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“Where’s the popcorn?” Dahyun heard the loud and impatient groan from the other room as she balanced three bowls of popcorn in her hands.
“Coming!” Dahyun shouted back, but only the vague sounds came out and none of the coherent syllables of the word as her teeth were clenched around the corner of a packet of sweets.
She was welcomed by a loud cheer from her friends as Dahyun entered the lounge, but she knew the majority of that was at the food she brought with her and not for her herself. As she reached her group of friends lazing on her couch and the floor in front of it, Dahyun looked expectantly at Tzuyu like a dog who had just retrieved something from around the house and wanted her owner to appreciate the gift too. Tzuyu took the wordless hint and reached up to take the packet of sweets out of Dahyun’s mouth. Dahyun sighed out a “thank you” as she regained the mobility in her jaw and the ability to form recognisable words once more. Nayeon took the bowls from Dahyun’s hands one by one and distributed them between their friends: two for those on the couch and one bowl for the unlucky few sat on the floor.
“Is this it?” Nayeon disappointedly said as she looked down at the popcorn in the bowl in her hands and then to Dahyun.
“Well, why don’t you bring snacks next time you come round instead of stealing all my parents’.” Dahyun rolled her eyes.
“I was just asking.” Nayeon defended herself under her breath before stuffing a handful of popcorn into her mouth and then moving the bowl closer to Jihyo who was cuddled up to Nayeon’s right arm.
Dahyun shook her head slightly and sat down on the floor. Typically she would have been annoyed about not getting a seat on the couch, especially considering this was her own family’s house they had all piled into for their weekly movie night, but the fact she settled into a spot next to Mina made the pain in her butt from the uncomfortable carpet flooring hurt a lot less.
She settled into her seat, leaning back against the couch and trying to scoot closer to Mina without making her conscious of the lack of space Dahyun was giving her or the small smile that crept across Dahyun’s face. Her eyes flitted to Mina’s shoulder as the latter girl’s eyes were glued to the tv watching Chaeyoung scroll through movies on Dahyun’s dad’s Netflix account. Mina’s dark hair cascaded behind her shoulder, exposing it in her slightly oversized pyjama t-shirt and Dahyun couldn’t help the urge to want to rest her chin against the slope; she was sure they’d fit perfectly together.
“Ugh Chaeyoung, can you choose something quickly and stop cooing over the arthouse movies that no one else has heard of.” Sana whined as she threw her head back on the couch in frustration.
“Shut up, why don’t you choose something then?” Chaeyoung called back, leaning forward to look down to the other end of the couch where Sana was throwing complaints.
“I don’t want to.”
“That’s what I thought.” Chaeyoung said smugly, happy to maintain control of the remote for the evening.
“Ooh,” Jihyo piped up as she saw something she liked amongst Chaeyoung’s repetitive scrolling, “put on Thor: Ragnarok.”
“For fuck’s sake Jihyo, no one wants to see you ogle Chris Hemsworth for over two hours, especially not Nayeon.” Jeongyeon shot up from the floor as she looked up at Jihyo and then to Nayeon who shrugged her shoulders and gave Jihyo an apologetic smile.
“Tzuyu can you stop moving around, you’re taking up too much space.” Chaeyoung tore her attention away from the tv screen to Tzuyu who had been fidgeting for a while and had just decided on a new position of her legs up on the couch and her feet tucked underneath Chaeyoung’s thighs.
“I can’t help it I’m so much taller than you,” Tzuyu’s words immediately got a tired look from Chaeyoung who didn’t appreciate the unoriginality of the comment. Tzuyu brought her arms around her knees, “I’m cold as well.”
“Yeah Dahyun, is the heating even on? I’m fucking freezing.” Momo agreed from her seat on the couch as her legs were draped over each of Jeongyeon’s shoulders.
“Do you have any blankets?”
“Yeah and maybe a pillow, Sana stole them all -”
“No, I didn’t!”
Dahyun groaned out amongst her friends’ arguing and then quickly turned towards them.
“Okay okay!” Dahyun almost shouted, losing her temper. She just wanted to have a nice relaxing night watching a movie with her friends, but obviously that was too impossible for them. They could never do anything together without at least Nayeon and Jeongyeon teasing someone which gave an excuse for the others to join in or gain the confidence to tease someone else. Typically it was fun unless it was directed at you, but right now, it aggravated Dahyun and this was evident in her stern look and questioning. “I’ll go get blankets and pillows, does anyone else want anything?”
