Inhale.

 

Exhale.

 

Inhale.

 

Exhale.

 

A nostalgic feeling washed over Jessica as she stepped out of the car.  The familiar sounds of the city washed over her; the hustle-bustle of pedestrians rushing to wherever they had to be, the roaring of a thousand car motors, and the familiar babble of meaningless nothings in her ear as people talked to each other, and on the phone.

 

Jessica walked in the familiar streets, approaching a familiar abandoned dirt path. The weather was dry, she noted, and slightly gloomy. She heard voices even when she was a good few meters away, laughter and chatter. She stepped up to the familiar battered metal door and knocked.

 

The chatter ceased as she pushed the door open. Eyes turned and widened at her presence. Jessica smiled nervously. "Um, hi." She said, feeling rather lame as she stood under the scruntinizing stares.

 

 

One person stood up.

 

 

"Jessica!" Hara breathed, rushing forward. Like a spark being thrown in a pool of gasoline, her voice shook the others out of their shock and a clamor arose; cheers were heard all around, of hollered greetings and excited chatter.

 

Hara buried her face in Jessica's shoulder, wrapping her arms around her. "I missed you." She mumbled into the blonde's shoulder.

 

Jessica smiled gently, and hugged the girl back. "I missed you too." She said.

 

Gyuri came up to them staring at Jessica like she was a figment of imagination. "Is that really you Jessica?" She asked unbelievingly.

 

"Jung! Where've you been?" CL grinned, patting her shoulder.

 

"We've been waiting for your orders." Seungyeon said with a faithful smile.

 

"Noona, what took you so long?"  Jackson Wang grinned boyishly at her, waving from a few feet away.

 

"Yeah, Jaebummie's been missing you!" BamBam teased with an evil grin, pulling the poor blushing boy forward.

 

Jessica released Hara, and smiled at her juniors, who looked at her with sparkling eyes and happy smiles. "I missed you too." She gently teased, wrapping poor Jaebum in an one-armed hug. The boy looked ready to faint from happiness.

 

Jessica released Jaebum and looked around. All her old friends were still there, as well as some new faces. It was amazing to see; their smiling faces, and expectant gazes. She saw some of the older kids whispering to the new faces, explaining what was going on, and presumably who she was.

 

Seungyeon ran her fingers through Jessica's hair. "Your highlights are gone." She said, seeming somewhat nostalgic. Jessica nodded and she swept the blonde locks over her shoulder.

 

"Yeah. I thought it was time for a change." She said, words laced with meaning as she looked around the room.

 

Hara's expression turned solemn as she looked at Jessica. "So? What's on your mind Jung?" She asked, casting the girl a knowing look.

 

Jessica took a breath as everyone's gaze turned to her, and she explained everything. Starting with her first day in the new town, to her aunt and uncle who were nothing like she'd expected them to be, to her weird but loving friends who were always there for her despite her cold demeanor bad days, to her sister Krystal and how she was the strongest kid Jessica could ever know, to Taeyeon and Taeyeon's history in Hansung (which garnered collective gasps from the shocked majority minus Hara and Gyuri who already knew.)

 

"And a lot more's happened, but that's the important bit I guess." Jessica finished, looking around.

 

Some were whispering among themselves, but a first-year, Bomi, looked up at Jessica with hopeful eyes. "But you're back now, and that's what matters isn't it?"

 

Jessica felt her heart sink and she looked over, pondering what to say. "Well, I-"

 

"You're not staying are you?" Hara cut in softly. Jessica looked over at her, and their eyes met in a wave of sad understanding.

 

"Yeah." It came out as a whisper. The gang members looked up, not hearing her response. Jessica took a breath and drew herself up.

 

"Yeah." She said again, louder and affirmatively like the strong leader they recognized, looking around for reactions.

 

Faces fell.

 

Jessica felt her heartstrings twisting, but she knew what she wanted and what she had to do. "Guys, listen up." She raised her voice authoritatively, and instantly the room was silent. When she had everyone's attention, she continued.

 

"Hara will be your new leader."

