“I’m… awake.”

Jessica hopped off of her bed, still disordered and unorganized, as she kept rubbing her eyes, trying to shake her drowsiness off.

“Jessica!” A muffled voice suddenly screamed out from downstairs. “Please open the door!”

“Mom?” Jessica thought to herself as she stretched her arms.

“Jessica! Where are you?!” The voice continued to shout.

“I-I’m coming!” Jessica screamed back as she opened the door of her room.

“Jessica!” Her mom screamed for the last time.

“I’m coming!” Jessica yelled back as she headed down the stairs.

After a few seconds, Jessica was at the front door. She grasped the doorknob and then pulled the door open.

“Mom!” Jessica exclaimed as the face of her mother came in sight.

“What took you so long?” Her mother asked.

“Well… I was… in my room,” Jessica answered hesitantly.

“You were sleeping weren’t you?” Her mom suspected.

“Well…” Jessica tried to think of an excuse.

“I thought so.”

“Mom?” Jessica suddenly uttered as her eyes turned towards a long-haired person behind her mother.

“What is it?”

“Who’s that girl behind you?”

“Oh. Her?” Jessica’s mom answered as she moved aside, revealing the girl that was behind her.

“Yuri?!” Jessica exclaimed in surprise as she recognizes the girl outside her door.

“Now, I’ll be going inside first,” her mom said. “Dinner will be ready soon.”

“What are you doing here?” Jessica asked the other girl.

“Can I come in?” Yuri asked as she entered the house without waiting for Jessica’s permission.

“Hey! Kwon Yuri! I didn’t tell you to come in yet!” Jessica shouted as she followed behind Yuri.

“Jessica!” Jessica’s mom shouted. “Where are your manners? She’s a guest, and you should treat her better than that.”

“Fine,” Jessica answered as she turned to face her mother. “But why is she here?”

“She already told me why she’s here since it took too long for you to open the door, but I think you should let her tell you,” her mom replied as she placed a couple of paper bags on the dining table.

“Why are you here?” Jessica asked Yuri, coldly as she faced the girl.

“Well…”

“Jessica!” Her mom called out.

“What now mom?”

“Help me set up the table,” her mom requested.

Jessica left Yuri’s presence for a moment and followed her mother into the kitchen.

“What’d you buy for dinner, mom?” Jessica asked as she stood behind the busy woman.

“You’ll find out when you take them out of their paper bag containers and put them on plates,” her mom answered, implying an order.

“Those bags?” Jessica asked as she pointed at the brown bags that were placed on top of the dining table.

“Yes,” her mom answered as she started washing some plates in the kitchen sink. “And please bring out the leftover juice from the refrigerator.”

“Yes mom,” Jessica replied after taking a number of plates from a cabinet.

Jessica headed to the dining room with a couple of plates in her hands. Then, she placed these on the table in their respective places. Three plates were each placed directly in front of three chairs, then the remaining ones were put on the center of the table. Jessica opened the rolled paper bags then took out the food that was wrapped in foil. She did the same for the remaining two paper bags until all the bags were empty.

“What are those?” Yuri asked as she sneaked up behind Jessica.

“Oh fu… You scared me!” Jessica exclaimed as she turned to face Yuri. “What do you want?” Jessica asked as she continued setting the table up. “Aren’t you going to help?”

Jessica continued to work as she waited for a reply, but none came back.

“Hey! Aren’t yo–” Jessica repeated as she turned around once more.

After Jessica turned her back, she realized she was no longer talking to anyone.

“Where’d she go?”

Jessica let go of the plates and tin foiled-food as she marched back a couple of steps to peek at the staircase, trying to find where Yuri was.

“Maybe she just went to the bathroom,” Jessica’s mom suddenly said as she entered the dining room with a large bowl of rice in her hands.

“Maybe,” Jessica answered as she resumed her work.

The sets of food that were covered in foil were unwrapped and were put on saucers as the contents were revealed. The first dish was a whole roasted chicken. Steam was still coming out from it as the tang of its coating attracted Jessica’s sense of smell. The next dish was mixed vegetables. A variety of vibrant, green colors complemented the dark brown exterior of the chicken and the smell was as attracting as the other dish. The third dish, or rather, side dish, unlike the other two, seemed unpleasant for the blonde girl. It was Kimchi. Jessica had Korean blood, but she never liked the taste that the dish brought.

