. She was still just a playgirl.

“I was thinking about dancing, but I can’t after that. How are they so good?”

“They probably practice a lot,” you said, dismissing it the best you could. “Once the floor is full, people wouldn’t even notice if you’re good or not. If you want to dance, you should.”

“Hey! Are you guys enjoying the party?” Yoojung seemed to appear out of the crowd like magic, making both of you jump. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you! I’m small, so I move around quickly.”

“It’s okay,” Chaeyoung said with a smile, waving her hand not holding the drink. “You killed it out there by the way. Where did you learn to dance like that?”

“Thank you! It’s one of my passions, so I practice a lot,” she said, pulling up a chair and sitting down. “Lua is better than me, though. She’s been dancing since she was little. She can do everything from hip-hop to ballet.”

“Seriously?” You looked back over at her as you spoke. “I would never have pegged her as the ballet type.”

“Right? But she’s honestly amazing at it. I go to all of her shows and I’m still amazed every time. She’s surprisingly girly. Her favorite color is even pink.” Now that you thought about it, she did wear a lot of pinks, even if it was on her hats and bomber jackets or those bright pink pants that the teachers hated. She was even wearing a hot pink shirt now, albeit a crop-top with a lace-up front.

You glanced over at her, and when you looked back at Yoojung, Doyeon was walking up behind her. Even just her walk was intimidating, and you swallowed nervously, but Chaeyoung gave her a smile and a wave.

“Hello, Doyeon.” To your surprise, Doyeon gave her a small smile back as she wrapped her arms around Yoojung.

“Hey, Chaeyoung. You enjoying the party so far?”

“It’s a little different than what I’m used to,” Chaeyoung admitted sheepishly, making Yoojung laugh. “But it’s fun!”

“I’m surprised you’re drinking alcohol,” Doyeon said, to which Chaeyoung quickly shook her head.

“Oh, no! (Y/N)’s friend Heejin ordered these for us. She called them virgin, which means they have no alcohol. Right?” Doyeon chuckled.

“Right.” Then, her eyes landed on you. “You’re (Y/N), right?” You nodded, unable to find the words to speak, but Chaeyoung spoke up before you had to.

“Oh, yeah, this is the friend I invited, (Y/N)! She’s somehow friends with some popular people so I convinced her that she would have people to talk to if she came with me.”

“It’s nice to meet you, (Y/N). Thanks for keeping our Chaeyoung company.” ‘Our’ Chaeyoung? Apparently they really liked her.

“It’s nice to meet you too.” Doyeon looked down at her girlfriend, and her features became soft.

“Anyway, I came over here to get Yoojung so we can do the gift announcement. Sorry to interrupt.”

“That’s okay!” Chaeyoung said, “By the way, what is the gift tonight?”

“Dating Lua for a week,” Doyeon said with a grin, resting her chin on Yoojung’s head, which made the younger girl whine. “It’s been a pretty popular one, so we brought it back for tonight. Maybe you guys will get lucky.”

“Ah, I don’t think I could keep up with someone like her....” You weren’t saying anything, but you agreed with Chaeyoung. How would a nerd like the two of you be able to date someone like Lua?

“You never know,” Doyeon said, “don’t be so hard on yourself. Anyway, we’ve got to go. We’ll come back over and talk once everything is settled, okay?”

“Bye Chaeyoung, bye (Y/N)!” Yoojung said, waving at the two of you with a wide smile as her girlfriend led her away. The two of you waved back until the two disappeared into the crowd, and Chaeyoung looked back at you.

“See? Doyeon isn’t too bad. Yoojung told me that she just has a hard time conveying her emotions because she gets nervous.”

“Doyeon? Nervous?” It didn’t seem real. That girl had it all. But you guessed if it was her girlfriend saying it, it had to be real. “I would have never guessed it.”

“I know. But when I talked to her she was genuinely nice, so I know Yoojung is telling the truth.”

“They both certainly seem to like you,” you said, making Chaeyoung squeal and bring her hands up to cover her cheeks.

“Stop it! I’ll end up blushing!” You laughed at her, shaking your head, but then the music died out, making you look over at the dance floor again. At the far end, the main group of girls had gathered, and Doyeon had a microphone in hand. Yoojung was holding a bowl full of folded up papers, and your heart jumped knowing that your name was in there. You almost wanted to rush up and take it out, but you would never have to confidence to do such a thing.

To distract yourself from the feeling of imminent doom, you looked over the group. Suyeon was there, and she looked a bit different than usual with her hair up. Lucy was there too, hands in her pockets looking kind of like she’d rather be back at the bar eating the snacks. Elly was leaning over Yoojung’s shoulder, listening to whatever Doyeon was explaining, as the microphone was still off. Rina and Sei were talking, Rina with her arms crossed as Sei messed with her bangs.

“Honestly, Sei is really cute too,” you said, squinting to see her better from your seat. “How did she end up in their friend group?”

“Honestly I have no idea. I think she was friends with Lua so she just ended up joining the group when Lua did.”

Speaking of Lua, she was standing next to Doyeon, slipping back into the bomber jacket she’d abandoned when she’d went out to dance. She didn’t seem nervous at all, but she was always confident when she hit on girls so you weren’t sure why you thought she might be nervous now.

