The clock tower came to life around them. The slight squeak of the large cogs greeted them on their way in and they half-expected a greeting from Hyun Bin himself as well. When there came none, they proceeded further inside. The green lights that used to shine from above, reflected through crystals once hit by sunlight, no longer danced around each other and across the room. The same shade of green that used to bring out Hyun Bin's eyes was gone and so was he.

His desk remained as it was, just behind the face of the clock. Again, part of them wanted to see their old friend sitting at his usual spot with a mug of coffee in his hand and his cane by his side. They remembered that at times like these he would let them argue in front of him while he sat by with clasped hands and elbows on the desk, waiting for them to realize how juvenile they were acting.

And then the real talk would begin.

"What was it that you wanted to talk about, Jongkook?" BoA asked. She ran a finger down the length of Hyun Bin's desk, trying her best to swallow the worry she felt for their absent colleague.

"It's about that message that we received," Jongkook answered. The previous night, a voice message came through from just beyond Atlas. The headmasters of the other academies confirmed that they received the same thing. It was a very clear threat:

"I desire peace. Everyone does. And at this point, I am the only one who can grant it. All that needs to be done is to stop resisting. This endless feud between humans and faunus has hindered our growth and that of Remnant for far too long. Agree to live in peace with each other. Otherwise, I will bring darkness to your very doorstep and I will not stop until every single being in this world has agreed to my terms. Choose soon or I will choose for you."

A few other professors dismissed it as mere White Fang propaganda even though it didn't coincide with their goal of subjugating humanity. BoA suggested that maybe the message was an announcement that the White Fang had reverted to their initial goal of achieving equality between humans and faunus. Jongkook and the other professors didn't care. It was still a threat and giving in to such would not ensure peace but give rise to a dictator that Remnant had no need for.

The clock's hour hand landed on six. They had only been here for a little while.

"BoA, you should know that your former student, the one who sent the message, is not responsible for the Grimm invasions," said Jongkook.

"If it's not her, then who is?"

"We don't know who he is. We don't even have a name."

BoA gripped her upper left arm, her brows meeting in a furrow. "If you don't know who this person is then how are you so sure that he's responsible? More importantly, how is he doing this?"

"Trust me. He's the one responsible. I should know because..." Jongkook sighed through gritted teeth, hiding a fist behind his back. "I know because I failed to stop him."

"What do you mean? What has he done exactly?"

Jongkook recounted what happened shortly after Remnant fell into the void, when the oldest and strongest of the Grimm decided to move forward. For hundreds of years, they remained inactive, only wandering close to the cities but never showing hostility, placing Remnant in ever-present danger.

No one was prepared for the actual attack.

During the commotion, an unidentified male together with the White Fang took advantage of the vulnerability of the kingdoms. Atlas was their main target, specifically the Schnee Dust Company (SDC) which housed one of the most dangerous pieces of technology of its time. General Jongkook found out about the contraption months before the void and ordered its confiscation. However, the President of the SDC was adamant about keeping it seeing as it was private property and was independently developed.

Jongkook wanted to take it by force but was restricted by the law from doing so. In the midst of more failed attempts to acquire the machine, the void came about and then the infiltration of the SDC. The machine was purposely destroyed by its developers to keep it from falling into the hands of the unidentified male and the White Fang, but the schematics somehow remained.

"And whoever that man was, he figured out how to build another one. That's how he's controlling the Grimm."

"But how is that even possible? How does a machine—"

"The technology is called Possession Type Grimm." Jongkook took a step closer to his friend and colleague, placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze. "The SDC managed to create a machine that can harness the Grimm's essence and transfer it to something else. From what I saw when I first came to the SDC to confiscate it, they had already used it on a large suit of armor. What was once just a piece of assembled metal in the Schnee Museum came to life as a creature of Grimm. Not in form or appearance. But the darkness was there. And that insatiable thirst for destruction. The man who re-built the machine for himself is just like that suit of armor. He's a creature of Grimm and the rest of them follow him now."

