"Did you get it? Did you get it?" Sunny asked excitedly after I came back to my seat. "Wait, why is your expression so forlorn?"

I sighed as I started to pack my bag without saying a word. Today was the day where students from our business degree class would be receiving the results of their exams and also to find out if they qualify for the enrichment programme held at Hokkaido University next month. Sunny didn't ask me anything further as she followed me in packing her bag. Both of us walked to the cafetaria where Sooyoung, Taeyeon, Yuri and Hyoyeon had been waiting for us.

"How was it? Will you be going to Japan?" Sooyoung asked Sunny the moment she sat down.

"I'm going. Mr Han said that I did very well in my papers and was among the first few students to be selected for the programme." Sunny smiled widely while the rest of them congratulated her.

"Then how about you, Jae? Did you make it?" Taeyeon turned to me with the rest of them waited for my reply.

"I'm going off to buy some food first. What do you want to eat, Sunny?" I changed the topic, causing the girls to look at me with a confused expression. After Sunny told me to get kimbap for her, I left the table.

"What's wrong with Jae? Her expression doesn't look good. Don't tell me she didn't make it?" Yuri turned her attention to Sunny who shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm not sure, Yul. She didn't answer me when I ask her in the classrom earlier. Her expression was lifeless after she walked away from Mr Han's table." Sunny replied.

"Let's message Sica and get her to come here as soon as possible." Hyoyeon suggested as Sunny took out her phone.

I saw Yoona and Seohyun arriving at our table as I looked at my watch. I messaged them to ask about what food they would like to have and they ordered the same as Sunny. 'Sicababy should be reaching here in 20mins time. The food should be ready in 10mins. Should I wait at the counter here until she arrived or should I just bring the food over to the table?'

While I was still contemplating and lost in my own thoughts, I didn't realise that 10mins had passed until the lady at the counter called me over. I was about to take my own sweet time to get the food when I heard a familiar voice, calling out my name. Turning around, I was surprised to see Jessica walking into the cafetaria and stood beside me. I noticed that she was panting and sweats could be seen on her forehead.

"Why are you panting? Did you run all the way here?" I was shocked again when she nodded her head. "Wae? Why did you run?"

"Because.... because Sunny messaged me and said that you were not feeling well." Jessica replied as I quickly bought a bottle of water to let her drink.

"Aigoo, my Sicababy. I'm fine. By the way, I ordered tteobokki for you. Is that okay?" She nodded her head while sipping the water. "Okay. Let's get back to the table then."

We had just reached the table when we saw Tiffany walking in with two bags. It was then that I realised that Jessica had came without her bag.

"Yah, Jung Jessica!! How could you dump your bag at me and ran off just like that?" Tiiffany pouted as Jessica kept grinning and apologising at the moment.

"Blame it on Sunny. She left me a message and said that Jae was not feeling well. So I panicked and ran here." Jessica explained her actions.

"Mwo? Sica running? Jinjja? Unbelievable." Taeyeon said in English, causing the rest of the girls to laugh.

"But Jae was really unwell. Her expression was so bad and she didn't even answer our question when we ask her. Right?" Sunny looked at Sooyoung, Taeyeon, Yuri and Hyoyeon who nodded their heads.

"What did you ask her?" Yoona asked as Hyoyeon told the group about what happened earlier.

"Does that mean Jae didn't get selected for the enrichment programme? But she worked so hard to improve on her grades. I bet you must be really upset for not able to attend the programme, Jae" Seohyun commented as the rest of the girls turned their attention to me.

Jessica placed her hands on my thighs and gave me a smile. "It's okay, Jaegi. You did...."

Before she could finish her sentence, I placed my finger on her lips. "I got it. I'm going to Japan too."

Everyone had a very confused expression especially Jessica who had a frown on her face.

"Wait, I'm confused. If Jae is going to Japan, then why didn't she just say so when the girls asked her earlier?" Tiffany looked at me for a reply.

"Because she wanted me to to be the first person to know about it." Jessica answered even before I could say anything. "I Just remembered that I made her promise to let me be the first person to know."

While me and Jessica sat there smiling lovingly at each other, the rest of the girls were complaining and nagging at me for making them worried.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry for making all of you worried. I had to keep on my sad face so that you girls won't be able to guess it correctly." I clasped my fingers together in an apologetic gesture. "Since I've made you guys worried, I'll treat you all to dinner one of these days, okay."

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

"What else do you need, Jaegi?" Jessica asked as I looked at the trolley that was full of my toiletries and some necessities.

"I think all of these should be enough." I replied while I turned behind to look at SooSun. "Yah!! Why is your trolley full of food? You think Japan doesn't have food is it?"

"It's not mine. This is mine." Sunny pointed to a little corner inside the trolley where her belongings were. "The rest belongs to this Shikshin."

