As Far as Our Eyes Can See

By Mishina

Prologue

Two small girls were sitting by the seashore. One was digging in the sand while the other was 

looking out at the big sea. Their hair swayed when the wind blew by. A calming atmosphere 

surrounded them when they were sitting there. Enjoying the sound of the waves and seagulls.

The girl not digging in the sand looked towards the other girl, chuckling by the other girl's 

messy clothes. The sound of laughter made the girl stop digging in the sand and she looked 

towards her friend. Soon she also broke into a smile.

"Taeyeon." The girl said when she had stopped laughing. The girl with her dirty hands and 

dirty clothes looked questioning towards the other girl.

"Hmm?" She said and tilted her head.

"If I ever run away from here, will you come with me?" The girl suddenly asked. Taeyeon 

pondered a bit, rubbing her chin with her hands which left a few sand trails on the chin.

"Of course. If you want me to come with you I'll go." Taeyeon said with a smile. The other 

girl smiled as well and laid down with her hands under her head, using them as a pillow.

"Good." She said with a satisfied smile. She heard that Taeyeon laid down beside her.

"But Jessica, when would we go then?" Taeyeon asked and turned around towards the girl 

beside her. Jessica opened her eyes and turned towards Taeyeon.

"When I've got enough of this place." She said and smiled. Taeyeon nodded.

"And where are we going?"

Jessica pondered a bit. She sat up and looked at the horizon, it looked like the sky and the sea 

was meeting. She turned towards the girl that was still lying down and smiled. "As far as our 

eyes can see, I guess." She said with a smile. Taeyeon's eyes widened in amazement.

"That's not a specific place, you know." Taeyeon said matter-of-factly. Jessica giggled and 

laid back down again.

"I know, but I don't have any specific place to go. Let’s just go where we feel like going." She 

said and smiled. She looked at Taeyeon beside her and saw the other girl smiling as well.

"Sounds good to me." Taeyeon said and grinned.

"Promise me you'll come with me no matter what?" Jessica said and reached out her pinky 

finger towards Taeyeon. Taeyeon soon wrapped her pinky with the other finger.

"I promise to go with you no matter what." She said and both of them looked at each other 

with smiles on their faces.

They turned their heads towards the sea again and watched when the sun was setting. 

Chapter 1 - Enough of this

The sound of rain hitting the window filled the empty and cold room. A girl with long brown 

hair was sitting on the floor in the room with her back leaned against the wall. She was sitting 

with her arms crossed and her bangs were covering her face as she had her head bent down.

The sound of the thunder made the girl twitch. She looked towards the single window in the 

room. She saw droplets of rain run down the window and a sigh left her lips. She brought her 

knees closer to her body and propped up her chin on them. It was getting cold and she didn't 

know how much long she was going to stand being out in this cold.

She frowned when she felt the piercing cold. She needed to keep warm and she wouldn't do 

that by just sitting down on a floor in an empty basement. She stood up and started jumping 

around and doing small movements to get her body heat up.

She stopped jumping around when she felt her movements instead started making her tired. 

She couldn't fall asleep either, it wasn't good for a young girl to sleep in this kind of place all 

alone. Maybe if she had someone with her she would have dared to sleep for a while, but the 

problem now was that she wasn't with someone. She was all alone.

The sound of a door opening and something walking on four legs caught the girl's attention 

and she tensed all her muscles and prepared to defend herself against whatever it was that had 

just come into the basement. The four legged beast came closer to her and she backed away 

until she felt the wall hit her back. She cursed and brought up the small flash light from her 

pocket and turned it on and flashed it at the creature that had interrupted her peace.

A dog came into view when the light shone at the animal that had entered the basement. The 

dog was light brown with a white underside, she dog looked away from the light that dazzled 

its eyes.

"Oh, it's just you." Jessica said when she recognized the dog. She shone the light through the 

rest of the basement like she searched from someone else.

"Where is the person that took you for a walk?" Jessica asked and looked at the dog. The 

animal sat down with its tongue hanging from its mouth, its head tilted to the side.

Steps coming down the stairs to the basement answered her question and she shone the light 

at the coming person. A girl with shoulder length blonde hair stopped in her tracks when 

Jessica shone the light in the girl's face.

"Hey." Taeyeon said and Jessica turned the light away from Taeyeon's face.

"Just made sure it wasn't a rapist." Jessica said with a smirk.

"I'm sure she would have attacked at that person then." Taeyeon said and pointed at the dog.

"Yeah." Jessica said and bent down to the dog's level and patted its head. The dog licked 

Jessica in the face which made the girl grimace.

"How nice." Jessica said sarcastically and wiped the dog's saliva of off her face. Taeyeon 

chuckled at the sight.

"George told us to get the dog back to him before 4 am because he's going to work then." 

Taeyeon said and looked at her wrist watch in the light that comes from the flashlight.

"I see, what time do you have to go home?" Jessica asked and took a seat on the floor again 

and leaned her back against the wall. Taeyeon did the same and took a seat to the left of the 

other girl.

"Whenever I want." Taeyeon said and smiled. Jessica frowned and shone the flash light in 

Taeyeon's eyes which made the girl turn her head away.

"I'm serious, when do you have to go home? I don't want you to get scolded again." Jessica 

said serious and lowered the flashlight.

"One hour ago." Taeyeon said and stuck her tongue out. Jessica let out a sigh.

"Let’s get you home." Jessica said and stood up. Taeyeon frowned and remained seated.

"I told you I was gonna keep you company." Taeyeon said with a pout.

"And I said you would do it until you must go home, which was an hour ago. Come now." 

Jessica said and grabbed the seated girl's hand and dragged her up on her feet. Taeyeon 

continued to pout but Jessica ignored it.

Jessica took the dog's leash and began walking towards the stairs. The dog started walking up 

first and Jessica walked right after still dragging Taeyeon after her. When they reached the 

door to the basement Jessica put on her hood and made sure Taeyeon was wearing hers too 

before she opened the door and both of them together with the dog entered the pouring rain.

Jessica was still holding Taeyeon's hand as they walked towards the girl's place. The walked 

in silence and watched the dog that walked a head of them and smelled at all the things they 

walked past.

When they had reached an apartment complex both of them stopped and looked at the dog 

that smelled at some bushes that were outside the building. Taeyeon looked at Jessica that was 

still staring at the dog.

"Now you've brought me home." Taeyeon said which made Jessica turn her attention towards 

the other girl.

"Yeah, you should go now so you don't get more scolding than before." Jessica said and 

looked towards the entrance to the complex. Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know what the point is of bringing me home now when I already am late. I could have 

stayed out some more and it still wouldn't have made any difference because I was already 

late." Taeyeon said and smiled. Jessica just shook her head.

"Whatever, you're home now. Go." Jessica said and pointed towards the doors. 

"You're saying it like you don't want to be with me." Taeyeon said jokingly before she started 

walking towards the door.

"If I didn't want to be with you I wouldn't have asked you to come out and keep me company 

in the first place."

Taeyeon stopped and turned towards Jessica. "I thought you did that just because you wanted 

me to get the dog and walk it for you." Taeyeon said and stuck her tongue out.

"Go in before I make the dog attack you."

Taeyeon chuckled and opened the entrance door to the apartment complex and entered. 

Jessica could see through the glass on the door that Taeyeon took the elevator and when she 

was sure Taeyeon didn't turn around and came back out she turned on her heels and continued 

her walk towards her home.

The dog was running in front of her, still smelling at all things in its way. With her free hand 

in her pocket Jessica let the dog led the way, hopefully she would end up at home and not 

somewhere else.

After a while Jessica noticed they had walked past where she lived. She pulled on the dog's 

leash and made the dog turn around and walk the other way. When they had reached the 

apartment complex Jessica lived at they tried to find the right entrance to enter. Finally 

finding it Jessica unlocked the entrance with one of her keys and let the dog enter before she 

did it too.

When they were inside the dog shook off all of the droplets on its fur, making Jessica wetter

than what she already was. She glared at the animal in front of her that now sat and looked at 

her with its tongue stuck outside of its mouth, exactly like it had looked at her when it had 

come to the basement where she had been.

Jessica let out a sigh and removed her hood and pulled on the leash to make the dog follow 

her up the stairs. When she reached the second floor of the building she walked to the closest 

door and stopped. She heard loud voices from the other side of the door and hesitated to open 

it. She looked towards the dog that sat beside her and waited for her to open the door.

"I guess you'll have to bear with this for a few hours. I'm sorry though." Jessica said and put 

her key in the key whole and twisted it. A click was heard when the door was unlocked and 

she opened the door and the loud voices echoed in the whole building when the door was 

open.

Jessica quickly went inside with the dog right after her. She closed the door with a loud slam, 

the voices didn't seem to get any lower even though someone had just entered the apartment. 

Jessica let out a sigh and took of her shoes and removed the dog's leash.

"Follow me." Jessica whispered to the dog.

Together with the dog Jessica walked past the kitchen. The door was partly closed and the 

voices came from that room. Quickly peeked inside the kitchen and saw a man and a woman 

around the kitchen table. The woman was sitting down and the man was standing up almost 

hovering above the woman. Jessica noticed glass pieces scattered around the floor and the 

side of the woman's head was bleeding.

Jessica's stomach turned upside down upon seeing the sight and left the place she had been 

standing at and continued her way towards her room. In there she closed the door after her 

and removed her wet hoodie and tossed it on the floor where most of her clothes were. She 

looked around the room but stopped by the wet dog that sat in front of her and looked at her 

with its head tilted to the left.

"Right, I've to take care of you." Jessica though out loud and looked towards the clock in her 

room. Two hours left until she could return the dog. A sigh left her lips and she stood up and 

searched among all the articles of clothes on the floor.

"We need to make you dry so you don't stink. I heard that wet dogs doesn't smell that good." 

Jessica said and picked up a towel she found among the piles of clothes.

She went to the dog with the towel and started rubbing the wet fur with it. The dog's tail 

started wagging back and forth, indicating the dog was happy. Jessica happily continued to 

rub the dog's fur to make it dry.

When most of the fur was dry Jessica tossed the towel at the piles of clothes on the floor and 

took a seat on her bed again. She laid down with her hands clasped behind her head. She saw 

in the corner of her eyes that the dog laid down on the floor beside the bed. The voices in the 

kitchen filled the apartment and Jessica tried to drown the out with trying to just listen to the 

rain outside.

To her distress the rain stopped after a few minutes and her parents’ voices became even 

clearer. She frowned and turned to her side and faced the animal on the floor that looked up at 

her with its brown eyes.

"I'm tired of it, but I don't know how to make it stop." Jessica said and patted the dog's head. 

The animal continued to look at her.

"Everyone in this house are so f*cking crazy. Your daughter is a good for nothing and I'm 

tired of taking care of her." Jessica heard her father say. She lifted her head and listened to the 

sound of a glass break and scattering of other things.

"You can't leave this house. She's your daughter as well." Her mother yelled.

Jessica heaved a sigh and put a pillow over her head. She don't remember when these fights 

started, it felt like it had been an eternity. She was so used to the words her parents shot at 

each other and the names her father called her and how her mother blamed everything on her. 

She was used to it, but she still felt she was starting to get enough of it.

The sound of the kitchen door opening and slamming shut broke Jessica's train of thoughts 

and her attention was back to her parents. The ruffling of shoes and the clinging sound of keys 

indicated someone was on their way out. Jessica sat up and heard the kitchen door open again.

"Don't leave, don't leave." Jessica heard her mother beg. 

"I'm leaving." Her father's firm voice said.

Jessica scoffed. Like he would leave, he had done this at least fifty times already and he's 

always coming back. She wondered why her mother even bothered to beg him to stay.

The front door opened and slammed shut. The cries of her mother echoed in the apartment 

and Jessica laid back down again and put the pillow over her head. Was there no place she 

could escape this?

The door to her room abruptly open and her mother stormed in. Jessica sat up and felt a hand 

slap her across the cheek, she found herself having a glaring battle with her mother afterwards 

and she cupped her stinging cheek.

"It's your fault." Her mother spat.

"What is my fault?" Jessica barked.

"That he left." Her mother said and breather heavily. Jessica scoffed.

"He always comes back. And why even bother having him here, just look at how he treats 

you." Jessica said and nodded towards the cut on the side of her mother's head.

One more slap. Jessica continued to glare at her mother, she saw the dog had covered behind a 

chair. She knew the dog was a bit of a coward but she didn't think it would actually cover 

when a person is getting attacked, she had hoped the dog would somehow defend her.

"Apologize to him." Her mother said between clenched teeth. Jessica raised an eyebrow.

"For what?" Jessica asked and leaned back on her arms.

"For what you did!" Her mother shouted. Jessica looked at her with an unbelievable 

expression.

"I haven't even done anything!" Jessica defended herself.

"Exactly! That's why you should apologize!" Her mother shouted.

A low growl was heard which made both females turn towards the source of the sound. The 

dog was showing its teeth and growling was heard from it. It finally mustered up some 

courage and defended Jessica. Jessica smirked and looked at her mother that had turned pale.

"W-w-hy is t-there a d-d-dog here?!" Jessica's mother asked terrified and pointed at the 

animal.

"I'm taking care of it for a friend. I suggest you don't aggravate it more." Jessica said and 

stood up and grabbed the dog's collar. Even though she wasn't very pleased by how her 

mother was acting right now she didn't want the dog to attack her.

Her mother followed her with the eyes and Jessica calmly sat down on the bed and patted the 

dog's head to calm it down. Jessica mother watched with a disgusted expression.

"How long is that thing going to stay?" She asked and eyed the dog like it was some animal 

Jessica had picked up from the street.

"Is that really something you need to know? It's me that's taking care of it." Jessica said 

arrogantly.

"Yes I need to know. It's under my roof it's staying!" The older woman shouted. Jessica 

looked questioning at her mother, wondering what it was she was yelling about.

"I'll return her at 4am. Happy?" Jessica said continued to pat the dog.

"You better do." Her mother said and turned around to exit the room. "I'm going to sleep and 

if I see that dog when I wake up I'll throw it out!" She said and exited the room and slammed 

the door shut. Jessica just rolled her eyes.

"She won't see you here when she wakes up. Heck, who would even want to stay here?" 

Jessica said to the dog that now happily wagged its tail and enjoyed being patted by Jessica.

Jessica let out a sigh and scanned her room. There was nothing really to do in there, she didn't 

own many books, nor a TV or computer. That is why she spent most of her time outside 

hanging out with Taeyeon.

I'm getting enough of this place. Jessica thought and kicked a shirt on the floor. Suddenly a 

memory flashed in her mind and her eyes widened.

"If I ever run away from here, will you come with me?"

"Of course. If you want me to come with you I'll go."

Jessica looked at the dog in front of her that looked at her with its head tilted to the left, 

seeming like it was confused by Jessica expression. A wide smile appeared on the girl's lips 

and she jumped up from her seat on the bed and started pacing around in the room. The dog 

continued to look at her.

"How could I forget about that? When did I think of it? Was it seven years ago?" Jessica 

asked herself and rubbed her chin as she was thinking.

"Who cares when it was! I'm gonna leave this place!" Jessica said excited and startled the dog. 

The dog laid down and looked at the girl that now had started packing things in a back pack.

I'll need this and this if we go. And money! Where's my money? Jessica thought and started 

checking in the drawers in her room, putting down everything she needed for her runaway in 

her back pack.

"That should be everything. Now I just need Taengoo." Jessica said and looked at the dog that 

now had laid down on top of her bed. "And I need to return you too." Jessica said and picked 

up the lace that was lying on the floor.

"I'm sure George won't mind that I return you a bit earlier." Jessica said and attached the lace 

in the dog's collar. "Come on now, I need to return you to your owner." Jessica said and 

pulled on the lace which made the dog follow her.

Jessica exited her room and walked to the hallway with the dog trailing behind her. When she 

went past the kitchen the smell of alcohol filled her nostrils and she frowned by the smell. She 

continued to the hallway and only stopped to put on her shoes. She looked back at the 

apartment before she grabbed the doorknob.

Last time I see this place. Jessica thought and turned the doorknob and opened the door to 

leave her home for the last time.

She closed the door and headed downstairs with the dog trailing behind her. Her body felt 

energized by the excitement she was feeling by the trip she was going to do. She hadn't any 

specific place to go to but as she had said even years ago, she would just go as far as her eyes 

could see.

When she was outside she almost ran to the dog's owner's house. It was a few blocks away 

from the neighborhood she lived in but she didn't mind where the person was living now, she 

just wanted to leave the dog and go and pick up Taeyeon to leave this town.

Finally reaching a house Jessica stopped running and looked at the house, she was panting a 

bit and noted that all the light's in the house were turned off. She shrugged the darkness of the 

house off and walked towards the door. She rang the doorbell and waited for someone to 

answer the door.

She looked at the dog that sat beside her, its tail wagging back and forth with its tongue 

outside. Jessica smiled and turned her head back to the door when she heard someone unlock 

the door. A man in a gray robe with a white tee and black sweatpants opened the door.

The dog barked happily upon seeing the man and jumped up at him. The man patted the dog 

and ordered it to sit down before he turned his attention to the girl that had returned the dog. 

She squinted his eyes when he thought it was a different person than the one that had come to 

pick it up.

"Oh, it's you, Jessica, I didn't recognize you for a second. Where's Taeyeon?" George asked 

and looked outside to see if he had missed to see any other girl there.

"Taeyeon had to go home." Jessica said and shrugged her shoulders.

"I see. She doesn't have the freedom you have. Do you wanna come in for a while?" The older 

man asked and looked at Jessica. Noticing the back pack and Jessica's attire he lifted an 

eyebrow. "Or are you on your way somewhere?" He asked instead. Jessica shyly looked away 

from the older man and kicked a pebble on the ground.

"Yes, I'm leaving this place." Jessica answered without looking up at the man. He nodded and 

looked at the dog that had made its way into the house, probably finding its sleeping place.

"I see, where are you going?" George asked.

Jessica shrugged her shoulders. The man sighed and looked inside the house again before he 

turned to the teenage girl in front of him.

"I kind of expected this would happen with the family situation you have," He said and took 

his jacket that was hanging on a hanger beside the door. Jessica watched with curious eyes to 

what the man was doing. "I suppose you're taking Taeyeon with you, considering you two've 

always stuck to each other through the years and you wouldn't leave Taeyeon alone in this 

place, right?" The man asked and looked up at Jessica with a smile. Jessica just nodded not 

knowing how the man knew what she was thinking.

"Here take this. Buy you and Taeyeon a bus ticket out of this town. I won't tell anyone that 

you left, and in return you won't tell anyone that I gave you money for tickets. Deal?" George 

said and held out both of his hands, one with the money and one to grab a handshake with 

Jessica.

Jessica reluctantly took the money and shook the man's hand. He smiled pleased that Jessica 

had accepted the money he had offered. If he could he would have taken in at least one of the 

girl's in his home, but he couldn't afford it, and this was his way of helping them because he 

trusted that once they were out of this town they would be able to take care of themselves and 

each other.

"But I can't take your money." Jessica said and looked at the money bills she had in her hands. 

The man chuckled.

"Take it as a payment for taking care of my dog." The man said with a big smile.

"Thank you so much." Jessica said and bowed towards the man. The man chuckled and patted 

Jessica's head.

"It's okay kid. Go now and pick up Taeyeon before the last bus leaves." He said and ushered 

the girl to go. Jessica thanked the man once again and bid him farewell before she broke into a 

sprint and ran towards Taeyeon's place. The old man watched amused as the girl left, it would 

probably be the last time he saw her and her friend.

---Jessica dashed up the steps towards the floor Taeyeon's family's apartment was located at. 

When she had reached the fourth floor she stopped to catch her breath before she walked to 

the number 18. She pressed her ear against the door to hear if there were any sounds inside; 

not hearing anything she knocked lightly on the door.

Jessica nervously fidgeted with her fingers when she didn't know who would open the door. It 

could either be Taeyeon or one of Taeyeon's family members. If it was one of the latter she 

would need to come up with a story to tell them why she was here, which she didn't have, she 

just had the story she was going to tell Taeyeon.

There was a click from the door when the lock unlocked. Jessica tensed when the door opened 

and revealed a familiar face, she relaxed when she saw her blonde friend had opened the door.

"Sica, what are you doing here?" Taeyeon whispered surprised when she saw Jessica.

"Are your parents awake?" Jessica asked and tried to peek over Taeyeon's shoulder.

"No, they are asleep." Taeyeon said.

"Good, can I come in? I have something to tell you." Jessica said and smiled. Without asking 

anything further Taeyeon let Jessica in. Jessica quietly removed her shoes and picked them up 

and followed Taeyeon towards her room. If one of Taeyeon's parents woke up while Jessica 

was there it would be bad if they found a pair of shoes that wasn't Taeyeon's. Taeyeon wasn't 

allowed to bring over friends, ever, but she had managed to sneak Jessica in a few times 

before.

They snuck quietly into Taeyeon's room without waking any of Taeyeon's parents up. When 

they got in Taeyeon closed the door as careful she could without making any sound and both 

of them took a seat and the blonde's bed.

"What did you want to tell me?" Taeyeon asked in a low voice. Jessica's smile widened and 

she leaned closer to Taeyeon so she didn't need to speak so loud.

"Do you remember that promise you made with me seven years ago?" Jessica asked and 

looked hopefully at Taeyeon. Taeyeon gave the girl a confused look, indicating she didn't 

know what Jessica was talking about.

"At the beach, don't you remember?" Jessica asked disappointed.

Taeyeon pondered for a bit. She rubbed her chin just like Jessica remembered she had done 

seven years ago at the beach. She hopefully watched her friend as Taeyeon tried to search for 

that certain memory Jessica was talking about.

"Ah, you mean that I'll come with you if you run away from here?" Taeyeon asked and looked 

at Jessica that happily nodded.

"Yeah, the time has come. I'm tired of this place and I want you to come-" Jessica stopped 

when she reached out for Taeyeon's hand and noticed a red mark across Taeyeon's fingers. It 

was a red line like someone had hit her over the fingers with something straight. Taeyeon 

noticed Jessica looked at the marks on her fingers and she hide her hands with the sleeves of 

her sweater.

"It's nothing." Taeyeon mumbled and looked away from Jessica's eyes. Not convinced Jessica 

grabbed Taeyeon's hands and pulled up the sleeve and looked closer at the marks.

"She hit you again, didn't she?" Jessica asked and let go of Taeyeon's hand.

"It's quite obvious." Taeyeon said still not looking Jessica in the eyes. Jessica continued to 

look at the hands and gently stroked one of her fingers on top of the marks.

"Does it hurt?" Jessica asked and looked at Taeyeon's face.

"It stings." Taeyeon admitted. Hearing the answer Jessica retreated her finger from the marks 

and let out a sigh.

"That's why I want to run away, and I want you to come with me." Jessica said and looked 

Taeyeon in the eyes. Taeyeon saw how determined Jessica was to do this and she nodded her 

head.

"The time has come now, huh? When we finally leave this place." Taeyeon said and smiled. 

Jessica nodded.

"Yes, we'll take a bus from here to begin with. But first we need to pack things you might 

need." Jessica said and scanned Taeyeon's room. It was much cleaner than hers. No clothes 

were lying on the floor and you could actually walk in here without putting one of your feet in 

a pile of clothes you weren't sure if they were clean or not.

"Okay, help me pack then so we can get out of here quicker." Taeyeon said and got up from 

her seat and took the biggest back pack she could find in her room and tosses it on the bed 

beside Jessica.

"I can pack your clothes while you go out in the kitchen and take something you can take with 

you to eat." Jessica said and stood up. When she opened the drawer she knew Taeyeon's 

clothes were in she heard the door to the room clothes indicating that Taeyeon had left the 

room.

When Jessica had found all clothes Taeyeon might need she put them in the back pack and 

Taeyeon returned with a small plastic bag with things she had taken from the kitchen. The 

blonde girl put the things in the back pack and turned to Jessica again.

"Something else?" Taeyeon asked and looked around the room.

"Money." Jessica reminded Taeyeon. Taeyeon went to the head of her bed and lifted the 

pillow and underneath it was a wallet.

"Money." Taeyeon said and put the wallet in the back pack. "Was that all?" Taeyeon asked 

and looked at Jessica.

"Yes, it's everything. Now we just need to go and get to the bus station." Jessica said and both 

of the girl's left Taeyeon's room. In the hallway the carefully put on their shoes to not make 

any sound that would wake Taeyeon's parents up.

When they were finally outside and had gotten a few meters away from the neighborhood

they looked happily at each other and jumped in excitement.

"Let’s go to the bus station." Jessica said and grabbed Taeyeon's hand and both of the jogged 

towards the bus station.

When they arrived at the bus station they stopped at the boarder that showed what buses that 

goes at this time. Taeyeon turned to Jessica and wondered what bus Jessica had in mind. 

"Kunsan - Seoul or Kunsan - Ulsan." Jessica read out loud. She looked at the questioning eyes 

of Taeyeon that watched her.

"Let’s take the bus to Seoul." Jessica said happily. Taeyeon nodded and watched as Jessica 

walked to the place where you buy tickets.

There was no line so Jessica knocked on the window to get the cashiers attention. The lady 

behind the glass yawned and looked at Jessica through her glasses before she turned to the 

computer beside her.

"Where do you want to go?" The lady asked in a tired tone.

"I want two tickets to Seoul." Jessica said and proceeded to pull out the money she had gotten 

from George.

"There's only one seat left on the bus to Seoul. Next bus to Seoul goes-"

"Two tickets to Ulsan then!" Jessica shouted before the lady had finished her sentence. The 

lady looked strangely at Jessica.

"Okay. Two tickets to Ulsan." The lady repeated the order.

Jessica handed the lady the money and got two tickets. She looked wide eyed at the tickets 

and walked slowly towards where Taeyeon was waiting for her. When she was standing in 

front of the girl she grinned and handed the ticket to the blonde girl.

Taeyeon took the ticket the blonde girl looked at the ticket she just have been given. Jessica 

grabbed the girl's free hand and led her to one of the buses that stood parked on the big 

parking lot. Taeyeon looked up at the big bus and at Jessica.

"Where are we going?" Taeyeon asked and continued to be led by Jessica.

"To this bus' last stop." Jessica said and stopped by the door of the buss. "We're going as far 

as our eyes can see." Jessica said and waved her ticket in front of Taeyeon's face.

Taeyeon frowned and looked around at their surrounding that had started to get brighter when 

the sun was starting to go up. Jessica watched the girl that seemed to look for something.

"We're really leaving this place." Taeyeon said. Jessica smiled and put an arm around 

Taeyeon's shoulders.

"Yeah, but together." She said and turned her head towards Taeyeon's. A small smile 

appeared on Taeyeon's face and she turned towards Jessica.

"Yes, together." She chimed and both of them smiled together.

"Let’s get on the bus." Jessica said and grabbed Taeyeon's hand and led the girl in the bus. 

They handed the driver the ticket and soon they found two free seats to sit at. Jessica took the 

seat closest to the window and Taeyeon took the seat beside her. 

"How far is it to Ulsan?" Taeyeon asked after a while. Jessica shrugged her shoulders.

"Not far enough." She answered and turned towards the blonde girl beside her.

"What's far enough?" Taeyeon asked and looked innocently at Jessica. Jessica chuckled and 

sighed.

"I haven't figured out that yet." Jessica said with a sad smile.

She felt Taeyeon lean her head against she shoulder and she leaned her head against the 

blonde girl's head.

"You'll have a lot of time to figure out that now." Taeyeon said. Jessica smiled and 

interlocked her fingers with the blonde's.

"Yeah." Jessica chimed and listened to the sound of the bus' engine when it started. She 

watched as the bus started to move to its next destination, which Jessica hopped would be far 

away from here.

Chapter 2 - First stop

The girl in the bus watched the passing scenery outside the window. She didn't know how far 

away from home they were now but she was determined they would go all the way to Ulsan 

which was the bus' last stop. She scanned the bus, it was only her and Taeyeon, the driver and 

a lady that was sitting in the front of the bus, the other passenger that had been on the bus had 

already gotten off.

Jessica felt the head that was resting on her shoulder move and she looked towards the person 

beside her that was sleeping. Taeyeon's bangs were covering her eyes and her mouth was left 

hanging open. The backpack Taeyeon had brought was resting securely in the girl's arms. 

Jessica moved away a hair strand that had got stuck on Taeyeon's lower lip before she turned 

her head towards the window again.

They were currently driving through a city. It was early afternoon and Jessica saw people 

walking on the streets in the city. People stopped and talked to each other and some were 

sitting outsides cafés and restaurants, probably eating lunch.

Just when she was thinking about food a low growl was heard. She looked towards the source 

of the sound and noticed Taeyeon was biting her lower lip, the girl was probably dreaming 

about food; they hadn't eaten anything before they got on the bus and Taeyeon was probably 

hungry. Jessica also started to feel a bit hungry.

Jessica picked up the back pack she had placed between her feet and opened it to see what 

there was to eat inside of it. She found two chocolate bars, a bottle of water and a ham 

sandwich. She frowned and looked at the bag in Taeyeon's arms.

What did I think bringing just this to eat? Jessica thought and put back the things in the bag. 

She zipped the bag up and placed it back between her feet. She let out a sigh and leaned her 

head against Taeyeon's.

I'll just sleep and save eating for later. She thought and closed her eyes.

---When she woke up again the sound of the engine had stopped and someone was shaking her 

lightly. She fluttered her eyes open and a face came into view. When her eyes had adjusted 

she made out the features of Taeyeon, the blonde girl smiled at her when she had awakened.

"We're at the last stop now." Taeyeon said and smiled.

Jessica blinked and looked to her left to look outside. The bus had stopped near the ocean and 

the sun was shining brightly outside. She looked at her watch to see how much it was and saw 

it was almost 7pm. The bus ride had taken about 15 hours.

"The driver wants us to go off the bus." Taeyeon said when Jessica didn't say anything. 

Jessica felt Taeyeon was pulling one of her hands and she saw the girl had intertwined their 

fingers.

Jessica grabbed her back pack and let Taeyeon led her out of the bus, the shorter girl thanking 

the driver and bowing to him. When they got off the bus they noticed it had stopped at a cliff 

where they could see the ocean. Both girls were mesmerized by the sight and watched it for a 

few minutes.

Jessica felt Taeyeon pulling on her hand and she looked towards the blonde girl. "I need to 

find a toilet." Taeyeon shyly admitted.

Jessica scanned the area to try to find the place Taeyeon desired but not seeing anything of 

that sort she turned to the blonde girl again.

"If you can hold yourself a bit longer we might be able to find a toilet." Jessica said. Taeyeon 

nodded and both of them started walking to find a toilet of some sort in this new city they just 

had arrived at.

They walked down the road that led them to the city. People were busy walking on the street 

and car drove past the two girls that didn't know where they should go first. They kept holding 

tightly onto their hands to not lose the other girl.

Taeyeon kept looking at all the big buildings they walked past and Jessica kept looking for 

any public toilet, if they didn't find any they might need to ask on a restaurant if Taeyeon 

could use theirs.

People bumped into the teenage girls if they weren't careful where they were going. Jessica 

made sure that none of them would get hurt by the people they accidentally bumped into. Just 

when it seemed like they wouldn't find any toilet a sign caught Jessica's eyes and she sighed 

in relief.

"There's a toilet Taeyeon." Jessica said and pointed towards the sign. Taeyeon looked where 

Jessica was pointing and a wide smile appeared on her lips.

The two girls continued to go towards the public toilet they had found. When they reached the 

toilet Taeyeon handed her back pack to Jessica before entering the toilet to do her business. 

Jessica stood outside and waited for the other girl.

Jessica looked around the area they were in, many people walked passed, some were busy 

talking on their phones while other seemed to hurry to their destination. Everyone seemed to 

have a place to go to but Jessica didn't know where they should go next.

After a few minutes Taeyeon came out from the toilet and Jessica handed the blonde girl's 

back pack back. Taeyeon looked at Jessica as she swung the back pack over her shoulder.

"Aren't you going?" Taeyeon asked and nodded towards the toilet. Jessica looked at it for a 

second before she took off her back pack and gave it to Taeyeon.

She better go now, who knows when the next public toilet shows up?

After both Jessica and Taeyeon had went to the toilet they continued to walk the street of 

Ulsan to see if there was anything they could do while they were there. They looked at the 

items shops were displaying in windows and checked at restaurants menus; silently wishing 

they had more money so they could afford a meal at one of the restaurants.

After they had walked around for an hour the now tired girls took a seat on one of the benches 

they found. They sat down and both exhaled and watched in silence the people that walked 

by.

"Sica, I'm hungry." Taeyeon said after a while. The brunette looked at the blonde girl beside 

her.

"Should we share the ham sandwich you gave me?" Jessica asked and opened her back pack. 

Taeyeon watched the brunette as she took out the sandwich and held it up in front of her.

"How much do we have to eat after we eat this?" Taeyeon asked and looked Jessica in the 

eyes.

"I have two chocolate bars, and we have that cheese sandwich in your back pack and a packet 

of jellies." Jessica said and pointed at Taeyeon's bag. The blonde girl nodded.

"What happens if we run out of things to eat?" The blonde girl asked concerned.

"We buy more. We just need to be careful with money and food, we can't waste anything." 

Jessica said and divided the sandwich in half and gave the other half to Taeyeon. "Eat now or 

you won't have energy to look around the city." Jessica said and took a bite of her half.

Taeyeon took her half of the sandwich and began eating. The two friends sat in silence and ate 

their sandwich halves. They continued to watch the people walking by, not having anything 

else to really watch as they sat on this bench. After finishing eating Jessica took the water 

bottle that was inside her back pack and took a sip from it before giving it to Taeyeon to 

drink.

The blonde girl took the bottle and drank two gulps from it before giving back it to Jessica. 

The brunette drank two more gulps from it before placing it back in her back pack and sighed 

satisfied.

"Where do you want to go now?" Jessica asked and looked at the blonde girl.

Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders and turned to Jessica. "What can you do here?" She asked.

"I don't know." Jessica said and tilted her head back and looked at the sky that had darkened. 

"Do you want to see if we can go to the beach?"

"Why should we go to the beach?" Taeyeon asked and continued to look at all the boring 

people that walked by. Jessica shrugged her shoulders and tilted her head back up and looked 

at the people that Taeyeon looked at.

"Better than sitting on this bench and do nothing. And we can see the stars clearer if we're on 

the beach." Jessica explained. Taeyeon tilted her head up to see if there were any stars and to 

her surprise there were a few. 

"C'mon, let’s go star gazing at the beach." Jessica said and grabbed Taeyeon's hand and stood 

up. She dragged the blonde up on her feet and began walking. Taeyeon looked the other 

direction when they walked, she tugged on Jessica's hand which made the brunette stop and 

look at her with a questioning expression.

"Wasn't the sea that way?" Taeyeon asked and pointed the other direction. Jessica looked the 

way Taeyeon pointed and the way she had headed.

"No, this is the right way. Trust me." Jessica said and smiled and dragged Taeyeon after her. 

Taeyeon just obliged and followed after the brunette, putting all her trust in her friend.

After they had walked for half an hour Taeyeon started wondering if this really was the right 

direction to the sea. She looked at the brunette that walked beside her wondering if Jessica 

really knew where they were going.

"We should have gotten a map over the city." Taeyeon thought out loud. Jessica turned her 

attention to the girl that just had spoken up, she shrugged her shoulders.

"Why? It's more exciting walking around like this." Jessica said and continued to walk.

"We would have known what way to go instead of getting lost." Taeyeon retorted. Jessica 

frowned and looked at Taeyeon.

"I know where we are going. See." Jessica said and pointed at a sign at the other side of the 

road. The sign pointed the way they were going and read "beach". When she had made sure 

Taeyeon know that she knows where they are going Jessica began walking again.

Jessica side glanced at the girl that walked beside her. Taeyeon was keeping her head bent 

down not saying anything. Not wanting to rub it into Taeyeon's face that she had been right 

and Taeyeon had been wrong she didn't think more about the incident that just had happened 

and focused to find the beach.

"I'm sorry." Jessica heard the girl beside her say after a few minutes of silence. Jessica just 

smiled and squeezed Taeyeon's hand she held.

"It's okay, it's normal to get insecure if you're in a new place. But let’s trust each other from 

now on, okay?" Jessica said and looked at Taeyeon. Taeyeon nodded and Jessica smiled. 

Clearing that up both of them continued to walk towards the beach.

Finally reaching the beach both of them just stood and watched the now black sea and listened 

to the waves that hit the shore. Now when they were closer to the water they felt cold due to 

the wind. Not minding the wind Jessica looked at Taeyeon with an excited smile.

"Let’s go and feel the water." Jessica said and started taking off her shoes. Taeyeon did the 

same and when both of them were barefoot they both walked towards the water.

Jessica felt the water first with her feet and turned to Taeyeon that stood a few feet away and 

watched the brunette. Jessica smiled by how frozen Taeyeon looked when she stood by the 

side and watched. 

"Taengoo c'mon, it's not cold." Jessica said and reached out a hand for Taeyeon to grab.

Taeyeon looked at the hand before she dropped her shoes onto the sand and walked up to 

Jessica and grabbed the brunette's hand. Jessica smiled and led Taeyeon further out in the 

water.

"See, it's not cold." Jessica said and jumped up and down, splashing water at Taeyeon.

"Are you kidding me? It's cold as ice!" Taeyeon said and shivered.

"It is? I thought it was just perfect." Jessica said and felt the water with her hand instead. 

Taeyeon tightly held onto Jessica's other hand so the girl wouldn't trip and fall. "Is it really 

that cold?" Jessica asked and stroked her wet fingers over Taeyeon's cheek. The blonde girl 

scrunched up her face and Jessica laughed by the sight.

"I was just kidding, it's really cold. Let’s get out of here." Jessica said after she had stopped 

laughing and started to walk back to the beach. Taeyeon following her right after.

When they were on the beach again Jessica took a seat beside the back packs they had 

dropped onto the sand. Taeyeon took a seat beside her and Jessica started looking for that 

towel she remembered she had packed with her.

She dried her feet and gave the towel to Taeyeon to do the same. She watched the blonde girl 

as she dried her feet and gave back the towel to the brunette when she was done. Jessica 

tossed the towel to the side and leaned back on her hands and watched the sea.

"What now?" Taeyeon asked after a few minutes of silence.

Jessica laid down on her back and took her back pack to use as a pillow. "Relax and watch the 

stars." Jessica said and gazed up at the star filled sky. Taeyeon did the same and laid herself 

down beside Jessica and the both of them looked up at the sky with the small glimmering 

dots.

"There's the Ursa Minor." Taeyeon said after a while and pointed up in the sky. Jessica looked 

where Taeyeon's was pointing but couldn't see anything but stars.

"Where?" Jessica asked and scooted closer to Taeyeon.

"It goes from that star to that star." Taeyeon said and pointed it out for Jessica. "Like this." 

Jessica frowned and looked at something else instead.

"It looks like a duck." Jessica said. Taeyeon turned her head to the brunette.

"Like a duck?" Taeyeon asked like she couldn't believe what Jessica just said.

"Yes, like a duck." Jessica said and put her hands behind her head. "Isn't it supposed to be a 

bear that star picture you mentioned?" Jessica asked and closed her eyes.

"Yes, it is."  

"It doesn't look anything like a bear, it looks like a duck." Jessica opened one of her eyes and 

saw that Taeyeon was frowning.

"It's because you can't really see it and that's why you say it looks like a duck." Taeyeon 

muttered. Jessica sat up and looked at the blonde girl.

"Really? Are you saying that this," Jessica said and began drawing in the sand. "looks like a 

bear? It looks like a duck!" Jessica said and pointed at her drawing.

Taeyeon sat up and looked at the drawing Jessica had made. The blonde girl tilted her head 

and looked at the drawing. Jessica had drawn the star sign correctly but it really did resemble 

more a duck than a bear.

"It does look like a duck." Taeyeon admitted. Jessica proudly crossed her arms and nodded.

"Told you." Jessica said and stuck out her tongue.

"But Ursa Major looks more like a bear, it looks like this." Taeyeon said and drew the Ursa 

Major beside the Ursa Minor. Jessica watched the finger that drew line after line in the sand. 

"See, a bear." Taeyeon said proudly after she had finished her drawing.

"That looks more like a bear." Jessica agreed. She looked up at the blonde girl that had a wide 

grin plastered on her face. "What more star signs do you know?" Jessica asked and sat herself 

beside Taeyeon to give the blonde more room to draw in the sand.

"I know the lynx." Taeyeon said and drew it in the sand. When she finished drawing it Jessica 

looked up in the sky to find it, not seeing anything like it she bent her head down again. 

"Cassiopeia, Aries and Pisces." Taeyeon continued to draw. Jessica frowned upon seeing the 

two latter drawings.

"Why is Aries smaller than Pisces?" Jessica asked and pointed at the two latter drawings.

"Because it just is." Taeyeon said and stuck out her tongue.

"If I look at you I would think that Pisces would be a tiny sign." Jessica said teasingly.

"Yah!" Taeyeon shouted.

"I mean, you're really small. Just like a small fish!" Jessica laughed. Taeyeon pouted and 

ignored her friend's tease.

Noticing she didn't get any reaction or sort of comeback form Taeyeon Jessica stopped 

laughing and looked at the blonde girl that was just drawing circles in the sand. She tried to 

look Taeyeon in the face to see if the girl was mad at her.

"Are you mad, Taengoo?" Jessica asked and carefully poked Taeyeon on the arm. Taeyeon 

didn't say anything and continued to draw the circles in the sand.

"Taeyeon-ah, I was just kidding with you." Jessica said and tried to cheer Taeyeon up.  

Taeyeon looked at her and Jessica almost backed away by how angry Taeyeon looked, but she 

remained in her seat and prepared for whatever Taeyeon was going to do to her.

"I not mad, I'm tired." Taeyeon said and looked back down on the sand. Not knowing if she 

should believe it or not Jessica looked at her watch to see how much the time was. Seeing it 

was getting pretty late Jessica looked back at Taeyeon that she know thought looked more 

tired than angry.

"Should we find a place to sleep then?" Jessica asked gently. Taeyeon nodded her head. "We 

might need to sleep outside though." Jessica said and started gathering her things. "That's not 

a problem, right?"

Taeyeon shook her head and grabbed her shoes to put them on. When they had taken all their 

things and put on the shoes Jessica grabbed the tired blonde's hand and started walking away 

from the beach. She had no idea where they should sleep for the night.

When they were back in the city they noticed it was less people on the street but there were 

still some people walking there. Jessica kept her eyes open for any good place they could 

sleep at for the night. When she had planned this whole run away thing she hadn't thought 

about where they should sleep.

If one of us had own a tent them maybe we could have taken that with us. Jessica thought and 

glanced at Taeyeon that walked beside her. The two girls continued their searching through 

the city to find a place to sleep for the night.

Jessica stopped when a playground caught her eyes. Taeyeon also stopped when she felt the 

brunette had stopped walking and she looked around wondering why Jessica had stopped.

"Taengoo lets go over there." Jessica said and pointed towards the playground. Too tired to 

even protest Taeyeon followed the brunette that began walking towards the playground on the 

other side of the street.

To Jessica's delight there was no one at the playground at this hour. She smiled and made her 

way to two benches that stood at the side of the swings. She sat down on one of them and 

made Taeyeon sit down too.

"We'll sleep here for the night." Jessica said and smiled at the tired girl. Taeyeon nodded 

when she knew they would find any better place than this.

"Okay." Taeyeon said and took a seat on the other bench. She put her back pack at the end of 

the bench and placed her head on it and stretched out her legs. It was good she was short 

because her whole body could fit on the bench.

Jessica smiled when she saw Taeyeon had made herself comfortable on the other bench. She 

did the same as Taeyeon had just done and laid down on the bench. The distant sound of cars 

driving was the only sound that could be heard. Jessica turned on her side when she felt the 

hard bench hurting her back.

"What happens if it starts raining?" Taeyeon's tired voice asked. Jessica chuckled. 

"We'll get wet if we don't find shelter." Jessica said with a smile.

"That would be problematic." Taeyeon mumbled tiredly.

"Yeah, that's why we should hope it won't rain."

"Yeah."

Silence filled between them again and the regular breathing from Taeyeon caught Jessica's 

ears. The brunette lifted her head and checked on the blonde that had fallen asleep, Jessica 

smiled and noticed Taeyeon had wrapped her arms around her body. Jessica thought the girl 

looked cold and opened her bag to find something to cover Taeyeon with.

Finding a hoodie she could put over Taeyeon Jessica took the article of clothe out from her 

bag and sat up and placed it over the sleeping girl. Seeming like it could make Taeyeon feel 

warmer Jessica laid back down on the bench and stared up at the sky at the few stars that 

could be seen.

Jessica closed her eyes and hoped the sound of the cars and Taeyeon's breathing would work 

as a lullaby for her and she would soon also fall asleep in this new city she had made them go 

to. Listening to the calm breathing of Taeyeon made Jessica relax and soon she was also in 

dreamland dreaming of other places she would be able to go to with her friend by her side.

Chapter 3 - Encounter of new friends

Jessica woke up by feeling that something small was poking her waist. She frowned and 

turned to lie on her stomach and propped her head up on her folded arms that rested on her 

back pack. She heard someone let out a shocked gasp but she didn't bother about it as she 

thought it was just her imagination.

"Unnie, she moved." She heard female a voice say beside her.

"Why wouldn't she move? She's breathing." She heard a more husked female voice say.

"But she isn't moving, is she alive?" The first voice said.

"I don't know, it doesn't seem like she's breathing."

Jessica furrowed her eyebrows. What were these voices talking about? Who was breathing 

and not breathing? Were they talking about her and Taeyeon?

If they're talking about me and Taeyeon I must be the one that's breathing because I just 

moved and Taeyeon must... She broke her train of thoughts and opened her eyes wide upon 

her realization; startling both girls that had watched her sleep.

She looked at the girl that slept on the other bench beside her. Taeyeon was lying on her 

stomach, the hoodie Jessica had placed on her was covering her body and her face was turned 

to the back rest. And just like the two girls had said, it didn't look like Taeyeon was breathing.

"Taeyeon!" Jessica shouted and jumped up from the bench and shook the sleeping girl. A 

groan emitted from Taeyeon's mouth and she turned around and looked at the girl that was 

shaking her.

"What is it, Sica?" Taeyeon asked with a groggy voice.

Jessica looked dumbfounded at the girl that had her eyes open and was breathing fully well 

like normal living human. She turned towards the two girls that had awakened her. It looked 

like a twin pair when she saw them, they looked really similar with their long brownish hair 

and tall bodies, the only thing Jessica could differ them from each other was that one of them 

was more tanned than the other.

"Did you joke when you said she wasn't breathing?" Jessica asked the two girls. Both of them 

shook their heads at the same time.

"No, you saw it yourself, it didn't look like she breathed." The tanned one of them said and 

pointed at Taeyeon who was now sitting up.

"Who are they?" Taeyeon asked tired and rubbed her eyes. Jessica looked at her newly 

awoken friend and back to the two girls that had disturbed her sleep, both girls wearing a big 

grin on their faces.

"We're Yuri and Yoona." Both girls said and held up a peace sign with their fingers and had 

their other arm wrapped around the other girl's body. "For short YoonYul." They ended.

Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances before they looked back at the two girls Jessica still 

thought looked like twins.

"Are they street performers?" Taeyeon asked Jessica which she received a shrug in answer 

from the brunette.

"Yah, we're not street performers!" The tanned girl said.

Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders and laid back down on the bench with her back facing the 

other girls, Jessica took a seat on the bench Taeyeon was lying on and looked at the two tall 

girls in front of her.

"What are you?" Jessica asked and pointed at the girls.

"YoonYul." The two girls answered with a big smile. Jessica sighed.

"Yeah, I got that. But what are you doing?" Jessica asked instead. The two girls in front of her 

exchanged confused glances before they turned to the brunette sitting on the bench.

"We breathe, blink our eyes, stand up." Both of them started counting on their fingers. Jessica 

let out a frustrated sigh when it seemed like none of these two girls understood what she 

meant.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. I meant what do you usually do? Do you perform or 

something?" Jessica tried her best to formulate her question so the girls would understand her. 

She started wonder if these girls were really Korean.

"Perform? No, we're just two normal girls." The tanned girl named Yuri answered. Yoona 

nodded her head in agreement. Jessica stared at them speechless. The person sleeping on the 

bench beside her moved and she felt Taeyeon sitting up and looking at the two girls.

"That's weird. I thought you were some kind of clowns when I first saw you." Taeyeon said 

exactly was Jessica was thinking. Jessica turned to her friend with wide eyes.

"That was what I was thinking too." Jessica said amazed her friend actually had thought the 

same thing as her.

"Yah, we're not clowns. We're just normal girls!" Yuri shouted angry. Yoona held the tanned 

girl's arm to prevent her from going any further than shouting at the girls that had mistaken 

them as clowns.

"But what are you? It's not very normal to sleep on a bench." Yuri asked when she had calmed 

down. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other before turning to the two girls in front of 

them.

"We're travelers." Taeyeon answered.

Excitement and interest glimmered in the two girls’ eyes when they heard Taeyeon's answer. 

"Oh, what places are you traveling to?" Yoona asked and looked back and forth from Jessica 

to Taeyeon.

"As far as our eyes can see." Jessica answered. Yuri and Yoona lost the excitement when they 

heard Jessica's answer and they both looked at each other with a confused expression.

"Uh, that's not really a place." Yoona pointed out.

"We know, we just travel wherever we want." Jessica defended her answer.

"That doesn't sound very safe." Yuri said and looked at Yoona, the other girl nodding in 

agreement.

Jessica ignored the two girls that were now discussed among themselves if Jessica and 

Taeyeon's travel plan was safe. Jessica wondered why these two girls even bothered to care 

about what two strangers are doing.

Jessica turned to Taeyeon that seemed to zone out. She waved her hand in front of the tired 

girl's face and earned Taeyeon's attention from it. She smiled at the girl when Taeyeon turned 

to face her.

"Want something to eat?" Jessica asked and received a nod from the tired Taeyeon.

Jessica grabbed her back pack from the other bench and opened it to find what she thought 

might give Taeyeon the energy back. She took one of the chocolate bars she had with her and 

started unwrapping it. She divided it into half and gave one of the halves to Taeyeon.

"If you get some sugar in you you will feel energized." Jessica smiled and took a bite of her 

chocolate.

"No! You can't eat that for breakfast." Jessica heard one of the girl's shout and the next second 

her chocolate was out of her hands. She looked around to find it and saw the tanned girl 

holding it.

"Yah! Give it back!" Jessica said and stood up and tried to get back her half of the chocolate 

bar that Yuri now held above her head so Jessica couldn't reach it.

"This is not breakfast, this is candy. You need a better breakfast if you're going to grow." Yuri 

said and continued to hold the chocolate bar out of reach.

"Like you would know something like that." Jessica said through gritted teeth. She was 

standing on her toes with her arms reached up towards the chocolate bar Yuri was still 

holding.

"I'm a living proof. If you compare our heights it's a big difference." Yuri said with a smirk.

Jessica stopped reaching for the chocolate bar and stepped back to take a better look at the 

girl. Yuri was right, she was indeed taller than her. The realization just made Jessica frown 

and she looked at the chocolate bar that Yuri now had passed to Yoona in the meantime of 

Jessica's thinking.

"Give it to me, we don't have so much food and we need to eat." Jessica ordered the other girl. 

Yoona exchanged glances with Yuri before she looked back at Jessica that held out her hand 

and waited for Yoona to hand back the chocolate bar.

"Why don't you have so much food?" Yoona asked and tilted her head to the side. Jessica 

closed her hand and into a fist when it seemed like Yoona wouldn't give her the chocolate bar 

either.

"Because we didn't bring that much food with us." Jessica answered through gritted teeth.

"Why didn't you do that?" Yoona asked curiously.

"Because we needed to get away from home unnoticed."

"Why did you need that?" Yoona now asked more confused. Jessica however didn't need to 

answer the question when Taeyeon had been very quick with snatching the chocolate bar 

away from Yoona when the girl had been distracted with questioning Jessica.

Jessica took the chocolate bar Taeyeon had got back for her and the two friends smiled at each 

other when Jessica resumed eating her chocolate. The two friends grabbed their back packs on 

the benches and took their other belongings before they proceed to walk away from the 

playground.

"Where should we go now?" Taeyeon asked and turned to Jessica that was still munching on 

her chocolate bar.

"I don't know. I don't really know what you can do in this city." Jessica said and took another 

bite of her chocolate.

They heard someone coming towards them in fast steps. The two friends stopped in their 

tracks and looked back to whoever it was that seemed to run after them. Soon after they felt 

they got dragged away by someone. When they looked who it was they noticed it was the 

twin like girls they had got awaken by.

"We'll show you lots of places here! Just follow us!" The twin like girls said in unison and 

dragged Taeyeon and Jessica with them. The two shorter girl found it hard to keep up with the 

long legged girls that took much wider steps than them.

"Can't you slow down a bit?" Jessica barked at Yoona that dragged her.

"No, we won't have time to show you all the places if we don't go in this speed." Yoona said 

and laughed. Jessica just gave the girl a weird look and tried to keep up with the speed they 

walked at.

Taeyeon looked at Jessica that got dragged by Yoona while she was dragged by Yuri. Jessica 

shrugged her shoulders by her friends questioning look. At least now they didn't need to come 

up with places to go to when these two girls would show them around.

"What're your names by the way?" Yuri asked and turned to the two girls that still got dragged 

by her and her companion. Jessica and Taeyeon looked at each other contemplating if they 

really should tell these strangers their names.

"Taeyeon." Taeyeon answered. The three girls turned to Jessica to wait for her to tell them her 

name. She looked at Taeyeon that smiled a reassuring smile even though they were in the 

position they are now.

"Jessica." Jessica told them and looked another way. She always gave into things when 

Taeyeon smiled at her like that.

Jessica and Taeyeon found themselves being dragged around in the city. They saw Yuri and 

Yoona giving each other some kind of sign and they took a turn into some alley and ran 

through it out on another road. The four girls stopped there and Jessica and Taeyeon could 

finally catch their breath after being dragged away by the two taller girls.

"What are you two doing?" Jessica asked after she had regained some of her breath. The two 

taller girls just smiled at her and exchanged glances before looking back at her.

"Well we kind of heard that you didn't know what to do in this city so we thought we would 

show you around here." Yuri explained. Yoona nodded in agreement. Jessica cocked and 

eyebrow and eyed the two girls.

"And?" Jessica asked and crossed her arms.

"Uh, nothing else." Yuri said and shrugged her shoulders. Jessica sighed and face-palmed.

"Why would you two show two strangers around in a city? You don't even know anything 

about us." Jessica said and pointed at herself and Taeyeon.

"You're not a stranger. You are Taeyeon and you are Jessica. Once you know someone's name 

that person gets an identity and is no longer a stranger in your life." Yoona said and pointed at 

respective girl. Jessica looked at the girl with the big brown eyes that she thought looked like 

a doe's eyes. She had a really interesting point there.

"That might be your thought about the situation but we can manage to look around the city by 

ourselves." Jessica said and grabbed Taeyeon's hand and proceeded to walk away from the 

two strange girls.

She felt herself being stopped by a hand on her wrist. She looked back and found the girl with 

doe eyes holding her wrist and looking at her with pleading eyes, Jessica turned to face the 

girl and gave her a questioning look.

"Please let us show you around. We don't really have anything to do and are really bored. We 

would gladly show you this city." Yoona said with her big brown eyes in a pleading way. 

Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances before looking back at the two girls that waited for 

the answer with hopeful smiles.

"Fine, we'll let you show us around this city if you really want it." Jessica sighed and gave 

into the two girls' request. Smiles appeared on the taller girls face and they turned to walk 

down the road and motioned for Jessica and Taeyeon to follow them.

"Is there anything particular you want to see?" Yuri asked and put her hands in her pockets. 

She looked at Jessica and Taeyeon that were walking on her right side.

"No." Jessica said bluntly. Yuri and Yoona exchanged glances as they wondered what they 

should show these girls first.

"You haven't eaten breakfast yet! Let’s go to your favorite place first!" Yuri said and pointed 

at Yoona. Yoona brighten up by her friend’s suggestion and started taking the led showing the 

two girls the areas of the city they walked past on their way to Yoona's favorite place.

They stopped at a place that looked like a small restaurant. Jessica and Taeyeon felt the scent 

of cooked food as they stood outside the place, their mouths beginning to watering and their 

stomachs growled in hunger. Jessica bit her lower lip, this was bad.

She grabbed Taeyeon's hand and tugged on it. Taeyeon turned to the brunette that seemed to 

want her attention, Jessica shook her head and mouthed: 'no matter what we can't eat 

anything, we don't have money for this.'.

Jessica saw Taeyeon's disappointed face but she choose to ignore it for now, she also wanted 

to eat something but she needed to stay firm for their survival sake. The girl that had led them 

to this place turned to them with a big grin plastered on her face.

"Let’s fill your stomach with real food." Yoona said and grabbed Jessica's hand. Jessica 

snatched her hand away from Yoona and earned a surprised look from the doe eyed girl.

"We don't have money to buy anything here." Jessica said looked at the two girls that had 

been offering them to guide them around the city. Yuri and Yoona exchanged looks before 

turning back to the poor travelers.

"It's okay." Yoona said and grabbed Jessica's hand again just for Jessica to snatch her hand 

away again.

"And we won't come with you inside either, it will be too tempting for us if we're inside."

Jessica said serious. She felt Taeyeon's hold on her hand tighten and she squeezed back.

"That only proves you need to eat something. Now come." Yuri said and began pushing the 

two girls into the restaurant with Yoona's help. Once inside Taeyeon and Jessica were forced 

to sit down on a seat and Yuri and Yoona took a seat beside the two girls to prevent them 

from running away from this place.

"Shindong-oppa!" Yoona shouted at someone. Soon a guy came up to them with a smile on 

his face. Jessica and Taeyeon eyed the guy that was holding a notepad.

"Hi, Yoona and Yuri. It's nice to see you here again. What will it be today?" The guy named 

Shindong asked and held up his notepad to write down their orders.

"The usual, but oppa we have brought two friends with us today." Yoona said and showed the 

guy Taeyeon and Jessica. The guy smiling even wider when he saw the two new faces in his 

restaurant.

"Ah, hello. It's nice that you're coming by this restaurant of mine. What will you have? New 

customers always get their first meal for free here." Shindong said with a smile. Jessica and 

Taeyeon gaped in shock and stared in disbelief at the restaurant owner.

"For free?" Jessica asked in surprise. Shindong and the two girls that had brought her and her 

friend here nodded in confirmation. "Are you serious?" Jessica asked still not believing them. 

Free things always had a catch had she learned in life.

"He's telling the truth. Just look at the sign over there." Yuri said and pointed at a sign that 

were hanging on the wall beside the door to the kitchen. The sign read 'To welcome all new 

customers is the first meal for free.' Jessica read the sign over and over again trying to make 

herself believe the words that actually were written there.

"So it's for free." Jessica said and looked at Shindong that still waited for her order. She 

turned to her friend that was sitting opposite her at the table. "What do you want?" Jessica 

asked and looked at Taeyeon. Taeyeon's expression still showed that she was unsure of this.

"Taengoo, it seems legit." Jessica said and tried to assure her friend it was okay. Taeyeon 

leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.

"Nothing is for free." Taeyeon said.

"Okay, will you accept the meal if you help me out with a thing?" Shindong asked when it 

seemed like the girls would accept the free meal. The girl looked at him with questioning 

looks. "Help me wipe the tables after you've eaten, that will be your payment."

Jessica turned to Taeyeon again after hearing the offer they were given. She saw that Taeyeon 

seemed to be in deep thought about it and she waited for her friend to sort out her thoughts. 

After thirty seconds of thinking Taeyeon seemed to have made up her mind.

"Okay." Taeyeon mumbled. Jessica smiled and looked at Shindong that had a satisfied smile 

on his face and prepared to write down the girls orders.

"So what will it be?" He asked again. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged confused glances as 

both of them didn't know what this place had to offer. Shindong noticed it and wrote down 

something on the notepad.

"I'll give you a surprise then." Shindong said and placed the notepad in his pocket and went to 

the kitchen.

When the guy came back he was carrying a tray with drinks on. He placed two identical

drinks in front of Yoona and Yuri and the two other drinks placed he in front of Taeyeon and 

Jessica.

Jessica eyed the big glass with the black straw. She carefully took a sip of the liquid and her 

eyes widen in surprise when she felt the cold and sweet sensation of the drink. She looked 

surprised at Shindong that smiled at her.

"Is this milkshake?" Jessica asked surprised and held up her glass. Shindong nodded his head 

with a smile.

"Yes, do you like it?" Shindong asked.

"Yes, it's really good." Jessica said and drank other sip of the milkshake. Shindong chuckled 

by the girl's reaction to the drink.

"Don't drink yourself full now." He said and turned to attend another customer that had come. 

Jessica and Taeyeon enjoyed some more sips of their milkshakes before they saved the rest to 

after they had eaten their meal.

"So you're travelers?" Yuri asked the two girls. Jessica nodded her head.

"Why did you decide to travel?" Yoona asked. Taeyeon and Jessica stiffened by the question 

and glanced at each other, trying to come up with a good answer that wouldn't completely 

expose their reason for traveling.

"We just wanted to come away." Taeyeon answered and shrugged her shoulders. Jessica eyed 

the two girls that were questioning her and Taeyeon to see their reaction, they seemed to go 

with the answer Taeyeon had given them.

"But don't you have school? You seem to be in the same age as us." Yuri asked. Jessica and 

Taeyeon once more exchanged glances and Jessica began playing with the straw in her 

milkshake.

"I don't go to school." Jessica replied nonchalantly. Yuri and Yoona's eyes widen in surprise.

"Why not?" Yoona asked surprised.

"They just don't want me there." Jessica said and looked at her friend that sat opposite her. 

She noticed Taeyeon's concerned expression and she smiled to assure Taeyeon it was okay.

The four girls sat in silence as the two taller girls tried to understand what they had just been 

told about the new girls’ situation. Yoona and Yuri looked at each other without saying a 

word, making it look like they were using telepathy to talk to each other.

To all the girls delight the food arrived shortly afterwards which made them think about that 

instead. They all began eating to fulfill their stomachs' desires. Jessica and Taeyeon were 

given a hamburger each with fries to eat. They both got a 'enjoy your meal and welcome back' 

note on their hamburger. The note was stuck on a toothpick with was on top of the hamburger.

Jessica took a bite of her hamburger and looked at Taeyeon that was eating her hamburger 

with a satisfied smile on her face. Jessica smiled as well and swallowed the bite of her 

hamburger and took another bite of it. Her attention was drawn back to Taeyeon when she 

heard her blonde friend giggling.

"You have sauce here." Taeyeon said and pointed at the side of her cheek. Jessica wiped the 

opposite cheek with the back of her hand earning more giggles from Taeyeon.

"Babo, not there." Taeyeon said and reached her hand over the table and wiped away the 

sauce from Jessica's cheek. "There." Taeyeon said and licked away the sauce on her finger. 

Jessica stared at her friend, dazed by the contact Taeyeon's finger just had made with her 

cheek.

"Are you okay?" Yoona asked beside Jessica. Jessica snapped out of her daze and looked at 

the doe-eyed girl.

"Yes, I'm okay." Jessica said and took a napkin to wipe her cheek. She stopped in her action 

and held her hand over the place where the feeling of Taeyeon's finger was still lingering. It 

was a tickling feeling and Jessica felt slightly confused by it.

Jessica ignored the feeling and pushed back her confusion. She wiped her cheek with the 

napkin to make sure there weren't any sauce left before she began eating on her hamburger 

and fries again.

When the girls had finished their meal and Jessica and Taeyeon had finished their milkshakes 

Jessica was lying with her head on the table surface and clutching her stomach that now hurt 

because she had eaten so much.

"I'm gonna explode." Jessica said and looked at Taeyeon in front of her. Taeyeon just gave the 

girl a sympathetic look. "I'll never eat again."

"If you didn't drink your milkshake that fast then you could have saved yourself from the 

stomach pain." Taeyeon said and smiled at her now suffering friend.

"You should have stopped me." Jessica mumbled.

"It's impossible to stop you when you eat fast."

Jessica let out a sigh and closed her eyes. She wished she had eaten slower to save her this 

suffering. She heard someone take a seat beside her and she opened her eyes and saw that 

Yoona and Yuri had come back from visiting the washroom.

"Are you feeling any better, unnie?" Yoona asked and patted the brunettes back. Jessica made 

a grimace that answered Yoona's question.

"I'll go and clean the tables that Shindong wanted help with." Taeyeon said and stood up from 

her seat. Jessica sat up from her seat to help the blonde girl but Taeyeon stopped her.

"I'll do it myself, you can rest and take it easy." Taeyeon said and smiled at Jessica. Jessica 

watched as Taeyeon made her way towards Shindong, she saw them talking and Shindong 

pointing out the tables that Taeyeon was going to clean. She continued to watch the blonde 

girl as she did the work she was assigned.

When Taeyeon was done with her task they all thanked Shindong before leaving. Shindong 

bided them goodbye and wished them welcome back. The four girls proceed to walk to the 

next destination. Now had Jessica and Taeyeon grown a small trust towards the other two 

girls. 

"Now we're going to my favorite place." Yuri announced. Yoona cheering in excitement as 

she knew what place it was. Taeyeon and Jessica just let themselves being led to the next 

destination of this sightseeing.

