2017

JESSICA

The rain came in drizzles. A perfect company for the gloomy sunset. Another excuse for Jessica to stand still under the glass awning of the building's main entrance. It was the Friday leading to a long weekend. She knew she was probably amongst the lasts to leave the building. Jessica just couldn't find it in her to book an Uber or hail a cab. Somehow, her heavy heart anchored her feet to the spot, forcing her to watch droplets of water falling from the sky no matter how much she wanted to get on with her life.

Somebody honked her from inside a blue KIA. Probably one of her coworkers. She waved, forcing a polite smile. A few minutes later an SUV exited the building parking lot and stopped by the curb. Jay from marketing rolled the tinted window down and shouted for Jessica to get in. Shaking her head, Jessica sprouted a lie of waiting for a cab. Rolling the window back up while giving her a thumb up, Jay sped away.

A few minutes later, a dash of blurred red passed through. Jessica recognized the vehicle easily. It wasn't for the stark blue helmet nor the signature black leather jacket the driver was wearing. It was definitely not for the way the bike cut through the rain like a knife does a bar of butter. Jessica knew who it was because her heart skipped a beat only for her.

Kwon Yuri.

Taking a deep sigh, Jessica looked up at the dark sky. Weeks ago she could still feel Yuri trying hard. Weeks ago she could still see a soft glow of hope by the end of the dark tunnel. Now everything slowly turned pitch black and she had no one else to blame. Two years had passed by in a blur since the day she met Yuri for the first time. A pale blur of pretense and repressed feeling as she kept on making excuses to ignore the lovely girl.

The sound of a playful ringtone broke into her mellow reverie and Jessica fumbled for the source. As expected, it was her sister calling. "How is it?" She pressed the thin bar unnecessarily hard against her ear. The anxiety she had been trying to kill since morning now turned monstrous.

"Bad."

"I'm sorry." She took a deep breath. Her heart now felt like a ton of lead.

"Me too."

"Do you want me to come over later?"

"I have a late audition in two hours."

"Okay."

"Why don't you come to visit her now. She asks for you."

"I can't."

"Okay."

The call ended and Jessica nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw the red Yamaha stopped by the curb across the street. She didn't need Yuri to open the helmet visor to feel those eyes on her.

"Don't look at me like that, Kwon Yuri." She said quietly while closing her eyes and sighing. When she opened them again, Yuri was speeding back into the basement parking lot. The silly girl probably left something at the office. For someone who worked as sharp and as precise as her, Yuri forgot her own stuff often.

Date her. It will be okay. Soojung's advice rang in her ears almost every time she ponder about Yuri.

She likes you. A lot. Never seen her go head over heels like this before. And trust me, you want a kind and caring person like her in your life. Quiet boy Taemin was always generous with words when it came to promoting his best friend.

Even Key, in his own blunt ways, kept on pushing Yuri toward her.

The universe had conspired and now Jessica wondered if she should just give herself a chance before it's too late.

"Hey..."

Jessica lifted her head up, seeing a small smile that lit up her whole heart. Shielded from the rain, Yuri was standing on the steps in front of Jessica holding open a rainbow umbrella. The leather jacket and the brown strapped boots were still on but the helmet was gone, giving way for Jessica to savor the perfect features of Yuri's existence. Her toned body under that effortless tomboy attires. The messy yet chic ponytail of her shiny long black hair. A pair of beautiful eyes that looked unusually bright under the evening glow. Every other thing that made Jessica question herself almost every time.

"Let me drive you home." Her words bring Jessica's gaze to Key's metallic blue range rover parked by the curb. Apparently, Yuri had gone back in just to get the car for Jessica.

"It's okay."

"You'll get a cold waiting in the rain like this." Taking one step forward and holding out the umbrella toward Jessica, Yuri's eyes were doubtful and hopeful at the same time. While the look made Jessica's heart ache, it also acted like a strong magnet that brought her feet down the granite steps. Surrounded by the falling droplets, their eyes met and Jessica's heart skipped a beat. It had been forever since they got this close.

"Please?" Yuri asked again. Her small smile did not falter.

"Yes."

No words could describe the warmth that suddenly radiated across Jessica's skin when Yuri put a hand on the small of her back. With utmost care and a sincere smile, the girl led Jessica to the car. The comfort and protection Yuri provided during that super short trip felt so genuine that the moment Jessica sat on the passenger seat, the glasses that encased her heart shattered. It ached so much that by the time the car hit the main road, tears fell unbidden from her eyes.

YURI

Jessica cried. Tears streaming on her cheeks just like the pouring rain that kept on blurring Yuri's vision no matter how hard the windscreen wipers work. She wanted to reach out and wipe those tears. She wanted to hit the brake and console her. She wanted to know why. She kept driving instead.

"Second exit please." The girl mumbled behind the waterwork, eyes and nose were all tomato red.

"Not first?"

"No." Jessica sniffed back tears. "I moved out last month."

"Oh." Yuri took the exit, glancing at the address Jessica was typing into the car GPS. It was quite far and probably the reason why Jessica made a habit of coming late for work lately. "I'm sorry."

"No. I'm sorry. Should have told you earlier." The girl mumbled something about the few minutes extra drive Yuri had to take to get her home.

"I don't mind."

"Huh?"

"The extra drive."

"Thank you."

"How about you? Do you mind?"

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing. Sorry."

"Okay."

