Even while lying down, Junie feels like her body is on fire.

Maya runs her fingers through the surface of her skin, almost like Junie is a treasure to behold. Her hands follow the crevices of her skin, running by the dips and curves of her waist. Every single touch leaves Junie a little short of breathless, and she feels herself shiver at the coldness of Maya's fingertips. Junie's own hands lay face-up and frozen next to her chest, unable to move of their own volition.

"So pretty," Maya murmurs. Her half-lidded eyes glance back up for a moment, meeting with Junie's. Even when she's met with a stupid shocked stare, she remains sitting on top of Junie and her hands continue roaming around Junie's hips.

Oh my God, Junie tries to focus on a blank wall as Maya's fingers get a little too much. How are hot people so dangerous?

A sudden puff of laughter makes her flinch. When she looks up, she's met with the sight of Maya— eyes softly crinkled and lips subtly upturned. Junie is confused for a second, and then she gains the desire to kick herself in the mouth for saying her thoughts out loud.

Briefly regaining her senses, Junie looks away once again and tries to defend herself. "I mean like... just what are you? Are you human? Did Jesus spend all of 2002 making you or..."

She trails off, not out of her own personal will, but because of what she sees when she turns her head. With one of her hands still on Junie's hips, Maya gently holds Junie's left hand and brings it to her lips.

It's a known fact between the two of them that Junie doesn't blush, but that doesn't mean that she doesn't have any telltale signs of getting flustered.

Maya watches fondly as Junie's eyes blow wide and her lips part in silent surprise. The smile on her lips doesn't leave her face for a second, and it makes Junie feel... something.

"You're unbelievable," Junie blurts out. She doesn't have anything else to say. What is she even supposed to say in this situation?

Maya hums noncommittally like she's still not leaving fleeting kisses on Junie's hand. Her eyes flicker back to look at Junie's.

At this point, Junie is starting to feel like she's getting crazy. Is this okay? Does this make any sense?

Why is Maya looking at her like that? Why is Maya acting like this? Is this a prank? Is this all being filmed and streamed online?

Is Maya just playing around with her? Is she going to get up at one point and say that it wasn't anything serious?

Because if this is serious—

How can Maya just stay there and look at her like she's so...

So...

Just so...

Suddenly, it is as if it had gotten harder to see. With blurry eyes, Junie feels Maya wipe her cheeks with her thumb in hurried motions. Internally, Junie wishes that her face wasn't so wet. Maya asks, unaware of Junie's thoughts yet concerned of her emotions. "What's wrong?"

"You like me," Junie weakly says, like a question. "Why?"

Junie thinks with a brief moment of horror that perhaps Maya had only started liking her recently. Would she have even stood a chance if she didn't go out of her way to lose weight and to wear better clothes?

If she had remained the way she was just a few months ago, would she still have been someone who Maya would look at this fondly? What if she stops looking the way she does now?

Oh God, Junie thinks to herself. Is she screwing this up for herself already? If Maya, who probably knows her best right now on campus, ends up regretting this, what does that say about Junie?

"I've liked you since I met you," Maya confesses quietly. "How could I not?"

"‘How could I not'? ‘How could I not'?!" Junie almost hysterically cries out. "Excuse me?! The first time we met, I looked like a car ran me over!"

"And?" Maya fixes her eyes on her with a firm gaze. Junie doesn't know what she was looking for in her expression but she sure must have found it, because her eyes eventually soften once again.

"Junie," Maya says almost scoldingly, "You probably don't realize, but you're... lovable," She interlocks her fingers with Junie's open hand. The hand that was wiping Junie's face dry moves to cup her cheek instead. "It's just... so easy to love you, you know?"

Maya continues, never breaking eye contact with Junie. "You're clever, you're quick-witted, you're kind, and honestly... no matter what you think—" She takes a deep breath and says her next words so sincerely it makes Junie shiver.

"You're beautiful. That's what I think. Every single time I look at you."

"Even when you're too lazy to get out of bed," Maya places a soft kiss on their intertwined fingers. "Even when you're on the gym and can't get up," She places another one. "God, even now as I'm looking at you." And another one.

In the quiet dorm room, all Junie can hear is the sound of her own heartbeat. If she focuses well enough, she can also hear Maya's own heartbeat racing. Junie dazedly realizes that her bed is messy with the two bodies lying haphazardly on top of it, and the hoodie she was wearing earlier is lying pathetically on the floor.

Perhaps another time, she would consider cleaning up a little bit, and perhaps another time, she would deep clean the room altogether; but honestly, at this moment, Junie is a lot more focused on something else.

‘I've liked you since I met you.'

Oh.

....Oh.

"You... like me," Junie slowly says, like it's a revelation.

Maya gives her the smallest of smiles, just a slight lift at the corner of her lips, and it's enough for Junie to understand that it's the truth. "I do."

"I... I thought you wouldn't ever like me back—" The words tumble out of Junie's lips before she can even stop them. "I mean. Like, first of all, I thought you were straight? Most of the girls I liked before were straight, remember? And I just thought that maybe I could put everything away at the back of my head but—"

If unstopped, Junie probably would've gone on for quite some time. And stopped she was.

Maya pulls her face away from Junie's. Junie can still feel the smile that was on the other's lips lingering around where they were for a brief moment.

"So I'm taking that as you like me." Maya's smile widens impossibly further, and this is probably the most triumphant Junie has ever seen her. "You like me too."

"Yeah," Junie replies as eloquently as she could.

Maya shifts herself a little bit. She moves herself to put her elbows on the sides of Junie's chest. Now all Junie can see truly is Maya. Maya with her lean arms and her long straight hair and her lips that begin to part.

Maya's right hand brushes gently through Junie's hair and settles softly against her cheek.

"Then let me love you," Maya says.

Junie does.