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1.
Nayeon didn’t consider herself a jealous person. Really, she didn’t. She considered herself protective, loving and maybe a little insecure. But those three things had never truly culminated in jealousy before, she was far too emotionally intelligent for that. Well, at least now she was.
Perhaps she was in denial.
Everything felt different with Momo.
Don’t get her wrong, jealousy could be an ugly and manipulative thing, lashing out when it was romanticised and resulting in tears and distrust. No, it wasn’t that type of jealousy. Nayeon’s ‘jealousy’ was harmless, truly, more clinginess than anything else.
The only time Nayeon’s jealousy could have been considered petty and malicious was back when they were still trainees, when they hardly meant anything to each other, when Nayeon was still young and wrestling head on against the deep insecurities that bristled under the surface of her skin.
Nayeon had been watching the monthly assessments with the other trainees, slightly disinterestedly considering that she had done this every month for a while now. She was staring at where her nail polish had chipped as she waited for the next person to take their turn. As she lifted her head back to the front, she noticed that Hirai Momo was standing off to the side, murmuring her lyrics to herself over and over. If Nayeon had dog ears then they would have perked up at the realisation that Momo was next.
Something about Momo drew Nayeon in.
As she began, led by the music, the group of trainees watched her, enraptured by the way her body moved. This was nothing new, of course, considering it was Momo. But the thing that had the rest of the trainees gaping was Momo’s vocals. The girl had clearly been working hard to develop them and had chosen a song that melded with her husky tone perfectly. The performance was alluring, dragging in everyone’s attention and keeping it firmly locked on her.
Nayeon’s heart pounded throughout the duration of the performance, willing it to continue for just a bit longer, even as it came to a close.
When she had finished, the group burst into applause, not merely the polite claps that usually succeeded the majority of monthly assessment performances.
Momo looked positively stunned, her mouth falling open as she gazed across the faces of her peers, bowing lowly and deeply.
Nayeon felt the jealousy flare up in her chest, internally rolling her eyes at the girl’s reaction.
The sulky, childish part of Nayeon wanted to slink off and sit and wonder why she couldn’t make such fast progress like Momo clearly was. Why she couldn’t get such a visceral reaction from the other trainees. Get praised like Momo was.
Momo was the last to perform, so soon they began filtering out, a few people stopping Momo to congratulate her. Nayeon didn’t stick around to see it, flitting to the bathroom ahead of the crowds that were still meandering and clustering outside the doorway and inside the practice room.
Nayeon sighed as she gripped the side of the sink, staring at herself in the mirror. She didn’t want to be the type of person who couldn’t celebrate other people’s achievements because of her own insecurities.
Nayeon startled slightly as the door to the bathroom swung open. She glanced to her left in the mirror and froze when she saw it was Momo. Nayeon took a deep breath as their eyes met in the mirror, willing herself to make amends for her own selfishness, even if the other girl wasn’t aware of it.
She would not be that person, that was not who she was.
So, instead of merely looking away and saying nothing, like she may have done when she was angry with the world only ten minutes ago, she spun around to face Momo.
“You did amazingly out there. I want to perform as well as you do, I think you’re great.” Nayeon told the girl sincerely, surprised at just how much she meant it.
The smile that Momo gave her was blinding, evidently still operating on adrenaline, considering that the most that Nayeon had received from her in the past was a reserved head nod in acknowledgement. Nayeon relished in the guilt that flushed through her chest, letting it burn, hoping it taught her an important lesson.
Nayeon didn’t have to let her jealousy of Momo cloud her judgement or harden her. She should let it guide her, make her strive to progress, just as Momo had done. Maybe if she did, then Momo would smile at her like that again. Except this time it could be in congratulations for when Nayeon ceases her plateauing and finds a way to move forward and keep up with Momo.
Nayeon smiled back.
That marked the last time Nayeon ever felt jealous of Momo.
That also marked the last time that Nayeon was anything but Momo’s biggest fan.
2.
Nayeon wouldn’t say she could think of any moments where she had gotten jealous from something as pitiful as losing another person’s attention.
That was before her and Momo had become, well, Nayeon and Momo.
