oneshot, butterflies
Title: butterflies
Pairing: Jessica/Tiffany/Taeyeon
Word Count: 4155
Rating: pgDisclaimer: about as real as k-pop is heterosexual.
A pound of cat food, beep. A pound of dog food, beep. A bag of chips, beep; a six-pack of Coke; a bag of solo cups, beep. What the hell is this guy doing, having a party with his pets?
"Could I also get a pack of the, uh, Raison Reds?"
Jessica turns around to get the cigarettes but catches her manager's eye and remembers she forgot to ask an important question and lazily half turns back to the customer.
"ID?"
The guy luckily doesn't waste Jessica's time and has the card ready with his money. He looks nothing like the person in the ID, but they both look over 18 and it’s too close to the end of her shift to tell people what they should or shouldn't do. She gives him the ID back and goes for the cigarettes just as a familiar and yet, still unbelievably grating, voice sounds next to her.
"Is plastic okay?" Tiffany asks, smiling, as always.
Like most of the people who came into contact with Tiffany, girl or boy, they smiled back when she did, like it was mandatory. Or as Jessica likes to think of it--a reaction to pain, like touching something extremely hot and recoiling. Instead of recoiling, people smiled.
They finish the transaction and Jessica watches him exit, imagining a cat and a dog in party hats while the guy smoked and drank. What a sad, sad world. Tiffany's face pops into Jessica's line of vision and for once Jessica prays for customers so they won't have to talk.
"So how'd your day go?"
Too late.
The store is empty and closing time is nigh so Jessica goes back to the brain numbing celebrity tabloid to pass the rest of her shift. And although she can't see, she knows Tiffany is expecting an answer and will repeat the question the necessary number of times until she gets a response. Jessica knows from experience.
"Wonderful." Then, by pure reflex and accident, Jessica says something she regrets the moment the word begins to form on her lips, "Yours?"
Tiffany starts like a locomotive that gradually picks up speed until her sentences bellow out one after the other and her laugh is like the train whistle.
"And I woke up with a weird bruise on the back of my hand I have no idea where I got from."
Jessica flips a page and honestly only heard the last few words of Tiffany's retelling of another night out. "Mm."
It pissed her off a little actually, because Tiffany was an annoying little twit. Attractive, sure, but annoying as hell because she was so damn happy all the time. She was happy to work with Jessica for God's sake and that was when Jessica knew she was insane because Jessica was horrible to work with. All her evaluations said so. So day after day, Tiffany yammered about her friends or the night before or some crazy vacation where everyone lost their pants or something equally moronic and with every story Jessica hated her a teeny bit more.
When their manager tells them to wrap up, Jessica almost pumps her fist into the air in victory, thanking God she could go home and sit in the quiet, without the noise pollution that was Tiffany.
As she's taking off her apron the door dings with a customer and Jessica says, without looking up, "Sorry, we're closed."
"It's okay Jessie, you can go, I'll take this one," Tiffany offers kindly. Jessica cringes at the unapproved moniker but would care more later; it was time to go home. She put her apron under the cash register and only got a quick look at the person on the other side of the counter, a girl with the ends of her wispy blonde hair dyed green.
Jessica rolls her eyes and leaves. The night always brought out the crazies.
*
"Jessie, guess what?"
"I guess you should stop calling me that."
"Oh Jessie," Tiffany laughs, swatting Jessica's arm. "But seriously, guess what's tomorrow?"
Jessica knows, she doesn’t want to say it aloud though. She has a fear Tiffany would blow it out of proportion and ruin everything.
"I guuuuuuess you won't be working tomorrow," Jessica replies with what she wished would happen.
Tiffany cracks a bright smile Jessica wanted to throw under a bus. She knew it wasn't physically possible to throw smiles under buses, but please, give her that one thing.
"Nope. Guess again."
Before she could, the bell dinged and Jessica halfheartedly put her magazine aside. The customer disappeared into an aisle but reappeared within a moment with a box of chocolates. It wasn't the ordinary kind Jessica always got on Fridays and ate while watching three movies in a row; it was the pretty, red, meant-for-a-special-occasion kind.
When Jessica looks up to say the total she doesn’t recognize the face but she does recognize the green tipped hair.
The girl pulls out her headphones, muffled but loud guitars and screaming pouring from the small ear buds. "Sorry, what?"
