By some miracle, Sana managed to recall her memories of the night out. She hadn’t been giving Tzuyu much attention in her classes, simply because she was mad at her for lying. But Tzuyu hadn’t really lied. She’d never suggested something had happened between them – she just said that Sana had fun. She knew Tzuyu was affected by the change in her attitude and it made her happy that it did – it felt a little like revenge. Sana never really liked that attitude she was giving off in her class, especially since it was becoming increasingly difficult to act that way around Tzuyu.

Of course, Tzuyu was upset with the lack of attention she was getting from Sana but she didn’t know why. She’s never been one to seek attention from anyone and she liked keeping to herself but why did she want Sana’s attention on her? Why did Sana’s avoidance make her annoyed and frustrated?

It had been an entire week and Tzuyu couldn’t stop sulking. Her friends all seemed to be chipper than usual and no doubt it was because of their own personal love lives. Tzuyu hadn’t really seen Sana as a potential love interest right? She’d just admired how beautiful she looked. Like how her smile made her feeling happier in an instant or the fact that she liked seeing Sana’s hair in a ponytail or how she looked amazing when she wore jeans; it was definitely not a potential love interest.

Yep, she knew she was screwed.

That does explain why she was feeling so upset with her lack of acknowledgement from Sana. The few interactions Tzuyu had shared with Sana affected her more than she should’ve allowed it to. How could she have let her walls fall so easily? How could Sana have slipped past them when they weren’t even close. She had so many questions about herself and how this could’ve happened. She shouldn’t be this weak, it’ll only make her lose focus. After all, her main aim was to become top of the class. Tzuyu couldn’t do that if she bothered to delve deeper into whatever she was feeling for Sana.

She had to push Sana out of her head. She had to distract herself. She had to concentrate on anything else. Because Sana was starting to become the thing that strayed her from her goal. Her mind should be filled with solutions to problems, not Minatozaki Sana. She had to become that emotionless person she was when she came, before she became soft. Her friends could be happy – they deserve to be happy but she couldn’t do the same thing. Tzuyu couldn’t throw away everything she had gained from her studies to pursue something that she was unaware about. She couldn’t solve this problem like everything else.

Chaeyoung was the first to notice the change and she didn’t say anything. The one thing she knew about Tzuyu was that she was strong headed in what she wanted. She wanted to accomplish what she set out to do. Out of the four of them, she was the one who stayed at the back, observing everyone else and making sure they were all fine. It was always Tzuyu who took care of them, no matter what happened. Maybe she needed some guidance for once – maybe she needed advice. None of them had ever needed to lend a shoulder to Tzuyu, other than when her parents had passed away. She’d taken that as a way to make her stronger and she’d somehow become the person they all relied on. But sometimes, the people who are relied on need someone they can rely on.

It didn’t go unnoticed by Sana either, that Tzuyu’s attitude in the classroom had changed significantly after she continued her plan of ignoring. She was dazed out in her lessons and failed to answer questions as much as she used to. Had she taken things too far or was there something else on Tzuyu’s mind? She was no longer as lively as she used to be and the few smiles that were present on her face had completely vanished. Just what had happened to Tzuyu? She couldn’t help herself but be worried about her.

Chaeyoung didn’t think twice when she pulled Tzuyu away from her class, Momo and Jeongyeon already leaving for other things or should she say other dates.

“Tzuyu, let’s get some coffee.” Chaeyoung suggested, pulling Tzuyu along with her to the nearest quiet café.

“What’s with the rush though Chae.” Tzuyu chuckled dryly.

“Let me order the drinks, you sit there and I’ll bring them soon.” Chaeyoung shook her head, pushing Tzuyu into a booth in a corner.

Chaeyoung had come back five minutes later with their drinks, always knowing what Tzuyu liked best. Tzuyu chuckled as a waitress brought a slice of strawberry cheesecake moments later. “So, what’s the occasion?” She asked, sipping on her drink.

“I know something isn’t right.” Chaeyoung started.

“What do you mean?” Tzuyu asked, frowning.

“I mean, I know something is off.” Chaeyoung added.

“There’s nothing wrong Chae.” Tzuyu smiled forcefully.

“You came here, after a few days, you changed. You became happier and you smiled more than I’ve seen you in a while. But a couple of days ago, you went back to your old self. Tzuyu, we always rely on you when it comes to what we feel. You listen to us, you give us advice, you guide us and you do more for us than anyone else has done. Let me listen to you, please. I know you have something on your mind. I know you’re thinking about something. Lean on someone for once Tzuyu – everyone needs to at one stage.” Chaeyoung pleaded.

