Work Text:
Mina tossed and turned on her bed as she tried as hard as she could to fall asleep. As she usually was, she wasn’t sure what exactly was causing this stubbornness in her brain despite her body practically begging to be recharged. When lying down in every position she could think of—on her side, on her stomach, spooning her pillow—didn’t work, she settled for simply laying on her back and staring at her bedroom ceiling, which was decorated with those glow-in-the-dark stars that you would normally find in a child’s bedroom. She decided to plug her earphones in, immediately letting her head be filled with the familiar sounds of her nighttime playlist.
It was normal for Mina to have trouble falling asleep, but when she saw that the time on her phone read 3:27 AM, she started to feel a bit concerned for physical and mental health. Was her insomnia getting that bad? The worry definitely didn’t help her ease into slumber. She placed her phone down beside her pillow before closing her eyes again, once more attempting to let sleep consume her for the night.
She opened her eyes again fifteen minutes later.
Mina was about to reach for her phone again when the screen suddenly lit up. She looked at the screen and saw a notification from a familiar app, an app she never thought she would download. The notification wasn’t a message from anyone, simply some kind of reminder that read There are more people that like you! Start swiping to find out who!
With a disappointed sigh, Mina tapped on the notification and let the dating app open itself, as if the tip from the app and her inability to fall asleep was some kind of sign that she should, indeed, start swiping. Might as well , she thought to herself.
Not that Mina had anything against dating apps—her friends used them all the time—it’s just that she always thought they weren’t for her. She wasn’t one to show interest in a person with her only basis being the pictures they chose to upload of themselves along with very minimal, on-the-surface information. The only reason she had the app on her phone, as she claimed, was because her friends coerced her into downloading it, telling her that she should let herself go every now and then and try new things. Besides, maybe she was getting a bit bored playing the same video games over and over again.
It definitely wasn’t because she was starting to feel more lonely than before, and she felt the unnecessary desire to have more human connection in her life. No, that was something she’d never say out loud.
However, her claims were only proven to be correct the moment she started using the app.
This girl doesn’t have enough info on her profile. Swipe left.
I’m not getting any sense of substance from this one. Swipe left.
Maybe she’s a bit cute... Swipe right.
...nevermind. She’s not much of a conversationalist. Unmatch.
Her political beliefs are... questionable. Swipe left.
Was Mina being picky? Yes. Were her standards too high? Maybe. At least, that’s what her friends would always tell her when they asked for her progress on the app so far.
It wasn’t like Mina didn’t want to talk to people—refer to her reason for downloading the app which she refuses to admit. Don’t get her wrong, Mina has been able to hold a conversation with some of the few matches she got. However, the most common scenario was that they would talk for a day or two about the mundane details of their lives before having no contact with each other ever again. It was either that or the person that she matched with was only D-T-F , as they would call it nowadays.
If you looked at it from an outside perspective, you would end up wondering, what was the point of keeping the app in her phone, if not just to randomly swipe through strangers’ faces whenever she was feeling bored or when she couldn’t sleep at night?
The next ping that rang through Mina’s ears was the answer to those questions.
Mina tapped on the messages icon on the lower right corner of the app’s home screen, which was calling for her attention as it displayed a small red dot over it. She saw the text typed in bold, signaling that it was unread, from the first person on the short list of matches in Mina’s inbox. Maybe her heart fluttered a bit when she saw the name.
Sana [3:49 AM]
are u up?
actually nvm that i asked bc im pretty sure u are!
Sana. Also known as the reason Mina hasn’t deleted the practically-useless dating app.
It baffled Mina how this girl— how Sana seemed to know her bad habits even though they’ve only been chatting for about a week since they matched. The app didn’t have a system for seeing who was online, so how could she possibly have known that Mina was having trouble sleeping? But, the fact that the two have been talking for that long was already shocking in itself, especially to Mina who, despite being very surprised that this connection was unlike others in her short history of using the app, was still delighted each time she received a message from the stranger.