The microphone clicked to life and Doyeon brought it up to her mouth, raising her eyebrows.

“Hey everyone! I hope you’re all having a good time, like usual.” There was a loud cheer, and you looked around. Everyone who had scattered around the party before had returned, knowing about the prize and wanting to see who had won. You could even see Heejin and Hyunjin standing off to the side in each other’s arms, watching Doyeon speak. “We’re now going to announce the prize. Is everyone curious?” Another cheer, and she smiled. “Why don’t I let our Lua introduce it?” She handed the microphone over to Lua, who grinned widely and stepped forward.

“Since it was popular the last few times, we’ve brought it back. Tonight’s prize is, wait for it.... Dating me for a week!” The crowd seemed to go crazy, especially the girls. You’d known that she was a player, but you hadn’t realized that it was on this scale. The girls at this party were crazy for her. Shaking your head, you tuned out whatever else she was saying and took the last sip of the margarita Heejin had gotten for you. You weren’t really interested in any of this, dating someone out of this group was not on your to-do list, and plus, the chances of your name being pulled were slim. There were so many people here that there was no way-.

“(Y/N)! Tonight’s winner is (Y/N)!” Doyeon held up a strip of paper, and her eyes moved over to your table as the crowd began to murmur, looking around because they didn’t recognize your name. For a moment, you sat very still, hoping this was just a dream. But it wasn’t. It was very, very real, and you knew it was when Chaeyoung hit you on the arm in her shock. “Congrats, (Y/N), it looks like you’ve got a girlfriend for the week.”

You wanted to run, but you were rooted to your chair, unable to move as everyone watched Doyeon and Yoojung lead Lua your way. How were you so unlucky? You could see Hyunjin and Heejin grinning and waving at you, and you wished you’d never agreed to come.

“Wow, (Y/N), who would have guessed you’d get so lucky at your first party!” Yoojung was practically bouncing with excitement, and you stared at her with wide eyes, panicking internally. You’d never even dated anyone, how were you going to do this? Was Lua really going to be your first girlfriend?

“Don’t be so nervous, Lua doesn’t bite unless you want her to,” Doyeon said, earning her a slap on the arm from Lua as she stepped forward.

“You’re (Y/N)?” Slowly, mechanically, you nodded. “I thought your name was unfamiliar. I guess I wouldn’t know it since you’ve never been to one of our parties before. But it’s nice to meet you, babe.” Your face flushed immediately at her use of the word, and she grinned even wider, eyebrows going up. “Should we get to know each other better?” Chaeyoung across from you squealed and covered her mouth, leaning back in her chair, and you made a mental note to curse at her later. This was her fault.

“Uh, I.” What could you do? You couldn’t lie and say that you were in a relationship because Chaeyoung was right there, and Hyunjin and Heejin were making their way over, and Hyunjin looked just tipsy enough to sell you out for the laugh. And it would be rude to just refuse. Was that even allowed? You were totally stuck with nowhere to run. Swallowing, you glanced down at your empty glass. “Sure.” What else could you say? You were just going to have to ride this out.

Lua wasn’t fazed by your hesitance to accept, probably just thinking that you were nervous. With her grin still in place, she held out her hand. “Come on. Let’s go over to the bar and get you another drink.” Internally, you panicked. But on the outside, you tried to play it cool, swallowing thickly as you picked up your empty glass and stood up, glancing at Hyunjin and Heejin, who both gave you a thumbs up. You really didn’t want to take her hand, but you felt like you had no choice, so you did.

Her hand was surprisingly soft, and you just hoped that you didn’t start sweating is she gave you a smile and tugged you away from the group towards the bar. Behind you, you could hear Hyunjin whistle. She was so being added to the list of people to yell at later.

“So, what do you like to drink?” She was talking to you. You tried to remember what Heejin had ordered for you earlier, focusing on the empty glass.

“Well, I don’t really drink. Heejin ordered this for me earlier without any alcohol but I don’t remember what it was. A margarita or something?”

“Have you never tried alcohol?” You glanced at her out of the side of your eyes.

“No?”

“Oh, that’s so boring! I’ll get you something without much alcohol so you can try it.”

“Um, that’s okay, I-.”

“Come on, you’re at a party! You can let loose here! If you end up not liking it, I won’t make you drink it, don’t worry.” What could you say? She didn’t seem like she was someone who would take no for an answer, and she was determined to get you to try whatever she was thinking about. Was she drunk? You didn’t know, since you’d never actually talked to her before.

The bar was crowded, but the crowd parted as she walked up, and you could feel the girls standing there sizing you up. You really hated having this many eyes on you, so you looked down at the floor and tried to ignore the feeling of their stares.

“Hey, bartender Jihyo! Can you give me two of the usual? Make one light, though, my girlfriend hasn’t really had anything strong before.” The bartender gave her a smile and nodded, turning around to begin making something, and you shuddered a bit at the mention of “girlfriend”. This was real, wasn’t it? Your first girlfriend was really Kim Lua. This wasn’t just a nightmare.

