Jessica felt her phone vibrate beside her as she laid in bed. She opened her eyes and looked at the caller ID. It was Taeyeon.

“Hello?”

“Jeez, you sound terrible!”

“Yeah. I didn’t get any sleep last night.”

“I knew you wouldn’t based on what you told me.” Sometime during the night, Taeyeon had called to ask how her confession went. Jessica told her everything, and they ended up talking for hours while Jessica cried her heart out. Taeyeon had been kind and comforting. “You know,” the young woman started slowly, “she isn’t here today. You can come to the Café if you want.”

Jessica thought about it. She wanted some space, but she didn’t want to be alone. She needed to see her friends. It was the only way she would feel better.

“Okay, I’ll come.”

“Good. It’s best to take your mind off of things for a little while.”

“I’ll be there soon.”

“Alright. See ya.” When she heard silence on the other line, Jessica forced herself to get up. Somehow, she felt a little bit better. Sometimes a good cry is a positive thing; you feel refreshed afterwards.

After she put on new clothes (and did her makeup to conceal the purple circles beneath her eyes), she went downstairs and into the kitchen. There were pots and pans flooding the sink, liquids spilled on every flat surface available, and a burning smell being omitted by the oven. In the middle of it all was Krystal, cursing her heart out in both of the languages she knew.

“Um… Krystal… what is this?”

“I, uh… made breakfast?”

Jessica gave a slight smile. Her sister may act like she doesn’t care about anyone, but in reality, all she wants is for those around her to be happy. “Thanks for the attempt, sis.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, just eat it!” A plate was shoved in front of Jessica. It was filled with eggs, bacon, and rolls, all of which were slightly burnt. Jessica reluctantly took a bite under Krystal’s gaze.

“It’s good! Thanks!” Krystal smiled at the compliment; more accurately, she smiled at the fact that Jessica was happy.

“You’re welcome. You going to that café again?”

“Yep.”

“You go every day! It gets boring here!”

“Then do you want to come with me?”

“…Seriously? You want me to come?”

“Yeah, why not? You can meet my friends.”

“I still can’t believe that Jessi, my Jessi, has made friends! I’m so proud,” Krystal joked.

Jessica rolled her eyes. “Whatever, just hurry up!”

“Okay!” The two sisters each ate their breakfast hurriedly and grabbed their coats, walking out the door.

“I didn’t know you had a sister, Sica!”

“You didn’t? I thought I told you.”

“No, you haven’t! It’s nice to meet you! I’m Yoona!”

 “And I’m Yuri, Yoona’s girlfriend!”

“Hyoyeon. Nice to meet you!”

“I’m Seohyun, a classmate of Sica’s.”

“Sooyoung.”

“I’m Taeyeon, the owner of the Café. It’s nice to meet you, Krystal.”

“I’m Sunny! Do you remember me? Sica and I were friends when we were little! You and I would fight over who got to play with her, remember?”

“Yeah, I remember you, Sunny. It’s nice to see you again! And it’s nice to meet all of you! Wait… What about that Tiffany girl you’ve told me about?”

“She’s sick,” Sooyoung explained. Jessica looked down, knowing that being sick wasn’t the only reason for Tiffany’s absence. Taeyeon noticed Jessica’s sudden change of mood.

“Jessica, can you help me with something?”

“Uh, sure…”

Jessica followed Taeyeon into the back of the Café. The elder took out her set of keys and unlocked a door that Jessica had never opened before. “Come on in.”

“Wait, what room is that?”

“It’s the guest room.” Taeyeon gave a steady look to Jessica that seemed to say “trust me.” So, Jessica trusted her.

She stepped into the dark room, her companion flipping on the light on soon after. She found the walls lined with beautiful, vibrant paintings. An easel with a huge canvas was placed in the center, back facing them, with a wooden stood beside it. There was one lone bed on the back wall, covered in a white comforter. It somehow seemed out of place among the colorful canvases that adorned the walls.

“Oh my god…” Jessica whispered. She had never seen such gorgeous paintings in her life-- not even Hyukjae’s work could compare to these.

“I found it recently. I wanted to let the artist herself tell you about it, but you just looked so sad, I couldn’t leave you without knowing.”

“Who’s the artist?”

“Tiffany.”

Jessica gasped. So, this was what the mysterious girl had been doing all this time!

“There are two conditions to me showing you this, though.”

“What are they?”

“One, you can’t tell anybody about it, especially Tiffany. Two, you can’t look at the painting on the easel, got it?”

“Why not?”

Taeyeon smiled a knowing smile. “It’s not finished yet! Once Fany-ah comes back, she’ll be able to finish it soon, and then she’ll show it to you herself.”

“… I’m going to trust you on this, Taeyeon, but it’d better be worth the wait!”

“Oh, believe me, it will be!” Suddenly, the older girl wrapped her arms around Jessica’s thin waist.

“W-what’s this about?”

“I haven’t given you a hug yet. I know you must be hurting right now, and hugs are the best when you’re hurting.”

Jessica sighed, letting her stress melt away with Taeyeon’s embrace. She would definitely miss it when Taeyeon left. This girl was so kind, happy, comforting; not to mention the best manager in the world. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now, let’s go back out, okay?”

“Okay.”

The rest of the day passed by happily. Jessica, amidst her hyper friends and loud sister, was able to forget everything for a few hours.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t help but to feel lonely when night fell.

“Hey, Krystal?”

“Hm? What’s up, Jessi?”

“Can… can I sleep in your room tonight?”

“Sure.” Krystal moved to one side of the bed, letting Jessica slip into the other.

Jessica held her sister closer, slowly drifting off to sleep. When she began dreaming, she was still holding on-- but this time, she imagined she was holding Tiffany.

Poor Sica… It’s okay, Sica, you can fight through anything! You’re a strong girl!! Anyways, we finally found out what Fany always does! Buuut, you’re gonna have to wait to find out what is on the big canvas, and how it relates to Sica ^.^ How do you like Krystal in this fic? Should I bring her out again later? Well, please comment and keep reading till the end! Love you guys~