There was some sort of unspoken agreement between them that there was… something between them, even if they didn’t speak about it or progress past anything ‘friendly’. All of them knew it, not just Nayeon and Momo. Nayeon didn’t feel the need to push it, slightly scared the burst the bubble surrounding them, comfortable to just exist knowing that Momo was something to her and she was something to Momo.
There weren’t many opportunities to get jealous, she conceded. They were so busy trying to stabilise and cement their place in the industry after a successful two or so years since debut that they didn’t seem to have much time to see anyone outside of their immediate circle.
This was until Momo got the chance to dance with Seulgi.
It was nothing official, just Momo going to their practice room to watch and learn things from her, with Seulgi having the same opportunity. Nayeon didn’t think anything of it, excited at the prospect of Momo getting to do her favourite thing in the world with someone that she really admired.
Momo had escaped early from the dorm, charming the managers to take her even earlier than scheduled using her sad, pleading eyes and infamously dangerous pout. She had gone before Nayeon had woken up, leaving her slightly disgruntled that she didn’t even get to playfully wake Momo up, which was quite possibly her favourite part of the day.
Later that night, Momo came bounding into Nayeon’s bedroom that she shared with Mina, Jihyo and Sana. Fortunately, the rest of her roommates were nowhere to be seen. Nayeon didn’t feel like sharing Momo right now, considering that they weren’t often separated for the entire day. Nayeon was loath to admit that she had actually begun to pine a bit from Momo’s (albeit brief) absence from her daily routine.
The bright smile on Momo’s face and the way she was rocking on her heels told Nayeon that she had enjoyed a wonderful day, Nayeon helpless to do anything but grin equally as happily back at her, standing up to lean her back against her cabinet as Momo began to speak. Momo confirmed that the day was perfect, immediately barrelling head first into stories of the day, about how cool ‘Seulgi-unnie’ was and how talented she was.
Nayeon felt something twinge inside her chest when hearing Momo call someone that wasn’t her ‘unnie’. Nayeon brushed it off, assuming that she just wasn’t used to hearing it when Nayeon was the oldest member of their group.
The feeling returned, stronger, when Nayeon noticed a light blush on Momo’s cheeks as she recalled another story from the day. “Seulgi-unnie really was so nice. She said that she thought my hairstyle really suited me. And that my dancing was incredible. Isn’t that lovely?”
Nayeon wanted to huff at how giddy Momo looked at the compliments, her hands clasped together and her eyes wide with excitement. Nayeon was the one who normally made Momo smile like that, made her blush with her praises and was her number one cheerleader. Honestly, Nayeon couldn’t be too upset when she was faced with Momo’s unadulterated happiness.
Her happiness was most important, not who caused it.
Nayeon just preferred to be the one to cause it, that was all.
Regardless, Nayeon wouldn’t miss a chance to playfully antagonise Momo, because that was inherent to their dynamic.
“She was just being polite, Momo-yah. Your hair hasn’t changed in months. Isn’t Seulgi such a nice person?” Nayeon teased, reaching out to Momo’s hair to stroke the strands gently, softening the blow in case Momo thought that she was serious.
Momo knew her better than that, pouting dramatically and crossing her arms across her chest like a moody child. Nayeon was struck with the urge to kiss the pout from her lips, but forced herself to reign in her desire, instead laughing loudly when Momo burst into loud fake tears.
At Nayeon’s laugh, Momo giggled deviously. Nayeon narrowed her eyes slightly, wondering what Momo was planning. “Seulgi-unnie is such a nice person. You should learn from her.”
Nayeon placed a hand on her chest in mock hurt, the childish urge to whine ridiculously strong at Momo’s words. “I see how it is. So, is she your new favourite?”
Momo pretended to ponder it with a finger tapping her chin and her lips pursed. Nayeon didn’t know why she was waiting with bated breath. It was only playful, they were only teasing, so why did Nayeon feel like she might throw herself into Momo’s arms and grumble at her if she said yes?
Eventually, Momo shrugged, a clear smirk on her face, like she knew exactly which of Nayeon’s buttons that she was pressing. “I guess I’ll have to see her again and find out.”
Momo’s cocky shrug ignited something in Nayeon’s chest and she took a stride forward to tug Momo close by her waist.