You listened as some of the girls talked to Lua, and she laughed along with something they were saying, until the hand in your own tightened its grip and you glanced up to see her holding a drink.

“Here. This one is yours. I think you’ll like it.” You took it gingerly. It felt different than before, knowing this drink actually had alcohol in it. Jihyo slid another drink over the counter, and Lua grabbed it and stepped back. When you glanced at her again, there was a gleam in her eyes that made you nervous. “Alright, follow me. I know somewhere more private we can talk.” Some of the girls whined, but Lua ignored them as she led you away, towards a back elevator that you hadn’t even seen before. It was slightly hidden behind elaborate plants on top of half-walls, but Lua seemed to know exactly where she was going.

The elevator was even nicer than the one you’d rode up on, and you looked around in awe, surprised at the scale of it.

“This elevator is so pretty, isn’t it? It leads down to the upscale private rooms so they had to make it a little bit nicer.”

“It is really pretty,” you admitted, nodding your head. You felt stiff and unnatural beside her, the drink in your hand foreign and the hand in yours even more so. Then, it struck you what she’d said, and you panicked a little inside. Private rooms. Where was this going?

The elevator doors slid open to reveal a small but beautiful hall, and she led you out towards the last door, hand slipping out of yours to pull a key from her pocket. You waited with your heart in your throat as she unlocked the door, eyes searching for any way out.

“Come on in!” The door swung open to reveal a suite, with a large bed, an elaborate bathroom with a giant bath, a desk, and two chairs to sit on in front of the bed, not to mention the walk-in closet and the vanity. The television was huge too, taking up half the room. You stepped slowly inside, eyes wide as you took it all in. Was this normal for rich people? You’d never seen such a room in person. This stuff only happened in movies. Except now you were inside one, and it was very real, and you were definitely not in a movie. “What do you think?”

“This is crazy,” you said, shaking your head. “How are we allowed to use this?” Lua winked and sat down on one of the plush chairs, motioning for you to do the same.

“This floor is designated for Doyeon and her friends, which means us. We could stay here all night, if you wanted to.” You decided not to think about the implications of that sentence as you sat down. “Have you tried the drink yet?”

“Haven’t had the chance,” you said, glancing down at the glass as she took a sip of her own. What would your parents say if they knew you were here instead of studying at Chaeyoung’s place? You could only imagine. You’d never thought that you’d have your first sip of alcohol while you were still in high school, but there you were. Slowly, you took a sip.

It tasted almost like the drink you’d had before, but there was a bit of a burn when it hit the back of your throat and you winced a bit. Still, the sweetness took away most of the feeling, and the drink wasn’t bad. You weren’t sure if you wanted to drink it all, though. Being drunk in a room like this was not something you wanted to happen.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s okay. I’m not used to the burn,” you said, lowering the drink and hoping that she wouldn’t pressure you into taking another sip.

“I guess it isn’t for everyone,” she said, shrugging her shoulders and taking another sip of her own drink and nodding towards the desk. “There’s water and stuff in the fridge if you’d like that instead.” When you looked over, you noticed the small fridge for the first time. The door to it was clear, showing an assortment of drinks inside, and you got up and wandered over to it. Placing the drink on the desk, you opened the fridge door and took out one of the waters, then walked back over to the chair and sat down.

“This is good,” you said when she raised her eyebrows, assuring her that you didn’t want anything else. Honestly, you just wanted to go home. Although there was something about her that was... alluring, almost. You kind of understood now why Hyunjin had gotten so excited over getting hit on.

“If you say so,” she said, leaning forward. “Anyway, (Y/N), tell me about yourself. I haven’t really seen you around.” Well, you’d been around. But you weren’t surprised that she hadn’t noticed you. It’s not like you were anything close to popular enough for her.

“There’s not really much to tell,” you said, shrugging your shoulders. “I’m friends with Hyunjin and Heejin, but that’s about all the popular people I know. I’m in the math club. The only people I’m behind when it comes to grades are my friends. As for hobbies? If doing homework is a hobby, then I have one. I like watching shows, too, I guess. I’m pretty boring.” Her face was unreadable as she watched you, and it was unnerving, so you looked down at the water bottle in your hands instead.

“I haven’t known anyone in the math club before. That’s impressive, though, that you’re at the top of the school in your grades! I could never do that.”

“All it takes is studying,” you said, and she fell quiet for a moment before laughing.

“You’re interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone tell me anything like that.” You looked back at her, eyebrows raised, surprised she hadn’t thought it was rude. “I mean, it’s true. If I studied, I bet I could get better grades.”

“Do you not study?” She shook her head slightly and took another sip of her drink.

“Not really. I don’t have the time between everything else I do and doing the homework.”

“What all do you do?” She grinned, like just talking about it made her happy.

“Ballet, rhythmic gymnastics, hip-hop dancing. My dance teacher recently started training me to be more well-rounded so I can dance to anything, so that’s extra lessons too. Plus I’m a cheerleader at the school, and I’m in the dance club. And I do stuff like this. So I’m always busy.” You had no idea about any of this. You still couldn’t really imagine her doing gymnastics or ballet, but she seemed so passionate about it that it made you feel a bit bad for feeling angry about her not studying.

