I didn’t actually want to look like a lifeless ghost, because that’s just disturbing, but after two weeks I thought I was getting better.

Or maybe I just stopped giving a ; that could also be the reason.

I had just finished my last final exam and walked down the hall, ready to just go to work and forget everything when I saw a sight that made me want to crumble for some apparent reason.

Kai and Krystal were walking down the hall, both of them seemingly in their own world, something I hated in two very different ways as I walked past them, none of them sparing me a single glance because they seemed so immersed in each other to care.

My stupid-dance-soccer-loving best friend had finally gotten her, the girl of his dreams perhaps, as they were now happily together. The rest of the school population was kind of shocked by the news. Very few expected that because, well, they hadn’t really spoken to each other before now recently.

They had only really known each other for almost two months, a short time, but I figured I wasn’t the one to talk as I walked alone in the halls.

I didn’t want to feel hurt, because they were a couple so of course they would spend time with each other. However, it was weird not seeing Kai as often anymore. It was either Krystal this or Krystal that and I wasn’t sure why I was so angry and so miserable at the same time, only in two totally different ways.

I was scared of losing my best friend because I hadn’t spoken properly with him in a while. He did call the day after I punched him, wondering if everything was fine, but I still couldn’t get myself to tell him about it all. I thought I could do it when I was ready, but now I wasn’t sure of when I’d ever be ready.

The last conversation we had was last week when he came over two in the freaking morning, eyes excited and breath a bit scarce as if he had been running a thousand miles, although in reality he only lived one house away so I didn’t understand how he was out of breath.

“We kissed,” he shared that night as we both sat down on the island counters of the kitchen, trying not to awake my parents with hushed voices as we both shared a bottle of soda. I could only look at him for a long moment, before slowly letting out a smile to show I was happy for him, although the smile was in fact very strained.

“So she accepted your confession?” I then asked him, thinking about the one that he must have spent hours on practicing before he finally said it. I had no idea why he came this late, wondering if he had been with Krystal this long, but before I could ask or wonder he began to answer with a speedy voice, the eagerness literally never dying in his eyes.

“Yes!” he exclaimed a bit too loud as I had to hush him, and then he turned to whisper again with an apologetic look. “I was just saying that I liked her and wondered if she wanted to consider going out with me, but before I could even complete the sentence though she just kissed me… That’s a good thing, right?”

I could only look at him as I drank a bit of the now halfway empty bottle, my entire being shattering again despite the smile I had on my face as I patted him on the back. “That’s a very, very good thing. I’m happy for you,” I lied so blatantly, and if Kai hadn’t been in such a happy daze I think he would have noticed.

However, he didn’t as he continued to smile and through the moonlight I could see his slightly red ears, probably recalling the memory in his head.  Honestly I was happy for him because he had a crush on her for so long, and that they finally got together was great, but I still didn’t completely understand why it hurt so much for me to hear that.

I didn’t like him, obviously, and I couldn’t like Krystal… Could I?

As I turned my gaze to look at the happy pair walking down the hall, hand in hand, I was awakened from my flashback as I could only feel a numb pain in my chest before turning around again.

Later that afternoon I was busy spray painting a new car for a customer that was tired of the previous color. It was all pretty normal until I heard my name being called from a distance. Honestly, I wanted to ignore it, but I couldn’t as I stopped what I was doing to find someone I didn’t expect seeing.

“The moment you’re done, you are coming with me,” Sooyoung said whilst standing there with her arms crossed, determined before turning away to exit the room, I could only look at her a bit oddly, but figured I’d have to ask later as I went back to work.

My mind was one hundred and ten different places all at once as I stood there, the last patches of the car now completed. It took me a while, however, to get going and remove the protective gear as I still was thinking about all the events that had happened earlier.

When I finally was done and exited the painting room, telling my boss slash uncle that the car was done, I was quickly dragged away by a very straight-faced Sooyoung.

She let go of my wrist around one block later, but she was close enough as if she was scared I would run away. I wanted to, but I wasn’t stupid as I only walked beside the tall woman, wondering what was going on.

“I hear from my younger brother that somebody has been acting quite down recently,” Sooyoung started after another block of pure silence, her eyes looking at me, but I couldn’t get myself to meet her gaze.

“A lot has happened,” I replied instead of anything else, because that was true, and it annoyed me how I could easily open up to Kai but no one else. Not even his sisters were much of help, even though I have known them my entire life.

“You haven’t been much around,” Sooyoung then added after a while. “Whenever I visit him you’re usually there, but now I haven’t seen you there at all and I’ve almost went every day for a whole week!” she then exclaimed and I could only sigh because the reason for why was most likely because Krystal was there or he was at least talking to her on the phone or something like that.

“Well I would have been there hadn’t it been for –“ I was about to retort until I bumped into someone who made me lose my balance and I ended up on the ground, the person above me apologizing and then I immediately knew who it was.

