Chapter Eighty-Two
 
Awkward.
 
For the umpteenth times, Sunny regretted so badly for staying behind and even prepared dinner for the both of them. Clearly just a few days ago, she was still trying to take Tiffany’s life, and now?
 
Sunny face-palmed herself mentally.
 
Who would believe she was actually having a peaceful dinner with her target right now?
 
“Is it stressful?”
 
Sunny looked up from her bowl and saw Tiffany smiling at her. She watched the hunter put a few pieces of meats into her bowl, but said nothing to stop her.
 
“Your cooking is great as always.” Tiffany commented. “You should enjoy them too before they turn cold.”
 
Her brows furrowed in reflex.
 
There was something weird about her compliment, but Sunny couldn’t pinpoint which was the part that made her felt that way. Nevertheless, she listened to Tiffany’s words anyway and ate her dinner obediently. The awkward atmosphere gradually eased and was replaced by a certain familiarity.

 
Sunny smiled to herself.
 
Tiffany or Stephanie, it just feels great to have her around.
 
The smile faded away the next minute.
 
However, it is Taeyeon’s decision whether to keep her alive or to take her life away.
 
*
 
Jessica was upset. Yuri had not been herself ever since she returned to the dormitory from the headmaster’s office. She had questioned her lover many times in regards to her unusual behavior, but all she received was a forceful smile and a fake assurance from the hunter, claiming that she was fine, which, obviously, Jessica knew it was the complete opposite.
 
Tiffany’s departure had hurt Yuri deeply. Jessica doubted anyone would believe that since Yuri had been acting quite indifferently to this matter. But if only they stuck around Yuri for at least half an hour, it was more than enough to sense Yuri’s depression.
 
She was always distracted, as though her mind was somewhere else. She lost her focus easily during a conversation. Jessica had caught her many times, staring blankly into the space before her when they were chatting.
 
How Jessica wished Sooyoung and Yoona, especially Sooyoung, was present whenever those scenarios happened. She didn’t want the two hunters to misunderstand Yuri and thought that she was someone who would sacrifice friendship for love.
 
Yuri isn’t someone like that. She treasures Tiffany, she loves her. She is the last person who wants to see Tiffany leaves. She… just… Jessica doesn’t want Sooyoung and Yoona to misunderstand her further.
 
“Yes?”
 
Sooyoung was surprised to see Jessica standing outside her room when she opened the door to her room.
 
“I…”
 
“If it’s about Yuri, you can save your breath now.” Sooyoung tried her best not to vex her anger on Jessica, but it was obvious from her tone that she sounded very hostile towards the blonde.
 
Jessica didn’t want to give up yet. “Sooyoung-ah––”
 
“Unless Tiffany returns, nothing else matters.” With that, she tried to close the door, but Jessica beat her to it by placing her hand in between the gap. Frustrated, Sooyoung pulled open the door again and looked at Jessica helplessly, “What do you want?” If only Jessica wasn’t Jessica, Sooyoung would have screamed at her already.
 
“Can you forgive Yuri?”
 
“No.” Sooyoung replied without a second thought. The answer had already been there ever since Tiffany stepped out of the headquarters and it would never change.
 
She will never forgive Yuri for chasing their friend away.
 
Sooyoung tried to close the door on Jessica again when Jessica suddenly grabbed hold of her arms.
 
“Please Sooyoung!”
 
“Stop it Jessica––”
 
“I’m sorry!” Jessica let go of Sooyoung suddenly and dropped to the ground on her knees. She hung her head low and curled her hands into fists before resting them on top of her knees. “It is my fault. Please put the blames on me and forgive Yuri, I beg you!”
 
“Yah! What are you are you doing!”
 
Sooyoung wanted to pull Jessica up from the ground, but only got pushed away by her.
 

“I beg you to forgive Yuri! She is innocent! If you want to blame someone, blame it on me instead! I’m the one who caused Tiffany to leave. Yuri has nothing to do with this!”
 
“Jessica…”
 
Jessica looked up from the ground and Sooyoung could see tears rolling down her cheeks.
 
“I beg you… please…” She sniffed. “Don’t blame Yuri… She is just as upset as all of you when she learnt Tiffany had left. She didn’t want her to leave either. Tiffany is her partner, she is important to her. Do you know the kind of heartbreak she is going through all these while?” Jessica squeezed her eyes when she found her vision was getting blurry from the tears, which were obstructing her view. And when the tears came out, she wiped them away with the back of her hand roughly. “She is hurt as well. I beg you to forgive her and talk to her again. You can punish me for chasing Tiffany away, but please don’t do this to her… You’re only tearing her apart.”
 
Silence.
 
Sooyoung didn’t know what to say and Jessica was just kneeling there, waiting for Sooyoung’s answer.
 
“Stand up, Jessica.” Sooyoung finally broke the quiet atmosphere after the uncomfortableness in the silence started to eat her up.
 
Jessica shook her head, “I will kneel here till you forgive her.”
 
Sooyoung was getting restless at this, “Why are you doing this?”
 
“Because Yuri doesn’t deserve such treatment at all.” Jessica answered as she diverted her gaze back to the carpeted floor.
 
Silence engulfed them once again. Jessica never budged in her position nor did she ever try to steal a peek at the tall hunter in front of her. She was serious when she said she would keep on kneeling until Sooyoung forgave her girlfriend.
 
Just then, she heard a sigh from above her head. She felt someone held her arm and tried to pull her up.
 
“I will forgive her. Now, stand up.”
 
Jessica looked up with surprise. “Really?”
 
“I don’t lie.” As much as she hated to agree with this, she couldn’t let Jessica kneeled to her and do nothing about it. “Now stand up and return to your room. I’m sure Yuri will be looking for you if she finds you missing.”
 