After a few minutes of walking Jessica and Taeyeon found themselves standing outside a 

small amusement park. Both of them gawking at all the rides at the amusement park while 

Yuri and Yoona took the lead to show them around.

"Because you don't have any money we can't really go on any ride, but it's funny to just look 

around." Yuri explained and the four girls began looking at all the stands with games people 

were playing.

Jessica and Taeyeon stopped in front of a game where you were supposed to hit plastic ducks 

with a gun to win a price. A small boy and girl were standing by the stand and trying the game 

out. The small boy was currently trying to hit the ducks that were moving. He had taken an 

aim at the ducks and was shooting at him, but none of the shots seemed to hit the ducks.

"Oppa, you're so bad at this, let’s go to another place." The small girl whined and pulled at the 

boy's arm.

"No, I'm gonna win that doll for you." The boy said determined.

"No, you'll waste all your money and your mom will get angry."

Jessica let out a chuckle when she heard the two small kids’ conversation. She nudged

Taeyeon by the arm only to have the blonde look away in embarrassment, probably because 

she also had thought the same thought as Jessica. Jessica smiled and continued to watch the 

smaller kids as her mind wandered back in memory lane.

The twelve years old Jessica and Taeyeon walked among all the stalls on the carnival. They 

were walking hand in hand to not get lost among all the people at the carnival. Both girls 

were keeping their eyes open for that certain place they had wanted to visit ever since they 

heard of the carnival. Finally finding the place both girls hurried their short legs towards the 

stall.

"Three balls, thank you." Taeyeon said and gave the man that was sitting in the stall the 

money and in return she was given three balls she was supposed to throw in bowls. She stuck 

out her tongue in concentration when she aimed at the red bowl.

She threw one of the balls only to have it hit the edge of the red bowl and roll down and land 

in one of the green bowls. Taeyeon frowned and positioned herself to throw the next ball. She 

followed the ball when it flew in the air only to see it landing in another green bowl. She let 

out a frustrated sigh and prepared herself to throw her last ball. The last ball ended up as her 

first two balls and Taeyeon stared at the balls in disbelief.

"Better luck next time, Taengoo." Jessica said and pulled on Taeyeon's hand only to have the 

girl pulled away from her.

"Ahjussi, one more round!" Taeyeon said and gave the man money for another round. Jessica 

helplessly watched as Taeyeon did another round only to end up like her first round. Taeyeon 

did one more round only to have it end like the two first ones.

"Taengoo, let’s go. This is obviously not something for you, let’s try something else instead." 

Jessica said and pulled at Taeyeon's arm.

"No, one more time." Taeyeon said and pulled away from Jessica.

"No! Think about your money, Taeyeon. You'll get in trouble if you waste all of it!" Jessica 

reasoned. The twelve year old Jessica pierced Taeyeon with her stare, Taeyeon stared at her 

friend and let Jessica's word make sense to her.

"Okay, let’s go and look at the goldfishes instead." Taeyeon said. Jessica smiled when 

Taeyeon had changed her mind and grabbed other girls hand and both of them made their 

way to the other stall.

Jessica smiled upon the memory and continued to watch the boy that now was able to hit one 

of the ducks. The boy smiled and the little girl cheered in happiness when she was able to get 

her doll. The two kids walked away from the stall with the girl hugging the doll happily.

"Hey, that boy is better than you at aiming." Jessica said in a teasing voice and turned to her 

friend only to notice Taeyeon was no longer standing beside her. Jessica's eyes widened upon 

her friend's absence and she turned around to see if Taeyeon was near somewhere but the 

blonde girl was nowhere to be found.

Where did she wander off to now? Jessica wondered and wrapped her arms around her body 

and starting to slowly walk around to look for Taeyeon.

Jessica first made her way towards the toilets in hope that Taeyeon might have went there. 

After waiting outside for five minutes and no Taeyeon came out Jessica concluded that 

Taeyeon wasn't there.

She made her way to every stall that might be of Taeyeon's interest only to find out that there 

were no Taeyeon there. Anxiety started building inside of Jessica and the brunette started 

panic when she couldn't find Taeyeon.

Think Jessica, think Jessica. You of all people should know how Taeyeon thinks, where 

Taeyeon might go and what Taeyeon likes to do. It shouldn't be that hard to find her. Jessica 

scolded herself. She stood in the middle of the amusement park and looked around after 

Taeyeon.

The loneliness and insecurities started building up when Taeyeon wasn't there with her. 

Jessica bit her lower lip and continued to spin around to look for the girl, but she saw no sign 

of Taeyeon.

Where the heck is sh- Jessica's thoughts stopped when someone tapped her shoulder. She spun 

around hoping to see the face she was looking for only to have disappointment slap her in the 

face when she saw it was two taller girls with brown hair standing there. Her disappointment 

was however not unnoticed. 

"Oh, did you look for someone else?" Yuri asked when she noticed Jessica's disappointment. 

Jessica let out a sigh and began looking around again.

"I lost Taeyeon." Jessica said sadly and continued to look around. Yoona and Yuri looked at 

each other before looking back at the shorter brunette.

"We can go and look for her together." Yuri suggested. Jessica bit her lip, she was starting to 

get scared to what might have happened to Taeyeon.

"I've looked everywhere already." Jessica said and helplessly looked at the two taller girls.

"We can look again. My mom always says you should look more than once at the same place 

as you notice things you never noticed the first time you looked." Yuri said and the three girls 

began looking around the amusement park after missing blonde girl.

After looking at every stall and place three more times the three girls took a seat on one of the 

benches beside the Ferris wheel. Jessica cupped her face in her hands as she now felt 

completely helpless without Taeyeon there.

"I'm sure she will show up, Jessica. Don't worry." Yuri said and patted the distressed brunettes 

back.

"My mom said you never really loose things that are really important to you. I'm sure 

Taeyeon is somewhere around here." Yoona said with a smile. Jessica however couldn't smile 

or think bright thoughts when she didn't know where Taeyeon was. They didn't know much 

about the city they were currently in and Jessica had managed to lose Taeyeon. How were 

they supposed to survive like that? If they had been in their hometown they always had their 

special place to meet up at if they lose each other, but here in this new city they had no such 

place.

Taeyeon why did you just wander off like that? Where in the world are you? Jessica thought 

to herself and let her fears and worries overflow ending with her crying over her nowhere-to-be-found friend.

Chapter 4 - So we can remember

The two taller girls got shocked to hear the shorter brunette sob. They looked at each other 

wondering what they should do. Yoona was the first one to take action and side hugged the 

distressed brunette and tried to comfort her.

"Don't cry. I'm sure she will show up." Yoona said and patted Jessica's back. Yuri took out a 

napkin she had in her pocket and offered it to shorter girl to wipe her tears. Jessica accepted 

the napkin and wiped her cheeks.

"She can be anywhere. And what if something has happened to her?" Jessica asked and 

looked at the two girls with helpless eyes. The two taller girls exchanged glances before 

looking back at Jessica.

"Let’s not think about all the bad things that might have happened. Let’s first think of all the 

places Taeyeon might go to if she would lose you like this. What would Taeyeon do if she lost

you like this?" Yuri asked.

"If it were in our hometown she would go to the first place we met each other." Jessica said. 

Yuri and Yoona looked at each other.

"Maybe we should look at the first place you two visited when you got here?" Yuri suggested 

and looked at Jessica. Jessica let out a sigh.

"That would be some cliff the bus stopped at." Jessica said and threw the napkin in a garbage

bin that was beside the bench.

"I know where it is, let's go there to look." Yuri said and stood up.

Jessica followed the two taller girls that led the way to the first place she saw of this city. She 

looked back at the amusement park as they excited it. She hoped that Taeyeon wouldn't still 

be there now when they leave.

Jessica tried to look around as much as she could on their way to the cliff, she hoped that 

Taeyeon would actually be there when she got there. She knew full well that Taeyeon was bad 

at directions but she hoped a miracle had happened and led her friend to the cliff.

When they finally had arrived at the cliff Jessica got even more scared as she didn't see 

Taeyeon there. She, Yuri and Yoona took time to look around the cliff to make sure that 

Taeyeon really wasn't there. None of them found her and after twenty minutes of looking they 

decided they should head to the playground where all four of them first met.

When they arrived at the playground they saw there were kids there playing and running 

around. The girls took their time to look around for Taeyeon and even asking some of the kids 

if they had seen someone that looked like Taeyeon, the answer they got was either a no or 

some shy kids just shaking their heads. They left the playground with much more concern for 

the missing girl.

"Should we go to Shindong's and see if she maybe went there?" Yoona suggested. 

"Yeah, that's a good idea. What do you think Jessica?" Yuri said and turned to the shorter 

brunette. Jessica just gave a shrug in answer.

They walked to the restaurant they all had been eating at earlier that day. Jessica felt like her 

worries would eat her up. Regret started kicking in as well, if something had happened to 

Taeyeon she would never forgive herself for making Taeyeon come with her here.

When they arrived at the restaurant they looked around to see if the blonde short girl was 

there, seeing no sign of her they asked if Shindong had seen Taeyeon or if maybe Taeyeon 

had stopped by after they had been there.

"No, I haven't seen her since you came here together." Shindong answered their questions.

"I see. Thank you anyway. But if she stops by here make her stay and call one of us, okay?" 

Yuri said and Shindong nodded.

"I'll keep my eyes open. I'm sorry I can help you look for her." Shindong said when the three 

girls were leaving.

"It's okay oppa, you'll do enough just keeping your eyes open here." Yuri assured the guy 

before they excited the restaurant.

The three girls took a seat on a bench outside of the restaurant, everyone feeling tired after 

walking around so much. They all were thinking of some place Taeyeon might be at. Jessica 

let out a sigh and covered her face with her hands.

"Jessica if we don’t find Taeyeon we might need to report her to the police." Yuri said in a 

sad tone.

"No!" Jessica shouted and glared at Yuri. "Not the police! We can't and will never get the 

police involved in this." Jessica said serious. She knew once they got the police involved and 

when they found Taeyeon both of them would be sitting on a bus back home.

The three girls sat in silence again as they thought of another solution of the problem. It was 

harder for Yuri and Yoona to think of places where Taeyeon might be as they didn't know the

girl that well. They could only show Jessica the way to different places but Jessica had to 

think of those places for them to go.

"Maybe we should go back to the amusement park and look?" Yoona suggested.

"Is there not someplace else you and Taeyeon visited together when you came here?" Yuri 

asked Jessica.

Jessica sat straight up when she remembered a place they haven't looked at yet. She mentally 

face-palming herself for forgetting she and Taeyeon had went there. She stood up and looked 

around and tried to think where in the city they were and how she would be able to go to that 

place.

Finally feeling she knew the direction she started walk with Yuri and Yoona closely following 

her. The taller girls being a bit confused by Jessica's behavior. They exchanged confused 

looks and continued to follow the short brunette.

"Where are we going?" Yuri asked as she walked beside Jessica.

"To the beach, Taeyeon and I went to the beach when we came here." Jessica said and 

continued to speed-walk her way to the beach. The two taller girls just following the short 

brunette as it seemed like she knew the way already.

When they arrived at the beach Jessica was panting after she had been walking so fast. She 

was scanning the area after the girl she had been looking around the whole city after. The two 

taller girls that stood behind her helped her to look around for any short blonde girl that is the 

short brunette's friend.

Jessica's eyes stopped at a girl that was sitting on a rock in the water. Her eyes widened and 

she started running towards the girl feeling her heartbeat pound in her chest as she pumped 

her legs faster to reach the girl.

"Kim Taeyeon!" Jessica shouted and run into the water and to the rock where Taeyeon was 

sitting.

Jessica tripped after she had run and her legs got tired. Taeyeon quickly got up from the rock 

she was sitting on and helped her now wet friend to stand up. Jessica was panting heavily as 

she looked at Taeyeon that stood in front of her. Her wet clothes dripping of water.

"You! You!" Jessica began shouting and poked Taeyeon's chest. "Where in the world have 

you been?! I've been looking everywhere for you! I was so worried something might have 

happened to you! You can't just walk off like that without telling me where you're going!" 

Jessica continued to shout and now shaking Taeyeon's body.

"I'm sorry, I-" Taeyeon began but Jessica didn't let her finish her sentence.

"Sorry? Is that what you're going to say after I've went around the whole city looking for you, 

worrying myself to death while thinking of all the possible things that might have happened to 

you?" Jessica continued to shout in Taeyeon's face.

"Yes! I'm sorry! I'm sorry that you got your wallet stolen at the amusement park and I had to 

run after the thief that stole it. I'm so sorry!" Taeyeon shout back and took out a black leather 

wallet out of her pocket and held it right in front of Jessica's face.

"I'm sorry that I just happened to notice the guy that put his hand in your back pack without 

your notice and ran away with your wallet. I'm sorry!" Taeyeon said and shoved Jessica's 

wallet into the brunette's hand and started walking back to the beach.

Jessica looked down at the wallet in her hand. The wallet was worn out and some of the color 

of the fake leather had started to fade away. She opened her wallet to see if her money and 

other things were still there, to her relief everything was there.

She looked at the blonde that now had made her way to the beach. Taeyeon was standing with 

her back facing Jessica, Jessica felt really guilty right now. She slowly made her way towards 

the beach and continued to look at her wallet.

"You should change clothes." Taeyeon said when Jessica had walked up to her at the beach. 

Jessica looked down on her wet clothes.

"We can go to my house." Yuri suggested as the two taller girls came towards the two shorter 

ones. Taeyeon picked up Jessica's pack back she also had dropped on the sand before she had 

ran out in the water.

"Sounds good. Let’s go." Taeyeon said and the four of them began walking.

Jessica looked at the blonde girl she walked beside, she could clearly see that Taeyeon was 

mad. She let out a sigh and looked at the two girls that walked ahead of them, she noticed that 

they were holding hands. She tilted her head as she watched the interlocked hands that 

dangled between the two taller girls.

Her eyes left the two other girls hands and gazed down on her own hand that was still holding 

her wallet. Her wallet that had been the reason why Taeyeon had disappeared, and now the 

reason why Jessica felt guilty.

How can a wallet cause so much trouble? Jessica thought and frowned.

She saw a hand that was held out in front of her. Her eyes followed the arm up to the owners 

face, the face was still turned from her and the person's eyes were focusing forward. Jessica 

looked down at the hand again wondering what the person wanted her to do with it.

"Should I take your wallet?" Taeyeon asked with a casual tone when she seemed to get no 

response from the brunette. Jessica looked at Taeyeon sadly, Taeyeon rarely used that kind of 

tone when she talked.

She placed the wallet in Taeyeon's hand but didn't let go of it. She felt Taeyeon trying to pull 

the wallet and for a few seconds, she watched the girl struggling as it seemed like Taeyeon 

couldn't get the wallet out of the brunette's grip.

Taeyeon stopped pulling at the wallet and just let both of them hold the wallet together. 

Jessica looked down at their hands that now were connected by a wallet. She smiled for 

herself and continued to focus her eyes forward.

If we can't hold hands we can always do this. Jessica happily thought.

They soon reached a small house that was in the outskirts of the city. Jessica and Taeyeon 

followed the two taller girls that entered through the garage of the house. Yuri stopped in 

front of the door that led into the house and turned towards Jessica. She looked at the wet girl 

that at least now had stopped dripping of water.

"Take your shoes off, my mom wouldn't like it if the floors got wet." Yuri said and pointed at 

Jessica's shoes.

Jessica did as she was told. She took of her shoes and placed them beside other pair of shoes 

that were standing in a line outside the house. Yuri eyed her again noticing that Jessica's pants 

were still making the floor in the garage wet.

"Wait here, I'll give you a towel." Yuri said and turned to walk into the house.

"No, no! It's okay. I have my own towel." Jessica said and turned to the carrier of her pack 

back. Knowing what the brunette wanted Taeyeon handed Jessica the brunette's back pack.

Jessica opened her pack back and searched for the item she wanted. As she found the towel 

she also found out that her wallet wasn't there either, making Taeyeon's story true that some 

thief tried to steal her wallet. She pushed back her guilty feelings for now and took out the 

towel from her bag showing it to Yuri.

"Good, I was thinking that you maybe could remove your wet pants." Yuri said and pointed at 

the brunettes pants. Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked down at the wet article of clothe before 

they looked back up at Yuri.

"Sure." Jessica said and shrugged her shoulders.

She handed her pack back and wallet to Taeyeon so she could get her hands free before she 

wrapped the towel around her waist. With the towel around her waist she removed the wet 

pants and held them up.

"Good, there's a wire over there you can hang them up to let them dry." Yuri said and pointed 

at the opposite wall. Seeing the wire Yuri was talking about Jessica first made her way to the 

small sink in the garage to squeeze out some of the remaining water before she hung up the 

pants on the wire.

Now when there was nothing left on her body that might wet the floor in the house Yuri 

finally let everyone in. As they were all inside Yuri quickly took a door to their right, the door 

led to a stair that probably led down to the basement.

"My room is down there, you can go there while I talk to my parents. Yoona show Jessica 

where the shower is." Yuri told the other tall brunette. Yoona nodded and led the two new 

girls down the basement to where Yuri's room was.

They all walked down the stair that led to the basement, it was dark and Jessica and Taeyeon 

took carefully step by step down the stair to not take a wrong step and instead fall down the 

stairs. Yoona was walking down like it was the easiest thing in the world to walk down a stair 

in darkness.

When Yoona had arrived at the basement she was quick with turning on the lights to not make 

the new girls stumble over the things on the floor she knew Yuri had. The two shorter girls 

stopped in their tracks as they saw the room in front of them.

The room was spacious and Yuri or whoever that had furnish this room had divided the room 

in two parts. One part of the room where some kind of workout area with mirrors filling the 

wall, some of the floor with work out machines. The other part of the room had bed beside a 

wall a bed, a desk close to the bed, a wardrobe by the end of the bed a couch in the middle of 

the area and a TV in front of it. The two girls were amazed by the big room Yuri had.

"Yuri-unnie likes to exercise a lot. She's a good dancer as well." Yoona told the two girls and 

took a seat on Yuri's bed. Laying down and stretching her limbs over the bed. Taeyeon and 

Jessica followed the girl and stood beside the bed, a bit careful to not touch anything without 

permission.

A few minutes later steps were heard and Yuri came down the stairs to the room. She had two 

towels in hand and walked to the two girls that stood beside her bed and glanced at the girl 

that was loitering around on her bed.

"Yoong I told you to show Jessica where the shower is." Yuri scolded the girl on the bed.

"Oh, right. I forgot. Take that door over there and you'll find it." Yoona lazily pointed towards 

a door beside the wardrobe. Jessica glanced at Taeyeon before she slowly walked towards the 

bathroom.

"It's okay. Take this towel, my mom said you could use it." Jessica looked at the towel she 

was given. The tanned girl flashed her a smile and Jessica returned it and entered the 

bathroom to take a shower.

Yuri took a seat beside the girl on the bed and looked up at the blonde girl that was standing 

up. That Taeyeon was feeling uncomfortable being here was evident on her face. Yuri wanted 

to do something to make the girl relax somehow.

"So have you and Jessica known each other for a long time?" Yuri asked the blonde girl. 

Taeyeon turned towards the girl that was speaking to her, a smile appeared on her face and 

she looked down on her feet.

"Yeah, almost fifteen years." Taeyeon said.

"I see." Yuri said and nodded. "Jessica seems to care a lot about you. She was really worried 

when you disappeared, she even started crying."

Taeyeon looked up surprised by hearing what the tanned girl told her about her friend. She 

looked down at her hands only nodded in acknowledge.

A few minutes later Jessica got out of the shower, now in dry clothes and with a towel around

her neck that she rubbed her wet and clean hair with. She noticed all the girls in the room 

were staring at her and she shot them a questioning look.

"You shower very fast, Jessica-unnie." Yoona pointed out.

Jessica shrugged her shoulders and walked to Yuri to hand back the towel to the tanned girl. 

"I didn't want to waste your water as this is not my house." Jessica said and gave the towel to 

Yuri.

"That's thoughtful of you, but you didn't need to worry about that, it was me that said you 

could use our shower." Yuri said and smiled. Jessica shrugged her shoulders again and went 

to stand beside Taeyeon again.

"Next one." Yuri said and reached out the towel to Taeyeon. Taeyeon reluctantly took the 

towel and made her way to the bathroom. Jessica watched the blonde girl as she made her 

way towards the bathroom. When the door closed to the bathroom Jessica turned to the tanned 

girl and the girl lying on the bed.

"Did you tell her something?" Jessica asked.

"Only that you seemed to care a lot about her and that you were worried when she 

disappeared." Yuri said and threw the towel Jessica had used in a laundry basket that stood at 

the end of the bed.

"You really didn't have to tell her that." Jessica said and looked towards the door Taeyeon had 

gone through.

"But I did it anyway." Yuri said and smiled. "Anyways, where are the two of you going to 

sleep tonight?" Yuri asked and stood up. Jessica followed the tanned girl with her eyes as the 

girl walked around in the room.

"I don't know." Jessica said and looked down at her feet. "Probably the playground."

"Sleep here." Yuri offered. Jessica looked up at the tanned girl that stood in front of her. 

Yoona that was lying on the bed seemed to take interest in the conversation now and propped 

her head up to listen.

"No, that will be too much. You've done enough for us already. And we barely know each 

other." Jessica declined the offer and shook her head.

"I insist. And we can get to know each other." Yuri said and took a seat on the floor in the 

middle of the room. She patted the space in front of her telling Jessica she should also take a 

seat.

The shorter brunette slowly made her way towards Yuri and took a seat on the floor in front 

of Yuri. Yuri smiled wide at her and Jessica avoided the tanned girl's gaze. What was up with 

this girl's thoughtfulness? Jessica had never met anyone being so nice towards people they 

just had met.

"I still don't wanna stay here for the night. What about your parents?" Jessica said and played 

with the edge of her sleeve.

"I can tell them we'll have a sleep over. They will accept it." Yuri said with a smile.

Jessica let out a sigh. "I don't wanna take up space."

Yuri chuckled. "Nonsense! I've enough space for four people to sleep here!" Yuri said and 

reached out her hands to demonstrate how spacious her room was. Jessica knew full well that 

she and Taeyeon would be able to sleep here, but something was still holding her back.

Steps that came down the stairs were heard interrupting the girls’ conversation. The looked 

towards a woman that resembled Yuri that just had come down to the basement, the only 

difference between the woman and Yuri was that Yuri was tanned while the woman had more 

light skin. 

"Yuri, you said one of your friends fell into the water, is she okay?" The woman that Jessica 

thought was probably Yuri's mother asked.

"Yes, it's her. Her name is Jessica." Yuri said and pointed towards the girl in front of her. 

Jessica smiled awkwardly at the woman.

"Hello! I'm Yuri's mother. You fell into the water, are you okay?" The woman said and sat 

down beside Jessica on the floor. She placed a hand over Jessica's forehead startling the 

brunette a bit.

"Y-yes. I'm perfectly fine." Jessica stuttered.

A click from a door opening made all the people in the room turn towards the bathroom door 

that just had opened and revealed a clean Taeyeon. Taeyeon was rubbing her hair with her 

borrowed towel and she looked at everyone that looked at her with a questioning look.

"Oh, another girl!" Yuri's mother exclaimed and got up from her seat and walked up to 

Taeyeon. Shaking the blonde girl's hand and greeted her. "Hello, I'm Yuri's mother." She 

greeted the girl that looked at the woman with a confused expression.

"I-I'm Taeyeon." Taeyeon managed to say.

"Are you two staying for dinner?" The woman asked and looked at both Taeyeon and Jessica. 

Jessica looked at Taeyeon that kept her head low to avoid her friends gaze.

"We-" Jessica began but got interrupted by the woman's daughter.

"They are staying for dinner, and they will sleep here as well." Yuri answered for the two 

girls. Jessica looked at Yuri not believing the girl had just said the complete opposite of what 

she was going to say.

"Good! The more the merrier!" The women said happily and proceeded to walk back to the 

kitchen to leave her daughter and daughter's friends alone.

"I'm also eating here." Yoona said from the bed.

"I know, when I mention food I don't even need to ask you if you're going to join, Yoona." 

Yuri's mother said and climbed up the stairs.

Yoona just smiled sheepishly and turned to lie on her stomach. Yuri looked at her friend that 

had occupied her bed and at the girl that stood dazed by the bathroom door, looking like she 

was still shocked by Yuri's mother.

"You two, join us here on the floor." Yuri ordered the two girls that wasn't seated on the floor 

and patted the empty space on her sides. Yoona quickly got up from the bed and took a seat 

on Yuri's left while Taeyeon took a seat beside Jessica.

"Yuri, me and Taeyeon can't stay here, it's a really nice offer but you've already let us use 

your shower. We don't need your food or your place to sleep at." Jessica stubbornly said. 

"Are you going somewhere else?" Yuri asked. Jessica looked questioning at her. "You said 

you can't stay here and I thought that as travelers you two might have a bus or train you need 

to catch."

"No, it's nothing like that. We don't really know where to go." Jessica said and glanced at 

Taeyeon only to notice the girl was facing her hands in her lap.

"Why don't you go to Seoul?" Yuri asked.

"We'd have gone to Seoul in the first place but the bus only had one seat left there so we went 

here instead." Jessica explained.

"I see, interesting. What's your hometown then?"

"Kunsan." Jessica felt a hand grip hers. She looked down and saw Taeyeon holding her hand.

She followed the hand up to its owners face and saw Taeyeon staring intensely at her, she 

looked questioning at Taeyeon and then it hit her.

She turned towards Yuri that had a mischievous grin plastered on her face. "See, we're getting

to know each other. So you're travelers from Kunsan, you're the same age as me. See we 

know a lot about each other already." Jessica mentally face palmed herself. How could she 

have been so reckless with giving out information about them?

"Yuri this doesn't change anything, we're not staying for dinner nor for the night." Jessica said 

and shook her head.

"Aww come on. Is there something I can do to make you stay? We want you to stay, and my 

mother has already started making dinner for you." Yuri said.

"No, we don't want to depend on others." Jessica said and proceeded to stand up to leave.

"Wait! We can play a game. If you win you can go, if I win you stay. Okay?" Yuri said and 

grabbed Jessica's hand before the girl could go. The shorter brunette eyed the girl in front of 

her and sat back down again on the floor.

"What game are you suggesting?" Jessica asked and arched an eyebrow. Yuri smiled when 

she seemed to have made the two girls stay a bit longer.

"I suggest poker." Yuri said and stood up to grab a pack of cards. Jessica eyed the cards that 

Yuri was right now mixing in her hands. "You do know how to play poker right?" Yuri asked 

and started dealing the cards.

Jessica took the cards she was given and nodded her head. "Yes, I know how to play."

---Two pair of orbs looked at the two girls in front of them. One of the girls was calmly looking 

at the cards in her hands while the other one was staring more intensely at her cards. The girl 

looked up from her cards and looked at the girl in front of her that was looking calmly at her.

"You done?" Yuri asked. Jessica just gave a nod in answer.

Yoona and Taeyeon stared at the cards that were displayed from both girls’ hands. One of 

them ended up with a smile while the other stared in disbelief at the cards in front of them. 

She sighed and covered her face with her hands.

"I win again. Me and Taeyeon are going." Jessica said and stood up preparing to leave Yuri's 

house.

"No! One more round! Please one more!" Yuri begged and grabbed Jessica's legs to hinder the 

girl from going anywhere.

"Unnie, she has won over you three times in a row now. Just admit your defeat." Yoona said 

and released Jessica from Yuri's grip. Yuri arms let go of Jessica's legs and made the standing 

girl able to walk again. Yuri sighed and faced the floor.

Jessica grabbed her back pack that was lying on the floor and Taeyeon followed her; taking 

her back pack and both of them proceed to head to the stairs to get out. Both looked back at 

the tanned girl and doe-eyed girl that were still seated on the floor. Yuri was still facing the 

floor and Yoona looked at them with an understanding expression.

"It was nice meeting you." Yoona said and smiled. Jessica and Taeyeon smiled back.

"Thank you for everything." Jessica said and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Yuri's words halted the two leaving girls. Taeyeon and Jessica turned back to the now 

standing girl that was now pointing at them, they both looked at Yuri and wondered what the 

girl was up to now.

"You two owe us." Yuri said. Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked questioning at the taller girl, 

even Yoona didn't know what Yuri was talking about. "If it weren't for us, you wouldn't have 

gotten free food. As a thank you for that you can at least stay here." Yuri said.

"No." Jessica said and turned around to leave. Yuri frowned and rushed to grab Jessica's wrist 

before she could walk any further.

"You won over me in poker, three times, thanks to that you deserve to stay." Yuri said and 

grinned. Jessica narrowed her eyes.

"That wasn't our deal." Jessica said and gently slapped away Yuri's hand.

"Take it as you won a night here with free food and a place to sleep. That's your prize for 

winning." Yuri said still grinning. Jessica just looked at Yuri with a raised eyebrow. "You 

have won prizes when you've played poker before, right?" Yuri asked when it didn't seem that 

Jessica was getting at what she was saying.

"Yeah, I know. I'm just wondering what kind of person you are; wanting to take in two 

strangers in your house. What if I and Taeyeon steal something when you're asleep?" Jessica 

asked. Yuri just smiled.

"If you really would have planned to steal something I don't think you'd have told me of the 

risks by making two stranger stay here. Besides, you don't seem like that kind of people." 

Yuri explained. Jessica sighed.

"You've known us for a few hours, how do you know that we aren't that kind of people?"

"Because if you're surviving by stealing I don't think you'd have been so careful with money 

like you are." Jessica and Taeyeon looked wide eyed at Yuri that just smiled at them. "Am I 

right? You don't seem to settle to stealing if you could choose other options to gain money or 

food, like working. That's what I learned at the restaurant, nothing is free in your world."

Jessica looked to the side. Yuri really had observed them well. Even though Jessica many 

times in her life had temptations to steal she never did it, or Taeyeon had always been there to 

stop her. Stealing had been an option for her, but she had always chosen other options. She let

out a defeated sigh.

"You're right." Jessica said. Yuri smile widened.

"Because I got that right you have to stay. Otherwise it feels like I've been deceived of my 

hospitality." Jessica sighed.

"Fine! We stay! We won't get anywhere if we continue like this!" Jessica said defeated. Yuri 

smiled satisfied and started jumping around in the room, finally being able to convince the 

two girls to stay. Seeing how happy Yuri become Jessica couldn't help but smile along 

together with Taeyeon and Yoona that also watched the now happy girl.

Jessica turned to Taeyeon and looked at the girl that was still smiling. Feeling that someone 

was looking at her Taeyeon turned towards Jessica and met the brunette’s eyes, Taeyeon's 

smile faded and she looked another way. Jessica disappointed looked another way as well. It 

seemed like Taeyeon was still angry at her after she had yelled at her for disappearing without 

knowing the real reason for Taeyeon's disappearance.

A click sound was heard in the room followed by a mechanic sound of some sort of technical 

device starting working. Jessica and Taeyeon faced the source of the sound and found Yoona 

with a polaroid camera. The taller but younger girl smiled at them.

"So we can remember this moment." Yoona said with a smile. An idea seemed to have 

popped up in Yuri's head as she took a seat beside the younger girl and took the camera away 

from her. A wide smile plastered on her face.

"Let's take pictures together!" Yuri announced and pointed the camera at Taeyeon and Jessica. 

The flash dazzled both girls as it went off and Yuri stopped pointing the camera at the two 

girls and looked at the picture that she just had taken.

"You two look so surprised, can't you at least smile?" Yuri said disappointed and held up the 

picture to show Jessica and Taeyeon. The two girls walked closer to take a look at the photo 

that displayed both their surprised expressions. "Let me and Yoona show how close friends 

take pictures together. Yoona smile." Yuri said and turned to Yoona and snapped a photo of 

the younger girl.

Once the photo was ready to see Yuri showed the two other girls how photos were taken. 

"See, now give me a smile." Yuri said and pointed the camera at Taeyeon. Awkwardly the 

blonde girl smiled at the camera. Not satisfied Yuri put the camera down and eyed the other 

girl.

"You're too awkward! Here Jessica, take our picture, I'll help with this." Yuri handed the 

camera to Jessica and stood up and stood beside Taeyeon. She had one arm around Taeyeon's 

shoulders and held up the other one and showed a peace sign while she had one eye closed 

with a wide smile plastered on her face. "Smile to the camera, Taeyeon. Smile and show 

Jessica how happy you are." Yuri whispered only for Taeyeon to hear.

A blush appeared on Taeyeon's cheeks. But she dismissed it and did as she was told, she 

copied Yuri and held up two fingers showing a peace sign and tried to smile as naturally she 

could. Yuri gave Jessica an okay to snap the photo and Jessica did it with help of Yoona to 

show her how the camera was working.

"See, this is how you take pictures." Yuri said and showed Jessica and Taeyeon the photo they 

just had taken. "Now one of both of you!" Yuri said and dragged both of the girls to stand in 

the middle of the room. "Pose!" Yuri said and pointed the camera at the two girls that still 

stood awkwardly beside each other.

"Unnie, they're too awkward." Yoona pointed out, her finger rubbing her chin in thought. Yuri 

sighed and looked at the two girls in front of her that seemed impossible to act naturally in

front of a camera.

"Should Yoona take a picture with Jessica first?" Yuri asked instead.

Jessica felt an arm wrap around her shoulders and noticed Taeyeon had moved closer to her. 

Taeyeon had once again copied Yuri, now with an arm wrapped around Jessica's shoulders 

and holding up a peace sign with her free hand and a smile on her face. Feeling some kind of 

familiarity when Taeyeon was close to her, Jessica was finally able to smile a natural smile 

and their photo was taken by Yuri.

"Now, this is a photo!" Yuri said and looked at the product in her hand. "You look really good 

together, look." Yuri said and held the photo for the two girls to take a look at. A smile 

appeared on both of their faces as they saw the photo. They turned to each other and both 

broke into giggles after wards. The two taller girls that stood by the side smiled at the sight of 

the other two girls that seemed to have come over whatever it was that made them awkward 

earlier.

"Now let's take more pictures!" Yuri said and gave the camera to Taeyeon to take a picture of 

Yuri and Yoona that had already started posing together.

---

"Look at this picture!" Yuri laughed and showed Yoona the picture. The younger girl burst 

out in laughter and laid down on the floor and laughed and held her hands over her stomach. 

"You're hilarious, how did you even make that expression?" Yuri asked and showed the girl 

that was displayed in the photo what she was talking about.

Jessica smiled and turned to Taeyeon. "It was because she was making all these kind of 

expressions behind you and I did it back!" Jessica said and pushed Taeyeon that was sitting 

beside her.

"I was trying to make you laugh, not trying to make you do faces back to me!" Taeyeon 

defended herself.

All girls laughed and continued to look at all the pictures that now were scattered on the floor 

in front of them. After hours of photo taking, a dinner break and more photo taking they had 

used up all film for the polaroid camera and now they were busily looking at all the pictures 

they had taken.

"But you two are really good at taking photos, both behind the camera and in front of it." 

Jessica praised the two taller girls that were sitting across from her and Taeyeon on the floor.

"It's because we like it." Yoona explained with a smile. The younger girl was now lying on 

her stomach and looked at five photos she had in her hand.

"And we also have a bit of interest in modeling and photography." Yuri added. The two other 

girls nodded their heads, interested in what they just had learned about the two girls.

"So are you thinking of working with that later on?" Taeyeon asked and shifted her gaze from 

the photo in her hand onto the two questioned girls. Yuri and Yoona looked at each other and 

smiled.

"If we get the opportunity we would like to do it." Yuri said with a smile. Jessica and Taeyeon 

nodded their heads both thinking it was something that would fit both of the girls.

"What about you? Is there anything you would like to do in the future?" Yuri asked and 

looked interested at the two girls in front of her.

Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other. The future was something they rarely talked about, 

and even though they were close friends they haven't spoken to each other what they were 

thinking of the future.

Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders. "I haven't thought about it." Taeyeon said and picked up 

another photo to look at. Jessica eyed her blonde friend to see if Taeyeon spoke the truth, 

seeming like Taeyeon really meant what she said Jessica turned to Yuri.

"I don't know. I just wanna take the days as they come." Jessica said and brought her knees 

closer to her body and placed her chin on top of them.

"Will you ever return to your hometown?" Yoona asked.

The question was followed with an awkward silence. Jessica and Taeyeon glanced at each 

other, both wondering how to answer the question. Yuri and Yoona could also feel the 

awkwardness that appeared after the question was spoken.

"We've... we haven't really thought about it, this is only our second day away from our 

hometown." Jessica said. Yuri and Yoona nodded both deciding on not to question any further 

about Taeyeon and Jessica's hometown.

A loud yawn was heard and everyone's attention turned towards the girl that had her mouth 

open wide. She closed her mouth and blinked and looked back at the three pair of eyes that 

looked at her.

"I'm getting tired." Yoona said and leaned her head against Yuri's knee. The older girl just 

chuckled and patted Yoona's head. "Maybe we should go to sleep. I woke you up pretty early 

today." Yuri said and stroked Yoona's hair. The younger girl only nodded.

"What do you say, should we go to sleep?" Yuri asked and turned to the two other girls.

"Sure, I'm starting to feel a bit tired anyways." Jessica said. Taeyeon nodded her head in 

agreement.

"Okay, up Yoona, go and sleep in my bed instead." Yuri said and tried to lift Yoona up when 

she stood up. Lazily Yoona let herself up on her feet and walked towards Yuri's bed before 

she plopped down on it. Yuri just let out a sigh.

"Are you gonna sleep with your clothes on?" Yuri asked with a hand on her hip.

"Undress me." Yoona said and grinned.

"You're too much." Yuri said and walked to bed. She rolled Yoona onto her back and took off 

Yoona's sweater, the grin never leaving the younger girl's lips.

"Oh, you're really gonna undress me?" Yoona amused asked.

"In your dreams." Yuri said and threw an oversized t-shirt in Yoona's face before she got up 

from the bed and turned to the two girls that watched with two shocked faces. Yuri laughed 

and scratched the back of her head.

"Sorry about that, I hope you don't mind. Me and Yoona are really close." Yuri said.

"I think we just saw that." Jessica mumbled after she had recovered from her shocked state. 

Yuri just laughed awkwardly.

"Is it okay for you to sleep on the floor if I fix mattresses?" Jessica and Taeyeon looked 

around them on the floor.

"Yeah, it's okay." Jessica answered and she and Taeyeon started clearing up the floor to give 

room for the mattresses.

When the mattresses was on the floor and the four girls had gotten ready to go to the bed Yuri 

joined Yoona on her bed and Jessica and Taeyeon laid down beside each other on the 

mattresses on the floor. Jessica found herself staring up at the ceiling of Yuri's room; listening 

to the breaths of the three other girls in the room.

Jessica checked her watch in the dark. The pointers glowing in the dark allowing her to see 

how much the time was, she let out a sigh and turned to the two girls that was sleeping on the 

bed. Their breaths were even; indicating they had fallen sleep.

"They're really close, huh?" A low whisper beside her was heard. Jessica snapped her head to 

the other side and saw Taeyeon also lying on her back staring at the ceiling. The blonde girl 

turned to face Jessica. "They're really close." Tae yeon said with a smile. Jessica nodded and 

shifted her gaze to the ceiling as well. Silence filled between the two girls again.

"I'm sorry." Both whispered in unison. At the same time they also turned to face each other, 

both smiling.

"Go first." Taeyeon said and turned on her side and propped her head up with her hand to 

listen to why Jessica was apologizing. Jessica did the same and turned on her side.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you at the beach, I shouldn't have scolded you like that when I didn't 

even know why you disappeared." Jessica said. Taeyeon smiled.

"It's okay, it was my fault too. If I had told you about the thief we could both had ran after 

him. Besides, it's understandable to react like that if someone suddenly disappears without a 

word." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head.

"We should forget about this now and move on." Taeyeon said and placed her head back 

down on her pillow. Jessica smiled.

"We should move on from it and learn from it, not forgetting completely." Jessica said. 

Taeyeon furrowed her eyebrows trying to understand what Jessica was trying to say. "We 

should come up with a rule if something like this happens again to not cause 

misunderstandings." Jessica explained. Taeyeon nodded thinking it was a good idea.

"First of all, if one of us notices that the other gets robbed we should inform the other one 

before running after the thief." Jessica said. Taeyeon nodded thinking it was a good start. 

"Secondly we should have some kind of place to meet each other if we lose sight of each 

other and gets lost." Jessica said.

"Like the first place we visited together in the city we are in?" Taeyeon suggested. Jessica 

nodded.

"Yeah, that's a good place." Jessica agreed.

"Anything else?"

Jessica shook her head. "Not now, if anything comes up we will take it then." Jessica said. 

Taeyeon smiled and nodded.

"Sounds good." The blonde girl responded. Jessica smiled as well.

"We should try to get some sleep." Jessica said. She got a nod from the blonde girl.

"Yeah." Taeyeon responded.

"Good night." Jessica said and closed her eyes, the last thing she saw was Taeyeon doing the 

same.

"Good night." Jessica heard Taeyeon saying before both of them drifted off to sleep.

---A pair of brown orbs watched the two girls that were busily packing their back packs. The 

eyes shifted to the girl that stood beside the bed, her arms were crossed above her chest and 

eyes were focusing on the two girls sitting on the floor.

"It's too bad you're leaving so soon, it would have been fun to have you stay here longer." 

Yuri said and took a seat beside Yoona on the bed. Jessica looked up from her back pack she 

just had closed and smiled.

"We can't stay too long, we have more places to see. Our eyes haven't stopped seeing yet." 

Jessica said and stood up from the floor followed by Taeyeon.

"Where are you going now?" Yoona asked.

"I don't know. What is the closest city if you head north from here?" Jessica asked. Yuri and 

Yoona exchanged glances before turning to the brunette.

"That would be Kyongju." Yuri answered.

"It's Kyongju we're going to then." Jessica answered with a smile. Yuri and Yoona exchanged 

concerned glances again.

"Isn't it too sudden to just decide something like that just now?" Yuri asked worried. Jessica 

and Taeyeon looked at each other, both girls not completely comprehending what Yuri was 

trying to say.

"No, we always live our lives with doing spontaneous decisions." Jessica said.

"Oh, I-I see." Yuri said a bit shocked. She didn't know what to answer, she thought it was 

kind of dangerous but she didn't want to be in the way of Taeyeon and Jessica when she knew 

they already had come a long way.

"Can't you come with us?" Taeyeon asked out of nowhere. Yuri and Yoona looked at each 

other before they turned to Jessica and Taeyeon.

"It's a kind offer, but me and Yoona have school and our families here. We can't really leave 

right now." Yuri explained. Yoona nodded.

"Oh, of course. You should stay if you have something to stay for." Taeyeon said and smiled.

"We should go now. Mind showing us the way to Kyongju?" Jessica asked.

"It's not really a walking distance there, you need to take the bus." Yuri explained.

"Okay, mind showing us to a bus that goes to Kyongju?" Jessica changed her question.

"No problem, we can show you." Yuri said and stood up. "Yoona show them out, I'm gonna 

do something first." Yuri said and turned around.

The younger girl showed the two girls out. Taeyeon and Jessica didn't had the chance to bid 

good bye to Yuri's parents as they already had left for work. After five minutes of waiting for 

Yuri the tanned girl arrived with a bag. Yoona eyed the bag and looked questioning at Yuri.

"We have school later today, if you've forgotten." Yuri reminded the younger girl. Yoona 

responded with an 'ah' when she finally remembered what she had to do later today. Now 

when all the girls were gathered Yoona and Yuri took the led to show Taeyeon and Jessica to 

a bus going to Kyongju.

After ten minutes of walking the girls were outside a bus station. Yuri stopped in her tracks 

and looked at the two girls that had been walking behind her and Yoona, a sad smile covering 

her usually bright face.

"It's a pity that we can't come with you. This traveling thing you are doing sounds fun." Yuri 

said. Yoona stopped beside the tanned girl and Jessica and Taeyeon stopped in front of her 

and faced the other pair of friends.

"Yeah, it would have been fun to have you guys with us." Taeyeon said and smiled.

"You should come back here someday, so we can meet each other again." Yoona suggested 

with a big smile.

"We will make sure to stop by here and visit you." Jessica said and smiled at her two new 

found friends.

"Oh, before I forgot," Yuri said and started looking for something inside of the bag that she 

had brought. "Here take this with you, you'll have more use of it than me." Yuri said and 

handed over her polaroid camera to Jessica. Jessica stared at the camera in her hands before 

she looked at Taeyeon that had the same shocked expression as her.

"We can't take your camera, Yuri." Jessica said and tried to hand back the camera to the 

tanned girl. Yuri pushed the camera back to Jessica and shook her head.

"I give it to you. Take pretty pictures in the places you visit and send them to us so we know 

where in the world you are." Yuri said and smiled. Jessica held the camera in both of her 

hands and looked at it. It must be the most expensive thing she will have in her bag.

"Thank you so much." Jessica said and smiled. The tanned girl flashed a smile at the brunette 

before she brought in Jessica for a hug. 

"Take care of yourself, okay?" Yuri said and released the brunette that was dazed by the 

sudden hug. Yuri turned to Taeyeon and hugged the blonde girl as well. Jessica took a glance 

at the tanned girl and the blonde girl that hugged, seeing how tensed Taeyeon looked in Yuri's 

embrace Jessica started to worry.

"Uhm, Yuri." Jessica said and pulled at Yuri's arm in hope the taller girl would let go of the 

shorter girl. Yuri released Taeyeon and looked at Jessica wondering what the girl wanted, 

seeing Jessica was focusing her eyes on Taeyeon Yuri turned her head to the girl she had 

hugged.

Now when she came into view of the blonde's pale face and felt how tensed Taeyeon was 

under her hands she was holding Taeyeon's arms with, she let go completely of the girl in fear 

she had hurt her.

"I'm sorry Taeyeon, are you okay?" Yuri asked concerned and checked Taeyeon's body 

without touching her in fear she would hurt the blonde any further. Yoona stood beside Yuri 

and watched with a worried expression as well, Jessica bit her lower lip and carefully moved 

closer to the girl.

"Taeyeon, you okay?" Jessica asked and carefully held Taeyeon's hand she felt was trembling. 

She felt the trembling stopping and Taeyeon seemed to come back to her senses.

"Uh... I." Taeyeon shook her head and looked at Jessica. Jessica quickly noticing what was 

wrong.

"I'm sorry Taeyeon, did I hurt you?" Yuri asked concerned. Taeyeon looked down on the 

ground and tightly held onto Jessica's hand that was holding hers.

"No, Yuri. It wasn't your fault." Jessica explained and glanced at Taeyeon. "Taeyeon just 

doesn't like hugs, that’s all." Jessica explained still keeping her eyes on the blonde girl. Yuri 

nodded her head.

"Oh, I understand." Yuri said and looked at the blonde girl that now seemed to get the color 

back in her face. "Shake hands?" Yuri asked and held out her hands towards the blonde girl. 

Taeyeon shook the hand with her free hand and smiled at Yuri.

"Thank you Yuri, it was nice meeting you." Taeyeon said happily like she had forgotten 

everything about the hug. Seeing the girl was okay Yuri smiled as well.

Jessica and Yoona exchanged hugs and Yoona and Taeyeon shook hands. All having smiles 

on their faces as they bid their goodbyes, everyone hoping that their roads would cross again 

so they could meet.

Yuri and Yoona headed off to school and Jessica and Taeyeon entered the bus station, hoping 

they could get on a bus that could lead them to their next destination.

Chapter 5 - Restaurant Drama

A tap on the shoulder woke the sleeping girl up from her slumber. She slowly opened her eyes 

and looked to her left; a man in a suit came into her view. In her newly awoken state she eyed 

the man that was standing beside the seat she was sitting at.

"Move. That's my seat." The man that seemed to be in his thirties ordered. Jessica snapped her 

head up now fully awake after hearing what the man had demanded.

"This is our seat." Jessica protested. The sleeping Taeyeon beside her raised her head awoken 

by the voices beside her.

"No, this is my seat. Get off." The man ordered.

"We've paid for tickets for this seat!" Jessica protested again. She looked around in the bus, 

everyone was looking their way now.

"Where are you going?" The man asked. He crossed his arms over his chest. Jessica turned 

her head towards the man again.

"Kyongju."

The man laughed and looked at Jessica and Taeyeon. "Like you two would even be able to 

buy a ticket to there. Get off now!" The man yelled.

Jessica felt the bus stopping. She and the man turned to the driver wondering why he had 

suddenly stopped. The bus driver turned around in his driver seat and looked back at the 

problematic passengers.

"What's the problem?" The driver asked.

"I think these two have sneaked on the bus." The man said. Jessica eyes widened and she 

looked at the driver.

"No! We paid for our tickets!" Jessica said panicked.

The driver stood up from his seat and made his way towards the three passengers that was 

causing problem. He stopped beside the man in the suit, both of them looked at Jessica and 

Taeyeon.

"Just look at them. They are only kids. No way they can afford a ticket to Kyongju." The man 

in the suit said and pointed at the two girls. The bus driver took off his sunglasses he was 

wearing and took a better look at the girls.

"Just get off the bus!" An impatient man in the back shouted.

"It's he that should get off the bus!" Jessica shouted back and pointed at the man.

"Now, now. Don't make this more problematic than it already is. Just go off the bus." The 

man in the suit said.

"If this is your seat where's your ticket?" Taeyeon asked. The driver and the two girls turned 

towards the suit clad man. He just smiled.

"I think we could fix that." He said and put his hand inside of his coat and took out a wallet. 

"Let’s say, I pay you for the ticket and extra if you let me stay on the bus." The man said and 

took out money bills out of his wallet and showed them to the driver. "Who do you want on 

the bus? These kids that can cause problem or me?" The man in the suit said with a smile. 

Jessica and Taeyeon stared wide eyed at the money, that was money they never would be able 

to afford.

The driver grabbed the money and put it in his pocket, he turned to Jessica and Taeyeon that 

still was seated. They looked at him wondering what he was going to do to them now. He 

sighed and grabbed Jessica's wrist.

"Get off my bus now!" He ordered and dragged Jessica off her seat.

Jessica tried to fight back. She protested and yelled that they had paid for their tickets but all 

was futile. She was literally kicked off the bus and fell on the hard concrete. Soon after with 

more protests and fighting back Taeyeon landed beside her. Both girls looked up at the bus 

that now closed its doors and drove off, only leaving a cloud of dust after it for the girls to 

cough.

"Aish! I can't believe it! We paid for our damn tickets!" Jessica shouted and hit the ground. 

Taeyeon sighed and laid down on her back.

"If you have money you can do everything in this world." Taeyeon said.

"I can't believe it! He just threw us off the bus without a reason!" Jessica continued to shout. 

She was pacing back and forth on the road they had been thrown off on. Taeyeon sat up and 

looked at the pacing Jessica.

"He had a reason. He got directly paid." Taeyeon said.

Jessica sighed loudly and took a seat beside Taeyeon and cupped her face, feeling all angry 

and frustrated by how they just had been treated. Taeyeon just sat in silence and watched all 

the cars that passed by.

"Kyongju is that way, right?" Taeyeon asked after a while. Jessica looked up and saw 

Taeyeon pointing the way the bus had left.

"Yes, why?" Jessica asked. Taeyeon stood up and dusted off her pants before offering her 

hand to help Jessica stand up. The seated girl grabbed the hand and got up on her seat and 

started following Taeyeon that began walking the same way the bus had went.

"If we can't come to Kyongju by bus we might as well walk, it can't be that far away." 

Taeyeon said. Jessica stopped in her tracks, understanding how Taeyeon was thinking. A 

smile appeared on her face and she jogged up to the blonde girl and grabbed Taeyeon's hand 

she swung between them. 

"Yeah, we can't just stop because we got thrown off of a bus. Obstacles happen." Jessica said 

with a wide smile. Taeyeon smiled as well and both of them continued walking on the road 

they hoped would lead to Kyongju.

---Jessica glanced at the girl walking beside her. Beads of sweat were running down Taeyeon's 

face and she was patting heavily. Jessica bit her lip as her concern for the girl worsened and 

she focused her eyes forward at the road ahead. They have been walking for three hours 

straight and they were tired and exhausted, Jessica had also noticed Taeyeon haven't been 

drinking anything during this long walk.

She stopped and pulled at the shorter girl's hand. Taeyeon stopped as well and looked 

questioning at Jessica. Jessica reached out her water bottle to Taeyeon to drink but the girl 

shook her head and began walking again. Jessica frowned and walked after the stubborn girl.

"Taeyeon you need to drink. You haven't drunken anything for the past three hours and we've 

been moving non-stop. You'll faint." Jessica scolded.

"I'm fine." Taeyeon muttered and continued to walk. Jessica watched how Taeyeon seemed to 

walk more wobbly than before. The girl could past out any minute if she continued like this.

"Taeyeon stop, I'm tired." Jessica changed tactic and sat down on the ground. The girl stopped 

and looked at the seated girl, Taeyeon let out a sigh and took a seat beside Jessica. Satisfied 

Jessica drank from the water in her bottle and offered some to Taeyeon. The stubborn girl 

eyed the bottle but in the end she took it and took a large gulp before giving it back to Jessica.

"Feeling better now?" Jessica asked and looked at the girl beside her.

"Yes." Taeyeon reluctantly answered and looked to the other side. Satisfied Jessica drank the 

rest of the water in her bottle.

"You should just listen to me when I say you should drink. We don't want you to end up 

fainting. Do you want me to carry you on my back all the way to Kyongju?" Jessica asked 

jokingly.

Taeyeon pouted and still didn't look at Jessica. Jessica poked Taeyeon's shoulder which made 

the other girl look at her. She pinched the other girl's nose which made Taeyeon yelp in pain. 

Jessica stood up and dusted of her pants and ignored the glares Taeyeon sent her after she had 

pinched her nose.

"Just listen to me, okay?" Jessica said and offered her hand to Taeyeon. Taeyeon took the 

hand and stood up as well.

"I was fine." Taeyeon said with a pout.

"No, you'd have dehydrated if you didn't drink something." Jessica said and waved the empty 

bottle in front of Taeyeon's face. Taeyeon swatted the bottle away from her face and began 

walking again.

"I don't need you to take care of me." Taeyeon said and Jessica trailed after the girl.

"Oh, yes you need. I now know you're acting like this because you haven't eaten and have low 

blood sugar. If I had something to eat I'd have offered you some." Jessica said matter-of-factly.

"You think you know so much." Taeyeon mumbled. Jessica jogged to the shorter girl's side 

and wrapped her arm around the girl's shoulders.

"I don't think I know, I know I know." Jessica said proudly. Taeyeon glared at her and pushed 

the arm of off her shoulders and pushed Jessica away from her. Jessica got rather surprised by 

the sudden push but returned to walk by Taeyeon's side again.

"Hey, you can't act like that just because you're hungry." Jessica said and poked Taeyeon's 

arm. Taeyeon looked annoyed at Jessica.

"I'm not hungry!" Taeyeon shouted mad and stomped ahead of Jessica. Jessica looked 

questioning after the girl.

"But you're very mad without a reason." Jessica said and trailed after the girl. Taeyeon 

ignored the girl and Jessica continued to walk behind Taeyeon to not further annoy the girl 

that was going low on blood sugar.

They didn't have money, and they didn't have anything to eat. Their last sandwich they had 

had gone bad so they had to throw it away, all the candy they had to eat ate they on the bus. 

Now they didn't have money, nothing to eat nor drink. Jessica knew they would die if they 

continued like this.

"Taengoo." Jessica said. The called girl stopped and turned to Jessica. Jessica saw the 

exhaustion in Taeyeon's face and felt bad for the girl, she would do anything to be able to give 

Taeyeon some time to rest.

"When we get to Kyongju we need to find a job." Jessica said when she now was walking 

beside Taeyeon. Taeyeon looked at Jessica with a raised eyebrow. "We don't have any money, 

and we need money to buy food and water. We're going to die like this." Jessica explained.

"I feel like dying right now." Taeyeon mumbled but wasn't unheard by Jessica. Jessica looked 

at the girl concerned.

"You want to take a rest?" Jessica asked

"Didn't we just do that?"

"Yeah, but a longer rest. We're both going to faint by fatigue if we continue like this." Jessica 

explained.

Not wanting to start an argument Taeyeon went to the side of the road and Jessica followed. 

The two exhausted girls took a seat on the concrete and stared at the empty road. A few cars 

had passed by as they had been walking but not that many they thought would pass by.

"I'm tired." Taeyeon mumbled and brought her knees closer to her body and rested her chin on 

top of them. Jessica copied Taeyeon's position and did the same.

"Me too." Jessica responded.

"Look out!" A female voice shouted.

The seated girl turned to the source of the sound and saw two girls sitting on a bicycle coming 

in full speed towards their direction. One of the girls was sitting on the handlebars while the 

other tried to steer the bicycle.

Seeing the bicycle came their way Jessica quickly grabbed Taeyeon's hand and moved her and 

the blonde girl out of the way for the bicycle. The bicycle together with its passengers went 

passed them into the trench beside the road. Jessica and Taeyeon watched shocked the now 

groaning passengers that were lying on the ground.

"I told you to fix the brakes before we went out." A short girl with brown hair groaned.

"I did it!" The other girl that was taller said.

Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances.

"You two! What do you think you're doing sitting on the road like two bums?!" The taller of 

the two girls said. She stood up and stared up at Jessica and Taeyeon that was looking at her.

"Hyomin-ah, it's not their fault." The shorter girl said and pulled on the taller girl's pants.

"I'm gonna show them it's not okay to just sit on a road like that." Hyomin continued and went 

up from the trench and eyed the two girls in front of her. She frowned and turned to the road. 

"If you're gonna try catching a ride you need to show your sexy side, like this!" Hyomin said 

and posed, standing in a very weird position.

"Hyomin-ah!" The girl still lying in the trench whined.

"No, no, Sunny look at this. This is how you do it." Hyomin continued. Jessica and Taeyeon 

exchanged glances again, wondering what kind of people they had met now. "Now copy me!" 

Hyomin ordered and motioned for Jessica to copy her pose. Reluctantly Jessica did as she was 

told and posed like Hyomin did. Jessica glanced at Taeyeon and saw the girl biting her lower 

lip and trying hard to contain her laughter.

"Yah! Don't laugh!" Jessica yelled instead.

"Don't stop posing!" Hyomin scolded Jessica.

"Ouch." A cry of pain brought the three girls' attention to the trench where the shorter girl still 

was. She was standing on one leg, keeping her right foot in the air. She looked up towards the 

three other girls that looked at her. 

"I think I sprained my ankle." The girl said.

"Sunny!" Hyomin cried and jumped down in the trench to help the girl. Carrying the girl 

called Sunny in a bridle style Hyomin helped her up from the trench and carefully placed her 

back down. Hyomin turned to the two girls that still stood and watched them.

"What are you standing there for? Take the bicycle and help me with her. It's partly your fault 

she's in this condition." Hyomin ordered.

After carrying up the bicycle up from the trench Taeyeon ended up with carrying the girl 

called Sunny on her back while Jessica was leading the bicycle after Hyomin that was 

showing them the way to God-knows-where. Jessica wanted throw the bicycle in Hyomin's 

head.

"I'm sorry for dragging you into this." Sunny whispered to Taeyeon.

"It's okay." Taeyeon said with clenched teeth. Jessica glanced at the blonde girl that was 

carrying the short brunette on her back. Sweat was running down Taeyeon's face and Jessica 

was sure Taeyeon would faint any minute if the girl continued to carry the other girl on the 

back.

"Hyomin, why don't we just let Sunny sit on the bicycle instead?" Jessica asked the girl that 

was walking ahead of them. The taller girl turned around and looked at the girls that were 

following her.

"There might be a risk for it to fall and she can get hurt again." Hyomin said arrogantly and 

turned around. Jessica gritted her teeth, feeling frustrated by Hyomin's response.

"But if we carry her we might drop her and she can get hurt anyway."

"You'll have to be careful not to do it then." Hyomin nonchalantly replied.

All three girls stared at the retreating figure of Hyomin. Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged 

glances, both showing exhaustion on their faces. Jessica looked at the girl on Taeyeon's back 

that looked apologetically at her.

"Put me on the bicycle, if you lead it carefully I'm sure it won't fall." Sunny said and motioned 

for Taeyeon to put her down.

Taeyeon crouched and carefully let go of the hurt girl on her back. Sunny carefully got of 

Taeyeon to not hurt her ankle any further. With help of Jessica and Taeyeon the short girl was 

sitting on the bicycle with Taeyeon on one side and Jessica on the other making sure the 

bicycle not falling when they were pushing it.

Hyomin that didn't had noticed the three girls behind her had stopped earlier turned around to 

check on Sunny, seeing Sunny on the bicycle her eyes widened and she marched with fast 

steps towards Jessica. Jessica just stared at the taller girl that came towards her with a furious 

expression with a blank one.

"I told you not to put her on the bicycle." Hyomin scolded and pointed at Sunny on the 

bicycle.

"It was she that requested it. Maybe you should trust your friend more and stop being so 

overprotective." Jessica said coldly. Hyomin looked at Sunny that nodded her head in 

agreement. "Besides, if you continue to stop us every time it's going to take longer for us to 

get Sunny to the hospital."

Realizing she might be acting wrong Hyomin finally turned around and started walking again. 

Jessica and Taeyeon started pushing on the bicycle again that Sunny was sitting on and the 

four girls was again on their way to some destination they had no clue where it was.

The scenery started changing as they walked further. More houses were seen and the road was 

getting bigger as it seemed they were on their way to a city. Jessica tried to read on the road 

signs they passed by to see where they were going to, it seemed that they were on the right 

way as she caught a sign saying Kyongju.

"Where you going to any place special?" Sunny asked. Jessica turned her attention to the girl 

on the bicycle.

"Yes, we were on our way to Kyongju." Taeyeon answered.

"Oh, that's good. We live in Kyongju so you won't go the wrong direction or anything." 

Sunny said and smiled. Taeyeon smiled back and turned her head forward again. Jessica 

looked back and forth between Sunny and Taeyeon, feeling a slight tug in her heart after she 

saw Taeyeon smiling at the other girl, thinking it was just fatigue she shrug of the feeling and 

focused her eyes forward again.

After a few more minutes of walking they found themselves walking on a pedestrian street in 

a city. Taeyeon and Jessica took their time to look around the city they now had arrived in. 

Amused by the girls reaction by the city Sunny just smiled at them.

"Just so you know, you have to follow us all the way to the hospital." Hyomin said and looked 

at the two girls that were leading the bicycle. Taeyeon was the only one that nodded her head.

Luckily for the two girls the hospital wasn't that far away. Once they got there they helped

Sunny getting off the bicycle but Hyomin wouldn't let them help the injured girl much before 

she had gotten a wheelchair for Sunny to sit on.

"Thank you for your help." Sunny said and smiled at the girls.

"No problem." Taeyeon said and smiled back.

"Hope to see you around here." Sunny said before she was pushed into the hospital by 

Hyomin that didn't seem to want to wait another minute before Sunny got treatment. Jessica 

and Taeyeon didn't bother about it and started their wandering around the city.

"First we need to find a place to work." Jessica said and grabbed Taeyeon's hand just to be 

sure none of them would get lost in the city.

"Should we start asking around if people might need help in some stores?" Taeyeon asked.

"Good idea, better starting asking now." Jessica said and she took a turn to enter a super 

market to ask if they needed some extra staff for a temporary time.

However the girls weren’t that lucky. The super market said no and Taeyeon and Jessica had 

to go to another place to look for any job. Asking in restaurants, cafés, clothe stores, shoe 

stores, grocery stores and super markets the girls had almost walked around the whole city to 

find any place to work at but to no avail.

"I don't want poor kids in my store!" An old ladies voice roared. Taeyeon came running out 

from the store with an elderly lady chasing after her with a broom stick.

The lady hit Taeyeon in the back making the girl fall before the lady went back into the store 

again and out came a guy that was well built and carried Jessica over his shoulder. He 

dropped Jessica beside Taeyeon before he as well went back to the store.

Exhausted the two girls laid down on the hard concrete, not caring about all the people that 

walked by them and stared at them. They were way too exhausted to be caring what people

were thinking about them at the moment.

"She didn't need to hit us, we could have left the store without her chasing us out." Taeyeon 

mumbled after a while.

"Did she hurt you?" Jessica asked and turned her head towards the girl lying beside her.

"She only hit my back. It's not serious." Taeyeon said and sat up. "I'm tired." Taeyeon said 

and tilted her head to the side with her eyes closed. Jessica also sat up and stared at the road 

with its passing cars.

"It must be some place that can give us work. One day would be enough." Jessica said. 

Taeyeon could only nod agreeing.

"Let's go. We can't sit here all day and expect a job walking by." Jessica said and stood up and 

reached out her hand for Taeyeon to grab. Tiredly Taeyeon took Jessica's hand and they began 

walking again to search for a job.

They walked on a street with a lot of restaurants. The smell made the two girls hungry and 

almost dizzy but they tried their best to not faint without finding a job. The restaurants they 

walked by looked too fancy for them to even step their feet inside and considered it wouldn't 

be a suitable place for them to work.

"Sica, look. They're looking for substitutes." Taeyeon said after a few minutes of more 

walking and pulled on Jessica's hand. Jessica turned to where the blonde girl was pointing and 

her face brighten up when she saw the small sign in the window of a restaurant on the other 

side of the road.

