Intertwined Souls (JiTzu)

Chapter 13

One Year Ago

3rd Person POV

Dahyun and Chaeyoung walked out of the hospital with heavy hearts. They were used to this familiar sequence of events but could never get over how much it affected them. They always tried to convince themselves that things were great, but they came to the realization that it was wishful thinking to think like that. After yet another incident where Tzuyu had a relapsing episode and was admitted to the hospital, they were left with the reminder that they could never forget the fear and anxiety they experienced while praying that their best friend would be okay.

Tzuyu has had multiple relapsing episodes throughout the years that she has known Dahyun and Chaeyoung. The latter two have almost always been with her whenever the episodes occur. This time, however, they were out looking for a job. They returned to their shared apartment just in time to witness Tzuyu falling into her episode. They were able to get Tzuyu to the hospital in a timely manner which helped save Tzuyu's life.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung had just finished college and had not found a full-time job yet. They had some combined savings from some part-time jobs that they worked throughout college. Tzuyu lived with them while attempting, and failing, to attend college. They always supported Tzuyu no matter what happened.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung were now heading out to eat after having spent the entire night by Tzuyu's side. They were exhausted and starving, having not gotten a wink of sleep nor having anything to eat. They entered the first restaurant they found and did not realize that it was called "2Yeon Restaurant".

"Hello, will that be a table for two?" a woman came to greet Dahyun and Chaeyoung upon hearing the doorbell to signal their entry into the restaurant.

Dahyun nodded her head, "Yes please."

The woman grabbed two menus and gestured towards a table, "Right this way then."

Dahyun and Chaeyoung followed the woman to a table. They sat down as the woman placed the menus in front of them. The woman said that she will give them a few minutes to look through the menu, backed up to bow, and left to attend to other tables. Dahyun and Chaeyoung looked through the menus before closing them and placing them down on the table.

"We really need to find a job if we want to support ourselves and help Tzuyu," Dahyun said with a heavy sigh.

Chaeyoung let out a heavy sigh of her own, "We really do... But it really sucks that Tzuyu thinks she is a burden on us because she isn't."

"I know where she is coming from, but it sucks that we can't convince her otherwise," Dahyun said with a frown.

"Right? We are never going to give up on Tzuyu as she will forever be our best friend," Chaeyoung replied.

"Exactly, we have always been there for each other," Dahyun said with a small smile, "Even Tzuyu was there for us when she herself was constantly going through bad times."

A different woman came up to Dahyun and Chaeyoung's table to take their orders. Neither of them had an appetite after their conversation and decided to get chocolate and strawberry smoothies. The new woman wrote down the order before bowing and leaving to work on their order.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung started discussing their current situation. They wanted to rent an apartment with three rooms but could only afford one with two rooms. This forced Tzuyu to sleep on the couch as all of the beds were too small to fit two people. Tzuyu never complained as she felt like a burden to her two best friends while she faced her problems that ultimately caused her to drop out of school.

The woman who took their order and yet another new woman pulled up two chairs to sit down at Dahyun and Chaeyoung's table after placing down their smoothies. Dahyun and Chaeyoung gave the two women a confused look before asking if they could do something for them. The two women introduced themselves as Jeongyeon and Nayeon and exchanged pleasantries with the two younger women.

"The reason we sat down with you two is because we overheard you talking and would like to offer you two jobs at this restaurant," Nayeon explained.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung exchange suspicious glances. It did not seem too suspicious as the restaurant was already established and it would be easy for them to check the history of the restaurant. They were just taken aback by the sudden offer that was given to them.

"Why the sudden offer?" Dahyun asked.

"We are the owners of this restaurant and are looking for a few more front of house staff," Jeongyeon replied before pointing towards the first woman that Dahyun and Chaeyoung encountered, "Jihyo over there has been working hard, but it's very obvious that we need more staff to relieve the pressure off of her. This would also free Nayeon and me for more operational duties and allow us to act as floaters for the entire restaurant."

Dahyun and Chaeyoung looked at each other. They could tell that Nayeon and Jeongyeon were telling the truth to them. They were also not in a position to reject the offer as they were in desperate need of a job.

"We will accept the offer," Chaeyoung spoke on behalf of Dahyun and her before starting to drink her strawberry smoothie.

Present Time

Sunday Afternoon: 1:00 P.M on the Same Sunday as Chapter 12

Dahyun and Chaeyoung were relaxing inside of their apartment. They wanted to call their girlfriends over to hang out but remembered what happened last week. They felt bad for putting Momo through some stressful time and encouraged their girlfriends to spend some time with their best friend.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung moved to their living room where they sat around just talking. They still remembered the days when Tzuyu sat between the two of them on their couch. They always woke up scared that Tzuyu would not be on their couch. They always prayed that nothing would happen during the night or while they were out at school or looking for a job.

Their biggest fear became reality when they woke up one morning to the couch devoid of Tzuyu's presence. Tzuyu had left them a note that said she decided to live on the streets to avoid burdening Dahyun and Chaeyoung any further. Dahyun and Chaeyoung were thrown into a panic. They knew that Tzuyu was vulnerable to anything and everything if she was on the streets. They immediately set out to look for Tzuyu, but their search turned up no results. They were left devastated and went out to look for her every single day until she suddenly showed up with Jihyo.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung discussed how Tzuyu had changed a lot since she met Jihyo. Tzuyu used to be unwilling to stay with Dahyun and Chaeyoung and found shelter at school. It was only because she dropped out of school that she was willing to stay with them, but she was now willing to stay in one place with a specific person. She used to be unwilling to take on a job as she was scared of what problems her drug addiction could cause, but she is now holding down a job and doing well for herself. Tzuyu's life was going up and Dahyun and Chaeyoung could not be any happier to see it.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung even discussed how much Jihyo had changed. They were a bit scared of the older woman outside of work when they first met because she was cold and only responded with short uninterested responses. They were surprised but happy that Jihyo started talking with them. It turns out that their initial impressions of the older woman were wrong, and it turns out that Jihyo is a funny and kind person. They also recognized that Jihyo and Tzuyu meeting was some stroke of faith as the both of them seem to have grown after meeting each other.

"I hope the both of them find happiness," Dahyun commented.

"Me too. Tzuyu has gone through a lot and I don't really know what Jihyo-unnie has or if she has gone through anything, but I hope nothing bad happens to them," Chaeyoung replied.

Dahyun nodded her head in agreement, "Me too."

---TWICE---

A/N: Hello everyone! I am back with another update! This is a short chapter that talks about how Dahyun and Chaeyoung came to be at 2Yeon Restaurant. We also get to see their perspective on their relationship with Tzuyu and how much Tzuyu has grown. Anyways, until next time, thank you for the support!