(Krystal’s POV)

Since that day, I haven’t been able to get what Jessie told me out of my head. Were we really each other’s first kiss? Why can’t I seem to remember? What happened? And why did I do it? I had so many questions but Jessie refused to tell me. It was driving me insane.

“Jessie, why won’t you just tell me? Did I do something really bad?” I pestered her.

“Kryssie… you were 5… you didn’t even know what you were doing…” she replied.

“Then why can’t you just tell me?” I pressed.

“Because I told you something very important that day and I need you to remember it on your own.”

What could it be? She was starting to worry me a little.

“I don’t understand…” I sighed.

She brushed my hair away from my face and looked directly in my eye. “Maybe you’re not ready. I have faith that you will remember one day soon. When you do, everything will become clear. Now… there are more important things… like what are we having for dinner?”

“Is that all you can think about?”

“What? I’m hungry…”

Why does she always do this to me? Every time I think we were having a moment she somehow manages to dump a bucket of ice water over my head…

“What would you like to eat then?”

“I don’t know… surprise me…”

---

(Saturday morning…)

“Jessie… get up!”

It was Saturday and she had said she was going to come along to the art exhibition. There was no way I was letting her back out of it now especially after she made such a fuss about Taeyeon unni and me.

“Hmm…? What’s up Kryssie?” she yawned.

“Did you forget something about today?”

“What about today…?” she asked without even bothering to open her eyes.

“Come on Jessie… you said you were going to come with us… I even asked you again the other day…”

“Don’t worry… I remember…” she responded half heartedly.

“Good! Then get your out of that bed and get ready!” I ordered.

“Oh yeah? Make me!” she resisted.

“Don’t think I won’t…” I threatened.

I grabbed her hand and pulled hard but she had already anticipated my move so she pulled back.

“Hah! You ain’t got nothing on me sis!” she jubilated.

“Fine… I’ll leave without you then…” I retaliated.

“No! I’m up… I’m up…” she gave in.

I smirked. “You know in the end I always have the upper hand.”

“Only because I let you win…”

“I know… but you always let me win…” I gave her one of my very rare eye smiles.

This was one of the reasons why I loved Jessie so much… We fought, we teased each other, some days we hated each other, but at the end of the day… she always, ALWAYS put me before herself. I had THE BEST sister in the world.

“Come on Jessie… you can at least pretend to be a little excited… If you aren’t interested, you don’t have to force yourself to come with us,” I told her.

Honestly, I knew exactly why she insisted on coming along… she didn’t like me hanging out with Taeyeon unni. I’m not sure why exactly but Jessie was jealous that I got along so well with her. She was usually a little possessive but it was worse than usual with Taeyeon unni. I just wanted for them to get along. I know Tiffany unni wanted the same thing too.

“No, I really want to come… You know I just have a hard time waking up…” she justified.

“Are you sure?!” I double checked.

“Yes, I’m sure… I’m sure! Now get out… I need to get ready,” she stuck her tongue out at me.

---

(At the SeMA…)

(Taeyeon’s POV)

This is not good… not good…

I was running late yet again and I was so hoping to make a good impression on Jessica. I don’t know why but I really wanted her to like me even if she was technically my competition. I think I’m unconsciously a people pleaser.

I saw the Jung sisters from afar as I ran towards the entrance of the museum.

“I. (breathe). Am. (breathe). So. (breathe). Sorry. (breathe). I’m. (breathe). Late…” I panted. I was completely out of breath from all the running.

“That’s fine, unni. We haven’t been waiting that long,” Krystal said.

“I woke up early for no reason…?!” Jessica muttered under her breath but I heard her loud and clear.

“I’m really sorry. I try to be early but I always end up being late… I swear it’s like a curse.”

Krystal gave me a polite smile but Jessica just seemed impassive.

“Shall we go in then?” I suggested.

The museum was filled with interesting pieces that would take more than a day to appreciate but we were there specifically for the Gauguin exhibition. He was a French post-Impressionist artist, one that we had learned about while I was in Paris so I was quite excited about it. It was a temporary exhibition so Krystal’s class was analyzing it as well so it was great for the both of us.

We slowly made our way through the exhibition one piece at a time, taking the time to observe, absorb and then interpret the pieces. Krystal and I exchanged opinions about each piece and I must say that she was a very deep thinker for her age. Gauguin’s pieces were extremely existential and he was a very tormented artist so I was afraid that the subject of his pieces was a little heavy for her but it wasn’t the case at all.

It was a different story for Jessica. She didn’t seem very interested in the exhibition at all. Her typical reaction was to look at a piece for a minute, read the description and then move on to the next. Once in awhile she would take a seat so that we could catch up to her. I knew she wasn’t really there for the art… I wasn’t stupid. But I thought it was weird that she’s spending her time here just to be around her sister. I knew I’ve never done that for my sister… Maybe I wasn’t that good of a sister…

When we were almost at the end of the exhibition, I decided to catch up to Jessica to see if I could warm up to her. When I found her, she was staring at a specific piece very intently. It was the "D'où venons-nous? Que sommes-nous? Où allons-nous?" (Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?) piece. It was the first time the entire day that she seemed to show any interest at all and she was absolutely fixated on the painting.

“Did you know that Gauguin considered this piece as his master piece and the ultimate conclusion of his thoughts?” I said to her as I walked up to her. I stopped, standing right by her side.

She didn’t turn to look at me but she nodded slowly.

“Don’t you think it’s interesting that the piece is read from right to left?” I commented.

“It’s both haunting and beautiful at the same time…” she said. “Life and beyond… It’s everything we all go through yet it’s different for everyone…”

I was taken aback. For someone who had not been showing an interest the entire day, that was quite a profound thought.

