It’s always Sana and Nayeon.

 

Pictures inside Sana’s old photo albums are evidence of how attached to the hip they used to be. 

 

Rusty gears move to rewind Sana’s earliest memory of them. She remembers they’re in a park.

 

Sana’s short and wobbly legs fail to support her, and her face meets the ground. Her loud wailing gets Nayeon's attention and she immediately runs to her.

 

She helps her stand up and doesn’t remove her small arms around Sana’s until she stops crying.

 

They stay like that for a moment, but a moment feels like ages to Sana’s mother, she has to go to the park herself to fetch Sana. 

 

When Sana gets home, her mother scolds her for not taking care of herself enough.

 

None of them cry on their first day of school. While the teacher’s stressing herself on comforting the other crying children, Sana and Nayeon are in the corner drawing and coloring with their foreheads resting on each other.

 

Their primary school years were a bit tougher. Kids their age would tease Nayeon for her bunny teeth, but she doesn’t mind. Sana on the other hand, doesn’t let this pass. 

 

Everytime someone teases Nayeon, she would write an insult in the bully’s notebook or textbook. 

 

Her classmate’s cry sounds like a joke to her ears. Nayeon never fails to catch her soft victorious chuckles.

 

Sana made the school's biggest bully cry once and humiliated her in front of the whole class. The bully wouldn't stop teasing Nayeon for her teeth and unorthodox behavior. 

 

One day it got to Sana’s nerves. When the bully passes by Sana’s desk, the Japanese sneakily sticks her one foot out, causing the bully to trip.

 

Her teacher's “MINATOZAKI” stands out in her classmates’ laughter and the bully’s wailing.

 

Sana’s quick to defend herself with “It wasn't my fault she’s blind!” earning her first ticket to the guidance office. She doesn't mind, though. 

 

Letting the bully taste her own medicine and getting revenge for Nayeon’s more important. It's worth getting scolded by her mother for. Her father's there for her anyways.

 

Despite all the disapproving snarks both from their classmates and some of their teachers, Sana and Nayeon ace all their classes. In all their subjects, it's either one of them who always gets the highest grades.

 

The Japanese girl gives all the credit to the korean one. Nayeon would always teach her their lessons especially in Mathematics, the subject Sana could not quite understand why she’s studying because she would not use it in real-life situations.

 

Faculty staff don’t doubt Nayeon’s geniusness. Just her beliefs. One time, the teacher tells them that the answer to everything was the cure, and they are blessed to be born in a world where the cruelty that comes from amor deliria nervosa was annihilated.

 

However, Nayeon seems to disagree. She raises her hands as soon as the words slip from her teacher’s mouth. Suddenly, the spotlight’s on her.

 

“No, miss, you’re wrong.” Nayeon says. Pairs of eyes turn to her like sharp daggers, but it doesn’t shake her. Not even a bit. “The ultimate answer to life, universe, and everything is forty-two. I read it in ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy’ by Adam Douglas. You can look it up.”

 

Fascination rests easy on Sana as she stares at her best friend. A new lesson from the wisest person she ever knew, even wiser than Merlin himself. 

 

The corner of her lips stretches upwards. She’s lucky she has a friend like Nayeon. 

 

There’s not a boring day that passed with her or a day where Sana did not learn anything new from her.

 

As much as Sana finds this amusing, their teacher definitely doesn’t. Her teacher’s face turns sour and shakes her head. 

 

Their classmates shift their gaze from their teacher to nayeon then back to her teacher.

 

That afternoon, the Police turn up to their school together with men in their neatly-pressed suits and their neatly-tucked ties. 

 

They call those men in their neatly-pressed suits and their neatly-tucked ties ‘regulators’. 

 

They’re a special type of police responsible for regulating the rules of society and making sure that the cure remains sacred.

 

Nayeon’s parents asked Sana to wait with her. Sana slips her hand on Nayeon’s and intertwines them. Both their cookies and cream ice cream Nayeon's parents bought them.

 

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Nayeon asks innocently. 

 

Both her parents’ arms are crossed and their eyebrows are meeting halfway. The regulator that came with the police is doing calculated hand gestures while explaining something to her parents.

 

“No idea,” Sana focuses only on her ice cream. Nayeon purses her lips together as she watches her parents talk to the officials. 

 

Then worry washes over her. She squeezes her friend’s hand. It's the only way she knows how to tell her friend it’s okay.

 

A week after that, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Adam Douglas is removed from the Library of Approved Music and Movies (LAMM). 

 

The production of the book stops, and they make everyone who had the series surrender their copy.

 

“It’s a shame I never got to lend you these,” Nayeon examines the paperback before putting it in the box. 

 

Sana gives her a sad smile. She knows she would have liked it because she liked every single thing Nayeon recommended to her.

 

When they’re not at school or doing their academic responsibilities, Sana visits Nayeon’s house and stays there until her parents call her back home. 

 

They would talk about anything under the sun, watch movies, or play board games in which Sana would always lose. 

 

But she doesn’t mind. It’s fun playing with Nayeon anyway.

 

Nayeon’s mother would always cook or prepare snacks for them, and Sana really appreciates it. 

 

Her own mother would not even cook her favorite dish for her, Sana would bet her mother does not know what it is.

