Amber saw the interaction between the Ice Princess and her cousin and walked up to Yuri who was staring at Jessica’s , mouth wide open. “What was that all about?” she asked as she pushed Yuri’s chin up to close .

Yuri covered her lip and winced in pain. “Ow! I have no idea.”

Amber looked her cousin directly in the eye. “You’re lucky Ailee didn’t see that. She likes you, you know? Just don’t lead her on, okay? She’s a good friend.”

Yuri patted Amber on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Ambro. I promise to be upfront with Ailee, okay? You of all people should know that I don’t play those kinds of games. Besides, you know that I’m not really looking to date anyone. C’mon, let’s get out of here and go get ready for lunch. You stink!”

Tiffany was watching the events unfold on the gym floor. She overheard Jessica’s comments to Yuri, as well as the Liu cousins’ conversation. She nudged Taeyeon and whispered, “I told you something was up with Jessi. Either she’s falling for Yuri or she absolutely hates her.”

Taeyeon replied, “Knowing Sica, she probably hates her. Hey, what are you cooking up in that cute little head of yours, Fany?”

Tiffany smiled as she linked arms with Taeyeon as they walked out of the gym. “Nothing…for now.”

As Yuri walked back to the dorm with the rest of the group, she wondered why Jessica had a sudden change of heart towards her. I can’t figure that girl out. First she’s a …then she’s nice…then she ignores me…now she’s extra nice. What the hell is up with her!?

After some thought, Yuri’s eyes widened as a little light bulb came on in her head. Oh ! I think I know what’s going on here. Amber said Jessica was bi-curious…maybe she wants to use me to see what it’s like to be with another girl. Does that girl really think she can play me? Okay, Miss Jessica Jung…let’s see how well you can play the game.

Parkdaegamne restaurant, lunch time

“Where is Key?” asked a frustrated Minho. “Isn’t he the one who made the reservation? Why is he always the last one to show up?”

“He decided he needed to freshen up and put on a new outfit,” answered Taemin. “He’ll be here soon. You know Key…he likes to make an entrance.”

Just then Key walked into the restaurant and struck a pose. “I have arrived, es. You are all allowed to eat now.”

Everyone rolled their eyes as Key made his way toward one of four tables which had been reserved for the hungry group. Key sat at the EXO table with Kai, Luhan and Suho. He and Jonghyun, his on-and-off boyfriend and group mate, were not on speaking terms today which was also part of the reason why he didn’t want to play basketball.

Amber and Krystal sat with Minho, Sulli and Jonghyun, while Donghae and Eunhyuk sat with Hyo Yeon and Sunny. At the remaining table were Jessica, Ailee, Yuri and Taemin. Of course, Yuri ended up sitting between Jessica and Ailee. This is going to be interesting, Yuri thought. Thank God Taemin is sitting with us.

Taemin had decided to sit at the table because he had a small crush on Ailee and hoped to get to know her better, but unfortunately Ailee’s attention was strictly on Yuri.

Throughout lunch Jessica and Ailee competed for Yuri’s attention and took turns feeding the tomboy. Ailee quickly realized that she now had a rival in Jessica although she was unaware aware of the latter’s intentions. Yuri, on the other hand, was well aware of what Jessica was up to even though she was wrong about the motive.

While the girls continued to stuff food into , Yuri sat there trying to think of how to play along with Jessica without hurting Ailee who clearly had a thing for her. At one point, Yuri’s mouth was so full that a little bit of sauce ran down the side of . Ailee quickly wiped off the sauce with her fingers and them which made Jessica fume inside. , you’re going to ruin my plan!

Not to be outdone, Jessica quickly took a sip of her wine. “Mmm…this is really delicious with the beef.  Here Yuri, try some.” She shoved the glass in Yuri’s face making sure that the rim of the glass where she took a sip from touched the tomboy’s lips. Yuri obliged Jessica and took a small sip. Indirect kiss…good one, Jessica, her rival noted.

Sitting a few tables away were Mr. Goh and two other managers who were watching over the group. He observed the interaction between Jessica and Yuri. He had witnessed Jessica’s behavior with the guys she had dated and noted how much more attentive she was to Yuri and also how upset she became whenever Ailee got close to the tomboy. I have never seen Soo Yeon act this way around anyone. She must really like him…I mean her. Yuri seems nice. Amber is a great kid, so I would expect her cousin to be the same way. At that moment, Mr. Goh decided that he would do a background check on Yuri because it appeared to him that Jessica clearly liked the tomboy.

Amber glanced over at her cousin’s table and noticed the interplay between Jessica and Ailee. She wasn’t at all surprised at Ailee’s actions, but was puzzled by Jessica’s behavior. “Krys, what’s up with your sister?” she whispered.

“You noticed it too, huh? I don’t know, babe. Unnie usually doesn’t fawn over anyone…it’s usually the other way around,” Krystal replied.

