CHAPTER XX

A GOOD NEWS

“… And so Liz told Robbie to stop two-timing Lisa and poured her punch on top of his head.” Tiffany and Jessica were on the bus heading for SM training building and the crescent eyed girl was telling Jessica about Elizabeth, her best friend in Los Angeles.

“Wow…” The blonde girl said. “… Liz sounds like a good friend…”

“She is!” The crescent eyed girl said in confidence. “She’s the best!”

“More than me?” Jessica looked sad.

“I didn’t mean it like that, Jessie.” Tiffany giggled. “You’re always going to be the bestest best friend for me.”

“Stop getting jealous at all my friends.”

“I can’t help it.” The blue eyed girl sighed, and Tiffany found her to be too cute, and she instinctively hugged her.

“T-Tiff…” Jessica pulled away gently. “… People are watching…”

“O-Oh…” The black haired American girl blushed and pulled away.

“Tell me more about Liz…” The blonde said after a while, but she was still blushing too.

And Tiffany told her about how she the last few days of her winter break in Jeonju in the internet café. In the morning she and Taeyeon would go to the internet café and Tiffany would arrange for a video call between Elizabeth and herself, while her shorter new best friend played some online games. The two American girls would then exchange stories about their current lives, before Tiffany would learn to make the friendship bracelet for Jessica at the souvenir shop.

Elizabeth would tell her about their friends in Los Angeles, and how things changed when the crescent eyed girl was no longer around. Rickie was now getting closer with Jackie, but they were still a little awkward around Elizabeth and the others since they knew Rickie liked Tiffany back then, Dean confessed to Erica, but she rejected him since she liked Robbie, and Lisa found out about Erica and Robbie, but she forgave him since he promised her he would not cheat on her again, and Elizabeth and Nick were doing great, and they got closer and closer with each other by the day.

Tiffany shared that she was getting used to her busy schedule, and was actually enjoying her new life in Korea. She told Elizabeth that she had gained a lot of friends in her school and training, and a new best friend.

But she didn’t tell Jessica how she had spent the entire time calling Elizabeth talking about her. How pretty she was, how calm, and nice, and cute she was. The crescent eyed girl told Elizabeth about every little detail she could remember about the blonde girl, and Elizabeth seemed to be excited to listen to her story, although on the very last day of her stay in Jeonju Elizabeth mentioned something odd to her.

“She sounds wonderful, Tiff.” Elizabeth said.

“Yeah, she is.” Tiffany flashed her eye smile.

“So she buys you stuff, and took care of you when you were sick, and gave you a pair of pretty and expensive looking anklets for your Christmas present…” The brunette girl recalled what Tiffany had told her.

“And now you’re making her a handmade friendship bracelet even though you already bought her a scarf…”

“Mhmm…” The black haired girl nodded passionately. “Because I think the scarf isn’t special enough…”

“And you guys talk over the phone and text each other all the time…” Elizabeth continued.

“Yeah…” Tiffany nodded some more.

“And you guys miss each other so much even when it’s just for a few days…”

“It’s one week, Liz.” The crescent eyed girl sighed and corrected her.

“One week; okay…” Elizabeth could see the sparks on her best friend’s eyes.

Elizabeth stayed quiet for a while, and she looked like she was thinking about something.

“What’s wrong, Liz?” Tiffany asked her.

“O-Oh, nothing…” She looked surprised.

“I guess…” Elizabeth said carefully. “… I guess you really like her, huh?”

“Oh, yeah.” The black haired girl giggled. “I like her so much.”

“O-Okay…” The brunette looked confused. “J-Just…”

“Just take it easy, okay?”

“Why?” Tiffany found her comment odd.

“W-Well, s-she may not like…” Elizabeth stuttered as she was having a hard time trying to share her opinion without hurting her best friend. “I mean you’re both still…”

“A-And I don’t know if you really meant the things you said…”

“What are you talking about, Liz?” The crescent eyed girl was getting confused. “Which things were you talking about?”

“I-I…” Elizabeth was at loss for words.

“Oh! I have to go now; it’s time to finish my bracelet.” Tiffany realized she was a bit late. “I’ll call you later, Liz; I promise.”

“Goodbye!” The crescent eyed girl waved to the screen.

“O-Okay…” The brunette looked like she was still trying to say something, but she decided to wait until next time. “… Goodbye, Tiff!”

And the black haired American girl hung up and quickly gathered her things and went straight to the souvenir shop.

“… You should’ve seen their faces.” Jessica said as she concluded her story about her winter break.

Tiffany smiled when she realized what she was talking about. “Yeah, I wish I was there…”

“But we got them on video, Tiff.” The blonde smiled as she stood up. “I’ll bring the camera tomorrow.”

