CH. VII

 

‘Are you sure this is okay?’ 

 

‘Ryuddaeng, I’ve said it five million times, it was literally Coach's idea.’ 

 

Ryujin and Chaeryeong were walking through the halls of Chaeryeong’s high school, Ryujin just finished getting changed in the changerooms and were now heading out to the field to meet the rest of the team. 

 

‘It just doesn’t feel real.’ Ryujin said, a look of awe on her face. 

 

‘Well, you better believe it, baby, cause it’s real!’ 

 

Ryujin didn’t miss the way her body shivered slightly at Chaeryeong calling her baby. 

 

‘Also, can you slow down a little bit? I can’t keep up.’ 

 

Ryujin stopped and pouted at Chaeryeong. ‘I forgot, you’re crippled.’ 

 

‘At least I don’t have my crutches anymore, you .’ Chaeryeong laughed and pushed Ryujin’s shoulder slightly. 

 

Ryujin faked hurt and held onto her shoulder, shaking her head. 

 

‘And to think that I was going to give you a piggyback ride to the field.’ Ryujin said dramatically holding her hand to her chest. 

 

‘Ryujin!’ 

 

‘I’m just joking!’ Ryujin said, rubbing her shoulder. Chaeryeong had landed a hard hit onto her as she mocked running away. 

 

Chaeryeong huffed. 

 

Ryujin crouched down, pointing to her back. 

 

‘Get on, princess.’ 

 

‘You were serious about carrying me?’ Chaeryeong said, laughing quietly to herself. 

 

Ryujin turned around so that she could meet Chaeryeong’s eyes. ‘When have I ever lied to you?’ 

 

Something in Chaeryeong’s eyes sparkled. 

 

Then she shook her head and let out another laugh as she climbed onto Ryujin’s back, draping her arms over her shoulders and interlocking her arms across Ryujin’s collarbones. She leaned her head onto the side of Ryujin’s. 

 

‘Yeah.’ Chaeryeong smiled happily as she snuggled into Ryujin some more. ‘You’re a lot of things, Shin Ryujin, but you’re definitely not a liar.’ 

 

‘Lying .’ 

 

‘Agreed.’ 

 

They traveled the rest of the way in a comfortable silence, the only sound coming from Ryujin’s water bottle shaking and rattling against something else in her bag. 

 

Ryujin and Chaeryeong didn’t need much conversation for them to enjoy each other’s presence. Just being there with each other was always enough for them. 

 

Ryujin loved Hyunjin and Yujin to bits but after hanging out with them for long hours, Ryujin needs a break in some way like playing a sport or just some alone time in the bathroom. For example, Yujin was very much conversationally driven. Ryujin didn’t mind talking to her, she always had interesting things to say but sometimes she just wanted to sit and think to herself. Which she would be able to do when she was alone with Hyunjin, but the problem with Hyunjin was that sometimes she was too quiet and would keep to herself a lot. She would always get lost into her own spiritual, hippie thoughts or whatever it was that she would think about. 

 

Whereas with Chaeryeong, it was always just right. They would have just the right amount of conversation and just the right amount of down time and silence for Ryujin to be satisfied. Every moment spent with Chaeryeong was always great. Whether they were playing soccer together, or chatting behind the counter at work or even just sitting next to each other on their phones, Ryujin loved every moment with Chaeryeong. 

 

‘Captain!’ 

 

‘Ryujin sunbaenim!’ 

 

As soon as they stepped onto the field, the entirety of the soccer team came running towards Ryujin and Chaeryeong. 

 

Ryujin was pretty popular outside of her own school, too. 

 

‘Today, Ryujin will be your captain.’ Chaeryeong smiled. ‘I’m just the vice captain, today.’ 

 

Ryujin and Chaeryeong shot each other a look, as if to say ‘just like how it’s supposed to be.’ 

 

‘There she is.’ One of the girls nodded towards the side of the field. 

