Jessica slowly opened her eyes and turned to her side. She saw the time and hissed under her breath. She was supposed to attend classes but she was two hours late. She decided to stay in bed since her wounds were still healing. Her eyes glanced towards her study table – she saw a plate of sandwiches with a thermal flask by the side. She frowned.

She got out from her bed and walked over. There was a note.

Remember your breakfast and I’ve made MILO in the flask. Your painkillers are here as well. Remember to take them after eating breakfast. I’ll get notes from the class for you so just stay in bed and rest well. – Yoona

There was a smile on Jessica’s face. She hardly knew this girl but she has done so much than what Jessica has expected from her. In fact, Jessica didn’t expect Yoona to care for her that much. Most of the girls in school avoided her path but not Im Yoona. Jessica sat on her chair and picked up the sandwich. She checked before eating and was surprised to find no cucumbers.

“Does she know me that well?”

Jessica wondered to herself.

*

Yoona was in class; listening to the lecturer. Hyoyeon and Yuri were already dozing off; Seohyun was still staring at the screen and Taeyeon was obviously losing concentration. She was doodling on her notebook. Yoona struggled to keep awake as well. Taeyeon was watching her. She was curious about Yoona’s new roommate and Yoona’s feelings towards the girl.

Last night, Yoona dragged Taeyeon to find the senior who helped to allocate their rooms accordingly. The senior was sleeping in the lounge when Yoona jumped on her. It almost scared her to death.

“Ow!”

“Senior Boa! Can I ask you something?”

“Stop calling me that. I’m Yuri’s sister. Just call me Boa unnie will do. And do you have to jump on my stomach to ask me something?”

“Hehe, I’m sorry. But you’re so hard to resist. Anyway I have a favour to ask.”

“What is it?”

“Do you know Jessica Jung?”

Boa nodded.

“Is she still attending classes? I have no idea why she’s still in school anyway.”

“Huh? Why?”

“She’s hardly in class and she has been repeating her first year like twice now. It’s just so unfair when your father is one of the directors in a prestigious university.”

Taeyeon was clueless as to what Boa and Yoona were talking about. But she recognized Jessica’s name so she just sat there; listening quietly.

“Is she a bad kid?”

“I’m not sure. She wasn’t like that when I knew her. But something happened and she changed drastically.”

“Oh.”

“Wait, you’re in the same room with her, right?”

“Yeah, she hardly talks. I seldom see her around.”

“She hasn’t been coming back?”

“She did last night but with wounds all over her hands.”

“Sheesh. What’s wrong with that girl?”

“Well, I don’t want to ask but do you know her that well?”

“Hmm, not really but I know her best friend well.”

“Her best friend?”

“Yeah, her best friend is Tiffany Hwang, the school belle. Well, we used to be in the same course together but after Jessica flunked her very first time, she stayed away from us. But only Tiffany remained by her side.”

“Oh. I’m making her breakfast tomorrow. Is there anything I should avoid?”

“Yoona, do you like her?”

“No, I’m not! But she’s not well so I thought making her breakfast so that she could eat her medicine properly.”

“I see. She hates cucumbers.”

“Ok, roger that. Thanks unnie!”

“Is Yuri doing well in class?”

“Is Yuri always that hyper?”

“She has a hyper syndrome deficiency.”

“Oh. That explains why she couldn’t stay still in class but other than that, she’s fine.”

“Okay then. Keep a look out for her, okay?”

“KIM TAEYEON!”

Taeyeon fell someone shook her shoulders violently.  She saw Yuri grinning gleefully at her and shook her arms really hard. She pushed Yuri away and smacked her forehead.

“What?”

“You fell asleep with your eyes open?”

“Huh?”

“Lecture’s over and you’re still here; staring at the screen. Are you okay?”

Seohyun was concerned.

“Maybe she’s dreaming of her prince charming.”

“Shut up.”

Taeyeon managed to swing her file at Yuri. The taller girl stuck her tongue out.

“Are we going to grab lunch?”

Hyoyeon was rubbing her stomach. Seohyun was already leaving the lecture hall; Yuri chased after her.

“You girls go ahead first. I’ll check on someone.”

