“Really?!”

“Yeah, he told me last night.”

 “You’ve got to be kidding me…”

“I’m not! He barged in my room and told me he likes her.”

“Really?!”

 “Yeah! Why do you keep questioning me?!”

 “Because…I can’t believe it! I’m just so… shocked.”

“I was too! But at the same time…I was really happy.”

“What did he say? …Like, what he likes about her?”

“Oh geez, you should have seen the look in his eyes. He kept going on about her beauty and her personality traits. He even said ‘her smile is like seeing heaven.”

“OH MY GAH!! THAT IS SO CUTE!!!”

“Yah! Princess, lower your voice down… I still want to hear!”

 “Ah, sorry…”

“It’s okay. Do you know how she feels about him?”

 “Ugh no! She doesn’t tell me anything. But I’m POSITIVE that she likes him too! I just have a feeling.”

“You should find out… Because I’m going to encourage him to confess to her but I want to make sure that she feels the same way. I don’t want him to get hurt… again.”

 “I understand. Okay, I’ll talk to her today!”

“Good! Let me know as soon as possible!”

 “I will! Talk to you soon!”

“Okay. I love youuuu.”

“I love you too!”

Yul hangs up the phone between Jessica and him, a cheeky grin was plastered on his face. He couldn’t wait to tell his girlfriend that Taeng had developed feelings for Tiffany, he was glad that she had the same excitement as he did.

As if on cue, Taeng walks to the kitchen and towards the fridge, oblivious to the smirk and stare coming from Yul who was watching his every movement. The dorky boy, still not noticing Yul, reaches in the fridge and grabs an apple, immediately placing it in his mouth as he closes the fridge door.

“Taeng!”

He jumps up and pivots to where Yul was sitting, he was surprised the apple didn’t fall from his mouth even though he was startled.  He pries the apple from his mouth and takes a deep breath.

“Geez Yul, you scared me! How long have you been sitting there?” Taeng asked.

“I just got off the phone with Jessica, so I’ve been here for a while,” Yul answered nonchalantly.

Taeng slowly nods and takes a bite out of his apple, “Oh I see.”

Silence settles in between the two teens, Yul was staring at Taeng with undecipherable eyes while Taeng was staring at him with confusion.

“Uh, is there something on my face?” He asked awkwardly, rubbing his cheek with his free hand.

Yul chuckles and shakes his head, “Nah… I’m just wondering…”

“About?”

“If you’re going to confess to Tiffany.”

Taeng’s eyes widen in surprise, he grows flustered recalling last night’s event when he confessed to Yul about his feelings for Tiffany. He thought it was a dream when he woke up but sadly, it was a vivid image that was too real for it to be a dream.

“Uh… I’m not sure.” Taeng replied sadly, his apple loosely in the palm of his right hand.

“What’s wrong?” Yul asked sympathetically noticing the change of attitude in his friend’s behavior.

Taeng sighs, the look in his eyes expressed fear along with sadness. Yul quickly takes notice in that but remains quiet as he waits for his friend to reply to his question.

 “I’m afraid…” He confessed quietly, his eyes growing empty.

The dark-haired boy tilts his head to the side, “Afraid? Afraid of what?”

Taeng slumps his shoulders, “That if I ask her our… Our relationship wouldn’t work out. Remember what Jieun told me? I’m too nice of a guy; every girl I date would just cheat on me. I wouldn’t be able to stand on my own two feet if she were to cheat on me. It’s heartbreaking, especially since we live thousands of miles away…”

Yul takes a deep breath, allowing silence to sink in as he processes what Taeng said. He understood where he was coming from; having a long-distance relationship with a girl that lives thousands of miles away is hard. He has always been afraid that Jessica would cheat on him one day. But he overcame that fear because the love they have for each other is strong that they wouldn’t dare cheat on each other. Jessica even told Yul that she would never cheat on him and he trusts her completely.

After a comfortable silence, Yul softly sighs again which catches Taeng’s attention, he gazes at the dark-haired boy and watches as he runs a hand through his hair and sends him a reassuring smile.

“Taeng… How much do you like Tiffany?”

Taeng instantly became confused; he sets the apple that was in his hand on the counter and faces Yul. “What do you mean?” He asked confusedly.

 He chuckles, “How much do you like her?”

Taeng rubs the back of his neck shyly, “A lot…”

“How much?”

“So much that I can’t go one day without thinking about her…” He mumbled, growing flustered.

The latter laughs, “Really?”

He receives a nod from the rosy-cheeked boy making him laugh again. “Then I don’t see a problem.”

Taeng shoots his head up, “What are you talking about?”

“You care about Tiffany, don’t you?  If you truly like her then the distance shouldn’t matter. I already told you last night Taeng. Don’t be afraid of rejection. I know that you’ll find ways to work things out if you do ask her to be yours.”

