The phone was ringing mercilessly while waiting for its owner to pick it up.  But no one even attempted to click the answer button. It seemed like whoever was calling wasn't going to be satisfied. But that was what Sana was hoping for. Or maybe for the phone not to ring ever again. She observed the caller id until it disappeared. She didn't want to talk with her father. Not then and not ever most likely. He could get lost for all she cared. Sana sighed with relief but just before she could close her eyes the phone started ringing again. She shot the phone a glare and let out the air from her lungs forcefully. She didn't answer that one either. Even if it was her mom. She needed some time alone. Not with her parents bugging her 24/7. She was debating just turning her phone off but then she wouldn't know whether Mina texted her. And she couldn't leave Mina hanging. At least her ringtone wasn't annoying. The call ended. Sana closed her eyes and leaned her head on the wall of the building. She was sitting in the garden right outside of the dance clubs studio. She was waiting for Mina to finish the practice so she could tell her about the ed up idea her parents had. She needed to talk with Mina. 
Sana clenched her jaw when she heard her ringtone again. She was ready to just pick up and yell at whichever parent called that time. But her anger washed away when she saw Mina's name on the screen. She answered quickly and told Mina where exactly to look for her. And then she was able to just turn off her phone and not give a damn about her parents. All she had to do is wait a few minutes for Mina to get there. And when she did Sana told her to sit beside her. They just sat there in silence for a while. Mina didn't want to force Sana to say anything, even if she was worried after reading 'SOS' in the message without any explanation. Sana, on the other hand, had to gain her courage to speak. Mina already knew about her family situation after Sana had to deal with her father coming to her dorm. Mina helped her get rid of him and Sana decided she can trust Mina. Because Mina was the best person in the whole world. And there was no arguing about it. She was happy that Mina was her friend, but at the same time, it felt very undeserved. And it created the relationship where they were getting closer but at the same time pulling away more. 
"He wants to take our house." Mina couldn't say she was surprised. She knew that Sana's parents wouldn't divorce without any conflict. And unfortunately, it was pretty likely that Mr. Minatozaki would win.
"Did he actually tell you that? Or was it through the lawyer?" Sana adjusted her position awkwardly. She already was ready to cry but she didn't want to.
"He told us. He wanted to meet and kinda told us the things he wants. My mom didn't try to coax him into staying. I don't know if it's a good sign though." Mina grasped Sana's hand for support. She definitely didn't have experience with problems like Sana's. Tzuyu's family was just controlling and it destroyed their relationship. But they didn't want a divorce and they tried to work on it. So a different situation. And her parents were the happiest in their marriage. She was the most important to them and it showed. So she didn't want to give pointless advice to Sana. She could only be there beside her and support her through it.
"Does your mom have enough money for a new place? And what else does he want?" Sana squeezed Mina's hand absentmindedly and tried to remember all the things her father listed.
"The house, the car, the couch, the TV, the bed, everything that's inside of the house basically. Thank God that I am an adult and he can't take me away as well. I guess, she can afford something." Sana said it with venom. And Mina's heart hurt even more when she saw Sana wipe her teary eyes. She really wanted to do more. But she didn't have the power over every single thing in the world. 
"Your father just proves what type of person he is by doing this. If you need any financial-" 
"No. Don't do that. I can't take money from you, no matter how rich you are. I am just glad you are supporting me through it all. I just wish my mom would have cheated on him earlier so would be done with this by now." Mina wasn't sure how to reply to that. Considering the circumstances, Sana's words were nowhere near offensive. But it still sounded horrible. Her father was a manipulative person and drained them both during their life. So no matter how much Mina despised infidelity she understood Mrs. Minatozaki's actions. And Sana more so, she was pretty much happy to learn her mom cheated. She just didn't expect that it would end up so badly. 
"I understand. But maybe it wouldn't be better if it happened earlier. Sana, I will not only support but help you, always. Don't feel like it's a burden because it is not." Sana let go of Mina's hand and started playing with her fingers frantically. It got Mina worried, that she had said something wrong. 
"Thank you. For doing all of this. You are the best." Mina answered Sana with a gentle smile. She tried to be the best she could be. So she could aid people that needed it. 
"I would do it in a heartbeat all over again." That sentence was both reassuring and scary. But she didn't want Mina to know that. She didn't reply though. Instead, she got up. Mina followed her movement and waited for another move. And that another move was a tight hug. Something that Sana really needed right at that moment. And Mina was kind enough to provide her natural warmth to engulf Sana. She wished to never lose Mina. But at the same time, she knew that it would be better for Mina if she left.