“I wouldn’t mind a pillow..” Mina said quietly with no impatience or rudeness in her voice, unlike the others. She just looked back at Dahyun with kind eyes and it completely threw Dahyun off; her rage was forgotten as she got lost in Mina’s presence.
“Umm yeah sure…” Dahyun gulped back, her voice quieter and shier than before, “I’ll go get those for you.”
She had meant that for everyone who wanted blankets and pillows, but she directed her words to Mina before scrambling up from her seat on the floor and disappearing up the stairs to find spare blankets and pillows from cupboards and her bedroom. Nayeon sneered as she watched Dahyun’s angry front disappear and a soft almost puppy-like desire to get Mina her every wish arise in its place. She looked back at Jihyo who shared a knowing look and laugh at the display.
Dahyun soon reappeared in a similar way as she had earlier, yet instead of snacks in her arms, she was carrying a few pillows and a bundle of blankets.
“Here,” Dahyun announced before throwing a pillow a little too hard at the girls on the couch, the flying item smacking Nayeon square in the face who instantly yelped loudly. The rest of the girls giggled at Nayeon’s dishevelled face and hair from the impact and Dahyun tossed the other pillow to Jeongyeon who caught it. Then she gave out the blankets. One to Tzuyu who had started the uproar about the inadequate comfort and warmth of Dahyun’s house and then the other to Momo who smiled contently at its arrival. As the blanket left her arms, it unwrapped a particular unusually shaped pillow that was hidden in her arms. Dahyun sat back down and turned her attention to Mina.
“This is for you.” She smiled shyly, presenting the item to the other girl.
“This is so cute!” Mina giggled out, a smile spreading across her face at the gift. It was a penguin plushie the same size as the other plain light brown pillows she’d offered out, yet this plushie had a deep black and a brilliant white contrast with a bright orange beak.
“I thought you’d like it.” Dahyun said as she tickled under the chin of the plushie to emphasise how cute it was and to make Mina’s grin spread wider. Completely enchanted by the gesture, Mina jutted her chin out and shook her head with a content look across her face as if she was being tickled herself.
“Thanks, Dahyunnie,” Mina said as she took the plushie from Dahyun hands. She turned her attention towards the tv as Chaeyoung and Sana had finally stopped squabbling over what film to watch. Hugging the toy to her chest, Mina rested a cheek on the top of it captivated by the film starting in beaming lights and loud noises.
Everyone’s attention rested on the screen apart from Dahyun’s whose mind was still holding the plushie, but her hands were just grasping thin air, reeling from the way Mina had cutely moved her head from side to side. The way Dahyun had made her giggle loudly and then welcomingly soothed that noise by her touch on the plushie’s chin; which Mina turned into Dahyun’s touch on Mina’s chin by association. Dahyun watched the way that Mina held tightly to the plushie in her arms and ran her fingers back and forth through the fur comfortingly as she watched the film. Dahyun had never felt more jealous towards something in her life, let alone an inanimate object. She wanted to replace the plushie in Mina’s arms with herself and feel her warmth around her torso instead. But right now she’d have to settle with the little warmth her hoodie gave her as she tried to focus on the movie.
Ever since that moment, Dahyun was adamant to commit it to memory. She’d added it to the library of other tiny yet endearing things Mina did that she’d search through when she daydreamed in class or late at night before she went to sleep. She thought Mina imitating the plushie would be a once in a lifetime moment, but it happening again.
It was like Mina just expected Dahyun to give her the plushie when her and all their friends came round for movie night the following week. And of course, Dahyun obliged. As Dahyun ran down the stairs with the penguin in her hands, she flapped its wings at Mina who reciprocated its movement and her excitement by wiggling her hands in the same motion. Dahyun almost missed a step and tripped at the sight of Mina’s innocent joy. Once again Mina hugged the plushie tightly throughout the film and Dahyun couldn’t tear her eyes away.
When Mina came round Dahyun’s house for study sessions about particularly difficult pieces of homework - Dahyun was convinced that Mina was more than capable of solving matrices by herself but never let her questions surface - Mina was spread out on Dahyun’s bed, pages of equations and worksheets fanned around her. Most importantly Dahyun’s plushie was nestled underneath Mina’s chest as she propped herself up on it and chewed the top of her pencil in concentration. Dahyun definitely didn’t fixate on the way Mina was attached to the penguin toy and would bury her head into it in frustration before asking Dahyun for help. And Dahyun definitely didn’t fixate on the way the plushie smelt of Mina when she hugged it tightly as she drifted to sleep at night.
