Taecyeon, Jessica and Donghae were gathering outside of Yuri’s ward. Her condition had been inconsistent since last evening. The doctors were pacing up and down and nurses were entering and leaving the room like those scenes where you see at the train platform during the peak hours. Machines were sent into the room as the nurses carried trays and trays of operating tools into the ward. Nervousness and worries filled the air as the three sat there quietly outside with their fingers crossed.

“Babe, you okay?” Donghae asked caringly as he rubbed his hands against hers repeatedly to keep her hands warm. Jessica was supposed to be discussing for her upcoming album at this moment but the phone call from Taecyeon made her leave everything aside. Yuri is her friend, a girl that she had always admired. No matter how tough things get, Yuri never gives up. Her undying will and determination had helped her won against the battle with her cancer years back. She should be enjoying her life now, not lying there motionlessly with thousands of tubes and needles.

“I want her to wake up,” Jessica said as she faced her husband. Anyone can look into her eyes and understand how sincerely and genuinely she is praying for Yuri’s survival. It is scary how every one leaves her slowly sand Donghae knows that his wife was afraid of separation, especially life and death. He hugged her really tightly as he continues telling her that everything will be fine. And maybe not; because they really don’t know. Life’s too short to worry about when you’ll shut your eyes forever, and somehow, Jessica detests how Yuri is giving up in this battle just because of a man who lied to her, Ok Taecyeon.

The sound of the machine started beeping faster. It wasn’t a good sign. More doctors were rushing into the ward and Taecyeon rushed to the window, trying his best to see what exactly was going on in there with the blinds totally covering everything. His entire mind was filled with her condition and he was probably not doing anything that was sane enough. Something was telling him that things were no longer going his way. In fact, right from the moment he broke their hearts, things went out of control.

“Please Yul, wake up. I’d rather you hate me than for you to leave just this! It isn’t fair. Wake up and scold me, won’t you? Please Yul, I’m begging you,” he was on the verge of going onto his knees. His guilt was eating every piece of him and all he could think of now is for her to wake up.

A girl stood behind the wall as she waited impatiently for the doctor to come out too. Her hands were tightly held together as she prayed for her to be fine. She cares, she really does. And somehow, all the hatred she had was gone as she watched the girl lying in there fighting against the wrath of god. Will she ever see her again? Will they be able to talk and play around together like how they did when they were still young? And within a minute, their thoughts stopped running wild as the door knob turned with a rusty click, and the man in the white robe stood tall in front of them.

All the eyes were on him.

“I’m sorry, we’ve tried our best.”

The entire corridor was filled with silence as each and every single one of them close their eyes to digest what an apology from a doctor would mean. And somehow they got it. Jessica stood emotionlessly in Donghae’s arms as her tears fell from those icy pair of eyes.

Flashback:

“Yul! Is he your boyfriend?” Jessica crept up at her back. Jessica was walking home when she spot Yuri sitting alone at the park and she decided to join her. She saw how Yuri was smiling sweetly at that photo in her hands. She was sure that the guy in the photo meant so much to Yuri although the both of them looked really young in the photo.

“Yah Sica! You scare me!” Yuri jumped up from the bench and quickly hid the photo behind her. Jessica gave a smirk and sat down next to her.

“I already saw it. There’s nothing to be shy about Yul, you should be proud of the fact that you’re able to love him.”

“But I don’t know. I don’t know if he still loves me. Perhaps, he is married, and maybe he can’t even remember the fact that I had once existed. I left him when we are so young, and even if he once loved me, it might be just an infatuation. He is probably living with someone better right now.” Yuri said as she looked at the photo once again. Jessica patted her shoulder.

“No matter what it is, you have to give it a try before you regret isn’t it? You’re a brave and strong girl. You’ve won the battle with the cancer and now you just have to overcome your own psychological barrier to live the life anyone can ask for!”

They were hugging each other tightly and Jessica knows, Yuri was someone important to her too. She looked up to this girl as she was filled with admiration and respect for her. From the first day Jaejoong introduced Yuri to her, she likes that girl a lot. She isn’t like those spoiled heiress but she was a tough girl that had gone through many ups and down. Yuri faces each and every day with a smile and that was something Jessica always wanted to but can’t. She thanked god for bringing Yuri to her side during those days in the States. If it wasn’t for her, Jessica wonders, will she ever have the courage to look for Donghae after Jaejoong’s death?

“Sica, you’re the only person who is so nice to me and take care of me when I was suffering from those side effects of the chemotherapy. You never felt ashamed of walking beside a girl who looks like a vampire and has no hair. Thank you and I’m so glad Jae oppa has you as his girlfriend.” Jessica ruffled the latter’s hair and laughed.

“Why would I? I get the chance to walk next to such a beautiful girl and shouldn’t I be proud of it?” Jessica replied as Yuri hugged her tightly.

“We will be friends forever, right?”

“Of course Yul! Let’s have a promise! Let’s meet up with each other 50 years later here again to dig out the friendship bracelets we had buried last week okay?” Jessica exclaimed happily as she released the hug and put out her little pinky. Yuri happily agreed.