From her profile, Mina only visualized Sana as a girl the same age as her with honey blonde hair that reached just above her waist, and puffy cheeks that made her look like a hamster. She was a fellow Japanese native who found a home in Seoul after moving there for the sake of her studies, same reason as Mina.
In the week-or-so that they’ve been talking, they exchanged typical, mundane facts about each other such as what majors they were taking. But as the days went by, they’ve managed to uncover other little facts about each other, like Mina’s sleeping habits or Sana’s relationship to her family.
The only things that weren’t exchanged were the names of their family and friends and the universities they were attending, along with other details that were much more personal like insecurities or exes—if the latter was even applicable.
When Mina saw Sana’s message, she almost immediately began typing out a reply.
Mina [3:50 AM]
How do you know? Are you stalking me now?
Sana [3:51 AM]
nope just a gut feeling
glad to see i was right tho!
so whats keeping u up?
Mina [3:51 AM]
The usual, I guess. Noisy thoughts but I have no idea what they’re saying.
What about you? Why are you still awake?
Sana [3:52 AM]
idk. its like my body told me that i needed to be awake rn
now i think i see why~
Mina could’ve sworn she felt her cheeks warm from the message. But, that’s also something she would never admit.
Mina [3:53 AM]
Cute.
But, you really should get some sleep!
Sana [3:53 AM]
only if u promise to get some too!
Mina [3:53 AM]
Fine fine. I promise I’ll try.
Goodnight, Sana :)
Sana [3:54 AM]
hmph, good enough
good mor-night, mina!!
Mina unplugged her earphones, stopping her music before locking her phone and placing it beside her pillow once more. And just like that, she managed to fall asleep in a matter of minutes as if the previous hours of insomnia had never happened.
Saturday morning. Mina wakes up a bit before noon.
She sends Sana a quick good morning message before walking into the kitchen of her flat to make herself a cup of coffee.
Mina [11:56 AM]
Good morning!
I hope you have a good day today :)
Mina sat alone on one of the barstools as she contemplated on her plan for the weekend, taking a few sips of coffee every now and then. After a few minutes, her roommate Jihyo entered the room, with tousled hair and groggy footsteps.
“Good morning,” Jihyo said with a husky voice as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
“Good afternoon, you mean,” Mina chuckled.
“Eh?” Jihyo glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. Mina only giggled even more.
Just then, Mina’s phone made a familiar ping. As if by muscle memory, she grabbed the phone that was sitting on the counter and opened the notification from the familiar app, revealing a message from a familiar stranger.
Sana [12:23 PM]
good mor-noon! i overslept TT
was supposed to wake up earlier bc im trying to do that now LOL
have a good brunch! <3
“Looks like you’re not the only one who slept in,” Mina said as she began typing out a reply. Jihyo watched her, confused at what the statement meant.
Mina [12:24 PM]
Haha, it’s okay! And I still need to cook it but thank you. :)
Sana [12:24 PM]
u can cook?? omg a wife
would it be wrong if i proposed to u rn >///<
Mina [12:24 PM]
Proposed? You waste no time, huh?
Sana [12:25 PM]
what can i say? i move fast ;)
Jihyo smirked at Mina, noticing the way her smile reached her eyes and exposed her gums. It took Mina a moment to feel Jihyo’s knowing gaze, and when she finally did, she gave her roommate a confused look.
“What?” Mina asked innocently.
“Who’re you texting?” Jihyo asked smugly.
A tint of pink spread across Mina’s cheeks. She was caught red-handed, but chose to play it off despite her obvious embarrassment. She stood up from the barstool, placing her phone down on the counter before making her way to the stove.
“No one,” Mina said flatly as she reached for a pan. With her back turned to Jihyo, she only heard the older girl hum. She walked to the fridge to gather the ingredients for omelettes.
“Sana, huh?”
At the sound of the familiar name, Mina’s body whipped around. She dropped the egg she was holding when she saw her phone in Jihyo’s hands.
