CHAPTER XXIX

THAT OTHER LIFE

“I thought the dreams had stopped…” The little girl said as she sat back down on the edge of the bed.

“I thought so too,” Jessica sighed as she glanced at the little blonde girl but then quickly switched her gaze towards her bed. She could never get used to staring at the girl; it was like talking to her own reflection. And no matter how often they had talked in her dreams, she had never made eye contact with the little girl for more than three seconds. “I guess they’re God’s way of saying that I shouldn’t forget why I was given the chance to live a new life.”

“God?” The little girl lied down on her back in the bed. “Is he the one you told me about?”

“The man in the theater?”

“I don’t know…” Jessica shrugged as she lied down on her stomach in the bed next to the little girl. “I’d like to think he is.”

“I mean, who else could he be?”

“He’s the one who gave me this chance.” She continued, “And I don’t think there’s anyone in this world who has the power over life…”

“And sent me, your conscience, to make sure you wouldn’t make the same mistakes; according to you…” The little girl smiled as she turned to Jessica.

“Right?” She smiled. “I mean; who else could do that?”

“I don’t know,” The little girl shrugged. “I don’t remember who sent me here.”

“Yeah...” Jessica sighed as she stood up from the bed and walked towards the door. “He works mysteriously; they said…”

“Come on,” She gestured to the little girl to follow her. “I’m bored.”

“Where to?” The little girl looked excited as she jumped off the bed.

“Anywhere this door would lead us.” Jessica said as she opened her bedroom door, and stepped outside.

As soon as she stepped outside, there was a white light so powerful that blinded her, and she covered her eyes with her arm. Seconds later the she could tell the light had subsided and there was a cool and calming breeze that blew through her body, and she suddenly felt relaxed. She slowly opened her eyes as she took a deep breath to fill her lungs with the fresh and cooling air, and saw the beautiful meadow in front of her that stretched as far as she could see. The sky was so blue and clear, and the sun was shining warmly. She smiled and admire the scenery before her, and turned around to find that the door had vanished into thin air, and there was only the little blonde girl standing behind her; smiling back at her.

“I finally figured it out!” The little girl said cheerfully. “It was Santa that gave you this second chance!”

“Sometimes I wonder if you’re really me,” Jessica giggled at her comment. “I can’t remember when was the last time I thought of such a childish idea.”

“I was just thinking out loud…” The little girl pouted and kicked the knee-high grass, while Jessica laughed at the silly girl.

“Come on!” She said as she took the little blonde’s hand and ran across the beautiful field of grass.

The two girls then spent some time running around in the meadow, chasing each other while laughing and singing cheerful songs. The little girl looked happy as she ran and spread her arms wide and spun around, and Jessica laughed and followed her. When they were tired they sat down in the shorter part of the field, and the little girl quickly placed her head on Jessica’s lap.

“I’m not a kid, you know.” The little blonde said as she stared at the distance.

“Well, only a kid would believe in Santa.” She giggled as she caressed the little girl’s hair.

“Says an old lady who’s still afraid of ghosts!” The little girl stuck her tongue out and picked herself up.

“Wha-But ghosts are real!” Jessica quickly defended herself.

“Yeah; how do you know that?” The little girl grinned like she knew she was going to win this argument.

“Well…” She tried to think of a reason good enough to convince her other self. “Well…”  

“Yes…?” The little blonde . She had the same look as Jessica when she teased Tiffany.

“Because there’s life after death!” She finally came up with the perfect reason. “I’m the perfect example of it!”

“So there must be spirits roaming in this world!”

“Aha!” The little blonde shouted. “If there are ghosts, then there’s Santa too!”

“That’s unlikely,” Jessica shook her head. “I’ve never seen an old man with beer belly climbing chutes in the middle of a winter night just to give presents for good kids.”

“Oh, well,” The little girl looked upset. “Have you ever seen a ghost?”

“I have not!” Her eyes widened as she glared at the little girl. “And I sure like to keep it that way.”

“Have you thought of how scary it would be to see a ghost?”

“Ha!” Her young other-self scoffed. “Coward.”

“Well at least I’m not childish.” She crossed her arms and looked away.

“Ugh!” The little girl stomped her feet. “I’m not childish!”

“Take that back!”

“Uh-uh…”

“Take that back!”

“Nuh-uh…”

“Ugh! I hate you!” The little girl crossed her arms and turned around, and both blonde girls stopped talking to each other.

After a while Jessica started laughing and the little girl quickly turned around. “Are you laughing at me?”

“No,” She tried to stop her laughter. “Well, yes…”

“I just never thought I could upset myself…”

“Huh?” The little girl looked puzzled.

“You’re my other half,” She explained. “So basically you’re me.”

“Huh…” The little blonde finally understood. “So now you know how annoying you really are.”

“Yeah…” Jessica lied down on the grass and closed her eyes. Soon they both laughed when they realized how silly they were.

“I have to ask you…” The little girl said after a while. She was now sitting next to Jessica, who was still lying on the grass with her eyes closed.

