Chapter 8 – Part 2 - Neon Naege Banhaesseo! (You've fallen for me!)


“Oh my gosh. Yoona has an artificial leg.” Taeyeon is still a bit shock by that new information she learned about the younger girl half an hour ago. She’s never noticed it before because the girl always wore knee high length socks, which conveniently hid the artificial leg quite well. She never questioned it either because she too wore the same thing. Every girl in school did!


“Yes, yes she has an artificial leg. How many times do you have to say it?” Sooyoung was quite irritated by Taeyeon. She’s been saying the same phrase for the past half hour now and it seems like she still can’t wrap her finger around that small little detail.

The three of them, Taeyeon, Sooyoung, and Sunny, sat inside the guest room (Taeyeon’s room) discussing Yoona’s situation. Yoona and Seohyun had just left to their respective homes, while Jessica went out to buy groceries. The three were the only ones inside the condo.


“So, what exactly am I supposed to do to help her with?” Taeyeon asked, turning to Sooyoung.


“You know how you’re helping Jessica move on? With Yoona, you need to help her revert back to her old self. She wasn’t like this before you know.”


“What do you mean?” Intrigued, she scooted closer.


“Before she got her leg amputated, she used to be the most popular girl in school. She was smart, beautiful, charismatic and athletic. She was the soccer team captain and she was part of the debate team. Everyone adored her. Almost all of the boys in school had a crush on her while the girls admired her. She was like a goddess.”


“Unfortunately, after a certain incident and she lost her leg, all of that went away. She struggled with soccer and eventually she decided to quit. She ended up quitting the debate team as well because she lost her will. Everyone began avoiding her like she was the plague and she lost all of her friends as well. This is when the bullying started. The Shinee gang began picking on her because of her disability. That’s when she met the outcasts; I’m referring to Seohyun, Eunjung, Hyuna and CL. They became her new friends after they saved her from one of Shinee’s harassment. Although she’s happy she found new friends, she still insecure about herself.”


“And that’s where you come in.” Sunny interjected. “You’re going to get her self-esteem and her confidence back. Help her return to the joyful Yoona she once was.”


“Uh, how am I supposed to do that?” Taeyeon asked unsure.


“That’s your job! Figure it out shortie!”


“Yah! Stop making fun of my height!”


“Yeah, stop making fun of her height!” Sunny retorted, smacking Sooyoung behind the head.


“What was that for!? I swear you only care about Taeyeon!” Sooyoung pouted and wiped away fake tears from her eyes. 


“Oh, stop with the drama shikshin. We’re supposed to be guiding Tae Tae here.”


“Whatever.” Sooyoung mumbled.


“Anyway, ignore the giant. About your predicament, we can’t really tell you what to do. We’re just here to give you background information about Yoona, hoping it’ll help you think of a plan. That’s all we can do for you Tae Tae. Sorry.”


“Oh. I see.” Taeyeon frowned.


Hmm, how am I supposed to boost her confidence up? I guess I’ll just get Sooyeon to help me.


“So, I guess we’ve done our part.” Sunny and Sooyoung started getting up from the bed. “We hope you feel better Tae Tae—”
“Wait! I have another question.”


Sunny and Sooyoung halted. “What is it?”


“Taemin.”


The two angels glanced at each other knowingly.


“What about him?” Sooyoung arch a brow.


“Why does he hate Sooyeon so much? This is the second time he tried to attack her and until now I’m still baffled by their relationship. What’s going on?”


“Erm…we don’t really know anything about Taemin.” Sunny lied.


“But aren’t you guys angels? Shouldn’t you know everything?”


“Yah, we’re just angels not goddesses. FYI, we don’t know everything.” Sooyoung retorted.


Taeyeon wasn’t convinced. She knew they were hiding something from her. But how come they won’t let me know?


She purses her lips and pouts. “If you say so.”


The angels heaved a silent sigh of relief that the spirit didn’t probe any further.


“Alright, I guess we’ll be going now. Say goodbye to Jessica for us!”


A flash of bright light enveloped the entire room, momentarily blinding Taeyeon until everything went back to normal. Not long after that, she heard the front door opening. Taeyeon smiled knowing full well that the owner of the condo has returned from her shopping. Excited to see the brunette, she hurriedly exited the room and limped her way over to the kitchen where she found the said brunette putting away the groceries in the cupboard.


