Work Text:
When Heejin was a kid, her father asked her to come to his office one day, out of the blue. The 8-year-old looked at him with a smile, still filled with childish dreams, and dropped her dolls so she could follow him nonchalantly through the wide corridors of their mansion. Her little steps echoed across the salon as they passed by marble statues and old paintings adorning the walls – many generations of important Jeon family members. She waved at the faces on the canvas, like she always did, then grabbed her father’s hand. He smiled down at her, and kept walking slowly so her little legs could follow properly. When they finally reached his office, he unlocked the doors with his special key.
She never forgot the sight she saw inside the room as her father pushed the doors open.
“Heejin-ah, I want you to meet someone very important.” Her father said with his deep, calm voice.
Heejin approached the person waiting for her on the other side with careful steps. It was a girl; a child, just like herself. She was probably the same age as her, but instead of wearing a pretty dress like all her other friends did, she wore black pants and a comfortable white shirt, as well as sneakers.
(Heejin had always wanted sneakers, but her mother never allowed her to wear them.)
“This is Kim Hyunjin,” Her father continued. “And she will be your very special friend from now on.”
Heejin finally stopped, a few meters away from the other girl. She stared at her for a long, silent moment, examining her entirely, trying to understand this sudden situation she found herself in. But despite the interesting clothes, Heejin’s gaze stopped just shy of the girl’s nose. She couldn’t tear her eyes off her face.
“Hi…” Heejin finally broke the silence with a quiet greeting.
And she would never forget Hyunjin’s first words to her.
“You smell like flowers.” Accompanied by the brightest smile she has ever seen.
--
10 years later
--
Mornings were Heejin’s personal paradise.
She always took a bath in the morning before going to school. Being part of the Jeon family, she simply did not have the time to take care of herself properly like she so desperately wanted to, so she decided to wake up earlier every day for her self-care routine. Heejin loved basking in the sounds of birds chirping at dawn as the water ran through her skin. She put on some classical music in the background, closed her eyes, and breathed slowly. The smells of scented candles and soap calmed her down, and she believed that the invisible energy of the earth flowed through her veins, giving her peace of mind.
Calm and serene, those were Jeon Heejin’s mornings—
“Did you die in there?” Hyunjin’s voice from the other side of the door interrupted Heejin’s relaxation moment, and she sighed loudly.
“I’m meditating.” She retorted, annoyed. When the other girl didn’t respond, Heejin took it as a sign of respect for her morning ritual, so she once again sunk into the tub, feeling the hot water opening her pores, cleansing her pure skin, freeing her mind—
“These eggs benedict taste amazing, by the way.” Hyunjin’s voice resurfaced, and this time she spoke as if she had something in her mouth.
Heejin’s eyelids flew open and she got out of the tub so fast that she nearly tripped on the carpet. She didn’t even dry herself before putting on her robe, and almost tore the bathroom door off the hinges. “Don’t eat my breakfast, you prick!”
She stopped, eyes landing on her eggs, which were untouched. Hyunjin just sat on her bed with her arms crossed and a smirk. “Food always makes you move your lazy ass, huh?”
“Ugh, I hate you so much.”
“No, you don’t.” Hyunjin chuckled, jumping off the bed and taking the plate with her to where Heejin was. With her fork, she cut a small bite off the eggs, and lifted it up. “Go dry yourself, you’re making a mess on the carpet.”
Heejin looked down and saw the water dripping on her perfect floor. She sighed, then looked back at Hyunjin; she was still waiting with the fork in the air. With a grunt, Heejin took the bite, then turned around. “You’re the worst bodyguard ever.”
“Aww, you make me blush.”
The bathroom door closed and Heejin sighed. With her peaceful morning now successfully ruined, she removed her robe to dry up and put on her school uniform. Once she was done, she paused.
Heejin took a moment to touch her back on the door and look up to the dome above her head. Some birds flew, their shadows dancing across her face as the sun rose with each tick of a clock.
