Krystal looked around; so many people have gathered to celebrate the New Year’s Eve. This time around, at least hundred people were partying inside and outside the house, loud music blasting throughout the whole neighborhood. As expected, Jay Part took care of the music while mostly each guest brought a bottle of their preferred drink to help out Krystal with the booze. Solo cups in every person’s hold (Sulli insisted on buying typical party things as seen on TV), the atmosphere of the party was even better than at the Christmas’ party.

Kitchen was mainly occupied by the watchers of the beer pong game. Right now Doyoung and some unseen girl were playing against Vernon and Momo, a girl from Tzuyu’s class and fellow cheerleader of Jiyeon. The whole kitchen was divided by two groups that were either team Doyoung or team Vernon. Snickering at a cheering by a girl known as Sana, Krystal sipped from her red plastic cup and exited the packed room into the long hallway.

The halls weren’t empty either- the host tried not to look at all the flirting going on by the walls. Back in the living room it was a true mess. One of the speakers was placed here, but not many were dancing. Most of the students in this spacious room were sitting in a big circle, pouring drinks clockwise; others were just plainly sitting on the couch, smoking pot. The kids by the walls were chatting in groups, but overall, not a lot of people were here.

The true party was outside the house. At least half the guests were by the pool, dancing or swimming. There was Jay Park working as the DJ, Suzy and other girls drinking from their cups nearby the drinks’ table, Minho, Jackson and Jungkook with his friends talking about sports.

Sulli was there too, swimming inside the pool with Jiyeon, whom she got friendly with since the start of the party. Somewhat bored, Krystal neared the table full of drinks and poured herself some more juice. Yes, that’s right. Although everyone here were drinking alcohol, Krystal was the only one opting for juice or soda instead of booze. It didn’t escape Suzy’s eyes, as she noted:

“You’re drinking soft drinks again.”

The host sheepishly smiled at the slightly red-faced girl. “Well, yeah, somebody has to look after everyone.”

“Nonsense,” Nana declared, “You’re allowed to have some fun too- it’s your party.”

“I’m having lots of fun as it is,” Krystal faked a smile.

“Don’t waste your time on her,” a voice interrupted the trio, “She probably doesn’t want to drink because of her previous experience.”

Krystal instantly turned around to glare at the cocky face smirking at her. “Myungsoo.”

The boy looked pleased beyond words by the reaction he got from her. He lived for moments like these.

Suzy and Nana exchanged glances and laughing, left the two to bicker.

“I’m surprised you decided to come here tonight.”

Myungsoo shrugged, “Me and my pals didn’t have anywhere else to party.”

Krystal glanced around the backyard. Many people here, yet she couldn’t spot anyone from this ’ group. “Since you mentioned, where are they? I haven’t seen them all evening.”

“I doubt you would recognize them even if you saw them. Last time I checked you got drunk really fast the time you met up with them.”

“Oh I remember them all right,” Krystal blew a raspberry.

Myungsoo dropped his cocky attitude and took several bottles of vodka from the table. “We’re all upstairs, playing some games. Wanna join us?”

“I think I’ll pass this time.”

“Suit yourself.”

In just a matter of seconds, Krystal was left all alone, again. A tad irritated by Myungsoo’s mere presence, the host filled her solo cup once more, this time mixing a little bit of an unknown drink into her juice. She inspected almost the whole house for anything bad happening, leaving just the upper floor for further inspection. However, since The and his buddies are up there, Krystal chose to leave the second floor as it is, leaving her no other activity than checking her phone.

There was a message waiting for her from an anonymous number. It read, “Hi, Krystal. It’s your sub, Mark. I’m a bit drunk to be writing to you, but do you want to meet up? I think we have something serious to discuss.”

Hold on, what?

Krystal reread the message over and over until she was sure that she wasn’t dreaming. It was sent around ten minutes ago, she noted, as the time was nearing half twelve.

“,” she quietly cursed and started typing her response. Just few seconds after her message was sent she got an immediate response. Krystal smiled shyly; was he waiting for her?

Whether she was thinking clearly, she had no idea, as she dialed the taxi number and ordered a ride. As the night was beyond busy, the taxi should arrive in around twenty minutes, giving her the time to worry about what Mark wants to talk about.

As she was nervous beyond words, Krystal poured herself another drink, this time mainly alcohol and gulped it down in one quick motion.

Suzy once again came to stand by the table, as she watched Krystal drink one drink after another in short breaks. Tzuyu patted Krystal’s back when the latter choked on one of the shots and suggested another idea.

“Krystal, how about you take it a bit slower? Let’s go with me upstairs, there are people playing some fun drinking games, I think you would like it,” she smiled like an angel.

Krystal didn’t feel any effect of the alcohol yet, as she murmured, “Myungsoo is there, I really despise his guts.”

Tzuyu and Suzy interlaced their fingers with the host’s. Suzy grinned, “We won’t leave you alone with him to fight like you’re used to. Besides, there are lots of nice people upstairs, let’s go.”

Anything to push the thought of Mark away for a while, Krystal thought, as she and her two new friends made their way into the guest room on the second floor.