Yoona was grabbing her files and books together before running out of the hall. Taeyeon looked on; she didn’t have to guess. Yoona was probably looking for Jessica.

“Where is she going?”

“Her roommate is injured. She’s probably checking on her.”

“She has a roommate?!”

“Apparently, she does.”

“I thought she lives alone?”

“Well, the roommate hardly comes back to the dorm.”

“Ah, okay then. Let’s go! We cannot leave Yuri with Seohyun for too long. Seohyun might go crazy.”

Hyoyeon dragged Taeyeon out and true enough, they saw Seohyun chasing after Yuri with her umbrella. The two girls looked on in disbelief.

*

Yoona returned to her room to find her roommate missing. She was slightly disappointed. The girl didn’t rest well. She dumped her books and bag on her table when she saw a note at the side of it. She picked it up and smiled widely.

Thank you for breakfast. I’m alright; thanks for your concern. I’m going out for awhile. I’ll be back for dinner. – Jessica

The younger girl was relieved. Jessica has started to communicate with her even if it was through writing notes. Yoona was genuinely concerned about her. Her slashing wounds were pretty ugly and she kept wondering where Jessica got her injuries from.

Yoona thought of asking her last night but the girl was extremely exhausted. So she kept to herself.

“Maybe I should buy dinner for her.”

With that in mind, Yoona grabbed her wallet and left to meet her friends. She quickly made her way to the cafeteria when she saw people crowding around.  Yoona was surprised. There were two girls screaming at each other. Yoona came closer to take a look.

She was surprised to find Hyoyeon and Taeyeon pulling Yuri back and another girl was still staring and screaming at her. She ran towards them.

“What happened?!”

“Thank goodness, you’re here! Yuri got into a fight with that girl over there!”

Seohyun quickly explained. Yoona turned to find a taller girl glaring at Yuri. Yuri didn’t back down either. Hyoyeon and Taeyeon had a hard time pulling her back.

“DON’T LET ME SEE YOU AGAIN, YOU BAMBOO POLE!”

Yuri shouted at the girl. The girl retaliated.

“I’M SURE I WON’T ABLE TO SEE YOU, BLACKIE!”

“WHAT BLACKIE?!”

“YOU’RE SO BLACK THAT NOBODY COULD EVEN SEE YOU!”

“YOU SAID THAT AGAIN!”

“COME THEN!”

Yoona went to Yuri’s front and pushed her back. But Yuri kept her eyes on the taller girl.

“Yuri, what are you doing?”

“She stole my food!”

“Huh?”

“I DIDN’T STEAL YOUR FOOD! YOU’RE TOO SLOW!”

“YOU CUT INTO MY QUEUE AND GRABBED THE APPLE PIE FROM MY GRASP!”

“YOU WERE LAUGHING AND CHATTING AWAY WITH YOUR FRIENDS!”

“AT LEAST WE QUEUED! YOU DIDN’T!”

Yoona covered Yuri’s mouth and pulled her back. Taeyeon was dragged along and Hyoyeon was trying hard to stop Yuri from coming over.

“Come on, let’s go. We’ll get you another apple pie.”

Yuri didn’t say anything but let her friends dragged her away. Seohyun helped to carry her bag and the girls disappeared quickly. Yuri could see the taller girl smirking at her.

“WHY YOU!”

“KWON YURI, your sister is going to know about this!”

“I hate people who cut queue and try to defend themselves!”

“I know you hate such people but you’re creating a scene in the cafeteria. Everybody will know who you are. And besides, that’s our sunbae. You can see she’s sitting at where the seniors often hang out.

“Oh? Then I should ask my sister who’s that bamboo pole is!”

“Your sister is going to kill you for fighting in school.”

Yuri ignored Yoona and walked ahead of them. She was really pissed off with the bamboo pole.

“WAIT TILL I GET MY REVENGE, BAMBOO POLE!”

Yuri cursed under her breath.

*

“Choi Soo Young, why are you fighting with that junior for?”

Sunny was dragging Soo Young back to their table. The rest of their friends were shaking their heads.

“She’s cute. You should see how she looked at me when I cut her queue and grabbed her pie from her hands.”