“Mom! Why did you buy Kimchi?” Jessica complained.

“Well… you had to learn how to eat them sometime,” her mom replied.

“Well I’m not going to eat any,” Jessica stubbornly refused.

“Jessica, don’t be stubborn. It’s really good for your health,” her mom argued.

“Then I’ll eat the vegetables. But I’m not going to eat Kimchi!” Jessica yelled out in rejection.

“Fine. I knew it’d end up this way. I guess there’s more for me to eat then,” her mom finally gave in. “But where’s Yuri? Can you call her so we can eat?”

Jessica nodded to her mom as she went upstairs to check on Yuri. As soon as she reached the second floor, she knew where Yuri was. Her bedroom door was open, and the lights were on. Jessica immediately went towards the room, expecting the brunette to be there.

“You are so dead, Kwon Yuri,” Jessica thought to herself as she walked briskly to her room.

Jessica entered the door and she found Yuri sitting on her bed with a photo album was on her lap.

“Is this you?” Yuri asked Jessica, pointing to a baby picture in the album. “You look good with your clothes off,” Yuri continued as she laughed at her own comment.

“Give me that!” Jessica screamed out as she snatched the album out of Yuri’s hands, irritated, with her cheeks reddened. “Who told you to come in my room?”

“Well, I just wanted to go to the bathroom,” Yuri answered innocently. “I thought it was this room, so I went inside.”

“Why did you have to look at this?” Jessica asked, referring to the album she was holding.

“Well… I knew it was your baby album,” Yuri started to say as she stared at the floor. “And I wanted to know if… you… if you’ve been this beautiful since you were a baby.”

“Wh… What are… beautiful?” Jessica uttered as she was taken aback by Yuri’s sudden answer.

“I think dinner’s ready,” Yuri changed the subject as she headed out the door, leaving Jessica dumbfounded.

After Yuri left the room, Jessica put her photo album back on top of her desk, then sat down on her bed.

“She thinks… I’m beautiful?”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Oh, you’re here,” Jessica’s mom exclaimed as Yuri came down the stairs.

“Yes, I just went to the bathroom.”

“Where’s Jessica?”

“Oh… she’s… well…”

“I’m here,” Jessica stated loudly as she entered the dining room. “Let’s eat!”

Yuri sat on an empty chair where a plate was placed in front of her and Jessica sat across the girl. As Jessica made herself comfortable, her eyes met those of Yuri’s and both of them froze in their spots. Jessica’s mom noticed this and she stared intently at the two girls.

“Shall… we say grace?” Jessica’s mom said carefully, but firmly, breaking the empty gazes of the two girls.

“Y..yes,” the two replied in unison.

Jessica led the prayer and her mom, as well as Yuri, prayed with her.

“Here,” Jessica uttered as she helped Yuri reach for the bowl of rice.

“Th…thanks,” Yuri mumbled as she reached for the bowl.

Yuri stood up to reach for the bowl that Jessica was lending her, and she accidentally placed her hands on Jessica’s. As Yuri’s warm hands met the surface of the other girl’s, Jessica instinctively removed her hands. But as she did this, the bowl of rice dropped upside-down on the table. Jessica looked at Yuri, then at her mom, and then at the mess she made on the table.

“Oops,” Jessica uttered as she got rid of the rice on her hands. “I… I’ll clean this up.”
Jessica immediately rushed to the kitchen as she took a couple of things from a cabinet. Meanwhile, her mom and Yuri were left at the table.

“What is up with her? Why is she acting like this?” Jessica’s mom asked Yuri.

“I… I’ll help,” Yuri suddenly declared as she grabbed a hold of the bowl then scooped the rice on the bare table with it.

Yuri went to the kitchen to put the bowl in the sink, but she unexpectedly met Jessica face to face in the kitchen. Yuri nearly dropped the bowl in fright, but she kept a tight grip. After seconds of standing still, of staring at each other, Yuri finally moved. She moved towards the sink and finally placed the bowl of spilled rice on it. Then she paused for a bit as a number of thoughts suddenly passed through her head. On the other hand, Jessica went back to the dining table to start cleaning the remaining mess that was left on the table.

