After getting their coffees the two girls went to find a table to sit by. It didn’t take long as it wasn’t that many customers at the café they were at, and they finally settled down by a table further in in the café.

A smile was on the black haired girl’s lips as she looked at the brunette girl opposite her. The other girl didn’t look that happy, but more like her usual calm self. The black haired girl continued to smile and took a sip of her coffee and watched as her friend did the same.

“It’s weird seeing you without Jessica.” Tiffany finally pointed out.

“It’s weird going out without Jessica.” Taeyeon admitted.

Tiffany smiled when she realized that even though Taeyeon and Jessica almost see each other every day, Taeyeon starts to miss the other girl once they aren’t hanging out. She wanted to say it was cute, but seeing how embarrassed Taeyeon had gotten when Jessica had kissed her in front of everyone she figured it would only embarrass the girl.

“Where’s Jessica?” Tiffany asked as she thought it was strange Taeyeon wasn’t with her, and Jessica wasn’t with Taeyeon.

“She went golfing with her dad and sister.” Taeyeon said.

“Oh, she didn’t invite you?”

“Pfft, it’s Jessica we’re talking about. Of course she invited me. She even proceeded to drag me with her. But I said I had some other things to take care of. And after a while she let me go.”

“She let you go?” Tiffany asked surprised as she couldn’t remember a single time Jessica had let Taeyeon off the hook.

“Yeah, I told her to spend the day with her dad and sister. She hasn’t spent much time with them during the summer break as she’s been with me most of the time, and I said she should do it before we go back to college again.” Taeyeon said.

“Of course that would come from you.” Tiffany said and smiled.

“Yeah…besides…I don’t like golfing.”

“What sports do you like?”

“I like getting dragged around by Jessica.”

“Is that a sport?”

“It should be.”

Tiffany began laughing and Taeyeon smiled. She let her eyes fall down to the coffee cup, her smile remaining on her lips as she thought about the girl that was currently at some golf court somewhere with her father and sister.

She kinda regretted not going with Jessica as she was sure it would have been fun going there with the girl and her sister and father. But she knew she should take this chance when Jessica was away for the day to do this.

“Do you have Soyeon’s number?” Taeyeon asked and looked up at Tiffany. The latter looked surprised and blinked confused.

“I do. But why do you want it?” Tiffany asked and took out her phone to search for the number Taeyeon had asked for.

“I just need to talk to her about a few things.”

“Okay…” Tiffany looked skeptical but she handed Taeyeon her phone with Soyeon’s number displayed. Taeyeon met Tiffany’s gaze and let out a sigh.

She knew she had to explain this better after asking the girl for Soyeon’s number. She knew she usually don’t ask for people’s numbers randomly like this.

“Okay, I chose to not tell you this because I know how much you care about Jessica, but I figured it’s no point anymore as it already has got out of hand and Jessica actually got hurt in the process.” Taeyeon said and met Tiffany’s confused gaze.

“You know there was this group that bullied Jessica in high school?” Taeyeon asked and saw Tiffany getting even more confused.

“Wait! There was a group? I only thought there were those two guys and that girl in our class that did it.” Tiffany said as she had no idea what Taeyeon was talking about.

Taeyeon sighed and shook her head.

“No, they were just three out of many. Anyway, there was this group that bullied her, and I know Soyeon is the one behind that group.” Taeyeon said.  

“How do you know?”

“Because she had a really big problem with me hanging out with Jessica.” Taeyeon stated and watched Tiffany still not fully understanding.  

“But why? I also hung out with Jessica in high school. Did she have problem with that too?” Tiffany asked as she didn’t remember Soyeon having any problems with her. Or at least not any problems she stated at least.

“No…she didn’t have a problem with it because you and Jessica were the same in her eyes.” Taeyeon said and looked away from Tiffany’s gaze.

Tiffany blinked confused until she realized what Taeyeon meant and her expression darkened.

“She thought Jessica was weird and I was weird as well.”

“Exactly.” Taeyeon said and nodded her head.

“That ! And I invited her to the dinner! I can’t believe it! Why haven’t you said anything until now?”

Taeyeon let out a sigh and leaned back in her chair. It was no turning back now. It’s better to reveal everything there is as it’s no point keeping it a secret.

“I thought that once we had finished high school everything would stop, but apparently it hasn’t, and Soyeon has apparently not gotten over it as well.” Taeyeon stated and looked up at Tiffany again.

