to be loved | huh yunjin ✔

27) yellow daffodils

2 MONTHS LATER
HONG EUNCHAE POV.

Once again, for what feels like the millionth time in recent days, I found myself staring at the wall as I lay on my bed, wrapped tightly in a thick blanket. Yunjin was lying behind me, holding me tightly.

Things haven't been the same ever since the Youth Gala job. That night went horribly wrong. I hate that I have this thought so often, but I truly wish that Wooryeong didn't run back for that boy. I'm happy and proud that she did the right thing, but doing the right thing took her from us.

Because of that night, we haven't been able to see her beautiful smile. Her captivating eyes. Her familiar voice. None of us have felt her warmth in two long months. The longest months of our lives.

None of us have ever experienced losing a member. None of us knew how to handle it. For the first week, Yunjin and I locked ourselves in our rooms. Now we just stick close to each other and try to keep each other going. Kazuha still spends her days in the training room, taking out her frustration and grief on the gym's punching bag. Chaewon goes to visit Wooryeong every week, no matter what the weather, and sings to her. Sakura took it almost as hard as Yunjin did. When she's not on the field, she's sluggish. She still laughs and smiles with us, but there's always a sliver of pain in her eyes. She told us it's because she can't erase the image of Wooryeong's bloody body from her head.

Of course, we still make each other laugh and try to hold the atmosphere up, but it just doesn't feel the same. Even though Wooryeong wasn't with us for a long time, it seems as though we can't fully function normally without her here. It's like we all don't remember what we were like before she walked into our life (or more like we fell into hers).

And although Yunjin says she's holding up better than she was, we all know it's a lie. Every night, she comes into one of our rooms and sleeps with us. Although none of us mention it, we can all hear her soft cries as she tries to fall asleep. She sometimes has bad days where she won't even get out of bed, no matter what.

But all we can do is show and tell her that we're here for her. That's all we can do. Be here for each other through such a hard time.

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NAKAMURA KAZUHA POV.

I frowned softly as I walked into our maknae's bedroom. There, I saw her and Yunjin cuddling. The sight would seem adorable if it weren't for their puffy eyes, the visible tears staining their cheeks, and the overall exhaustion painting their sleeping faces.

Looking at them tugged at my heart. We've all been down since our last job, which was two months ago. Our boss has allowed us to take all the time we need to collect ourselves after what happened that night, and believe us, we're trying. It's just that… it seems so hard. We had gotten so used to hearing Wooryeong's laughter and seeing her smile, being in her embrace and making amazing memories with her, and now that we've lost that, everything simply fell down. Things have gotten better as the two months progressed (with the exception of Yunjin, unfortunately), but things are still just... different.

I sighed and shook my thoughts away, proceeding to walk over the bed. I carefully sat down on it. After staring at my two sleeping members for a few moments, I solemnly shook Eunchae awake.

"Manchae, wake up," I said softly. I brushed her hair away from her eyes as she stirred awake. She groaned softly, but eventually opened her eyes.

As soon as she did, she looked at me with a small smile. "Good morning, Unnie," she said.

I returned the smile, albeit sadly, and patted her head as she sat up. "Good morning." My smile wavered for a moment. "Hurry up and get dressed so we can eat breakfast. Get Yunjin-unnie up while you're at it. We're visiting Wooryeong today."

At the mention of Wooryeong, Eunchae frowned, but nodded. I ruffled her hair affectionately, before getting up and leaving the room, but not before pressing a soft kiss to Yunjin's forehead.

I headed to the kitchen, where Chaewon was still cooking. Sakura was sitting at the table, eyes closed as she rested her head on the table.

I walked up to Chaewon and leaned against the counter. "I woke up Eunchae. She's waking up Yunjin-unnie and getting ready right now," I informed the older. "And… Jin-oppa told me that Haerin's been there since three this morning." She nodded without saying a word.

I sighed as I hugged her from behind. She continued cooking, but I heard her sniffle, and that's when I knew she was crying. My eyes watered, but I held the tears back and released Chaewon from my grip. She looked at me with tears rolling down her cheeks, her nose and eyes red. I patted her back in a comforting manner.

"I'll finish breakfast, Unnie. How about you go and sit down with Kkura-unnie, yeah?"

Chaewon nodded in response to my suggestion, and made her way to the table. I watched as Sakura opened her eyes, and then her arms, wordlessly inviting Chaewon to take a seat on her lap so she could hug her. I smiled at the scene.

We all have each other. And Wooryeong still has us, no matter what.

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KIM CHAEWON POV.

The girls and I solemnly walked down the sidewalk, a heavy air settling around us. I was holding Yunjin's hand tightly as we went, so as to remind her that she wasn't alone. She held a bouquet of yellow daffodils in her other hand.

A piece of all of us broke after what happened on that night. That mission ruined everything. It took something from us. Our best friend. A lover. We'd do anything — anything — to have her back, but there's nothing we can do. I miss her so much. We all do. I sometimes find myself crying to myself in my bedroom. I just can't help it. On top of my grief, I'm the sub-leader of Le Sserafim. And in moments where Yunjin doesn't have the capability of leading us, I have to step up. I push myself to do so, even though I, too, am sometimes at my own breaking point.

I quickly wiped a tear, saddened by my thoughts. I squeezed Yunjin's hand in an attempt to reassure and ground myself. She responded by resting her head on my shoulder. Something I'll always be grateful for is Wooryeong bringing out the true Yunjin, the one who isn't afraid to love.

We all eventually came to a stop in front of a building. I looked to the side and eyed all of the girls, who were looking up at the building with tired eyes.

I exhaled deeply.

"Let's go, girls."

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a/n: what do you think is happening? where do you think they are? hint: yellow daffodils symbolize hope.