"Let's go there!" Jessica happily said and both she and Taeyeon walked to the ramen 

restaurant that was across the street. When they entered the food scent greeted them and they 

felt their mouths beginning to water. 

They looked around for someone that could be a staff working. They saw a girl standing with 

her back towards them standing by the counter and writing something on a note. The girl was 

wearing black pants with a white blouse and had her long brown hair tied up in a ponytail, 

judging from the girl's attire Jessica and Taeyeon thought she probably was an employee.

The two girls walked to the girl that was taller than them and patted her on the shoulder. The 

girl turned around and the two job-searching girls got shocked upon seeing a familiar face, the 

other girl that also recognized them had also a shocked expression.

"You, kids." Hyomin said when she recognized the girls that had helped her bringing Sunny 

to the hospital.

"You work here?" Jessica asked still surprised upon seeing Hyomin.

"Yes, I do. Why are you asking?" Hyomin said and leaned her side against the counter.

"We want to apply for substitutes." Taeyeon said. Hyomin arched an eyebrow and eyed the 

two girls.

"I don't think that-"

"Hyomin-ah!" A voice said and Sunny that was walking with crutches came out of the 

kitchen. The two girls shifted their attention to the injured girl they had helped a few hours 

ago to go to the hospital.

"Omo, it's you girls!" Sunny said happily when she saw the two familiar girls. "Anyway, 

Hyomin I need your help in the kitchen. And have you found someone that can take your 

place in the meantime?" Sunny asked the taller girl.

"No, I haven-"

"We can!" Jessica and Taeyeon said in unison.

The taller girl and the girl on the crutches looked at the two girls that had offered their help. 

Hyomin and Sunny looked at each other before looking back at the two girls, wondering if 

they would really suit for this position.

"Hyomin, go into the kitchen and fix food. I'll talk to these girls." Sunny said to the taller girl. 

Hyomin did as she was told but not without sending a disapproving glance towards the two 

younger girls.

"Shall we take a seat?" Sunny asked after she had made sure Hyomin had gone to do the work 

she was assigned to. Jessica and Taeyeon nodded their heads and followed Sunny to an empty 

table. The two younger girls took a seat beside each other opposite Sunny.

Sunny clasped her hands together on the table and smiled at the younger girls that suddenly 

looked nervous even though they had sounded very confident when they had said they could 

take the job.

"So you want to apply as waitresses." Sunny said. Taeyeon and Jessica nodded their heads.

"I see. Have you had any other experience similar to this profession?"

Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other before turning to the girl in front of them.

"I worked part-time on a small café before." Jessica said. Sunny nodded.

"Good. Why are you applying for this?"

Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances once more, both now looking hesitant about what to 

answer. Sunny raised her eyebrow in interest when she noticed how insecure the girls 

suddenly looked.

"We need to earn money." Jessica said. Sunny nodded her head.

"I see, may I ask where you're living?"

Both Taeyeon and Jessica clamped their mouths shut. They both looked elsewhere trying not 

to meet Sunny's eyes, Sunny observed the girls with much interest.

"Did you just come to this city?" Sunny instead asked when it seemed none of the girl would 

answer her former question. Both girls turned back to look at Sunny again.

"Yeah." Jessica mused. Sunny nodded her head, a smile appearing on her lips.

"I see. So how long are you staying?" Sunny said and leaned back in her chair.

"How long is the substitute position?" Taeyeon asked.

"Until my ankle has recovered." Sunny said and pointed at her right foot.

"We're staying until then." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded in agreement.

"Good. You both can start working here as substitutes then. It will be easier for both of you if 

you work together, both of you will get paid for the time you've worked. And you'll get a 

place to stay at my house." Sunny said and took up a notepad out of her pocket and started 

writing down things on it. "Just fill in your names here, please." Sunny said and pushed the 

notepad over the table towards the two younger girls.

The girls read what was written on the notepad. Just two lines where they were supposed to 

write down their names. Jessica took the pen she got from Sunny and wrote down her name 

before passing the pen to Taeyeon to do the same. When their names were written they gave 

back the pen and notepad to Sunny that read their names and she raised her eyebrows in 

surprise.

"Jung Jessica and Kim Taeyeon. You aren't sisters?" Sunny asked and looked at the two girls, 

both shaking their heads in answer. "I thought you looked alike in some aspects. Anyway just 

go into the kitchen where Hyomin is and ask her to show you to the staffs closet, you'll find 

clothes there you can borrow. When you're done changing you can come back here and I'll tell 

you what to do." The two girls stood up from their seats and bowed to Sunny before they 

proceed to leave to the kitchen.

"Oh, by the way. You can leave your things in the staffs’ closet." Sunny said before the girls 

had been able to leave. Taeyeon and Jessica bowed once more before making their way to the 

kitchen.

When they entered the kitchen they first noticed how much warmer it was inside here and also 

the smell of ramen. It wasn't hard for them to find Hyomin that was standing by a big pot 

cooking ramen. The taller girl turned her attention away from the pot when she noticed the 

two younger girls in the kitchen.

"What are you doing here?" Hyomin asked coldly.

"Sunny told us to ask you to show us to the staffs' closet." Taeyeon said. Hyomin glanced at 

the girl that had spoken.

"It's Sunny-sshi for you. And the closet is over there." Hyomin said and pointed towards a 

door further in the kitchen.

"Thank you." Taeyeon said and she and Jessica made their way towards the door Hyomin had 

pointed out for them.

The girls entered the room and went inside only to find themselves among vegetables and 

other boxes. The looked around trying to understand why they've been sent here when they 

didn't seem to see anything that looked like clothes, unless Sunny wanted them to dress up 

with pieces of lettuce and cabbage.

"Taengoo, I don't think this is the right place. This is the stockroom, look." Jessica said and 

pointed to a sign on the wall beside them, the sign read 'stockroom'.

Feeling stupid because they had entered the wrong room they both excited only to notice the 

door was locked. Jessica twisted the doorknob with all her might trying to open the door, she 

turned to Taeyeon for help. The blonde girl tried to twist the doorknob to open the door but to 

no avail. They were locked up in the stockroom.

"Aish, just perfect." Jessica said feeling angry that they've been fooled. She banged on the 

door, hopefully Hyomin wouldn't be so cruel to leave them inside of this room. But on a good 

side, they wouldn't be left starving in here if she did.

No one came to open the door for them and the young travelers looked at each other. Taeyeon 

started banging on the door this time. To their relief they heard steps on the other side and the 

sound of keys, soon after the click of the door lock was heard and the door opened revealing 

Hyomin on the other side.

"What do you think you're doing, banging on the door so loud? You're gonna disturb the 

customers if you act like that!" Hyomin scolded Taeyeon. Taeyeon blinked shocked by the 

sudden scolding, she didn't think she had banged that hard on the door. Seeing nothing else 

she could do Taeyeon bowed towards Hyomin and apologized for her action.

"I was the-" Jessica began explaining that she was the one that had banged loudest on the door 

but she got interrupted before she could finish her sentence.

"Go now, Sunny is waiting for you. The staffs' closet is over there." Hyomin interrupted 

Jessica and motioned for the girls to go to another door. Taeyeon hurriedly followed 

Hyomin's order and went to the room. Jessica slowly followed the blonde girl but not before 

she sent a glare to Hyomin that sent one back.

Finally finding the right room the two girls began changing. Jessica was still a bit bothered by 

how Hyomin had treated Taeyeon. She looked over at the blonde girl that was currently 

buttoning up a blouse, Taeyeon didn't seem to be bothered by what Hyomin had done. 

Though Jessica knew that Taeyeon was probably used to get scolded she still didn't like 

seeing it right in front of her eyes.

When both girls had changed into work clothes that would suit for their job they made it back 

to the table where Sunny was waiting for them. They got surprised though as they saw two 

bowls of ramen waiting for them as they arrived. Sunny just smiled at their surprised faces.

"To work well you have to get energy. Eat up." Sunny said and motioned for both girls to eat. 

Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged unsure looks before both turned to their bowls of ramen and 

hesitantly grabbed a spoon to begin eating. "Don't worry. The food is on us." Sunny said with 

a smile.

The two girls started eating and Sunny watched them satisfied. She looked around her 

restaurants before her eyes landed on the two girls in front of her. She smiled at them when 

she saw them carefully glancing at her from time to time.

"This is how I've planned. You Taeyeon will take the customers on this side of the restaurant 

and Jessica will take the other side of the restaurant." Sunny explained to them when she saw 

they had finished half of their food. Both of them nodded in acknowledge.

"Here's your notepad you'll write down orders on. Just give the orders to either me or Hyomin 

that will be in the kitchen, when the food's done we'll ring a bell for you to know. Sometimes 

if there are a lot of people and we see the waitresses are busy we'll go out with the food 

ourselves." Sunny continued and placed two notepads in front of each girl together with a pen, 

a blue for Taeyeon and red for Jessica.

"I'll help you with cash register over there. Just tell me if when a customer wants to pay. And 

all the tips you get is yours." Sunny finished her explanation. Taeyeon and Jessica nodded 

again.

"Good. When you've finished your food just go out with the bowls in the kitchen and start 

clearing the tables over there." Sunny said and pointed towards a few tables where some 

plates and glasses where still on. "I'll go to the kitchen now. If there is any problem feel free 

to come to me and ask." Sunny said and stood up with the help of the crutches and limped her 

way to the kitchen.

Jessica and Taeyeon quickly finished their meal to get to work faster. With food in their 

stomach both felt more energized and wanted to do a good job now when they finally had 

been able to get one. 

Taeyeon offered herself to take the bowls to the kitchen while Jessica started clearing the 

tables on her side of the restaurant. When Taeyeon had left the bowls in the kitchen she also 

started with her work. Both working fast and effectively once they got started.

Hours passed as the two girls worked and they got better and better at handling the customers 

and walking back and forth from the kitchen with full plates or empty plates. Sunny was 

pleased to see that the two young girls seemed to adapt to the work so quickly.

Around dinner time it started to come more customers and the girls got their hands full with 

work. Jessica also started worry about Taeyeon when she started noticing Taeyeon getting 

tired. She took glances at Taeyeon from time to time when she wasn't serving any customer, 

not seeing it was anything serious wrong with Taeyeon she turned her focus to clear off the 

plates from the table she was standing by.

Her attention was however soon drawn to a loud crash coming from the kitchen direction. She 

was startled by the loud sound and looked towards the direction only to have a minor heart 

attach when she saw Taeyeon was sitting on her butt on the floor right in front of the doors to 

the kitchen, Hyomin was standing right in front of the girl and looked fuming mad. Jessica 

noticed all the scattered plate pieces on the floor and she could put the puzzle pieces together 

to know what happened.

The customer had also turned their attention to the new waitress and the old one. Hyomin also 

noticed the attention they were gaining and she looked towards the girl on the floor that 

seemed not to have moved an inch after the crash and fall.

Jessica saw Hyomin grabbing Taeyeon's wrist and dragging the shorter girl into the kitchen. 

Her heart beat irregular fast and she continued to stare at the kitchen doors her friend was 

behind. She wondered what Hyomin was going to do with Taeyeon.

"Excuse me!" A customer called and made Jessica snap out of her thoughts and turned to the 

customer that had called for her. She left the plates on the table and took a last glance towards 

the kitchen doors before she went to attend the customer.

What is she going to do with Taeyeon? She isn't going to hurt her, is she? Jessica thought and 

wrote down the customer’s order on the notepad in her hand.

Before she went to the kitchen she took the plates from the table she was supposed to clear 

before she had attended the customer and went to the kitchen with them as well. She stepped 

over the broken plate pieces on the floor in front of the kitchen door and entered the kitchen.

She left the plates to the dishwasher and put the order among all the other orders in the 

kitchen before she started looking for where Taeyeon and Hyomin were. She could only find 

Sunny that was sitting on a chair beside the stove.

"Where's Taeyeon?" Jessica asked the injured girl on the chair. Sunny looked up at the girl.

"Taeyeon? Isn't she out there?" Sunny asked and pointed towards the doors. Jessica shook her 

head.

"No, Hyomin took her in here." Jessica said and looked to the side and hoped her worry for 

the other girl wasn't evident. Sunny furrowed her eyebrows.

"Hyomin? No, wonder she's not here. Where can they've went off to?" Sunny said and looked 

around the kitchen.

"Maybe the backside." Sunny said and took her crutches to stand up. Jessica slowly followed 

the shorter but older girl to the backdoor of the restaurant, her heart pounding against her 

chest when Sunny unlocked the door and opened it.

"Do you fucking understand what I'm saying?" A loud voice was heard. Sunny and Jessica 

stepped out and saw Taeyeon sitting on her knees on the ground with her head bent down and 

Hyomin standing in front of her.

"Hyomin what are you saying?" Sunny asked shocked. Seeing that what Hyomin just had said 

didn't get unheard by Sunny. Taeyeon looked up when she heard Sunny's voice, Jessica was 

quick with noticing Taeyeon's wet cheeks and scared expression.

Jessica ran to Taeyeon’s side and crutched down beside the girl. She wiped Taeyeon's wet 

cheeks before she stood up and glared at Hyomin that just looked at her unfazed by the glare.

"What did you do to her?" Jessica asked through clenched teeth.

"Just reprimanding her for her mistake." Hyomin said.

"How?" Jessica said.

"In my way."

"What mistake?" Sunny asked and limped towards the three girls.

"She crashed into me on her way to the kitchen, resulting in two plates with food go to waste 

and plates and glasses as well." Hyomin said.

"You know full well that's accident that's due to happen when it's getting stressed in this 

place. It happened to you too in the beginning." Sunny said and leaned against the wall to 

support herself. "So tell us what you did to her." Sunny demanded with a more fierce voice. 

Hyomin glanced at the girl that was still seated on the ground.

"I just played a bit with fire, scaring her a bit." Hyomin said and held up a candle lighter. 

Jessica's eyes widened when she saw the lighter and she turned to Taeyeon beside her, now 

she noticed that Taeyeon's left hand was covering a part of her arm.

"You burned her?" Jessica asked angry and looked at Hyomin.

"Just to let her know her place." Hyomin said and shrugged her shoulders.

"Hyomin, you know full well that's not how we treat employees here, not matter what mistake 

they do. Now get your ass back in again and clean up the mess you did and take care of the 

customers." Sunny ordered, her face was flushing with anger. Hyomin's cool expression had 

faded when Sunny had spoken to her like that. Not daring to oppose Sunny Hyomin went 

back into the restaurant to do some work.

When Hyomin had left Sunny turned to the two other girls, an apologetic expression on her 

face.

"I'm sorry about her. I really am. Let's get inside and get those burn marks treated." Sunny 

said and motioned for the two girls to follow her. Jessica helped Taeyeon to stand up and the 

two girls followed Sunny inside that led them to a small office beside the staffs’ closet. Sunny 

closed the door after her when they were inside and took a seat on a chair and motioned for 

Taeyeon to take another chair and sit in front of her.

"Jessica can you please get me the aid-kit over there." Sunny said and pointed to the first aid 

kit on a shelf. Jessica took the aid kit and gave it to Sunny before and stood beside Taeyeon's 

chair and watched as Sunny aided Taeyeon's burn marks.

"I'm really sorry for this. I'll talk to her about this, this is not okay. I'll keep an eye on her from 

now on." Sunny apologized again for Hyomin's behavior. "She's not supposed to do this." 

Sunny said and put a patch on the burn marks. A sigh left her lips.

"Hyomin can't really socialize with people, and if she feels like people near her are starting to 

pay more attention to other than her she has a tendency to trying to get rid of that person." 

Sunny said and sighed.

"It's scary, but it's very complicated on my end. I- I don't expect you to forgive her for this, 

but please try to act like nothing happened. She will feel guilty in the end." Sunny said with a 

sad expression. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other, not knowing how to react to this.

"Why are you having her here when you know she's like this?" Jessica asked.

"Like I said, on my end it's very complicated. I really like Hyomin, she has her good sides 

even though she has this side too." Sunny said with a sad smile.

Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged skeptical glances before they turned back to Sunny that still 

was looking at them with her apologetic expression. She sighed when she saw how skeptical 

the girls were.

"I won't let her hurt any of you again. I promise." Sunny said and reached out her hand to grab 

Taeyeon's but Taeyeon moved her hand away. Sunny looked sad at the younger girl.

"If you promise she won't hurt any of us it's okay. We can't really do anything because we 

really need this job." Taeyeon said and looked at Jessica. Jessica just nodded. "If there isn't 

anything else we'll go back to work." Taeyeon said and stood up.

Both girls went to the door of the small office and Jessica glanced back at the girl still sitting 

in the room. Sunny still looked at her with an apologetic expression. Jessica smiled a crooked

smile towards the older girl before she followed Taeyeon out to the restaurant.

The two girls continued with their work as waitresses for the rest of the night, and Hyomin 

wasn't allowed near any of them which Jessica was feeling relieved about. If she saw Hyomin 

getting near Taeyeon again she was scared of what she might be able to do to the older girl. 

She just didn't want Taeyeon to get hurt again.

When the last customer had left Taeyeon and Jessica helped to clean off the table that would 

be the last for that day. Both was feeling tired after they had been working so much and their 

arms, backs and legs were hurting after been standing up for many hours.

Sunny and Hyomin came out from the kitchen when they heard that the last customer had left 

and Jessica and Taeyeon had cleaned up. Sunny had a satisfied smile on her lips when she 

saw that Taeyeon and Jessica had put up the chairs on the tables.

"Thank you for today. You can leave now, Hyomin will clean up the rest." Sunny said with a 

smile. Taeyeon and Jessica bowed and turned to walk to the staffs’ closet to get their things.

"Oh, by the way. I live in the house right beside this on the second floor. I live in number 515 

and the key is in the flower pot outside." Sunny said before the girls had left. Taeyeon and 

Jessica nodded and made their way to the staffs’ closet.

The two girls changed their clothes and took their things before they went out through the 

back door of the restaurant. They went to the small apartment complex beside the restaurant 

and began climbing the stairs to the second floor. It didn't take them long finding the right 

apartment and the flower pot Sunny had said the key was in.

Once they had unlocked the door they opened it and stared inside. It was dark and no sound 

was heard. Both girls exchanged glances as they wondered if it really was okay to enter 

someone else's apartment.

Thinking it would look suspicious if they just stood outside they both took a step inside and 

closed the door. It was still dark inside and Jessica tried to find the light switch in the hallway. 

Her hand came in contact with something that made the lamp above their head switch on, they 

both froze to their spots as they waited for something else to happen but nothing happened.

Both exchanged glances before they started to take off their shoes and carefully walk further 

inside. Both girls were walking closely beside each other and looked around like they were 

scared that something or someone would pop out from somewhere and scare them.

When nothing else seemed to happen they both tried to relax and stopped in front of a 

staircase. Both looked at each other before turning back to the staircase again. It was the first 

time they saw something like this thus they never knew there were apartments with two

floors.

"Can you have two floors in apartments?" Jessica asked after a while.

"Seems like it." Taeyeon said. "But it should be pretty expensive to live in one." Taeyeon said 

and arched her neck to take a better look how big the second floor was.

The two girls stood rooted to their spots and looked around the apartment, fascinated by its 

fanciness. They wondered how any could afford this, this was something that royals would 

live in in their worlds.

A click was heard from the front door and both girls looked towards Sunny that entered. She 

smiled at the two girls that on instinct run up to her to help. Sunny appreciated their help and 

limped towards the kitchen with both girls following her.

"Hyomin will come over later. She's buying some groceries before coming here." Sunny said 

and took a seat by the large kitchen table. She motioned for the two other girls to take a seat 

as well and they followed suit and took a seat with their backpacks in their laps.

"Are you hungry?" Sunny asked.

Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged unsure expressions.

"I'll cook something light later when Hyomin arrives." Sunny said with a smile.

"Thank you." Taeyeon mumbled, unsure how to answer. Sunny just smiled at the girls.

"It's okay for you to share room, right?" Sunny asked and stood up and limped her way to the 

staircase. Jessica and Taeyeon followed her like ducklings following their mother.

"Yes." Both girls said.

"Good. If you go up the stairs and turn right the room you'll be using is right ahead. You can 

leave your things there." Sunny said and pointed at the stairs with one of her crutches. 

Taeyeon and Jessica looked at Sunny like they wanted confirmation if it really was okay for 

them to go and she just nodded and smiled. The two younger girls began walking up the 

stairs.

When they had arrived at the second floor they noticed it wasn't that big. It was a small 

hallway with four different doors. They turned right and headed to the door that was right in 

front of them. Jessica carefully grabbed the doorknob and twisted it, she expected someone to 

jump up in front of them and hit them in the head or something when she entered but nothing 

of sort happened.

The room was big enough for them. There were two beds in the room, one at the right side of 

the room and one at the left side. There was one drawer and a desk in front of the window. 

Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked at each other before making their way to one bed each. 

Taeyeon took the bed to the left while Jessica took it to the right. Both of them dropped their 

backpacks on the beds before leaving the room.

When they went down stairs again they heard Sunny was talking with someone in the kitchen. 

When they went there they noticed that Hyomin was there. Hyomin was packing up the things 

she had bought while Sunny was fixing some sandwiches. The two older girls stopped talking 

when they noticed that Taeyeon and Jessica had come back.

"Hyomin has something to tell you." Sunny said and wiped her hands on a towel and leaned 

against the counter. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at the other older girl that was facing the 

floor with a packet of bread in one of her hands.

"I- I'm sorry that I did that to you, Taeyeon." Hyomin said and met Taeyeon's gaze. Taeyeon 

glanced at Sunny that just smiled at her before she turned back to Hyomin again. 

"It's fine. I guess." Taeyeon said.

"I promise it won't happen again." Hyomin said and bowed which surprised Taeyeon.

"It's okay, raise your head, please." Taeyeon said. Hyomin did as she was told and raised her 

head.

"I bought some, uh, candy for you. I don't know what you like though so I bought some of 

everything." Hyomin said and held up a plastic bag towards Taeyeon. Taeyeon looked at 

Sunny that just nodded her head before she grabbed the plastic bag.

"Thank you." Taeyeon said and held up the bag for both her and Jessica to look inside. It was 

all kind of different sweets, everything from chocolates to jellies. The two younger girls 

looked up from the bag at the taller girl that had resumed her task with placing the things she 

had bought where it should be.

"Don't eat of the candy now. I've made sandwiches for you." Sunny said and showed two 

plates with two sandwiches on. She took the plates and limped over to the table and placed it 

in front of the seats Jessica and Taeyeon had been seated at a few minutes before.

The two girls took a seat by the table and watched as Sunny took a seat in front of them. 

Hyomin soon came and placed two glasses of milk in front of them. Both thanked the older 

girl and looked at the sandwiches in front of them.

"Eat up." Sunny said. Hyomin came and took a seat beside Sunny when she had finished 

packing up all the groceries. Both older girls looked at the younger ones that still haven't 

started eating yet.

Carefully grabbed Jessica one of her sandwiches and took a bite from it. The jam mixed with 

the bread taste in her mouth as she chewed her bite. All eyes were on her as they waited 

expectantly for a reaction from her.

Jessica turned to Taeyeon that was still holding her sandwich without taking a bite of it. 

Jessica nodded towards the sandwich, signaling for Taeyeon to eat it and Taeyeon hesitantly 

took a bite of the sandwich with her eyes focused on Jessica. Jessica smiled when she saw 

Taeyeon relaxed after she had swallowed her bite.

"It was good." Jessica said as she noticed that Sunny and Hyomin seemed to wait for some 

kind of feedback. A relieved smile appeared on Sunny's lips as she now knew her guests liked 

the sandwiches.

The two girls continued to eat of their sandwiches and drank their milk in silence. Hyomin 

and Sunny was chatting about some menu for tomorrow and other things that revolved around 

their lives and Taeyeon and Jessica listened a bit of what the older girls were saying.

"I'm sorry to say this but I think it would be the best for you to go to sleep. You'll start 

working early tomorrow morning." Sunny said after Jessica and Taeyeon had finished their 

meals. The two girls turned towards the clock Sunny was glancing at. It was already after 

12am.  

"If you're going to sleep now your tooth brushes is over there. I didn't know if you had your 

own so I told Hyomin to buy two for you." Sunny said and pointed towards the counter where 

they saw two tooth brushes lying.

Jessica and Taeyeon took their plates and glasses and bowed towards Sunny and Hyomin 

before walking to the counter where they placed the plates and glasses and took the tooth 

brushes. It was easy for them to decide who would get which tooth brush, Hyomin had bought 

one blue and one purple tooth brush.

Taeyeon took the blue tooth brush without second thought and went to get ready for bed. 

Jessica followed her with the purple tooth brush in hand and both of them went up the stairs 

and entered the surprisingly big bathroom. They found toothpaste they borrowed from Sunny 

and began brushing their teeth.

"Are you also having this weird feeling?" Jessica asked and looked at Taeyeon through the 

mirror.

"Hmm?" Taeyeon looked at Jessica confused.

"About Sunny and Hyomin."

Taeyeon stopped brushing her teeth for a while and stared at her reflection in the mirror.

"Yeah." Taeyeon said and began brushing her teeth again.

"Do you think it's temporary or...?" Jessica asked and looked at Taeyeon. Taeyeon had the 

same confused expression as her.

"I don't know. Maybe we should wait and see?" Taeyeon said and spitted out the toothpaste in 

the sink.

"Yeah, we'll get to know them well if we're working and living with them."

"Is Hyomin living here as well?" Taeyeon asked shocked. Jessica met Taeyeon's wide eyes.

"I think she-"

Jessica got interrupted by a knock on the bathroom door. Jessica opened it and saw Sunny was 

on the other side. She was a bit surprised how Sunny had been able to walk up the stairs by 

herself but when she saw Hyomin was leaning against a door further down the hallway it 

answered her confusion.

"This is an ointment for Taeyeon's burn marks. If she put it on before she goes to sleep it 

won't sting that much." Sunny said and gave Jessica a white tube. Jessica looked at it and 

turned to Taeyeon that was still standing by the sink and brushing her teeth.

"Thank you." Jessica said slightly bowed towards Sunny.

"No problem." Sunny said and smiled.  

When the older girl limped away again Jessica closed the door to the bathroom again and 

went back to the sink. Taeyeon eyed the white tube in Jessica's hand and Jessica noticed it.

"We'll apply this before we go to sleep." Jessica said and waved the tube in front of Taeyeon. 

Taeyeon just nodded before she turned her focus back to their reflection in the mirror.

When both girls had finished brushing their teeth they went to their room where they changed 

into other clothes they would wear while the slept. When they were done changing both took 

a seat on Taeyeon's bed to apply the ointment for Taeyeon's burn marks.

Jessica squeezed out some of the tubes continent on her finger before she started carefully 

applying it on Taeyeon's burn marks. She glanced at the blonde girl to see if she reacted in 

some kind of way but Taeyeon's face reminded blank.

"Does it hurt?" Jessica asked as she was smearing out the ointment on three red marks on 

Taeyeon's left forearm.

"No." Taeyeon said. Jessica glanced at the girl before turning her eyes back on the marks.

"Don't lie." Jessica said and moved away her finger when she had finished applying the 

ointment.

"It stings a bit." Taeyeon confessed.

Jessica took the white tube and began reading from the backside of it. She furrowed her 

eyebrows when she tried to read how long time it would take for it to stop stinging.

"Uh, three, ten, thirteen?" Jessica said and tilted her head in confusion as she tried to read. 

Taeyeon grabbed the tube from Jessica's hand and began reading from where Jessica had tried 

reading from before.

"Thirty minutes." Taeyeon said and held her finger under each syllable when she read and 

showed Jessica. Jessica just nodded her head.

Taeyeon smiled at the other girl as Jessica stood up from the bed and made her way to the 

light switch and switched off the light before she went to her bed. The sound of ruffling sheets 

filled the room before it died down and it became all quiet.

Jessica turned to lie on her back after she had tried to sleep on her side to no avail. She let out 

a sigh and reached one arm above her head and stared up at the ceiling, a nostalgic feeling 

filled her as she remembered she had been lying like this in Yuri's bedroom only the last 

night. She wondered how the tanned girl with her close friend was doing.

She turned again and laid on her right side and looked towards the other bed of the room. 

Taeyeon was lying with her back facing her, Jessica could only see a dark silhouette of 

Taeyeon's body in the dark.

"Taengoo-ah." Jessica hopefully whispered in the dark.

She saw movement on the other bed and Taeyeon turned around to lie on her left side. Jessica 

smiled even though Taeyeon probably couldn't see her in the dark.

"I can't sleep. It feels... unfamiliar." Jessica said and her smile faded. She saw Taeyeon reach 

her head up and look towards the door before she plopped down her head back on the pillow.

"I can't sleep either." Taeyeon voice was heard soon after.

The two girls were lying in silence and stared at each other in the darkness. Jessica wasn't sure 

if it was Taeyeon's eyes she was looking at or something else, but it looked like Taeyeon had 

her eyes open.

Feeling like the sheets would eat her Jessica sat up from her bed and threw off the sheets and 

grabbed her pillow before she stood up to make her way towards the other bed in the room. 

Taeyeon didn't even react when Jessica climbed over her in the bed and lied down behind the 

blonde girl.

Jessica let out a satisfied smile when she could feel some familiarity now. Taeyeon's scent and 

the sound of Taeyeon's breathing worked well as sleeping pills for her. Her eyelids got 

heavier and she couldn't keep her eyes open to stare at the back of her blonde friend and she 

soon let sleep succumb to her and she closed her eyes to get rest after this long day's work.

Chapter 6 - Taking care of you

Taeyeon awoke by something shaking her shoulder. She carefully opened her eyes and saw a 

blurry image of a brunette, she closed her eyes and opened them again. The face she thought 

was Jessica's was someone else's. She shrieked and backed away only to bump into the person 

sleeping beside her.

"I'm sorry." Sunny said when she saw she had scared Taeyeon. Jessica lifted on her head and 

tiredly looked at Taeyeon that had curled up to a ball beside her and at the older girl that stood 

by the bed with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry." Sunny apologized again.

"Taengoo-ah, it's only Sunny." Jessica said and patted the blonde girl's head.

Taeyeon moved away from Jessica and looked at Sunny that looked at them with an 

apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry. I was going to wake you up." Sunny said.

"It's okay." Taeyeon mumbled and slowly got up from the bed.

"We'll be eating breakfast in the restaurant. Just get ready and come downstairs when you're 

done." Sunny said before she limped out of the room. Taeyeon tiredly nodded her head and 

stretched her arms above her head.

She turned around and saw that Jessica had got back to sleep. She furrowed her eyebrows as it 

was kind of unusual for Jessica to do it if she was awaken to go to work. Taeyeon leaned over 

the bed and supported her body with one hand on the bed before she lightly shook the girl that 

was still sleeping.

"Sica. We need to get ready." Taeyeon said and gently shook the sleeping girl. Jessica stirred 

in her sleep and tiredly looked at Taeyeon that had woke her up again.

"Mmh. I know. I'll get up." Jessica groggily said.

Taeyeon watched as Jessica sat up in the bed still with her eyes closed. The sleepy girl 

removed the blanket from her body before she swung her legs over the bed and sat there for a 

while. Taeyeon raised an eyebrow when Jessica had stopped in her action of getting out of 

bed.

"Sica."

"On my way." Jessica mumbled and stood up. However when she stood up she was about to 

fall back on the bed again but Taeyeon grabbed the girl's hands before she could fall back 

down on the bed again.

"You okay?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica leaned against the blonde girl as Taeyeon was holding 

her up. Taeyeon tensed when Jessica placed her arms around Taeyeon's neck and leaned her 

head against Taeyeon's shoulder.

"Perfectly fine." Jessica mumbled. Stiffly Taeyeon turned her head to glance at the brunette.

"You're a bit pale, Sica."

Jessica unwrapped her arms from Taeyeon's neck. Her eyes now open and she seemed to 

search for something in the room, finding the item she was searching for she stumbled 

towards the two backpacks that was lying on the floor. With a concerned expression Taeyeon 

watched as Jessica took out their towels and held them up.

"I'm going for a shower first, okay?" Jessica said and threw the other towel towards Taeyeon. 

Taeyeon caught the towel before it hit the floor and watched as Jessica left the room to go to 

the bathroom to take a shower.

"Maybe it's nothing." Taeyeon said out aloud and took a seat on the bed again to wait for 

Jessica to finish up in the bathroom.

After fifteen minutes Jessica came out of the bathroom with the towel around her neck. She 

rubbed her hair with it as she entered the bedroom. Taeyeon looked up from her hands she 

had been fidgeting while she had been waiting.

"Bathroom's empty." Jessica said and took a seat on the other bed in the room. Taeyeon took 

her towel and clothes and headed for the door, she glanced an extra time at Jessica before she 

headed for the bathroom to take a shower.

Taeyeon didn't take long in the bathroom either and soon the two girls headed down stairs 

where they saw Hyomin and Sunny waiting in the kitchen for them. A smile appeared on 

Sunny's face when she saw the two girls.

"Let's go then." She said and stood up with the crutches help. The four of them headed out 

and Hyomin locked the door before they began walking towards the restaurant.

It was early in the morning and not many people were outside. Taeyeon stifled a yawn as they 

now stood outside the back side of the restaurant and waited for Hyomin to open the 

backdoor. When the taller girl had unlocked the door she held up the door for them to enter 

before she went inside as well.

"Hyomin heat up some soup and roast that bread in the fridge." Sunny said to Hyomin before 

she limped her way out to the restaurant. Taeyeon and Jessica followed the limping girl.

"Please help me take down the chairs here." Sunny said and pointed on a table with her right 

crutch.

Jessica and Taeyeon did as she was told and placed down the chairs that were on top of the 

table down on the floor. Sunny took a seat on one of the chairs and Taeyeon and Jessica 

followed suit.

"How are you Jessica? You look tired." Sunny pointed out when she looked at the two girls in 

front of her. Jessica smiled tiredly. 

"I'm fine." Jessica said. Sunny smiled and looked towards the kitchen where the sound of the 

microwave was heard. Taeyeon was however not convinced by Jessica's answer and 

continued to look at the brunette a bit longer.

'I'm fine.' Jessica mouthed to the blonde girl she caught still looking at her. Taeyeon 

absentmindedly nodded and turned away from the brunette. She was still concerned.

After a few minutes of waiting Hyomin arrived with a tray with three bowls and a basket with 

bread. Sunny looked delighted at the food that was placed in front of the girls. Hyomin placed 

the tray to the side and took a seat beside Sunny and started eating.

Taeyeon started eating as well and kept glancing at Jessica in the corner of her eyes, taking 

notice to every action of Jessica. She noticed one thing, Jessica was eating slower than she 

usually did. Also when they had finished eating Jessica hadn't finished her soup and barely 

eaten any bread. Taeyeon's concern wasn't going disappear by this.

When they had finished eating Hyomin and Sunny went to the kitchen to start making the 

food for today. Taeyeon and Jessica were assigned to fix the tables in the restaurants. They 

started with fixing the tables they had been assigned to by Sunny at their start of their 

employment.

Taeyeon had taken down all chairs off of the tables on her side of the restaurants and she 

noticed that Jessica still had a few tables left. She furrowed her eyebrows. Jessica usually 

worked faster than her. After keeping her eye at the brunette for a few more seconds Taeyeon 

went to the cabinet where the tablecloths where. She took out the necessarily amount of 

tablecloths she needed for her tables and went to put them on the tables.

A bang startled Taeyeon and she turned around and saw Jessica had accidentally dropped one 

of the chairs. Taeyeon left the rest of the tablecloths on the nearby table and ran up to Jessica's 

side to see what was wrong.

"Jessica you okay?" Taeyeon asked worriedly and watched as Jessica slowly picked up the 

chair and put it up right.

"I'm fine." Jessica said with an exhausted expression and a tired smile. Taeyeon frowned.

"It doesn't seem like it." Taeyeon said and helped Jessica pick down the rest of the chairs.

"I'm really fine, Taengoo." Jessica assured.

Taeyeon just looked at Jessica, not convinced, and went to put down the rest of the chairs of 

Jessica's table.

"Taeyeon." Jessica said firmly. Taeyeon turned around after she had put down the last chair.

"What?" Taeyeon faked being ignorant.

"I'm fine. Go back to do your work." Jessica said and pointed to the other side of the 

restaurant. 

The two girls stared at each other for a minute before Taeyeon broke the eye contact and went 

back to put on the tablecloths on the tables. She however didn't stop glancing at Jessica to 

make sure the girl would really be okay.

Taeyeon sighed when she saw how Jessica was stubbornly pushing herself to work even 

though Taeyeon could clearly see that something was off. She finished up putting the 

tablecloths on the table and went to the kitchen to get another task from Sunny.

"I'm done with the tables." Taeyeon said and walked to the shorter of the two girls in the 

kitchen. Sunny smiled and looked up from the pot she was currently stirring in.

"Good. What about Jessica?" Sunny asked and turned her head to the pot Hyomin just had put 

some vegetables in.

"Almost done."

"Good. There's a table in front of the bar counter. I want you to put some bowls and spoons 

there because we'll be offering free soup there for our morning guests and-" A sound from the 

restaurant made Sunny stop. Taeyeon snapped her head towards the restaurant when she heard 

the sound, she tried to listen for any sound following the first one. When no other sounds 

came she looked at Sunny before she went to the restaurant to see what the sound had come 

from.

The restaurant seemed empty when Taeyeon entered but her eyes caught a figure lying on the 

floor. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw who it was and she rushed to Jessica's side.

Taeyeon sat down by Jessica's side and carefully lifted the brunette’s head up to put it on her 

lap. Jessica's cheeks where flushed and she had droplets of sweat on her forehead. She was 

however shivering.

Taeyeon looked up at Hyomin and Sunny that had arrived to see what the sound had been as 

well. When they saw Jessica Sunny carefully bent down beside Taeyeon and took a closer 

look at the brunette.

"She has a fever." Sunny stated and stood up again with the help of Hyomin.

"Bring her home to me. Hyomin show Taeyeon where the fever medicine is and the other 

things. Understood?" Sunny said and looked intently at Hyomin. Hyomin just nodded her 

head and turned to the two girls on the floor.

"Will you be able to carry her?" Sunny asked Taeyeon gently. Taeyeon just nodded and 

minutes later Hyomin had helped Taeyeon lifting up Jessica on Taeyeon's back.

Jessica's hot breath brushed against Taeyeon's neck making Taeyeon tense and freeze in her 

spot. Hyomin and Sunny noticed that Taeyeon wasn't following them and they looked back to 

see what was wrong.

"Taeyeon?" Sunny asked and waved in front of Taeyeon's face that seemed to had ended up in 

a trance. Taeyeon snapped out of her trance like state and brushed all her flashbacks of past 

events far back into her head where they were supposed to stay.

"Yes, I'll be right after you." Taeyeon said and fixed Jessica's position on her back. Trying 

hard to focus on other things than Jessica that was making her feel all tensed up and 

uncomfortable.

Hyomin and Sunny exchanged glances before the three girls went to the back side of the 

restaurant where Taeyeon and Hyomin went out to go back to Sunny's apartment. Taeyeon 

carefully went up the stairs to make sure she didn't drop the unconscious girl on her back.

Hyomin glanced back at the younger girl to make sure Taeyeon was still behind her. She 

couldn't let something happened to any of the girls because she knew Sunny wouldn't like it, 

thus making her take care of Taeyeon and Jessica in the best way she could.

They arrived in front of Sunny's apartment and Sunny unlocked the door to let Taeyeon carry 

in Jessica. Taeyeon removed her shoes and turned around to look at Hyomin. Hyomin caught 

the confusion in Taeyeon's face.

"Carry up her to your room." Hyomin said and motioned for Taeyeon to go upstairs. Taeyeon 

nodded and went as fast her legs could up the stairs to the room Taeyeon and Jessica had been 

assigned to.

Taeyeon opened the door to the room with pushing it open with her shoulder. She quickly 

went to the bed to the right and turned around to carefully drop Jessica down on the bed. 

Jessica slided of Taeyeon's back but mumbled something inaudible.

Taeyeon placed Jessica head on the pillow and took of Jessica's shoes and put the blanket over 

the girl. She noticed the girl was grimacing even though her state. Taeyeon looked at the 

sweat drops that appeared on Jessica's forehead and she fought the temptation to wipe them 

off.

She heard steps when Hyomin entered the room with a small tray with a glass of water and 

some pills. She placed the tray beside the bed and checked on the girl lying on the bed. She 

looked up at the worried stricken friend that sat on the edge of the bed.

"I'll get a thermometer so we can check her temperature, and something for you to wipe of the 

sweat." Hyomin said and pointed at the sweat that ran down the side of Jessica's face. "There's 

some extra blankets in the second drawer over there, cover her with one more." Hyomin said 

and pointed at the chest of drawers on the room. Taeyeon nodded and went to the chest of 

drawers to take out the blanket while Hyomin went downstairs again to look for the 

thermometer.

Taeyeon took out one of the folded blankets in the second drawer and went back to Jessica 

again and placed the blanket over Jessica's body. She made sure all parts of Jessica's body 

were covered when she had placed the blanket over the girl. She let out a sigh as she looked at 

the girl on the bed.

"I knew you weren’t fine." Taeyeon whispered. She continued to stare at Jessica that looked 

like she was sleeping.

Hyomin came back with a thermometer and a cloth she gave to Taeyeon. Hyomin checked the 

thermometer before she handed it to Taeyeon that looked confused at the object she was 

handed.

"Put it in her mouth. I don't want to touch her if she wakes up and gets a shock. I don't know 

how well she accepts that strangers touch her." Hyomin said and pointed at Jessica. Taeyeon 

nodded and carefully went to the bed and sat down beside Jessica again.

She gently opened Jessica's mouth by pressing down Jessica's chin. When the mouth was 

slightly open she put in the thermometer and slowly closed the mouth again. She looked up at 

Hyomin that looked down at her wrist watch.

"Three minutes." Hyomin said. "In the meantime you can wipe the sweat with that." Hyomin 

said and pointed at the cloth in Taeyeon hand. Taeyeon nodded and carefully started wiping 

of the sweat of the sides of Jessica's face and forehead.

"You like her, huh?" Hyomin asked out of nowhere. Taeyeon snapped her head away from 

Jessica and at the older girl that watched from the side of the bed. A smirk appeared on 

Hyomin's lips.

"It's pretty obvious by the way how you look at her. It's not some friend feelings you have, 

right?" Hyomin asked.

Taeyeon looked away from Hyomin and back to Jessica. She continued to wipe Jessica's 

forehead with the cloth, turning the cloth and wiping the forehead with the unused side. 

Folding it and repeated the same process.

"You can take it out now." Hyomin said after a while.

Taeyeon carefully pulled out the thermometer from Jessica's mouth and looked at it. Hyomin 

went to Taeyeon's side and glanced at the thermometer as well. She wasn't surprised by seeing 

what temperature it was.

"39.7°C. I thought it would be more." Hyomin said. Taeyeon sent a glare towards the older 

girl which she didn't seem to notice.

"I'll go back to the restaurant. When she wakes up, give her those pills and let her sleep some 

more, when she has fallen asleep come to the restaurant." Hyomin said and pointed at the tray 

with the glass of water and two pills.

"And don't worry. Those pills are aspirins. If you don't trust me I could even take one right 

now to show you it's not some kind of drug." Hyomin added.

"It's okay. I trust you." Taeyeon mumbled.

"Okay, you know where you can find us. Just come running if something happens." Hyomin 

said and left the room. Taeyeon watched the door close and she continued to stare at it until 

she heard the sound of the front door closing. She sighed and looked at the girl on the bed 

again.

Thinking that she needed to watch over Jessica until the girl wakes up, she climbed over the 

girl on the bed and took a seat beside her and leaned her back against the wall. Her eyes 

scanned the girl's face and stopped at Jessica's mouth that was slightly open. Taeyeon sighed 

and looked away from the girl.

'You like her, huh?'

The words echoed in her head and she glanced at the girl lying beside her. She swallowed a 

lump in her throat and looked away again. She was also starting to feel feverish now. She 

inhaled and exhaled loudly before her eyes landed on Jessica again.

Of course I do. But it's not like I can confess and destroy what we already have, 

right? Taeyeon thought with a sad smile on her lips. She brushed away a few hair strands that 

had gotten stuck on Jessica's cheek.

Taeyeon continued to look at Jessica. Minutes passed and became an hour and Jessica hadn't 

moved yet. The only thing that made Taeyeon know Jessica was alive was the rising and 

sinking of Jessica's chest.

Taeyeon's eyes widened when she saw Jessica move a bit. Jessica unconsciously whimpered 

and turned on her side, her hand taking a hold of Taeyeon's shirt. Taeyeon stared at the grasp 

that looked really desperate.

Jessica continued to move. She moved closer to the object her hand has grasped. Not wanting 

to wake her up Taeyeon didn't move and let Jessica move herself closer to her. Jessica 

stopped when her face was nuzzled into Taeyeon's shirt. Her hot face making the side of 

Taeyeon's stomach heat up.

"Don't get hurt." Jessica mumbled in her sleep. Taeyeon raised her eyebrows when she heard 

the familiar line Jessica usually told her before she was going to school a few years ago.

Not knowing what to do Taeyeon did what her heart told her to. With a shaky hand Taeyeon 

stroked Jessica's hair, making the girl smile in her sleep.

"I won't get hurt." Taeyeon whispered. She felt Jessica's grasp loosened and Jessica hand fell 

down beside the girl's face.

Taeyeon continued to stroke Jessica's hair and stared at the wall of the other side of the room. 

It wasn't much she could do. She didn't want to go anywhere else as she was afraid that 

Jessica would wake up and find herself alone.

"Taeyeon." Jessica's tired voice said after a while. Taeyeon turned her gaze from the wall to 

the girl beside her. Jessica's eyes were open, a bit watery, and she looked at Taeyeon.

Taeyeon stopped stroking Jessica's hair and clasped her hands together in her lap. Her fingers 

started nervously fidgeting.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Taeyeon asked calmly.

Jessica moved hear head a bit away from Taeyeon and plopped it down on her pillow again. 

She continued to look at Taeyeon that watched her with her gentle eyes.

"Did I faint?" Jessica asked.

Taeyeon nodded. "You have a fever. Do you think you can hide that kind of things from me?" 

Taeyeon asked and carefully climbed over Jessica again and went to the tray with the water 

glass and the aspirins. Jessica turned around to see what Taeyeon was doing.

"No wonder I feel dizzy..." Jessica mumbled and looked at the glass in Taeyeon's hand with 

the clear liquid.

"Take these. Your fever will go down." Taeyeon said and held out her hand with the pills in.

Jessica slowly sat up and took the pills and glass of water from Taeyeon. She swallowed the 

water and the pills and gave back the half empty glass to Taeyeon that put the glass on the 

tray again.

"When did you notice?" Jessica asked and followed Taeyeon with her gaze as the girl took a 

seat beside her on the bed.

"This morning when you could barely get out of bed." Taeyeon said. Jessica tiredly nodded.

"I was tired and dizzy." Jessica mumbled. Taeyeon nodded in acknowledge.

"You should rest now so you'll feel better." Taeyeon said and stood up and lifted the blankets 

to cover Jessica again when the girl had lied back down.

Jessica proceeded to lie down again but stopped midway and looked wide eyed at Taeyeon

when she realized something.

"What about Sunny? Shouldn't we be working?" Jessica asked slightly panicked.

"No one works when they have a high fever, and I'm here to take care of you." Taeyeon said 

and pulled the blanket up under Jessica's chin. Jessica continued to stare wide eyed at 

Taeyeon.

"But..." Jessica started put Taeyeon placed a finger over her lips.

"Rest. I'll talk to Sunny. She will understand, hopefully." Taeyeon said and the last word came 

out as a whisper. Jessica continued to look at the blonde girl.

Taeyeon turned to walk away from Jessica but the bedridden girl grabbed Taeyeon's wrist 

making the blonde girl turn to the brunette with a questioning expression.

"How did I get back here?" Jessica asked.

Taeyeon smiled at loosened Jessica's hand that was holding her wrist. "I carried you here."

Jessica let go of Taeyeon's wrist and watched as Taeyeon walked to the bed on the other side. 

Taeyeon sat down on the bed and leaned her back against the wall and looked at Jessica on 

the other bed. Jessica continued to look at the girl that sat so far away from her.

"Was it uncomfortable?" Jessica asked and turned her head to the right. Taeyeon brought her 

knees closer to her body and hugged them.

"Sleep, Sica. You'll get better faster." Taeyeon said and averted her gaze from Jessica. Jessica 

turned her head up to the ceiling and stared at it.

"When you sit over there it feels like you're uncomfortable with me being conscious. It makes 

me wonder what happened when I was unconscious." Jessica mumbled.

Taeyeon looked towards Jessica again. The brunette had closed her eyes now. Taeyeon let out 

a sigh and got up from her bed and walked over to the other bed. She looked at Jessica and the 

place she had been sitting at before Jessica had awakened.

All the things I could do for you. It's scary. Taeyeon thought and climbed over Jessica and sat 

down at the same place she had been sitting at before.

Jessica turned her head slightly to the left and opened an eye. A smile appeared on her face 

and she reclosed her eyes again.

"Thank you." Jessica mumbled.

"You're welcome." Taeyeon said and smiled a small smile. "Sica, I need to go back to the 

restaurant when you have fallen asleep. Don't get worried if I'm not here if you wake up." 

Taeyeon told the girl with closed eyes.

"I'll try to remember that." Jessica mumbled.

Taeyeon smiled a crooked smile. "Also, you do weird things even though you're 

unconscious."

"Like what?"

"Like clutching to my shirt and mumble things."

Jessica smiled. "Even in my unconscious state I know where I feel the safest."

Taeyeon kept quiet when she didn't know what to say to that. She watched as Jessica's breath 

got more even for the passing minutes until the girl had fallen asleep. When Taeyeon was sure 

Jessica was sleeping she got carefully up from the bed to not wake up Jessica.

She stopped beside the bed and looked at Jessica for a few minutes before she sighed and 

picked up the cloth she had wiped Jessica's sweat with that was lying beside Jessica on the 

bed.

With the cloth with her and went to the bathroom with it where she washed it and rinsed it 

from all the sweat before she went back to the bedroom with it. She folded the cloth and went 

to the sleeping Jessica where she put the now damp cloth on Jessica's forehead. Jessica didn't 

move when the damp fabric touched her hot skin which made Taeyeon relieved and she could 

now leave Jessica to sleep while she went to the restaurant.

---When Taeyeon got back to the restaurant she found Hyomin and Sunny in the kitchen. Both 

were cooking and Hyomin was running back and forth between the kitchen and restaurant. 

Taeyeon walked up to Sunny that was busy cooking something. Sunny's face brighten up 

when she saw Taeyeon.

"Hi, Taeyeon. How's Jessica?" Sunny asked and poured up some food on a plate.

"She's sleeping right now." Taeyeon said.

"I see. Can you help Hyomin carry out these plates, please?" Sunny said and pointed at the 

plates that were waiting to get carried out to the respective table. Taeyeon did was she was 

told and took three plates and began carrying out them to the customer that was waiting for 

their breakfast.

When there were only two plates left of the breakfast serving Hyomin and Taeyeon took one 

plate each and went to the customers that had ordered the food. Like good waitresses they 

smiled at the customers and told them to enjoy their meal before they went back to the 

kitchen.

"How's Jessica?" Hyomin asked on their way to the kitchen.

"She's sleeping. I gave her the pills like you told me to." Taeyeon said. Hyomin nodded and a 

smirk appeared on her face.

"Why don't you take advantage of her now?" Hyomin asked. They stopped outside the kitchen 

door. Taeyeon turned to the taller and older girl with a questioning look. Hyomin crossed her 

arms and a mischievous grin appeared on her lips.

"I mean, it's not like she would notice if you like kissed her now or something." Hyomin said 

and looked off to the side. Taeyeon looked away from the older girl and felt her cheeks 

heating up. Hyomin of course didn't unnoticed Taeyeon's reaction.

"Think about it, Taeyeon. I'm sure you have some pent up desires inside of you. Take 

advantage of this situation." Hyomin said and patted Taeyeon's shoulder before she walked 

past the girl into the kitchen.

Taeyeon shook her head and followed Hyomin into the kitchen where she found Hyomin 

busily helping Sunny with something. Taeyeon lowered her head when she walked past the 

taller one of the two older girls and stopped beside Sunny.

"Ah, Taeyeon. I've got something for you." Sunny said and turned around to the younger girl. 

Taeyeon lifted her head when she was spoken to and looked where Sunny was pointing.

"Take that pot over there with you. It's porridge for Jessica. You can heat it up in the 

microwave if it gets cold before she wakes up. I'll give you a day off today so you can take 

care of Jessica." Sunny said with a smile. 

Taeyeon nodded and went to take the pot and left the restaurant to go back to Sunny's 

apartment. She went up the stairs and took out the key from the flower pot and opened the 

door. She went to the kitchen where she left the pot on the stove.

Taeyeon went upstairs after she had left the porridge in the kitchen. When she came inside 

Jessica was still sleeping and she heaved a sigh of relief. She bent down beside the bed and 

looked at the sleeping girl. Suddenly Hyomin's words started echoing in her mind.

Taeyeon looked at Jessica's lips. She swallowed the lump in her throat when she looked at 

Jessica's pink luscious lips. She averted her gaze from the lips to Jessica's eyes which were 

still closed. She looked towards the lips again and unconsciously licked her own dry lips.

Argh, what are you thinking?! She thought and stood up and walked around the room. Her 

cheeks where hot and beads of sweat had appeared on her forehead. She bit down on her 

thumb and turned to the sleeping Jessica that was lying so innocently on the bed.

You shouldn't listen to Hyomin. It's not right when Jessica is sick and sleeping, it's not even 

right to do it even though if she wasn't! It's wrong! You're friends! Taeyeon continued to scold 

herself.

With a sigh she laid down flat on her stomach on her own bed and buried her still heated up 

face in her pillow that was much colder. She let out another sigh and let she her body relax as 

she was lying on the bed.

"Taengoo." Jessica weak voice said and Taeyeon's tensed up her body and opened her eyes 

wide. She thought her mind was suddenly playing tricks on her but when she turned her head 

towards the bed she saw Jessica was awake and looking at her.

"Sica." Taeyeon said and sat up on her bed with her legs crossed.

"Were you sleeping?" Jessica asked.

Taeyeon shook her head. "No, I was just... I was just..." Taeyeon stopped when she couldn't 

come up with anything to cover up for what she was doing. She looked at the pillow beside 

her. She heard a giggle from the other side of the room which made her turn back to Jessica.

"Almost sleeping?" Jessica asked with a smile.

Taeyeon broke into a small smile. "Yeah, almost sleeping." She said and averted her gaze to 

her hands.

"Were you at the restaurant?" Jessica asked.

"Yes. Oh, right. Sunny made porridge for you." Taeyeon remembered and got up from the bed 

to go to the kitchen to fix some porridge for the sick girl.

Jessica didn't need to wait long until Taeyeon returned with a bowl with some porridge and a 

spoon for Jessica to eat. The blonde girl placed the bowl on the floor and helped Jessica sit up. 

She even went to her own bed to get another pillow for Jessica. 

When Jessica was sitting up comfortably Taeyeon took a seat beside the girl and started 

feeding her with the porridge. Jessica furrowed her eyebrows when Taeyeon fed her a second 

spoon.

"Taengoo, I can eat on my own." Jessica said with a smile. Taeyeon stopped herself from 

feeding Jessica again and stared wide eyed at the spoon and bowl in her hands. She felt really 

stupid right now.

"Ah, right." Taeyeon said and gave the bowl and spoon to Jessica to eat.

Taeyeon clasped her hands together in her lap and continued to look at them as Jessica was 

eating beside her. Jessica looked at the blonde girl as she was eating. Even though she was in 

her sick state Taeyeon couldn't hide anything from her.

"Has something happened?" Jessica asked. Taeyeon turned her head from her hands and 

looked at Jessica that had the spoon in her mouth. She took out the spoon and placed it in the 

bowl.

"You are acting strange. Did Hyomin do something?" Jessica asked. Taeyeon turned away 

from Jessica's observing eyes and stared at the floor instead.

"No, nothing has happened." Taeyeon said. Jessica lifted an eyebrow.

"Were you shocked when I fainted?" Jessica asked and tried to look at Taeyeon's face that 

was hidden by the blonde hair strands that was covering it when Taeyeon had her head bent 

down.

Taeyeon shook her head in response. Jessica lifted her eyebrows and looked down at the 

empty bowl.

"Here, I'm done. Maybe you should check my temperature again." Jessica said and handed the 

bowl to Taeyeon. Taeyeon took the bowl and went to the tray where the half-filled glass of 

water still was and the thermometer. She placed the bowl there and took the thermometer and 

went to the side of the bed again. Jessica watched as Taeyeon was fidgeting with the 

thermometer.

"Taeyeon, I know something is wrong." Jessica suddenly said and grabbed both of Taeyeon's 

hands that were holding the thermometer. The two girls were locked in an eye contact. 

"You're tensed and nervous. What happened? You don't act like this without a reason." Jessica 

said and stared into Taeyeon's brown orbs. Taeyeon gulped and felt sweat starting to build up 

in her hands.

"Nothing." Taeyeon said and averted her gaze from Jessica's. Jessica frowned and let go of 

Taeyeon's hands and instead cupped Taeyeon's face and turned it towards hers. Taeyeon's 

eyes widened when her eyes were locked with Jessica's again.

"What is wrong? Tell me. I won't hurt you." Jessica said. No response came from Taeyeon 

and they continued to stare into each other's eyes. "And I won't let anyone else hurt you 

either." Jessica added. 

A door opening downstairs was heard and the two girls broke their intense eye contact. 

Jessica continued to look at Taeyeon that was focusing her eyes on the thermometer in her 

hand.

"Girls it's just me!" Sunny voice was heard.

Taeyeon gave the thermometer to Jessica and turned to walk to the door. She stopped with her 

hand on the doorknob and turned to Jessica that was still looking at her with the thermometer 

in hand.

"Three minutes and you'll know the temperature." Taeyeon said and opened the door and 

excited the room.

She closed the door to the room and leaned her forehead against the door, closing her eyes 

and letting out a sigh. Her hands were slightly shaking and Jessica's serious face from earlier 

was flashing in her mind.

Feeling that she had calmed down a bit she went down the stairs to see why Sunny suddenly 

had gone home for. The older girl was in the kitchen and seemed to be heating up something 

by the stove. Taeyeon looked questioning at the pot on the stove as she approached the older 

girl.

"Ah, Taeyeon. How's Jessica?" Sunny asked.

"She seems better, we're checking her temperature." Taeyeon said.

"Good. Has she drunk any water?" Sunny asked and stirred in the pot.

"Half a glass."

"That's not good. Take two bottles from the refrigerator and give her." Sunny said and pointed 

to the refrigerator. Taeyeon went to the refrigerator and opened it and took out two bottles and 

closed it.

"Is it true what Hyomin said?" Sunny suddenly asked. Taeyeon froze in her spot, the grip on 

the water bottles tighten and she turned around to face the older girl with a questioning look. 

"That you have feelings for your friend?" Sunny answered Taeyeon's questioning look.

Taeyeon felt her throat go dry. She wondered why people where so curious about feelings she 

had stored away since a long time ago. She looked down at the floor and held the water 

bottles close to her body.

"Feelings are never a bad thing, Taeyeon." Sunny said. She didn't need to her an answer from 

Taeyeon as she got it from the girl's body language. Taeyeon let out a sigh and looked up at 

Sunny.

"Not bad, but complicated and wrong." Taeyeon said and turned around to leave.

"It's only you that make them complicated and thinks they're wrong." Sunny said and turned 

to the pot. Taeyeon stopped in her tracks and turned to the girl by the stove. Sunny looked 

back at Taeyeon when she noticed Taeyeon had stopped again.

"If you get your feelings sorted out you'll know that they aren't that complicated, and 

definitively not wrong." Sunny said. Taeyeon swallowed the saliva that had gathered in her 

mouth and turned to leave again.

Sunny didn't stop her again and Taeyeon was able to return to the bedroom. Jessica was 

sitting on her bed with the thermometer in her hand, the girl on the bed looked up when

Taeyeon entered. A smile appeared on the brunettes face.

"37.9°C." Jessica said when Taeyeon walked closer to her.

"You're recovering fast." Taeyeon said and handed one of the water bottles to Jessica and 

placed the other one on the floor beside the bed. "Drink, it's for you." Taeyeon said and took a 

seat on the bed. Jessica removed the lid on the water bottle and took a few gulps, she had her 

eyes still on the blonde girl sitting beside her.

"It's nothing wrong with me, Sica. I just got shocked and worried when you suddenly fell 

sick." Taeyeon gently said and smiled. The brunette lowered the bottle from her mouth and 

swallowed the water she had in her mouth.

"I figured." Jessica said and placed one of her hands over Taeyeon's hand on the blonde girl's 

lap. Taeyeon smiled again.

"But I'm okay now. I've almost recovered, thanks to you that took care of me." Jessica said 

with a smile. Taeyeon nodded and looked down at their hands.

"Don't worry, okay?" Jessica brought her hand up towards Taeyeon's chin and lifted up the 

girl's head to look her in the eyes. Taeyeon smiled and nodded.

"Good. What's Sunny doing?" Jessica asked.

"Cooking something." Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders.

"Have you eaten something?" Jessica asked when she remembered Taeyeon had been here 

almost the whole time.

"Only breakfast." Taeyeon said.

"You must be really hungry then!" Jessica said and poked her finger into Taeyeon's small 

stomach. Taeyeon giggled and swatted away Jessica's hand. Jessica smirked and continued to 

poke Taeyeon's stomach making the girl squirm and laugh.

"Sica it tickles!" Taeyeon said and tried to cover her stomach from the fingers that was 

tickling her.

"That's what you get for skipping meals." Jessica said with a smile on her face and continued 

to tickle the blonde girl.

The room filled with laughter from the two girls, forgetting everything about their previous 

conversation they had before Sunny had gotten back.

Chapter 7 - Love confession

Sunny limped inside the room where her two guests and employees were sleeping. She turned 

to the bed on the left because she knew they had been sleeping there last night but the bed was 

empty. She looked to the other bed and saw the two girls sleeping there beside each other. A 

smile appeared on her face and she limped towards the bed with its sleeping occupants.

When she got closer she saw the brunette girl lying on her side with an arm over the blonde's 

girl's stomach. Sunny giggled quietly by the sight and supported herself on one of the 

crutches. She shook Jessica's shoulder lightly and the younger girl stirred and turned her head 

to see who it was that was disturbing her sleep.

"Good morning." Sunny said with a smile when she saw Jessica didn't react like Taeyeon had 

done when she had woken up the other girl. Jessica let out a yawn and stretched her arms 

above her head.

The movements from Jessica made Taeyeon wake up as well and the blonde girl raised her 

head up and rubbed her tired eyes. Sunny couldn't help but smile by the cute sight of the 

younger girls.

"If you always sleep together you can put the beds beside each other so you don't have to 

sleep on one small bed. It should be pretty uncomfortable." Sunny pointed out for them.

Taeyeon and Jessica looked around them on the bed they were lying. The bed was indeed 

small, even a bit too small for two teenage girls to sleep on. They had enough space to lie 

down on but they couldn't turn without making the other girl fall out of the bed.

"We're okay." Jessica replied and sat up on the bed. Taeyeon followed Jessica's action and sat 

up as well and stretched her arms above her head. Sunny smiled and put her hand over the 

brunette girl's forehead. The contact made Jessica stare at Sunny wide eyed. Taeyeon noticed 

and looked at the older girl and the reaction from her friend.

"Sorry, just checking your fever. Are you feeling better?" Sunny said after a while and 

removed her hand from Jessica's head. Jessica nodded and fixed her bangs. "Taeyeon you can 

check as well, just put your forehead against Jessica's and see if it's warmer than yours." 

Sunny suggested.

"What?!" Both girls said in unison. Both looking at the older girl with flushed cheeks.

"Aww come on. You're friends right? It shouldn't be a problem." Sunny said and proceed to 

bring Jessica and Taeyeon's heads together. Taeyeon screwed her eyes shut and waited for the 

contact of Jessica's forehead. Nothing however happened and instead she felt someone 

holding onto her shoulders.

"Sunny, I don't think it's a good idea. I'm really feeling well." Jessica said. Taeyeon opened 

her eyes and saw that Jessica was holding her on an arm lengths distance. She felt somehow 

relieved.

The disappointment in Sunny's face was evident. She let go of the two girls' heads and turned 

to the table where the thermometer was. She picked it up and looked at it.

"Put this in your mouth so we know for sure. I won't let you work if there is a possibility of 

you to faint again." Sunny said and reached out the thermometer towards Jessica. Jessica 

reluctantly opened her mouth and Sunny propped the thermometer into the younger girl's 

mouth.

"Check it after three minutes. Breakfast is waiting for you downstairs." Sunny said and 

limped out of the room. When the door closed the two friends that were left in the room 

looked at each other with tired and confused faces.

"You are okay?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica nodded in answer. Taeyeon gave the girl a smile 

before she got out of bed and walked to the other bed only to plop down on it. Jessica watched 

as Taeyeon rolled onto her side with her back facing her now.

Jessica furrowed her eyebrows while she still had her eyes on the blonde girl's back.