“How do you not get tired with that kind of schedule?” She laughed again.

“I do, trust me. But I love dancing and gymnastics so it’s easy to carry on. I think I’d die if I couldn’t dance.” That wasn’t something you’d expected to hear from her, but you nodded your head, looking back down at your water bottle. You couldn’t really understand where she was coming from. You loved school and learning, sure, and you liked math, but you didn’t feel like you’d die if you didn’t have them.

“It’s good to have something that you’re so passionate about,” you said, and she tilted her head slightly, watching you.

“I’m sure that there’s something you’re passionate about. Everyone is passionate about something. You just have to find it.” When you glanced up again, she was closer. So close that it made your breath hitch in your throat, both because of what she’d said and how close she was. You licked your lips, and watched her eyes follow it, your heart beating hard. She was leaning in, and you didn’t know what to do. You hadn’t even had your first kiss yet. Was this really how it was going to be?

Your phone rang in your pocket and you jumped up, startling her slightly.

“Oh, I’m sorry! It’s Heejin, they’re all probably heading home and I have to go with them.” Secretly, you were relieved for the distraction, but when you looked at her, her face was slightly fallen.

“Oh. That’s okay. I’ll walk you back up.” She sat down her glass and stood up, giving you a small smile as she pulled out her phone. “Could I get your number?”

“Sure.” It would be weird to have a girlfriend and not have their phone number, right?

Your heart was still beating quick in your chest, and you wondered if she could hear it as you typed your number into her phone and handed it back.

“Thanks,” she said, slipping the phone back into her pocket and holding out her hand again. Although you were flustered, you took it, letting her lead you out of the room and up to where your friends were waiting by the door.

When Friday morning rolled around and your alarm went off, forcing you to wake up, you rolled over and stared at your phone. You knew your face was puffy from all the crying you’d done the night before, and your throat was still a bit sore, making it even harder to wake up. Today was the night of the ballet performance, but it was also the last day; after today, you would no longer be dating Lua.

The idea made you sadder than you would have thought when this all began, and you shoved your head into the pillow, trying not to be so negative. As much as you wanted to tell your parents to call you in sick, you knew you needed to go to your classes. This wasn’t worth ruining your hard-earned grades over, and you had tests coming up.

Sighing, you sat up and picked up your phone, blinking your eyes sleepily. There was a text, and the name of the sender jolted you awake.

-I won’t be at school today, we have rehearsal :( See you tonight?

You stared at the text, heart thumping in your chest. Hyunjin and Heejin had been right, it seemed. Lua did still want to see you.

-I’ll be there. What time?

-Starts at 7pm but my friends always come early to get good seats

-Will do

You put down your phone and rubbed your face, steeling yourself as you stumbled out of bed.

It was going to be a long day.

-

“You look like you didn’t sleep,” Hyunjin said when you sat down, making you groan.

“Why are you always like this to me. You know exactly why I didn’t get enough sleep,” you said, sending her a glare with no actual malice behind it. She just smiled and reached into her bag.

“I was just saying so because I think you’ll need this.” She held out a new stick of makeup towards you, and you cautiously took it. “It’s concealer. It’ll help hide those dark circles under your eyes.”

“Like I’ll know how to use it correctly,” you said, looking down at the object in your hand. “You know good and well that my makeup limit is foundation and some mascara, if I’m feeling brave.”

“At least try. Heejin and I can’t come over tonight to help but I thought I’d give you that.” You raised your eyebrows.

“Why? You guys have a hot date or something?” Hyunjin nodded and flipped her hair.

“You guessed it. I’m taking her out tonight.”

“Have fun,” you said, smiling at your friend as you slipped the makeup into your bag.

“Thanks. We totally will.”

The teacher opened the door, interrupting the conversation, but when you glanced back at Hyunjin, she mouthed a “good luck” and winked. You rolled your eyes at her, but it made you feel better, a little bit. Maybe today wouldn’t be as bad as you’d thought.

-

You hadn’t eaten lunch with your friends in what felt like ages, so when you approached the group, they all cheered.

“Hey, it’s (Y/N), Lua’s girlfriend!” Soyeon yelled, and Chaeyoung elbowed her, giving her a look as you winced and sat down.

“Not really. That was a week thing, remember?” Your friends looked at you, confused.

“Really? You guys seemed really into each other, though,” Chaewon said, tilting her head. “What happened?” You shrugged.

“It’s a long story. I’ve missed you guys, though.”

“We’ve missed you too,” Dami said, scooting closer to put her head on your shoulder. “But are you okay? That’s the most important thing.” You smiled and nodded, looking around at the girls you’d come to be close to.

“Yeah. As long as I have you guys backing me up, I’m good.”

“Awe, (Y/N),” Seoyeon said, putting her hand to her chest. Chaeyoung looked at you, eyebrows raised.

“Is everything a secret, or?” You shook your head and began to unpack the first homemade lunch you’d had in a week.

“No, I’ll tell everyone. Are you guys ready for the long story?” Dami sat up and nodded, looking all too interested, and the rest of them crowded closer. Chaewon pulled her tissues out of her bag, like she knew she might need them, and you took a deep breath. “Well, it started like this.”