 

Everyone turned their gaze to rest on their coach talking to a caucasian woman and her translator. They all felt a chill run down their spines. Even Ryujin felt her hands sweat up a little bit. 

 

‘Don’t look at her.’ Chaeryeong told her team and Ryujin. ‘Just focus on playing, you guys will be fine.’ 

 

She shot a look at Ryujin who nodded her head and got the hint to say something.

 

‘Alright, St Mary’s!’ Ryujin clapped her hands. ‘Let’s run a couple laps around the field to warm up.’ 

 

She felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to see Chaeryeong shaking her head. 

 

‘Stretches, first.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

‘Right.’ Ryujin scratched her head. ‘What she said.’ 

 

As the team got to their stretches, Ryujin noticed Chaeryeong trying to limp her way towards the bench. Quickly, she reached an arm to wrap around her waist, her other hand resting by her hip to steady her. 

 

Chaeryeong looked up at Ryujin when she felt the sudden movement and their eyes met, their faces dangerously close. Ryujin couldn’t help the small smile on her face when Chaeryeong was looking up at her with such innocent eyes. 

 

‘Thanks.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

They made their way to the bench and Chaeryeong sat down, Ryujin placing her sports bag next to her so she could rest her arm against it. She took out her blanket and placed it on top of Chaeryeong’s legs, noticing the girl was shivering a little bit.

 

‘It’s like taking care of me is your job.’ Chaeryeong laughed. 

 

Ryujin shrugged. ‘I told you I’d always have your back. I like to keep my promises.’ 

 

‘You still remember that?’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

Thank God, because Chaeryeong always felt too embarrassed to bring it up, scared Ryujin had forgotten it and she was the only one who remembered their promise. 

 

‘How can I forget? I pinky promised you, Lee Chaeryeong.’ Ryujin said. 

 

She held out her pinky with a soft smile and Chaeryeong couldn’t help but stare at the finger with a giggle. Chaeryeong brought out her pinky and interlocked it with Ryujin, grinning up at the other girl.

 

It was almost moments like this where the two seemed to get lost in their own little world. 

 

Which is why Chaeryeong couldn’t help but beckon Ryujin forward with her free hand, as if to tell her a secret. 

 

Ryujin raised an eyebrow and bent down so she could reach Chaeryeong’s face, turning her head so she could hear whatever it was that Chaeryeong was going to say. 

 

‘What’s up?’ Ryujin said. 

 

Except she got no response. 

 

At least verbally. 

Instead, she felt soft lips press against her cheek. 

 

It was so soft and so light and it was over before Ryujin knew it. But even after the lips were gone she could still feel it lingering on her skin, she could still feel her heart beating just a little bit faster. 

 

‘What was that for?’ Ryujin said with a quirk of her eyebrow, a small smirk hinting at her lips. 

 

‘Just to let you know that if you ever feel nervous, try not to look at the scout,’ Chaeryeong said, ‘just look at me.’ 

 

Ryujin straightened back up and looked down at Chaeryeong, only then realising just how close to each other they were. Chaeryeong had shifted from interlocking their pinkies together to holding Ryujin’s in hers, beaming up the other soccer player.

 

‘Now go, play some soccer.’ Chaeryeong said and pat Ryujin’s hip, reluctantly separating her hand from hers. 

 

Ryujin saluted. ‘Yes, captain.’ 

 

Ryujin felt that the practice had gone well. During the practice and warm-ups, Ryujin was able to show her exceptional skill, as well as holding back a little to make sure that she gelled well with the team. One of her pet peeves was when one person was obviously good at the game and made sure that they were showing off. It was a team sport, not Korea’s Got Talent. 

 

However, during the scrimmage was not as smooth sailing. It was a tough match, with the other team scoring a goal close to when they started. It took Ryujin awhile to try and adjust to the St Mary’s style of play, so she was kept on her toes a little bit and their temporary team didn’t seem to have good synergy. 