"So, will you help us?" Sana looked from one guy to the other trying to decide if that was a good idea. They wanted to create a video about the students and that sounded great. Sure. She couldn't ignore the fact that one of the guys asking had a crush and Dahyun and he got rejected publically. Dahyun was beating herself up for that for a month. But honestly, the dude asked for it. He confessed to her in the middle of a crowd. Thinking that she wouldn't reject him. Though it sounded like a neutral thing. There were more people than him involved, allegedly. And Dahyun was known around as a funny girl. So would she be against it? She would probably give the photos herself. They were also asking for photos of Sana and Nayeon. That made it sound even less suspicious. 
"Alright. I will send you some photos when I am in my room. I hope you won't try to ask Dahyun out again this way." The boy in question shook his head defensively. So Sana let him go. She didn't have the energy to talk with them anyway. She had to go see her father. Which was dumb. Apparently, he wanted to talk with her and he would consider leaving the house for them. And that was a good offer. Sana hated the idea of her mom trying to find a good place to leave while working more hours to pay for the bills. But there was no way she would go there alone. She didn't want to involve Mina even more. She was just scared to go there alone. Her father was a manipulator. He was going to try and coax her into something for sure. And Mina would not let that happen. 
Sana wanted to be done with it quickly. She didn't wait a few minutes before she had knocked on the door of her father's rented apartment. She glanced behind her to make sure Mina was still there and faced the door in time for her father to open the door.
"Sana. I knew you would use your common sense." Sana fought herself hard not to say anything offensive. It was supposed to be a civilized conversation. Her father noticed Mina behind and hesitated to let them in. "It's a meeting between a daughter and her dad." 
"I am not going in without Mina." She didn't have to give him any reason for that. She only glared at him and it seemed like enough to convince him. But it couldn't have been that easy. He let them both in though and Sana immediately grabbed Mina's hand. They both followed her father to the living room and sat on the couch right in front of his chair. 
"I am happy you have accepted this meeting. I wanted to talk with you earlier but you never pick up your phone." Sana knew he didn't actually care about that. He just wanted to coax her to help him. But she was not going to cooperate. 
"Okay. What do you want exactly?" Her father glanced at Mina briefly and it irked Sana. She was afraid he would try to involve Mina somehow. She had to be strong. She tightened her hold on Mina's hand to keep her hand from shaking. It didn't work.
"I am just disappointed you are taking your mother's side. After what she has done to us. She betrayed our trust Sana." He really tried to make it about them. But her mom didn't hurt her. Ever. But her father surely wanted to paint a picture where her mom was the cause of everything.
"Mom didn't betray me. She did what she had to. You just weren't there for her." 
"Sana, I want the best for you. I told you that I will leave the house. But you have to be on my side. So I will get the flower shop." Sana was actually surprised that her father wanted to have it. He didn't care about preparing flowers for parties, weddings or balls. He just did the accounting stuff. No, he wanted to take her mom's job away. 
"No way in hell. Mom actually works her off there. Why do you want to take her work away." Mina put her other hand on Sana's to keep her calm. Sana was getting angrier and that was not a good sign.
"She cheated on me and therefore betrayed our marriage.-"
"Stop playing a ing victim. You got what you deserved. I won't let you take everything away from mom just because you take pleasure in humiliating others." Her father didn't show any remorse. He just grimaced a little. And it made her even angrier but when she tried to get up Mina held her down. 
"I always cared for you. Can't I get at least a little bit of gratitude? You will still have the house. And your mother can find another job. There's a lot of flower shops in the city. Also, I will leave you alone if you agree." Sana hesitated for a moment after she had heard her father's proposal. He would leave them alone. If she just said that it was her mom's fault. Wasn't that what she wanted? But that didn't sound right. 
"No. This isn't right. Take that stupid house." And so Sana got up and brought Mina with her. She has had enough. They would do something to find a new place. It wasn't a big problem.
"You are her friend. You surely see that what I am saying makes sense." Her father focused his eyes on Mina entirely. He was not going to let go easily. Mina stared back and tried not to show any emotion. 
"I think that you want it to make sense, sir." Mina wanted to end it in the most peaceful way possible. Sana's hand was already trembling hard in her own so it was best to leave. And she didn't want to say anything that would make either of them angry. Her father didn't stop them from exiting the apartment. Which was nice of him. But all of it made Sana feel down. And it brought a night like any other. 