Momo gasped in shock at the sudden turn of events and, honestly, Nayeon was shocked too. But now that they were this close, Nayeon felt like Momo was magnetic, her aura too alluring to resist, compelling Nayeon to slowly inch her head forward. Still, she hesitated, afraid to burst the protective bubble that cocooned them. The unspoken agreement that they were content as they were. The fear of taking all of each other.
She took a chance and stole a glance at Momo’s eyes. Nayeon wasn’t aware that someone’s eyes could look so dark yet so loving at the same time, but if anyone could achieve that fine balance, of course it was Momo.
Nayeon had mastered the art of comprehending Momo’s emotions from her expressions, figuring out what her mouth was too hesitant to say.
Nayeon knew her heart.
And Nayeon was certain that there was no doubt in her eyes.
So, she took the plunge.
She dove forward to capture Momo’s lips against her own, her hands leaving Momo’s waist to cup her face.
Nayeon felt like she was on fire. Kissing Momo felt like they were onstage together. Their bodies moving against each other, Nayeon pushing and Momo accepting her gratefully, moving in tandem to the rhythm of the ragged breaths they were taking through their noses.
Momo kissed her with the same passion that she danced with and it threatened to push Nayeon from the precipice and toppling into the volcano.
But there were elements of off-stage Momo too. The playful tracing of her bottom lip with her tongue, the hesitant hands that couldn’t quite decide whether they wanted to settle on Nayeon’s waist or at the top of her back, the careful way that Momo traced her skin with her fingertips.
Their kisses were everything Nayeon could have dreamt them to be and more.
Eventually, Nayeon pulled back, as much for her sanity as for her lungs.
“Be mine.” Nayeon husked against Momo’s lips. Even through her hazy mind, she realised that sounded far too possessive and hurried to backtrack, not willing to pressure Momo. “If you want to be.”
Momo blinked herself out of the kiss-induced stupor and smiled without abandon, so bright and gleeful that Nayeon almost couldn’t comprehend that this was the same woman whose kisses were molten.
Nayeon couldn’t help but feel pride swim through her chest at being the one to make Momo smile like that.
“I already am yours.” Momo told her, covering Nayeon’s hands on her face with her own.
Something thrummed pleasantly through Nayeon’s veins hearing Momo confirm those words.
“Could Seulgi kiss you like that?” Nayeon asked smugly, sure of the answer, but wanting to feel the satisfaction of the confirmation.
Momo laughed somewhat bashfully, squeezing Nayeon’s hands and leaning back in for another kiss.
3.
Nayeon felt light-headed as the car lulled her side-to-side, the pain in her stomach flaring to accompany the burning in her thighs from the extra hours of practice she had put in.
Nayeon was not looking forward to telling Momo that she had stayed late for practice again, not when Momo had scolded her for overworking herself earlier this week. Except, this time it was worse, as her cramps had burdened her for the entirety of the latter half of her practice session, Nayeon almost stumbling into the mirror once or twice from her pain-induced haze.
Not much had changed from the beginning of her career. She still wanted to push herself to be the best that she could be, to make herself and everyone else around her proud. Once, overworking herself may have been fuelled by insecurity, but now Nayeon thought it was more of a strange mix of confidence and diffidence. She knew that she was good, but she also felt that she could always try something different.
Now, she could praise herself for a job well done, allowing pride to blossom through her chest, the tiredness of her body serving as a pleasant reminder that she had done well today.
But that didn’t mean that she wasn’t exhausted, hungry and aching everywhere.
Crawling into Momo’s arms and pushing Momo’s hands into her hair sounded like a perfect way to unwind right now. Maybe she could convince Momo to help her wash her hair too, considering she wasn’t sure she could hold herself up for extended periods right now.
As they pulled up to the dormitory, Nayeon thanked the managers and heaved herself to her floor, leaning a bit on the door frame for a brief moment to curse her birth. Gathering herself, she unlocked the door and stepped into their dorm.
“Momo? Sana?” Nayeon called, glancing around the living room yet seeing no sign of them. Nayeon would have jumped for joy if she had the energy, because that meant that Momo was already in her room and they could cuddle on the bed rather than settling for the sofa. She deposited her stuff by the door, resolving to deal with it in the morning.
Momo’s door was propped open and, really, Nayeon should have realised that it was all going a bit too conveniently to last. And yet, she didn’t, so Nayeon’s dreams crumpled harder than anticipated when she poked her head around the door and saw Sana and Momo curled up next to each other, watching something on Sana’s laptop.