 

Ryujin took a deep breath when she saw they only had 5 minutes left. She bit her lip, shooting a worried glance at the scout who had on a pokerface the entire time. But Ryujin knew that she was seeing more than she was letting on. Scouts always made sure to look at everybody, everything and every little moment on and off the field. 

 

Ryujin shook her head, feeling a sense of nervousness down her spine. Or maybe it was a shiver from the cold weather. 

 

She turned her head to the other side of the field, hoping that Chaeryeong was warm. 

 

Ryujin was surprised to see Chaeryeong already staring at her. As soon as they gained eye contact, Ryujin saw Chaeryeong’s whole face brighten up. 

 

And Ryujin couldn’t help but smile back at her, too. 

 

She heard the rest of the St Mary’s team collectively gasp. 

 

‘What’s up?’ She raised an eyebrow at them. 

 

They all looked away, all the girls doing a mixture of awkward hair touching, awkward swaying, awkward looking around the field and awkward coughs. 

 

‘We’ve just never seen you smile before.’ One of the girls said. ‘Captain Chaeryeong always said that you had a pretty smile.’ 

 

‘She did?’ Ryujin said, turning around to catch Chaeryeong’s eye again and shoot her a wink. ‘Tell her that I think her smile is pretty, too.’ 

 

Then the girls in the team collectively started to murmur giddily to themselves. 

 

‘3 minutes, ladies!’ 

 

Oh, right. They were playing soccer. 

 

…………………….

 

After the practice, while Ryujin was shivering in her short sleeves, Chaeryeong had stood up quickly and wrapped her jacket around her shoulders as soon as Ryujin made her way over to her. She started to adjust her jacket, tenderly placing a heat back underneath and onto her shoulders and Ryujin couldn’t help but stare at her, Chaeryeong’s nose red from the cold. It took Ryujin everything in her not to lean in a plant a soft kiss onto her red nose. 

 

‘Stop looking at me like that.’ Chaeryeong said. 

 

‘Like what?’ Ryujin said. 

 

Chaeryeong looked up to meet Ryujin’s eyes, a soft smile on her face. 

 

All of time seemed to stop just briefly for Ryujin. 

 

‘Like that.’ 

 

Ryujin returned Chaeryeong’s eye contact for a couple more moments, before clearing and shyly looking away from Chaeryeong’s eyes. Chaeryeong did the same, patting the heat pack through Ryujin’s jacket. 

 

Chaeryeong smiled satisfactorily at the small lump where the heatpack was. 

 

‘There. Can’t have you getting sick.’ 

 

Ryujin froze.

 

No way. This cannot be happening right now. 

 

Suddenly, Ryujin grabbed her bag. 

 

‘I um, I have to go. I’m meeting up with Hyunjin and Yujin and I can’t be late.’ Ryujin said. 

 

She had started jogging off already when she turned around to face Chaeryeong. 

 

‘Thank you.’ Ryujin said. ‘I’ll see you later.’ 

 

Chaeryeong could only half heartedly watch her leave, her hand waving at Ryujin’s retreating figure. 

 

When she turned the corner, Ryujin collapsed against the fence, her fingers gripping on desperately to try and steady herself. 

 

She held her head, trying to get rid of the thoughts that were showing up in her mind. 

 

‘There. Can’t have you getting sick.’ 

 

It was scary, just how completely the same the words were. Word for word, as if Chaeryeong were quoting it. 

 

Ryujin closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to bury the scene in the bottom of her mind. 

 

It worked, but not before she heard her Mom’s happy giggle echo through her head. 

 

……………...

 

FLASHBACK: Sophomore Year, 3 months before Chaeryeong’s transfer

 

Ryujin was certain. 

 

After a couple months of shy glances at each other, lingering touches and soft smiles, Ryujin knew it was time to do it. 

 

She had to tell Chaeryeong how she felt. 