 

All eyes were directed to the two girls standing next to each other. Hara looked over, seeming rather shocked.

 

"But I-" she began, but Jessica cut her off.

 

"You told me to settle things if I wasn't gonna stay. What better way than this?" She asked rhetorically, rendering Hara speechless.

 

Jessica looked around at the members. Some were surprised, some looked devastated, some weren't surprised at all.

 

"Any objections?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked at the various faces.

 

Hyuna, a senior member and Jessica's good friend, cleared . "I think this is a good choice." She said, looking around. "Who else could do it?"

 

Murmurs of agreement rose, and Jessica looked gratefully at Hyuna who shot her a sad smile. Jessica exhaled.

 

"Well if there are no objections, that's  settled then." She said, feeling relieved. Hara looked lost, and somewhat confused. Jessica clapped her on the shoulder.

 

"Good luck. Call me if you need me." She smiled cheerily at her friend, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

 

Hara looked up. "I'm gonna miss you so much." She whispered, voice cracking at the end as she buried her face in Jessica's shoulder. Jessica felt a pang in her chest as she wrapped her arms around the girl.

 

"Why do you have to go?" Bomi  asked, fighting back tears. Everyone looked up expectantly.

 

Jessica looked up at the starry sky. "There's someone who's waiting for me, looking at the same sky. There's people who need me, and I need to go back to them." She said somewhat sorrowfully, yet with a fondness none of them had seen in her before.

 

Hara exhaled with an air of forlorn finality, and looked her best friend in the eye. "Thank you. For keeping your promise." She said softly. Jessica smiled fondly, and ruffled the younger girl's hair.

 

"Well that's it then." She said, not quite knowing what to say next. She looked around unsurely.

 

Hyuna smiled softly, and flashed their sign. The signal they used in fights to tell each other that they were alright and well. "Thanks for all your hard work." She thanked the Jung, standing up.

 

Jessica felt her eyes water as the rest of the gang followed suit, holding their hands in the familiar sign that held them together in reassurance as they stood. "We'll miss you Jessi." Eunyoung, who initially hated her, bowed respectfully.

 

"You'll always have a family here." Seungyeon added with a bright smile.

 

"Don't forget to come visit noona!" BamBam grinned, albeit sadly.

 

Jessica almost choked. "I-I won't. Thanks you guys. Thank you all. Don't get in too much trouble okay? Call me if you need me, I'll definitely come back for you." She promised, making eye contact with each person in the room.

 

Hyuna took a breath, and turned Jessica to fully face her. "Go." She said softly, smiling wistfully.

 

Jessica looked at her, and everyone else around her. A nod of approval arose, and a peaceful, accepting yet still melancholy silence enveloped the room with unspoken respect and veneration for their forever leader as they finally let her go.

 

"Go home Jessica."

 

Only know you love her when you let her go…

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Inhale.

 

Exhale.

 

Inhale.

 

Exhale.

 

Jessica stated nervously out the train window at the cloudy midday sky, thinking of words to say. How would she explain herself? How would they react? How was Krystal? Did anything happen to her in Jessica's absence? Jessica suddenly became anxious, and mentally punched herself for forgetting her phone at the house.

 

They must have been worried sick.

 

She didn't intend to be gone so long though. She thought it would only take her a day trip, but of course she got distracted and spent some time with her old friends in her old town. It was nice, but she clearly didn't think about what could happen in her absence.

 

She bit her lip, kicking her legs anxiously. If Soojung wasn't alright, she swore she'd slap herself a hundred times and beg for her forgiveness. Her friends must be furious and turning cartwheels; especially Tiffany, who she figured was probably thinking of ways to track her down and burn her at the stake right this moment.

 

And Taeyeon.

 

Jessica bit her lip again, suddenly feeling a tremendous wave of guilt wash over her. She wasn't the type to kiss someone and just leave with no explanation; that simply wasn't part of her personality. She strongly believed in honesty, and she obviously had not been honest with Taeyeon. She felt awful, and she knew it was her fault because she was too afraid to approach the girl honestly and talk things out. Taeyeon, she knew, definitely sensed her discomfort and chosen to remain silent about the matter even though she must've wanted to address it terribly.

