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It was a peaceful Friday night. Most of the group had gone home for the weekend or had family plans. Jeongyeon, whose family lived farther away, had decided to stay on school campus. She was her dormitory (shared with Jihyo), curled up on one of the large, worn sofas with a movie playing on the TV. She was scrolling through her phone, enjoying the quiet peace.
The door of the dorm creaked open, and Jihyo walked in.
Jeongyeon's heart immediately kicked into a faster rhythm. Jihyo was in soft, grey sweatpants and an oversized hoodie, her hair piled into a messy bun. She looked cozy and approachable and utterly breathtaking.
"Oh hey Jeongie," Jihyo said, looking surprised to see her. "I thought everyone was gone."
"My parents are visiting my grandma this weekend," Jeongyeon explained, sitting up straighter. "I thought I'd just chill here. What about you? I thought you had a family dinner."
Jihyo made a face, walking over and collapsing onto the sofa next to her with a sigh. It wasn't the other end of the sofa. It was right next to her, close enough that Jeongyeon could feel the warmth radiating from her. "Cancelled. My dad got called into work the last minute. So, it’s just me."
"Oh," Jeongyeon said, her mind racing. They were alone. In the dorm. On a Friday night. This was the setup for every cheesy romantic drama she'd ever seen.
An awkward, but not uncomfortable, silence settled between them. Jihyo pulled her legs up onto the sofa, tucking her feet beneath her, and turned her attention to the movie. It was some old romance film, the dialogue soft and melodramatic.
They sat like that for a while, the only sounds the movie and their own breathing. Jeongyeon was very aware of every tiny shift Jihyo made, every rustle of her hoodie. The space between them on the couch felt charged, like the air before a thunderstorm.
"You're quiet tonight," Jihyo murmured during a lull in the film, her eyes still on the screen.
"Just... kind of tired," Jeongyeon lied.
Jihyo hummed in response. She leaned her head back against the sofa, turning to look at Jeongyeon. Her gaze was intense, searching. "You've been really quiet around me a lot lately, actually."
Jeongyeon's breath hitched. "I have?"
"Mmhmm," Jihyo confirmed. She bit her lip, a nervous habit Jeongyeon had come to adore. "Did I... do something wrong?"
"What? No! No, of course not," Jeongyeon said quickly, turning her whole body to face Jihyo. "You never do anything wrong, Jihyo. You're... you'e perfect."
The words were out before she could stop them. She braced for impact, for Jihyo to laugh or look confused.
But Jihyo didn't. She just looked at Jeongyeon, her dark eyes wide and unblinking. A faint pink blush spread across her cheeks. The movie played on, the main actors now locked in a passionate, desperate embrace, but neither of them was watching.
The air in the room thickened, growing heavy, only hearing the sounds from the television. Jeongyeon could hear her own pulse drumming in her ears. Jihyo's gaze flickered down to Jeongyeon's lips for a fraction of a second, so quickly Jeongyeon thought she might have imagined it.
But she hadn't.
It was a look she'd seen in movies, read about in books. A silent question.
Kiss me.
Jeongyeon's brain screamed in panic. This is it. This is the moment. Don't mess it up. Don't be a coward.
Jihyo's expression was a mixture of hope, vulnerability, and that same intense longing Jeongyeon felt burning in her own chest. She wasn't moving away. She was leaning in, just slightly, an almost unnoticeable tilt of her head, her lips slightly parted.
That was all the confirmation Jeongyeon needed.
Slowly, giving Jihyo every chance to pull back, Jeongyeon closed the small distance between them.
...
The first touch of their lips was hesitant, but it's a simple press that ignited a year's worth of kindling. It was soft, questioning, a silent "is this okay?" that was answered by the immediate, fervent pressure of Jihyo's mouth moving against hers.
Jeongyeon's mind, usually a chaotic whirlwind of anxieties and second-guesses, went utterly silent. There was only sensation: the incredible softness of Jihyo's lips, the faint taste of her cherry lip balm, the warm puffs of her breath mingling with Jeongyeon's own.
She pulled back an inch, her eyes searching Jihyo's. What she saw there wasn't shock or regret. It was wonder. It was joy.