“Come on, it’s our stop.” Jessica offered her hand and the crescent eyed girl quickly took it.

They got off the bus and walked to their training building without letting go of their joined hands. Tiffany squeezed the blonde’s hand a little tighter and Jessica let out a cute whine.

The blue eyed girl then tried to pull her hand away but Tiffany wouldn’t let her and pulled her closer instead and giggled.

“I’m not letting you go, Jessie…” She whispered, and the blonde flushed slightly.

It was the first training day after winter break and all the trainee girls were still in their holiday mode and less excited to resume their trainings. Tiffany had just entered her dancing class and saw Yuri and Sooyoung sitting in the corner, leaning towards each other and stared at the distance; too lazy to even talk to each other. The crescent eyed girl then lead Jessica towards them.

“You guys look happy…” Sooyoung said as the two American girls sat next to them on the floor.

Tiffany smiled at her and shrugged, “Is it wrong to start a new year feeling happy?”

“Ugh, I wish winter break lasts until March…” Yuri leaned her head against the wall.

“I wish winter break lasts until June…” The taller girl yawned.

“Do you want something to drink?” Jessica ignored the two lazy girls and asked Tiffany.

“I’m fine, Jessie.” The crescent eyed girl smiled at the blonde as she stood up and started to walk away.

“I want a coke!” Sooyoung shouted to the blue eyed girl.

“You can just buy them yourself.” Jessica said without even turning her head.

“Ugh! Sica-yah!” The tall tanned girl pouted. “Are you playing favorites?”

Tiffany giggled at her friend’s comment, and deep inside she was happy that her bestest best friend always favored her.

“You must tell me how to make her nice to me like that, Tiffany.” Yuri said as she stared at the disappearing blonde. “I want Jessica as my personal maid too…”

“She’s not my maid!” Tiffany glared at her tanned friend. “She’s not anyone’s maid! How could you say that?”

“Okay, okay…” Yuri was surprised by her sudden outburst. “… I’m sorry…”

The crescent eyed girl pouted and crossed her arms, while Sooyoung giggled and nudged Yuri. “She’s scary when she’s upset.”

“Yeah, I think it Jessica is a touchy subject for her…” And Tiffany glared at her once more, and Yuri quickly hid herself behind her laughing tall friend.

“Alright, people!” A girl entered the room. “Let’s start this dancing class!”

The black haired American girl stared at the girl in front of the room; she was a little shorter than her, with a long straight dark brown hair. Her skin was tanned and her face was oval shaped. She had a long and sharp eyebrow, with small eyes and low cheekbones. Her lips were thin and wide, and her voice was husky like the crescent eyed girl’s; although Tiffany’s had a deeper one.

“What are you guys waiting for?” The girl said in a commanding tone and clasped. “Chop, chop!”

Tiffany looked around and found some girls were laughing at her, while some others looked confused and stood up.

“Come on, girls!” The brunette said again. “I’ll be your instructor for the day.”

She started to show a couple of tricky moves, and some girls were amazed by her dancing skills. A couple of girls then started to copy her moves, but they still looked confused.

Tiffany was also confused by the girl’s sudden appearance, and she turned to Sooyoung with a puzzle look on her face.

“Come on,” Sooyoung stood up. “She’s the new dancing instructor.”

“Yeah, I guess the lesson has started…” Yuri sighed and followed her taller friend.

“Really?” The black haired American girl was surprised by the comment. “But she looks so young…”

“Yeah, she’s the same age as us actually,” Yuri started to follow the dance, and more girls decided to join too. “But she’s some kind of a dancing genius, so SM decided to hire her to teach us…”

“Wow…” Tiffany stared at the dancing genius in front of the class in amazement.

“You there!” The brunette pointed at Tiffany. “Less staring and more dancing!”

“Y-Yes!” The crescent eyed girl quickly bowed and started to follow the instructor’s moves.

“Very good!” The instructor praised her. “Move that hip more!”

“Excellent!” She praised again. “Come forward!”

“M-Me?” Tiffany pointed to herself in disbelief.

“Yes, you!” The instructor glared at her. “Come, quickly!”

“Y-Yes, sunsaengnim!” She rushed to the front and continued to dance.

“Keep it up!” The instructor took her hands and started to dance with her. “One-Two-One-Two…”

Tiffany put all her effort in following the instructor’s moves as she didn’t want to disappoint her. She concentrated on the brunette instructions and tried hard to keep up with her fast rhythm. She had her whole attention to the dance that she ignored the laughing and cheering of her fellow trainees behind her, until a certain blonde smacked the instructor’s head with her water bottle.

“Ouch!” The brunette rubbed her head and turned around to face Jessica.