 

Jessica mentally kicked herself. "Stupid…" she sighed, and continued her blank staring out the window at the passing scenery. She soon arrived at her destination, and quickly walked to catch the bus to take her to her town. Her surroundings were familiar now; she no longer got lost, even though her sense of direction was still horrible. She got off at her stop, and began her walk home greeting some pedestrians on the way with a pleasant smile. It was a nice day, not too hot and not too cold. Just right.

 

She supposed she should head home first to greet Daehyun and Chohee, if they were home that is. Jessica internally smiled, as she noted her reference to the house as "home" now instead of "the house."

 

They were standing on the doorstep with expectant gazes. Once they saw Jessica, they smiled brilliantly, opening their arms.

 

"Welcome back." Chohee said excitedly, wrapping her arms around Jessica tightly. Daehyun joined their hug and ruffled her hair.

 

"You look good kiddo." He smiled at her knowingly. She grinned back gratefully.

 

"Thank you both for supporting me." She said, stepping back and bowing formally to the couple who smiled and chuckled.

 

“You’re always welcomed here Jessica, remember that.” Chohee hugged her again with a thankful smile.

 

"Go to school kid. They're all freaking out." Daehyun said, opening the door for her. Jessica winced slightly, and jogged up the stairs. It was still a school day, after all, and she had yet to charge her phone.

 

"Oh, I charged your phone for you dear." Chohee called after her. "Do you need a ride?"

 

"I'll be alright. And thanks!" Jessica called back, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Her blonde hair was up in a ponytail, and she was wearing a blue flannel with the sleeves rolled up and a black tank top under. She changed into black skinny jeans and settled for white Birkenstock sandals, pulling a black bracelet on her slender wrist.

 

"Be careful. You might get beat up." Daehyun joked as she headed out. She flashed an okay sign at him and shut the door behind her.

 

"I didn't think it'd be so nerve-wracking…" she thought to herself upon arriving at school. "What if I really get beat up?"

 

She looked at the time and realized it was the end of lunch. She quickly slipped through the front gate and began making her way across the lawns, maneuvering around the clusters of students sitting on the grass. Stares, whispers, glanced flitted with her every step.

 

"Is that Jessica?"

 

"Is she back?"

 

"Didn't she transfer out?"

 

"I heard she didn't tell anyone she was leaving though."

 

“Is she dating Taeyeon? Is that why she’s back?”

 

Jessica ignores them, looking around for her friends. She spotted Krystal and Sulli sitting in their little spot by the school on the grass. There were three other girls with them now, and Jessica figured they were safe since they were laughing at something one of them had said.

 

"Jung Soojung!" She yelled cheekily at the younger girl. Krystal's head whipped up, and her eyes widened.

 

"Unnie?" She asked hesitantly, running across the grass. Jessica stood there with a sheepish grin.

 

"Hi Soojung." She greeted, not knowing what to say as her hands hung lamely by her sides.

 

People were definitely staring at them now, but Jessica didn't care. The only thing that mattered was that her sister was here, wrapped in her arms burying her face in Jessica's shoulder.

 

"I-I thought you left." Krystal mumbled almost incoherently into Jessica's thin shirt. Jessica felt guilt slam into her, and she tightened her grip on her sister.

 

"Soojung, I'm so sorry. I didn't think I would be gone that long." She apologized, rubbing her younger sister's back. "I'm sorry for making you worry."

 

Krystal pouted slightly, making Jessica feel even worse. Sulli had stood up and come over with a shy smile. "Hi Jessica sunbaenim. I'm Krystal's friend. Thank you for coming back, we were worried about you." She bowed, and Jessica allowed a huge smile to overtake her pretty features.

 

"Just call me unnie Sulli-ah. Thanks for your concern, but I think I was more concerned about you two than myself." She said lightly, smiling widely at the girl who straightened and smiled hesitantly, but happily.

 

"Th-Thanks unnie." She smiled shyly, and Jessica felt her heart melt at the girl's innocent, beautiful smile.

