Daisy

Sprout

A cozy morning, the sun hasn't risen yet.

Seulgi was carrying Irene behind her back after sailing back to their place. Irene was like a baby leaning her head on Seulgi's shoulder while asleep. The dried leaves Seulgi steps on and the animals making sounds made her day.

She felt her back aching already but never complained instead she had a little smile.

"Seulgi" says a woman standing few meters  away them.

With the shock on her face, Seulgi accidentally dropped the sleeping Irene and nervously run after the woman to hold her hand.

"Tzuyu, what are you doing here?"

"Here" Tzuyu handed a bag by forcefully hitting it on Seulgi. 

"I packed you food and medicine. I thought you would die of hunger or sickness but seems like you're already happy here." Tzuyu turned her back about to leave but Seulgi stopped her.

"Stay"

"Tell that to Seulgi who left me a month ago."

"But-"

"WHY?" Tzuyu suppressed herself from looking back.

"BECAUSE I'M NO LONGER HAPPY..."

"THEN WHY DATE ME?"

"I'M AN ASSHOLE"

Tzuyu turned back and slapped Seulgi.

Seulgi dropped and was on her knees...

"I- I'm sorry"

"And what was that?" Tzuyu pointed.

"Irene? She's..."

"What Irene? You're with a woman all this time?"

"It happened that way, Tzuyu, please"

"What were you begging me forgiveness for?" Tzuyu says in low tone as she fell from being dizzy. Seulgi was on time catching her.

She carried Tzuyu around her arms and walk back at Irene who was looking at them all this time.

"Irene" Seulgi worriedly called Irene as she might've hurt her earlier. But the latter replied with a smile to assure her she's fine. Irene stood up and guided them back the tree house.

After a night of taking care of Irene, she's now taking care of Tzuyu.

Irene sat on the edge of the tree house looking at Seulgi sitting next to Tzuyu who was lying on the rattan bed.

*blink blink*

Seulgi approached her and tap her head.

"Are you wondering about our visitor?"

Irene shook her head.

"Oh, okay then" 

Tzuyu suddenly woke up and forced herself to rise.

"I cannot stay here alone with you"

"With this state you are leaving?" Argues Seulgi.

"You are also not doing well then. If you are worried about me, you're coming with me now to the city"

Seulgi cannot respond.

"See? You won't come with me, you dont care enough about me"

"It's not about that."

"Then what?"

"I left the city to build myself again here. Can you not understand?"

"Is that it?"

Seulgi was disappointed at how Tzuyu took it lightly. The former was slowly healing herself from the wounds the city caused her but she can't just grasped that fact and only think about their relationship.

"It's always been you and you alone in this relationship. Have you ever considered how I'm doing? I may be physically fine but here, it's aching for months and no one noticed." Seulgi pointed at her chest.

What Seulgi said silenced Tzuyu.

"But didn't you live with a woman all this time here? Behind my back?"

"Irene was a friend who helped me"

"Where is she? Where is that Irene you are talking about?"

They looked around and saw no one.

"Wait she was here on the edge of tree house all this time." Says Seulgi

"No one is sitting there ever since I woke up."

"What are you saying?" Seulgi laughs. "She's here, it can't be" 

"Can't be what?" Tzuyu replies. 

"YOU ARE TALKING TO THE VOID." Word by word Tzuyu stressed. 

Seulgi was having a panick attack after hearing that but instead of helping, Tzuyu left her.

"no no no no no" Seulgi repeatedly says as she slaps both of her ears til she drop on the floor.

Veins of a daisy covered around her body.

Irene approached and crouched in front of her. The former carressed her hair and hummed the song Seulgi sings her when asleep.

"It's me, Seulgi-yah" Irene tucks Seulgi's hair behind her right ear.

Seulgi who's crying is still catching her breath.

"Pause. Calm down. Breathe in. Breathe out." Says Irene when Seulgi looked at her eyes. 

Seulgi was not back on her senses yet and so Irene guided her, held both of her hands...

"Just follow after me okay?" 

Minutes when Seulgi finally recovered she hugged Irene. The latter patted her back.

"It's okay, I'm here."

Irene assisted her to stand and offered her to look for the view outside.

"Come"

A rainbow can be vividly seen by their window.

"You were crying when the clouds were pouring a little shower."

"R-rene"

"Eung?"

"You can- you can talk?"

"Well..." Irene eye-smiled to tease her.

"YOU CAN?"

"No. This is just an episode."

"You mean?"

"Most days I won't be able to communicate with you and for important times, rarely times, I'm like this."

Seulgi in her confused face was still trying to grasp what Irene said...

"And if you can talk...and if it rained, wait, Tzuyu-"

"She's fine. She won't even noticed it rained. I covered above her my leaves, enough for her to leave the jungle."

Seulgi sighed in relief.

"You're still an asshole by the way" Irene says while raising one eyebrow like jugding the whole out of Seulgi.

"Aye aye aye" Seulgi hugged herself to cover up in defense. "You never know everything about me."

"We'll see about that.. for now fine, I won't judge you."

"Right" Seulgi's eyebrows met cutely. She's mad but that's how she is.

"You're as stubborn as her. You two looked like you like each other but keep pushing each other too away."

"Because it isn't enough to like someone for you to stay..."

Irene attentively looked at Seulgi by leaning her head on her hand with her elbow on the window.

"...we were close to destroying each other. She won't let go of me, treated me as a possession. I broke up with her because that's not all that's consuming my mind. I wasn't able to fix myself before I dated her. 

Time rotted my innerself. I was never fixed."

"And so you're here" Irene continued

"And so I'm here."

Irene booped Seulgi's nose.

"And who do you think am I again?"

"Someone who helped me fix myself?"

Irene shook her head.

"No." She disagreed. 

"I hope you don't look it that way. See how you tried to be with Tzuyu? Thinking she could fix you? It never worked, right?" Irene continued

"Well..."

"It was just you, Seulgi-yah. Don't skip a step or you will fall. Whatever state you are right now, you'll pass by it soon. You're in your 20s but that doesnt mean you stopped growing just because people assume you're done with it. 

Too young for the world to acknowledge your point yet too old to be pampered in lil things that hurt you. You're growing" Irene patted her head.

"And you are doing well... I hope you know that." Irene continued.