“Hmm?” She was still enjoying the cool and fresh wind, that she didn’t bother to open your eyes.

“Who are you in love with right now?” The little blonde asked; she looked serious. “Stephanie or Tiffany?”

“What brought this question?” She opened her eyes and stared at the clear blue sky.

“Well…” her other-self explained. “Tiffany is a different person than Stephanie…”

“I mean; she used to be so shy and reserved, but she’s so cheerful and bubbly now…”

“She’s pretty loud too.” Jessica added, and they both giggled.

“Yeah; she is…” The little girl nodded in agreement.

“I guess my real question is,” Her other-self continued. “Why are you trying so hard to win her heart now when she’s not the same person she was?”

“It’s like; she’s not Stephanie any more…”

“I know.” Jessica simply said and both girls stayed quiet for some time; both were thinking about the crescent eyed girl; the old and the new one.

“If you fell in love with someone,” Jessica started after a long while. “And they went away for some time…”

“… Only to return a different person…” The little girl turned her attention to her.

“… Would you still love them?”

“I don’t understand.” The little blonde said as she stared at the sky.

“I know she’s not the same Stephanie we used to know,” Jessica picked herself up and fixed her hair. “But I believe that deep inside she’s the same person we fell in love with.”

“But she’s…” The little girl still had her doubts. “… So… Different…”

“Really?” She turned to look at the little girl. “I think she’s the same kind and caring person we know before this…”

“She’s just not that Stephanie yet,” She the little blonde’s hair. “It will take her years before she would become the Stephanie we loved…”

“You’re confusing me…” The little girl said as she stood up and decided to chase a white butterfly.

“Look at it this way,” Jessica smiled. “I’ve changed too; I’m not the same Jessica she knew…”

“I used to be half American,” She pointed at her blonde hair. “But now I’m half Korean.”

“I used to hate cucumber; but now I can eat them just fine.”

“You used to be so mean and annoying…” The little girl giggled as she kept chasing the butterfly.

“And now?” She raised an eyebrow at her comment.

“Oh, wait.” The little blonde laughed. “You’re still so mean and annoying!”

“Only to those who annoy me.” Jessica crossed her arms and threw her infamous ice glare. “Like you.”

“Well; I am you!” The little girl stopped and turned to face her. “So you get annoyed by yourself!”

“True.” She suddenly smiled sadly. “I annoy myself…”

“What’s wrong?” The little girl walked towards her.

“Do you remember how we fell in love with her?” There was sadness in her eyes as her memories took her to her other life; before this one…

Jessica Jung was the daughter of a pair of rich and powerful politicians. She was born and raised as a pampered princess who knew nothing about other people’s hardships. What she wanted; she always gets. Whatever it was. Her parents’ idea of a good parenting was giving their daughter everything she wanted. They showered her with money and gifts and expensive things that she didn’t need to substitute their lack of presence in her life since they were always busy with their works. And what worse was they didn’t even correct her when she had done something she was not supposed to; all in the name of parent’s love. They were trying too hard to please their precious daughter, to win her love, that they neglected their duty to teach her what was right or wrong.

When other children were playing hide and seek, she was riding her pony. When the other kids got toys or dolls for their birthdays, her parents bought her the toy store. When the other children were having fun playing with kids their age, she was playing with her maids and bodyguards. And she always won.

The only good thing her parents had given her was perhaps good education. She went to the best school and the best tutors. She learned how to play the piano at the age of five, the drums at six, and guitar at eight. She could speak in six different languages by the age of 12, and she was a black belt in Karate and kick-boxing at the age of 14.

Jessica Jung grew up to be the most selfish and pampered princess. It sounded cliché, yes; but that was what bad parenting and money could do to a lonely little girl. She could’ve turned into someone kind and caring, who could see through all the illusion of money; but she chose the easy way out. She chose to cope with loneliness by doing anything she wanted. Her own way.

She grew up believing that she could get anything that she wanted; and anyone who stood before the things she wanted would be crushed. Mercilessly. She grew up believing that money and power were the answer to any problems. Anything. And those who couldn’t be bought; she swore to destroy.

The first one was her own little sister. Yes; little Krystal Jung. When she was born Jessica was already a five years old princess; and her parents turned all their love to their newborn. Jessica hated her little sister the moment her parents brought her home. She despised the little baby because even then, she knew that she would not be number one in her parents’ hearts. She swore to destroy her. And she did, countless of times, without success. She took her baby bottle, her pacifier, her toys, and little Krystal cried, and their parents punished Jessica by locking her in her room. All her parents did just added fire into the oil, and she was proven right; her parent’s loved her no more. And she grew hatred towards them.

When Krystal was three, their mother praised and treasured the little Jung by saying how much Krystal looked like her, with her shinny vanilla blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Jessica then pulled her blonde hair, threw soap in her blue eyes, tripped her when she was walking, and burned her dresses and toys. And their parents punished her by throwing away her toys and favorite dresses, and locked her in her room. And her hatred grew stronger. And that started her personal war against the rest of her family. Every time she was in the same room as her little sister, they would always bicker and fight. And every single time their parents would take Krystal’s side and punished Jessica.

