“Ms. Jung, you’re late again,” Jessica’s homeroom teacher exclaims irritably as she sees the student at the classroom door.

“Sorry Ms. Lee. I…” Jessica replies as she thinks of another excuse. “I had diarrhea this morning.”

The whole classroom burst in laughter at the brave statement of their classmate.

“I don’t know if you’re trying to be funny or if you’re being honest, but you’ll be seeing the principal later.”

“I will,” Jessica agrees. “But can I come in now?”

“Yes. Please do.”

Jessica comes in the classroom with all eyes on her. She walks briskly to her seat, carrying a few of her books and her bag. The classroom was a pretty small one, but there were a lot of students in. Jessica was seated at the back; a lonely corner in the classroom. Luckily someone dared to sit beside her at the start of the schoolyear.

“Hey Jessi. Woke up late again?” Jessica’s seatmate asks her as she takes a seat.

“Isn’t it obvious? I don’t want to waste a single moment with Tiffany.”

“Tiffany? You have a name for her now?”

“What are you talking about Taeyeon? I’ve always had a name for her.”

“It’s the first time I’ve heard of it.”

At the start of the schoolyear, the two girls immediately became the best of friends. It was either because their personalities matched or because no one would want to be friends with them. Because of their tight bond, Jessica felt the urge to tell Taeyeon about her nightly dreams about Tiffany and the adventures they shared in them. Jessica was lucky to have a girl who would be willing to listen to her never-ending stories of her fantasies with another girl.

“So class, as I’ve said earlier, the president tells us that we need to hold a fundraiser before the year ends. Today, we’ll be spending homeroom talking about what we can do. Any suggestions?” Ms. Lee announces to her class as she picks up a piece of chalk from the blackboard ledge.

“How about a musical?” A student suggests.

“And we could sell cookies or something while that goes on,” another one suggests.

“Great ideas! Are there any more?”

“Well, we can wash cars,” Jessica suggests boldly as she raises her hands.

“We’ll be doing the fundraiser in the evening, so washing cars is not really the best idea for that,” the teacher contradicts as jeers from all corners of the classroom point towards Jessica.

“Oh. Well, you should have mentioned that before asking for suggestions.”

“I did. But you came late, remember?”

“Oh. Sorry,” Jessica replies, embarrassed.

“Are there any more?” The teacher asks once more. No hands were raised and no suggestions were heard anymore. “So it’s done. We’ll be doing a musical and we’ll be selling food and other items at the same time. I’ll be working on the assignments today and I will be posting them tomorrow. For now, you may have an early recess.”

As Ms. Lee said those words, the classroom turned into a mess in no time. The students rushed out of the classroom and the tables and chairs were everywhere. But one corner remained calm and silent. Jessica was still sitting on her table. Her arms were folded across the table and her head was resting on top of them. Her eyes were closed and her lips were slightly forming a smile.

“Jessi?” Tiffany calls out as she narrows her eyes down to make sure that it was Jessica she was seeing from afar. “Is that you?”

“I missed you Tiffany!” Jessica shouts as she runs towards Tiffany.

“Well you’re here early,” Tiffany tells Jessica she arrives in front of her.

“Aren’t you happy?”

“Of course I am! But don’t you have school?”

“I’m in school right now. Our homeroom teacher granted us early recess so I came to see you with this extra time.”

“Well, I’m worried that you might starve yourself just to see me,” Tiffany replies worriedly as she holds Jessica’s hands.

“That’s why I’m planning to eat with you today!”

“Eat? We’ve never tried that together before.”

“There’s a first time for everything, right?”

“Yes. There is.”

“Close your eyes.”

“Again? This isn’t one of your cheesy lines again is it?”

“Why? Don’t you like them?”

“I do. But I don’t appreciate it when you say the same thing over and over.”

“Well, it’s not one of those. Just close your eyes.”

“Okay,” Tiffany does so and she closes her eyes slowly.

“Now, count one to three and don’t let go of my hands.”

“One… Two… Three!”

“Now open them.”

Tiffany opens her eyes slowly and she sees Jessica’s eyes. The eyes tell her to look around. She turns her head to the right and the vast blue sea meets her eyes. She turns her head the other way and she sees the same wondrous thing. The sun was hidden beneath thin clouds, making the sky a bright and light blue color. The sea perfectly reflects the color as it adds depth andShe turns around and she sees a white structure before her. It was a yacht and it was a big one.

“Since when did you plan this?” Tiffany asks in amazement as her eyes widen at the situation.

“When I asked you to count to three,” Jessica replies honestly as she lets go of Tiffany’s hands.

“Well, it’s pretty good for something you planned for three seconds. “Wait, I thought we were going to eat?”

“We are!” Jessica replies. “Come with me.”

Jessica takes Tiffany’s right hand and they head inside the yacht. It was very immense, especially since they were the only ones on board. They head through a couple of doors and they finally reach a restaurant. The room had a very romantic aura to it as roses were scattered on the floor, the tables were lit by candles and the tablecloth was velvety red in color.

“Wow!” Tiffany exclaims in astonishment. “We’re eating here?”

“No we’re not,” Jessica replies with a smile on her face as she takes Tiffany out another door. “We’re eating here.

A different setting grabbed Tiffany’s attention as a table and two chairs were in the middle of the outdoor yacht floor. The moon perfectly illuminates the setting as the velvet cloth reflects the moonlight. The three candles on the table add to the romantic aura that was similar to the previous room.

“Close your eyes again,” Jessica orders Tiffany once more.

“Why? This is so romantic! You don’t want it to end do you?”

“No, no… just close them again... for the last time.”

“I’ll be counting to three again,” Tiffany says as she closes her eyes once more.

“One… two… three,” Tiffany opens her eyes finally. “Jessica?” Tiffany calls out as the girl who prepared such a romantic meal was nowhere to be seen.

“Jessica! Wake up! Recess is over!” Taeyeon screams into Jessica’s ear as she tries to wake her friend up.

“Huh… wha… what?” Jessica replies unorthodoxly as she lifts her head from her arms. She wipes the nearly dried up drool on her face before speaking once more. “Tiffany? Tiffany!” Jessica calls out desperately. “Am I awake?”

“Yes! You’ll be late for math class if you don’t hurry soon.”

“I left Tiffany alone!”

“You’ve been dreaming again? Don’t tell me you’re doing this in school now.”

“I can’t leave her there. She can’t go to any place else without me! I need to go back to sleep!”

“No Jessica!” Taeyeon stops her friend as she pulls her up by the arm. “If you’re late for math class again, you’ll get kicked out of it! Now come on!”

“Oh no! She’s going to be mad at me. I won’t be able to see her ‘til dismissal,” Jessica worriedly tells herself as she was forced out of the classroom. “Tiffany, hang in there. I’ll be back soon.”