Chapter 2: Homecoming

--- Krystal’s POV ---

“Princess, look at me.”

I instinctively look outside upon hearing your voice but it turns out that it was just a fragment of my imagination. Are you really even coming back, Amber? I want to believe Mrs. Han when she told me that you won’t leave me for good. But… It’s just been so long. I don’t know whether if I should wait for you or not. I don’t know what to do with Minho either. Sure we’ve been dating a couple of years now but to me… I feel horrible. I feel like I’ve only been using him as a scapegoat. We haven’t even kissed yet. Seriously. The thought of my lips being in contact with anybody that’s not you, it feels wrong. Then there he is, patiently waiting for me as always. He never forced me to do anything. But there are times that he annoys me. I don’t know. By this time I should be falling for him right? Then why am I feeling that I want to get away from him. Am I much of a coward to say that I don’t love him all this time? I see… I’m still a coward. Even here, I can’t say what I really feel. This feels like how I lost you.

“Krystal?” There’s Minho’s voice.

It snaps me out of my thoughts to my disappointment. Oh right. He’s here.

“What?” I reply, still looking out of the café window.

“What do you think?” He asks.

“About what?” I finally look at him.

“Mom said we could join them for dinner tonight.” He says before taking a sip from his coffee mug.

Dinner tonight. It’s rare for Minho’s mom to invite us to dinner since they’re always busy. Maybe there is something important to be discussed? Or maybe they just want to see us after arriving back from Europe. I shouldn’t be thinking too much. Why did I turn out to be like this in the first place? It’s all your fault, Amber.

“Sure. Why not?” I reply, looking out the window once more.

“Okay then. I’ll tell them that we’re going.” I hear him reply and take out his phone.

Right… Parents are involved. That’s why I can’t tell what I really feel about this relationship right now. We’re legal on both sides and my family likes Minho. His family also likes me so I’m in a tough situation. Back in high school, I thought that everything will be okay after a few years. That I will forget my feelings for you. But I was dead wrong. Now here I am. Stuck in a dead end or so it seems. What do I do now? I’m not even sure that you’re coming back. If you do… You still see me as a friend. Ugh. This is a lose-lose situation for me.

-----------------------------

“Did you receive the news? Our high school batch will be having a reunion next week.” Minho says while driving us to their house.

“Yeah. Luna messaged me the other day.” I reply, keeping my eyes onto the road.

“Are we going?” Minho asks.

Should I go? Minho can go by himself. I won’t stop him. I don’t have much of the determination to attend since you’re not there anyway, Amber. You may be the only one missing in action there as far as I know. But why do I feel the hope that you would turn up? I’m hoping again only to be shot down it seems. But of course, I should go. Luna and the girls will strangle me if I don’t. And I don’t want to start any rumors when I go there without Minho. So….

“Fine with me.” I reply, without looking at him.

“Great. I miss our class. It’s been a while since we all got together.” He says.

“The last time was when we were still college freshmen. To think we couldn’t handle being apart for long.” I say, a small smile creeping unto my lips as I remember.

“But as usual… Like the last time, Amber will be the only one missing in action. I wonder how she is right now. It’s been four years. She went to the US right after graduation. Right, Krystal?”

I wince. I remember that painful memory of that day when you said that you would leave. The summer day that felt cold because you were saying goodbye. It’s like I couldn’t reach you anymore.

--Flashback--

“You’re going to the same college as him?” You added.

“Yes. How about you.” I reply. Where would you go, Amber? Maybe I could transfer there and be with you?

“I’ll be going to Los Angeles and study there.” You say. My heart sank. You’re leaving… For good. Why, Amber? Don’t you want to see me anymore? You’re too far from me.

“Oh that’s nice.” I say, trying my best not to cry.

--End of flashback--

I cover my eyes, fearing that I would cry again. That day was the day I felt pain the most. That day when my heart broke. One tear manages to escape only to be wiped off immediately. I can’t have Minho see me crying or he will annoy the answer out of me again. He can never know that I love you, Amber. At least not yet.

“Alright. We’re here. Krystal, are you asleep?” I feel him gently put his hand on my arm.

I put my hand away from my eyes, seeing that we are already parked in front of their house. I see Minho go out of the car and to my side, opening the door for me. I step out and look at their house. It’s big, yes, knowing that Minho comes from a prominent family.

