I think you should all sh!t bricks coz here's another update in less than 24 hours! :D I'll be sending the PM in about an hour since I'm busy. 

For those of you who said 'Drink more' well I thank you for supporting my drinking habits, but I'm telling you now that my mother would not like any of you. HAHA! The bar scenes here on Soul Searching are actual scenes we do when my friends and I go out. xD But kids, don't drink and drive! that's the only thing I'm forbidding; other than that, I support drinking habits! LOLOL Just kidding. HAHA Maybe.

Anyway, this is a short update since I felt bad for leaving a cliffhanger. :D LOL

Chapter Twenty Two

“Jessi,” Tiffany called yet again after being silent for awhile.

Great. That was just a great way to blue ball Jessica. She was already ready to ask the girl out on a date, but then the girl decided to speak. Just wonderful. “Yeah?”

Tiffany looked to her side, meeting Jessica’s eyes; their faces were just inches apart. She closed her eyes as she took in a deep breath, as though preparing herself for something. “Jessi,” she called once again.

“Fany-ah?”

“Would it be a burden to you…” Tiffany paused and took in another deep breath. The blonde just waited; her gaze not leaving Tiffany’s. “if I told you I love you?”

Burden to the blonde? Why would being loved by the person she wanted love from be a burden? How was that even possible? Was she kidding? She really just might, and if the blonde reacted to it seriously, Tiffany would just end up laughing at her and say everything was a joke. Thinking about it like that now, the blonde couldn’t help but frown. There was this pain in her chest by just the thought of everything not meaning to anything. Because she would do anything for things to go her way.

“Jessi?” Tiffany called again with a soft smile on her face.

This really might be a joke, and the blonde couldn’t help but frown. “Don’t joke like that, Tiffany. It’s not funny,” she said as she looked away to the ceiling, not liking the smile on Tiffany’s face; it was as though it proved to the blonde the answer she didn’t wanna hear - this wasn’t what she thought it would be. She wished she had the courage to look at Tiffany, meet her in the eye, and smile at her as though there wasn’t anything wrong. Like that joke was just funny and they would laugh together. But she couldn’t. Because it just hurts when her spirits were lifted but then was thrown like trash.

Tiffany sighed. “If you don’t love me, you can at least take my confession seriously.” Jessica heard it right, right? Tiffany said it was a confession, so it really was? It was never a joke all along? A smile crept in her face, she wasn’t able to contain the sudden emotion of happiness rushing in. She was loved. She was loved because she was Jung Jessica, not because she was the Jung Jessica. It might not be much for some people, but the blonde determined there was a difference. A huge difference, even. She was just ecstatic Tiffany felt the same way.“Jessi, I know you might think I only fell for you because you’re nice to me, and maybe to some extent, you’re right.” The blonde looked Tiffany in the eyes, trying to see if things were really happening and she wasn’t just dreaming. Tiffany was really there, looking straight to her eyes. The blonde watched Tiffany speak, her eyes focusing on the girl’s lips. “But I’m sure I’ve had feelings for you for awhile now. And you keep doing things to make me fall for you; isn’t it unfair? You keep making me love you, but you don’t ev---”

The blonde wanted to speak, but it was as though she was overwhelmed by happiness, she didn’t know how to convey her feelings, but then again how could she when the girl kept on talking? She just wanted Tiffany to shut up so she quickly, but gently, grabbed the back of the girl’s head, holding it securely as she leaned in forward and then touched their lips together. The blonde knew the girl was taken aback as she was stiff for a second - like dead fish, even - but soon after, she returned the kiss, opening , welcoming the blonde’s tongue. Jessica then felt Tiffany’s hand on her nape so she moved to a more comfortable position, Tiffany was under half of her upper extremity as she had one hand behind Tiffany’s head; her other hand was on the mattress, supporting her weight. The blonde pulled back slowly, wanting to solidify what it was that went on. The girl looked at her, confused, with the girl scowling. “Fany-ah?” Jessica then carefully placed her body on top of Tiffany’s and embraced the girl. “You’re not just saying this, right?” She held on to the girl tightly, as though she turned into a child, not wanting to be alone. “Because if you say you’re just kidding, I really wouldn’t know what to do from here.”

Jessica felt a pair of arms wrapped around her, soothing her and making her feel more at ease. Like she really belonged in that embrace, and she wouldn’t want to leave. “Jessi,” Tiffany called once again. The blonde made a humming noise in response; she honestly didn’t know why the girl liked calling her name today. “Does this mean you love me too?”

