i'm yours to keep | winrina

- 7

"Notice anything different?" Are the first words out of Minjeong's mouth when she sees Jimin the next morning. She meaningfully shakes her head, allowing her hair to fall.

Jimin examines her closely starting with her feet, making Minjeong's face heat up a little. Her mouth drops open when her gaze reaches Minjeong's hair. "You did not."

Minjeong beams. "Yep!" She tugs at the dark locks of hair, pleased with her work. "What do you think? It's like a physical manifestation of how very, very sorry I am."

Truth be told, she doesn't feel all that sorry about the destruction of Jimin's garden. If it weren't for that damn bleach bottle, she wouldn't be here right now— wouldn't feel like her chest is filled with butterflies whenever Jimin looks at her.

"It doesn't count." Jimin grumbles good-naturedly, crossing her arms over her chest. "It looks good."

"Damn right it does!" Minjeong beams, putting her cap back on. "So, are we ready to finish or what?"

Jimin's amusement fades and she stares down at the garden they've made together. It's almost an exact replica Jimin's first garden, right down to the placement of the plants. It's oddly fulfilling to see all their hard work amount to something, and it's even more rewarding to see how happy Jimin is with the whole thing.

"Right, we'll be finished soon." Jimin says after a moment, teeth tugging at her bottom lip as if she wants to add something. She leans down instead, reaching for a trowel.

Minjeong mimics the motion, snatching the trowel and making sure it's out of Jimin's reach. She thinks she knows just why Jimin is reluctant about finishing the garden.

"You gonna miss me after this?" She asks, though instead of the teasing tone she was going for, the question comes out soft and genuine.

Jimin's cheeks pinken and she looks up at Minjeong with those gorgeous eyes. "What if I will?" She asks in return, equally serious.

"Then..." Minjeong begins, trying to keep herself from closing the distance between them and just kissing her already. "Then I'd like to invite you to Yunjin's party on Saturday. As like, a date."

Yes. She mentally high-fives herself for putting the 'd' word out there. Now Jimin will know she likes her as more than a friend. And she hadn't been misreading things, right? Unless she was hallucinating, Jimin seemed to like her just as much.

A heartbreakingly beautiful smile begins to break across Jimin's face, but then it abruptly fades, replaced with worry. "My dad's home now."

Minjeong raises an eyebrow, unable to see how that fact related to what she had said. "Okay?"

Jimin's eyes drop to the soil between them. "He's not going to let me go to a party." She mumbles. "Especially if he knows you'll be there."

"Then sneak out." Minjeong says like it's obvious.

"You were able to sneak me out last night without a problem. Put a few pillows under your comforter and say you're going to bed early. Then when he's in his own room, you can meet me out here. Yunjin doesn't live too far away, so we won't need to take your car."

Jimin's eyes widen in something like admiration. "Wow, you've done this a lot, haven't you?"

Minjeong shrugs. "I used to, back when my mom was in nursing school. Now she usually works evening or night shifts so it's not really an issue." Her mom also seemed content to let Minjeong roam free as long as she didn't get into too much trouble. But she didn't want bring that point up; it would just serve to highlight how much of a hardass Jimin's dad is in comparison.