——— 2014, 1 year into college.
"Can you imagine if you end up being in a music video or something?" Aeri teased, but she truly thought that her friend would reach such success.
"You're funny." Bada responded out of breath, playfully covering the camera on the phone Aeri was recording her with.
"Remember me when you're besties with Ariana Grande, yeah?"
"I'll be too busy on her private jet, I think."
Aeri feigned offense as she held a hand on her chest and stopped recording.
"No but seriously, I'm glad you're dancing again, you're so cool." Aeri held onto Bada's arm as she exaggerated her voice when she complimented her.
"Yeah, yeah. When are you getting back to painting, huh?"
Aeri's smile dropped slightly, she was caught off guard. Painting was just a hobby for her, there was no way she could pick up a brush for a living. But her friend could see how much she loved it either way.
"I have a better chance of a future if I get a degree, was that it?"
Bada clicked her tongue and looked at her friend more deeply. "Okay, get your degree, but if you partied less you could paint sometimes. That's all I'm saying."
"I guess." She shrugged. "But speaking about partying..." She grabbed her friend's arm again (some habit she had picked up), as they exited the practice room.
"Don't."
"Come on, it's either you come with us or Minho hangs at our dorm."
"Can't you go to his room?"
"You know that place has to be a biohazard, I'm not risking it."
"And that doesn't make you not want to date him?" Bada looked at the girl with distaste, the same exact expression she makes everytime she hears any fact about the guy.
But Aeri just laughed and pleaded with her friend once again.
"Here's a thought, how about you go out without me and don't make me the third wheel?"
Aeri sighed. "I want you two to get along."
"Yeah, that's never happening."
"Give him a chance, we're finally at a good place and I really really want your approval."
Bada just looked at her, being met with a couple of puppy eyes. She rolled her eyes, there is really nothing she can say to make the brunette be done for good with the man. Should she just let it go?
"You don't need me to be okay with your relationship, I promise you." She hugged the shorter girl. "I'll just stay home."
——— Present day.
"Would your fiancé be okay with a stranger going?"
"You're not a stranger, Bada. I'd be nice for you to meet him, but I want you there regardless."
The girl sighed, it was kind of a lot at once. Halfway reconnecting with her friend and all of a sudden welcome each other back into their lives like it was nothing, sure was a lot for Bada.
But how could she assist the event that ties her girl friend permanently to a person, and then meet the guy and be all cheery for them?
When there had been a day when she secretly wished she was in his place.
Bada couldn't even admit out loud, not then, definitely not now. It hurt that she had to ask herself if Aeri was important enough for her to suck that resented bitterness in, because the answer was obvious.
———
"So now I'm meeting the guy." Bada sighed as she held her head with her hands, telling her sister about the conversation she had hours prior.
"You're such a people pleaser, girl." Bitna exclaimed, chuckling at the younger girl's distress. "Well, not people - Aeri."
Bada ignored the last comment. "And she told me to bring Jungwoo too."
Bitna furrowed her eyebrows, pretty much the same reaction the girl had when Aeri suggested it, 'how did she know?'. "She looked through my socials, I guess."
"Sounds obsessed to me." The 31 year old appealed. Bitna was the only person Bada felt she could trust with her feelings about the whole friendship fallout - her feelings about Aeri. Only her had been able to read through her sister, back in the day, when even Bada herself couldn't decipher her emotions.
"Funny, ha ha." She kept a monotone voice. "Should I really bring him, though. I don't want him to get caught up in any drama."
"Yeah, sure. You guys want to meet each others partners, good way to finally move on."
"I moved on, long ago."
"Right, yeah." Bitna chuckled slightly. Bada decided to ignore again.
The girl kept updating her sister about the details of her chat with Aeri. As she had been, since approximately 20 minutes after the girls said goodbye to eachother and parted ways. She barely waited to call her sister in need of help.
She told her about how Aeri asked so many questions about her life now, and how she already knew she opened a dance studio, how she looked happy for her.
Also the fact that Aeri worked at a law firm, how for some reason Bada thought the girl would follow the artistic route, but she didn't.
And how weird, yet somehow comforting it was to reunite with her former best friend. And how strange it was to actually acknowledge they weren't close anymore.
They stayed talking for the rest of the day, all while Bada could tell her sister had mixed feelings about it. She saw, in first person, how Aeri had hurt her after all.
It was late at night, Bitna left, but Bada couldn't seem to get herself to sleep.
She just kept thinking about her. Bits and pieces of the long, straining conversation and reminders of their story together kept haunting her. She wouldn't fully process the fact that she actually saw her after so long, and was able to keep her composure well.
'Remember that window in our dorm?' She brought up randomly before.
Aeri must not have known how marked that place was in her heart judging by her talking about it so casually, it was almost insulting. But Bada found herself thinking about it, and that day with both of them sitting on it, often.
That day, their very first kiss.
'Let me teach you!'
'I know how to kiss, thank you very much.'
'Not how I do it.'
And then it happened, with the excuse that Bada needed teaching, she let the girl steal a kiss from her. But Aeri never knew how she couldn't stop smiling after, how she felt her lips begging for more.
She really never knew, huh?
———
[A/N: heeeyyy here's a question: would you prefer I post less frequently but longer chapters, or shorter ones but I post more often?
oh, and thank u so much for the votes btw !! <33]