There were plenty of times when Krystal tried to reach out to her and offered her peace, but Jessica was clouded by her hatred that she pushed her away; harshly. Just like she pushed everyone away. She thought that the only person who truly loved her was herself, and anyone else who claimed the same were lying. That was when the people around her, even her best friends, Yuri and Yoona, started to call her the Ice Princess.

But there was nothing cold or princess-like about what she was about to do next. One Christmas eve when she was already in her twenties, she came home drunk and burned down Krystal’s room. Luckily the youngest Jung was in the kitchen helping their mother preparing their dinner. Their parents then decided to send Jessica to Korea to continue her study there, away from Krystal. And Jessica’s hatred only grew stronger, as she felt once again their parents took Krystal’s side and threw her away. And from that moment on they became arch-enemies.

The second one was another person named Stephanie Hwang. She met the crescent eyed woman when she was in her late twenties, at a press conference she held to defend her company against the accusations that they bribed the government to get deals and project from them. The black haired woman was the journalist who kept pushing and asked difficult questions. And since then she swore she would make that woman’s life miserable.

At first she tried to bribe her; but Stephanie was proven to be a stubborn idealist and kept her nose into her company’s business. And then she tried to threaten her; and that failed too as the crescent eyed woman ignored the threats and challenged Jessica instead. The brunette could’ve simply carry on with her threats and broke the naïve journalist, but her fiancé at the time, Richard Wong, said it would be too boring and offered her another idea instead. Richard, the cocky drug addict Chinese man proposed that they used one of his friends, Alex, to seduce Stephanie and make her one of them. She thought it was a good idea; if not a refreshing one. And they carried on with their new plan.

But once again it failed, as Stephanie somehow wouldn’t fell in love with Alex, no matter how he tried. Even with Jessica’s resources Alex was free to use, the journalist wouldn’t show a slight interest in him. He took the crescent eyed woman to fancy restaurants, but the journalist decided they should split the checks. He bought her expensive gifts, and the black haired woman returned them all; saying that she didn’t need those things. He invited the journalist to spent the weekend abroad, but she never accepted the offer. And all other plans to make her fall in love with him failed miserably. Not even flowers and poetries.

And one night when they were drunk by alcohol and drugs, and Jessica lost her patience and was ready to make Stephanie disappear, Richard threw out another one of his “brilliant ideas”. It was Jessica’s turn to seduce the idealist. The brunette selfish princess laughed at the idea at first, but then decided to try it after Richard persuaded and told her that maybe Stephanie was gay. That or perhaps all the alcohol and drugs in her blood that made her thought it would be pretty interesting to see if her beauty could seduce even a woman.

And it was a huge success. She had her doubts when she first started to pretend she wanted to become Stephanie’s friend, but somehow the crescent eyed woman seemed to welcome the idea. Sure it started awkward, and Stephanie seemed to keep her distance; but soon enough they became best friends. That was when Jessica realized how shy and reserved the journalist was; she would only talk to the people she was close with; some of her closest friends like her fellow journalist Sooyoung, and her childhood friends Sunny and Seohyun. And she would only really open up to her best friend, Kim Taeyeon. And her ideals were pretty simple; she just wanted to make the world a better place, little by little, and for the world peace. When Jessica laughed and asked how was she going to make world peace come true; she smiled cutely and said that if people could be honest with themselves, the world would become a happy place for everyone. Honesty was all it took. And in her mind the brunette princess mocked her ideals. She was just a naïve little girl who believed in Santa Claus and fairy tales.

But little by little, bit by bit; the ice princess started to change. She started to get curious and wanting to know all about the woman journalist. The crescent eyed woman was actually born in the same town as her, and spent her childhood in the US before her family moved to Korea when she was eleven years old. That explained why the journalist could speak English fluently. And whenever they were together they would always speak in English.

She learned how Stephanie loved to read. In a month she could finish two novels. And she always left her home with a book or two in her bag. She could read all day long if she had no work; or more like her employer had to remind that she had a job to do. And that was why she kept forgetting to do her laundry. And Jessica started to read some too; at first it was just to have another conversation starter with her, but slowly she started enjoying reading.

And she really loved the color white; more like a maniac. Her car was white, her cell phone was white, her dresses, and her suits. Even her house, her couch, and her bed were white. Jessica thought she had stepped inside a hospital when she first visited her home, and she hated it at first. Her favorite color was black, and it was the opposite of Stephanie’s favorite color.

And the journalist loved cute things; like babies, and little children, and stuffed animals. Especially teddy bears. White teddy bears. Polar bears. Jessica thought she had given the poor crescent eyed woman a heart attack when she gave her a white polar bear. The journalist had her eyes wide like they were about to pop out of their sockets before she squealed and screamed and jumped around. And the brunette had given the stuffed animal in a fancy restaurant. It was hilarious watching how the other guests and waiters reacted.