Like clockwork, Dahyun’s group of friends were sat in her lounge and Mina was clutching the penguin plushie, but this time with a death grip as her head frantically shook back and forth.
“I don’t want to watch a horror film.” Mina said quickly with a scared look in her eyes like the movie was already projected on the back of her eyes.
“But Mina…” Sana whined but was met with Mina shaking her head even faster to emphasise her refusal.
“Why don’t you pick something else then Mina?” Jeongyeon said, worried Mina’s head might come off if she shook it any more. At this, Mina instantly scrambled towards the remote on the floor a few feet in front of her to pick anything else. Amongst her haste, she let go of the plushie in her arms, replacing it with the remote and pointing it at the tv with big eyes and crossed legs like a small child.
“What about this?” Mina questioned, outstretching her arm to the tv and turning her head back to her friends on the couch for their opinions. However, she realised they weren’t listening and were too busy giggling over the penguin plushie that had somehow made its way to Nayeon who had its wings outstretched, bouncing it up and down.
“Hey, gimme back my plushie!”
“It’s not yours, it’s Dahyun’s.” Nayeon smiled, her eyes glued to the plushie she was playing with.
“It might as well be Mina’s with the amount of time she clings to it.” Momo rivalled, watching Mina’s face start to tint red at what she was implying.
“Shut up.” Mina warned, darting her eyes towards the door to the kitchen which Dahyun was in right now. She didn’t want her to walk in on this.
“She probably wishes it was Dahyun and not the plushie she was holding onto though-” Sana teased, knowing she’d get even more of a rise out of Mina and she definitely did when Mina launched the remote at Sana’s arm. It hit the bare skin with a dull smack and Sana felt triumphant despite the pain and angry pout on her lips.
“Guyss,” Mina desperately whined and covered her face with her hands. She tried to bury herself from the embarrassment but no matter how well she hindered her vision, she still heard the chorus of laughter.
“I think it’s cute,” Mina heard Tzuyu say, “you should just tell her you like her, you’d be surprised.”
“I’m not saying anything.” Mina groaned, her voice muffled as it projected into her palms. She scrunched her eyes closed even tighter. Dahyun made her heart skip in a sweet way, but the thought of telling her this and vocalising her feelings made her heart skip but in a way that made her want to vomit with fear. Feelings and the unknown were scary.
“Okay okay,” Nayeon reassured as if confirming they weren’t going to press any further. Mina relaxed a little at this, “but can you do one thing for us?”
Mina eased her head out of her palms and took a peek at what Nayeon was about to suggest. Nayeon reached under the chin of the plushie to tickle it there. Mina immediately took the hint.
“Can you do the cute thing you do?” Nayeon pouted with big eyes, trying so hard to subside her laughter bubbling up her throat.
“Come on Mina,” Jihyo continued, “just wiggle your head a little.”
“Ugh no, stop!”
“She’d do it if Dahyun asked.” Jeongyeon said as she reached up to the toy in Nayeon’s hands and tickled its stomach and then shifted her gaze to Mina, waiting expectantly and dramatically for Mina to imitate the plushie. But Mina gave them no such satisfaction and flopped back onto the carpet bringing her knees up to her stomach and covering her face once more.
“I’m gonna go see what’s taking Dahyun so long.” Chaeyoung chuckled as she untangled herself from the elaborate weave of legs that Sana and Tzuyu had made with her own. She walked out of the lounge and into the kitchen to find Dahyun staring at the microwave as a popping sound erupted from it at irregular intervals. Dahyun was completely lost in thought and Chaeyoung couldn’t help laughing at the sight.
“I can hear you thinking from here.”
The rhythmic noise had Dahyun distant and lost in thought and Chaeyoung’s arrival took her out of it as she whipped her head around to look at her friend, “That’s the microwave.”
“Same difference.” Chaeyoung laughed as she leant against the kitchen counter. She watched Dahyun get lost in thought again, “and I know what you’re thinking about Dahyun. Just ask her.”
“Is it that obvious?” Dahyun asked, avoiding the latter part of Chaeyoung’s statement.