Jessica repeats the amount and was given the due money. Tiffany presents the bag with the chocolates to the girl with a joyous, "Have a nice day!"
But the girl's headphones were back in her ears and she didn't see or hear or care. There was no, "You too!" or a smile back and all Jessica could see on Tiffany’s face was confusion, bright alerts going off, SYSTEM MALFUNCTION SYSTEM MALFUNCTION because how could someone possibly not reciprocate Tiffany’s exuberant joy.
What a great early birthday present.
*
Jessica took little pride in her entry-level job at the grocery store but she liked the pace and atmosphere, slow and quiet. Quiet for the most part. Her hand gripped a can of beans a little tighter as she hears Tiffany’s voice from up front. From the top of her ladder she peered over the aisles to see exactly what was so funny. Tiffany was standing with Taeyeon, as Jessica found out was her name from Tiffany recently. Taeyeon’s back was to Jessica so she couldn’t see if she was enjoying their conversation as much as Tiffany seemed to be. Since when were they on such good terms? Tiffany’s laugh rings through the store and Jessica wonders what chance she had at hitting Tiffany if she hurled the can at her. Besides, what did they have in common? Taeyeon seemed reserved, like Jessica, and impervious to Tiffany’s cheeriness. Or so it had seemed.
When the display was done Jessica stepped down and took her place back at the register. Taeyeon got in her line minutes later, with some usual necessities.
Jessica swiped the items and looked over at Tiffany, envy burning at her nerves.
"You're friends with Tiffany?" Jessica asked.
Taeyeon gave her a blank look. "Who? Oh, her--Tiffany, no. I know her about as well as I know you."
Jessica gave Taeyeon her change and Taeyeon was gone.
For the rest of the day, Jessica only thought about how Taeyeon was wrong, because Taeyeon knew Tiffany's name and that was more than Taeyeon knew about Jessica, which happened to be nothing.
*
It sits on Jessica’s mind more than it should have, this whole Taeyeon and Tiffany thing. Maybe Tiffany’s personality really was winning and maybe the girl did have more to offer than her smile and obnoxious optimism. Because let’s call it what it is-obnoxious. Jessica liked the girl well enough because Jessica wasn’t a complete bitch; Tiffany was kind and sometimes when she kept her mouth shut for more than a minute Jessica caught herself staring at Tiffany for whatever reason.
As Jessica thinks about Tiffany more than she ever had before, Taeyeon starts unloading her items in Jessica’s lane. Jessica thinks of striking a conversation but Taeyeon has her ear buds in and cellphone out. Instead, Jessica watches her for a brief moment, this aloof girl with green hair who apparently has a dimple when she smiles wide enough.
Taeyeon looks up from her phone, meeting Jessica’s gaze, and Jessica drops the box of pasta she was about to scan. She immediately goes back to doing her job and gets a good distraction in the form of Tiffany.
“You’re low on pennies, want me to get you some?” Tiffany asks, smile bright and true and for once welcome.
Jessica looks at the penny slot, only two coins inside. “Sure, yeah, pennies.”
Tiffany practically bounces like a cartoon character to the other register and Jessica only looks away from her when she hears Taeyeon's soft laughter.
"She is a handful sometimes, isn't she?"
The comment is enough to make Jessica giddy, because yes, someone understands, someone who isn't swayed by the so-called charm everyone says Tiffany has and sees her for what she is, which is hellishly annoying.
"Well, see you tomorrow."
Taeyeon's leave is followed by the much too soon return of Tiffany.
"What'd she say? Was it something funny?" Tiffany asks, smiling expectantly.
"What? No, why?"
"Oh, never mind." Tiffany is just as confused as Jessica. "I could see your smile from across the room, I just thought she told you a joke or something."
Tiffany shrugs and starts talking about something Jessica doesn't bother listening to. Jessica takes out the latest trash magazine and continues to smile unknowingly.
*
Taeyeon becomes a regular, like many of the store’s customers. They talk, if Jessica telling Taeyeon the amount she has to pay counts as talking.
It’s another slow night and while three registers are open, Taeyeon strolls up to Jessica’s with some Red Bulls and a pack of gum in hand.
Taeyeon doesn’t have ear buds in and Jessica can’t shake the curiosity as they share courteous smiles.
“You know, Tiffany has the express line and you never have more than like, three things. Why don’t you go there?”
“And miss out on our witty banter? Never,” Taeyeon jokes and it’s a first, the joke, but it relights a spark in Jessica just when she was about to give up.