She licked her lips, the taste of eggs still in her mouth, and a faint red tint on her cheeks. Her best friend was a drag.
“You smell like flowers.”
But also, sort of perfect.
--
“You remembered to do your homework, right?” Hyunjin asked as she walked behind her, one hand in the pocket of her suit, another holding a piece of bread that she would chew occasionally.
“Yeah, yeah.” Heejin answered, then smiled to the garden boy as they left the mansion’s yard through the huge silver gates.
“Did you study for your three tests today?” Hyunjin continued.
“Thoroughly.”
“Don’t forget about your grandmother’s party tonight.”
“I know.”
“Also, did you—”
“Oh my god, you’re so annoying with your list,” Heejin paused just to turn around and glare at her for a second. “I know how to take care of my responsibilities! I’m a Jeon, not a baby.”
Hyunjin lifted an eyebrow and the two had a staring contest for about five seconds before the bodyguard took a bite of her bread slowly. Heejin just rolled her eyes and they started walking again. “You take your job too seriously, sometimes.”
“I have to. You’re an airhead.” Hyunjin teased.
Heejin was about to reply with another sarcastic remark when she felt her friend quickening her steps a little, so they could walk side by side. It was such a simple gesture, but Heejin felt her heart leaping a beat. She hated how happy that girl made her, constantly, all the freaking time, even with the annoying bodyguard posture.
Heejin simply side-eyed her, then kept quiet. Hyunjin didn’t speak for the rest of the walk to the school, and ate her bread. It was really hard to keep this up for so long. They’ve never managed. Today seemed like a challenge. Who would break first, Heejin wondered.
As always, she did.
“I hate you,” She snorted, unable to keep in her laughter, and Hyunjin immediately joined her on the giggling. As soon as they reached the school gate, Heejin turned to her with a smile. “See you later?”
“I’ll be waiting.” Hyunjin returned the expression, and it was so incredibly soft that Heejin couldn’t help but to pull her best friend in for a hug.
It was nothing new, the display of affection. They grew up together and were glued to the hip ever since her father had introduced that little girl as her new bodyguard all those years ago. Heejin had been so shy at first, but Hyunjin had made it so easy to open up and make her comfortable around her that now the heiress couldn’t see a life without the girl by her side. They’ve bathed together, slept together, played together; really, Hyunjin has always been more of a sister than a proper bodyguard.
Except that lately the hugs lingered. Heejin’s chest felt heavy when she had to leave for school and say goodbye. The teasing crossed a few lines, and they would borderline flirt daily. Hyunjin would compliment her looks and everything she did with utmost fondness.
Heejin was very confused, but also very happy.
“You’ll be late.” Hyunjin snapped her out of it with a whisper that sent chills down her spine.
“R-right. Ew, clingy much?” Heejin finally stepped back and waved her goodbye. “Later, dork.”
“Bye, doofus.”
It was both light and heavy at the same time.
--
The Berry Private Academy wasn’t just a school for the elite – it taught the kids of the most influential people in the country. If your house wasn’t the size of a small-scale castle, then there really was no reason for you to be studying there. At least that’s what students whispered on their free time between lunch and classes.
Heejin wasn’t one to pay much attention to status and all that, so she wouldn’t engage in conversations with most of her class. In a place where all the rage was what sort of stupidly expensive object someone had bought lately, it made for a pretty lonely coexistence. No one talked about what movies they had watched, or what books were interesting lately, or what sort of music they liked to listen – but they did talk about inviting celebrities to their birthday parties. Heejin was sure they didn’t even know which shows those celebrities were even on.
Luckily for her, she had quite a few good friends despite everything.
“Are you sulking?” A cheerful voice broke into her head and Heejin looked up from her desk to the smiley girl above her. “You’re too pretty to sulk, Jeon.”
“I’m not sulking.” Heejin tried to defend herself, but the girl simply poked her cheek.