 Taeng slowly shakes his head, processing Yul’s word of advice. Ever since they talked last night, he was stuck on whether to confess to Tiffany or not. He was afraid of being rejecting or cheated on because of his previous girlfriend, but seeing that Yul was encouraging him was building up his confidence. He chuckles to himself, realizing that Yul himself was in a long-distance relationship and he admired how they can still have feelings for each other even if they don’t see each other every day.

Unknowingly, a smile grows on Taeng’s face, his mind starts to wander about Tiffany again and it didn’t stop his smile from growing wider. After some time, he gazes at Yul with his famous dorky smile and his eyes glow with happiness.

“Alright. I’ll do it.”

 Yul was taken aback seeing how quickly Taeng changed his attitude but he quickly recovers with a bright smile.

“What are you going to do?”

The dorky boy laughs before sticking a thumb up to his best friend with a grin on his face.

“I’m going to confess to her.”

 

 

“Tiffany!” Jessica yelled from the kitchen after ending the call she had with her boyfriend. She was trying her best not to squeal of excitement after hearing the news but her lips were failing her as they start to form an excited smile.

Tiffany rushes to the kitchen, worried that something happened to her friend, she barges in the kitchen and immediately locks her eyes on the blonde latter.

 “What? What’s wrong? Did you cut yourself again?!” Tiffany bombarded with questions, her eyes scanning every inch of Jessica’s skin to see if there was blood.

 Jessica rolls her eyes and fans her hand, “Aish! No Tiffany, I’m fine! I only cut my hand once okay?!”

“Yeah, but you were crying like a baby!”  

The blonde girl scoffs, “Whatever!”

Tiffany chuckles and playfully shoves the girl, “I’m just teasing you…” She receives another eye roll from her friend and she could only chuckle again. “Anyways, why did you call me?”

Jessica beams a smile; she takes Tiffany’s hand and drags her in the living room. Without saying a word, she pushes Tiffany down on the couch which startles the brunette but she remains quiet as Jessica plops down next to her.

 Tiffany’s eyebrows rise, “Are you okay?”

Jessica tilts her head to the side, “Yeah why?”

She scoots slightly away from the latter, “Okaaay you’re acting really weird. Are you hiding something?”

The latter only smiles brightly and cutely shakes her head, creeping the brunette girl more.

 “Okay, you’re scaring me,” Tiffany said bluntly.

“Can I ask you a question?” Jessica immediately asked, making the girl’s eyebrows rise higher.

“How do you feel about Taeng?”

 Hearing the boy’s name, Tiffany’s eyes immediately widen and she quickly grows flustered. On cue, her heart started beating faster and her thoughts jumbled all over the place.

“W-What do you mean?” She stuttered.

Jessica beams a smirk, “What do you think about him? You guys’ have been talking a lot now; I just want to know how you feel about him.”

Tiffany bites her bottom lip; she would be lying if she said that she didn’t love talking to the boy in Korea. She looks over at Jessica who was expecting an answer sometime soon. She takes a deep breath before answering.

 “I mean yeah… I love talking to him. We’ve become such good friends.”

“I can tell…” Jessica interferes.  She quickly motions Tiffany to continue despite her slight comment.

Tiffany rolls her eyes but decides to continue anyway.

“I don’t know... I’ve never met a guy like him. He’s funny, sweet, caring… He’s handsome too. He’s patient, all the times he would tutor me he wouldn’t get mad at the times I was struggling. Instead, he would be gentle and help me understand the problem each step of the way… He’s just…amazing.”

Jessica smirks seeing that Tiffany had been unconsciously smiling to herself as she describes Taeng. She wanted to laugh at the girl but she held it in.

After realizing what she said, Tiffany quickly blushed and silently gasps out of shock. She gazes at Jessica who had a smirk on her face.

 “Y-Yah! Why are you looking at me like that?” Tiffany yelled, heat rising to her cheeks.

Jessica laughs, “You should have seen the look on your face! You were smiling like an idiot!”

Tiffany held her cheeks with her hands, she mentally curses herself as she looks down to the floor. Jessica, on the other hand, could only smile seeing how ridiculous her friend was behaving.

“Tiffany, stop acting so…weird.”

 Tiffany beams a glare at the blonde-haired girl, “It’s your fault! You’re making me act all weird!”

“Me? Or Taeng?” She retaliated, making the already blushing girl blush even more. “Oh my gah Tiffany. I never realized how red your face could get.”

Tiffany pouts; she just wanted to push Jessica off the chair for causing her to grow red like a tomato. Jessica knew this was the time to attack with the one question she’s been dying to ask. She scoots closer to Tiffany, she waits for the blushing girl to calm down and looks at her with full attention.