“Let’s go?” He says, offering his hand.

I hesitate. It feels wrong. But then again, I should do this. I nod and take his hand, putting only a slight pressure for it to be called holding hands while walking. Minho rings the doorbell and in no time his mother opens the door.

“It’s so good of you to come, Krystal. Come in!” She warmly says.

I give her a smile and enter the house. The interiors are indeed elegant, same as the last time I went here.

“Dinner is ready.” His mother says, directing us to the dining room.

“Thank you, auntie.” I say.

“Oh call me mom, okay?” She gives me a smile.

Mom… I’m sorry. I just can’t quite grasp that. We enter the elegant dining room. I see his father already sitting. He notices us and gives us a smile.

“Ah, it’s good to have you here, Krystal.” He says while standing up.

“Thank you for having me, uncle.” I say, bowing.

We proceed to our seats and start to eat. The meal is absolutely delicious. But as usual, whenever I see meat it reminds me of you. Oh how you love to eat meat. I used to cook twice as much lunch so I wouldn’t be left starving because you kept on getting some of my lunch. I smile unconsciously at the thought.

“So mom. It’s rare of you to invite us for dinner. Is there something you want to discuss with us?” Minho suddenly asks his mom.

“As a matter of fact, yes. Well… It’s about you and Krystal.” She says.

I look at her hearing my name. What is this about?

“We think it’s about time for you two to get married.” His father says straight to the point.

I suddenly choke on to what I’m eating. What? Get married? I look at Minho only to see his eyes wide with surprise.

“Uhh… Mom, dad… Isn’t this too sudden. I mean Krystal and I haven’t talked about this yet.” Minho says.

“Oh you should now. Both of you are at the right age to marry and you’ve been together for years. So why wait?” His mom says.

I can’t speak. I’m too shocked to speak. I can’t get married yet. Not without knowing what you think of me. I can’t. Amber, help…

“What do you think, Krystal?” Minho’s father asks me.

I snap out of my thinking and look at them with a shocked face. I don’t know what to say. I want to walk out and refuse. But… My parents.

“We already discussed this with your parents, dear. So no worries.” His mom says, smiling.

No… What? Please it’s too soon. I can’t get married yet. Knowing my parents, they already approve Minho to propose to me. So there is a high possibility that I’ll get married soon.

“Mom, dad. Let’s not talk about this right now, okay? Krystal’s just as shocked as me.” Minho says as he puts his hand on my back, noticing my blank expression.

My head is full of thoughts. Should I consider it? Should I follow what they want? What my parents want? It’s my fault that I let this go this far. Why didn’t I just break us off when I still had the chance. Oh yeah, that’s right. I was too cowardly to do so. Hoping that I would someday accept Minho and fall in love with him and live happily ever after. No, as time goes by, the more I regret my decision. Why did I even listen to you in the first place, Amber? I shouldn’t have gone to him and said yes. I should’ve stood my ground and spent that night at the festival with you. I shouldn’t have left you alone. I should have told you to stay with me. I should have told you how much you mean to me. I shouldn’t have told you that you’re the one who owns my heart…. But now…What do I do?

--- Amber’s POV ---

“Shirts?”

“Check!”

“Pants?”

“Check!”

“Toiletries?”

“Check!”

“Pink dresses and polka dotted ?”

“What?!”

Jackie bursts into laughter after seeing your reaction. Really? She teases you even you’re already going to leave for Korea in a few hours. Ah… But you couldn’t deny that you’re going to miss you sister. I’ll be a while until you see her again. Speaking of Korea, yes you’ll be Flying back for the first time in four years. You’ll be back to the place where you made so many precious memories. That place where you met your most precious person. That person you so desperately want to see and the sole reason why you’re coming back. You can’t hide your excitement since the day you received the news that you’ll be going home. Now the day has finally arrived. Would you make it right this time?

“Let’s get going, mei mei. We don’t want to miss your plane.” She says, taking one of your bags.

“Alright!” You enthusiastically say.

“Ohooo. My baby sister really can’t hide her excitement. I think I know why. It starts with the letter ‘K’.” She teases once again.

You throw a pillow at her only to get dodged. Your parents are already in the car to drive you to the airport. The trip is agonizingly slow. It seems like time is playing a trick on you. The more you wanted it to go faster, the more it slows down. You finally arrive at the airport and into the departures.