"Taengoo, are you okay?" Jessica asked with the thermometer in her mouth.

Taeyeon rolled around until she was lying on her stomach and placed her head on her folded 

arms with her head turned to Jessica.

"Yeah, why?" Taeyeon said.

Jessica shrugged her shoulders.

"Just making sure."

Silence filled between them as they waited for the three minutes to pass. Bored by the waiting 

Jessica continuously moved the thermometer from left to right in her mouth. Taeyeon 

watched as the thermometer moved back and forth until Jessica stopped moving it and took it 

out of her mouth to check on her temperature.

"I'm working with you today." Jessica said with a smile and stood up.

Taeyeon got up from the bed and followed Jessica that headed downstairs to the kitchen 

where the smell of newly baked bread filled their nostrils. They stopped at the door to the 

kitchen and watched Sunny that just had taken out bread from the oven and placed them on a 

plate.

"Oh, you're here already. Take a seat." Sunny motioned for them to take a seat by the table in 

the kitchen. They took a seat beside each other, glasses and utensils was already placed on the 

table and they watched as Sunny placed the plate with bread in the middle of the kitchen 

table.

"Do you need help?" Jessica asked as Sunny limped towards the refrigerator.

"No, I'm fine on my own. Hyomin will be here soon anyway. How's your fever by the way?" 

Sunny asked as she took out a package of milk and orange juice from the refrigerator.

"It's good. My temperature is back to normal." Jessica answered and looked at the milk and 

orange package that just had been placed in front of her and Taeyeon.

"Good, do you think you'll be able to work today?" Sunny asked and returned to stand by the 

stove where she was busy cooking something in a pan.

"Yeah, I had planned to work today." Jessica said. Sunny stopped and looked at the younger 

girl and smiled when she saw that Jessica wasn't pale as yesterday and looked much better 

with a day of rest.

"Good, I have some things I need help with later on at the restaurant. But I'll tell you what 

when we're there." Sunny said as she went back to the stove and turned it off and began 

placing the breakfast on plates.

Steps was heard when someone walked down the stairs and Hyomin arrived soon after in the 

kitchen. Sunny smiled as she saw the taller girl and Hyomin returned the smile and went to 

Sunny's side and started helping her with the breakfast without anyone asking her to. Sunny 

stepped to the side and supported herself at the counter as she watched Hyomin put the fried 

egg on the plates on the counter.

"Thank you. Did you sleep well?" Sunny asked the taller girl that put the pan in the sink to 

wash it. Hyomin nodded her head in answer.

Sunny smiled and limped her way towards the table and took a seat in front of the two 

younger girls while flashing them a smile. Soon after Hyomin returned to the table as well, 

carrying the four plates in a steady way after all her years as working as a waitress. She put 

the two first plates in front of Jessica and Taeyeon and the last ones in front of Sunny and 

herself.

"You always serve guests first, learn that kids." Hyomin said and began eating. Taeyeon and 

Jessica stared at Hyomin, quite confused of where that sudden comment came from.

"Don't mind her. Enjoy your meal." Sunny said and motioned for the girls to eat. After 

exchanging glances the two younger girls began eating their omelet Sunny had made them. 

The four girls sat in silence as they ate.

"Do you always sleep beside each other?" Hyomin asked after a few minutes of silence. 

Jessica and Taeyeon looked up from their plates at the taller one of the older girls.

"It feels... more familiar that way." Jessica answered with a shrug and continued to eat. 

Taeyeon looked back and forth between Jessica and Hyomin. Hyomin had a smirk on her face 

and the blonde girl shot her a questioning look but Hyomin just shrugged her shoulders and 

continued to eat her breakfast.

The rest of the time they ate was silence. Only Hyomin and Sunny talked a bit about today’s 

food and deliveries. Jessica kept glancing at Taeyeon that seemed to space out when she ate. 

She wanted to question the girl but she knew that if it was something personal Taeyeon 

wouldn't mention it when Sunny and Hyomin was there.

They finished eating their breakfast and Taeyeon and Jessica offered to help Sunny wash the 

dishes but she sent them upstairs to get ready instead. Without arguing about the matter the 

two girls listened to the older girl and went upstairs to wash and put on clothes to go to work 

later on.

"I'll take a shower first, okay?" Jessica said as she and Taeyeon had gone upstairs. The blonde 

girl just nodded and went to sit on her bed to wait for Jessica to get out of the shower.

Jessica quickly finished showering, Taeyeon's spaced out face kept appearing in her mind and 

she started wondering again what was wrong with her friend. Taeyeon was usually quiet but 

she didn't space out like she had done when they had eaten breakfast.

She quickly finished washing up and putting on clothes before she went out of the bathroom 

to let Taeyeon wash up too. When she entered the bedroom Taeyeon was waiting in she 

noticed the girl holding the polaroid camera Yuri had given them. She went to the blonde 

girl's side and took a seat beside her on the bed. Taeyeon snapped her head towards Jessica 

when she felt the girl sitting down beside her. Jessica smiled and pointed at the camera in 

Taeyeon's hand.

"Should we take a picture?" Jessica asked and tapped her finger on the camera.

"Maybe later." Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders. She handed the camera to Jessica 

and grabbed a clean set of clothes before she headed to the bathroom. Jessica looked after the 

girl as she had left the room, a small sigh left her lips and she looked down on the camera.

"We're supposed to take pictures to send to Yuri and Yoona." Jessica said to herself and 

looked at the camera. She listened to the sound of the water from the shower as she waited for 

Taeyeon. Another sigh left her lips and she stood up and walked to the window of the room 

and looked outside.

It wasn't a beautiful view, she could only see the roof of the restaurant because it was the only 

building beside the one they were in. She frowned and lifted the camera and snapped a picture 

of the view. She lowered the camera and waited for the picture to show.

"This, Yuri, Yoona, is the place we're working at. Pretty nice, huh?" Jessica said to herself 

and she looked at the picture. "A restaurant in Kyongju." A smile appeared on Jessica's lips 

and she turned around and started looking for a pen or something else she could write with in 

the room. Finding one in her backpack she turned the picture around to write but stopped 

when she heard someone entering the room.

She saw Taeyeon had just finished showering and had put on the set of clean clothes. Jessica 

smiled by the sight of Taeyeon rubbing her hair with the towel around her neck. Before 

Taeyeon could move away Jessica grabbed the camera and snapped a photo of Taeyeon. 

Taeyeon stood dazed for a moment before her brain had processed what had happened.

"Yah, why did you do that?" Taeyeon questioned and went to Jessica that was now holding 

her picture.

"We need to send some pictures to Yoona and Yuri. We haven't taken any since we came 

here." Jessica explained and finished writing on the backside of the first picture she had taken. 

She showed Taeyeon the picture when she was done and the girl lifted an eyebrow and 

grabbed the picture to read on the backside.

"You've spelled 'restaurant' wrong." Taeyeon pointed out and gave back the picture to Jessica 

that frowned.

"You know I can't spell well..." Jessica mumbled and looked at her handwriting on the 

backside.

"It's okay, at least it's understandable. But let me help you write on the next pictures." 

Taeyeon offered. A smile appeared on Jessica's lips and she nodded vigorously.

"Okay, let's take some more pictures on our way to the restaurant. Maybe Sunny has an 

envelope we can put them in later and send them away." Jessica said and turned to the door 

with the camera and pictures in hand. Taeyeon followed her and both of them headed 

downstairs where Sunny and Hyomin was waiting.

"Oh, what's that?" Sunny asked as she saw the camera in Jessica's hand. With a smile Jessica 

showed the camera to Sunny.

"A camera. We're supposed to take pictures to send to two friends in Ulsan." Jessica 

explained. Sunny nodded.

"I see, how nice. Have you taken any pretty pictures?" Sunny asked as the four girls now 

headed out of the apartment. Jessica showed the two pictures she had taken to Sunny and she 

looked at them before she turned to Hyomin with them. Hyomin looked at them and nodded 

her head as she saw them.

"Are you going to take more pictures?" Sunny asked and handed back the pictures to Jessica. 

Jessica turned to Taeyeon that seemed to be once again in some deep thought. Jessica turned 

to the two older girls again with a smile.

"Yeah, actually we were going to ask you if you had any envelope we could put the pictures 

in later so we could send them away." Jessica said with a smile. A smile appeared on Sunny's 

lips as well.

"Yeah, I'll give you one later. I can give you stamps too." Sunny said with a smile.

"Really? Thank you!" Jessica said excited.

On their way to the restaurant Jessica and Taeyeon took turns to take pictures and sometimes 

Hyomin took pictures of the two of them. When they had arrived at the restaurant they had a 

pile of pictures they could send to Yuri and Yoona. Jessica got an envelope from Sunny she 

could put the pictures in and when they were done with the pictures Taeyeon and Jessica 

began working.

"Jessica, Taeyeon." Hyomin called them as she came out from the kitchen and the two girls 

that had been busy putting tablecloths on the tables turned to the taller and older girl that had 

called them.

"We just got a delivery. Sunny told me to tell you to pack up the things. They are on the 

backside." Hyomin said and pointed towards the kitchen. The two girls looked at each other 

with questioning looks.

"Don't worry about the tables, I'll fix them. Now go!" Hyomin ordered them and soon the two 

younger girls went to do the new assigned job they had got.

When they came to the backside of the restaurant they wound piles of boxes. They opened 

one of them to see what was inside and saw carrots. They assumed all of the boxes contained 

some kind of food and they soon began carrying in the boxes. Both of them worked hard 

without exchanging any words with each other. If a box was too heavy for one of them to 

carry they helped each other and carried the box together. They continued to work like that to 

get all the boxes inside.

After a while Sunny came out to the two girls. She had seen them carrying in most of the 

boxes and she smiled a proud smile, the girls were young and she was surprised to see such 

hardworking spirits. She had had young employees before and she had always caught them 

slacking off somewhere, but these girls seemed to work hard. She was happy she had let them 

work for her.

"Taeyeon, Jessica, can you do us a favor?" Sunny asked the two younger girls that were about 

to lift a box. She limped towards the two girls, she something easier for them to do. She didn't 

want Jessica to work too hard just when she had recovered.

When they were called Jessica and Taeyeon stopped in their action and turned towards the 

older girl that had stopped by them now. Sunny smiled at them and looked down at the box 

that contained egg plants.

"We're running out of groceries at home, could you please do some shopping for us?" Sunny 

asked with a smile. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other before they turned back to the 

older girl.

"Yeah, sure." Jessica replied and shrugged her shoulders. A wide smile appeared on Sunny's 

lips.

"Great. Taeyeon can you come with me for a second, the shopping list is inside." Sunny said 

and pointed at the back door.

Taeyeon followed the older girl inside and to the office. She watched as Sunny seemed to 

look for something among all her papers scattered on her desk. After a while Sunny took a 

seat on the chair behind the desk. Taeyeon continued to look at the older girl.

"Here's the shopping list and money. And I want to ask you something." Taeyeon had just 

grabbed the shopping list and money when Sunny said the last part of her sentence. The older 

girl was looking serious at her.

"How long have you had feelings for Jessica?" Sunny asked. The question made Taeyeon 

blush and she looked off to the side.

"Since three years ago." Taeyeon mumbled.

"Have your feelings faded or gotten stronger during those years?" Sunny continued to ask. 

Taeyeon let go of the shopping list she and Sunny was both holding and her arm fell down to 

her side.

"I don't think this is a discussion I should have with my boss." Taeyeon said with her head 

bent down. A look of hurt showed on Sunny's face but Taeyeon couldn't see it.

"Can't you think of me as an adult you can rely on and not your boss?" Sunny asked.

Taeyeon inhaled and exhaled, her shoulders slumping slightly. She stared at her worn out 

shoes she had had for almost two years now. She never had the chance to buy new ones. 

Taeyeon clenched her fists and bit down on her lower lip.

"If I think of you as an adult I won't be able to rely on you." Taeyeon confessed. Sunny raised 

an eyebrow.

"Can I be your friend then? And not an adult friend."

Taeyeon slowly looked up at the older girl. Sunny smiled at her, a warm and welcoming

smile. Taeyeon gulped. She didn't know what to say.

"Taeyeon, I want to help you. I promise. I won't hurt you. If you've been hurt by people in the 

past please don't put me in the same category as them. I'm not the same as them." Sunny said 

and reached out to one of Taeyeon's hands but Taeyeon stepped away.

"Shopping list." Taeyeon croaked.

Sunny looked perplexed at her. Taeyeon nodded towards the paper in Sunny's hand and the 

older girl looked down at it, suddenly remembering the favor she had asked of the two girls.

"You told me and Jessica to go shopping for groceries. May I do that now?" Taeyeon asked 

and held out her hand. Slowly handed Sunny the shopping list to Taeyeon. "Anything else?" 

Taeyeon asked before she left. With sad eyes Sunny looked at the younger girl standing in 

front of her.

"No, Taeyeon. You may go." Sunny said. Taeyeon turned around and Sunny watched the 

younger girl's retreating back.

"I want to help you." Sunny speaks up before Taeyeon had been able to leave the office. To 

the older girl's relief Taeyeon stopped in her tracks. "I don't know who made you think your 

feelings are wrong, but I want to help you see they aren't. And if you're able to tell the person 

you have strong feelings for you might get someone to share them with." Taeyeon turned 

around and faced the older girl.

"There's no one here that will tell you your feelings are wrong. I promise." Sunny said with a 

smile. Taeyeon's lower lip was slightly trembling.

"Jessica might." Taeyeon said. The smile on Sunny's lips faded.

"You won't know if you don't tell her." 

Taeyeon turned on her heels and left. She didn't want to hear anything else the older girl had 

to say to her about feelings and it's not wrong. What if she felt it was wrong?

Getting out from the office and back to the backside of the restaurant she saw Jessica playing 

with a stray cat. She watched as Jessica was crouching and playing with a grass straw with the 

cat that was lying on the ground on its back and trying to catch the grass straw in Jessica's 

hands. When the back door closed Jessica looked up from the cat and at Taeyeon that stood 

and watched her.

"Found a new friend?" Taeyeon asked and tried to act as normal as possible even though she 

had had that conversation with Sunny.

"No, this cat just suddenly showed up." Jessica said and stood up again. The cat continued to 

lie on the ground by her feet.

"I see, shall we go?" Taeyeon waved the piece of paper she received from Sunny.

"Yeah, let's go." Jessica began walking and Taeyeon followed her.

They walked to the grocery store they found a few blocks away from the restaurant. A small 

store but they were sure they would find every item Sunny had wanted them to buy. When 

they entered the grocery store they took a basket which they carried together and began the 

search of the items on the list.

As they searched for the items on the list Jessica couldn't help but notice that Taeyeon seemed 

to be bothered about something, the slight frown on Taeyeon's face told her that something 

was wrong. She found the first item on the list and put it in the basket they were carrying. 

Jessica continued to look at Taeyeon that continued to seem like she was in deep thought 

again.

"Something seems to be on your mind." Jessica says as she grabs a carton of milk and places 

it in the basket. Taeyeon snaps out of her thoughts and looks at her friend, she fakes a smile 

and they continued to search for the next thing on the shopping list.

"I'm just a bit tired." Taeyeon lies and watches as Jessica search for something on the list on 

the shelves in the store.

"You sure?" Jessica asks and puts a can with canned beans in the basket.

"Yeah. It's nothing, really." Taeyeon says and they continued to search for the groceries they 

got assigned to buy.

Finding everything they needed they went to the cashier and helped each other to put up the 

groceries on the counter. Jessica handled the paying while Taeyeon began putting the things 

in a plastic bag. When Jessica had paid for everything she helped Taeyeon to pack the last 

things. They both took each a handle of the plastic bag and left the grocery store once they 

were done.

They started walking on the street again back to Sunny and Hyomin's apartment. On the way 

Taeyeon was quiet and in deep thought, still thinking of the things Sunny had told her, it 

bugged her more than it ever had done in her life. Jessica that always had an eye on Taeyeon 

couldn't unnotice the blonde girl that was in deep thought.

"You seem to be in deep thought today." Jessica pointed out and turned her head forward to 

check the road for any passing cars before she and Taeyeon went over to the other side. 

Taeyeon snapped out of her train of thoughts and smiled embarrassed.

"Yeah, I guess I am." Taeyeon admitted and averted her gaze to the ground. Jessica glanced at 

the girl.

"If you share your thoughts it might not be that big of a burden to you." Jessica suggested.

Taeyeon's eyes slightly widened and she gulped. She felt nervous all of sudden and she 

clutched her hand tighter around the handle of the plastic bag. Jessica continued to watch the 

blonde girl that still walked with her head bent down. Jessica felt something was off with 

Taeyeon, and she had felt it ever since this morning. She wondered if something happened 

when she was sick.

"Instead of telling about what I'm thinking about, can I tell you something I haven't been able 

to tell you for quite some time?" Taeyeon asked. Both girls stopped in their tracks and Jessica 

turned towards her blonde girl. She could see the seriousness in Taeyeon's face and she 

understood it must be something important for the girl.

"Sure, tell me. You know you can tell me anything." Jessica said and smiled. She saw 

Taeyeon smiled a small smile as well. Taeyeon bent her head down again, her right foot 

moving to kick a small pebble. Jessica continued to watch the girl as she waited for Taeyeon 

to get ready to tell her whatever it was she hadn't been able to tell her before. From Taeyeon's 

pose and how she acted Jessica could see Taeyeon was nervous.

When Taeyeon had mustered up some courage she took a deep breath and looked up at 

Jessica's face, meeting the brunette’s eyes and smiled sincerely at her. In silence Jessica 

waited for what Taeyeon had to say.

"You know I always had these stronger feelings for you since three years ago, but because 

there always were people around us that would judge us and hurt us I never dared to tell you 

about them. But now when we only have each other I want to tell you about them." Taeyeon 

finally said. Not knowing what feelings Taeyeon was implying on Jessica gave her friend a 

questioning look.

"I love you." The words came out like it were something common to say between them. 

Jessica stared at the girl in front of her that was holding the other handle of the plastic bag 

they were carrying together. Her mind not fully comprehending what Taeyeon had just 

uttered.

"You're not going to say anything?" Taeyeon asked and tilted her head. Jessica felt like her 

body system had just re-started as she looked into the brown orbs of her friend. She turned 

away from the eyes that seemed to observe her, for the first time in her life she felt 

uncomfortable in Taeyeon's presence.

She opened her mouth and closed it again. She didn't know what to answer in this situation, 

she had never imagined something like this could happen. She never thought that was what 

Taeyeon had wanted to tell her. And love? What was that really? Jessica didn't know.

Not knowing what to do Jessica did what she usually did in situations she felt she had no 

chance to win no matter what she did. She dropped the handle of the plastic bag she was 

holding and started running. If she couldn't win she could always run, that's how Jessica had 

survived her whole life, with running away.

Chapter 8 - Walking through the rain

Jessica let out a sigh and leaned her forehead against the window. She watched the droplets 

run down the window and even more drops appeared. When she pulled her head away from 

the window she noticed mist had appeared on the glass because of her breath. She started 

writing on the mist without really thinking about what she wrote.

"T.A.E." Jessica spelled out what she was writing. She stopped in her action when she 

realized what she was writing, she frowned and removed the mist from the window and 

continued to stare at the droplets.

It's not fair to just confess like that. Jessica thought and closed her eyes. The sound of the rain 

hitting against the window and roof filled her ears.

Not when I'm not sure what I'm actually feeling.

Jessica turned around from the window and looked towards Taeyeon's empty bed. Taeyeon 

was currently taking a shower and Jessica was waiting for her turn to wash up before 

breakfast. Another sigh left Jessica's lips and she turned back towards the window.

It had gone two days since Taeyeon's unexpected confession and Jessica had avoided her 

friend by all means. It was pretty easy when all they were doing was just working, and when 

they were at home Jessica went straight to bed and pretended to sleep. She couldn't even see 

Taeyeon straight in the eyes anymore, she knew the blonde girl was waiting for some kind of 

answer. But Jessica didn't possess any kind of answer to Taeyeon's feelings.

Jessica leaned her head against the window again. Her head was feeling heavy due to the lack 

of sleep she had suffered the last two days. For two days she had needed to sleep alone, 

something Jessica couldn't do in an unfamiliar place.

The sound from the door opening made Jessica open her eyes wide and she stared outside the 

window afraid of turning around. She heard the steps walk towards the direction Taeyeon's 

bed was and some ruffling of sheet. Frozen in her spot Jessica waited for Taeyeon to leave the 

room again, and hopefully without trying to talk to her.

"The bathroom is empty." Taeyeon said.

Jessica closed her eyes and started counting in her head. She didn't know if she should pretend 

like she didn't hear her or if she should just go to the bathroom without saying anything. 

When she had reached the number twenty seven she heard Taeyeon sigh and her footsteps that 

went towards the door indicated she was leaving the room. When the door closed Jessica 

opened her eyes and turned around, she was alone in the room once again.

Jessica got up from her seat in front of the window and went to her bed where she had left a 

set of clothes. Slowly she made her way towards the bathroom to wash up. Thoughts of 

Taeyeon kept appearing in her mind and she tried to shake them off by focusing on something 

else, like how much shampoo she should use. But the harder she tried to get the thoughts 

away the more Taeyeon appeared in her head.

When she was done in the bathroom she went back to their bedroom. She didn't know what 

she should do today, Sunny had given them a day off because she needed to go to the hospital 

to check up on her ankle and Hyomin would go with her. That means she and Taeyeon would 

be alone most of the day. It had never been a problem before but now it felt like the biggest 

burden she had ever had in her life.

Slowly went Jessica out of the room, she slowly went downstairs to the kitchen. She could 

hear Sunny and Hyomin talking and the smell of newly baked bread filled her nose as she 

went closer to the kitchen. When she arrived by the door to the kitchen she stopped and took a 

look around. Taeyeon was seated by the table and Hyomin and Sunny stood by the counter. 

Jessica saw Taeyeon turning her head her way but she averted her gaze towards the floor 

before their eyes could meet.

To not raise suspicion she slowly made her way towards the seat beside Taeyeon. Without 

looking at the other girl took Jessica a seat on the chair and turned her head the other way to 

not make eye contact with Taeyeon. She heard a sigh from the other girl but she ignored it and 

continued to look the other way. She wasn't ready to talk to Taeyeon, she was scared. She was 

afraid that Taeyeon would bring up the confession.

She saw in the corner of her eye that Hyomin placed a plate in front of her and a glass of 

orange juice. She turned her head to the plate and looked up in front of her at Hyomin that sat 

in the seat opposite her. Both Hyomin and Sunny had taken a seat and had already started 

eating their breakfast. Jessica slowly grabbed her fork and began eating as well, chewing 

longer than necessary and drinking her juice slower than usual.

"So what are you girls going to do today?" Sunny asked with a smile.

The question made Jessica swallow the food in her mouth harder than before. She averted her 

gaze to her plate as she felt Taeyeon glancing at her, she heard the blonde girl sigh and put 

down the glass she had been holding in her hand.

"I don't know. Maybe looking around the city? Do you know any good places to go to around 

here?" Taeyeon asked. Sunny and Hyomin might not hear it, but Jessica noticed the sadness in 

Taeyeon's voice. She took notice of every change of tone in Taeyeon's voice, even if it was a 

small change had Jessica always noticed it.

"A place to go to?" Sunny placed down her fork and rubbed her chin as she was thinking. 

Jessica glanced at the older girl, when Sunny turned her way she looked at the glass in front of 

her instead.

"Why don't you just walk around anywhere? I'm sure you'll find a place you like then. I don't 

really know what places you girls like to go to." Sunny said and chuckled at the end. In the 

corner of her eye, Jessica could see how Taeyeon smiled a bit sad.

"Yeah, that's probably better." Taeyeon said.

Jessica closed her eyes, she couldn't stand this. Every time Taeyeon spoke could she hear the 

sadness in the voice, and knowing that she's the reason for it hurt her. She looked down at her 

plate and noticed she hadn't even finished half of her meal while everyone else was about to 

finish theirs. She slowly looked up at the two older girls in front of her that seemed to observe 

her.

"Jessica, is something wrong?" Sunny questioned and nodded towards her plate. Jessica 

looked down at the plate again before she looked up at the older girl.

"No, just not that hungry." Jessica answered with a faked smile. She took a small bite of the 

omelet and felt it had gone cold, feeling it wasn't any use to force the food down now when it 

was cold she placed down the fork and finished her orange juice instead.

The three other girls around the table had already finished their breakfast and seemed to 

understand that Jessica wasn't going to finish hers. Taeyeon started helping Hyomin to clear 

the table while Jessica and Sunny was left by the table. Jessica noticed that the older girl 

looked at her, why she did it was something Jessica didn't know.

"Jessica." Sunny spoke which made Jessica turn her head towards her. Sunny had her chin 

propped up on her hand and looked at Jessica. Jessica looked at the older girl and waited for 

her to say something.

"You know, you and Taeyeon will be left alone when Hyomin and I go to the hospital, right?" 

The older girl asked. Jessica glanced towards the sink where Taeyeon was helping Hyomin 

washing the dishes, Taeyeon's back was facing their way and she couldn't see what expression 

Taeyeon was having at the moment, she couldn't even see if Taeyeon had heard what Sunny 

had said.

Jessica nodded her head to answer Sunny's question. The older girl smiled slightly and leaned 

back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes still on Jessica.

"It won't be a problem, right?" Sunny asked. Jessica eyes widened slightly and she shook her 

head, her answer was a bit too fast and desperate. The corner of Sunny's lips seemed to curve 

up when she got the answer.

"Good. You know where the extra key is if you decide to go out. I trust you two." Sunny said 

and stood up. Jessica watched as the older girl left the kitchen, suddenly horror seemed to 

strike her when she realized in what situation she was placed in. She would be all alone with 

Taeyeon until Hyomin and Sunny returned from the hospital, which meant she had no place to 

escape to if Taeyeon wanted to talk.

She swallowed the lump in her throat that seemed to have appeared and looked towards the 

sink again; Taeyeon and Hyomin were now wiping the plates dry. Jessica looked down at her 

hands that were clasped together on the table. She nervously fidgeted with her fingers for a 

while and got startled as Hyomin closed the cabin a bit too loud. She looked up at the two 

girls that had finished washing the dishes, the older one of them was on her way out of the 

kitchen.

Fearing she would be left alone in the kitchen with Taeyeon Jessica followed Hyomin out 

from the kitchen as well. She noticed Hyomin went upstairs and she followed the older girl 

there too. Once she was upstairs she knew she couldn't follow Hyomin anymore and just 

made her way to the bedroom she and Taeyeon was sharing and laid down on the bed there 

instead. If she pretended to sleep Taeyeon might leave her alone.

Even though her back was facing the door she still heard when Taeyeon entered the room. 

The careful steps Taeyeon always seemed to take as she walked was something Jessica 

always seemed to take notice of. She heard the blonde girl take a seat on the other bed of the 

room, and the question she feared to come never came. Taeyeon just sat there quietly. If 

Jessica didn't try so hard to avoid the girl she would turn around to check what she was doing, 

because if Taeyeon was quiet something usually was wrong.

Jessica heard another person entering the room and the person seemed to stop by the door. 

She could feel the person look at her, and by how well the person seemed to have walked she 

could only guess it was Hyomin.

"I and Sunny are going to the hospital now." Hyomin said. She heard no answer from 

Taeyeon and she guessed the girl must have nodded her head in answer.

"Is she sleeping?" Hyomin asked in a whisper. Jessica felt her heart beat faster by the 

question, for some reason she was afraid of what Taeyeon was going to answer. She strained 

her ears to not miss what Taeyeon was going to say.

"I see." Hyomin's voice spoke after a while. "Well, we'll be going now. Just take whatever 

you want in the kitchen if you get hungry. Have fun!" Jessica heard Hyomin leave the room 

and she felt a big question mark was being left as the older girl was leaving. She didn't hear 

what Taeyeon had answered, Taeyeon hadn't even opened her mouth. For some reason Jessica 

started to feel frustrated by Taeyeon's silence.

Jessica heard the front door open and close and the apartment was quiet except from the 

sound of the rain hitting the window. Jessica felt herself dozing off as she was lying in the bed 

and listening to the rain, it felt like all those times she and Taeyeon had snuck away from 

home to that basement on rainy days. They always had taken a nap there if they had been 

tired. By the memory of her and Taeyeon back in their hometown together and the sound of 

the rain sleep seemed to but a warm blanket over Jessica and she finally was able to sleep 

after all these sleepless nights she had been thinking about Taeyeon's confession.

---Jessica woke up after a few hours of sleep from her nap. She blinked and stretched her body 

as she sat up on the bed, her head turned towards the other bed in the room and by the sight 

her eyes widened and she looked around in the room in panic. Taeyeon was gone.

She jumped out of bed and ran outside the room. She checked the bathroom to see if the other 

girl was there, only to have her panic raise as she found the bathroom empty as well. She 

continued her searching downstairs only to find all the room there empty as well. Her panic 

raised and she ran up to the bedroom again and looked around. Her brain was going high wire 

to try to think of where Taeyeon could be.

She didn't leave, did she? Jessica thought as she looked around in the room. Her eyes landed 

on Taeyeon's backpack that was still there. Her heart that had been pounding against her chest 

in fear earlier seemed to slow down as she had gotten her eyes on the backpack, and she 

continued to look around in a calmer manner this time.

A note on her backpack caught her eyes. She went there and picked up the note and 

recognized the handwriting as Taeyeon's, when she tried to read what was written on the note 

her heart beat faster as she feared what was written.

"I we...nt....out...side....b...e...ba...ck...la....ter." Jessica read out loud. A frown appeared on her 

lips and she furrowed her eyebrows in concentration.

"I went outside, be back later." Jessica finally managed to read out. A proud smile appeared 

on her lips and she turned around like a habit to look for her friend to get a praising. 

Remembering her friend wasn't there she pouted and turned to the note again, and 

remembering the note was written by Taeyeon.

Ah, she went out. Jessica thought once she had connected the note's messages and Taeyeon's 

disappearing together. She held the note in her hand and she sat down on the edge of her bed, 

her fingers stroked the letters Taeyeon had written with a blue pen and smiled unconsciously 

as she thought back to older days.

Her train of thoughts was broken as she noticed a smattering sound and she turned her head 

towards the window only to discover in was still raining. Realizing Taeyeon was outside in 

the rain and could have been that for hours she jumped up on her feet, leaving the note behind 

and ran downstairs to put on her shoes. She found an umbrella and thought it wouldn't hurt to 

borrow it.

She went outside and opened the umbrella and began looking for her blonde friend as she 

walked. It was raining hard, and Jessica was lucky to have brought the umbrella or otherwise 

she would have been soaked by now. She tried to think of places that Taeyeon could be at, 

feeling like a déjà vu from when they had been in Ulsan and Taeyeon had disappeared.

The restaurant was closed for today but she thought it was a good start to look there for the 

girl. She walked fast and turned her head left and right just in case she caught a glimpse of her 

friend. She reached the backside of the restaurant and it seemed like Taeyeon wasn't there, she 

let out a sigh and stopped at the backside to think of another place.

She couldn't have gone to the hospital, could she? She don't have a reason to got there, 

besides, she despises the hospital and wouldn't go there even if she needed to. Jessica thought 

and she remembered the hospital as the first place they had visited.

But it is the first place we visited together.

Jessica began walking again but stopped abruptly as she noticed a figure standing in the rain. 

Her heart almost jumped out of her chest as she saw the figure. Realizing she recognized the 

figure she went closer to see if it really was who she thought it was. Her inquires was 

answered as she saw it really was Taeyeon that stood there. Her heart beat slowed down and 

she could let out a sigh of relief as she had found her friend.

She watched the blonde girl that stood there in the middle of the rain. Taeyeon's clothes were 

completely drenched but she seemed to not care about it. Jessica watched as Taeyeon stood 

with her head tilted up towards the sky, the rain drops hitting her face. She wasn't sure, but if 

it didn't rain she thought she would see the girl crying. Standing in the rain was probably only 

a way to hide the tears.

Jessica sighed and leaned against the wall. It was good it was raining, because she didn't have 

to see Taeyeon's tears then. Because every time she saw the girl crying she would always 

come running no matter what the reason was. And she was sure that even though she probably 

was the reason for Taeyeon to cry now she would still come running towards her, just because 

she couldn't stand watching the girl cry.

So it was good it was raining. For both Taeyeon and Jessica, Taeyeon could cry without 

anyone noticing and Jessica didn't have to come running for her. None of them had to drop 

their facades.

Jessica eyes widened when she saw Taeyeon turning around towards the way she was 

standing. The blonde girl stopped and her eyes widened too when she noticed Jessica was 

standing there. Sadness seemed to wash over Taeyeon's face as she saw Jessica and she turned 

around again and began walking. Jessica just stood there and watched as her friend aimlessly 

walked through the rain.

---"We're home!" Sunny's voice was heard throughout the apartment as she announced her and 

Hyomin's arrival. Jessica that was sitting on the couch in the living room looked towards the 

hallway where she had heard the voice. Not long after, both Sunny and Hyomin entered the 

living room, and Sunny was walking without the crutches.

"No more crutches?" Jessica asked as she watched the two girls that entered the living room 

and took a seat on the other couch in the room.

"Yes, but I should be careful to not strain it." Sunny said with a smile. Her smile however 

faded when she noticed that Jessica seemed to be alone in their big living room.

"Where's Taeyeon?" She asked. Jessica had known the older girl would be asking that sooner 

or later and she just let out a sigh and propped her chin on her knees that she was hugging.

"She's outside." Jessica mumbled and stared in front of her. She didn't notice the two older 

girls exchange surprised glances.

"She's out in the rain?" Sunny asked. Another sigh left the younger brunette’s lips.

"Yeah. She likes the rain. I think." Jessica said and the last part came out like a whisper. Once 

again did Hyomin and Sunny exchange surprised glances.

"I see. Well, we'll start making dinner. Can't you go look for Taeyeon and tell her to come 

home to eat soon?" Sunny suggested and stood up to make her way to the kitchen. She 

stopped in her tracks when Jessica didn't answer and she looked back at the younger girl. To 

her surprise Jessica seemed to terrified by the suggestion.

"Is there a problem?" Sunny asked. Jessica stared at her wide eyed for a few seconds before 

she averted her gaze to the floor. It took a few minutes more for her to stand up from the 

couch and following the two older girls out from the living room.

"No, I can go look for her." Jessica mumbled. She watched as Hyomin and Sunny made their 

way to the kitchen and she slowly started making her way to the front door. Just when she was 

going to reach for her shoes to put them on the front door opened and she looked up on a 

drenched Taeyeon. She stared wide eyed at the girl that just blankly stared back at her. Jessica 

felt like she looked into a soulless body.

"Was it Taeyeon that just came back?" Sunny's voice asked from the kitchen, and to answer 

her question the older girl entered the hall to see for herself. She however stopped when she 

saw how wet Taeyeon was.

Jessica continued to stare at Taeyeon that lifelessly took off her shoes and walked past her 

like she hadn't seen her. She heard Sunny call after the other girl but the steps walking up the 

stairs indicated that Taeyeon had also ignored Sunny. Jessica swallowed a lump in her throat 

and turned around to the older girl that looked at her with a questioning look. She averted her 

gaze to the floor and walked back to the living room, pretending she hadn't noticed Sunny's 

questioning stare.

To Jessica's relief Sunny didn't follow her to the living room to question her about Taeyeon, 

and she didn't mention it for the rest of the day either. But to Jessica's worries, Taeyeon acted 

as soulless as she had been since she came back. Jessica wanted to know what it was that 

made her friend be like that, but she was too scared to ask, just because she already knew the 

answer.

Chapter 9 - Friends don't avoid each other

The ruffling of clothes was heard as Taeyeon changed out from the clothes she had been 

sleeping in into a pair of clean ones. She put the sweater over her head and pulled in down 

over her body. She turned around towards her bed and began fixing it, when she was done she 

turned towards the other bed in the room, the figure that lied on the bed had been lying in the 

same position ever since she had woke up. Taeyeon sighed and picked up her clothes from the 

floor.

"I know you're not sleeping." Taeyeon said like she would get some kind of answer from 

Jessica this time. She looked towards the lump on the bed which was unmoved.

"I'm just asking you for an answer. Is it really too much to ask for?" Taeyeon asked, her voice 

cracking at the end. Jessica didn't move nor say anything. Taeyeon sighed and threw the 

clothes she had picked up from the floor on her bed.

"Fine, be like that." Taeyeon mumbled and left the room.

Five days had gone and nothing had changed between Taeyeon and Jessica. After Taeyeon 

had gotten home from that rainy day she had thought that if she avoided Jessica too the other 

girl might understand how she feels when being avoided. She however couldn't do it for long 

when nothing seemed to change and instead it seemed to be for Jessica's benefit.

Taeyeon had also started avoiding Sunny and Hyomin. Taeyeon knew that they knew 

something was wrong between her and Jessica, and the last thing she needed was for them to 

start meddle in their problem. She had had enough of their help. That they were providing her 

with a job, food and a place to stay was enough.

The blonde girl entered the kitchen where she saw Sunny making breakfast for them. Hyomin 

was probably upstairs getting ready, or she had gone to the restaurant early to fix some things 

before they went there. The older girl by the stove turned around when she heard someone 

was entering the kitchen and Taeyeon looked away to give the signal she didn't want to talk.

"Taeyeon." However, it didn't seem that Sunny understood her signal.

Taeyeon ignored the older girl and grabbed a glass from the cabinet and went to pour up some 

orange juice to drink. She could feel she was being watched by the older girl as she walked 

around in the kitchen. Even though Sunny watched her with her observing eyes she would 

still ignore the older girl.

"Taeyeon, it feels like you're avoiding me. Can't we talk?" Sunny asked and started to come 

closer to Taeyeon.

Taeyeon was standing by the table and taking a few gulps of her orange juice. She could feel 

the older girl stopping beside her, and in the corner of her eye vision could see Sunny looking 

at her. She averted her eyes forwards and looked at the glass in her hand that got emptier and 

emptier for each gulp she drank.

"I wanna talk to you." Sunny said and placed one of her hands on Taeyeon arms.  

Shocked by the contact Taeyeon dropped the glass in her hand and took three steps away from 

Sunny. Sunny that also was a bit shocked by Taeyeon's reaction look down at the broken glass 

on the floor Taeyeon just had dropped. Slowly Sunny looked up to meet Taeyeon's gaze.

"Taeyeon-"

"Don't you ever touch me again." Taeyeon hissed and held her hand at the spot Sunny had 

placed her hand earlier.

"I-I'm sorry." Sunny said that was still a bit shocked.

"Like you would know the meaning of sorry." Taeyeon mumbled and averted her gaze to the 

side. She felt the older girl in front of her still looking at her.

"I... I just wanted to talk. You seem to have avoided me for the last few days." Sunny said.

"There's nothing to talk about! Last time we talked you gave me some advice which was a 

complete lie!" Taeyeon yelled.

Sunny stood frozen in her spot like she was shocked. Taeyeon wasn't sure if she was shocked 

by what she just had said or that she had yelled. Taeyeon rarely yelled, but now she couldn't 

come up with something else to do to get her messages through this girl's head.

"You...told Jessica?" Sunny asked after a few minutes of silence. Taeyeon scoffed.

"Yes, I told her. Haven't you noticed she’s avoiding me? I told you it was no point in telling 

her my feelings, and now it has been proven they're clearly wrong."

"But that wasn't supposed to happen. Jessica, she's-"

"Stop!" Taeyeon yelled and held both her hands over her ears to cover out what Sunny was 

about to say. She looked at the older girl that had her mouth closed and then she dared to 

remove her hands from her ears.

"I've had enough of your advice. I've had enough of this. Thanks to you I lost my only friend. 

I'm.... I'm leaving this place."

Steps coming down the stairs were heard and Jessica was soon standing in the door to the 

kitchen. She was breathing heavily and she looked back and forth between Taeyeon and 

Sunny. She looked panicked, probably because she had heard the conversation between the 

two girls in the kitchen.

"Jessica." Sunny looked at the girl that just had arrived with sympathetic eyes.

Taeyeon didn't look at Jessica and just stared at the glass pieces on the floor. No one was 

saying anything or doing anything and the three girls just stood there, Taeyeon looking at the 

glass pieces, Jessica looking at Taeyeon, and Sunny shifting her eyes between the two 

younger girls. 

Time was running and Taeyeon started to get enough of this silence game. She averted her 

eyes away from the glass pieces and looked at Sunny that met her gaze before she turned to 

leave the kitchen. Taeyeon walked past Jessica without looking at the other girl, and Jessica 

didn't seem to make an attempt to stop her either and it was easy for her to just walk past her 

and go upstairs.

"Go after her. You're the only one that can stop her from leaving." Taeyeon heard Sunny say. 

Taeyeon didn't look back, because she knew that Jessica wouldn't follow her and she wouldn't 

try to stop her.

She entered the bedroom she and Jessica had been sharing. She picked up her backpack from 

the floor and started throw her things into it. She had had enough of this place, she had 

enough of Jessica avoiding her, and she sure had enough of Sunny and Hyomin's advice that 

didn't even work out, just making things worse.

The last thing she put in her backpack was the envelope with some of the money she had 

earned from working at Sunny's restaurant. Sunny had said they would be given the money 

when they had finished working for her but the older girl had changed her mind and given 

some of the money in advance. A good thing for Taeyeon when she was leaving before 

Jessica.

When everything was packed Taeyeon took her backpack and went downstairs. Jessica still 

stood at her spot by the kitchen door and Sunny was now standing beside the girl. When 

Taeyeon was coming down the stairs Sunny tried to stop her from going further.

"Please don't leave Taeyeon. Let's talk about this." Sunny pleaded. The older girl didn't dare 

to touch Taeyeon however after the warning she had been given before, and because her 

words didn't seem to stop the girl Taeyeon went to the hall and put on her shoes.

"What about the restaurant, Taeyeon?" Sunny asked when her pleading didn't work on 

Taeyeon.

"Your ankle is almost fine, and you have her and Hyomin left. It will be no problem." 

Taeyeon said and nodded towards Jessica. Jessica that had been looking at her turned her head 

away when Taeyeon looked her way. Taeyeon sighed and turned to pick up her other shoe to 

put on.

I can’t believe you're gonna be like this even now when I'm leaving. Taeyeon thought and 

finished tying her shoe.

"What about the rest of your money?" Sunny asked. Taeyeon looked up from her shoe at the 

older girl.

"Keep the money. Or give it to her." Taeyeon said and once again nodded towards Jessica 

without saying her name. Jessica looked her way with sad eyes and for the first time ever 

since Taeyeon had confessed her feelings to the girl they had eye contact. They stared into 

each other's eyes for a few seconds before Taeyeon broke it to turn around to leave.

"Take care." Taeyeon said and took a step to the front door that suddenly opened and Hyomin 

came in. The newly arrived girl looked confused from Taeyeon that was carrying her 

backpack towards Sunny and Jessica.

"What's going on?" Hyomin asked.

Without answering Taeyeon walked past the taller and older girl. She heard Sunny say 

something but didn't care about it and continued to walk. She heard approaching steps and 

began walk faster. No one was going to stop her from leaving now.

"Hey, kiddo. Where are you going?" Hyomin grabbed her arm and held her back. The older 

girl turned her around and Taeyeon tried to struggle out of the grip Hyomin was having on her 

arm.

"Let me go!" Taeyeon yelled only to have Hyomin grip her other arm as well.

"Are you leaving?" Hyomin asked and tried to hold Taeyeon still.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Taeyeon shouted into Hyomin's face. Hyomin was taken 

aback by Taeyeon's loud voice and the younger girl managed to get out of her grip and 

Taeyeon could once again proceed to leave.

"What about your friend?" Taeyeon heard Hyomin ask after her. Taeyeon slowed down her 

pace and came to a halt and turned around and looked back at the taller girl. She smiled sadly 

at her and turned her head away.

"What friend? Friends don't avoid each other." Taeyeon said and began walking again.

---On a bus stop early in the morning weren’t many people. Taeyeon took notice of it as she with 

two else was the only ones standing there and waiting for the bus. She had no idea where the 

bus was going, she just wanted to go away. Away from this town, away from the people she 

trusted, and away from her broken heart.

She averted her gaze away from the pool of water she had been staring at for the last ten 

minutes while thinking about the things she had Jessica had went through back in their 

hometown and now on this journey. They had done a lot together. It was sad it would end like 

this.

Taeyeon exhaled and tilted her head up to keep her tears in check. Starting to cry in front of 

these two strangers didn't feel like a good idea, especially when one of them was an elderly 

woman, the elderly woman would probably ask her what was wrong. Earlier the woman had 

offered Taeyeon some bread but Taeyeon had kindly rejected it. Depending on others didn't 

feel like something Taeyeon would do soon after what she had experienced in this town.

The bus came after fifteen minutes waiting. Taeyeon let the two other passengers go on the 

bus first before she stepped on the bus, she thought she heard someone calling her name, but 

thinking she probably imagined things she stepped on the bus. She looked around the bus and 

noticed not many people were on it, only a few elderly people and some students that had 

dozed off. Taeyeon turned to the driver that waited for her to pay for a ticket. She had no idea 

where this bus was going.

"To the last stop." Taeyeon said.

The driver took out a ticket for Taeyeon and handed the girl the ticket and said the price. 

Taeyeon took out the necessarily amount of money for the ticket and gave the driver the 

money before she started looking for a seat.

She found a single seat in the back of the bus which she took a seat on. The bus started 

moving and Taeyeon watched as the scenery outside disappeared. Now she was on her way 

away from this town, away from Sunny and Hyomin and away from Jessica. She was on her 

own.

I never thought it would turn out like this after I agreed on going with her. Taeyeon thought 

and leaned her head against the window. She let out a sigh which made the mist appear on the 

window and Taeyeon stared at the mist as it slowly disappeared.

Ten years ago I didn't know I'd have feelings for my friend either, or that she would start 

avoiding me.

A tear slid down Taeyeon's cheek, and this time she didn't bother wiping it away. There was 

no one here to hide it from. It was only she and a sleeping student that sat in the back of the 

bus, and the student wouldn't notice if Taeyeon shed a few tears. Taeyeon let the tears fall and 

she tilted her head down and felt the teardrops hit the back of her hand. It was better to let 

things out, she had heard, but who ever came up with that saying didn't mention that letting 

things out alone could hurt this much.

---She heard the door close after Hyomin came back in after trying to get Taeyeon back. Jessica 

saw Sunny saying something to Hyomin and Hyomin shook her head in answer and took off 

her shoes and jacket. Sunny was coming closer to where Jessica was sitting but she still 

couldn't hear any sounds except for the words echoing in her head. She saw Sunny crouching 

in front of her and her mouth was moving but no sound was coming out from it. Jessica 

blankly stared at the older girl in front of her.

Sunny's mouth stopped moving and the older girl stared at Jessica for a few seconds. Jessica 

remained still and mum, if Sunny had asked something she wouldn't be able to answer, she 

hadn't heard her. She only hear the voice in her head, the voice that belongs to Taeyeon, and 

that over and over announces that Taeyeon would be leaving. The problem was that Taeyeon 

had already left but the voice is still in her head, like a reminder of what she had done.

Sunny shook her head after she had remained quiet a few minutes and stared at Jessica. 

Jessica saw how the older girl got up and went to the kitchen with Hyomin following her. The 

taller of the girls didn't even look at her when she walked past her.

Jessica looked down at her hands that were clasped in her lap. She noticed she was sitting on 

the floor by the door to the kitchen. The place she had been standing when Taeyeon had left. 

She now remembered she had lost strength in her legs when Taeyeon had walked out the 

door, and it had come up for Jessica that it would probably be the last time she saw the girl.

"She said 'friends don't avoid each other' and walked away." Hyomin's voice was the first 

thing Jessica was able to hear of the world outside of her head. If she could, she wouldn't have 

chosen that to hear as a first thing. Another thing that came like a blow to her stomach and 

reminded her of that it was her fault her friend wasn't here. That Taeyeon wouldn't be here to 

eat breakfast with them, Taeyeon wouldn't be here to let her sleep beside her when she 

couldn't fall asleep, and Taeyeon wouldn't be here to be her friend.

A lump appeared in her throat and she tried to swallow it, but she couldn't. Her body began 

shaking. She was alone. She had made the only person that probably would walk to the 

world's end with her go away. The only person she had trusted with all her secrets, all 

problems, was now gone.

"Jessica, breakfast's ready." Sunny said from the kitchen. Jessica however didn't move as she 

thought back of how things could have gone differently.

"Go after her. You're the only one that can stop her from leaving."

The words she hadn't listened to before suddenly made sense to her and she stood up from her 

seat on the floor. She started walking to the door, ignoring the calls from Sunny from the 

kitchen, and put on her shoes and jacket.

If this can make a difference I'd take the chance.

"Jessica!"

Jessica ignored the call and excited through the door. She walked faster and faster and now 

she was running. If only she could make Taeyeon stay she would do it, she needed to have the 

girl in her life. She couldn't let her go away.

When she ran she heard someone running behind her. She turned around and noticed Hyomin 

was running after her. She began running faster, trying to think where Taeyeon could have 

gone.

Bus. She's leaving. A bus stop.

Jessica continued to run and turned her head left and right to look for a bus stop Taeyeon 

could be standing at. Her eyes caught a glimpse of a bus that was slowing down. She followed 

the street to where the bus was probably going to stop and she saw a blonde girl standing 

there. The bus came to a halt by the bus stop and the people at the bus stop started to go on.

"Taeyeon!" Jessica yelled as she continued to run. She hoped she could make the girl stop but 

Taeyeon continued to walk without turning around and went on the bus.

"Taeyeon wait! Don't leave!" Jessica yelled even louder and ran even faster.

Someone caught her in an embrace and held her back from running and tried to make her go 

back. She struggled against the person and continued to yell Taeyeon's name even though she 

saw the bus leaving.

"Let her go. You've already broken her heart enough." Hyomin said and continued to hold 

Jessica from running after the bus.

"But she's leaving!" Jessica was determined to get Taeyeon to stay.

"You broke her heart! It's enough Jessica. She had enough. Let her get over it. If you're fated 

to be together you will meet each other again." Jessica stopped struggling and the words sunk 

into her head. Hyomin loosened her hold on her and Jessica fell down on her knees on the 

ground.

Minutes passed while Jessica continued to sit on the ground and thinking about what she had 

done to Taeyeon, what she must have made Taeyeon go through by coming with her on this 

journey, what kind of hope she must have given Taeyeon, and how all of that she had crushed 

by just ignoring the girl when Taeyeon was in her most vulnerable state.

Jessica finally stood up from the ground, and now she noticed both Hyomin and Sunny had 

been standing with her. The two strangers that had taken care of her and Taeyeon, given them 

a job and a place to stay, and without questioning what they were doing out in the big world 

on their own. Jessica realized that with or without Taeyeon, she needs to continue this journey 

she had started.

"I need to leave tomorrow." Jessica said. Surprised Hyomin and Sunny looked at each other 

before they looked back at the young girl.

"You've done a lot for both me and Taeyeon, and it's enough now. It wasn't meant for any of 

us to stay here. I'm grateful that you've taken such good care of us, but it's time for me to 

leave too. I've have answers to look for." Jessica bowed to the two older girls, surprising both 

of them when Jessica hasn't acted that polite to them through the weeks they had known each 

other.

When Jessica raised her head up again she began walking towards the apartment again with 

Sunny and Hyomin. She would me sure she would work hard her last day there and make it as 

worthy as possible. And the next day her never ending journey would continue.

Chapter 10 - Through thick and thin

A brunette girl was walking beside the road. She had her hand out to the side with her thumb 

up, exactly like she had seen people catch a ride in movies, in real life however, it didn't work. 

That's what Jessica realized after one hour of trying to catch a ride in this way. She let out a 

sigh and stopped walking and put her hands on her hips and looked at the cars that zoomed 

past her. She was tired, hungry and her feet hurt.

Jessica put her hand above her head and waved to make one of the passing cars stop but they 

continued to drive past her like the driver hadn't seen her. She let out a frustrated sigh and 

pulled her hair. It had been hours since she left Kyungju and she had no idea where she was or 

where she was headed. She regretted not taking the bus now.

A grey Audi was heading her way and she waved in hope of getting a ride. To her surprise the 

car slowed down and came to a halt. From what she could see from her place the driver was a 

blonde female. She slowly walked to the car and noticed the driver had let down the window 

for the passenger seat. The female driver leaned away from the steering wheel to hear Jessica 

better.

"Where are you going?"

Jessica looked left and right for any sign to give her any idea of where she could be going. 

Not finding any signs except for advertising signs she turned back to the driver inside the car. 

Jessica shrugged her shoulders and heaved up the backpack on her shoulder.

"The place you're going." She answered with a shrug.

The driver raised an eyebrow and looked in front of her before she turned back to Jessica 

again. She eyed Jessica from head to toe and she nodded her head like she approved of the 

girl. She leaned back in the driver seat and turned her head to the road again.

"Get in."

Jessica opened the passenger door and got into the car and the driver drove off. The ride was 

silent, the driver was focusing her eyes on the road while Jessica stared outside the window. 

Her mind filled with wonders and questions about a certain person that wasn't, but should be 

with her right now.

I wonder if Taeyeon is okay. Jessica thought as she stared outside the window at the houses 

the car was passing by. I wonder if she's eaten. I hope she's eaten.

A sigh left Jessica's lips and she leaned her head against the window and continued to stare 

outside. I wonder if she's thinking about me.

The driver caught Jessica's sigh and glanced at the girl in the passenger seat. Jessica noticed 

the glance and glanced back at the driver before she looked outside the window again. The 

driver had blonde hair, like the color Taeyeon had, but longer. The girl didn't seem much 

older than Jessica, maybe in her early twenties. Jessica guessed the driver was an university 

student. 

"Is it okay if I put on some music? I hate the awkward silence." The driver asked. Jessica 

shrugged her shoulders without sparing a glance at the driver.

"It's your car. Do as you like." Jessica nonchalantly said.

The driver turned on the stereo and soon Britney Spears’ Circus was blasting through the 

speakers. Jessica raised an eyebrow as she noticed the driver singing along to the song and 

doing some dance moves with the hand she wasn't holding on the steering wheel. Jessica 

slightly shook her head and focused her eyes on the passing scenery and let her mind drift off

to thoughts about Taeyeon.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" The driver asked and made Jessica break away from her 

thoughts about Taeyeon. Jessica looked at the driver to tell she was listening and the drive 

glanced at her before she turned her focus on the road again.

"Are you running away from home?"

The question left a pounding headache and Jessica leaned her head against the window. To 

her relief the glass of the window was cold and seemed to relieve her of her headache and she 

let out a sigh. The driver looked at her like she waited for an answer.

"So?" The driver asked impatiently. Jessica furrowed her eyebrows and looked outside the 

window again.

"You can ask questions, but I have no obligation to answer." Jessica said.

Silence filled between them and the only sound came from the stereo that was now playing 

Jennifer Lopez's Love don't cost a thing. Jessica noticed the driver seemed to be in deep 

thought and she wondered if it was because of what she had said.

"Actually you have an obligation to answer. This is my car and I can just drop you off 

anywhere I want when I feel like it." The driver said and turned to her with a smirk. The 

sentence had answered what Jessica had been wondering and she rolled her eyes at the 

driver's sudden wit.

"Yes." Jessica said and looked outside the window again. Her eyes landed on a fire truck, 

police cars and an ambulance that was taking care of a car accident.

"Yes what?" The driver asked. Jessica let out a frustrated sigh and rubbed her right temple.

"Don't you remember your question?" Jessica asked back.

After a few minutes of thinking the driver nodded her head and Jessica shook her head. She 

started asking herself how she could have found this kind of person to give her a ride. She 

hoped the driver wouldn't ask more questions through the ride.

To Jessica's relief the ride was quiet. They were starting to come to a city and more houses 

were seen and the trees and other nature started to disappear and was replaced by the concrete 

or buildings. Jessica noticed the driver took left and stopped at a gas station. While the driver 

refueled the car Jessica remained in her seat and thought it would be good to rest her eyes for 

a bit.

Knocking on the window made her open her eyes again and glare at the person that disturbed 

her rest. It was the girl that had drove her and she winded down the window to hear what she 

had to say. The girl pointed towards a direction and Jessica looked that way and noticed a 

cafe.

"Wanna grab something to eat or drink? I heard your stomach growl earlier and thought you 

might be hungry." The girl said with a smile. Jessica blushed embarrassed as she remembered 

her stomach had growl but she didn't think the girl would have noticed. She slowly nodded 

her head yes as she thought it would be a pretty good idea to eat something. The driver smiled 

and went to the driver seat and started the car and drove to the cafe's parking lot. Both of them 

went out of the car and went inside the cafe once the car was parked.

There wasn't a single customer in the cafe. The lady that worked there stood behind the 

counter and was reading a newspaper. Jessica and the driver looked at each other before the 

driver went to the counter to order. The driver waved in front of the lady's face and she slowly 

looked up from the newspaper, her eyes widened when she realized they had costumers.

"Ah, welcome!" The lady said and bowed her head. The driver raised an eyebrow at the weird 

lady but didn't say anything and took out her wallet to prepare to order something. Jessica was 

looking at the things to order, she knew what to order to drink because it was only one thing 

she really liked from the things but to eat was another story. Jessica never ate at cafés.

"I'll grab us a table." The driver said and pointed towards a table for two that stood by a 

window. Jessica nodded her head and turned to the lady behind the counter, the lady smiled 

widely at her and Jessica slowly walked towards the counter, still looking for something to 

order to eat.

"I'll take hot cocoa and," Jessica looked to her left at the things that was displayed. She 

furrowed her eyebrows and took a glance at the lady behind the counter that was still smiling 

at her. "a ham sandwich?" Jessica said like a question and looked at the lady behind the 

counter.

"Cheese sandwich suits better with hot cocoa." A voice from behind Jessica said. Jessica 

turned around and saw the driver standing there. The driver flashed her a smile before she 

went off to their seat again with the napkins she had gotten from the counter. Jessica turned 

back to the lady and smiled embarrassed.

"Change it to cheese sandwich." Jessica said and put her hand in her pocket and took out 

some of the money she had been given from Sunny. The rest of the money was in an envelope 

in her backpack.

The lady placed a white mug on the counter with a brownish liquid and a sandwich with 

cheese, tomato, cucumber and lettuce. Jessica stared wide eyed at the sandwich with the small 

little green vegetable slices. The lady that was calculating how much it would cost didn't 

notice Jessica's reaction to the sandwich.

"It will be..." 

"Hold on." Jessica stopped the lady from saying anything and the lady looked questioning at 

her. "Can I get a sandwich without cucumbers?" Jessica said and pointed at the green 

vegetable on the sandwich on the counter. The lady smiled and grabbed the sandwich to 

change it. While Jessica waited she read on the cashier how much it would cost and placed the 

exact amount of money on the counter.

"Here you go." The lady said and placed a sandwich without cucumbers on the counter.

"Thank you, Park Minyoung." Jessica said and smiled at the lady. She took her mug with 

cocoa and sandwich and went off to the table where the driver was seated.

The driver looked up when she noticed Jessica taking a seat opposite her. Jessica smiled a 

small smile at the driver and began eating on her sandwich, she could feel the driver looking 

at her as she ate even though she looked outside the window.

"What's your name?" The driver asked and leaned closer to the table. She propped one arm on 

the table and swirled the spoon around in her cup. Jessica looked at the cup before she looked 

up to meet the driver's eyes.

"I'm Hyoyeon." The driver by the name Hyoyeon reached a hand over the table. Jessica stared 

at the hand, she was chewing on a bite of the sandwich and contemplated if she should shake 

the hand or not. When she swallowed she had made a decision and reached out one of her 

hands towards Hyoyeon's and shook it.

"Jessica." Hyoyeon smiled at her and Jessica looked away.

"So Jessica, what are you doing?" Hyoyeon asked and took a sip from her cup. Jessica raised 

an eyebrow and looked at Hyoyeon like the girl was stupid.

"I'm eating." Jessica said and took a bite of her sandwich like showing Hyoyeon what she 

meant. Hyoyeon laughed and nodded her head.

"Yeah, I can see that. I mean in general. Do you go to school, work, what?" Hyoyeon clasped 

her hands together and looked at Jessica while she waited for the answer. Jessica stopped 

chewing on her bite while she thought about her answer. Yes, what exactly was she doing? 

That was a question Jessica had forgotten to ask herself.

"I don't go to school, I work if I get a job. And I'm on a trip somewhere." Jessica said and 

drank from her cocoa. Hyoyeon nodded interested.

"I see. Where are you going?" Hyoyeon asked and leaned back in her chair. Jessica lowered 

the mug from her lips and placed it on the table. She looked down at it and a sad smile 

appeared on her lips.

"As far as my eyes can see: that's what I usually say, and it's still the same. But now I'm 

looking for where I can find the answer to love." Jessica said and looked up at the girl in front 

of her. Hyoyeon looked wide eyed at Jessica. Jessica smiled sadly and turned away from girl 

that had driven her here. She didn't know why she was telling Hyoyeon this, maybe she just 

needed someone to talk to. 

"I see." Hyoyeon said and nodded her head. The blonde driver took a sip of her coffee and 

Jessica looked at her, expecting her to say something more.

"Can I ask why you aren't going to school? You look pretty young." Hyoyeon said and placed 

the cup on the table. Jessica chuckled sadly and looked outside the window. This must be a 

first for her, no one really cared why she didn't go to school. And only one person knew 

exactly why she didn't. But that person wasn't with her anymore.

"They threw me out of school because of violent behavior." Jessica said and looked at 

Hyoyeon that looked shocked by the answer. "Some kids in school bullied my friend and I 

protected her. The kids noticed we were each other's weakness and they started provoking me 

by bullying her more. It ended pretty badly." Jessica said and sighed sadly while looking 

down at her mug. She didn't see the sympathetic eyes Hyoyeon was looking at her with.

"I'm sorry. Didn't your parents do anything about it?"

Jessica shook her head. "No, dad doesn't care about me, and I'm already a big problem in my 

mom's eyes so she couldn't see where the teachers had misjudged me when they had told her I 

was the problem." Jessica said and sighed once more.

"What about your friend?"

A pang of sadness filled Jessica and she had to try to keep her tears in to not start crying. She 

inhaled and exhaled slowly to calm her feelings down. The questions about Taeyeon weren’t

something she was prepared to answer.

"My friend has always felt guilty for it." Jessica said after she had managed to get her 

emotions in check. Hyoyeon nodded her head understanding. "But I think it was good, I never 

liked school, and school was never my thing." Jessica said and tried to bring out the positive 

of it.

"But what about education?" Hyoyeon asked. Jessica smiled sadly again.

"I have dyslexia. The teachers in the school never gave me the help I needed so I never 

learned as much as I should. Besides, when I got out of school I learned what I needed to 

know on my own." Jessica said and leaned back in her chair like she was proud of it.

"Like what?"

Jessica shrugged her shoulders. "Everything there was to know to get around life. I still had 

my friend and she went to school and learned all the basic stuff there while I was outside 

learning about the real world. It was a good combination." Jessica said and smiled by the 

memory. When Jessica had got thrown out of school Taeyeon still had insisted Jessica should 

learn some of the things they were learning in school, so every time Taeyeon had homework 

she made Jessica do it with her, just for Jessica to know some basic things. But the only thing 

Jessica was good at was math. Text books and letters wasn't her thing, she likes numbers.

"So you've went to school of life then?" Hyoyeon asked. Jessica broke away from her 

memory train and looked questioning at the girl. Hyoyeon chuckled by Jessica's confused face 

and drank a sip of her coffee. "You know, School of life. People say that's the 'real' worlds 

school. Things you learn outside of school"

When Jessica finally got what Hyoyeon was talking about she started laughing and shook her 

head.

"No, I wouldn't call it school of life. I'd just call it life." Jessica said and finished her 

sandwich.

---When they had finished their little meal at the cafe they had went back to the car and began 

their ride to Hyoyeon's destination. Jessica still didn't know where they were going, Hyoyeon 

hadn't told her anything and she didn't feel like asking either. If she was still moving forward 

it was enough for her.

The car ride was quiet. Hyoyeon had turned off the radio and the only sound that 

accompanied them was the humming sound from the open window in the back of the car. 

Hyoyeon had explained the car window in the back is broken but she's going to get it fixed 

later. Jessica didn't care, as long as the car was moving she was fine with a small opening in a 

window.

"Can I ask you something?" Hyoyeon asked after twenty minutes of silence. Jessica nodded 

her head. "And you have obligation to answer this, in some way at least." Jessica smiled and 

nodded her head again.

"Why do you need to find the answer to love?" Hyoyeon asked. Jessica widened her eyes and 

stared outside the window for a few seconds. The question had come a little unexpected for 

her.

"I want to know what love is so when I meet a person again I can give that person the answer 

I never gave." Jessica said. She nodded her head because she thought her own answer to 

Hyoyeon's question was good, it was the truth.

"So you don't know what love is?" Hyoyeon asked a bit surprised.

"No. Never seen it, never felt it, and as far as I know, it's only one person that has loved me, 

but I only found that out recently."

"I see. Well, I have a suggestion for you, if you don't have anything else to do." Jessica looked 

questioning at the girl in the driver seat. Hyoyeon glanced at her and flashed her a quick smile 

before she turned back to the road to make a turn. Jessica continued to look at the girl while 

she waited for her to say her suggestion.