Nayeon could have cried.
Nayeon didn’t have any issue with Sana cuddling her girlfriend. Momo may have been her girlfriend, but Sana was also her soulmate, which Nayeon had no problem with on any other day. But when all Nayeon wanted to do was curl up, with Momo doting entirely on her, she may have a slight problem with it today. Nayeon could just join them on the bed, it wasn’t uncommon for the three of them to squish in together, but Nayeon did not want to have to contend for Momo’s affections today.
She was too tired, too hormonal for that.
So, instead, Nayeon swallowed down the disappointment (if Nayeon was less stubborn, she might have labelled it as something like jealousy ) swimming through her chest that Sana got to have Momo all to herself tonight and continued on her path, past Momo’s room and into her own.
Her own room felt almost unfamiliar to her today, lacking a certain pair of soft eyes and even softer hugs. Still, she was a grown woman, she would resign herself to dealing with her moping alone like she had done many times.
Near the beginning of their career, Nayeon might have hesitated at asking for comfort. She was the oldest, and it also didn’t come entirely naturally to Nayeon to request help, much preferring to offer it instead. It seemed a bit ironic that she had learnt to be comfortable asking for something when she wanted it, but now in a moment where she desperately needed something, she didn’t feel like she had the opportunity to ask.
Nayeon was hungry and her stomach hurt, but she couldn’t motivate herself to go back to the kitchen.
Instead, she went through her drawers and retrieved a hand warmer so she could put it on her stomach instead of a hot water bottle, swallowing down some painkillers with the glass of water by her bed. Next, she promptly flopped onto her bed with a groan, pulling the giant bunny plush that Momo got her for her birthday to her chest with a tiny whimper that she would deny ever making whilst alone.
As Nayeon stroked the soft fur of the bunny, she belatedly realised that she hadn’t pulled the covers back. Nayeon swallowed back the tears of frustration that were steadily building.
“Unnie?” A bright light invaded her senses as Momo’s voice sounded from somewhere behind her. Nayeon couldn’t summon the energy to turn to face her, instead choosing to answer with a completely dignified whine. “Unnie.”
Momo plopped down next to her on the bed, trying to roll Nayeon onto her back by her shoulder. Nayeon frowned into the bunny’s fur as she resisted the movement, feeling petulant. She heard Momo huff from behind her, pulling Nayeon’s shoulder a bit more forcefully until Nayeon let the teddy go and was staring up at Momo, squinting slightly as she adjusted to the light.
Momo looked Nayeon up and down, frowning at the sight of the hand warmer against Nayeon’s stomach. “Do you have cramps?”
Nayeon nodded slowly, waiting for the penny to drop.
“And you still practised late? Nayeon! I thought we agreed! Why didn’t you come get me when you got home so I could take care of you?” Momo chided, poking Nayeon on the nose accusingly. “Have you eaten?”
Nayeon rolled her eyes at Momo’s interrogation, not in the mood to hear it even if it came from a place of love and concern, readjusting herself to turn away from Momo and hide her face using the bunny. “Just go back to Sana, Momo.”
Momo giggled behind her and Nayeon’s hand unintentionally tightened around the hand warmer. She felt Momo’s weight leave the bed and, despite her words, wanted to call out to Momo to get her to come back. There was no need to, Momo quickly rematerialising in front of her to pluck the teddy from in front of her face and place it on the floor. Momo climbed onto the bed, careful of jostling Nayeon, before hooking her under the armpit and securing her close to Momo’s chest. Nayeon whined as she pressed her forehead to Momo’s collarbone, feeling the exhaustion seep further into her soul as Momo placed a delicate kiss on the top of her head. Nayeon threw an arm around Momo’s shoulders, as much as the angle would allow.
“Have you eaten?” Momo repeated, more tenderly, into Nayeon’s hair.
Nayeon hummed noncommittally in response, weighing the gnawing hunger in her stomach against the knowledge that telling Momo she was hungry would result in Momo’s warmth abandoning her.
“That’s a no, then.” Momo confirmed, shifting the arm that was under Nayeon’s to her stomach, gently rubbing circles with her hand. Nayeon was embarrassingly close to falling asleep within a few seconds of Momo’s soothingly monotonous ministrations. “You have to eat though. I’ll go make you something.”