“Your gay panic is palpable, everyone knows,” Chaeyoung started and then saw fear start to spread across Dahyun’s face, “apart from Mina. She’s as oblivious as ever.”
“Okay good,” Dahyun said before the microwave pinged to a halt.
Chaeyoung frowned at the sense of relief in Dahyun’s tone, “Do you not want to tell her how you feel?”
“No.” Dahyun said abruptly as she opened the microwave and then the bags of popcorn to distribute into bowls.
“Hyun,” Chaeyoung whined in frustration and received a sigh from Dahyun in response.
“Shush, I’d rather enjoy things now than potentially fuck things up.” Dahyun said before stuffing a few pieces of popcorn in her mouth, distracting herself.
“You’re not gonna fuck things up by asking-”
“Can you take this please?” Dahyun cut Chaeyoung off by pushing a bowl of popcorn towards her to carry. Recognising the cue for her to stop pestering her best friend she simply nodded and took the bowl, but she couldn’t help but notice the way Dahyun’s face lit up when Mina cooed a “thank you” after Dahyun handed her a bowl of popcorn and sat down beside her on the floor. She decided not to comment on it or toss Dahyun a knowing look. However, the same could not be said for the rest of their friends who tried to cover up their laughter when Dahyun poked the stomach of the penguin plushie like Jeongyeon had done earlier, but this time Mina held her own stomach in the place where Dahyun had poked the plushie, mirroring its supposed pain. Mina’s cheeks started to glow red at the way Dahyun beamed back at her and because she knew her friends were right, but she couldn’t help it. This sweet interaction had become her own little thing with Dahyun and she wasn’t about to give that up for anyone.
Against Mina’s wishes, they ended up watching a horror film. The previous death grip she had around the penguin when she had first refused to watch a horror film returned again and once or twice it appeared around Dahyun’s upper arm when there was a particularly tense scene or as she reeled from a jump scare. Dahyun thanked god that she was the one sat next to Mina, the one who was comforting her or chuckling at how scared she was. Whenever Mina would let go of her grip on Dahyun’s arm, she still felt the touch burn at the spot until Mina screeched again and the grip returned.
“Dahyun, I thought you liked horror movies?” Sana teased from her seat, watching the way Dahyun coughed back a gasp whenever Mina grabbed her arm and tried to fight back the flush on her skin.
“It’s scary.” Dahyun said, trying to justify her blush but everyone - apart from Mina - saw past her lie.
After the film, Jeongyeon found her car keys and rounded up everyone to get ready to go home. She threw Nayeon’s car keys at Nayeon who seemed to forget that she also had to drive home before their curfew as she was too busy making googly eyes and hushed promises into Jihyo’s ear on the couch. Jeongyeon and the others were sure that this would continue in Nayeon’s car so they begged Jeongyeon for a seat in her car in order to avoid witnessing it unfold.
“You know you can take him home with you if you’re still scared?” Dahyun offered to Mina, pointing at the plushie still safely secured in her arms. It didn’t look like Mina had intentions of letting it go anytime soon.
Mina dropped her gaze from Dahyun to the toy and then back to Dahyun, dragging a concerned expression with her, “But this is yours. I don’t want to steal it off you.”
“You’re not stealing anything Mina.” Dahyun reassured, “Just take him home to keep you company.”
“Okay, thank you.” Mina smiled sweetly at Dahyun’s kind gesture. She wanted to thank Dahyun properly. Her mind ran wild with the image of her kissing Dahyun on the cheek or on the lips as a thank you, but she didn’t and only stood there smiling weakly. Mina reassured herself that it was only because their friends were around and not because she was a coward who feared to put her dreams into reality.
Dahyun said goodnight to all her friends and asked them to text her when they were home safely. They flippantly agreed and waved goodbye, Mina waving herself and then flapping the penguin’s wing at Dahyun. She watched the plushie disappear into Jeongyeon’s car as Mina piled into the back. For Dahyun, the penguin acted as a physical reminder of Mina. It was like it emitted memories they’d shared together like a perfumed scent whenever she cuddled it, completely immersed in Mina. It was a poor substitute for hugging Mina, but it would have to do unless Dahyun was feeling particularly brave one day and she never was.
As her friends drove away and Dahyun closed the front door, she missed the plushie already but she was happy it was bringing comfort to Mina. That was all she wanted.
