Work Text:
"Soyeon-ah!"
...was the last thing she heard before she eventually fell face down on the ground as the person who ran into her whispered small yet earnest apologies in her ear.
Soyeon's face stings—probably got scabbed a little bit by the concrete, but she's been rock hard since birth so she can bear the pain. Not Yuqi though, who looked like she would cry at any moment due to the small red spot on Soyeon's cheek caused by her misdemeanor, but the older tries to convince her it's okay.
Oh yeah, Song Yuqi. There's nothing quite exciting about her public image aside from the fact she's said to have a rather famous cousin from another campus who's apparently a fuckboy heartbreaker or whatever that is. Cliché, Soyeon first thought, since whenever Yuqi talked about her cousin he always seemed nerdy; the contrast of how she usually describes him makes Soyeon think the rumors of Yuqi's famous cousin were lies.
Well, also aside from the fact she's a bit known for being extroverted and pretty and all that stuff—she's the head of their friend group actually. They call themselves Queencards, but that's a story for another day.
Song Yuqi, also Soyeon's crush since forever.
She wants to think they have some kind of invisible string between them; Yuqi being all touchy, clingy, and cheesy around Soyeon, calling her honey, babe, whatever cute name there is to exist makes her think she reciprocates her feelings. However, it could be another situation of Soyeon being fooled and played around with just to be tossed away once the person she loves finally has somebody else.
Anyway, let's... not get too depressing. Since—
"Yuqi, stop apologizing." Soyeon sheepishly says, cupping the Chinese's cheeks as she stared into her glossy eyes. Cute; she's pouting, cute lips scrunched into a frown, and her cheeks a bit warm once Soyeon got in contact with them. "It's fine, really. Nothing but a scratch."
"Okay, if you say so," Yuqi sighs, dusting the small creases and dirt off of Soyeon's neat white shirt—now having a tiny tinge of gray—trying to make up for the damage as much as possible. "I'll treat you later at lunch as compensation..." she mumbled.
"You told me yesterday you're excited about your cousin transferring to this campus," says Soyeon, trying to avert the crisis of the previously gloomy mood. "Why is that? I mean, he sounds like a nice guy by the way, but why does he have to transfer here? Tell me about it." she continues, reaching for Yuqi's soft hand and intertwining their fingers once she does.
"Ah, yes, Quánruì! My cousin!" beamed Yuqi in a seemingly more positive mood now. "He's coming over somewhere around this week, actually, his place is a few hours from here, plus he still needs to settle his stuff at my house. I haven't met him in person for like, years now, and I'm also excited for you to meet him!" she shares, and Soyeon almost gets lost in Yuqi's cute little voice whenever she's happy explaining something.
"Wait I didn't answer your question right? Uh, he's coming over cause he finds his fame at the other campus a bit bothersome. Plus it's not a problem since he has, well, me! His absolutely helpful cousin!"
"Fame? He's actually famous?"
"Well, not celebrity level famous. But he's known for whatever reason—he never told me until earlier today! Not trying to brag about it though."
"I see," Soyeon smiles. "I can't wait to meet him, too."
For some reason, she's actually thrilled to meet said cousin. Soyeon wonders just what that guy actually looks now since the only photos Yuqi has shown her was when he still looked... nerdy. Not like she's interested in him in a romantic way—she's gay—as much as how introverted Soyeon is, she's simply curious to meet new people.
The next day, Soyeon finds herself walking to the school gates to meet up with Yuqi after she puts all of her other necessities in her locker. She doesn't even realize she's almost skipping; being all giggly and excited to see the Chinese, as always, even earning a stare from Soojin after she left the latter in the building.
What she doesn't expect, however, is Yuqi all cuddled up with some random blonde dude who's waaay taller than her, the girl barely reaching his neck. Yuqi's smiling, laughing, chuckling while she's rubbing and squeezing the living hell out of the guy's cheeks. It attracts stares from other students around them, comments that say,
"Who's that?"
"He's so good looking."
"Ah, Yuqi's lucky to have him..."
"Are they dating?! They look so good together!"
These words... the sight... the fast beating of Soyeon's heart, it makes her skin crawl and blood boil with anger! Just who is this guy? Who is he to have himself all over Yuqi—wait, they're barely even touching intimately, just pushing and almost hitting each other, but still!—who is he! Wait, Yuqi also said she had a boyfriend before, who was also Chinese and whose name sounded like hers, who was he... Yuki? Yuk-hei? Lucas?