Jessica finished cleaning in a couple of minutes and Yuri was able to take care of her share in the kitchen.

“I don’t think I’ll be eating dinner tonight,” Jessica told her mom as she finished cleaning up.

“What? Why?” Her mom asked, worried.

“I don’t feel too good. I… I’ll be going to bed,” Jessica answered as she slowly walked towards the stairs.

“Me too,” Yuri suddenly said from out of nowhere. “I… my stomach hurts. I need to go to the bathroom.”

Jessica entered her room as Yuri started going upstairs, leaving Jessica’s mother alone.

“Now what am I supposed to do with this?” Jessica’s mom asked herself, thinking of what to do with the untouched dinner.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Jessica? Can I come in?” Yuri asked as she stood by the doorway of Jessica’s bedroom.

“S-sure.”

“What’s the matter?” Yuri asked as she sat beside Jessica on her the bed.

“Well…”

“Relationship problems?”

“Well… sort of.”

“So, you’re with someone?”

“Yeah. Sort of.”

“Oh.”

“You haven’t told me why you’re here yet,” Jessica said.

“Well… it’s sort of private.”

“Then why’d you tell my mom?”

“I told her something else. I told her that I got locked out of my house, so I needed a place to stay.”

“Then what really happened.”

“Well, it was partially true, but as I said, it’s sort of private.”

“Well okay. I respect that. I’ll let you sleep here.”

“Thanks.”

“Oh. And I don’t mean on the bed. I’ll be sleeping here. You’ll sleep on the floor,” Jessica said with a smile.

“Still, thank you.”

Jessica stood up and took blankets out of a cabinet in her room after her brief conversation with Yuri. Then, she placed the sheets on the floor beside her bed and added two pillows.

“There. Good enough?”

“Better than I expected,” Yuri answered.

“Good. Well… I’ll be taking a short bath, and you can make yourself comfortable.”

“Okay.”

Jessica headed inside the bathroom with a new, dry towel in her hands. She closed the door behind her and then took her clothes off. Then, she opened the faucet for the bathtub as warm water rushed out. In a matter of minutes, the tub was filled to the brim. Jessica hung the towel on a towel rack and then entered the tub as water spilled out of it. Jessica closed her eyes, relaxed, and felt the warm water on her stressed body. After a few minutes, Jessica started getting drowsy. Her eyes got weary and her body was as relaxed as possible. Then, she started drifting to sleep.

Then, a loud scream echoed through the house.

“JEEESSIIIIICAAAAA!!!”

“Mom?” Jessica muttered as her eyes shot open.

“JESSICA!!!”

“Mom!”

As soon as Jessica realized that it was her mom who was screaming, she immediately grabbed the towel on the rack and wrapped herself around it. Then, she exited the bathroom. She looked at the floor where Yuri was previously on, but the girl wasn’t there.

Jessica went out her room and the frightened, terrified face of her mom met her sight.

“Mom! What’s wrong?!”

“Th-th-there… th-there was…” Her mom mumbled in shock.

“Mom! Calm down! What happened! Tell me slowly!”

“Th-there was a girl. She was in my room. I didn’t know how she got there, but she went out before I got a good look at her,” her mom explained.

“But where is she now?”

“I-I don’t know. When I went out my room to follow her, she just disappeared. She was gone just like that.”

“Did you notice anything about her? What she was wearing? Anything?”

“Well… she had long, dark hair,” her mom pointed out.

“Yuri,” Jessica thought. “It has to be Yuri! I knew letting her stay here was a bad idea! Did she take anything with her?”

“I-I’m not sure.”

“I knew she’d be nothing but trouble.”

“What’s happening here?” Someone suddenly spoke.

“Yuri?” Jessica muttered in surprise. “Where did you come from?”

“Duh. Where else? I was in your room!” Yuri answered.

“But you weren’t on your bed when I checked,” Jessica reasoned.

“Well, first of all, what you made for me wasn’t a bed. Secondly, I fell asleep on your bed. Didn’t you see?”

“But if you were in my room… then… who was that girl?”