And Stephanie loved to travel to see new things and experience new cultures all around the world. And what she loved most was travelling to a country she had never been and play with their children, and find a new cute and white stuffed animal.

And all the kind and caring gestures Stephanie showed her opened her heart, and the ice that had frozen her heart slowly melted. How the crescent eyed woman texted her first thing in the morning, to wake her up, and late at night just to wish her good night. How she took Jessica with her when she was covering heartbreaking stories. How she forced her to come with her and help with her charity works; at the orphanage, or the nursing homes.

And more over; Stephanie’s care for the little things was what won Jessica’s heart. She listened to the brunette woman when she was drunk and rambled about how lonely she was, how jealous she was with her own little sister, and she listened to everything Jessica threw at her. And she remembered. She remembered the small details like how Jessica hated cucumbers, and anything that shaped or smelled like them. One time when they were eating in a fancy restaurant and the brunette had forgotten to tell the waiter to hold the cucumbers in her salad, it was Stephanie who voiced her mind and told the waiter. A simple gesture that caught Jessica’s heart, as she had never been treated with such care before. Or the time when she had a cold; it was Stephanie who reached the front door of her apartment and nursed her back to health, even though the journalist had to postpone her work trip to Bangkok.

And their dates. They were magical. Even when they only went for a cup of coffee, or lunch, or to the movies. Those were like the normal things to do, that Jessica thought she had already grew bored of. But they turned out to be the most exciting activities to do for the ice princess. And then there were the big dates. Their trip to the amusement park; trying out all the rides, laughing and screaming and getting scared, and sharing a bag of cotton candies. They went to the beach; chasing and splashing water at each other, building a sand castle together, lying on the soft warm sand, and admiring the sunset. Their trip to Italy, and France, and Spain; to enjoy the best those countries had to offer. And Jessica never knew that the things she did with Stephanie could feel so exciting and refreshing, although she had done the same countless of times with her so called friends and fiancé. In fact, whenever she was around the naïve journalist she felt like a little girl once more, and everything felt so exciting and new to her.

And it was when they were on a vacation in Italy that she noticed that she had fallen in love with the crescent eyed woman. She had fallen in love with her long black wavy hair, her dark brown crescent eyes, and her perfect smile. Her squeals, her small laughter, and her shy blushing face. She had fallen in love with her kindness, her sweet gestures, her attention to details, and her simple ideals. It was then when she noticed she liked her eye smiles that she wanted to hug her and never let go. She liked to stare at the nape of her neck, and had an urge to sank her lips against it, and she liked her plump red lips so much that she had to bit her own lips to stop herself from jumping the innocent woman and ravished her luscious lips. It was then that she knew how love feels, and there was a feeling more addicting and pleasurable than getting drunk on alcohol and drugs.

But there was still that side of her that refused to be conquered, at least not by some innocent naïve, ordinary person like Stephanie. And that person was a girl. She couldn’t picture how her parents and her friends and employee, and the whole world would react when they found out that she was a lesbian. And not to mention she had not even told the crescent eyed woman how she really felt about her. All those times they were hanging out and spending times together were only as friends. As best friends, Stephanie would say; like Taeyeon to her. And Jessica was afraid that she would hate her if she told her she had fallen in love with her. And once again she took the easy way out and pushed Stephanie away.

But the naïve journalist was too thick headed or stubborn to read the signs, and she kept clinging to her like a koala to a tree. That; or she was doing it on purpose. She kept texting her, and she would get mad if Jessica didn’t reply to her messages right away. She kept calling her, and they would spend two or three hours talking over the phone. And she kept visiting her when Jessica decided to avoid her and hide in her luxurious apartment. All those things made the brunette princess go crazy; and one night when she pretended to be sick so that she wouldn’t have to meet Stephanie and go watch a movie with her, she couldn’t keep her feelings hidden any longer.

Jessica Jung was lying in her long comfortable black couch doing nothing. The TV was , and there was a drama playing, but she had no interest in watching it. She sighed for a number of times while her eyes were locked to her cell phone. The brunette woman was feeling extremely bored, and she wondered if she should have accepted her best friend’s invitation to go to the movies. Stephanie had called her earlier in the afternoon, and rambled about a new Hollywood movie featuring her favorite actor Jude Law, and how she would die if she couldn’t catch the premiere tonight. And although the hazel eyed woman also wanted to go and see the adorable journalist, she opted to lie to her and told her she caught a cold and wanted to rest for the day. All so she could escape Stephanie’s mesmerizing eye smile and loving gestures. And she needed time on her own to rethink this whole evil plan to lure Stephanie into falling in love with her and use her for her amusement. Yes, the plan was not working for her right now, since she was the one who fell in love with the beautiful naïve journalist. And although she couldn’t care less of what people would think about how she lived her life; being gay was certainly not acceptable. She had built herself a kingdom; although for the most part it was built by her father’s image and connections, and she wouldn’t want to show a weakness to her competitors and enemies. And besides, she already had a fiancé; the rich and powerful Richard Wong, who would guarantee and secure her future. Why would she want to ruin her life for some peasant and naïve journalist? And her mind went back to the crescent eyed woman.