*
“I can stay, Jessie.”
Jessica sits down in the chair she dragged from the break room and waves Tiffany off.
“It’s okay, Tiffany, really. You go.”
Tiffany looks out into the downpour and back at Jessica. She swings her car keys and waits for Jessica to look back at her but it doesn’t happen.
“Alright, I’ll see you next week!”
Jessica relaxes in the chair and only gets up when Taeyeon shows up. It’s the same old, same old, hi and goodbye despite Jessica wanting to initiate more. She doesn’t have the guts to.
She closes the store with less vigor than usual since she has no ride home and it’s still raining. The metal barricade clangs as she slides it down the window and she notices she isn’t alone. At the end of the sidewalk of the store stands Taeyeon, bundled up and green hair somewhere lost between her beanie and jacket. If Taeyeon knows she isn’t alone as well, she doesn’t show it.
Jessica blows some hot air into the collar of her coat, thinking of what to do. They were standing under the awning, shivering separately, but if they were going to shiver, might as well do it together.
"Mind if we stand together?" she says, practically shouts because if she knows anything about Taeyeon, the girl's music is drowning out the world.
Oddly enough Taeyeon doesn't question what Jessica had asked and answers in a normal volume, "Sure."
When close, Jessica doesn't hear any music from Taeyeon like she thought even when the girl puts her iPod away. Could've been because of the rain though.
"You have a ride home?" Taeyeon asks.
"No, you?"
Jessica sinks into her coat a little more as it starts to rain harder. They step back, closer to the store and Jessica has a half a mind to open the doors and go inside. She knows, however, her manager goes over the tapes every day and will no doubt give her hell for being inside the store at unsupervised hours.
"No, and everyone I can call is busy now."
"Same here."
They don't speak as it continues to pour but Jessica notices at one point she can feel Taeyeon's arm push into hers as they breathed. It isn't half bad since she's somewhat warm. But half bad turns into completely bad because while she's warm she's also acutely aware of what Taeyeon's perfume smells like and how Taeyeon's nose is starting to redden and she thinks her own cheeks might be too.
A litany of Shitshitshit runs in through her brain and it occurs to her she might have a small crush. Well no, that was a lie. She had been crushing for weeks.
"Are you seeing anyone right now?"Jessica asks for the hell of it.
Taeyeon turns to her, body flush against Jessica's.
"No. Why do you ask?"
Jessica hates herself for looking away but makes up for it by boldly responding, "Why else do people ask that question?"
Taeyeon doesn't answer and faces the rain again. Jessica doesn't know what to do with that. She doesn't think Taeyeon is daft; this might be her subtle way of saying not to even try.
Jessica casts some worthless sideway glances at Taeyeon and debates with herself for a moment before leaning over and kissing Taeyeon. Taeyeon takes the unexpected breach of space in stride and is quick to kiss back but when Jessica pulls away, a bit unconfident with her performance, they go back to shivering under the awning.
The kiss mulls around in Jessica's head and each time she replays it, it gets worse. By the time she speaks, her version of the kiss is a horror story of kisses so bad it gets told as a joke at parties.
"I'm sorry, that was embarrassing."
Taeyeon is reassuring and strangely sympathetic.
"Oh no, I wouldn't say embarrassing. I mean, it wasn't exceptional but I've had worse."
Mildly offended, Jessica opens her mouth to speak, twice, but only gets it right on the third try.
"I am not a bad kisser, that was just a weird angle and neither of us were ready.” Taeyeon says nothing. “I am not a bad kisser," Jessica repeats.
Taeyeon smiles politely and says, just as politely, "I'm sure."
However, Jessica is not letting it go because her pride just can't take any more hits.
"No, really. I can prove it," Jessica says adamantly.
Truthfully, Taeyeon had been joking but she has no time to get a word in before Jessica spins her and cups her cold hands on Taeyeon's face.
"I'm going to kiss you now."
Taeyeon's eyes dart to the side, to the rain, unsure if there was a hidden camera somewhere and this was a joke.
Face slightly smushed, Taeyeon responds, "Okay."
The kiss truly is monumentally better, so much so Taeyeon finds herself pulling Jessica closer at the girl's waist. This time when Jessica pulls away, they stay locked in an embrace. Because it was a warmer alternative, of course.
Jessica thinks to clear her throat but she's never seen Taeyeon's eyes this close and she forgets to.
