ozaira asked: The anti-social Jessica takes no pride in who she is, care-free, cigarette smoking and constantly on the fence with the law. She feels life is out of her control and is pointless until she meets a bubbly girl that went by the name Tiffany. Good luck! ^^

Tendrils of smoke filled the air as the slender figure held the cigarette between her fingers. Her feet were propped on her therapist’s desk as she took in a breath of her cigarette. Smoke filled her lungs and she held in for a bit before making a tight circle with her lips.

With each exhale, she made perfect circles of smoke, “You know you really shouldn’t be smoking in here.”

A grin covered the young woman’s face as she let out a scoff, “What? You gonna stop me?”

The therapist scribbled in her notebook and shook her head with a sigh, “I know you don’t want to be here, Ms. Jung. But to make this less painful for both of us, I suggest you cooperate.”

Jessica took another drag of smoke before putting it out on the wooden desk, “Well…Ms. Seo. How about I make life easier for both of us and just walk out?”

With a flick of a finger, the cigarette hit her therapist, leaving Ms. Seo with a rather flushed and an indignant look on her face. Jessica strolled out of the office without a backwards glance.

"Y-you still need to come here next week!"

Jessica rolled her eyes and slammed the door shut, “Pft. As if.”

~

"So how was therapy?"

The girl was met with silence as Jessica lazily stocked the shelves.

"Yah, are you going to talk to me?" Hyoyeon huffed at her partner in crime.

Jessica stared at the shorty with disinterest, “No.”

"You know, you’ve always been like this. This is why you have no friends.”

"So?" the young woman rolled her eyes before pulling out a cigarette.

"Don’t you care at all? No one’s an island you know. We need human interaction," Hyoyeon crossed her arms.

Jessica patted her pockets, “Do you have a lighter?”

"I don’t smoke. You know that."

"Oh, you don’t?" Jessica asked. She patted her pockets once more before pulling out a packet of matches. "Nevermind. I got it."

Hyoyeon just shook her head as she watched her co-worker take in a puff of smoke. Their supervisor came around and immediately reprimanded Jessica.

"Yah! Jung! There’s no smoking on the floor!"

Jessica looked around before pulling herself onto one of the storage shelves, “I’m not on the floor, Choi.”

Sooyoung felt like throttling the lazy but opted for grabbing the cigarette, “Stop being a smart- Jung. Get back to work!”

After their supervisor left, Hyoyeon turned to Jessica, “Come on. We got work to do and I want to go home early today.”

"Whatever," Jessica mumbled before pulling out another cigarette and getting back to work.

~

"Now that I’ve confiscated your pack of cigarettes, can we get started?"

Jessica crossed her arms over her chest as she stared at the annoying therapist before her, “You took my smokes. Not like I have a choice, now do I?”

"Let’s start simple. How was your day?"

"Like any other day. Pointless."

Seohyun began scribbling in her notebook, “Pointless? Could you explain why you think every day is pointless?”

"We humans are born onto this earth and we live our lives. Then we die. There really is no point in our existence except to give the stupid government our money. So every day is pointless. It doesn’t matter what we do because we’re all just going to die in the end."

"I see. That’s a pretty harsh way to look at life."

Jessica scoffed and shook her head, “It’s reality. Nothing matters. I can’t control my life so I just go with the flow. People work their whole lives for their dreams. And what do they get in return? Pain, suffering, and a whole bunch of bull. There’s nothing of worth in this world. So why bother trying to do your best when it’s pointless?”

~

"Hey stop! Thief!"

Jessica slowly turned around to see a park security guard, “Excuse me?”

"I’m sorry ma’am, but this lady here says you stole something from her food stand," the security guard said.

"She just swiped a hotdog and didn’t pay for it!"

A delicate eyebrow rose, “I don’t appreciate being accused lady.”

"But you did!"

Jessica was met with a finger to the face and she scowled in return, “What evidence do you have, lady?”

"I…I saw you do it!"

"Well I didn’t so if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be on my way," Jessica turned her back on the flabbergasted woman and kept walking.

The security guard didn’t do anything and the food stand lady resorted to just going back to her stand. “Tch, all that for a stupid hotdog,” Jessica mumbled.

She continued walking with her hands stuffed in her pockets and a cigarette loosely held between her lips. Couples, joggers, children, parents, and all sorts of people passed Jessica as she strolled through the park. Her eyes took in the happy looks on people’s faces and she just scowled.

Continuing her stroll, a jogger wearing hot pink short shorts and a white tank top ran into her, “Omo!”

Jessica felt herself spin around before landing harshly on her with and her cigarette falling to the ground, “Oof!”

