Somewhere, in the distance, the sun rises above the horizon. The moon falls and is replaced by the sun, freedom melting into the cool air, dancing with the brightness of the sky. Summer greets them with a warm embrace, a generous promise.
The car is packed, clothes thrown carelessly into bags, zipped closed with haste. None of the stores have opened their doors yet. It's just Dahyun and Momo, standing by the parking lot, ready to have a wonderful summer. Two girls, one who holds the warmth of the sun in her hand, the other, who embraces the chill of the night, the light from the moon.
The cool morning air bites at their skin, causing gentle shivers to ripple through their bodies. Dahyun hugs her arms to her body, watching as Momo loads the last of the bags into the back of the car. Momo turns and gives Dahyun a gentle smile as she holds out her hand, bouncing excitedly on her heels.
"You ready?"
Dahyun returns the smile, a slight upturn of her lips as she takes Momo's hand and walks by her towards the car. They both get in and prepare to leave to Busan.
"This is going to be the best summer of our lives, I can feel it," Momo beams, starting the car.
Dahyun hums in thought, ignoring the feeling in her chest. Ignoring the way she can feel her heart racing, her hands shaking.
Right before they back out of the driveway, Momo chooses a song to play. They drive through the morning, letting the sound of music drown out the sleepiness. The album playing is one of Dahyun's favourites. She assumes that Momo didn't pick it because of her, but she finds herself smiling anyway.
There's something sparking between them, something new, exciting, scary. Maybe due to the fact that this is their first time alone, just the two of them sharing a space, sitting underneath the stars. Neither of them acknowledge that fact, though. They keep the silence and let themselves surrender to the feeling of hope.
Two hour later, they're driving on the wrong interstate. It's suddenly raining now, the clouds are a dark grey and the sound of rain melts along with the song that is playing. Momo's playlist has long since ended and now the songs are in a different language.
Momo looks so calm and comfortable while driving, though, so Dahyun doesn't have the heart to tell her that they're going the wrong way. So, Dahyun stays quiet, waiting for the song to finish before telling Momo, making her cheeks flush red as she tries to find a way to turn around.
It adds another hour to their trip, but they laugh it off because it only means that they have more time to talk and embarrass themselves.
They let funny stories fall from their lips easily, like they were born to be this open and vulnerable with each other. They bask in the safety the isolation of the car brings, being separate from the world, their secrets intended to remain in the car forever, never seeing the light of day.
Momo tells Dahyun about the time she accidentally walked into a pole in fifth grade and how she still remembers every second of it in detail. Dahyun tells Momo about the time she danced on a table at her sixteenth birthday party and she also tells her about how her parents used to track her to see if she actually went to church or not.
They just talk, and talk, and talk, until they run out of words. But then it's still a fun and comfortable silence that they sit in. Rain and wind hit the windshield violently, shaking the car. Water drops roll down the windows, and Dahyun tracks one closely as it falls, watching it disappear into the bottom of the window.
For a second, it feels good to be under the rain. For just a second, Momo tries to convince herself that it's not because Dahyun is next to her. But she knows better.