"Better?" she squeaks.
Taeyeon's smile is almost worth the embarrassing chipmunk voice.
"I have to admit that was."
Their hands fall away, both of them a little embarrassed for once. Jessica realizes her heart’s pounding and she’s insufferably hot but it feels good. Great even.
When the rain stops, Jessica’s confidence goes down the sewer with it and she only musters a bye when Taeyeon walks away. Something inside Jessica screams at her to take action but then Taeyeon disappears down the block and Jessica is left alone and lonely.
*
Feeling disappointed and spurned, Jessica calls off work the next day on the off chance Taeyeon showed up. What would she say? What would she do? Grab her face across the counter and kiss her again? Jessica buried her face into her pillow to cool it. The kiss repeated itself countlessly in her head but unlike the substandard first kiss, the second one gave her stomach butterflies.
Ugh, what a cliché it was.
A knock on her door drags her from bed, thinking it might have been the Chinese food she ordered to drown her sorrows. There goes another cliché.
She opens the door and almost slams it back when she sees Tiffany.
“Manager told me you called off because you said you weren’t feeling well. You alright?”
Jessica’s face wrings in disgust at Tiffany’s concern and she wants to tell her to shut up but dammit, it was a nice thing of her to do, to come by and see how Jessica was doing.
“I’m fine, Tiffany, just a crappy week.”
“I get it, sometimes I hear the beep of the scanner when it’s quiet and I feel like I’m going insane,” Tiffany says and it’s the first thing Tiffany has said that doesn’t make Jessica eyes roll. When Tiffany smiles, so does Jessica. “Anyway, I’m throwing a small movie party at my apartment tonight and you should come. Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s nothing wine and a few rom coms can’t fix.”
Jessica starts to decline but Tiffany is determined about Jessica’s attendance and Jessica remembers why she found Tiffany so annoying.
“Alright, alright, I’ll come, just get off my lawn.”
“Sure thing, grandpa. I’ll see you at 8.”
Jessica finally rolls her eyes and all is right with the world again.
*
The Proposal and four glasses of wine later, Jessica wants to go home. The movie and wine had only exacerbated things. She’s feeling daring and stupid and thankfully without Taeyeon’s number because if she did have it, she’d be drunk texting her right now.
u and i shoud go out. pls and thanx ;0
And she’d send it exactly like that too. Demented smiley face and all.
“So which next, Jessica? Back in time to classic Pretty in Pink or the crude Zack and Miri Make a Porno?”
“Why’s it up to me?” Jessica hadn’t realized she might have been more than just slightly tipsy until she heard herself slurring words together.
“You’re the only one still awake,” Tiffany sighed, looking at her snoring guests.
Jessica looked around too and saw everyone else was indeed out for the night. Lightweights.
“I think I’m gonna head home too.”
Jessica had different plans, plans like crying herself to sleep or the more popular, stare at the ceiling and reenact all the things she should have done in life.
“Oh come on, we’ve watched one movie. You leave now and I’m going to bother you all next week.”
Maybe it was the wine, but Jessica could have sworn Tiffany’s smile was knowing, like the bothering was on purpose. But she couldn’t have been that cruel. Then again it was Tiffany and if it meant a peaceful week, she’d take the offer.
Jessica set her glass down on the coffee table and stood, her body unwillingly swaying but she managed to walk over to Tiffany and sit down, albeit in a slightly uncoordinated fashion.
“So what are my choices again?” Jessica goes through the pile of DVDs on the floor but her eyes wander to the rest of Tiffany’s movie collection. “Ooh, Being John Malkovich.”
Jessica reaches for the movie and almost ignores how close her face is to Tiffany’s. Almost falls into the realm of the should, could and woulds of the world and she comes to a sudden halt, her hand forgetting about the movie. She gulps audibly and it definitely is the alcohol now that is making it seem like Tiffany is coming closer. No wait, that really was happening.
“Tiffany, I-” like Taeyeon, was how that sentence was supposed to finish but she gets Tiffany’s lips instead, wonderfully soft and warm and Jessica gets butterflies again. Again? Goddammit, how many people did she like?
But the longer the kiss lasted, the angrier Jessica became. Screw Taeyeon and her dark eyes, her loud music and her crazy green hair. If she didn’t want to kiss Jessica there were plenty of other people (i.e. at least one other person) who wanted to kiss her.