"Jessica..." After a few minutes of silence, Yuri stole another glance. She had been trying to hold back lately. Not advancing as much. Starving herself from the proximity that she actually craved. This evening was different though. Seeing Jessica waiting in the rain made the old feeling she had been trying to bury resurface again.

"Yes..."

"Did you cry because of me?" She really wished she wasn't the source of pain in Jessica's eyes but the circumstance said that she might be.

"Yuri..."

"I'm sorry If you actually didn't want me to drive you home." She should have read the signs. Jessica was clearly not interested in anything beyond relationships between coworkers. Maybe this was the limit. Maybe Jessica hated her that much.

"No... That's not it." Jessica turned her head, looking even more in pain now.

"I'm sorry if I came on too strong at you. I'm sorry if I offended you in so many ways. We had one date and my mind has never been right since then." Yuri took a deep breath. Taemin and Key might say otherwise but this was the perfect time to bury the false hope. She had failed to unlock the door to Jessica's heart so many times it was only logical to think that the key wasn't hers to begin with. "You are just so attractive. I think I've fallen so hard I forgot to consider your feeling at all."

"I promise this will be the last time." Yuri offered a weak smile. It was hard not to cry but she steeled herself. Apparently, her heart was extremely fragile tonight. "I really hope we can still be the best of friends."

"Yuri, I am not-"

Jessica's words were cut short by the GPS informing them of their arrival at her address. "Is this your apartment?" Yuri looked up at the modest apartment from behind the window. Rain was still pouring mercilessly so she reached for the umbrella under her seat. "It looks nice." She lied while getting out of the car and opened the umbrella. To her luck, a truck dashed by and created splashes from the puddle on the road, wetting Yuri all over.

"Oh, no!"

"It's okay. Stay there." She rushed to Jessica's side of the car and open the door for her.

"You're all wet."

"Yeah." Yuri laughed a little, wiping dripping water from her face. "It's okay though. Come on, let's get you in before another mad truck drive by."

"But..."

"Come on, let's go." Yuri led Jessica by the small of her back again.

"Yuri..." Jessica turned her head when they arrived before her door. "Let's go up and get you changed into something warmer."

"It's fine." She kept her stance, thinking Jessica didn't mean the invitation at all.

"No. You'll get cold driving all the way back drenched like that."

"It's really fine." Yuri smiled a little. Jessica couldn't even stand having lunch alone with her at work in the past few months. The girl was only trying to be polite.

"At least towel your hair dry. Come on, follow me." Jessica tug at Yuri's hand now, fingers circling her wrist in a way that made Yuri's heart fluttered. This was not it. Just a few minutes ago Yuri had promised herself to completely stop breaching into Jessica's personal space.

"I won't get a cold. I drive my bike in the rain all the time." She whispered, feeling her resolve dissolve bit by bit.

"God, It's so cold out here." Jessica shivered, tugging harder. "Close that umbrella and follow me already."

Smiling wider, Yuri nodded.

Jessica's apartment was compact, to say the least. A bit untidy for Yuri's liking too. After the short first impression, Yuri's eyes were fixed on nothing else but the beauty moving about in front of her though. Her lips tugged into a grin when she realized Jessica was trying hard to make the space look more presentable.

"I'm sorry, it's so messy in here."

"It's fine." She stood by the door, didn't know what else to do.

"Here." Jessica handed Yuri a towel while simultaneously trying to drag a laundry basket away from the view. "You can get changed in the bathroom there."

"Into what?" Yuri walked to the pink door. There was a cute wreath made of little plushies on it. Someone special must have given it to Jessica as a present, jealousy whispered to her heart.

"Ah yes, I forgot. You can use my clothes." Jessica dashed to the closet.  Opening its doors, she got flooded by unfolded laundry and other stuff instead. "Whoops. Nooo."

Yuri laughed, stepping forward to stop a bunch of shoeboxes from falling onto the girl. "Careful." She moved the boxes onto the bed.

"I shouldn't have invited you in," Jessica mumbled, snatching matching sweatpants and sweatshirt from the pile on the floor. "Here. They are clean. Trust me. I just haven't got the chance to fold everything. We were very busy at work."

"I know." Yuri grinned again. If Jessica's station at the office was the benchmark of her neatness, the mess of her apartment was quite understandable. The girl clearly worked better in chaos. "Let me help you-"

"No. No. No." She pushed her toward the bathroom instead, cheeks blushing red. "Go get changed."

"But-"

"Please. Get in before I embarrass myself any further."

Yuri laughed, entering the bathroom with a heart that thump rather wildly.

Ten minutes later she came out in a sweatshirt that smelled like Jessica and sweatpants that felt one size too small for her thighs. Jessica was still struggling with her closet so Yuri came behind her, holding the doors open as Jessica crammed three boxes at once onto the top shelf.

"Ah, you're done?" Jessica spun. There was barely an inch between them now.

"Yep."

"How's the sweat set?" Jessica bent down to pick two boxes from the floor. "Do you like them?"

"A lot." Yuri smiled, taking the boxes from the girl's hand and putting them up with the others. "Thank you so much."

"No. Thank you so much."

"Shall I leave or do you need more help?"

"Uh... " Jessica threw a look at the window. Outside, the rain was still falling in torrents. "I think you need to wait until the rain subsides a bit."

"Are you sure?" Yuri couldn't even believe her luck.

"Yes.