“Tiffany…” Jessica called out after seeing that the girl wasn’t going to look at her.

Tiffany sighs; she finally calms herself down from her racing heart and hot cheeks and gazes at her friend. Jessica had a different character this time, instead of the teasing one she had a while ago, it was a more serious one that it made Tiffany more confused about her sudden change of behavior.

“Can I ask you another question?” Jessica asked calmly, sending her friend a small smile.

 “I don’t know… I’m afraid.” Tiffany lightly teased, earning herself a playful slap on her arm. “Aish… Okay okay. What’s your question?”

 “Do you like Taeng?” Jessica asked with no hesitation.

Tiffany’s eyes widen in surprise again, she found her heart racing and her mind swirling of endless thoughts. She fidgets her hands that were resting on her lap, pondering on the question for what felt like an eternity to Jessica. She patiently waits for her to answer but at the same time, she was growing restless since she was dying to know if her hunch about Tiffany was right.

The brunette bites her bottom lip, again unknowingly a smile forms on her face as her mind starts to drift about Taeng. Their late-night/morning texts and video chats were precious moments to her. She was glad that she was able to grow closer to him these past months. She was grateful to have him in her life.

After endless thoughts and smiles, Tiffany gazes at Jessica who quickly beams up seeing that she was about to answer her question.  Jessica sends a small smile, her excitement growing as she sees the girls’ lips part open. Tiffany takes a deep breath before looking at the blonde girl with all seriousness.

 “I-”

“Beep beep beep beep.”

Both the two girls jump in surprise hearing someone’s phone ring. Tiffany quickly realizes that it was hers and she quickly pulls out her phone. Without bothering to look at the caller ID she presses accept and pulls the phone up to her ear.

 “Hello?”

“Tiffany!”

Her heart skips a beat and her eyes widen. “T-Taeng?!”

 “Hey, Tiffany! How it’s going?”

“G-good! Really good…How are you?”

 Jessica, on the other hand, wanted to pull her hair out in frustration. She couldn’t believe that Taeng would call right as about Tiffany was going to confess her true feelings about Taeng. She irritably sighs and remains quiet as Tiffany continues conversing with Taeng.

 “Anyways, I was hoping if you would like to video chat?” Taeng asked in a hopeful tone.

 An automatic smile forms on Tiffany’s face, she felt her heart beating rapidly and a warm feeling overtaking her body.

 “Of course! I would love too.” She replied excitedly.

She gazes at Jessica who had an annoyed look on her face, relief settles in her body. She was glad Taeng called. She pretends that she forgot the conversation between her and the latter as she returns her conversation to the boy on the phone.

“Nice, I’m happy. Let me know when you’re available okay?” He said in excitement.

Tiffany chuckles softly, “Okay. I’ll text you.”

 “Alright! See you soon!”

“Bye Taeng!”

Taeng waits for Tiffany to hang up; as soon as he sets his phone down he happily punches the air multiple times.

 “Yes!”

Yul walks into his room and smiles seeing his childish gesture. He chuckles and clasps his friend’s shoulder, “Let me guess… You’re going to do it… tonight?”

Without a word from his friend, he knew that his assumption was right seeing the cheeky smile on his face. Yul warmly smiles; he pats his back and sends him a thumb up.

“Go get her tiger.”

 

Tiffany sighs of happiness as she sets her phone down; her mind was so hungover Taeng that she forgot Jessica was still sitting next to her.

“Tiffany!”

She snaps out of her daze and gazes at her friend, her annoyed face still present.

Tiffany gulps and awkwardly chuckles, “That was Taeng…”

“Well duh. I knew that.” Jessica said coldly, her ice stare sending chills down Tiffany’s spine.

 She could only awkwardly chuckle again since she didn’t know what else to say.

 Jessica groans of annoyance and flails her arms in the air, “Are you going to answer my question or not?!”

Tiffany takes a deep breath; she knew Jessica wasn’t going to give up. She was always a persistent one.

“Uh…” Tiffany trailed, avoiding eye contact with the ice princess.

Jessica groans again, “Seriously Tiffany! Just tell me! Do you like Taeng or not?!”

Tiffany gulps again; she was starting to grow more frightened of her best friend. She wasn’t sure what to say.

 “Uh…Bye!”

In one swift motion, Tiffany launches off the couch and runs to her room. She quickly locks the door and leans against it to catch her breath. She hears another groan from the living room; she knew Jessica was going to knock on her door any minute now.

But to her surprise, she didn’t hear stomping or any mumbling words. Tiffany quickly unlocks the door and slowly opens it; she was surprised to hear… nothing. Not even the sound of the TV. She was surprised but she quickly closes the door and locks it to ensure that she was safe from the ice princess for now.

