(Krystal’s POV)

When I woke up the next morning, Jessie was still asleep. She had her arms tucked in tightly and she was snuggled up against me. I grinned to myself like an idiot. It was a good thing she wasn’t awake yet to witness my embarrassing behavior.

My only other wish would be for us to stay together forever…

Just as I was beginning to imagine what our lives would be like as we grew older; whether or not this would last, Jessie’s phone began to ring. She shuffled a little but she was still sleeping like a log. It probably didn’t help that she was on medication; there was no waking her until she was ready to wake up on her own.

I took a peak at the number on the screen; it just said unknown caller.

That’s odd… I shouldn’t pick up I guess…

The ringing stopped. Then she received a text. I couldn’t help but read the text preview on the screen.

“It’s mom and dad. Pick up.”

OHMIGOD! MOM AND DAD?!

The phone started to ring again.

“Jessie! Jessie, wake up! Mom and dad are calling!” I yelled at her and shook her as hard as I could.

“Mmmmmnnnnngggg…” she grumbled but did not actually wake up.

“Jessie! Seriously! Get up now! It’s MOM AND DAD!” I shouted in her ear.

Her eyes shot open immediately, bolting upright and bumping into my head yet again.

 Seriously, why do we keep bumping heads?! Should I be wearing a helmet?

We both flinched in pain and rubbed our heads furiously.

“What?! Mom and dad?!” she exclaimed in panic, turning her head left and right to look around.

“Not here! They’re calling your phone! They’ve been trying a few times now. You have to pick it up!” I explained.

The phone had stopped ringing during my attempt to wake Jessie up but it had started ringing again.

“Ohmigod! Eotteohke?” she looked at me, all worried.

“Just pick up the phone and act normal!” I told her.

“Can’t you answer it?”

“It’s your phone… You’ll have to at least pick it up…”

“Fine…”

She finally answered the call.

“Hello? Mom…? Dad…?” she greeted cautiously as if they could hear through the phone and find us out.

“Oh, dad!

Uhm… I just got up…

I wasn’t feeling well so I took some medicine yesterday…

Yes, I actually took them, Kryssie made me.

I’m feeling a lot better. Don’t worry.

Everything else is fine back home. You have nothing to worry about.

You want to speak with Kryssie?

Mmmhmmm… Yes, dad.

Okay.” She handed the phone to me.

“Oh, dad… How are you? Are you enjoying your trip?” I asked.

“Krys, Happy Birthday! Sorry we called so late. Your mother and I lost track with the time difference.”

It was so nice to hear dad’s voice after all this time. I forgot how dignified he always sounded even though he was a softie on the inside. It was probably all due to having two daughters and no sons.

“Thanks, dad. Where are you guys now?”

“We’re in Reykjavik. It’s getting really cold here. How is it back home?”

Typical dad, talking about the weather…

“Wow! You’re in Iceland! What is it like? It’s getting pretty cold here too. It’s going to be a cold winter this year.”

“Your mother really wanted to see the Northern Lights, so I decided to take her here. It’s really beautiful here actually. Maybe we’ll come back another time and I’ll bring you girls with us. I hear it’s a whole different experience here during summer.”

“Are you paying for me, dad? I’ll definitely go,” I joked.

He actually let out a chuckle.

“Hmmm… I do owe you a birthday present, don’t I? Anyway, your mother wants to talk to you. Make sure you keep warm and don’t get sick, okay? Take care of your sister. Make sure she takes her medicine.”

“Yes, dad. Bye.”

“Sweetie?” Mom’s voice came ringing through the phone. I don’t think I ever realized how much Jessie was like mom’s copy, except of course she can’t cook like mom can.

“Mom! I miss you so much!”

“I miss you too, sweetie. Happy Birthday! Did you have a good time?”

The event of the past week recapped in my mind, ending with Jessie.

“I had a great time.”

“Dad said that Jessie is sick? How is she?”

“Much better. She had a bit of a fever yesterday but she took some medicine and it’s pretty much gone.”

“Good. She actually took the medicine? You made her, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I did,” I replied proudly.

“Good. You’re the only one who can convince her… Anyway, we just called to wish you a happy birthday. We haven’t forgotten about you two.”

“Hey, mom? When are you guys planning on coming home?” I asked. I just needed a rough estimate as to how long we had before reality would come crashing down on Jessie and me.