The group inside wasn’t small, not at all. Around fifteen people were chatting and drinking, not really looking at the newest addition to the circle. Once the three girls sat down, a boy named Sungyeol proposed a new game.

“Let’s play the “Bottle”!”

The girls seated in the circle were quick to grunt.

“We’re not playing,” some couples announced and sprung to their feet, eight people in total.

“That’s even better!” Sungjong clapped his hand in delight as the couples exited the room. “But how about a twist on the game?”

Tzuyu asked with utter interest, “What do you have in mind?”

Sungjong deviously looked at the gorgeous girl straight in the eyes. “Mix it up with “Seven minutes in heaven”.”

“This is childish,” Krystal stood up, “I came here thinking you’ll be playing with drinks.”

She felt a soft hand grip her palm. She hadn’t noticed, but as the eight people left, L was sitting on her right. The boy was signaling for her to sit down.

Slightly unsure of his signal to stay there, she slowly sat down beside him, giving Sungyeol the cue to explain the new game.

“Alright, I know we all want to drink. So the rules are, we play it like a regular “Bottle”, but with a twist. Every time you spin the bottle, you have the chance to either kiss the person or gulp down seven shots. Every seventh pair has to do the seven minutes in heaven thing. Got it?”

“That sounds interesting,” Taeyong smirked, “But aren’t seven shots too much?”

Sungjong high-fived Sungyeol. “That’s the point. You’ll have to kiss no matter what.”

“Alright, let’s begin.”

“I’ll start,” Jin announced. It seems like Jungkook’s group was all over the place.

The spinning bottle stopped by L. Both boys looked disgusted by the thought and the poor Jin had to drink seven shots.

Next up was Jihyo, a classmate of Tzuyu. The red-headed girl spun the bottle, which turned to none other than Suzy. The two girls chuckled and to boys’ dismay, Jihyo gulped down the seven shots. As the circle went, it was Taeyong’s turn, then Seulgi, Suzy and Tzuyu’s, until it was time for Krystal to try out her luck. All of the previous spins resulted in drinking the shots and the host wasn’t so against doing the same.

She truly had no luck, as the bottle stopped on the person on her right. L questioningly glanced at girl, who quickly poured herself the drink and gulped it down with no resistance.

“She will rather drink the shots than kiss you,” Sungjong teased L with a knowing look. Then, he whispered something else in his ear, “Just wait till she drinks more, it’ll be just like the last time.”

Next up was Myungsoo. He got Taeyong, so drinking was his only option.

However, the real thing started when Sungjong spun the bottle. It landed on Tzuyu, who shyly returned his kiss. The full circle quickly came and it was Krystal’s time, again.

“!”

“Hey, you two are the seventh couple! Seven minutes in heaven for you two!” Sungyeol cheered and watched as Krystal and L closed the bathroom door behind them.

As the others continued to play, Krystal tried not to stumble on anything. “Can we at least have some light inside?”

Myungsoo snickered at her worried voice, “Not according to the rules.”

Even though she couldn’t clearly see his face, she knew he was looking all coy like he’s used to.

“How come you can get on my nerves so easily?”

“I have that special charm about me.”

“Nah, you’re just the biggest I know,” Krystal sat down on the ground by the door. L followed suit.

“And you’re the worst brat. That’s why no one wants you.”

Krystal blushed oh-so-slightly at his comment. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

Myungsoo intuitively gulped down. Does she remember what happened between them after the ball?

“You’re not that desirable either, though,” Krystal smirked in the dark.

Myungsoo chuckled at her, “I expected a greater comeback from you.”

“Well maybe I’m too tired to bicker with you all the time.” A sudden realization came up to Krystal, as she continued, “Only few more months and we’ll go our separate ways. How about we call it truce and act like adults?”

To prove her suggestion, she even extended her palm towards to the handsome fella sitting nearby.

“Not a chance,” L left her hand hanging in the air.

“You lil’ ,” Krystal’s palm s its way behind the unknowing boy’s head only to serve the most hurtful slap on the back of the head she could manage.

Wincing at the pouncing scalp, L glared at her with as much hate as he had towards the whole wide world. “Oh no you didn’t!”

The boy literally jumped on the girl, taking the girl’s hands in his hold by surprise. Krystal’s head banged on the door while her back quickly slumped on the cold marble floor whilst Myungsoo instinctively placed himself on top of her legs to prevent any resistance.

“Just a moment ago they were fighting, what’s going on there now?” Suzy quietly whispered to the group in the guest room.

“Seven minutes in heaven does miracles to people. Seulgi, your turn,” Sungyeol diverted everyone’s attention back to the game.

Krystal tried to retract her hands from L’s hold, however, all her attempts seemed futile.

“Are you that drunk or plainly stupid?!” She shouted at him, “Get away from me you .”

Myungsoo’s cold stare sent shivers down her spine. His face was close enough for her to finally see him well enough even though they were in the dark. “Apologize.”

Back to her old self, the girl stuck out her tongue for him to see, “Never.”

Amused, L tightened his grip on her hands and curled his long legs around hers to minimize her movements. “You always act so tough, as if you could possibly beat up any guy.”