Nayeon pulled her head back enough to look Momo in the eyes, painting a pout onto her lips and a frown on her brow. Momo sighed, trying to pull back from Nayeon entirely, but Nayeon didn’t relinquish the grasp she had around her shoulders.
Momo matched Nayeon’s pout. “Nayeonie.”
Nayeon didn’t surrender. “Momoring.”
Momo stared at her thoughtfully. “What about if I give you a piggyback the entire time?”
Nayeon narrowed her eyes, not entirely trusting this to be anything but a ploy to make Nayeon release her. Momo noticed the apprehension and puffed out a breath dramatically, continuing with, “I promise.”
The idea of being pressed against Momo’s strong back wasn’t the worst in the world, she supposed.
Nayeon nodded her agreement.
Momo rolled her eyes, disentangling herself from Nayeon, which drew a low complaint from Nayeon’s lips until Momo crouched at the edge of the bed. Nayeon slowly pushed herself up, shuffling to the edge of the bed and wincing at the pain in her stomach. She draped herself over Momo’s back, securing her arms around Momo’s shoulders and letting her thighs rest on the dips of her hips.
Momo lifted her up without complaint and her palms felt nice and warm where they held Nayeon’s thighs. Nayeon shut her eyes and rested her cheek on Momo, perfectly content to trust Momo with her life. Momo may be clumsy, but Nayeon would bet anything she owned that she could ask Momo to carry her all day and Momo would make it her personal mission to ensure no harm came to her.
Nayeon thinks she may have drifted off somewhere between her room and the kitchen, with Momo softly humming and Nayeon tired of resisting the magic of sleep. When she blearily blinked awake, she was on the sofa, Momo against her side with a portion of spaghetti in a takeout tub and holding a fork. Seeing that she was awake, Momo twirled the fork in the spaghetti and brought it closer to blow on it. Then, she moved the fork close to Nayeon’s lips, looking at her expectantly.
Nayeon was too tired to do anything except obediently open her mouth and accept the food. She couldn’t believe that she had sulked when she saw Momo with Sana when she could have been getting this treatment even sooner.
Her heart ached with gratitude for the younger woman.
Whilst Momo blew on the next bite, Nayeon spoke confidently into the comfortable silence. “You’re the best, Momo-yah.”
Momo smiled shyly, the light blush dusting her cheeks appearing whenever Nayeon complimented her, and her response came in pressing the form of gently nudging the fork against Nayeon’s lips.
As she ate, she felt slightly more energetic. The last remnants of her hormonal reaction left one question swimming around her mind. “Where did Sana go anyway?”
Momo smiled cryptically as she looked down at the spaghetti. “I told her that I needed to take care of you today.”
Yeah, Nayeon really loved Momo.
4.
Nayeon refused to admit that she was jealous of a dog, regardless of the fact that she very much was jealous of a dog.
Momo’s new dog, to be precise.
Nayeon sighed.
It’s not that Boo wasn’t cute, in fact, Nayeon loved Boo. He was precious, Nayeon had always adored babies and dogs. So, a baby dog? Perfect. She loved cooing at him and scooping him into her arms to cradle him like a baby. She loved sneaking him treats when Momo wasn’t looking because she loved the tiny pudgy tummy that he had. She loved playing with him when they were in a waiting room to kill the monotony of waiting.
It was more that Boo took up a lot of Momo’s attention and time, attention and time that Nayeon was used to being almost solely on her in their dorm.
Momo was nothing if not attentive, so she pandered to Boo’s every whim (really, the puppy was getting spoiled, but perhaps Nayeon couldn’t be judgemental about that, considering the circumstances). For example, whenever Boo whined in his sleep, Momo would slip from Nayeon’s arms, dragging her warmth with her, and pick the puppy up and soothe him until he fell into an unbothered slumber. If that didn’t work, Nayeon would have to deal with Momo’s elbows jabbing her in the ribs as she tried to maneuver the puppy between them in a way that ensured that Boo wouldn’t get squashed during the night.