BoA blinked, agape. What had she just heard? "If you expect me to believe this, tell me why it took you this long to reveal it. Do the other headmasters know? Was I the only one kept in the dark?"

Jongkook drew his arm back and turned around, his head hanging low. "Of course not! You're the first one I thought of telling. This was supposed to be a military secret, but that message—"

"So if that message didn't arrive, you wouldn't have told me?! Jongkook, seriously!"

Jongkook felt a hard slap on his back and though it didn't hurt him physically, it upset him that BoA had to find out about the situation this way. If Hyun Bin were here... He shook the rest of the thought away. Hyun Bin wasn't here. Not anymore. Now, he had to take charge. He turned around and caught BoA's hand before she could land another slap. "I'm going to handle it, BoA. The repairs on the Atlesian Knights are almost done and I already have my soldiers preparing for what may as well be our final mission. I will end this."

"With just your army?" BoA pulled her hand out of Jongkook's grip. Her voice came out in a shout that was called for by her colleague's stubbornness. "You saw what happened in Atlas. You need everyone to take on the Grimm! That wasn't even their full force! If what you say is true, that there is someone controlling the Grimm's actions, who knows how much more dangerous things could become? We all need to stand up against this threat!"

"And what do you propose we do?!" Jongkook shot back, his frustration rising within him. The creases in his forehead grew deep as he held the scowl, his hands now balled into fists. "Do you want to send your students to the front lines? They're just kids! Not even full-fledged huntsmen and huntresses. It's not their responsibility to save the world, BoA. It's ours. We are the guardians of Remnant. This is our duty."

BoA held Jongkook's gaze, her grip tightening on her wand. She knew how stubborn Jongkook could be but this wasn't the time for macho pride and she wasn't going to let that be his downfall. "It may be true that we have a sworn duty to Remnant as its guardians but there is no denying that we can't defend it alone.  With Hyun Bin gone, we're already one guardian short. Wherever he is, we can't wait for him to show up before we make our move. This is on us now and I believe that it is only fair for us to gather as many willing warriors as we can. Should you refuse to tell the students about our enemy, I will bear the burden of doing so. Whatever may be the result – no matter the casualties – I will bear it for as long as I know that I did everything I could to save what we have sworn to protect."

Jongkook opened his mouth to reply but nothing followed. The cogs of the clock tower turned before him, reminding him that they did not have much time. He planned to tell the other headmasters about the situation next. He feared that they would agree with BoA to send their students to the final battle. When he approached the face of the clock past Hyun Bin's desk, he saw the students of Beacon Academy going about their patrols down below, now a bit relaxed due to the absence of Grimm in the area. He pressed a palm to the transparent glass face and wondered whether he could ever forgive himself for passing on to them part of his responsibility. But they're just kids...

+

The following days remained uneventful. Other than a few calls from their families outside of Beacon, they had no contact with the outside world. They appreciated this monotony. There hadn't been a Grimm attack in so long that it seemed they were again enjoying a time of peace. Little did they know that just beyond the four kingdoms, the real threat was waiting, gathering an impossible amount of strength.

All they could do now was attempt to stay vigilant and that meant continuing their training.

Sooyoung and Yuri kept having sessions with the Hwang spouses and although the improvement was slow, it was a big leap from how they used to fight. Sooyoung was able to gain enough muscle to support her axe-wielding and despite the teasing she received from her friends for having man-arms, they had nothing on her developed skill set. She rarely needed to use her aura to mount a decent attack and her hounds only made extended appearances in their tame form upon Tiffany's request during breaks.

After partnering up with Sooyoung for a few rounds, Yuri pushed herself even further and started requesting two-on-one matches with the Hwang spouses. She and Sooyoung had been continuously and purposely drained of their aura during their previous matches and they had gotten a bit used to withstanding the pain. She wanted something more challenging.