 

She turned to Krystal again, who watched on with a relieved smile. "Anyway, sorry for disturbing your lunch." She said, smiling apologetically at the other three a little way away on the grass who smiled back brightly.

 

Krystal had always been a chic, cool girl but she looked at her unnie with the cutest expression Jessica had ever seen her don. "It's alright unnie, just make sure to buy me bread later arraso?" She winked cheekily in the cutiest was possible, aegyo on full display.

 

Jessica playfully pushed girl's shoulder. "Yah, is that how you greet your unnie? Aigoo, our little Soojung is such a pig." She teased back, ruffling the girl's hair. Krystal giggled, but stopped her antics.

 

"Oh unnie, this is Victoria, Amber, and Luna unnies. They just transferred here the other day from the neighborhood in the next town." She said, pointing to the three on the grass.

 

Jessica felt a huge burden lift off her heart. "I'm glad. Are they your friends?"

 

"Of course. They're really weird, but they're cool." Krystal replied, laughing at Victoria's glare at her remark. Jessica smiled.

 

"I'd love to talk to them later." She said, smoothing Krystal's hair down. Krystal simply beamed at her, and her expression grew thoughtful.

 

"Have you seen the other unnie's yet?" She asked, referring to Jessica's friends. Jessica shook her head no.

 

Krystal giggled. "Good luck unnie. Anyway, you have a lot of explaining to do for me when we get home later, so hurry and say hi to the other unnies." She said, but her statement soon became unnecessary.

 

"THERE SHE IS!"

 

If there wasn't a bunch of stares before, there certainly were now.

 

Both Jung's jumped and Jessica's head snapped around. An angry mob of seven girls, Manager Hwang in the lead, stood angrily fanned out in the distance. Jessica could barely make out who was who. She only recognized Tiffany because of her hot pink sweater and Sunny for her height.

 

She internally frowned as she scanned the mob. Taeyeon was nowhere to be found.

 

The mob advanced at an alarming speed with shouting and pointing, and the next thing she knew she was being engulfed in a huge group hug, Krystal and Sulli lumped in next to her.

 

It was completely chaotic.

 

"JUNG JESSICA HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?"

 

"Unnie that was so mean!"

 

"Jung you are so dead."

 

"I swear I almost went in your room and burned all your possessions."

 

"I almost went with her to eat all the food in your house."

 

"If you ever do that again I'll track you down and punch you in the face!"

 

Jessica laughed, cowering under their hugs. "I never knew you guys were so crude." She looked up with a grin.

 

"BE QUIET." Came the communal response. Jessica looked around, surprised.

 

"You have no right to speak!  I am so upset with you Jessica-shi." Sunny crossed her arms over her chest with a stern glare.

 

"Yeah! You need to sit in a locked room in a tower and reflect on what you've done." Yuri joined in with her own stern glare and crossed arms.

 

Tiffany was still fuming. "Jessica Jung you have so much explaining to do." She glared at the Jung, who could practically see the steam pouring from Manager Hwang's ears.

 

Jessica gulped, and shot a weak grin. "But I'm back now. I'm staying." She said timidly looking around in fear.

 

Their expressions instantly lit up. "Really? YAY!" The communal cheer resounded afresh, and Jessica was once again engulfed in a sea of flailing limbs and bodies.

 

Jessica turned to her sister, remembering the original cause of her worries. "Soojung, no one's bothered you have they?" She asked concernedly, prying her friends off her.

 

Krystal's eyes curved into a smile. "No unnie. Well they came up to me and said they would, but the other unnies protected me." She grinned gratefully at the figures around her.

 

"Yeah! We won't let anything happen to our precious Krystal!" Sooyoung declared, slinging an arm around the younger's shoulders.

 

"I swear I almost knocked those morons out." Yuri glowered, glaring somewhere in the distance.

 

“Taeyeon actually almost did. She slammed the girl into the wall and was all ‘whoosh!’” Hyoyeon said excitedly, reenacting the so-called epic scene with Sunny.