 

This almost makes Sana jealous, but she has her father. He’d make sure to cook for Sana like Nayeon’s mom. 

 

And honestly, if you ask Sana, she thinks her father’s cooking is better than Mrs. Im’s. Just a bit, though.

 

The Im household’s their light in the dark. Quite literally. Other houses would turn off their lights as early as thirty minutes before curfew, but the Ims would always stay up late.

 

There’s this thing they do that Sana found rather intriguing. She would peek to Nayeon’s house from their living room window and she’d see them dancing. 

 

Cured people rarely dance unless it’s for performances or it’s their work. They don’t dance. At least not the way the Ims do.

Sana could see the bright smile on Mrs. Im’s face as she approaches her husband. Mr. Im must have said something funny because his wife chuckles as she reaches for him.

 

Mrs. Im puts her hands on her husband’s shoulder, and Mr. Im puts his hands around her waist. They sway into a rhythm while looking at each other’s eyes, smiling.

 

After a few moments, Nayeon steps into the scene. She raises both her arms up, asking her father to carry her. 

 

Her parents laugh, and they look like the happiest people in the world.

 

Sana feels someone tapping her shoulder and sees her father when she turns around. His smile shows a small dimple on his left chin just below his lips. Same as Sana’s. 

 

“Wanna dance?” He grins and wiggles his eyebrows.

 

“Without music?” Sana frowns at him.

 

“Who said we didn’t have any?” His father pulls a small mp3 player behind his back. 

 

Sana’s smile extends as far as it could, and she throws herself into her father’s arms. Both of them chuckle.

 

Slow music fills the room the same way it does to Sana’s heart. All she knows is that her father’s arms feel the safest place. He sways into the rhythm slowly which makes Sana feel sleepy.

 

She couldn't understand the lyrics because it was English. As sleep enters her system, the only word she could recognize whispers into her ears. 

 

Love. 

 

She forgets it the moment she wakes up.

 

Sana doesn’t know what to feel when her father leaves for Japan. She’s too young to understand. Her mother always told her it was for the better. Would’ve given her a better future than the one she’d have if he stayed here. 

 

She believes her mother, but deep down there’s an itch she could not scratch. She thinks there are deeper issues than that. 

 

The Ims treat her like one of their own. They even claim her as their daughter because “Being a family is not just being related by blood. It’s more than that, kids.” Nayeon’s father would always tell them.

 

Ever since her father left, there’s this thing the Ims would always tell her she had to understand. Not a day passes by where they fail to remind her of this. 

 

Sana grew tired of it, sometimes, she would beat Nayeon’s parents into saying it just to save herself from hearing it in their voices.

 

Even when Sana’s father stops reaching out to them. Especially when Sana’s  father stops reaching out to them, they would always tell her.

 

“He had to.”

 

~

 

Nayeon’s always the one who gets ready for school early. The first time Sana’s early, the Im household is empty. 

 

Sana has been calling for them for a few minutes now and feels a little perched already. 

 

She sticks her face on their window and sees their furniture and stuff still in place. She gives up and sits at the steps in front of their house to wait instead. 

 

But the clock is ticking and their school bell will soon ring.

 

Sana figures she’d wait for Nayeon at school instead and apologize for leaving her like that. But Nayeon does not show up to school that day.

 

Their subject teachers ask Sana if Nayeon’s sick, and if she is, why did she not send an excuse letter. But Sana is just as clueless as their teachers.

 

The emptiness on Nayeon’s seat bothers Sana the whole day. She could not answer one of her teacher’s questions regarding their lessons and even skipped lunch.

 

When the bell rings, Sana sprints to the door and gets out of their classroom before their teacher. She runs as fast as she can from their school to their house.

 

She turns into their street. Her pace slows down. Her breath’s cut short as she looks at the Im household.

 

A neighbor pulls her to the sidewalk and asks. “Weren’t you friends with their daughter?”

 

The hollowness in her neighbors' eyes scare Sana. Aside from her mom, she’s not used to how cured people look her in the eye. 

 

The Ims and her father did not have such a lifeless gaze like that. It feels like something’s being out of her.

 

She pulls her arms away from him and avoids her gaze. Instead, she focused on the Im residence that is now surrounded by police and regulators with barricade tape all around it.

 

Her face turns pale and her hands clammy. Nothing good happens when cops or regulators show up. No one even feels safe around them anymore.

 

Other neighbors are outside their house, whispering to each other with their children hiding behind them. Sana swallows a lump on as she slowly approaches their house.

 

Her body’s barely moving, but she forces herself to. Beads of sweat form on her forehead and her lips tremble. 

 

She feels scared. Scared of the neighbors. Scared of the regulators. Scared of the cops. Scared for Mr. and Mrs. Im. Scared for Nayeon.

 

Just as she thought of her, her best friend gets out of their house ushered by two regulators, hugging her bunny stuffed toy tightly. Sana could see fear in Nayeon's eyes from afar.

 

Sana runs for her friend. “Nayeon!”

 

The other girl looks at her in surprise. Her lips are slightly apart, showing her bunny teeth. Tears start to build up around her eyes.

