Amber’s train of thoughts been interrupted when his hand phone ringing. He took it out from his pocket and answered the call.

“Hello,” He greeted the other line.

“Hello, Am. Where’re you? It’s going to end soon. Are you sure you can handle this?” The other line asked him with concern.

“I’m still here, hyung. Don’t worry, I can handle the last part,” Amber told Taeng, tried to assured him. He can hear Taeng sigh at the other line.

“Ok then, if you say so. Just…be strong,” Taeng said that to him. He tried to support him.

“Thanks, hyung,” Amber thanked him and hang up the call. He took out his camera and put it in standby mode and walked a little closer to the stage. The mc was talking on the stage right now.

“Ladies and gentleman, we finally reach our last part of our event. Last but not least, we’ll presents you our second main character today. It’s call Thea Tiara. Thea means the shining wide with sparkling light. It suit the tiara with genuine diamond all around it and of course, our lovely idol tonight, Krystal Jung will present it to you once again. She’ll wearing the tiara while she sing her new song, Agony. It’s still not released yet, you’ll hear it for the first time here in this magnificent hall. Let’s give them a big applause,” After Lee Teuk ended his speech, the hall echoes with the applause from the audience. Soon the lights off, leave only the spot light that had been directed on the stage. Then, Krystal coming down to the stage using the swing up in the air. She wearing the Grecian style of this one-shoulder champagne dress with the Thea Tiara, perfectly attached around her head. All the audience were stunned and captivated by her beauty including him, it just like the goddess from the east finally decide to showed herself. 

picture credit to the owner

picture credit to the owner

Krystal settled down in front of the black keyboard. Standing elegantly and started playing the keys with her spired fingers. A single spot light only toward her. The melancholy of Agony start.

Agony

There’s a girl that gave him her heart

But he gave her the pain and hurt

Did you ever fall for someone you shouldn’t

Try hard to fight but you just couldn’t

You fall deeper with each passing day

Though try to hide it in possible way

Now, I do believe

Pleasure of love last a moment

Though it took years to be created

Now, I do believe

Pain of love last a lifetime

Since it took the life of mine

*Never say I love you, if you don’t care

Never talk about feeling, if they aren’t there

Never hold my hand, if you’re gonna break my heart

Never say you’re going to, if you don’t plan to start

Never look into my eyes, if all you do is lie

Never say hi, if you mean goodbye

Never say forever, cuz forever makes me cry

The song continued but in her deepest soul, this is just like another way to torment her already feeble heart. It could be say that the song was telling about how she felt right now, how terrific is that? She smirked in her heart. She tried hard to hold on, to keep standing, doesn’t want to look weak but fate always had another plan. Her eyes caught of something in that crowd.

While he only kept taking the pictures, tried every single strength that he had to distract himself from her. Tried not to break the wall between them, no matter how much he want to ran to her, embrace her and felt her in his arm again. But then, something caught his sight.

Their eyes locked with each other. They immersed in their own feeling, no words been said.                        She looked at him. He looked at her.

Her fingers still moving on the keys, continuing the song. His hands still holding the camera, taking the pictures. It just like the body move itself but the mind was somewhere else. Only at that moment, there’s no one else, only them here, in this hall. Till the last part of the song, she sing though her eyes still locked on him. His camera still caught her figure.

Your love leave those memories that no one could steal

But your love also leave the pain that no one could heal

How I wish I could forget everything

But those memento of ours keep haunting

Slowly this agony will killing me

Deeply I’m drowning in agony inside of me….

                                                                     ~P.S~

SPLASH!!