It felt like the world was ought to get her. She had the meeting with her dad and it didn't go well. And then she had a terrible night. The classes were bad because she didn't pay attention most of the time and she didn't know what they were doing exactly. Then her mom cried to her for a whole day. To be honest, every day of that week felt the same. She just wanted the divorce to end already so there would be one less thing to worry about. She had hope for that day though. Even if it was cold. She didn't wake up in a different room. Awesome. She didn't have a nightmare. Great. She prepared a bit for classes. So it was going to be fine. And it was. She met with everyone for lunch and they had fun. Even Chaeyoung didn't glare at her the whole time. So maybe she was over her anger. Sana was still a little bugged that she was accused of using Mina. She loved her and she never wanted to hurt her. She needed someone at that moment. She trusted Mina. She didn't want to think that she might be abusing their friendship. Then after lunch, the classes were fine as well. Sana felt like it was a lucky day. Without her father trying to talk with her or her mom crying. She had to use that occasion. So she decided to go to the shop to buy food and then invite everyone to her room. She wanted to have a little friends' night. And she was excited about that. She was pretty distant from the others recently. They even nagged her about avoiding them like a plague. She picked up everyone's favorite snacks and went back to prepare everything. That went smoothly as well. And Sana actually started feeling a bit anxious. Because that whole day was too perfect. She decided to continue with her plan though. She sent an invitation in their group chat and passed the remaining time on watching random videos on YouTube. And she lost the count of time due to that. Or maybe she didn't. Because when the door to her room flew open she wasn't meet with a smiling face or an enthusiastic greeting. She was met with a furious Jeongyeon.
"Jeong? What's wrong?" She got up quickly and just as quickly she found herself on the floor. After Jeongyeon landed a punch right on her jaw. Her heart started racing like crazy. She was lost and felt pain pulse through her jaw. She looked up at Jeongyeon with tears in her eyes. And she saw that Jeongyeon was ready to land another punch. Sana was never fast. She was never good at defense so Jeongyeon's fist hit her right on her nose. And then again and again and she tried to do something but she was weaker and no matter how hard she tried to get out she couldn't. She slowly started feeling dizzy and she was panicked. But Jeongyeon didn't stop punching her in the face. Until she got pulled away all the way to the door.
"What are you doing?!" Sana was barely conscious. She couldn't focus her eyes and all the blood didn't help it. She was trying to stay awake but it was very hard.
"What! You have ing seen the photos, Mina! This ing did that to Dahyun!" Mina moved a step away from Jeongyeon. She was terrified. Her whole body was shaking and she tried to choke her tears down. They were all ready to go see Sana when Chaeyoung got a message with...horrible edits of Dahyun. And they knew that Sana provided Dahyun's photos to some guys. But she didn't believe that Sana knew it would be like that. No one else shared her thoughts. Or at least didn't say it out loud. They were actually talking all together until Jeongyeon took off. Mina followed her without thinking. She didn't know what the rest did. But she was terrified that exactly what happened would happen. 
"We were supposed to talk it through." Mina tried to talk calmly. She hoped that Jeongyeon would regain a clear mind. But then they heard more footsteps and she lost all hope for it to be well.
"Jeongyoeon." Jihyo started after she saw the bloody-faced Sana lying on the floor. 
"Great. Tell Mina that we are not supposed to defend Sana." 
"We need to-" Mina tried to speak but got interrupted by Chaeyoung. 
"Mina, what is there to talk about. She is just a ing scumbag. She has been always. And now she has further proved it." Mina glanced at Tzuyu. But the girl lowered her head. She didn't blame her. Maybe it was better for Tzuyu to stay quiet. Then she looked at Momo. She saw regret in her eyes. Mina couldn't blame Momo either. But she hoped someone would take her side.
"This just created with Dahyun and you are trying to protect her." Jeongyeon mocked Mina. Dahyun was standing there with them. In Nayeon's arms. She wasn't facing them. For the better but she still heard everything. 
"Don't call her that." Jihyo walked closer to Mina and tried to look her in the eyes.
"Mina, Sana did all of that. She has just destroyed Dahyun. She needs to take responsibility." And exactly then Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung moved closer and Mina stepped back to shield Sana. She wasn't looking intimidating at all. But she wasn't going to let them get closer. She just wanted them to leave. She wanted to check on Sana. To make sure she's...