“You’re not smiling, so you’re sulking.”
“Not everyone has the energy to smile 24/7 like you do, Jiwoo.”
“Which is dumb,” Jiwoo sat on the chair in front of her, resting her chin on her elbows. “Smiling makes the world go ‘round.”
The girl was stupidly contagious, so Heejin couldn’t hold back a chuckle. “You’re silly.”
“And you’re sulking. Tell me why?”
Heejin just sighed.
Kim Jiwoo, the only child of the man who owned the biggest toy company in the world. She always had something to say when she saw her friends wearing anything but a bright grin on their faces. She wasn’t the most sensible person at times, but her heart was always in the right place. Heejin wished she could shut her out sometimes, but it was quite frankly impossible to deny those puppy eyes.
“I’m just going through some stuff.”
“Hmm. Go on.” Jiwoo pretended to grab a notebook and a pen. The last thing Heejin wanted was a therapist, honestly.
“It’s nothing serious, promise.”
“Something wrong with the family?” Despite the goofy attitude, Jiwoo could be serious when she wanted to. She knew how easy it was for family issues to break out when you were as rich and powerful as everyone in that school.
Heejin just shook her head. “No, nothing like that.”
“Thank God,” Jiwoo smiled sincerely, then resumed her improv. “Then… problems at school?”
“I don’t even talk to enough people to have problems with them.” Heejin rolled her eyes.
“Smart. All right, let’s see… is your career being jeopardized?”
“I don’t have a career.”
“Yet!” Jiwoo bit the end of her imaginary pen. “Well, that just leaves us with one thing.”
“Jiwoo—”
The girl poked Heejin’s chest. “Matters of the heart, I take it.”
There it was, that annoying accurate perception Jiwoo had when it came to Heejin. She could play dumb all she wanted, and most of the time she would rather make jokes around people to avoid awkward conversations, but when it came to Jeon Heejin, Jiwoo never held back. Maybe Heejin should feel honored – Jiwoo only took off her mask around her because she actually cared.
“Can we drop this?” Heejin let her head fall on the table, defeated.
“I was right!” Jiwoo cheered for a second, then reached out to play with her friend’s hair. “You’re still hung up on that, huh?”
Her tone indicated that she knew exactly what Heejin was going through, which made her panic for a second.
“W-what are you talking about?” Heejin lifted her gaze, cheeks flushed with anxiety.
“Hm? What, you and that bodyguard of yours?”
“How did you—!”
“Oh, please.” Jiwoo raised an eyebrow. “Heejin, you bolt out of the classroom every single day to meet her when school’s over. Whatever expression you think you’re making when you talk to her isn’t hiding it.”
“Expression? What expression?” The panic was growing by the minute, because if Jiwoo had noticed, then clearly Hyunjin had too. Right?
Or is that just wishful thinking?
“You’re all heart eyes around that girl.”
“I’m not!” Heejin brought her hands to her face, sliding them down slowly. “…Am I?”
Jiwoo softened her expression and touched her friend’s shoulder gently. “Hey, it’s okay to have a crush on your best friend.” Her eyes felt distant, suddenly. “It happens.”
If Heejin wasn’t so focused on her own issues she would’ve asked about that odd sentence, but the thought of Hyunjin knowing about her feelings and playing dumb all along was too much for her to bear, suddenly.
“But seriously, am I being too obvious?” She dropped the self-pity and asked seriously. “I need to know.”
Jiwoo hummed, deep in thought. “Not to the untrained eye. If it was anyone else, they would probably just see two best friends who enjoy each other’s company.” She removed her hand from Heejin’s shoulder and rested her head on her arms again. “But I’m your close friend, and you don’t smile like that for anyone else. It was just a hunch. You just happened to confirm it.”
“…She knows.” Heejin slowly dropped her shoulders, sinking further into the chair. “That idiot knows.”