A loud splash can be heard from the stage as Krystal fell down, disappeared from the eyes of the audience. Everyone gasped and started to wonder where’s she and then, the large screen showed a girl in the water, it’s Krystal. The melancholy continued, a single spot light directed on the floor next to the black keyboard where the Thea Tiara was placed on it. The crowd gave a loud and big applause for her great performance. Till the end he took the pictures. But when he looked back at the pictures taken inside the camera, from the start she looks gorgeous and beautiful till the last part, something wetted her cheeks. Krystal cried. The others might not noticed it since it was dark and only single spot light was directed to her or if there’s anyone saw it, perhaps they’ll assumed it as a part of the show but for him, he knew it very well. Those tears were true, not a fake or lie. ‘Did I hurt you that much, princess?’ His inner side kept asking himself.

picture credit to the owner

 And that’s the time, it broke his heart more because no matter how hard he want to denied, deep down he know why. Because of Amber she cried. That’s the cue for Amber to leave the hall. Suddenly, he felt this magnificent hall might suffocate him, likes he might choked in his own saliva. He walked out from the hall, leaving the crowd, ignoring his ringing hand phone that he assumed, the call probably from Taeng. Amber stepped inside his car and drove away. He doesn’t know where to go but he just needed to leave.

After Krystal finished her last song, Tiffany went to dressing room looking for her because she noticed something was wrong during Krystal’s last performance. She could sense it, Krystal’s expression wasn’t like usual when she performed. The way she sang, it’s like only her body was there, her soul was somewhere else. Tiffany needs to find the answer, she wanted to know why. Tiffany knocked on the door a couple of time but no one answered.

“Krys, are you in there? I’m gonna open the door now,” Lucky her, the door was unlocked. Tiffany opened it and her eyes started to looked for Krystal but there’s no single sign or trace of Krystal not even her bag, only her dress was left on the chair. Tiffany’s heart started to racing. She took out his hand phone and called a number. When the other line picked up the call, she didn’t wait till the other line greeted her back.

“Oppa, where’re you now?” Tiffany asked him, her voice sound so anxious and tense.

“Tiff hey, what’s wrong?” Kangin that could sense something off in her tone, asked her back.

“I can’t find her, oppa. I don’t know where Krystal is. Oh god, don’t let her doing anything stupid,” Tiffany told him. Her voice still sounds uneasy.  

“Tiff, relax. You need to calm down. We’ll find her. You try look inside the hall, I’ll find her outside here,” Then, both of them hang up the call. While looking for Krystal, Tiffany’s hand still moving on  her iphone, looking for every number that she can call and asked for Krystal but all of them were giving her only negative answer. Fortunately, the event already ended, well at least for Krystal since there’s nothing that needed for Krystal to be there anymore.

Meanwhile, Amber finally arrived at one of the nightclub in the city after been driving for almost an hour. He wasn’t the one who’s really fond of the nightclub, not because he hate it since he used to hang out with his friends somewhere likes this too. It just that sometimes it’s too much of noise and smells but tonight, he thought he needs a couple of shot and distracted his mind by watching the youth been wasted here. After his second shot of brewski, he felt a little tipsy but still sober enough to recognised the familiar figure on the dance floor with all the guys surrounding her, touching her, feeling her, groping her while the girl only kept dancing, laughing and definitely, drunk. Because of her unstable mind, she just let them be.

Amber tried to take a closer look so he went to the crowd. And yes, he always can trust his eyes because no matter what he always can recognised her figure even her hoodie still up covering her head. A very familiar one. The one that he always longing for, the reason why he’s been here tonight. ‘Princess?’ His inner side calling for her. When there’s one guy tried to kiss her lips even she tried to push it but fail, his heart started to boiling up and he’s clench his fist. He gave that damn guy a real hard punch till he fell, the others shocked for a moment but continued to doing whatsoever it is. Maybe they already used to this or maybe they just too drunk to interrupt in someone else business but one thing for sure, he doesn’t care. He didn’t even look at the guy that he already gave a punch.

He only grabbed her hand and dragged her out from the nightclub. With a little struggling and whining from her that she still want to drink, he pushed her into his car. He groaned and hit the steering wheel a little bit hard. He’s frustrated, he’s mad, he’s furious and his inner side was raging but don’t know to who. Maybe to her because of her reckless act but he thought, it’s much to himself because he can’t protect her and be with her when she needs him. His head felt a little throb and woozy, the brewski that he took finally give a sign that his mind would be unstable soon. He took a deep breath and tried to talk to her.