“We’ll be coming home just after new years. But your father and I are actually considering extending our trip. There’s just so much we want to see and it’s not like we have anything we need to do back home, especially now that we know you girls can take care of yourselves.”

“So you may or may not be coming home in January?”

“No, we’ll be back regardless. We miss home. We’ll take a short break before setting off again if we do decide on extending our trip.”

“Oh… I see…”

“Okay, I got to go, sweetie. Happy Birthday again. I love you. But before you hang up could you pass the phone back to Jessie?”

“Okay. Love you too, mom. See you when you get home."

So I handed the phone back to Jessie. She hand a very short exchange with mom before she hung up.

---

(Jessica’s POV)

We both let out a sigh of relief after I hung up.

I should have known that mom and dad would call on Kryssie’s birthday, but we were so lost in our own world that we had forgotten the reality of our situation.

“Ohmigod! When you said mom and dad… I almost had a heart attack…!” I said, clutching my chest to steady my heart.

“That’s how I felt when I saw the text they sent…”

“So they’re in Iceland right now?”

“Yeah! Isn’t that amazing?! Dad said that mom wanted to see the Northern Lights so he brought her there…” she explained

“Wow… That’s so romantic of dad… You must get it from him, ei?” I teased.

She punched my arm lightly, probably feeling too embarrassed about what I just said.

“So… mom said that they’ll be back in January…” she told me, momentarily interrupting my rare cheerfulness so early in the morning.

Silence fell upon the room for what seemed like an eternity as we just stared at each other, both realizing what it could mean for our relationship that was so unexplainable, so inconceivable yet it was so real and so unmistakable and extremely precious to us. Our bond, our relationship had changed and I didn’t want it to go back. No, I couldn’t go back to just being sisters!

“Are you sure? Is it definite?” I asked.

“She said that they may be extending their trip but even then they are definitely coming home just after new years for a short break.”

I paused for thought again.

She looked at me with her eyebrows furrowed and bit her lower lip as she did so while waiting for my response. I watched her and all I could think was how adorable and wonderful she was, and how much I wanted those lips on me right then.

There I go again… My mind really needed to be doused with ice cold water!

Jessica! This is NOT the time to be thinking such things…!

Whatever she wanted, I’d do anything, I’d give her everything…

“Kryssie…”

“Hmmm?”

“When it comes time to decide… what do you want to do?” I asked, making sure that what we wanted was the same.

“Do we have to talk about this right now? I really didn’t want to face reality right now. Why couldn’t we just stay like this without having to worry about the future? Just for a while longer…” She turned her back to me.

“We’ll have to talk about this eventually. I’m not saying that we have to do anything about it but should we not at least think about what we’re going to do once mom and dad get back?” I reached over and placed my hand on her shoulder.

She shrugged my hand off. “No! I don’t want to think about it! It’s too sad! I can’t even…” she trailed off.

“Calm down, Kryssie… You don’t have to get all emotional… I just-”

She got out of bed angrily and turned back to face me but her expression was grim. “Are you really telling me not to get emotional? Do I not mean anything to you? Are you going to let me go, just like that? Don’t you even care that we might have to go back to being just sisters, yet we’ll always just be an arm’s length away?!”

No matter how mature she’s gotten or how solid our relationship was, she was still the younger one. Some things could still shake her up.

“Kryssie…”

“I don’t want to break mom and dad’s hearts but… Jessie… I love you more…” Her voice became small and quiet.

“Kryssie…”

“Am I wrong to feel this way…?” She stared at me with her piercing eyes.

I wanted to hold her so badly that I got up too quickly, forgetting that I had injured my ankle and fell back onto the bed the moment I tried to put any weight at all on the foot. It had seemed to have gotten worse, probably because I had focused on lowering my fever that I had ignored my ankle and hadn’t iced it down when I should have.

Just like reflex, Kryssie rushed over to my side even though it really wasn’t necessary considering I fell onto the soft bed, putting aside her anger and frustration for a second.

“Ohmigod! Jessie, are you alright?!” she asked as she leaned over to check for herself.

I took the opportunity to grab hold of her arm, pulling her down onto the bed with me.

“What are you doing?!” she shouted, turning angry again. She pushed herself up to get off of the bed.

But before she could get a good footing, I pulled her down again and flipped her over so that I could hold her down while she faced me, pinning her hands over her head so she couldn’t move.

“Let me go!” She struggled but I knew she wasn’t really putting up a real fight.