"As I see it, you don't really have any place to go, you're just aimlessly walking around, 

searching for things that might have been with you for the whole time, you just don't know it. 

But because you say you don't know love, and you really seem to be very clueless about it, I 

suggest that you come with me, and me and my friends will show you and teach you what 

love is about." Hyoyeon said and stopped by a red light. Jessica now noticed they were in a 

city as she looked outside the window. She turned to Hyoyeon again and the driver flashed 

her a reassuring smile.

"Welcome to Andong. The next place you're stopping at is my university where all my friends 

are. I can let you crash at me and my friend's place while we teach you about this love stuff. If 

you don't like it I can drop you off somewhere else. Your choice."

Jessica looked around again. She had arrived at her next destination, a destination she didn't 

know about until she arrived there. In this city she would be all alone when she didn't have 

Taeyeon with her, and Jessica was unsure how she would manage that. She was already 

feeling insecure, and being in a city all alone didn't seem to boost her security.

"I've got nothing to lose, huh?" Jessica said and continued stared at the backside of the car in 

front of them. She could see in the corner of her eyes that Hyoyeon was smiling. "Because I 

don't know anything about this city, and you have the knowledge about the thing I'm looking 

for answers for, I'll come with you." Jessica said and turned to the smiling driver.

"Good choice." Hyoyeon said and turned back to the road when the light turned green and she 

stepped on the gas pedal and the car began moving again. Jessica let out a sigh of relief. She 

hadn't even been in the city for ten minutes and she already had a place to stay. This had 

gotten really well for her. But her mind drifted elsewhere and she couldn't help to think about 

if the other person that's so far away from home is as lucky she is.

I wonder if Taeyeon has a place to stay. Jessica thought and stared at the buildings of Andong 

they were passing by.

---They arrived at a large building. Hyoyeon had parked the car at the parking lot beside it and 

now Jessica was standing outside of the car and staring at the large building. She was a bit 

amazed by it, but it was mostly because it was unfamiliar to her.

When Hyoyeon had gotten all her things from the backseat she looked at Jessica that still 

stared at the building. Hyoyeon smiled at the younger girl.

"This is Andong University. The university I'm studying at." Hyoyeon said and smiled. 

Jessica looked at the older girl with her eyebrows furrowed.

"How come a student is driving around and not attending classes?" Jessica asked and 

followed Hyoyeon when they entered the campus. Hyoyeon laughed and turned to the 

younger girl that walked beside her.

"Sometimes you just need to get away from all this stuff. Studying is pretty boring you 

know?" Hyoyeon said and smiled when she saw Jessica nodding her head agreeing.

The two girls walked to a bench where a group of students were sitting, apparently on a break 

and waiting for their next lecture to start. One of the girls that were sitting there turned her 

head when she noticed the approaching girls. When she saw them a wide smile appeared on 

her face and she jumped up from her seat and ran towards them.

"Hyoyeon-ah is back!" The girl that had short brown hair said with a cheerful voice and 

engulfed Hyoyeon in a hug. Hyoyeon had dropped the bag she had been carrying when she 

had suddenly been glomped by the girl.

When the girl had broken away from the hug she led Hyoyeon to the bench where the other 

people sat, from how it looked it looked like it was four guys and two girls there. Everyone 

greeted Hyoyeon with hugs and happy greetings. Jessica stood by the side and watched 

Hyoyeon rejoice with her friends.

"We just started to wonder where you went off to." The girl that had hugged Hyoyeon earlier 

said. Hyoyeon smiled at her and turned to one of the guys that had blonde hair. The guy and 

she smiled at each other. Like she just remembered she hadn't come back alone Hyoyeon 

turned around to where Jessica was standing. She motioned for the younger girl to come over 

and slowly went Jessica over to Hyoyeon's side.

"This is Jessica. I met her on my way back here. She will stay here for a while. We have a 

little mission to accomplish while she's here." Hyoyeon said with a smile. Her group of 

friends nodded their heads and smiled at Jessica.

"Hi, Jessica. I'm Nicole." The girl that had hugged Hyoyeon earlier introduced herself. Jessica 

shook the girl's hand as she had offered a handshake.

"I'm Junho!" The shorter one of the guys said. Jessica bowed to him to let him now she 

acknowledged him.

"I'm Min." A girl that sat beside Nicole said.

"I'm Amber." The person Jessica had thought was a guy introduced herself. Jessica looked 

questioning at Hyoyeon and Hyoyeon laughed and patted Jessica's back.

"She's a girl, don't get fooled. It's just Amber's style." Hyoyeon reassured. Jessica awkwardly 

smiled and shook Amber's hand.

"And this is Eunhyuk and Doojoon." Hyoyeon introduced the last two guys. The guys shook 

hands with Jessica and Jessica awkwardly smiled at them.

"You see, Jessica here is a bit unsure what love actually is, so I thought we could teach her 

about it. She's unsure if what she feels for a friend is love or something else." Hyoyeon 

explained to her group of friends. All friends nodded their heads understanding what was 

expected of them.

"Then she has found the right help, because who else than we knows more about that matter 

than us?" Eunhyuk said. The rest of the group agreed on what he was saying. Jessica was a bit 

taken aback about how much these people seemed to want to help her.

"Oh, I forgot to say something. Nicole, Jessica doesn't have a play to stay so she's staying 

with us. She's okay with sleeping on the floor so it shouldn't be a problem. Right?" Hyoyeon 

said and turned to the brunette that always seemed to have a smile on her face.

"Of course not! She could sleep in my bed if she wanted!" Nicole said. Jessica looked at 

Nicole with horror in her face and Hyoyeon laughed while patting Jessica's back.

"Nah, I think that will get a bit too close for comfort for her. Right?" Hyoyeon turned to 

Jessica and Jessica nodded her head in agreement.

The blonde guy by the name Eunhyuk checked his watch and turned to the group of friends 

that chatted vividly with each other while Jessica stood by and watched them and listened to 

their conversations.

"I'm sorry to be a joy-killer, guys, but we're starting in a few minutes, we should get going." 

Eunhyuk said and grabbed his backpack and swung it over his shoulder.

"Already? I want to get to know Jessica more." Nicole whined.

"You'll have time to get to know her later, she'll stay here for a while, right?" Min turned to 

the brunette girl that stood by the side. Jessica nodded her head in answer and smiled a small 

smile.

"See, she'll be here. Besides she will be at your place, you'll have plenty of time to get to 

know her!" Min said and hooked her arm around Nicole's and they began walking after the 

three guys together with Amber that had started to leave for the campus building.

"True. See you later Jessica!" Nicole said happily and waved at the girl. Jessica slowly waved 

back at the cheerful girl that now had turned around to walk with her friends.

"That's my friends, what do you think of them?" Hyoyeon that had watched her friends leave 

now turned to Jessica.

"Not really the kind of people I usually hang out with." Jessica honestly said. Hyoyeon 

nodded her head and began walking the same way her friends had walked. Jessica tagged 

along.

"So I'll have classes until 4pm I think. Do you think you'll be good on your own for that 

time?" Hyoyeon checked her watch and turned to the younger girl again. Jessica nodded her 

head and they stopped walking outside the entrance to the building.

"Good, if there's anything and you're looking for me just come here and ask any student for 

Kim Hyoyeon, someone will probably know who I am." Hyoyeon said with a smile. Jessica 

slowly nodded her head with a questioning look on her face.

"It's because I and Eunhyuk are dating that everyone knows me." The older girl explained.

Jessica's eyes slightly widened. The surprised expression the younger girl did make the older 

one laugh.

"I'll tell you more later, but I have to go now. See you soon." Hyoyeon gave Jessica a pat on 

the shoulder and went inside the campus. Jessica watched after the older girl while she tried to 

picture what she just had been told.

When Hyoyeon had entered the campus Jessica spun around on her heel and began walking to 

the entrance of the campus yard. She had no plan of where to go to kill time, she would just 

walk around.

She got out on the street again and began walking to her left. Some cars passed by her on the 

road and some pedestrians walked passed her on the street. But none of those people was the 

girl Jessica had in mind. She caught herself looking for a short girl with blonde hair.

It feels lonely not holding your hand while walking on these streets. Jessica thought and 

looked down on her hands that had grown used to always hold another hand. They looked 

empty without Taeyeon's hand to hold.

Jessica sighed and put her hands in her jeans pockets and continued to walk aimlessly. She 

checked her wristwatch and calculated that she had four hours to kill. It was now she wished 

she had asked Hyoyeon about a good place to go to.

Without noticing she had reached a park. Without thinking any further about the place Jessica 

took a seat on one of the benches that were surrounding a pond. A man and a woman that 

stood by the pond caught Jessica's eyes and she watched the couple conversing. The woman 

leaned on the man with a smile on her face and the man smiled as well and then they kissed. 

The action made Jessica raise her eyebrows and look elsewhere as she felt slightly 

embarrassed by the couples’ public affection.

Jessica's eyes landed on another couple. The couple was however a bit younger than the first 

couple, and the girl was busy feeding the ducks bread while the guy seemed to want to go 

elsewhere as he was pulling on the girl's hand. Jessica watched as the girl got mad at the guy 

for pulling her hand and a small argument occurred. However the argument soon ended with 

the guy just placing his arms around the girl's waist while the girl continued to feed the ducks.

Jessica didn't know why she noticed all these couples now. Before she never seemed to see 

them. Her eyes continued to look at the two couples that stood by the pond. If she dared she 

would have went to them and ask how it feels like being in love, but right now she didn't dare. 

She was a bit shy.

She continued to sit on the bench, without going anywhere, and watched all the couples that 

went by, and all the other people. She tried to see if you could see love, but because she didn't 

quite know what it was it was hard to see. And therefore she sat there and continued to try 

understand what made people know they felt love.

---When Jessica came back to the university she saw Hyoyeon standing by her car. The older 

girl smiled upon seeing the arriving girl and she waved happily at her. With a small wave of 

the hand Jessica returned the gesture. Hyoyeon pointed at the car, signaling that Jessica 

should get in. Without questioning why Jessica went to the passenger seat and got into the car, 

and Hyoyeon started the engine and drove off. 

"Did you have fun walking around?" Hyoyeon asked and glanced at the girl beside her.

Jessica that was staring outside the window shrugged her shoulders and turned her head 

towards the girl in the driver seat.

"I don't know about fun, but it was interesting." Jessica said and turned back to the window. 

Hyoyeon nodded her head while her eyes were still focused on the road.

"I see, where did you go?"

"To this park with the pond."

The car stopped at a red light and Hyoyeon turned to Jessica with a raised eyebrow. Jessica 

turned back to the older girl when she felt her looking at her.

"Were you there all the time?" Hyoyeon asked and accelerated when the light had turned 

green. Jessica nodded her head.

"Yeah, it was interesting watching all the people there."

"It's like you're an ahjumma." Hyoyeon said and bit her lower lip. The statement earned a 

glare from the younger girl. Hyoyeon began laughing when she had caught the glare she was 

sent.

"Just kidding. Don't take it so seriously, kiddo." Hyoyeon patted the younger girl's head that 

now had a pout on her lips.

The rest of the car ride was silent with Hyoyeon focusing on driving and Jessica stared 

outside the window at the city. There were people walking on the streets, probably getting 

back from work. Jessica saw couples walking hand in hand, mothers holding their kids hands 

and friends walking together with smiles on their faces. Upon seeing all the people that 

seemed to have someone in their life Jessica started to feel lonely. She missed Taeyeon. The 

friend that always had stuck by her side through thick and thin.

"Jung Jessica, principal's office, NOW." The teacher pointed at the door with a serious face. 

The thirteen years old Jessica looked confused at the teacher as she once again got sent to the 

principals without knowing what she had done wrong. She stood up from her seat with her 

books and other things gathered together in her arms, with one last glance at Taeyeon that 

had sat behind her she left the classroom.

Detention. Jessica was used to it as she had it at least two times a week. The teachers always 

found something they could punish her for. It could be because she couldn't read from a book 

or she couldn't spell a word or sometimes because she asked the teachers for help. The 

teachers always saw it as Jessica was lazy and didn't want to do the things the teachers asked 

of her.

With a sigh the thirteen years old girl slumped down in her seat. Her pencil in her hand and 

she stared at the sheet of paper in front of her. She was supposed to write about why she got 

detention, the problem was that she didn't know why. She only knew she had asked Taeyeon to 

spell out a word for her and the next thing she knew was that the teacher had sent her off to 

the principal’s office. Not even given her a warning beforehand.

Frustrated by her punishment and how teachers were treating her she grabbed the paper and 

torn it apart and threw the pieces away. She crossed her arms and stared at the whiteboard in 

front of her. No teacher was there so she was able to do whatever she wanted.

She heard the door to the classroom open. She didn't turn to look who it was as she thought it 

was a teacher coming to see if she was still there. When the person seemed to enter the 

classroom and close the door after them without saying anything made Jessica turn her head 

to the person in curiosity to who it was. Seeing a blonde familiar girl had entered the 

classroom a smile appeared on Jessica's face.

"I thought you could use some company." Taeyeon said in her low tone she always spoke 

with. The blonde girl made her way to the seat next to Jessica and took a seat on it. Jessica's 

smile never faded and she continued to smile while she looked at the girl beside her. Taeyeon 

slowly turned her head towards Jessica, the blonde's eyes landed on the pencil on Jessica's 

desk and the paper pieces scattered on the floor.

"What were you supposed to write about?" Taeyeon asked carefully and looked at the paper 

pieces. Jessica's smile faded and she looked at the pieces on the floor. Her lips forming a 

frown and she leaned back in her chair with crossed arms.

"Why I got detention." Jessica said and looked towards the windows. She heard the ruffling of 

papers and the sound of a pencil writing on a paper. She turned her head towards the source 

of the sound and saw Taeyeon busily writing on a paper. Slightly interested in what Taeyeon 

was writing, Jessica leaned closer to catch a glimpse of the paper, her eyebrows furrowed in 

concentration while she tried to read the first lines Taeyeon had wrote.

Before she even could finish reading the three first lines Taeyeon was done with her writing 

and she held the paper out towards Jessica to see. Jessica looked from the paper to the person 

holding the paper. She reluctantly took the paper and tried to read from it. Her eyebrows 

furrowed and her teeth biting down on her lower lip.

"But this-"

"Isn't really something to be given a detention for, but that's the reason why you were given 

it." Taeyeon interrupted what Jessica was going to say as she knew what Jessica would say 

about what was written on the paper. Jessica turned to the blonde girl and just nodded her 

head agreeing.

"Yeah. It's unfair though." Jessica grabbed her pencil to write down her name on the paper. 

She could see in the corner of her eye that Taeyeon nodded her head.

"At least we're in it together." Taeyeon said and turned to Jessica. Jessica turned her head 

towards Taeyeon as well, a smile forming on her lips.

"Yeah, together through thick and thin?" Jessica said with her smile still on her lips. Taeyeon 

nodded with a small smile tugging on her lips.

"Yeah, through thick and thin." Taeyeon agreed.

"We're here."

Hyoyeon's voice made Jessica snap back out of her memory reminiscing. She blinked her 

eyes rather dazed and confused when she saw where they were. Hyoyeon had parked the car 

in front of a pizza restaurant. Jessica could see some customers sitting by the tables near the 

windows, and a couple was exciting through the doors of the restaurant, both of them holding 

hands while smiling at each other.

"Uhm... what are we doing here?" Jessica asked and got out of the car when she saw Hyoyeon 

did it. She walked around to the other side of the car where Hyoyeon was standing while the 

older girl locked the car doors. Hyoyeon smiled at the younger girl and turned to the 

restaurant.

"We're going to eat here." Hyoyeon announced. A frown appeared on Jessica's face. If Jessica 

could spend money as she wanted she would have, but because she didn't know when she 

would gain back the money she had spent she knew she possibly wouldn't be able to buy 

anything at this restaurant. She had to hold tightly onto her money.

"You don't like pizza?" Hyoyeon asked that saw the disappointed expression Jessica was 

making. The younger girl shook her head no.

"No, it's just that I won't be able to buy any pizza. I need to save my money." Jessica 

explained. Hyoyeon nodded her head in understanding.

"I see." Hyoyeon nodded her head while trying to think of a solution for the problem. A smile 

appeared on the older girl's face and she grabbed Jessica's hand and dragged her towards the 

restaurant. "But it won't be a problem with my friends." Hyoyeon said with a smile. The 

statement only made Jessica confused and the younger girl let the older one lead her inside the 

restaurant.

When they were inside the restaurant Hyoyeon led Jessica to a table in the back of the 

restaurant. Jessica noticed all Hyoyeon's friends were already seated around the table with a 

pizza in front of them. Hyoyeon took a seat beside Eunhyuk and made Jessica sit down on the 

chair beside her. Still confused Jessica looked around the table at Hyoyeon's friends that 

smiled at her.

"I bought the pizza you wanted." Eunhyuk said to Hyoyeon and placed the plate with the 

pizza on in front of the girl. Hyoyeon smiled and gave Eunhyuk a peck on the lips.

"We didn't know what pizza you like so we didn't buy any for you. But here's a menu if you 

want to take a look." Nicole said and reached out a menu towards Jessica. Jessica looked at 

the menu and to Hyoyeon that sat beside her.

"Oh, we've got a money problem here guys. Jessica here needs to save money and won't be 

able to buy any pizza." Hyoyeon said. 

The group of friends stared at Hyoyeon in silence. The silence making Jessica uneasy and she 

slumped further down in her seat, hoping she could sink through the chair and floor and just 

disappear.

"But she can take a slice from me." Nicole said and took a slice from her pizza to give Jessica.

"She can take one from me too." Amber said.

And like a chain reaction, everyone of Hyoyeon's friends offered Jessica a slice of their pizza. 

Jessica stared dumbfounded at the pizza slices that were offered to her. Hyoyeon chuckled 

and patted Jessica's back.

"I think you'll need a plate for all those slices." Hyoyeon said. Jessica only nodded her head in 

answer.

When Jessica got a plate for all her pizza slices the group of young adults began eating while 

chatting together. Hyoyeon's friends were curious about everything about Jessica, where she 

comes from, what she does and why she travels. Questions about her family were something 

that Jessica didn't answer, and to her relief the questions weren’t furthered asked about either.

"Guys, isn't it unfair if you only hear about Jessica, shouldn't you tell a bit about yourselves as 

well?" Hyoyeon asked. Her group of friends that had acted like investigator when they had 

asked Jessica about herself clamped all their mouths shut and glanced at each other. Jessica 

turned towards Hyoyeon that sent her a wink and a reassuring smile.

And like that Hyoyeon's friends took turns of telling about themselves. Things like what they 

were majoring in, what their interests were, what their parents had for expectations of them, 

and so on. Jessica listened to all the friends while they continued tell about themselves, what 

Jessica realized later were that Hyoyeon had actually saved her from being questioned the 

whole night.

---The night at the pizza restaurant had ended with full stomachs and a satisfied group of young 

adults. Hyoyeon, Jessica and Nicole had parted with the rest of the group to go to Hyoyeon 

and Nicole's place. The place where Jessica currently was at, using some blankets as a 

mattress to lie on, and a pillow Hyoyeon had given her and a spare blanket Nicole had 

managed to find. The place was dark as they all had bid good night and was supposed to go to 

sleep, but Jessica had her mind clouded with other things that kept her awake. Like if Taeyeon 

had a place to sleep.

The brunette girl turned to lie on her stomach, she turned her head towards the window in the 

room and saw the pitch black sky with the few white dots on it. Jessica glanced towards the

bed in the room, the bed where Hyoyeon was sleeping on. The older girl was lying with her 

back facing Jessica, and by the rhythmic breathing coming from the girl Jessica confirmed 

Hyoyeon was asleep.

Slowly got Jessica up and made her way towards the desk that stood by the window, she 

glanced at Hyoyeon one last time before she took a step on the chair and carefully put her 

other foot on the desk. She carefully crouched down to move some things on the desk to not 

make any sound that could wake up the sleeping girl. When she had made space for herself to 

move closer to the window she proceed to take a carefully step forward on the desk.

"I hope you're not thinking about jumping out the window." A whisper was heard in the dark. 

Startled Jessica almost fell down but with her fast reflexes she grabbed the windowsill to hold 

herself up. She turned towards the sound of the voice and noticed Hyoyeon was looking at 

her, Jessica let out a relieved sigh and positioned herself in a better pose on the desk to keep 

the balance.

"No, I wanted to look at the stars." Jessica explained and pointed at the sky. The older girl 

moved her head to see what stars Jessica was talking about, seeing what Jessica meant 

Hyoyeon nodded her head and placed her pillow under her chin to rest it on it.

"Having trouble to sleep?" Hyoyeon asked. Jessica sat down on the desk with her legs crossed 

and looked outside the window, she nodded her head and turned towards the older girl. She 

thanked the darkness that made it hard to see their expressions at the time.

"I can't really sleep in unfamiliar places, unless I have someone I'm familiar with." Jessica 

explained with a crooked smile. She could see Hyoyeon nod her head in the darkness.

Silence filled between them. Jessica was looking outside the window at the twinkling small 

dots in the sky, thinking back at what Taeyeon had said on the beach the first night when they 

had ran away from home. With her eyes focused on the sky Jessica tried to find that Ursa 

Minor constellation had looked like a duck, and deep in her heart she hoped that somewhere 

in this world Taeyeon was doing the same.

"That friend you said you had protected from being bullied in your school, is that the person 

you need to give an answer to?" The question from the older girl made Jessica avert her gaze 

from the sky to the older girl. Hyoyeon had her eyes closed, which had made Jessica believe 

the girl had went back to sleep. Jessica bent her head down to her hands that was clasped 

together in her lap.

"Yes." Jessica answered still with her eyes on her hands.

"Do you know where your friend is right now?"

"No." Jessica lifted her head and turned it towards the older girl on the bed. "But someone 

once told me that if we're fated to be together we'll meet again." Jessica said with a smile. She 

could see Hyoyeon looking at her, and by Hyoyeon's silence and unresponsiveness Jessica 

guessed the older girl felt sympathy for her. She turned her head away from the girl and 

looked up at the sky again.

"That's what I'm hoping we'll do." Jessica said sadly. Her eyes landed on group of stars, that 

to her looked like a duck. Her lips formed a sad smile, and like that Jessica continued to sit the 

rest of the night, looking at the stars and hoping the stars gave the comfort to the person her 

mind was filled with like they were doing to her. 

Chapter 11 - Love lesson

A thud near the girl's head made the girl lying in the grass open her eyes only to cover them to 

not get dazzled by the sun. When her eyes was covered from the sun she made out a blonde 

haired girl standing beside her with a grin plastered on her face, the blonde girl was however 

not the blonde girl Jessica had hoped to see.

"Here." Hyoyeon held out a paper towards Jessica that looked questioning at the paper. "You 

said you needed money right? They're looking for someone that can help out in the cafeteria 

for the week, the guy that usually helps out there is down with the flu." Hyoyeon said and 

took a seat beside Jessica in the grass. Jessica looked through the paper and nodded her head.

"Seems good. I'll check it out." Jessica said and folded the paper. Hyoyeon smiled and shook 

her head.

"Don't need to, I've already signed you up for the work." Hyoyeon said with a smile. Jessica 

looked wide eyed at the older girl.

"No need to thank me." Hyoyeon said and patted Jessica's back. Jessica continued to stare at 

the girl with a her mouth hanging open in shock.

"Anyway, I was supposed to teach you about love, right?" Hyoyeon changed the subject and 

looked at Jessica that now had snapped out of her shock and nodded her head. She hadn't 

forgotten about why she had come with Hyoyeon. Hyoyeon smiled and turned to her 

backpack she had dropped on the ground. The older girl opened it and began searching for 

something in it while Jessica was watching her with curious eyes.

"I and the guys wrote down some things you can be thinking about when it comes to love, but 

then I remembered that reading isn't really your strong side so I'll just read it for you. Okay?" 

Hyoyeon said and looked at the younger girl. Jessica nodded her head and sat cross legged 

while she waited for the older girl to begin reading from the notebook she was now holding in 

her hand.

"What do you wanna learn about first?" Hyoyeon asked and opened the notebook. She looked 

over at Jessica that shrugged her shoulders.

"Everything there is to know." Jessica replied with a shrug.

"An eager student." Hyoyeon said with a smile.

"Okay first of all, love is a feeling, a feeling that can be between two friends, family members 

or two lovers. Love can be different, but none if it is wrong." Hyoyeon glanced at Jessica that 

nodded her head saying she had got what Hyoyeon was saying.

"How to know you're loving someone is easy if you know the feeling. The first thing you can 

ask yourself is if there is someone in your life that makes you smile, second is if you'd do 

everything for that person, third is if you feel your heart beat faster when the person is close 

or just being in the same place as you. And the fourth question, do you like seeing that person 

being intimate with other people. If you've answered yes on the three firsts and no on the last 

one then congratulation you've just discovered who you love." Hyoyeon finished reading the 

part and furrowed her eyebrows. When she looked up at Jessica the younger girl was sitting 

rooted to her spot, her expression serious and she nodded.

"Sorry, I think it's Nicole that wrote this. It's not always like this." Hyoyeon explained and 

changed page in the notebook.

"But, there's someone like that." Jessica said. Hyoyeon froze in her action and looked at 

Jessica with surprised eyes.

"There is?" Hyoyeon asked, she was rather surprised the younger girl had discovered it so 

quickly.

"Yes, there's this person that makes me smile, I also like seeing that person smile. And I'd do 

everything for that person, and every time me and that person was close to each other I always 

felt my heart beat a bit faster, I just didn't know what it meant. And when I saw this person 

being close with someone else I honestly didn't like it." Hyoyeon looked wide eyed at Jessica 

as her explanation had matched in on the one that Nicole had written down.

"Aww, she loves someone. How cute." Nicole's voice said from behind Hyoyeon. Hyoyeon 

jumped in surprise upon hearing the girl and turned around only to see all her friends sitting 

there. She gave all of them a glare for not announcing their arrival.

"But you said love can be between two friends, is that same as two lovers love?" Jessica 

asked.

"No, it's not the same. See I and Nicole love each other as friends, but that love isn't the same 

as between me and Eunhyuk." Hyoyeon explained. Jessica nodded her head with her 

eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"But what if the person you love is your friend, but you later on become lovers, is it still the 

same then?" Jessica's question made Hyoyeon and the rest of the group smile warmly at 

Jessica.

"No, when you've started loving your friend as a lover your love has reached another level." 

Hyoyeon said with a smile.

"But it doesn't mean the person no longer is your friend, even though you've become lovers 

you can still be friends." Eunhyuk added. He looked at Hyoyeon that smiled at him.

Jessica nodded her head, she had pretty much gotten a hang of these things now even though 

she had been so unused to them. But when she talked about it like this with these older people 

it made sense to her. The only thing she had to figure out was her own feelings. Even though 

she had pretty much matched in everything Nicole had wrote down about being in love with 

someone she was still unsure if she really loved Taeyeon. She had to see Taeyeon to know.

"Have you ever kissed someone?" Eunhyuk asked and moved to sit beside Hyoyeon. Jessica 

shook her head and a grin formed on his face and he turned towards the blonde girl beside 

him.

"Then I guess you don't really know how to do it." He said and turned back to the brunette 

girl. Jessica furrowed her eyebrows.

"Don't you just press your lips on someone else's?" Jessica asked. The guy together with 

Nicole, Amber and Junho began laughing by what Jessica had said. Hyoyeon slapped the guy 

beside her on his shoulder and looked apologetic at Jessica.

"Don't laugh at her! How is she supposed to know when she's never kissed anyone?" Hyoyeon 

said to Jessica's defense. Jessica looked confused at the group of laughing people. She 

honestly didn't know what she had said wrong, because to her kissing appeared like what she 

just had said.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh at you." Eunhyuk apologized when he had calmed down. 

Suddenly his eyes lit up and he looked at Hyoyeon and back to Jessica, a smile appeared on 

his lips and he turned to his girlfriend again. "I've got an idea." He said with a smile on his 

lips. Hyoyeon looked at him with her eyes narrowed.

"What kind of idea?" Hyoyeon asked.

"Well, it would be bad if she had her first kiss and she didn't know what to do when it 

happens, so why don't we show her what she can do?" Eunhyuk suggested. Hyoyeon eyes 

widened and a slight blush appeared on her cheeks and she glanced at Jessica that looked 

oblivious to what he meant. Hyoyeon lightly slapped Eunhyuk's arm and turned her head 

away from him.

"You want us to show how kissing is done?" Hyoyeon asked in a calm manner even though 

her cheeks were flushed red. Eunhyuk nodded his head.

"Because I know that you can kiss." He said with a grin. Hyoyeon still had her head turned 

the other way and Jessica continued to be oblivious to everything. She looked at the couple's 

friends that sat behind them, none of the friends seemed to bother about what the couple 

talked about. Jessica turned her gaze back to the couple that seemed to have come to an 

agreement.

"Okay, Jessica. Look at this." Eunhyuk ordered. Jessica focused her eyes on what the two 

older persons was doing. "If someone else is intending the kiss it will be most likely they 

place their hands here on you." Eunhyuk explained and showed where he placed his hands on 

Hyoyeon's back. Jessica nodded her head understanding. "And here it's important that you and 

the person are aware of what the other is doing. You can't kiss like this, you'll bump your 

noses together." Eunhyuk did a demonstration of leaning closer to Hyoyeon's face but stopped 

when their noses met. Jessica nodded her head. "You have to tilt you head to the side, like 

this." Eunhyuk showed how he was tilting his head. "The other person can tilt their head too, 

but the opposite way." Eunhyuk said and the observing eyes watched when Hyoyeon tilted 

her head the other way.

"Now you just have to press your lips together, like you said." Eunhyuk said and chuckled 

which earned a slap from Hyoyeon. He ignored the slap and pecked Hyoyeon's lips faster than 

what the girl had expected. When Eunhyuk had ended the small kiss Hyoyeon looked 

confused at him. "I'm not done yet, so you can sit like that for a while." Eunhyuk told 

Hyoyeon with a smile on his lips. Hyoyeon straighten up her tilted head and waited for the 

next thing Eunhyuk said.

"Okay, that was more of an innocent kiss. You can kiss in another way too. Want me to show 

you?" Eunhyuk asked the student that listened intently at him.

"She wants to know everything there is to know." Hyoyeon said. Eunhyuk looked at his 

girlfriend that just had spoken and back to Jessica that nodded her head to confirm what 

Hyoyeon had said. A satisfied smile appeared on Eunhyuk's lips and he turned back to 

Hyoyeon.

"Good, then we go on to the not-so-innocent-kiss." He said with a smile. "And this kiss, you 

shouldn't kiss someone like this if the other person isn't on with it. You could be bitten, and 

that's not something you want when you're kissing." Eunhyuk explained.

"Talking out of experience?" Min asked. Jessica now noticed Hyoyeon's friends had taken a 

seat beside her and everyone had their eyes glued to the couple that was demonstrating how 

kissing was done.

"Uhm..." Eunhyuk glanced carefully at Hyoyeon that gave him a deadly glare. "No..." He said 

and laughed awkwardly.

"Anyway, let’s get on to the kiss." Eunhyuk said and turned his head to Hyoyeon. He 

furrowed his eyebrows like he was thinking for a bit then smiled. "Put your arms around my 

neck." He told Hyoyeon.

"What? Why?" Hyoyeon asked.

"Because I'm telling you." Eunhyuk lifted up Hyoyeon's arms and placed them around his 

neck while he let his arms wrap themselves around Hyoyeon's waist. "So, kid, take notice of 

this." Eunhyuk turned his head to the group of friends that now watched him and Hyoyeon. 

"When you have your hands like this you can bring yourself closer to the person you're 

kissing, and it's kind of useful for this kiss." Eunhyuk said and winked. Jessica nodded 

understanding.

"Ohhhh." The couple's friends chorused.

"This kiss starts as the first kiss, you just press your lips together, like you said. But then you 

want to take it further, to the next level. To get there you need to use the knocking-on-door-technique." Jessica continued to nod to tell she was listening and getting what he was saying. 

"Think of the lips or teeth or whatever that's blocking your way as the door, and your tongue 

is your hand that you use as knocking. And to get allowed to enter through the door you need 

to knock, if nobody opens you don't enter. Simple as that." Eunhyuk said. "But you don't 

really knock with your tongue, that would be silly. Instead of knocking you stroke the other 

person's lips or teeth with your tongue, and wait to see if the person agrees, and if it does, 

viola! You get to enter through the door!" Eunhyuk said happily.

"It might sound confusing now, but once you are in that position you'll know what I'm talking 

about." Eunhyuk reassured.

"Yeah, we get it. Get on to the kiss!" Junho said. The other friends agreed with him.  

"Okay, okay, you impatient bunch of kids." Eunhyuk said and turned to Hyoyeon. "Like I 

said, the kiss starts as the first one I showed and then escalates to the next one. Watch and 

take notes." Eunhyuk leaned in to kiss Hyoyeon. Tilting his head to the side and pressed his 

lips together with Hyoyeon's in a simple kiss.

Jessica continued to watch the couple while they demonstrated the kissing. Her eyes slightly 

widened when she realized how the last kiss was done. She started to feel embarrassed when 

she watched the couple kiss and averted her gaze elsewhere. The friends of the couple 

continue to watch like it was an interesting movie. Jessica was slightly amazed that she had 

gotten this lesson too when she only had asked about the love lesson. Even though she had 

felt embarrassed during the last kiss she was still thankful to Eunhyuk and Hyoyeon for 

showing her.

---Damp, dark and scary places. Taeyeon should be used by it when she had spent most of her 

childhood hanging out in a basement, but the blonde girl wasn't used to it. Not this place at 

least. Maybe if Taeyeon hadn't been alone, maybe if Jessica had been with her, then she might 

have felt safer. But Taeyeon didn't feel safe, she was scared. And no matter how much she 

tried to find it, her courage was not something she could find.

With her arms wrapped around her tiny body Taeyeon walked through the alley. Jessica's 

warning that she had been told years ago was screaming in her mind but she ignored, even 

though Jessica pretty much had been right about walking in dark alleys alone. It was 

dangerous, and it was practically like saying 'hey big, scary people, please beat me up!'. 

Taeyeon knew how dangerous it was, but she had pretty much nothing to lose by taking this 

way.

She gulped nervously and looked left to right while she walked through the alley. If someone 

or something were to jump out from behind one of the dumpsters she would pretty much faint 

by fear. With careful steps Taeyeon walked through the alley, taking glances at every shadow 

to make sure nothing scary would pop out from them.

When she finally got out from the alley Taeyeon let out a relieved sigh and turned to walk 

left. It however didn't go that well when she bumped into something, or someone. Taeyeon 

looked up at the person she had bumped into, noticing a tall girl standing there. Taeyeon 

smiled nervously and bowed her head.

"Sorry." Taeyeon mumbled before turning around to walk the other way.

"Hey, kid!" The girl Taeyeon had bumped into called after her. Taeyeon pretended she hadn't 

heard anything and just continued to walk.

She heard steps following her. Fearing what might happen to her Taeyeon walked faster, the 

steps behind her did so too. She walked even faster and hoped the person, or from the sound 

of it, people that followed her would leave her alone. She was wrong. The people following 

her went into a sprint making Taeyeon even more afraid and she broke into a run. She closed 

her eyes and sent prayers to whatever God it was up there that the people chasing her wouldn't 

catch up with her.

But like all the other times Taeyeon had tried to pray to some supernatural powers they never 

showed any kind of helpful side. With a hand around her wrist Taeyeon was forcefully 

dragged back, almost stumbling over her feet. Taeyeon slowly, and reluctantly turned her 

head around and noticed she stood face to face with the girl she had bumped into earlier. Now 

she also noticed the three other girls standing behind her. Taeyeon nervously gulped when she 

could see by the looks on the girls faces that they hadn't stopped her just to return something 

she might have dropped.

"Where are you running to, kid?" The girl that was holding Taeyeon's wrist asked. The other 

three girls moved themself closer to Taeyeon, now surrounding her in a circle. Taeyeon 

gulped nervously while she glanced at all the girls.

"Nowhere." Taeyeon managed to say. Taeyeon could feel her knees shaking by fear. A sick 

smirk was displayed on the girl's lips and she looked towards her companions.

"But if you're going nowhere you can stay here with us and play." One of the girls 

surrounding Taeyeon said. Taeyeon felt the girl place a hand on her shoulder, Taeyeon tensed 

up by the contact and felt a sweat drop run down the side of her face. Wherever this was 

going, Taeyeon didn't like it.

"I play alone." Taeyeon nervously said and tried to walk passed the girls, only to get pulled 

back by the one holding her wrist.

"Hey, hey, hey, not so fast." The girl holding her wrist said. Taeyeon felt like crying, 

whatever these girls wanted from her she wanted to get it over with.

"But Uee what are we gonna do with her?" One of the other girls asked. The three other girls 

together with Taeyeon looked at the girl. The girl holding Taeyeon's wrist, that apparently 

was called Uee, shook her head.

"Nana, get Joyeon somewhere else." Uee said. The girl that had said Taeyeon should play 

with them hooked her arm with the girl that seemed kind of confused of what was going on. 

Taeyeon noticed the girl named Nana leading the girl elsewhere, leaving Taeyeon alone with 

the two remaining girls. Taeyeon glanced at the two girls that now stood before her. One of 

them had her arms crossed over her chest while the girl named Uee still had a tight grip 

around her wrist.

"The backpack." The girl with her arms crossed pointed out. A smile appeared on Uee's lips 

and she turned to the girl, nodding approvingly.

"Good idea." Uee said.

Realizing what the girls were going to do Taeyeon felt panic rise within her. She started 

struggling, trying to avoid the hands that were trying to get a grip on her. The hand around her 

wrist got tighter and tighter the more she struggled, Taeyeon knew she would get a mark 

there. Starting to get annoyed by Taeyeon's squirming, both girls tried to get a grip on her 

instead. 

Taeyeon felt two arms hold her shoulders still while a kick landed at the area behind her 

knees, making her bent down. She landed on her knees on the ground and before she could 

even compose herself from that fall she was dragged down to lie on her stomach. A weight 

was added on her back, making her unable to move from her position. She felt her backpack 

being taken away and she helplessly watched while the Uee girl was holding the item now in 

front of her eyes.

"Shall we see what she has inside?" Uee asked.

"Good idea!" The girl sitting on Taeyeon's back said.

"No!" Taeyeon shouted. Getting surprised by her own voice. She wasn't someone to protest

about things happening to her like this, she just let it happen as she knew it would be soon 

over if she just let the people do what they wanted.

To answer her protest she felt someone take a grip at her head, she could feel the hair strands 

tug at her head in a painful way and she clenched her teeth to not let out any sound. Her head 

was pushed down and now she was lying with her head pressed against the ground.

"Did you say something?" The girl on her back asked. Taeyeon didn't say anything and 

remained mum.

"Answer me!" The girl quickly lifted Taeyeon's head up only to ram it back down in the 

ground. Taeyeon felt pain coming from her left cheek now, a bruise would probably appear 

there as well.

"I didn't say anything." Taeyeon mumbled.

"Thought so." The girl on her back said.

Taeyeon heard Uee opening her backpack. The girl lying on the ground gulped nervously and 

tried to shift but couldn't because of the girl on her back, Taeyeon remained still while she 

heard her belongings were being thrown out of the bag to the ground. When a sweater landed 

right in front of her eyes, she knew the girl holding her backpack was going to empty out her 

entire bag until she found something for her liking.

"Oh, what do we have here?" Uee exclaimed. Taeyeon wanted to turn her head to see what 

she had found but was unable to do so when the girl on her back was still holding her head 

pressed to the ground. "It's money!" Uee said happily.

Taeyeon's eyes widened when she realized what money Uee had found. She started squirming 

under the girl that was sitting on top of her but was still unable to get out from under her. The 

girl on her back grabbed a hold of her arms and brought them back and pressed them against 

her back, making her immobile again. She heard Uee coming towards her and saw the girl 

crouching down beside her. Uee was holding the money in front of Taeyeon's eyes, and with 

helpless eyes she watched while Uee counted the money.

"This will be enough. Thank you for the money." Uee said and stood up and placed the money 

inside her jacket. Taeyeon helplessly watched while Uee walked away with her money.  

"Lizzy c'mon." Uee said. The girl on Taeyeon's back moved away and ran up to Uee's side. 

"Nana, Joyeon, we're going." Uee called the other two girls as well.

Taeyeon continued to lie on the ground. Feeling the coldness from the concrete against the 

skin of her cheek and palms. She listened to the four girls steps that walked further and further 

away, until they had completed disappeared. That was when Taeyeon dared to move and she 

slowly sat up, her body was a bit sore. Her eyes looked left and right at her belongings that 

been scattered around.

She felt a warm liquid run down the side of her face. When she brought up her hand to check 

what it was she hissed when her hand came in contact with the cut on her check. She realized 

it was blood from the cut that had ran down her cheek. With a heavy sigh she accepted what 

just had happened to her and started gathering her things, and in the back of her mind a voice 

was telling her something she had known all along, ever since she had walked through that 

alley.

This wouldn't have happened if I didn't leave Jessica.

---The girl sitting by the desk in the small apartment stretched her arms above her head. She had 

been sitting in the same position for hours, trying to catch up with her studies she had left 

behind when she had went back home to visit her family. Hyoyeon turned her head towards 

her bed where another girl was sitting. She had let Jessica borrow her laptop to check some 

videos and now the younger girl had her eyes focused on the screen, probably watching the 

videos.

"Found what you were looking for?" Hyoyeon asked. She turned her chair around to face 

Jessica instead. Jessica looked up from the laptop screen at Hyoyeon, she smiled and nodded 

her head before she went back to watch whatever video she was watching on the laptop. "I 

see. That's good." Hyoyeon said and stood up from her seat. She grabbed her coffee cup that 

stood beside a book with the title 'Economic', before she made her way to the kitchen.

"Do you want something to drink?" Hyoyeon asked from the kitchen. No response came but 

Hyoyeon grabbed a can of Coke anyways before she made her way back to her room with her 

refilled coffee cup and the can of Coke.

"Here." She held out the can of Coke towards Jessica. The brunette girl looked up from the 

laptop screen, her eyes looked from Hyoyeon to the can that was reached out towards her.

"Oh, thanks." Jessica placed the laptop beside her and grabbed the can. Hyoyeon smiled at her 

before she took a seat on the chair again. She sipped her coffee while she watched Jessica 

opening the can and taking a sip from it.

"Can I ask what you're watching?" Hyoyeon asked and nodded towards the laptop that was 

beside Jessica. Jessica glanced at the laptop before she turned her head towards Hyoyeon.

"Love movies." Jessica answered while she shrugged her shoulders. "I figured that people 

directing that kind of movies should have some clue about what love is, or at least what they 

hope love should be." Jessica said with a crooked smile. Hyoyeon nodded her head.

"So what I and my friends told you wasn't enough?" Hyoyeon asked jokingly.

"No, it's not like that. What you told me was good, it gave me a clue. But I wanted to see what 

other people thought of love too, or what other people think of love." Jessica said with a 

smile. Hyoyeon nodded her head and brought up the cup towards her mouth and took a sip 

from it.

"You're pretty smart, Jessica." Hyoyeon said with a smile. Jessica's eyes widened slightly and 

she lowered the can of Coke from her mouth. "It's a pity your life has turned out like it has. 

You don't deserve it." Hyoyeon said. Jessica lowered her eyes to her hands that were holding 

the can.

"It's not something you can really do about it. It's best to just accept it and try to do the best 

out of the situation, if you live without accepting it and just be sad about it you'll eventually 

turn out miserable. And that's not a way I want to live my life. I've seen what has happened 

with people that live their lives like that." Jessica said with a bit of sadness in her voice. 

Hyoyeon looked at the younger girl with sympathy.

"You have a really good fighting spirit. Whatever you're searching for I hope you'll find it 

someday. And I know you'll if you keep this spirit up." Hyoyeon said with a smile. A look of 

hurt showed on Jessica's face but it disappeared just as fast as it had appeared and the girl 

looked up at the older girl with a smile on her face.

"Hopefully." Jessica replied and sipped on her Coke. Hyoyeon nodded her head and turned to 

the pile of books on her desk. Remembering what she needed to do she let out a sigh and 

turned to Jessica again.

"You should go back to watch your love movie. I need to study." Hyoyeon said and pointed at 

the bile of books. Jessica nodded her head understanding. She took a sip of her Coke before 

she moved to a more comfortable position on the bed and placed the laptop in her lap and 

went back to watch the movie she had been watching. The older girl sipped her coffee and 

turned her chair so she was facing her books again. She took a glance at Jessica that was 

immersed in the movie again, a small smile appeared on her lips and she picked up her pen 

that was on top of her notebook before she started write down notes from the book.

Chapter 12 - Stay by my side

The petite girl with the blonde hair sat up on the bench she had been resting on. Her eyes 

landed on the pond that was in front of her eyes. A shiver ran through her body and she tried 

to wrap her jacket tighter around her body, but it was futile. She was still freezing. Her eyes 

locked on an elderly lady that was feeding the ducks in the pond. Taeyeon suddenly felt 

envious of the ducks. She also wanted something to eat.

Her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten for three days, and it had started to take a toll on her 

body. Her energy was low and she was constantly shivering because her body couldn't warm 

itself up anymore. Taeyeon didn't need to be smart to know where this was going. Her body 

would sooner or later give up. Her eyes left the elderly lady to look around the park, it was 

early in the morning, Taeyeon confirmed. She and the lady were the only ones in the park at 

this hour.

Taeyeon tried to come up with some kind of plan of what to do with herself. She knew 

walking around aimlessly would just waste the energy she had left, but staying in this park 

wasn't an option either. She knew by the looks she had gotten from the people in the park 

yesterday that she wasn't much welcomed there. But considering from how she looked it 

wasn't that strange. Her clothes were torn and dirty, her hair had looked better, and her face 

didn't only have the bruise she got from the girls that robbed her, she now had some scratch 

marks from stray cats she had to fight with when she had looked for a place to rest in in an 

alley.

Taeyeon stood up from her seat on the bench. Her hands were rubbing her arms, trying to get 

some warmth from the friction. But because she was too weak to move her hands quickly she 

couldn't really get any friction and no warmth from the action. Her feet began moving towards 

the exit of the park.

She was walking on the street again. A few cars were passing by her on the road, but there 

weren't many people on the streets at this hour. Taeyeon turned her head to the right, her eyes 

landing on a large building. She continued to walk until her eyes landed on a sign, she halted 

for a few seconds to read on it. The sign read 'University of Andong'. A sigh left Taeyeon's 

lips and she turned around to walk over the street.

She had reached an alley once again. But this time she didn't enter it, she just sat down beside 

it and leaned her back against the wall. She stretched out her legs in front of her, the muscles 

was sore and ached. The same as the rest of her body. She needed rest, and food. She looked 

around to see if there was some place she could get something to eat from, but nothing was 

there. The only solution she had left was stealing, and Taeyeon knew that would never go, 

because she was too big of a coward to steal. She lowered her head and felt tears of frustration 

and desperation burn behind her eyes.

I wonder what Sica is doing. Taeyeon thought and looked up again.

Her eyes widened, and squinted to make sure she was seeing right. A figure that walked on 

the other side of street looked exactly like the girl she had been thinking about, like someone 

had wanted to show Taeyeon what Jessica was doing. But Taeyeon wasn't convinced, it could 

be someone that just really looked like Jessica. The person that looked like Jessica stopped 

and turned her head to the alley on the other side of the street. Taeyeon furrowed her 

eyebrows, if she knew Jessica right, Jessica wouldn't walk through an alley alone. To her 

surprise the girl turned and began walking into the alley. And that was Taeyeon's cue. The 

blonde girl rose to her feet and walked over the street. She needed to make sure the person 

really was Jessica or not.

---The brunette girl ran down the street. She had to get to the university cafe early, the lady that 

worked there had told her yesterday that she needed help early in the morning with 

something. Too bad that Jessica had lost track of time and was now running late. She slowed 

down and began walking to check her wrist watch. She had ten minutes to go, if she arrived 

earlier it would just be a given.

She stopped and looked to her left. It was an alley. Jessica bit her lower lip and checked the 

street. She knew if she took the way through the alley she would get to the university faster 

than if she took the street way. But Jessica knew alleys wasn't always a safe way. Words she 

had told someone a few years back repeated in her mind.

"Wait!" Jessica grabbed Taeyeon's arm only to release it again. The blonde girl looked 

confused at Jessica, the brunette girl pointed at the alley Taeyeon just had been about to 

enter. "You can't go that way, it's dangerous." Jessica said. Taeyeon furrowed her eyebrows 

in confusion.

"But I'll get to school faster." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head knowingly.

"I know, but it's not safe for girls like us to go through alleys. You never know what kind of 

people that can be looming around in them. Here, let me show another way." Jessica said and 

began leading the way. Taeyeon followed her friend she trusted with her whole life.

Jessica let out a sigh. She would be a hypocrite. But this was about work and not school, and 

in some sense Jessica thought the former was more important that you arrived in time to. And 

even though she didn't quite like it Jessica entered the alley and went through it

She noticed a figure standing further up in the alley. Jessica nervously gulped and hoped the 

person would let her peacefully walk past without causing any problems. This was exactly 

what she had been warning Taeyeon about a few years ago. With quick steps she was closing 

in on the person and just when she thought she would be able to walk past him he grabbed her 

wrist.

Her head snapped down to her wrist the man was holding. She noticed the man's dirty hand, 

her fingernails were all broken. Slowly looked Jessica up at the man that was no hovering 

above her. The man had a beard that looked like it really needed to be washed, when he 

opened his mouth Jessica noticed he was missing one of his front teeth. She tried to back 

away from the man but he just followed her, still holding a tight grip on her wrist.

"Let me go." Jessica begged. The man didn't seem to care about what she said. Her back 

bumped into something hard and when she looked back she noticed she was trapped against a 

wall. She looked back at the man that seemed to get closer and closer to her.

"C'mon little girl. I'm not dangerous. We'll just have some fun together." The man leaned 

closer to Jessica. She could feel his breath against her face. She held her own breath to not 

feel sick by the sickening smell that came out of the man’s mouth and turned her face away 

from the man.

The grip on her wrist tightened and she felt the man drag her closer towards him. She tried to 

fight back but the man was way stronger than her and no matter what she did she felt herself 

being drawn closer towards him. Horror and panic was begin to rise within her as the man's 

face came even closer to hers, and all she could think of at this moment was how she wished 

Taeyeon was with her.

Taeyeon is this how you felt every time-"Ouch!" The cry from the man broke Jessica's thoughts and her wrist was released as the man 

turned around, one hand was rubbing the back of his head that she noticed was bleeding.

"What the hell are you doing?" The man asked someone in front of him. Now when Jessica 

was free she moved and looked at the person the man was talking to, her eyes widened when 

she saw who it was and she froze in her spot as she couldn't believe her own eyes.

A groan was heard from the man and he bent over holding his crotch. Jessica opened her 

mouth to say something but she lost all the ability to speak as she felt a familiar hand, a hand 

she had missed, grabbing hers and dragged her away.

She ran out from the alley and continued to run down the street. Running passed all the people 

that walked there, but she only had her eyes at the person running in front of her. The person 

that had saved her. She wanted to stop and ask questions. Ask what the person was doing here 

but she couldn't as the person was too busy running away from the man in the alley.

They soon stopped both of them panting heavily. And now the person that had saved her 

turned around, a small smile plastered on her face. Jessica continued to stare at the person, 

still feeling it unbelievable that the person would be here.

"You okay?" Taeyeon finally spoke her first words after Jessica had seen her. Taeyeon was 

still panting heavily. Jessica noticed the bruise on Taeyeon's right cheek and some scratch 

marks here and there. Taeyeon's blonde hair was a mess, her clothes was dirty and torn. 

Jessica knew she had seen Taeyeon in a worse state, but this sight still hurt her. And instead 

of answering Jessica stepped closer to her, and even though she knew what the girl thinks of 

such things, she hugged her. Wrapped both her arms around Taeyeon's petite body.

"I'm sorry, but I really need to do this." Jessica said as she had her arms still wrapped around 

Taeyeon. Taeyeon was stiff as a stick and didn't move, Jessica hoped for all her life was worth 

that this would be worth it. "I don't know if what I feel is love, I don't know if I love you like 

you love me, but I do know I don't want to lose you. And you're important to me and nothing 

is right when you're not here." Jessica blurted out things she had been thinking about saying to 

Taeyeon all the time she had been away from the girl. 

Taeyeon relaxed in her arms. Jessica felt her heart beat in an abnormal fast speed as she 

waited for Taeyeon to do or say anything. Silence was killing her insides and she was about to 

go crazy if Taeyeon didn't say anything soon.

Jessica's eyes widened when she felt two arms wrap themselves around her and Taeyeon 

leaned her head on her shoulder. They stood in silence for a moment, just hugging each other, 

and Jessica was still waiting for Taeyeon to say something. She could wait in an eternity for 

some kind of answer from the girl.

"It's okay if you don't know. You can figure it out on the way." Taeyeon finally said with her 

gentle voice.

A small smile appeared on Jessica's lips and she leaned her head on Taeyeon's shoulder and 

hugged the girl tighter. She felt relieved and tears even brimmed her eyes as she stood there in 

Taeyeon's embrace and heard what she just had said.

"If I'm with you I'm sure I'll figure it out somehow." Jessica said and a tear of joy escaped her 

eye and ran down her cheek and landed on Taeyeon's shoulder.

People say that after you’ve lost a person, you then realize what that person means to you, 

Jessica agreed with that saying, she had realized how important Taeyeon was to her after 

being away from the girl. But being separated and being able to see that person again made 

Jessica realize how much she actually had missed, and what she would have missed out if she 

had been separated from Taeyeon any longer. She now knew, beside this person’s side she 

wanted to be her whole life, going through hardships and happiness, discovering things 

together, learning things together and doing things together. Jessica didn’t mind what it was, 

only if it was with Taeyeon.

If discovering what love was, what love felt like and learning about love, was what was going 

to keep her by Taeyeon’s side, Jessica was sure she would do all that, and even a bit more. 

They were young, but Jessica knew you only lived once, and she didn’t want to waste another 

day, another hour, being away from Taeyeon. She wanted to live her whole life with Taeyeon, 

spend every single minute with Taeyeon.

Maybe this was love. When Jessica was hugging Taeyeon and felt the girl actually hugged her 

back and she felt all these feelings, the feeling of feeling complete and everything was right. 

And the feeling of being able to give her whole life to Taeyeon, maybe that feeling was what 

was called love. Jessica wasn’t sure, even though Hyoyeon had said something about that. But 

Jessica didn’t care if she knew love at this moment or not, because she knew, with Taeyeon 

by her side, she would discover it and know it like no other did.

Because like Hyomin had said, if they were fated to be together, they would meet again. And 

with this meeting with Taeyeon and all the feelings she felt, she was so sure this was the 

person she was fated to be with.

She felt Taeyeon's breathing has subsided when she was hugging Taeyeon's body. But to her 

fear she felt Taeyeon's grip loosening too. Jessica noticed Taeyeon seemed to lean on her for 

support. When she tried to hold Taeyeon up she felt Taeyeon's knees give in and the girl fell. 

Taeyeon fainted. Panicked Jessica looked around the street, hoping someone could help her 

with her dear friend she finally had been reunited with.

---A stinging pain was coming from her right arm. The girl furrowed her eyebrows and tried to 

open her closed eyes. A blurry image of a ceiling came into view. She turned her head a bit to 

her right, a blurry image of a brunette came into view instead. The figure was holding her arm 

she took notice of. Her view got clearer and now she saw Jessica. The brunette was sitting on 

a chair, holding her right arm on her lap while she dabbed a cotton ball against the scratches 

on her arm.

"It stings." Taeyeon said with a croaked voice. Jessica snapped her head towards her, her eyes 

wide in surprise. Taeyeon tried to smile but the smile became crooked. "You saved me." 

Taeyeon said in a low tone. Jessica's eyebrows furrowed.

"No, you saved me. Don't you remember what happened?" Jessica said.

"It's a bit unclear." Taeyeon said honestly.

"It will be a bit unclear for a few more minutes." Jessica said and returned to her job of 

cleaning Taeyeon's scratches. Taeyeon watched when the girl tenderly held her arm and 

gently pressed the cotton ball against her arm. She now noticed Jessica wasn't cleaning her 

scratches, she was cleaning a bite she had gotten from a stray dog.

"You've been bitten by a dog." Jessica pointed out. Taeyeon nodded her head.

"I got bitten in the leg too." Taeyeon said. Jessica looked away from Taeyeon's arms to 

Taeyeon's legs. She noticed a small blood mark around the area of Taeyeon's left ankle. A 

look of guilt showed in Jessica's face, making Taeyeon furrow her eyebrows in confusion.

"Jessica you can wrap this around the bite mark." Taeyeon and Jessica snapped their heads 

towards the owner of the voice. A blonde girl had entered the room and was walking to where 

Taeyeon and Jessica were. The girl stopped in her tracks when she noticed both pair of eyes 

looking back at her. "Oh, she has woken up. Hold on I'll get Nicole." The blonde girl turned 

around and left Jessica and Taeyeon alone once again. Taeyeon turned to Jessica with a 

confused expression.

"That's Hyoyeon." Jessica said. Taeyeon slowly nodded her head.

"Your patient has woken up." Hyoyeon said to another girl that now entered the room. Jessica 

rose from her chair and gave space for the new girl to check on Taeyeon. The girl that was a 

brunette placed her hand on Taeyeon's forehead for a few seconds when she had done that she 

grabbed Taeyeon's hand and placed her point finger and long finger over the pulse of her wrist 

and kept her eyes on her wrist watch.

"You seem fine." The brunette girl said. "But I need to ask when was the last time you ate or 

drank something?" 

"About three days ago." Taeyeon said with furrowed eyebrows. The brunette nodded her 

head.

"Do you remember any of the events before you fainted?"

"I saw Jessica enter this alleyway, and I followed her. I saw an older man trying things with 

her and I hit him in the head with a brick stone. I think I kicked him and ran away with 

Jessica. Then I was with her for a few minutes and then..." Taeyeon trailed off.

"Everything went black?" Hyoyeon asked. The older blonde girl was standing beside Jessica. 

Taeyeon nodded her head.

"I see. Is there anything missing of her story?" The brunette girl turned to Jessica and Jessica

shook her head no.

"Good. So if you're not saying your name is Angelina Jolie now there's nothing wrong with 

your head." The brunette girl said with a smile. Taeyeon furrowed her eyebrows upon hearing 

the foreign name.

"My name is Taeyeon." Taeyeon said.

"Good that you know. I guess you just fainted from fatigue. Running around without eating or 

drinking for three days is kind of bad. If you just eat and drink something I'm sure you'll feel a 

lot better afterwards." The brunette girl said. The brunette turned around and went towards the 

door of the room. The three remaining people in the room followed her with their eyes as she 

left.

"Oh, I'm Nicole by the way! Nice to meet you, Taeyeon." The girl said happily before she left 

the room. Hyoyeon let out a sigh while Jessica returned to her seat on the chair beside the bed.

"Here." Hyoyeon handed Jessica something that looked like bandage. "For her bite wound." 

Hyoyeon said with a smile.

"She has another one on her leg." Jessica said and pointed at the ankle of Taeyeon's left leg. 

Hyoyeon turned her head towards the ankle Jessica was pointing at.

"Use it for both after you've cleaned the other one as well. I'm going to fix something to eat." 

Hyoyeon said and left the two girls for themselves.

Silence filled the room when the older blonde haired girl had left the room. Taeyeon watched 

when Jessica wrapped her arm with the bandage. When the brunette girl was done she let 

Taeyeon's arm lie on her lap for a while. By Jessica's expression Taeyeon guessed the girl 

wanted to say something, but she didn't know where to start.

"Can you sit up while I check on your leg?" Jessica asked. Taeyeon nodded her head and tried 

to sit up on the bed, she now felt that she was a bit dizzy. When she was sitting up she turned 

around to lean her back against the wall with her legs outstretched in front of her. Jessica 

placed the chair in front of Taeyeon's left leg and took a seat on it. She pulled the pant leg 

upwards to expose the wounded area. When she had confirmed it wasn't any more cuts or 

scratches than the bite mark Jessica started cleaning it. 

Taeyeon winced when the alcohol soaked cotton ball came in contact with her wound. Jessica 

instantly pulled away the cotton ball, afraid she had hurt Taeyeon any further. Taeyeon 

motioned for Jessica to go on and the brunette reluctantly continued with her task.

Hyoyeon came into the room again with two cans of Coke. She handed one to Taeyeon and 

the other to Jessica before she left the two younger girls to themselves. Jessica opened her can 

and started drinking from it. Taeyeon watched her with her Coke still unopened in her hand. 

Jessica noticed the blonde girl hadn't touched her Coke and glanced at her with a questioning 

look.

"It's okay to drink it." Jessica assured. Now it was Taeyeon's turn to be reluctant. With her 

hands that were a bit shaky she opened the can and took a small sip from it. Her eyes were 

still on Jessica that watched her every move. The sweet liquid ran down Taeyeon dry throat, 

and that's when she realized how thirsty she actually was. When she began drinking more a 

small smile appeared on Jessica's face.

"Don't drink too fast though, it could shock your stomach when you haven't eaten anything for 

so long." Jessica advised. Taeyeon lowered the can from her mouth, an embarrassed 

expression on her face. Jessica smiled again at the blonde girl before she started cleaning the 

bite mark again.

Silence engulfed them again. Taeyeon shifted her okay leg awkwardly. She looked at Jessica 

that was concentrating on wrapping Taeyeon leg with the bandage now. Taeyeon swallowed 

nervously while she looked at Jessica.

"I... I'm sorry." Taeyeon finally said. Jessica that had finished wrapping the leg looked up 

questioning at Taeyeon.

"I should be the one apologizing." Jessica said still surprised by the apologize.

"But I was the one that left."

"But I could have stopped you. It was my fault that you left. I pushed you away."

Taeyeon looked down, biting her lower lip. "I missed you." Taeyeon mumbled. She heard 

Jessica stand up from her seat on the chair and the shift of weight on the bed indicated Jessica 

had taken a seat on the bed instead. She felt the brunette take a seat beside her, but Taeyeon 

kept her head down.

"I missed you too." Jessica said and let out a sigh.

Silence filled the room again. Both teenage girls trying to understand they were together 

again, but both wondered for how long it would last. Jessica fidgeted with her fingers that 

were lying in her lap. She side glanced at Taeyeon that sat motionless on the bed beside her. 

She bit her lower lip and averted her gaze forward at the wall in front of them.

"Will you leave me again?" Jessica asked and broke the silence between them. She felt 

nervous about Taeyeon's answer and fidgeted even more with her fingers.

Taeyeon raised her head up and glanced at the nervously fidgeting girl beside her. She eyed 

Jessica for a few seconds before she turned her head forward.

"Not if you don't want me to." Taeyeon said honestly.

Jessica stopped fidgeting with her fingers and a smile appeared on her lips. She unclasped her 

hands and let her right hand slide into Taeyeon's left and interlocked their fingers together. 

When Taeyeon did no sign of protest or disagreeing Jessica moved closer to her dear friend 

she had missed since the first day they had gone separated ways.

"I want you to stay by my side." Jessica said and looked at Taeyeon. She saw the blonde girl 

was also smiling, and the squeeze she got from the hand she was holding told her that 

Taeyeon would stay.

---A yawn escaped the blonde haired girl's lips and she put a hand over her mouth to not make 

any noise. When her mouth was once again closed she turned to check on the time. It was 

thirty minutes past one in the night. Hyoyeon figured it was time for her to go to sleep. She 

put a bookmark in the book she had been reading and closed it before she put it on her bedside 

table. Before she turned off the light she looked at the floor where two figures were lying. A 

smile appeared on her lips upon the sight.

Ever since Hyoyeon had picked up Jessica and let the younger girl stay at her place, she had 

never seen the girl sleeping. She was unsure if the girl actually had been able to sleep at all. 

She just knew that when she went to sleep, Jessica was still awake, and when she woke up, 

Jessica was already awake. It had in a sense worried her a bit. But now she was relieved. For 

the first time she saw Jessica sleeping.

When asked the two younger girls hadn't had any problem about sleeping on the floor, and the 

question about sleeping together was almost absurd to them. Both of them had went to sleep 

on the mattress Jessica had been provided with on the floor. And with the extra blanket and 

pillow Nicole had fixed for Taeyeon both girls had made themselves comfortable beside each 

other on the floor, and eventually had they went to sleep. Because to Taeyeon and Jessica 

there wasn't anyone or anything more familiar in this place than each other.

With one last glance at Taeyeon and Jessica that was sleeping soundly on the floor Hyoyeon 

turned off the light and crawled further down under her covers and placed her head on her 

pillow. She looked at the figures on the floor that she still could see even though the light was 

turned off, and with a smile on her face she older girl finally closed her eyes to get her beauty 

sleep.

Chapter 13 - Feeling complete

Clattering from utensils hitting plates was heard in the kitchen in early in the morning. Four 

girls were sitting around the table and eating breakfast together. On one side sat Hyoyeon and 

Nicole beside each other and right opposite them sat Jessica and Taeyeon. The two younger 

girls were eating while being carefully watched by Hyoyeon that watched their every move 

and action. She had noticed something between them, and she wanted to make sure she was 

right before she asked about it.