“You take care of yourself alright, Amber?” Your father says, giving you a hug and a kiss on the forehead.

“Send a message to us as soon as you get home. Everything’s been taken care of. Your uncle has already fixed our house up for you.” Your mom says, also giving you a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Mei mei! C’mere and give ‘yo big sis a hug!” Jackie loudly says, throwing her hands up in the air.

You laugh and give her a big tackle bear hug. Yeah she teases you all the time and gives you migraines. But you couldn’t imagine anyone other than her as your sister.

“Thanks, Jack. For everything.” You say, still hugging her.

“It’s all good. Now you go there and fix your mess. We’ll be with you in a year so when that time comes, I want to see her by your side. Got it?” She says, pulling away and patting you on the head.

“Got it.” You say, giving her a grin and a thumbs up.

You get your bags and bid your goodbyes with your family. It’s not the last time. It’s not like it’s the last time that you’ll ever see them.

“See you guys in a year! I love you!” You shout as you distance.

You see them waving at you and Jackie shouting her ‘I love you too’ back. You look in front of you. There it is. Your first step to reuniting with her. You walk towards the check-in and put your bags into the conveyor belt. You get your seat number and proceeded into the waiting terminal for you plane to arrive. After waiting for an hour, there it is. Finally. The plane that would send you back home. Back to where she is. You board and wait for twenty-two agonizing hours before you arrive at Korea. You just sit there as the starry sky greets you hello. The lights down below from the millions of lives you just passed by. What would you do when you get back? Find her maybe? Hug, lift her up and spin her around like you used to? Like one of those fairytales? No, you couln’t. You bet Minho’s still in the picture.

“Tell me, princess. Have you finally fallen head over heels in love with him?” You think.

You’re scared. What if she is? What would a mere best friend do? Your head starts to ache from all the questions. You decide to sleep and dream of loving her.

You open your eyes and find yourself standing at a cherry blossom laden path that is all too familiar. It’s summer again? Wow… You haven’t been here in a long while. The wind gusts over you, stirring the pink petals around. Then you see students emerging down the path. Oh it’s their first day? Yes… It was the day when you found your summer. You’re reliving memories in your dreams. You spot an awkward short haired girl coming up the stairs. You grin as to see that it’s your younger self. Any moment now… She’ll emerge from down the stairs. The girl with the cat like eyes. Her long beautiful hair will dance with the wind.

There she is…

Walking so elegantly… Then a gust of wind stirs up the place. You see her looking annoyed while fixing her hair. You turn to your younger self who's looking lovestruck. You chuckle at your own expression. So this is how you looked like when you first saw her. You look back at the long haired girl only to find that she’s coming up to your direction. What? This isn’t supposed to happen. She should say that you should forget it and keep walking. But why is she here in front of you?

“Did you miss me, Amber?” She says, giving you a loving smile.

You look at her, confused. Then you notice that she’s looking through you. You look back and see your younger self smiling lovingly at her.

“Yeah, I did. Let’s go?” Your younger self says as she offers her hand to the long haired girl.

“Hah. I knew you would be back. You love me.” The long haired girl takes the short haired one’s hand, entwining it with hers.

“As a matter of fact… I do love you, Krystal Jung.” Your younger self brightly says and they walk up the stairs hand in hand.

You wake up and you hear the captain of the plane speaking. You’ll be arriving in five minutes. You couldn’t handle the excitement you feel. Adding up to that dream you just had. It was marvelous. It livens up the precious memories you had with her. The plane finally lands and you can’t wait no more. You stand up and you’re the first one to get out of the plane. You look at the sky, the sun is already starting to show. You feel the cold air getting warmer. It’s going to be summer. You take the dream as a sign. Maybe you could turn everything right this time.

-----------------------------

Arriving at your old home is a big breath of fresh air. Ahhh… Childhood. You missed this place a lot. Now you can’t wait to get in touch with people whom you’ve left behind. Especially her… Suddenly your phone rings and you look at the caller ID. It’s an unknown number but you answer anyways.

“Hello?” You answer with a cautious tone.

“Yaaaaaah! You’re actually here! Oh my goodness. I’m so happy.” A shrieking voice comes out the other end, nearly shattering your ear drums.

