Those crystal eyes.

“I’ve seen those before,” Jessica thought as she looked at the reflection of her eyes on the mirror. “Those eyes are oddly familiar.”

Jessica stared at her eyes a little bit longer.

“But only mom and I have these eyes,” Jessica told herself.

“JESSICA!” Yuri called out from outside the bathroom. “What’s taking you so long? We’re going to be late.”

“Yes! I’ll be out in a minute!” Jessica yelled back.

With that, Jessica took one more look at her eyes’ reflection and then entered the shower. She twisted the shower’s knob quickly as warm water flowed downwards. Then, she washed her hair hastily, and then her body. Finishing off, she washed the excess soap off her body and turned the shower off.

Jessica stood in front of the mirror again, her image blurred by the steam that formed on the mirror. Her hands inched towards the mirror and they wiped a portion of the mirror, revealing Jessica’s eyes once more.

She stared. And stared. And stared.

“JESSICA!” Yuri screamed, growing impatient.

As she snapped out of a daze, Jessica took a towel from the towel rack and wrapped it around her body. Then, she took another one and tied it over her hair.

“What took you so long?” Yuri asked as Jessica finally opened the bathroom door.

“I usually take this long to take a bath,” Jessica reasoned. “You better take a bath quickly, or we’ll be late for school.”

Yuri stepped inside the bathroom and she quickly did her daily routine with taking a bath.

Meanwhile, after putting on the clothes she picked for the day, Jessica sat on her bed and closed her eyes, thinking of all that has happened to her these past few days.

Jessica remained still for more than a few minutes, and she finally dozed off.

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

Suddenly, Jessica was in dreamland again. She was at the island again. However, it seemed as if she was watching everything from a different point of view. She felt similar to a spirit, floating aimlessly on earth. She couldn’t control anything. She could see everything but herself. She felt like it wasn’t her dream.

Then, Jessica’s vision suddenly zoomed in to the middle of the forest. There, she saw Tiffany and a very familiar girl. It was dark, but she could see and hear everything.

“Tiffany!” Jessica yelled out, but no one heard her. “I’m here!” Jessica screamed once more, but there was no response.

All she could do now was watch helplessly.

She was witnessing something that has already happened, apparently. Tiffany was hiding behind a tree as a girl searched for her.

Jessica saw everything that had just happened recently. She watched as Tiffany struggled to escape, as she struggled in the arms of the other girl, as she suffered with all the beating and pounding. Jessica screamed out as she herself was in pain, but to no avail. She couldn’t watch anymore. Finally, the girl in her dreams clenched her fist and aimed it towards Tiffany. Jessica watched helplessly as the girl was about to throw her fiercest punch at Tiffany. But before it happened, she woke up.

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

“Jessica,” Yuri whispered softly as she shook Jessica shoulder to wake the girl up. “We’re going to be late for school!”

Jessica slowly opened her eyes. In front of her was Yuri who had already stepped out of the bathroom, all dressed up and ready for the day.

Jessica fixed her gaze at the clock on top of her desk. It read 7:52. There are only 8 more minutes left until the first school bell.

“We need to go,” Jessica uttered with a gloomy tone.

With that being said, both the girls exited Jessica’s room and they both headed downstairs.

“You mind helping?” Jessica’s mom asked as the two girls stepped off the stairs.

“Not today, mom,” Jessica answered as she ignored the dishes that were left unwashed on the dining table.

“Oh, Jessica,” Mrs. Jung called out before the two left through the front door. “I’ll be going to the market later, so I’ll just leave the keys under the doormat.”

“Yes mom,” Jessica answered.

Jessica and Yuri finally leave the house and they head towards their school.

“Why did you give me these clothes?” Yuri asked Jessica as she started to shiver. “It’s too cold for these kinds of clothes, you know?”

“Well, they’re all I had,” Jessica answered as they continued walking. “Everything else might not fit your taste.”

“Trust me. I’d rather wear something from the 70s than die from this cold,” Yuri snapped back.

“Well, we can’t go back now,” Jessica reasoned as she took her phone from her pocket. “It’s already 7:54.”

“Fine,” Yuri muttered. “The school has a centralized heating system anyways. Am I right?”

“Yeah,” Jessica answered. “Let’s just hope it functions well.”

The two girls started to walk at a faster pace as the school was already in view.

After two more minutes or so, the two girls were finally at the façade of the school.

“What are all these people doing here?” Jessica asked as she stared at a big group of students who were gathered around something she couldn’t see.

The two girls slowly approached the group. They looked at the faces of the people, and they were staring at something on the ground, apparently.

Jessica squeezed through the crowd as she aimed to know what the people were fussing about. Finally, she was at the middle of the crowd.

There, she saw her. There was a person, lying face-first on the cold, hard ground. She seemed lifeless. More importantly, she seemed familiar to Jessica.

Jessica eyed the girl from head to toe. As she did so, unexplainably, her heart beat faster. The clothes the girl was wearing seemed oddly familiar o Jessica. Even the hair, the skin tone, and the built of the girl seemed familiar.

Finally, Jessica stooped down as she came closer to the girl. All the other people were murmuring, staring at her, but she didn’t mind them. Her hands moved towards the girl’s face which was covered with the girl’s messy hair. Jessica grabbed a hold of a number of strands of hair and combed it off the girl’s face.