“J-Jessie!” Tiffany was shocked by the blonde’s action and. “T-This is our—“

“—What are you doing?” Jessica glared at the instructor, and Tiffany was scared that her bestest best friend might get scolded for her action.

“This is a misunderstanding, sunsaengnim!” She said quickly and stood between them.

“Jessie! Apologize to her now!” The crescent eyed girl turned to her. “This is our new instructor!”

“What are you talking about?” Jessica stared at her, confused. “She’s a trainee just like us, Tiff.”

“What?” Tiffany was again surprised and had opened. “But Sooyoung and Yuri said…”

She then looked to her back and saw the whole room was laughing at her, and Sooyoung and Yuri laughed the loudest. The black haired American girl suddenly realized that she was tricked, and she quickly covered her blushing face with her hands.

“Apologize to her.” Jessica said as she tweaked and pulled the fake instructor’s ear as hard as she could. “Now.”

“Ouch-ouch-ouchie…!” The brunette girl bowed down in regret. “I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“Sica-yah! My ear is going to fall off!”

And the whole room exploded in laughter again.

“Why did you pretend to be the instructor?” Tiffany asked her after the class had calmed down.

“I’m sorry, I was just playing around.” The brunette girl smiled as she rubbed her red ear.

“I’m Kim Hyoyeon.” She said as she offered the crescent eyed girl her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“I’m Tiffany Hwang.” She said as she shook her hand. “Nice to meet you too.”

“Did Yuri put you up to do this?” The crescent eyed girl had her suspicion.

“Hey, I have no part on this!” Yuri quickly said when she heard the comment. “I didn’t even know she’s come back!”

“Yeah, I didn’t even recognize you at first, Hyoyeon.” Sooyoung joined in. “You look so fat now…”

“I’m not fat!” The brunette glared at the tall girl. “I just decided to put on some weight, that’s all!”

“Yeah, do you tell yourself that every time you look at the mirror?” The tall tanned girl laughed.

“Shut it, bones!” Hyoyeon waved her hand at Sooyoung’s face. “Shoo!”

“I’m talking to the new girl here.”

“You’re just jealous at my slim and y figure!” The tallest girl stuck her tongue out.

“So you’re new here, huh?” Hyoyeon ignored her and turned to the crescent eyed girl. “It’s nice to have more friends here…”

“Yeah, I just joined a few months ago.” Tiffany nodded.

“Really?” The brunette looked surprised. “And you already have Jessica on your side, huh?”

“That’s amazing…”

Tiffany smiled sheepishly at the comment like someone had just praised her of something spectacular. Hyoyeon caught the shy smile she made and turned to Jessica, who was sitting right next to the crescent eyed girl, drinking her mineral water.

“So is she like, your new best friend?” Hyoyeon pretended to look sad when she asked the blonde girl.

“But you promised you would never ever replace me!” She took Jessica’s hand when she didn’t respond to her question and glared at her. “I’m disappointed in you, Sica-yah…”

“Hey! I’m the one who should’ve said that!” Sooyoung shouted. “I was her first best friend!”

“You?” Hyoyeon scoffed. “You have a really good imagination, Sooyoung-ah…”

“What did you say?” The tall girl stood up and glared at her.

“I said you have a really good—“ Hyoyeon was about to repeat what she had just said to her tall friend, but the real instructor had stepped inside the classroom, and their real lesson was about to start.

“I’m her best friend!” The brunette whispered to Sooyoung as they started their warm up routine.

“No. I’m her best friend!” Sooyoung whispered back.

“No. I am!”

“No. Me!”

“Why are you in this class anyway?” The tall girl glared at her. “Aren’t you supposed to train with the boys like you used to?”

“Am I not allowed to train with my best friend once in a while?” Hyoyeon glared back.

“You should just go back to China!” Sooyoung stuck her tongue out.

“Ugh! Wo hen ni!” [I hate you in Chinese]

“What did you say?”

And they continued to bicker.

Dinner time came and Tiffany sat down with Jessica and the others. The girls were busy talking with Hyoyeon, welcoming their dancing princess back. Sooyoung and Yuri were teasing about how much weight she had gained in China, when they noticed how different she was than the slim Hyoyeon they used to know.

“So Hyoyeon-ssi…” Tiffany decided to get to know the brunette since she was awed by her dancing skills. “… I have never seen you in our classes before…”

“Just call me Hyoyeon, Tiffany.” The brunette smiled. “And yeah, last year I was sent to China to learn their language; so that’s why you never see me here.”

“I just got back like two days ago to resume my training here.”

“Oh, I see.” The black haired American girl nodded.

She must be something special that the company sent her all the way to China to learn their language, she thought to herself.

