I drove out from the school, not knowing where to go. All I knew was that I wanted to get away from everyone at the moment. I took out my phone and switched it off. As I stepped on the accelerator, Jessica's words kept playing in my mind. 'Tell me the last time that we actually spend time together.' I sighed as I tried to remember the last time it was. It was during the time she had accompanied me to the library about 3weeks ago. It was her 2nd time and was to be her last time accompanying me there.

(Flashback 3 weeks ago)

Me, Jessica and SooSun were walking to the library after our quick dinner at the cafetaria. Having Jessica by my side, made me feel happier and more motivated to study.

"Hey, Sica. Are you going to fall asleep again like yesterday?" Sunny asked as Jessica glared at her.

"Anni. I brought my assignments along this time round so I won't feel sleepy. The previous time was because I got bored." Jessica replied as she meronged at Sunny.

I just smiled at her cute reaction and shook my head.

It was only 9.30pm when I noticed that Jessica's head was starting to drop lower. I felt a kick in my leg and looked up to see Sooyoung who was sitting opposite me. She gave me the gestures to tell me that Jessica was already half-asleep. I nodded my head and put a finger to my mouth to tell SooSun to just let her be and don't disturb her. 10mins later, Jessica's head was already lying on the table with her arms as her pillow. A piece of paper flew towards me.

Are we going to go back now? We are suppose to study until midnight.

It was note from Sunny as I quickly wrote a reply before tossing it to her again.

Mianhae. Let's just go back at 10pm. I don't want Sica to sleep in such an uncomfortable manner.

And just like that, our revision ended earlier than what we had planned. I piggbacked Jessica right up to her bed and laid her down to sleep after I didn't manage to wake her up. She's really a sleepyhead since she didn't even wake up throughout the whole process. When I walked out from her room, Sunny and Sooyoung were waiting for me at the living room.

"That's two times in a row that you ended up carrying Sica back to the dorm. So are we going to continue studying now? We can study here if you want." Sunny suggested.

I shook my head. I was actually exhausted from carrying Jessica earlier. "I don't think I can continue studying. I'm already physically tired. I think I'll just go back and rest now."

Since then, I would rarely ask Jessica to accompany me and everytime she asked me, I told her that she didn't have to accompany me.

(Present time)

'Was I the one who pushed her away? But I didn't want her to fall asleep there.' I sighed. 'And that hug with Sunny. I wasn't the one who was hugging her. Sunny gave me the hug.' I argued in my head but when I remembered the reason as to why we were in the Ladies in the first place, I sighed again. 'You should learn from Sunny.' Mr Han's voice echoed in my head.

Even though I will always do my revision with Sunny, the truth is we would study individually and I will only ask for her help when I can't do certain problems. I didn't tell Sunny about my difficulties in the course as a whole. There were a lot more problems that I couldn't solved but I didn't asked Sunny for help. Most of my assignments were done without Sunny's help. 'Would it have been better if I had told Sunny about my difficulties? But I don't want to trouble her.'

As I continued my focus back on the road, I looked around and realised that I was driving towards Taeyeon's house. I looked at my watch and saw that it was already 10.45pm. I didn't even realised that I've been driving around for almost an hour.

'Aunt and Uncle Kim must be sleeping right now. I shouldn't disturb them but I can always use the side gate.' I grinned to myself as I drove past the house towards a park nearby.

********************************

With my hands behind the back of my head, I looked up to the sky which was pitch dark as the bubbling sound from the water in the swimming pool was the only sound that filled the silence of the night.

"Looks like there's no star tonight. Can you still hear me from up there, Omma?"

While lying down on one of the reclining chair, I felt a tear trickled down the sides of my face as I wiped it off with my right hand.

"I missed you, Omma. I missed having someone that I could talk to at night without having to worry that I might be a burden to her." I paused as I wiped away the tears. "Omma, was it really my fault that lead to Sica's outburst? I didn't intend to push her away. I just didn't want her to hurt her back, sleeping in the library. Furthermore, I knew she was getting busier with her assignments too. About earlier, I knew she said it in anger and she doesn't really mean it but still... Why does it hurt so bad? It was not the first time that she gets jealous and I'm suppose to be used to it by now. I thought I was prepared to face HellSica but I guess too many things happened today that I couldn't handle my emotions well."

"No matter how much I tried, I can never be as good as Appa or Sunny in my business studies. Even my futsal skills are deteriorating. Appa will surely be disappointed in me. Are you going to be disappointed in me too, Omma?" I sighed before taking a deep breathe. "And Sica..."

I swallowed my saliva as I felt the pain seeping through my body. Placing my hand near my heart where it hurts the most, I started to sob softly.

