AN: This chapter changed quite a bit.

Tiffany woke up earlier than usual. For some reason, she couldn’t sleep. Deciding not to fight it, Tiffany got dressed and got ready for her morning run. She left as quietly as she could, so not to disturb her roommate, Taeyeon.

She got to the school’s racetrack at 5:30 am, an hour earlier than usual, and was surprised to see that she wasn’t alone.

There was another girl already running laps. She had her hood up, so Tiffany couldn’t see her face. However, she was wearing a pink and white jacket that Tiffany recognized as the SM ballet team jacket. She only knew because she often saw Yoona wearing it.

Tiffany made a mental note to ask her dongsaeng later about the blonde ballet girl.

Walking down to the field, Tiffany started her stretches. Yet, her eyes stayed discreetly trained on the lone girl. ‘Her running form is really pretty.’

After around ten minutes, Tiffany started to jog lightly on the track.

In less than ten minutes, the girl had lapped her twice. Tiffany stared at the girl’s back that was getting further and further away from her. She grinned. Time to turn it up a notch.

Picking up the pace, she ran until she was side by side with the girl so she could discreetly glance at her face. To say she was stunned was an understatement. Tiffany almost tripped over her own legs in amazement. The girl was really pretty.

Not even realizing she was spacing out, when Tiffany looked to her right again, the girl was already gone.

‘Eh?’

Tiffany looked back to the front and once again saw the girl’s back getting further and further away.

‘She’s so fast!’

Feeling a rush of adrenaline, Tiffany grinned. A little competition never hurt anyone, right?

She sped up once more until she was side by side with the girl. This time, the girl turned to look at her in confusion and raised a single perfect eyebrow. Tiffany grinned childishly at her before taking the lead.

Not looking back, Tiffany hoped that the girl would chase after her.

Jessica panted as she mentally told herself to breathe in from her nose and breathe out through . She’d been running for thirty minutes when this girl, dressed in all pink (Literally no other color was on her. Even her hair was red/pink) came and...?

Jessica huffed and glared at the girl’s back. She just wanted to run in peace, but if the girl wanted to play, Jessica would play.

Taking a deep breath, Jessica sprinted.

Tiffany grinned as she heard fast footsteps closing in on her. Knowing she was about to be overtaken, Tiffany started sprinting too.

However to her surprise, the blonde still easily overtook her.

‘Is she a machine or what?! How does she run so fast? She’s not even on the track team!’

Never one to give up, Tiffany pushed her legs harder. Soon, she was running so fast, she couldn’t even feel her legs.

And boy, was that not a good thing, because before she knew it, she tripped over her own feet and fell straight onto the asphalt.

“HOLY MOTHER OF!” Tiffany held her leg in pain as she curled up on the track. Her eyes were shut tightly, too in pain to open them. She was bleeding, she knew it. Oh goodness, coach was going to kill her during practice later today for being so clumsy.

Amidst her pain, Tiffany didn’t hear light footsteps come near her. A warm hand brushed her hand away from her scraped knee and Tiffany squinted through one eye at the sudden touch. It was the girl from earlier. She’d come back.

The girl took off her hood, and Tiffany felt her heart skip a beat at the girl’s face. Her blonde hair seemed to shine under the rising sun.

Leaning closer, the blonde carefully observed the scrape and even blew on it gently.

Cheesy as it might sound, Tiffany swore her leg stopped hurting. Instead of the stinging pain, it was now a more dull buzzing pain. And through it all, all Tiffany could think was, ‘Woooow, she is soooo pretty.’

The girl turned to look at her and Tiffany felt her breath hitch slightly. ‘Oh please look away. I don’t know if I can take this.’

A hand neared her face and Tiffany closed her eyes on reflex. A soft finger brushed against Tiffany’s wet cheek.

‘Wait a minute. Wet?’

She was crying. Oh god. She was crying in front of this blonde beauty. Opening her eyes again, Tiffany found herself staring at the now smirking blonde.

“I know I’m pretty, but there’s no need to cry.”

Tiffany wanted to die.

Jessica sighed to herself. So much for a peaceful morning run. It was ruined all because of this clumsy pink girl.

“Can you walk?” Jessica asked, offering a hand to hoist the girl up. The girl took her hand and stood up, wobbling only once.

“I’m fine,” Tiffany whispered as she stabilized herself. She was fine. Her knee was a bloody mess, but it was only a scrape. She could still walk. It just stung.

“Do you need help to go to the clinic?” Jessica asked, relieved that the girl had stopped crying and seemed to be able to walk just fine.

