The Mannequin (Jiyoo)

Forward Together

« Good morning, boss. I'm reporting for work » Yoohyeon greeted gleefully Yubin who was busy wiping the glass of the giant water tank clean.

The tattooed woman turned around and smiled brightly at her « Just in time to clean the inside of the tank »

Yoohyeon's smile dropped « Seriously? » She asked in a small voice. She had no idea how she was supposed to do that. Did she have to get in?

Yubin burst into laughter « I'm kidding. It does that automatically » She put the cloth under the counter and gave her a quick hug « So, today's gonna be a test. If everything goes well, and I don't doubt it, you'll have a job here » She announced, receiving a toothy smile from her friend.

« Where do I start? » Yoohyeon asked enthusiastically.

Yubin chuckled « Help me get the money from the last row of arcade games. I didn't have the time to do it last night » She pointed in said direction.

« Oh, yeah, you had a date last night » Yoohyeon tried to say as innocently as she could to hide her curiosity « How did it go? »

« Truthfully... » Yubin smiled while handing her a bucket to put the coins in « It was perfect. If I had known Minji had such a beautiful and smart neighbor, I would have befriended her sooner » She joked.

Yoohyeon laughed « It must have been a fun long night. We didn't hear Handong come home »

« Were you waiting for her? »

« No. It's just that the walls are paper thin so we even hear Nannan meowed »

« Ah! » Yubin nodded. She paused before saying « She wants to present me to him »

Yoohyeon could see she was a bit nervous which made her look adorable to her « He'll love you. I'm sure of it »

« I...I don't know. I have never been close to a cat before »

« Just be you » Yoohyeon advised her « He'll feel that »

Yubin smiled at her thankfully « I'm gonna love working with you. I can feel it » Yoohyeon snorted as they continued their task in a good mood.

-

Minji wasn't feeling well when she went to get Yoohyeon at lunchtime. Bora's message had shaken her. It was the only thing that occupied her mind that morning. All these intrusive thoughts made scenarios in her head that terrified her. What had they discovered? And how could it affect Yoohyeon? And, selfishly, her?

She took a deep breath as she arrived in front of Reality Catchers and walked in. She passed by the rows of computers, mostly occupied at this hour of the day, and reached the arcade room. She immediately caught sight of Yoohyeon's silver hair from afar. She was showing the controllers of a machine to a child accompanied by her mother. Minji smiled unconsciously.

« You, my friend, are the definition of heart eyes »

Minji blinked, turning to the side to find Yubin coming toward her. She blushed as the smaller woman snorted « Hey, Yubin! » She greeted « I suppose you weren't better last night » She teased back.

Yubin snorted « You have me there » She stood next to her as both their eyes fell back on Yoohyeon who was cheering the little girl on « She's doing amazing » Hearing that Minji smiled proudly « I hired her »

« I didn't doubt you would. It would have been your loss otherwise » They smiled at one another « I guess I'm gonna be seeing a lot of you since Yoohyeon works here and...you're also gonna be at Handong's place sometimes »

Yubin rolled her eyes « Yoohyeon told me the walls were thin. I'm gonna behave I promise »

« Oh, I wasn't thinking about that, but I'm glad » Minji smirked « Don't come play video games with Yooh every evening » She warned playfully.

« No promise » Yubin joked.

When Minji looked back ahead, she met Yoohyeon's eyes and her heart flipped in her chest. The silver-haired sent her a shy smile that she reciprocated.

« Whipped » She heard Yubin mutter by her side.

« I'll probably say the same soon about you and Handong » Minji told her without detaching her gaze of Yoohyeon. She heard Yubin snort as Yoohyeon was letting the mother and daughter play on their own, coming toward them « Hey! » Minji said when she did « How was your morning?...And your new boss? » She glanced with a grin at Yubin who shook her head while rolling her eyes.

« Maybe I shouldn't flatter her ego but it's been amazing » An eye-smile appeared on Yoohyeon's face.

« I'm giving you a raise right away » Yubin winked at her and they laughed « Now, both of you, go enjoy your lunch break » She shooed them away.

« Thanks, boss » Yoohyeon exclaimed happily, holding onto Minji's arm and led her outside.

They walked in a comfortable silence to the American dinner. Once settled at a table, Yoohyeon broke it « How was your morning? »

« Good. Good » Minji lied, playing with her cutlery.

Yoohyeon tilted her head to the side, noticing her tense attitude « Minji, what's going on? Talk to me » She spoke in a small voice.

Minji gulped, nervously meeting her gaze. She couldn't keep Bora's text to herself. Yoohyeon deserved to know. It was about her after all « Uhm...Bora...sent me a text before I got to work » She stuttered.

Yoohyeon frowned « Is she okay? »

« Yeah. Yeah » Minji reassured her « She and Siyeon are coming in the evening to see us »

Yoohyeon wasn't sure she followed. Bora and Siyeon were her friends but Minji didn't seem excited about it « Is it not a good thing? » She inquired.

« They have a reason to come » She took a deep breath while Yoohyeon felt deep confusion. She met her eyes « They discovered...where you come from »

Yoohyeon's eyes widened slightly as she froze. After her last flash of memory, she hadn't stop thinking about the two people she had seen in it. Their familiarity was frightening her because she couldn't remember anything else but she knew they were important to her. Truth was, she was scared to know.

Minji let her process the revelation before talking « Yoohyeon if you don't want them to come, they won't. If you don't want to know, I won't hear it either » Yoohyeon focused back on her with surprise « I'll support whichever decision you make. You're the one to decide about yourself. I'll go along » She reached for her hand that was resting on the table and sweetly rubbed her thumb over her knuckles.

Yoohyeon took a deep breath « What if...we find out something bad? » She said in a small vulnerable voice.

« Then we'll deal with it....together » Minji smiled softly at her and she felt a bit reassured.

She had been there for Minji all this time but now Minji was there for her.

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Hey, guys!

Hope you enjoyed?

See you next week :) In the meantime, take care of yourselves. Love you <3

-J