Karina's lips were soft and warm against Winter's, she couldn't deny it. The way she could taste the sweetness of the other girl's breath hitting her skin, and how breathtaking every movement was. For a moment, nothing else existed but the two of them, lost in the intensity of the moment.

It took almost one minute for Winter to come back to her senses.

"Oh, god— I'm sorry— I need to leave—", Winter panicked as she pushed Karina lightly, took her black guitar on the floor before she stood up, rushing towards the nurse's front door.

Karina still processing what just happened inside her mind, unable to react at all.

When the loud bang on the door is heard and Winter totally disappears from Karina's apartment, she blinks her eyes a few times. Trembling fingers slowly traced her lips, touching the skin softly as the memories keeps repeating inside her head.

"We just... kissed...", she said with her low voice.

"Oh my god, we just kissed!", she repeats.

Winter, at the same time, getting onto her bed after she abandoned her guitar right in front of her shoe rack. Rolling and screaming into her pillow is the most sane thing she could do right now.

This is embarrassing, she thought inside her mind.

Embarrassing, but she didn't hate it.

*****

The next day, instead of following her usual shift that should start at 2 in the evening, Karina came as early as 10 in the morning. The reason? Simple. To meet Aeri and ask for help, or probably asking for advice (since her friend got a girlfriend).

"Holly molly! You guys did what?!", Aeri's hands both on the air from the extreme shock. "I was at your apartment for a brief last night and now you told me that you guys kissed after that when I wasn't there to watch?"

Karina swear to god, that she wanted to slap Aeri's loud mouth since they were at the hospital. But, gladly there isn't anybody around. When Karina roams her eyes again, she can only see Irene about ten meters away from them. Green light.

"Shut up! Irene might hear us", Karina said in her low deep voice.

"Hah! You're blushing right now", the Japanese laughed when she saw the rosy cheeks on Karina's face. "So, tell me. It is official?"

"N-No", Karina shaking her head. "I think she has feelings for me. She wrote me a song, take care of me while I'm sick, and now she kissed me. What should I do now?", the nurse said as she put down the checklist form inside her hand.

"The question now is... do you have feelings for her?", Aeri lifted up her eyebrows.

The question was a bit hard for the nurse to answer. Did she? Let's see. When Winter is around, she feels butterflies in her stomach and her heart beats two times faster. Okay, probably three times faster.

Every time she heard Winter singing while playing the guitar, she smiled in joy, enjoying the sweet tones of Winter's voice. Karina is down deep for that voice, not gonna lie.

"I guess, I am?", Karina smiled awkwardly. "Enough of your quizzes. I know you would say that I am in love with her indeed without me answering that question. Now, tell me. What should I do?"

Aeri smiled teasingly, tapping her feet happily as she put her hands in her pocket. "I never thought Karina Yu would ask me for a girlfriend's advice. Well, I am amazed", she laughs.

"Just tell me what should I do!"

"Fine-fine. So impatient", Aeri rolled her eyes, "Ask her out".

"That's it?", Karina asked in confusion.

"Then, what? You guys aren't official yet, so first of all you need to ask her out and confess. That's the first step", Aeri answered.

"Is that how you and Ningning started?"

"Nah. Both of us were pretty straightforward, not like you guys, turtles."

"Okay, that's rude of you!"

*****

Night comes as Karina scans her thumb on the machine, ending her shift. Ningning came that night to fetch up Aeri, leaving Karina feeling a bit jealous, yet conflicted with her own situation.

Should she confess to Winter first? Since the shorter girl already starting the first move, Karina guessed this time it should be her.

"Oh, right. I forgot", Karina pulled out her phone as she walked towards her car, scrolling down some information about the pain on the hands that is usually inflicted on guitarists.

Well, then, her mind only got an idea for that.

"Carpal tunnel?", Karina said softly as she scrolled down more, going through every detail from the medical articles.

"The overuse of hands from repetitive and rapid movements, numbness, clumsiness, losing hand strength, dropping things— this is so her. That explains how frequently she drops the glasses", Karina read as she unlocked the door to her car.