When Tzuyu had given her a blank look, Chaeyoung immediately thought that she’d read everything wrong – that Tzuyu hadn’t needed this talk. That she was indeed fine and nothing was a problem but she’d seen the way her bottom lip trembled as she struggled to word her thoughts. She knew something was wrong when Tzuyu had looked down and fumbled with her fingers, biting her lip as she pushed her hair out of her face. The way she’d refused to meet Chaeyoung’s gaze and preferred to look outside the window, breathing heavily as if she was trying to stop herself from crying. Her palms had turned into fists and Chaeyoung knew Tzuyu was digging her nails into her skin – to settle herself down.

“Tzuyu.” Chaeyoung called out, opening Tzuyu’s hands.

“I don’t know anything.” Tzuyu mumbled.

“Hmm?” Chaeyoung pushed.

“What am I doing? I’m such a mess right now Chae. My mind is chaotic and I don’t know what to do. The last time I felt like this, I lost the people I cared about; what if the same happens again? I can’t pursue what I feel but I want to. I’m so frustrated with my lack of understanding – I don’t know how to solve this problem. I’d vowed to become the best pilot but what if I can’t reach that stage? What if I turn out like my dad? I have so many questions in my head and it’s all driving me insane. I’m questioning everything and anything.” Tzuyu explained.

“Tzuyu, firstly, you can’t think that you’ll turn out like your dad. That was an unfortunate event. You can do whatever you want to if you put your heart into it. I’ve seen you do it all my life to this point right here and I know you can go further. Now, what do you mean by the last time you felt like ‘this’? What do you want to pursue?” Chaeyoung asked.

“I mean when I realised I care about someone a lot. I want to pursue that person.” Tzuyu muttered.

“Then what’s stopping you?” Chaeyoung questioned.

“The past is what’s stopping me.” Tzuyu admitted.

“You can’t live your life in the past Tzuyu. You need to move past what happened, pursue whoever this person is. Pursue your feelings.” Chaeyoung advised, patting Tzuyu’s head.

“Since when did you get so smart.” Tzuyu scoffed.

“Since I had a wonderful person that’s supported me in life.” Chaeyoung smiled, earning a shove from Tzuyu.

Tzuyu had gone to her next class feeling more motivated than she’d felt all week. She was glad she’d talked to Chaeyoung about what was on her mind, it hadn’t surprised her that she’d noticed her change in attitude so quickly. Chaeyoung was always the one who knew when something was wrong first, but didn’t act on it often.

“Oh look who it is, the dead pilot’s daughter!” A fellow student mocked.

Tzuyu paled when she heard the words tumble out of the girl’s mouth. Maybe it wasn’t her they were referring to. It could be someone else, right?

“Hey, you, girl who always gets the answers right in the class!” She called out. Tzuyu’s anger had risen up immediately, realising it was her she was indeed being referred to. “Just because your dad was a pilot, doesn’t mean you’ll be one here automatically. You need to actually try, you know?”

It had taken only a few seconds, in which Tzuyu had the girl pinned against the nearest wall as she glared at her.

“Did I touch a sensitive topic there, Miss Pretender?” The girl smirked, pushing Tzuyu back, resulting in her tumbling against the table and chairs. Tzuyu let out a growl, grabbing her collar and pressing her elbow against her neck.

“Who the hell do you think you are?!” Tzuyu shouted, pushing more pressure against the girl’s neck. She smirked yet again, headbutting Tzuyu to escape her hold. Tzuyu felt a little dizzy from the hit, shaking her head to gain her bearings.

“Is it too much for you, Chou 2.0?” The girl challenged, arms on her hips. Tzuyu was about to push her against the wall again when someone pulled her back, snaking their arms around her waist.

“Let me go.” Tzuyu seethed.

“Tzuyu.”

It was one word, it was simply her name – but Tzuyu had immediately stopped resisting. She hated it. She hated how she became so weak because of the presence of one person.

“Breathe.”

Again, Tzuyu had listened to the voice as soon as the word was uttered. As if she was being controlled by them, hypnotised – she took in a deep breath, calming herself down.

She couldn’t let herself be weakened to this extent. She shouldn’t. She should be stronger than this. She pushed herself out of Sana’s embrace, grabbing her bag and running out of the class.

A/N: Delayed update~ I'm sorry everyone
I'm being bad with time management and having more fun reading other stories XD

Also, thank you to those who wished me happy birthday!
I haven't been able to reply to you all but I will get there (ง ͠° ͟ل͜ ͡°)ง

I hope you liked the update~
Sorry for any typos ಠ_ಠ