“My turn.” Hyoyeon said. “You have a funny accent; where are you from?”

“Oh, I’m from the US,” Tiffany said. “Los Angeles.”

“Ahh, I see…”

And the two of them spent the short break getting to know each other.

“And so I’m probably like, the most senior trainee here,” Hyoyeon said proudly after they chatted for a while about her trainings. “Along with Jessica; of course.”

“We started back in 2000.”

“So that means you have to obey me, hoobae.” She grinned. “I’m like the number one trainee in SM.”

“Don’t listen to her, Tiffany.” Sooyoung jumped in. “Being the longest trainee doesn’t mean you’re number one…”

“It just means that the company doesn’t want you to debut because you clearly need to train your skills more!”

“What did you say?” Hyoyeon glared at her tallest friend.

“You heard me.” Sooyoung stuck her tongue out.

“So you’re saying that Jessica has not debuted yet because she lacks the skill?” The brunette shouted.

“I-I didn’t say that!” The tall tanned girl flustered. “Sica has not debuted yet because she refused the offer!”

“Everybody knows that!”

The two girls started quarreling again, while Tiffany stared at the ever calm blonde girl beside her and wondered if what Sooyoung mentioned was true. She had known her best friend for a while now to know that her singing and her looks were more than enough for her to debut.

“Did you really refuse the chance to debut?” The crescent eyed girl asked.

“Don’t be silly, Tiff.” Jessica giggled. “If I had ever refused their offer to debut, they would kick me out that instant.”

“Here; try this egg roll…” The blonde cutely said as she offered Tiffany a piece of her egg roll with her chopstick. “Ahh…”

“Ahh…” And the black haired American girl instinctively opened and ate the dish, although she had the same meal as her blonde friend.

“What are you two doing?” Yuri stared at the two.

“What?” Jessica took another bite from her plate. “Can’t I spoon-feed my friend?”

“Oh, but I guess chopstick-feed is more accurate…” And both girls giggled.

“Chopstick-feed me too then!” The tanned girl quickly opened . “Aahh…”

“Do you want some broccoli?” The blonde ignored her tanned friend and offered Tiffany instead.

“No thanks, Jessie—“

“--Say aahh…” The blue eyed girl already had her chopstick near her lips.

“Aahh…” And Tiffany could not refuse her.

“Ugh! Talk about playing favorites!” Yuri shouted, and the two American girls laughed.

Dancing class was over and the two American girls were already sitting in their vocal class, waiting for their instructor. Tiffany and Jessica were chatting with Taeyeon, sharing their winter break stories, when Jang Ri-in stepped inside the classroom, looking excited like she had just won the lottery.

“Guys, guess what!” The Chinese girl squealed as she took Taeyeon’s hands and waved them around frantically.

“What is it, Ri-in?” The slanted eyed giggled.

“Did you finally go on a date with Youngjin oppa?” Tiffany .

“That’s another thing,” Ri-in laughed and she made Taeyeon spun like they were dancing. “This is so much better than that!”

“So you did go on a date with him!” The crescent eyed girl laughed, while Jessica stared at them, confused.

“They like each other since forever.” Tiffany noticed her blonde friend and told her.

“Tiffany!” Ri-in shouted. “I told you it’s not that!”

“I’m going to debut!” And all the girls in the room stared at her.

“Really?” One girl squealed.

“Oh, my God! You did it!” The other shouted.

“Congrats, Ri-in!” Another said.

And the classroom was suddenly filled with girls squealing, yelling, shouting and celebrating the Chinese girl.

“I’m so happy for you, Ri-in!” Taeyeon wiped her tears and hugged Ri-in. “You deserve this!”

“Yeah, congregation, Ri-in!” Tiffany joined and hugged her roommate.

“Congratulation!” The Chinese girl laughed and corrected her American friend, and pulled her closer.

“Sorry; my tongue slips!” The black haired American girl wiped her own tears of joy.

All the girls in the room laughed at the silly American trainee and soon joined them for a huge group hug. And after another few minutes of crying, laughing, and shouting, they pulled away and Ri-in stared at a certain blonde girl, who was smiling at her from the corner of the room.

“Congratulation, Ri-in.” Jessica said. “No one deserves this more than you.”

“Thank you, Jessica.” The Chinese girl said and hugged her. “Thank you…”

And their vocal instructor stepped inside the classroom and started their lesson for the day. The experienced man did not forget to congratulate Ri-in too, and gave a long speech about how hard work was the most important thing for them if they wanted to debut like their fellow trainee, and then switched to Ri-in and gave another long speech about idol lives and their hardships. The instructor finally ended his speech with words of encouragement and advice, before starting his real lesson.