 

Regulators stop Sana from running to her friend. It happened quite fast. Faster than what Sana could comprehend.

 

Their bulk bodies and strong arms block her way to her friend. Sana remembers screaming and crying for Nayeon.

 

Her friend looks at her, wide eyed. A regulator whispers something in Nayeon's ear that makes the young girl jump and whimper in fright.

 

“No,” Sana shouts as she struggles against the regulators.

 

The other girl mouths her apology to her with quivering lips. Nayeon’s eyes are just as red as Sana’s. 

 

She looks at Sana one last time and flashes her bunny smile before entering the police car.

 

It was the last time she saw her then.

 

~

 

They call it ‘The Purge’.

 

People who refuse to comply with the Government’s procedures are called ‘Inavlids’. They are those who do not believe in the cure and insist that love is not a disease. 

 

No one knows exactly how invalids communicate with each other, or how they manage to fool people into thinking that they are part of the ‘good’ side. But it is recently discovered that a secret society of invalids exists.

 

Apparently, there are more invalids than the government expects. They’re everywhere. Hiding. Pretending. Interacting with cured people. 

 

This thought scared a lot of people, mostly those who think that the cure is a sacred ritual and are strong believers of the procedure.

 

Now, the government is desperate on purging each and every single one of them until they have reached the paradise they all have been talking of. 

 

Nayeon’s parents are one of them. Invalids. A snitch sold them out to the government and helped the government with purging them.

 

Regulators send everyone they capture into the Crypts. It’s a prison reserved for people who have done the heaviest crimes such as murder, kidnapping, robbery with inflicted violence on their victims, and now, invalids.

 

Sana’s neighbor, a retired policeman, tells the entire neighborhood proudly that cops and regulators torture those who are prisoners of the crypts until they’re “Close to death but not really. Just like what they deserve,” he says.

 

It’s the first time Sana hears of the term ‘invalid’  back then because the society refused to acknowledge their existence at first before the purge.

 

When Sana asks her mother what happened to Nayeon, she immediately dismisses the question and bans the topic of the Ims. 

 

“You never knew them. If anyone asks you if you knew them, tell them no. Or tell them you’re just a child and they tricked you, understand?” Her mother puts both her hands on her face and looks her in the eye.

 

“But mom—”

 

“No buts,” she cups Sana’s face tightly, it hurts. “And from now on you don’t know any Nayeon. End of discussion.”

 

Her mother sends her back to her own room to sleep, but Sana has too many questions in mind. 

 

Nayeon’s probably frightened right now, and Sana wants to hold her hand. Be there for her as a friend just like how Nayeon was always there for Sana.

 

But she doesn’t know where she is or if she’s doing fine or if she’s still alive. Sana closes her eyes and thinks to herself. 

 

She’s still alive. She should be. She’s strong.

 

She thinks of Mr. and Mrs. Im. Her second parents. She could only imagine they’re doing fine, but Sana would be fooling herself to think that, especially with what her neighbor said earlier.

 

Out of all the questions she has in mind, one stood out the most.

 

Was my father invalid, too?

 

School’s tough on Sana. Of course, the news filled every room including the faculty room. She endures all the judging looks from her schoolmates. 

 

Her teachers treat her differently, too. They would not call Sana’s name even if she’s the only one who knows the answer to their questions.

 

Her head hangs low and no one dares to approach her. Until one day, a japanese girl enters the confines of their suffocating classroom and introduces herself in an awkward accent while reading her introduction on her palm. 

 

Weeks later, the two of them became three. Another girl from another province who loves to sing and just lost her mom. 

 

After a few months, they become four. A tall girl with short hair who would not tell them a thing about why she transferred.

 

The group’s inseparable since then.

 

===

 

Coldness makes Sana shiver and hugs her knees. The two find themselves sitting on Nayeon’s porch just like how they used to back when they were younger while Mrs. Im prepares snacks for them. Except they’re older now and there’s no Mrs. Im to call them back in.

 

Nayeon’s sitting beside her in comfortable silence. Sana breathes in sharply when she finds the right words.

 

“What happened, Nayeon? If you’re comfortable sharing it with me.” Sana asks her, letting the words escape carefully, afraid she’d scare Nayeon away.

 

The other girl looks at her for a few seconds and smiles. A sad one. The same smile she gave Sana when she took her away. Pain settles on Sana’s chest. She isn’t used to seeing her like this.

 

“When they took me away, they sent me to this huge government facility made for children who needed alternative care.” She explains. 

 

“They think I have nothing to do with what my parents did, as long as I follow what they tell me. Then I somehow managed to convince them to let me go.”

 

Nayeon clenches her fists for a brief moment then loosens them. “They told me they’d be watching closely, and one wrong move means a ticket back there.”

 

Sana places a hand on her chests and sighs in relief. “I thought they sent you to the crypts.” At least one of the biggest mysteries in her life’s answered now.

 

Realization hits her when she drops the word ‘crypts’. She looks at Nayeon with regret and silent apology. Nayeon keeps her gaze forward, avoiding Sana’s. 

 

“I’m sorry, Nayeon.” She says, “I’m sorry this happened. I’m sorry I couldn’t be with you there. Everyday I think about you and—“

“It’s okay.” Nayeon cuts her off and looks at her. Sana knows it’s not, but she knows better than to push the topic further. So she nods.