“Krystal, where do you live? I need to bring you back home,” He told her. His tone was emotionless.

“No..(hic)…don’t want..(hic)..I want drink…(hic)…mooorreee drink..(hic),” She whined in her incoherent tone and then, collapsed on her seat. Amber sighed. He never going to get her address in  this kind of state. Without having another choice, he drove the car to his apartment. When he reached his apartment, he struggle a little when he tried to brought her into his apartment because she started to awake and more and more whining from her. Not to mention that he also half sober and a little tipsy.

“You silly….(hic)..who’re you?...(hic)..where you take me?...(hic)..” Krystal said to him with her incoherent words.

“My home, Krystal,” He told her while still holding her since she can stands properly in her state now and closed the door behind them. She whines more when she heard the word ‘home’.

“No….(hic)…no home…(hic)…don’t want..” She whines but now, her eyes glistened with tears. He shocked a little. ‘Does she hate her home?’ His inner side asking. She struggling tried to free herself from him but failed miserably because of her drunken state.

“Home…(hic)..I’ll be stuck..(hic)..in room…(hic)…I’ll fall  asleep…(hic)…dream again..(hic)..” Krystal whines more and only stopped when she started to sniffing. He looked at her dearly, he’s now facing her and hold her body closed to him. His heart break when he looked at her downhearted state.

“Dreams…(hic)…memories…(hic)..him..hurt so much….too much pain,” She whined between her sobs. The tears finally escaped from her eyes.

“This…(hic)..in pain…(hic)..hurt…why he doing this to me…(hic)…” She took her hand and clenched a fist. She hit her chest where her heart is, likes she tried to ease the pain. She cried more because the pain won’t go away. Amber totally understood it, guilt piled up in his chest. It’s all his fault, he’s the one the cause of this. He took her hand that kept hitting her chest and hold it tightly.

“Am I not good enough?...(hic).. Am I bad?...(hic)..,” Krystal cries echoed in his apartment. She looked at him. He only shook his head while cupped her face with one of his palm, just like he tried to answer her. And now, his eyes were glistened with tears, looking at her feeble and vulnerable state. Her eyes were red and puffy along with her nose and cheek, the tears still falling.

“Then, why?!..why he doing this to me?!...” She sobs more, her tone a little high while grabbed his collar with both of her hands. The tears pouring down on her cheek. He only hugged her.

“I hate him….really hate him…(hic)…but why…my heart still..(hic) missing him…” Krystal said it between her tears and sobs. Amber’s heart broke more, no it shattered now. His tears finally managed to escapes. He cupped her face with both of his hand, his thumb her cheeks softly and looked at her tenderly. She’s still cried.

“I’m so sorry, princess,” Finally, that words came out from his mouth. He doesn’t know why he said that to her now since the probability she remembered this tomorrow was low. He tried to wipe her tears and put a chaste kiss on both of her eyes while kept whispering apology. He put their forehead together, his hands still her cheeks. Krystal stopped sobbing but her tears still flowing down. Their eyes locked with each other, full of longing and yearning. Slowly the space became small and smaller till there’s no space anymore between their face. Their lips molded together and locked on. Her hands reached his neck and brushes his hair lightly while his hands hold her waist tighter and closer. The kiss heating up, soon the cold apartment becomes hotter.

The next morning, he woke up with her head on his chest and his hand around her body like they used to be, years ago. He smiled contently at the sight of her sleepy face, her eyes still closed though her body snuggling closer to him. He hugged her tighter and kissed her forehead gently, doesn’t want to wake up the ice princess. Something clicked in his head when he looked at her in his arm right now, he wanted this, he wanted her back into his life. If there’s still a chance, he’ll take it, no he’ll fight for her. He’ll make the chance, he’ll win her back. His hand phone on the nightstand vibrates, stopping him from his long thought. He looked at the notification that full with missed call and messages from Taeng but one new message caught his eyes.