The spouses warned her at first but she was insistent. The first match ended with her completely immobile. It took half a day before she recovered and even then she wanted to try again.

Come the next try, she opted to take out Mr. Hwang first. Needless to say, she had to destroy half the training room just to trap him in the debris and keep him from using his semblance. That left Mrs. Hwang and her needles. She used the stagger-and-hit strategy first then switched to a more headfirst tactic. She took a few needles to the body but she pushed past the pain and willed her body to recover faster from the temporary shock as she tackled her opponent to the ground. Once she got a hold of the huntress' wrists, she sent a wave of force from her palm, through the limbs in her grip, and the needles fell to the floor. She was about to launch into a series of punches when Mrs. Hwang raised a leg and brought her boot down hard on her back. A sharp cry of pain filled what was left of the training room and Yuri fell to the floor. Mrs. Hwang claimed the needle that was stuck deep in Yuri's shoulder blade, returned it to the compartment in her boot then crouched down to help Yuri get back up.

They agreed to take a break from training after that and the other students got to have a go at the spouses. While Yuri was recovering from the unexpected attack that completely drained her of what remained of her aura and caused a permanent scar to form across her left shoulder blade, she got frequent visits from Tiffany. It was initially in the infirmary and then later on in the dorm room she shared with Jessica and Yoona.

"I'm so, so sorry about what my mom did to you," Tiffany would often say. She also often offered to dress Yuri's wound and even give her sponge baths.

Yuri declined the latter, uncomfortable with the idea of having another person clean up after her. She didn't want to come off as helpless or anything. "I'm really okay, Tiffany. Don't worry too much," she always said.

Despite that, Tiffany still spent a lot of time doting on Yuri whenever she could. Jessica would always be right behind them, subtly interrupting whenever Tiffany got too close to Yuri.

"Don't you have training with Seohyun and Taeyeon today? You shouldn't keep them waiting," Jessica told Tiffany once. The latter shrugged it off and said she could train with her teammates any time and that Yuri needed her attention more. Jessica forced a wide smile in response before she linked arms with Yuri and offered to take her back to their dorm room so she could rest.

"Oh, good! I'll help," Tiffany chirped. She held on to Yuri's free arm and started walking, leaving Jessica no choice but to follow her lead.

Once Yuri's wound started healing, Tiffany had no more excuse to stay close to her as her personal nurse but that didn't mean that she had run out of ideas. She went with her parents to watch their training matches and just next door the last match just happened to be between Sooyoung and Yuri. After the match, she bounced up from the bleachers and pressed herself to Yuri's side the moment she had a chance.

"Hey you~" She wiped the sweat off of Yuri's cheek with the back of her hand then ran her palm down Yuri's arm. "Are you free today?"

"Hm? Yeah, I think so. What's up?"

"Yuri..." Sooyoung said from behind her friend. When Yuri turned to look at her she shook her head and widened her eyes, hoping that Yuri would get the hint that whatever came out of Tiffany's mouth was poison.

"What is it?" Yuri asked. Tiffany was still hanging on to her and she swore she felt her arm being massaged with tight squeezes.

"Uh... isn't Sica waiting for you outside or something?" Sooyoung blurted out. Tiffany glared at her while Yuri wasn't looking and she swallowed hard, scared of what Tiffany might do to her in retaliation for interrupting.

"Yeah, I think she is—"

"Yuwree, I actually wanted to invite you to dinner. My parents are going to be there too. I feel really bad about what mom did to you and she does too so we want to make it up to you. What do you say?"

"Wow. That's not really necessary, Tiffany. It happened during a match so it wasn't anyone's fault. Your mom was just training me like she's supposed to. And besides, they did cover for me when Professor BoA got mad at me for wrecking the other training room. I'd say we're even."

"Really?" Tiffany asked, batting her eyelashes and running a finger up and down Yuri's toned arm. "'Cause it would really mean a lot to me if you agree to come. You know... since we've become such fast friends."