 

She was going to do it tomorrow, after their soccer game. She didn’t have enough time to do her grand and elaborate scheme of getting the entire crowd to spell out her confession to Chaeryeong, but she did ask the jazz band to do a version of Chaeryeong’s favorite song: I Think You Kinda You Know. They were hesitant at first, but their drummer, Ahn Yujin, bless the girl’s heart, was way too excited about it and was able to convince the band to do it. 

 

Suddenly, a stiffled cough broke her out of her thoughts. 

 

Ryujin turned her head to look at the culprit. 

 

‘Mom.’ Ryujin said. ‘Are you sure you’re okay? Maybe you should go to bed early tonight.’ 

 

‘I’m fine.’ Ryujin’s Mom said, sniffing a little bit. ‘I want to celebrate your Dad’s promotion.’ 

 

At the mention of her Dad, he entered the room, watching his wife quizzically. 

 

‘I think Ryujin’s right.’ her Dad said. ‘Instead of going out tonight, maybe you should stay home and rest. We can celebrate another time. Besides, I have some stuff I have to finish at work, anyways.’ 

 

‘No.’ Ryujin’s Mom said. ‘I’m fine, honey.’ 

 

As if on cue, she shivered lightly. 

 

Her Dad shook his head. 

 

‘Another time.’ He said. 

 

Then he made his way over to his wife, placing the blanket around her shoulders. 

 

‘There. Can’t have you getting sick.’ He said. ‘Or at least, more sick than you already are.’ 

 

He planted a soft kiss on his wife’s head. 

 

‘I love you.’ Ryujin’s Mom said as he turned to leave. Her Dad stood at the door, his hand frozen at the doorknob. 

 

‘I love you, too.’ 

 

Then he opened the door and left the house. 

 

Ryujin couldn’t help but smile at the door, and then at her Mom. Her parents were so cute together. Yes, she would cringe sometimes because what daughter or son wouldn’t cringe at their parents being romantic, but other times, Ryujin thought that they really showcased what love was. 

 

‘Dad’s so sweet.’ Ryujin said. 

 

‘He is.’ Her Mom said. ‘You know, you remind me a lot about him.’ 

 

Ryujin smiled at that, her father was one of the people that she looked up to the most. Maybe because she felt they were always so similar. She had heard stories of her father in High School, and he was very similar to Ryujin; always knew what he wanted, captain of his football team, was almost suspended because he was caught making out with someone in the janitor’s closet. Though, Ryujin’s parents only knew about the first two on that list, definitely not the latter. Not that it mattered anymore because she hadn’t done that since Chaeryeong. 

 

Ryujin made a mental note to herself to talk to her Dad about Chaeryeong and ask for advice. She didn’t want to screw anything up with her. She wanted a good relationship like her Mom and Dad. 

 

…………….

 

It was weird, it was like her body had instinctively made its own way down the street and onto a bus that went the opposite way to her house. It was weird how well she remembered everything, the way to get to the place she knew she was making her way to. 

 

6 stops, that was all it took. Ryujin made her way off the bus and walked a block more, until she made it to the place she was looking for. 

 

This was the place. This was where everything changed. 

 

……………

 

‘Mom, I could have bought the beef myself, you know?’ Ryujin said, shooting her Mom a worried glance when she coughed a little. 

 

‘You may be 16-years-old but I still don’t want you travelling this far. Especially this late in the night.’ Her Mom said. ‘We’ll be quick.’ 

 

Ryujin just sighed in defeat, wrapping her jacket a little closer around her. 

 

They had walked a block or so before her Mom stopped in front of a fancy looking restaurant with a smile on her face.

 

‘Did you know, this was where your Dad took me on our first date.’ Her Mom said. 

 

Ryujin looked at the fancy lighting, the ladies in dresses and heels and well dressed men waiting on the red carpet and the waiter in the suit and tie calling out numbers. 

