Imperfectly Perfect (MiChaeng SaTzu)

76 : Mina's Affection

Mina slowly opened the door to her dorm room. It is already past eight in the evening.

"Our lover girl is back!" Dahyun yells as soon as the newly arrived girl steps inside.

"Finally!" Sana adds. "I thought Chaeyoung kidnapped you and forced you for a marriage somewhere."

The two performing arts students are comfortably seated by the dorm's couch. Both with laptops in front of them, placed on the coffee table. There are stacked papers scattered on the floor not too far from them.

Mina simply rolls her eyes and scoffs at them. She walks straight towards the room's mini kitchen. She places her shoulder bag on top of the dining table and then carries the bouquet of flowers to the kitchen sink.

"Woah, woah, woah." Sana nudges the council secretary beside her. "Look at what our Mina brought back with her."

"Woooow." Dahyun stands up from the couch and slowly treads to the council president's side. "Isn't that a nice bouquet of flowers you got there, Pres?"

Sana comments from the couch. "I know, right. Hmm... I wonder who it came from."

Mina can't help but chuckle at the girls' teasing. She takes an empty vase from the cabinet right above the sink and starts washing it. "When did you two got back here? How was the concert you watched?"

"We got here in about three hours or so, I think? The show was fantastic!" Dahyun cheerfully answers. "It was definitely worth the time and struggle to go there. I'm so glad that I pursued and went to attend that recital concert."

"I see." The council president smiles. "Good to hear that you enjoyed it. Although, it's a shame that I really wasn't able to accompany you."

"It's okay, Pres! But, the show was really good! The music they performed is surely something that—"

"I really don't like that concert guy!" Sana cuts in and dramatically rolls her eyes. "Something about him irks me."

Mina instantly scrunches her eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

"Ahh. Pres, she was talking about my friend that she met at the concert." Dahyun took the liberty to explain. "We had snacks with him after the event. He even bought us the whole meal! But the proud Minatozaki Sana didn't even thank him and—"

"Hey, Dahyun!" Sana suddenly shouts from the room's couch. "Don't be fooled! Mina is just trying to change the topic."

The council president playfully scoffs. "What are you saying, Minatozaki?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Myoi!"

Mina stifles a laugh. She walks to the study table to open one of the drawers beside it, eventually fishing out a pair of scissors. "Anyway, don't you two have a research paper to finish?"

Sana rolls her eyes. "See? She's doing everything to open another unrelated topic."

"Hey." The council president points the pair of metal scissors she is now holding to her roommate. "That's not true!"

Dahyun grins and butts in. "So, Pres! Are you and Chaeyoung now dating?"

Mina just casually shakes her head. She slowly walks back to the kitchen sink and carefully removes the flowers from its wrappings.

Sana immediately scoffs. "How slow could that tiger cub be?"

"I know, right?" Dahyun agrees. "She still hasn't asked you, Pres?"

"Umm..." Mina pauses and tries to find the right words she would like to say. "Hmm... Let's just say... It's complicated."

"Ugh! When would that complication end?" Sana frustratingly yells.

The council president stifles a chuckle. She is now cutting the end of the stems of the flowers and shooting it one by one onto the vase she just washed moments ago. "Why do you sound like you're the one who badly wants to be in a relationship?"

"I've seen enough of the drama with you two!" The cheer captain stands up and walks lazily towards the dorm's mini kitchen. "How complicated will your love story go, huh?"

"Why, Pres?" Dahyun curiously asks. She is now sitting in one of the chairs around the mini dining table. "What is going on with you and Chaeyoung? You obviously like each other. That cub is head over heels for you and you look like a high school schooler in a daze when you stare at her. So what's keeping you both from making it official?"

Mina heaves in a deep breath. She opened her mouth for a second, but quickly stopped and closed it again.

Sana finally reaches her roommate's side and slowly hugs her from behind. "Don't tell me you're now having second thoughts because you suddenly realized that you have feelings for your best friend."

"In your dreams, Minatozaki."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk!" Dahyun teases. "I should've taken a video of that and sent it to Tzuyu."

"HEY!" Sana quickly turns to the council secretary and scrunches her eyebrows, still loosely hugging her best friend though. "Don't you dare, Kim!"

The two other girls simply laugh at her.

"But, seriously, Mina. Why?" Sana pursues the topic. "I thought you already resolved your issues from your past. Was the talk you had on your date today didn't help?"

"Hmm..." The council president picks up the vase that is now containing all the flowers she has tended to. She slowly walks towards the dining table, softly breaking the back hug her best friend is giving her. "It's not that it didn't help or anything. We talked well. I didn't force her and let her freely open up to me. I think it's just that..."

Mina glances at the other girls in the room who are in full attention to her, waiting for whatever she has to say. "I think Chaeyoung has some personal things she has to settle first. And I can't say it to you two in detail simply because it is not my story to tell." She then carefully places the vase in the middle of the table.

"So... you're going to wait for her to get through those 'personal things' before you actually go out with her?" Dahyun asks further.

The council president simply nods.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Sana leans onto the kitchen sink beside her, smirking with her arms crossed. "Myoi Mina."

"What? What is it this time?"

"You really love Son Chaeyoung that much?"

Mina heaves in a deep breath. "That baby cub is worth every affection in the world. If I could have that privilege of loving her and being with her longer, I will always take that chance without hesitation." She pauses for a couple of seconds to stare at the bunch of flowers in front of her.

Then, the council president sweetly smiles. "I want to be her shoulder to cry on. I want to be her source of strength in the battles that she faces. I want Chaeng to know that she will never be alone 'cause I will always be there for her. From now on, I want to try my best to give her all the love that she deserves."

Mina blushes a little as she turns to look back at her widely smirking best friend. She flashes a gummy smile and faintly chuckles. "So, yeah. You're right. I think I love Son Chaeyoung that much."