"Ah. Well, that does sound nice, Tiffany." Yuri turned to Sooyoung again and the latter did the same gesture as earlier. It would be rude to refuse, though. When she turned her attention back to Tiffany, the latter flashed her signature bright eye smile. "Uh, okay. Sure. I'll just take a shower and I'll catch up with you later."

"Actually, I was thinking I could wait in your room. Would that be okay?"

"Ugh!" Sooyoung threw her arms above her head and almost let out a growl.

"Awww... Sooyoungie, what's wrong?" Tiffany had no trouble sounding cute as she pretended not to know why Sooyoung was so frustrated with the situation. The rest of their friends didn't agree with her idea on how to get Yuri and Jessica to bring their relationship to light but she went on with it anyway. Besides, Yuri is way too hot for me to ignore just because she's playing house with Jessi.

Sooyoung only rolled her eyes and left after giving Yuri a pat on the back – right on that spot where her injury was healing.

"Yah! Choi Sooyoung!!" Yuri cringed at the impact and drew away from Tiffany to clutch her shoulder. "Tsk. That sadist!"

"Poor baby... Let me see." Tiffany got Yuri to take off her blazer and checked whether there was any blood on the white uniform top underneath. "It seems fine so don't worry—"

"Yuri-yah?"

Yuri turned around and so did Tiffany. Jessica walked over, taking large strides to get to the center of the room, and snatched the blazer out of Tiffany's hand. Her eyes met Yuri's in an instant. It was like Tiffany wasn't even in the room.

"What happened? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am. Soo just hit me kinda hard a while ago—"

"And I wanted to check on her injury," Tiffany cut in, forcing Jessica to notice her.

Jessica's eyes glazed over the other person in the room and took Yuri's hand. "Anyway, do you wanna get something to eat after you shower?"

"Ah. About that... Tiffany actually asked me to have dinner with her and her parents. So, I... uh..." Yuri looked back and forth at Jessica and Tiffany who were now staring at each other with such intensity that she felt like they wouldn't notice if she slipped out of the room. "I think I'll just take a shower now."

"I'll wait for you then," Tiffany said as she took Yuri's free hand. "I can just chill on your bed or something."

"Her bed is currently a mess, actually." Jessica tugged on Yuri's hand to bring her closer. "Also, about this dinner with your parents—"

"Oh, of course! Would you like to come along too, Jessi?"

"Actually, I would—"

"Would not be able to go because you have plans? Oh what a shame! Maybe next time?"

Jessica did her best not to raise an eyebrow at that lame attempt to ward her off. She flashed the widest smile she could manage instead. "I was actually going to say that I would love to go with you guys. It's so sweet of you to invite me, Tiff."

Tiffany returned the forced smile. "What are friends for, right Jessi? So I guess we should just let Yuwree take her shower alone and we can wait for her outside?"

"That's fine with me," Yuri said, already getting ready to leave after Jessica and Tiffany released her hands. She really was itching to take a shower. "See you guys in a bit!"

After Yuri left, Jessica folded the blazer that Yuri left behind and tucked it under her arm. Tiffany was watching her all the while.

"Well played, Jessi," Tiffany said while slowly clapping her hands. "Nice touch with that bed comment by the way. Even though I doubt that you guys have really gone all the way and made her bed as messy as you claim it is."

Jessica shrugged. She knew Tiffany was right but she and Yuri had done more things in bed than Tiffany had with Yuri during the entirety of their still-developing friendship. That she was sure of. "Well, whether we have or we haven't is between us, isn't it? Who knows?"

Tiffany let out a giggle then she linked arms with Jessica and led the way out of the training room. The latter followed without a word, clutching Yuri's blazer to her chest.

+

After Yuri changed into a fresh set of clothes, she met Tiffany, Jessica and the Hwang spouses at the school gate. From there, they all walked to the local bar. It wasn't the fanciest of places in Vale but it was one of the few in the entire kingdom that held the wine that the Hwang spouses liked. And it was closer.