“We should celebrate!” Tiffany whispered to her friends. “Solitaire after this!”

And the girls nodded repeatedly in agreement.

“Order what you like!” Ri-in was drunk with happiness. “It’s on me!”

“No, no; you don’t have to pay for all of us,” Yuri giggled. “You don’t want to have a large debt before you even start your debut, Ri-in.”

“Especially when Sooyoung and Yoona are here…”

“Hey, I heard that!” The tallest girl glared at her. “Do you think I’m some sort of a pig?”

The girls laughed and they all took their seats in their favorite hang out place. Hyoyeon was about to sit next to Jessica when Tiffany quickly took the seat for herself. The brunette stared at her curiously, but decided to give up and reached for the chair next to the black haired American girl instead when she saw her smiled apologetically.

“So when did you know?” Taeyeon said as she took a seat to the right of the blonde girl.

“You remember when I was so busy that I couldn’t hang out with you guys just before winter break?” The Chinese girl sat next to Taeyeon and Yuri.

“Oh, God!” The tanned girl stared at her in amazement. “You’re so lucky!”

“Luck had nothing to do with her debuting,” Tiffany said, smiling. “Ri-in has a very beautiful voice!”

“Yeah; you’re right.” Yuri nodded in agreement.

“But Yuri’s right.” Ri-in said as she glanced at Jessica. “I mean, there are others with great voices and longer training experience but they hadn’t debuted yet.”

“No, no; Tiffany’s right.” Jessica smiled to her as she knew she was talking about her. “You have a very beautiful voice, Ri-in.”

“I think my voice is perfect if there are others to complement it.” The blonde explained. “So I don’t think I can debut as a solo artist…”

“… But yours is a very powerful and beautiful voice, Ri-in,” She continued. “I think you would do great.”

“Th-Thank you, Jessica…” Ri-in blushed at her comment.

“Wow, unnie...” Yoona stared at Jessica with amazement. “… You sound like an expert…”

“Yeah, sometime she sounds like an old woman.” Yuri laughed.

“I-I do not!” The blue eyed girl stuttered. “I’m still sixteen!”

The girls laughed at her silly comment and they started to ask Ri-in for more details on her debut.

After one hour a familiar figure entered the café. The man appeared to be looking for something, or someone. The crescent eyed girl noticed the young Korean man and quickly waved to him.

“Youngjin oppa!” She shouted. “Over here!”

“Youngjin oppa?” Ri-in quickly turned to her right and found an awkward young man walking towards their table.

“Oh! Hello, girls!” Youngjin greeted them. “Long time no see, huh?”

“Long time no see?” Sooyoung giggled. “You check our dorm for attendance every night, oppa…”

“O-Oh, yeah…” He scratched his head, and the girls laughed.

“Have a seat, oppa.” Yuri giggled as she scooted to her right and made some room for their blushing young manager.

“Y-Yeah, yeah…” The young man pulled a seat from an empty table and sat next to the blushing Ri-in. “Thank you…”

“So what brings you here, oppa?” Taeyeon .

“W-What?” Youngjin was still blushing. “Ti-Tiffany asked me to come…”

“Yes, I did.” The crescent eyed girl giggled. “I thought Youngjin oppa would like to celebrate Ri-in’s debut as well.”

“Oh, really?” The other girls looked curious since only those who were roommates with Ri-in knew about their fling. “Why is that, oppa?”

“W-Why not?” The young manager blushed even more. “I-I’m going to get something to drink…”

“Tiffany!” Ri-in pinched the crescent eyed girl’s arm when Youngjin was far enough. “What are you doing?”

“Ouch!” The black haired American quickly pulled away and rubbed her arm. “I thought you’ll be happy that Youngjin oppa is here to celebrate with you…”

“I am; but--” The Chinese girl quickly changed her words. “--I am not! I am not!”

And their tables were filled with laughter once more, and Jang Ri-in covered her face with her hands.

“I thought we were not allowed to date our managers?” Sooyoung asked teasingly.

“We-We are not dating!” Ri-in shouted, drawing more laughter.

“Maybe we’re allowed to date them once we debut.” Yuri added when she noticed Youngjin was taking a long time staring at the menu at the counter.

“Stop it!” The Chinese girl’s face looked like a ripe tomato.

“What’s taking Youngjin oppa so long to order?” Yoona asked innocently.

“Perhaps he’s trying to find a Chinese drink called Jang Ri-in…” Hyoyeon teased and their laughter erupted.

Yoona was hitting the table, Yuri held on to her stomach, and Seohyun even spat some of her drink.

“W-What are you girls laughing about?” Youngjin said as he took his seat.

“Oh, nothing…” Taeyeon giggled. “… We’re just so happy that Ri-in is going to debut.”

