Amber must’ve broken all the traffic rules to get there in five. Her girlfriend looked almost like she had a hangover –  her hair was messy, like she had gotten just out of bed, which was probably true since she wore the sweater from last night and the jogging pants she used for sleeping if she was cold – but her eyes were alert and extremely worried.

Even though Amber looked like she had a hangover, Krystal really felt like it. After the results, it felt like all the energy had been drained from her body. She was almost not able to stand on her legs. Her bag was slumped over her shoulder. Krystal was someone who fainted rather easily and it felt like she could lose consciousness at every moment.

When Amber’s car parked in front of the building, she had to watch out when she walked off the steps of the stairs. She scrolled down the window and opened the door for her – and she was glad that she did because she didn’t know if she had enough strength to open the door herself.

Krystal let herself slump down in the seat and closed the door. She pulled up her knees, wrapping her arms around them and forming her body into a ball, trying to make her as small as possible whilst Amber made the engine purr as they drove home.

They didn’t say anything. Krystal didn’t want to talk just yet and Amber knew her girlfriend good enough to leave her alone and tuck her in bed as soon as they arrived at her apartment.

Amber took her back to Krystal’s apartment, helped her undress and get her into bed. Krystal was too tired to get in her pajamas and just covered herself with the blankets in her underwear. She heard Amber scurry in the living room for a second, then eventually she entered the bedroom as well and laid next to her, pulling her closer immediately. Krystal buried her face in the crook of her neck and tightly wrapped her arms around her waist, trying hard not to cry. Amber’s natural smell made her burst into tears for the first time since she had seen the results of the voting. Her shoulders shook, her tears wetted their clothes and dripped onto the sheets.

Amber didn’t say anything, just softly hummed. And eventually that calmed her down. It took her a while, but her crying got less bad and eventually it stopped. Perhaps it was because she simply didn’t have any tears left, or that Amber was here and she was allowed to break down, but she was glad that she could.

Krystal wiped her nose and sniffled. Amber was still her hair, but she had stopped with the humming. Their gaze found each other and she knew it was time to tell her what had happened.

“With how much did he win?” she asked softly.

“Fifty-four percent,” she answered, her voice still thick of the crying session.

Amber shook her head.

“You lost by 46 percent, do you know how little of a difference that is? If I were you, I wouldn’t give up. There is a big chance that your father manipulated a lot of higher-ups into voting for him instead of you. And what about the other CEO’s? Jackie, Victoria, Amy, Eric? You have to fight back.”

“What’s the use? Dad will win anyway,” she muttered bitterly. Amber shifted her body so Krystal’s head fell off her shoulder. She looked up a bit annoyed; she wanted to be petty and cuddle with her girlfriend whilst she cursed capitalism.

Amber looked at her angrily. Krystal immediately sensed that she was angry for real. She had never seen Amber angry, at least, she never was angry with her. They had never had a fight but it suddenly felt like they were very close from fighting, and that scared her.

“Are you kidding me?” Amber hissed. Krystal immediately sat up right and blinked confusedly. “You’re just going to quit? After all you’ve done? I thought this battle was your life battle, your dad is like the Champion League of Pokémon. You’re so close to beating him and now you’re just going to quit?”

“If he wins there’s nothing more I can do but accept my defeat.”

“You’re so, so wrong, do you know that?” Amber growled, rolling her eyes. “You can do so much more than to just back off. He doesn’t deserve Jung Internationals. You do. You trained for this, you know all the tips and tricks. You have been his second for years. He didn’t use to have problems with handing the company over to you. But suddenly, now that you broke up with Kai, he pulls back. Doesn’t that make you angry? He doesn’t believe in your happiness with me and he doesn’t support you as well. Don’t you want to prove him wrong? Because if you’re not going to teach him a lesson then I am going to and believe me, I will not handle it in court. I’m just going to hit him in the face so everyone knows what a disgrace he is as a man. What father abandons his daughter like that?”

Krystal rubbed with her thumb and index finger in her eyes as she let out a sigh.

“Don’t you think I’m angry? Don’t you think I want to shut him up as well and prove myself?”  she muttered. “But I tried that and he beat me. It’s over.”

Amber huffed annoyed.

“It is never over, not as long as he’s the CEO. You tried playing by the rules now, you can always play dirty.”

Krystal frowned.

“What do you mean? It’s not like I’m going to hire in men to beat up my father,” she exclaimed in shock. Amber shook her head.

“Of course not. But you forget how many people are backing you up here. Song Software, do you know how powerful Victoria is? Make her break the deal with Jung Internationals. They’ll lose a ton of profit if she does. Same if Jackie ends her agreement. If Jackie goes, Amy and Eric will follow. Jung Internationals’ network will fall when they don’t have any associates to build on, whilst the other companies will do just fine without Jung Internationals. At least, for a little while. As soon as your father gives in, you set up a new contract for them and bring them back in.