Maybe this is Yuk-hei, or Lucas, whatever his name was. But why is he back for Yuqi? He looks a bit taller than usual too, and his face looks rather... drastically different. What the actual fuck?
Unless Yuqi's actually dating this guy... and she never told Soyeon?
Once Yuqi turns around in Soyeon's direction, the latter immediately turns away and runs back to Soojin. Probably to cry. Who knows?
"Yah- Yah! Let me go!" Soojin whines, trying to loosen each of Soyeon's fingers to get her death grip away from her reddening wrist as she's being dragged into the locker rooms; the door being slammed and locked shut by the younger. "What's this about now..."
"Tell me." Soyeon sternly said, pulling both of them to sit down on the bench. "What— what are you trying to make me tell you? I don't know anything about whatever this is about. I don't know anything at all, I swear!" Soojin blabbered as she tried to get out of this fiasco as soon as possible.
"About Yuqi's new boyfriend!" Soyeon nearly screams, but she immediately clasps both of her hands together as she slaps them to cover her mouth. "Boyfriend? I already told you, as much as you're a sucker for her love, every single one of Yuqi's male friends isn't her romantic boyfriend—"
"But you don't get-"
"No buts!" retaliated Soojin, hushing Soyeon by placing a finger on her lips. "Stop overreacting. I'm pretty sure she's still single, open for you to grab by the way, and even if you think she has a boyfriend, it's probably nothing. You're getting too caught up, Soyeon." But then Soyeon bites her finger, making Soojin hiss.
"Son of a bitch— SHUHUA!" screamed Soojin as she stood up, but Soyeon immediately pushes her back down on the bench while covering her mouth. "No, no Shuhua!"
"You really don't get it, Soojin. They were all lovey-dovey! They're laughing, joking, and Yuqi was squishing his cheeks!" screamed Soyeon, voice hinted desperation and romantic longing. Okay, the way she describes it catches Soojin for a little bit, although she's doubtful because of how many times Soyeon tends to exaggerate any interaction Yuqi has with a guy.
Yes, this isn't the first time this has happened.
"Okay...? She didn't tell me anything about having a partner, but I'll try to recall anything she told me about this guy who you think is apparently her new boyfriend," Soojin rolled her eyes. "What did he look like?"
"He's, uhm," Soyeon swallows thickly. "He's blonde, really tall—way taller than me, probably like 6 feet or something—he also has this one tattoo on his neck, hair is slicked back. Good looking."
Sounds like Yuqi's dream boy, frowned Soyeon. Tall blonde guys, tattooed, good looking and strong enough to protect her from anything... everything Soyeon isn't. But she has tattoos too!.. she even went blonde once just for Yuqi, yet the latter didn't make any other comment about her hair aside from wow, it suits you very much!
And once Soojin picks up on the description Soyeon gave her, she perks up. She's stifling a bark of laughter that's coming out in small giggles and breaths. Soyeon furrows her eyebrows in mild offense and confusion, feeling like she's the one being laughed at and not laughed with here.
"What's so funny?"
"It's literally so obv—" Soojin pauses; later chuckles when she realizes she could mess around with Soyeon for a while.
"I know him. Shuhua told me about him since Yuqi told her about him as well," Soyeon tilts her head like a puppy. That sounded like a tongue twister. "But I won't tell you anything. It's up to you to find out, and I'm also just intrigued by what your reaction would be."
"WHAT!" Soyeon stands up and stomps her tiny feet. "Tell me, oh Soojin! Just tell me who he is and I'll leave you alone!"
"No can do, Yeon. If you're really perseverant about pursuing Yuqi then you might as well have to find out who this boy is, yourself."
Soyeon gets on her knees, all puppy eyed and acting cute. "Please, Soojin?" begged the younger. Doing all this just to know some further information about a boy? Awkward for Soyeon's part, but hilarious for Soojin's. "No. And stand up, the way you're acting is disgusting. I have to go now anyway." replied Soojin, and almost immediately, she was out of the room. Ugh!
She needs answers.
Soyeon really needs to know the truth!
Now after a few seconds turned into minutes, minutes turned into hours—or hours of running away from Yuqi and avoiding her anywhere, Soyeon still hasn't gotten an actually helpful clue on who that man was. Not even Shuhua, Yuqi's closest friend and confidant, gave her a detailed clue or hint. The only thing she knew was that he's Chinese like Yuqi. That's it. That fact doesn't speak much.