“Y-Yeah…” The young manager scratched his head again. “… I’m happy for Ri-in too…”

And the girls ooh-ed at his comment, and both Youngjin and Ri-in blushed even more.

“Oh, it’s so hot in here!” Hyoyeon laughed as she fanned herself.

The girls then decided to stop teasing Youngjin and Ri-in after they saw the Chinese girl looked like she was about to cry. They then started chatting and joking amongst their own, leaving the two odd couple to chat between themselves. They switched their attention to Hyoyeon, their long lost friend who just got back from China, and they decided to catch up with each other. Tiffany noticed how her blonde friend stayed quiet that evening, and she decided to ask her what was wrong.

“You seem quiet, Jessie,” She gently asked. “Is something wrong?”

The blonde showed her her cute little smile and shook her head. “No, nothing’s wrong.”

“I was just thinking about the two of them.” Jessica nodded to Ri-in and Youngjin.

“What about them?” The crescent eyed girl asked again.

“Don’t you think you should tell them that trainees should not date?” The blonde . “You were pretty adamant about that point back then.”

“O-Oh…” Tiffany remembered how she was so against her and Donghae dating. “I-I…”

“So it’s okay for them to date, but you wouldn’t allow me to do the same…” The blue eyed girl pretended to be deep in thought and put her finger on her chin.

“I-It’s okay for Ri-in because she’s about to debut soon!” The crescent eyed girl blurted out anything that came to her mind.

“Oh, so am I allowed to date when I debut too?”

“Maybe…” Tiffany looked away. “… Only if I approve of the boy…”

“Really?” Jessica leaned closer to her and blinked her eyes repeatedly, showing her cute side. “You’ll let me date?”

“W-We’ll talk about this some other time, Jessie!” The crescent eyed girl felt her face was burning when she caught her act, and quickly drank her coffee.

“Stop acting so cute, Tiff.” The blonde giggled and adjusted her glasses.

“You stop being so cute!” Tiffany blurted out.

“Oh.” Jessica pretended to be surprised. “So I’m cute, huh?”

“Thank you.” She said in a cute tone, and Tiffany had to stop herself from hugging the blue eyed girl that instant.

So instead the black haired American girl stared at the blonde with narrowed eyes and bit her lower lip. Jessica saw her and quickly turned the other way, trying hard to control her rising heartbeat; as the image of the crescent eyed girl biting her lip was too much of a seduction for her to handle.

And when she turned her head to her right, she caught the eyes of a slanted eyed girl sitting next to her. Taeyeon had been watching the two of them and she had a frown on her face that suddenly turned into a smile when she caught Jessica’s eyes.

“Nice bracelet.” Taeyeon said to her.

“O-Oh, yeah.” The blonde replied. “It was a Christmas present from Tiffany.”

“Really?” Seohyun and Yoona looked surprised.

“How come we didn’t get one?” Yuri turned to the crescent eyed girl and her eyes were filled with expectation.

“O-Oh, right,” Tiffany remembered she didn’t have enough money to buy any souvenirs for her friends. “I’m sorry, you guys...”

“… I ran out of money…”

“Oh?” Hyoyeon crossed her arms and stared at the black haired American girl with a suspicious look. “But you got that cute bracelet for Jessica…”

“It’s… It’s a…” The crescent eyed girl blushed and stared at her lap.

“Stop it, Hyoyeon unnie,” Seohyun surprisingly said. “You’re just jealous that Tiffany unnie and Jessica unnie are best friends.”

The brunette girl stared at Juhyun for a moment and laughed. “I guess you’re right, Juhyun-ah…”

“I’m very jealous.” She turned to Tiffany once more and smiled.

“You don’t have to feel bad, Fanny unnie,” The youngest girl turned to her, ignoring Hyoyeon. “We didn’t expect you to buy us anything.”

“Yeah, Seohyunnie’s right.” Yoona agreed and nodded.

“Th-Thank you…” The crescent eyed girl was relieved to hear that.

The girls then continued their celebration of Ri-in’s debut until it was getting late and they decided to go home. Youngjin offered to take the girls back to their dorm and they agreed as they thought it would be nice not to have to pay for a bus fare once in a while. The young manager then told them to wait as he brings the car around from the parking lot.

Yuri, Yoona and Seohyun were already getting inside their buses and waved to the other girls. Taeyeon noticed Jessica’s taxi arrived and she waved Tiffany goodbye. And as the crescent eyed girl walked towards them, the slanted eyed girl rushed to Jessica before she could stepped inside her taxi and offered her a small red box wrapped with a white ribbon.