To : Amber

You had play enough

Back to the deal

From : Anonymous

The reality had been thrown hard back to him, straight to his face. There’s no way they can get back together, not even a single chance. Amber freed himself from her slowly, she stirred a little but still sleeping. He sat on his bed, hands on his knee while his palm cupped his face. He release a heavy sigh, he ruffled his hair in frust. He looked at her that still sleeping on his bed with a large shirt that certainly not her covering her upper body. He cupped her face and it gently. He wanted to remember her face, her figure that he never going to tired with. His eyes glistened with tears again, he kiss her cheek softly while slowly whispering ‘I’m sorry’. The thought of have to separate from her and can’t be with her, make his heart fall to pieces. A single tear managed to escape.

Amber changed his clothes and walked out from his apartment after he took a final glanced at her. That stupid llama leaves the ice princess alone, again.    

 While at Krystal’s house, Tiffany and Kangin were dead worried tried to figure out where’s Krystal. They’ve been looking for her the whole night, their calls didn’t even reached her for once. Tiffany had called everyone that Krystal’s knew but none of them gave a positive answer. Tiffany rubbed her temple, her head throb the cause of stayed up all night and the worried and anxious of Krystal’s missing filling her up.

“Oppa, what if we report to the police?” Tiffany broke their silence.

“They only take the case if the person was missing more than 24 hours. Besides, I don’t think we want to make a big fuss about this before we confirm it,” Kangin told her as a matter of fact. He knew they already tried everything and that’s their last choice but a missing Krystal on the tabloid wasn’t a perfect cover.

“I know, oppa but I’m deadlocked. We been searching her for the whole night but nothing that we got,” Tiffany let out her frustration. Worried of where Krystal is, is she safe, is she well, everything came across her mind now.

“Patient, ok. We’ll find her,” Kangin told her while squeeze her shoulder lightly, tried to assured her. Though he also in the same state likes Tiffany. He doesn’t know where to find Krystal anymore but he doesn’t want to showed it to her, it’s enough with one person that’s almost break down, someone needs to be strong. Both of them were too immersed in their own thought. A sudden ringing came from Tiffany’s hand phone. She looked at the ID caller, a long sigh coming out from her. Kangin only looked at her expression suspiciously. Tiffany took a deep breath and answered the call.

“Hello, Jess,” Tiffany greeted the other line. Now, Kangin understand why she showed that kind of expression before. They were really in dead end.

“Tiff, I want an answer,” Jessica told her sternly without even bother to greet her back. Her tone sounds so emphasized in every word.

“What answer, Jess? I don’t get it,” Tiffany asked her. She felt strange with what Jessica asked from her.

“You don’t get it?! That article in the website of Hotz in Seoul, what kind of article is that? I told you to watch over her and not let her go to that kind of place anymore. It’s enough what she had done before,” Jessica told her. Her voice still sounds so stern and annoyed.

“Article? Wait a minute, Jess,” Tiffany told her while she gestured her hand to Kangin to look for the website. When they found it, both of their eyes wide open. The website are basically about artists,  gossips, and scandals. When they saw what Jessica told them, they knew that she have right to felt furious. The article was about Krystal with the title ‘KRYSTAL JUNG WAS SPOTTED IN ONE OF THE NIGHTCLUB IN SEOUL’. They read more but luckily there’s no strong evidence, it just basically what the peoples in the club saw, no pictures. But first they need to calm down the snow queen.

“Jess, it just an article. You know, they always have this kind of gossips all the time. Besides, she got an event last night,” Tiffany told her.

“So, it wasn’t true?” Jessica asked her, her tone a little low than before.

“No, it’s not, Jess,” Tiffany assured her.

“Ok then, where’s she now?” Jessica asked her again, her tone was emotionless. Tiffany gulped hard when she heard her question. Now, it’s the hard part because the real answer is they also don’t know where’s Krystal right now but of course, they can’t tell Jessica that. Another lie been made.

“She got an early schedule. I’ll tell her to call you when she got the time,” Tiffany told her, tried hard not to sounds like she was lying. Jessica finally hang up a moment later after she satisfied with Tiffany’s answer. Tiffany gazed at Kangin, full of meaning.

“Oppa…” Before she could say anything further, Kangin cuts her words.