It was a promise they shared.

End of Flashback.

Jessica’s tears kept on flowing as the doctor’s apology kept on replaying in her head. Is she going to lose someone important again?

Of course, the girl who had been hiding behind the wall heard the doctor too. She stood there and she wonders why she can’t bring herself to hate the both of them, the two that meant so much to her but hurt the deepest. She stood closely behind the wall as she fought hard against the urge to run in and see her. She missed her. Undeniably, through these years, Yoona missed her so much. She was her closest friend and now she was close to leaving her. That wasn’t what she wanted.

Flashback:

The two little girls were playing happily as they compete to see whose swing will swing higher. Their laughter filled the air as they swung the swing to the highest.

“I want to grow up to be as pretty as Yoona!” Yuri cheered as the swing flew high up awhile she kicked her legs in the air.

“I want to grow up to be as smart as Yuri!” Yoona cheered happily to as she grabbed tightly onto the rope and swing with all her might.

“I want to complete my dreams with Yoona!” They looked at each other and laughed.

“I want Yuri to stay by my side all the time!” The innocent eyes met again but this time, Yuri’s expression changed. There were sorrows in her eyes as though Yoona had mentioned something wrong. But she kept quiet about as she started screaming again.

“I want Yoona to be happy forever!”

“I want Yuri to be happy forever!”

And with that Yoona wasn’t holding on tight enough to the rope and she fell of the swing. Luckily, it wasn’t from to high a height.

“Yoong!” Yuri quickly stopped the swing and ran to the crying girl on the ground.

“Are you okay? Is it hurting badly?” Yuri asked repeatedly as she looked at the crying Yoona. Yoona nodded as she grabbed onto her ankle tightly. They were only six years old. They were helpless but there was no one around to help them. Yuri saw Yoona’s expression and she knew that it must have hurt a lot. She turned her back against Yoona and told her to hop on. The smaller girl stopped crying and she stared at Yuri as though she was an alien.

“Yah Yul, I’m too heavy for you…” she whispered shyly.

“Although you’re a shikshin, you’re definitely way skinnier, come on Yoong,” Yuri quickly grabbed her arms and piggybacked her. Honestly, no matter how light Yoona is or how strong Yuri is, piggybacking Yoona was still a difficult task, considering the fact that they were only six. Yuri’s steps were shaking but she was trying hard to walking properly in case she dropped Yoona and injures her further. They were only six, but Yoona knows that Yuri truly care for her.

“Gomawo Yul…”

“Silly girl, we are best friends, aren’t we? Do you expect me to sit there and watch you cry?” Yuri joked heartily to make Yoona forget about the pain in her ankle. And when Yuri left for New York for her treatment, Yoona knew that there wouldn’t be another person who will do so much like Yuri did for her.

End of Flashback.

Yoona let out a silent sob as she closed her eyes. How can she hate her when this girl protected her whenever she needs help? Even after so many years, Yuri still sacrificed herself for her. She felt her knees weakened and she fell back. Luckily, someone caught her in time.

“Kyu…” she looked at that taller guy and her tears were falling uncontrollably.

“Tell me, how can I hate her? Why does my heart yearns for her to be fine after she broke it? Why does it hurt of much when the doctor apologizes?” She cried as Kyuhyun gave her a really faint smile. Their thoughts were interrupted when a long beep came from the machine in Yuri’s ward. Kyuhyun hugged Yoona tightly as she covered her ears, refusing to hear the beep; Taecyeon fell onto his knees, clutching the Polaroid tightly in his hand; Jessica’s heart stopped as she tightened her grip on Donghae’s hand.

“Don’t break your promise Yul, please don’t. I’m begging you.” Jessica pleaded.

Nothing can replace the purest friendship we’ve once shared.

Siwon woke up and felt like he was having a really bad hangover. He didn’t even drink much yesterday and he don’t understand what’s with the throbbing feeling in his head right now. He looked around the room and realized that Tiffany was no longer in the bed. Lazily, he reached out for the watch next to his bed and realized that it was already three in the afternoon. He noticed that Tiffany’s favourite set of shades were no longer on the shelf so he supposed she had already gone to work.

“Sir?” the maid knocked on the door before he asked her to come in. The maid held a tray of cup and placed it on the dressing table. He knew that Tiffany had asked her to prepare a cup of tea to ease his hangover. He looked at it and smiled to himself.

“Thanks Fany,” he uttered to himself and that blissful smile had never left his face. No, he wasn’t aware of the situation.

On the other hand, she was trying hard to get rid of those images on her mind. For the hundredth time since this morning, she was trying her best to convince herself that those aren’t true. She was still holding on to the glimpse of hope that Siwon wouldn’t betray her since they’ve been through so much to be together. However, she can’t help but to wonder; didn’t Yoona and Taecyeon went through a lot to? And he betrayed her ultimately in the end.

“Tiffany sshi?” the photographer called out to her. She had been spacing out due to her thoughts that were running wild. She knows how unprofessional that is but she just can’t help it. Her head was splitting because she fell asleep so late while waiting for Siwon last night, and somehow, her heart was aching.