 

“We’re still friends, right?” Sana asks innocently. The question has been bothering her ever since Nayeon went back.

 

Nayeon chuckles. “I see you with your new friends every time. Tell me about them.”

Sana shifts and faces her with her body. Excitement fills her system and she does not know where to begin. She figures she’d start with the first person who arrived after Nayeon.

 

“Momo’s from Japan, and can you believe my Japanese skills can finally be put into use?” Sana raises her eyebrows and both of them chuckle. 

 

Sana was always proud about being bilingual, but Nayeon used to that her language skills are useless unless she’s actually in Japan.

 

“Her sister was supposed to be a kpop artist, and she brought Momo with her here. She’s the next friend I have after you.” 

 

A dreamy sigh escapes her lips. “Jihyo moved here from Gangwon when her mother died. She said her father was originally from here. You need to hear her sing!”

 

“I would be glad to.” Nayeon smiles at her genuinely with her front teeth showing. Sana missed that smile. She’s glad she’s seeing it again.

 

“You really should. She’s in this band called TWICE, and they’re amazing. People go to their gig all the time. The owner of the place even gave us free food because of it.” Sana tells her in one breath. 

 

She pauses to fill her lungs and goes again. “She also has two amazing younger siblings.

 

“What about the girl with short hair?”

 

“Oh, her name’s Jeongyeon.”
 

“Jeongyeon, huh?” Nayeon says absentmindedly. “Since when did you become friends?”

Sana hesitates at first, but Nayeon gives her a smile, telling it’s okay. “A few months after you…” she trails off.

 

Nayeon nods slowly. The siren humms, indicating it’s only five minutes until curfew and they should be inside already. 

 

Both of them stand up. Sana dusts herself off and Nayeon does the same. Before Nayeon could go in, Sana stops her.

 

“Nayeon, if you don’t mind, I’d like to introduce you to them. I still have four more good friends, and I would really love for you to meet them.”

 

“I did say I’d be glad to hear your friend sing, right?” Nayeon frowns, trying to recall if she remembers correctly.

 

“Right,” A grin escapes Sana’s lips. “Nice. That’s nice. Good night, Nayeon.”

“Sweet dreams, Sana.” Nayeon smiles at her.

 

She freezes for a moment. Cured people never dream. Sana used to be jealous of them because she always had nightmares. 

 

But her father explained that dreaming is a beautiful thing. He said it’s how you look deep in your soul.

 

Sana looks at her and smiles. “You too, Nayeon.”

 

===

 

Yawn threatens to escape Sana’s lips, but she bites it back. She can’t be caught being tardy on her second day at her new job. 

 

The customer taps her fingers on the counter impatiently as she waits for Sana to finish scanning the barcodes of her snacks.

 

She stayed up all night thinking about Nayeon, and how their conversation could’ve gone better. Series of questions she should’ve asked and words she should’ve said flooded her thoughts last night.

 

But it’s not like she wouldn’t meet her again, so she shrugs all of it. The customer pays for her snacks and Sana watches her go out and sit at the bench outside.

 

The calmness of the sea behind the customer catches Sana’s attention. She works at a convenience store near the baywalk, and Sana finds the view somewhat healing. 

 

When there’s no customer, she’d spend her time watching the waves settle on the shore and whisper comfort in her ears. 

 

During the afternoon, few children would come and play by the shore and Sana finds it entertaining to watch them. 

 

Joyful resonance of the wind chimes tinkles, and a group of friends enter the store. Sana stands straight up. 

 

Their noise disturbs Sana’s peace and a series of teasing fills the air instead. They look two-years younger than her, and suddenly she misses her friends.

 

The tallest girl smiles at her politely while she puts everything in front of Sana. She returns her smile. Behind her, two girls accidentally knock down some chips. 

 

The two immediately apologize and put back the chips in place. Another girl emerges from the next aisle and scolds the two.

 

“I’m sorry about them,” the tallest girl apologizes.

 

“It’s okay,” Sana replies as she scans their snacks. 

 

The rest of the group joins them on the counter and continues bickering. Sana smiles at them because they’re just like her group of friends. 

 

Seulgi, her coworker of the same age, emerges from the backdoor while wiping her sweat. She helps Sana at punching their snacks and asks the kids if they’re planning on watching a movie or something because they ordered too much. 

 

The two girls who knock bags of chips a while ago answer that it’s the tallest girl’s birthday today. Sana’s about to greet her when a very familiar figure catches her eyes.

 

She probably didn’t hear the wind chimes because of how loud the children were or she’s too busy scanning their snacks. Either way, it doesn’t matter. 

 

The girl can’t see her like this. She hasn’t combed her hair because she didn’t have the time and can’t be bothered. Her uniform’s all wrinkled, too.

 

She feels embarrassed of herself. She can’t take the risk of showing this side of her to the girl because she thinks this might change her perception of her.

 

Sana’s social status hits hard during times like these. Times where she wishes to have the money to make herself more presentable. Times where she wishes she didn’t have to work there so the girl wouldn’t have to see her like this.

 

She whispers to Seulgi. “I’ll organize things at the back. You watch the counter.”