“Cute? Wait, she’s your new target now?”

“Sunny, don’t make it sound like I change targets every day.”

“Almost. You change your targets twice a month.”

Soo Young stuck her tongue out and placed the apple pie in front of her. Sunny gave up on her. Two of her other friends were staring at her.

“Are you even going to eat it?”

One of the girls with red hair was asking.

“Maybe not. I’m just going to irritate that new girl.”

“Why can’t you woo a girl in a more conventional way without annoying her?”

“Bora, you must leave an unforgettable impression to that person.”

“I’m not going to make that person hate me.”

“Well, the girls in my past relationships grew to love me eventually.”

“And then you went to break their hearts a week later.”

The red haired girl rolled her eyes when Soo Young gave her a smirk.

“Tiffany, that’s how the dating world works.”

Soo Young’s friends threw their serviettes at her before taking turns to smack her forehead. Soo Young just ignored them and turned her attention onto the apple pie on her table. Soo Young smiled to herself. She saw the girl earlier on. She caught Soo Young’s eyes immediately.

“I don’t know your name but you’re just so cute.”

Soo Young mumbled to herself.

*

The girls looked on as Yuri slammed the basketball into the basket. The ball missed. That was not the first time. It missed the basket for like the tenth time and it frustrated Yuri even more.

“GO IN!”

She threw it once more and it missed.

“ARGHHHHHHHHHH!”

She started screaming but continued to shoot hoops. The girls were on the audience seats; looking on.

“She’s frustrated.”

“I thought Yuri was always the cool kind?”

“Well, that girl must have stepped on her tail.”

“This is the first time I saw this side of her.”

“So do we.”

Yuri could hear her friends gossiping about her but she couldn’t care less. The incident earlier on was annoying her to the maximum. If she could pull out the hair of that bamboo pole, she would do it gladly.

Yuri hates injustice. The girl was clearly in the wrong because she has cut the queue. And to make things worse, she stole the apple pie right from Yuri’s hands. Yuri has never met such brazen girl before. It fuelled her need to seek justice for herself. That girl has embarrassed her in front of her friends and the other students in the cafeteria.

“Bamboo pole, you’re dead meat!”

Yuri suddenly grinned when an evil idea popped into her brain.

*

Tiffany Hwang kept looking at her phone. She was waiting for someone’s message since morning and until now, that person was nowhere to be found.

“Jessica Jung, what the hell are you doing? Didn’t you promise?”

Soo Young disappeared right after the lecture. She knew where she was heading to; probably looking for that girl she pissed off earlier on. Sunny was heading to the library and Bora has her track and field practice. She was left alone so Tiffany decided to hang out at the cafe nearby.

She took out her iPad and unlocked the password. There was a photo of Jessica and herself posing in their Halloween costumes. Jessica was smiling widely and Tiffany was giving her a kiss on her cheek. They were best friends – the closest among the rest. They did everything together and it came to a point where people assumed they were dating.

Tiffany didn’t think much of it without realizing that Jessica had something else in mind. She didn’t realize that Jessica was in love with her all this while. So when Jessica confessed few months before their last semester examinations, Tiffany was stunned. She rejected Jessica vehemently and she regretted doing so.

Jessica was too upset when Tiffany kept avoiding her path that she didn’t make it that year. But Jessica didn’t even once pointed fingers at her; citing her to be the reason for her downfall. Lucky for Tiffany, Jessica was given another chance to repeat her first year again. But it was too late.

Jessica changed. She didn’t turn up for school. She skipped classes and even worse, Tiffany got a shock of her life when a police officer called her one day. Jessica was caught for fighting and Tiffany was her immediate contact.

Tiffany rushed to the police station and her heart ached when she saw Jessica with blue black marks on her arms and face. Tiffany didn’t realize the harm she has gotten Jessica into. Jessica didn’t make it last year and this year would be her last chance to repeat.

Jessica didn’t want to continue at first but Tiffany begged her to at least complete her university. The other girl was feeling awfully guilty for rejecting her best friend. But Jessica admitted it was never her fault; it was hers only. She couldn’t get over the heart break.