-

Eating lunch with your friends and getting everything off your chest made you feel lighter, and there was a little smile on your face as you headed to your next class. You could still feel eyes on your back, but you didn’t let it bother you, knowing that you were just going to have to get used to it no matter what happened.

If you and Lua started dating for real, people would stare at you because you were the one who took her away, and if Lua rejected you, people would stare at you because you were the nerd who thought you had a chance. Either way, you were going to be the center of attention for a little while. So you needed to get used to it.

“Hey, (Y/N)?” You stopped in your tracks and turned around to see Yoojung standing there with Doyeon behind her. She gave you a big grin and threw her arms around you in a hug, while Doyeon stood with a hand on her hip and the trace of a smile on her lips. “What’s up? We haven’t seen you in forever!” It had only been a week, right?

“Um, nothing much. Just, going to my next class, like usual.” Yoojung let you go and nodded, glancing at her watch.

“We still have a few minutes, and we’re close to your classroom, right? Can we talk for a moment?” You weren’t going to get beat up or anything, were you?

You nodded. “Sure. What’s up?”

The two girls looked at each other, and then Doyeon stepped forward.

“We just want to know something. About Lua.” Your heart started up at the sound of her name, and you swallowed, feeling your cheeks getting hot. “Do you like her?”

“Uh-.” Yoojung didn’t let you finish searching for the words you were looking for before she spoke.

“We just need to know if you’re serious about her or not. Lua is a really sensitive person and we don’t want her getting hurt.” You waved your hands quickly.

“I’d never hurt her! Not on purpose, anyway. I- I’m serious about her. I really like her.” A slow smile made it’s way across Doyeon’s face, and Yoojung let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh, thank goodness. I knew you were a good person and you wouldn’t lead her on but we had to make sure, you know?” You smiled nervously at them.

“I get it.”

“You’re going to her ballet performance tonight, right?” You nodded your head, and Yoojung grinned. “Great! We’ll pick you up. Chaeyoung said she’s going with you, so just have her text us your address, okay?” The bell rang, and you winced. You were late. Quickly, Yoojung waved. “See you tonight!”

“See you.” You turned as you waved and made your way towards your classroom, giving the teacher an apologetic smile as you entered.

Yoojung’s words hung in your head, and you found yourself spacing out thinking about them. Did this mean that Lua had talked about you to them? Or had they just noticed it too? This meant for sure that Lua liked you back, right? Although, her friends could just be guessing.

Sighing, you shook your head and tried to focus again, even though everything seemed to be getting more and more complicated as the day went by. Would you really be able to go through with this?

-

“It’s just concealer, I can do that much.” Chaeyoung’s voice echoed in your bathroom as she picked up the makeup Hyunjin had given you earlier, grinning. “This is the easy stuff.”

“To you,” you muttered, looking at your reflection in the mirror. You were wearing the same amount of makeup you usually did at school, other than the lipstick you’d put on and the concealer that Chaeyoung was now using on your dark circles. You’d done your hair and picked out an outfit that still felt you, but that was a little bit nicer than your school or casual clothes. This was a ballet performance, after all.

“What time did Yoojung say they’d be getting here?” She asked as she peered close, applying the concealer.

“She didn’t say, but Lua sent me a text this morning saying that her friends are always early, so they should be here soon.”

“I’m glad I sent them the address as soon as I got here, then.” She pulled away and capped the concealer again, setting it down. “See? No more dark circles.” You looked into the mirror and turned your head slightly, admiring how well the concealer had worked. Maybe this was something you needed to learn, especially during exam season when you hardly slept at all.

“Thank you,” you said, at the same time that the doorbell rang, signalling Yoojung and Doyeon’s arrival. You stood up, but Chaeyoung darted out of the room ahead of you, beating even your parents to the door.

“Welcome!” She said as she opened the door, making you roll your eyes and shake your head.

“This is my house, Chaeyoung.”

“I pretty much live here anyway,” she replied, shrugging her shoulders before turning back to Yoojung and Doyeon, who seemed very amused. “Are you guys ready?”

“Ready if you are,” Doyeon said, spinning her keys on her finger. You suddenly felt self-conscious, knowing what kind of life Doyeon lived, and grabbed your purse from the chair beside the door.

“Alright, let’s go,” you said, ushering Chaeyoung out and waving at your parents, who were looking curiously around the kitchen corner. “I’ll be back later!”

Doyeon owned a brand-new BMW, but you weren’t even surprised. Of course she would have such a nice car, if what you’d seen at the party was any indication of her life.

“Buckle in, I don’t wanna lose my license,” Doyeon said as she started the car, looking at you and Chaeyoung through the rear-view mirror. Immediately, the two of you obeyed, buckling up as Doyeon pulled away from the house and onto the main road.

Yoojung turned on some 2NE1 and began to sing and rap along, getting Chaeyoung to join in, but you couldn’t make yourself join in. Your heart was beating like crazy and you could feel your palms sweating as you looked out the window, unable to calm yourself down. The tickets and the keychain sat in your purse (you’d checked on them multiple times to make sure they were there), but as the car neared the venue, you could feel the confidence you’d gotten from your friends dwindling. You hadn’t seen Lua at all since she’d left you in the library the day before, and you felt just as nervous as you’d been at the party. It was like all the courage you’d gained throughout the week had been destroyed the day before.