 

“But—“

 

“You can do it,” Sana gives her a pat on the back and quietly retreats to the back door. 

 

When she closes the door, she releases a breath she didn’t know she was holding and places a hand on her chest. Her heart’s pounding loudly against her ribs.

 

She calms herself first. Thinking she might have mistaken the person, she opens the door for an inch to confirm. Her legs feel weak when she verifies it.

 

On the counter, Dahyun is beaming at Seulgi looking beautiful as ever.

 

===

 

Sana pushes the back door, and the smell of the sea greets her. She massages the back of her neck to untie her muscle knots on it. Her shift just finished, and she’s just about to go home.

 

“Sana,” a soft voice calls her. She looks around and sees Dahyun, slowly approaching her. Dahyun looks brighter than the sun, and Sana could not help but to mirror her contagious smile.

 

“I didn’t know you work here,” the smaller girl beams at her.

 

“I just started,” Sana rubs the back of her neck and looks down. “I’m kind of embarrassed to tell you and your friends.”

“Why?” the girl frowns.

 

“I’m afraid it’ll change how you see us.”

 

“It wouldn’t,” Dahyun replies immediately. “It didn’t.” She says in a firmer tone. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about, Sana-yah.”

 

“Yeah?” Sana looks her in the eyes and Dahyun’s sincereness greets her. There’s a tug in her heart.

 

“Yeah,” she reassures her. 

 

“What are you doing here, by the way?”

“I live near here, Sana.” Dahyun says as a matter-of-factly. “And I’m a regular at the convenience store because it is convenient for me and my tummy.”

Sana jokingly facepalms, feeling like an idiot because of her own question. Of course, the beach and rich neighborhood should’ve thrown it all away that Dahyun, a rich person who has a beach house, lives there.

 

Both of them chuckle. When it dies down, Dahyun asks her “Are you going home now?” Sana nods. Dahyun asks again. “Can I walk you to the bus stop?”

 

“My pleasure,” she answers. 

 

Dahyun leads. Sana follows from behind. 

 

Her heartbeat muffles the crashing of the waves and conversations of strangers they’re passing by. Her heart is all she hears together with her desire for the other girl’s hands.

 

Sana looks at their shadows. Quietly, she extends her hand until it reaches the shadow of Dahyun’s. She presses her lips together and guesses this should be enough.

 

Dahyun reaches her hand from behind and pulls Sana beside her. Shock fills Sana’s system, she needs a moment to comprehend what’s happening. 

 

“I told you, you didn’t need to ask if you want to hold my hand,” Dahyun says with a huge grin on her face. She intertwines their hands and holds it tighter.

 

She feels like a child who just got caught. On rare occasions Sana feels shy, she avoids her gaze and puts her other hand inside her pocket.

 

Her hand feels rough against Dahyun’s. Probably from all the dishes she washed or from all the reckless activities she did as a kid. 

 

Meanwhile, Dahyun’s hands feel like paper on her palm. It’s so soft Sana’s afraid she might tear it apart, so she holds them as carefully as she can.

 

Luckily, or not because she doesn’t get to spend more time with Dahyun, a bus arrives when they reach the stop. Sana looks at the other girl, drunk with the thought that they’re still holding hands.

 

“See you soon?” Dahyun smiles. Sana nods and returns her smile. 

 

Both of them look at their hands locked together. Neither wants to let go first.

 

The bus door opens, Sana doesn’t know who did it first. If Dahyun said goodbye, she didn’t hear it because everything in her feels hazy as of the moment. 

 

She’s not in the right mind to absorb anything.

 

She finds herself staring at her left hand, the one that Dahyun held, until the driver announces her stop.

 

===

 

Sana scribbles down her ideas in her notebook for her essay. Her shift’s almost done, and there are no customers as of the moment. She decides to finish her essay, instead. 

 

Not like she’s a good student because it was due last week. She had no plan on doing it, but her teacher would not stop bothering her.

 

Romeo and Juliet. Their teacher asked them to write a reflection about the book. 

 

Korea decided to follow other country’s educational curriculum in order to discipline and teach students more about the disease.

 

They say it’s the perfect book to teach the students about the fatality of amor deliria nervosa. Two strangers got infected with the disease and ended up being dead. Perfect story to build up fear among young minds.

 

According to cured ones, the poison that Romeo and Juliet took was the first ever remedy for the disease in literature. A panacea for amor deliria nervosa. It was also one of the inspirations for the cure and procedure.

 

You see, everything is a poison, but only a right amount of it can be a remedy. 

 

Sana tilts her head. If you really think about it, the reason behind their deaths was not the poison but the society instead. They poisoned Romeo and Juliet into thinking that killing themselves was the only answer.

 

If Sana’s living in the pre-cure era she would’ve written down these thoughts. She has to be careful now, though, if she doesn’t want to be cold on her grave like the main characters of the story.

 

There are rumors the original ending was that the feud between the two families ended. It’s not what their teacher taught them, though. 

 

According to her teacher, their deaths added fuel to the fire and the feud between the two families grew.

 

The next employee on the shift taps her shoulder, a cured woman who’s a mother of a two-year old girl. Her three-pronged scar’s hard to overlook.

