Author's POV 

Mrs. Soo Hye relased a deep sigh once she stepped into the space. The figure of her young child caught her eyes, the vague yet dim-light atmosphere was explainable enough on why Krystal laid there on the mattress. 

"I said leave me alone," the cold voice greeted her out of blue. 

"I'm not going to leave until you have something to eat first," Mrs. Soo Hye told, placing the tray of food on the mini drawer. 

It was a pause moment, where she lost in her worry thoughts and Krystal lost in her sorrows. None of them able to utter further. Same ego, and same principle of life. 

"Honey, I know, this is not easy for you," Mrs. Soo Hye began her words. "I did not expect, that child has a courage to leave you like this. I'd only wanted to give you two a lesson," 

That made Krystal forced her body to turn around immediately. She rose from the bed and stared straight at the woman's face. She wanted to spit everything out but she suddenly remembered the person that made her cried more. 

"Lesson learned, mother," Krystal muttered, holding her anger. "Do not trust anybody, including your very own family," 

"Soo Jung..." 

"I just told you what I have learnt," 

Mrs. Soo Hye's eyes getting teary when she saw the flame in Krystal's eyes. The same-hatred kind of sharp eyes she used to give when she hated something, back then, when she's still small and pure. 

"I love you, honey. In this world, you and your sister are precious, I can't--- accept that someone with her sweet talking manner would be taking you away from my life," 

The young woman replied, 
"That sweet talking manner is not taking me away anymore, mother. She 'was obliged' to drop me here, don't you remember?" 

"Why is it hard for you to understand...?" 

"Because you wouldn't like to listen first," 

Again, Mrs. Soo Hye felt she's been oppressed. "Soo Jungie, tell me what you will gain in this... meaningless relationship? Tell me how, you will have children on your own? Tell me how a woman can happily lives with another woman?" 

Krystal sniggered, sighing a sarcastic smile. 
"Are you even a God, mother? Are you the God that decides either we can have children freely and blesses human with happiness?" 

The mother sanked deeply into silence. 

"I hated her idea at first. She wanted us to meet you personally, she wanted to make you feel you're valid to know everything, as a real mother," Krystal said as her head slowly shifted to the window. "It wasn't me, your real daughter that has that kind of 'honour', mother. It was her, and I'm sure she still have the highest respect for you," 

Then, her tears streamed down again. "In your point of view, she might be irresponsible, strange and--- such a coward. But for me, she is the opposite of all of those... I cut down everyone who tried to be in my life. You, Jessica and our relatives, none of you are far from that. Until, she weirdly popped out from somewhere, without even trying to change my bad behaviour, but just know how to love me for who I am..." 

"Enough then, mother. Your wish granted. Amber did what she thinks she should, so please don't argue with me anymore,"
 

Krystal sobbed and laid back her body on the smooth mattress. And when Amber's face appeared her eyes tightly closed.
 

She let her mother observed her from where she was. She let Mrs. Soo Hye saw she's breaking down, crying endlessly and forcing herself to fall asleep again. 






***

(Listening to Live Forever by The Rasmus)
 

Amber slowly zipped the bag. She took a moment to check if there's everything else she needed to carry with her, and when she saw the vanity table, she felt like her heart has been loaded with poison. 

Krystal admired the vanity table from the day they moved into the room. She put all her make-up stuffs, her comb, her skin care products and including the mug Amber gave her as a small gift. 

The boyish sat on the mini chair, confronting the mirror from the vanity table. She read the sticky notes Krystal put at the top of it and smiled- eyes getting teary. 
 

"I'm not your Juliet but I'm your wife" 
                          -Kryspatra-
 

Amber caressed it as her eyes instantly gazed at the silver thing tightly clasped around her ring finger. Swallowing the hard feeling to herself, in her reluctance, Amber took off the ring and put it on the vanity table. 

She felt like a betrayal. 

"Are you sure about this, Amber?" Yuri's voice reached her ears. 

Amber looked at the older woman and clamped her lips, nodding. 

"I might be the worse person to give you advice, but... please, this is not how you deal with the problem, kiddo," 

"I know, deep down I know what I did is wrong, Yuri-sshi," Amber answered in her deep voice. "I made it like I'm running away from everything I believed in," 

Yuri paused as she glanced at the upset face of Amber. 

"It's not what I wanted to tell you," she said and approached the vanity table. "You have to fight for yourself too. Sometimes, you have to appreciate yourself more than others," 

Amber nodded, speechless. 

Just, she had her mind fixed. 

"Thank you,Yuri-sshi, for your hospitality. Pay me a visit if you're free, okay?" she changed the topic and grabbed her backpack on the bed. 

"Krystal might be after me for your whereabouts, Amber. What should I say to her?" 

Amber stopped folding the duvet then. "Don't worry, she won't," and continued fixing the bedsheet afterwards. 

The older sighed deeply as she distracted herself from having negative thoughts by trying to help Amber with her personal stuffs. They were busy in the packaging session when the doorbell rang loudly from out of Yuri's apartment. 

"Did you tell... anybody about this???" Amber looked at Yuri and curiously asked. 

"Not even Jessica knows, Amber. I swear, kiddo. I did not tell anyone... yet," Yuri replied, frowning. 

"It's okay, Yuri-sshi. You deal with that while I deal with my things here,"

They nodded at each other and Yuri quickly stepped out from the room. 
 