Mina didn’t return the penguin the next day nor the following day. That night had been the last movie night for a while and not because Mina was so scarred from the horror film, but because everyone was busy studying for finals.
Some of their friends studied harder than others and Mina was definitely one of those. She had dreamed for a long time of studying medicine at a good university and her dreams were almost becoming reality with her consistently high grades throughout her school career. All she needed to do was get good grades in her finals this year and in her medical school exam and she’d be there.
But it wasn’t as easy as that for Mina, feeling the pressure mount up. She gave herself no time outside of studies and engaging in extracurricular activities that would look good on her university application. Hence, she had no time for her friends or their movie nights. She even had no time for her and Dahyun’s study sessions which Dahyun constantly looked forward to despite having to actually study. She’d see Mina in their one class together, but with her eyes glued to the whiteboard or down at her page, Dahyun had no time to talk to her and crack jokes like she usually did just to see the other girl smile. Dahyun completely understood why Mina was absent and so busy, but she couldn’t help but feel upset and miss the girl.
“Hey Mina, are you free for a little bit? Wanna hang out?” Dahyun called down the hallway at Mina who was rummaging around in her locker. Mina whipped her head around to see Dahyun smiling so brightly at her. It soothed her for a second but the chaos and stress soon flooded her eyes.
“I’d love that, but I’m really busy Dahyun,” Mina sounded distant and distracted and Dahyun furrowed her brows at this, immediately wanting to know what was the matter, “I’ve gotta go talk to my professor about my university application and then I’ve got hockey training in 20 minutes.”
Mina looked down to check her watch, breathed out a heavy sigh and then smiled at Dahyun. Mina’s erratic movements and the fakeness of Mina’s smile was unusual. It didn’t take an expert to know she was beyond stressed right now.
“Yeah, I figured you had hockey seeing you’ve been lugging your hockey stick around all day. You almost hit Chae with it earlier, you were so distracted..” Dahyun let out a little laugh, trying to lighten the mood but there was a tone of worry in there.
“Ah yeah, I guess I’m not really with it today.” Mina frowned, “I should apologise to Chaeyoung.”
“It’s okay, I’m sure Chae isn’t mad. Honestly, she should be grateful she’s not a few inches taller otherwise she’d be in the nurse’s office right now.” Dahyun joked, but she didn’t get the usual response of seeing Mina’s gummy smile and her eye sparkle that she’d become so addicted to. Concerned, Dahyun walked closer to Mina and rested a hand on her upper arm, “Mina, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s just…” Mina started as she squeezed her eyes shut and ran a hand over her face in exhaustion, “I’m just stressed about finals, you know what it’s like.”
Dahyun rubbed Mina’s arm a little to reassure her and ground her in something other than the stress that was so obviously eating her up from the inside, “Yeah of course, but I don’t think any of us are as stressed as you right now. You need to cut yourself some slack.”
“I can’t, I don’t have time to give myself a break.” Mina replied, her mind becoming restless with the number of things she had to do today. Her arms became restless too as she fiddled with the strap of her hockey stick bag but it didn’t ease anything and only reminded her that she had hockey training in around 15 minutes now. She checked her watch once more. “I’ll be fine, but I’ve really gotta go.”
Dahyun didn’t feel reassured whatsoever by Mina’s statement and if anything had become more worried about her. Before Mina could dash off down the hallway, her legs carrying her from stress to stress, Dahyun interrupted her, “Before you go, I’ve got something for you.”
Mina looked confused as Dahyun let go of her arm. She took her backpack off her shoulders and unzipped it, rummaging through the contents to find something. An excited “ah” sound escaped Dahyun’s lips when she found what she was looking for deep in the bottom of her bag. She pulled her hand out and was holding a small shark plushie. It was just smaller than her hand and the toy shark smiled up at Mina in white and grey fluff.
“I thought you might like it. You’re stressed all the time so I wanted to get you something fun. Maybe it could be a stress ball or something you know,” Dahyun rambled and then squeezed the toy in her hand to emphasise her thought process. “It’s dumb I know, but it could help.”
“Dahyunnie,” Mina’s voice was airy and soft.
“You don’t have to keep it, it was just a thought,” Anxieties crept up Dahyun, worried that Mina didn’t care for her gesture.