Finally, her identity was revealed.

Jessica fell back in shock as she realized who the girl was.

The yacht, the bathrobe, the lipstick, the cuts and bruises on her face, everything that she brought back with her from the world of dreams was all coming back to her. And at that moment, it happened. A dream turned into reality.

It was Tiffany.

But before anyone else could react, Jessica jumped back on her feet and bent over the girl’s body, attempting to carry her.

She tried to lift Tiffany up with her own arms, but she was only able to lift the girl a couple of inches off the ground. She tried, and tried, but she was just too weak.

All the murmuring of the people around her grew louder and their judgmental eyes were piercing through her. Jessica closed her eyes one last time, gathered all her strength, and tried to lift Tiffany up. Finally, she was able to carry the unconscious girl in her arms.

Jessica ran out of the crowd and headed towards the school’s gates.

Yuri chased after her and grabbed her shoulder.

“Where are you going? If you’re late or absent one more time without a good reason, you’ll be in trouble,” Yuri told Jessica.

“I don’t care!” Jessica answered back as she shrugged Yuri’s hand off her shoulder.

“Who is this girl anyway? Do you even know her?” Yuri continued to ask.

“It’s none of your business!”

Yuri stepped back as she was taken aback by the Jessica’s sudden outburst.

Jessica then started to run as quickly as she could.

“Tiffany!” Jessica shouted as she continued to run. “Wake up! Wake up!”

Jessica’s arms and legs were starting to weaken, but she continued to run.

“I’m sorry it had to be like this,” Jessica whispered to the lifeless girl as her eyes started to tear up. “I’m sorry.”

Jessica continued to run as she was only a few meters away from her house.

As she took a few more steps, Jessica’s legs finally gave up on her. The weight she was handling and the cold that pierced her skin was just too much too handle.

Now, both Tiffany and Jessica were on the harsh earth, lying helplessly. Jessica tried to get back on her feet, but she could only bring herself up on her knees.

Jessica stared at the girl once more and caressed her face with her hands. Tiffany’s face was burning with heat. She was sick. At that moment, Jessica couldn’t do anything about it.

Jessica placed her hands on Tiffany’s body and buried her head between her arms. Then, she cried.

“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry,” Jessica uttered hopelessly.

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

“Hey,” a voice suddenly echoed out of nowhere. “Get up.”

Jessica lifted her head from Tiffany’s body and wiped the tears from her eyes. Then, she turned around.

“What are you doing here?” Jessica asked as the tall figure of Yuri met her eyes. “You don’t need to help me.”

“Then what kind of friend would I be?” Yuri answered with a smile. “You don’t need to explain anything to me, I just want to help.”

Yuri extended her hand at Jessica, keeping her smile. Jessica smiled back and took Yuri’s hand.

Soon, Tiffany was being carried by two girls, with her right arm around Jessica’s shoulder and her left arm around Yuri’s. After a few more minutes, they were at the front door of Jessica’s house.

Jessica quickly took the keys from underneath the doormat and picked out one from the bunch. Then, she inserted it into the keyhole and turned it to unlock the door.

After entering the house, the two girls brought Tiffany up to Jessica’s bedroom and lay her down on the bed.

“Get me some cold water and towels while I get extra blankets,” Jessica ordered.

Jessica opened her closet and quickly took out three sheets of blankets. Then, she unfolded each of them and placed them neatly over Tiffany.

“I’m really sorry for letting this happen to you,” Jessica uttered as she looked at Tiffany with pitiful eyes. “I’m really sorry.”

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

“Here’s your cold water,” Yuri exclaimed as she handed over a container filled with cold water and a small towel.

“Thanks,” Jessica uttered.

“Seems like her fever’s really high,” Yuri observed.

Jessica looked at Tiffany again, pitifully, then looked towards Yuri.

“I need to change her clothes,” Jessica declared.

“Yeah. That’d be a good idea,” Yuri answered.

“Well,” Jessica started. “Are you going to stay here and watch?”

Yuri’s face reddened at the rhetorical question and she exited the room without a word.

“What am I going to do with you?” Jessica whispered. “If I just set my priorities, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Jessica continued to talk to the unconscious girl as she lifted the sheets of blanket off Tiffany’s body. The girl was shivering because of the cold, but she was burning because of her fever. Jessica tried her best to make Tiffany feel comfortable.

Jessica took Tiffany’s clothes off slowly, including her underwear. Everything was damp, probably because of the low temperature outside. There was no malice with the undressing this time. Jessica didn’t waste any time and quickly dressed Tiffany with the clothes she had already prepared. Then, Jessica lay Tiffany down on the bed once more.

After this, Jessica took the towel from the basin that Yuri had prepared and squeezed the excess water off. Then, she took Tiffany’s arm and damped the towel lightly on her skin. She did this to Tiffany’s other hand, as well as her legs, neck, and face. It took her a little under half an hour to finish, but she was finally done.

Jessica placed the sheets over Tiffany again, and placed the folded towel on the girl’s forehead. Then, she took the chair from her desk and placed it beside the bed. She sat down on it, and watched Tiffany sleep, with mixed feelings of worry and glee. She was happy that she was able to see Tiffany again, but saddened at the reality that she had to see her in such a state.

“Jessica!” Yuri screamed from downstairs. “Someone’s at the door!”