 

Sana smiles at her, but she doesn’t return it. She stands up and shoves her things inside her bag. 

 

Her mind’s still stuck with Romeo and Juliet. She thinks to herself.

 

What is love?

 

Does she wanna know?

 

As if on cue, Dahyun enters the store with her eyes smiling. The wind from outside blows her hair sideways. Everything’s in slow motion as Dahyun walks towards her.

 

Does she wanna know?

 

===

 

Sana wasn’t thinking when the words came out of . It was too late to stop herself anymore because the cat’s already out of the bag. She doesn’t know why, but lately she finds herself acting in front of Dahyun before thinking.

 

And she embarrasses herself all the time in front of the other girl. Dahyun says she doesn’t mind, but still, Sana wants to leave a stronger impression. To dazzle her. 

 

Moon hangs like a lonely disk in the sky as it gives light. Wave crests rise gently and drenches the shore. Salty air fills her lungs as the quiet of the night calms her. 

 

Grains of sand find their ways between Sana’s toes as she walks barefoot and side by side with Dahyun while holding her hand. 

 

She didn’t expect it when the other girl agreed to walk by the sea. Sana’s sure that soon, the warning siren will hum its first warning, thirty minutes before curfew, and send everyone into the comfort of their home. But here she is with this amazing young girl.

 

A hermit crab with an aqua blue shell captures Sana’s attention. She extends her hand and tries to reach for it, unaware that she’s half running half walking while dragging Dahyun. The girl quietly obliges, anyway.

 

Her foot lands on a slippery seaweed. She shuts her eyes tight, ready to meet the ground face first. 

 

Instead, a pair of arms catch her and wrap itself around her waist. She holds onto Dahyun and lands on top of her.

 

She keeps her eyes closed for a moment. Had to make sure she’s safe enough first. 

 

When she thinks it’s fine to do so already, she slowly opens them. Dahyun’s unblinking eyes crinkles at the edges and the corners of her lips turn upwards.

 

“You okay?”

 

Sana sits beside Dahyun, not minding if grains of sand will stick to her skin. She chuckles as she helps Dahyun up. A comfortable amount of space separates the two of them. 

 

Dahyun digs a fistfull of sand and dumps them in the middle. Sana watches her trace a box around it with a frown. Dahyun continues on dumping clumps of sand at the center. 

 

The other girl taps it to make it stand firmer. Sana helps her and slaps fistful of sand, too, because what Sana sees, Sana does. “What are we doing?”

 

“A sand castle,” Dahyun answers.

 

“A castle,” Sana gasps. “Just like in fantasies! I’ve always wondered what it’s like to have one.”

Dahyun stops and looks at her for a second then continues. “I’m building you one.”

 

“Just like Romeo and Juliet,” Sana pokes a hole into their castle as windows to make it more believable. Dahyun does the same.

 

“Yes, we live in a castle. Just like Romeo and Juliet,” Dahyun’s just about to poke another when their fingers brush against each other. 

 

A course of electricity passes from one finger through another. Dahyun jerks away unintentionally. Sana lets out a small yelp. 

 

From their fingers, it travels through their bodys and then onto their gaze. Like magnets, their eyes lock together, unable to separate them.

 

When Sana recovers, she stands up. She immediately runs and goes back before Dahyun could think of a wrong idea. She beams and kneels in front of her.

 

“Would you do the honors?” 

 

In the middle of Sana’s palms lies a seashell in the sweetest of caramel curls and twirls. She hands it carefully like a precious gem while smiling at Dahyun.

 

The castle they’re both very proud of looks like a deformed hill that went through numerous landslides with poked holes as a window and a random seashell as the gates in an attempt to make it look decent. 

 

Nonetheless, it’s something they could call theirs. Sana thinks it’s beautiful.

 

As expected, the siren hums low like a conch blowing through their ears, telling them they have thirty minutes left to go home if they don’t want to get caught.

 

Sana’s energy drops lower than the siren’s pitch. She hunches her back and smiles bitterly at Dahyun. 

 

She’s about to ask the other girl to rinse the sands off their feet, but the other girl seems to have the same idea in mind.

 

“Race you,” an immensely smug grin escapes her lips as she runs to the sea.

 

Sana’s eyes widen. When she absorbs it all, Dahyun’s already dipping her feet in the sea while laughing at her. “No fair!”

 

She stands up and walks slowly since there’s no point in running, anyway. Carefully, she picks up the seaweed that made them trip a while ago and tosses it back to the sea. 

 

When she looks back up at the other girl, she still could not move on from Sana’s defeat. Dahyun throws back her head and lets out a humorless laugh. 

 

Behind her, from the moon, the light rips through darkness with graceful ease, shining platinum-gold amid the starlit sky. But Dahyun shines brighter.

 

Sana’s eyes sparkle from her radiance. She watches Dahyun as she becomes a waxing echo inside her, like the moon behind, new and full.

 

Smugness on Dahyun’s face disappears when she realizes Sana’s frozen still. “I’m sorry. I’ll make sure to let you win the next time.” She tries to settle their non-existent dispute.

 

“What? No,” Sana shakes her head. “It’s not that.”

 

“What is it then?”

“It’s just…” Sana rubs the back of her neck. 