For my part, you go to the judge and whine about how the voting wasn’t fair, that the first level employees weren’t allowed to vote. You can always try.

Playing by the rules has never gotten anyone anywhere. This business world is corrupt and you have to play that way. He probably pulled some dirty trick to influence the voting otherwise he wouldn’t have won. Now it’s time for you to push back and show that one step backwards won’t make you pull back.”

Krystal stared at her girlfriend in disbelief.

“You know, I never understood why you never joined Liu Economics,” she muttered softly. If Amber had given up her music career to become a Vice-President or maybe even CEO later, there was no doubt that Liu Economics would be even more dominating the industry than it already was. If she was able to think of such good strategical plans out of the top of her head, then what would happen if she really made an effort for it?

But Amber burst out in laughter instead.

“Then I wouldn’t be here to help you, now, would I?” she chuckled. “C’mere.”

Amber pulled her closer in a hug again and with a shaky breath Krystal let herself fall in her arms again, burying her face in the crook of Amber’s neck, breathing in her scent. Krystal wrapped her arms around Amber and sighed.

Her girlfriend lifted up her chin after a few moments and smiled.

“Thank you for being with me,” Krystal whispered softly, when their eyes met. Amber bowed down to kiss her. Their lips met softly and Krystal immediately felt loved. It had been long since she thought that Amber might be faking her feelings, that she didn’t like her at all. You couldn’t kiss someone so lovingly if you were faking it.

Krystal’s hand gripped Amber’s shirt tightly, clutching the fabric in her fist when she deepened the kiss. Amber immediately responded. She placed her hand in Krystal’s neck, cupping her cheek and pulling her closer even more. It didn’t take long before the need of oxygen started to make them pant into each other’s mouths.  Whenever they broke apart to shift into a better position they gasped for breath, only to press their lips onto each other’s again as soon as they had settled again. Krystal was the one who tapped on Amber’s lower lip with her tongue. She immediately opened to let her in. The low moan that erupted in the back of was enough to send shivers down Krystal’s spine.

Amber landed with her back in the pillows and Krystal swung her legs over her body so she was on top. It didn’t happen often that Amber let her top. Both of them preferred it the other way, with Krystal as the bottom and Amber hoovering over her. But all of the tension of the past few weeks were becoming too much for her and right now she just really wanted this so she could let it all out.

When Krystal started to press down with her hips, Amber placed both of her hands on her cheeks and pulled them softly apart. As soon as their lips were removed from each other, their eyes opened and they stared at each other. Confusion had gathered in Amber’s eyes, whilst Krystal’s were filled with pure lust.

“You know, when I said you should let out your feelings in a healthy way I didn’t mean that you should bang me sore,” she said casually. Krystal rolled her eyes and already bowed down again.

“Just let me do this, I really, really want you,” she whispered against Amber’s lips. She felt her already buck her hips up a bit, groaning uncomfortably.

“This is just another unhealthy way, you know that, right? You should talk about it, instead of-“

Amber’s sentence was cut off when Krystal unclipped her bra and took it off with one swift motion. Her jaw dropped a bit. Amber’s eyes shifted for a split second to her bare s, but forced herself to look back to Krystal’s face, even though her cheeks reddened. She noticed how Amber’s jaw tightened. It made Krystal smile, knowing that it took only a few more seconds to break her and give in to her.

The past few weeks had been a ual frustration for both of them; because of Krystal’s busy schedule and cranky mood as soon as she got home, had been off the table. Amber hadn’t complained but Krystal knew she felt as frustrated as she did, maybe even more.

“We already talked about it, didn’t we?” she smiled. Her hand moved between Amber’s legs. She didn’t even touch anything but her inner thighs yet but it was already enough to make Amber bite her lower lip hard.

Suddenly, without any warning, Amber came up from the sheets, grabbed Krystal by the waist and turned them around, so that Krystal’s back hit the bed and Amber was now on top. In a reflex, she had wrapped her legs around Amber’s body. She blinked in surprise, since it had happened in a split second.

Amber bowed down, grabbing both of her hands and pushing them into the mattress. She brought her face close and this time it was Krystal who gulped.

“If you so badly want to all of the stress out, then let me be top,” she said, as a grin formed on her face. But Krystal had already made up her mind, and if Krystal Jung set her mind to something, she was sure to get it. If only she was as strong as Amber, then she could’ve just turned them around as well. Sadly, she wasn’t, so she needed to pull some tricks to get Amber back on her back again. A smile grew on her face when she thought of that.

“No,” she grinned. Amber was caught off-guard by Krystal’s response, and she used this to slip her hand in her jogging pants and into her underwear. Normally she would’ve started with her bra, but times like these took drastic measures and Krystal knew that Amber’s most sensitive spot was her center.