“No no, this is so thoughtful,” Her expression rearranged into something overwhelmed with feeling, lips jutting up into a pout and her eyebrows pulled in and up to etch lines between her brows and on her forehead. She took the small toy from Dahyun’s hand and squeezed it within her own. The simple action caused a smile to spread across her lips and jump into her eyes. Dahyun saw pure joy return to Mina, a look that had been lost from her face for weeks now.
Before Dahyun could say anything else or verbally accept Mina’s compliment, Mina leant forward and wrapped her arms around Dahyun’s neck in a big hug. She pulled Dahyun in close - her right hand still squeezed around the tiny shark - and practically buried her face into the curve of Dahyun’s neck.
“Thank you, I really appreciate it. You really didn’t have to.” Mina words were mumbled into Dahyun’s sweater, but the meaning was there and then so were Dahyun’s hands on her waist, holding her close.
“It’s nothing. Anything for you.”
Mina pulled her head away from the comfort of Dahyun’s neck. Her eyes traced Dahyun’s facial features that were now so close to her. They travelled from the darker shade specks that marked across Dahyun’s brown eyes and down to her lips that were ever so slightly parted.
With a small clearing of her throat, Mina soon pulled completely away from Dahyun, aware of them standing in a school hallway; aware of the way time felt slightly slower and her heart squeezed when she looked at Dahyun’s lips for a little too long.
“I really should go now,” Mina said quietly whilst still regaining her composure. She raised her right hand up complete with the shark plushie within it, “but thank you for this.”
“No worries.” Dahyun said, in the similar stages of regaining her previous confidence.
“I’ll see you later, Dahyun.”
“Yeah, have a good day.” And with that Mina shut her locker and walked down the hallway on her way to the sports changing rooms. Her mind was preoccupied with a whirlwind of thoughts like it had been recently, but instead of being a hybrid of anxieties and fears around studying, they all grouped under one title that brought her no stress and only smile-inducing giddiness: Dahyun.
“Dahyun! You have a visitor!” Her mum’s voice called up the stairs as Dahyun lay on her bed reading a book. Now her exams were over she had time to read for fun at her own pace and not speed cram Wuthering Heights into every free space of her brain.
Tearing herself away from her book, she rolled onto her back and looked at the door awaiting her visitor. In bound Mina wearing a big smile that Dahyun mirrored. Dahyun tossed her book carelessly on the bed as she sat up.
“Hey, what are you doing here?”
“I just finished my last exam.” Mina grinned triumphantly. She must have bolted up the stairs after Dahyun’s mum let her in as she was still clad in her thick puffer jacket. She dropped her bag on the floor and practically flopped on the bed with a loud sigh. “I’m finally free.”
Dahyun couldn’t help but smile as she took in the absolute bliss wiped across Mina’s face. She sunk into the bed like she was floating in the ocean. “Well, until the end of summer when you have to go to medical school.”
“Ugh stop,” Mina reached out to Dahyun and held her arm as if Dahyun was running around too fast for her mind and legs to catch up. Mina’s brow furrowed at the thought of more studying, “Just let me enjoy this for a little longer.”
“Okay,” It came out in a whisper like Dahyun was trying not to disturb Mina’s relaxation any further. She gently lay down beside Mina, her hands meeting on top of her stomach and she found herself fiddling with the skin around her nails. Mina looked so calm but Dahyun couldn’t meet the same composure when Mina always made her heart race and right now was no exception when she was lying back on her bed. She closed her eyes and tried to regulate her breathing, matching it with Mina’s quiet breaths.
“So you came all the way to my house to tell me that you finished your exams when you could have just texted me that?” Dahyun’s voice cut through the silence after a while.
Mina opened one eye and squinted at Dahyun from her side, “No, I came here to thank you.”
“Thank me for what?” Dahyun asked as she turned her head to face the other girl.
A hand dipped into her coat pocket and brought out the shark plushie that Dahyun had gifted her a few weeks before, “For this. It’s my good luck charm.”
“Really?” Dahyun sat up in her complete surprise.
“Yeah,” Mina sat up too, looking between Dahyun and the toy in her own hand, “I’ve had it in my coat pocket ever since you gave it to me. I guess you were right about it having the ability to help me.”