“Stop it! Stop being a brat and just give me a chance to speak…”

“I don’t want to hear it! I… I can’t...”

“You don’t even know what I’m going to say…!”

“Yes, I do… You’re going to tell me that it was fun while it lasted, that this had all been a mistake, that we were eventually going to have to realize that this was never going to work… Why else would you-“

Where was she even getting all these ideas? Have these worries been in her mind all this time? Have I not made it clear how I felt about her? Did I really leave room for her to doubt me? I must have been a terrible girlfriend not to mention sister since she couldn’t even trust that I would protect her heart against such painful misdeeds.

I had heard enough. She wasn’t even making any sense. So I did the only thing that I knew could shut her up. I locked lips with her; just gently placing mine on hers.

“You can’t just-” Her speech was a little muffled but her message was still clear, so I pressed my lips tighter against hers.

“Hhhm mmm nnggg hmmm!” She mumbled.

How can she be so relentless?!

I started moving my lips against hers.

Just surrender, Kryssie… Just trust me… I would never hurt you…

As if she had heard my plea, she slowly stopped fighting me and I was able to let go of her hands.

I sensed that she was still hesitating but she reached under my arms, grabbed ahold of my shirt and pulled me closer to her, pressing my body against hers. Then she started moving her lips along to mine.

I had wanted her to stop fighting me and she had, but I knew something was wrong. Her kiss was withdrawn yet I could feel her desperation, as if she would lose me if she let go of me.

I opened my eyes just for a second to make sure everything was alright but as I had suspected, it wasn’t. She had her eyes clenched tightly but tears were trickling down the sides of her face. I stopped immediately.

This isn’t right…

I caressed her face gently with my hands and wiped away her tears.

She opened her eyes, gazing straight into mine. They were filled with so much despair it tore my heart.

“I… I can’t do this…” I told her.

“W-Why not?! Please, Jessie… Let’s just get this over with…” she said, her voice so forced.

I couldn’t believe she just said that. Was it something to just get over with?

“Stop, Kryssie… Just stop… This isn’t right…”

“Why…? Don’t… don’t you want to…?”

“Is this what you want…?”

She didn’t reply.

“It’s not that I don’t want to but… I know why you’re doing this. You’re afraid that this might end soon, but that shouldn’t be the reason.”

“But it is ending soon…” she broke down again.

“Why? Why is it ending? Are you ending it with me?”

“No… I can’t even… I don’t even know how… But-“

“But what? I told you, Kryssie… I’m never letting you go. I meant it… I still mean it. How could you think that I would ever hurt you? I would rather hurt myself first…”

“I… I’m just… afraid… I’m afraid of losing you.”

“You could never lose me, Kryssie…”

“I-I know that but… if we have to end this… I will no longer have any reason to be happy…”

“Then let’s not let that happen. I’m all in, Kryssie. I just needed to know you were too. If you take my hand, I promise I won’t ever let it go and we’ll go wherever this may take us, together.”

I could see the light in her eyes starting to brighten again.

I pressed my forehead against hers. “Don’t give up on us yet…” I whispered to her.

She pulled me into an embrace, still clinging tightly onto my shirt.

“Please don’t ever let me go…!” she exclaimed.

This was exactly what she said to me that time…

She suddenly let go of me.

“Jessie…”

I lifted my head again so that I could see her face.

“Do you know… you said that to me before?”

She looked deep into my eyes, as if searching for something.

“I… I remember…” she said hesitantly.

“You… you do?!”

I thought she had forgotten all about it… or that she couldn’t even recollect that piece of memory in the first place.

---

(Krystal’s POV)

It was the strangest feeling… A piece of memory that I never knew I had started cracking through the walls of my memory bank.

Ohmigod! This was it… The day Jessie ran away… and then… our first kiss…

“How did I not remember this…?!” I thought out loud.

“Do you really remember…?!” Jessie looked at me with disbelief in her eyes. She must have held onto this memory for the both of us for far too long.

I nodded my head slowly as each piece of the memory was put back together like a jigsaw puzzle, forming the most precious picture in my head.

---

(Flashback…)

Krystal: Aged 5, Jessica: Aged 10

Jessie came running to me in the worst panic I had ever seen her in, her eyes already tearing.

“Jessie… Why are you crying?” I asked her as I reached up to her, trying to give her a hug but I couldn’t reach past her waist.

