So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.

Galatians 5:16-17

With wide eyes, dropped mouths, and angry expressions, Krystal’s friends stared at her as she finished recounting her story.

“So, he just...dumped you? Because he liked Seulgi?” Jinri, or commonly referred to as Sulli, reiterated for clarification. Indeed, she looked a bit confused with her knitted eyebrows and frown.

“Yup,” Krystal said glumly. Sulli’s confused face transformed into one of indignation.

“Why, that little- I oughta- He said he changed!” she exclaimed in outrage.

Amber snorted. “Obviously he didn’t.”

Sunyoung- also known as Luna- crossed her arms. “We should teach that boy a lesson.” The other girls, except one other, nodded in agreement. The one who didn’t agree was Victoria, the mother of the group. She looked at Krystal in concern.

“Hey, Krystal, it’s his loss. Honestly. He lost a wonderful girlfriend,” she tried to cheer up the saddened girl who couldn’t smile in return.

“Thanks, Vic,” is all Krystal could say. The atmosphere of the table had considerably dampened. Until Sulli attempted to brighten it.

“Why don’t you come clubbing with us this Saturday?” she suggested.

“Yeah, maybe find another guy. There are plenty of other guys in the sea,” Luna agreed.

Normally Krystal was the party animal, the first to suggest clubbing. But at that moment, she didn’t feel like doing anything except maybe going home and watching melodramas with tubs of ice cream in her pajamas.

She sighed heavily. “No thanks, I’m not interested. I’m done with relationships anyways.”

“What?!” All four other girls chorused in surprise.

“But, you’re in your second year of college now, you can’t not have a boyfriend,” Luna blinked.

Amber nodded. “This is the time to have a relationship.”

Krystal snorted. “Easy for you guys to say. You all have steady relationships with wonderful boyfriends.”

The four girls looked at each other before looking away a bit sheepishly. It was true. Sulli recently got into a relationship with a dashing young man named Minho who was a rising super soccer player. For nearly three years now, Luna’s been going out with a man named Jinki who oddly went by Onew. Victoria was freaking engaged with her boyfriend of five years, a businessman named Zhou Mi. Even Amber, the tomboy of the group, had someone: a playful and talented musician, Henry Lau.

Where did that leave the now newly single Krystal? She wasn’t quite sure, but she tried to ignore the odd stinging of jealousy in her heart at the thought of all four of her friends happily with their boyfriends, leaving her all alone at her house with only ice cream to keep her company-

“I think Krystal and I need to head back to university now,” Sulli’s voice drew Krystal out from her thoughts.

“Yeah, I have to get going too,” Luna agreed. The five girls cleaned up their table and walked out of the restaurant where they had met up for their weekly lunch break.

Before they dispersed, they made sure to hug one another and remind each other to call frequently. Krystal in particular received extra hugs for her hardship.

“If you’re going to beat up that punk, make sure to call me,” Luna half joked as she tightly hugged Krystal. For an innocent angelic looking person, she could be quite scary.

“Yeah, call me too. I’m going to whoop his ,” Amber went along with Luna’s joke, but Krystal knew Amber could- and would if she was able to- beat up Kai.

Victoria gave Krystal a more gentle hug and whispered into her ear, “Stay strong, Krystal. Don’t be so discouraged because of one boy.” She pulled back from the hug and gave a kind smile. “After all, your future boyfriend could enter your life very soon, and you wouldn’t know it because you didn’t give him a chance.”

Before Krystal could ask what in the world Victoria possibly meant, Sulli was tugging Krystal’s sleeve, slightly panicking.

“Krystal, we have to leave now. My next class is in eleven minutes,” she frantically urged. She glanced at her watch. “And I think the next bus comes in three minutes. And it’ll take us a good two minutes to get to the bus stop-”

“Stop chattering, and let’s go,” Krystal firmly ordered. Putting aside Victoria’s mysterious words aside, she waved goodbye to the others and ran with Sulli to the bus stop with a bus heading to their university, They panted heavily when they reached to the stop, but at least they arrived there just in time as the bus pulled up.

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