The breakfast went on, and the four girls were about to finish what they were eating. Hyoyeon 

glanced at Nicole's plate and noticed the brunette had finished eating her breakfast. She 

glanced at Taeyeon and Jessica's plates too and noticed the younger girls were almost done. A 

smile appeared on Hyoyeon's lips and she finished the last of coffee in her cup to hide the 

smile.

"Taeyeon, why don't you take a shower first?" Hyoyeon suggested after she had finished her 

coffee. The younger blonde looked up at the older blonde girl with wide eyes.

"But I was gonna-" Nicole began to protest but Hyoyeon but a hand over the brunette's mouth 

and smiled at the younger girls.

"Because Nicole is going to swim practice now so she won't need to take a shower, so you can 

go first while me and Jessica clean this up, okay?" Hyoyeon said with a smile. Taeyeon 

looked at Jessica that shrugged her shoulders. And without protesting Taeyeon stood up to 

make a shower she had been offered to take.

"Oh, and Jessica, why don't you go and get Taeyeon a towel?" Hyoyeon said. The younger 

brunette didn't say anything and stood up to make help her friend find a towel. Now when 

Hyoyeon had made sure none of the two younger girls were left in the kitchen she turned to 

Nicole whose mouth she was still covering with her mouth. She removed her hand and smiled 

at her roommate.

"I need to talk about something with them, and it's kind of private so you can't be here." 

Hyoyeon explained with a smile. Nicole raised an eyebrow at what Hyoyeon was saying.

"And you tell me to go to swim practice which I haven't been to for months?" Nicole asked 

still with her eyebrow raised.

"Then I think it's time for you to go there. Now go and get the things you need. I'll buy you 

something to eat before you classes starts." Hyoyeon said and motioned for the brunette to go. 

Nicole shook her head but obeyed nevertheless. Hyoyeon watched with a smile as Nicole 

made her way out of the kitchen and Jessica that returned after giving Taeyeon a towle.

"Did you find a towel for her?" Hyoyeon asked and began gathering their plates.

"Yeah." Jessica replied and gathered their glasses and made her way to the sink where 

Hyoyeon had put the plates.

"Good." Hyoyeon said and began washing the plates while Jessica helped to wipe them dry 

with a towel.

Silence filled the kitchen while the two girls continued to wash the dishes. They only broke 

the silence to bid good bye to Nicole that went for her swim practice she suddenly had been 

forced to go to. Now when Hyoyeon was sure Nicole had left and Taeyeon was in the shower 

she knew she was alone with the younger brunette. She glanced at Jessica that was wiping a 

glass dry and put it back in the cupboard where it was supposed to be.

"Can I ask you something?" Hyoyeon asked and averted her gaze to the plate she was 

washing.

"Do I have an obligation to answer?" Jessica asked back and took the clean plate Hyoyeon 

was handing her and started to wipe it dry with the towel she was holding in her hands. 

Hyoyeon smiled by the question.

"Yes, because if you don't answer it will be boring." Hyoyeon said with a smile. Jessica 

looked at the older girl with a raised eyebrow before she turned to the plate in her hands.

"Okay, you can ask." Jessica said. Hyoyeon continued to smile.

"When you met Taeyeon yesterday, what did you feel then?"

Jessica stared down at the plate she was holding in her hands while she thought back to the 

moment she had met Taeyeon the day before. She thought about all the unfamiliar feelings 

she had felt at the moment when they had hugged for the first time in their lifetime. Jessica 

wiped some invisible droplets of water on the plate while she tried to figure out what she 

actually had felt at that moment.

"I was relieved that I was able to see her again, and happy, and..." Jessica trailed off as it was 

one feeling she wasn't that sure if you actually could feel, but she didn't had any other word to 

explain it than what she had in mind, and with uncertain eyes she turned to Hyoyeon that was 

looking at her with gentle eyes. "It might sound strange, but I felt complete."

Hyoyeon broke out into a gentle smile and she turned to the last glass she was washing. She 

nodded her head satisfied by what she had heard, and with the clean glass she turned to 

Jessica that still looked at her with uncertain eyes.

"It's not strange to feel complete with another person. It's normal, but it's kind of 

extraordinary. You don't feel complete with just anybody you meet, you need to have some 

kind of special bond to feel complete." Hyoyeon explained. Jessica slowly nodded her head, 

she thought she got what Hyoyeon was saying. Seeing that the younger girl seemed to 

understand what she was saying Hyoyeon smiled.

"So do you think Taeyeon feels complete when she's with you?" Hyoyeon continued to ask 

the younger girl questions. Jessica closed the cupboard she just had placed the plate she had 

wiped dry inside. She stared at the closed cupboard for a while before she shrugged her 

shoulders.

"I don't know." She said and started wiping the last glass dry. 

"Do you think you dare to ask her?" Hyoyeon asked and looked expectantly at Jessica. Jessica 

stared at the glass in her hands for a while before she nodded her head, and suddenly she came

to think of something else.

"What if we both feel complete with each other? What do I do then? Or if she doesn't feel 

complete with me?" Jessica started bombarding the older girl with questions. Hyoyeon smiled 

satisfied, this was the reaction she had wanted to get of Jessica. She wanted the girl to think of 

the possibilities that could and couldn't happen.

"Let's see, if she does feel complete with you, I'd say that you should take your relationship to 

the next level." Hyoyeon said and looked at Jessica. The younger girl had furrowed her 

eyebrows in confusion. "Love lesson: if two friends develop another kind of love for each 

other they take their relationship to the next level. Lovers." Jessica's eyes widened and she 

nodded her head as she remembered what Hyoyeon had said during the day Hyoyeon and her 

friends had tried to teach Jessica about love.

"And if she doesn't feel complete with you, I guess you just have to accept it." Hyoyeon said 

and shrugged her shoulders. "Because if you want to be with her, you have to accept that she 

can't agree on certain things with you, feelings like opinions." Jessica nodded her head. Her 

eyebrows were still furrowed while she still thought about the things Hyoyeon had said. 

Hyoyeon heard that the shower had turned off, which meant that Taeyeon had finished 

showering. And before the other younger girl stepped out of the bathroom Hyoyeon moved 

closer to Jessica to say one last thing before she left the girls to deal with their relationship.

"And the love thing, I can't teach you much more about it, but I do know that if you're with 

Taeyeon I'm sure you will be able to figure it out together." Hyoyeon said in a low tone to 

Jessica. The younger brunette looked at the older girl that had a smile on her lips. And Jessica 

didn't had time to further ask Hyoyeon about the matter because Taeyeon just entered the 

kitchen. Clean and with a fresh set of clothes on.

"Good that you're ready, Taeyeon. You'll help out Jessica at her work today. They can always 

use an extra person at the cafeteria." Hyoyeon said to the younger blonde girl. Taeyeon 

nodded her head even though her eyes showed confusion. "Jessica will tell you about it." 

Hyoyeon assured and went out of the kitchen to get ready. Leaving the two younger girls to 

themselves.

---When they had gotten ready to go to Jessica's work the brunette girl had explained most of 

how she got a job at the cafeteria at the University Hyoyeon was attending. Taeyeon had been 

pretty impressed by how much Hyoyeon had helped Jessica, and that the older girl also had 

helped her, a complete stranger was baffling Taeyeon. Taeyeon rarely met people that nice, 

even though she and Jessica had been lucky to meet at least some nice people during their 

way here.

Now the two girls were walking down the street towards the University. The city was still a 

bit unfamiliar to them, but it didn't matter, they had each other. And by holding each other’s

hands like they did, they could go through whatever place they wanted. 

They walked past the alley Taeyeon had saved Jessica from the man that had tried to force 

himself on her. The brunette girl glanced towards the alley that they just had walked past, a 

question popped up in her mind and she turned towards her blonde friend that walked beside 

her.

"How did you know?" Jessica asked. Taeyeon turned to Jessica with a confused look on her 

face. "That I was in the alley."

"I was on the other side of the street and saw you entering it, I however wasn't sure if it was 

you and followed to make sure." Taeyeon explained. Jessica nodded her head and turned her 

head forward.

"Were you scared when you saw what he was trying to do?" Jessica carefully asked and 

looked at Taeyeon. The blonde girl instantly got a tensed look on her face and her whole body 

seemed to tense up. Jessica regretted the question immediately when she noticed the reaction 

Taeyeon gave to it.

"Sorry, you don't have to answer it." Jessica squeezed Taeyeon's hand and hoped it could 

bring back the blonde girl from whatever went through her head. Taeyeon seemed to relax a 

bit by the squeeze, but she looked away from Jessica like she was ashamed. Jessica bit her 

lower lip and turned forward. She made a mental note to never bring up that subject again.

The two friends continued to walk down the street in silence. It was not an awkward silence, it 

was a comfortable silence where both of them tried to enjoy the moment of finally being 

together like this again.

When they reached the university Taeyeon halted in her tracks and looked at the sign outside 

of the large building. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at the building again. Jessica 

looked questioning at her blonde friend that suddenly had stopped. The brunette girl looked at 

the sign that Taeyeon stared at, for her it was nothing weird with it, it had always been like 

that every time she had went past this place.

"Yesterday before I met you, I walked passed this university." Taeyeon explained and turned 

to Jessica that still looked at her with a questioning look. The brunette looked wide eyed at 

Taeyeon for a few seconds before she started to smile.

"What a coincidence, I was on my way here when you saved me." Jessica said with a smile. 

The brunette tugged on Taeyeon's hand and they began walking through the gate of the 

campus and went towards the campus building.

There were already some students on campus at this hour, students that probably had to attend 

some early lectures in the morning, or just wanted to study before their lectures started. While 

Jessica showed Taeyeon the way to the cafeteria the blonde girl took her time to look around 

the campus, it was fascinating as Taeyeon never been to a university, and considering from 

her current situation she would never attend any either.

They entered the building, Jessica continued to lead the way to the cafeteria while Taeyeon 

looked around. Some of the students that were inside the campus looked at them with 

questioning looks. Taeyeon slightly bowed her head towards those students when they walked 

passed them.

They soon reached the cafeteria. Some students were sitting by a few tables there but it wasn't 

many. Jessica led Taeyeon to a room that were behind the counter in the cafeteria, in the room 

they met woman that was busy making sandwiches. Upon seeing the two girls that entered the 

woman turned around with a smile on her face.

"Jessica! It's good that you could come, I heard from Hyoyeon that some obstacles got in the 

way for you yesterday." The woman said to the brunette girl.

"Yeah, kind of." Jessica said and glanced at Taeyeon that was shyly looking at her feet. "This 

is Taeyeon, by the way, she will help out today as well." Jessica introduced her blonde friend. 

When being introduced Taeyeon looked up at the woman and bowed her head in a greeting.

"Oh, right. Hyoyeon mentioned I would get another girl to help me today. But let's start 

working then, put on an apron and help me make sandwiches." The woman said and pointed 

at the sandwiches that already been made.

The two girls went to a nearby wall where aprons were hanging on a clothes hanger. They 

took one apron each and helped each other to tie the knot at their backs. When both of them 

were done putting on the aprons they went to the table were all the sandwiches were being 

made and started helping the lady to make them. Jessica proceeded to cut the bread while 

Taeyeon put on cheese, ham and tomato and cucumbers. The woman looked pleasantly at 

how the two girls worked together. And soon with Jessica and Taeyeon's help all the 

sandwiches were made.

"Good job girls. Now when you're done you can put in the soda cans and water bottles in that 

refrigerator over there." The woman told the two teenagers. Jessica and Taeyeon looked at 

where the woman was pointing. Seeing what soda cans and water bottles she was talking 

about they went to the refrigerator and started to put in the sodas and water bottles in the 

refrigerator. Once again they were helping each other, while Taeyeon were packing the bottles 

and cans out of the boxes Jessica was putting them inside the refrigerator. Impressed by their 

team work the woman watched them by the side.

When they were done with that work the woman put them to take care of the selling. While 

Taeyeon took the orders Jessica got what the customer wanted and they helped to calculate 

the cost together. With a pleased smile the woman watched them. When they didn't 

understand something they discussed it with each other and most of the times they could find 

out the right answer by that, but when it seemed helpless they turned to the woman. The 

woman didn't need to do much work and just had to sit on a chair beside the two teenage girls 

and watched them working.

The day went by while Jessica and Taeyeon continued to work. The woman noticed time had 

gone by much faster than expected and she had to tell Jessica and Taeyeon they could go 

home. But she had something else to tell them as well, something she didn't want to when she 

had watched them work so well for the day.

"Girls, thank you for today. You did a really good job." The woman said when she had asked 

Jessica and Taeyeon to come to the staff room. 

"Thank you." The two girls said in unison and bowed towards the woman. The woman smiled 

and held out two envelopes towards Jessica and Taeyeon.

"Here's your pay. Because Jessica has worked here longer than you, Taeyeon, she got a bit 

more. But I'm sure you understand." The woman said. Taeyeon nodded her head knowingly. 

The woman smiled at them while she crossed her arms over her chest. "You really worked 

well today, but I'm afraid to say that I don't have much use of you anymore. The boy that 

helps out here will come back tomorrow. So I guess this is goodbye." The woman said with a 

frown. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other before they turned back to the woman.

"Thank you for letting us work here." Jessica said with a smile.

"Thank you for wanting to work here." The woman said and smiled back. "I shouldn't keep 

you here much longer. I'm sure you have other places you want to go to. But thank you for the 

help." The woman said and ushered Jessica and Taeyeon to change out of their aprons. The 

two girls went to take off the aprons and bid good bye to the woman before they exited the 

cafeteria.

Hand-in-hand they walked out of the campus and went out on the street. Both of them a bit 

baffled that time had went by so fast during their work day. But with the envelope with 

money in hand they walked satisfied down the street while praising themselves for having 

done a good job.

"Where should we go now?" Taeyeon asked as they walked. She had taken notice of they 

were heading back to Hyoyeon and Nicole's place.

"I want to go to this park. We can just sit there and relax for a few minutes." Jessica said with 

a smile. Taeyeon nodded her head and let herself be led by Jessica as the brunette girl knew 

what park she wanted to go to.

---They went to the park with the pond Jessica had went to during her first day in Andong. That 

also is the same park Taeyeon had been sleeping in the day she had seen Jessica. Taeyeon 

looked around the familiar place as Jessica was walking them to one of the benches and took a 

seat on it. Taeyeon took a seat beside her brunette friend while she continued to look around 

the park. It was indeed the same park, she remembered exactly which bench she had been 

sleeping on too.

"I've been here before." Taeyeon said.

"You have?" Jessica asked surprised. The brunette’s eyes were wide and her head was turned 

towards Taeyeon. Taeyeon nodded her head and turned towards Jessica.

"Yeah, I went here in hope of finding a place I could sleep. I was resting on that bench over 

there." Taeyeon pointed at a bench that was on the other side of the pond. Jessica looked at 

where Taeyeon was pointing, she nodded her head when she saw where Taeyeon had pointed.

"That's funny. I visited this place the first day I came here." Jessica said and looked out over 

the pond. "I tried to figure out what made the people in the park know love." Jessica said and 

turned to Taeyeon again. The blonde only nodded her head.

Jessica turned her head to look out over the pond again. Taeyeon did the same. And like that 

the two girls sat in silence for a few minutes while they were thinking about their own things 

that were going on inside their head. Jessica had a plan in her mind. She had wanted to ask 

Taeyeon about the thing she and Hyoyeon had talked about that morning. She wanted to ask if 

Taeyeon felt complete with her, but she didn't know how to approach the girl about it.

"What do you feel when you're with me?" Jessica asked when she finally had come to a 

decision of how to take it up. She turned to Taeyeon that was looking at the pond. Taeyeon 

turned to her brunette friend. While waiting for an answer Jessica smiled at Taeyeon. Taeyeon 

furrowed her eyebrows in concentration as she was thinking of the answer, she looked down 

at her hand that Jessica was still holding while she tried to come up with a word that could 

explain what she was feeling.

"Happy," Taeyeon started. Jessica nodded her head. "secure," Taeyeon continued and turned 

to Jessica that still were looking at her. Their eyes locked and Taeyeon's eyebrows furrowed. 

Jessica stared into her friend's eyes, anticipating the answer that was to come. "confident." 

Taeyeon ended. Jessica stared at Taeyeon for a few more seconds like she wanted something 

more to come after it, but it didn't come.

"Yeah, that's what I feel while being with you." Taeyeon said with a smile. Jessica slowly 

nodded her head while she turned away from Taeyeon, for some reason she was feeling 

slightly disappointed by the answers. She was happy that Taeyeon felt happy and secure with 

her, but Jessica had been hoping it could be something more.

Maybe she doesn't know she's feeling complete? Maybe she thinks it's strange to feel like that 

just like I did and don't dare to say it because she's afraid it will sound stupid. Jessica began 

her speculations to why Taeyeon hadn't said what she had expected to hear. Taeyeon watched 

as Jessica was being in deep thought, the blonde couldn't help but feel it was because of what 

she had said.

"Why did you ask?" Taeyeon asked and eyed Jessica's face. The brunette girl was staring right 

in front of her while she was thinking. Hearing she was spoken to Jessica snapped out of her 

thoughts and turned to Taeyeon again. She smiled a reassuring smile at the blonde girl.

"Nothing special, just wondering." Jessica said and looked down at their intertwined hands. 

Taeyeon slowly nodded her head and turned to look at the pond.

Maybe if I asked her directly if she feel complete? Jessica continued to think. She glanced at 

Taeyeon that was looking at the pond, she turned to where Taeyeon was looking. She shifted 

her legs position and put her free hand inside her jeans pocket.

"Do you feel complete being with me?" Jessica asked casually and looked at Taeyeon. The 

blonde girl turned towards Jessica. Jessica could clearly see the confusion and all the 

questions that had built up inside Taeyeon's head when she had asked the question. Slowly 

began Taeyeon moving her head side to side.

"No, I don't think so." Taeyeon said still with confusion in her eyes. Jessica nodded her head 

understanding.

"Okay." Jessica said with a shrug and turned her head to look at the pond.

"Why?" Taeyeon asked as she was wondering why the sudden question was brought up.

"Just wondering." Jessica replied.

The two friends continued to sit and look at the pond for the rest of the evening. Both of them 

sat in silence while they were thinking about their own things, but at the same time enjoying 

the company of the other girl.

---Taeyeon and Jessica was on their way back to Hyoyeon and Nicole's place after Jessica had 

checked the time and concluded that at least one of the two older girls should be home at this 

hour. Ever since they had left the park Taeyeon had been in deep thought about what Jessica 

had asked about feeling complete. In truth Taeyeon hadn't much thought about it, but when 

she did think about it she was feeling something that was close to feeling complete.

The blonde girl glanced at Jessica that was walking beside her. Jessica's face was relaxed and 

she seemed secure in what she was doing, which she always seemed when she was with 

Taeyeon. A small smile appeared on Taeyeon's face when she looked at the profile of her 

friend's face. She was happy being with Jessica again.

It's good being with Jessica again, it's like I'm- Taeyeon stopped her thoughts when she had 

realized the feeling she was feeling. She felt stupid for not realizing it earlier. By the 

realization she had stopped in her tracks making Jessica stop too as she was holding 

Taeyeon's hand. The brunette looked questioning at Taeyeon that just had stopped.

"What is it?" Jessica asked confused as she saw how wide Taeyeon's eyes were. The blonde 

girl slowly turned to Jessica.

"Yes." Taeyeon blurted out. Jessica continued to look at her confused. "I do feel complete 

with you." Taeyeon added.

Silence filled between them. Jessica stared dumbfounded at Taeyeon while Taeyeon 

continued to stare at Jessica, still feeling stupid for not realizing it earlier. Slowly started 

Jessica smile and she was soon looking at Taeyeon with a wide grin.

"What-" Taeyeon got interrupted when she felt Jessica hug her. She tensed in the girl's 

embrace and she stared wide eyed in front of her. The longer the hug went on the more 

relaxed Taeyeon became in Jessica's embrace, and she soon was able to hug Jessica back. The 

brunette girl smiled widely.

"Can we become lovers?" Jessica asked still hugging Taeyeon. 

"W-what?" Taeyeon asked. She thought she must have heard wrong.

Jessica released Taeyeon from the hug but held Taeyeon's hands instead. She stared into 

Taeyeon's brown orbs that were looking questioning at her. With a reassuring smile Jessica 

squeezed the hands she was holding.

"Lovers. I want us to become lovers." Jessica said with a smile. Taeyeon's eyebrows furrowed 

in confusion.

"I don't understand." Taeyeon said.

"I feel complete with you, I don't know if I love you but I do like you very much, and you 

love me, I hope, and you feel complete with me, and therefore I think we should become 

lovers." Jessica explained with a smile. Taeyeon blinked her eyes. She was surprised and 

dumbfounded by what she was just hearing. Noticing no answer was coming from Taeyeon 

Jessica's smile slowly started to fade.

"You don't wan-"

"Yes!" Taeyeon blurted out before Jessica had gotten to finish her sentence. Jessica looked 

surprised by the sudden interruption, her face making Taeyeon blush and she looked shyly 

away.

"Yes, I think so too, that we should become lovers." Taeyeon explained in a calmer manner. 

Her cheeks were flushed red and she was shyly glancing at Jessica. Jessica smiled widely at 

Taeyeon.

"Then that we are. Lovers." Jessica said with a smile. A smile appeared on Taeyeon's lips as 

well. And when the two friends, but now lovers, had decided on the new title for their 

relationship they continued their way home to Hyoyeon and Nicole.

---The blonde girl was watching the two girls that were busy packing their backpacks. She had 

known she would part with them sooner or later, but she couldn't help but feel a bit sad now 

when they were leaving. In the short amount of time she had spent with the two girls, she had 

somehow managed to get fond of them. But she knew she couldn't force them to stay, because 

that's not what they wanted, and she had come to realize that making them stay is like putting 

a bird into a cage. A bird is meant to fly high up in the sky, exactly like how Taeyeon and 

Jessica are meant to travel and not staying at one place.

Earlier when Taeyeon and Jessica had come back Jessica had told Hyoyeon about their desire 

of wanting to go to another place. Jessica had finished her work at the cafeteria and the 

younger girl was satisfied with what Hyoyeon had taught her about love. And with that 

knowledge she would try to figure out her own feelings, but not in this place. Hyoyeon had 

understood what the younger girl meant and she couldn't do much more now that letting them 

go.

When she had finished packing her backpack Jessica swung it over her shoulder. She turned 

to the older blonde girl that had been watching them by the door, she smiled at her and 

Hyoyeon returned her smile. Jessica glanced at Taeyeon that just had finished packing her 

backpack. Now when both girls were ready they turned to Hyoyeon, the two younger girls 

was smiling at the older one.

"Thank you for staying here." Hyoyeon said and reached out her hand towards Jessica. Jessica 

looked at the hand and back up to Hyoyeon's face, a wide smile appeared on her lips and she 

took the hand and shook it.

"No, thank you for letting us stay here." Jessica said. Hyoyeon smiled at the brunette girl.

"I actually think I should be the one thanking you. I've enjoyed having you here, and I've also 

learned a few things from you." Hyoyeon said. Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked at the older 

girl with questioning looks. Hyoyeon only smiled at them.

"Being with the one you trust with your whole life is the best security to anything." Hyoyeon 

said. The two younger girls continued to look at her with confused faces. The looks she was 

given made Hyoyeon chuckle. "Someday you'll know what I mean." Hyoyeon assured. 

Trusting what Hyoyeon said the two girls nodded their heads.

The two girls bid Hyoyeon good bye. And when they had said their goodbyes they went to the 

door while they were being led out by Hyoyeon. With one last exchange of smiles the two 

girls headed out the door, preparing themselves for what it is to come at their next destination.

Chapter 14 - How far can your eyes see?

"Wanna play a game?" The seven years old Jessica asked Taeyeon that was sitting beside her 

on the swings. Taeyeon turned her head and moved it up and down in a nod. A wide grin 

plastered itself on Jessica's lips and she jumped off the swing and waited for Taeyeon to get 

off hers. When both girls were standing on the ground Jessica grabbed Taeyeon's hand and 

led her to one of the benches in the playground. She took a seat on one of them while Taeyeon 

sat down beside her.

"What is the game about?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica's smile widened so much it showed her 

teeth.

"We're gonna hold our breaths as long as we can." Jessica said excited. Taeyeon nodded her 

head as she understood the game. "I count to three you start holding your breath while I 

count how long, and when you're done you do it for me. Get it?" Jessica said excited. Taeyeon 

slowly nodded her head in answer.

"Good. Let's start then. One, two, three!" Jessica stared at Taeyeon that had taken a large 

inhale of air before she had covered her nose by pinching it with her thumb and pointing 

finger, her cheeks were puffed by all the air she was keeping in them.

"Eleven, twelve, thirteen." Jessica continued to count out loud for Taeyeon that held her 

breath.

"Twenty six, twenty seven, twenty eight."

"Thirty five, thirty six, thirty seven, thirty eight-" Jessica stopped as she saw Taeyeon let go of 

her nose and the girl started breathing heavily. Jessica smiled and nodded satisfied.

"Thirty eight seconds!" Jessica said with her arms outstretched. Taeyeon nodded her head 

while she tried to regain some of her breath. "Good job, now count for me." Jessica prepared 

to hold her breath while she waited for Taeyeon to count.

"One, two, three." Taeyeon counted and Jessica did exactly like Taeyeon had done before she 

had started holding her breath, taking a big inhale of air and covered her nose.

"Sixteen, seventeen, eighteen." Taeyeon counted out loud for Jessica to know how many 

seconds she had held her breath. Taeyeon had her eyes on the girl to see if she gave up and 

started breathing.

"Twenty nine, thirty, thirty one" The longer Taeyeon counted, the more her eyebrows 

furrowed.

"Forty two, forty three, forty four." Taeyeon glanced worriedly at her friend that still was 

holding her breath.

"Jessica you're starting to look like Tinky Winky from teletubbies." Taeyeon said worriedly. 

Jessica continued to hold her breath and with her hands she motioned for Taeyeon to 

continue to count. "Sica you're turning purple!" Taeyeon said that was more worried about 

her friend than the stupid game.

It got harder and harder for Jessica to hold her breath, and her face had indeed started to 

change color. Which Taeyeon was a witness to and it only made her more worried, worried 

that Jessica might die. Because Taeyeon had seen on TV that people that don't get air dies.

"Jessica stop it, you're going to die!" Taeyeon begged and shook Jessica's body. Jessica 

finally let out an exhale and started to breath, making the worried Taeyeon slump her 

shoulders in relief. Jessica shot Taeyeon an angry glare while she was regaining her breath.

"Yah! You're not supposed to stop counting." Jessica scolded Taeyeon that now looked guilty 

at the other girl.

"But I was worried you'd die." Taeyeon mumbled and averted her gaze to the ground.

"I wouldn't have died. I know if I'd have died." Jessica said and crossed her arms over her 

chest. Taeyeon pouted still with her eyes fixed on the ground.

"How do you know if you're dying?" Taeyeon asked and glanced at Jessica. Jessica's eyes 

widened by the question and she looked away from the other girl while she rubbed her chin as 

she was thinking. Taeyeon's eyes widened when no answer came from her friend. "You don't 

know." Taeyeon said. Jessica looked back at Taeyeon, ready to explain.

"I-"

"You don't know, you could have died because you don't know how it feels when you're 

dying." Taeyeon said with teary eyes. Seeing the tears in Taeyeon's eyes Jessica shook her 

head.

"No, I do know."

"You don't know." Taeyeon said and sniffled. Tears had begun streaming down her cheeks.

"I'd have known. Aish, stop crying." Jessica patted the crying Taeyeon's back.

"Y-you don't kn-know. You c-could have just d-died here and left me alone." Taeyeon cried 

and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. A frown appeared on Jessica's lips as she 

watched Taeyeon cry. The seven years old girl took a deep breath and looked another way 

while she patted Taeyeon's back, when looking at her friend crying she suddenly started to 

feel like she would cry too.

"I wouldn't have died, Taengoo." Jessica said and held back her tears. Taeyeon sniffled and 

looked at the girl that was patting her back.

"You can't know that." Taeyeon said and wiped her cheeks.

"I do know. Because I don't want to leave you alone and... and... and that will keep me from 

dying." Jessica said with confidence in her voice. Taeyeon looked at Jessica with furrowed 

eyebrows. Her nose and eyes were red after she had been crying. Seeing the look her friend 

gave her Jessica gulped nervously. She didn't know if Taeyeon believed her, and she didn't 

even know if what she was saying was true, but she wanted to believe it actually was like that.

"That would have kept you from dying?" Taeyeon asked and sniffled. Jessica nodded her head 

confident. "Then I won't die too, because I don't want to leave you alone either." Taeyeon 

said. A smile appeared on Jessica's lips. Taeyeon smiled too. Her fear of that Jessica might 

die without knowing it and leave her alone was now washed away, because she was sure that 

when they both wanted to be with the other girl, and not leaving each other alone, they would 

be alive.

"Let's go back to the swings." Jessica suggested and grabbed Taeyeon's hand. The seven 

years old girl nodded her head and hand-in-hand the two girls went back to the swings.

---They had reached a city called Chungju. They had fallen asleep on the bus and went further 

than intended but when they had reached the last stop the bus driver had woken them up, they 

had both apologized to the bus driver and hurriedly left the bus only to be met with a new 

sight. A new city.

Like all the new places they had visited together they started to explore the city by walking 

around, because it was in the middle of the night they had decided they should look for a 

place to sleep for the night.

When they walked through the center of the city they could see the Namsan Mountain in the 

horizon as they walked. While walking through the city they had walked past shops, grocery 

stores, restaurants and even some motels and hotels. But when they had seen those places they 

had decided that place would cost them too much money to just stay for one night, and so they 

had walked on.

"Can I ask you something?" Jessica turned to the girl walking beside her. She had gotten 

bored of being silent and something in her mind was bugging her.

"Sure." Taeyeon said still with her eyes focused forward.

"What do lovers do together?" Jessica asked the question she had been thinking about ever 

since it had come up for her she and Taeyeon would now be lovers and not friends.

"They go on dates." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head and mentally noted down what 

Taeyeon had just said.

"Don't they hug and kiss and do things like that too?" Jessica asked and looked at the blonde 

girl as she waited for Taeyeon's answer.

"Yes, they do things like that too." Taeyeon said and nodded her head. Jessica nodded her 

head too. Furrowing her eyebrows and looking at Taeyeon again.

"Will you be okay if I hug you?"

Taeyeon didn't answer and they both continued to walk down the street. Some cars passed by 

them on the road and Jessica patiently waited for Taeyeon's answer. Suddenly a smile 

appeared on Taeyeon's lips and she turned towards Jessica.

"Wasn't I okay when you hugged me before?" Taeyeon asked with a smile.

The corners of Jessica's lips also turned upwards into a smile and she let out a happy laugh 

when she thought back to the hug. Taeyeon joined the laugh and they both stood in the middle 

of the street laughing at the memory. When they had calmed down from their laughing fit they 

began walking again.

They started to come to a place a bit outside of the town. Less people was on the streets and 

less cars was driving on the roads. Also this area was filled with more houses and apartments 

and they rarely saw any shops or restaurants like they had seen when they had been in the 

center of the town. They also noticed they had come closer to the lake that was beside the 

city.

"Taeyeon have you ever wanted to kiss me?" Jessica asked out of nowhere.

Taeyeon stopped walking and turned towards Jessica that looked at her while she waited for 

Taeyeon to answer the question. Taeyeon lowered her gaze that had been looking into 

Jessica's eyes to Jessica's lips, the memory of when she had been thinking about kissing her 

when they had been in Sunny's home flashed through her mind and she had to look away from 

the lips; feeling flustered by the memory.

Taeyeon opened her mouth to answer but felt embarrassed and closed it again. She smiled 

shyly at Jessica that patiently waited for her to answer. She looked away from Jessica's face 

and focused at the lake that was behind Jessica instead, she tried to think of other things that 

would make her rising heart calm down.

When she looked back at Jessica again she noticed the other girl was standing closer to her, 

and coming even closer. Taeyeon's eyes widened as Jessica leaned her head even closer as 

their bodies couldn't come closer than they already were. Taeyeon saw Jessica focusing her 

eyes on her lips and looking up to lock gaze with her, the gaze making her hold her breath and 

freeze in her spot as she anticipated what would come.

Taeyeon felt Jessica's warm breath brush against her lips as the girl was only a mere inch 

away from her now. She saw Jessica closing her eyes and slightly tilted her head to the side, 

feeling like it would look stupid if she still had her eyes open Taeyeon screwed her eyes shut 

as well.

Jessica's lips finally touched hers and they stayed like that in a small, shy kiss. Taeyeon felt 

her face heat up as she still felt the lips on her own, Taeyeon was sure she would be able to 

burn up like this.

Slowly moved the lips away from her and Taeyeon dared to open her eyes again and Jessica 

also opened her eyes when they had ended their first kiss. Taeyeon finally remembered how 

to breath and let out a loud exhale. It made Jessica giggle and she covered her mouth as she 

thought it might be embarrassing for Taeyeon if she giggled.

"57 seconds." Jessica said after she had stopped giggling. Taeyeon looked at her confused as 

she couldn't utter any words when she was busy regaining all the oxygen to her brain.

"That's how long you held your breath. Congratulation, new record." Jessica said and smiled.

When Taeyeon finally understood what Jessica meant she began laughing embarrassed. 

Jessica laughed too and they stood there laughing together. When they finally calmed down 

from the laughing they looked into each other’s eyes again, Jessica smiling wide.

"So, how was I? Was it good?" Jessica asked and her eyes glimmered in excitement.

"It was better than I had imagined." Taeyeon said.

Jessica smiled again and averted her gaze to the ground. When she looked up again she 

glanced at Taeyeon's lips again before she looked Taeyeon in the eyes and began leaning 

closer to Taeyeon again. She stopped when she was an inch away from capturing Taeyeon's 

lips again; her eyes were already half closed. Jessica looked down at Taeyeon's lips before she 

looked up at Taeyeon's eyes again.

"Don't hold your breath too soon now, or I might need to end the kiss sooner in fear of 

choking you." Jessica said jokingly and smirked. Taeyeon smiled and took a big inhale of air 

before she closed the distance between them and kissed Jessica.

The kiss started as the first one, both lingering shyly on the others lips and not daring to 

explore further. Always been a curious soul, and always gotten bored of doing the same thing 

over and over Jessica took the initiative to go further. She placed her hands around Taeyeon's 

waist to keep the other girl in place, she felt Taeyeon slowly retreat but she stopped and that 

made Jessica able to catch the lips in they shy kiss again. Feeling Taeyeon knew what was to 

come Jessica took the chance to deepen the kiss.

It went slowly at first but soon both Jessica and Taeyeon had gotten a hang of what kissing 

really was about and now they couldn't tear away from each other as they had discovered the 

new activity they could to together. As further the kiss went they both took notice of how 

dizzy it got when they lacked oxygen and soon had to stop the kiss anyway. Both now panting 

heavily as they had pulled away from each other, now looking each other in the eyes with 

flustered cheeks.

"Did you count?" Taeyeon asked as she had regained some of her breath.

"No, why?" Jessica shook her head when she answered. She was still breathing heavily as she 

was trying to regain oxygen.

"I think we broke our records." Taeyeon said and smiled.

Jessica began laughing and leaned her head against Taeyeon's shoulder and both of them 

laughed together. They stood like that while both of them tried to stop breathing so heavily 

and while they tried to think of what they just had done.

"Can I ask where you learned that?" Taeyeon asked when she had regained most of her 

breath. Jessica chuckled and released Taeyeon's waist she still had been holding and took a 

step back to look the blonde girl in the eyes.

"If I said that I watched a couple kiss just to know what to do when I had my first kiss would 

you believe me?" Jessica asked and looked into Taeyeon's eyes.

"Yes, because it wouldn't surprise me. When we went to the library to borrow the computer 

there you'd always watch how-to-do-videos just because you didn't like reading books." 

Taeyeon said and smiled.

"Yah!" Jessica pouted and slapped Taeyeon's arm, the blonde girl only laughing at Jessica's 

reaction.

"I did it because it would take me ages to read a single page in a book. How else were I 

supposed to learn things?" Jessica said mad.

"I don't know." Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders. A smile appeared on her lips as she still was 

looking into Jessica's eyes. "But it seems like watching how other people do things did you 

good."

The compliment made Jessica blush and her pout disappeared and instead she had to look 

away. Taeyeon continued to smile widely as Jessica was now too embarrassed to look at her. 

But the brunette girl had a smile on her lips that was hard to hide. Being complemented by 

Taeyeon felt good, and Jessica wasn't someone to hide when she thought something felt good.

---The blonde and brunette girl had stopped by the lake, both of them were now looking out over 

the lake while enjoying the night breeze. They stood close to each other to keep themselves 

warm. Their hands were as always intertwined.

Taeyeon glanced at Jessica that stood to her left, the lamp post that stood beside Taeyeon was 

lighting up the right side of Jessica's face. The discovery of it, made Taeyeon smile and she 

turned to look out over the lake again. She glanced down at their intertwined hands that were 

resting on the railing, her cold hand was being heated up by the warmth from Jessica's hand.

"How far can your eyes see?" Taeyeon broke the comfortable silence between them. The 

blonde girl looked at the brunette girl that now had turned her head towards her.

Jessica pondered on the question a bit. She looked out over the lake again before she turned to 

Taeyeon again, a smile was gracing her lips and she turned to fully face the blonde girl.

"As far as I want." Jessica said with a wide grin. Taeyeon looked at the brunette girl with a 

raised eyebrow. "For example, right now I want to see you, and I see you. Now I want to see 

the other side of the lake, and I see it." Jessica demonstrated what she was saying by turning 

to look out over the lake and she pointed to the other side of the lake. Taeyeon was looking 

where Jessica was pointing, she slowly nodded her head understanding what the other girl 

meant.

"So basically you just see what you want to see?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica nodded her head.

"Yup, isn't that the point of being able to see?" The brunette asked and leaned against the 

railing. Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders and averted her gaze to the ground.

"Maybe it is." Taeyeon said and smiled a small smile. A solemn expression appeared on the 

blonde's face and she averted her gaze towards the lake. The sudden change of expression 

confused Jessica and she studied Taeyeon's face for a few seconds before she asked:

"Did you think of something else?" Jessica asked and squeezed Taeyeon's hand she was 

holding. The blonde girl let out a sigh and turned her head back to Jessica that smiled a warm 

and gentle smile at her.

"Sometimes you see things you actually don't want to see." Taeyeon said. Jessica's smile 

faded. Seeing that Jessica understood what she was implying at Taeyeon turned her head 

towards the lake again and let out a sigh. Jessica was left looking at their intertwined hands 

while thinking of what Taeyeon had said.

Silence filled between the two girls again while they were silently thinking of past things they 

had seen. Both things they rather had not seen and things they were happy to have been able 

to see. Jessica carefully glanced at Taeyeon that still was looking out over the lake.

"But we don't have to see those things anymore." Jessica said in attempt of trying to cheer 

Taeyeon up. The blonde girl looked towards the brunette that smiled a reassuring smile. "We 

left to see other things, meaningful things, things we will remember with a smile on our faces. 

Things that can make up for those times." Jessica explained.

Taeyeon averted her gaze to their hands, and when she looked up at Jessica again a small 

smile had appeared on her lips. She nodded her head to what Jessica just had said. Seeing she 

had been able to make Taeyeon smile Jessica flashed a smile back at the blonde girl. She 

turned to lean her back against the railing. Her face was turned towards the street, and her 

eyes landed on a bus that was on its way to a bus stop that was located near where the two 

girls were standing.

Jessica turned to Taeyeon again. She pushed herself of the railing and began walking, 

Taeyeon was trailing after her. A confused expression had appeared on the blonde girl’s face 

when they suddenly had begun moving again.

"Right now my eyes see a possibility to go to another place." Jessica said with a smile and 

began jogging towards the bus stop to make sure they arrived there before the bus did. 

Taeyeon took notice of where they were jogging towards.

"But we just arrived here." Taeyeon said. Jessica smiled and speed up her pace. She made 

sure Taeyeon could keep up with her by glancing at the blonde girl now and then.

"I know, but there are so many more places I want to see." Jessica said and began running 

faster when she noticed the bus was nearing the bus stop. She caught the sign on the bus and 

she turned to Taeyeon with a smile. "Right now I want to see Wojnu." Jessica said.

"What?" Taeyeon asked while she tried to keep up with Jessica. 

"Wojnu." Jessica repeated. They had reached the bus stop just in time before the bus had 

arrived. Taeyeon tried to regain her breath while Jessica tried to find money in her backpack. 

The blonde caught the sight of the bus and saw the sign on the bus.

"Oh, you mean Wonju." Taeyeon said. Jessica looked up at the blonde girl when she had 

found the money in her backpack. She motioned for Taeyeon to turn around so she could find 

Taeyeon's money in her backpack too.

"Yeah, Wonju, Wojnu. Almost right." Jessica said and closed Taeyeon's backpack when she 

had found the money. Jessica handed Taeyeon her money and they both stepped on the bus 

together. They paid the bus driver and took a seat beside each other. The bus began moving 

and the two girls was on their way towards their next destination.

Chapter 15 - Not what it seems

Jessica turned her head towards the girl that was lying beside her. Taeyeon's breath was even 

and her chest was rising in regulation. Jessica noted that the girl was sleeping and she 

carefully got up on her feet. Thinking it might get cold for Taeyeon to sleep on the ground 

alone Jessica took off her jacket and placed it over Taeyeon's upper body. Noting that 

Taeyeon was still sleeping she carefully began walking away from the girl.

I'm sorry Taengoo-ah, I'll have to do this for our own good. Jessica thought and left the alley 

she and Taeyeon had been sleeping in. She looked around the streets to find a place where she 

could fulfill her plan.

When they had taken the bus to Wonju they had used up the rest of their money. During the 

bus ride to Wonju another problem also had built up; they had begun to feel hungry. When 

they had arrived at their destination they had decided they would just go to sleep and try to 

find something to eat when they wake up. But Jessica had known from the beginning that 

without money it would be hard for them to find something to eat.

She noticed a delivery truck parked at the backside of a grocery store. She turned her head left 

and right before she ran across the street to the grocery store and hid behind a dumpster. 

Glancing from behind the dumpster she saw the truck driver leaving a few boxes outside of 

the store before he got back in into the truck and started the engine. Jessica's eyes widened in 

surprise when she saw the truck driver leaving with the boxes still there and no one there to 

watch over them.

Jessica looked around the street. No one was there besides her, and cars were rarely passing 

by. She turned back to the boxes which seemed like the truck driver had just dumped there.

Isn't this a bit too tempting? Jessica thought and kept her eyes at the untouched boxes. I'll 

have to say it's their own fault for not keeping an eye on them. Jessica thought and got up 

from her hiding spot behind the dumpster and walked towards the boxes. She looked around 

before she carefully opened one of the boxes to see numerous of bread packages.

She gulped and looked around again to make sure no one was there before she put one hand 

inside the box ready to grab one package. She felt her heart beat fast as her fingers wrapped 

around the plastic packages of the bread.

"What are you doing?" A husky female voice asked.

Jessica jumped in surprise and fell backwards and landed on her butt. She looked up at a 

woman that stood with her arms crossed over her chest and staring down at Jessica. The 

woman was wearing short denim shorts with a black tank-top with a jeans vest over it. A cap 

was shading the woman's eyes from the morning sun and the woman's long black hair was 

hanging loosely down over her shoulders.

"What were you trying to do?" The woman asked once more and bent down still looking at 

Jessica. Jessica felt unable to speak as the woman's brown orbs pierced into hers. She felt a 

bead of sweat trickle down the side of her face.

"Are you mum?" The woman asked when Jessica didn't speak.

"Who are you talking to?" Another voice said and a tall, slim woman came out on the loading 

dock. The woman with the cap turned her attention to the taller woman that just had arrived.

Now when the woman with the cap wasn't looking at her Jessica took this chance to scramble 

up on her feet and escape this place. She pumped her feet as fast as she could from the place 

to not get caught by one of the women.

Just when she thought she had escaped someone grabbed ahold of her backpack. Jessica still 

tried to run and the only thing that made her stop was the sound of fabric ripping apart. She 

turned around and saw the woman with the cap had grabbed her backpack and the worn out 

backpack had finally given in and was now ripped apart.

Jessica's belongings fell to the ground. Jessica and the cap clad woman stared at the things 

that were now scattered on the ground, it was everything from Jessica's clothes, photos she 

had taken with the polaroid camera she had got from Yuri and her wallet.

"What the..." The cap clad woman said and looked up from the things at Jessica. Jessica 

swallowed a lump in her throat. What exactly would happen now?

"You... have you ran away from home, kid?" The woman asked and looked at Jessica. 

Jessica's eyes shot wide open when the woman had figured it out so fast. She snatched back 

the part of the backpack the cap clad woman was holding and quickly gathered her things on 

the ground and began running again.

It however didn't help her when the woman now took ahold of her hood. Jessica felt it got 

hard to breathe when the hoodie was now pressing against her throat and blocking her

airway.

She felt the woman pull her hood hard backwards and Jessica stumbled and landed against the 

frame of the woman. The woman took a hold of Jessica's arms not letting Jessica have any 

chance to run away again.

"Come with me." The cap clad woman ordered and dragged Jessica with her. Jessica closed 

her eyes. How did everything turn out like this? She just wanted to get something to eat for 

her and Taeyeon. And she didn't even got the chance to take anything so why did this woman 

still capture her?

"I didn't take anything." Jessica managed to say. The cap clad woman didn't respond and 

continued to drag Jessica with her.

The woman with black hair opened the back door to the grocery store and continued to drag 

Jessica with her. They entered something that looked like a coffee room where Jessica got 

pushed down on a chair. The cap clad woman stopped in front of her with her arms crossed 

over her chest.

"What do you think you're doing, kid?" The cap clad woman asked. Her brown orbs staring 

intently at Jessica making the teenage girl feel uncomfortable. Jessica looked away from the 

woman that looked at her. 

"I don't know." Jessica said not facing the woman before her. The woman scoffed.

"I've dealt with more shoplifter than you can count to. The only difference is that I've never 

caught anyone that tried to steal direct from a delivery." The woman said and grabbed 

Jessica's chin and turned Jessica's face to face her. "Where're your parents?"

"None of your business." Jessica responded.

"A cocky one. Are you alone?" The woman let go of Jessica's chin and crossed her arms over 

her chest again. Jessica didn't respond and continued to stare at the woman with her lips 

sealed. "I take your silence as a no. Where's your friend? Did your friend make you do all the 

dirty job and get in trouble? Or is your friend somewhere else shoplifting?" The woman 

continued to shower Jessica with questions. Jessica clenched her jaw tightly and refused to 

answer the questions.

"Why are you keeping me here? I didn't take anything." Jessica instead said. The woman 

raised her eyebrow. She leaned closer to Jessica's face to take a better look at the girl.

"Why did you run away from home? Did you have some disagreement with your parents?" 

The woman asked. Jessica gritted her teeth.

"None of your business." Jessica replied through clenched teeth.

"Don't you know any other phrases than that? Do you speak to your parents like that as 

well?"

Jessica clamped her mouth shut. She figured out that if she said something the woman would 

question her even more. The women caught on quickly as well and straighten up and kept her 

eyes at the teenage girl seated on the chair.

"You're refusing to speak now? Or do you have some speech disorder?" Jessica frowned.

"I speak very well!" Jessica protested. The woman looked amused by Jessica's response.

The woman opened her mouth to ask Jessica another question but the back door opened once 

again and the cap clad woman stopped. The tall, and slim woman entered while dragging in a 

person with a familiar face. The tall woman had somehow found Taeyeon. The two teenage 

girls looked at each other.

"I found this one sleeping in a nearby alley." The tall girl said and pushed Taeyeon forward. 

Taeyeon stumbled forward and almost lost her balance if Jessica hadn't caught her.

"You okay?" Jessica asked Taeyeon in a whisper. Taeyeon only nodded her head.

The cap clad woman noticed Jessica's action and whispering. She turned to the taller woman 

with a satisfied smile.

"Good. We have two runaways here." The cap clad woman said and nodded towards the two 

girls. "Is it only you two?" The cap clad woman walked closer to the two teenage girls that 

moved closer to each other by each step the woman took.

The woman stopped and crossed her arms over her chest. "I guess it's only you two. You look 

like two fools that have run away from home." The cap clad woman said and moved closer to 

the wall to lean on it. Jessica shot her a glare.

"We're not fools. We know what we're doing." Jessica scowled. The cap clad woman raised 

an eyebrow.

"Oh, so you admit you've ran away from home?" The cap clad woman asked with a smirk. 

Jessica once again clamped her mouth shut. The woman's smirk grew even wider.

"Your silence says everything. Sooyoung call the police and tell them we've found to runaway 

kids." The cap clad woman ordered the taller woman. Jessica and Taeyeon looked with horror 

at the woman that was leaving to call the police. With no second thoughts the two teenage 

girls got up on their feet and ran to the taller woman to stop her by holding her by the ankles.

"Please, don't call the police." Taeyeon begged while holding tightly onto the taller woman's 

right ankle.

"I promise I won't steal anything. I won't even lay my hands on things I can't buy. Please don't 

call the police." Jessica begged the taller woman while holding the other ankle.

The taller woman looked at the cap clad woman that still was leaning against the wall. Both 

women were surprised by how the girls had reacted by the mention of the police.

"Please don't call the police. We're begging you. Just let us go and we'll never show our faces 

here again." Jessica begged and bowed her head to the floor, Taeyeon copied the act and 

placed her forehead against her hands that were lying in front of her on the floor.

"Don't report us to the police. Please just let us go." Taeyeon begged.

"Why should we let you go? How do we know that you won't go to another shop and try 

stealing there?" The cap clad woman asked.

"I won't ever try to steal anything again. I promise." Jessica said with her forehead still against 

the floor.

"How do we know you're not just lying?"

"Because I'm not ordinary and tried to steal from a newly delivered delivery." Jessica said.

Silence filled the room and Jessica pressed her forehead even harder against the floor. She 

was sure it would be a red mark once she lifts her head, or if she ever lifts her head. She 

peeked in the corner of her eye at Taeyeon that also was pressing her forehead against the 

floor in a low bow. When Jessica thought about it, this must be the furthest she had gone in 

her life to beg for something.

"Tiffany let them go." Jessica heard the woman they were bowing before say. She wanted to 

look up but she didn't dare to do so, this could be their only chance to not get sent back home 

by the police.

"Please, we're old enough to take care of ourselves." Jessica said. She felt a bitter taste on her 

tongue by how much she was begging, it was starting to tear on her pride now.

A scoff was heard and closing in steps from the other woman was heard. Jessica heard the 

woman stop beside her and felt her crouch down beside her.

"Raise your head." Jessica slowly rose her head as she was told to do. She didn't look at the 

woman with the cap and continued to stare forward at the long legs of the other woman.

"How old are you if you're old enough?" The cap clad woman asked. Jessica clenched her 

teeth, she didn't want to give out their age to some strangers that she didn't know what they 

would do to them. The cap clad woman seemed to figure out that Jessica wasn't going to 

answer.

"If you're old enough, how come you need to run away from home instead of just move 

away?" Jessica could see in the corner of her eye how the cap clad woman was smirking. She 

clenched her teeth and stopped herself from answering the question like she had answered two 

of the former questions.

"Why can't you just let us go?" Jessica instead asked.

"Because I don't trust a person I saw trying to steal bread from us. We have security cameras 

outside so don't think there isn't any proof."

Jessica bit her lower lip. She was done for it, there was no way she would be able to get out of 

this. The woman had caught her red handed, and they even have proof. They only need to lift 

on a cellphone and the police would be here picking her and Taeyeon up and sending them 

home.

Jessica tilted her head back and stared up at the woman she was kneeling before. The tall 

woman was focusing her eyes on the two girls on the floor and she and Jessica made eye 

contact once Jessica focused her eyes on her. With all her might she tried to see as desperate 

she could do get out of here, she hoped for her life's sake that the woman would be able to 

read her emotions through her eyes.

The taller woman looked uncertain when she met Jessica's begging eyes. Jessica continued to 

look at her with her pleading eyes when she seemed to get some kind of reaction from the 

taller woman.

Jessica didn't see that the cap clad woman was still observing her beside her. The woman with 

the black hair looked at her taller friend that was having eye contact with one of the teenage 

girls. The cap clad woman let out a scoff and smacked the back of the brunette girl's head.

Jessica let out a yelp and she sent a glare towards the cap clad woman that now had stood up 

to stand beside the taller woman's side. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she just 

stared calmly at Jessica that sent her angry glares.

"I won't let them go, but I won't call the police either, do you have any suggestion what I 

should do with them then?" The cap clad woman asked and turned to the taller woman. The 

taller woman turned to the two girls on the floor. The brunette one was still glaring at the 

woman with black hair while the blonde was still bowing her head.

"Keep them here to have an eye on them for a while." The taller woman suggested. The cap 

clad woman looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"But then I have to take care of them."

"It was a suggestion." The taller woman said and shrugged her shoulders.

They looked at the brunette that still was sending the cap clad woman glares. Their eyes 

turned from the glare-sending-girl to the one that was still bowing her head. Interest seemed 

to glimmer in the cap clad woman's eyes and she walked to crouch down before Taeyeon. 

Wide eyed Jessica watched what the woman was doing.

"Raise your head." Ordered the woman before Taeyeon. Slowly rose Taeyeon her head up and 

instantly locked her eyes gaze with the cap clad woman. Taeyeon gulped nervously.

"What's your name?" The cap clad woman asked. Taeyeon remained mum and glanced at 

Jessica that was glaring angrily at the cap clad woman. "I'm Tiffany, and that's Sooyoung. 

What's your name?" Tiffany said. She glanced at Jessica that was still glaring at her with a 

disapproving frown. "Ignore your friend, tell me your names." Tiffany said. Still serious about 

knowing her name.

Tiffany furrowed her eyebrows when nothing seemed to come out of Taeyeon's mouth. She 

glanced at the brunette girl and then back at the blonde. She leaned her head closer to the girl 

that backed away the closer she got.

"I know you can speak, I heard you speak earlier." Tiffany said. Taeyeon gulped nervously 

when she felt the woman coming closer to her. Tiffany raised up one hand and placed it on the 

girl's shoulder. The blonde girl instantly froze in her spot and Tiffany was able to lean closer 

to her. With her mouth gaping Jessica watched what was happening to Taeyeon.

"Remove your hand." Jessica said through her now clenched teeth. She watched with horror 

how Taeyeon's face had gone paler, and beads of sweat were running down the blonde girl's 

face. "Remove your hand before she faints!" Jessica yelled.

Tiffany that had been leaning closer to Taeyeon the whole time stopped and glanced at Jessica 

that had yelled. One of her eyebrows raised when she heard the absurd thing Jessica just had 

said.

"Tiffany!" Sooyoung called from behind her. Tiffany looked at her taller friend that looked 

panicked. That's when she felt the girl she was keeping her hand on the shoulder move. She

looked back at the blonde girl and noticed she fell to the floor. Tiffany stared wide eyed at the 

blonde girl that now had been assisted by her friend.

"Taeyeon." Jessica called her blonde friend that had fainted. She lightly shook Taeyeon's 

shoulder and when no response came from the blonde girl she glared at the cap clad woman 

that looked confused at the fainted girl. "I told you she would faint." Jessica said and turned 

back to Taeyeon. Sooyoung had come to help Jessica to check on Taeyeon. But when the 

taller woman was going to touch the fainted girl Jessica swatted away her hands.

Sooyoung looked at the brunette girl, her eyes showing fear and anger.

"I'm a nurse." Sooyoung said. Jessica continued to look at her with anger in her eyes.

"So?" Jessica spat and scooted Taeyeon's immobile body up in her arms and moved the body 

away from the woman.

"She fainted from a panic attack right?" Sooyoung asked. Jessica's face softened a bit, but the 

doubt was still there. She glanced at the unconscious girl she was holding her arms around.

"Yes." Jessica said uncertain and glanced at the woman.

"If you let me I can help her." Sooyoung said. Jessica still looked at her with doubt. She 

glanced at the cap clad woman that was watching from the side. Guilt was showing in the 

woman's face but Jessica didn't bother about it.

"How do I know I can trust you when one of you just caused for this to happen?" Jessica 

asked. She glanced at the cap clad woman again and saw her roll her eyes.

"You'll have to take a risk." The taller woman said. Jessica turned her head towards the 

woman that was crouched in front of her. She looked down at Taeyeon in her arms and back 

up at the woman. She bit her lower lip.

"Tell me what to do." Jessica said and slightly loosened her arms around Taeyeon's body.

"Lie her down on the floor and put some kind of support for her head." Sooyoung instructed.

Jessica let go of Taeyeon's body completely to move the body to lie out stretched on the floor. 

She lifted Taeyeon's head to place it in her lap. With a nervous gulp she looked at the woman 

that had instructed her to what to do.

"Now what?" Jessica asked.

"You just wait for her to wake up." Sooyoung said and sat down on the floor with her legs 

crossed. Jessica swallowed again and placed one of her hands reluctantly on Taeyeon's head. 

She stroked away a few hair strands from the girl's face but figured if she kept her hand there 

she might shock Taeyeon again and she removed her hand. In silence Jessica sat with the two 

women while they waited for Taeyeon to wake up.

---The cap clad woman checked in the rear view of her car at the two girls that were seated in 

her backseat. The blonde girl that earlier had fainted had now woke up, she was still a bit pale. 

The brunette girl had offered her shoulder for the other girl to rest her head on. And like that 

they were seated in the backseat.  

Tiffany hadn't spoken anything to the two girls after she had caused for the blonde girl to 

faint. Sooyoung had been the one that had offered them to come to their place, the taller 

woman had told them that if they did they wouldn't call the police. The brunette girl that had 

been the one handling the talking had at first been doubtful but given the situation she had 

complied in the end.

The cap clad woman tightened her hold on the steering wheel when she focused her eyes on 

the road. She didn't understand how the blonde girl had been able to faint. Sooyoung had 

immediately understood it was from a panic attack, but she didn't understand why the girl 

would get a panic attack. There was something more to these two teenage girl than what they 

saw. Tiffany was beginning to wonder what more lied behind their doubtful and uncertain 

looks.

She turned to drive up a driveway to a house. They were now a bit outside of the town. The 

car came to a halt and without saying any words to any of the passenger in the car the cap clad 

woman got out. Sooyoung turned to the two teenagers in the backseat with a gentle smile.

"We're here. You can go out now." The taller woman said and exited the car.

Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged looks before they slowly made their way out of the car. 

Jessica was now carrying a plastic bag where she kept her belongings after Tiffany had ripped 

apart her backpack. Once the two teenagers were out of the car they held each other's hands 

and looked at the house they were standing in front. The cap clad woman had already made 

her way to the door while the taller woman waited for the girls to follow her.

With slow steps the two teenagers began following the taller woman inside the house. The cap 

clad woman had already disappeared into one of the rooms and was nowhere to be seen, but 

they could hear her steps. Sooyoung continued to lead the two teenagers into the kitchen 

where she made them sit down by the table.

"Are you hungry?" Sooyoung asked the two teenagers that were sitting beside each other by 

the table. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged looks before they turned to the taller woman. 

Sooyoung smiled at them.

"Either way, I'll make you something to eat. It's okay, right?" Sooyoung said and turned to the 

refrigerator.

"I thought you would just keep us here to keep an eye on us." Jessica said. Sooyoung smiled 

by the teenage girl's comment.

"They feed prisoners in prison too, you know." Sooyoung said. Her respond to what she said 

was silence.

Steps coming towards the kitchen made the three occupants turn their heads towards Tiffany 

that just arrived in the kitchen. The cap clad woman was still wearing her cap when she 

entered. She glanced at Sooyoung that was making something by the stove before she turned 

to the two teenager that sat by the table. Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked at her with doubtful 

eyes. The black haired woman sighed by the looks she was given.

"I'm sorry." Tiffany said. The two teenager exchanged glances. "For making you faint." 

Tiffany pointed at Taeyeon before she went to an empty chair and took a seat on it. The two 

girls still looked doubtful even after her apologize. Tiffany let out a sigh and looked at the 

taller woman by the stove.

"Are you making them something to eat?" Tiffany asked.

"I'm making us something to eat." Sooyoung corrected.

Tiffany glanced at the two teenagers that were looking down on the table surface.

"Do they talk to you?" Tiffany asked still with her eyes on the two teenagers.

"Not much." Sooyoung responded. Hearing Sooyoung's answer Jessica and Taeyeon looked 

up from the table surface and glanced at the taller woman before they looked another 

direction. Frown appeared on Tiffany's lips.

"They sure as hell don't speak to me, nor look at me." Tiffany said and stood up from her seat 

made her way to the refrigerator.

"It's because they don't trust you." Sooyoung spoke like the two teenagers wasn't even there. 

Tiffany halted in her tracks and Jessica and Taeyeon looked surprised up from the table at the 

woman that just had spoken. Sensing the looks she was given Sooyoung turned around from 

the stove to look at the two teenagers by the table. "That's why you don't say anything, right?" 

Sooyoung asked to confirm she was right. Tiffany turned around to look at the two teenagers

by the table again.

Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other again. Both of them knew that Sooyoung had been 

right about what she had said, but they didn't know what to answer. But after having 

confirming what the other girl thought by looking at each other in the eyes they turned to the 

two women that still observed them. Slowly started they nodding their heads.

"See." Sooyoung said with a smile. Tiffany looked at the two teenagers with her mouth open. 

She looked at her taller friend that had been able to understand the girls so quickly with a 

shocked expression. Seeing that she had went back to cook Tiffany frowned again.

"I don't trust them either." Tiffany said stubbornly and left the kitchen. The two girls by the 

table looked after the cap clad woman that left. Chuckle from the remaining woman in the 

kitchen made them turn their attention to her instead.

"Don't mind her. She's like that at first. If you would give her some time I'm sure she will 

soon open up towards you." The taller woman explained and turned around with two plates in 

her hand. She went to the table and placed the plates in front of the two teenagers that looked 

uncertain at the food that was placed in front of them.

"It's okay to eat." Sooyoung said and motioned for the two teenagers to eat while she took a 

seat opposite them. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other with unsure looks before they 

reluctantly began eating the food the woman had prepared to them.

"So, you know I'm Sooyoung. What are your names?" Sooyoung leaned back in the chair 

while she watched the two girls eat slowly. Both Jessica and Taeyeon's eyes widened by the 

question and they looked the way Tiffany had left earlier.

"I'm not gonna call the police if you tell me, and Tiffany won't call the police either. I promise 

you that." Sooyoung leaned closer to the table and looked back and forth between the brunette 

and blonde girl.

"Jessica." Jessica finally gave in and gave the taller woman her name. Jessica looked at 

Taeyeon that was poking her food.

"Taeyeon." Taeyeon's answer came out as a mumble. Jessica glanced at the taller woman that 

now nodded her head to their answer before she went back to eat her food.

"I see." The woman mused. Neither Taeyeon nor Jessica looked at her now. "I'm Sooyoung, I 

work as a nurse at a High School, I also own this bakery my family left behind to take care of. 

When I feel like it I help out Tiffany at her grocery store. The place where we met." 

Sooyoung told the two girls a bit about herself even though they might not really care. Both 

girls nodded to what she had told them and she smiled by their response.

"I'm gonna take care of a few things. I'll be in the room nearby if there is anything." Sooyoung 

said and left the two girls alone in the kitchen. When they were sure they were alone Taeyeon 

and Jessica looked at each other.

"Are you okay?" Jessica asked and looked at Taeyeon with concerned eyes. The blonde girl 

nodded her head.

"Yeah." Taeyeon nodded. Jessica smiled a crooked smile and grabbed Taeyeon's hand and 

squeezed it.

"I have no idea what we're doing here." Jessica said and glanced at the plates that stood in 

front of them. Taeyeon did the same before she turned to look at Jessica again.

"Eating?" Taeyeon suggested. Jessica let out a small chuckle.

"Yeah." Jessica said. She looked the way Sooyoung had left before she turned to Taeyeon 

again. "What do you think of her?" Jessica asked and nodded the way Sooyoung had left. 

Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. But it seems she wants us the best. She could stop the other woman from 

calling the police." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head.

"Yeah, but the other woman..." Jessica furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't know what to think of 

her."

"We were supposed to give her time." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head.

"Yeah, but how much time can we give her?" Jessica asked. They heard steps coming to the 

kitchen which made them turn away from each other and pretend to eat again. They both 

glanced at Sooyoung that had come back to the kitchen. The woman smiled at the before she 

went to a cabinet. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other before they went back to eat the 

food the woman had made them.

They saw something being placed down in front of them and they looked up and saw 

Sooyoung had placed to glasses in front of them with a white liquid. With questioning looks 

they looked at the woman that had taken a seat in front of them again.

"It's milk." Sooyoung said. Still not sure what to believe they looked at each other before they 

turned to the woman in front of them. The woman seemed to understand they didn't trust them 

and she got up from her seat to get another glass. With the empty glass she returned to her 

seat again. She grabbed both girls' glasses and poured up some of the milk from both glasses 

in her glass. She placed back the glasses in front of the two girls and drank from her own 

glass.

"See, nothing wrong with it." Sooyoung said after she had emptied the glass. Taeyeon and 

Jessica looked at each other before they nodded their head, approving of what Sooyoung had 

said.