“I-I got you this, Jessica…” The slanted eyed girl looked very nervous. “… M-Merry Christmas…”

The blonde looked confused for a moment but decided it would be rude if she rejected her gift. “Oh, thank you, Taeyeon…”

“You shouldn’t have…” She stared at the cute little box in her hand. “… I didn’t get you anything…”

“I-It’s okay…” Taeyeon flushed and stared at her feet. “… You don’t have to get me anything…”

“… I-I just wanted to give you a gift…”

“Okay, then.” The blue eyed girl smiled. “Thanks again, Taeyeon.”

“You’re welcome.” The shorter girl smiled her sweetest and stared as her blonde friend sat in the backseat of the taxi.

“Bye.” Jessica waved to her.

“Bye.” She waved back and let out a sigh of relief.

And as Taeyeon climbed inside the car and sat next to Tiffany, Youngjin gently pushed the gas pedal and they were on their way back home to their beloved dorm. Tiffany stayed quiet and glanced at her shorter best friend once in a while. But soon she started to feel the urge to know what happened with Jessica and Taeyeon earlier. The black haired American girl quickly pulled her cell phone out and texted her blonde best friend.

What did Taeyeon want? She wrote and anxiously waited for a reply.

She gave me a Christmas present. Her reply came quick as usual, but Tiffany still felt it was too long.

What is it? She impatiently wrote as her heart was starting to beat faster.

I haven’t opened it yet.

Open it now. The crescent eyed girl switched glances between her phone and the slanted eyed girl sitting next to her.

Why do you want to know what’s inside? :) Jessica teased as usual, but Tiffany was not amused this time.

Whatever. She got upset and quickly stuffed her cell phone back into her bag.

And then the black haired American girl remembered how Taeyeon was talking about having someone she had liked from the moment she saw that person, and how she suggested that the slanted eyed girl should give that person a Christmas present so they could get closer with each other. The crescent eyed girl stared at her Jeonju best friend and wondered if the person she was talking about was Jessica.

It couldn’t be; they’re both girls! Her mind rejected her suspicion.

But why did Taeyeon give her a gift? Her heart was telling her a different thing.

Does she really like Jessie that way? Suddenly she was burned with jealousy.

No, no; it can’t be her… She shook her head as she didn’t want to believe that. Taeyeon said it was a ‘he’…

It couldn’t be my Jessie…

And her head hurt just thinking about the possibility of Taeyeon liking Jessica. And she was lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t say a word during their ride home. She didn’t even notice when Ri-in apologized to them from the front passenger seat and said that she would be moving out of their dorm tomorrow.

Tiffany went straight to her room once the girls reached their dorm. She quickly went back outside carrying her pajamas and locked herself in the bathroom. She didn’t even say hi to Yujin and Jihye who were chatting in the living room. When she was done undressing she reached for the shower tap, but then she heard her cell phone ringing. The crescent eyed girl knew who was calling her, and she didn’t want to answer the call, but her hand moved on its own and reached for the cell.

“What?” She wanted to scream at her blonde best friend.

Why are you mad at me? She knew from her tone that the blonde was pouting.

“Can’t you figure it out by yourself, Sherlock?” She didn’t want to give in to her cute voice and tried to sound as mean as she could.

Are you upset because Taeyeon gave me a present?

“So you know.”

And why do you have to be upset? Jessica asked her again.

The black haired American was about to yell at her but stopped when she realized that she had no reason to be upset about. Tiffany then sat on the toilet and started to question herself.

Why did I get jealous when Taeyeon talked with Jessica?

Why did I feel I need to know what they were talking about?

And why do I get upset when I found out that she gave her a Christmas present?

Didn’t you tell me you got a present from Taeyeon too? Jessica’s next question was spot on. Taeyeon did give her a beanie for Christmas back in Jeonju.

Maybe she had another present for the mystery boy, Tiffany’s mind told her. I shouldn’t jump into conclusion like this…

And then she remembered how Taeyeon said that she wanted to be best friend with Jessica too. And her mind told her that Taeyeon probably gave the blonde girl a Christmas present as a way to get closer to her. But her heart still didn’t like how the shorter girl had to give a present to her Jessie.

“Y-Yes…” Her voice was weak, as she started to realize she had no right to be upset with the blonde.

So are you mad because you didn’t want Taeyeon to give gifts to her other friends? Jessica sounded sad.

“N-No!” She panicked and quickly said. “It’s not that, Jessie!”

Then are you mad because she gave it to me?

“Yes.” But then she realized that was not true. “I mean; no!”

Then why are you mad? The blonde sounded confused.

“I…” She wanted to cry now. “I… I’m mad because I don’t want you accepting the gift from her…”

“Or gifts from anyone else…” She was not thinking clearly when she said that; all she knew was she needed to tell the blue eyed girl her feelings.