“You think Soyeon is behind everything?”

“I don’t know. I just want to talk to her about it, and if she is behind everything I just want to make sure she stops it. I don’t want Jessica to get hurt again.” Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders. She could almost bet that Soyeon was behind the whispering about Jessica that has been going around town, the girl was after all the one that had started all the bullying.

“I see…Are you going to beat her up?” Tiffany asked and looked at Taeyeon.

“No, I’m going to talk to her.” Taeyeon said and furrowed her eyebrows.

“Can I beat her up?” Tiffany asked hopefully.

“No, you can’t.” Taeyeon said and smiled when she realized where Tiffany was going with this.

“You’re boring.” Tiffany said and pouted.

“I don’t handle things the way you do, Tiffany."

“I’d have beaten her up.”

“I’m sure you’d. And I’m not letting you do it.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re a friend and I don’t want you to get hurt. Also, I don’t think Jessica would have wanted you to do it.”

“Heh...whipped.”

“I am so not whipped.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“If someone is Jessica is the one.”

“Adorable.”

“Oh, just shut up.”


---


The girl’s eyes landed on the form of another girl and a guy that were sitting on a bench in the park. She continued walking until she had reached them and stopped when she noticed they had seen her. The girl and guy exchanged glances before they got up from their seats and went over to her.

“Hi.” Taeyeon greeted them and let her eyes go from Soyeon to the guy beside her.

“Hi, how did you get my number?” Soyeon asked with a smile.

“It’s easy to find if you want it.” Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t want to reveal she got the number from Tiffany incase the girl got in trouble for it. “Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something.” Taeyeon said and once again let her eyes travel from Soyeon to the guy. She was a bit bothered about his presence but tried to ignore it.

“Right, you said that in the phone call.” Soyeon said and smiled. Completely oblivious that this conversation will get more serious as it prolongs. Taeyeon sighed and looked at the girl and tried her best to ignore the presence of the guy.

“You should tell your group of friends to stop talking behind Jessica’s back. They’ve already done enough damage.” Taeyeon said and met Soyeon’s gaze. The girl’s smile faded and she glanced at the guy before turning back to Taeyeon again.

“I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Soyeon said and smiled. Taeyeon saw the smile was faked, and the girl’s lips twitched in the corner and she was unable to look her straight in the eyes. She frowned when she realized it was a lie.

“I think you do. I think it’s time that you grow up and forget about the past. I don’t exactly meddle in your life, so you should stop meddle in mine.” Taeyeon said, her eyes narrowing.

“But I just care about you. I want what’s best for you.” Soyeon argued.

“I have what I need right now. I have Jessica, and I’d like to keep her exactly like she is. Not how other people want her to be. So stop. Just stop. You’re just doing more damage than anything.”

Soyeon frowned and looked down on her feet. Taeyeon thought the sight was pathetic and she shook her head when the girl didn’t say anything.

“We weren’t even friends. We had no type of connection. I don’t understand why you still care about me and why it bothers you who I’m with. It was ages ago. And you should really get over it.” Taeyeon said and turned around. She felt unable to walk away as a hand gripped her wrist. Her eyebrows furrowed and she looked back at the girl.

“I…I don’t understand why. I don’t understand how you could fall for her. I don’t understand how someone…how someone like she deserves someone like you. I don’t understand…She’s so different from you…so different from all of us…I just…I don’t understand.” Soyeon said and met Taeyeon’s gaze.

A gentle smile graced Taeyeon’s lips and she wriggled her wrist free from the girl’s grip.

“I think I’m the one that doesn’t deserve someone like Jessica. She’s unique, and I’m pretty common. There’s no one like her out there, and I don’t understand what I’ve done to deserve someone as great as her in my life. What I’ve done to deserve being loved by someone like her. I think it’s amazing, and I’m happy. Happy being loved by her, and happy loving her.” Taeyeon said and turned to face Soyeon. She noticed the girl was getting angry, and she couldn’t care a bit about it right now.

“I think you’ve got it misunderstood. What the real question is is how Jessica could fall for someone as common as me, someone as boring as me. The real question is is what exactly makes Jessica want to stick by my side when I’m not exactly the funniest or the most interesting person out there. Jessica could find someone much better, someone that can keep up with her. But she chooses not to, and she sticks with me, and makes me happy. And I feel so blessed because of that.” Taeyeon said and smiled.