"Thank you." Jessica said and grabbed her glass of milk and drank from it. A smile appeared 

on Sooyoung's lips when she saw the brunette girl drink the milk she had given them. She 

turned to the blonde girl that also had lifted her glass of milk and drank from it. Feeling 

accomplished Sooyoung leaned back in her chair.

"About Tiffany," She began. Both Taeyeon and Jessica stopped in their action and gave the 

woman their attention. "she's been through some things in the past. That's why she might 

seem hard on the outside. But she's really nice once you get closer to her. I promise. And that 

she made you faint, she didn't mean to do that. She honestly feels bad for it, that's why she 

isn't here right now. She feels bad by just looking at you." Sooyoung said and looked at 

Taeyeon. Quite surprised to hear how bad the cap clad woman feels Taeyeon looked wide 

eyed at the taller woman. Not knowing what to do Taeyeon looked at Jessica. The brunette 

girl shrugged her shoulders.

"Tell her I forgive her." Taeyeon said in a low tone. A smile appeared on Sooyoung's lips.

"Tiffany!" Sooyoung shouted. The shout startled both girls by the table and they looked up 

from their plates to the door which Tiffany entered through. The cap clad woman looked 

really guilty when she entered the kitchen.

"You can tell her by yourself." Sooyoung told the blonde girl. Feeling nervous Taeyeon 

gulped and glanced at the cap clad woman.

"I forgive you." Taeyeon said with her gaze on the floor. Both Sooyoung and Jessica looked 

at Tiffany that had a smile on her lips now.

"Thank you, Taeyeon." Tiffany said. Taeyeon gave the woman a quick smile before she 

turned to Jessica again. The brunette girl patted her back while she glanced at the cap clad 

woman. They met gaze and Jessica nodded her head, the woman nodded back to her. Jessica 

went back to eat her food while both women now observed them.

---Night came. The two teenage girls were showed to a room where they could sleep in while 

they stayed. They noticed the two women had prepared the room by placing two mattresses

on the floor with two pillows, and blankets on the floor. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged 

glances while they looked down at the two mattresses on the floor.

"Let's move them closer to each other." Jessica suggested and dropped her plastic bag on the 

floor and went to one of the mattresses on the floor to move it closer to the other one. 

Taeyeon did the same and moved the other mattress closer to the one Jessica was moving. The 

space that had been between the two mattresses disappeared and they were now lying right 

beside each other. The two teenage girls looked at each other.

"I guess we will just have to go to sleep now." Jessica said and removed her jacket and her 

sweater she was wearing. Taeyeon did the same and the two girls laid down beside each other 

on the two mattresses. Both still feeling the space between each other moved closer to each 

other until their shoulders were touching. Like that they continued to stare up at the ceiling of 

the room they were in.

"Sica." Taeyeon broke the silence in the room.

"Hmm?" Jessica said and turned to the blonde girl beside her. Taeyeon did the same and they 

both got trapped in an eye-contact with each other.

"Let's tell them." Taeyeon announced. Jessica furrowed her eyebrows.

"Why?" Jessica asked.

"I'm tired of being misunderstood." Taeyeon spoke truthfully. Jessica slightly backed away 

from Taeyeon to take a better look at the blonde girl in the darkness of the room. By 

Taeyeon's tone Jessica knew the other girl was being serious.

"You sure?" Jessica asked and placed a hand on top of Taeyeon's. The blonde girl nodded her 

head. Jessica let out a sigh.

"You want me to tell them?" Jessica asked and sat up.

"If you'd like to, then yes." Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head.

"Yeah, I'll do it." Jessica said and squeezed Taeyeon's hand before she got up from the 

mattress. Taeyeon sat up and watched the brunette leave for the door.

"You're gonna do it right now?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica stopped with her hand on the 

doorknob.

"Better get this over with as fast as possible." Jessica said with a crooked smile and exited the 

room. Taeyeon was left in the darkness while she waited for Jessica to fulfil her wish.

Jessica walked down the stairs in the house and found the two women sitting in front of the 

TV in the living room. Tiffany turned her head when she heard someone coming and smiled 

upon seeing the younger girl was still up.

"Come and sit." Tiffany said and patted the space beside her. Jessica did as she was told and 

took a seat beside the cap clad woman. She started fidgeting with her fingers while Sooyoung 

and Tiffany looked at her.

"Was there something you wanted?" Sooyoung asked the brunette girl. Jessica looked at the 

taller of the two women and at the cap clad woman she was sitting beside. Jessica slowly 

nodded her head.

"I wanted to tell you something." Jessica said and averted her gaze to her hands. The two 

women nodded their heads.

"Go ahead." Sooyoung said. Jessica nodded her head and let out a sigh.

"It's about me and Taeyeon. Why we have ran away from home." Jessica said. The two 

women exchanged glances before they looked back at the brunette girl. They both nodded 

their heads.

"We didn't leave because of some simple disagreement with our parents. It's worse than that." 

Jessica said with a sigh. Both women furrowed their eyebrows in confusion but continued to 

listen to the teenage girl that was talking. 

Jessica let out a sigh and brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them. She stared at the 

TV and tried to think of a good way to explain to Tiffany and Sooyoung. The two women 

watched her with anticipation.

"My dad doesn't notice my mom and my mom blames it on me." Jessica began. She released 

her legs and sat cross legged instead and started fidgeting with the hem of her shirt instead.

"My dad is tired of my mom and treats her very bad, my mom tries to get noticed by him but 

it doesn't work, she takes out her frustration on me, punishing me in different ways, telling me 

it's my fault. She's also a heavy drinker."

Jessica looked up from her hands and stared at the TV with emotional eyes. "Taeyeon... in 

Taeyeon's family it's not much different. While my dad doesn't notice me or my mom, 

Taeyeon's dad doesn't notice her mom but he notice Taeyeon a bit too much." Jessica said and 

looked towards Tiffany. "He noticed her in a very wrong way." Jessica said and looked away 

from Tiffany back down to her hands. She let out a sigh.

"Taeyeon's dad did things to her. The first time something really, really, happened between 

them, was when Taeyeon was about ten years old I think. Taeyeon didn't dare to go home for 

four days, and I stayed with her at a place where we always went to when we couldn't, or 

didn't want to go home. Or if we just wanted a place to be at without anyone finding us.

The passing years weren’t much different for her. She had a really hard time as her dad didn't 

stop with what he was doing, and it soon resulted in Taeyeon couldn't have physical contact 

with people and she became a very introverted person. Taeyeon was so scared of physical 

contact that she flinched even when someone just brushed past her. In the beginning she was 

even scared of physical contact with me, but as time passed by she could accept it more and it 

wasn't that uncomfortable for her anymore and she started to hold my hand. But that was it. 

It's now, about seven years later, that Taeyeon is able to hug me without tensing up or freak 

out." Jessica explained with a sad smile on her face.

"Taeyeon's mom was aware of what was happening between Taeyeon and her husband and 

she didn't do anything about it, she only got jealous because her husband wouldn't care about 

her and she took out her jealousy on Taeyeon." Jessica said. "Every time something happened 

between Taeyeon and Taeyeon's dad and her mom found out about it, she would punish 

Taeyeon in different ways. Not giving Taeyeon food, lock her up, beating her, the list goes on. 

Those kind of punishment also happened when Taeyeon did something she wasn't allowed to 

do, like being out later than what she's allowed to." Jessica continued. Jessica ended her story 

with a sigh.

Tiffany was shocked by the story and felt lost for words. She felt guilty for thinking that 

Taeyeon and Jessica ran away from home because some simple disagreement with their 

parents. She looked at Sooyoung beside her that was looking at the young brunette with a 

sympathetic expression. Tiffany suddenly put the pieces together and now understood why 

Taeyeon had fainted earlier.

"She fainted because she's still not used to physical contact with strangers." Tiffany said and 

looked at the brunette girl. Jessica nodded her head.

"She's especially cautious of physical contact with adults." Jessica said and looked at the cap 

clad woman. Tiffany nodded her head understanding. Jessica swallowed and averted her gaze 

to her hands. She let out a long sigh.

"Me and Taeyeon didn't understand in the beginning that what happened to us was wrong, it 

wasn't until later on we found out that it shouldn't really be like that. It once came to a point 

when we wanted it all to end completely. For us both to stop suffering." Jessica said and 

gulped nervously.

Jessica stared at the trembling form of Taeyeon that sat in front of her on the floor of the 

basement they were in. It pained her seeing Taeyeon like this. Jessica didn't need to ask what 

had happened, she knew by Taeyeon's expression, Taeyeon body language, and how Taeyeon 

didn't want to look at her. And what pained her even more was that she couldn't do anything 

about it. Her uselessness was what pained her the most.

The brunette girl bent her head down to her folded arms that were resting on top of her knees. 

Jessica lifted one of her hands and let her point finger trace the bruises on her left arm. 

Earlier that day she had gotten into a fight with her mother, that's why she came here, but 

when she went here she didn't think she would find Taeyeon here as well. Seeing the 

vulnerable state of her friend all the anger she felt against her mother was forgotten and it 

transferred to Taeyeon's father. If only she could get her hands on that man, if she only could 

end Taeyeon's suffering.

Like a water drop that finally fell and hit the ground Jessica's memory of something her 

mother had used to end her suffering for a while plopped down. She stared in front of her 

while her mind tried to get a better hold of that memory so Jessica could figure out exactly 

what it was that her mother had used. After some backtracking of her memories she finally 

knew what it was.

Jessica moved closer to the still trembling Taeyeon. She knew what distance she should have 

with the girl and stopped at exact distance, hugging her knees while she looked at the 

trembling form of the girl. She gulped as she didn't know if she really should talk with her, she 

didn't know if Taeyeon even knew she was still here.

"Taeyeon...?" Jessica called the girl's name carefully.

The trembling girl slowly looked up at Jessica. Her eyes were red from tears, her cheeks wet 

from all the rivers she had cried, and her eyes showing how ashamed and scared she was. 

The sight making Jessica's stomach twist in an awful way. The brunette clenched her fists. She 

was disgusted, but not by Taeyeon, by Taeyeon's father.

"I have a solution." Jessica said and stopped herself from moving closer to Taeyeon. It was a 

habit of sitting close to the girl, but these days she had to give Taeyeon space.

Taeyeon remained silent and waited for Jessica to go on. The brunette girl moved to take a 

seat by the wall and leaned against the cold concrete wall. The blonde girl didn't move nor 

turn her head to Jessica, but Jessica was used to it, she was used to it but she didn't like it. 

She didn't like it because she knew Taeyeon didn't deserve to be like this, and she couldn't do 

anything to stop Taeyeon for suffering like this. But this, this plan she had now, now both of 

them could stop suffering.

"I know a way to end this." Jessica whispered. To her surprise Taeyeon turned her head, and 

when Taeyeon faced Jessica she could see the small glimpse of hope. If you hadn't lived by 

seeing Taeyeon's scared and miserable face for three years then you would have missed that 

small change in the face, that small change that showed hope. Knowing that she could still 

give Taeyeon that hope Jessica got encouraged that this might be their solution.

"My mom, she takes these pills, it's sleeping pills. When she takes them she falls asleep and 

nothing seems to be able to wake her up. Perhaps, we, if we took them, a bit larger doze, then 

we could end this. We won't feel anything. It's like falling asleep." Jessica said with her eyes 

focused on Taeyeon's face. Taeyeon remained expressionless and Jessica didn't quite know 

what Taeyeon thought of the idea. It made her a bit unsure.

"We take them together. We won't be alone. We'll have each other." Jessica assured Taeyeon. 

Like that had been the worry Taeyeon had been thinking about the blonde girl nodded her 

head like she understood, her eyes focused on the wall in front of her. Jessica swallowed the 

saliva in her mouth. She still hadn't gotten any sign or answer from Taeyeon that she was in 

for it.

"What do you say?" Jessica asked carefully. Taeyeon's eyes were distant as they focused on 

the wall in front of her. A sight Jessica had seen a lot of times, a sight that left Jessica to 

wonder what was going through the blonde's mind. Jessica gulped and shifted her sitting 

position. Her legs were beginning to cramp in the position she was sitting.

"Taeyeon...?" Jessica called the girl carefully. Slowly began Taeyeon nodding her head. 

Jessica felt her heart beat in anticipation. Was that the answer? Was Taeyeon in for it?  

"You wanna... do it?" Jessica asked. She had to be sure, she couldn't force Taeyeon into doing 

something against her will. Then it would be against Jessica's will.

Taeyeon nodded her head again. Making Jessica let out a relieved sigh. When she got the 

answer she scrambled up on her feet, brushing away the dust from her jeans. Taeyeon 

remained seated on the floor with her eyes still focused on the wall with her distant look.

"I... I'll go get them. I'll be back as soon as possible, no in thirty minutes, thirty minutes and 

I'll be here. Just stay here." Jessica turned to leave the girl, she glanced over her shoulder at 

the blonde girl that remained unmoved on the floor. With one last glance at Taeyeon Jessica 

exited the basement.

---The apartment was dark when Jessica got home. She carefully began moving towards the 

direction of the living room, careful to not bump into the things that were lying on the floor. 

She peeked inside the living room, catching a glimpse of her mother's figure on the couch. 

Her mother was completely passed out. An empty wine bottle was lying on the floor beside 

where her mother's hand was hanging down over the edge of the couch. With the notification 

that her mother was sleeping and wouldn't wake up pretty soon Jessica made her way to the 

bathroom.

She found her way inside and closed the door after her, she locked the door and turned on the 

light. The light making her eyes squint for a second as they weren't used to the brightness. 

Her eyes landed on the cabinet over the sink in the bathroom. With her heart pounding hard 

against her chest Jessica moved to the cabinet and opened it, trying to find that particular 

bottle that had imprinted itself in her memory from when she had been a child.

Her hands moved around among the things in the cabinet. Moving away things to take a look 

behind them for that particular bottle. Fear started to build up within her. What if the bottle 

wasn't here? What if her mother had put it elsewhere? What if she couldn't take away 

Taeyeon's suffering?

Just when she was losing all hope of finding the bottle her eyes landed on a white bottle in the 

cabinet. Jessica's lips curved into a smile and she grabbed it, shaking it slightly to make sure 

it was something in it. By the sound of the pills inside Jessica let out a relieved smile. The 

pills were there. Together with the end of all this.

She opened the bottle and filled her left palm with the pills. The bottle was almost empty when 

her palm was filled, but she didn't mind, her mother wouldn't notice. She stuffed her jack 

pocket with the pills and put back the bottle in the cabinet and closed it after her. And just as 

quietly she had made her way into the apartment Jessica made her way out of it.

---

Her heart pounded hard against her chest as she ran towards the basement she knew Taeyeon 

was waiting for her. Thirty minutes she had promised, Taeyeon just had to wait thirty minutes 

and then she would be there with the solution, the end of the suffering. The thought of making 

the heartache, the pained days, the days of tears and fear end made Jessica smile.

She turned a corner only to bump into something hard. The impact made Jessica stumble 

backwards and land on the hard concrete. Her butt and back came in contact with the ground 

and she let out a moan of pain. When she looked up to see what she had bumped into her eyes 

widened. Of all days to meet people from the school, this wasn't exactly the day and time 

Jessica wanted to meet them.

"What's the hurry, Jung?" The guy Jessica probably had bumped into asked. Jessica didn't 

respond the guy and just moved away when the guy took a step closer to her. The act only 

made the guy smirk.

"You should apologize when you bump into people." A guy behind the first guy said. The 

second guy had blonde hair and was slightly shorter than the first one. Jessica's lips remained 

sealed. No apology was needed in Jessica's mind.

"Hey, speak." The guy Jessica had bumped into demanded and kicked Jessica's foot. Jessica 

didn't say anything and just looked another way. If she remained unresponsive they probably 

would leave her alone, and then she could just go to Taeyeon and continue on with what she 

was going to do, and these guys wouldn't matter anymore.

"Where's Taeyeon by the way? Lost her? Or maybe she's with her father, yeah, daddy's little 

girl." One of the guys said in a mocking tone. The group started laughing by his comment. 

Jessica clenched her teeth and closed her hands into fists.

What Taeyeon doesn't hear she can't get hurt by. What Taeyeon doesn't hear she can't get hurt 

by. Jessica tried to tell herself. She breathed through her nose and tried to calm her raising 

anger.

"What's with you? Why won't you speak? Maybe you can't speak anymore. Hah! Like how you 

can't read!" The guy continued to say making the group laugh. Jessica sent him a glare.

"Oh, how scary." The guy continued to mock. A smirk appeared on his lips and he looked over 

at his friends. "Pick her up." He told them. Jessica's eyes widened when the blonde guy 

together with a brunette guy walked to her side and forced her up to her feet. The two guys 

held back her arms while the guy that had ordered them took a few steps to stand in front of 

Jessica.

"Let's see what Jung has in her pockets today." The guy said and reached out towards the 

pockets of Jessica's jacket. Realizing what the guy would find in the pockets Jessica started to 

struggle against the two guys that held her back. The action only making them more curious 

to what was inside.

"Seems like it's something we shouldn't find." The guy said to the two guys holding Jessica. 

The two guys laughed and held Jessica even tighter. Realizing it was no use in fighting 

against them Jessica could only hope the guy wouldn't mind the pills in her pocket and just let 

them be and then let her go. Feeling the guy's hand enter the pocket with the pills Jessica 

clenched her teeth together to not fight back. When she saw the guy's eyes widened she knew 

he had found them.

"Hey, look at this." The guy said and brought out his hand full of the pills. Jessica didn't look 

at the hand, if she looked she would probably find out he had taken all the pills that had been 

inside. "Are you doing drugs now?" The guy asked and picked up one of the pills to look 

closely at it.

"Doing drugs like her mother." The blonde guy said. The comments making Jessica’s anger 

boil over and she stomped the hardest she could on the guy's foot. The guy let go of her arm 

and she threw a punch at the other one that held her before she threw herself at the blonde 

guy and began landing punches at his face.

A kick to the side of her head made her fall over while clutching the side of her face. She felt 

something warm and wet run down her face, by the smell of iron she figured it was blood. The 

hand she was holding her bleeding head with was grabbed and was brought back to her back 

together with her other arm and a weight was pressing her down making her immobile. When 

she looked up she saw the guy holding the pills crouch down in front of her.

"I guess Jung really has become a drug addict like her mother." The guy said and looked at 

his closed fist which he was holding the pills with. "Or maybe she's buying the pills for her 

mother." The guy said excited. Jessica could hear some of the guys agreeing to what he had 

said and he began laughing.

"So Jung, what is it? Your pills or your mother's pills?" The guy said and straightened up. 

Jessica didn't respond and instead focused on the pounding of her head. Because of her 

unresponsiveness the guy started to get bored. She heard him sigh and the footsteps indicated 

he was walking away from her.

"But you know drugs are illegall, Jung. I'm just wondering how much in trouble you'd get if 

you didn't gave these pills to your mother. I guess a lot. But then that isn't my problem." The 

guy said with a smirk. Jessica looked up at him, her heart beat in fear, fear of what he could 

to with the pills in his hand. And like some kind of confirmation of her fear the guy turned, 

bending his closed hand back before moving it forward in a swift motion while opening it. 

Jessica saw all the white pills flying, flying away into the darkness of the night.

Still not saying anything Jessica stared at the pills she no longer could see. The escape she 

had been so close to getting, the end of her and Taeyeon's suffering, the end of the beating, 

the bullying, everything. It was just a few blocks away, if she had been faster she would have 

gotten it, if she had been stronger and fought back these guys she could have gotten it. But 

now it was gone, just in the motion of a throw, it was gone.

"Let's go." The guy that had thrown away the pills said in a bored tone. Jessica felt the weight 

on her body move away and her arms were released. Even though she was now free she didn't 

move and continued to lie on the ground while starting towards the direction the pills had 

flown. The footsteps of the three guys faded away and were instead replaced by the pounding 

of Jessica's head.

A water drop hit Jessica's cheek and soon she heard the rain fall down on the ground, making 

her dirty clothes wet. And the pills, they were gone, probably forever. Jessica clenched her 

fists and lowered her forehead to rest on top of them. The feeling of useless was coming back 

to her, she couldn't save Taeyeon from the suffering this time either. And while she lied there 

in the rain she wondered how she would be able to face Taeyeon now without the pills. The 

pills she had promised would help.

---Jessica knew it hadn't gone thirty minutes since she left when she came back to the basement. 

It had probably gone over an hour. But she still caught Taeyeon's form in the basement. The 

blonde girl was still staring at the wall in front of her, the sight making a lump form in 

Jessica's throat. A broken promise, how would she be able to tell Taeyeon about that?

Her tired body brought her to the seat beside Taeyeon. A distance of fifty centimeters were 

between them. Jessica leaned her still pounding head against the wall behind her, feeling the 

coldness from it soothe the pain in her head a bit. Her body was shaking a bit by the coldness 

of her soaked clothes. She let out an exhausted sigh and glanced at Taeyeon that still hadn't 

moved. She gulped nervously and wetted her dry lips.

"I lost the pills." Jessica said with a dry voice. Hearing her own voice say it she felt the lump 

in her throat getting larger and larger and she closed her eyes before her tears could fall. The 

feeling of uselessness was eating her up.

She heard Taeyeon move, she could feel the blonde girl looking at her, something she didn't 

want. She was ashamed of herself, ashamed she couldn't help her friend, ashamed she 

promised to help but she couldn't. Jessica let out a sigh, hearing how unsteady her own 

breath and voice were.

"I'm sorry." Jessica said and clenched her teeth together. A lone tear rolled down the side of 

her cheek. She felt Taeyeon had moved closer, and fearing what her friend would do to her 

Jessica sat rooted to her spot. But even though she feared it, she knew she deserved it. She 

had lost the only escape Taeyeon had to her suffering.

A hand slipped into her own and squeezed it tight, a warm body was pressed to the side of 

hers and a head leaned against her shoulder. Jessica opened her eyes in surprise, she wanted 

to turn to look at Taeyeon but she was afraid and remained still, her eyes focused on the wall 

in front of them. Jessica gulped nervously. She hadn't expected this to be the reaction she 

would get.

"It's okay." Taeyeon spoke calmly. The words making the lump in Jessica's throat appear 

again and she had to brace herself against the tears to not let them fall.

"There's other ways." Taeyeon continued to speak in a calm manner. Jessica screwed her eyes 

shut and her tears fell. Tears falling because Taeyeon had to live with her suffering for 

another day, tears of how much it pained her knowing she couldn't really do anything to help 

the girl she cared so much about.

When Jessica had finished telling the story her whole body was trembling. Both Sooyoung 

and Tiffany watched the brunette girl in shock and sympathy. They looked at each other and 

then back at Jessica that took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"We never tried anything like that again. We talked about it, but we never did it. We figured it 

was no use when we already had failed once." Jessica said and looked at the two women 

beside her. She felt tears burn behind her eyes and she brought up her knees to her chest and 

folded her arms on top of them and covered her face with them.

"Didn't you go to school? Didn't your teachers notice anything?" Sooyoung asked carefully. A 

sad laugh escaped Jessica's lips.

"Taeyeon's dad never let Taeyeon have any friends, he scared them away and she got bullied 

for it. Because I never left Taeyeon's side both me and her got frozen out in school. While the 

teachers never saw Taeyeon, they always saw my mistakes. One teacher once saw what 

happened to us, he also helped me to get a dyslexia diagnosis because I had trouble reading 

and writing. That teacher got fired. And no one dared to get close to us again after that 

happened." Jessica lifted up her head and looked at the two women beside her.

"We had contact with that teacher after he got fired, but he couldn't get any teaching job after 

what he had done. He also wanted to help us more than what he did, but he couldn't afford it." 

Jessica explained and rested her chin on top of her folded arms. "I always felt guilty towards 

him because I felt I was the one that got him fired, and later on I got expelled from school 

because I had punched a guy that had kicked Taeyeon in the stomach until she was coughing 

blood. Taeyeon always felt guilty for that." Jessica said and sighed.

"Basically we had no one to rely on because they always got dragged down with us, and 

everyone knew that and stayed away. We were like the plague." Jessica said. Both Sooyoung 

and Tiffany looked shocked by how Jessica had described their situation. But they understood 

that from where the girls came from, it was no surprise they would think like that.

"You aren't like the plague, Jessica." Sooyoung said. Tiffany nodded her head in agreement. 

Jessica sighed.

"I know. But we didn't know what else to think then." Jessica said sadly.

"I'm sorry, Jessica." Tiffany said and patted the young girl's head. "I'm sorry that I judged 

your situation so lightly." The cap clad woman said.

Jessica inhaled and exhaled and nodded her head. She let out a small chuckle and looked at 

the TV screen. "I don't blame you, what you thought must be the normal thing to think if two 

teenagers run away from home. None really think it can be something different." Jessica said 

sadly.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't be. I and Taeyeon never liked people's pity, we're stronger than that. The only thing 

we've ever wanted is to be understood and accepted." Jessica said and looked serious at 

Tiffany.

"Me and Taeyeon have managed to live with our families and other problems, and the last 

thing we want to hear is that someone is sorry for us. I told you our story because I wanted 

you to know and understand why we do this, I don't want your pity, save it for the starving 

kids in Africa." Jessica said serious and stood up from her seat on the couch. Tiffany looked 

dumbfounded at the brunette.

"I'm going to sleep, thank you for listening." Jessica said and went to the stairs to head up to 

the second floor where she and Taeyeon were sleeping.

Tiffany looked shocked at the brunette, she was surprised by the change in attitude Jessica 

had showed. She looked at Sooyoung to get an answer why Jessica would act like that and the 

other woman smiled at her.

"I think you offended her." Sooyoung simply said. Tiffany expression changed from shocked 

to questioning. "Jessica told you they didn't want to hear people say they are sorry for them, 

they simply want to be understood." Tiffany nodded and looked at the TV again.

"Those kids are really something. I want to feel sorry for them but if they don't want that what 

should I do?" Tiffany asked and took a sip from her drink.

"Just be there, watch them, understand them and accept their choices in life. That's what they 

want." Sooyoung said and leaned back in the couch.

"You always get the hang of things so quickly."

"I've read a lot of books." Sooyoung said and smiled. Tiffany chuckled and shook her head.

---Jessica quietly opened the door to the room where she and Taeyeon would be sleeping. In the 

darkness she could see Taeyeon's figure lying on the mattress in the middle of the room. 

Jessica carefully walked to the mattress and pulled away the blanket and laid down beside 

Taeyeon. She closed her eyes and tried to let her muscle relax to allow her to go to sleep. She 

felt Taeyeon moving beside her and she opened her eyes and found them staring into 

Taeyeon's brown orbs.

"Did you tell them?" Taeyeon asked. Jessica nodded.

"What did they say?"

Jessica let out a sigh and looked away from Taeyeon's eyes. She felt the blonde girl grab her 

hand.

"I told them we didn't want their pity, hopefully they will understand that." Jessica said and 

looked back at the blonde's eyes. Taeyeon nodded her head.

"Yeah, hopefully." Taeyeon said and looked at the hand she was holding. Jessica did the same 

before she looked up at Taeyeon again. Even though it was dark the brunette could see what a 

concentrated expression seemed to have.

"Let's not think more about it. Let's go to sleep." Jessica announced and placed her free arm 

around Taeyeon's waist. She felt the blonde tense for one second but slowly relaxed soon 

after. When Jessica had made sure Taeyeon had relaxed and closed her eyes Jessica proceed 

to close her eyes and try to sleep as well.

Chapter 16 - Watch and Understand

Brown orbs were watching two figures putting up things on a shelf in the small grocery store. 

In the corner of the eyes the woman could see someone coming towards her. She turned her 

eyes and looked slightly upwards at the woman that approached her. The tall woman with 

brown hair smiled at the cap clad woman that raised her eyebrow upon seeing her.

"Don't you have work?" Tiffany asked Sooyoung that stopped beside her and turned to watch 

Taeyeon and Jessica Tiffany earlier had put to work.

"It's Sunday. School is closed." Sooyoung said with a smile.

"You have a bakery."

"I have people there to take care of it."

Silenced filled between the two women and the continued to watch the two teenager that did 

their work without stopping, or even take notice of the two people that were observing them. 

They took notice of how well the two girls were working with each other. While Taeyeon 

stood on a stool to reach up to the higher shelves Jessica gave Taeyeon the things that were 

supposed to be on those shelves. Like that they continued to work until all shelves were filled 

with goods.

Tiffany let out a sigh which made Sooyoung turn to her with a questioning look.

"What should I do?" Tiffany mumbled. Sooyoung continued to look at her with a questioning 

look as she didn't understand what Tiffany was talking about.

"The world has been really cruel and unfair towards them. They have gone through more 

things than most kids their age. It makes me angry knowing what they have gone through 

without anyone but themselves to help them. People have pushed them away, treated them 

unfairly. It's so sad. I just want to wrap my arms around them and give the security no one 

else seemed to give them. Is that strange?" Tiffany turned to the taller girl. Sooyoung was 

looking at her with a knowing look.

"I know. It's not strange to want to protect them; save them from the world's cruelty. But you 

know, they are travelling like this for a reason. Rather than travelling I think they want to 

show the world that no matter what cruel things they go through, no matter how unfair 

everything is going to be for them, they will have each other, and together they can overcome 

all that." Sooyoung said and turned her head to the two girls Tiffany and she was watching.

"Thinking they run away for love or friendship is an understatement, they're running away to 

slap fate in the face." Tiffany said and looked at the two girls that helped each other carrying 

the big box of cans.

Sooyoung chuckled by Tiffany's comment. Not because it was stupid, but because it was true 

and a really good explanation of what the two girls really was doing.

"True." Sooyoung said and nodded her head. 

"The saddest thing that could happen is if someone were to separate them from each other." 

Tiffany said and furrowed her eyebrows.

Both she and Sooyoung turned to each other, both of them confirming they were thinking the 

same when they saw the other's expression. They turned back to watch the two teenager while 

they both sent small prayers that no one would ever separate the two girls from each other.

As time went by the goods Taeyeon and Jessica were going to put up on the shelves got lesser 

and lesser and soon they were done with the task Tiffany had given them. Now a bit tired after 

having working since six in the morning they went to the cap clad woman that stood by the

counter.

"We're done." Jessica said and adjusted the gloves she was wearing.

"Good, now you can-"

"Change clothes, because we're going out." Sooyoung interrupted Tiffany. The cap clad 

woman looked at the taller woman with a confused look. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged 

glances as they didn't know if they should listen to Sooyoung or not when it was Tiffany they 

had taken orders from before.

"Okay." Jessica said a bit uncertain and she and Taeyeon started making their way to the 

staffs' locker rooms. But not without glancing at Tiffany and Sooyoung that continued to 

stand by the counter.

When the two teenagers had left Tiffany glared at Sooyoung.

"What do you mean we're going out?" Tiffany asked angry. Sooyoung smiled at the cap clad 

woman and patted her cap clad head.

"You barely have any customers on Sundays, why not close the place for today? There is this 

carnival today, I thought we could take the girls there." Sooyoung said. Tiffany's expression 

softened and she looked around the store. Sooyoung was right about the customers. She 

barely had any on Sundays.

"You said you wanted to give them the security no one else had given them. But to be able to 

give them that you need to earn their trust first. They won't let you protect them unless they're 

sure they can trust you. And to earn that trust you need to spend time with them, showing 

them you're someone they can rely on." Sooyoung said. A pout appeared on Tiffany's face and 

she turned to the taller woman.

"It's unfair to use that against me. Now you know I'll agree to this no matter what." Tiffany 

said with a frown. A triumphant smile appeared on Sooyoung's face.

"Fine. I'll close the store for today." Tiffany gave in and pushed herself off the counter she 

had been leaning against and started making her way to the staffs' room. The taller woman 

was left by the counter still with her smile on her face.

---Sooyoung had told where the carnival was located and Tiffany had driven them there. The 

two teenagers that had no idea where they were going was watching the changing scenery 

with curious eyes. When they understood it was a carnival they had been brought to, both of 

them had slightly confused eyes to why the two women brought them here.

"To hang out a bit." Tiffany explained. She glanced at the taller woman that nodded her head. 

Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged glances before they looked back at the two women. "You can 

go wherever you want. We will be right behind you." Tiffany said and lifted her hand to turn 

both girls around and push them to walk, but remembered last night and stopped herself from 

touching Taeyeon.

"Go." Tiffany instead showed in the air that the two girls should begin walking. And with 

their hands intertwined the two girls turned around and began walking through the crowd of 

people with Tiffany and Sooyoung trailing behind them.

The two women's eyes were on the two teenagers that walked in front of them. With 

observing eyes they watched how the two girls interacted with each other and how they acted 

in the environment they were in right now. They quickly took notice of the hands that never 

let go of each other.

"Why are they holding hands all the time?" Tiffany finally spoke out her inquires about the 

hand-holding to Sooyoung that was walking by her side.

"They are two kids going to places they've never been to before. The only security they have 

are each other, to make sure they are by each other sides all the time they hold hands, it gives 

both security and familiarity." Sooyoung quickly explained her analysis of the two girls after 

having watching them for a while.

Tiffany turned to the taller woman and looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Sooyoung turned 

to the woman with the cap and gave her a smile. Both turned back and watched the two 

younger girls walking in front. Both pair of eyes landed on the two intertwined hands between 

the two girls.

"How do you know all that?" Tiffany asked.

Sooyoung chuckled. "I just watch and try to understand them. It's not that hard if you really 

try." Sooyoung said and turned her head to the still confused Tiffany.

"Just watching them will make me understand them?" Tiffany said like she couldn't believe it. 

She continued to watch the back of Taeyeon and Jessica that walked in front of them.

They came to a sales booth that displayed jewelry of different kinds. The two teenager 

stopped there to take a look at all the bracelets, necklaces, rings and earrings that were laid out 

on the table for people to see. The two women came to join the two girls by the table to take a 

look at the jewelry.

Tiffany saw in the corner of her eye that Jessica lifted on a bracelet. She turned to the brunette 

girl, and a smile appeared on her face when she remembered something Jessica had said 

before.

"I thought you said you wouldn't lay your hands on things you couldn't afford?" Tiffany said 

jokingly. The brunette snapped her head towards Tiffany, and with a guilt-stricken face 

Jessica slowly put back the bracelet back down on the table.

Sooyoung looked at Jessica that continued to look at the jewelry, but now with both her hands 

deep buried in her pockets.

"If there is anything you want, I can buy it for you." Sooyoung offered. The taller woman got 

three pair of eyes that looked at her. "I mean Taeyeon and Jessica. You got your own money." 

Sooyoung said and patted Tiffany's shoulder.

The other woman frowned and turned back to the jewelry. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each 

other with unsure looks and glanced at Sooyoung that had made the offer. Sooyoung noticed 

it and went to the two teenagers’ side and looked at what they were looking. Jessica and 

Taeyeon quickly noticed it and looked somewhere else.

"That bracelet," Sooyoung began and stretched out her hand towards the bracelet Jessica had 

been looking at earlier. "do you have two of it?" Sooyoung asked the seller and held up it to 

show which one she meant. The seller that was an elderly lady nodded her head.

"I have more of these, they're on the table." The lady said and pointed at the place where 

Sooyoung had taken the bracelet from. The taller woman looked at the place and noticed there 

was only one more of the bracelet. Not thinking much about it Sooyoung took the other 

bracelet that was on the table.

"I'll take these two." Sooyoung said with a smile.

"It will be 1900 won, please." The lady said.

When Sooyoung had paid for both the bracelets she noticed both Taeyeon and Jessica was 

gone. Tiffany was still looking at the jewelry beside her. Sooyoung furrowed her eyebrows in 

confusion and she looked at the cap clad woman that didn't seem to have noticed the two 

teenagers’ disappearance.

"Where are Taeyeon and Jessica?" Sooyoung asked the other woman. Tiffany looked up from 

what she was looking at. Her mouth opening to answer but stopped herself when she noticed 

they were gone.

"I don't know." The cap clad woman said. Sooyoung shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess we'll just have to go look for them then." The taller woman said and began walking.

---

The two pair of feet stopped walking and two heads turned to glance over their shoulders to 

check if someone was following. Confirming no one was walking after them, the two girls 

began walking slower while letting out a sigh of relief.

"That was weird." Jessica said after a while. She glanced over her shoulder again before she 

turned her head forward to focus on where she was walking. Taeyeon just nodded in 

agreement to what Jessica said and the girls continued to look at the different things on the 

carnival.

"Oh, look." Taeyeon said after a while and pointed to their right. Jessica turned to where the 

blonde girl was looking and saw a woman with turtles. The two teenagers went there to take a 

look at the animal with its shell like house. They bent down to the bin small turtles was 

swimming around in. Taeyeon turned to Jessica with a smile on her face, Jessica smiled at the 

blonde too.

"Do you want to hold one?" The woman asked. Wide eyed Taeyeon and Jessica looked at the 

woman that just spoke to them.

"Are we allowed to hold one?" Jessica asked. The woman smiled at the brunette and put her 

hand into the water and picked up one of the small turtles and reached it out towards Taeyeon.

"Here." The woman said. Taeyeon looked at the turtle and at Jessica before she carefully held 

out her hands to hold the little animal. The woman dropped the turtle that landed in Taeyeon's 

small hands. Wide eyed Taeyeon looked at the animal that was in her hands now.

Fascinated by the animal the two girls stared at it when it tried to move in the hands that was 

holding it. The turtle turned its small little head towards where Jessica was, the brunette 

reached out one of her fingers towards it, getting scared the turtle hid its head inside its shell. 

Wide eyed and disappointed Jessica stared at the animal while Taeyeon chuckled by how the 

animal had reacted.

"It doesn't seem to like your fingers that much." Taeyeon said with a smile. Jessica frowned 

and instead settled with just looking and not touching. Having had enough of the turtle 

Taeyeon handed it back to the woman that placed it back into the bin with water. The two 

girls looked at the turtle that seemed to have gotten relieved after being returned to its 

friends.

They continued their way through the carnival; looking at the people that played different 

kind of games and the different kind of places that sell food. Both of them started to get 

hungry. They had stopped at a place where they sold different kinds of jeon (Korean 

pancakes). The two girls looked at the food, feeling their mouths getting watery by the sight.

Jessica felt her stomach growl and she nibbled at her lower lip. She glanced at Taeyeon that 

was still looking at the pancakes. Just when Jessica had decided to continue to walk someone 

tapped her shoulder and she spun around to see a tall woman standing there with a grin.

"Here you are." Sooyoung said. Tiffany was by the taller woman's side; looking relieved to 

have found the two girls again. 

Realizing the two people they had ran away from had found them again the two teenager 

looked at each other before they looked back at Sooyoung and Tiffany again. With faked 

smiles they smiled at the two women.

"So, do you want pancakes?" Sooyoung asked. Surprised the woman had realized that so fast 

the two girls turned to look at the pancake stall before they turned to the two women again. 

"Well, we want pancakes, and we will buy it for you too." Sooyoung then concluded without 

hearing what the two girls had to say.

Taeyeon and Jessica felt themselves being pushed towards a table by the tall woman. The got 

pushed down on two chairs while Sooyoung took a seat by the table as well. Taeyeon and 

Jessica stared at the table surface as they didn't dare looking the taller woman in the eyes.

"What fun did you find?" Sooyoung asked. Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances, and by 

what they saw in the other girl’s expression they both knew it was no point in staying silent 

when the woman was asking them.

"Turtles." Jessica said and glanced at the woman.

"Oh, turtles. I see. Do you like turtles?" Sooyoung said with a smile. Once again did Jessica 

and Taeyeon look at each other.

"They're cute." Jessica said with a shrug while Taeyeon nodded in agreement. Sooyoung took 

notice of the girls hands that was still holding each other, when she had looked at the hands 

before it seemed like they had hold tighter, but now it looked like they held more relaxed.

"Yeah, turtles are cute." Sooyoung said. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged glances again before 

they turned to stare at the table again. The two girls with the woman sat in silence by the table 

while they waited for Tiffany to make their orders.

"About Tiffany," Sooyoung started while she seemed to look somewhere else than the two 

girls that sat by the table. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at the woman that had begun talking. 

"Tiffany got married when she was 19 years old. She and her husband lived in America then, 

but they decided to move to Korea after they had gotten married. When Tiffany was 21 she 

was gonna have their first child, however when she gave birth the child didn't survive." 

Sooyoung said and looked at the two girls in front of her that looked at her wide eyed.

"After that Tiffany's marriage didn't survive either, when she was 22 she and her husband 

divorced. And ever since she hasn't had any serious relationships. It's kind of sad, she's 

already 26." Sooyoung said and looked at the two girls that didn't know what to say about the 

cap clad woman's past.

"After you told us about your past, Tiffany said she wanted to tell you about hers. It was fairer

that way." Sooyoung said with a smile. The two girls nodded their heads while glancing at 

each other. None of them knew how to react to this story they was just told. In truth they 

didn't know much about the importance of the things Sooyoung talked about either.

The two girls and woman sat in silence while they waited for Tiffany. The black haired 

woman soon arrived by the table with the food she had ordered. When she sat down by the 

table both Taeyeon and Jessica looked at her with a sympathetic look. The cap clad woman 

noticed the teenagers looked at her and she looked questioning at Sooyoung that smiled at her 

and started eating from the food.

"What?" Tiffany asked when Taeyeon and Jessica didn't seem to stop looking. Embarrassed 

that they had been caught both of them looked somewhere else while Tiffany again turned to 

Sooyoung. "What did you tell them?"

"The thing you told me to tell them." Sooyoung said while she munched on a kimichijeon.

"Oh." Tiffany said and glanced at the two teenagers that had their heads bent down and 

looked down at their hands. "I'm fine, really. You don't have to feel sorry or anything. I just 

thought it was fair if I told you my story when you've already told your." Tiffany said with a 

smile. Taeyeon and Jessica slowly looked up from their hands they had been looking at.

"Alright?" Tiffany said. Both Jessica and Taeyeon nodded their heads. Satisfied Tiffany 

smiled and placed the plate of kimichijeon in front of the two girls. "Eat before Sooyoung eats 

up everything." Tiffany said. Hesitantly Taeyeon and Jessica took one kimichi pancake and 

started eating on it.

---The two girls with the two women continued to walk through the carnival. From time to time 

they stopped to take a look at the different sales booths that were along the way through the 

carnival. Jessica and Taeyeon had decided it was no point in trying to run away from the two 

women as they would start looking for them.

"Why do you think they let us go anywhere we want but won't let us go alone?" Taeyeon 

whispered to Jessica. The brunette girl whose hand she was holding looked behind her at the 

two women that followed them before she turned to Taeyeon.

"They make sure we don't steal anything." Jessica answered back in a whisper. Taeyeon 

slowly nodded her head and continued to look at the sale booths they were passing by.

After a few more minutes of walking they had walked through the whole carnival. It was 

rather small compared to other carnivals the two teenagers had seen through their life, but it 

was still entertaining for them. Even though they had the two women behind them that 

watched their every step and every move.

"I need to go to a toilet." Taeyeon whispered when they were on their way to go back through 

the carnival to the parking lot Tiffany had parked the car.

Jessica snapped her head to the younger girl and nodded in acknowledge before she began 

looking around for any public restroom.

"Maybe we will find one while we walk." Jessica said and turned to Taeyeon when she hadn't 

seen any. The blonde nodded her head and she too began looking around for any toilets.

"Tiffany knows where the toilets are. She can take you." They heard Sooyoung's voice say 

behind them. Jessica was going to turn around to look at the women but feeling the hand she 

was holding slipping out of hers she panicked looked back at Taeyeon whose back she saw

walking through the crowd together with Tiffany.

Feeling empty and a bit lost without Taeyeon Jessica shoved her hands into her jeans pockets 

while she continued to walk now with Sooyoung by her side. The woman and teenage girl 

stopped by the side of a sales booth while they waited for Taeyeon and Tiffany to return.

Sooyoung glanced at the girl beside her. Jessica was constantly looking the way Tiffany and 

Taeyeon had went like it would make them return faster. Sooyoung smiled by the girl's action 

and put her hand inside her pocket.

"Jessica put out one of your hands." Sooyoung told the girl. Being spoken to Jessica snapped 

her head towards the woman, she slowly took out one of her hands out of her pocket and held 

it out towards the woman.

Thinking Sooyoung was going to hurt her Jessica tried to withdraw her hand but Sooyoung 

managed to grab her wrist before she could do so. With wide eyes Jessica tried to struggle out 

of Sooyoung's grip.

"Calm down." Sooyoung said gently and looked at the teenage girl. Slowly started Jessica to 

relax and she watched what the woman was doing with her hand. Something was wrapped 

around her wrist and when Sooyoung removed her hands that had been around Jessica's wrist 

the girl could see it was the bracelet Sooyoung had bought earlier.

Jessica felt the woman turn her hand upside with her palm facing upwards now. Something 

was placed in her hand and when Sooyoung let go of her wrist and hand she saw it was an 

identical bracelet as she had around her wrist now.

"Give that one to Taeyeon." Sooyoung said with a smile. Jessica looked up from the bracelet 

at the tall woman. With a small smile Jessica bowed her head in gratitude. "Now you have a 

couple bracelets." Sooyoung said jokingly.

"We are a couple." Jessica said bluntly while still looking at the bracelet in her hand.

Sooyoung's eyes widened by the girl's blunt confession. She blinked and expected Jessica to 

say it was a joke.

"It's true." Jessica said and turned to Sooyoung. Sooyoung's face relaxed and she smiled at the 

girl.

"I see. You match." Sooyoung said with a smile.

"Really?" Jessica asked shocked. Sooyoung smiled even wider and nodded her head.

"Yeah. I hope you'll be happy together." Sooyoung said. A smile appeared on Jessica's face 

and she looked at the bracelet in her hand and around her wrist again.

"As long as we are together we will be happy." Jessica said with a smile.

---The two women and the two girls returned back to Sooyoung and Tiffany's home after 

Taeyeon and Tiffany had come back from their toilet visit. Feeling tired after walking around 

the whole day, and also been working during the morning Taeyeon and Jessica went to the 

room they had been allowed to borrow while they stayed there.

When they were in the room both of them took a seat at the mattresses that were still laid out 

in the middle of the room on the floor. Side by side they sat on the mattresses while staring at 

the wall in front of them.

With her hand in her pocket Jessica could feel the matching bracelet she was supposed to give

Taeyeon. She wanted to do it at the right moment, and she felt this to be the perfect moment 

now when they were alone. But with her heart beating so fast out of nervousness she was 

getting scared.

She felt the hand that was holding the bracelet getting sweaty. She took out the hand from the 

pocket and wiped it off on her jeans, with a glance on Taeyeon she saw the blonde girl 

looking at her. She smiled embarrassed at her and put her hand back into her pocket.

She gulped and glanced at Taeyeon again. The blonde girl that was sitting cross legged was 

playing with the hem of her shirt. Jessica gulped again and averted her gaze to her feet. Her 

mind tried desperately to come up with something to say.

"Are you tired?" Jessica finally asked and turned to Taeyeon. She was amazed how natural 

her question sounded even though she was so nervous. Taeyeon turned her head to her when 

she was spoken to. A small smile appeared on the blonde's lips and she shrugged her 

shoulders.

"A bit." Taeyeon said. "What about you?" Taeyeon asked and looked into Jessica's eyes. 

Looking into those brown orbs of the blonde girl Jessica felt warmth spread in her body and a 

wide smile appeared on her lips.

"No, not at all." Jessica said with a smile. And it was the truth, she had felt tired, but that 

tiredness had suddenly vanished.

Feeling the new strength Jessica tightened her grip on the bracelet. The nervousness was no 

longer there and she felt like the perfect moment was right now. Her heart still beating fast, 

but she discharged it and moved closer to Taeyeon that looked questioning at her.

Jessica carefully placed one arm around the blonde girl and brought the body closer to her. 

She could feel Taeyeon hesitating a bit, and the girl looked at her questioning. Jessica flashed 

a reassuring smile at the blonde girl.

"Trust me, okay?" Jessica said and let the hand not holding the bracelet in it's grip lightly 

stroke Taeyeon's arm. She felt the blonde slowly relax and Jessica was allowed to move 

Taeyeon's body till it was in complete contact with hers.

Jessica felt her heart beat faster by their close proximity. She nervously gulped and reached 

her hand around and gently grabbed Taeyeon's right hand. With curious eyes Taeyeon 

watched Jessica uncover her right wrist and revealing the bracelet. Jessica opened her right 

hand and revealed the second and identical bracelet she had been holding.

"This," Jessica began speaking in whispers while she put on the bracelet on Taeyeon's right 

wrist. "is couple bracelets." Jessica said with a smile when she saw the bracelet around 

Taeyeon's wrist.

"And it's going to show that we're couple." Jessica said with a smile and held her right wrist 

beside Taeyeon's. Taeyeon remained mum while she looked at the two bracelets that were 

around their wrists.

Jessica slid her right hand into Taeyeon's and intertwined their fingers. The two girls 

continued to sit in silence as they looked at their hands. Feeling restless by Taeyeon's 

quietness Jessica started moving their intertwined hands.

"Is it okay?" Jessica asked and studied the profile of Taeyeon's face. The blonde turned her 

head and met Jessica's gaze. A small smile graced Taeyeon's lips and she nodded her head.

"Yes. It's okay." Taeyeon replied.

Jessica felt her heart beat fast in happiness and she beamed a big grin at the blonde. Without 

thinking she leaned closer and pecked Taeyeon's cheek. The blonde's eyes widened and a 

blush appeared on her cheeks. Jessica smiled at the blonde while her cheeks became the same 

color the blonde's were.

Taeyeon met Jessica's eyes, not being able to contain her facial expressions Taeyeon smiled 

too. An embarrassed laugh escaped Jessica's lips and they broke their eye-contact. Jessica 

looking another way while Taeyeon looking at their still locked hands.

The blonde glanced at the brunette girl that was still looking another way out of 

embarrassment. She bit her lower lip and averted her gaze to the sheet underneath them. She 

gulped nervously and looked up at the brunette again. Mustering up as much courage she 

could she kiss Jessica's cheek while the brunette was still looking another way.

Jessica snapped her head towards the blonde when she felt the kiss on her cheek. The girls 

locked in an eye contact again, both stared wide eyed at each other. Jessica shocked b y the 

kiss and Taeyeon shocked she actually had dared to do that kind of move.

"T-thank you." Taeyeon muttered. The girls shocked state broke when one of them finally had 

uttered something. Realizing what Taeyeon had said Jessica looked questioning at the girl.

"F-f-for the b-bracelet." Taeyeon stammered. A smile appeared on Jessica's lips and she 

nodded her head.

"You're welcome." Jessica said. Relieved by the response Taeyeon smiled and looked shyly 

away. Seeing the shy Taeyeon Jessica smiled and propped her chin on Taeyeon's shoulder, not 

feeling the blonde tense or flinch by the contact Jessica engulfed Taeyeon in a hug. 

"Taeyeon, I think I love you." Jessica confessed. She glanced at the blonde that was blushing 

again. She smiled, rather embarrassed by her confession. "My heart beats so fast when we're 

like this." Jessica confessed again. She felt the blonde shift in her embrace and she looked at 

the blonde girl that now was smiling.

"My heart does too." Taeyeon confessed. Jessica felt relieved when she wasn't the only one 

feeling that feeling. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh.

"Things don’t feel so bad when we're like this." Jessica whispered. She felt Taeyeon nod her 

head. The blonde girl slightly leaned back in Jessica's embrace. Jessica started wonder if 

Taeyeon could feel her heart beat when they were this close.

"Nothing feels bad when I'm with you." Taeyeon whispered. Jessica opened her eyes by the 

blonde's comment. She smiled and nodded her head.

The brunette girl leaned back. Making both of them fall down on the mattresses. She felt the 

blonde tense up as she still had her arms around her; giving the blonde time to relax Jessica 

loosened her hold on Taeyeon's body and let her hands slowly stroke Taeyeon's back in a 

comforting manner.

Taeyeon slowly let her body relax. Her heart beat fast as she looked down at the brunette she 

was lying on top of. Feeling shy Taeyeon looked away from Jessica's observing eyes. She felt 

Jessica's hands stopping stroking her back and instead Jessica's arms wrapped around her 

body.

"You okay?" Jessica asked worried. Taeyeon slowly nodded her head and looked at the 

brunette's face.

"I'm okay." Taeyeon assured her. Jessica smiled relieved. Taeyeon slightly shifted to be able 

to rest her head against Jessica's shoulder. She extended one of her arms to place it over 

Jessica's waist. Feeling the position wasn't that weird, and it didn't feel wrong when she was 

with Jessica, Taeyeon smiled and closed her eyes.

Feeling them breathing in sync Taeyeon thought that love perhaps wasn't that bad of feeling. 

Because how could a feeling that made you feel this happy, and this good, be bad?

Chapter 17 – What might be waiting

A closed hand was raised up to knock on the wooden door to the room. After three knocks the 

woman entered the room; stopping at the sight before her. Her eyebrows slightly raised and 

her mouth closed. When she finally had proceed what she saw in front of her she made her 

way to one side of the mattresses and bent down. Her hand reached out towards the brunette 

girl that was sleeping and lightly shook the girl's body.

Jessica stirred and turned her head towards the person waking her up. She could make out 

Tiffany's face in the dim light of the room. A yawn escaped her lips and she tried to move but 

felt something holding her down. She looked to her other side and noticed Taeyeon sleeping 

with her arm wrapped around her waist. A smile graced the brunette's lips by the sight.

"Breakfast is ready, come when you've washed up." Tiffany said and stood up. Jessica turned 

to the woman that now exited the room. Seeing that Tiffany had left Jessica turned to the 

sleeping blonde beside her.

"Taeyeon-ah." Jessica lightly nudged the sleeping girl. Taeyeon just shifted her head a bit and 

tighten her hold on Jessica's waist. The action making Jessica smile even wider than before.

"We need to wake up." Jessica said and shook Taeyeon's shoulder a bit.

"Mhmm." Taeyeon stirred and slowly opened her eyes. When she realized what a close 

proximity she had with the brunette a blush crept on the blonde's cheeks, making Jessica grin 

by the expression.

"Good morning." Jessica said with a smile.

"Good morning." Taeyeon mumbled and tried to hide her blushing cheeks in the pillow. 

Jessica chuckled and placed a quick peck on Taeyeon's temple before she went out of bed and 

proceed to the door. She glanced over her shoulder at the girl still in bed, the sight of Taeyeon 

hiding her face completely by the pillow made Jessica smile wider.

"I'm going to take a shower first. Don't go back to sleep." Jessica said to the blonde still on the 

bed. She could see Taeyeon nodding her head, and with a smile on her face Jessica proceeded 

to the bathroom.

---The black haired woman entered the kitchen and saw the taller woman busy placing their 

breakfast on the table. Tiffany looked behind herself before she went to Sooyoung's side to 

help the woman.

"Those two are really close with each other." Tiffany stated while she placed the glasses on 

the table. She thought back to how she had seen the two teenagers hugging each other in their 

sleep. She couldn't remember she had been that close with any of her female friends, or male 

friends for that matter. 

"It's because they're a couple." Sooyoung simply stated.

"W-what?!" Tiffany turned around and looked at the taller woman. Sooyoung looked her way; 

nodding her head when she saw Tiffany's doubtful look. "Did you find that out by watching 

them too?" Tiffany asked and wondered why she hadn't figured that out as well. Sooyoung 

smiled and shook her head.

"No, Jessica told me yesterday." Sooyoung said with a smile. "I'd never had thought that if 

she hadn't told me." Sooyoung admitted and looked at the black-haired woman. Tiffany 

closed her mouth that had been open and looked around the kitchen like she could find 

something there that could help her understand the two girls better. She looked back at 

Sooyoung that smiled warmly at her.

"Don't they match?" Sooyoung asked with a smile. Tiffany furrowed her eyebrows and looked 

down at the table. "Fany, isn't it good that they have found love?" Sooyoung asked a bit more 

serious this time.

"Of course it's good, and they match, but..." Tiffany looked up at Sooyoung; biting her lower 

lip while thinking.

She thought back to the day when Jessica had told them about their past, how the brunette girl 

had been trembling while bringing up all the cruel things they had gone through in their lives. 

Tiffany closed her eyes and sighed.

"Remember how the world is, Sooyoung. They're both girls. You know how most people see 

people like that." Tiffany said and opened her eyes. She took in the solemn look on 

Sooyoung's face. The taller woman nodded as she knew what Tiffany talked about.

"I know. But I'm not sure they're aware of how wrong some people think of their love, maybe 

that's why they met us. You know, so we could tell them." Sooyoung said and smiled again. A 

doubtful look was on Tiffany's face.

"They won't like it. They might get hurt if we tell them." Tiffany said with a frown. The taller 

woman nodded her head.

"Yes. But how hurt won't they get if we don't warn them beforehand of what the world 

outside is like? I think they would appreciate it if we informed them of what problems they 

might meet in their lives." Sooyoung reasoned.

A sigh left Tiffany's lips and she took a seat on one of the chairs around the table. She buried 

her face in her palms while letting out another sigh.

"Wish they could just stay here. We won't hurt them, we won't look down on them, and we 

would never let anyone else do that to them either." Tiffany mumbled into her hands. She 

uncovered her face from her hands and looked up at the taller woman.

"It's f*cking unfair how some people treat their kids like garbage while there's some people 

that can't even get kids. So f*cking unfair!" Tiffany said and stood up from her seat. 

Sooyoung opened her mouth to say something but stopped as she watched Tiffany make her 

way to the bathroom. She closed her mouth and looked at the seat Tiffany had left seconds 

ago. She knew it was better to let the other woman cool down on her own rather than trying to 

soothe her with words she knew she had heard at least millions of times.

Sooyoung heaved a sigh and looked at the table. With a shrug of the shoulders she took a seat 

by it while she waited for the teenagers or Tiffany to come and eat.

---The woman didn't have to wait long until she heard steps coming from the second floor, and 

the blonde and brunette girl arrived in the kitchen. Seeing Taeyeon and Jessica Sooyoung 

smiled at them and motioned for them to come and sit by the table. The two girls looked at 

each other before they took a seat beside each other by the table.

"Start eating before it gets cold." Sooyoung told them.

The two girls picked up their chopsticks and started munching on their rice. Seeing they were 

eating Sooyoung smiled and started eating of her food as well. It was silence between the 

woman and the two girls as they ate.

Jessica constantly took glances on the empty seat by the table. She glanced at Taeyeon that sat 

beside her, and the blonde girl met her gaze. She could confirm both of them were thinking 

the same, and the brunette looked over at the tall woman that was busy eating.

"Where's Tiffany?" Jessica asked and nodded towards the empty seat. Sooyoung stopped 

chewing on her food for a few seconds while her eyes took in the empty seat her friend had 

left a few minutes ago. She swallowed the food in her mouth and smiled at the girl that had 

questioning her about her friends whereabouts.

"She will come later. She wasn't feeling too well." Sooyoung explained. A look of 

understanding appeared on Jessica's face and she nodded her head before she went back to 

eating her food. Her mind went to the woman that had woken her up earlier that morning, she 

couldn't remember if Tiffany had looked unwell in some way, but it might just have been 

because she had been newly awoken that she couldn't see it.

The sound of a door opening in the hallway made the woman and two girls turn their attention 

towards steps that came closer to the kitchen. Seeing the black haired woman had come back 

Sooyoung smiled and watched how Tiffany took a seat by the empty one by the table.

"Feeling better?" Sooyoung asked. Tiffany looked at the taller woman; rolling her eyes at the 

question and proceeded to eat her breakfast.

The two girls that had been watching looked at each other before they looked at Tiffany that 

had her eyes fixed on the soup she was eating.

"Are you okay?" Taeyeon asked this time.

Tiffany looked up from her soup and her eyes settled on the girl that had questioned her. She 

let go of her soup spoon and let out a sigh. Her expression had softened since she had come to 

the kitchen, and she looked at the two teenagers that waited for her answers.

"I'm okay." Tiffany assured the two girls. "It's just..." Tiffany stopped and looked back and 

forth between Taeyeon and Jessica.

"Be careful."

Silence filled the kitchen after Tiffany's statement. Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other 

as they didn't know what they would think of what Tiffany had said. The black haired woman 

figured out that the two kids didn't seem to understand and she sighed.

"I'm happy to hear that you're together. But some people out there won't think the same, some 

people will think of it as disgusting, and wrong and many other things that goes on the 

negative side." Tiffany explained. She could see that Taeyeon and Jessica understood what 

she meant, but there was still that confused look in their eyes.

"Out in the world, most people think that two people of the same gender shouldn't love each 

other in a romantic way. It's not considered normal." Tiffany tried to explain. She could see 

how the Jessica's furrowed her eyebrows and the brunette girl got a displeased look on her 

face.

"Why not? Isn't love considered normal? Shouldn't love between two girls be normal too 

then?" Jessica asked. The things Hyoyeon and her friends had told her about love come back 

to her and she was now utterly confused by the things Tiffany told her and Taeyeon.

"Yeah, it's true what you're saying. But I just want you to know that some people don't think 

of it as normal. That's why I'm saying you should be careful with whom you're telling that 

you're a couple." Tiffany explained.

"Do you think like those people?" Jessica asked.

Tiffany clamped her mouth shut and looked at the girl. Jessica's face was expressionless when 

she looked at her. And to Tiffany's fear, she could almost feel a wall between her and the girl 

build up. She knew there had been one before, but while that wall had been made of wood, 

this was made of steel.

"No, I don't think like them. I actually don't care if people love someone of the same gender 

or the opposite gender. As long as they're happy I'm fine with it." Tiffany said.

Jessica didn't say anything else after that statement and went back to eating her breakfast. 

Tiffany also started eating her own meal but kept glancing at the brunette girl. She knew there 

had been risks of bringing this up, but she couldn't let the two girls go around and be 

oblivious to how most of the population of the world saw their love.

Sooyoung and Taeyeon exchanged quick glances, and the teenage girl quickly went to eat her 

breakfast when she noticed the woman looking at her. Thinking that Taeyeon might be 

embarrassed when she watched her, Sooyoung went back to eating her breakfast and trying to 

ignore the wall that seemed to build up between Jessica and Tiffany.

---When their breakfast was eaten Sooyoung stood up from the table and made her way to the 

sink while Tiffany started gather the dishes. In the corner of her eye Sooyoung noticed the 

two teenagers trying to sneak out from the kitchen.

“Taeyeon, Jessica.” The woman called the two girls that halted in their tracks and turned 

around towards the woman. “Please help us with the dishes. Taeyeon you can help me and 

Jessica you can help Tiffany.” Sooyoung said with a smile. Without saying anything Jessica 

and Taeyeon exchanged glances before they went on with the tasks they had been ordered to 

do. While Jessica helped Tiffany gather the dishes and carry to the the sink, Sooyoung took 

the time to chat a little bit with the blonde girl.

“This is not the first place you came to after leaving your hometown, right?” Sooyoung asked 

and started washing the dishes. She looked at Taeyeon that looked surprised by the sudden 

question. Taeyeon looked over her shoulder at Jessica that helped Tiffany to wipe the table, 

seeing the brunette won’t help her she looked at the clean plate Sooyoung had given her to 

wipe dry.

“No, it isn’t.” Taeyeon mumbled and shook her head. Sooyoung nodded her head satisfied 

that the blonde was answering.

“What places have you been before when you came here?” Sooyoung continued to ask and 

gave Taeyeon another plate to wipe dry.

Taeyeon slowly took the plate and wiped it dry. She bit her lower lip while trying to figure out 

whether to answer the question or not. Sooyoung noticed the girl’s hesitance and she smiled 

and washed another plate.

“It might be hard to remember. But how did you manage to survive in those places?” 

Sooyoung continued to ask while glancing at the blonde that still was biting her lower lip like 

it would help her from answering the questions.

“Uhm… we met some people.” Taeyeon said and took the third plate that Sooyoung handed 

her and wiped it dry.

“You met some people?” Sooyoung asked and raised her eyebrow.

“Yes, we met some people that offered us shelter and food. We also worked for some people 

and got a place to stay. Sometimes we’ve needed to sleep outside, and we’ve ended up 

fighting and taken our own ways but we ended up meeting each other and cleared up 

everything. Is there anything else you’re wondering about?” Jessica’s voice appeared on 

Sooyoung’s other side and the woman turned that way and saw the brunette lean against the 

kitchen counter with her arms crossed while she looked at Sooyoung with a blank face. The 

woman turned around to look for Tiffany, but noticed the other woman had left the kitchen.

“No, there’s nothing else I want to know.” Sooyoung said and smiled at the brunette girl. 

Jessica gave Sooyoung a skeptical look but the woman didn’t bother about it and turned her 

attention to the blonde girl on her other side. She observed how Taeyeon held the plate in her 

hand and wiped it dry.

She noticed that the presence on her other side disappeared and she turned around and saw 

Jessica had taken a seat by the table again, probably waiting for Taeyeon to finish helping 

Sooyoung. Sooyoung turned her attention back to Taeyeon; a small smile graced her lips 

when she watched the blonde girl place the now dry plate on the pile of the other ones.

"I wish I could be your first." Sooyoung said with a small smile. Taeyeon looked at the tall 

woman with a questioning look. Sooyoung noticed the stare and looked at Taeyeon with a 

wider smile. "I wish I was the first person you met on your journey." Sooyoung explained. 

Taeyeon continued to look at Sooyoung that had went back to wash the dishes.