Mina took it everywhere with her. Even when it wasn’t cold outside, Mina would suffer the sweating warmth of wearing her jacket just so she could squeeze the plushie buried in her big pocket when she was overwhelmed with the number of tasks she had to do that day or overthought about how few days she had left until her exams. Maybe it was a similar stress relief like punching a wall or screaming into a pillow, yet this was more discreet and less destructive in the public building of their school. Mina felt it was more similar to the way Dahyun’s presence put her at ease. Yes, their playful relationship and her constant urge to spill her feelings for the other girl put her on edge, but the way Dahyun looked at her and treated her with so much care and attention outweighed that. Dahyun couldn’t be by her side all the time - no matter how much she’d like that - so having a small reminder of her with her when they were apart in their different classes meant a lot to her.
“I’m happy it helped.” Dahyun simply said, her words understating just how happy that made her.
“Also, I brought this back.” Mina leant forward to retrieve her backpack. She unzipped it and pulled out the penguin plushie Dahyun had leant her a few months back.
Dahyun frowned at this, “Oh, you keep it, I don’t need it.”
“Dahyun, I can’t take this. You already give me so much,” Mina referred to the smaller shark plushie Dahyun hadn’t just donated her from her plushie collection but bought for her.
“It’s not a lot though. It was only something small.”
“I know it might not mean a lot to you, I’m sure this wasn’t a lot of money, but it means a lot to me. The fact you thought and worried about me. It means a lot, Dahyunnie.”
“I always think about you…” Dahyun eyes went glassy and she scanned Mina’s face for a sign. Maybe she’d gone too far, but all of Mina’s meaning and emotions fizzled down into a soft and small smile.
“Just take this back, please.” Mina’s arms moved forwards, outstretching the plushie in her hands as an offering. She received a small nod from Dahyun who took the plushie from her hands. She hugged it tightly and then brightened the mood by tickling the stomach of the toy which Mina instantly reacted to by clasping her hands on her own stomach with a bright grin.
Dahyun had been carding through her memories of Mina imitating her plushie for the past few months since her plushie had left her, but seeing happiness caused by this sweet moment again was better than any memory she had compiled.
She had become so lost in the moment and the feeling it brought her that it pushed her to be bolder than she normally was. Maybe that was why she felt her arms bring the plushie up to her face and her lips place a kiss on the penguin’s beak. But as she waited for Mina’s reaction, Dahyun wouldn’t have called it bold anymore; maybe reckless and stupid instead.
Mina read the situation. She looked at Dahyun for a few seconds like she was thinking, her thoughts and panic whirling at a racing speed. But it wasn’t thinking, it was overthinking. Mina has done enough of that for a lifetime when it came to Dahyun and she especially didn’t need to do that when what she wanted was right in front of her. So moving forward from her seated position, she kissed Dahyun’s lips. Her hands moved to cup Dahyun’s cheeks as she felt lips press against her and kiss her back.
Dahyun was initially taken aback, her heart squeezing so tight she thought she couldn’t breathe due to shock and the weight of all this pent up time skirting around each other. But then the tightness in her chest released and butterflies fluttered around her body through her arteries and veins. They ended at her fingertips as she put aside the plushie in her hands and reached out to hold Mina’s waist as they continued to kiss.
“Do you wanna stay over for dinner?” Dahyun whispered inches away from Mina’s lips as they eventually broke apart.
“Your mum already asked me that.” Mina let out a light chuckle, “She moves a lot faster than you.”
Dahyun dipped her head in slight embarrassment at how long it had taken them to get this far and now they were here, Dahyun didn’t want to waste it. “Well do you wanna stay over for a movie night just the two of us?”
“I’ve been waiting for you to ask that.” Mina said as she ran her thumb across Dahyun’s cheek, “Yes.”
“I’ll go ask my mum then.” Dahyun announced. Capturing Mina’s lips in a quick kiss and then practically jumped off the bed to go find her mum.
Mina watched her leave and immediately fell back on the bed. If she had been in pure bliss after finishing her exams earlier, this feeling was something higher and more powerful. She heard Dahyun’s heavy and raced footsteps down the stairs in the hunt for her mum and the sound made her excitement manifest past her smiling lips to her legs that kicked animatedly against the mattress. She reached for the plushie that Dahyun had discarded on the bed and hugged it in an attempt to contain her excitement, but her legs still kicked and she rocked slightly as her grip on the toy tightened. She predicted she had less than a minute until Dahyun came back into her bedroom; less than a minute for her to subside her overflowing excitement; less than a minute until she was back with Dahyun where she had wanted to be for so long. She couldn’t wait.