 

"Those idiots won't know what's coming to them!" Yoona cackled, exchanging evil glares with Sunny.

 

Jessica arched an eyebrow. "What did you do?" She asked suspiciously.

 

Yoona turned to her and giggled, saying nothing. Jessica shrugged but let it drop.

 

"That was creepy unnie." Seohyun said from Jessica's right, tugging at Yoona's sleeve. Everyone burst into laughter except Yoona, who looked horribly shocked.

 

"Seohyun! Did you just call unnie 'creepy?'" She said disbelievingly, as she stared at the youngest with wide, hurt eyes.

 

Seohyun giggled.

 

The group burst into laughter again, their familiar chortles melodiously familiar to Jessica. Jessica laughed along, but she failed to notice Sunny and Tiffany huddled a few feet apart from the group, their faces inches from Sunny's phone. "Yes, TaeTae? It's me. She's right here." Tiffany said matter-of-factly, glancing over at Jessica's laughing form.

 

"What? Yeah, right in the middle of the school front path. Yeah. Mhm. No problem Taeng. Alright, hurry up!" Sunny quickly hung up the phone, and they rejoined the group with innocent smiles.

 

Jessica looked at the duo. "What's with the grin?"

 

"Oh nothing." Came the airy response.

 

Hyoyeon pointed, chuckling. "There she is." She nudged Yuri and Tiffany who laughed out loud.

 

Jessica looked over. "What?!" She asked, feeling left out of the loop.

 

Krystal laughed out loud, and pointed. Jessica raised her gaze and froze on the spot.

 

A familiar petite figure was storming across the school grounds.

 

The crowd made way for her, as if she was parting the sea. Jessica could only stand there and stare with a surprised, guilty expression and she was frozen, not knowing what to do.

 

Her friends backed away as Taeyeon's fuming figure came near. She stood directly in from of Jessica, face-to-face.

 

"…"

 

"……"

 

"………"

 

"…………"

 

"……………"

 

"You are an idiot." Taeyeon glared at her, her words calm but her gaze furious.

 

"I-um-well-" Jessica stuttered, suddenly feeling rather anxious. She had planned out what she'd say to the shorter girl, but suddenly she was tongue-tied and feeling awful and-

 

"You are such an idiot."

 

Taeyeon suddenly leaned forward and planted her lips on Jessica's within seconds, and she kissed the blonde with all the definite feelings they never spoke of. Jessica's mind went blank, and she didn't even have time to reciprocate the kiss since Taeyeon pulled away five seconds.

 

Jessica felt her face flushing, and her jaw dropped. Her friends were gasping, and the students around them were whispering but she didn't even hear them as she stared at the still-fuming Taeyeon, who promptly glared at her, then spun on her heel and stormed away.

 

She was gone as fast as she came.

 

"… what?!"

 

Sunny was first to break out of shock. "Well I definitely did not see that coming." She said, staring after Taeyeon's back in the distance.

 

Sooyoung let out a disbelieving laugh. "That midget's got guts."

 

Krystal and Yoona burst into laughter. "Jessi unnie daeeebuk." Krystal snickered between laughs. Yoona clapped her hands and hi-fived her doppelganger. The duo laughed harder upon seeing Jessica's shell-shocked expression and unblinking stare.

 

"Wow. Taengsic lives guys!" Hyoyeon cheered, doing a small victory dance with Sunny.

 

"So much for Taeny then." Sooyoung grumbled.

 

"And YulSic." Yoona added, wiping a fake tear from her eye as she shared a smirk with Krystal.

 

"Taeyeon unnie is so smooth."

 

……

 

They burst into laughter again, to the maknae's chagrin. "What? It's true!" Seohyun protested, shaking Jessica's arm. "Right unnie?" She asked with her ever-innocent eyes.

 

Jessica broke out of her shock and looked at her dxpectant dongsaeng. She exhaled. "Yes Seohyun, your Taeyeon unnie is very smooth. Very very smooth." She said tiredly, suddenly not knowing what to do with herself.

 

Sooyoung's face softened upon seeing the lost Jung. "She's a little upset." She said softly, placing a hand on Jessica's shoulder.

