“Taeng!!!~~”

Taeyeon snapped his head to the familiar voice. He dorkily grinned and walked towards his grinning shikshin friend. Since Tiffany decided to not go back to work and allowed him to go home as well after finding Lauren, he went straight to the cupcake café that Sooyoung and Sunny recently bought near CAU.

“Hey!~~ This place is nice!~” Taeyeon exclaimed after having a bearhug with Sooyoung as his eyes wandered around the old-fashioned and cozy cupcake café.

It is quite a large wooden cupcake shop and is mainly for students who need a place to study while enjoying their cupcakes and teas.

“Thanks, Taeng! Come, we have a private room here since our friends always complain that they don’t have seats whenever they come here.” Sooyoung dragged him towards a room and he was immediately engulfed in a warm hug by his short friend.

Taeyeon chuckled at Sunny and gave her a peck on her cheek as they pull away from their hug. The now-engaged couple then dragged him to the table and a female staff appeared to serve them cupcakes and coffees.

“Thank you.” he charmingly smiled and the female staff blushed as she shyly smiled at him before leaving the three friends in the private room.

“What?” Taeyeon innocently asked Sooyoung and Sunny across him who are both shaking their heads in disagreement at his flirting towards their employee.

Sunny sighed. Though she didn’t like what Taeyeon did to Tiffany, she didn’t hate him as she saw how sorry he was and she believes that Gyuri was the one behind it. However, what she hates about him is his drastic change as he became a playboy and parties almost everynight.

“Taengoo, now that you’re back, could you stop flirting around?” she intensely stared at him but Taeyeon just gave her his dorky smile before taking a bite on his cupcake.

Not wanting his fiancee’s intense gaze at Taeyeon as he knows that she’ll start reprimanding him again like she always does over the phone or internet when they talk to him, Sooyoung decided to quickly change the topic as he hugged her.

“So… how’s your first day with Tiff?”

“Good, I guess? Well, as expected… she still hates me but atleast she’s talking to me because she has to and… I met her daughter.”

“You met Lauren???!”

Sunny and Sooyoung shouted, startling Taeyeon as they stared at him with wide eyes and mouths open.

“Err… yeah. Why do you look so surprised? And speaking of Lauren, why didn’t you tell me that Fany already has a daughter?” Taeyeon an eyebrow at them, looking back and forth at the couple.

The couple looked at each other first and Sooyoung nudged Sunny to answer Taeyeon’s question as he doesn’t know how to answer it, taking a bite on his cupcake to try and avoid the question.

“Because… you didn’t ask?...” Sunny blinked innocently at Taeyeon and anxiously sipped her coffee, trying to avoid eye contact with him.

Taeyeon furrowed his brows and the couple sheepishly smiled at him. There was an awkward silence for a few moments before Taeyeon decided to ask his friends the question that he has on his mind as soon as Tiffany blurted out that she has a daughter.

“Who’s Lauren's father?”

Sooyoung choked his cupcake with his question and Sunny patted his back while Taeyeon gave him his drink to calm him down. He asked if he’s alright and Sooyoung nodded his head as he took a sip on his drink. Once he felt better, he let out a deep sigh and continued eating like nothing happened as he wanted to escape from Taeyeon’s question.

Taeyeon blinked as he stared at him in disbelief. He then chuckled at his friend’s action but his smile faded when he saw the person who has just enterred the private room.

“Jess…” he mumbled, staring at Jessica who froze upon seeing him.

Like Sunny, Jessica didn’t hate him for what he had done but she and Taeyeon drifted apart when he started changing into someone that’s not him and for wasting his time flirting and partying around instead of trying to fix the problem between him and Tiffany. But what really strained their relationship is when she and Yuri visited Taeyeon in New York as she attended an annual seminar for wedding planners two years ago to talk to him and tell him about Lauren.

However, when they saw a glimpse of how Taeyeon is living his life – having series of flings, goes to clubs almost everynight, and became a totally different person, they got into an argument as she expressed her sharp disapproval of his actions but Taeyeon just put on a smug expression. She lost herself and slapped Taeyeon as she told him to never come back to Tiffany’s life as her best friend doesn’t deserve someone like him and thought that Tiffany made the right decision to not tell him about Lauren. After that, the two seems to be total strangers to each other whenever they’ll meet in some social events abroad.

“Jess!~~ Is Yul still in the meeting?” Sooyoung decided to break the awkwardness and the heavy atmosphere, snapping Jessica back to her senses.

“Y-yeah…” Jessica stuttered as she made her way towards the table and awkwardly sat beside Taeyeon.

Taeyeon tensed up for a moment. He glanced at the girl beside him before finishing his coffee.

