Let Me Protect You (Sahyo)

Chapter 16.1

They had their fill of all the things Shanghai had to offer, Jihyo being the best guide and guard they could ask for as they enjoyed the city to its fullest. They waved goodbye out of their plane windows like children waving at parents from their school buses, with a promise to return as soon as their schedules allowed it. 

With their luck, it was not going to be soon. Jihyo clung onto Sana's arm the whole plane ride back, and sana let her, enjoying the last bit of this freedom before jumping back into reality. As soon as the plane touched down in Seoul, they stepped back into their roles again, the bodyguard, A-list celebrity and manager, and breezed through the routines of getting through the crowds and greeting their homes again.

It took hearing the CEO’s voice welcoming them back through the phone, did reality really hit jihyo. The night before their flight to Shanghai came back to the forefront of her mind, and she recalled what she had to do.

She had tried to devise several ways to pop the question to Sana , to ask her to move in temporarily with her, but could not think of a single way to do it without all the possible follow-up questions that would no doubt reveal what was really happening.

Somehow, it happened naturally, the night they landed back in Seoul was also when Sana lethargically requested to sleep over at Jihyo's for the night, but never bothering to go back to her own home for the several nights to follow. 

When Momo showed up one evening at her house with the bags of souvenirs and a nervous pout on her face, Jihyo knew exactly what she was going to ask. She left Sana at home, reminding her to call if she wanted to leave the house, before dragging Momo along with her to Chae's bar.

“Remember, that girl in there is whipped for you. Rejection is the last thing that you have to be scared of, okay?” She took Momo by the shoulders at the doorstep of the bar, giving her several firm pats on the back to egg her on, before taking a seat at the furthest corner in the place and watched as her two friends took their conversation from the bar counter to the room behind the velvet curtains.

A few days ago, she had already had that conversation with Chaeyoung. It was 1am, and the bar was being run by Chae's employees as their boss took a break to greet her best friend with a warm hug. 

Jihyo told Chae about the trip, about Sana now knowing of the nightmares and Sujeong.

“She asked me before about this, you know? I think that was after the first time she saw it happen, and I told her it was up to you if you wanted to tell her about it. She cared a lot back then too. I could tell it wasn’t just nosiness or simple curiosity, but really unnie, she did care a lot about you even before everything happened too. I’m glad you got to tell her about it.”

She told Chae about that night at the waterway, about saying i love you again for the first time after Sujeong’s death, and how it solidified for her that she had truly moved on. She laughed at Chae when the younger girl cried hearing her words, but cried along with her too when Chaeyoung hugged her tightly and told her how much she missed seeing Jihyo this happy. 

Then, she turned the conversation on its head, making chaeyoung groan as she lectured her about trusting herself and heeding her own advice when it came to a particular bang haired girl. 

“So when she eventually comes over and makes the first move don’t you dare chicken out of it just because you think you’re not good enough for her or some stupid reason you know I will smack you for.” 

She watched, sipping on her soda, as the two of them emerged again from the curtains, shy smiles on both their faces and trapped in their own happy little bubble of bliss. She gave them exactly another half hour to bask in their newfound relationship, before skipping over, drink in hand, and slung both arms around their shoulders to congratulate them.