"Mina stop acting stupid." Nayeon tried this time. But she didn't get any reaction. Mina was watching Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung like a hawk. 
"You are all angry. We should talk when we all calm down." Jeongyeon stepped closer and Mina's heart jumped up to .
"We are angry for a reason. We won't be less angry." Mina lowered her head and stood still. She was praying at that point for that to end. 
"Mina, you know what is right. She is just a piece of that manipulates you." Mina shook her head at Chaeyoung's attempt to coax her. She was not going to listen. 
"I know. You all should leave if you don't want to see Sana." There was a silence after Mina's suggestion. And she hoped someone would stay. Tzuyu. Momo. She begged in her head. 
"You can leave with us. We will go. But Sana will face the consequences." Jihyo was definitely the most reasonable and Mina thanked God for her. Even if she didn't want to listen. 
"So you want this to go easily?" Jihyo just grabbed Jeongyeon's arm and dragged her away. Mina looked up and watched them leave. First Jihyo and Jeongyeon. She didn't miss the glare from Jeongyeon. Nayeon followed them with Dahyun still clinging to her. She watched Momo linger in the room looking from her to the corridor. And finally, she turned away and went after Nayeon. Mina nodded at Tzuyu after seeing her troubled expression. She knew that Tzuyu wanted to go with Jihyo. And she didn't want to stop her. Tzuyu left after that. Mina met Chaeyoung's eyes last. She could see the hurt inside of them. And for a moment she thought that Chaeoung would stay. But then Chaeyoung looked behind Mina and stormed out of the room. And only then Mina let go and started sobbing. She kneeled on the floor and checked if Sana was still breathing. And she cried harder when she felt the air hit her cheek and saw her chest rise. She took Sana's phone from the desk and called for an ambulance. She felt bad for the dispatcher though. The man probably had a very hard time understanding what she was saying. But somehow he did and in a few minutes that felt longer, the paramedics came running in. Mina told them that she found Sana like that and she had no idea what happened. The paramedics allowed her to go with them and told her to call Sana's mom. She followed all the instructions and waited in front of the entrance to the hospital for Sana's mom. And tried to figure out the best way to explain everything to her.

Sana didn't talk much the next day. Maybe it was because of a fractured jaw. Definitely. Even the doctor said it is the most painful when chewing and talking. But Sana wasn't even communicating with them in any way. Maybe it was also the broken nose and zygomatic bone. Either way, Sana was lying in bed doing everything to ignore Mina and her mom. And it went like that for a while. Mina didn't know if Sana knew what happened. So she didn't try to tell her. She was sitting in the chair next to the bed and just held Sana's hand. Ms. Minatozaki was talking for all three of them. She didn't want it to be quiet. She talked about anything. And Mina appreciated it. She loved Sana dearly and Mina had a big problem with calming Ms. Minatozaki down once she arrived at the hospital. But it turned out as well as it could. Sana only got some bruises and broken bones. But she got no damage to her brain or eyes. That was making the situation less scary. Even if Sana needed surgery for her jaw. 
When Sana could leave the hospital Mina and Ms. Minatozaki hoped for a change. That Sana would communicate with them finally. But it wasn't really the case. Sana spent the whole day in her room. She only went out to the bathroom. She didn't let any of them inside and they had to leave food and drinks outside of her room. At least they were glad that Sana was eating. Mina came over every day after her classes ended. She didn't want to be in her dorm anyway. Momo moved to Nayeon so she was alone. And she hated that. She tried to talk with Sana every day. But she never got any answers. The divorce happened a month after the incident. Sana didn't go. And she was probably happy and sad at the same time. Because she didn't support her mom. They didn't even get to talk with Sana when they had to go for a check-up. Every check-up. But after Sana's jaw had healed and she could talk and eat normally they tried to get to her even more.
"Sana, Mina and I are having pizza. Do you want to share it with us?" Ms. Minatozaki spoke through the door with a hopeful expression. Mina stood next to her with a large box with Sana's favorite pizza and hoped it would be the day when Sana lets them in. But there was silence. 
"We can sit here and eat it. She will hear our talk." Mina suggested and Ms. Minatozaki smiled at her thankfully. Sana always talked a lot about Mina before. And her mom already got a liking to that girl. But after all of that, she was grateful for Mina. She cared about Sana so much it was shocking. Sana ignored her every day and yet Mina always showed up after classes with new hope. 