Amber decided she needed to find out what was going on so she excused herself, walked over to Yuri’s table and asked to speak with her outside. Yuri followed Amber out to the front of the restaurant where the two cousins sat down to talk.

“What’s up, cuz? Everything okay?” Yuri asked.

Amber knocked Yuri softly on the side of the head. “I should be asking you what’s up. What’s going on with you, Jessica and Ailee? You’re really enjoying yourself, aren’t you?”

“Enjoying what? It’s a mess, Ambro, and I’m stuck in the middle.” Yuri proceeded to explain what she thought Jessica was up to. “It makes sense, right? I’m the best target. She thinks she can just use me and then I’ll be gone in three months and that’ll be it.” Yuri also faced the dilemma of trying to figure out how not to hurt Ailee. “Help me out here, cuz. What should I do?”

“Are you sure this isn’t an excuse to get closer to Jessica?” Amber said suspiciously.

“No, it’s not! Hey, she started it! You saw what she did in the gym,” Yuri replied defensively. “I’m not going to let her think she can easily manipulate me. If she wants to play me, I’ll play her right back.”

Amber hated these kinds of games even more than Yuri did, but she couldn’t turn down her cousin’s request for help. “Okay, okay. I get it. You handle Jessica and I’ll take care of Ailee.”

Although the younger tomboy felt that Yuri should just call Jessica out and confront her about what was going on, a small part of her thought it would interesting to watch them go up against one another and see who would crack first.  She also wasn’t completely convinced that Yuri had no interest in Jessica.

Amber suddenly realized something…“Oh, crap! If you’re going to play along with Jessica’s little scheme, it needs to be convincing. I guess I’m going to have to have a talk with her.” Amber cringed at the thought of having to face Jessica. “I have to play the protective cousin and talk to her…you know, make sure her intentions are honorable and warn her not to hurt you, blah, blah, blah…”

“Yeah, that sounds good,” Yuri agreed. “What are you going to tell Ailee?”

“The truth, of course…I have to tell her so she doesn’t get hurt when she sees you flirting with Jessica, especially after I tell her you’re not ready to date. Don’t worry, she’ll understand,” Amber reassured Yuri.

Yuri fist bumped her cousin. “Cool. Thanks, Ambro. C’mon let’s go back inside before Ailee and Jessica throw each other on the grill.”

As Amber walked Yuri back to her table, she motioned for Ailee to follow her into the bathroom. She didn’t like having to be the one to let Ailee down, but she knew her friend would appreciate the truth.

Meanwhile, Yuri sat back down at the table and pulled her chair closer to Jessica. “Jessica, I wanted to tell you this earlier, but my mouth was a little full. I know we got off on the wrong foot, but let’s start over. Friends, okay?” She then flashed the cutest smile at Jessica. “By the way, you look really pretty today. That red blouse really compliments your eyes…it’s also my favorite color.”

Jessica was a bit taken aback by the tomboy’s sudden openness and flattering remark as she nervously played with her wine glass. “Th-thank you.” She quickly regained her composure remembering her plan to teach the tomboy a lesson. She then tilted her head and smiled at Yuri. “I guess I’ll be wearing red more often then.”

In the restaurant bathroom…                                                                         

“What’s going on, Amber? Were you guys talking about me?” Ailee asked sounding hopeful.

“Yes, but,” Amber paused, “we also talked about Jessica.”

Ailee’s expression shifted to one of disappointment. “Don’t tell me that Yuri likes her. I thought we hit it off.”

“You did... Yuri thinks you’re great, but she just isn’t ready to date. She had a pretty tough break-up and isn’t ready to put herself out there yet,” explained Amber.

“Then why did you talk about Jessica? From what I’ve heard she’s a serial dater and only dates guys. What’s the deal with that girl?”

“Here’s the thing, Ailee…Jessica is bi-curious and Yuri thinks she is playing her so that she can see what it’s like to be with another girl,” Amber explained. “Yuri is pissed about being used, so she’s going to play her right back.”

A look of understanding came over Ailee’s face. “You know, that’s kind of a ed up thing for Jessica to do. Nobody likes being used.”

“Yeah, it is pretty messed up. Yuri didn’t want you to get caught up in all of this bull or hurt your feelings, so I said I would talk to you. Are you mad?”

Ailee shook her head. “No…I’m not mad, just disappointed. I really like Yuri. Hey, I have an idea! How about I help Yuri out? I can keep on with the flirting and be Jessica’s rival. Let’s not make this easy for her.”

“That sounds like a good idea. We’ll see just how serious Jessica is about using my cousin. I’ll let Yuri know what’s up so she doesn’t freak out when you keep flirting,” replied Amber. “You know, Girls’ Generation’s anniversary party is coming up in a few days and we’re planning to go to Club Déjà Vu afterwards. I’ll text you the details later. Meet us there and be sure to wear something y.”

“Sounds like fun. I haven’t done anything like this since high school!” Ailee giggled. “Let the games begin.”