Mina’s body seemed to go into auto-pilot as she stomped her way back to the counter, but when she attempted to reach for her phone Jihyo was already walking towards the living room. Mina chased after her, but Jihyo paid her no mind as she scrolled through her and Sana’s conversation on the dating app, careful not to read anything too personal.
“Mina, you’ve been talking to her for over a week,” Jihyo said as she plopped down on the couch, one hand holding Mina’s phone while the other was blocking Mina from reaching it as she joined Jihyo on the couch. “I didn’t even know you still used this app. You said it was boring!”
“It is!” Mina tried to argue as she struggled against Jihyo’s strength, but her efforts were deemed useless as Jihyo casually continued scrolling.
“Oh, honey, your messages say otherwise,” Jihyo teased, finally tossing the phone in Mina’s direction, who somehow reacted quick enough to catch it albeit being panicked and breathless. With her phone now back in her possession, Mina got up and made her way back to the kitchen to accomplish her interrupted task of making omelettes. She sighed at the sight of the broken egg on the floor by the fridge.
“So do you plan on meeting her?” Jihyo asked, following Mina into the kitchen and effectively startling her while she cleaned up her mess.
“I don’t know,” Mina said, “I haven’t really thought that far.”
“Well, I think you should,” Jihyo said with a smirk. Mina chuckled and shook her head, amused at her friend’s enthusiasm towards the topic. She supposed it should’ve been expected, as Jihyo was one of the people who pushed her to download the app in the first place.
It made her think about why she was so hesitant about the suggestion her roommate just gave.
Mina stood up and walked back to the kitchen counter, suddenly quite deep in thought as she started cracking some eggs open into a bowl. Jihyo approached her, taking a seat on the barstool as her friend began to whisk.
“Hey,” Jihyo started, “You know I just want you to be happy, right? There’s no harm in putting yourself out there.”
“I know,” Mina answered, not taking her eyes off of the eggs she was scrambling, “Honestly though, I’m kind of expecting this thing to fizzle out in, like, a few days or so. I can’t really make a big deal out of it if that’s the case.”
“Oh, yeah, it’s not a big deal at all,” Jihyo said, sounding almost sarcastic despite her sincerity. The tone made Mina shoot her a quizzical look. Jihyo’s hands shot into the air.
“Wait, not what I meant!” Jihyo tried, “I mean, I think you should just… go with the flow, y’know?”
Mina couldn’t help but smile at her friend’s defensiveness. She had to admit—although never out loud—that Jihyo did have a point.
As she brought the beaten eggs to the stove where she began the process of turning them into omelettes, she thought about the words she said to Jihyo as some kind of attempt to downplay what was actually going on inside her brain.
Mina had always been a reserved person. Everyone within their immediate circle of friends knew that she was an introvert—she didn’t interact with a lot of people, stayed in during most of her free time—but no one was aware of how closed off Mina actually was. She wasn’t the type to quickly open up to people or to let them in the moment they came knocking on the door to her life. Nobody knew of the walls that she put up in order to protect herself from people who would waltz into her life for a brief moment before they got what they needed and left, taking a little piece of Mina’s heart along with them while Mina could only wonder what it was about her that made them leave. No one needed to know of those insecurities that constantly made her feel so vulnerable, constantly kept her up at night with their endless whispers into her ear, telling her that she’s not good enough for people to stay .
It was these thoughts, these notions about herself that made her hesitant about Jihyo’s earlier suggestion to meet Sana in person, because for all she knew Sana could be one of those people who would be there for a quick second until she eventually realized that Mina wasn’t enough to make her stay, either.
This was another thing that Mina refused to admit out loud.
Mina snapped back to reality when Jihyo’s arms suddenly snaked around her waist as if she had sensed the change in her aura.
“Stop thinking so loud,” the shorter girl said, the tone of her voice laced with affection, “I hear you. I know what’s on your mind.”
It was enough to remind Mina that, no matter how many people have waltzed in and out of her life, there were the few exceptions that chose to dance with her a bit longer.