You took a couple breaths to try and calm yourself, closing your eyes. But you saw Lua behind your eyelids, smiling so wide that the dimples beneath her eyes were showing. You saw that smile that had become so familiar, and quickly opened your eyes again, knowing that your cheeks were flushed. It hadn’t helped at all, and now Doyeon was pulling into the parking lot, and you were even more nervous than you’d been when you were leaving.

“Ready?” Chaeyoung asked, reaching over to grab your hand, and you gave her a weak smile.

“Not really, but I’m getting there.” She gave you an affectionate grin.

“You’ll be okay, I promise.” She gave your hand one last squeeze before she let go to open her door and get out, and you did feel a little better. Still, you took one last deep breath before getting out yourself, steadying yourself as much as you could.

The venue was huge, much bigger than you’d thought it would be, and you looked around with wide eyes.

“Wow,” Chaeyoung said, taking the words out of your mouth, and Yoojung laughed.

“Right? Lua’s ballet company is widely known, so they always have huge shows. They’re all crazy good, too.”

“So impressive,” you said, mouth dropping open as you took in the crowd waiting to get in. “When she said get here early, she wasn’t joking.” Doyeon nodded and held up her tickets.

“Yeah, but we have special passes since we’re close to her. Come on, we’ll get our seats and everything and then we can see her backstage.” Your heart jumped again, but you let Doyeon and Yoojung lead you over to the ticket booth as you pulled your tickets from your purse.

The girl behind the counter gave you and Chaeyoung a once-over, probably because she’d seen neither of you before, but she let you both in with Doyeon and Yoojung, handing both of you back half of your ticket.

“You’ll use that to get backstage,” Yoojung explained, pointing to the ‘exclusive access’ portion of the ticket as the four of you made your way into the almost-empty auditorium. A few other people milled around, other friends and family, and Doyeon suddenly stopped and turned around.

“Hey, (Y/N), we’ll go ahead and get the seats, why don’t you go back and see Lua now? She’s in the fourth fitting room.” Your heart stopped for a moment and your eyes widened.

“Alone?”

“Yep,” all three girls said together, and you resisted the urge to whimper. But the keychain still sat in your purse, and you knew that you wouldn’t be able to give it to her with everyone there. So you squared your shoulders and glanced around.

“Where do I go?”

-

It was easier than you had expected to find the fitting rooms, but your hand hesitated as you brought it up to knock on her door. Would she be happy to see her, or would you end up upsetting her? This wouldn’t mess up her performance, would it?

Your mouth felt dry, but you mustered all the courage hiding behind your anxiety and knocked.

You heard shuffling on the other side of the door, and Lua calling a quick “hang on!” Your heart beat hard in your chest, and you knew that your cheeks were flushed as you fidgeted with your fingers, moving from foot to foot.

When Lua finally opened the door, her eyes widened when they met yours. She looked different than she usually did, her hair slicked back in braids and her makeup done with a more feminine precision, turning her into the character Dorothy. She was in slippers, but she had on the dress that she’d be wearing for the show, the iconic blue and white dress, cut just a little shorter than usual to give her a full range of motion as she danced. She looked cute, and it made your heart skip a beat. The butterflies were back.

“Hey,” you said for a lack of anything else to say, giving her a small smile. She blinked, seeming to finally realize what was happening, and quickly stepped to the side, smiling back at you.

“(Y/N)! You made it!”

“I did. Doyeon, Yoojung, and Chaeyoung are with me, but they went to go get seats.” When she closed the door, the room felt like it got smaller, but you tried to ignore it as you stood awkwardly in the middle, unsure of what to do.

“Oh, you can sit down in one of the chairs! It’s just me using this room and the makeup artist already left,” she said, gently touching your arm to lead you over to a small seating area at the opposite side of the mirrors. Carefully, you sat down, allowing space for her to sit down next to you. “I’m glad you made it.” She was telling the truth, you could tell it from the way she said it, and it soothed your nerves.

“I’m glad I made it too,” you said, trying to keep it lighthearted as you looked at her. Wow, had you missed her smile. And it had only been a day. “How are you feeling?”

“Good, confident! I was a little nervous before but our rehearsals went well so I feel better.” She tugged at one of the braids, letting out a soft laugh. “I bet I look weird right now, though.”

“No, you look cute.” The words came out on their own, like they had been since you met her, and you could feel your cheeks heating up again. But you didn’t regret it, especially when it made her ears turn pink and her eyes get a little wider.

“Oh, really?”

“Really. I like the braids.” A wide smile, one that showed those dimples you liked so much, broke across her face, and she looked down at her hair again.

“Thank you.” The air still felt a bit awkward, but the thickness that had been there when you first arrived had gotten lighter, and when her hand moved over to cover yours, it felt right. For a moment, the two of you just sat there, not saying anything. Then, swallowing, you turned to look at her again.

