The next day started early for Krystal. As unusual as it is, she woke up even before her alarm clock rang, without her typical grumpy mode in the morning. She freshened up and got dressed. She even added a floral hairpin for a girly touch, something she hadn’t done in a while – before she headed down for breakfast.

“Good morning,” she planted a chaste kiss on her mom’s forehead, taking the latter by surprise. The young girl then plopped herself onto her usual seat and reached for a toast.

Mrs. Jung chuckled. “What has gotten into you?”

Krystal looked at her mom and grinned. “Omma,” she spoke with so much aegyo. “Is it okay for a queenka to like the kingka?”

The older lady’s lips curved into a huge smile. “Are you saying you like someone?”

The daughter nodded, happy to break the news to her mother.

Many might think it weird but the best thing about this mother/daughter pair is that they treat each other as best friends. Krystal isn’t afraid to tell her mother everything, even the incident which happened some three years ago. Everyone close to them knew that as the younger girl hurts, the older one hurts double. So for Mrs. Jung, it is such a great news to hear her daughter liking another man, and perhaps, moving on.

“Tell me about him,” Mrs. Jung nudged her daughter as she scooted closer.

Krystal chuckled and propped her chin above her intertwined fingers, her elbows supporting her weight. “Well, I thought he’s arrogant since we always get into each other’s nerves all the time, but I realized how responsible he is. I can tell because I’ve worked with him for the detentions, right? And it’s just a sight to behold when he’s focused on something,” she described.

“Woman, tell me how he looks like,” Mrs. Jung teased.

Krystal laughed at how childish her mother can sometimes be. “Other students liken him to a god because he’s really gorgeous they say. He’s tall and model-like. He has eyes that would make anyone cower in fear but…”

The older woman’s eyebrow shot up. “But…” She waited.

“But when he stared at me when I was having that panic attack, it felt so warm inside,” she reminisced. “It’s like his gazes are telling me that I’m safe and I’m protected and that everything’s gonna be alright.”

Mrs. Jung nodded, fully understanding what her daughter meant. “I guess you found a keeper,” she commented.

Krystal smiled. “I guess so,” she sadly sighed. “But I doubt he sees me in the same way.”

***

Soojung was walking into the gates of Gyeonggi Science High School when she felt a sudd