Once, on a particularly chilly night where Nayeon wanted as little space between their bodies as possible, she had protested Boo being placed on the bed with them. In return, she had been met with two pleading sets of eyes, leaving Nayeon helpless to do anything but flop dramatically back on the mattress and wave them carelessly into the bed. Nayeon had petulantly turned away from the pair, grumbling under her breath at the betrayal, which hadn’t lasted long when Momo placed Boo at the foot of their bed and pressed her warm front against Nayeon’s back.
Nayeon had fallen asleep with a soft, probably victorious, smile on her face and may or may not have stuck her tongue out at Boo when she looked at him the next morning.
But, today, Nayeon seemed especially hard pressed to get even an ounce of attention from her girlfriend.
Nayeon wouldn’t say she was sulking , but if she was sipping her Starbucks order that had long depleted using a straw just so it made persistently annoying slurping sounds...
Well, then that was no-one’s business but her own.
In her defence, Momo was far too entertained by asking Boo to roll over for what must have been the eighteenth time in the past five minutes. Boo merely stared at her for a moment, head cocked to the side and ears flickering at the high-pitched coddling tone Momo was using. Momo huffed, proceeding to lay down and roll slightly across the carpet, staring expectantly at the puppy when she had finished the move.
“Like that, Boo!”
Nayeon couldn’t deny how adorable Momo was, even when she was blatantly neglecting her for the sake of trying to teach Boo a trick that would never benefit him in the real world.
“Maybe Boo just isn’t in the mood for learning today.” Nayeon suggested, hoping Momo would concede defeat and sidle up to Nayeon’s side so that they could watch a film on the sofa.
Perhaps ignore the film in favour of making out until Sana got back.
Momo either didn’t hear her or chose to ignore her because she grabbed her phone from the coffee table and clicked play on the puppy teaching video, instructions that Nayeon might be able to recite from memory sounding through the room again.
Nayeon scowled, swiping Momo’s forgotten drink from the table and sipping from it herself.
Nayeon scrolled through her phone, mindlessly liking things on Instagram, trying to formulate a plan to get some deserved attention from Momo. Nayeon looked at Momo’s drink that she held in her hand and pondered whether the idea she had was really worth it. Then she glanced over Momo’s shoulder to see her drag her thumb across the screen to start the puppy training video from the beginning, again , and decided that it was worth it for her sanity, if nothing else.
Nayeon braced herself, checking that Momo wasn’t watching her (of course she wasn’t), before shutting her eyes and tipping a decent amount of the drink in her hand over her hoodie. The scream she let out was very genuine as the fluid clogged her hoodie and a trickle of iced coffee fell onto her collarbone and down under the material of her clothes, making her jerk onto her feet.
The commotion was enough to draw Momo’s attention to her, her head whipping around to see what had happened.
“What did you do?” Momo asked worriedly, standing quickly to hurry over to Nayeon, phone forgotten.
“I spilt your drink over my hoodie!” Nayeon told her whining and, admittedly, too petulant considering that this had been her idea.
Momo snorted in amusement, before scowling. “Hey! That serves you right for stealing my drink.”
“The ice has melted! You weren’t even drinking it.” Nayeon retorted, allowing her lips to turn downwards in mock-sadness. “You can’t be mad at me now, not when I’m cold.”
Momo shook her head fondly. “Okay, okay. Let’s get this off and dry you a bit.”
Momo gripped the hoodie from the bottom. “Arms up.” She pulled the sodden garment off with only a bit of resistance from the wet material and dropped it onto the sofa.
Nayeon tried to restrain her smirk at how quickly Momo’s eyes widened at the sight of Nayeon in the tank top that she was wearing underneath her hoodie. Momo’s gaze dragged across Nayeon's collarbones, her fingertips coming up to trail down the exposed skin of her biceps.
Nayeon cleared her throat, rejoicing in the way that Momo’s eyes flew up to her own and an embarrassed smile crossed her features at being caught staring. “Aren’t you supposed to be helping me get dry?”
Momo nodded hurriedly, scooping up hoodie and using the dry half of it to wipe delicately across Nayeon’s shoulders and sternum. Nayeon’s comment had only been teasing, there had hardly been any liquid on her skin, but Momo was so lovely that she was carefully making sure there was no moisture remaining, despite clearly fighting her urge to kiss Nayeon senseless.
Nayeon glanced over to where Boo was settled in his bed in the corner of the room, clearly exhausted from a day of (failed) learning.
Nayeon didn’t feel so bad about stealing Momo’s attention now.