Jessica didn’t say a word and Tiffany was worried she was upset with her now.

“I…” She took a deep breath. “I… was afraid it would be a better gift than mine…”

Silly Tiffany… She could hear the blue eyed girl giggled. … No gift would be better than yours.

And the crescent eyed girl felt her chest tightened when she heard that. She felt her face was burning and she could not stop smiling.

“Don’t say that…” She whispered full of hope. “… Don’t say things you didn’t mean…”

I never say anything I didn’t mean. Jessica convinced her. I mean it, Tiff. Your gift is special to me.

“Just special?”

Very special. The blonde corrected her words. The most special.

“Thank you…” She whispered lovingly.

You’re not mad anymore, are you?

“No…” She was embarrassed for being upset over such a small thing. “… I’m sorry…”

It’s okay. Jessica sounded relieved. Now smile.

“And how could you tell if I’m smiling or not?”

I’ll just know. Now smile.

And the crescent eyed girl laughed at her silly bestest best friend.

“There; I smiled.” She laughed some more. “Happy?”

Very. And Jessica laughed too.

“So are you home yet?” Tiffany asked after a while.

Yes, I just got—

“—Tiffany?” Taeyeon was shouting from the other side of the bathroom door. “Are you going to be in there all night long?”

“We only have one bathroom, you know.”

“Oh! I’ll be right out, Taetae!” The crescent eyed girl shouted back. “I’m sorry!”

“Okay! Just hurry up!” And she could hear the slanted eyed girl walked away.

Taetae? Jessica was curious.

“Oh, it’s Taeyeon.” Tiffany explained. “It’s a nickname.”

Oh, really? Now it was the blonde’s turn to get upset.

“Oh, don’t be jealous, Jessie!” She laughed. “It’s only a nickname!”

“Besides; yours are much, much cuter.”

Tease.

“Flirt.”

What are you doing in the bathroom anyway?

“I was going to take a shower when you called.” She stood up and the shower tap.

So are you saying that you’re now? Jessica sounded really curious.

The crescent eyed girl looked down to her own body and realized she was the entire time.

“Jessie! Don’t ask stuff like that!” She blushed.

What? I was only asking… The blonde used her cute tone once more.

“Stop it! I’m going to hang up now!”

Tiffany had just stepped out from the bathroom after taking her long shower and decided to wait for her hair to dry in the living room. She sat on the floor next to Yujin and Jihye, who were listening to Ri-in’s explanation about her debut.

The crescent eyed girl asked the two why didn’t they go to Solitaire to celebrate Ri-in’s good news, but they shrugged and said they were busy. The Chinese girl then continued her explanation about moving out of the dorm, and Tiffany was shocked when she heard the news.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She almost yelled.

“But I did, Tiffany.” Ri-in looked confused. “I told you during our ride home.”

“Weren’t you listening?”

“O-Oh, I guess not…” The crescent eyed girl said apologetically. “… I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay.” Ri-in sighed. “So anyway, I have to move to another dorm tomorrow…”

“Oh, God!” Taeyeon looked sad. “So soon?”

“Yeah…” The Chinese girl looked sad too. “… They already arranged for my transfer…”

“There’s nothing I could do about it…”

“But we’ll still keep in touch, right?” Tiffany tried to lighten the atmosphere. “And we can visit each other all the time!”

“I hope so!” Ri-in’s eyes were teary.

“Aw, it’s nothing to be sad about, Ri-in…” Taeyeon hugged her. “… You’re going to debut soon!”

“That’s all that matters!”

Tiffany felt her tears were coming out to, and she hugged her two roommates. “Yeah, you’re going to debut soon!”

And the three girls were swept by their emotions and cried. Deep inside each of them knew that it was probably their goodbyes, as it would be hard for them to see each other from now on.

“Well, good luck on your debut, Ri-in.” Jihye said as she stood up and walked away.

“Yeah, good luck with your debut.” Yujin followed her best friend to their room.

“Thank you, guys…” Ri-in said as she wiped her tears.

“Yeah, that’s right!” Taeyeon seemed to realize something. “This is not the time to cry!”

“We should wish Ri-in good luck instead!”

“Y-Yeah!” The crescent eyed girl agreed and put on her best eye smile. “Good luck, Ri-in!”

“Good luck!” The slanted eyed girl followed.

“Thank you, guys!” Ri-in wailed and hugged her two best friends once more. “Thank you!”

And the three girls were crying in each other’s arms again. Tiffany peeked to Yujin and Jihye’s room through Taeyeon’s shoulder and stared at their closed door. There was something strange about how they congratulate Ri-in earlier; like they were not too happy with the news.

Did something happen with them? She thought to herself.