 

"Give her some time. She's shocked." Hyoyeon added, wrapping her arms around Jessica in a reassuring hug.

 

"I knew you liked her! I knew it!" Tiffany grinned like a Totoro, doing a strange -dance with Yuri as the rest of them suddenly began chanting to a strange rhythm.

 

Jessica couldn't help but smile at their crazy antics, but she kept thinking about Taeyeon. "I guess you're right. Thanks guys, I promise I'll talk to her. If she doesn't dump coffee on me first, that is." She sighed.

 

They grinned at her reassuringly. "Don't worry, she likes you too much to not talk to you. Use a cheesy pickup line or something on her later, she'll love it." Sunny cheerily recommended to the Jung.

 

Jessica arched an elegant eyebrow. "A what?"

 

"A pickup line." Was Sunny's collected response. "She's a total dork; you know that already don't you? She loves these kinds of things.

 

"Especially from a cute person like yourself." Yuri smiled at Jessica's lost expression, playfully punching her cheek. "Aigoo, so cute." She cooed, ruffling the soft blonde hair.

 

Jessica scowled and batted away the intruding hand, looking much like a peeved kitten. "Cut it out! And I'll talk to her myself. Later. When she's not so mad at me." She declared, drawing herself up determinedly.

 

The others looked on. Krystal shrugged.

 

"Well good luck unnie."

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Throughout the rest of the school day, every time Jessica saw Taeyeon, she was ignored. Taeyeon apparently chose to leave school early as well, since she wasn't in vocal class. Jessica had to partner herself with two young lads named Jonghyun and Onew. She remembered Jonghyun from a while back when she'd first gotten here. He was the one whom Hyoyeon had hit with a ball of tinfoil at their first lunch. They were nice though, and she found herself enjoying their company since they were the only ones who hadn't asked her about her relationship status with Taeyeon.

 

Bora was right. News really does spread fast.

 

Once school let out, Jessica called Taeyeon again. She'd called the girl countless times throughout the day, and texted her a good amount too. Unfortunately the shorter had not responded or picked up to any of her calls/texts. Jessica was feeling rather frustrated at this point; she felt like an obnoxious clingy girlfriend (which she never was; in all her various relationships, it had been the other party clinging to her.)

 

"Ugh, I don't know any pickup lines…" the blonde groaned as she furiously typed in her laptop. She'd run straight home to look up these pickup lines that Taeyeon seemed to like so much. She read an example, and her ears instantly turned red.

 

"What the hell?! That's what a pickup line is?" She cried in frustration, ready to rip her hair out.

 

Krystal was sitting on her bed calmly reading a book. She looked up at her frustrated unnie and snickered. "You didn't know? I'm surprised unnie, you seem to have a lot of people hanging around." She teased.

 

Jessica glared at her sister who giggled and returned her gaze to her book. "Sorry sorry. Just saying. You should go see her soon, before she dumps you for good." Krystal shifted so she was lying on her stomach.

 

Another glare. "What do you mean 'dump me?!' No one's ever dumped me! I prefer to do the dumping, thank you very much." The eldest Jung sniffed haughtily, allowing her princess side to show.

 

Krystal laughed aloud. "There's a first for everything you know. But as expected, unnie's daebuk." She laughed harder at the icy glare shot her way and her sister's annoyed expression.

 

"Jung Soojung, shut up." Jessica groaned, finally resorting to her unnie power to shut the other up. Krystal smirked but shut up for a while, and Jessica resumed her Internet scanning.

 

After a while, Krystal looked up again. "… you and Taeyeon unnie are seriously daebuk though. Taeyeon unnie is jjiang you know? She literally kissed you speechless. I've never seen you so flustered before." She said thoughtfully, placing a hand under her chin.

 

"JUNG SOOJUNG!"