The jogger quickly bent down and offered a hand to help her up, “I’m so sorry. Here let me help you.”

Smacking the hand away, Jessica got herself up with a scowl. She began to fix herself while the jogger just smiled at her.

"I’m so sorry. It’s good to see that you’re okay," the jogger had an eye-smile that rendered Jessica speechless.

"I…"

"Today’s a beautiful day for a walk. I hope you enjoy it! Maybe I’ll get to see you around?"

The beautiful jogging girl continued her run with a smile and a have of her hand.

~

Jessica mindlessly stocked the shelves at work as her mind wandered to the girl she met a couple of days ago. It was a bit confusing for her. She never really cared about anyone or herself. The last person she genuinely cared for was her father who died when she was young. She was left all alone.

A warm body bumped into Jessica and she turned around with a scowl only for it to soften at the sight of the jogging girl before her.

"Omo, I’m sorry I was-hey! I know you! I’m sorry, I keep bumping into you."

"Er…it’s okay," Jessica mumbled.

Eyes turned to crescents and a hand was ed forward, “I’m Tiffany!”

Jessica blinked and slowly shook the other girl’s hand, “Jessica.”

Tiffany giggled at the stoic looking girl, “Well I’ll be going now. I have errands, Jessi. I’m glad I bumped into you again.”

With that the girl walked down the aisle leaving Jessica standing there blankly once more. Did she just call me Jessi? A soft smile covered Jessica’s face.

"Oh, Jessi!"

Jessica turned her head to Tiffany, “Ne?”

"Have a nice day!"

"Uh, you too," Jessica said awkwardly.

Tiffany called out, “Oh and Jessi?”

"Mm?"

"You should smile more often, it suits you," Tiffany gave her a radiant smile that sent Jessica’s heart palpitating at an irregular beat.

What was this feeling?

~

There was a change in Jessica’s life after she met Tiffany. It seemed wherever she went, the other girl would be within proximity of her. Her outlook on life was so optimistic and bright that at times it caused Jessica to shrink back in fear.

She never met anyone who was like her.

No one had ever been enthusiastic about life. No one had bothered to really reach out to Jessica. No one made her feel alive. No one made her feel like maybe there was something more to life than just going through the motions.

~

"Hyoyeon, do I look okay?" Jessica asked hurriedly.

Jessica’s co-worker looked up at the taller girl before smiling deviously, “Omo, what’s this?”

"Hyoyeon, now’s not the time. I just saw her in the next aisle. Do I look okay?" Jessica stressed.

A giggled escaped Hyoyeon as she quickly helped her normally stoic co-worker fix herself, “There. You should be good.”

"Thank you," Jessica said in relief and turned around only to see Tiffany right before her. "I…Tiffany!"

Tiffany giggled, “Hi, Jessi! Working today?”

"Um, yes," she said awkwardly and Hyoyeon inwardly laughed.

"When do you get off today?" Tiffany asked.

Hyoyeon’s eyebrows raised, was her stoic co-worker being asked out?

"Uhh, I get off at four, why?"

"I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me?"

A blush covered Jessica’s face as she looked at the smiling girl, “I…uhh. Y-yeah. I’d like that.”

"Good, I’ll pick you up from work?" Tiffany asked with a smile.

All Jessica could do was nod dumbly.

~

"Jessi, I had a great time tonight."

Jessica nodded as she awkwardly stood outside of Tiffany’s apartment. The other girl had managed to convince her to go out on not just one but several dates with her. It was literally a breath of fresh air for her. For the first time, Jessica cared what this girl thought about her.

"I…had a great time too, Fany."

She even had her calling her a nickname.

Tiffany took a step forward with a smile before pressing her lips against Jessica’s firmly. After a couple of seconds, she pulled back to see a heavy blush and a look of awe on Jessica’s face.

A giggle escaped the eye-smiling girl, “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Jessica nodded dumbly, “I…yeah.”

"Good night."

"Good night," Jessica said breathlessly as the door slowly shut.

~

Seohyun looked across her desk to see a completely different woman from when she first saw her. Jessica Jung was sitting properly in her seat without a cigarette between her lips and a brightness in her eyes that was pleasant to see.

"So, Ms. Jung. How do you feel about life now?"

Jessica her lips as a smile graced her features. Seohyun thought the smile fit her better than the usual scowl or blank look of indifference on her face. It was like watching a caterpillar transform into a butterly.

"It’s true that we’re all going to eventually die. It’s inevitable. Death. But…I think what’s more important is making the best of things now. To live in the present and take pride in what you do. Because we only have one life to live."