“Urg…!” The brunette princess grunted as she blocked the image of a smiling Stephanie out of her mind. She then picked herself up and sat straight on her couch. She decided to look for something to do so she wouldn’t think of the naïve journalist.

The hazel eyed woman looked around her apartment; the two story apartment was quite large; huge, in fact. She was sitting on her ridiculously comfortable long black leather couch, and an elegant and too expensive looking black coffee table was in front of her, with her cell phones and laptop and two tablets on top of it. An 80inches television that she bought from her birth country stood about five meters behind the coffee table. There were two tall black sleek DVD racks on both sides of the huge television, which were filled with her DVD collections.

On the right side of the television was the spare bedroom door, which was originally her trusted bodyguard’s room before she bought him an apartment two floors below. She hadn’t feel the need of a bodyguard when she was at home. That and she felt suffocated by all his lectures about how she was supposed to behave and live her life as the heir of the Jung corporation. She had always wanted to fire the ex-military man; even back when she was still in the US, but the man was an old and trusted friend of her father, and he made sure that the butler/bodyguard remained by her side and followed her to Korea; to make sure nothing happened with her, or maybe just to keep an eye on her. Nevertheless, Alfred; as she always called the man, even when it was not his real name and it was just a joke she came up with a long time ago when she was just a child; when she read a comic book with a butler character named Alfred in it; had his uses. He was the one who taught her an advanced self-defense mechanism, and even taught her lethal combat movements; the CQC. One day they would prove invaluable for her. And more times than not, Jessica felt safe whenever the middle aged man was around, and because they had been together most of her life, she felt comfortable with him. In fact, Alfred was more of a father to her than her own dad.

She smiled as she thought of ways to tease the old man. Maybe she should press the panic button and prank the poor bodyguard, or maybe she should set her apartment on fire, just to see how fast Alfred could react and handle the situation. She then sighed and refrained to do such a foolish idea; she was not in the mood to create a panic attack. The hazel eyed woman then turned her gaze to another room on the left side of the television. It was the guest room; which was rarely used. She could only remember a pretty journalist used the room once; when they were having a quiet birthday party and she passed out from too much alcohol. The crescent eyed woman was definitely not a good drinker. Jessica smiled when she thought of the party; how the birthday girl wanted to spend the night celebrating her most important day just with her, and how funny and cute she was getting drunk; singing and dancing and laughing and yelling and crying. Jessica let out another sigh and quickly turned away from the room. She cursed herself from thinking about the journalist.

She turned to her right side and found the huge glass door leading to the balcony, and she could see Seoul’s skyscrapers from there. The hazel eyed woman sighed and shook her head; remembering how Stephanie thought the view was so beautiful, and Jessica couldn’t help but agree with her, for the first time after seeing the same view for millions of times before on her own.

She turned around and could see the large kitchen behind her. Everything looked elegant and very expensive. From the black marble kitchen counters and countertops, the black oven and microwave, to the countertops burner and the silver utensils. The brunette princess smiled wryly when she remembered how Stephanie cooked there once, and joked about how could a woman like herself who couldn’t even cook an instant noodle, owned a luxurious kitchen like that. And across from her kitchen was the dining room; with expensive looking dining table made from oak, and tall elegant dining chairs. It was there she enjoyed a good meal with the black haired woman for the first time since she moved there.

Jessica let out a deep sigh and lied back down in her couch, covering her eyes with her arm. All she could think about was how nice it would be if Stephanie was here with her; just to chat and enjoy the night. And when she was about to picture how nice it would be to see the pretty journalist cooking in her kitchen once again; maybe breakfast, the doorbell rang.

She cursed in her mind and covered her ears with a couch pillow. But the doorbell rang again. And again, and again. And she grunted as she glared towards her front door.

“I’m coming…!” Jessica yelled as her doorbell rang for the twentieth times in the last two minutes.

“I’m going to throw that stupid bell away tomorrow…” She cursed to herself as she walked towards her front door, while someone behind the door kept pressing the doorbell like they were playing with it.

“I said I’m coming!” The brunette princess yelled again, annoyed by her impatient guest. “Stop pressing the damn button or I’m going to shove it up your—“

“—My what?” She couldn’t continue her vile words when she saw Stephanie standing outside her door.

“S-Steph…” She stuttered as she stared at the journalist wearing a black leathered jacket over a white frilled one-piece dress and a pair of black leathered boots. Stephanie looked absolutely stunning. “Wha-What are you doing here?”

“Checking up on you,” The black haired woman let out a sigh and brushed her wavy long black hair aside and forced her way into the hazel eyed woman’s apartment. “You look quite healthy for someone who’s having a cold and sore throat.”