She could see Soyeon was gritting her teeth, and it looked like steam would come out of the girl’s ears. Soyeon’s face had even shifted color and Taeyeon waited for her to say something.

“You’re a fool.” Soyeon finally stated.

Taeyeon smiled and nodded her head. “I might be.”

“You’re an idiot that has been blinded by her. She’s nothing…she’s nothing special. She’s just weird…a weirdo that only thinks of herself and does her own thing…not thinking about other people. She doesn’t deserve someone like you…she’s…she’s a freak!”

Taeyeon’s smile faded and she looked away from Soyeon’s eyes. A sigh left her lips and she shook her head and closed her eyes. She inhaled and exhaled and tried to keep as calm as possible. Her eyes opened again and she stared off into nothingness, suddenly remembered what Tiffany had told her before. She shook her head and turned to Soyeon.

“I don’t care what you think. I just want you to stop implanting your opinions in other people and let them do your dirty work. Just stop this bullying sh*t and grow up. We’re supposed to start acting like adults but you’re still acting like an emotional teenager.” Taeyeon stated. She could see Soyeon got shocked by her words and she just shook her head. She was done acting nice and responsible. It wasn’t working and she almost felt like go with Tiffany’s way of handling things.

“Just stop it, okay?” Taeyeon said when Soyeon didn’t say anything.

“I think…” Soyeon finally mumbled. Taeyeon raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms as the girl met her gaze. “I think Jessica is the one that should grow up. See that she can’t act like she does in the real world. No one stands her. And you, you should also open your eyes and see that this won’t work.” Soyeon said.

Taeyeon continued to stare at the girl. She didn’t know what else to say for this girl to understand that this wasn’t the problem. The problem was that she had a problem with a person that she didn’t even know.

A sigh left Taeyeon’s lips and she uncrossed her arms. She had had enough. And Tiffany’s way of handling things didn’t seem that stupid anymore.


---


The doorbell made the woman in the living room stand up from the couch. Her eyebrows furrowed as she thought it was strange for a visitor to come by. She wasn’t expecting someone, and everyone else in the house was out.

She reached the front door, placing her hand on the doorknob and twisted it before opening it. Her eyes fell on a girl that stood on the other side. Not a stranger. Someone she was very familiar with and that she almost saw on a daily basis. A smile graced her lips upon seeing the girl, but when the girl looked up at her, her smile instantly faded and her expression was changed into worry instead of delight.

“Taeyeon what happened to you?” Mrs. Jung asked worried when her eyes landed on the bleeding lip.

“It’s nothing. It’ll hurt for a while but it’ll heal and get better.” Taeyeon said and waved off the woman. Mrs. Jung couldn’t take it as a nothing and let the girl enter the house before she closed the door.

“But you’re bleeding!” Mrs. Jung said and grabbed the girl’s arm to make her stop and turn around towards her.

“Ah, I need something to wipe up the blood with.” Taeyeon said and hissed when Mrs. Jung touched the cut.

“I’ll help you. Does your mom know?” Mrs. Jung said and led Taeyeon to the bathroom on the first floor

“No, she doesn’t. And I kind of didn’t want to let her know either.” Taeyeon said and took a seat on the toiled lid while Mrs. Jung proceeded to soak paper towels with water to be able to clean up some of the dried up blood.

“But she’s going to ask you about your lip.” Mrs. Jung said and looked at the girl.  

“I’ll tell her I tripped.” Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders.

“But what have you done?”

“I….got into a fight.”

“What?!” Mrs. Jung distanced herself from the girl and looked shocked at her.

“Is Jessica home?” Taeyeon asked instead.

“No, not yet. But you got into a fight? With who?” Mrs. Jung asked and began cleaning Taeyeon’s cut and the dried up blood.

“Good. I got in a fight with the people that bullied her in high school.” Taeyeon said and hissed when she felt the cut stung.

Mrs. Jung stopped in her action of cleaning Taeyeon’s bruised lip. She took a step back to look at Taeyeon’s face. She could see that Taeyeon wasn’t lying, and in the first place, she didn’t even think the girl would lie about such thing.

“Bullies?” Mrs. Jung breathed out. Taeyeon slowly nodded her head.

“Yeah.” Taeyeon said.

Mrs. Jung had to lean against the sink, her hand covering her forehead as she looked at her daughter’s girlfriend.

“Jessica was bullied in high school?”

“Yes, partly my fault.” Taeyeon said and looked down on her clasped hands. Mrs. Jung looked confused at the girl.