"It's kind of naïve, but my mind wants to think that if you had met me and Tiffany first you 

wouldn't have gone through so much as you have done." Sooyoung said.

Taeyeon looked rather surprised at the woman for her confession. She turned around and 

exchanged looks with Jessica. The brunette looked just as surprised as she was.

The two teenage girls looked at the woman that was currently washing the dishes and not 

minding the two girls’ stares. She knew that what she said must have shocked them a bit.

---When the kitchen was clean and the dishes was washed and wiped dry and back to their spots 

in the cabinets Sooyoung and Tiffany started to get ready for work while Jessica and Taeyeon 

sat in the living room and waited for the two women to get ready.

The first one to get ready was Tiffany and she joined the two girls in the living room when 

she was done. She looked at the two girls that sat beside each other on the couch while she 

was currently seated on the armchair.

She noticed how close to each other they seemed to sit, and even though Taeyeon seemed to 

have problems with physical contact with people, Jessica seemed to be able to touch Taeyeon 

just fine. The closeness of the two girls made Tiffany interested in how it actually would feel 

to be that close to a person.

“Have you ever thought about the future?” Tiffany suddenly asked. The two girls averted their 

attention to the woman with black hair. Both Jessica and Taeyeon looked at each other before 

they turned back to Tiffany.

“Not really. We just take the days as they come.” Jessica said, and Taeyeon nodded in 

agreement. Tiffany nodded her head understanding.

“Does it feel hard being away from each other?” Tiffany asked and raised an eyebrow. She 

noticed how both Jessica and Taeyeon shifted in their seats and their intertwined hands 

seemed to grasp a tighter grip around the other girl’s.

“It depends.” Jessica said and creased her eyebrows. Her trust for Tiffany wasn’t the greatest 

at the moment and she had her suspicion of why Tiffany would ask questions like these.

Tiffany noticed that Jessica had taken a step back and gotten into defense mood. The black 

haired woman tried to smile in hope of getting on Jessica’s better side.

“I’m just curious about your relationship. I don’t want to harm you or anything with the 

information you give me.” Tiffany said in hope of assuring the girls she wouldn’t harm them

in any way.

The doubtful look she got from Jessica told her that the brunette girl wouldn’t give in in the 

first place. Tiffany let out a sigh and wondered how Sooyoung was able to get them to talk 

without getting suspicious looks from them.

“It’s just that you seem really close, I wonder how you’d cope if you two would ever get 

separated. And I’m not saying this because I want you to get separated. I hope you two will be 

glued to each other throughout life. But you know, some people don’t think like me.” Tiffany 

said and shrugged her shoulders. She noticed Jessica and Taeyeon exchanging glances

“It’s difficult to be separated from each other if we don’t know if we ever would see each 

other again.” Taeyeon finally opened her mouth and spoke. Tiffany looked at the two girls 

surprised when her question had been answered.

“I mean, I can go to another place without Jessica, and even though I’d feel uncomfortable 

without her and miss her, but if I know that at the end of that day I’ll be able to see her again

I’ll do just fine.” Taeyeon explained. Both Jessica and Tiffany looked at Taeyeon that just had 

shared a piece of her feelings on the subject Tiffany had brought up.

“I think the same as Taeyeon. Even though I’d rather not be separated I think there’s times 

when we have to go our own way, but if I know we’ll see each other again I’ll be fine.” 

Jessica said.

Tiffany was rather surprised she had managed to make the girls talk with her and she nodded 

her head understanding.

They heard someone coming towards the living room and they turned their heads towards the 

entrance when they noticed someone standing there. Sooyoung smiled at all of them and 

pointed towards the hall.

“Shall we go?” Sooyoung asked with a smile. Tiffany glanced at the two teenagers before she 

stood up from her seat.

“Yeah, come, let’s go.” Tiffany told the two girls on the couch and Jessica and Taeyeon 

followed Tiffany towards the foyer.

"I'll take Taeyeon with me to work, you can take Jessica." Sooyoung stated when she entered 

the hall. She got two pair of panicked eyes looking at her after her statement. Noticing 

Taeyeon and Jessica's anxious looks she smiled at them and turned to Tiffany.

"I won't keep Taeyeon long; I'll drop her off around lunch. You need more people around that 

time, right?" Sooyoung asked the cap clad woman.

"Yeah, but why?" Tiffany glanced at the anxious looking girls that were holding hands like it 

would be the last time they would be able to.

"I'll tell you later. But I have to go now. Taeyeon," Sooyoung turned to the blonde girl that 

startled looked up at the tall woman. "Shall we go?" Sooyoung asked the girl with a smile. 

Thinking she might not have another choice Taeyeon reluctantly let go of Jessica's hand. The 

two girls exchanged looks before the blonde followed the tall woman out of the house.

Jessica and Tiffany looked after the leaving girl and woman. Feeling empty without Taeyeon 

by her side Jessica put her hands inside her pockets and turned to Tiffany that was looking 

rather displeased by the morning’s outturn.

"Aish, how is she thinking that tall giant." Tiffany mumbled and grabbed her set of keys 

before she put on her shoes and went outside the house with Jessica trailing behind.

Tiffany opened her car door and took a seat in the driver’s seat and motioned for Jessica to 

take a seat on the other side. The brunette did as she was told and when both of them were 

seated and had their seatbelts on Tiffany started the engine and drove off.

---The tall woman entered the infirmary of the school with the blonde girl trailing behind. With 

her arms wrapped around her body Taeyeon looked around the room which was probably the 

place Sooyoung spent most of her working hours.

"You can take a seat over there." Sooyoung pointed at one of the beds in the room. Without 

arguing Taeyeon went over to the bed and took a seat on top of it. Her hands were clasped in 

her lap while she watched the woman look through some papers that was on her desk.

When Sooyoung was done with that she took her chair and placed it in front of where 

Taeyeon was seated. Curious to what the woman was going to do Taeyeon watched as 

Sooyoung went to the sink in the room and washed her hands, with clean hands Sooyoung 

returned to the chair and took a seat on it.

"When we washed the dishes this morning, I couldn't help but notice this." Sooyoung gently 

grabbed Taeyeon's wrist, making the blonde girl tense for a second. Sooyoung gently pulled 

up the sleeve of Taeyeon's sweater and revealed the bite mark that hadn't healed.

"Did you get bitten by a dog?" Sooyoung asked and looked up at the blonde girl. Taeyeon bit 

her lower lip and slowly nodded her head in answer. A sigh left the woman's lips and she 

continued to examine the wound.

"I guess that's why you also can't put much pressure on your left leg." Sooyoung asked after 

she had finished checking the wound on Taeyeon's arm. Taeyeon looked wide eyed at the 

woman for noticing something so small. Sooyoung smiled at the girl and went to get 

something to clean the wound. 

Not being able to look at the woman now Taeyeon lowered her gaze while she listened at 

Sooyoung that was looking through some cabinets in the room. When the woman returned to 

her seat on the chair in front of Taeyeon, Taeyeon looked another way again.

"May I check your leg too?" Sooyoung asked and eyed Taeyeon's left leg that dangled over 

the edge of the bed. A small nod was the answer the woman got from the girl. Wanting to 

check that the wound on the leg wasn't infected or anything Sooyoung pulled up Taeyeon's 

jeans to reveal the still bandaged leg.

Sooyoung sighed as she saw how poorly the leg was wrapped. Her guess was that either 

Taeyeon or Jessica had done it. She took away the bandaged and instantly backed away when 

she noticed Taeyeon flinch. With worried eyes she looked up at the blonde girl that looked 

pale.

"Does it hurt?" Sooyoung asked and eyed the wound on the leg without touching it.

"Not much." Taeyeon mumbled without looking at the woman. Sooyoung furrowed her 

eyebrows and looked at the leg again. She was quiet for a while when she was thinking, and 

like someone had turned on a lamp her eyes widened when she remembered what Jessica had 

told them a few nights before.

"Are you uncomfortable with me touching you?" Sooyoung asked and looked at the blonde 

girl again. She saw Taeyeon biting her lower lip like she didn't want to answer the question. 

Sooyoung smiled a small smile and looked at the leg again.

"It's okay to tell me, Taeyeon. If you do we can figure out something together to make it more 

comfortable for you." Sooyoung said with a reassuring smile.

"It's a bit uncomfortable." Taeyeon admitted and awkwardly shifted in her seat. Sooyoung 

nodded understanding and looked around the room like she could find any help there. She 

sighed and looked back at the girl again.

"I kind of regret letting Jessica go with Tiffany now." Sooyoung said and laughed a bit. When 

she glanced at the blonde girl she noticed Taeyeon had relaxed a bit more. She smiled and 

looked at the leg again.

"Should I start cleaning the wound on your arm?" Sooyoung asked. Taeyeon finally turned to 

look at her, the blonde girl looked at her wounded arm before she looked back up at the 

woman.

"O-okay." Taeyeon said. Sooyoung furrowed her eyebrows at Taeyeon's answer.

"Don't say yes if you don't want to. It's your body, you're the one making decisions for it. I 

can't force you to let me treat your wounds." Sooyoung said sternly. She noticed Taeyeon 

clamp her mouth shut and bit down on her lower lip again. The girl looked like she was 

contemplating what she should do.

After about a minute and no change of answer from the girl Sooyoung grabbed a cotton ball 

and soaked it with disinfection liquid. She took one last glance at Taeyeon before she 

proceeded to clean the wound on Taeyeon's arm with the cotton ball. Just when she was about 

one inch away from the arm Taeyeon pulled the arm away from her. Sooyoung looked at the 

girl that seemed to have changed her mind.

"I-I can do it." Taeyeon said and held out her hand for Sooyoung to give her the cotton ball 

with the disinfection liquid. A smile appeared on Sooyoung's lips and she gladly handed the 

cotton ball to Taeyeon and watched as Taeyeon treated her wound by herself.

When Taeyeon was done she handed the cotton ball back to Sooyoung which the woman 

threw in the garbage bin. She took another cotton ball and soaked it with the disinfection 

liquid and held it out towards Taeyeon again.

"Should you or I clean the wound on your leg?" Sooyoung asked and nodded towards 

Taeyeon's leg. Taeyeon bit her lower lip and looked down at her leg and then up to the cotton 

ball before her. She released her lip and let her eyes meet Sooyoung's.

"Y-you may clean it, if you want to..." Taeyeon mumbled and looked off to the side.

A smile appeared on Sooyoung's lips and she gently lifted on Taeyeon's left leg to reach the 

wound better. She gently started cleaning the wound while looking at the teenage girl from 

time to time to make sure Taeyeon wasn't too uncomfortable or if she hurt the girl.

"Taeyeon there's a lot of things out there to learn, but there's one thing you should learn now 

and always take with you." Sooyoung started talking while she cleaned the wound. Puzzled 

Taeyeon looked at the woman that had her focus on her leg.

"You own your body. No one else does. No matter who claims your body as theirs, it's wrong, 

because no one but you owns your body." Sooyoung began and looked up at the girl that 

looked a bit confused. "No one but you. Not Jessica, not me, not Tiffany, no one has a right in 

saying your body is theirs. It's your body. You understand?" Sooyoung asked the blonde girl.

Slowly started Taeyeon to nod her head. Sooyoung let out a sigh and stood up from her seat to 

get a bandage to wrap the wounded leg up. When she returned to her seat she looked at 

Taeyeon with a sad smile.

"I'm not saying this to be mean, Taeyeon. I just want you to know that you have certain rights 

as a human being. When it comes to your body, you have the right to say no if you don't want 

to." Sooyoung said gently.

Wide eyed Taeyeon watched as Sooyoung began wrapping the bandaged around her wounded 

leg. The words Sooyoung had said slowly started to sink in and she started to slump in her 

seat like the words was weighing her down.

“It’s not always easy to say no…” Taeyeon said. Her words made the woman avert her eyes 

from the leg and meet with Taeyeon’s sorrowful ones. Like the woman understood what 

Taeyeon meant she smiled and let go of the leg she had finished wrapping up.

“No, it isn’t. But you have to practice.” Sooyoung said with a smile.

Taeyeon looked at the woman that smiled warmly at her. The woman stood up from her seat 

and gently patted Taeyeon’s head before she made her way to her desk. Sooyoung turned on 

the computer on her desk and started typing something, and Taeyeon continued to watch her 

while her words continued to ring in her ears.

“Is there other things I have right to do as a human?” Taeyeon suddenly asked. Shocked by 

the question Sooyoung turned away from her computer screen and looked at Taeyeon that was 

still seated on the bed. Realizing Taeyeon wanted to know more Sooyoung smiled and 

grabbed a pile of papers and magazine that was lying on her desk.

“Here, this should answer your question.” Sooyoung said and went over to Taeyeon and gave 

the girl the magazines and papers. With curious eyes Taeyeon looked at them and began to 

slowly read them.

“I’m sure that will occupy you until we go back to Tiffany.” Sooyoung said with a smile 

when she noticed the blonde girl had already immersed herself into the magazines and papers.

---Brown orbs shifted away from the newspaper that was in her hand to the brunette girl that was 

occupying herself by cleaning the shelves in the small convince store. Tiffany let her eyes 

observe Jessica for a few more minutes. Seeing Jessica move to the next shelf to clean a sigh 

left the woman's lips and she looked down on the newspaper again.

"Why are you cleaning those shelves? Go and buy me a coffee instead." Tiffany said without 

lifting her eyes from the newspaper. She didn't get anything in response from the teenage girl 

and Tiffany resumed reading while she thought Jessica was still in the store cleaning like she 

earlier had been ordered to do.

Finding nothing interesting in the newspaper to read about Tiffany closed it and tossed it to 

the side while letting out a sigh. Her eyes shifted to the place she earlier had seen Jessica, only 

to see the girl gone. Tiffany's eyes widened and she stood up from her seat.

"Jessica?" Tiffany called out.

No response. Tiffany moved from her place behind the counter and began looking around the 

store for the brunette girl. But Jessica was nowhere to be found.

"Where did that girl go?" Tiffany asked out loud and went back to her spot behind the 

counter. She rubbed her chin while she started thinking about the possible places Jessica could 

have gone off to.

She didn't run away again. Did she? Tiffany's eyes widened in thought of Jessica 

disappearing again. Aish, Sooyoung's gonna kill me if she finds out...

A tap on the cap clad woman's shoulder made her turn around. Her eyes widened when her 

eyes landed on the brunette girl she had been looking for. A coffee cup that was held out 

towards her made her eyes shift to the cup Jessica was holding towards her.

"You drink your coffee with milk, right?" Jessica asked oblivious to Tiffany's surprised state.

"Coffee...?" Tiffany looked at the cup then back up at Jessica. Remembering what she had 

said when she had been reading the newspaper she let out a chuckle and smiled.

"So you really did it, huh?" Tiffany asked and grabbed the coffee cup from Jessica. "Thank 

you." Tiffany said and patted Jessica's head. Jessica looked at the woman with a raised 

eyebrow; thinking Tiffany acted a bit strange.

Shrugging Tiffany's weird behavior away Jessica resumed her task of cleaning the shelves. 

With a pleased smile Tiffany continued to watch Jessica do her work. The brunette girl moved 

among the shelves, used a ladder to reach the higher shelves, and continued like that until the 

she had cleaned all the shelves in the store.

Jessica had begun wiping the floor when a tap on her shoulder interrupted her. Tiffany stood 

behind her with a wide smile. The teenage girl shot the cap clad woman a questioning look; 

wondering if Tiffany needed something from her.

"I need to head out for a while. Can you stand by the cashier for a while?" Tiffany asked and 

pointed towards the counter. Jessica looked where the woman pointed and nodded her head.

"Sure. No problem." Jessica said and placed the broom against the wall.

"You know how the cashier works, right?" Tiffany asked while she and Jessica made their 

way to the counter. The brunette girl nodded her head.

"Yeah, I've used one of those before." Jessica said. Tiffany nodded her head satisfied and 

watched as Jessica took her spot behind the counter now.

"Good, I'll be back soon. Just call if there's anything." The cap clad woman said. Jessica 

nodded her head and watched as Tiffany made her way out of the shop.

Minutes ticked away while Jessica stood by the counter. She noticed her job there was pretty 

limited as she had to have her eyes on the cashier machine. While waiting for customers the 

brunette kept herself busy by cleaning and tidying up around the counter.

After standing by the cashier for thirty minutes she heard the bell ring, indicating someone 

had entered the store. The brunette looked towards the door, a smile on her face, ready to 

greet the customer that had come. Her smile however turned to a surprised expression when 

she saw two familiar faces coming towards her.

"Here's Jessica. Where's Tiffany?" Sooyoung asked and looked around to see if the woman 

she asked about where nearby. Jessica's eyes turned to the blonde girl by Sooyoung's side and 

greeted Taeyeon with a smile, which the blonde returned a bit shyly.

"Tiffany said she was going somewhere." Jessica answered Sooyoung's question. The tall 

woman snapped her head to the teenager behind the counter. She nodded her head and looked 

at Taeyeon, a smile gracing the woman's lips.

"Me and Taeyeon have bought you lunch." Sooyoung said and pointed at the paper bag 

Taeyeon was holding. Remembering the food Taeyeon held up the paper bag for Jessica to 

see. Jessica looked surprised at the bag with food.

"Oh, thanks." Jessica said rather puzzled of what to say or feel.

"I made Taeyeon choose for you, as I thought she would know what you like." Sooyoung said 

with a smile. Upon the woman's statement Jessica's eyes landed on Taeyeon that was looking 

at the floor. A smile appeared on Jessica's lips and she nodded her head.

"I see." Jessica said and turned to the woman again.

"Anyway, I'll leave the food in the lunch room and let you work." Sooyoung said and took the 

paper bag from Taeyeon's hand before she headed to the room that was located behind the 

counter. The teenage girls looked the woman's way, seeing Sooyoung was gone they turned to 

each other, both having smiles on their faces.

"Was it fun at Sooyoung's work?" Jessica asked and leaned against the counter. Taeyeon 

shrugged her shoulders and looked down at her feet.

"She just cleaned my wounds and the rest of the time I just read magazines." Taeyeon said 

and looked up at Jessica again. The brunette nodded her head.

"That's good." Jessica said and averted her gaze to her hands.

"How was it for you?" Taeyeon asked and looked up at Jessica.

"For me? I just cleaned and went to buy coffee for Tiffany." Jessica said with a grin. The 

blonde girl nodded her head. Looking at Taeyeon for a few more seconds Jessica's grin 

disappeared and a small smile appeared on her lips. She checked behind her to see if 

Sooyoung was still in the lunch room before she looked back at Taeyeon.

"But I was a bit boring without you." Jessica admitted. "I missed your company." Taeyeon 

looked wide eyed at the brunette while a blush appeared on her cheeks. A smile appeared on 

Taeyeon's lips and she looked down on the floor embarrassed.

Seeing Taeyeon's reaction made Jessica smile wider and a warm filling spread from her 

stomach to the rest of the body, and a fluttering feeling appeared in her chest. When Taeyeon 

looked up to meet Jessica's gaze again, the brunette was smiling so wide it even spread to the 

blonde's lips and the two girls stood and smiled stupidly at each other.

"Did you miss me?" Jessica asked and tilted her head to the side. The blush that had started to 

disappear on Taeyeon's cheeks reappeared again and the blonde lowered gaze while she 

slowly nodded her head. Jessica's grin was hard to hide now.

The girls heard the bell to the store ring and both of them turned to see who had entered the 

store. Both of them saw it was Tiffany that had returned from wherever she had been. The cap 

clad woman looked a bit surprised upon seeing Taeyeon.

“Oh, Taeyeon, you’re here? Is Sooyoung here as well?” Tiffany asked and looked around to 

see if she saw the other woman. 

“No, Sooyoung is in the lunch room.” Jessica said and pointed behind her. Tiffany nodded her 

head and went the way Jessica had pointed.

The brunette girl turned to Taeyeon again once they were alone. She smiled at the blonde girl 

that shyly smiled back. Jessica grabbed Taeyeon’s hand and dragged the blonde to stand 

beside her behind the cashier.

“Have you eaten?” Jessica asked and looked at the blonde girl’s face. Taeyeon looked at 

Jessica and nodded her head. A disappointed look appeared on Jessica’s face and she pouted.

“Why?” Taeyeon asked a bit shocked over seeing Jessica’s disappointed look.

“I had hoped you’d eat with me.” Jessica said and turned to look at the cashier instead. 

Taeyeon followed Jessica’s eyes before she looked back at the brunette.

“I can keep you company while you eat.” Taeyeon suggested. Jessica turned to look at the 

blonde girl, her pout had disappeared and a smile started to grow on her lips.

“I guess that will be fine.” Jessica said and smiled.

Seeing Jessica was fine with just her company Taeyeon smiled as well and the two girls 

looked at each other while smiling like two fools. They were so immersed in each other they 

didn’t notice the two presence that were watching them.

“Okay, lovebirds. Stop gazing each other and go and eat.” Tiffany interrupted the two girls. 

Embarrassed both Jessica and Taeyeon turned away from each other with blushes on their 

faces.

Sooyoung chuckled by the two girls’ reaction and looked at Tiffany that also had a smile on 

her face. The taller of the two women went up to Jessica’s side and gave the brunette a pat on 

the back.

“Go eat now before your lunch gets cold.” Sooyoung told the girl. Jessica nodded her head 

and went to the lunch room with Taeyeon trailing behind her. Tiffany took Jessica’s spot 

behind the cashier and turned to Sooyoung again.

Tiffany furrowed her eyebrows when she looked at the taller woman, Sooyoung gave Tiffany 

a questioning look when she saw the cap clad woman’s expression.

“You said Taeyeon had gotten hurt.” Tiffany began. Sooyoung nodded her head. “You sure 

she doesn’t need to go to the hospital?” Tiffany asked.

Sooyoung smiled a reassuring smile and nodded her head. ”She doesn’t need to go. If we just 

keep a watch on how her wounds are healing she will be fine. Besides, I think it would be 

dangerous to take them to the hospital, once the staff there finds out they have run away from 

home I’m sure they’re going to call the police and they will be sitting on the next train to their 

hometown. And I don’t think that’s what they want.” Sooyoung said.

Tiffany nodded her head and let out a tired sigh. 

“It’s difficult.” Tiffany said and rubbed her temples.

“What’s so difficult?” Sooyoung asked and tilted her head to the side.

“Trying to do what’s best for them.” Tiffany said and looked up at the taller woman. 

Sooyoung smiled and leaned against the counter so she came closer to the cap clad woman.

“It’s very easy if you just listen to their wishes and their wants.” Sooyoung said and playfully 

pulled the cap down over Tiffany’s face. The black haired woman angrily swatted away 

Sooyoung’s hand and put her cap back to its originally spot

“Don’t overthink, Fany. It’ll stress you out and it’s not necessary. It’s easier than you think.” 

Sooyoung said and smiled.

The tall woman turned around and went for the door of the shop. Tiffany watched the woman 

leave with a pout on her lips. Seeing the woman had left she let out a sigh and leaned against 

the counter.

“It’s easy for you but not for me.” Tiffany said and rubbed her temples again.

Chapter 18 – The art of breaking walls

Tiffany looked up from the money she was cutting when her ears caught the sound of 

laughing and giggling. Her eyes stopped at the two teenagers that stood by the vegetables. The 

blonde girl was covering her mouth, her body shaking from the laughter she was holding in, 

and the brunette that stood beside her had a pleased grin on her lips.

Seeing that Taeyeon and Jessica was enjoying their time together Tiffany smiled and went 

back to do her work. The buzzing sound from the cell phone that lied on the desk beside the 

calculator she used caught her attention and she picked it up and noticed a text massages. Her 

left eyebrow raised when she had finished reading what was written in the massage, her eyes 

shifted to the two girls that now had stopped laughing and was doing their assigned task 

diligently. Tiffany sighed and put her cell phone back down on the desk.

“Hey, girls.” Tiffany called the two girls that stopped with what they were doing and turned 

their attention to the cap clad woman. Tiffany motioned for them to come to where she was, 

and without question her, Jessica and Taeyeon made their way towards her.

“Sooyoung wants to take you somewhere. Go and get changed.” Tiffany said and nodded 

towards the staff’s room. Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged looks before they turned to Tiffany 

again.

“Aren’t you coming?” Taeyeon asked. Tiffany looked and back and forth between the girls, 

before her eyes stopped at the girl that had questioned her.

“Can’t really do that when I’ve to take care of this.” Tiffany answered and glanced at Jessica 

that didn’t give any reaction to what she said. The brunette girl looked away from Tiffany’s 

gaze and began to move towards the staff’s room. She watched how Jessica's hand reflexively 

reach for Taeyeon’s hand dragged the blonde girl with her.

Tiffany didn’t bother about it and went back to do her job when the two teenagers had left her. 

Her hands stopped counting the money bills in her hands when she thought back to Jessica’s 

look she had been given. The grip around the money tightened and she let out a sigh.

“I care way too much for my own good.” Tiffany muttered and gathered the money on the 

desk and put them inside the safety box, and made sure she had locked it. She picked up the 

‘closed’ sign that were behind the counter and went to the door of the store. She removed the 

‘open’ sign and replaced it with the ‘closed’.

When she had made sure everything was done for closing she went to the staffs’ room, she 

also getting ready for Sooyoung to pick them up.

---The brunette and blonde girl looked wide eyed at the big skeleton of the dinosaur that was 

displayed in the exhibition. When they had been told that Sooyoung would bring them 

somewhere they had thought it would be shopping or some sort of errand. Not a visit to the 

natural historical museum.

“Shall we continue?”

The two girls snapped their heads away from the skeleton to Sooyoung and Tiffany that stood 

a few feet away and watched them. Sooyoung smiled at the two teenagers that were obviously 

amazed by the big creatures that had lived a long time ago. Both Jessica and Taeyeon turned 

their heads back to the skeleton like they didn’t want to leave it.

“We can come back later to look at it if you want, we should go and look at the other things as 

well.” Sooyoung said.

Taeyeon and Jessica slowly turned their heads away from the dinosaur skeleton and slowly 

started to walk after the two women that walked ahead of them. The two teenagers were busy 

to turn their heads to every direction to not miss anything. Seeing that they enjoyed this, 

Sooyoung smiled at them and continued to lead the way to the next thing they would look at.

Jessica stopped in her tracks when she found something that caught her interest, her halting 

made Taeyeon also stop in her tracks and the blonde girl looked where Jessica was looking. A 

smile slowly grazed her lips when she noticed Jessica had found something of her interest.

“Shall we look at it?” Taeyeon asked the brunette and tugged at her hand. Jessica snapped out 

of her trance like state and looked at the blonde girl. She slowly nodded her head and the both 

of them made their way to the exhibition that had caught Jessica’s interest.

Still amazed by what her eyes saw Jessica looked at the big turtle like dinosaur. Her eyes tried 

to take in the size of the creature, and she thought back to the similar living things she had 

been holding in her hands a few weeks ago. But the creature she looked at now seemed to be 

able to carry both Taeyeon and Jessica on its back.

“It’s an Archelon.” Taeyeon told the brunette girl. Jessica snapped her head towards Taeyeon 

and slowly nodded her head.

“It’s big.” Jessica mused still amazed by its big figure.

“It’s said to weigh over 2,200kg.” Taeyeon informed the brunette. Jessica’s mouth opened in 

shock and her eyes widened.

Jessica knew about dinosaurs, she knew it was big creatures that had lived a long time ago on 

earth. But she had never really seen them like this; she had only seen pictures in books. She 

couldn’t really believe big animals like this had lived on the same place she was living on 

today. It amazed her.

Taeyeon smiled upon seeing Jessica’s amazement. She slightly tugged on the brunette’s hand, 

making Jessica turn her attention away from the Archelon skeleton to look at her. The blonde 

smiled at her.

“Should we continue?” Taeyeon asked.

Jessica looked at the skeleton again, her expression looked like she didn’t want to leave it just 

yet. Seeing that the brunette seemed to want to stay a bit longer Taeyeon smiled and didn’t 

push Jessica into leaving just yet.

“Or we can stay.” Taeyeon said and smiled. Jessica turned to the blonde, she smiled 

appreciating at her. Taeyeon smiled back and went to read a bit more about the creature, and 

telling Jessica about it so the brunette knew more about the dinosaur that had caught her 

interest.

---“See, I told you they would find them.” Sooyoung mused and nodded towards where Taeyeon 

and Jessica were standing.

Tiffany looked the way Sooyoung nodded towards, her eyebrow raised as she watched the 

two teenagers that were looking at a skeleton that looked like a giant turtle. Her eyebrows 

furrowed and she crossed her arms.

“Didn’t Jessica say she liked turtles?” Tiffany asked and glanced at the taller woman beside 

her.

“No, she said she thought turtles were cute.” Sooyoung reminded her. Tiffany frowned and 

went back to watching the two teenagers.

While Jessica was gazing up at the big skeleton, Taeyeon stood beside her and told her about 

the historical creature that had lived thousands of years ago. She was once again amazed by 

the bond the teenagers had. Taeyeon was obviously telling Jessica as Jessica would find it 

difficult to read on the information plate that were beside the exhibition, and Taeyeon told 

Jessica only because she knew Jessica was interested.

Tiffany’s attention switched from the two teenagers to a middle-aged lady that approached the 

girls. Her eyebrows furrowed when she noticed she patted Taeyeon’s shoulder, and even 

though she stood far away she could see the blonde girl flinch.

Tiffany’s eyebrows raised when she saw the woman saying something to the two girls when 

she had gained their attention. The woman pointed at Jessica’s outfit, and from the expression 

that appeared on Jessica’s face, Tiffany could tell it wasn’t something good.

Without being able to watch any further Tiffany started to make her way towards the two girls 

and the woman. The closer she got, the clearer she could hear what the woman told the girls, 

and it made Tiffany’s blood boil inside of her. And when she saw both Taeyeon and Jessica 

shifting closer to each other like they wanted to protect themselves from the woman’s words 

and their heads hung low in shame, Tiffany almost flipped.

“What’s the problem?” Tiffany asked and stopped beside the woman. The middle-aged 

woman turned her attention from the two girls and her eyes landed on Tiffany, she eyed 

Tiffany up and down before she met Tiffany’s piercing gaze.

“Nothing that concerns you, miss.” The woman waved off Tiffany like she had been a fly. 

The comment only made Tiffany even angrier and she looked at the two girls that still had 

their heads hung low, and they stood so close to each other it looked like they would merge 

together.

“It does concern me.” Tiffany spoke up. The middle-aged woman snapped her head 

annoyingly at Tiffany’s direction. She let out a scoff and turned to the two girls.

“What are you two waiting for?” The woman asked the girls. Tiffany glanced at the girls and 

noticed Taeyeon had started trembling and Jessica held dearly onto the blonde girl. The cap 

clad woman gritted teeth by now.

“Can you stop ignoring me and tell me what the problem is with these two girls?” Tiffany 

asked annoyed. The woman sighed annoyed and turned towards Tiffany.

“Can’t you see it with your own eyes?” The middle-aged woman asked back.

“No, because the only problem I see now is an adult scaring two kids.” Tiffany argued.

The middle-aged woman snorted and nodded towards the two girls. “Garbage like this 

shouldn’t be in places like this, this is a museum for heaven’s sake. They look like come from 

the street, and they should keep their filthy hands there. I’m sure they’re just here to pick-pocket.” The woman said and eyed Taeyeon and Jessica up and down.

Tiffany raised an eyebrow at what the woman had said.

Garbage?

Filthy hands?

Pick-pocket?

Tiffany clenched her teeth and uncrossed her arms. She moved to stand beside Taeyeon and 

Jessica and carefully placed a hand on Jessica’s shoulder.

“They’re not garbage, they’re young adults and they’re living with me. And I want you to 

apologize to them as you’ve obviously hurt their feelings.” Tiffany demanded.

The woman looked unbelievable at Tiffany, and she slowly shifted her gaze towards the two 

teenagers that now was covering behind Tiffany, both of them still holding onto each other 

with their heads still bowed in shame.

The woman scoffed and turned on her heels. Tiffany couldn’t take it and grabbed the 

woman’s wrist before she managed to leave, when the woman turned to meet Tiffany’s gaze 

the cap clad woman’s fierce gaze pierced through her.

“They’re not garbage, they’re human beings. Apologize.” Tiffany demanded. The middle-aged woman remained mum as she shifted her eyes to Taeyeon and Jessica.

“Put yourself in their shoes and think of their feelings! Don’t you think they will get scared if 

some random person comes up and tells them they belong on the street?” Tiffany continued to 

argue.

The middle-aged woman remained stubborn and didn’t want to listen to what Tiffany was 

saying, and Tiffany’s patience was running out. She took a deep breath and tried to calm 

herself down, but when she saw the woman’s expression less face and how she didn’t even 

look guilty about what she had said, Tiffany couldn’t take it.

“You-“

“Tiffany.” Tiffany got interrupted and she turned around and saw Jessica looking at her. She 

searched the brunette’s face and could see Jessica was scared and angry. She saw Jessica 

gulping and Jessica quickly glanced at the woman whose wrist Tiffany was still holding.

“Let’s go instead.” Jessica announced.

Tiffany’s grip around the wrist loosened and the woman snatched her hand away from 

Tiffany. The cap clad woman turned to the other woman that now had started to walk away.

“Yah!” Tiffany shouted after the woman. She felt a tug on the sleeve to her leather jacket and 

she noticed Jessica standing behind her.

“Let’s go.” The brunette said and she and Taeyeon began walking towards Sooyoung.

Tiffany followed the girls, her eyes remained on their bowed heads, and they looked like they 

had been punished for something. The sight made Tiffany grit her teeth even more. She knew 

that they didn’t deserve to hear what they just had been told.

When they had reached Sooyoung the taller woman looked at the two girls sympathetic as 

they walked passed her and continued to search for another exhibition to look at. The two 

women walked behind them as they let Jessica and Taeyeon choose the place they wanted to 

go next. But both Sooyoung and Tiffany could tell that the two girls had lost the excitement of 

looking at the dinosaurs skeletons.

The two girls stopped at an exhibition that showed Sauropoda, a long necked dinosaur with a 

big built. Tiffany and Sooyoung stopped beside the teenagers that seemed to only be spacing 

out, rather than looking at the big skeleton. Both Tiffany and Sooyoung exchanged worried 

glances upon seeing the sullen mood of the two girls.

“Thank you.” The voice made Tiffany snap her head towards Taeyeon and Jessica. The two 

teenagers looked at her, Jessica smiled bitterly at her. “For defending us.” Jessica added.

Tiffany smiled at the brunette girl and shrugged her shoulders. “You know, you shouldn’t 

always need to defend yourselves, sometimes it’s good to have someone else do it.” Tiffany 

said and glanced at the brunette. Jessica’s face showed uncertainness as she looked at the cap 

clad woman.

“People always get in trouble when they defend us.” Jessica said and furrowed her eyebrows. 

Tiffany’s mind went back to the teacher Jessica had told them about, and what the girls had 

thought of themselves after what had happened to him.

“I’ve always gotten into trouble, so I guess some more wouldn’t hurt, besides, I’ve Sooyoung 

to take care of me.” Tiffany assured the girl and smiled. Jessica looked wide eyed at Tiffany, 

and Tiffany placed her hand on Jessica’s head and ruffled the brown locks.

“You need to stop thinking it’s because of you that bad things happen to other people. It’s not 

your fault that people chose to act in a certain way that makes them get into trouble, get it?” 

Tiffany said and removed her hand from Jessica’s now messy head.

The brunette girl slowly nodded her head, and stopped with her head bent down. Tiffany 

watched the brunette girl that didn’t seem to lift her head. She noticed Taeyeon glancing at 

Jessica, the blonde’s questioning expression turned into concern and she bent her head to take 

a closer look on Jessica’s face. When Tiffany saw Taeyeon bring her free hand to Jessica’s 

face, Tiffany knew what had happened.

“Yah, are you crying?” Tiffany placed her hand on the brunette’s girl’s shoulder, but the hand 

got pushed away.

“Hey, Jessica, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-“ Tiffany panicked when she thought she was the 

cause of the brunette’s tears. But when Jessica shook her head she stopped herself and 

watched the brunette wipe her cheeks.

Tiffany shifted her eyes to the blonde girl that watched looked at Jessica with a distressed 

expression. Noticing someone was looking at her Taeyeon met Tiffany’s gaze and she smiled 

apologetic at the woman.

“We’re not used to people defending us, let alone assuring it’s not our fault when they get into 

trouble for doing so.” Taeyeon explained. Tiffany furrowed her eyebrows at the blonde’s 

words and shifted her attention to the still sobbing Jessica.

“Being abandoned by the most of the adults in our lives we don’t have much respect or 

expectations of them, so when there come an adult that actually shows they can stand up for 

us and show our past experiences were wrong it gets pretty overwhelming.” Taeyeon 

explained.

Taeyeon shifted her eyes to the brunette that was still crying. She inhaled and bit her lower lip 

to brave herself against her own tears.

“It makes us realize what we experienced were wrong, and we start feeling sorry for 

ourselves, which we want to keep from doing.” Taeyeon said and she as well let tears stream 

down her cheeks.

Tiffany listened with widened eyes at the blonde’s explanation, and suddenly everything the 

girls had told her made sense. She gulped nervously and took a step closer to the brunette she 

had made cry from the start.

She carefully placed an arm around Jessica’s shoulders, the brunette didn’t react to it, and 

Tiffany dared to put her other arm around Jessica and slowly brought in the girl for a hug. She 

could almost feel how the girl’s body broke down in her embrace, and she braced herself for 

her own tears when she actually could feel how fragile Jessica was.

When the armor and walls were down, Tiffany finally could see the weak side of the girl, and 

Tiffany kept her hold around her, just to make sure Jessica wouldn’t fall apart. Also, to make 

the girl know that when her walls were down Tiffany’s would be up to protect both of them, 

no matter what trouble Tiffany would be put through.

Chapter 19 – Until next time

Eyes looked at the ripped pair of jeans in her view. The owner of the eyes lowered her gaze a 

bit to the pair of black sneakers that was worn out and definitively needed to go to a better 

place.

The woman furrowed her eyebrows and let her eyes move higher up, the black sweater that 

covered the teenage girl’s upper body looked just as worn out and torn as the jeans she was 

wearing.

The woman bit down on her lower lip and shifted her gaze to the other girl that sat on the 

couch. She only had to take a glimpse of the girl to know her clothes were in the same state as 

the former girl’s clothes she had been checking out. Tiffany let out a sigh and placed her chin 

in her palm.

Her eyes went back and forth between the two girls. Their appearance bothered her even more 

now than ever. And it didn’t help that the incident that happened a few days ago kept 

repeating in her mind. She hated how the woman had locked down on the two girls.

Not being able to look at the two kids anymore Tiffany stood up from her seat on the arm 

chair and made her way out of the room. Taeyeon and Jessica looked questioning after the cap 

clad woman that left, when Tiffany didn’t say where she was going they turned to Sooyoung 

that shrugged her shoulders.

“She’ll probably come back.” The woman on the other end of the couch said.

The two girls exchanged looks before they turned back to the TV they had been watching 

earlier. By reflex they moved closer to each other and didn’t notice the smile that was 

plastered on the remaining woman’s lips upon seeing their action.

After a few minutes of watching the TV they heard steps coming from the hallway and they 

turned their heads towards the door in time to see Tiffany enter while putting on her black 

leather jacket.

“Are you going somewhere?” Sooyoung asked.

“Yes, and you’re coming with me.” Tiffany said and pointed at the two girls on the couch.

The two girls looked surprised upon the sudden decision of them going somewhere. But after 

exchanging glances Taeyeon and Jessica complied with Tiffany’s order and followed the 

woman out. Sooyoung joined them as well even though Tiffany had only requested for the 

two teenagers to come with her.

---The blonde and brunette girl kept close to each other while they held each other’s hands 

tightly as they looked around the cloth store they had been brought to. The two women that 

had brought them here had already walked off to look at the things they wanted to look at and 

the two teenagers were left to take care of themselves.

Jessica and Taeyeon slowly began walking around the store while carefully looking at the 

clothes. Jessica caught a glimpse of a price tag on one of the t-shirts that were displayed on a 

table and she held her breath when the price was even more she could imagine she would 

carry around in her pocket. Her grip on Taeyeon’s hand got tighter and she leaned closer to 

the blonde’s ear.

“Be careful of what you touch. If it breaks you’ll have to work here for the rest of your life to 

pay it back.” Jessica warned the blonde. She could feel Taeyeon tense beside her. And with 

that in mind the two girls went to a corner of the store and stood there until Tiffany and 

Sooyoung had finished their shopping.

They could easily spot Sooyoung in the store as the woman walked around. She was taller 

than most of the customers in the store, thus making her stand out among the others.

They caught Sooyoung turning around like she looked for something. When the woman 

finally saw where the two girls were she stopped and smiled. The woman started to make her 

way towards the two girls when she finally had found them.

“Are you hungry?” Sooyoung asked when she had stopped in front of Taeyeon and Jessica. 

Both girls shook their heads and a frown appeared on Sooyoung’s lips.

“Not even for ice cream?”

The two girls got unsure expressions on their faces and both bit down on their lips. Sooyoung 

smiled upon the reaction she received and with a satisfied grin on her lips she turned around 

to continue her shopping.

“I’ll just pay for these and see what Fany is doing then we’re going to buy ice cream.” 

Sooyoung announced and held up a pair of denim shorts and a t-shirt. The two girls watched 

in silence as the woman went to the cashier.

“Do we really have to eat ice cream?” Taeyeon asked and turned to Jessica. The brunette 

sighed and looked at the blonde.

“When it comes to her I don’t think we have another choice.” Jessica said and slumped her 

shoulders.

The two girls waited in silence for the two women back to them. They looked at the 

customers in the store that were mostly females. The customers didn’t seem to mind the two 

younger girls that really looked out of place in the store.

“There they are.” They heard Tiffany’s voice say and both of them snapped their heads to the 

familiar woman with the black cap, they noticed another woman was by her side, and by the 

looks of it it seemed like she was working there.

“I see.” The woman by Tiffany’s side said as the two of them stopped in front of Taeyeon and 

Jessica. 

“You see what I mean?” Tiffany asked and crossed her arms while she turned to the other 

woman that looked at Taeyeon and Jessica. The two teenagers shifted in their spots as they 

felt uncomfortable by the strangers gaze.

“Yeah, I see what you mean.” The staff said and nodded her head before turning to Tiffany. 

“It’s a good thing what you decided to do, and your choice is really good.” The woman 

praised Tiffany.

The cap clad woman grinned and glanced at Taeyeon and Jessica that looked confused at the 

two women.

“I know, when it comes to fashion I’m an expert.” Tiffany said and she and the other woman 

laughed.

Taeyeon and Jessica looked at each other, they didn’t get what was so funny about what 

Tiffany said.

“Very well then, I’ll fix what you requested.” The woman said after she and Tiffany had 

stopped laughing.

“Thank you, Sunye!” Tiffany said when the woman left. She turned to the two teenagers again 

that still looked confused at her.

“That’s Sunye, she’s the manager of this store, she’s also a close friend of me and Sooyoung.” 

Tiffany quickly explained who the woman was and her relationship to her.

Taeyeon and Jessica slowly nodded their heads as they looked at the cap clad woman that 

leaned against the wall beside them. Tiffany grinned at them before she turned to look out 

over the store.

“Where’s Sooyoung?” Tiffany asked and furrowed her eyebrows as she looked for the taller 

woman.

Jessica and Taeyeon also turned their heads to look for the said woman. Both of their eyes 

looked around to catch a glimpse of the woman they had remembered was supposed to look 

for Tiffany.

“Ah, there she is.” Tiffany said and pointed when she saw the taller woman that was currently 

coming their way.

Sooyoung was carrying two bigger plastic bags and two smaller, Jessica and Taeyeon looked 

surprised at the things she was carrying as they had remembered she was only going to buy 

two things.

“Sunye gave me these and told me it was yours.” Sooyoung said when she had stopped by 

them and reached out the two bigger bags and one of the smaller ones towards Tiffany.

“Oh, that was fast, thanks.” Tiffany said and smiled at Sooyoung.

Sooyoung smiled knowingly at the cap clad woman when she handed back Tiffany’s credit 

card which Tiffany grabbed and put inside the pocket of her leather jacket.

“So, next stop will be an ice cream bar.” Sooyoung said and turned to the two teenagers.

---“So what ice cream flavors do you like?” Sooyoung asked and glanced at the two teenagers 

that walked side by side to her right.

“Vanilla, strawberry,” Jessica turned to look at Taeyeon.

“And banana.” Taeyeon finished.

“Yes, those three.” Jessica said and turned to the taller woman.

Sooyoung nodded her head. “Then we’ll fix so you get that.” The taller woman said and 

smiled at them.

Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged looks as they followed Tiffany and Sooyoung into the ice 

cream bar.

The two women stood in line with the two teenagers by their side. Taeyeon and Jessica looked 

around the ice cream bar, it was a lot of customers around this time of the day, and people 

filled the whole place.

Cheerful chatter came from the different tables that were occupied by customers. Taeyeon and 

Jessica were fascinated by how many people it was there as they had never been to an ice 

cream bar before, they had only bought ice cream from the ice cream truck or the super 

market in their hometown.

“Why don’t the two of you find a table for us while we buy the ice cream?” Sooyoung asked 

the two teens. Without arguing or questioning the woman Taeyeon and Jessica went to search 

for an empty table that would fit the four of them.

The two girls found a table in the back of the ice cream bar and they took a seat beside each 

other while they waited for the two women to finish the orders.

“Have you ever been to an ice cream bar before?” Jessica turned to the blonde and asked even 

though she already knew the answer.

“No,” Taeyeon answered and shook her head.

“Me neither, I didn’t even know it existed. It’s like an ice cream restaurant.” Jessica said and 

looked around the place.

“I knew it existed, I saw it on TV once and asked mom about it but she only got mad and-“ 

Taeyeon trailed off and Jessica snapped her head towards the blonde. Seeing the pale face 

Taeyeon had gotten she smiled reassuringly at her and grabbed her hand and gave it a light 

squeeze.

“Well, your mom isn’t here now, so asking won’t hurt, right?” Jessica said in attempt of 

cheering the blonde girl up. A weak smile appeared on Taeyeon’s lips and the blonde nodded 

her head.

Seeing that Taeyeon got cheered up Jessica smiled and turned to the two women that 

approached them. She noticed that Sooyoung and Tiffany was carrying two ice cream cones 

each and when Taeyeon and Jessica got one each they looked surprised at the cones in front of 

them.

“Eat before it melts.” Sooyoung told the two girls that continued to stare at the cones like it 

was an unfamiliar object they’ve never seen before.

“We got one each?” Jessica asked surprised and looked back and forth between Sooyoung and 

Tiffany.

“Yes, of course you get.” Tiffany said.

“But we’ve always shared ice cream cone.” Jessica said and looked almost disappointed that 

she would be eating her own.

Tiffany and Sooyoung stopped eating their ice creams and looked at the two teenagers that 

looked confused to the new change. The two women exchanged looks before they turned back 

to the two girls.

“You know, you could still share, but instead of eating one you eat two.” Tiffany said.

Both Taeyeon and Jessica looked at the cap clad woman like they thought she had the said the 

strangest thing ever.

“Okay, look,” Tiffany took the plastic spoon from the ice cream cone in front of Taeyeon and 

placed it in Jessica’s, then she moved the cone so it stood in the middle of the two girls. “See, 

eat that first then the second one.” Tiffany said and motioned for the two girls to start eating.

Reluctantly the brunette and blonde girl started eating from the ice cream. Much to Sooyoung 

and Tiffany’s relief.

The two women watched amused as the two girls ate their ice cream, and after finishing the 

first cone they moved on to the next one. With their observation they learned that both girls 

liked vanilla, but Taeyeon liked strawberry while Jessica liked banana.

Being bored by the silence that was engulfing them Tiffany thought about something to talk 

about. And after thinking about it she turned to the two girls that was busily eating their ice 

cream.

“Jessica what’s your favorite color?” Tiffany asked the brunette girl that sat opposite her.

The brunette girl took out the spoon she had in her mouth and furrowed her eyebrows upon 

the rather random and sudden question.

“I don’t know.” Jessica said and looked at the taller woman beside Tiffany, but Sooyoung 

seemed too busy eating her ice cream to bother about what the others were talking about.

“Good color.” Tiffany said and ate a spoon from her ice cream.

Jessica frowned upon the woman’s comment and looked at Taeyeon that gave her an 

understanding look.

“Okay, grey.” Jessica mumbled.

“Why grey?” Tiffany continued to question the teenager, completely oblivious to the 

annoyance Jessica felt.

“Because it’s a mix of the absence and presence of all colors.” Jessica simply stated.

Both Tiffany and Sooyoung momentarily stopped eating their ice creams and stared surprised 

at Jessica. Jessica looked questioning at the two adults that she seemed to have surprised with 

her answer.

“What?” Jessica looked back and forth between Tiffany and Sooyoung.

“Nothing, sometimes you just say so unexpected things.” Sooyoung said and smiled at the 

brunette. Jessica raised her left eyebrow and looked at Tiffany that nodded her head in 

agreement to what Sooyoung said. The brunette turned to Taeyeon that smiled at her which 

also made Jessica let go of the subject.

“So what about you, Taeyeon? What color is your favorite?” Tiffany ate another spoon of her 

ice cream and turned to the blonde girl instead.

“Blue.” Taeyeon replied.

Tiffany furrowed her eyebrows and looked at her ice cream cone before she looked up at the 

two girls again.

“You know, none of those are that bright.” Tiffany pointed out.

Her statement made Jessica frown.

“What is a bright color?” Jessica asked and looked from Tiffany to Sooyoung.

“You know, like pink, yellow and white.”

Jessica furrowed her eyebrows and slightly shook her head. She didn’t like the idea of having 

such colors as a favorite.

“What’s wrong with a bit of color? Look, Sooyoung is wearing a yellow bracelet, it’s really 

good to complete an outfit.” Tiffany said and pointed at the bracelet Sooyoung had around her 

wrist. 

“But with colors like that you’ll stand out.” Jessica said with still a frown on her lips.

Tiffany clamped her mouth shut and looked back and forth between the two girls. Now she 

realized she had never seen them wearing any article of clothing with a bright color, or 

colorful color. It had always had been dark colors, like black, grey and blue.

“I see.” Tiffany said and nodded her head.

She knew that clothes were like armor, and while Jessica and Taeyeon had grown up in an 

environment where they had to defend and fight for themselves they probably had needed to 

wear something that wouldn’t make them stand out. Tiffany could clearly understand why the 

girls would rather choose a black sweater instead of a white one.

With that new fact learned Tiffany remained quiet as they finished their ice cream before they 

were going to return home.

---A knock on the door made the two girls inside the bedroom look towards the entrance. A 

woman with a cap stood there and leaned against the doorframe. She pointed at Jessica when 

she had gotten both girls’ attention.

“May I borrow you for a few minutes?” Tiffany asked and lowered her finger she had pointed 

at the brunette girl.

Jessica and Taeyeon looked at each other, not seeing why it should be a problem Jessica got 

up from her seat beside Taeyeon and followed Tiffany out of the room. The cap clad woman 

led Jessica further down the hallway to where her bedroom where located. Jessica trailed 

behind the woman that entered her room and stopped when she was standing in the middle of 

the room.

“You can take a seat on the bed.” Tiffany told the brunette girl. Jessica looked at the bed and 

slowly made her way towards it and awkwardly took a seat on it. She watched the woman 

make her way to one of the plastic bags that stood outside of her closet. The woman picked up 

one of the plastic bags and turned to Jessica.

Tiffany made her way to the girl seated on her bed and held the plastic bag in front of Jessica 

for the girl to take. The brunette girl grabbed the bag and looked questioning at Tiffany, the 

woman motioned for her to look inside it. Jessica carefully put her hand inside the bag and 

brought out a pair of jeans, her eyes widened and she looked inside the plastic bag again and 

this time she took out a backpack, her eyes shifted to Tiffany. Tiffany shrugged her shoulders 

upon seeing the teenage girl’s questioning look.

“I broke your backpack the first day I met you, remember? I thought I could buy you a new 

one.” Tiffany said. “As for the clothes, I thought you could use some newer ones.” Tiffany 

said and pointed at the pair of jeans, and the t-shirt and sweater Jessica had found in the 

plastic bag. 

Jessica furrowed her eyebrows and looked at the things she just had been given. This was way 

too much for her to take in. She quickly put everything back into the plastic bag and held it 

out towards Tiffany.

“I can’t accept this.” Jessica said and looked Tiffany in the eyes.

“Yes you can, I bought it for you.” Tiffany said and furrowed her eyebrows. Jessica only 

shook her head, making a frown appear on the woman’s lips.

“Accept it.” Tiffany pushed away Jessica’s hand that was holding the plastic bag towards her. 

“If you don’t I’m gonna get hurt.”

Jessica lowered the plastic bag and looked at Tiffany that looked at her with a serious 

expression. Jessica looked reluctantly at the plastic bag in her hand, she didn’t want to accept 

it, but she didn’t want to hurt Tiffany either.

“Just take it. If I know that you have clothes on your body I’ll be less worried about you.” 

Tiffany said.

Jessica placed the plastic bag in her lap and looked up at the cap clad woman. She bit her 

lower lip and slowly nodded her head.

“Okay.” Jessica finally accepted the gift. Tiffany grinned and ruffled Jessica’s hair.

“Good girl.” Tiffany mused.

Jessica smiled a small smile and looked at the plastic bag she was hugging. This must be the 

most expensive gift she has ever received.

“And give this to Taeyeon.” Tiffany picked up the other plastic bag that was the same size as 

the one Jessica had been given. The cap clad woman threw the bag beside Jessica on the bed 

and the brunette girl looked at it before turning her head back to Tiffany.

“No, you do it.” Jessica said and furrowed her eyebrows.

“I told you to do it.” Tiffany argued back.

“If you don’t do it Taeyeon will probably get hurt.”

Tiffany clamped her mouth shut and stared into Jessica’s eyes, Jessica raised an eyebrow and 

tilted her head to the side as she waited for Tiffany to say something back.

Feeling defeated Tiffany sighed and went to pick up the plastic bag she had thrown to Jessica.

“Fine, I’ll give it to her.” Tiffany mumbled.

When the cap clad woman looked back at Jessica she saw a small smile was displayed on the 

teenager’s lips. Tiffany couldn’t keep the smile from her own lips when she realized she had 

been able to make the girl smile. 

“Can’t we give it to her together?” Tiffany suggested.

Jessica looked at the plastic bag Tiffany held out. Her eyes left the bag and went up to meet 

Tiffany’s gaze instead, her smile returned to her lips and she jumped down from her seat on 

the bed.

“Okay.” The teenager agreed to Tiffany’s request.

Tiffany smiled as well and she and Jessica exited her room to give the clothes to the blonde 

girl that was probably waiting for Jessica to return.

---A tall woman wearing a simple black skirt and a white blouse to match with the skirt walked 

to the room she heard two girls chatter from. A small smile formed on her lips as she got 

closer to the room but when she arrived at the room’s entrance her smile instantly 

disappeared.

The two girls that had occupied the room for the last week had packed their bags and were 

currently in the middle of the room helping each other to roll up the mattresses they had used 

to sleep on.

“What are you doing?” Sooyoung finally asked and earned both teenage girls’ attention.

Both Jessica and Taeyeon exchanged glances before they looked back at the woman that was 

standing by the door.

“We’re cleaning up.” Jessica answered with a small smile.

“Why?” Sooyoung asked even though she could figure out the answer.

“We’ve gotten a bit tired of this place and want to go somewhere else.” Jessica answered.

“What?!” Sooyoung and the two girls’ turned their attention to Tiffany that was outside the 

room behind Sooyoung. The cap clad woman had overheard what Jessica just had said when 

she was going to walk past the guestroom.

"You're leaving already? Can't you stay? We have enough room for both of you." Tiffany said 

after she had taken a spot beside Sooyoung by the door.

“No, there are other places to see. We can’t just stay at one place.” Jessica said and shoved a 

shirt into her new backpack. Tiffany watched with a concerned expression.

“But-“ Tiffany stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked to her side and saw 

Sooyoung shaking her head, she gave the taller girl a questioning look as she didn’t 

understand why she would let the two younger girls just go.

“Remember, watch them, understand them and accept their choices in life.” Sooyoung 

whispered into Tiffany’s ear before she went to help Jessica and Taeyeon to pack their 

belongings.

“Let me drive you then. I need to take care of some business in Hongchon anyway.” Tiffany 

said with a sigh.

“Okay!” Jessica said happily.

---After the girls had bid goodbye to Sooyoung they had gotten into Tiffany’s car and Tiffany 

had started driving towards their next destination. The cap clad woman was driving slower 

than she usually did while she checked the rear mirror to check on the two girls in the 

backseat. Taeyeon and Jessica was however too busy to admire the new scenery outside the 

window to notice the woman’s gaze.

When the car drove into a city Jessica started to get more alert about her surrounding an she 

tried to look at the streets of the city and tried to remember what places they were passing by.

"You can stop here." Jessica said when she saw a good place for Tiffany to stop and a place 

she thought would be good for them to walk from. Tiffany slowly drove off to the side and the 

car came to a halt. She looked back at the two girls in the backseat that smiled at her.

“Sooyoung told me to give you this.” Tiffany turned around in the driver seat and gave each 

girl an envelope. The girls didn’t need to open it to know what it contained.

“Thank you.” Both Jessica and Taeyeon said and bowed towards the cap clad woman. Tiffany 

smiled bitterly at them and nodded towards the door.

“You better go.” Tiffany said. She shared a few seconds of eye contact with the two girls 

before both of them started moving towards the door of the car.

“Thank you, and bye bye.” Both girls said as they went out of the car.

Tiffany turned back around and watched the girl get out of the car through the rear mirror. 

She sighed deeply when the car door closed and she saw them stand on the side walk.

She suddenly remembered something she almost had forgotten she quickly turned towards the 

girls that was about to walk away.

"Jessica, hold on!" Tiffany shouted after the girls. The brunette girl turned around and looked 

confused at the driver in the car. Tiffany motioned for the girl to come and Jessica went over 

to the car and opened the passenger door and peeked her head in to hear what Tiffany wanted.

Tiffany took off her cap and put it on Jessica's head instead. Jessica stared at her confused and 

Tiffany smiled at the younger girl and slowly patted her head that was now covered by her 

cap. 

"I'll give this cap to you for now, but one day I want it back. Okay? You have to come back 

and give it to me." Tiffany stopped patting Jessica's head and stared intently in Jessica's eyes. 

When the younger girl understood what Tiffany was trying to say she smiled wider and 

nodded her head.

"Okay! I'll give it back to you someday." Jessica said with a smile.

Satisfied with the response Tiffany smiled. "Good. So I'll see you someday, Jessica."

The brunette girl closed the car door and she and Taeyeon watched as Tiffany drove away. 

When the car had disappeared from their sight, they started to make their way down the street, 

hands holding, and eyes roaming the new place they had arrived at.

Chapter 20 – Just stay close

Jessica looked over the edge of her cards at the blonde girl that stared at her own cards in 

front of her. She smirked and straightened up in her seat and held her cards with one of her 

hands and rested her head on her other.

"You done?" Jessica asked with her eyes focused on her cards. When there was no response 

from the other girl she looked up and saw Taeyeon nodding her head, Jessica smirked and 

showed her cards and Taeyeon did the same.

Jessica's smile widened and Taeyeon was left with her mouth hanging open. Jessica laughed 

by the blonde girl's reaction and held her stomach as she laughed. With wide eyes Taeyeon 

checked if the cards really were true and to her distress they were.

"How can you win again?" Taeyeon whined and placed her head on her folded arms as Jessica 

started mixing the cards again.

"Luck I guess." Jessica said and shrugged her shoulders. Taeyeon pouted and buried her face 

in her arm.

"I don't wanna play poker anymore." Taeyeon mumbled.

"Aww, c'mon Taengoo. We're just doing this for fun." Jessica said and patted the blonde's 

head. She received no response from the blonde girl and she sighed and looked at the cards 

that were now scattered around the table.

Her eyes left the cards and looked around the café they were at. After walking around the city 

they had decided to take a rest at the café they had found at the corner of the street. They had 

bought tea to drink and to kill some time while having fun Jessica ad suggested to play poker, 

however she was the only one that seemed to have enjoyed the game.

The brunette turned her head back to the blonde girl. She smiled as she could only see the 

crown of Taeyeon’s head as the latter’s face was still covered by her arms.

"Do you wanna play something else?" Jessica asked instead. The blonde shook her head in 

response. Jessica slumped in her chair and looked at the blonde girl in front of her.

"Are you hungry?" Jessica asked and glanced at Taeyeon.

“No,” Was the answer she got from the blonde. Jessica smiled and poked the blonde girl’s 

arm and leaned closer to the table when Taeyeon had uncovered her face.

“You do know that I notice when you get hungry. You always start to act stubborn then.” 

Jessica pointed out.

Taeyeon’s cheeks took a light shade of pink when Jessica had pointed out her observation. 

The brunette smiled and took out her wallet.

"I'll buy something to eat for us." Jessica said and proceeded to stand up but Taeyeon was fast 

enough to be able to grab the brunette's wrist before she had been able to leave the table.

"We split it." Taeyeon said. Jessica looked confused at Taeyeon to what she meant.

"Let's not only waste your money, we split the cost." Taeyeon said and grabbed her own 

backpack to find her money. Jessica smiled at the blonde’s concern.

"It's okay, Taengoo-ah. I'll pay now and you can pay next time." Jessica said and placed her 

hand on Taeyeon's shoulder. The two girls stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds 

before Taeyeon broke the stare and placed her backpack on the floor between her feet.

"Okay, but nothing too expensive, okay?" Taeyeon said and Jessica smiled and gave her a 

nod.

"I got it." Jessica said and gave Taeyeon a light pat on the head which made the blonde flinch 

at first but later left her blushing.

Jessica went to the counter to order something for them to eat, as she waited she glanced at a 

man that sat by the counter and read the newspaper while drinking coffee.

Jessica glanced at the newspaper and her eyes widened when she saw a familiar picture on the 

front page. That blonde hair, pale face with the pink lips that formed an uncertain smile, 

Jessica knew exactly who it was with just one glance.

Her eyes moved away from the picture to the text that was written above the picture. Her 

heart beat faster as she read the words that were written. She gulped nervously and felt the 

blood in her face drain.

The man turned page and noticed Jessica staring his way, he shoot the girl a questioning look 

which made Jessica snap out of her shocked state. She apologized and turned around and 

started to make her way back to her and Taeyeon’s table, as she walked she looked around the 

café and suddenly she felt like everyone was looking at the blonde girl sitting by the table.

Jessica picked up her pace and hurriedly went over to the table Taeyeon was sitting by. When 

Jessica arrived by the table and started to gather the cards and quickly threw them into her 

backpack Taeyeon sensed something was wrong.

“What are you doing?” Taeyeon asked and looked at the panicked Jessica.

“Ssh, I’ll tell you later.” Jessica said in a hushed tone and dragged Taeyeon up from her seat 

and put on Taeyeon’s backpack for the girl.

Taeyeon turned to the other girl again to ask but got silenced as Jessica put on the black cap 

over her head that she had gotten from Tiffany. Jessica pulled the cap down over Taeyeon’s 

face and told the blonde to keep it like that.

Jessica looked around the café one last time before she grabbed her own backpack and 

Taeyeon’s hand with her other and quickly dragged them out of the café.

Once they were on the street again she told Taeyeon to keep her head down and she led the 

way for both of them. Her eyes was glancing left and right, her eyes looking for anyone that 

might look a bit too much at them.

The brunette finally found an alley where the two of them could be alone and she quickly 

dragged Taeyeon with her in there. When she had made sure no one seemed to have followed 

them, or no one seemed to come their way she finally turned to Taeyeon that was still

covering her face with the cap.

“I’m sorry.” Jessica apologized and pulled the cap up to see Taeyeon’s face. Taeyeon looked 

at her with confused eyes.

“What’s going on, Sica?” Taeyeon could sense that Jessica was worked up about something, 

and the other girl’s panic was clearly shown in her face.

Jessica took a deep breath to calm herself down, she looked at Taeyeon that had a worried 

expression on her face now, and Jessica gulped. She knew what she just had discovered would 

change things from now on.

“You’re in the newspaper.” Jessica started. Taeyeon’s eyes widened just as much her must 

have done when she also had discovered it.

“I can only assume your father or your school must have reported that you’re missing, 

because the newspaper is writing about it now, your picture is even published.” Jessica said in 

a low whisper.

Taeyeon gulped and her posture seemed to shrink. When Jessica saw how scared the blonde 

girl seemed to get she regretted telling the blonde about the article, but she knew she couldn’t 

keep something like this a secret. It’s important that both of them are aware of it.

“So, what do we do now?” Taeyeon fidgeted nervously and her eyes started to glance towards 

the direction they had come from.

Jessica sighed and looked down on their intertwined hands.

“I don’t know. Try to not show us too much in public?” Jessica said and shrugged.

Taeyeon nodded her head. “It wasn’t anything written about you?” Taeyeon asked and looked 

at Jessica.

The brunette shook her head. “No, I don’t really have anyone that would be missing me at 

home.” Jessica said and smiled bitterly.

Taeyeon nodded her head once again. Even though it might sound sad that no one would take 

notice of Jessica’s absence in their hometown, it was better than getting reported as missing 

like Taeyeon had been.