“Stupid,” Jessica said as she released the girl from the hug, getting up a little with one hand on the mattress, supporting her, and their face inches apart. “If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have kissed you.” Did the girl think she would just kiss simply because she was confessed to? Did she have any idea how much work it was for the girl to muster up all that courage to almost confess - until she was obviously blue balled? Even though it wasn’t she, who confessed first, she still had a lot of troubles because of wanting to do so. “Do you even realize how hard it was for me to live with you for a week with feelings like wanting to kiss you and embrace you and ?” Tiffany smiled at the blonde as she got up, hugging Jessica by the waist and then laying down, pulling Jessica along with her.

“Jessi?”

The way Tiffany called her name always seemed to be so loving that the blonde couldn’t help but fall deeper and deeper, as though the mere calling of her name was some incantation to make her love the girl more. Actually, had she sang her name more, the blonde might end up being Tiffany’s blinded lover, thank goodness she only did it a couple of times. “Fany-ah?”

“I don’t have anything.” There was sadness in the girl’s voice, and Jessica was about to say something, but Tiffany continued. “I’m not rich like you, but I’ll work hard to be someone worthy of being with you.”

The blonde wanted to tell Tiffany that it was fine; she really didn’t need anything other than the girl, but then, at the same time, she thought that it was Tiffany’s pride that was speaking. And who was she to destroy someone else’s pride? Because she understood where Tiffany was going, she hugged Tiffany tighter and said, “You better. I don’t wanna be with a loser,” she finished with a giggle.

******

The blonde opened her eyes and she saw the pieces of white furniture, she couldn’t help but have a smile on her face. Just being in the girl’s room verified that everything that happened last night wasn’t just a beautiful dream but reality. That her love for the girl didn’t deplete her sanity.

She looked to her side and Tiffany was there, curled up in a ball as she slept peacefully. The blonde couldn’t help but adore her girlfriend’s sleeping figure. Thinking about it now, Tiffany was her girlfriend, and that thought alone brought to her so many positive emotions. She still couldn’t believe it and things still felt surreal, but this taste of reality was the best taste of happiness for her since it was the first time she would be dating someone she loved. So maybe even being played with by her former love seemed worth it now that she had someone much more deserving of her love.

The blonde carefully got up from the bed, not wanting to wake Tiffany up; she figured she should freshen up since she would want to eat breakfast soon. She went in her room, and saw the time.  It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet. Not liking the fact that it was still too early, the blonde got on her bed and remembered thoughts of last night: Tiffany confessed to her, she kissed Tiffany, they talked, and Tiffany asked Jessica to sleep beside her. Now that she remembered herself sleeping, she couldn’t help but do the same again now.

*******

After freshening up, the blonde headed for the kitchen to have coffee since it was still too early for her. To her surprise, Tiffany was still not there; the girl usually ransacked the kitchen by this time of day. Well, maybe for a change, the blonde figured she should be the one to make coffee for the girl. And so she her coffee maker, added the needed ingredients, and then hit brew.

Busy getting things together such as the cups, coasters, sugar, and creamer, the blonde was humming joyfully. She just couldn’t help but keep this wide smile on her face. Had her cousin or her friends seen her right now, they would probably  laugh at her and tell her she was whipped, which she would obviously deny to them. Like hell she would. But right now, she didn’t care since nobody was around her, so she knew she could act as silly as possible.

“Jessi?” Tiffany called behind the blonde girl.

The blonde looked over her shoulder with a smile on her face. “It’s almost done,” she said as she poured coffee in each cup. “Just sit there.” She nodded once at the table as she carried a mug in each hand. She placed one coffee in front of Tiffany, while placing the other next to the girl; since it was a four-seater, she was at the other edge.

“Thank you,” Tiffany said.

She sat next to the girl with a smile on her face. “Be careful, it’s still hot.”

Tiffany smiled softly at the girl as she nodded.

The blonde didn’t know what was wrong with Tiffany since she was mostly vocal during the mornings. Why was she silent now? Was it because she didn’t have enough sleep last night since they stayed up until morning or what? Maybe she was feeling unwell? Or maybe she was regretting what happened last night.

She took a quick sip of her coffee - it was still really hot. “Is something wrong?” she asked as she placed the cup down on the coaster.

Tiffany shook her head and then took a sip as well. “No.”

So why did it seem like things were so awkward? Just a couple of minutes ago, the blonde was happily humming as she prepared coffee, but now, she didn’t know what happened to the girl; it was as though she was a different person. It really might had something to do with her, she figured. Why else would Tiffany be silent and awkward? Shouldn’t she be happy that they finally were able to confess to each other about how they feel?

Feeling her insides turn to knots, the blonde didn’t like it, so she took another sip of coffee to hide the fact that she was afraid. Afraid that Tiffany would tell her everything was a mistake and that they should just go back to how things used to. But the blonde didn’t want that, because at this point, she wouldn’t know how she would act had she been asked that.