Amber frowned deeply and looked away when Krystal felt how wet she already was, hopelessly trying to control herself. She breathed heavily and probably tried to control her moans as much as she could. Krystal couldn’t take her eyes off of her face, simply intrigued about the indecisiveness that was going on inside Amber’s body. She could feel the tension building up between them.

Krystal’s finger explored her wetness; she let her finger trace circles around her entrance or move closer and closer towards her . Amber was still trying as hard as she could to stay on top, to balance her body on her legs and arms, but she saw how her arms were shaking and how deep her teeth were pressed into her lower lip. She wouldn’t last much longer and Krystal had barely done anything yet.

She decided not to go easy on her, she didn’t want to. The moment two of Krystal’s fingers entered Amber, her girlfriend let out the moan she had been holding and closed her eyes. Her body shook. But she made it only last for a few seconds before she pulled back, causing Amber to open her eyes confused. Krystal smiled evilly.

“Let me top,” she demanded. Amber rolled her eyes, sighed and scooted over, let herself fall on the bed as Krystal regained her position with a grin. But the moment Krystal had adjusted her body, Amber pushed her back in the sheets.

“I’m not topped that easily, Krystal,” she chuckled smugly, causing Krystal to pout in annoyance. “There’s a reason why I’m always the top. And that’s because I work for it and know what to do. If you want to prove yourself, you’re allowed to try, but I’ll be pushing back.”

Krystal started to chuckle too. Swiftly, she pulled Amber closer.

“That’s exactly what I hoped for,” she muttered, before she kissed her.

Krystal had never felt so free. Now she understood why Amber preferred to be the top: it was incredibly hot to hear your lover moan your name from underneath you. Even though they took turns, it still felt great to pin Amber to the bed every time; it almost turned into an addiction.

It was 6 PM when they finally laid still next each other, the sheets covering only half of their bodies, still panting of their activities of the last hour. For a moment, they could only stare at the ceiling, letting the amazing post- feeling rush through their bodies.

“I do not entirely agree with you letting your stress out through but I would be lying if I said I didn’t love what just happened,” Amber eventually admitted, causing Krystal to laugh.

“Perhaps it was just because I was a top,” she remarked. Amber shot her a look and rolled her eyes.

“I allowed you to have your fun this time but the next time you’re the bottom again,” she said.

“Nuh-uh, now I have had a taste of the good stuff I won’t go back to being a bottom anymore.”

“We’ll alternate… sometimes. I can’t promise anything,” Amber said. Krystal chuckled. She propped herself up by her elbow and pulled the sheets with her, to cover her s.

“No, I want to be the top,” she pouted. Amber lifted her eyebrows and snorted.

“Are you pulling your Princess charms on me? It’s not working, honey.”

Krystal pouted some more and bowed down to place a kiss on Amber’s cheek. She heard her girlfriend chuckle.

“I promise we’ll alternate but I’m not letting you have all the fun on your own,” she said. Krystal sighed and rolled her eyes.

“It’ll do, I suppose.”

Amber kissed her back on her cheek and smiled.

It didn’t take long before they got hungry and because today was Krystal’s guilty pleasure day, they decided to order pizza. They both took a pizza on their own, the biggest size they could get. Krystal had only dressed herself in a tank top that belonged to Amber and new undies. She didn’t bother to put on a bra or pants because she wouldn’t be leaving her apartment either way. Especially since they were going to have a movie night, she didn’t bother to get dressed.

Amber had to put on jogging pants and a sweater to reveal she was actually wearing nothing underneath when she went to open the door and take the pizzas. The moment Amber came back into the bedroom with the two cardboard boxes, Krystal’s belly started to growl. The scent was amazing.

Amber crawled back into the bed as Krystal took the remote of her TV – a few days ago she had installed a flat screen TV in the bedroom, so that she wouldn’t even have to leave her bed anymore if she had one of her ‘Netflix days’, and it came in handy right now too – and scrolled through the movies in her list. They eventually decided to watch Blue is the Warmest Color, Krystal’s favorite movie. 

They cuddled up together under the blankets, holding each other’s hands with one and a slice of pizza with the other.

The next morning, Krystal went to work with her head high and her make-up on point. Amber had helped her prepare in the morning because she really hadn’t felt like going. But her girlfriend had given her courage after a quick pep-talk and Krystal felt like she could take on the world at the moment. She was vibrating with confidence, knowing that she still had a plan B if her father wouldn’t listen to her.

She walked towards her office and settled down. It had been Krystal’s plan to visit her father at home after she was done with work so she could ask him once more if he truly felt okay with his decision that he wouldn’t hand over the company to her, hoping to try and make him feel guilty about had he had done. Perhaps she could work on his emotions that he hid so well and convince him anyway. Otherwise she was going back to the judge, like Amber had said, or she’d call Victoria.

