Readerdeul, I want to make it clear that Tiffany is NOT falling for Sooyoung.

She was just feeling mad because of Sooyoung and Jessica's relationship. She loves her BFF like a sister, that's why she doesn't want Jessica to get hurt. Tiffany and Taeyeon are just additional character here. But I make Tiffany's role important because I made Jessica suffer a lot in this story :") and I kinda want someone who faithfully standing by her side. For the love quarel, I can asure you that it will only been between Soosica, Yoona, and Yuri.

Hope you okay with that :3

Happy reading!

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“Okay, class. I think the lesson for today is enough.” Mr. Yook, the music teacher, said to us.

The class was currently learning some practical lesson to play some instrument in the school studio. The students were now sitting on the studio floor facing the stage where Mr. Yook was standing next to the grand piano. He then looked at his watch.

“But I think it is not yet the time for lunch break.” He placed his palm under his chin. “How about… having a student perform with this piano to waste our time?” He asked the student.

The students got excited and quickly shout Sooyoung’s name repeatedly.

Jessica’s POV

“Sooyoungie!”

“Please let’s Sooyoung play, Mr. Yook!”

“Sooyoung! Sooyoung!”

“Play a song, Sooyoungie…”

The class gets energetic with the request for Sooyoung. I hear some students clap and shout at her name here and there.

I hate that.

No matter how hard I tried to ignore her presence, to erase her from my mind, I forgot that all attention is always centered to her. Everybody loves her. Everybody wants her. She’s every teacher’s favorite. She’s every student’s idol. She is the school’s sweetheart.

And I hate how everybody feels like owning her.

I hate that the most.

“Sooyoung, would you mind?” Mr. Yook looks at her while smiling endlessly, which only replied by an okay sign and a charming smile from the latter. I smile that I don’t want to see.

There are moments I loved her smiles. It was when she smiled only at me before. I love those smiles that it gave me butterfly effects in my stomach and great tremor in my heart every time I saw them.

And there are also moments when I hated her smiles. That was when she gave it to another people. It was when she had to reply all her fangirls or fanboys smiles or greetings. Or Yoona’s.

But now, no matter whom she gives those smiles to, I will always hate it. Even it is for me. I will hate it. I will hate it when she smiles. I hate it because it will kill me softly. It will make me drown more into her. And I hate to think that I won’t be saved if I’m drowned into them.

I see her walking through the sitting students to the stage. After some chit chat with Mr. Yook, she makes a position, sitting in front of the piano. In a couple of second, her fingers start to dance on the tuts and make beautiful harmony. And no matter I try not to look at her, my eyes and heart betrayed me. After some intros, she begins to sing the lyrics.

Why did I recognize you?

Don’t ask me.

Why did I approach you?

Yeah. Why?

You, the one I can’t leave.

Bull.

Even if I leave you behind and walk away, all I see is you.

Those painful words you said one day,

‘If we’d never meet each other, would it have been less painful?’

My eyes start to make some pool of tears inside them as I hear her voice.

You’re crying, you’re holding it in.

You’re raising your head and smiling painfully.

Your sunset smile is staining the whole world.

I miss you, I want to hold you.

I want to be by your side even if it hurts.

I want to fall asleep by your side.

The first tear is falling into my cheek but I quickly wipe it before anyone notices it.

Like that first day, you took some steps back.

I did.

And like that first day, I thought of parting.

Can we?

Although I want you so much, I can’t ignore such a cold reality and sad fantasy.

Reality?

I hate reality.

I hate you, Choi Sooyoung.

No matter how careful or how much I try.

No matter how much I pretend and push it away, I already like you.

I bit my lower lip and look away.

I miss you, I’m running to you.

I knock, you’re surprised and smiling.

Your round smile calms the whole world.

Don’t cry, don’t go.

Now, linger by my side.

You are my warm spring.

In front of your hesitating heart, my heart still can’t stop.

My remaining fear.

I hug and hug you again, until my arms feel comfortable.

You’re crying, you’re holding it in.

You’re raising your head and smiling painfully.

Your sunset smile is staining the whole world.

Don’t cry, don’t go.

Now, linger by my side.

You are my warm spring.

Like I have just met you.

You are my warm spring.

She ends the song and her piano playing. I look at her to find her eyes are seeing directly at mine. I don’t care if she sees my puffy cheeks or my red eyes.

I don’t care.

Or at least I try not to care.

Author’s POV

It was a quarter before midnight and Jessica was sitting in the dinning chair with her right hand on a glass which containing hot chocolate milk. She was having difficulties in sleeping nowadays. And the reason was obviously another certain girl in this house. Obviously. And what that girl did back then on the studio stage, sang a song which much related to their recent condition, wasn’t helping at all. Jessica was thinking what was right and what was wrong. But not until then, she could ever find the answer.

Her mind, that was already in a stress state, had to handle another pain when she saw a figure walking down the stare. It was Sooyoung. They exchanged glances for a while, and a second after Jessica looked away as if she didn’t aware of anybody’s presence. Sooyoung sighed at that gesture and continued walking.