"What if I was told to drop out from my degree class? What if I was not selected for the coming futsal competition?" I paused as I looked up to the sky and searched for something that I can focus to. 'What if.. what if Sica will never have trust in me and decided to leave one day?"

I closed my eyes trying to stop the tears from flowing but failed. When I tried to open them, I couldn't see clearly. Blinking my eyes a few times, I saw a single star blinking in a distance and at the same time, I heard the sliding door opened.

"Omma??"

There she was, the person that I missed the most, standing by the door and smiling at me. She was wearing a white dress and seemed to be glowing. I was about to stood up from the reclining chair when she stopped me.

"Just lie down and relax, Jae." She smiled and walked towards me.

I laid down obediently and turned my body sideways so that I can face her as she took a seat at the reclining chair beside mine.

"Why are you crying, my child? Would you like to tell about your problems to Omma?" She asked as I felt her my head softly.

It felt just like the old times as I started to tell her everything that had happened in school earlier, with regards to my studies and my futsal.

"... Are you disappointed with me Omma? I might be dropped out from both the business course and futsal too." I said as I felt a tear trickling down my cheek.

"Aigoo, my Hyun Jae. Since when did you learn to give up so easily? Where is my capable and strong-willed daughter?" Omma said as she wiped away my tears and pinched my cheeks. "By the way, why didn't you tell me about your quarrel with Sooyeon too?"

"We didn't quarrel." I said quickly as I saw Omma smiling at me. "We.. we just.. we didn't quarrel."I repeated my statement as I heard Omma chuckled.

"You didn't want to admit that it was a quarrel because you knew that you were partly to be blame, am I right?" Omma said as I sighed and nodded my head. "Let's talk about one thing at a time. First, your studies. You knew you were struggling with it but are you really doing anything about it? Besides doing your revision and studying up until late at night, did you try to sort professional help or at least Sunny's help?"

"Anni." I shook my head. "I will only ask help from Sunny when I'm stuck with something like one or two questions."

"Wae? Because you didn't want to trouble her a lot?" I nodded my head. "Did you know that your Appa was not that good in his business studies too but he asked his classmates to help him throughout his revision and also some help from his professors. He put in a lot of effort and became a top student. You need to put your pride aside and seek for assistance, Hyun Jae. There's nothing wrong with asking for help from your friends."

"I didn't want to trouble anyone. Sunny is also juggling with 2 degree courses at a time. But she's much better than me. She's gifted like wha Mr Han said. She can handle both courses by herself." I sat up straight so that I can talk face to face with Omma.

"Did you at least try to tell Sunny about your difficulties?" I shook my head. "If you didn't tell her, how do you expect her to help you? And how would you know that she will see it as a trouble? For all you know, she might be willing to help you out."

I sighed as I pouted and nodded my head, agreeing to what Omma had said.

"Secondly, about your futsal performance. Do you know that all of these are actually a continual cycle?" Omma asked as I placed my right elbow on my thigh and rested my chin under my right palm.

"Stress from studies led to unhealthy body and mind which in return is affecting my futsal performance." I said as Omma nodded her head. "I didn't want to trouble others so I insisted on trying to study by myself with only asking Sunny's help when in dire states. I guessed it would have been much easier if I had asked for her help in a proper way to avoid all the stress."

It was total silence after I ended my sentence and just stared into nothing.

Omma saw me staring into space as she placed her hands on thighs. "Lastly, about Sooyeon. She tried to be there for you but you pushed her away, am I right? Let me ask you something. Have you been really honest about your feelings with her lately?" I avoided Omma's eyes by looking at the floor. "Seeing your reactions, it's obvious that you've not done so. Did she know that you're going through a tough time with your studies? Did she know that you've not been taking care of your health due to all the stress? Did she know that you're upset when she didn't tell you about the modelling assignment?" I bite my lips after hearing all the questions from Omma as I started to feel guilty towards Jessica.

"And even after all that she had said earlier, you still miss her, don't you?" Omma's last question hit me straight to the heart as I took a deep breathe.

"I've never stopped thinking about her, Omma. Even if she had hurt me a lot, I still miss her and even blame myself for it. Do you think that I'm pathetic, Omma?" I asked as I saw Omma shaking her head.

"You're not pathetic, sweetheart. You're just in love." Omma replied as she ruffled my hair. "You're just like your Appa. Very loving and understanding. I was lucky to have him in my life and I believe Sooyeon feels the same way about you too. Let me tell you a secret. I'm actually just like Sooyeon too. There has been a lot of times when I would feel jealous with the girls surrounding your Appa but he never stopped proving his love to me. I knew he was frustrated at times with my insecurities just like how you are feeling right now. But the real reason I was jealous was because I was afraid of losing your Appa."