She pulled me aside and knelt down so that our eyes were leveled.

“Kryssie… I don’t know what’s going to happened to us from now on but I just want you to know that I love you. You’re my most precious sister and don’t ever forget that.”

“Jessie…? I don’t understand… Did I do something wrong?”

What is she going on about…? Should I be worried…?

“No, Kryssie… You did nothing wrong. It’s just… It’s difficult to explain right now…” she told me, but she was still crying so I was still confused.

Mom came around the corner and found us.

“Sweetie, why are you crying?” mom asked Jessie.

“I-Is it t-true? W-what I heard you and dad talking about?” Jessie asked mom.

Mom’s expression suddenly got serious.

“Sweetie… What are you talking about…? What did you hear?”

“I heard you and dad talking about Kryssie and me… and how we’re not really…”

“Uhm… sweetie, can we talk in private?”

Mom and Jessie went off to another room and I was left dumbfounded.

What are they talking about? I hate being left out…!

Suddenly, I heard Jessie shouting.

“NO! This can’t be true! You’re lying! I hate you!”

Then she ran past me towards the main door.

“Jessie, where are you going?!” I called after her and started running to her.

“I’m sorry, Kryssie. I’m sorry…” She opened the door and ran out without giving me an answer or even saying goodbye.

“Jessie! Wait! Please! Where are you going?!” I shouted but she was already gone even before my words could reach her.

Mom came running out with dad but they were also too late.

“Sweetie! Did Jessie say where she was going?” mom asked.

The entire situation had made me so worried and now that mom and dad were both panicking I knew something was definitely wrong. I couldn’t stop myself and burst into tears.

“Mom! Where did Jessie go? Where’s Jessie? Where’s Jessie?” I cried.

Mom picked me up and I buried my face into her shoulder. She tried comforting me but it was no use. I wanted Jessie…

Where’s Jessie?!

---

(Jessica’s POV)

I wasn’t even thinking when I just ran out of the house. I just couldn’t be there while I felt so betrayed by my own parents.

Why does this have to happen to me?!

Wait that doesn’t even make sense… That has been the fact since I was born… since Kryssie was born…

Ohmigod! Kryssie!

Kryssie… I’m so sorry… I wish I could take you with me… but it wouldn’t be fair to you…

What are you even talking about, Jessica?! Take her where? Where are you going?

Jessica Jung! You ran away from home without any plan or even money…?! What are you expecting to accomplish?

Kryssie… what are you doing right now? Are you mad at me for leaving you?

I walked around aimlessly. So many thoughts were running through my head but it kept going back to Kryssie…

You’re probably crying and throwing a fit now, aren’t you? Please be good, Kryssie… I’m just trying to let this all sink in…

How can we not really be sisters though? Our bond was undeniable… How is that possible? How can we not be connected?

I can’t leave her alone… I have to go back…

As much as I was angry with my parents, I missed Kryssie a lot. Too much. I couldn’t stand to be away for any longer than I already had, not to mention it was starting to get dark, so I headed home.

I stood outside the door for a while, too ashamed to go inside. I was slowly gathering the courage to walk back in the door when it suddenly opened, and there stood Kryssie, her eye red and puffy, and she was still crying.

“Kryssie!” I exclaimed.

Her eyes widened in surprise. She tried to say something but she was crying hard and unable to get anything out. So instead she ran up to me and threw herself around my legs, clinging to them tighter than she had ever done before.

“I’m sorry, Kryssie… I’m sorry… I’m home now…”

But she wouldn’t stop crying. She was crying so hard it sounded like she was choking; gasping for air.

I decided to pick her up and I her back gently to calm her down. Slowly, her breathing steadied. But when I tried putting her down, she desperately clung onto me tighter.

“Please don’t ever let me go…!” she cried.

They were big words for one so small but they were sure enough to case my heart to flutter.

Dugeun, dugeun…

What is this feeling now…?!

I shook it off as I attempted to comfort her again.

“Okay, okay… I promise, Kryssie… I promise… I promise I won’t ever let you go… Never…”

“Jessie, sweetie?! You’re home!”

It was mom. I was so focused on Kryssie that I hadn’t noticed mom had made her way out.

“Mom… I… I’m sorry I just ran off like that…”

She walked over and gave me a hug. “I’m just glad you’re safe, sweetie… Are you alright? I know the news was a little shocking. I never meant for you to find out like that… You must know that it doesn’t make a difference to us. We both love you girls both just the same. You’re our precious daughters and nothing will change that.”