“Oh, well; I…” Jessica cleared and pretended to rub while following the journalist into her living room. “My throat still hurts, but I’m feeling much better after taking a nap…”

“Oh, then did I woke you from your precious nap?” Stephanie as she sat down on the couch. “I’m really sorry…”

“I-It’s okay,” She laughed awkwardly as she caught the sarcasm in her words. “I’ve had enough sleep for the day anyway…”

“C-Can I get you something to drink?”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” The crescent eyed woman said as she had her eyes on the TV. “I don’t want to strain your already sick body.”

“You should just go back to sleep.”

“I’m going to make you a cup of caramel coffee.” She said quickly as she turned towards her kitchen. She knew her best friend really loved that coffee, and it would help her relax a bit.

“I told you; you don’t have to get me anything, Jess.” She could hear Stephanie’s sharp words from the living room.

“It’s okay, Steph,” The brunette shouted from the kitchen as she clumsily hurriedly prepared the coffee. “I want some too.”

“Do you need help with that?” She could hear the impatient journalist’s voice from the living room. The black haired journalist was probably wondering why it took so long for her best friend to make two cups of instant coffees.

“I can manage; thank you.” The brunette woman sounded annoyed as she poured hot water into the cups. She was trying hard to contain her excitement now that the woman of her dreams was here with her, but deep inside she knew she was not supposed to be too happy since her original plan was to avoid the journalist.

“I don’t get why you take so long to make coffee,” The crescent eyed woman turned around to watch the TV once more. “All you need to do is pour the coffee into the cup and add hot water—“

“—Shut it, Steph,” Jessica said as she finished and brought the two cups to the living room. “I’m starting to regret wanting to do something nice for you.”

“Well I already regret coming over to check up on you and cancel my plans for the night.” Stephanie pouted as she kept changing the channels; not sure what she wanted to watch.

“Plans? What plans?” The brunette princess handed her a cup and sat down on the couch next to her. “You were just going to watch some silly movie.”

“Then I should’ve asked Taeyeon to watch the movie with me,” Stephanie took the cup without turning her gaze from the TV. “Not some spoiled rich brat who lied about being sick and made her best friend worried.”

“I’m starting to wonder if she’s really my best friend—“

“—Hey, I’m sorry, okay,” Jessica quickly said and grabbed her arm. Somehow every time Stephanie mentioned Taeyeon she could feel jealousy burning her chest. “I’m just not in the mood for the movies right now.”

“Yeah, tonight you’re not in the mood to watch the movies; yesterday you’re not in the mood for dinner, and the day before that you’re not in the mood for shopping…” Stephanie scoffed but didn’t try to break away.

“I mean; the shopaholic queen Jessica Jung not in the mood for shopping?” The crescent eyed woman continued. “I thought the world was coming to an end.”

“I…” The hazel eyed woman couldn’t say anything. “I was just—“

“—You’re just avoiding me.” Stephanie said as she glared at her American best friend.

“I-I…”

“Did I do something wrong to you?” The black haired woman asked.

“N-No…”

“Then did you grow tired of me?” Stephanie kept pushing as she leaned closer to the hazel eyed woman. “You can’t be!”

“I never talked much but when I’m upset…”

“… Like right now.”

“Did you get yourself a new best friend?” The crescent eyed woman rambled in panic. “Who is she?”

“Why are you hiding her from me?”

“Why can’t I meet her?”

“S-Steph, calm down…” Jessica kept leaning backwards as she wanted to keep her distance from the woman she fell in love with. “I-I don’t have a new—“

“—Then is it a boyfriend?” Stephanie’s eyes suddenly grew bigger as she looked shocked. “Did you get a boyfriend?”

“H-How could you?” The black haired journalist was shouting now. “You said you were done dating men after your breakup with Richard!”

“I-I…” It was a lie she had told Stephanie when they were getting closer with each other; a lie she orchestrated with Richard, her fiancé, to make it easier for her to have a relationship with the naïve journalist.

“Why didn’t you tell me anything?” Stephanie kept leaning forward, and the crescent eyed woman was getting too close to Jessica now, that their noses were only inches apart and she could really feel her breath now.

“Who is it?” The black haired woman looked very angry and upset.

“Who is that man tha—“ And before Stephanie could say another word, Jessica quickly covered her opened mouth with her hand. “—Mmphh…”

“S-Steph, calm down, okay?” She said as she gently pushed her head to create a space between them. “I’m not seeing anyone right now…”

“Mmphmm…?”

“What’s that?” Jessica couldn’t make up her words.

“Mmphmm…!” Stephanie mumbled under the hazel eyed woman’s hand and pointed to .

“Oh…” The brunette princess realized she was still covering with her hand and immediately let go. “… Sorry…”

“I said how do I know you’re telling the truth?” The beautiful journalist asked again.

“O-Of course I’m telling the truth!” Jessica replied. “Why would I lie to my best friend?”

“But you lied about having a cold!” Stephanie glared.

“I swear it, okay?” The hazel eyed woman blurted out. “I swear to God I’m not seeing anyone and I don’t have plans to!”

“Fine, then!” Stephanie leaned away and returned to her original position, crossed her arms, and acted like she was still upset. But there was a hint of a smile, blossoming from the corner of her lips. And Jessica had to fight the urge to hug the journalist and kiss her with all her might. She quickly turned to the TV and pretended to watch it, while giving her best to calm her heart down.