“Nehh, mianhe,” she bowed repeatedly at the crew as she felt bad for her performance today. It was totally off standard for an idol.

“Ani, let’s take a short break everyone!” the manager said nicely as he could clearly see how tired she looked. Tiffany gave a weak smile, thanking him before she walked towards her dressing table. Her mind was still wandering about and she took out her phone to see his name, Siwon.

Siwon: Fany ah, thanks for the tea, it did help a lot for my hangover. Love you babe, see you tonight. Miss you.

She closed her phone as she face down, her hands clutching the phone tightly. He has never failed to sound this sweet to put on a smile onto her face even when her day is bad. However, looking at such sweet and lovely message only made her more confused. She wants to believe her husband, she does. But she had been so badly hurt once and she don’t know if the guy she trusts with all she had will hurt her this time round. After all that had happened, she knows that an unknown fear was growing in her. Initially, she thought that it was unnecessary, but certain things proved her wrong.

“Oh Sooyoung sshi! You’re here!” she heard the crew greeting Sooyoung. Her heart was almost in . She turned around to see that tall, slender and polite lady greeting everyone in the studio while she hands over the famous cupcakes that she had specially bought for them. And all of a sudden, she felt inferior. Sooyoung is such a famous model and she does her job professionally well yet she isn’t the type of people that will look down on people around them.

“Is that why Siwon oppa likes you?” she muttered.

“Hi Tiffany!” she looked up and saw her standing in front of her with a smile.

“Hi Sooyoung!” she greeted back with her infamous eye smile. Although she wasn’t in the best mood, she still greeted Sooyoung politely since she doesn’t understand the purpose and the story behind those photos this morning. She didn’t want to jump too quickly into a conclusion. She wants to trust her husband, the guy she was determined to spend the rest of her life with. 

“Where’s oppa?” Sooyoung asked and Tiffany was slightly taken aback. She didn’t know that Sooyoung and Siwon was that close for her to address him as oppa. All these while, she thought that they were merely acquaintance who had only gotten closer recently.

“Ah, he was having a bad hangover from the party yesterday,” she replied softly, trying not to sound too unhappy or it might sound rude. She put on a smile as she eyed Sooyoung while she chuckled.

“His alcohol tolerance is still so low?” she laughed at Siwon’s bad hangover while Tiffany gave another slight smile. She was close to bewilderment as she watched the girl in front of her laughing at her husband. She didn’t understand what Sooyoung meant by ‘still so low’? It was seemingly telling her that Sooyoung had seen her husband drunk and they are definitely closer than she thought.

“Tiffany?” Sooyoung waved her hand in front of the girl who looked like she was spacing out.

“Ah neh?” Tiffany replied as she snapped back to her senses.

“Is there something wrong?” Sooyoung asked as she looked at the shorter girl. In fact, it was more of observing. She was observing Tiffany’s reaction to what she had said and somehow, Tiffany felt uneasy. But she decided to give it a go and ask what’s on her mind or she wouldn’t be able to concentrate on her job for the rest of the day.

“You seem really close with oppa…?” Tiffany asked, almost whispering as she avoided Sooyoung’s eye contact. She heard her giggling and she felt uneasy.

“Close? Of course, we were so close during the high school days!” Sooyoung replied heartily while Tiffany looked up to see her expressions. She was about to reply but couldn’t when the manager called her over to continue with the shoot.

“Sorry, I got to go, talk to you again!” She tried to put on a smile, a really weak one before she walked towards the settings. Sooyoung looked at her walked away.

“You’re a really nice girl. No wonder he loves you. But I’m sorry, I love him more,” Sooyoung whispered as looked into the mirror with a smirk.

You love her and I love you. It’s a competition between me and her.

“Andwae! She… She can’t leave like this!” Yoona cried so hard in his arms as the beep sound kept on sounding. She knew that it was a flat line on the monitor; she knew that her heart has stopped beating; she knew that Yuri had given up; she knew that it’s going to hurt her so much to lose Yuri again. And her heart was aching all over again. Kyuhyun was trying so hard to keep his own balance while trying to support Yoona. He can feel her pain and he knows that Yuri was still someone important to her even though she was the reason for her husband’s betrayer.

“I told her I wanted her to stay by my side all the time…” Yoona cried. And they could clearly hear Jessica’s cries from where they were. Jessica was grabbing onto that pair of hands that had turned cold long ago. She hated that temperature and she wants the warmth that Yuri always brings for the people around her.

“Yul! Wake up please, I’m begging you,” Jessica cried as she kept on shaking her body. She didn’t mind if her make up was ruined; she didn’t mind if anyone else were to see her crying so pathetically; she didn’t mind about anything else because right at that moment, all she had ever wanted was for Yuri to wake up to talk to her again.

“Yul, what happen to our promise? We said we’re going to return to the States to get our friendship bracelet. You can’t break that promise please. I miss you. I miss how we always lock ourselves up in the room to talk without letting Jae oppa know; I miss how we always prank oppa together;