Dear Love,
 

Siwon laid in his bed. He had been in lock out mode since the incident.

He wasn't allowed to go out or use his phone or play games on this X-box. He had a chauffeur waiting to take him to school and back every day. His allowance shrunk to lunch money.

There was a pile of things on the floor that his friends sent him. Books from Seohyun, an extra guitar Yonghwa had, a few DVDs from Leeteuk. For now, he had only consumed snacks that were given to him by Taeyeon. Tiffany hadn’t left him anything.

Is she mad at me? He thought he’d kissed her at the right place and time. It was so frustrating that the fire had to break them apart. If he can go out, he’d find out who lit the tree up in the first place, even if it meant turning the school upside down for the perpetrator.

He sighed. It was only a matter of time before his Dad takes him back to Seoul and ships him somewhere else. Japan, maybe. Or New York. He really didn't know.

He tried to convince them that he didn't burn the tree down as a gimmick. But his school knew of his previous antics back in Seoul: how he dipped the library books in the pool full of pineapple juice; or how he let the air out of the principal's tires; how he drenched his old school by turning on the fire alarms. He did it just for the heck of it. Nothing's stopping him from setting that stupid tree on fire, right?

Wrong! He said. If being this goody two shoed boy gave him more chances to be with Tiffany, of course he'd do it. They can all eat for all he cared. He wanted her badly.

He'd be the person she wants to be with. He'd take her to places and make her experience everything there is to life. He wanted to fulfill her as a man, as her man.

At school was even more painful, Tiffany avoided him like plague. He tried to tell Leeteuk and Yonghwa that he can’t even text or call or even chat on Kakao because he had all his toys taken away since he was pronounced ‘grounded’. All he was waiting for was his father's decision on where in the world he needed to be thrown to 'to learn his lesson'.

What did Tiffany feel for him? He wished they had a chance to exchange 'I love you's. He wanted to hear it.

Tiffany had this knack of trying to protect the people she loved; but was dense enough to do it in a way that she unknowingly hurt the person instead. It was stupid. Her intentions were good though. He'd agree to that much.

At school, she'd avoid him. When he'd sit at the same table at the cafeteria or the library, she'd excuse herself. When he'd speak during class, she'd check her phone or chat with her seatmates. It was as if they never had a bond with each other and her association with him meant the end of the world.

Will pulling away from me really prove my innocence? He thought. He received his sentence. There's nothing they can do about that. The least they can do is spend their remaining time together. What was it, a few more days? The clock is ticking. Tiffany, how is it that you can endure me? 

He loved her and she loves him. No girl would have acted that way if she didn't feel the least bit attracted to a person. Would it?

Maybe she wasn't as in love with him as he thought.

If she did miss him in any way at all, it wasn't showing. There wasn't sadness in her voice when she narrated what happened on the drama she watched during the weekend. There wasn't any difference in her smile when she walked along the hallway or hand fed Taeyeon snacks during break time. It was as if he never existed, along with their kiss under the White Tree.

He kept rolling in bed, deep in thought. She had all these flaws and did all these crazy stuff but in the end, all he can see is this beautiful and young girl. And the most painful thought of all crossed his mind:

The most perfect girl in the world was his for approximately one minute.

But that isn't gonna happen now. He said. There weren't any overtimes on where he's going. No encore. Nothing. He kicked one of the pillows from his bedside and with that, drifted to sleep.

"GOD! He's so persistent in staying awake!" Taeyeon said, opening the window and letting herself in before pulling Tiffany inside. "You owe me big time. I had to crush sleeping pills and coat the gummi worms with it to knock him out."

"I'll be sure to thank you after we find something that can stop him from leaving." Tiffany said. She had this odd feeling that Taeyeon was somehow enjoying this.

"What exactly are we looking for anyway?" Leeteuk asked. He picked up Yonghwa’s guitar and strung it lightly. "He hasn't touched anything we gave him!"

"I... Just..." Tiffany said, almost in tears. "I just need him to stay."

Taeyeon looked at Tiffany's feet. There was a collage of photos that featured candid pictures of them all laughing or eating together, although there were almost pictures of Siwon and Tiffany posing while on dates. She had always had bad thoughts for Siwon, but was she wrong to think that he didn’t love Tiffany as much as she? She was beginning to doubt that. "Is this the only thing he works on?" Taeyeon asked, hugging Tiffany from behind.

"We have to stop him." She responded, pushing Taeyeon’s hand away and picking up the pictures on the floor. “I think… I think I love him.” She choked. She felt as if she was drowning herself in tears.

And so did Taeyeon's heart.

•••••••

Dear love. It read. That was all it said. It wouldn't normally count as a clue but Yonghwa knew better. Each word was always carefully thought of during lyric writing. He had suspected that it was Taeyeon’s the moment Tiffany said she picked it up the lowest branch. Taeyeon was known as the shortest senior in school. And when Seohyun confirmed that it was her handwriting, he didn’t have any more doubts.

What kind of message was Taeyeon trying to give Tiffany?

He reached out for his guitar. "Pabo." he sang. He read Juniel's music once and yet he remembered every note. She had not written anything beside the sound. He wanted to fill the words in himself but he knew it wasn't his place.

He let his back touch the chair, trying to get back to thinking effectively at the matter at hand. What kind of relation did Taeyeon and Tiffany have exactly?

•••••••

Yoona sat at one of the benches that faced the now burnt tree. There were ants creeping to the side because a melted pint of ice cream that mixed and leaked on its side.

Yoona had a feeling that she has once again won the something that she didn't deserve. She was glad she got herself out of there before Leeteuk announced it. She pulled out the only memento she had that night.

A shiny metallic lighter.

This toy is much more fun than a stupid crown. To Yoona it was a symbol of freedom and power. It was worth more than any amount of money she had or made. Something that was truly her, something that she credited to herself, even though she heard someone else took the blame. It didn't matter. She knew what she had done and has never felt so alive in doing so.

She can see Sooyoung and Yuri run towards her from afar. They carried a small box with big smiles.

"Yah! Mwoeyo?" Yoona asked tucking the lighter back in her pockets. 

"Open it! Open it!" Sooyoung said, handing her a very colorful box. She did, and found a small but very cute cake that said 'Chukhahaeyo!' in pink frosting.

"What's this for?" she asked. 

Yuri handed them spoons. "For making Prom Queen, you didn't make it back in time. Everyone wondered where you were."

"Yeah, the white tree totally stole your fire." Sooyoung said, digging her spoon in the cake.

Yuri tapped Sooyoung's hand away from the cake. "Ya! Let Yoona have first bite!"

Yoona smiled. She was thankful to have good friends; Friends who love her despite her inadequacies. For a second, she felt guilty that she had not felt the love the two sent her before. That the things she did in the past, whether it was right or wrong was all because she felt appreciated for the wrong reason.

She was thankful, she kept repeating in her mind; being friends with Sooyoung and Yuri was something she did on her own. It was her choice, just like it was her choice to burn the White Tree. She hugged Sooyoung and Yuri with all of her strength, shouting random nothings as they laughed together.

She was finally proud of herself.