For now, it was enough for her that they thought she was enough.
The more Mina chatted with Sana, the more her insecurities were slowly proven wrong.
She would never admit that, though. It was for her own good that she didn’t.
Sana [4:15 PM]
i tried baking banana bread today
it didn’t go well :(
the top of the bread sank and the middle was gooey
Mina [4:16 PM]
I think you added too many bananas...
Sana [4:16 PM]
gsbdsdbh ur so smart
pls marry me
One day, things started to change a bit.
Mina was seated with her friends at a table in their university’s cafeteria. Her friends’ voices sounded distant in the background while they discussed a topic she was no longer following as she had gotten caught up in her own conversation with Sana, as she usually does.
In the middle of a debate about whether Marvel or DC had better superheroes—Mina insisted heavily on Marvel—Sana asked Mina for her number.
Sana [1:01 PM]
its ok if u dont wanna give it tho!
i just thought… well we have been talking for awhile now and it might be more comfortable to change platforms yknow?
Mina stared at her phone screen, her pupils darting back and forth as she reread the message over and over. Sitting across from her, Jeongyeon pulled her out of her trance with a light poke on the back of her hand.
“Everything okay over there?” Jeongyeon asked, her tone gentle.
Mina looked up at her, still a bit dazed from both Sana’s question and the sudden pull back to reality. She only nodded in response.
Beside her, Jihyo leaned closer and caught a glimpse of her phone.
“Oh my god, she wants your number?” Jihyo said a bit too loud, making Mina shoot her a glare.
Across from Jihyo, Nayeon quirked her brow. “ She? Who is this she?”
A blush immediately spread across Mina’s face as she hastily locked her phone and placed it faced down on the table. She tried to brush it off by shifting her attention to her food, aimlessly picking at it with her chopsticks.
“It’s just someone I matched with,” Mina confessed as nonchalantly as possible, “It’s not a big deal.”
Her friends perked up with interest at the topic, despite Mina’s attempts at not making a big deal .
“She’s been talking with this girl for over two weeks ,” Jihyo said, once again ratting Mina out. Mina elbowed her arm lightly.
“Two weeks, huh?” Nayeon asked inquisitively, “That must be a new record for you.”
“Why does that make me sound so awful?” Mina said sarcastically with a matching eyeroll.
She went back to picking at her food, assuming her friends would drop the topic. She was proven wrong when Jeongyeon asked another question.
“So, are you gonna give her your number?”
Mina tensed up when she realized she didn’t have an answer to that. Would it be wise to give Sana her number? Giving away her own phone number strangely felt like she was giving away a very personal piece of information that signified the crossing of some invisible line that she had drawn for herself. It felt like she would be breaking boundaries. Boundaries that have been set in place for her to protect herself from danger, whether it was the danger of letting someone into her life just for them to leave later on, or simply the danger of the person she’s been talking to for weeks actually being a catfish trying to siphon her personal data for some kind of scam.
She doubted Sana was a scammer, though, based on the way they’ve been talking. But then again, you could never be too careful.
“I don’t know, would it be safe?” Mina asked as calmly as she could, once again trying to downplay her own fears.
“Yeah, why not?” Nayeon said, casually reaching forward to steal some of Mina’s food. Mina let it slide. She didn’t have much appetite.
“She could be a catfish or something,” Mina shrugged.
“I say,” Nayeon rebutted, “You wouldn’t know unless you give it a shot.”
Mina’s brows furrowed at her friend’s ability to be so carefree about something that scared her more than she’d like to express. Her frown only deepened when she looked at her other friends and watched as they simply nodded and shrugged in agreement with Nayeon.
Feeling cornered and feeling like she didn’t have much to lose, anyway, she eventually agreed with them, too.
Might as well.
She pulled out her phone and replied to Sana with a string of eleven specific digits.
Not much changed in the days that followed. Mina and Sana still texted everyday about anything and everything. The only difference was the platform they texted on.