Then I started crying too.

“Kryssie’s been crying nonstop…” mom told me.

“I figured… That’s why I came home immediately…”

After I said that, I realized that it actually sounded really strange.

No… The reason why I came home wasn’t for myself… It wasn’t for my parents… It was because of Kryssie… But my heart ached just thinking how Kryssie was crying this entire time because of me.

“I’m going to call your father and tell him you’re home. He’s out looking for you…” mom said.

“I-I’m so sorry, mom…”

“It’s okay, sweetie. I understand… but please don’t just run away again, okay?”

I nodded.

She left to call dad.

Kryssie’s crying had subsided to a soft whimper but I didn’t want to risk having her revert back to crying if I tried putting her down again. But since I was getting a little tired as she wasn’t that little anymore, I carried her over to the couch and sat down. She was still slumped over my shoulder, her arms wrapped around my neck.

When she finally fell asleep from exhaustion, I carried her to her room to put her to bed. But just as I was about to place her down, she woke up again.

“No! Sirheo! You promised...!” she fussed.

Usually I would scold her for being such a brat but my heart was soft for the day and I felt guilty as well.

“No, no… I was just picking J up…”

“I don’t need J… I need you!”

Dugeun, dugeun…

Does she even know what she’s saying right now? And the weird feeling it’s giving me…? If someone else had heard it… would they think it was weird?

“But I have to put you down sometime, Kryssie… I can’t keep holding you like this… I promise I’m not going anywhere… I will always come back to you. Always!”

What am I saying? Does it even makes sense? Is this something you say to your sister?

I was so confused. I was confused as to what this new feeling Kryssie was making me feel… and I was so self-conscious about whether my actions were those of a sister’s after I found out the truth…

Why am I being so self-conscious?! Isn’t this how I normally behave around Kryssie anyway?

These were really confusing questions for a 10-year-old…

“Then, I’m sleeping in your room…” she said unconvinced that I wouldn’t leave her again.

“Okay, Kryssie… okay…”

So I brought her to my room instead. I put her down and took up the space beside her. She wrapped herself around my arm making sure that I wasn’t going anywhere. Soon enough, she fell back asleep and I followed suit. We were both exhausted…

---

(The next morning…)

“Jessie, wake up… Wake up… Wake up…” I heard Kryssie’s melodic little voice calling to me. She definitely sounded more cheerful than last night. I guess she was finally done crying.

“Hmmm… I’m awake… I’m awake…” I told her but I didn’t open my eyes. I was still sleepy.

“Liar! Jessie, you’re a liar! Open your eyes or else…” she threatened me but it was difficult to take a cute little 5-year-old’s threat so seriously.

“Or else what?” I asked just to .

Then all of a sudden, before I was even able to comprehend what was going on, I felt something brush against my lips and it stayed there. My eyes shot open immediately. It was Kryssie… she was… she was… she had her lips against mine!

Dugeun, dugeun…

What on earth?!

Then she pulled away and laughed innocently.

“K-Kryssie… What did you just do?” I asked in shock.

“That’s how you wake a sleeping princess up! See it works…” she giggled.

I realized that she was referring to Sleeping Beauty and I laughed.

She’s so adorable… Oh gosh…

“A prince is supposed to kiss the princess, Kryssie… Not another princess…” I told her.

“No… it’s supposed to be the person who loves you the most, and that’s me!” she said.

Dugeun, dugeun…

Seriously… What’s the matter with me…?

How is it possible for a 5-year-old to think like this?!

I know that everything she said was meant to be innocent but they were really messing with me, and she didn’t even know that she was doing it.

When I didn’t reply, she sulked. “Don’t you love me too, Jessie?”

“Of course, I love you too, Kryssie… Don’t be silly…” I answered. “More than anyone else…”

(End of flashback…)

---

(Krystal’s POV)

“I… I can’t believe I forgot about that… I’m sorry, Jessie…” I told her. I don’t know how it was possible to forget such an unforgettable event.

“What are you sorry for?”

“For not remembering… I will never forget it again!”

“It’s okay… you were only 5…”

“No… That memory is precious to me too… I may have only been 5 but what was said… what was done… they were all from my heart,” I told her.

“I won’t ever let you go, Kryssie… Do you trust me?”

“I trust you… I won’t ever let you go either…”