When Sunny pointed to her, all Sooyoung did was just to grin as she stopped again to try another food sample. The 4 of us had went off to the supermarket in the mall to get some toiletries and necessities for Sunny and me for our stay in Japan which we would going in a week's time. TaeNy, HyoHyun and YoonYul were also at the mall but they had went off for some shopping and would be meeting us up later for dinner.

"Let's pay for the stuff and ask the other girls to meet us in front of the restaurant." I said to which Sooyoung nodded her head in full support.

30mins later, the 10 of us were already seated in one of the Korean BBQ restaurant shop. Me, Sica, TaeNy and HyoHyun were seated at one table while SooSun and YoonYul were seated at a table beside us.

"Since it'll be my treat, just order whatever that you guys want." I said as Sooyoung and Yoona cheered happily.

Happily chatting away and enjoying the grilled meat with the side dishes, I totally didn't expect to meet Uee in there. Actually I wasn't the first one to see her walking into the restaurant since I was busy getting the grilled meat for Jessica and my back was facing the door.

"Daebak. How small can this world be?" Taeyeon suddenly said with her eyes looking straight at the door.

Her remarks caused me to turn around and that was when I saw Uee walking in with a tall guy. She must have noticed us since I saw her looking fidgety as the waitress ushered them both to a table.

"Is that her boyfriend?" Tiffany asked, half-whispering to us at the table.

I just shrugged my shoulders and continued with what I was doing, ignoring the stares that I was receiving from the other girls.

"Hi, everyone. I didn't expect to see all of you here."

Uee smiled at us as she stood by the side of the table. Everyone greeted her while I just smiled a little and bowed slightly before continuing to look at my plate. The next sentence that came out from Uee's mouth grabbed my attention back to her.

"Jessica, I'm still waiting for you to message me about the meet-up. You didn't give me your number so I couldn't keep in contact with you."

I saw Uee smiling at Jessica and just when I was about to say something, Sunny intercepted me from the next table. "Is that your boyfriend?"

"Anni, anni. He's just a friend. He's my neighbour from Busan and wanted to look around Seoul so I accompanied him here since it's the weekend. We are actually waiting for another friend to meet us up soon." Uee explained herself in details as I just concentrated on cooking the food. "You seem busy, Jae?"

I looked up when Uee asked me that question and just nodded my head. I felt Jessica wrapping her hands around my arms and when I saw her eyes, I knew she wanted me to at least say something to Uee. "I think your friend is waiting for you. Don't let him go hungry."

It was obvious that my remarks had caused her to be slightly embarassed as she quickly excused herself and walked back to her table.

"Jaegi, what was that for?" Jessica slapped me lightly on my shoulder.

"Wae? I thought you wanted me to talk to her. You gave me the eye signal earlier, right?" I said with a straight face.

"I did but I wasn't expecting you to send her away. That was rude." Jessica said as I bite my lips, took a deep breathe and placed my chopsticks down.

"I'm going to the restroom for a while."

Jessica's POV

I saw how Uee looked embarassed with Jae's remarks as she excused herself and walked away. I suddenly felt bad for her and without thinking, I ended up scolding Jae a little. I didn't like the way Jae talked to her but at the same time, I should have been more sensitive to Jae's feelings. Knowing how things were between them in the past, I should have expected it.

"Jae really hates her, doesn't she?" Tiffany asked Taeyeon who were watching Jae's back as it disappeared into the restroom.

"She doesn't hate her. She's just reminded of the past every time she looked at Uee." Taeyeon replied before pointing a finger at me. "And you should've been more sensitive about it. Jae was quietly sitting there with no intention of talking to her but you just had to make them interact."

"Mianhae." That's all I could say when Taeyeon's words struck a chord in my heart.

"Is Jae going to be alright?" Sooyoung asked as she continued eating while waiting for an answer. "Does this mean we are going to have to stop eating?"

"Maybe I should go and take a look at her." I was about to stand up when I felt someone placing their hand on my shoulders.

"I'm fine, Sicababy." Turning my head to the side, I saw Jae smiling at me as she sat down. "We can continue eating too, Soo. No worries about that."

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

The drive to Taeyeon's house was filled with silence as I concentrated my eyes on the road. Me and Taeyeon had decided to return to her house since I wanted to spend some time with Uncle Kim and Aunt Kim before going off to Japan. Furthermore, it's the weekends so there was no classes.

"Gwenchana?" I asked softly when I noticed Jessica kept stealing glances at me, even though I could guess what was on her mind.

"Jaegi... I.. About earlier, I..." Jessica couldn't finish her sentence when I intercepted her.

"It's okay. I've told you that I'm fine, right?" I turned to face her before I entwined our fingers when the car came to a stop at a red-light. "Are you feeling bad for scolding me?"