“Why do you think that he uses females as the subject in this piece?” I asked. I was curious about her opinion.

“The simple answer would probably be because women are a symbol of the creation of life, but many of his pieces have women as the subject probably because his father died when he was very young and he was raised my his mother who was the daughter of an activist that basically founded feminism, along with his sister.”

I was shocked. How does she know so much about Gauguin?

“You’re surprised aren’t you?” she continued.

“I have to admit… Y-yes…” I replied. Even her question to me had caught me off guard.

 “Sometimes there’s more than that which meets the eyes… If you look closely, the original French title that he wrote does not include any question marks or punctuation. He wrote it all in capitals… He wasn’t posing a question but he was making a statement,” she said with a certain seriousness.

“I didn’t realize you knew so much about Gauguin,” I said to her.

“Yes… sometimes even though I don’t seem to show any signs of interest doesn’t mean that that’s really the case…”

What is she trying to say? Why does it sound like she’s talking in riddles? Is she still talking about the painting?

“Did you know that Gauguin thought that this painting was basically the best that he could do in his lifetime so much so that the attempted suicide unsuccessfully…?” she stated.

“Yes… he was quite troubled… it wasn’t the first time… It’s sad that he only became known after his death.”

“Isn’t that the case for a lot of Impressionist artists? Sometimes when something is gone, that’s when you want it the most…”

There she goes again… Does she think I’m someone else? She doesn’t talk to me the whole day and then she suddenly spews all these weird things?!

“Uhm… Jessica? Is something wrong?” I asked. She was starting to freak me out.

Dammit Fany! This is exactly why I need a buffer…!

“No… Why?” she replied.

“Uhm… you just seem… You know what…? Nothing. So, did you like the exhibit?” I didn’t want to offend her so I decided to keep my opinion about her to myself.

“Yeah, it was interesting…” she replied casually.

“Which was your favorite?” I decided to start with some small talk instead.

“I have to say… this one. How unoriginal of me… I know but it really speaks to me.”

“No, I get it. I like this one too… Can I be honest with you?” I asked curiously

“Sure… why not…”

“You didn’t seem very interested in the exhibition the whole day… but you seem to know a lot about it… How is that?”

She grinned. “You want the honest truth?”

I shrugged. “If you want to tell me…”

“It’s not that I wasn’t interested… I just knew exactly which piece I was interested in. I prefer to immerse myself in things that I’m absolutely sure that I’m interested in instead of just being lukewarm about everything,” she replied bluntly.

“Is that so?”

“There may be some exceptions but that is generally the case.”

“I see. I like that you’re honest,” I told her and I really meant it.

“You’re one of the few… Most people don’t seem to appreciate that side of me. I don’t do it intentionally, it’s just the way I am,” she said as-a-matter-of-factly.

“Well, I think it’s refreshing… It might sting sometimes but I rather have that than people constantly lying to me. Anyway, it only means you care because like you said if you weren’t interested you’d just be indifferent.”

She finally turned to look at me directly. “Taeyeon-shi… I was wrong about you… I find you… very interesting,” she smirked.

“That’s high praise…” I had finally broken her down and she had finally accepted me.

She gave me a light, playful punch on the shoulder.

“Can I ask you another very forward question?”

“You can ask me anything you want… As for whether or not I will answer the question, I can’t guarantee anything…” she responded.

I was beginning to like her more and more. She was witty and humorous.

“What’s the deal with you and Fany?” I asked. I needed to know for sure if they had something going on.

“What do you mean?”

“What is the extent of your relationship…?” I rephrased my question.

“We’re colleagues… friends… sisters…” she answered.

“Nothing more? So you guys aren’t like an item?”

She gave no sign of shock or surprise. “Honestly, I haven’t even thought about it… What’s it to you?”

“I’m just curious. I just want to know what has changed with her since I’ve been gone.” It was only half the reason.

“If she asked you out, would you say yes?”

“Wow Taeyeon, that’s a lot of questions…”

“Uhm… sorry. I tend to get carried away…”

“To answer your question… I don’t know if I feel that way about her. We’re great together… as friends… but I don’t know if she makes me feel that way…” she answered sincerely.

I guess she doesn’t like Fany the way I do… That’s a relief…

“So… is there someone who makes you feel that way then?”

She hesitated for a second. “I’m not sure… maybe…” There was a look of pain in her eyes when she said that.

“Taeyeon unni! Jessie! There you guys are… I was wondering where you were. I thought you guys ditched me or something…” Krystal finally caught up to us.

“It’s about time, Kryssie… What took you so long?” Jessica’s expression brightened again.

“Oh so this is THE painting… His ultimate…” Krystal said when she spotted the painting behind Jessica and I.

Just as Jessica and I had done just a short while ago, Krystal admired Gauguin’s master piece.

“I think this is my favorite… It’s so beautiful yet haunting…”she said.

I laughed. “That was EXACTLY what your sister said.”

“Really, Jessie?” Krystal asked.

“Stop copying me…” Jessica chuckled.

“I can’t help it… great minds think alike…”

“Are you trying to pay yourself a compliment?”

“And you too…” Krystal giggled.

I think I was starting to get these two. There was something quite adorable about the both of them together.

“Well, now that we’re done here… what do you want to do Jessie?” asked Krystal as she linked arms with Jessica.

“I don’t know… What do you want to do?” Jessica asked back.

I thought it was interesting how she was completely different during our conversation when Krystal wasn’t around.

“But we already did what I wanted… So now let’s do what you want!” Krystal insisted.

They started walking out as they bickered about whose turn it was to pick the next activity. I just stood and watched the Jung sisters from behind. There’s still something very odd about those two…

Just as I thought they had forgotten about me, Jessica turned around.

“Taeyeon… you coming?!”

Well I guess I’m part of the group now…