Everyone was happy.
Especially Momo, when Nayeon plucked the hoodie from Momo’s grasp and tilted her head up to say thank you in the form of a searing kiss to her lips.
+1
If Nayeon had to put one thing near the top of the things she loved about being with Momo (because it was unjust to pick one thing to be at the very top), it would be how comfortable they were together.
Momo was half-hanging from the sofa, her head almost entirely upside down as she watched a video on her phone with her earphones in, despite Nayeon chiding her for letting the blood rush to her head. Momo had merely stuck her tongue out at her and shuffled further off the edge of the sofa in defiance.
Meanwhile, Nayeon was sitting on the opposite end of the sofa with her brows furrowed in concentration at the question in front of her. She had chosen to do one of those relationship quizzes out of sheer boredom, Momo too engrossed in the cooking video in front of her to be coaxed (or coerced) into entertaining her girlfriend. Now, Nayeon sat pondering whether she was a highly jealous person or not. At the other questions, Nayeon hardly had to question her responses, yet this one had her doubting herself.
She wasn’t a jealous person, right? She didn’t stop Momo seeing anyone, would never dream of it. She never complained about Momo seeing her other friends or not seeing her for a while. Sure, she got a tiny bit sulky if she felt that she wasn’t getting enough attention, but that was just a little bit of clinginess.
She couldn’t be that much of a jealous person, Nayeon reasoned.
Still, Nayeon wanted to give this quiz the best chance of being accurate, so she turned her head from her phone to look at Momo. “Momo.”
Momo didn’t hear her, which was unsurprising given that Nayeon could hear the exact words coming out of the woman’s mouth on Momo’s phone despite her earphones. Nayeon rolled her eyes. Momo was gonna damage her eardrums one day and Nayeon would be the one who had to find a way to make her earphones suffer for it.
“ Momo .” Nayeon repeated, louder this time. At Momo’s silence, she huffed, picking up the pillow that she was leaning on and tossing it in Momo’s general direction. She snickered when it smacked Momo directly in the face, startling her so badly that she had to catch herself before she tumbled headfirst from the sofa.
“Nayeon! What was that for?” Momo scowled, patting her hair down where the pillow had mussed it up and reaching to pull her earphones from her ears.
“I could have been getting mauled over here and you wouldn’t have heard it. Let that be a lesson to you. Do not, under any circumstances, have your earphones too loud.” Nayeon mused, pretending to stroke an imaginary beard. Momo’s scowl deepened and Nayeon laughed as she ducked out of the way of Momo’s return throw of the cushion.
“ Anyway . What did you need so urgently?” Momo asked, sitting up properly on her part of the sofa and crossing her legs.
“I’m doing this relationship quiz to work out what type of couple we are and one of the questions is asking about if I’m a highly jealous person. What do you reckon?” Nayeon asked, maintaining an air of nonchalance.
Momo grinned a tiny grin at her, looking unreasonably smug. “Is that a genuine question?”
Nayeon glared at her suspiciously. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Well, because it’s obvious.” Nayeon blinked in surprise, which Momo must have taken as a cue to continue. “Of course you’re a jealous person.”
“What? I am not!” Nayeon protested, dropping her phone on her lap and crossing her arms over her chest defensively.
“You don’t think you’re a jealous person?” Momo asked, smirking in clear amusement.
“No.” Nayeon insisted, nothing if not relentlessly stubborn.
Unlucky for her, Momo was equally stubborn. “Nu-uh, you’re wrong.”
“Oh yeah? Prove it.” It was the wrong thing to say, Nayeon realised, as Momo’s eyes lit up with a devilish glint as she leant forward and supported her body weight with her palms flat on the sofa.
“ Well . The only reason you had the courage to kiss me was because you were jealous of Seulgi-unnie. You used to look at Boo like he had personally offended you–” Momo had a hand raised in the air now, lifting a finger with each new point. “When I say that I love ice-cream more than anything else, you start pouting. One time you said someone in a drama was attractive, I agreed with you, then you wouldn’t kiss me until I bought you dinner. Oh, and how about the time–”
Nayeon had climbed onto Momo’s lap by then, clapping a hand over her mouth with an embarrassed tinge to her cheeks.