Jessica nodded her head as I smiled at her. I was about to face the road again since it was already green when Jessica leaned her head on my shoulders. "Mianhae, Jaegi. For being insensitive to you. I shouldn't have ask you to interact with her when you didn't want to."

"Sicababy, let's plan a meet-up with her tomorrow." My remarks must have shocked her since she jerked and sat up straight while looking at me. "She's here in Seoul anywhere."

"Why the sudden decision?" Jessica had a frown on her face.

"Suddenly I'm curious as to why she wants to see you so badly and I want to know what she intends to talk to you about." I said as I saw the gate to Taeyeon's house opening. "Leave her a message and ask if she's free tomorrow."

Once both my car and Taeyeon's car had parked neatly beside each other, I teased Taeyeon about driving slow when she had left the mall earlier than me. Jessica and Tiffany had walked in to greet Uncle and Aunt Kim while me and Taeyeon were still teasing each other outside.

"AAAARRRRGGGHHH!!!!"

The scream echoed throughout the house as Jessica, Tiffany, Uncle and Aunt Kim rushed out from the house towards where the sound had came from.

"Yah, what are the two of you doing in the pool, fully dressed?" Aunt Kim asked as Taeyeon giggled.

"It's all this midget fault. She wrestled me earlier and I don't know how we ended up falling into the pool." I said as I splashed water into Taeyeon's face who was still giggling.

"Get out from there quickly and go change your clothes. I don't want both of you to catch a cold." Uncle Kim said as he shook his head, along with Jessica and Tiffany.

Both me and Taeyeon continued to play around while trying to get out from the pool until our girlfriends called out our names in a firm tone. Looking at them glaring at us, we quickly climbed out and ran to our own rooms.

"Come here. Let me dry your hair." Jessica gestured me to sit on the floor in front of her, the moment I walked out from the bathroom with a towel hung around my neck. I had taken a short shower and changed into my pyjamas, getting ready for bed.

I was enjoying the warmth of her rubbing my head with the towel when I heard her phone beeped to indicate any incoming message. Jessica stopped her actions and took her phone from the side table. After about 2secs, Jessica showed me the message.

From Uee:

Hi Jessica. I'm so glad that you finally message me. With regards to tomorrow, I'll be free for lunch. Just a question. Will Hyun Jae be accompanying you?

I took the phone from Jessica's hand and typed a reply.

To Uee:

Will that be a problem if she's around?

Before I pressed the 'send' button, I looked up at Jessica and asked if it was okay for me to send the reply. Jessica then took her phone and pressed the button before placing it back on the side table. Jessica continued to dry my hair for another minute before I told her to stop. I went to hang the towel at the walk-in closet and heard the beeping sound again.

"What did she reply?" I asked as I crawled on to the bed where Jessica was already lying with her head resting at the headboard.

"She said that it's fine with her although it'll be better if you were not around." Jessica showed me the message as I read it with my own eyes.

"Better without me? What is she trying to do? Spread rumors about me?" I leaned back against the headboard and folded my arms, clearly upset about her reply.

"Jaegi..." Jessica's tone of voice was soft as she placed her hand on my folded arms. "Maybe we should just cancel the meet-up. Seeing you getting so worked up when we haven't even meet her yet, makes me worried."

I sighed as I took a deep breathe and closed my eyes. Feeling Jessica resting her head on my shoulders and rubbing my arms, I felt myself calming down. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let my emotions take over me. Don't cancel the meet-up. Let's get this over and done with."

"Are you sure?" Jessica asked as I nodded my head and kissed the top of her head. "I'll send her a reply about the place and time before we go off to sleep, okay?"

While Jessica typed in the reply, I laid down on my pillow and waited for her. When I saw her placing her phone back on the table, I scooted closer and gave her a backhug. "Sicababy, I'll need your help tomorrow. If you notice me losing my cool, you have to quickly do something about it, okay?"

Jessica placed her arms on top of mine that was wrapped around her waist. "I'll be there for you, Jaegi. Just remember that I'm just beside you. Always by your side."

As Jessica snuggled closer to me,both of us drifted to sleep.

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

Drumming my fingers on the table, I looked out the window with my left hand supporting my chin. Jessica was busy messaging on the phone and it was not until she placed her hand on my thighs did I notice she had stopped messaging.

"What's with the bored expression?" She asked as I shook my head. "Uee said that she'll be here soon. Smile a little please."

I gave her a dorky grin as she pinched both my cheeks and was about to peck me on the lips when a cough sound grabbed our attention. Looking up, we saw that Uee had arrived at the table.

"Sorry to interrupt and sorry for being late." She bowed slightly before taking a seat in front of Jessica. "Have you guys ordered yet? Let's order the food first."