She doesn't want to confront Yuqi. It's a bit silly, Soyeon doesn't even know why she's avoiding her, but she does, for a fact, run away from things or people that'd hurt her.
But Soyeon realizes she's not going to get anywhere if she keeps this up, so she's gonna take a deep breath, have some courage, and ask Yuqi herself. Soyeon's finally gonna have the balls to ask Yuqi after trying so hard to regain her composure. Yay! Awesome! A big milestone, perhaps?
Or, well, just suck it up. Accept everything, Yuqi has a boyfriend and Soyeon's been a hopeless romantic for all her life now, so might as well just tell her how she feels before fading away for eternity's end.
Is it not a bit amusing how everything Soyeon has to do is ask instead of going through a dramatic timeline? Although the fact she, herself, is aware can make up for it.
It's break time.
The Korean walks into the cafeteria after looking around for a good while to be aware of any sight of Yuqi. None, just great.
Wait, maybe she was wrong.
Yuqi's seated with that same blonde boy from earlier, enjoying a good snack with him. Okay, understandable. Soyeon can put up with that—but not for the fact that she seems happier with him than every other time she has lunch with her..
The boy says something that makes Yuqi's face flush, and he laughs, adding another remark about it and poking her cheek. They're having a conversation albeit in their mother tongue; it should be odd enough that Soyeon heard the faint mention of her name. Were they making fun of her?
The way he laughs, he speaks, he jokes, and the way Yuqi grins and giggles in response makes Soyeon want to rip her eyes out of its sockets!
That was the turning point for her.
That's it!
"Yuqi." Soyeon sternly calls stomping her way to their table, startling Yuqi but not quite catching the attention of the blonde boy whose head was tilted down. "Soyeon-ah! What can I do for y—"
"Can we please talk?"
"Ah, sure, about what?" asked Yuqi, barely having any more time to add to her question as Soyeon's already beckoning her outside the cafeteria once she agreed. "Yah- unnie! Baby! I'm sorry if I did something wrong, I'm really sorry! Please don't—" The commotion makes the crowd turn to both girls, and even the boy himself.
But just as when he looks back up to check on the noise, Yuqi is already nowhere to be found. He's bewildered; Yuqi's food sadly left alone and unfinished. "Biǎojiě! Where did you go?!" he yelled.
Yuqi's brought to the fountain within the school's plaza. Her eyebrows are furrowed in discomfort and confusion; being completely oblivious as to why Soyeon's been acting so... anxious? rushed? troubled? Her forearm's already going sore from how long it's been grasped. Oh god.
Don't tell me I'm gonna get drowned here?
"Jiĕjie." Yuqi forcibly jerks her arm away from the older's hold, "Just why, out of every possible time, did you bring me here during break? You could've just asked to meet me later!"
"You don't get it Yuqi, I don't have much time. There's something I've been meaning to tell you, you know?" Soyeon grabs her two hands, holding them together as she stares into Yuqi's eyes with earnest emotion. As much as the Chinese is growing impatient, she's forced to listen just to get over with—whatever this is.
"What is it?" replied Yuqi, nearly emotionless and bored making her words seem like a non-question.
Soyeon takes a deep sigh. "I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time, but I never got the chance. You know, I don't want to get in the way of your new relationship, but—"
"New relationship?" Yuqi flinched in surprise, voice laced with shock since she's obviously been caught off guard by the sudden accusation. "What— what new relationship are you talking about, Soyeon—"
Soyeon doesn't even pause what she's revealing to her. Her eyes are clamped shut, breathing hurried, her lips quivered with each word that slipped out of herself. "...but I really like you Yuqi, or love you even, and it's okay if you don't love me back. I just needed to get this off my chest." she finishes; she's suddenly scared at the silence bestowed upon her.
Okay, what the actual fuck?
Things were such a mess on Yuqi's side. First, Soyeon thought she was dating someone, and second, she suddenly says she's fallen deeply in love with Yuqi? Sudden accusations and revelations are so much that it's overwhelming her mind and her heart all at once!
Soyeon flutters her eyes open; merely met with the expression of shock painted on Yuqi's face. Eyes wide open, lips pursed tight, cheeks tinged light pink.
"Yu.. Yuqi? Are you okay?" asked Soyeon, lightly poking Yuqi's soft cheek as if she'd turned to stone. She expects her to retort in anger, followed by a harsh slap and a string of curses to her face, but neither happens. Instead, Soyeon is suddenly engulfed in the tightest hug she's ever been in as Yuqi whispers soft praises and I like you's and love you too's in her ear.