“I-I’m gonna go and get ready…” Jessica said after a while of awkward silence and stood up from the couch.

“Are you going somewhere?” Stephanie looked confused when she asked her.

“I thought you wanted to go to the movies?” The brunette princess replied.

“It’s too late now,” The beautiful journalist sighed as she sank in her seat. “The movie’s probably half through…”

“Well, then pick another movie.” The hazel eyed woman crossed her arms.

“Let’s just watch some DVDs…” Stephanie said as she turned her gaze back to the TV. “I’m not in the mood to go anywhere now…”

“Fine…” Jessica said as she walked to her DVD collections. “… What do you want to watch?”

“I don’t know…”

“What do you mean you don’t know?” She was starting to get annoyed. “This was your idea.”

“Just pick something.” Stephanie said nonchalantly.

“Fine.” Jessica sighed and browsed through her collections, but she couldn’t decide what to watch. She had a brilliant plan to watch a horror movie so when there was a frightening scene Stephanie would cling on to her, but the problem was she was scared of ghosts too. It was probably the only thing in this world she was scared of. Well; that and heights. Her other idea was to watch a romantic movie, but she knew the naïve journalist had probably already seen all of them; since she was a really huge fan of romantic movies, and how she usually spent her weekends watching those kind of movies in her apartment.

“Let’s watch this one.” The naïve journalist said as she pulled out a DVD case from the rack. She was now standing so close next to the brunette princess, and made startled Jessica a little bit because she was too busy with her own mind that she didn’t notice the journalist sneaked up on her.

“B-But that’s a horror movie!” She said as she pointed at the title; 1408.

“It is,” The crescent eyed woman giggled. “And I want to watch this.”

“It’s been a while since I watched horror.”

“A-Are you sure?” Jessica was a little unsure. “We can watch something else, you know…”

“I have a lot of—“

“—Yes; I’m sure,” Stephanie laughed as she inserted the DVD into the player. “Or are you too scared?”

“Wha-I am not!” The hazel eyed woman shouted as the journalist took her hand and dragged her to the couch.

And as Stephanie pressed play on the remote, Jessica’s heart slowly beat faster and faster; from all the expectation she had and from the fear of ghosts she was about to watch.

“Let’s turned off the lights to make it more exciting.” The journalist said as she stood up and reached for the light switch on the wall. And the brunette woman could only stare at the black haired woman as she sat back down on the couch beside her, and gave her a meaningful wink.

But it was worth it. Only ten minutes into the movie and into the first frightening scene, Stephanie was already screaming and tugging Jessica’s shirt. And the hazel eyed woman felt her heart was beating uncontrollably; from all the scary scenes and the physical contacts. She could smell Stephanie’s sweet melon perfume, and her fresh mint breath, and her warm and soft hands. And she, even she herself didn’t know if she was doing it because she was frightened too or just playing along; screamed along and literally clung on Stephanie like her life was depending on it.

After a half an hour into the movie, Jessica was no longer paying attention to the movie. She was busy savoring the moment; even though deep inside she knew it was wrong. She was enjoying all the touches and hugs and cute squeals. And on one particular scene when the character had to crawl into the ventilation duct and there was a living burnt corpse chasing him, Stephanie screamed with all her might and pulled Jessica into her arms even tighter. The journalist turned her head to the side and closed her eyes, while the hazel eyed woman grunted as the air in her lungs was squeezed out. But she didn’t try to break away; not when Stephanie’s face was just three centimeters from her own. The sight of beautiful goddess was right in front of her, and she held her breath as she pondered whether she should just let go and kiss her right now.

“Oh, I’m sorry…” Stephanie said as she wanted to pull away, but Jessica had locked her arms around her.

“I-It’s okay…” She stuttered; she didn’t notice the idealist journalist had opened her eyes and was staring at hers now.

“I-I was so scared,” Now it was the crescent eyed woman’s turn to stutter. “I guess this was a bad idea after all…”

“Y-Yeah,” Jessica whispered as she couldn’t take her eyes off of Stephanie’s plump lips. “I guess so…”

There was a loud scary noise coming from the TV and both girls screamed. Stephanie quickly snatched the TV remote and turned it off.

“There.” The black haired woman said as she turned to Jessica once more. “Enough horror for today.”

“Jess?” Stephanie asked when her American best friend didn’t answer. And suddenly the crescent eyed woman became aware that they were still in each other’s embrace, and her face suddenly flushed.

“U-Um, you can let go of me now…” The naïve journalist whispered as she tried to pull away, but the brunette woman was stronger than her, and pulled her closer instead.

Jessica planted a kiss on her lips. A quick simple kiss that quickly turned into a heavy passionate one. She finally let herself go and poured all her feelings for the journalist into the kiss, and her hands were wrapped even tighter around Stephanie’s back. And when the crescent eyed woman didn’t break away, she skillfully opened Stephanie’s mouth with her lips and slid her tongue in. She could feel the black haired woman was a little surprised by the act, but then a moan slipped out of and Jessica took it as a sign to further deepen the kiss.