“Why do you say that?”

Taeyeon sighed and looked up at Jessica’s mother. There was no reason to keep it a secret now. Everything was already out and she had already failed in what she had tried to do in high school. It was only right to spill everything now.

“In high school there was this girl, Soyeon, that was fond of me. I didn’t like her back and that’s how everything started. Before no one had been harassing Jessica, they had only avoided her. But after I had rejected Soyeon all kinds of things started to happen to Jessica. And Jessica being Jessica, she just thought it was accidents and jokes and she thought no one meant to do her any harm.

I however knew these weren’t just accidents. I knew who was behind it and I tried to stop it. It eventually died down but Jessica seemed like an easy target for bored students so some of it continued.

 thought about telling the teachers, but I figured if I did it would become such a bigger deal, and I felt that if I did it, Jessica would probably had become unhappy. You know. Jessica lived in her happy bubble. That bubble would probably have burst if we told her she was bullied.

And I figured it would all stop once we finished high school but it apparently didn’t and I think Soyeon must be the one that has gathered some people to whisper about me and Jessica whenever we are out.

And because Jessica got really hurt this time I felt I should do something. I should try to stop it. And yeah, that’s how I ended up like this.”

Mrs. Jung stared wide eyed at Taeyeon. Too shocked to say anything. Once she had regained her senses she began shaking her head and let out a small sigh.

“I’m sorry, Taeyeon. But I’m going to tell your mom about this.” Mrs. Jung said and threw the paper towel in the garbage bin. “I’m going to tell her that her daughter beat up my daughter’s bullies, because I assume that was what you did?” Mrs. Jung said and glanced at the girl.

Taeyeon slowly nodded her head and Mrs. Jung turned to fully face the girl.

“Unbelievable. The quiet girl that wore glasses and always carried around a book with her got into a fight.” Mrs. Jung crouched in front of Taeyeon and grabbed Taeyeon’s hands and looked into Taeyeon’s eyes. A small smile graced the woman’s lips and she tilted her head to the side.

“But I suppose once you’re going to protect someone you love it doesn’t matter who you are.” Mrs. Jung said and smiled. Taeyeon nodded her head and the woman’s smile widened.

“I figured.” Mrs. Jung said and released Taeyeon’s hands and turned to the sink.

“I think we should put some ice on that lip. Some of the swelling might go away.” Mrs. Jung said and glanced at Taeyeon. The girl nodded her head and the two of them made their way into the kitchen where Taeyeon took a seat on one of the kitchen stools by the kitchen counter while Mrs. Jung fixed some ice for her.

“So…” Mrs. Jung started after she handed Taeyeon an ice packet she could put against her lip. “Did you punch this Soyeon girl?” Mrs. Jung asked.

“No…I just slapped her…You know…words weren’t enough anymore.” Taeyeon said and looked down on her hands.

“And she punched you?” Mrs. Jung asked and tilted her head.

“No…her guy friend punched me.”

“What?! What a coward! Punching a girl. What kind of boy is he?” Mrs. Jung exclaimed. Taeyeon shrugged her shoulders and looked up at Jessica’s mother.

“But I punched him back.” She stated.

Mrs. Jung blinked surprised and let her eyes fall down to Taeyeon’s hands. She noticed that the knuckles on the girl’s right hand were beginning to turn blue and purple and she looked up at the girl again.

“I’m not supposed to encourage fighting, but good job.” Mrs. Jung said and saw a smile appear on Taeyeon’s lips. “Please just tell me you didn’t break your hand because of it. That looks like it hurts.” Mrs. Jung said and nodded towards Taeyeon’s hand.

Taeyeon let her eyes fall down to her hand. She flexed her fingers and slowly clenched her hand carefully before unclenching it again.

“It hurts but it’s not broken.” Taeyeon said and looked up at the woman.

Mrs. Jung shook her head and turned around to the fridge to get another ice packet for Taeyeon’s hand. Taeyeon looked apologetically at the woman while she watched her place the new ice packet on her hand.

“Are you going to tell my mom this as well?” Taeyeon asked.

“Yup, I’m going to tell her everything. Every little piece you’ve told me. So you can’t lie to her and say you’ve tripped because I’ll tell her that you punched a guy.” Mrs. Jung said and motioned for Taeyeon to remove the ice packet from her lip so she could check on it.

“I think you’ll be able to kiss Jessica again.” Mrs. Jung said and watched Taeyeon blush by her comment. She smiled and took the ice packet from the girl when she didn’t need it anymore.