“Um, I got you something.” Again, her eyes widened as she looked at you, curiosity crossing her face. Quickly, you reached into your purse and pulled out the keychain, displaying it to her before you could have second thoughts. Her mouth dropped open, and she slowly brought up her hand to touch the ballerina charm, almost like she couldn’t believe her eyes. “I meant to give it to you yesterday, but....” You trailed off for a moment before picking back up, not wanting things to feel awkward again. “I figured it might give you good luck before the show tonight. And I really wanted you to have it.”

There was something unreadable and soft in her eyes as she picked up the keychain and looked from it to you, and then back again.

“Wait, when did you get this?”

“When we were at the mall Wednesday,” you admitted, “when I said that I was going to buy the book keychain, I did it so that you wouldn’t suspect anything. You looked so excited when you saw it, I just.... Wanted to see you smile like that again.” She held the keychain to her chest, mouth slightly open, searching for the words to say.

“I.... Thank you. I don’t know what else to say, this is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me,” she said, voice wavering, and you panicked a bit. She was wearing full show makeup, and you’d never meant to make her cry. But then she surged forward and wrapped her arms around you, holding you tight. It was the first time she’d hugged you, the first time she’d done anything other than hold your hand, and for a moment, you froze up.

Slowly, you brought your arms up to hug her back, breathing in the smell of her perfume as you fell for her even further. She was so warm, and you didn’t want to pull away.

“Lua, you have five minutes!” An unfamiliar voice broke the moment from the door, and Lua quickly pulled away, wiping gently at her eyes before looking back up and you and giving you a smile so brilliant it outshone that florescent lighting of the room.

“Sorry. It looks like I’ve got to go.”

“That’s okay!” You jumped up from your seat and closed your purse, eyes moving across her face to make sure you hadn’t messed up her makeup in any way. Thankfully, everything still looked amazing, and you smiled at her. “Good luck. I’m looking forward to seeing your performance,” you said, moving towards the door. She stood up as well and seemed to be debating whether to say something as she walked you to the door.

When you stood just outside the door, and her just inside, she stopped.

“(Y/N)?”

“Yes?”

“You’re making it really hard not to like you.”

-

Your head was spinning has you made your way over to where your friends were sitting, so spaced out that it was a miracle you didn’t trip and fall. As you got closer, you could see that the rest of Lua’s friends had joined, but that there was a seat left for you between Chaeyoung and Yoojung.

“How’d it go?” A voice sounded behind you and you jumped, spinning around to come face-to-face with Doyeon.

“Um.” You didn’t know what to say, because you were still processing what Lua had said. Was that a good thing? A bad thing? You’d been unable to respond because the stage manager had come up and shooed you away, so you were stuck with her words whirling around in your head. Her raised her eyebrows.

“(Y/N)?”

“I-I don’t know how to explain it,” you said, looking down at the floor. You hardly knew Doyeon, and she was still intimidating to be along with. But to your surprise, she put her hand on your shoulder.

“That’s alright. Why don’t we go sit back down with Chaeyoung, and if you’re comfortable, you can tell us about it then?” You looked at her, touched that she somehow seemed to know exactly how you were feeling.

“Thanks. I’d like that.”

All eyes were on you when you stepped up to your chair, and Lua’s friends waved at you, some of them looking a bit curious. What had they been expecting to happen when you went back there?

“How did it go?” Chaeyoung asked as you sat down, echoing Doyeon’s words from earlier. But with Chaeyoung there, you felt more comfortable, and you’d had a little bit more time to process it now.

“Well…. I don’t know.” Everyone’s eyes were on you, and you swallowed. “I gave her the keychain.”

“Did she like it?” Chaeyoung reached over to put her hand over yours, calming your nerves down a bit.

“I think so. But she said something.” As you spoke, everyone leaned in closer, and the lights dimmed. You glanced around, shutting your mouth, but Yoojung waved her hand.

“You’re good, the band will play before the show starts. What did she say?” Having everyone looking at you made you a bit uncomfortable, but you figured they should know. They were Lua’s friends, they might know what she meant.

So you told them what she’d said, and watched as their eyes widened and they looked at each other. Chaeyoung’s grip on your hand tightened and her other hand came up to cover her mouth.

“Wow. So she really does like you,” Suyeon said, eyebrows raising as she turned to look at Elly beside her. “I didn’t believe it at first.”

“Not because there’s anything wrong with you,” Elly clarified for her, “it’s just that Lua hasn’t liked anyone since… well, you know.” You glanced over at Chaeyoung, who gave you a sheepish smile.

“I told them that we knew about everything because Yoojung brought it up. I hope you don’t mind?”

“I don’t,” you assured her, shaking your head and looking up at the stage. Her friends had said it themselves, and as much as you could hardly believe it, it had to be true: Lua liked you too. The butterflies started up again and your heart squeezed in your chest, and you wondered if this was what it felt like to be in love. You’d never felt any of this before, and it was a bit overwhelming, but in a good way. 

The other girls looked like they wanted to say something, but the band had finished playing and the curtains were raising, so they settled back in their seats instead. Swallowing, you sat back and put your hand over your chest, willing your heart to calm down as the show started.