Jiwoo sighed. Before she could give her any advice, however, the bell rang. The students started moving, picking up their trash so they could get ready for the next class. The teachers were pretty strict, so Jiwoo had to get up and go back to her desk. “Will you be okay?”
Heejin wished she knew the answer to that. “Yeah.”
People moved and desks scratched the floor loudly, but everything sounded muffled suddenly. Heejin’s whole world was quietly collapsing around her and she felt betrayed by the one person in the world who had made an oath to protect her. Sure, at the time she’d meant from physical harm, but as they grew up, dealing with her emotions also became part of her job.
Heejin remembered the times Hyunjin would dress up to make her laugh when she was feeling sad, would snuggle with her to watch her favorite series even though she hated romantic comedies, and would whisper promises against her hair at night when Heejin’s nightmares were too much.
I wonder when she realized it, Heejin thought with unfocused eyes as she drew flowers on her notebook.
--
It was weird leaving class without a smile. Usually this was her favorite time of the day, when she could ditch all those pretentious teenagers and go back home. To Heejin, home had been a person for a long time. Now, she felt strangely disjointed from reality. Her brain was all over the place.
Hyunjin noticed, of course she did.
“Bad day?” She took Heejin’s bag without her asking, like she always did. Couldn’t have her hurt her back.
And the worst thing was that Heejin’s body still reacted like always whenever her best friend showed her concern; a spiked heartbeat, hairs standing up, dry throat. For a while she tried to deny it, but it just wasn’t working anymore.
She was so in love with her. It was that simple.
The thought of Hyunjin being aware of that, but ignoring her feelings, hurt her absurdly.
“I’m fine.” Heejin reached for her bag, yanking it from Hyunjin’s hands. “I’m going ahead.”
The bodyguard blinked, the sudden gesture surprising her. When Heejin quickened her steps, she frowned, following her. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Don’t worry.”
“Yeah, that’ll make me worry less.” Hyunjin rolled her eyes sarcastically, then put a hand on Heejin’s shoulder. “Come on, talk to me?”
And it wasn’t her intention, but before she could hold back, Heejin roughly removed her shoulder from her best friend’s touch. It hurt her the moment she did, but she couldn’t stop the influx of emotions rushing down her stomach. She nearly shouted. “You don’t have to do this.”
“Huh? Do what?”
“Protect me all the time. Leave me alone for once!” The words felt like poison dripping from her lips. “I’m going home. Don’t follow me.”
“Heejin, what—”
“I don’t want you around— today.” She pushed that last word out before she could regret it. “Give me some space.”
And with nothing else to add, Heejin turned on her heels, walking away from her bodyguard. She felt tears prickling her eyes, but didn’t care. If she stopped to think about it for a second, she would realize that ordering her bodyguard to stop following her was a dumb move, but she wasn’t thinking about her bodyguard. She was thinking about her best friend.
The girl who knew she had a crush on her for years and never did anything.
“Stupid, stupid, stupid.” Heejin wasn’t sure if she was talking about herself. Probably.
Her legs took her as far as she could manage, and her stubbornness made her turn left on an alley that was unfamiliar to her. She didn’t care where she was going, she just wanted to get rid of Hyunjin for now. That unreasonable anger would get her lost, but she could get a taxi later.
Heejin only stopped once she came face to face with a wall, nearly hitting her nose on the bricks. She finally lifted her head and looked around – a dead end. The alley didn’t take her anywhere, so she sighed, frustrated. Even when she was trying to get away it was like the world made her turn back and reconsider. Heejin was tired of having others make all the decisions for her.
She kicked the brick wall, slightly. “Stupid Hyunjin.”
Heejin took her sweet time to turn around again, because she knew she would find Hyunjin there, waiting for her with her hands in her pockets and a concerned look on her face. She’s been trained to do this her whole life – follow Heejin and protect her from any harm. Not that anything had ever happened to them, but it was still her job. Hyunjin’s perception was out of this world, and she was way more athletic than Heejin could ever hope to be, so she was sure that the steps she heard coming closer were her bodyguard finally catching up to her.