A slow, beautiful smile spread across Jihyo's face."Finally," she breathed, the word a soft puff of air against Jeongyeon's lips.
And then Jihyo's hands were coming up, one cupping Jeongyeon's jaw, the other tangling in the short hair at the nape of her neck, pulling her back in.
The second kiss was not a question. It was a declaration.
It was deeper, and definitely more confident. Jihyo poured her entire self into it. Jeongyeon met her with a matching intensity. Her hands, which had been frozen at her sides, came up to settle on Jihyo's waist, gripping the soft fabric of her hoodie.
But it felt like it still wasn't enough.
Jihyo seemed to feel it too. With a quiet, determined sound in the back of her throat, she shifted. In one fluid, breathtaking motion, she swung a leg over Jeongyeon's lap, settling herself onto her thighs, sinking into her lap until they were chest to chest.
Jeongyeon's breath caught. This new position was definitely more intimate, more overwhelming. Jihyo was so close, her weight a perfect, warm pressure on Jeongyeon’s legs. She could feel the solid strength of her, the reality of Park Jihyo in her arms, and it made her head spin.
Now, Jihyo's hands were free to frame Jeongyeon's face, her thumbs stroking her cheekbones as she leaned in to kiss her again, and again, and again. Each kiss was a little deeper, a little more sure. Jeongyeon's hands slid from Jihyo's waist to the small of her back, pulling her even closer, until there was not a sliver of space left between them. She could feel the frantic beat of Jihyo’s heart against her own, a wild, syncopated rhythm that matched the pounding in her ears.
One of Jihyo's hands slid from Jeongyeon's cheek back into her hair, her fingers tangling in the short strands, gently guiding her head to tilt just so, granting her better access. A soft, involuntary sigh escaped Jeongyeon, the sound swallowed by Jihyo's mouth. Bravely, Jeongyeon's own hands began to move, one staying firmly on Jihyo’s back, holding her secure, while the other drifted up, tracing the line of Jihyo’s spine under her hoodie, feeling the delicate shift of vertebrae.
Jihyo shivered at the touch, a full body tremor that Jeongyeon felt everywhere. She broke the kiss, her forehead falling against Jeongyeon's, both of them breathing heavily.
"Jeongyeon-ah," Jihyo whispered, her voice husky and raw. It was the most beautiful sound Jeongyeon had ever heard.
That was all it took. Jeongyeon surged forward, capturing her lips again. This kiss was different, slower. It was less frantic desperation and more of a discovery. She traced the seam of Jihyo's lips with her tongue, a shy, tentative question.
Jihyo's answer was an open-mouthed sigh, granting permission.
Jeongyeon's hand on Jihyo's back splayed wide, holding her as if she were the most precious thing in the universe. Her other hand came up to cradle the back of Jihyo's head, her fingers lost in the messy bun, feeling the silky strands of hair that had escaped.
They kissed until they were lightheaded, until the need for air became a pressing urgency. They parted, but only by an inch, their noses still brushing, their lips still close enough to feel the ghost of each other. Their chests heaved in unison.
Jihyo's eyes were half-lidded, her lips kiss swollen and glistening. She looked... utterly hot and impossibly beautiful. A slow, dazed smile spread across her face.
"Wow," she breathed.
A giddy, disbelieving laugh bubbled out of Jeongyeon. "Wow," she echoed, her voice rough.
There's a moment of silence before Jeongyeon broke it.
"So..." Jeongyeon whispered, her voice rough. "You...you felt it too? All this time?"
Jihyo laughed, a watery, joyful sound. She nodded, her nose brushing against Jeongyeon's. "All this time," she confirmed. "I was starting to think you'd never notice."
"I noticed," Jeongyeon said, leaning in to press a softer, quicker kiss to her lips, just because she could. "I was just... scared to ask you."
"Don’t be," Jihyo murmured, her thumb stroking Jeongyeon's cheekbone. "Not with me. Never with me."
They sat together for a long time: Jihyo curled against Jeongyeon's side, her head on Jeongyeon's shoulder, Jeongyeon's arm holding her tight.
"The others are going to be insufferable when they find out," Jihyo mumbled sleepily into Jeongyeon’s hoodie.
Jeongyeon chuckled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Let them be. I don't care."
And she really meant it.