 

‘How the hell did Dad afford all this?’ Ryujin said. 

 

‘He’s always been a hard worker.’ Her Mom said. ‘He worked hard at his internship just so that he could take me here. He worked hard instead of focusing his entire life on football, you know?’ 

 

Ryujin rolled her eyes. Of course her Mom would always find a way to make it about sports. Ryujin just shook her head, choosing to not engage in an argument especially when they were right outside a fancy restaurant. 

 

‘Can we look at the menu? I want to see the prices.’ Ryujin said. 

 

Her Mom just laughed. 

 

Even the menu looked expensive, yet the actual prices of the food on it. 

 

‘Wow.’ Ryujin said. ‘One dish is like my entire month salary.’ 

 

‘You know, now that we’re here, I think I’ll just takeaway for his favorite dish. He really loves their steak because of the sauce and the fancy mashed potatoes.’ Her Mom said. ‘Would you like anything, Ryujin?’ 

 

All the food looked good, but like father like daughter, the steak was the one that stuck out to her the most. 

 

So, there they were at the counter ordering food at an expensive restaurant that looked like it could buy Ryujin’s entire life. 

 

Ryujin let her eyes wander around the room, observing all of the people on their dates, everyone looked so pretty in their dresses and all the men looked good because they actually groomed their hairs for once. 

 

Then she saw it. 

 

She had to blink a few times to make sure what she was seeing was right. She leaned her head closer and squinted a little to get a closer look. 

 

‘What are you looking at?’ Her Mom laughed. Ryujin felt her mirror her expression, looking in the same direction as she was.

 

‘Oh, is that—‘ 

 

Ryujin’ s Mom couldn’t finish her sentence. She was too stunned to say anything. 

 

There, sitting in a booth near the window was Ryujin’s father, her husband, eating his favourite steak. 

 

But he wasn’t paying attention to the steak at all. 

 

Instead, he had one hand grasped around the hands of another lady, bringing it up slightly so he could press his lips onto them. A single rose made its way into her free hand and she giggled and hugged it closer to her chest. 

 

And then, he kissed her. 

 

Not on the cheek. Not on the forehead. Ryujin’s Dad leaned forward and planted his lips on another pair of lips that did not belong to Ryujin’s Mom, his wife. 

 

‘Let’s get out of here, Ryujin.’ 

 

Ryujin felt rage bubble up inside of her. 

 

‘What? No! We have to do something! I’ll go over there right now and curse him out!’ 

 

‘You will not do anything of the sort.’ Ryujin’s Mom said. She lifted her purse up a bit more and gently pushed Ryujin out the door, refusing to look her husband’s way and her eyes downcast to try and hide the tears that were so close to spilling out. 

 

………………….

 

As Ryujin stared at the table where she saw her father with another woman, she tried to recall what had happened afterwards but to no avail. Everything that had happened after that was honestly all a blur to Ryujin. She had no clue what had happened on the way home and later that night when her Father came home after being unfaithful. It must have been all too overwhelming for Ryujin. 

 

All she remembered was the pain she felt in her heart every time she would hear her Mom sobbing quietly into her pillows. The pain she felt when her father suddenly disappeared from her life, without a trace. 

 

Most importantly, she remembered the pain she felt when she looked Chaeryeong in the eyes and told her that she didn’t believe in love, and that Chaeryeong shouldn’t waste her time with her. 

 

…………………

 

A/N: 

 

I feel like this chapter is a mess but I’m still a mess from Loona 1st win so pls forgive me. Anyways, here is ur ryuryeong folks!! Now we know why Ryujin and Chaeryeong never dated. 

 

As always, thank you for all of your votes and comments and subscribes! You have no idea how much these comments mean to me. If you want, you can leave me questions, comments or just random things about Izone, Loona, itzy or twice right here!! (Songs by girl groups are also very much recommended here) https://curiouscat.me/yurigetic