"Does Appa knew about it?" I asked with a frown.

"Initially, he didn't and just like you, he couldn't understand why I was always jealous. But one day, I decided to confess to him about my true feelings. He was shocked when I told him but after that, he made sure that I was very involved in his life. He was always honest with his feelings to me. Things that he didn't like me to do, things that he was unhappy about, what he is feeling at the moment and whatever that is troubling him. All of these, he will always tell me. He will make sure that I was always beside him whenever it was possible for me to do so, such as bringing me all over the world when he had business dealings overseas. Even though at times we will argue about certain things but at the end of the day, it made us understand each other better."

"I... I just don't want her to worry about me. I don't want to be a burden to her.. Or to anyone else." I sniffed to stop myself from crying.

"You're not a burden to her, Jae. Not even to anyone. Believe me when I say that everyone deserve your honest feelings. They don't want to see you pretending to be tough when you're not. They want to see your fragile side who will ask for their help too. They're not just your friends, Jae. They're like your family. Especially Sooyeon. She wants to be part of your happiness and your sadness. Through your good times and your bad times. To pull you up when you're down and to be proud of you at your greatest moment."

I looked up and locked eyes with Omma. It was the same gentle and most caring pair of eyes to me. I smiled at Omma and she cupped my cheeks.

"Since young, you've been an independant child who likes to keep things in your heart. Do you know why you and Taeng can get along so well?" I shook my head as Omma smiled. "It's because both of you have the same characteristic. Both of you are very independant and don't like to be a burden to anyone. Both of you like to hide your true feelings deep inside but it's a miracle that both of you can confide to each other."

"I guess both me and Taeng understand each other well." I said as I grinned a bit.

"But did you notice that Taeng has not really been confiding in you." I nodded my head. "Do you know why?" Omma asked.

"Because she confides more to Fany now and I'm happy for her. For both of them." I said sincerely as a matter of fact.

"Then how about Sooyeon? Do you think she can understand you if you're not opening your whole heart to her? I can see that you love her very much but love is not just about giving the best to each other. Love is also about being at your worst but still accepting each others flaws. I'm proud that you've always been there for Sooyeon but I also want her to be there for you, provided you allow her to do so. She has to know that you need her in your life. She has to see and accept the weaknesses in you. That is what love is. Give her the chance to be part of your hardship, Jae." Omma smiled at me.

"Arraseo, Omma. I think I understand it all now. I always tell her that I love her but I've never made her feel like I really need her in my life. I handled everything by myself and kept all my feelings inside without realising that she wanted to be part of it too. I didn't try to understand her insecurities. I've always thought that she was just being jealous. Both of us were not honest about our feelings to each other." I said as tears filled my eyes. "Mianhae, Omma. For making you worried about me."

"Aigoo, my precious child. You don't have to feel sorry. Omma will always be here for you. Right here." Omma pointed to my heart before wiping the tears away from my eyes. "Remember that you're never alone, Hyun Jae. Right now, I'm no longer physically there for you but there's someone else who will be able to take my place. She just needs you to be more honest and open with your feelings." Omma suddenly stood up and walked away.

"Omma, where are you going? OMMA!!!" I stood up to chase after her but I slipped and fell into the pool as the water hit me hard in my face.

********************************

I opened my eyes and was shocked to see 3 pair of eyes, looking at me. I felt my heart beating fast as I turned to look at the sliding door. Wiping my face, I just realised that I was drenched.

"Did I fall into the pool?" I asked as I looked up to the 3 girls that were staring at me as if I had just said something weird. "Where's Omma?"

"Mwo? Fall into the pool? Omma?" Tiffany asked as she placed her hands on my forehead. "No fever."

"Jaegi, did you dream of Omma?" I turned towards the soft voice and stared at her, causing her to look down. "Mianhae."

I was about to say something when I saw Taeyeon trying to hide a pail behind her back. As I wondered to why she was holding on to a pail, I finally realised something."YAH!!! Midget!! Did you just pour a pail of water on me which is why I'm drenched right now?"

Taeyeon grinned dorkily at me as she ran off into the house. I stood up and was about to ran after her when I turned to face both Tiffany and Jessica. "Fany-ah, you might want to look for a new girlfriend since I'm going to kill that midget. And Sica, wait for me in my room, okay."

(30mins later)

I walked into my room and was surprised to see that Jessica was sitting on my bed while hugging her knees. I was actually expecting her to have already fallen asleep by the time I came back. She noticed my presence in the room and looked up. I saw that her eyes were swollen and she was actually crying softly. Walking up to her, I squatted beside the bed.