Sana [1:12 PM]
mina
i’m lost
can u give me directions?
Mina [1:13 PM]
... Directions to where?
Sana [1:13 PM]
directions to ur heart <333
One thing that Mina refused to admit was the fact that texting Sana through their actual phone numbers made the conversations feel even more real than before. It made her feel closer to Sana, closer to actually meeting her and farther from being just strangers. Mina couldn’t quite explain it. It was a sensation that she found difficult to elaborate on as the idea of it just swam around in her head as words that didn’t want to become sentences.
It feels more real. Those were the only words Mina could string together into a coherent thought.
The thought scared her. The idea, the feeling , they all filled her with a certain anxiety that if whatever this was was starting to feel more real , then the bubble that contained their blissful fantasy would eventually pop and their connection would take a turn for the worst.
Mina wanted to stay in the bubble for much, much longer, but she didn’t know how to do that. All she knew was that she enjoyed talking to Sana more than she would like to admit.
Another night wherein Mina is kept awake by her thoughts.
Unable to properly organize them, she decided to take a shower. She didn’t care if it was past four in the morning.
When she was finished, she emerged from the bathroom clad in a bathrobe. She looked around the quiet apartment. Thankfully, she didn’t wake Jihyo with the noise of running water.
She went back to her bedroom and sat at the edge of the bed. As she dried her hair with a towel, she checked her phone and was surprised to see that she received a text five minutes ago.
Sana [4:33 AM]
minaaaa
i cant sleep lol
i hope ur sleeping tho!!
Mina smiled at the concern in the last message, but then she was filled with a slight curiosity about the middle one.
Mina [4:38 AM]
Were you able to sleep yet? Don’t reply if you were!
Sana [4:39 AM]
no TT
did i wake u? if i did im sorry huhu
Mina [4:39 AM]
Don’t worry, you didn’t wake me :)
As usual I couldn’t sleep either
So I... took a shower?
Sana [4:40 AM]
ngl i thought abt showering too
but i think it wouldve kept me more awake HAHA
its so weird aaaa my body is tired but i still csnt slepp
omg *cant sleep
ahahaha sorry my hands r tired
do u mind if i just call u?
Mina wasn’t quite sure how to respond. One part of her felt like a deer caught in headlights and wanted to drop the conversation altogether, because she was afraid to hear Sana’s voice since hearing Sana’s actual voice would confirm that she was, in fact, real. Aside from that, letting Sana hear her own voice would feel like she’s breaking down yet another wall that kept the familiar stranger at bay from her fragile heart while giving Sana a little piece of it which was already more than she deserved. She felt that if she stripped herself of yet another barrier, she’d be exposing more and more of her vulnerability that she wasn’t ready to let Sana get a glimpse of just yet.
But then, there was the other part of her that had a voice that was getting increasingly louder as the days passed. The part of her that said Sana is real. Sana is different.
She didn’t want to admit that she could hear that voice, that she was even acknowledging it, or that she was letting it give her the faintest sliver of hope.
Mina sighed and internally shrugged. Might as well.
Mina [4:41 PM]
I don’t mind, go ahead :)
It took a few seconds before Mina’s phone started to buzz softly in her hands with Sana’s caller ID flashed on the screen. Mina could’ve sworn she felt her heart skip a beat.
Hesitantly, she tapped the green button and slowly brought the phone up to her ear before speaking.
“H-Hello?” she stuttered, her voice laced with uncertainty.
The line was silent for a beat, until another voice finally spoke.
“Hello, Mina,” Sana said on the other end, her voice riddled with drowsiness as she stretched out the last syllable endearingly.
It made Mina smile like an idiot, but in that moment, she didn’t care.
Sana is real.
Receiving calls from Sana and returning those calls had become as routine as their texts from the past few weeks.
All it took was one phone call for Mina to become attached to this stranger’s ghostly presence in her life.
Or was she always attached to Sana and simply in denial of it this whole time?
