𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 - 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐮𝐯𝐞𝐬

(THIRTY-TWO)

a/n: sorry for not posting these chapters sooner! i meant to, but then i got really sick (not covid, dw)

thank you for 1k reads :)
special fluffy chapters ahead

-

Jiwoo opened the door before Sooyoung even reached for the handle. They stood for a moment staring at each other in silence before they both spoke up at once.

"I'm sorry."

Sooyoung took a step back. "What?"

Jiwoo froze. "What the fuck?"

From just around the corner, a snort brought them out of their trance. Hyunjin held a hand over her mouth trying to muffle her laughter, which only made it even worse.

Though it seemed impossible, the atmosphere was somehow even more awkward than it had been only a minute before. Jiwoo still stood in the doorway staring at Sooyoung, who was now at eye level since she was still outside on the porch. Finally Jiwoo mustered the courage to move. She took one step forward and shut the door behind her before slowly wrapping her arms around Sooyoung's waist. She leaned her head on the older girl's shoulder and sniffled.

"I'm so sorry, Sooyoung," she whispered, "I should've talked to you about it before I kissed you – especially with my own experience, I should've considered how much it sucks to have someone force themselves on you because I know it firsthand. And I would never want to subject you to what I went through, so I'm really, really sorry that I did." She didn't bother to wipe away her tears, simply kept her hands securely locked around Sooyoung's waist as she soaked her hoodie with tears.

Sooyoung gently pet Jiwoo's hair and held her closer. She tried to hold back her own tears as she said, "You're okay, peach, I should be the one apologising. I put you into a situation where you had to react fast under pressure. What you did wasn't wrong, Jiwoo. You saved yourself, and I'm happy to have been the one lucky enough to... I don't know if 'help' would be the right word, but I'm really grateful that you trust me that much." Jiwoo cried even harder, so Sooyoung began to hum Jiwoo's favourite song as they swayed gently to the beat.

Neither of them had said all that they'd wanted to, but they both had a sense of relief. She doesn't hate me.

A voice tore through the soft moment. It was Heejin; she had come to pick up Hyunjin but found Jiwoo crying on the porch.

"Hey, what the hell? Chuu, why are you crying?" She thought for a moment. "Oh my god. Did Sooyoung reject you? What the hell, Sooyoung? Jiwoo is the sweetest thing ever and you're missing out." By now the other pair had pulled away from each other. Jiwoo stood behind Sooyoung making panicked gestures asking Heejin to shut up. Heejin didn't pay attention, just kept making things worse. "At least give her a chance, it was really hard for her to admit that she likes you, even to herself."

Jiwoo hid her flushed face behind her sleeves. "Heejin." Her voice was hard to understand through the fabric as she announced, "I didn't tell her."

Heejin froze. "Oh, shit," she said, "She didn't know?" Jiwoo shook her head violently, still keeping her face covered. "Damn, I'm so sorry, I thought you had already told her. But now it looks like you two have a lot to talk about, so I'll just... go see Hyunjin. Uh, bye." She ran inside, completely embarrassed by what she had said.

The girls still left on the porch stood awkwardly, looking anywhere but at each other.

To Sooyoung's relief, her phone rang. "Hi!" Her voice shone with artificial brightness.

Sooyoung's friend on the other line was loud enough that Jiwoo could hear her and Sooyoung had to hold the phone away from her face when the friend spoke.

"You sound happy," she teased, "Does that mean you finally got the balls to tell her?"

Sooyoung panicked. "Wh-what do you mean? I don't know what you're talking about." She nervously faked a laugh and prayed Jinsoul wouldn't humiliate her.

"Come on, dumbass, don't act like you forgot about the hours and hours of coaching Jungeun and I endured trying to convince you to tell her you like her," Jinsoul scoffed, "Don't tell me you stayed up all night freaking out and then didn't fucking tell her."

Sooyoung ended the call without another word. Jiwoo finally looked at her. "I overheard your conversation... sorry. Whoever your friend is talking about is really lucky, and I wish you the best of luck. Go talk to her." She forced a smile and prayed she wouldn't cry again.

With a bright smile, Sooyoung nodded. She turned and walked down the porch steps. She took a deep breath and nervously turned around to walk right back up.

"Hi," she said, "My name is Sooyoung, but if you want, you can call me yours." She shut her eyes tight and cringed at what she'd said. All night trying to figure out how to say it. All night trying to find a way to show Jiwoo that she really meant it. But she panicked and threw out a shitty one-liner instead.

Jiwoo gently pushed her shoulder. "You're a dork," she stated. She took a moment to think of a good response. "My name is Jiwoo," she began, "But you can call me anytime." Both of them were now equally embarrassed, but it was worth it to see each other smile.

"Jokes aside," Sooyoung mumbled, "Was Heejin telling the truth? God, that sounded stupid. Sorry, I—"

"Yes."

Sooyoung looked up in shock and saw the cutest thing she'd ever seen: Jiwoo blushing and playing with her hoodie sleeves as she stared at the ground and smiled. The older girl grabbed Jiwoo's hand and took a few steps backwards so Jiwoo was a step higher than her.

This was her moment. She just had to not mess it up, or at least that's what she told herself. She and Jiwoo were the same height now thanks to the stairs, so she stared into the girl's eyes and forced out the words she'd been afraid to say. "Can we do this properly this time?" Jiwoo tilted her head in confusion. Sooyoung continued, "Can I kiss you?"

Jiwoo draped her arms over Sooyoung's shoulders and leaned in close. Sooyoung's eyes fluttered shut as Jiwoo's lips met her own. The kiss was slow and gentle, a way for each of them to show the other that they meant it this time.

When they pulled away, they were both smiling shyly. Sooyoung opened her arms for a hug, and Jiwoo gladly threw herself into the familiar embrace.