"You are the sweetest girl, Mina. Thank you." Mina smiled softly and then set the box on the floor right in front of the door. She sat on the right side and leaned on the wall. Ms. Minatozaki followed her lead and sat on the other side. And the two of them started eating. They talked about their day and what would happen in the following days. They tried to talk loud enough for Sana to hear them. Surprisingly, after some time the door opened. Ms. Minatozaki stood up and waited for Sana to say something. Mina looked up from her spot on the floor though. 
"Why are you still here? Why didn't you leave? You should be gone like all of them. They are right about everything." Mina was quite stunned. She had never thought that Sana would question her like that. She was there because she didn't want to leave. She loved Sana.
"Sana, Mina has been here every day. She doesn't want to leave." Sana looked at her mom with eyes full of fear. Of course, she didn't want Mina to leave. But she was thinking about all that happened. They were right. She didn't know what the photos would be used for. But she has unknowingly contributed to that. And before that, she was not acting like a good person either. Mina should stay away from her. 
"She should leave. I keep ing things up. I have destroyed the friendship we had. I had contributed to destroying my friend's life. I was using Mina for a while. And I have stripped her off of all her friends. She would be better off without me." Sana's face was marked by her tears. She couldn't even look at Mina. She hoped that Mina would leave. But at the same time, she was praying for Mina not to leave. Sana's mom put her hands on Sana's cheeks and caressed them with her thumbs. Sana's stomach fell when she heard Mina move on the side. She shut her eyes and waited. She didn't hear faded footsteps though. She felt arms wrap around her waist. 
"I don't want to leave Sana. You are a good person. You are just in a terrible time." Sana's mom nodded to confirm she thinks the same way. Sana opened her eyes soon enough to see that. She felt undeserving of all that. But it was all she wanted. And since that day, Sana wasn't sitting locked up in her room anymore. She went out and spent time with Mina and her mom. The more time passed the better she felt. But also she was getting angrier at the rest. For treating her that way. Unfairly. She didn't let it stop her from moving forward. Her face went back to normal eventually and the scars were small and barely visible. She easily covered them with make-up. And she didn't have any insecurities related to that. Mina and her mom told her she's beautiful every day. The job she got as a model also helped her remain self-confident. Soon Sana and Mina started officially dating and Sana thought that she didn't deserve Mina less and less. Her father left them alone and even let them have the house after all. She got a gift from him as well. He apparently, was worried about her. And their life was nearly happy. She was still getting nightmares. About the incident. That kept them awake for hours sometimes. But Mina was always there. Sana also took care of Mina. She prioritized Mina's needs and wants. She made sure that she is always there for Mina. She didn't want it to be like back then. Especially, that Mina's eyesight was getting worse day by day. Of course, that was the reason for more trouble. Mina lost her eyesight on a day when Sana got into a car accident with her manager where a few cars crashed. She only broke her shoulder and the manager got a concussion. But Mina only found out when she was in the hospital after thinking for 20 minutes that Sana was one of the dead people that were in the accident. Sana still remembered Mina's horrified voice thanking the doctor for walking her there. And by the way, Mina just moved at a slow pace and seemed very focused Sana figured out why that was. Mina called her name even before she reached the bed. And Sana didn't wait to let her know she was fine. Mina didn't comment on her blindness. They knew it was bound to happen. To Mina, sight loss was nothing compared to the devastation she felt because of the accident. She didn't care about her sight. But definitely, when she still thought Sana was dead and she couldn't see, it was making the whole thing worse. But it wasn't after she heard Sana's gentle voice. 
They moved out of her mom's house only after a few months after the accident. Mostly because Sana had a broken shoulder and Mina was blind and had to get used to it. It was still bad during nights. Sana was still having nightmares, with the addition of the car crash situation. And Mina was focusing all her energy to support Sana. She even went with Sana to therapy sessions after the accident. Sana said she was fine but it wasn't true. Mina hoped though that Sana would say something about the situation with their friends. But Sana only talked about the car accident. The therapy helped, in some ways, in some not. But she wasn't afraid to go out anymore. Her nightmares stopped involving the accident as well. But she preferred not to drive by car. It felt like the world was ought to get them. But they still managed to be happy amidst all of that. With great jobs, their own apartment, having enough money to live well, having Sana's mom with them. And simply having each other. Sana would always be the most thankful for Mina. She was the only person that wasn't her mom, that truly loved her. And she would damn herself if she ever hurt her.