“…I still don’t want you to follow me.” Heejin said, finally turning around.
“Well, that’s too bad,” A male voice replied, and Heejin froze. She finally lifted her gaze and saw man she’s never seen before. “Shouldn’t have turned on that alley, then.”
A big red alert. Whoever this guy was, there were no good intentions coming from his aura whatsoever. “…Who are you? What do you want?”
“Me? Just some dude trying to make it in life,” He came closer, slowly. Heejin took a step back, but bumped into the brick wall soon enough. She cursed under her breath, her pupils darting everywhere, trying to find an exit, but the alley was too narrow to make a run for it. “You’re the Jeon daughter, huh?”
“…No.” Lying would get her nowhere, but it was the least she could try while she thought of something.
The man laughed slightly. “Rich people are all liars.”
Something shiny reflected on the man’s hand, and Heejin’s stomach dropped when she saw he had pulled a knife. A thousand things ran through her head, then. This was it? Her life would end at the hand of some random guy because of her name? All because she was too stubborn to talk about her feelings for her goddamn best friend and bodyguard? Truly the most pathetic way to go.
“Stay back, you have no idea who you’re messing with.” Heejin tried to sound intimidating, but her voice cracked and her hands were shaking.
“Oh, I know exactly who you are.” He snickered once more, the hand holding the knife pointing at her chest. “You’re gonna make me rich, Jeon daughter.”
He lunged forward, and in an instant, Heejin lifted her bag to protect her body. It worked for a split second, but the man was faster. He grabbed her bag, yanking it away from her and throwing it behind him. Then, he went for her wrist, pinning her against the wall. “Don’t make this difficult, heiress.”
“Hyunjin!” Heejin screamed, because it was all she could do. “Help! Hyun-”
“Shut up!” He reared his arm back once again, ready to stab. Time slowed down, and the pile of regrets at the back of Heejin’s mind came crumbling down. There were so many things she wished she had done in her short life – graduated, traveled more, told her parents they were great, played with her cousins, finished all those books she bought but never touched, watched the last season of her favorite show.
Confessed to Hyunjin.
“You smell like flowers.”
Flowers.
Why was she smelling flowers suddenly?
Maybe for the same reason the man hadn’t stabbed her yet.
“What—” He sounded very confused and Heejin opened her eyes to see what was delaying her fate.
Her knees nearly gave in when she saw her bodyguard holding his arm back with a stern gaze.
“Who the fuck are y—”
Hyunjin didn’t give him a chance to finish that sentence. She twisted his arm with such strength that Heejin could hear the bone cracking. The man let out a blood-curling scream, dropping the knife and bucking his knees, finally letting Heejin go. She immediately ran past him, grabbing her bag and waiting at a safe distance as Hyunjin dealt with him.
With another move, Hyunjin kicked his kneecaps, making him fall to the ground with a loud thud. Quickly, she took her phone and snapped a picture of the pitiful man, then grabbed him by the collar and pushed him against a pole, hanging him by his coat. “Don’t worry, the police will get you down.”
All he could do was whimper, his own weight hurting his broken shoulder.
Heejin only snapped out of it when she felt a warm hand on her own, and a familiar smile right in front of her. “Come on, let’s go.”
Hyunjin guided her away from the alley and back home.
She didn’t let go of her hand once.
--
They didn’t tell Heejin’s father.
Hyunjin went to the police station on her own once Heejin was safe back home, and only told them that the man in the picture tried to mug her. Then, she returned to the mansion, climbing up the stairs to Heejin’s bedroom.
The heiress was sitting on her bed with a bowl of ice cream, exactly how Hyunjin had left her. Once she saw her best friend coming in, tears blurred Heejin’s vision. She put the bowl down and stretched her arms.
Hyunjin buried herself in the hug, allowing Heejin to sob quietly on her shoulder.
