Amber walked around the empty apartment space, then went back to her dad and nodded. He turned to the real estate landlord and shook his hand. They'd found a space. 

It took a few days to decorate it, and her dad stayed with her for a few weeks, but he soon had to return to California. 

Amber sat on the small couch in front of the television feeling the silence creep in. 

I should tell them.

Shadows started to form into monsters in the corners of her vision so she the lamp on her nightstand. 

I hate this. 

She'd never felt so alone. Away from her family, away from her bandmates, away from her friends. Away from everything. It felt good to be away, but it was so...She massaged her hands together then pulled out her phone. 

She sent a quick and short text message: Come to this address if you can. 

Amber nervously walked around her apartment while she waited, feeling like there was both too much space and too little. Had the ceiling been that low before? The walls so close? 

She squeezed her hands into fists and forced herself to stop. She'd planned to be stronger than this, different. She pulled out her phone to ask Krystal not to come, but the buzzer sounded. 

She sighed and unlocked the door, waiting for her to come to her apartment. She heard the sound of shoes clicking against the tile floor of the hallway, then a soft knock on her door. 

Her heart leaped into . It had been so long since she had been face to face with her best friend. 

She rushed to the door, peeped through the hole, grinned, then unlocked it. She was crushed by thin arms, long dark hair, and the warm, familiar scent of Krystal. She felt calm almost immediately. She pulled Krystal's shoulders back so that she could look at her, then rested her forehead against hers. 

"I missed you." 

Krystal's eyes flickered for a moment, but she in a shaking breath trying to let the moment pass. She'd thought the crush done with. Over. But her heart was beating crazily. She felt like she wanted to cry, scream, and laugh all at once. "I-I missed you too." Amber tightened the hug again and she felt warmth completely engulf her from the inside out. 

"Why don't you want to see any of us?" 

"It's not that I don't want to see you. I'm just setting up my new place." She stepped back and reached for Krystal's hand. "Let me show you around." 

They walked around the small living room, the spare bedroom, then Amber's bedroom. Amber sat down on the edge of her bed and Krystal sank down beside her, sitting closer than most people would to someone they just considered a friend. 

"Why aren't you showing me the bathroom?" 

Amber laughed. "It's a mess right now. Sorry." 

"What if I need to go?" 

"You'll see it then, I guess," Amber shrugged. She laid back on the bed and Krystal laid beside her. "I thought I would like it better here, being away from the dorms, but it's quiet. Too quiet." 

"I moved out of the dorms two days ago. That's why I was able to come. Since my family was so close, I thought it would be better to stay with them. Plus, the company didn't seem to mind. I kind of felt bad leaving Sulli behind though. They were all moved to a smaller dorm though, so it should be fine." 

She rolled onto her side, then gently pinched the fabric of Amber's sleeve between her fingers. "I know you hurt your ankle, but are you ever going to tell me what else was going on? I know it wasn't just your injury." 

Amber shook her head. "It was nothing. I don't even want to think about it anymore. We're going to start recording our new album in about a month. I don't want anything else in my head besides that. Okay?" 

Krystal frowned but agreed. "Okay. Do you mind if I spend the night here? I already told my parents I'd be staying the night at a friend's." 

Amber laughed on a breath, then rolled to pull Krystal into a tight hug. "Thank you. You have no idea how awful it is to live in an apartment by yourself. I was hoping you would stay, but didn't want to ask." 

Krystal released a happy sigh and relaxed into Amber's arms. "Well, good thing I volunteered, huh?" 

"Yeah. Yeah, it is." 

'Oh my god, and have you seen her puppies? They're so cute!" 

"The little black one is the cutest thing!! So fluffy! And such a cuddler too!" 

"Amber or the puppy?" 

Krystal rolled her eyes listening to the group of girls talking backstage. This was their forth fourth performance of Pinocchio and the gossip about Amber was becoming a regular thing. She knew Amber had been making more friends and spending less time alone lately, but seemed like she was being too friendly. With everyone. She knew that some guys had been over to Amber's apartment too.

She folded her arms and shifted away from the wall, but not before a cute girl tapped her on the arm and handed her a letter with a little heart sticker keeping it closed. "Can you pass this to Amber?" She asked giddily. "I just wanted to thank her for the fun evening we had at her apartment last night." 

Krystal's shoulders slumped, but she took the letter. When Amber joined her later after getting her mic pack attached, she passed it to her. 

"Someone wanted me to give you this." 

"Oh thanks," Amber said, slipping it into her back pocket without reading it. She draped an arm over Krystal's shoulders. I can't believe we've gotten two wins. I never thought that would happen." 

It had been emotional for the group, especially since they'd been off stage for so long. "I never thought I'd cry over a trophy," Krystal agreed with a smirk. 

"Do you think we'll win another one?" 

"I know we will." 

They went out and performed will all of the energy they could despite the rehearsals before, hoping that everything they'd put into being on stage would show to all the fans on screen. That people would love them and vote for them and become their fans. 

"All the girls in the audience were screaming for you," Krystal said as they left the stage, heading to the dressing rooms to clean up and move on to their next performance across the city. 

Amber glanced around the room, then leaned in close to whisper to Krystal, "They were screaming for you too. You look beautiful out there." She smiled and gave Krystal's hand a little squeeze, then went back to removing her makeup.

The younger girl glanced up into the mirror and smiled. "Thanks." 

Her friend shrugged nonchalantly. "Just being honest."

As they were leaving, Krystal realized that Amber had tucked the letter from the girl into her stage pants, but had left them at the venue.

"That note," she said, grabbing Amber's arm. "You left it." 

Amber shook her head. "I threw it away." 

"What did it say?" 

She shrugged. 'Nothing important." Her eyes looked distant for a moment. When they slid into the van, she sat beside Krystal and wrapped her arm around her waist, laying her head on her shoulder in the dark.

"What's up?" 

"Nothing." She sat quietly for a moment, then said. "Did you ever think I was a boy?" 

Krystal thought back to when she'd first met Amber and nodded. "For a little while. Like two seconds. Why?" 

"Do I really look that much like a guy?" 

Krystal laughed. "Not really. It's just if you're not used to it." 

"Used to what?" 

Krystal gestured around. "So many of the girls here have the same hair length, wear the same makeup, struggle to make it look like they all have the same figure. Then here you are with short hair, not caring about makeup, and baggy clothes. No bra filled with padding to make it look like you've got something you don't. You kind of looked like a boy, or at least a person that can't be placed right away. But a few minutes in your presence and your beauty starts to stand out and there's no way to ever think of you looking like a boy again." 

Amber's brow crinkled. "Hmm." 

"Does that bother you? When people see you as a guy?" 

"I don't know. Maybe it's not a good thing or a bad thing. It's just a thing." 

She settled into silence. 

They finally reached the university for their performance, got into new outfits, performed, then headed back to the car. It was now past 1 AM and everyone was exhausted and a little cranky. 

"I know everyone is tired," their manager said loudly. "And I know it's hard to sleep in the van, especially since they haven't repaved the roads since I was in daycare, but just try your best, alright?" 

They sighed loudly and rolled their eyes, filing onto the bus. They 'd been hoping he was announcing they'd find a hotel to spend the night, but now they had a two hour drive back into the city.

"Are you still glad you came back?" Krystal asked Amber.