The spouses took their seats first, followed by Yuri who sat across from them. Jessica claimed the seat next to Yuri's while Tiffany claimed the other one instead of sitting next to her parents.

"So Jessica-ssi was it?" said Mr. Hwang after they placed their orders.

"Yes sir," Jessica answered.

"I'm afraid Miyoung hasn't told us a lot about you. But I'm sure she didn't mean to, right honey?"

"Of course not, daddy!" Tiffany tapped her father's hand with hers and let out a small laugh. "It's just that I haven't spent a lot of time with Jessi compared to Yuri here."

"Then it's a good thing that you came along then, dear," said Mrs. Hwang. She beamed at Jessica and offered her some water.

"Oh, thank you ma'am. I'll just pour it for myself. Would you like some too Yuri-yah?"

"Yeah, thanks Sica." Yuri handed her glass over and smiled. They held each other's gazes for what seemed like a full minute before Mrs. Hwang spoke up again.

"Are you two teammates then? Yuri-ssi and Jessica-ssi?"

"Yes we are. We're partners, actually," Yuri answered and Jessica followed with a nod.

Mr. Hwang let out a hearty laugh. "Did both of you have to go through that ridiculous initiation? The one where your eyes do the choosing?"

Yuri and Jessica looked at each other again and laughed. "Uh, yes we did. I also thought it was ridiculous at first," Jessica said. She remembered scoffing at the idea for sure.

"And what do you think about it now?" Mrs. Hwang asked after she took a sip of her water.

"Well..." She gave Yuri a quick glance and she got a toothy grin in return. "I don't think it's such a bad thing anymore. Uh, I guess..." She stopped herself the moment she felt the rush of blood to her cheeks.

The timing of their orders was impeccable. The food and drinks arrived just when Tiffany was about to point out that Jessica was blushing. The conversation shifted to Yuri and Jessica's respective families and whether they had come into contact with each other. After that came talk about training and how much Yuri had improved in controlling her semblance.

"I actually want to thank you both for being patient with me. I know that Sooyoung and I have been a handful since the beginning but you still agreed to train us more often. I'm truly grateful."

"You worked really hard, Yuri-ssi. Sooyoung-ssi too. Which reminds me..." Mr. Hwang turned to his daughter. "Why didn't you invite your other friends, honey?"

"Ah. Well..." Tiffany felt a bit guilty of having to lie to her father but this was a harmless one. Just a little white lie. "They said they were going to rest today and that they'll take you up on that offer some other time. They really are grateful for the offer though." She finished with a smile.

The Hwang spouses took their daughter's explanation at face value and then that led to Mrs. Hwang apologizing to Yuri for being so harsh during their previous match. Yuri politely accepted the apology but said that there really was no need to worry about it.

"Yeah mom. I took really good care of her so she's okay now. Right?" Tiffany clung to Yuri's arm and pressed a cheek to her shoulder.

Yuri nodded. "Yeah. Thanks for the help, Tiffany. I appreciate it."

"Awww... Anything for you, you cutie pie~"

Jessica cleared and pushed her chair back as she stood up. "Excuse me." But before she left, she leaned toward Yuri and wiped the side of Yuri's mouth with her thumb. "Yuri-yah, you're so messy..." Then she took her stained thumb into , taking the red pasta sauce with the tip of her tongue, her eyes set on Tiffany's during the entire motion.

And then she left for the bathroom.

+

The remaining half of dinner with the Hwangs was lost somewhere in between her ragged breaths and the tiny moans that escaped her whenever warm fingertips grazed the skin of her hips and her abdomen, just underneath her uniform top. She had grown used to the pair of lips that went from hers and down her neck but the trail of kisses from her collarbone toward the middle of her chest had her trembling, afraid and curious at the same time. Less afraid, really, admittedly just because it was Jessica who held her down. Their fingers intertwined over her head, some of their hair trapped in between due to their sporadic movement on the bed. Not that they noticed. The growing heat between them, though, was all Yuri could comprehend. She felt it inside her, too, creeping downward and everywhere else. She wondered if Jessica felt the same way.

