She felt so tired that her head hurt and her stomach wouldn't seem to settle, but she had another flight to New York. She'd barely been in LA for a few days before she was scheduled to fly again and she knew she wouldn't only be in New York for a few days too. 

"Do you want me to drive you?" her best friend asked from the doorway of her temporary bedroom. 

Amber rolled over and glared at her childhood friend. "Of course," she snapped. "You expect me to drive myself in this condition." She held up a hand. "Sorry. Sorry. I'm just-" 

"I know, tired," he said. He couldn't help worrying about her. "I'll take your suitcase down. Are you sure you're going to be okay?" 

"Yeah. I'll just eat something on the plane and try to get as much sleep as I can before we land," she groaned, getting to her feet. 

Krystal was meeting her in New York and she hoped she was feeling better by the time she landed or it would be a complete waste. 

She kept falling asleep on her drive to the airport and was thankful when she boarded the plane and managed to snag a window seat. She'd planned to order something or at least munch on peanuts, but her lids shut and the next thing she knew she had to gather her bags and exit the plane. 

"Jet lag," she growled angrily under her breath. 

"Amber?" 

Some of her fatigue fell away and she turned into the arms of Krystal. A brief hug only since they were in public. "Hi," she whispered, a soft smile on her face. 

"Hi." Krystal scuffed her toes on the airport floor, her eyes roaming hungrily over Amber's face. It had been so long. 

"We need to check in," their manager said from behind, startling them. 

Amber sighed heavily, waving to Krystal as she followed a separate manager. Her hotel was in a different part of the city since she had some meetings to attend and Krystal had a fashion event to prepare for. But they were also meeting with a team, so it would be hours yet before she could rest and she and Krystal could be alone together. 

Amber wished she could've given more attention in her meeting, but she was exhausted and the coffee barely got a small buzz going for her. When she was later driven across town to meet with Krystal and their team, all she wanted to do was put her head on Krystal's shoulder and take a nap. Felt like weights were attached to her eyelids. 

"Umm, how about Amber spends the night in my room?" she heard Krystal ask their manager. "She doesn't have another meeting until noon tomorrow so there's plenty of time for her to take a car across town. But tonight...she's so tired." 

She heard them discuss it for a few more minutes, then Krystal's hand on her shoulder. She let out a breath of relief. She didn't think she could've lasted much longer. They walked the short block to Krystal's hotel, Amber leaning heavily on Krystal as they took the elevator up. The manager nodded them good night as he exited on a lower floor and Krystal and Amber continued to the suite. 

"I'm so tired," Amber murmured against Krystal's skin. 

Krystal took her hand and lead her to her room. "I know." 

"I wanted to spend some real time with you," Amber continued. "I'm sorry." 

"It's okay," Krystal said, getting them into the room and leading Amber toward the bathroom. She managed to get her to brush her teeth and wash her face and out of her street clothes, then helped her into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. 

Krystal understood Amber's exhaustion, but she still couldn't help feeling a little hurt. She changed into her pajamas then got into bed beside Amber, wrapping her up in her arms. It would be ages before they saw each other again. 

She touched the short, blonde hair on the back of Amber's neck, threading her fingers through the longer strands on top of her head. 

"I missed you," she whispered. "So much." 

She felt a bit like a ert for doing it, but she slid her other hand under the hem of Amber's shirt and caressed her flat stomach. "I want more time with you," she uttered softly. "To talk to you, to touch you..." 

"Ugh!" she groaned, letting her head hit the pillow. "I hope you wake up early tomorrow." 

Krystal's wish didn't come true, however. When she opened her eyes, it was still dark outside, but Amber was sleeping heavily. She watched her sleep as the sun rose high in the sky and a loud knock interrupted her quiet morning. 

Amber's eyes opened slowly to find Krystal's sad ones looking back at her. "Sorry..." she whispered. 

Krystal shook her head and pulled Amber in for a long, slow kiss. The knock sounded louder at the door. 

"I might have time tomorrow," Amber said against Krystal's mouth. 

A louder knock and their phones started buzzing. 

"I have to go..." 

Krystal pushed her firmly to the bed and covered with hers, kissing her like she wanted to leave part of herself with Amber. She trailed kisses down her smooth neck, wanting more time. 

The door beeped and Amber pushed Krystal off of her. Their managers had spare keys to their rooms in case they needed to come in and wake the members. She got to her feet and quickly threw back on her clothes, rushing to the bathroom to splash some water on her face and brush her teeth. She heard Krystal pad in barefoot behind her and close and lock the bathroom door. 

She heard the shower come on then Krystal was wrapped around her again. 

"I just got dressed!" Amber hissed when Krystal started tugging on her shirt, trying to get it over her head. Amber put down her toothbrush before Krystal made her choke on it. "I'm going to be late, the traffic here is awful." 

Krystal nipped at Amber's lower lip, then trailed kisses around her jaw. "Let's-" 

Amber grabbed her firmly by the arms and set her aside. She checked her appearance in the mirror before darting out of the bathroom, putting her phone in her pocket. She heard Krystal calling her name, but grabbed her manager's arm and left the hotel room. Amber couldn't afford to be late for the meeting. She would make it up to Krystal later and hoped she would be understanding. 

Her phone bleeped an alert and she paused to quickly check it. 

- We need to talk...

Was all the message said. 

Amber tucked her phone away into her pocket and tried to focus on the rest of the day. She got so caught up that she never responded, there was no time to meet Krystal the next day, and before she knew it, she was back on another flight to LA. 

When she landed, she wanted to text Krystal, but her family met her at the airport and she spent the entire day with them, bonding and sharing old memories. She hung out with friends. She planned a new music video. She had meetings. 

She knew subconsciously that she was avoiding having to speak to Krystal, but she didn't know what to say. Of course, they needed to talk, it was something she'd said herself. But how? When? What they needed to say to each other shouldn't be done over the phone but it would be so long until they were in the same place again. She planned to speak to Krystal in New York, but she'd been so exhausted and the timing hadn't worked out. It would be weeks before she was back in Korea and she knew Krystal was busy filming a new drama anyway. 

- Please, just talk to me...

How could she let Krystal know she was thinking about living in LA?

- Talk to me. 

She screwed up her courage. 

-I'm sorry. She texted. - I just got busy, then I didn't know what to say. 

-You could've said anything, Krystal responded. - You know that. 

Amber gnawed on her bottom lip.

-I should be back in Korea at the end of March. We can talk then. 

-Is this how it's going to be? Krystal asked. 

-No. I won't ignore you again. I'm sorry. 

-Let's Facetime. 

-It's 2am here...

She could read anger in Krystal's text, and loneliness. -It's going to be so long until I see you again. 

-We could face time tomorrow after my meeting? 

-Could we?

Amber's heart thudded in her chest. 

-Yes. We'll find the time. We'll figure it out. 

-I love you. You know that, right?

-I love you too, Amber responded. 

She clutched the phone tightly in her hands and closed her eyes. Hopefully, love would be enough, cause this was going to be hard.

(sorry. When I published it earlier, some of the text was missing.)