Once again, Mina refused to admit anything. Not to anyone, and especially not to herself.
One particular afternoon, she was on a call with Sana on speaker mode while simultaneously playing a first-person shooter game on her PS4. She made sure to turn down the volume so as to not scar Sana’s ears with the sounds of assault rifles and frag grenades. Despite being quite immersed in her game, her attention was split just enough for her to listen to a story Sana was telling about a vacation in Hawaii with her best friend.
The story was interrupted when Mina let out a loud groan after being killed in-game. She tossed the controller aside as the screen revealed her second place ranking on the leaderboard. Mina heard Sana giggle from the other end.
“Did you die?”
Mina huffed, “I got second.”
“Aw, sorry darling. Did I distract you?” Sana asked, partly sarcastic but mostly affectionate.
Darling.
The pet name rolled around in Mina’s head for a moment. Yes, the connection they’ve formed over the past few weeks have made it so that Sana was comfortable enough to call her that. She had let it slip during one of their conversations and immediately apologized for it after, thinking it made Mina uncomfortable. It caught Mina by surprise, yes, but she told Sana it was okay and that she could keep saying it if she wanted to.
She wasn’t sure why she said that.
Might as well.
“No, you’re good,” Mina answered, trying to sound indifferent despite actually feeling affected by a mere pet name—affected in a positive way, of course, in which she couldn’t help but grin to herself as she suddenly gained the energy to pick up her controller and play another round.
As she prepared her weapon loadout for the next match, she noticed that the phone line had grown silent.
“Are you still there?” Mina asked, “I can stop playing, if you want.”
Sana answered after a beat. “No, it’s fine. I was just thinking about something..."
“Penny for your thoughts, then?”
“It’s silly.” Despite never seeing Sana in person or never having a video call with her, Mina could vaguely imagine Sana waving off the thought, downplaying it the way she normally would. For some reason, it made her want to prod a bit more.
“We talk about silly things all the time,” Mina said, sounding a bit more confident than usual, “I want to listen.”
Sana paused, presumably thinking about her response. Mina heard her let out a breath before finally speaking her mind.
“I just realized that I’ve been calling you by a cute nickname, but you don’t have one for me— oh, wow, I actually sound so petty right now. You know what, forget it, I told you it was silly we can just drop it—”
“I can come up with a nickname for you,” Mina said, cutting Sana off from her rambling, and even surprising herself when the words slipped out of her mouth.
It was somewhat of an instinctual response, perhaps a way to get Sana to shut up for a second or even a kind of gesture to entertain the thoughts that, for some reason, were running rampant in Sana’s brain. The idea itself wasn’t something Mina had given much thought to.
That is, until she started thinking about it at that very moment.
What exactly did it mean for them, now that they had taken that step, albeit small, to call each other by cute nicknames that were specifically tailored to the dynamics of their... relationship? Could she even call it that?
“Oh, you better make sure it’s a good one, then!”
It was a small gesture. A simple statement, a silly idea, and yet it managed to push Mina back down a spiral which she hadn’t found herself in for quite some time. Things were starting to feel normal with Sana, but the universe really had to come along and convince Mina to question the nature of their relationship.
What exactly was this? What were they?
“Mina? Are you still there?”
For a moment, Mina let herself believe that she could never really feel normal with Sana. To think they haven’t even met yet, what more if they actually did?
What would happen when things start to get even more real than they already are?
“Darliiing, did you die again?”
As if on cue, the noises of gunfire and explosions have ceased. Mina broke out of her reverie and looked up at the screen displaying the leaderboard once more. She ranked 23rd out of 27.
The pull back to reality made her realize she was still on the phone with Sana.
“Sorry, I guess I got lost in thought, too.” She shut off the PS4, suddenly not in the mood to play anymore.
“Copycat,” Sana giggled at her own remark, “Penny for your thoughts, then?”
Mina pondered how much of her thoughts she should reveal to Sana, if she should even reveal anything at all. How much did she actually trust Sana?