“I’ll find which club is that,” Kangin said that to her likes he already understand what Tiffany tried to told him. Been in this showbiz for four years, he already know what needs to be done in this kind of situation. Without waiting any longer, he grabbed his car’s key and walked out from the house. While Tiffany took her hand phone and called a few numbers, she needs to move quick to avoid this news from widely spread though she also doesn’t know whether Krystal was there or not last night. She’ll find the answer when she met her.

In the meantime, Krystal was already awake from her deep sleep. Her head was throbbing so hard, must be her hangover. She held her head, tried to remembered what happened last night since she had no idea where’s she right now or on who’s bed she lying. But what came to her mind were the memory of her taking the cab after she felt so miserably and on the edge of broken again, she stopped at the nightclub, and kept drinking, shot after shot. Then, she forgot what happened. She looked at herself and her eyes caught on what she been wearing, definitely not her shirt. She smell it. It’s him, she can recognised the familiar husky-solid cologne and the single frame on the nightstand confirm it. It’s a picture of Amber.

Once again, she’s falling down. Krystal’s had a feeling that something was happened last night but she quickly ignore it. She doesn’t want to think about it. Besides, if something happened, it’s not going to change anything. She’ll still be the same girl, his ex-girlfriend and it same goes to him excepted that he’s the only guy who ever had touch her like that though she doubt about that when it comes to him. The only thing she wants right now was get out from here before he’s back. So, she changed back to her clothes last night and put up her hoodie. Krystal’s take a cab and went straight to her house.  

While in the cab, her mind kept thinking of what happened when she woke up from his bed. She felt a real damn stupid, like a fool. Why must he be the one who’s found her? Why she kept falling back to him? Why’re the fate so cruel, breaking them but kept crossing their path? And again, she’s on the verge of tears. When Krystal reached her house, she stepped out from the cab and went into her house. Tiffany that still in the living room, got a shocked when she looked at Krystal. She wanted to lashed out her anger but she changed her mind when she looked at how miserable Krystal looks right now. Tiffany went to her slowly.

“Krystal?” She called her name while Krystal only gave her a blank look. Tiffany caught her body when Krystal suddenly plopped down on the floor. Tiffany can felt her body trembles. She looked at her face, tears flowing down on Krystal’s cheek though her face was expressionless. Tiffany hugged Krystal, tried to give her some comfort while Krystal kept staring blankly, tears still streaming down her face. Tiffany only hugged her more while her hair gently. Something must be happened, Tiffany knew it. If Krystal was breaking down like this, there must be a reason behind it.

“How’s she?” Kangin asked Tiffany when he got home after Tiffany called him that Krystal already at home.

“Sleeping. She look worn out,” Tiffany told him. Kangin sigh a relief, at least, she’s not missing.

“Did she tell you where’s she last night?” Kangin asked Tiffany while took a sit on the long couch. He already can felt the tiredness of his body.

“No and I can’t ask her yet in that kind of state,” Tiffany told him.

“What about the article?” Tiffany added.

“I went to the nightclub and looks like some of them saw Krystal though I don’t know whether we can believe them or not. But don’t worry, I got some contacts and it’s already settle. So, there’s no evidence or anyone can prove it. It’s going to be just like another those bad rumours about Krystal,” Kangin explained to her. Finally, Tiffany could breath easy. That article already been taken care.

“Good, we don’t need any more pressure than we already have. But I don’t know that oppa also got some connections,” Tiffany told him while looking at him and raised one of her brows.

“Well, you’re not the only one who has a lot of friends. In this showbiz, they come in handy when it comes to something like this,” Kangin said that to her as a matter of fact. Tiffany only grinned at him and couldn't denied more.

“I’m gonna take a rest. This whole thing already take a toll in me and you better take a rest too. You didn’t sleep at all last night,” Kangin told her with full of concern.

“Yes, oppa. I will,” Tiffany told him before he left her and went into his bedroom. Tiffany checked on Krystal’s schedule, looks like they still got time till tomorrow. All of them needs to catch forty winks before went back to Krystal’s schedule.