I Used To Be Alright

Chapter 8

Yeji

The car ride going to the airport was a little awkward.

For the first time during the whole trip, Minjeong avoided Yeji. She casually took the shotgun seat and fiddled with her phone the whole time. Ryujin, despite being seated next to Yeji, kept her eyes closed – looking like she barely got any sleep the night before, which was expected. Lia remained quiet, too.

Despite Minju's effort to strike up small talks with Yeji and her friends, the whole setup left them feeling discouraged to keep the conversation going.

She isn't sure what happened with half of the group but it was an eventful dinner for Yeji the night before.

"I'm glad we get to spend dinner alone before our departure tomorrow." Minjeong was smiling from ear to ear as she led Yeji towards their table.

The restaurant was a beautiful place with a coastal inspired theme, featuring palettes of soft blue and white in its interior. The windows are huge and part of its charm is the view of the ocean and the clear sound of the waves gently crashin nearby.

They were situated in a corner seat away from the rest of the other customers.

Minjeong surely put in a lot of preparation for this. It must've cost a lot, too. Yeji thought as she smiled towards her expecting date.

She remained composed throughout the night – nodding and acknowledging the stories of the other girl and only offering minimal answers when asked. She has prepared herself on what she'll say once the topic comes up. She knew that the purpose of this dinner was to finally get her answer, and she stayed up all night thinking about the proper way to say it.

She initially planned on asking Ryujin for help but found out from her friends that she decided to spend the last two nights over another girl's house. She has always left the brunette alone when it comes to her quests with women. And it has always been that way.

That's why she was a little confused when she felt a hint of defeat when she was informed about it. Is it because she really needed help? She made herself believe that. It's the most sensible reason, after all.

She was even surprised that it took Ryujin a while before actually finding someone to mess around with. She behaved pretty strangely during the first several days.

She was brought back to consciousness when she found her eyes focusing on a smiling Minjeong in front of her – eyes shining expectantly.

Did she say something?

"I-I'm sorry Minjeong-ah. I was out of my mind for a second there. D-did you say something?"

Minjeong's smile faltered for a quick second but she regained the look of excitement immediately after.

"Have you thought about... you know... the date, Yeji-ah?"

Yeji lightly shook her head to get in the proper headspace. The least she can do is to be present and give Minjeong a proper conversation.

She took a deep breath and paused.

"I did." She finally spoke up.

The stern expression on her face already causing Minjeong's smile to disappear.

"I really appreciate you asking me, Minjeong-ah. And I enjoy your company a lot. I like that we like the same things. And I might not be the smartest when it comes to this thing – but I've always prided myself in knowing what I want and what I don't."

She took another breath and held Minjeong's stare.

"I'm sorry. I don't think I like you that way, Minjeong-ah."

Minjeong's head dropped and the clear disappointment was all over her face.

"Oh."

"You see, I haven't really thought about relationships at all. And I wouldn't be that good of a girlfriend, anyway."

Yeji added, in an attempt to lessen the negative damage.

Minjeong's head stayed low and Yeji let her – figured she needed time to process everything.

Never in her life did she think that she'd be in this kind of situation now. But the last thing she wanted was to lie and be caught in a situation that she didn't want to be in.

The dinner ended briefly and when they got to the house, they returned to their own rooms without saying anything else.

So it was expected that Minjeong would act indifferent. What Yeji didn't understand was why Lia and Ryujin were acting strange, too.

The mood carried on until they boarded the plane and landed in Seoul. They said their quick goodbyes and went into their separate ways. But before they could walk away completely, Yeji impulsively walked towards Ryujin.

"Hey."

"Yeji-ah. Hi." There was a hint of surprise in the brunette's voice when she realized that Yeji approached her.

"Are you okay?"

Ryujin couldn't possibly lie with words so she kept her eyes away from the feline eye and nodded.

"Are we... cool?" She wanted to ask if they were okay, but that sounded a little off in her head, so she settled for a generic, more friendly, word.

"Y-yeah." Surprise was even more evident in her face now.

If she's being honest, Yeji doesn't completely understand what's going on either. She did feel a little upgrade on being emotionally connected to Ryujin back at that night walk on the beach – but she also felt a sudden coldness with the way she behaved after that.

Did she go overboard and sounded like she was prying into her personal life?

"We're cool. Right?" Finally, the brunette flashed her a smile that eased her mind instantly.

That earned a nod and a smile back from the feline eye.

"Alright. I'm gonna go. Talk to you soon?"

Yeji didn't wait for her reply and scurried back to where her friends were waiting.

She looked back to where Ryujin was sanding – eyes still on her – and waved one more time. The latter chuckled to herself and waved back, the same smile still on her face.