I didn't talk much and was just listening to the two ladies having small chats while ordering and waiting for the food to arrive. They sounded as if they were trying to get to know each other, like making new friends. I looked out the window again, watching the cars passing by.

"So how have you been, Jae?" I turned to face Uee who had asked me the question.

"Doing fine." I gave a short reply, trying not to sound too cold.

"How did the two of you meet anyway?" Uee asked as I arched my eyebrows at her, which didn't go unnoticed by Uee and Jessica. "I was just curious because both of you looked so in love with each other."

"We are. Very very in love with each other." I replied as I felt Jessica's hands on my thighs.

"We met during our 2nd year in SM University. Jae saved me during a fall when I was doing some cheerleading practices." Jessica replied as she patted my thighs before removing her hands away.

"How come both of you only met in the 2nd year? Since Jae is a futsal player and you're a cheerleader, shouldn't you both got to know each other from the 1st year itself?" Uee started asking again.

"Because I left for the States when I was 17 before coming back to start my sophomore year here." I replied while staring at my glass of water. Explaining that to Uee, made me remembered the reason as to why I had to move back to the States in the first place and it made me clenched my fist.

"You didn't know that she left Seoul? I thought you knew since you've been messaging her every year." Jessica noticed my clenched fist that was under the table, grabbed it and rubbed my hand with her thumb.

"I didn't know since Jae didn't reply any of my messages. Not even once. I don't even know if she had received them but I continued to do so." There was an obvious sadness in Uee's voice as I looked up to see. "All I wanted was to ask for her forgiveness. By the way, do you know what happened between us, Jessica?"

"I know. Jae told me before. About you and also about what happened in middle school. Frankly, when I heard it the first time, I was really angry at you. For causing her so much pain. The emotional and physical pain that she had to put through at a young age. Do you think you deserve her forgiveness?" Jessica stared at Uee, causing her to feel uneasy.

"I know I don't deserve it but I still need to keep trying, right? Do you know how much I wish I could travel back in time to make everything right? She was my first love but I messed up big time." Uee answered as she looked down.

"Mwo?" Both me and Jessica answered at the same time as we turned to face each other.

"Jae was your first love?" Jessica asked as she kept looking to and fro between me and Uee. "So you were really honest with your confession to her at that time?"

Uee nodded her head as I saw Jessica frowning. Honestly, I was shocked too. I mean it's not that I didn't trust her words when she confessed to me years ago but I didn't know that I was her first love.

"How did you? I mean your feelings for Jae... How did you know that you lo... love her?" Jessica stammered a little as she asked the question and it was my turn to frown.

"I was already attracted to her on the first day of school but I thought it was just a normal crush. It took me a week to pluck the courage to make friends with her since I noticed that Jae and Taeng didn't seem to mingle around with other kids. Initially I thought that they would reject me but they didn't. I had a strong urge to find out if what I felt towards her was more than just a crush." Uee looked at me nervously before she turned to face Jessica again. "As days when by, I became more attracted to her. The way she took care of me, the way she was dorky but matured at the same time, the way she smile and laugh. Everything about her made my heart beat faster. When she and Taeng admitted to me about their ual preferences, it was like a dream came true."

"But I don't feel the same way." I blurted out suddenly, causing Jessica and Uee to look at me. I noticed Uee biting her lips with a sad expression while Jessica had a blank expression.

"Jaegi, will it be okay if you leave me and Uee alone for a while?" I looked at Jessica with a confused expression and was about to ask her the reason when she continued talking. "Please."

There was something in those eyes of hers that left me with no choice but to agree. As I stood up and grabbed my phone from the table, I kissed her on the top of her head.

"I love you." I said as Jessica nodded her head. I didn't know why I felt like I've to say those words to her.

Walking around the mall with nothing that interest me, I ended up sitting at a corner in an ice-cream store. As I stared at the melted ice-cream, a lot of thoughts went through my mind. I don't understand why Jessica asked me to leave them alone. Is my presence there going to be burdensome for both of them? It didn't take long for my train of thoughts to be interrupted by an incoming call.

"Sicababy?"

"Jaegi, can you pick me up at the mall entrance now?" Jessica asked as I noticed a difference in her tone of voice.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" I stood up and walked towards the carpark while still on the line with her. I didn't hear any response but my ears perked when I heard a soft sniffing sound. "Sicababy?"

"Jaegi.... I... I.. Mianhae."

The moment I heard that, I swiftly changed my direction and ran all the way to the entrance of the mall with my eyes looking around for Jessica. Seeing her leaning against one of the pillar, looking down and hugging her handbag, I grabbed her by the arm and wrapped my arms around her.

"Gwenchana?" I said while trying to catch my breath as I felt her hugging me back.