So now, Tiffany could only stay by her side; trying to pull Jessica back on track. But the girl kept doing disappearing acts and Tiffany was worried. She couldn’t watch Jessica wasting her time anymore. She was going to graduate soon and if Jessica couldn’t pass this time, she couldn’t help her anymore.

Just then, her phone rang. She saw the name blinking on her id caller – Jessica Jung. Tiffany smiled widely.

“Hello!”

She was listening carefully.

“Okay then. I’ll wait for you here. I’ll order for you first.”

Tiffany hung up with a wide smile on her face. Jessica didn’t yell at her. She kept her promise this time.

*

Jessica sighed as she hung up the phone. She initially didn’t have the intention to meet up with Tiffany but the girl was begging her to meet up for the longest time. Jessica just couldn’t hear Tiffany’s whining voice. That was her awful weakness.

She grabbed her duffel bag and slung it over her left shoulder. She looked at the time and realized that she should start moving. Tiffany would be pissed if she was late again. She walked through her school gates and proceeded to the cafeteria. Jessica hates school. But she made a promise to Tiffany that she would at least make an effort to turn up for classes.

Jessica couldn’t understand why she turned out to be like that. She was making Tiffany worried for her. But Jessica couldn’t care less. Her parents couldn’t even bother about her and her sister. The younger girl has been missing for a long time but Jessica knew her sister would be at her grandmother’s place.  She was right.

Her parents spent most of their time overseas. The girls would only return back home when they return to Seoul but that would only happen at least 3 times in a year. So Jessica was aimlessly going from one place to another. Her only refuge was Tiffany.

She was in her sleepy trance when she knocked into someone’s back. She glared at the person in front of her.

“Wha..at?”

“Move away.”

“Hey, you were the one who knocked into me!”

“You’re blocking my path.”

“You could move away and walk to the other side.”

“Are you going to argue with me?”

“Then what? Am I supposed to apologize to you?”

Jessica continued glaring at the girl who locked her gaze at her. Then suddenly, the girl said something.

“Are you Jeshka?”

Jessica burrowed her eyebrows together. Who the hell was this midget? And how dare she mispronounce her name.

“What Jeshka? And who the hell are you?”

“You’re Yoona’s roommate, right?”

“Yoona?”

“I saw you yesterday. She carried you on her back to the doctor.”

“How come I didn’t see you?”

“I saw you from afar.”

“Oh, it’s not because you’re too short to even get noticed?”

The girl widened her eyes.

“You’re not that tall either.”

“Shut up.”

“Anyway, nice to meet you.”

“What?”

“You’re always this cold towards others?”

“It’s none of your business.”

“Well, Yoona is genuinely concerned about you. I hope you won’t treat her like this.”

“Why do you care?”

The girl smiled widely. She seemed unaffected.

“She’s my friend. And I care about her like how she cares for you.”

She turned around and walked away; leaving Jessica dumbfounded. She wasn’t going to continue the argument but Jessica stopped her.

“What is it now?”

Jessica was staring at her before looking down onto the floor. The girl was confused.

“Jeshka?”

The taller girl rolled her eyes.

“Firstly, it’s JESSICA not JESHKA. And secondly, I’m sorry for knocking into you. Well, it’s rude that you know my name and I know none of yours.”

“Ah, I’m Taeyeon.”

Jessica looked on before giving Taeyeon a shy smile.

“Hey, you look nice when you smile.”

Jessica’s heart skipped a beat.

*

Yoona was queuing for food when she bumped into someone. The other party almost fell but Yoona was quick with her reflexes. She wrapped her arms around Tiffany and pulled her closer.

“I’m sorry!”

Yoona realized it was a girl.

“It’s...it’s...okay.”

“Are you hurt?”

Yoona was wondering why her face was blushing red. Tiffany just shook her head and then quickly walked away.

*

“Why am I blushing? She’s just hugging your waist!”

Tiffany was fanning herself with the newspaper. She felt something when a worried face peered into hers. She was stunned to see the beauty of that girl.

Tiffany smiled to herself when she recalled that incident. Her face turned red once again.

“OH STOP IT, TIFFANY!”

She chided herself.

*