“Hey, Sooyeon.”


Jessica jumped in fright. “Omo, you scared me Taeyeon!” She placed her hand over her heart and pouted at the spirit.


“Sorry.” Taeyeon said scratching the back of her neck sheepishly.


“It’s fine.” Jessica said dismissively. “Oh, by the way did your friends leave?”


“Yeah. They went home a few minutes before you came in.” Taeyeon explained.


“Oh. I thought they were going to stay for dinner.”


“They were in a hurry so they couldn’t stay.” Taeyeon explained nervously.


“I see. Anyway, why aren’t you in bed? Aren’t you supposed to be resting?” Jessica inquired as she resumed putting the food away.


“Well, I wanted to see if you needed any help.”


Jessica halted and looked over at Taeyeon. She couldn’t suppress a smile at Taeyeon’s thoughtfulness despite the condition she’s in. Taeyeon caught it and smiled silently to herself.


“Ok, fine. Get that bag over there and put everything in the fridge.”


Taeyeon nodded and quickly grabbed the plastic bag and began stacking everything away inside the fridge.


Jessica smiled and went ahead to stacking the rest of the snacks she bought in to the cupboard. She had one more item left and she wanted to squeeze it through the back of the cupboard. She stood on her tippy toes but she still couldn’t reach the back. After a few more attempts and failures, she finally grabbed a short stool and climbed on top of it. It was a bit wobbly so she had to hold on to the counter for support. Once she was sure the stool wouldn’t tip over, she stood on her tippy toes and squeezed the item inside. She was about to successfully set it inside when a loud voice startled her.


“GUMMY WORMS!”


Jessica screamed in fright as the stool lost its balance. She tried grabbing onto something but it was too late. She shut her eyes and waited for the impact. To her surprise two soft arms caught her on time before her back collided with the cold solid floor.
When she opened her eyes she realized she was on top of a small body and she knew exactly who it belonged to. She quickly rolled over on her belly, placing her arms to each side of the girl underneath her for support.


“Taeyeon are you alr—”


Before she could finish her sentence she halted when she realized she was eye to eye with Taeyeon, her face just a few inches away from hers. Omo. Her whole face turned beat red at the closeness and so did Taeyeon’s, but no neither one noticed it for they were both lost in the depths of one another’s eyes.


This was the first time Taeyeon has gazed, like really gazed, in to Jessica’s eyes. Her almond shaped eyes were perfectly tinted with a shade of dark brown, which in effect made her eyes so alluring and made her iris sparkle like diamonds buried underneath piles of brown sand. It was definitely a sight to behold. Beautiful. Taeyeon thought.


Jessica couldn’t tear her eyes away from Taeyeon’s intense gaze. She felt so bare like the latter could see through her soul. She wondered if she could read her mind, her heart. Can she see my secret? She felt so self-conscious but she couldn’t force herself to look away. As much as she felt nervous under Taeyeon’s gaze, she also felt unusually excited. This was the first time Taeyeon had looked at her like that. It made her feel somewhat special. But most of all, it made her heart beat witlessly to no ends.


No one dared to move from the compromising situation. As they lay there, staring in to each other’s eyes, they suddenly felt an unconscious magnetic pull, drawing them closer to each other. The two soon found themselves leaning closer and closer to each other’s faces. Their lips were just an inch away from touching. They could both feel the electricity run through them as their bodies slowly became one.


When Taeyeon felt Jessica’s bottom lip graze her upper lip, this brought her back to her senses. It immediately woke her up from her trance. Her eyes widened when she saw Jessica’s closed eyes and her lips barely on top of hers. Before the brunette could push the kiss even further, Taeyeon pushed the girl off of her causing the brunette to fall flat on her back.


*Thud!*


“Urggh!” Jessica grunted. She pushed herself up from the ground and sat up. She rubbed the back of her head where she floor had made contact and sent a piercing glare at Taeyeon. “YAH! Why’d you push me!?”


Taeyeon sat up as well and avoided Jessica’s accusing eyes. “I-I’m sorry, I-uh-I saw a bug…?” That was the only thing that came to her mind.


“A bug?” Jessica’s face contorted into confusion. What is she talking about? I didn’t see any bugs when we were— Her eyes slowly widened at the realization of what just—almost happened a second ago. Her heart began palpitating like mad and her cheeks flushed pink. “Oh. Yes. A bug.”