 

Dahyun looks at her and tilts her head to the side, waiting for her answer. 

 

Sana breathes in, holds it, and then lets it out sharper than she intends to.

 

“Tsuki ga kirei desu ne?”

 

Silence fills them. All Sana could hear is the soft comfort the sea provides that Dahyun doesn’t speak Japanese. And perhaps, the unsaid words that trail after it because it speaks louder than the ones she said.

 

“Sana, I don’t speak Japanese.” Dahyun says as a matter of factly. Her brows meet halfway. She turns her back to Sana as she washes herself with seawater. 

 

“Right,” Sana says as she observes her. She mentally slaps herself. “I’m sorry.”

 

Dahyun finishes and stands up straight. She looks up at the sky.

 

Her back is still facing Sana when she asks “The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?”

 

Something inside Sana ignites. A campfire that's been long waiting to be lit. Purses together are her lips and her heart and her soul.

 

Although beautiful, in this world, in their universe, it’s a silver lucifer with eye-white sky-light white-light district of lunar lust deceiving you into your mercurial doomsday.

 

Like her heart, the sea throws a tantrum and a huge wave comes ashore. Coldness moves to meet the warmth of her feet. It tingles her awake.

 

“Our castle,” Dahyun gasps. Sana mirrors her action as realization washes over her. 

 

When she looks back, the labor of their fantasy’s already crumbling. Each grain of sand loses hold of another, and their precious seashell screams surrender like a white flag in a lost cause battle.

 

One could say the same goes for them.

 

===

 

It has been a routine now. When Dahyun’s not busy with school or her band, she’d go to the convenience store and visit Sana. Wait for her to finish her shift and hang out. 

 

Sometimes, something would come up and Dahyun would have to leave. Sana doesn’t mind, though. She’s happy Dahyun spends her free time with her. It’s enough for now.

 

She hands Dahyun her chocolate ice cream. It’s Sana’s treat because Dahyun always pays for the two of them. “About time you let me treat you.” She says and sits beside her.

 

The other girl smiles at her. She digs immediately. Sana chuckles when Dahyun clumsily smears ice cream on her cheek.

 

She leans forward. Dahyun’s delicate face is as white as milk and bounces when Sana wipes it off with a tissue. 

 

Sana finds herself looking straight in her eyes like orbs indented in her flawless skin in the color of the richest chocolate.

 

She clears and sinks back to her seat. She focuses on her ice cream instead. Chocolate. Just like Dahyun’s.

 

Comfortable silence settles on the small space between them. They decided to eat on the bench near the beach and enjoy the view instead of eating inside the ice cream parlor. Waves carelessly dribble onto the sand and its murmurs were almost hypnotic. 

 

Sana looks at the blanket of stars that stretched to infinity. Dahyun does the same. 

 

No one looks at the stars anymore. Not even the space agency. But the two of them seem to grow fond of appreciating something that some people would rather not. 

 

“I wonder how many stars are there in the sky,” Dahyun says.

 

“What if I secretly counted all of them?” Sana raises her eyebrows.

 

“How many, then?”

 

“I worked so hard counting stars and you expect me to tell you the answer for free?” Sana huffs and crosses her arms, “No.”

“Fair enough,” Dahyun chuckles.

 

Both eat their ice cream in silence. Knees brushing against each other as they sway their feet against the sand. 

 

After a long silence, in which they have been tasting the sweetness of, Sana answers.

 

“One,” she says.

 

“What?”

 

“There’s only one star.”

 

Dahyun squints her eyes filled with an inner glow. A playful smile escapes her lips.

 

“At least there’s only one that matters, anyway.” Sana lets the words out carefully. Dahyun closes her one eye and points randomly at the sky. “What are you doing?” 

 

“Looking for that star.”

 

“You’re looking for it in the wrong place,” Sana reaches for Dahyun’s hands and intertwines it with hers. “It’s not in the sky.”

 

Dahyun lowers her eyes to their hands. Then, she meets Sana’s enchanting gaze. 

 

Sana’s eyes rests on hers, not unblinking but slowed. Smooth and easy. 

 

Perhaps her soft lips, which aren't exactly smiling but curving as if they mean to, reveal her purpose. 

 

“Oh.”

 

===

Sana smiles at Nayeon and holds her hand. They’re currently at Dahyun’s beach house for their band practice. She already asked the group if she can bring another friend with her.

 

At first, Mina’s against it. She says that if Sana brings another Momo in, she would kick her out of Dahyun’s house.

 

But Dahyun, the real owner of the house, says it’s a great idea. Chaeyoung thinks so, too. Wouldn’t stop asking Sana about Nayeon ever since she brought the topic up. And if Chaeyoung agrees to something, then so does Tzuyu. 

 

Mina can’t exactly turn down her friends that are Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Tzuyu. So she agrees. “As long as she’s more bearable than Momo.”
 

Speaking of, Momo’s surprised when Sana first asks her. She didn’t think she had friends aside from the three of them. 

 

She jokingly tells Sana she feels betrayed because she thought she knew everything about her. Jihyo shares this sentiment with Momo. 

 

Jeongyeon on the other hand just shrugs her shoulders and doesn’t say another word.