*
The following week goes by in stages of awkwardness. Most of it is low-level threat where Jessica stays at least two cash registers away from Tiffany and goes out for lunch to avoid seeing Tiffany on their break. But sometimes the threat level of awkwardness is high: stocking products in the same aisle or passing each other on the way to the bathroom. Jessica didn’t know what she dreaded more, confronting Taeyeon or confronting Tiffany.
One day Jessica makes a fatal mistake-she gets backed up into a corner.
“So are you ready to talk or are you going to keep hiding from me?”
Jessica stumbles into the bags of coffee, the combination of her mixed feelings and the aroma nauseating her.
“Look Tiffany, I-I…”
Tiffany arches an eyebrow, a look that said cut the bullshit and Jessica does.
“I’m sorry, Tiffany. That kiss-I don’t even know what that was. I’ve never liked two people at once.”
Tiffany loses the menacing arching eyebrow, her face turning more sympathetic, if not a little worried too.
“You like me?”
“…Maybe?”
Tiffany crosses her arms and bows her head. Jessica no longer felt alone in her confusion.
“Do you like me?” Jessica asks, unsure whether she wanted Tiffany to say yes or no.
“I don’t think so…It was just nice kissing someone again.”
Tiffany had said the right thing because Jessica sighed in relief.
“So who’s the other person you like?” Tiffany asked, joining Jessica by the coffee.
“Taeyeon.”
“How do you know you might like us both?”
“I got butterflies when we kissed.”
Tiffany smiles like this were a contest and she won.
“I gave you butterflies?”
“Don’t be so happy. So did Taeyeon.”
“Oh,” Tiffany sounded, her trophy snatched away as soon as it was given. “Well, let’s find out if I can do it again.”
Tiffany spins to Jessica and kisses her. Not just a peck on the lips but deep breathing, chest heaving, hands roaming kind of kiss. It’s spectacular, Jessica will not lie, but…
“So?” Tiffany asks into Jessica’s mouth and it makes her knees shake a little, but…
“No butterflies.” Not that Jessica was complaining.
Tiffany sheepishly smiles, knowing she might have went overboard but at least she feels the same too.
“You should tell Taeyeon. Maybe she got butterflies too.”
*
The whole thing with Tiffany turns into a made for TV special and suddenly Tiffany is her best friend and matchmaker extraordinaire and a monumental pain in the ass. Her enthusiasm is appreciated though.
“Tiffany-yea, I know that-I know that too-no, I am not going to tell her she has a cute butt!” Jessica hisses into the phone, receiving a glare from an old lady passing by. “I gotta go, bye!”
She pressed on the end call button with a vengeance. Jessica couldn’t get some peace even on Tiffany’s day off. It’s noon rush anyway; Jessica doesn’t have time for phone call breaks.
People come and go but none of them are whom Jessica wants to see. The noon rush fades into the afternoon lull and Jessica turns off the light to signal her available lane. There’s still someone hanging out at the end and Jessica stops taking off her apron because the hair is blonde, but the green hair is gone and there’s streak of pink running through it now.
Taeyeon browses the chocolates on display and finally picks a KitKat bar. Jessica opens her mouth to tell her hello but she sees Taeyeon has her ear buds in and she simply swipes the chocolate. Taeyeon pays and Taeyeon leaves but this time Jessica follows.
She whispers the words under her breath-I like you, go out with me. I like you, go out with me. She gets closer to Taeyeon and she says it louder, adrenaline pushing her forward. She practices it a final time, loud enough to hear if Taeyeon wasn’t listening to music but gets a surprise when Taeyeon spins around to face her.
“Okay.”
Jessica stares at her. “Okay?”
The ear buds are still in Taeyeon’s ears but there’s no sound coming from them.
“I’ll go out with you.”
If someone had told Jessica it would have been that easy…
“Do you even listen to anything?” Jessica questions playfully, gesturing at her ears.
Taeyeon grins, one dimple cute, “Not around you.”
“I’m Jessica by the way.”
The grin widens. “I know. I’m Taeyeon.”
“I know.”
Jessica doesn’t want the clichés, the stupid tricks Hollywood portrayed on the screen that made love seem more unrealistic with every longing sigh and stupid time stopping glances. Who wanted that phoniness, that lovesick idiocy?
(She did, just a little bit.)
**
AN: I know the tenses are screwed up but it's all for fun. Happy New Year!