Sana, who was the only person on that cursed dating app who was even remotely interesting, and stayed consistent all throughout their chats together. Sana, who had somehow weaved her way into Mina’s routine despite being nothing but a stranger probably living on the other side of the city. Sana, who was starting to feel like a friend, or maybe even something more, if Mina were to let it happen. Was that something Mina could do?
Did Sana even like her that way?
“What are we, Sana?” Mina found herself slipping, anyway. “What are you looking to gain out of this?”
Sana paused. For awhile.
“Oh.”
Mina mentally slapped herself. Good job, she thought, you just had to burden her with your damn insecurities.
“I’m sorry, it’s stupid let’s just drop—”
“Mina,” Sana cut her off, continuing, “I like you."
Oh.
“I was hoping you knew that from the day I matched with you.”
It was like someone flipped a switch in the recesses of Mina’s mind. She immediately felt her shoulders relax, and her foot stopped tapping against the carpeted floor beneath her. She didn’t even realize she was tapping her foot.
“Is that okay?” Sana asked, making Mina realize she was being too quiet for too long yet again, “It’s cool if you just want to be friends, I’ll understand.”
There was something about how considerate Sana was being—not just at that moment, but on a general basis—that made Mina want to break a certain barrier down. She took a deep breath.
“Sana, it’s more than okay,” Mina said, “I like you, too.”
She knew Sana couldn’t see her, but she still put a hand over her face to hide her pink-tinted cheeks and her smile that reached her eyes and exposed her gums. The confession made her feel vulnerable, but it also made herself feel so free.
Maybe it made Sana feel the same way.
“Do you want to meet up?”
Mina sat at a little table for two by the window of the small coffee shop, with one hand resting on the table while another fiddled with the ends of her brown hair. Her foot was tapping against the floor.
When Sana had asked her if she wanted to meet up, she immediately said while she was still feeling the adrenaline from raising the topic of their relationship and from both her and Sana’s confessions. They agreed to meet that Monday when they were both finished with their classes.
Needless to say, Mina didn’t pay attention during any of those classes.
They didn’t text each other that whole day as they wanted to save any conversation for the date. The only time Mina texted Sana was to inform her that her last class of the day had ended and that she would go ahead to the coffee shop, which was surprisingly close to her campus. Sana replied saying she would be done in thirty minutes, and at the coffee shop in forty.
Mina checked the time on her phone, which had just reached the forty-minute mark. She felt her heartbeat pick up speed upon realizing that, and for some reason she felt the urge to look up and out the window.
She couldn’t have looked up at a more perfect time.
It felt like a scene in a movie when she saw Sana walking towards the shop’s entrance, her fair skin bathed in the rays of the sunset while her honey blonde hair gracefully flew in the wind.
She watched as Sana entered the coffee shop and scanned the area with a look on her face that exposed her nerves and uncertainty. Mina raised the hand that was playing with her hair and did a small wave to get Sana’s attention. Sana saw it from her peripheral vision and looked her way.
Three things clicked in Mina’s brain the moment they locked gazes and Sana flashed the most beautiful smile Mina has ever seen.
The first was that Sana was much, much prettier in person as compared to her pictures and the vague image in Mina’s head.
Second, she finally had the perfect nickname for the one who called her darling .
And third, Sana is real.
Mina stood up as Sana approached the table. They faced each other, meeting eye to eye, both with bashful grins on their faces.
“Hi,” Sana said, reaching a hand out to shake.
Mina took it and instantly felt a warmth radiate through her arm and up to her cheeks. “Hi.”
“Do you want me to order for us?” Sana placed her bag on the table before pulling her wallet out of it. “What are you getting?”
“Just a mocha,” Mina said, reaching to get her own wallet, but Sana quickly stopped her.
“Wait!” Sana’s hand wrapped around Mina’s wrist. “Let me pay for it.”
Mina felt herself blush even more, both from the contact and from embarrassment. “What? You don’t have to do that.”