Tiffany shook her head. She had bothered the blonde enough. “Thanks, but I should be fine,” she grinned.

Jessica gave her one last look over before nodding. “Okay then. Be careful.” And with that, she resumed her run.

With one last glance at the running girl’s back, Tiffany sighed and trudged indoors. What a way to start the morning. It was only when she found herself alone sitting in the clinic that a thought hit her.

‘Is it me, or did that girl look familiar?’

“You’re late,” Nana raised an eyebrow at the newcomer.

Jessica ignored the stares from all the ballerinas in the room and set her bag on the ground next to Nana before plopping herself down as well. Only one hoobae came up to her and bowed.

“Good morning, sunbaenim.”

“Good morning,” Jessica greeted the bear like girl back. ‘What a innocent mind,’ Jessica thought as the girl returned to her stretching, oblivious of all the stares and whispering around her. Most people didn’t associate themselves with Jessica Jung and Jessica was fine with that.

“Did you extend your morning run?” Nana asked as she leaned down and pulled on her toes, stretching her legs. Jessica copied the pose.

“No, just woke up later than usual,” Jessica muttered.

Nana chuckled lightly. “That’s so you. When I first met you, I was surprised someone as lethargic as you could be an athlete.”

Jessica shoved her friend lightly. “Shut up.”

Nana switched legs. “By the way, Yoona is coming back.”

“Oh, she’s done with her tour?” Jessica perked up as she too started stretching the other leg.

“Yup. I have other news as well,” Nana grinned.

“What?” Jessica asked disinterestedly. She never cared for gossip anyways.

“Well, I heard that we all of a sudden have two new transfers from the US,” Nana disclosed. “One in our year, and one in the year below us.”

“So?” Jessica asked.

Nana shrugged. “Just thought it was  interesting. We don’t get many American transfers. Plus, you’re from the US, aren’t you?”

Jessica stayed mum as she stretched her leg even more. After all, the US reminded her of things from long ago, things that she had long tried to forget.

By the time Tiffany arrived to her first class for the day, Taeyeon was already there.

“Tiffany, there you are! Where were you this morning?” Taeyeon asked as soon as she sat down.

Tiffany grinned sheepishly. “I woke up early and went for a morning run.”
 

Taeyeon raised an eyebrow, sensing there was more to the story. “And then?”

“Uh, I fell and had to go to the clinic?” Tiffany answered unsurely.

Taeyeon’s eyes popped out. “What?! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Did you break anything?” Her eyes scanned Tiffany’s body for any obvious injuries.

“I’m fine,” Tiffany reassured her friend. “I just scraped my knee. Nothing big.”

Taeyeon sighed in relief and sank back into her seat. “Goodness, you scared me. With nationals coming up, we can’t afford to get hurt.”

“I know, I know,” Tiffany pouted. “I’ll be carefull next time.”

Taeyeon rolled her eyes lightheartedly. “I swear. I don’t understand how you’re so clumsy on land and so graceful on ice. It doesn’t make sense!”
 

Tiffany only stuck her tongue out before her attention shifted to the newcomer.

“Oh, Yuri! You’re in this class too?” Tiffany beamed.

“You okay? You look like you didn’t sleep at all last night,” Taeyeon commented, noticing Yuri’s dark eye bags.

“I’m fine. Just stayed up all night thinking of how to find Jessica,” Yuri groaned as she rested her head in her arms.

Tiffany patted the girl’s back sympathetically. “Well, do you know what sport she applied here with? Everyone here is required to do a sport.”
 

Yuri groaned into her arms again. “I don’t. I was surprised she was even here. I didn’t expect her to come to a sports university and not even do ice skating. Goodness she frustrates me.”

“She didn’t do any other sports besides ice skating?” Taeyeon asked.

Yuri propped her head up and frowned. “I know she did soccer when she was young. Soccer and…” Yuri’s eyes lit up. “Ballet! You guys have a ballet troupe here right?” Yuri recalled someone talking about a national ballet tour.

“Oh, we do!” Tiffany grinned. “The best of the best too!”
 

“Too bad the only person we know from the ballet troupe is away,” Taeyeon muttered.

Tiffany hummed as she thought back to the girl from this morning. ‘I wonder if she knows Jessica.’

“You might be able to ask Hyoyeon. She’s in the SM Dance team and they’re under the same department as ballet. She might’ve seen your friend,” Taeyeon advised.

“Oh yeah!” Tiffany beamed. “Hyoyeon knows a few people in the ballet team too. Like that adorable first year named Kang Seulgi. She’s probably seen your fr