 

Since Momo, Jeongyeon, and Jihyo didn’t live in their neighborhood during the purge, they didn’t know the story behind their friendship. 

 

And after the purge, there was an unspoken rule around the neighborhood to not bring up the topic anymore. They fear that the disease will spread through their words.

 

Sana wishes she could tell this to them, but it’s not her story to tell. Besides, Sana wants to make Nayeon feel comfortable. 

 

She just wants to help her stand back up on her feet and chase after the child in her that was kept since that day. Maybe even catch up with the things they wanted to do but couldn’t.

 

“You ready?” Sana asks Nayeon. Behind the door, their friends are waiting for them. 

 

Nayeon slowly nods. Sana could see worry in her eyes. It has been years, but it’s still easy for her to read through Nayeon. 

 

She holds her hand, telling her it’s okay. Slowly, she opens the door. 

 

Mina and Momo’s bickering about something greets them. Chaeyoung is showing Tzuyu something from her sketchbook. Jihyo’s on the guitar, playing and singing. 

 

Jeongyeon’s by the window with her back facing them, probably admiring the view of the sea. Sana feels Nayeon slightly flinch at the sight of her.

 

Sana’s gaze immediately hovers over Dahyun's, who's at the corner with her notebook. When the girl looks up to meet her gaze, it feels like time was being considerate and gave them a few milliseconds longer than others. Sana’s smile reaches her eyes.

 

“We’re here,” she announces. 

 

The rest of the group, except Jeongyeon, looks at them. 

 

Momo grins. Mina tells her to stop grinning like that because she’s scaring the new kid. 

 

Jihyo places her guitar aside and smiles at Nayeon.

 

Dahyun, too, flashes Nayeon a welcoming smile. 

 

Tzuyu takes a second to look up at her and smile then takes her eyes back to Chaeyoung’s sketchbook.

 

“Finally!” Chaeyoung stands up and throws her arms around Nayeon. “I’ve been waiting for you a long time.”

“Chaeyoung, it’s only been a day.” Tzuyu says.

 

“A long time!” She insists.

 

Sana chuckles at the sight of them. Nayeon’s eyes are wide from shock and her lips are slightly parted. Then her expression slowly changes and returns her hug.

 

Momo stands up, too. Sana lets go of Nayeon’s hand to give space around them. 

 

She wraps an arm around Nayeon’s shoulder. “Your front teeth look cute!”

 

Mina extends her hand to Nayeon. Chaeyoung steps aside to give way. Momo raises her eyebrows at her.

 

“Myoui Mina,” she smiles. “I like your dress.”

 

“Uhh,” Nayeon consciously pulls her white dress down to cover herself. “Thanks. I’m Nayeon.”

 

“I know. Sana told us about you.” the girls shake hands. “You have to be careful around here, but don’t worry I’ll do my best to keep you away from Momo.”
 

Sana lets out an amused chuckle. Momo defends herself and the two are at it again. She pulls Nayeon away from the ensuing chaos between them.

 

“Hello, Nayeon.” Tzuyu stands up and pulls her to a hug. “I’m sorry about them. You’ll get used to it.”
 

“Why is everyone being formal?” She closes her notebook.

 

“Dahyun,” Nayeon guesses. “Sana always talks to me about you.”

 

Dahyun raises her eyebrows at Sana. Her pursed lips turn into a playful smile. 

 

Sana returns the smile and takes the empty seat beside her. She gets a can of soda and gives it to Nayeon.

“Yo!” Jihyo salutes Nayeon and winks. “Park Jihyo at your service.”

 

Nayeon nods and introduces herself to Jihyo. She sits beside Sana with her knees pressed together. 

 

The rest of the group gets back to their seats. Jihyo switches with Momo, in an attempt to stop her and Mina from their petty arguments.

 

“Jeongyeon,” Jihyo calls her. “You’re being rude to the new kid.”

The girl, who hasn't laid eyes on Nayeon since they came in, sighs. Her longing eyes meet Nayeon’s. Curve on her lips does not hide whatever it is that she is trying to hide.

 

“Hey,” she says softly.

 

“Hey,” the word escapes Nayeon like a weak whisper. 

 

Sana exchanges glances with Momo and Jihyo. She mentally asks them what’s happening but none of them has a single clue. 

 

Dahyun raises an eyebrow at her, but Sana just shrugs at her. Mina, Chaeyoung, and Tzuyu watch them with puzzled faces.

 

“I still don’t know why they call you Jeongyeon,” Nayeon says.

 

“What do you mean?” Sana interrupts.

 

“What should we call her then?” Momo asks.

 

“By her name of course,” Nayeon answers immediately like it’s something they should know by now because it is.

 

“But Jeongyeon is her name,” Jihyo insists.

 

Somehow, the atmosphere feels thick against her skin. 

 

Everyone’s eyes are on Jeongyeon who’s shaking and closing her fist so tightly Sana could see her knuckles turn white. 

 

They’re gazes are expectantly waiting for clarification, explanation, anything from Jeongyeon. 

 

She opens in an attempt to say something but ends up closing her eyes and shutting her lips tight.

 

Mina breaks the silence.

 

“You didn’t tell them, Kyungwan?” 

 

 

#