"Oh my god, unnie," Yuqi cried. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Of course I love you too, so much.."
"Hey- Woah," Soyeon pushes Yuqi away from her, much to her disapproval as the latter whined. "I don't think you get it. I mean, I meant I have romantic feelings for you. I love you more than just as a friend. I'm afraid that's not what you're thinking of..."
"What?! You're an idiot! I like you too, well, romantically, of course. I love you so much! You don't know how much I've been waiting for this moment," Yuqi smiled with tears of joy and a hint of sadness in her eyes, but Soyeon still looked perturbed even after having received her reassurance. "But... don't you, um, have a boyfriend?" she said, albeit shyly. She didn't want to suddenly become a homewrecker.
"Boyfriend? What are you talking about?"
"Um," Soyeon fidgeted with her fingers. "You know..."
"I know? Seriously, I really don't know what you're talking about."
"The blonde guy you were with," she swallows. "...he's your boyfriend, right?"
And it just makes Soyeon feel all the more embarrassed about her question once Yuqi breaks into a fit of laughter. She's cracking up, hands on her knees, whilst Soyeon simply stands there awkwardly as she watches her. "What's so funny..."
"No it's just, ah," Yuqi pauses to catch her breath. "Boyfriend? He's my cousin! You know, Quánruì? He also goes by Ricky."
"Oh my god..." the Korean hides her face in her hands, tearing up a little bit since she's put so on the spot after her assumption got proved wrong by the person involved directly in it. "Wait, no, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to laugh at you, really, but it's a bit funny how you thought Ricky was my boyfriend." said Yuqi, pulling Soyeon into a hug.
"But— but I don't get it!" Soyeon starts, looking up at Yuqi. "You guys were all touchy, all kind of like flirting and smiley, so I thought he was some kind of good-looking jock boy and you were dating him!"
"No, it's not like that at all." Yuqi replies, gliding her hand down Soyeon's head in a soothing motion. "Well, yeah, I tend to get affectionate with people but that would also include me being close to my relatives. I haven't seen Ricky in like, years, so I really just had to squeeze his cheeks to emphasize how much he's grown. We've been really, really close since childhood."
Soyeon buries her head into the crook of Yuqi's neck. "Yeah, it makes sense now. I also really thought you both were making fun of me back at the cafeteria since I heard my name," she mumbled.
"What? No! He was actually teasing me about, err," Yuqi hesitated. "My crush on you."
"Really?" Soyeon perks up. Yuqi's recent confession sounded like music to her ears. Sure, she said she also felt the same just a few moments earlier but it wasn't quite the best feeling when she thought Yuqi and her cousin were partners. But now that everything's clear, hearing Yuqi say that out loud is so satisfying to hear.
"Yes. I thought it'd be obvious enough that I liked you. I was even sad when you kept avoiding me on campus."
"Oh, that." Soyeon sheepishly grins. "Yes, I'm sorry about that. But hey, let's focus on the present. We're each other's, now." she smiles, and Yuqi can't help but pull the older back in her embrace once more.
"But I thought you'd know by now, since I even told you about his arrival yesterday...?"
Soyeon grimaced. "Riiiight. I forgot. I'm sorry."
"Biǎojiě— Oh, there you are." Ricky sighed as he started walking towards the newly developed couple. "You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend!" he says, clapping in glee.
"About that, we just started dating." replied Yuqi, and Soyeon didn't have a choice but to smile and nod— well, both of them were talking in their native language and she couldn't understand a thing. "Yuqi, I don't get any of what you guys are saying." she timidly whispered.
"Sorry," Yuqi replied. "Quánruì, speak in Korean. She can't understand Chinese." she mouthed.
"Ah, right—"
The younger boy bowed a sharp 90 degree.
"Hello, noona! It's nice to finally meet you!" Soyeon feels touched by the gesture, although she doesn't see the need for formalities. "It's okay, no need to be so formal. Nice to meet you as well."
The Korean bites her inner cheek. She's not really sure how to look at Ricky in the eye after... what happened. Anyways, well, that's all in the past. She should just get over it, and focus on the present especially when Yuqi's finally her girlfriend. But holy fucking hell, her cousin's tall! Even taller from how she saw him in the distance earlier. She chuckles at the way his height genetics didn't quite reach Yuqi that much.
"Let's go back and have lunch, you two!"
And Soyeon thinks, she should really, next time, avoid overthinking and probably find ways to soothe and confirm her troubles.