“It’s okay. You’re safe, now.” She muttered lowly, scratching the back of Heejin’s head.
“…rry.” Heejin mumbled.
“Hmm?”
“I’m—” She lifted her head to breathe, placing her chin on the crook of Hyunjin’s neck. “I said I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
“No,” Heejin shook her head, detaching herself from the hug. She sighed. “No, it’s not. I was an idiot. I shouldn’t have… I shouldn’t have run from you. That was stupid, I’m stupid.”
Hyunjin turned for a second to grab her handkerchief and clean Heejin’s face, allowing her to blow her nose. It was a bit hard when neither of them wanted to let go of each other enough to give it some space. Once Heejin was done, Hyunjin rubbed a thumb softly against her cheek.
“Yeah, that kind of was really stupid.” The bodyguard finally replied, only to receive an offended stare in return. Then, she chuckled. “But I got there in time, and you’re here, and everything is fine, Heejin.”
Heejin shook her head again, but didn’t say anything. The two kept quiet for a few seconds, until Heejin sighed heavily once more.
Hyunjin tried again. “Wanna tell me why you ran?”
That one question held so much weight. Telling the truth would just mean finally opening up about her feelings, and so many things could change with one simple confession. Heejin wasn’t sure she was ready for that. She already worried enough about school, and her future career, and the importance of her name, and her family – being in love and afraid was just one more thing pressuring her.
It was hard, being a teenager.
Suddenly, she remembered something.
“Flowers.”
“Huh?” Hyunjin asked.
Heejin leaned forward, sniffing Hyunjin’s neck, then leaned back again. “You’re smelling like flowers.”
“Oh,” For the first time in her life, Heejin saw Hyunjin blush. “I… kinda stole your perfume.”
“…Why?”
“I, uh… do that, sometimes. When I miss you. The smell makes me miss you a little less.” Hyunjin averted her gaze, scratching her cheek as if she had been caught doing something far worse than breaking someone’s arm. “I usually try to cover it up, but…”
The confession was so absurd that Heejin was speechless for a second. She could actually hear the gears turning in her brain.
“You… miss me when I go to school?”
“Yeah.”
“And you just. Use my perfume.”
“…Yes. Sorry.”
“You—”
“It smells really good, in my defense.”
More silence.
“…Why?” Heejin asked, a simple question.
And received a simple answer in return. “Because I love you.”
There were no fireworks, or wedding bells ringing in the distance, but rather just more confusion and a baffled gasp. Heejin grabbed Hyunjin’s arm out of instinct. “Love me? Love me how?”
“Uh… I don’t—” Hyunjin’s face got redder by the second, and she looked up, avoiding her best friend’s stare. “I mean, I’ve always loved you. Like a best friend, or sister, but that was before you were almost stabbed right in front of my eyes, and now when I think about having to live a life without you I just… don’t want that? I don’t know, I’m—”
Heejin let go of Hyunjin’s arm to cup her cheek and brush the tear there. That’s when it hit her. “…You didn’t know.”
“K-know what?”
And everything felt so pointless, suddenly. The anger, the sadness, the pain, none of it was worth anything, because Hyunjin had no idea about her feelings. She didn’t even know about her own up until now.
“God, we’re both such idiots.” Heejin just laughed, and decided to stop wasting time thinking about the possibilities.
Her lips covered Hyunjin’s, and it was very wet and salty because of the tears. The bodyguard let out a yelp, unexpectedly falling backwards on the mattress, taking Heejin with her. They parted, stared at each other, and this time Hyunjin was the one who cracked up laughing.
Heejin touched foreheads with her, closing her eyes and basking in the scent she knew so well.
She felt Hyunjin’s hand sneaking up to her neck, and looked at her one last time.
“Hey, Hyunjin.”
“Yeah?”
“You smell like flowers.”
It was hard to kiss her with such a wide smile. But they managed.