Her plan was completely flushed down the toilet when she saw her father leaning against her desk when she came in. She immediately frowned as she suspiciously put her bag down.

Her father had his arms crossed in front of each other and he wore the suit he had worn yesterday too. His hair was slick and pushed back, with a separation in the middle. He looked like he hadn’t been sick at all, but as soon as he pointed his gaze at her, she noticed his blood-shot eyes and the dark circles underneath his eyes.

Her father was not only getting old, he was also growing fragile and even though he didn’t want anyone to notice, Krystal knew. She knew and partly therefor she wanted Jung Internationals so badly.

“Father,” she said neutrally. Her father raised his right eyebrow and cleared his throat.

“I’m proud of you that you came to work. Not many would have come after such a defeat. I raised you well.”

“Clearly not well enough to hand over the company to me,” she replied bitterly. She ignored her father and sat down behind her desk, opening her laptop. Her father sighed and turned around, taking eventually one of the chairs and sitting down.

“No, I raised you well. I am not that narrow-minded that I don’t know your uality is something you can’t help. I know for sure that if you had the choice you would have chosen to be like everyone else.  Like nature wants it to be.”

Krystal stared at her father in utter disgust.

“I do not wish to speak about my love life with you anymore,” she said coldly. “But I can assure you that I would not have chosen differently. I have found more happiness in these few months with Amber than I have in four years with Kai. Therefor I also decided I do not mind if the media finds out about my uality. I hid it since I was fifteen and I am done hiding. I took me eleven years to accept who I am and finally I’m able to tell the world I am dating woman with pride. It is hard to understand how difficult it is for someone who doesn’t have to hide their gender preference but I can assure you that I wasted those eleven years of my life. I could have used them to get you get used to it.”

Her father stayed silent for a moment. He eventually bowed down towards her. For a moment, Krystal was scared he was going to hit her. He had never hit her as a child but that didn’t take the fear away that one day he might. Instead, he pressed on a button on her office phone.

“Yes, Ms. Jung?” they heard Eloisa say through the intercom.

“Two cups of coffee please, Eloisa. A cappuccino for me, an espresso for my daughter.”

“O-oh, Mr. Jung.. Of course, I’ll be there in a minute.”

Her father took his finger from the button and bowed down.

“I guess this will be a long and tiring conversation. It’s best to get over with it, right?” he asked her. Krystal clenched her jaws and nodded.

Eloisa came in after a few moments with the two damping cups of coffee, placing the espresso in front of Krystal and the cappuccino in front of her father. Her PA could feel the tension from the moment she stepped into the room; she shot Krystal a compassionate glance and hurried out of the room.

“I want to know why you won’t hand over the company to me,” Krystal demanded, as soon as she was out. “Because I won’t marry Kai? Because I’m dating Amber? Because our opponents might find out I am dating a woman? Or because I’m actually incompetent for the job?

I have already Liu Economics, Song Software, Lee Electronics and The Empire Group behind me, four of our biggest associates. I lost with only a little of the votes from you, which means a lot of the employees believe in me. I already came out so that is in the open now. There is no reason why you would keep it from me.”

Her father sighed. He took his time to answer her; first taking a few sips of his coffee before he spoke.

“It’s a matter of principles, Krystal,” he said. “It’s not that I don’t want you to take over; I have guided you for years. But it’s like watching the falcon you trained so thoroughly be hunted down by a faster bird. I can’t let you give you my position easily because it doesn’t feel right and you’re not ready. You don’t deserve it yet and I don’t want to hand it over yet. Too much can go wrong if I just let you be CEO. It’s not going to happen and since I still have enough leverage to hold onto my position, I will as long as my body lets me.”

Krystal tried to control her anger but she couldn’t help to form fists with her hands.

“How can you even say that I don’t deserve that position,” she breathed in pure rage. Her voice had dropped dangerously low. “I have dedicated my whole life to this. I worked so hard at school to earn only a job as an intern here and I worked my way up all by myself. You promised me the company would be mine, you told me all those years that if I worked hard enough you’d give it to me. This is my destiny. I eat, breath and sleep this company and you still dare to say that I do not deserve it?”

Her father looked back at her with a straight face.

“You didn’t work hard enough.”

Krystal was about to lose her patience and before she started screaming, she pointed at the door and hissed:

“Get. Out.”

Her father sighed and ran with his hand through his hair before he stood up with a grunt. He left her office without saying another word, leaving Krystal with her boiling anger.

Without thinking twice, she dialed the number of the person she knew who would help her. Her phone rung only twice before it got picked up.

"Victoria, I have a favor to ask of you."