“Momo!” Nayeon glared at Momo when she heard (felt) muffled giggles from behind her hand, which only served to make Momo laugh harder.
Okay, so maybe Nayeon got a little bit more jealous than she had first anticipated, but she would not give Momo the satisfaction of telling her that.
“You’re so dramatic. I’m saying that I’m not a very jealous person.” Nayeon got up from Momo’s lap and sat properly on the sofa, resting her back on the designated backrest and pulling her phone out from where she had hastily stashed it in her pocket. After she had unlocked it and rediscovered her place on the quiz, Momo plucked the phone from Nayeon’s grasp and turned away from her, clearly trying to select a different answer to what Nayeon had intended. “Hey!”
“I’m not letting you mess up our results.” Momo told her, holding the phone out of her reach when Nayeon tried to clamber over her to grab it.
Momo yelped in protest as Nayeon tickled her side and grabbed her phone during Momo’s moment of surprise. Nayeon thought she had won, about to alter the answer Momo had inputted and then gloat, but Momo pushed her back by her shoulders so that she was laid out flat on the sofa. She retrieved the phone, tossing it carelessly over her shoulder, ignoring Nayeon’s grumbles.
Nayeon struggled against Momo’s weight, but it was useless when Momo was stronger. Both of their chests were heaving with exertion, but Momo’s heavy breathing didn’t disguise the glee on her face.
“Do you yield?” Momo asked, arrogance oozing from her.
Nayeon sighed. “Yes.”
“So you admit that you’re a jealous person?” Momo asked, eyebrows raised in question.
A beat of silence. A resigned sigh. A quiet mumble. “Yes.”
“Sorry, what was that?” Momo encouraged, her tone light.
“Yes.”
“Yes what?”
“ Yes , I’m a jealous person.” Momo grinned, sitting up straight and offering Nayeon a hand to help her sit up.
Nayeon rolled her eyes at the gesture, batting Momo’s hand away peevishly and sitting up by herself, shuffling so that she was back in her own corner with her head turned from Momo.
Nayeon was very openly sulking, a crease on her brow, arms crossed, lips pursed and one leg crossed over the other.
Momo snorted unsympathetically, but Nayeon still saw her scoot closer from the corner of her eye. She didn’t protest when Momo laid her head on her thigh, uncrossing her legs so it would be more comfortable for her girlfriend. Nayeon caved embarrassingly quickly with Momo so close to her, relaxing her arms and running her fingers through the tangles in Momo’s wavy hair. She glanced down to see Momo’s eyes had fluttered shut.
Nayeon held back a fond smile, not allowing Momo the chance to feel even more satisfaction at how evidently whipped she was.
As they sat there quietly, a memory hit Nayeon and it made the hand that was combing through Momo’s hair still. Momo opened her eyes when she noticed the rhythmic movements had ceased.
“You know, one time when we were trainees, I got really jealous of you. Like, seriously jealous, in a bad way.” Nayeon admitted quietly, avoiding Momo’s eyes. Shame still burned in her chest whenever she recalled the moment that she had secretly discredited Momo’s hard work, when she had felt anything except for happiness and pride at Momo’s successes.
“I know. That’s why I came to the bathroom to check on you.”
“You knew ? Even back then?” Nayeon spluttered. Momo had been in the bathroom to check on her? Had Momo always been an angel?
The answer was yes.
Momo shrugged.
“And you weren’t mad?” Nayeon asked.
“Nope.” Momo said, popping the ‘p’. “I’ve always thought that you were nice. Now, I know that you’re nice. In fact, you’re the nicest.”
“Thank you for dealing with my jealousy.” Nayeon told her honestly, feeling unusually vulnerable considering how lighthearted the evening had been previously.
Momo laughed, sitting up and turning her body to face Nayeon. “It’s okay. It’s more clinginess than anything else. It’s cute, you’re cute. It’s completely harmless and I would tell you if it wasn’t. I know you would never jeopardise my happiness.”
“I would never.” Nayeon promised her.
“I know.” Momo leant forward, pressing a chaste kiss to Nayeon’s lips. She pulled back an inch, before reconsidering and leaning forward to give Nayeon another one, this kiss lingering slightly longer.
“So,” Nayeon started when Momo pulled back properly. “I’m cute, huh? Am I the cutest?”
Momo smacked her on the shoulder.