“This Soyeon girl, is she still fond of you?” Mrs. Jung asked and looked at the girl. Taeyeon blinked confused when she realized the subject had been brought back to Jessica’s bullies.

“I don’t know. I don’t think she is, it was such a long time ago that I feel she should have gotten over me. I suppose she just doesn’t like the thought of me and Jessica being a couple, considering the fact that she has always thought we didn’t match as we’re too different from each other.” Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders. Mrs. Jung nodded her head.

“How come you rejected her?” Mrs. Jung asked.

“Main reason was that I had no feelings for her. The other reasons would be that I didn’t like anything of what she liked to do, and her interests didn’t match with mine either. We had nothing to build any kind of relationship on. I also felt her personality would clash with mine. I couldn’t comprehend some of the things she chooses to do, and I felt it would just lead to endless fights and arguments and in the end it would just had been a disaster.” Taeyeon said and shrugged her shoulders.

A smile formed on Mrs. Jung’s lips and she nodded her head.

“So you had a reason.” Mrs. Jung said.

“Yeah.”

“I suppose you also had a reason for not rejecting Jessica, other than that your feelings were mutual?”

“Me and Jessica are different. It’s not something I deny, and both me and Jessica are aware of it. But we’ve lived with our differences since a long time. And…I guess we’ve just accepted the fact that we are different. And even though she does her things and I might complain about it I still enjoy it. I enjoy spending time with her and it makes me happy. So…if I like her, and she likes me, and she likes spending time with me, and I like spending time with her, then why not? We’re different, sure, but we’ve something to build our relationship on. We have an understanding for each other. We accept each other. That’s why we’re not going to clash, that’s why I believe it will work out.” Taeyeon said and looked at the ice packet on her hand.

Mrs. Jung smiled as she looked at the girl by the kitchen counter. She walked closer and leaned her elbows against the counter and looked Taeyeon in the eyes when the girl looked up at her.

“You really do think things through.” Mrs. Jung said and tilted her head. Taeyeon blushed and looked shyly away from the woman.

“Yeah.”

“I guess that’s why you and Jessica will work out well. You’re different but your differences make up for each other. You’re like puzzle pieces. Different but still able to connect.” 

Taeyeon looked up at Jessica’s mother. The woman smiled at her and patted her head before straightening up in her pose.

They heard the front door opening and their attention was drawn that way. They exchanged glances as they heard voices in the foyer before Mrs. Jung went to greet her family while Taeyeon was left in the kitchen, thinking about puzzle pieces and how they manages to stick together even though they’re different.

Taeyeon looked up from her hand when Mrs. Jung entered the kitchen again, together with Jessica trailing behind. Taeyeon saw the other girl smiled upon seeing her and she hurriedly went up to her.

“Taeyeon!” Jessica said happily but stopped before she had reached the girl. Taeyeon saw the smile on Jessica’s lips fade and worry clouded her cheerful expression.

“What happened to your…?” Jessica pointed to her lip, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion and worry. “Have you gotten hurt?” Jessica asked and met Taeyeon’s gaze. The latter tried to smile and grabbed Jessica’s hand. Jessica looked down and noticed Taeyeon’s bluish knuckles and she looked even more confused.  

“I got into a fight…today.” Taeyeon said and met Jessica’s worried gaze. She noticed Jessica’s eyes widened in shock.

“What…? Why? With who?” Jessica turned from Taeyeon to her mother and then back to her girlfriend.

“With Soyeon…and some guy friend of hers.” Taeyeon said and continued to watch Jessica go from worry to confusion.

“Why?” Jessica asked and furrowed her eyebrows. A sigh left Taeyeon’s lips and she motioned for Jessica to sit down. It was better to tell the story, from the start, as just telling the girl she got angry and beat a guy won’t really explain how she even got that angry to be able to do something like that.

Taeyeon proceeded to tell Jessica the whole story from the start. Telling the girl she had in truth gotten bullied and why she had gotten bullied and who was behind it. Jessica was silent throughout the whole story until Taeyeon reached the end and she looked worriedly at Jessica that was still silent.

“Are you…okay?” Taeyeon asked and looked worriedly at the girl. She was still holding Jessica’s hand and hoped what she had said wouldn’t change anything.

“I’m…”Jessica began but trailed off. She bit her lower lip and looked at Taeyeon that looked at her with worry displayed all over her face. “I’m okay.” Jessica said and smiled.