Jessica got up from the ground with Sooyoung’s help. She didn’t even bother to brush the dust on her knees and quickly bowed to Sooyoung, “Thank you Sooyoung… Thank you for forgiving her!” Tears had accumulated once again and dripped to the ground.
 
Sooyoung sighed for the umpteenth times tonight. “But I can’t promise I can treat her like how I used to in the past, you got to give me some time.”
 
“That’s alright!” A smile was formed on her face, together with the tears on her cheeks. Sooyoung could tell Jessica was really happy to know that she had finally forgiven Yuri. “I’m glad as long as you can forgive her.” She kept on wiping off the unstoppable tears on her face with the back of her hands.
 
Noticing this, Sooyoung shook her head mentally and took Jessica’s hand. “Come with me.” She pulled her into her personal bathroom and stopped in front of the sink. “Look at how swollen your eyes are. You should wash your face first before you go back, or else Yuri will be worried if she sees this.”
 
Jessica looked at her own reflection through the mirror and realized what Sooyoung said was true. She quickly the tap and splashed the water on her face.
 
Sooyoung went out of her bathroom and came back a few seconds later with a face towel in her hands.
 
“You can dry your face with this.”
 
Taking the cloth from the hunter’s hand, Jessica mouthed a silent ‘thank you’ before dabbing her face with it.
 
After she was done with it, Sooyoung took the towel from her. “Have a good rest, and don’t worry about Yuri and me anymore. I will talk to her once I’m ready with this.” Sooyoung walked Jessica to the door. “Good night.”
 
“Good night,” Jessica bowed to her again. “And thank you.”
 
Sooyoung nodded as a form of acknowledgement and closed her door finally.
 
When Jessica returned to Yuri’s room, she found the lights were still switched on despite Yuri was already lying on the bed, with her eyes closed. Shaking her head, Jessica switched off the lights for her girlfriend. Slowly, and quietly, she made her way to the bed. Afraid that she might wake her girlfriend up, Jessica climbed onto the bed as gently as possible and slipped herself under the blanket.
 
A pair of arms immediately found their ways around her waist after she lay down.
 
Jessica was surprised to find Yuri awake. “Yuri?” She thought she was sleeping already.
 
“Don’t ever do this again.”
 
 She felt Yuri shifted and buried her face on the nook of her neck.
 
It was wet.
 
“It hurts me even more to see you begging Sooyoung for forgiveness, you know that?” A sniffing sound rang in her ears. “And Sooyoung didn’t wrong me at all, I am indeed the reason Tiffany left. She is right to put the blames on me.”
 
“Yuri…” Her eyes were getting wet again.
 
“Promise me not to do this anymore, alright? I deserve to be treated this way.”
 
Jessica closed her eyes and squeezed the tears out of her eyes. “I’m sorry…” She sobbed softly. “I’m really sorry, Yuri. I’m sorry…” She tried to stifle her cries by covering the lower part of her face but to no avail. She couldn’t stop herself from crying.
 
“Hush…” Yuri moved away from Jessica and pulled Jessica into her embrace instead. “Don’t apologize, I’m not blaming you. I just… don’t want you to beg for me. You’re my girlfriend, not me. I should be the one who bear the consequence, not you.”
 
“Sorry…”
 
Yuri let out a sigh and patted Jessica’s back. “Let’s go to sleep. It will be a brand new again when you open your eyes.”
 
Jessica nodded and closed her eyes obediently.
 
Yuri, I’m sorry.
 
*
 
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay here tonight? It’s past midnight already.” Tiffany asked, while watching the petite girl made her way to the door.
 
Halting her pace, Sunny spun around and flashed Tiffany an assurance smile. “I’ll be fine. You don’t have to worry for me.” The most dangerous living beings were the mutants and as their master, there was nothing for her to be afraid of.
 
“Well, if you say so.” Tiffany folded her arms and shrugged. If that was what Sunny insisted, she shouldn’t force her to stay. “Hope to see you again then.” She smiled.
 
Sunny shuddered uncontrollably when she saw Tiffany’s eye-smile again.
 
She really needs to get out of this place as soon as possible and stop mistaking that hunter as Stephanie!
 
“Sunny.”
 
The petite sorceress was about to step out of the house when she heard Tiffany called for her. Groaning to herself inwardly, Sunny forced herself to smile before turning back to face Tiffany.
 
“Yes?”
 
“I… hope you can take good care of Taeyeon on behalf of me.”
 
That forced smile on her face slowly faded away. Sunny didn’t know how to reply her. She was certain that Tiffany knew and remembered what Taeyeon did to her before she woke up in the room, but she had no idea why was she still having concern over Taeyeon after what she did to her.
 
“Sunny?”
 
Sunny chewed on her bottom lip subconsciously. She looked at Tiffany with a frown, “Don’t you hate her?”
 
Tiffany let out a soft laughter upon hearing her question, as if Sunny had just shared a joke. She asked, “Why should I?”
 
“Why shouldn’t you?”
 
“Because I love her?”
 
Her answer caught Sunny off-guarded. Sunny wasn’t expecting this kind of response at all.
 
“I’ve never stopped loving her, and will continue to love her even if she hates me.” She let out a bitter chuckle suddenly. “I’m stupid, ain’t I?”
 
“No…” Sunny answered hesitantly. She wouldn’t say Tiffany was stupid, nor was she clever. But one thing for sure, both Tiffany and Taeyeon were definitely idiots who complicated their relationship for nothing. “Taeyeon is stupider.”
 
“I like that answer.” Tiffany giggled. “Well, it’s getting late already. I shall not hold you any further.”
 
Sunny nodded, “Me too, good night.”
 
“Good night and take care.”