How did we even get back here?

She remembered Jessica dragging her down the hallway and into their dorm room. The door closed with a click and locked with another. She remembered talking about how grateful she was to the Hwangs for the free dinner and the company, and then suddenly there Jessica's lips were on hers, their usual gentle caress replaced by a hurried hunger. "What was that for?" she asked even though she didn't really want to know. It was more of a reflex than anything. "You talk too much," was all she heard in reply. What followed was a mess of kisses, and discarded blazers (Yuri's second for the day), and undone buttons on uniform tops. Jessica was underneath her one second and then on top the next, breathing life into her and taking it away again with every broken kiss.

"Sica..." she whispered into the air along with a moan that begged to be suppressed by Jessica's lips and to be soothed by her tongue. Relief came minutes after Jessica left a then-red, now-bluish mark inches below Yuri's collarbone, when she pressed her lips to Yuri's once more and slowly took in the lower one to meet her tongue, like a drop of red pasta sauce.

+

It was already late when they heard the door almost come off of its hinges, quaking against the frame. The kissing came to an abrupt halt and they scrambled out of bed. Jessica rushed to the bathroom while Yuri unlocked the door for Yoona. Their dongsaeng took one look at Yuri's terribly wrinkled, ed uniform top and then searched the rest of the room for Jessica. "She's in the shower," Yuri hurriedly said. "I, uh... was working out a bit before my turn. Hehe." She didn't know whether Yoona bought the excuse but neither of them said another word until the three of them fell asleep on the joined beds.

The morning after, Yuri and Jessica still smelled fresh from the shower they took just hours ago. Yoona was in between them, lying on her stomach and with her head buried under two of Jessica's pillows. Yuri was lying on her side, hugging a pillow close to her chest – probably another one of Jessica's since all of hers somehow ended up by their feet with the unused blanket. Jessica was flat on her back with an arm above her head.

They woke up around lunch time. Or it was more like Yoona woke up because she got a message from Seohyun that missing breakfast was a big no-no so she hurried out of bed and knocked Yuri down to the floor, causing Jessica to wake up the moment Yuri screamed in shock. It was a particularly chaotic day.

After they had lunch, things wound down.

Yoona obviously wanted to spend her entire day with Seohyun even if it meant also having to hang out with Taeyeon, and so she did. Jessica went off with Krystal for some scheduled training session, leaving Yuri to wander about the campus until they were done. She felt like she was on patrol at first but then she remembered that the Grimm no longer occupied Vale. That gave her more reason to try to appreciate the Academy. She settled herself on a bench in the courtyard and sent Jessica a message to let her know. She didn't expect a reply, knowing that the Jung sisters were still having their practice match.

A few minutes later, she heard a familiar voice.

"Yuwree-yah!"

"Oh, hi Tiffany."

Tiffany inched closer to the bench and lowered herself onto Yuri's lap. "This is nice. You're finally alone for a change~"

"Uh, there's a seat right beside me, Tiffany," Yuri said as she leaned back to distance herself from the girl who all but jumped on her just seconds ago.

"But I like it here." Tiffany flashed a smile and placed an arm around Yuri's neck, her weight shifting from Yuri's knees to her thighs. "It's more comfortable."

An inaudible sound escaped Yuri and she covered it up with a slight cough. Tiffany was so close she could smell the scent from the candle that Seohyun often lit in their dorm room. She casually put her hands on her abdomen to place some distance between them. "Look, I know that we're friends now and that you can be very touchy-feely but this is a bit much, don't you think? I'm not that comfy with this amount of distance between us. Uh, I mean lack thereof. So I'd really appreciate it if you tone it down."

"Oh gosh you're just adorable!" Tiffany pinched Yuri's cheek and remained where she sat. It wouldn't hurt to push her luck, she figured. "Is this really so bad though? I think we make a good pair, actually."