“Uhm, I… I have to go. I’ll see you guys around.” he forced a smile to Sunny and Sooyoung. He knows that Jessica hates him and since the girl went to the shop to wait for her husband, he doesn’t want her to be uncomfortable so he decided to just leave although he still wanted to stay as it’s been a while since he last saw Sooyoung and Sunny. Besides, the couple still hasn’t answered his question and he wanted to know more about Tiffany.

He was about to stand up but Jessica stopped him.

“Let’s talk.” She said while looking at Sooyoung and Sunny, gesturing them to leave them for a moment.

Sooyoung and Sunny nodded in understanding and left the two alone in the private room.

“Still no plans of having a child?” Taeyeon started the conversation as the uncomfortable silence between him and Jessica is slowly killing him. They’re sitting next to each other but it seems like there’s an invisible wall between them, preventing them to interact with each other comfortably like what they used to.

“We’re already trying but I guess it’s still not the right time for us to have one yet…” Jessica softly said, fiddling with the cup of coffee that Sunny brought her before totally leaving them to talk.

Silence engulfed them again. Taeyeon took a deep breath and shifted his body to face Jessica as he just wanted to have his friend back.

“I’m sorry.” He sincerely said as he gazed at her, holding her hand that’s on top of the table.

Jessica glanced at their hands before she looked at Taeyeon and her eyes soften as she stared at him, sadness and pain can be seen through his eyes that are gazing back at her.

“For what?” she cocked her head on the side as she intensely stared at him.

“For being a jerk… Jess, I’m really sorry for acting like a total back then. I know that you were just concerned about me but… I messed up. I’m sorry.” Taeyeon sincerely said  as he let go of her hand and hang his head low, feeling guilty of all the things he have done for the past four years.

Jessica stared at him for a few moments. She was mad at him for his stupidity but she also felt pity for him.

“Do you think if I killed you… it would’ve saved yourself from messing up your life?” Jessica uttered and coldly stared at him.

Taeyeon lifted his head up and blinked a few times, processing what the girl just told him and Jessica stiffled her laughter at his bewildered and frightened expression. For some unfathomable reason, she has a soft spot for the guy ever since they became friends back in senior high.

Noticing her amused expression, Taeyeon narrowed his eyes and scoffed when Jessica could no longer hold it and bursted out laughing.

“Geez Taengoo, you should’ve seen your face!” she managed to say between her laughs and Taeyeon sulked on his seat while cutely pouting as he watched her staggering to her seat because of laughter.

When Jessica finally calmed down from laughing, she sighed and warmly smiled at Taeyeon.

“I wouldn’t say sorry for slapping you but I’m sorry for saying those things.”

Taeyeon blinked at her and slowly, a smile was drawn to his face and his eyes glowed in happiness and relief.

“It’s okay. I deserve more than that anyway. But I must say that you slap quite hard.”

They both chuckled at his statement. Taeyeon then stood up from his seat and dorkily opened his arms wide, asking for a hug from the girl that he treats as his sister as he missed her so much, and he’s glad that they’re finally in good terms again.

“Aigoo~~ If only you’re not married yet…” he joked around as he hugged her tightly and immediately received a smack on his head from Jessica.

Taeyeon laughed at her and kissed her on the cheek as they let go of their hug. They sat back on their chairs and Taeyeon continued eating his cupcake while Jessica just watched him. She has a smile on her face as she thought of how easy it is for them to settle their issue like sibblings but she sighed as she thought of her bestfriend.

“Jess, thank you for forgiving me.” he stared at her and has a gentle smile on his face.

Jessica warmly smiled at him. She then sighed in content before taking a sip on her coffee. Feeling hungry all of a sudden, she reached out for a cupcake and took a bite – not aware that Taeyeon is watching her with a sad smile.

“If only she could forgive me as well…” Taeyeon softly mumbled but Jessica heard it as she silently sighed.

“Do you still love her?” she asked, wiping with the table napkin as she gave her full attention back to him.

Taeyeon was taken aback by her question. It has been a really long while when he was asked about it and he never had thought of it as he did everything to forget about his feelings. In the process of trying to move on, he became accustomed to living with denying his love for Tiffany and he feels unworthy of love.

“I have always loved her… that never changed. But she hates me… she still hates me.” his voice is painfully sad and Jessica could only bite her lower lip as she gaze at the guy who had tried so hard to hide his pain from everyone else for the past years.

Silence engulfed them and for the first time in a long while, Taeyeon finally let his tears fall as everything seems to be coming back to him. He looks so lost and Jessica had to pull him in her arms as it hurts her to see him like that.

“I’m sorry…” he softly said, pulling away from her after a few moments.

Jessica wiped his tears and Taeyeon smiled at her but his smile didn’t reach his eyes, causing Jessica to feel sorry for him and mentally noted to help her friend to have her bestfriend’s forgiveness, if not her heart.

Yuri alrea