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Taeyeon still hadn't responded to any of Jessica's attempts to contact her, and even though her friends assured her that Taeyeon was fine, she still wanted to see the short dork. So she thought she would pay Taeyeon's house a visit, but she decided not to since the other might still be upset with her. So she'd resorted to sitting in her room by herself for the Friday night. All her friends claimed to be busy for some strange reason (they were never busy, honestly) so Jessica let them be and decided she'd just sleep an extra three hours. It was raining out anyway, so going out didn't seem very appealing in the first place.

 

Krystal ran by her room with a duffel bag. "I'm going now. Vic unnie's here." She informed her sister. She was going to Victoria's house with Luna, Amber, and Sulli for the night. Jessica smiled. Finally, the girl's life was getting better.

 

"Alright, have fun. Don't stay up too late." She said, giving the girl a hug. "Text me once you get there." She said, unnie instincts kicking in.

 

Krystal beamed cheekily. "Arraso arraso. Love you unnie." She called as she went down the stairs. The front door opened and closed, and Jessica heard happy screams from her sister and the car waiting outside in the pouring rain. Jessica watched her sister from her window, and once she was sure that the girl was safely in the car she closed the curtain.

 

She went back to her bed and lay down with a sigh. Daehyun and Chohee were out for the week, as they had a business trip in Japan, so she was officially alone. She exhaled, and closed her eyes in hopes of sleeping early.

 

Her hopes were smashed though, as a sudden pounding came from the front door and the doorbell started ringing like crazy. Jessica got up and threw her pillow across the room in fury. "WHO IS IT DAMMIT." She growled, storming down the stairs. She threw the door open, and her jaw dropped, fury vanishing.

 

"You gonna let me in?" A soaked Kim Taeyeon stood outside her door under the awning with an arched eyebrow.

 

Jessica snapped back to reality, and quickly stepped aside. "Y-Yeah, come on in." She stuttered, feeling her cheeks heat up at a fabulous rate.

 

Taeyeon smirked at her and stepped in, making sure to take off her soaked shoes and place them on the mat. Jessica shivered at the cold air coming from the open door, and she closed the door quickly, rubbing her bare thighs. She pulled down the rolled sleeves of her pink hoodie and followed Taeyeon to the kitchen.

 

"Your house is warm." Taeyeon noted as she awkwardly stood in the middle of the room, dripping and not wanting to get the furniture wet.

 

Jessica snapped back to her senses after a moment's hesitation, and she quickly pulled a towel from the closet in the hallway. "Tae, you're soaked. What were you doing?!" She demanded, drying the girl's hair. Taeyeon wrinkled her nose under the towel.

 

"I came to find you." She replied easily. "Although I forgot it was supposed to rain."

 

Jessica sighed. "Pabo. Take care of yourself." She said, placing the towel on the girl's head. "I'll get you a change of clothes. Don't move." She ordered, turning to jog up the stairs. Taeyeon shrugged but complied.

 

Jessica came back with a white v-neck and a pair of baggy grey sweatpants. "Here. Go change." She ordered, and Taeyeon obediently shuffled to the nearest bathroom. She came out in five minutes, holding her soaked clothes.

 

"Thanks." She muttered, plodding past Jessica up the stairs. She opened the door to Jessica's room and helped herself to a seat on the bed.

 

Jessica followed her, not bothering to close the door behind her. "Um… so what's up?" She asked lamely, not knowing what to make of the situation.

 

Taeyeon cast a disapproving glance at her. "I think I should be asking you that Miss Jung." She said calmly, pulling her legs up into a cross. "Why would you do that?"

 

Guilt washed over Jessica, and she cast her eyes down to the ground. "I-I didn't really think it out and-"

 

"You know." Taeyeon cut her off. "I have never had anyone, ever, in my life just leave me hanging like that." She cast a calm expression at the adorable guilty face of Jessica, who was now contritely scuffing her feet on the ground.

 

Taeyeon internally grinned. "So cute…" she mentally squealed, but she managed kept her cool composure.

 

Jessica, on the other hand, looked ready to get down and beg for forgiveness. "Taengoo, I'm really sorry. I'm sorry for leaving you hanging like that, and I'm sorry if you think I was playing with your feelings but I wasn't and I would never do that and I just think you should know that I really like you and-"

 

"Sica." Taeyeon cut her off again, this time with an amused smirk. Jessica looked up, surprised

 

"You're rambling."