"Tiffany, I'm serious." Yuri started to stand up and Tiffany swayed to her side in response to the movement underneath her. "This is a bit weird for me so please stop."

Tiffany placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder and pushed her back down onto the bench. Then she slid off of Yuri's lap and stood up. "There. I'll try harder to keep myself from doing this again. I can't promise that'll happen soon though. You're pretty irresistible, you know?"

Yuri smiled and patted the seat next to her. "That's a start. Thanks."

Tiffany sat on the proper part of the bench this time. "You're welcome. So what are you doing hanging around here by yourself?"

"I'm just waiting for Sica and Krystal. They should be done with their training any time now."

"Oh yeah, I heard about that from my parents. They say Krys is pretty good. Jessi too. But I guess that's no surprise. She has you for a partner after all. Ugh, I'm so jealous."

Yuri was flattered to have heard that about her but deep down she knew that it was the other way around. I'm better because of Sica. She smiled at the thought and suddenly she wanted the minutes to fly by faster just so she could tell Jessica that. Uh, well, not tell her exactly. Maybe I’ll just give her a kiss. That should be explanation enough... Right?

"Yuwree? Hello?"

"Huh?" Yuri saw Tiffany's hand in mid-air right in front of her face. She laughed at herself for spacing out. "Sorry, I just remembered something."

"Tsk! You're not making this backing off thing easy, Kwon Yuri. Why are you so adorable?" Tiffany pinched Yuri's cheek again with a genuine urge to just do so. "Oh my. Maybe I should go now before I do anything stupid. Consider yourself safe. For now. Later!"

Yuri waved goodbye and Tiffany went on her way. Jessica and Krystal came into view a few moments later. "Hi guys!"

"Yuri unnie!" Krystal greeted. Yuri beamed in response.

Jessica went on ahead and sat beside her partner. She skipped the greeting and went straight to most obvious question: "You seemed to be having a moment with Tiffany just now. Did something happen between you two?"

Yuri stifled a laugh. "Sica... you make it sound like I had an affair with her or something."

"Did you?" went the immediate reply.

"What? No! If anything, it was the opposite. I told her to stop being too clingy since it's gotten pretty awkward for me lately."

"Ah."

A beat passed.

"O-kay. Uh, I have to make a call." Krystal raised her scroll and excused herself. She did not like where this conversation was going. It involved Tiffany flirting with Yuri after all. Sica unnie is gonna lose her in 5...4...3...2...

She retreated to a nearby tree.

Jessica didn't know whether Krystal really had to make a phone call but she appreciated the alone time with Yuri, especially after finding out that Tiffany was up to her tricks again. She moved closer to her partner, settled her chin on the latter's shoulder and then hugged her arm. "What if I cling to you like this? Do you find it awkward too?" she asked in a whisper.

Yuri shook her head. She didn't even need to think about how to answer that one. She leaned to her side and touched the side of her head to the top of Jessica's before whispering back: "Of course not. I like it when you're next to me."

+

Sending photo attachment YULSIC_001... Sent.

Krystal's scroll almost blew up from the simultaneous replies. She couldn't even see who they were from. They just popped up like mushrooms on an autumn day.

"WTF?! Where is this?!"

"Awwww... they're so cute together!"

"It'll be way cuter if I was on Yuri's lap."

"Is that Sica's hand on Yul's ?!"

"I don't think we should be spying on them like this..."

"Krys, did you get one where they're actually making out?! Come on!"

"Scooore!!!"

"So who started it?"

"Did you hear what they were whispering?"

"KRYSTAL! GET BACK IN THERE AND WAIT UNTIL THEY. MAKE. OUT!!"

“P.S. You can all it ‘cause my plan is definitely working!”

So can you guys guess which texts are from who? :D

Also, shout out to Jessica who released two MVs a few days ago! She's adorable in both of them! :)