As the tall girl arrived at the kitchen, she started to search for something. She scanned the things on the kitchen table, and when she seemed to not find it, she started to open and close all the drawers one by one. But once again, she didn’t find it.

Jessica who somehow was annoyed watching Sooyoung’s actions sighed, thinking whether to ask what she was searching or no. On the other side, Sooyoung was also thinking about talking to the latter, whether to ask if the other girl saw the things she was searching for or no.

They kept silent for some second.

“What are you searching for?” “Did you see my painkiller pills and cream?” They looked at and asked each other in the exact same time. Sooyoung smiled thinking that it was ridiculuous. Jessica stayed in her cold expression.

“I think I saw Auntie placed them in the medicine box before.” She said finally.

“Oh. Okay.” Sooyoung frowned looking at her expressionless face, before turning to walk towards the medicine box.

After finding what she had been searching for, she took a glass of water and walked to the couch then placed the medicines on the table in front of it. She took the pills and gulped some water after that. Little did she know a pair of eyes watching her every move quietly. Sooyoung was going to apply the cream on her swollen temple when Jessica’s voice startled her.

“Have you compressed the wounds with warm water?”

The shorter girl walked towards her. “You haven’t, have you?” She took the cream from Sooyoung’s hand before walking to the kitchen.

Jessica took a basin then used it to take some warm water from the dispenser. After that, she took a small towel before finally walking back to where Sooyoung was. After placing the basin on the table, she sat and started to soak the towel into the water and then squeezed it. Right after that, she held Sooyoung’s chin with her left palm and tapped the swollen cheek and temple with the towel. She did it very softly so that the latter didn’t need to feel hurt.

After some times, she let the towel to drown into the water in the basin. Jessica pinched the painkiller cream tube a bit and put some in fingers. She then applied the cream to Sooyoung’s temple and cheek, and massaged them gently.

All along Jessica’s treatment, Sooyoung eyes never once left her face with sad expression. Every time Jessica hands made contact with her face, it was not only her face that got warm with the towel. Either did her heart. She was so comfortable and wishing that she could say a word or two to the latter, but she was too afraid if Jessica would hate that and left her. So she waited patiently and enjoyed the moment with the fluttered feeling inside her chest.

And with Jessica, it was exactly not like she was unaware of the eyes that endlessly looking at her. But she tried so hard to ignore that and focus on her works. It was not like she didn’t want to lay her eyes on the other’s when she touch the temple, when obviously that eye is looking for hers, trying hard to meet. It was just some millimeters if she didn’t hold back, just some millimeters from her temple to her eyes. But she was too eager not to fall. Because she knew, once she laid her eyes on those eyes, her insomnia would be harder to handle than ever.

After finishing her job, Jessica quickly took the basin and walked back to the kitchen. After throwing the water, she cleaned the basin, then put it on the kitchen rack.

What she didn’t know was Sooyoung has been waiting her in the way back. The taller girl was standing beside the dining table and waited for Jessica to finished cleaning. So as she turned around and planned to walk back to the bedroom, the first thing she could see was Sooyoung.

Without words, Jessica looked down and passed by Sooyoung’s body like she was never standing there. Her steps got stopped after the taller girl called her with low tone from behind her back.

“Sica.”

Sooyoung turned around just to face Jessica’s back. The shorter girl did not even mind to look at her, making her frowned.

After a couple of second, feeling like there was no other actions Sooyoung was going to take, Jessica chose to continue walking. But it was just the slight move she made when Sooyoung once again called her.

“Jessica Jung.”

She froze in her place. Waiting for Sooyoung to say some more words to her. But at that time, there were not the words that she received. Sooyoung took her arms and made her turnaround, before finally wrap her in a warm embrace.

Jessica struggled to let go from that hug so hard, but Sooyoung was stronger. She kept the girl tighter inside her hold. The shorter girl’s tears start to brim and fall from her eyes.

“Let me go..” She said in hoarse voice while hitting Sooyoung’s chest with both her back fists.

But Sooyoung don’t mind the pain on her chest. Because what hurt more was the pain inside of it. She tightened the hug more and more. Jessica didn’t stop the struggling.

“Let me go, Sooyoung. Let me-“ Jessica said in between her wet face, but to cut Sooyoung’s voice.

“I’m sorry.”

Sooyoung said finally. And what made Jessica stunned, is that she said that in a hoarse voice too. Without even she knew herself, tears started to flow from Sooyoung’s swollen eyes. She held back them for quite a while, but finally she couldn’t anymore.

“I’m sorry.” She said the exact same words with the more hoarse voice, while tightening the hug.

The tears came down and touched Jessica forehead. Upon hearing Sooyoung’s hurt voice and feeling her tears on her skin, Jessica stopped struggling. She warped her arms around Sooyoung’s waist. One of Sooyoung’s hands caressed Jessica’s hair on her back head, and the other one placed on Jessica’s back.

Jessica might had stopped struggling to let go, but her sobs was still clear and hard inside Sooyoung’s chest. And it was not like Sooyoung has already done with the tears flowing on her already swollen face.

They were both drowning in a blue sad night.

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The song that Sooyoung sang was Shun Si Kyung's You're My Spring, which was one of Secret Garden's Original Soundtracks.