“You know…after those girls said that back at the café I was thinking about all the other people that said those kinds of things in high school. I realized it wasn’t just those two, but a lot of people that thought I was weird…but…It’s okay, because I realized it’s actually just their problem, you know. I’m, like you and mom said, just unique, and it doesn’t matter if people think I’m weird because I at least have you, and I have my family, and your family, and I have Tiffany, Sooyoung, Hyoyeon and some people that don’t think I’m weird. So, it’s okay.” Jessica explained with a smile.

She saw some of the worry disappeared from Taeyeon’s face and Jessica smiled wider.

“So…I guess I should say thank you? Thank you for protecting me and standing up for me. But…you don’t have to do it anymore, because I’m going to stop caring about what other people think of me. What matters is what the people I have around me think of me.” Jessica said.

“Also…” Jessica continued before Taeyeon was able to say something. “Seeing someone you love getting hurt because of you is painful, right?” Jessica said and let her thumb lightly grace the top of Taeyeon’s bluish knuckles. 

A knowing smile appeared on Taeyeon’s lips and she nodded her head. Seeing Taeyeon understood Jessica smiled and looked down on their hands before meeting Taeyeon’s gaze again.

“You’re allowed to protect me, but don’t get hurt for my sake.” Jessica said and smiled. Taeyeon nodded her head understanding.

“The same goes for you.” Taeyeon said. Jessica nodded her head, her smile widening.

“Okay.”

“Good.”

A sniffle made both girls turn away from each other. They had completely forgotten they had an observer in the kitchen, and they looked shocked at Jessica’s mother that was wiping tears that was streaming down her cheeks.

“Mom, are you okay?” Jessica asked worriedly.

“I’m fine, sweetie.” Mrs. Jung assured her daughter but continued to wipe her tears and sniffle nonetheless. Taeyeon and Jessica exchanged glances before turning back to the woman that blew her nose.

“I’m just so happy that you’re mature enough to sit down and talk like adults and coming to agreements like this. I’m so relieved that you have an understanding for each other like this.” Mrs. Jung said and fanned her face to make herself calm down.

“Communication is an important part in a relationship, remember that girls!” Mrs. Jung said before excusing herself and left the two young adults in the kitchen.

Speechless Taeyeon and Jessica turned to each other. After a few seconds of silence Jessica burst out laughing and Taeyeon just shook her head with a smile on her lips.

“Communication is an important part in a relationship, remember that girls!” Jessica imitated her mother. Taeyeon lightly hit Jessica’s shoulder when the girl began laughing.

“Don’t make fun of your mom. She was serious.” Taeyeon scolded the girl.

“But it was kinda funny.” Jessica said and smiled. Taeyeon shook her head, a small smile gracing her lips.

“Okay, it was a bit funny.” Taeyeon admitted.

“See.” Jessica said and grinned when she had gotten Taeyeon to agree. Taeyeon shook her head at the grin displayed on Jessica’s lips, but she couldn’t keep the smile away from her own.

“We’re mean.”

“Naaah, you should be able to joke about these things as well.”

“But she was serious.”

“Yes, and we took it seriously.”

“But we laughed.”

“We’re easily amused people, we can’t help it.”

“You’re easily amused. I just happen to be easily infected by laughter.”

“That’s the same thing.”

“That is so not the same thing.”

Taeyeon saw Jessica continued to smile and she had to shake her head at the girl’s expression. Her action made Jessica laugh and Taeyeon could only smile at the other girl.

When Jessica had stopped laughing and the two girls stared at each other with smiles on their faces Taeyeon managed to pull Jessica closer to hug the girl. She could tell Jessica was a bit surprised by her action, but she ignored it.

“Thank you.” Taeyeon mumbled into Jessica’s shoulder. Jessica blinked confused by the words, but smiled and hugged Taeyeon back.

“You’re welcome. For whatever it is you’re thanking me for.” Jessica said.

Taeyeon smiled and didn’t let go of the other girl for a few minutes. She had come to realize Jessica was like a light in her life. While her life on her own was mostly gray and dull, Jessica brought in colors and made everything much funnier. Taeyeon felt nothing would be the same without Jessica in her life.

“You’re like a lamp that brings light into a dark room, did you know?” Taeyeon whispered against Jessica’s shoulder.

“No, but now I do.”

A small smile graced Taeyeon’s lips. 

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”