 

Jessica blushed and looked away, nervously tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Sorry."

 

Taeyeon finally allowed a grin to cross her features, and she cursed her immense affection for the girl in front of her. "You know, you're lucky I love you." She said casually.

 

Jessica looked up with wide eyes. "Huh?" She asked dumbly.

 

Taeyeon chuckled, and she walked to the shocked girl with a mischievous spark in her eyes. "Do I really need to spell it out for you?" She asked amusedly.

 

She received another blank stare in response.

 

"Well I guess I should then shouldn't I?" Taeyeon's grin grew bigger as she crossed the room to where the awestruck girl was standing. She chuckled softly as she stood directly in front of Jessica, their faces centimeters apart.

 

"I," she started, cupping the girl's face in her hands and planting a light kiss on Jessica's forehead.

 

"Love," she moved down the angelic face, pecking the other girl's button nose.

 

"You."

 

Jessica's mind went completely blank for the nth time that hour.

 

"So you should never, ever, ever leave me like that again." Taeyeon said as they broke apart, leaning her forehead gently against Jessica's as she finally allowed a beautiful smile to grace her delicate features.

 

Jessica's breath caught in , and she swore Taeyeon was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen in all her seventeen years of living. Dark onyx eyes met baby brown, and the next thing she knew was Taeyeon's arms around her waist and Taeyeon's face buried in her shoulder, and Taeyeon's body pressed against hers in a tight embrace.

 

"I was so scared. Don't ever do that to me again Sica. I thought you left for good." She murmured in Jessica's shirt, tightening her grip on the slightly taller girl.

 

Jessica finally regained her senses, and she wrapped her arms around the petite figure embracing her. She pulled Taeyeon close and planted a kiss on the child-like figure's head. "I won't. I'm sorry." She murmured into the soft reddish locks

 

Taeyeon finally pulled away with a sad pout, looking very much like an upset five year old and Jessica grinned like a maniac at the adorable sight in front of her.

 

"I really hate you sometimes." Taeyeon sniffled, turning her back on Jessica with a pout. Jessica laughed at the sudden childish display.

 

"I thought you loved me?" She teased, wrapping her arms around the Kim's waist in a backhug.

 

Taeyeon instinctually leaned back into Jessica's embrace. "Shut up." She mumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. A blush adorned her cheeks, but Jessica only saw the red tips of her ears.

 

"Hmm. Just so you know, I love you too." Jessica said just as casually as Taeyeon had before.

 

Taeyeon humphed. "You better." She muttered, and Jessica laughed aloud. She leaned her head forward and stole a kiss from the soft pouting lips that turned back to face her. Taeyeon blushed instantly, not expecting the contact and Jessica giggled as she rested her head on Taeyeon's shoulder.

 

"It's funny how things turn out sometimes." Jessica said, burying her face in Taeyeon's neck and inhaling the other girl's sweet scent.

 

Taeyeon hummed, tickling Jessica's face. "Does it matter? I still love you." She smiled sweetly at her new girlfriend as Jessica lifted her head lazily and grinned.

 

"I guess not. It's just how chemicals collide then."

 

"Right. Chemicals. And stars." Taeyeon added with a cheeky grin.

 

"Yes. Lots of stars. Satellites. Airplanes. Things of the sky."

 

"Of course. Don't forget the sun."

 

"I think that's a little too broad. And dangerous." Jessica frowned. "Ultraviolet rays and everything."

 

"Fine. Let's stick to chemicals then, for now."

 

"That sounds pretty good. But honestly chemicals can be pretty dangerous too."

 

"It's better than something cancerous though! Sica, just leave it. It's romantic."

 

 

"Can't chemicals be cancerous too?"

 

 

"Jung Sooyeon!"

 

 

"Fine. I love you."

 

"I love you too."

 

A pack of cigarettes sat disregarded in the trash can.

 

Shut your eyes

And feel the chemicals collide

Stars and satellites

Spinning round and round

On the night you saved my life

 

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