But after a few seconds she felt a sudden jerk as Stephanie pulled away. She could see in confusion and surprise in the journalist eyes, and immediately she felt her stomach twirled.

“Why did you kiss me?” The naïve journalist said, and Jessica thought there was a hint of anger in her voice.

“I-I…” She couldn’t say anything. “I was…”

“Why did you kiss me?” Stephanie repeated, and her voice was louder, and Jessica’s heart shrunk.

“I-I’m sorry…” She whispered as she couldn’t stare into Stephanie’s eyes any longer. Her body was shaking with fear now; even more than watching a horror movie, and she could feel tears feeling up her eyes.

“I asked you a question, Jessica.” The journalist voice was stern and cold.

“I-I…” The hazel eyed woman was scared to death now. “I don’t know…”

“What do you not know?” Stephanie said as she moved closer and try to meet Jessica’s eyes.

“I-I…” Her head was a mess and she couldn’t even think of anything right now, but she felt there was something in her chest that was about to burst out, and she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“I think I’m in love with you!” She closed her eyes and shouted.

And the next thing she knew, Stephanie’s lips met with her, and the journalist forcefully pushed her down on the couch and climbed on top of her body. Jessica opened her eyes for a moment; surprised by the sudden kiss, but she quickly closed her eyes again and savored Stephanie’s lips and tongue. The kiss was more passionate now, and she could feel longing in the way the journalist pressed her tongue against hers, and the way she moaned. Once again she wrapped her arms around Stephanie’s body, and pressed hard like she wanted their bodies to become one. The act only caused the crescent eyed woman to let out another moan and deepen her kiss even more. And both of them were lost in that moment of pure passion and love.

When they finally broke their kiss to get some air into their lungs, Stephanie gazed into the brunette’s hazel eyes and smiled. The journalist then lovingly wiped Jessica’s chin dry with her thumb and the brunette cupped her face with one hand and caressed her cheek gently. They were the happiest at that moment.

“So,” Jessica smiled and whispered. “Does this mean you’re in love with me too?”

“And here I thought it would take a genius to figure it out.” Stephanie said as she flashed her eye smile.

“Hey, don’t blame me,” The brunette pouted. “It’s harder to read a woman’s signs.”

“I thought you just like me as a friend…”

“Well I thought you only like me as a friend too…” The journalist giggled, and they both laughed.

“So since when did you have feelings for me?” Jessica asked after they stopped laughing.

“I don’t know…” Stephanie shrugged as she caressed the hazel eyed woman’s hair. “Perhaps from the first moment I saw you…”

“Really?” The brunette was surprised to hear that; since she remembered how cold and vicious the journalist was when they first know each other. “You have a funny way of showing that…”

“Can you blame me?” Stephanie laughed. “You were not exactly the nicest and kind-hearted person in the world…”

“Hey…” Jessica looked offended, but the pretty journalist quickly gave her a kiss on her forehead and her anger suddenly disappeared.

“But I know deep inside you’re a good person,” Stephanie continued. “That’s why I played along when you sent Alex to flirt with me.”

“You knew about that?” Jessica was shocked to hear that.

“Of course I knew!” The crescent eyed woman laughed. “I wouldn’t be a good journalist if I didn’t!”

“Oh…” She blushed in embarrassment and turned away shyly. “I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay,” The pretty journalist said as she cupped her face and gently turned her head to face her again. “I’m glad that you did.”

“Because then after I ruined your evil plan I can be closer to you.”

“I’m sorry…” She felt more embarrassed that the journalist could see into her plans.

“Stop saying you're sorry…” Stephanie put a finger on her lips. “I just hope that this isn’t one of your plans…”

“Of course not!” Jessica quickly said as she stared into Stephanie’s eyes; like she was hoping the journalist could see the truth in her eyes. At least the truth about her feelings for her.

The crescent eyed woman smiled her sweetest and kissed her again; but this time Jessica pushed her body sideways and turned her around, and the journalist found Jessica was on top of her now. And the hazel eyed woman showered her lips with kisses, before the black haired woman opened and invite Jessica’s tongue in. And they kissed for some time, longer than their first kiss, until they were out of breath.

“What are we going to do?” Jessica said as she lied on top of Stephanie, with her head on the journalist chest, listening to her heartbeat. “We’re gay…”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Stephanie said after thinking about it. “But I’m not gay…”

“What do you mean?” The brunette rich woman lifted her head and stared at the journalist; confused.

“I’m not gay.” The crescent eyed woman explained. “I just happen to fall in love with Jessica Jung, and she just happens to be a girl.”

“Oh, you…” Jessica felt her face was getting hot from her words. “… Did you practice that line in front of the mirror every night before bed?”

“Every. Single. Night.” The pretty journalist giggled, and the hazel eyed woman quickly silenced her laugh with her kiss.

“I love you, Jessica Jung…”

“I love you too…”