Taeyeon peered over her shoulder. As soon as their eyes made contact, they quickly averted their gaze at the same time.
Jessica began fanning herself. Is it me or is it getting hotter in here?


“I-uh, I’m gonnagochange.” Jessica mumbled.


“Uh, you do that.” Taeyeon muttered.


Jessica sprang up from the floor and practically dashed to her room. She shut the door behind her with a loud click and placed her hand over her ferociously pounding heart.


Taeyeon remained glued on the tiled kitchen floor. She swore, if she didn’t snapped out of her trance the two of them would still be on the floor ki—doing stuff. She placed her palm on her chest and felt the hard thumping of her heart.


Dinner was fairly quiet. It was pretty awkward actually. They didn’t converse, but they did steal glances at each other when they think the other wasn’t looking. Both still couldn’t comprehend what had happened an hour ago. Although no one had mentioned it, the two were still thinking about the same thought.


We almost kissed.


------


“Are you sure about this?”


“Yes.”


“But I thought you didn’t like this plan?”


“I changed my mind.”


“Why--?”


“She won’t give us any other choice.”


“Ok, but I still think—”


“Shh! Here she comes!”


The two girls hid behind the wall and waited.


“Ready?”


“Rea—”


“Now!”


The two girls jumped out from behind the wall and grabbed the unsuspecting girl. Before the girl could scream for help, someone covered with their sweaty palms while the other grabbed her legs. She couldn’t see their faces for they were covered with… Darth Vader masks?


She was pushed in to a small dark room and was forced to sit on a tall stool. Her arms and legs were bounded with pink handkerchiefs. They stuffed something soft and round in to to keep her from making noises. The more she got a taste of the item in , the more apparent it became…is this…jelly doughnut from Dunkin Donuts? The longer she sat there contemplating, the more puzzled she became. What in the world is going on?


A bright light came out of nowhere, blinding her for a second. She blinked a couple of times until her eyes finally adjusted to the bright light. From her surroundings she concluded that she was being held captive in a janitor’s closet. Her kidnappers were still wearing their Darth Vader masks. The taller of the two was holding the flashlight, while the other was holding a box of donuts.


The taller of them spoke.


“Are you Seohyun, Yoona’s supposed best friend?”


Seohyun became even more confused when she heard Darth Vader’s voice talk. She didn’t respond though.


“She’s not talking.” The short Darth Vader said.


“Alright, take out the big guns.”


Seohyun’s eyes widened. B-big guns!?


Short Darth Vader placed the donuts on one of the shelves. She grabbed a duffel bag and began rummaging through it. Seohyun held her breath as short Darth Vader took out a green plush toy.


“Keroro!” She muffled in between her teeth and the jelly filled donut in .


“Now she’s talking.” The shorter one chortled.


The taller one fished out a permanent marker from her back pocket and aggressively took off the cap.


“Talk or I will give this cute little toy a makeover!” The taller one threatened.


Seohyun gulped. I guess I don’t have much of a choice do I? She swallowed the last pieces of the donut in and looked at her assailants. “Ok. I’ll talk. But before I answer your question, can I ask you something?”


The taller nodded.


“Am I being kidnapped?”


“Yes, you are.”


“Oh ok.”


“Now talk!”


“Alright, sheesh. Yes, I am Seohyun, Yoona’s ‘supposed’ bestfriend.”


“Good. Now tell us everything you know about her.”


“Everything?”


“Yes, everything!”


“Well, Yoona was born on May 30. She loves to eat, that’s why we sometimes refer to her as a shikshin. Her favorite fruit is strawberry. She loves Kimura Takuya, you know that Japanese singer from SMAP. She has a birthmark on her—” (A/N: That last one was a lie…)


“OK, enough! That’s not what I meant! Aigoo!” The tall one face-palmed herself.


“Alright, mister cranky pants. You were the one who told me to tell you everything about her! So why are you getting mad at me?”

Seohyun began tearing up.


“Omo, you made her cry!” The shorter one pointed out.


“I-uh…yah, don’t cry!”


Seohyun cried harder.


The short one turned to the tall one and kicked her on the shin. “Look what you did!”