Sana looked Mina in the eyes, her stare soft and gentle. “But, I want to."
Mina, while being lost in Sana’s eyes and completely dazed by them, simply nodded in response. She sat down as Sana turned around and walked to the counter.
From the moment Mina laid her eyes on Sana, she couldn’t pull her gaze away for longer than a second, watching and observing every movement Sana made. She noticed how Sana smiled and bowed her head politely at the barista when she gave their orders, and how she very subtly dropped a bill in the tip jar when the employees weren’t looking. She noticed how Sana’s posture exuded a certain confidence—she stood with her back straight and her chin held high.
But when Sana came back to their table with both of their drinks, she nearly spilled one of them but was quick enough to save herself. When she sat down on her chair, she landed a bit too roughly and winced at the impact. Suddenly, she was acting so clumsy, and the embarrassment made her shrink shyly in her seat like a child would. Her cheeks were tinted a light shade of pink while she tried to hold in her laughter.
“Wow, I’m a mess,” Sana said sheepishly, “I’m sorry you had to see that.”
Mina couldn’t help but chuckle. “Don’t be, it’s cute.”
The comment seemed to make Sana’s blush deepen. Sana tried to hide it with her hair. “Oh my god, stop!”
Mina just laughed even more.
They spent most of their time at the café talking about their day, since they didn’t text each other about it like they usually do. They also spent it revisiting old topics, topics that they never talked about in detail before due to the boundaries they set when all of this began. It turns out, they’ve been studying in the same university the whole time, but have never seen each other due to their vastly different majors and schedules and the fact that Sana was a year ahead of Mina, aside from the campus itself just being generally large. They both laughed at the fact that they were so close to each other all this time, yet they acted as if they were worlds apart.
It could be considered true in a metaphorical sense.
After about an hour of telling stories, sharing laughs and exchanging smiles that reached their eyes, their energy died down a bit, instead being replaced with a comfortable silence. Mina found herself staring at Sana once more as she looked out the window, at the sky that was now dark with the full moon shining bright behind thin clouds.
“You’re staring at me,” Sana said, not keeping her eyes off the moon.
Mina’s lips curved upwards in a sheepish smile. “Sorry.”
Sana’s eyes moved to meet with Mina’s. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you have a crush on me.”
Mina felt herself blush at the comment—it made her feel like she was caught in an act that would have its consequences. It was meant to be a flirty remark, but there was something about it that held a certain weight depending on how Mina responded.
She could just shrug it off as what it was, playful banter, without having to admit whatever it was she was feeling. Or, she could give an honest answer that would result in breaking down yet another wall and letting herself be vulnerable for once.
It would always be easy for her to stay silent, to never admit the things she wanted to admit, and that’s why she kept a long list of words that she left unsaid, words that she never took a chance on.
But at that moment, with Sana, it felt even easier to just let go.
Might as well.
“Maybe I do,” Mina said—albeit softly, it made Sana turn her head.
“What?” Sana said, attempting to sound smug but being unable to hide the surprise on her face.
Mina’s eyes shined with a sincerity that shifted the mood of the conversation. “I’ve already told you that I liked you, Sana. But seeing you, the real you here in person just proves it even more for me.”
Sana seemed stunned at the sudden confession, until her face once again formed that wide smile that, in Mina’s opinion, could rival the moon’s beauty at that moment.
“I like you too,” she said, her tone matching Mina’s own vulnerability, “that’s why you’re my darling.”
Darling.
It reminded Mina of the nickname she thought of earlier.
“You know,” she said, “I finally came up with a nickname for you.”
Sana raised her eyebrows. “Really, now?”
Mina nodded, then pointed at Sana’s hair.
“ Honey. To match your hair.”
As if on cue, Sana ran a hand through her honey blonde hair. Her smile widened, and it made Mina’s heart soar more than she would like to admit.
But maybe, this time around, she was more than willing to admit it. Not just to Sana, but to herself, as well.
“It’s perfect.”