"I thought you would be sleeping right now. Don't cry anymore please. I'm not angry at you. Give me 5 more minutes to change out of this wet clothings. I'll be back, okay?" I said as I smiled at her and wiped away her tears.

After changing my clothes, I took my place on the bed beside Jessica who kept her silence. She was still looking down and was staring into an empty space. Taking her hands away from hugging her knees, I pulled her towards me so that she will lean sideways on to me. Wrapping my arms around her, I placed my chin on her shoulders.

"Mianhae. For not being understanding. For not spending time with you. For not being honest with my feelings to you." I whispered softly to Jessica.

Jessica tilted her head so that she can look me in the eyes as I lean in and peck her lips. "I know both of us have a lot of things that we want to say to each other but shall we rest first for the night?" I pointed to the clock on the wall. "It's almost 1am now."

Jessica nodded her head. "But before that, can I ask you something? What happened to Taeng?"

I just smiled at her and pulled her down to lie on teh bed. "She's still alive. Don't worry."

(Flashback)

"Yah!! Kim Taeyeon!! Stop running. You know you can't run away that far from me." I said as I saw Taeyeon running out to the front yard.

As I stood at the main door, I saw Taeyeon waiting for me in Sooyoung's car at the driver's seat. She gestured for me to join her in the car as I opened the passenger seat door.

"How come you're using Hyo's car?" I asked the minute I sat down in the car.

"You don't expect the 3 of us to sit in my 2-seater car, right?" Taeyeon said with a sarcastic but playful tone as both of us ended up giggling. "Feeling better? Did you talk to Omma?"

"How.. how did you know? Did you see her?" I asked with a poker face as Taeyeon flicked my forehead. "Yah!! That hurts!!"

"You were screaming out for Omma while lying on the reclining chair. That was why I had to splash that pail of water on you." Taeyeon said as I grabbed her collar.

"You could have just wake me up instead." I said as I gritted my teeth.

"Yah.. You think we didn't try that? We were there for 10mins, trying to wake you up but all you did was to keep on crying without opening your eyes. Sica and Fany started to panic so I decided to grab a pail of water. The moment you shouted out for Omma, I splashed it." Taeyeon said as I let her collar go.

"I didn't even realised that I had fallen asleep. You were right. I did had a long talk with Omma. In my dreams." I said as I sighed, thinking back about my conversation with Omma.

"Did Omma scold you?" Taeyeon asked as I frown and pouted. "She must have scolded you for keeping everything inside. You didn't even confide in me. About your studies." It was Taeyeon's turn to pout as she folded her arms and looked dissatisfied.

"Mianhae, Taeng. It's not that I don't want to confide in you. Everything happened so suddenly that I didn't have the time to think things through. I'm sorry." I bowed down a bit as I felt a knock on my head.

"Pabo-yah. I'm not angry with you. Anyway, you should check on Sica. She's been crying non-stop. Even though I'm not happy with whatever that she had said to you earlier, she had already admitted her mistake to all of us. And if it's not because of her who kept saying that you'll be here, all of us won't even know where to look for you." Taeyeon said.

"Sica was the one who knew where I was?" I asked as Taeyeon nagged at me again for switching off my phone, making it hard for them to contact me. "I needed some time to be alone to straighten out my thoughts."

"Do you know how worried we all are? Especially when you're driving in that unstable emotional state. Appa even said that your car was not at the front yard which was why, initially I didn't believe Sica when she said that she had a feeling that you're here. Did you park your car at the park behind?" Taeyeon explained to me as I nodded my head. "After driving around to look for you, Sica suddenly remembered that there's a park nearby to the house. She came up with the theory that you will park you car there and walked back to the house so as not to disturb my parents. When I told her that from the park, you can actually enter the house from the side gate which will lead to the swimming pool, she became excited."

"She did? Was she reminded about the story that I had told her before when we were sitting by the pool?" I asked while Taeyeon just shrugged her shoulders. "Thanks for taking care of Sica. I need to look for her now and talked things out."

I was about to exit from the car when Taeyeon grabbed my shoulders and made me turned around to face her.

"Get some rest first. Both of you are already physically and mentally tired. Sica has been crying since she realised that you left in your car. Furthermore, It's already past midnight." Taeyeon pointed to the digital clock in the car.

"Arraseo. Help me to inform your parents that we are here tonight so that they won't be shocked tomorrow. You should rest well too. Our girlfriends are waiting for us in our rooms. I'll see you tomorrow then." I smiled at her as I gave her a high-five and walked out from the car.