Amber was deep focusing in her doing when a group of shadows entering the space. She lifted her chin only to find out Yebin, Minkyung, Kyulkyung, Dahyun, Irene, Seulgi, Wendy and also Yuri were standing right in front of her. 

"You're leaving but you did not say anything to us, unnie," Dahyun spoke. 

The boyish avoided the stares and didn't reply a word. 

"You shouldn't leave Krystal unnie like this. You gonna hurt her," Yebin added. 

"I just did, Yebin-nie. I just did," Amber muttered back. She tried hard not to cry in front of the girls but when she remembered the pretty face of Krystal, the tears went down without her willingness. 

The girls looked at each other. Some of them disappointed and some of them were still clueless. Being the oldest among them all, and also as one of the closest person to Krystal and Jessica, Irene voiced out.

"We know what happened... Key told us everything," she stuttered, eyeing Yuri and back to the boyish. "You're not alone, Amber... We're here," 

As her eyes lifted up she sighted every and each face, her heart broken for more. 

"Unnie... don't go..." Dahyun said, started to cry. She walked to the short-hair and hugged her. "Why you gave up so easily? Why you gave up on us too?" 

Hearing that, Amber's tears poured heavily, she hugged Dahyun back, trying hard not to make any sound. 

"I'm sorry Dahyun-ie... I'm very sorry..." 

And when they parted, Amber stared at her, giving a small smile- while caressing her head, "I'd never give up on all those moments we have, Dahyun-ie. How can I erase the beautiful you?" 

Dahyun sobbed, "You're leaving, and that means we're not friends anymore," 

"Once we're friends, then forever we will be," Yebin interrupted. She wiped away her tears, looking at the older, "Is this your final decision, Amber unnie?" 

The boyish's eyes shifted to the white floor and nodded weakly. She took a moment to regain her strength in speech. 

"I discovered only great things when I'm with all of you, girls. I thought, a person like me could never fit in.But it turned out that I was totally wrong," she gave a soft gaze to everyone in the corner. "I'm going away not because I feel I did not belong here anymore but... the real thing is I'm not the right person to be in this moment. Kry--She deserves a good guy like what her mother wants. I don't have a heart to break them from each other... Like how I have already ruined mine," 

Amber put a smile, although her tears were still falling, "Don't worry, I'm not hiding from all of you. If you would like to see me again, Yuri knows where I will be," 
 

Second later, she directed her eyes at Irene. "Take care of my sisters, will ya? I'm counting on you... Irene- unnie," 

Irene's eyes also got teary as she nodded without her will to do so. 


"Now, since you girls are all here," Amber said and grabbed her backpack. She got a hold of the luggage and relieved a breath, "Can you say goodbye to me happily then?"


Wendy intruded, "I'd never feel happy of letting go someone in my life, Amber-unnie," 

Amber curved a smile at her, tighten the grip of the backpack on her shoulder, "So this gonna be your first and last time doing it, Wendy," 

"Would you do it for a friend like me?" 


The Canadian girl didn't mutter anything back. Instead, she had a moment reminscing her first time meeting Amber in the hallway. And how Amber's sad stories touched her fragile heart. 


"You're quite selfish, but in a good way," Wendy stated. 


"Yeah I'm selfish, sometimes," Amber replied, with eyes closed. 


"I will say goodbye, but not here. Key is waiting you downstairs," Wendy told, sighing. "I'm gonna follow you until the last step, Amber-unnie. Until you disappear from my sight, that gonna be my farewell for you," 

The girls immediately nodded, 
"Yes, until you disappear from our sight, that gonna be our farewell for you," they said together. 


Amber did not able to say more as her heart getting heavy. 

"Alright, until I disappear from your sight, that gonna be... your farewell, for me," and she started to cry again. 




 

"My parents gave you this," Key passed Amber a specially wrapped box. Amber looked at his face then. 

"What's this?" 

"They said a tiny special thing only for their only one daughter," told Key. 


She thanked him, putting the box on the top of her luggage. Key helped her to close the trunk before he accompanied Amber to see the girls. 

Seulgi, who didn't say anything from the beginning, looked at Amber sadly. Meanwhile, Kyulkyung gave Amber a nod because somehow her instinct knew, the distance Amber created would be not much.  

She spoke to her in Mandarin, "Why do I feel you will be not far from where I came from?" 

Amber said back, "Because you were used to have me around, and you feel closer to me, Pinky," 

Kyulkyung nodded again, smiling. She enveloped her right arm around Yebin's shoulder while seeing the tiny girl was sobbing. 

"What about our precious Life Literature Club, Amber unnie?" Minkyung asked after she embraced Amber. 

The boyish put both her palms on Minkyung's shoulder, saying "I may be not around but it should be still going on, Minky. Any recruitment for new members might be necessary, I don't mind," 

"But it would never be the same if you're not around," Minkyung pouted. "You're the only angel among us. Who's going to remind us about being nice and kind to everyone?" 

Amber chuckled. She tapped her shoulders, "You know you have it in there, Minky. I have faith in you," 

Finally, Minkyung's tears came out. "Thank you, Amber-unnie," 


The boyish hummed and gently caressed Minkyung's head. 


She loaded her precious backpack into the passenger seat before turning around and stared at them for one last time. Amber raised her hand. 

She composed the final words in her mind,

  "When you're different, you'll always be. Neither you nor the people around you could change it. In the midst of all this sorrow, I have sought happiness, not only for myself but sometimes for them as well. And to her, I can't even say goodbye. May she be happier, no matter where she is,"