“What? Wait, who’s this? How did you get my number?” You ask, your brows furrowing.

“Oh come on, hyung? You forgot about me already? I’m so hurt. It’s me! Sulli!” The voice says.

“Oooooooh! Hey, big baby! How are you? Woah. Sorry. I didn’t know you have my number. I mean I just arrived. Yeah… How did you get my number?” You say, laughing. Happy from hearing a familiar friend.

“Your cousin, Donhae-oppa gave it to me. He said that you’ll be home soon. He intended to tell Krystal first but he couldn’t contact or find her.” Sulli says.

Dang. What a waste. So Krystal should be the one calling you then? But no. It’s good that Sulli is the one you’re talking to right now. You don’t even know what to say to Krystal.

“I see… Alright then. Hey, Ssul. I’ll just fix my things down here okay? I’ll talk to you later.” You say to her as you enter your house.

“Oh no need to call me later, hyung. Didn’t you receive the message?” She says with amusement in her voice.

“What message? Hellooo? I just came back from across the world.” You sarcastically say.

“Right. Anyways… Our high school batch will be having a reunion later this evening.” She says.

You almost drop your phone. High school reunion? All of your old friends will be there. Meaning…. Krystal will be there also. Your heart starts to beat fast.

“Hyung? Hyuuuuung. Hellooooo.” You forgot a waiting Sulli on the other line.

“Oh sorry. I just… Okay tell me the details.” You say as you put your things in your room.

“Okay. It’s going to be held at that convention center near the river. The one with the balconies and open space. Remember that? Right. So the reunion starts at seven. Don’t be late. I assume you still know your way around.” She says.

“Yes. Thanks, Ssul. I’ll be there. See you guys. I can’t wait.” You say, laughing and unable to hide the excitement you feel.

Sulli hanngs up and you can’t contain your grin. You’re so excited. You’ll finally see everybody after so long. You’ll finally be able to see the face of the girl you love all these years. You’ll be able to finally talk to her, hug her, hold her hand and everything you both did before. You get your phone and text Jackie that you’ve already arrived home. You look around your room. You notice your old cork board where pictures of Krystal and you still hang. You smile as you see a certain picture where she’s feeding you some ice cream only for it to land on your cheek. You remember that day when she asked you to accompany her to the ice cream store that just opened a few blocks away from school.

--Flashback—

“Come on, Amber! Ice cream waits for no one!” She says as she drags your arm to the ice cream store.

“Yah! Slow down, princess! Sheesh!” You say as you try to keep up.

“I won’t when ice cream is involved. I want the mango flavored one.” She says.

“We haven’t even arrived and you’re already telling me what you want? Why do I get the feeling that my wallet’s gonna cry again?” You say, facepalming.

“Because your wallet IS going to cry!” She says laughing.

“You’re gonna get fat.” You blurt out.

She hits you on the head. Hard.

“Stoopid!” She pouts.

“I’m gonna get more stupid if you keep hitting me on the head.” You say, rubbing the back of your head.

She pokes her tongue out at you and enters the shop. You could only smile. Of course… You can never get mad at her.

--End of flashback--

You grin remembering those times you shared with her. You wonder. Now that you’re back. Would the both of you spend some time like those again? You plan on making it right this time… Or are you too late? You look at your watch and it’s already ten in the morning.

“So… We’ll have a reunion later. Tidy up this place or get some sleep?” You say to yourself.

You look at your bed. It’s seducing you. Then you look onto the pile of boxes you need to clean up. It’s also seducing you but you find it un-appetizing.

“Yep! Sleep it is!” You declare as you jump to your bed to get some rest. Hoping that you’ll dream of her again.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aaaaand there we have it! Chapter 2! Yaaaay! I'm always energized and b with inspiration whenever I write this story. I don't know. Maybe I got the whole story plotted out? I hope it'll be good! I've got to say that this is my favorite work. Hahahaha! Amber's finally home! But baby Jung's in trouble of an engagement. What would kryber do now? Uh-oh. Anyways.... I hope you guys like this latest chap as much as I do. As always... Comments, suggestions and death threats are most certainly welcome. :D

This is deniselionheart saying... Peace out and don't forget to support f(x) on their comeback! Red Light is so awesome! :D