“Aish! Whatever! Stop crying ok? Just tell us how we can help her become popular again so she can revert back to her old self! Tell us or I will make sure this adorable toy will die a slow death!”


“NO! Don’t hurt keroro!”


“Then talk!”


Seohyun bit her bottom lip adorably as she thought of a way to make Yoona popular again. The short one couldn’t help but gush at the cute sight.


“Aww, she’s so cute!”


Seohyun’s face contorted in to fright when she heard Darth Vader’s voice call her ‘cute. That didn't sound right. -__-


The taller one punched the shorter one violently on the arm. “Shut up and do your work!”


“Ok, mister cranky pants!”


The tall one raised its fist threateningly.


“I’m just kidding!” The short one cowered in fright.


“You better be or I—”


“I got it!”


The two turned to their hostage.


“How about you help her win prom queen during prom? Being voted prom queen is a huge deal here at Dookong High.” Seohyun explained.


“Ah! That’s a good idea!”


“Wait, when is prom?”


“It’s going to be in exactly a week! Haven’t you seen the fliers?”


“Nope.”


“Anyway, is that all you wanted to know?”


“Yup! That’s it! You’ve been a great help!” The short one clapped happily.


“If that’s all you wanted to know, you could have just asked me nicely and I would have told you…”


The two Darth Vaders looked at each other.


“See! I told you we didn’t need to do this!” The shorter one complained. She took off her mask and stomped her feet like a little kid.


“YAH! You idiot! Why did you take your mask off!?”


“Taeyeon unnie…?”


Taeyeon slowly turned to Seohyun and gave her a sheepish smile. “Oh, hello there Seohyun-ah.” She waved pathetically.


“If you’re Taeyeon unnie and that means this is…Jessica unnie?”


Jessica reluctantly slid off her mask and gave Taeyeon her infamous icy glare.


“Great job genius!” Jessica sneered.


“I’m sorry!”


“Aish! Too late now!” Jessica was about to pummel Taeyeon to oblivion when Seohyun interjected.


“Erm, so you two want to help Yoona become her old self?”


“Yeah. We want to help her become happy again, like she used to be.” Taeyeon explained.


“I see. Then I can help you two!”


“Realy!? Omo, thank you Seohyun-ah!” Taeyeon ran up to Seohyun and gave her a big bear hug.


Unknown to them, Jessica was sulking silently at the corner. For some reason she felt jealous that Taeyeon was showering Seohyun with so much love. Not only that, she was also irritated that Taeyeon ignored her this morning. She didn’t even bother talking about the almost-incident last night when she tried to bring it up during breakfast. It’s like it didn’t mean anything to her! Ever since then, the blonde has been avoiding her up until she suggested going through with the kidnapping plan. She felt dejected and disappointed by her withdrawn behavior.


Last night, she stayed up contemplating about the implications of the incident. She’s been feeling this weird feeling in her chest for a while now ever since their moment in the forest. At first, she thought it was just a fleeting feeling; just a simple admiration and appreciation for her kindness. But then it continued. It has gotten stronger actually. Every time she’s with Taeyeon, her heart would beat wildly and her she’ll get this fluttering sensation in her stomach. She has tried to suppress it because she didn’t want it to be something more. Well, it shouldn’t be something more. They’re both girls for crying out loud! How wrong can that be?!


But it continued. And that incident last night verified her most frightening thoughts. When she fell on top of her, the feeling became stronger than ever. It took over her, hence the reason why they almost kissed. If Taeyeon didn’t push her, she was certain she would have kissed the living daylights out of her short friend. And that realization made her thoughts and her feelings even clearer. The weird emotion she feels when she’s with Taeyeon is definitely no fleeting feeling, nor is it something to be taken lightly. That’s why she felt a twinge in her heart when the girl began avoiding her. It saddened her.

She stared at Taeyeon’ back despondently.


Did it really mean nothing to you? Did it not stir any feelings inside of you? Because for me, it definitely did. 


 

Kim Taeyeon, I think…I like you.


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A/N: Wow! I actually updated! I guess I couldn't stay away Lol. OOOH! Was that a confession at the end?  Haha, looks like Jessica has fallen! Anyway, I will be updating next week so look forward to it!


As usual, comments are appreciated! Tell me what you think! Thank you for reading!  

Edited by yozo217, Today, 08:40 AM.