“Aigoo. What a bad day.” Suzy couldn’t stop grumble. She has repeated that sentence so many times.

“Aww.. C’mon girl. Don’t overreact it.” Krystal couldn’t stand it anylonger.

Suzy pouted. “Why did you tell me to pay for those eggs? It wasn’t my fault. It was that Ahjussi who dropped it.” She complained.

“Because I could see that guy didn’t have intension to do so. So if you kept insisting, it wouldn’t be over. Beside half of that incident was your fault.” Krystal tried to explained patiently.

“See? That Ahjussi was really something!” Being stubborn, Suzy only listened the first part of Krystal’s sentence, but refused to listen the part when Krystal said it was partly her own fault. For didn’t want to succumb.

“But.... Suzy. Why do you keep calling that handsome guy ‘Ahjussi’? I don’t think he is that old.” IU asked innocently.

Upon hearing that Suzy’s face turned red again, “IU... Urgghhh. How can you say that Ahjussi ‘handsome?’ For me, he is Ahjussi. I don’t care with his age.”

“But...” IU was about to speak again, however she stopped when Suzy gave her a cold stare.

Krystal just laughed.

***

“Unnie is already on her way. But where is Krystal?” Suzy asked IU. Confusion could be seen on her face.

IU pressed her phone to her ear for numerous time already. “The number you are calling...“

“She didn’t pick up her phone.” IU was confused too.

“Lately, Krystal often does this. Let me try to call her.” But before Suzy could dial Krystal’s number, incoming call alert had appeared on her monitor. “JiHyo Unnie”

“Unnie is calling. Keep trying to phone Krystal.” Suzy told IU.

IU nodded and began to dial Krystal’s number again.

While Suzy was answering Jihyo’s call. “Yoeboseyo. Unnie?”

“Yeoboseyo.”

“Where are you now Unnie?” Suzy asked.

“About five or ten minutes more I’ll arrive on your apartment. But I lost my notes about your apartment number. That’s why I call you right now.” Suzy could imagine Ji Hyo smiled while saying it. Her Unnie is still careless.

“2402 Unnie. Alegria Apartment room number 2402. Tell that to the taxi driver and don’t get lost.” Suzy said jokingly.

 “Yah! Who do you think your Unnie is? I won’t get lost.”

“Arraseo Unnie. I’m waiting. See you very soon.” Suzy smiled and terminated her call.

As soon as she hung up she turned and asked IU. “How? Does Krystal pick up her phone?”

IU shook her head. “No. Still doesn’t.”

“Where is she jinjja! She has already promised that she will come. I’m sure she misses Unnie too. But where the heck she is? Why doesn’t she pick up your calls?” Suzy exploded.

Having no idea, IU could only shake her head. It really wasn’t like Krystal. The Krystal she knew would never break a promise. But she too realized that lately Krystal has become a bit weird. She often loses focus, she often dissapears without telling the two.

Although IU hasn’t known Krystal for as long as Suzy, but she knew there was something happening to her friend. Only one thing she couldn’t understand, which was why Krystal doesn’t want to tell them about her problem.

“I’ll try to call her again.” Suzy said, breaking the silence.

Suzy gasped and showed IU the message. “I have to call her.” Suzy said.

However the doorbell of her apartment rang at the exact moment and Suzy forgot whatever she had tried to do.

She ran and opened the door.

***

“Enough Appa. Enough. Don’t hit omma. Enough..” Krystal didn’t want to cry in front of his father, but seeing her mother being beaten helplessly by her father, Krystal could not just stay silent.

Krystal hates herself the most in the time like this. The time when she seemed so fragile and could only begged for his father to stop.

"Why did Appa have to stop? Your Omma deserves to be beaten!" Her father yelled and almost hit Mrs Jung’s cheek, if Krystal did not hold his father's hand.

"Please Appa. Enough. If you are still angry, you can hit Krystal instead." Krystal could not withstand her increasingly loud sobs.

“That’s right. This all hapens because you didn’t want to do what I told you. Useless daughter.” Mr Jung who was being posessed by alcohol diverted his anger to his oldest daughter.

“No. Just hit me. Go Krystal. Go. Do not interfere in this problem.” Mrs Jung told Krystal. She then pushed her daughter away.

Trembling, Krystal could only watch her ​​father as he continued to beat her mother. Mrs. Jung covered in order not to scream and with resignation she let the husband who she had loved so much before added more bruises on her body.

Krystal’s sight was being blocked by tears when she decided to turn around and went into her room.

In one corner of the room Krystal saw Jessica had been hugging herself. Her shoulders shaking, a sign that she was crying. Jessica looked up when Krystal walked toward her.

Krystal hugged her sister.

“Unnie. Will mom be alright?” Jessica asked in a low voice.

For the first time Krystal didn’t know what to answer. She didn’t want to lie to her sister anymore. She didn’t want to tell Jessica that everything is going to be alright, when she herself wasn’t sure of it.

Krystal pulled back. She couldn’t look directly at her when she said, “I’m sorry Jes. I’m sorry. But I have to go. I’m sorry.”

Jessica cried even harder. “No Unnie. Where are you going?”

But Krystal had already left.

***

Krystal did not know where she should go. She just ran to follow where her feet took her.

Krystal ran because she could not take it anymore. Her house was no longer a place where she could feel safe, it had been turned into hell.

Krystal felt guilty for leaving Jessica. But right now what she needed the most was to calm herself, instead of trying to appease others. Krystal was afraid if she remained in that house, she was going to lose her sanity.

When she started to feel tired, she decided to stop. She leaned against the wall and started to pay attention to her surrounding. The place where she was standing felt unfamiliar, but somehow Krystal felt she had been there before.

Currently she was in one corner of a deserted alley. There were only terraced houses on either side.

Krystal felt her phone vibrate. With trembling hands she reached for it and saw IU’s name on the screen.

At that time she remembered that she had promised Suzy to welcome Ji Hyo Unnie at her best friend's apartment.

But it was impossible for her to appear in a state of chaos like this. She did not want to make her friends worried. That’s why she decided to ignore the call.

Two seconds later her phone began to ring again. Still from the same person. Knowing that IU would try to call her until she pick up, she choosed to text Suzy.

After that, suddenly she felt dizzy. She was trying to sit down, when she heard someone called her name.

Jongin’s face was the last thing she saw before she lost her consciousness.

***

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