Since their project of the month had been submitted, Wonyoung, Rei, Liz, and Gaeul were mostly free. Mostly. Liz and Gaeul excused themselves for theatre when the bell rang with cheery "Bye!"s, leaving Rei and Wonyoung out on the campus field.
The air was chillier than usual outside, so Rei had a thick padding coat on. Wonyoung rubbed her palms together to warm her hands, wearing only a sweater and jeans.
"What're your plans for later?" Rei asked, a puff of breath becoming visible in the cold. It seems winter would roll around soon.
"I'm gonna see Yujin," Wonyoung said softly, looking down at her shoes.
Rei scooted closer to her. She reached into her jeans pocket under her coat. "You look nervous," she said, pulling out a small candy. It was a throat lozenge, wrapped in pale yellow plastic, twisted at both ends. She pressed it into Wonyoung's palm.
It was red, maybe cherry flavoured. Wonyoung hummed gratefully and stuck it in her mouth. A sweet coating soothed her hoarse throat. Vocal lessons were absolutely brutal.
"I am nervous," she sighed. She moved the candy to her cheek, clacking against her teeth slightly. "It's just- I know it's been super long and stuff isn't exactly completely fine, and we have to build our relationship from the ground again, but she could say I love you back as a start, right?"
Rei sat lazily, elbows resting on her knees.
"So why won't she?"
"We're all different people, y'know?" Rei said, fidgeting with an earring on her lobe. "Maybe Yujin isn't ready to say it yet."
Wonyoung's furrowed expression was replaced with a frown.
"She does love you, I'm sure. Feeling it and saying it are different things."
"I don't get-"
"Just like how you pushed her away when you knew it wasn't right," Rei finished.
That shut Wonyoung up, knocking a little more understanding into her, like pushing a puzzle piece you've been struggling to find into place.
Come to think of it, Yujin hadn't ever not been comfortable saying I love you. Or being kissed. Or anything when it came to Wonyoung. But truthfully, their high school relationship was messy and rushed, bricks falling out of the tower every day and being patched up again, and Wonyoung realised it, wincing.
...That's how bad I must've hurt her, she thought, balling her hands into fists on her knees.
Rei said nothing but pat her back. They sat in comfortable silence for a while.
Until the bell rang again, echoing out from the open windows of the classrooms.
"Come on," Rei said, pulling Wonyoung to her feet, "time to go home."
With a small smile, Wonyoung linked arms with her and they walked to the bus stop.
Liz and Gaeul had beat them to it, already waiting on the bench by the time they got there. Gaeul swung her legs playfully. Liz was freezing, her thin jacket barely enough to keep her warm. Rei took her coat off and put it around her wordlessly.
"Oh, you're being nice without a bribe?" Liz joked, teeth chattering.
Rei flushed and rearranged her hair with a hand, covering her reddening ears. "Can't ever take something nice without saying something dumb, huh?" she bit back.
Wonyoung raised a brow. "What's up with them?"
"They've been like this for a while," Gaeul giggled. Wonyoung caught on quickly and joined her.
The bus arrived and they boarded it together. Somewhen ten minutes later, Gaeul got off at her stop and waved them bye.
"See you later, Wonyoung!"
.
Wonyoung stumbled into the dorm clumsily, immediately making a beeline for their bedroom and flinging open the doors of her closet. Rei brought Liz to bed to warm up, wrapping an unmade blanket around her.
"Don't worry about picking outfits," Liz said. "Yujin will like you no matter what!"
Wonyoung threw a sock at her, which landed across her nose. "I never said anything about Yujin. Who said it was for Yujin?"
Liz threw it back at her. "Someone's worked up."
"No, I like to get dressed up anyway," Wonyoung huffed. She pulled a hanger off the rack, slipped her padded coat off it, and tossed it onto her bed behind her.
"Okay. This, or this?" Wonyoung asked, holding up a blue shirt with a small red heart on its chest pocket and a white long sleeved off-shoulder with a lacey collar.
Liz perked up. It seems like she'd warmed up enough, because she kicked off the blanket. "Alright, slow down, what's the occasion?"
Wonyoung lowered her hands and tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
"Is it dinner or just a hang out together?" Rei asked.
"Oh, um, I don't know actually."
"Cuz' that lacey off-shoulder would look like you want something more than a hang out," Liz giggled. "You gonna finish what you started yesterday?"
"Hey- Jiwon! Ah, shut up!" Wonyoung stuttered. Liz and Rei laughed heartily, and Wonyoung hid a smile from them as she selected a pair of white sweatpants.
"Blue shirt it is," Rei said, clicking her tongue. "You'll look cute no matter what. Oh, and..." She left the room and came back with a soft bundle in her hand. "Wear this."
Rei slipped Yujin's beanie over Wonyoung's head, arranging her hair outside it. "She'll go nuts."
"Like how you behave when I wear your clothes?" Liz purred, leaning towards Rei.
Rei rolled her eyes.
"Okay," Wonyoung said.
She had a brief shower, then changed. She took a tote bag to carry Yujin's clothes with her. Rei and Liz fussed around her, assuring her she could go bare faced, something about "she's found you beautiful for over seven years and I'm pretty sure she won't stop anytime soon" from Liz.
With a final pat on the butt courtesy of Rei, she left.
A new kind of nervous was billowing around in her stomach, and Wonyoung knew exactly what it was - the same feeling she got when she kissed Yujin for the first time.
She was falling in love all over again (not that she ever, ever fell out).