She entered her silver sedan, but continued reading the article. "If untreated for too long, it can lead to permanent dysfunction... oh no...", Karina gasped at the last word.

She didn't know for how long Winter had had the pain. Probably months? How the current treatment is for her? How frequently does she go to the hospital? Did she take her meds?

"Why didn't she do the surgery?", Karina said with a slightly angry tone as she steered her car back home.

Despite the fluttering and awestruck moment she got with her neighbor, Karina's mind bothered the most with the pain on Winter's hand.

*****

Karina rang the bells on Winter's door almost as aggressively as the first time she rang them back when she was annoyed with Winter's guitar strumming that one night. But now, it doesn't matter anymore.

When Winter didn't open the door, nor say anything on the door intel, Karina started to bang her fist on the wooden surface. "Winter! Open up! I need to talk to you!"

But, still, Winter didn't open her door.

"Did she fainted or what?", Karina starts to worry. She waited for another minute, banging the door and ringing the doorbell. She called Winter's phone number but no one picked up.

"Winter! Are you okay? I'm calling the cops—"

The door suddenly unlocks, and the door knob twisted open. Karina was just about to shout in Winter's face for making her so worried but immediately stopped the moment she saw the shorter girl in...

A bathrobe.

"W-Winter... You—"

"Sorry. I'm taking a bath just now", Winter said with an apologetic face and frown brows. "Did you wait long?"

Karina's worried expression changed immediately to a bright blush when she saw what her neighbor was wearing. She covered her slightly open mouth immediately the moment she saw a bit too much skin from her neighbor. No, she had something else to focus on right now!

"E-Enough talking. Let me in", Karina avoided eye contact with Winter as she shoved herself into her neighbor's apartment. "I got something to talk with you about".

Winter quietly follows the taller girl to her couch, sitting across her. "What is it?"

"Carpal tunnel", Karina make it quick. "Since when?", she sighed lightly.

"I guess I couldn't hide it no more from you, huh?", Winter laughing lightly, trying to brush off the guilt in her heart. Her neighbor is a nurse, Winter knew enough. She studied in medical school for years, and she won't be fooled by Winter's lies any longer.

"Eight months ago. Early severe stage", Winter answered, now with her soft voice. "Sorry. I hide it from you", she sighed heavily before Karina answered her almost immediately.

"Do the surgery", Karina instructs strongly.

"I can't", Winter shakes her head.

"Why? Winter— It's been eight months! You are in the severe stage and breaking glasses almost every single day! Why won't you do it? Is it because of money—"

"It's not about the money. I just... don't want to do the surgery yet. One more month, and then I will", Winter said, almost sounding like begging to Karina who is now looking intensely into her eyes.

"No. You need to do it as soon as possible! What if you lose your hand tomorrow? What if you can't hold onto anything anymore? Winter, I am worried. Please—"

"I got an audition next month and if I do the surgery now, it will take me weeks, or months to recover. I will fail the last chance for me to join the band after working hard and practicing, for almost four years. I don't want to waste this chance, Rina. Please..."

Karina tried to absorb every single thing Winter had been telling her, but her concern for Winter's health is more than she could ever think about.  "Is that audition the only way for you to join the band? Don't you care about yourself? I do, Winter..."

Winter suddenly became quiet. She doesn't know what should she do. She wants to join the band so bad, after dreaming about it for so long. Winter loves singing while playing her guitar, but...

"Do you love me, Winter?", Karina's sudden question stopped Winter's heart from beating for a second.

"Do you... love me, Winter Kim?", she asked again for confirmation. Winter doesn't want to lie anymore to her neighbor, or the guilt would pile up even more.

"I do", Winter looks into the taller girl's eyes, full of honesty. Finally, a confession. "I really do, Karina", her eyes tremble, almost like she is about to cry from the guilt, the love, and the dilemma.

Winter loves singing while playing her guitar, but she loves Karina even more.