“Aish… Why does she want to know so badly?” She muttered to herself as she makes her way to her bed. She gently lies down and stares at the white ceiling.

I wonder what Taeng wants to talk about. He seemed excited over the phone.

She couldn’t take the wait anymore; she quickly pulls her phone out and shoots a text to Taeng.

“To: Taeng – Hey, you want to video chat now? I’m no longer busy.”

 In an instant, she receives a reply from the dorky boy.

“From: Taeng – Already online. Just waiting for you!”

She caught herself smiling again seeing that the boy was waiting for her to go online. She quickly grabs her laptop and logs on. She sees Taeng online and rapidly presses the button to invite him. After some time, both their boxes load on the screen; they both smile at each other and send a small wave.

“Miyoung!” Taeng greeted cutely, sending another cute wave.

Tiffany pouts; she knew Taeng was going to call her by her Korean name. During one of their video chats, Taeng begged her to share what her Korean name was even when she kept insisting that it was for old people. She hated being called by her Korean name but she got used to Taeng calling her that seeing that he wasn’t going to stop. Another reason being was because she felt special when he called her that, for some reason, it felt like it was her nickname to him. Taeng liked her Korean name; he even told her that it was beautiful which made her heart skip a thousand beats. Deep down, she enjoyed being called Miyoung. But only if it came out of Taeng’s mouth.

“I regret telling you my Korean name…” She teased; her pout still visible.

 Taeng chuckles, “But I already told you! It’s a beautiful name!”

Tiffany rolls her eyes, “Yeah yeah. You told me.”

“It’s a fitting name…for a beautiful person.” Taeng confessed softly.

Her eyes widen and she blushes again, somehow the dorky boy on the screen always managed to make her blush. She didn’t mind though, in return he would make her smile and laugh as well.

“So what did you want to talk about?” She inquired, fanning herself to calm her red cheeks.

Taeng started to fidget in his seat. He awkwardly clears his throat and sends an awkward smile to the girl. Tiffany, on the other hand, was confused as to why Taeng’s character changed so quickly.

“Taeng are you okay?” She asked in a concerned tone.

Taeng quickly nods, “Huh? Yeah. Fine. Good.”

He quickly shakes his head and slaps his forehead for talking like an idiot.

Aish… I’m so nervous!

 Tiffany couldn’t help but chuckle seeing the boy act unusual from normal; she found it cute though seeing how he was twitching in his seat.

“Are you sure? You seem a little… excited?” Tiffany said in a questioning tone, unsure of how to describe Taeng.

He awkwardly chuckles and rubs the back of his neck, “Ah sorry…”

“It’s okay! Take your time.”

He smiles; he likes how patient the girl was, even at this time when he’s not acting himself. He takes a deep breath and mentally prepares himself. This was the moment he has been waiting for.

 You can do this Taeng.

 He takes another deep breath before looking deeply into Tiffany’s eyes.

“Well…Tiffany, there’s something I want to say.”

Tiffany quickly nods her head, “Okay. Sure, what’s up?”

She felt her heartbeat out of control, the look in Taeng’s eyes was captivating, she always found herself warped and lost from the look in his eyes.

 “Tiffany…There’s something I need to confess. Something I’ve been feeling for quite some time…” He stated softly, sweat developing in his palms.

Tiffany slowly nods, for some reason she was growing anticipated to what Taeng was going to say.

 “Yes?” She asked slowly, pure excitement in her tone.

Taeng takes another deep breath and looks deep in the girl’s heart capturing brown eyes.

“Tiffany I…”

Tiffany’s eyes widen, Taeng’s face quickly becomes pixelated and she wasn’t able to catch what he was saying.

 “What? I didn’t hear you Taeng.” She immediately said.

No, no, no! You’ve got to be kidding me…

 Taeng noticed the odd connection between him and the girl. She was growing static and their voices were being broken unevenly.  

Really? The connection chooses NOW to ?! Waaah, please don’t do this to me…

“Wha- I can- hear…”

 “Tae-?”

Taeng was growing frustrated; he couldn’t believe the romantic moment he was planning to have was ruined because of a random spasm in their connection. He was aggravated since his confidence was so high and now it’s crumbling down too quickly seeing that the girl wasn’t able to hear him.  

I won’t give up too easily.

Tiffany was trying her best to fix the connection but to no avail. She was dying to know what Taeng was going to tell her. It hurts her heart because she could only think of one thing Taeng would possibly want to tell her and the anticipation was killing her. Her excitement was being replaced with adrenaline.

“Taeng What- you- say-”

Taeng takes another deep breath before attempting his luck one last try.

 “Tiffany Hwang, I like you!”

 –Call Disconnected-