-

If Lua was cute doing everyday things, here she was stunning. From the moment that she came on stage, you couldn’t take your eyes off her. When you’d been with her, she’d shown that she could be slightly clumsy. She was known to be a tomboy and enjoy comfortable clothes and her mouth dropped open slightly when she slept and she was so incredibly loud when she talked and laughed.

But onstage, she was graceful and beautiful, another side to the girl you were still learning so much about. You were sure the audience would never guess what she acted like offstage, because she was so good. She never missed a step and her facial expressions were perfect, taking your breath away every time she was onstage.

As the ballet neared the climax, her eyes met yours in the crowd, and she smiled that brilliant smile that made your heart jump and stop. She was beautiful. And you really, really liked her.

The final dance ended, and the entire cast came onstage to bow, but you still couldn’t take your eyes off Lua. Somehow you even drowned out the clapping around you, and for a moment, her eyes met yours and it felt like the two of you were the only two in the auditorium. It was when she looked away that you made up your mind.

You weren’t going to be afraid anymore. You were going to pursue this, no matter where it took you.

-

After the show had finished, you made your way back to her dressing room again, following the familiar path with your heart beating hard inside your chest. Everyone else was somewhere behind you, but you were only focused on the path ahead of you that led to her.

The door was open slightly, and you didn’t hesitate this time when you reached up to knock on the door.

When she answered, she was smiling, strands of hair falling out of the braids and her cheeks flushed with excitement and exertion. She still looked so cute and pretty after giving it her best, eyes sparkling as she stepped to the side to let you in.

“(Y/N)! Did you enjoy the show?” You gave her a smile, opting to stand in front of her this time as she shut the door.

“I did. You were incredible up there.” She beamed, positively glowing, and reached up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

“Thank you, I-.” If you didn’t say it now, you’d lose the courage to say it ever. So you interrupted her, rushing over your words.

“You know, you make it hard not to like you too.” You caught her off guard and her eyes widened, mouth dropping slightly open before her entire face flushed and she brought her hand up to cover her mouth.

“W-wait, you-? What do you mean?” It was such a cute reaction, and you knew your cheeks were flushed too as you let out a nervous laugh.

“I like you, Lua. More than just as a friend.” It was like a million emotions went across her face at once.

“Since when?” She asked, slowly bringing her hand down.

“I don’t really know, honestly. Tuesday? Wednesday?” It was embarrassing to admit it and you had to fight the urge to escape the situation.

“Oh my god. This entire time, I’ve been trying not to like you, and you’ve liked me back? I didn’t have to worry about anything?” She groaned and stepped forward, putting her head on your shoulder, and you didn’t really know what to do.

“I’m sorry? I didn’t know you liked me either.” She let out a sigh, but when she brought her head up to look at you again, she was smiling.

“You don’t have to apologize. We were both a little dumb. I’m just not used to all this stuff.”

“Same here. I’ve never dated anyone,” you said, regretting it almost immediately as your face flushed again and you glanced down at the floor out of embarrassment.

“Wow, really?”

“Yeah, I mean, who wants to date the math nerd?” You said, trying to joke the awkwardness away.

“I do.” She had to stop saying stuff like this, because your heart couldn’t take it. “Also, here’s a little secret. I’ve only dated one person I really liked.”

“But you’ve dated plenty of people,” you pointed out.

“It’s not like I really do anything with them other than maybe hold their hand. I don’t do any of the things with them that... that I want to do with you.”

“Oh-.”

“Can I kiss you?” It came so out of the blue, but her eyes were so earnest, and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want to kiss her too.

“I’ll probably be bad at it,” you said, voice wavering.

“You won’t know unless you try.” She was so... magnetic. You found yourself moving closer, as if your body had a mind of its own. Every bit of you just wanted to be held by her.

“Then yes.”

“Yes what?”

“Yes, you can kiss me.” She grinned at your words and leaned forward, taking you into her arms. You wrapped your arms around her shoulders, shy because you didn’t really know what to do, and she brought a hand up to cup your cheek. Your eyes fluttered closed at her touch, and the next thing you knew, she was kissing you.

It took you a moment to tentatively kiss her back, pulling her closer without realizing exactly what you were doing.

And then she was pulling away, and both of you had matching pink cheeks. Her eyes met yours, and both of you burst into giggles, leaning back into each other.

“You aren’t bad,” she said, eyes sparkling. “But I don’t think it would hurt to teach you some more.” The butterflies started up again and you gave her a look, trying and failing to not smile.

“Your friends will be here any minute.”

“What? So they can’t see me kissing you?”

“It’s embarrassing,” you whined, and she beamed, letting her forehead fall against yours. She was so beautiful up-close, and for the first time, you noticed how dark and deep her eyes were. You could feel yourself falling into them, because they were focused on you, and only you.

“Just one more kiss,” she said, voice a whisper, and you couldn’t resist her. Everyone would probably burst through the door at any moment, and it would be embarrassing, and the two of you would probably never be able to live it down. But she was warm and inviting and your lips tingled for the chance to taste her again, so you couldn’t bring yourself to care, letting your eyes flutter closed.