ONE STEP BEHIND
(TaengSic)

It was probably three in the morning, when Taeyeon had enough of tossing and turning in bed and she got up to get a glass of water. There had been so many things on her mind, and so much weight on her heart, but there was no one who could listen to her, or perhaps, no one would understand even if they listened to her. It was her truest self there and then. The Taeyeon who needn't fake a smile, a laugh. The Taeyeon whose face was almost drained of all colours, especially the colour of life. The Taeyeon who was exhausted beyond words, physically, and emotionally. The Taeyeon who wanted someone's shoulder to lean on, to cry on. Letting out a sigh, she put down the empty glass before she started to take slow steps out of the kitchen, her head hanging low.

She almost screamed her lungs out when she suddenly saw a pair of legs right at the entrance to the kitchen. She clutched her chest as she gasped, after she realised that it was none other than the person she had been avoiding for the past two years - Jessica. Her heart raced, and the earlier shock was not the sole reason behind it. The familiar look of indifference took over when her shock subsided. Pursing her lips, Taeyeon had no intention to acknowledge the girl, and she took a side step so that she could pass her, but no. Jessica took a step to her right, successfully blocking Taeyeon a second time. Impatience was beginning to show in Taeyeon's eyes, and Jessica could sense it. It was the same impatience that she had to face since two years ago and it was only all too familiar. Still, Taeyeon said nothing. Swiftly, she took a side step in the other direction this time round, hoping that Jessica would stop enraging her in the middle of the night, but no, yet again. For the third time, Jessica mimicked her action and blocked her path. Finally, Taeyeon's cold stare met Jessica's soulful gaze.

"What's your problem?" Taeyeon asked, hostility obvious in her tone.

Jessica took a moment or two, her eyes fixed on the leader, before she muttered, "Stop it."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Taeyeon retorted, "Stop what?"

"Stop avoiding me. Stop ignoring me. Stop being nasty to me. Stop..." The rest of the words seemed to be stuck in Jessica's throat, and with much pain, she delivered them, "...hurting me."

The older girl lost herself for a second or two, her eyes registering those familiar, hurt filled eyes. She felt a sour feeling in , but she swallowed it down. "I don't know what you're saying. Move aside."

"No." Just one word, but anyone could tell that Jessica's voice was shaking. "I'm not going anywhere, until