“Jessi,” Tiffany called.

Just with this call, the blonde’s worries and doubts were vanished. It was weird since a mere loving call made every thing in her mind disappear. As though it was some type of magic that was used only to her by only Tiffany. “Yes?”

“Have you ever woken up one morning, not knowing which is real and which isn’t?” Their eyes met for a moment, but Tiffany averted her gaze and hung her head low. The girl then continued after she sighed, “Do you just ever question why you wake up happy?”

Not being able to follow where the girl was going, she then said, “What do you mean?”

“Like,” Tiffany started but paused, gathering her thoughts together to make better sense. “You just don’t know whether or not you wake up to a dream or if you're living a dream?”

Not knowing what else to say, Jessica stood up a little as she leaned forward; the chair made a dragging noise, making Tiffany look up. Just when she was, their faces were inches apart so the blonde landed her lips to other’s luscious one. Just like how it was last night, the girl was taken aback, but the blonde made sure she would make her point so she started to move her lips, which Tiffany welcomed; the girl’s hand was on Jessica’s nape, as though trying to not let her escape. The blonde tasted this sweet coffee flavor, probably Tiffany’s, and despite not liking sweet coffee, she didn’t mind this one.

Tiffany then pulled back from the kiss, leaving the blonde wanting more; however, the blonde just kept a smile on her face as she took a seat once again after she lightly poked the tip of the girl’s nose. The girl had one hand raised to her face; her fingertips were touching her lips. “So it wasn’t a dream?” The girl looked confused, but she seemed happy so the blonde didn’t mind. “Last night wasn’t just a dream?” She met with Jessica’s gaze; the blonde was smiling as she nodded to confirm everything.. “Really?”

“Yah!” Jessica said as she got up once again, giving the girl a peck on the lips. “It’s not. I thought you got awkward with me all of a sudden, so I got worried. I thought you’d tell me to forget about everything.”

“I jus--- I just didn’t dare think it’s real…I mean, you weren’t there beside me when I woke up… so I really thought...” she said softly.

“I love you,” the blonde said as she looked Tiffany in the eyes. She wasn’t always good being at comforting people, but she knew that by professing her love, the doubts in the girl’s head would go away. Because if she was in doubt, that was the only thing she would need to hear to be reassured of everything.

Tiffany paused, looking blankly at Jessica, and then she started to smile wider and wider. “You know,” she started. “It’s kind of hard to not love you. I mean… really?” She paused as she closed her eyes, sighing. “You’re really something.”

The blonde couldn’t get rid of this cheshire smile on her face; she was afraid she looked creepy. So she said, “You’re not even going to say it back to me?”

“You’re so cheesy! I can’t!” Tiffany said with her cheeky bright pink as she got up from the chair. “This is kinda embarrassing now.”

“What? You think this is embarrassing?” Well, honestly, the blonde was also embarrassed by the things she was saying, but she didn’t care at this point since she had Tiffany. “I love you,” she repeated once again, which caused Tiffany to cringe, but she had a smile on her face. Just when Tiffany was about to run away, Jessica was quick to grab her wrist and repeatedly said, “I love you,” in a singing manner as she giggled in between.

“Stop!” Tiffany said as she laughed along; she was still trying to get away from the blonde. “How can you act like this?! Shouldn’t you be awkward or something?!” Jessica didn’t say anything as she continued on her singing.

“Then say it,” Jessica said, and went on with her singing. It was pretty weird what she was doing, but it was fun so she didn’t pay any mind. “Say it!”  

“Fine, fine!” Tiffany stopped shaking her hand. “I---I---”

“Oi! This is unfair,” Jessica pouted now, not liking that Tiffany wasn’t saying she loved her, too. She was the one who confessed last night, so why was she being all shy now? The blonde wanted to hear it more just to keep reminding both of them that they were a couple and they were happy.

“How can you say you love me so openly this early in morning?!” Tiffany stomped her foot once; she, too, was pouting.

“Well, because you beat me to saying it last night so I’m saying it now. I love you.” She laughed as she continued to sing the last part. She liked teasing Tiffany and embarrassing the girl since she was just too cute, and that entertained the blonde. Not only did she got herself a lover, but also a personal clown, she thought.

“I love you,” Tiffany mumbled. “There! I said it. “

The blonde laughed. “I love you, too.” She got up from the chair and hugged Tiffany, whose face was pink due to embarrassment. In the girl’s arms, the blonde really realized how much happier she was with Tiffany in her life, she wanted to kick herself on her a$s for realizing things so late, but like she always thought, it was better late than never.