“I can beat you to a pulp for sure,” Krystal grunted beneath the boy, making him laugh like nobody has seen him before.

“Try doing that right now,” L couldn’t stop laughing which irritated the girl to no end.

Of course, the effort went to waste since he had sustained her from budging.

“Don’t forget you’re a girl and I’m physically stronger than you. If I wanted, I could easily kiss you right now if I wanted to and you wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.”

L’s voice became serious and Krystal stopped moving. “Why would you do that?”

Their eyes locked and the boy noted how big her eyes got. “To prove to you that you shouldn’t act so tough all the time. If only you acted more girly, you’d get boys interested.”

“To your knowledge, I don’t need boys. I prefer matured guys instead of the boys like you.”

Taken aback, L released his hold on Krystal and stood up. “Like our sub?”

“What?” the girl sat up. He was fully aware of the gossip going around about her and the substitute teacher, but he was also the first one to deny the possibility of them together.

The boy turned his expressionless face sideways to avoid her frightened eyes looking at him. “You have your eyes on our teacher, don’t you?”

She was getting furious at this point. “First you insult me, then pin me down on the ground and now you’re accusing me?! What does any of this have to do with you?”

Myungsoo’s cold glare pierced Krystal’s eyes. “It is wrong for a student to pursue a teacher.”

The girl couldn’t listen to him anymore so she opened the doors widely and ran out of the guest room. L ran after her, but managed to stop her only as she was making her way to the taxi that was conveniently waiting for her. “What now?!” She screamed at him, her eyes full of fury.

L’s expression was as stoic as ever, as he asked, “Have the two of you done anything that would be inappropriate for a teacher-student relationship?”

What the boy received was a clear indication that he crossed the line. He touched his slapped cheek in shock as Krystal got in the cab and quickly disappeared from the street.

“I ed up.”

*

Krystal nervously fidgeted by the door. If the address Mark gave her was correct, this should be his temporary flat.

“Krystal,” the young man opened the door and greeted the female. She noted that his face was flushed red, a clear sign he was partying up until now.

“Am I intruding you?”

Mark quickly made way for her, as he chuckled, “Not at all, come in.”

Krystal shyly entered the tiny hallway, leaving her heels by the door and following the older boy inside. It sure felt strange to come to her teacher’s house so late at night, even more so when both of them have clearly been drinking tonight.

Mark was dressed in quite the formal attire, not something you would wear simply at home. “Were you at a party?”

Mark was obviously waiting for the girl as he handed her a big cup of black tea. “Yeah, I was celebrating with my university friends when you responded to my message. They drove me back home since I thought it would be strange for you to go to a university party at such late hour.”

Krystal sat down on the couch beside her substitute teacher. “It’s even weirder to come to my teacher’s house.”

Mark avoided her questioning eyes. “, it was probably a bad idea to ask you to come out. Sorry Krystal, I’m drunk as hell right now,” he chuckled slightly, yet there was nothing to be laughing about.

“You said there was something serious to talk about,” she decided to be the straightforward one.

Mark’s eyes slightly glanced at her, but for a mere second before he downed his gaze back to the floor.

“Is it about the Christmas’ party?”

Krystal signed under her breath. It actually was somewhat easier with him being drunk. “You regret it and want me to forget everything?”

“No, no! The opposite!” Mark grabbed her palms to her utter surprise, “I mean, I don’t know. I mean, it felt quite good then, but we have a complicated relationship.” He then let go of the girl’s hands as he cursed, “.”

Krystal looked at him in awe. “I don’t get what you want to say.”

“You’re my student, there can’t be anything like that again.”

“I know.”

Mark’s eyes were darting from one place to another, “And, and, I was thinking, I won’t give you any ideas anymore. I’m your teacher.”

“I know.”

He finally looked seriously at her straight in the eyes as he said, “I think I like you. I’m ed.” Then he hiccupped.

The ongoing hiccupping session took the female by surprise and she couldn’t stop laughing at Mr. Hottie. She hadn’t seen him this drunk and it was hilarious.

“This talk is going nowhere,” Krystal wiped her tear away and got up from the couch. “Maybe I really shouldn’t have come here. I get it that it is forbidden, but you caught my interest, I do not plan on keeping it a secret.”

Mark was done hiccupping (at last) and felt his eyelids getting heavier every minute. “I’ll call you a cab,” he suggested, but Krystal was already dialing the taxi.

“The cab that drove me here will take me back in just five minutes.”

Mark glanced at his phone, “Hey, it’s less than a minute left till the New Year.” He the TV just in time for the countdown to begin.

“…Two, one, happy New Year!” the reporter congratulated the viewers and Mark stood up to his feet.

“Happy New Year, Krystal,” his smirk graced his plump lips.

Krystal smiled widely at the sub, quite awkward at their frozen postures. “Happy New Year, Mark.”

Out of nowhere, he hugged the girl and placed his head on her shoulder. “Let’s stay like this until the taxi comes, okay?”

“Okay,” she returned the hug, wishing that the two of them could stay like that for a bit longer than five minutes.

*