faraway | purinz

track 002

TRACK 002

first love

NEW YORK, UNITED STATES ♥ JANUARY 12, NINE YEARS LATER

Yunjin discovered her love of guitar right before she discovered how she felt for Chaewon.

Yunjin had considered herself more of a singer up until that point, and taking middle school music classes made her discover that she wasn't just a singer. She was a guitarist.

Her fingers flying across the frets and dancing across the strings as music slipped around, under, and through her voice as she sang. It was the perfect blend, like coffee at night, like sunsets on rooftops. Guitar was her outlet; she would never be criticized for saying the wrong words or sending the wrong message with it. Yunjin began taking guitar classes outside of school, and she started to write her own songs.

The moment Yunjin fell for Chaewon, an entire song wrote itself inside her head.

It wasn't overly romantic or anything. They were in music class, and Yunjin was strumming a lazy melody on the acoustic guitar while everyone around them warmed up or prepared instruments. She was humming to herself when Chaewon began to sing.

"It's like you got superpowers, turn my minutes into hours," she started, and Yunjin's fingers instantly formed the chords of the familiar song. Chaewon had always loved Ariana Grande, and "pov" was her favorite song. She would always sing it at karaoke, or when she was daydreaming.

Like now.

"You've got more than 20/20 babe, made of glass the way you see through me," Chaewon continued, her soft voice mixing with Yunjin's guitar, and that was when Yunjin realized that her eyes had not moved from Chaewon at all.

And then it hit her.

Yunjin panicked for a good week after that.

Her heart broke the speed limit when Chaewon walked into a room. Her palms began to sweat, and her throat went dry. She found herself paying attention to everything so uniquely Chaewon, always keeping the older within her peripheral vision. Yunjin's fall for Chaewon had been slow- music classes, study sessions, laughing in the schoolyard- but her realization had been fast. Chaewon's soft voice had hit Yunjin like a fire truck.

Thank God Chaewon hadn't been Yunjin's gay awakening- that would have resulted in several embarrassing weeks of discovery- but she had certainly been some sort of awakening. Colors sharpened, smells intensified. The world became alive whenever Chaewon was around Yunjin. The sky was always blue. The outlook was always positive. The sun was always shining. Yunjin could never be sad.

That was the beginning.

The innocent little I'm-in-like-with-you.

But then one day, Yunjin had tripped and fallen right in love with her best friend. Not the innocent kind of love she'd been in before. The all-encompassing kind.

It was a day like any other, except for the fact that Chaewon was sleeping over. The two girls rarely had sleepovers nowadays, but the next day was the beginning of a long school break, so their parents had agreed. Chaewon turned up on Yunjin's doorstep with her bags and a grin that rivaled the sun.

(It was second nature- not her crush on her best friend- that compelled her to take the bags and then squeeze Chaewon to death in a hug.)

"Whoa, Yunjinnie," Chaewon coughed, patting her back. "You'd think I vanished for fifteen years or something. I'm going to break my back."

"Pupu," was all Yunjin mumbled in response, burying her face in Chaewon's short black locks, keeping her arms wrapped tight around the shorter girl. Chaewon went quiet and squeezed Yunjin back softly.

Can she hear my heart beating?

Does she know how fast it is?

Yunjin's heartbeat was raging out of control as Chaewon pulled away with a gentle smile. "I'm excited to spend time with you too."

Yunjin grinned and took Chaewon's bags, bouncing up the stairs towards her room.

They spent the rest of the night doing classic sleepover activities- curling Chaewon's bangs, braiding Yunjin's long hair, doing their nails, gossiping, and finally, watching a movie. Chaewon curled up on Yunjin's couch wearing her sleep shorts and an oversized T-shirt, and Yunjin's heart battered out of control.

Yunjin walked forward slowly and took a tentative seat next to Chaewon, being careful not to touch her.

If she touches me right now, I think I might-

Chaewon moved forward and leaned her head on Yunjin's shoulder.

Oh, shit.

Yunjin's heart began to beat erratically again, and for the first time, her thirteen-year-old heart had just devoted itself wholly to one person.

Kim Chaewon.

Her heartbeat sped up, but now every beat pounding through Yunjin's chest whispered Chaewon's name as the girl in question leaned closer, her breath brushing across Yunjin's ear as the movie began. They were cuddled up under a blanket, but although it was somewhat cold, Yunjin was sweating from the proximity.

"Are you cold, Yunjinnie?"

"Mm- a little," Yunjin lied.

"Okay," Chaewon noted, and then she stayed immobile for a split second- then got up and snuggled into Yunjin's side.

"Oh," she whispered softly as the raven buried her face in the crook of Yunjin's neck. Yunjin's body only grew warmer, her traitorous heart speeding up yet again.

Yup.

Whipped for Kim Chaewon.

Middle school continued in a similar pattern. Yunjin had many friends in those years, but she was always closest to Chaewon. It was the same for the older girl; even her friends agreed that the younger was definitely Chaewon's best friend.

Yunjin's crush never faded, and turned into a raging love for Chaewon once high school began and everything intensified by a million.