“Don’t touch me,” I said harshly as I got up on my own, having no intention on talking to Jessica at all as I moved pass her. She called my name, but I didn’t want to hear it as I heard Sooyoung apologizing to her before catching up with me.

“Ara, how could you be so rude towards that very beautiful woman?” Sooyoung said the moment she was beside me again, and I turned around to see Jessica seemingly lost in the background, but I honestly couldn’t give a damn as I turned away again.

“That woman has hurt me before; I’m just trying not to get hurt again,” I shared then, not really knowing if I should tell her about us. As mentioned, no one knew about us at all, not even Kai knew about my affair with Jessica.

I wasn’t sure if Krystal found out or not because I haven’t spoken to her since, as she had avoided me and I stopped trying after a while. Besides it wouldn’t really be good for Jessica if too many people, especially the wrong people, knew.

I was hurt and mad, but I wasn’t a .

However, I knew that if I wanted to let out at least some steam I could trust Sooyoung… It was just that I didn’t want her to be the first to know, but in the end, she was the only one I could tell.

“That beautiful woman is named Jessica, we used to date, and she broke up with me because she wanted to follow her dream as a designer and left me behind crying. She came back now for a reason I’m not sure of, but she never contacted me all these years since she left so I don’t think I want to know… Maybe she thinks we’re in some damn movie.”

I could feel Sooyoung’s surprised expression as she stopped on her tracks, me slowly following as I turned to look at her indifferently. For some reason I didn’t feel as hurt as I thought I would be when I said it, but I felt lighter and better inside.

“I came back for a reason, but that reason doesn’t seem to want to talk to me,” then the familiar voice of Jessica rang through my ears as I could only turn to look at her standing a few meters behind us. She was wearing a casual dress suit set in white, blue stilettos on her feet along with some exclusive sunglasses on her face.

She was as stunning as always, and I hated myself for thinking that as I turned to look over at Sooyoung again. It appeared as if she was torn from being amused from what just happened, and she seemed slightly shocked and a bit pissed off as she turned to look over at Jessica.

“Excuse me, but how can you hurt her like that?” Sooyoung said with slight anger in her voice as I could only look at both of them, honestly scared for Jessica now. When Sooyoung let out the beast, there was no turning back.

Jessica’s eyes widened in surprise by that, but she still kept her cool as she removed her sunglasses. “I am sorry, but I believe this is none of your business,” she then said and I wanted to facepalm because that was not a good idea to say Sooyoung wasn’t involved in something.

If she wanted to she would be involved in the CIA.

“None of my business, ey?” the taller then added before stepping over to stand just in front of Jessica, and it surprised me that even with those heels Jessica was barely her height.

I was about to get Sooyoung to calm down, but when I saw the way Jessica slightly gulped in fear I figured I’d let her be tortured just for a little while as I watched the scene unfold in front of me. My body was now leaning on a random lamp post as they continued to argue.

“Do you think that it’s okay to toy with a young girl like her?” Sooyoung retorted to something Jessica said that I didn’t bother with listening to at first, her tone growing louder. “Do you even have a soul?” she then continued as Jessica could only gaze at her.

“How many times do I have to tell you that you have nothing to do with this? Besides, whatever happened between Ara and me is only just for us to know,” she then said before Sooyoung shocked us all.

“Well excuse me Miss I-am-more-superior-than-you, but you don’t wanna piss me off today because I am tired of having to hide all these bodies around,” she said and Jessica only quirked her eyebrows up in amusement, before a sly smirk was on her face.

“You’d think I’d be threatened by that? Well everyone is entitled to be stupid, but you abuse the privilege,” the shorter woman then retorted dryly and I could only slightly chuckle as I watched them have what seemed like a diss battle in front of me.

“God went from making Mother Teresa to you? Guess we all make mistakes,” Sooyoung replied and I could see the shocked expression on Jessica’s face as I could only try to conceal my laughter.

“Well at least I look attractive and wear a bra because I have s, why do you wear one?”

In that exact moment I could feel my stomach ache by the retort, because I tried to conceal my laughter. In reality should be horrified by my ex talking to one of my closest friends, but for some reason I couldn’t bother to stop them and their little fight which didn’t make much sense at all.

“I would retort to that, but since Ara here was so excited  to see me she just preferred that I didn’t wear one,” Sooyoung then said, and by the look on Jessica’s face she really didn’t have anything else to say to that.

I could literally imagine Sooyoung smirking in triumph, and I was right when she turned around to grab my waist as if it was in a loving gesture. “So are you ready to go now, honey?” she then said and I still tried not to laugh, despite her going a bit far, as I only nodded.

Whatever attempt Jessica wanted to try to get me back, I knew I had to ignore, although I secretly wished for her to come and stop me right now.

I shook the thought away as I turned to look over at Sooyoung with disbelief. “Why did you do that?” I then asked and she only shrugged, after letting go of me when we turned the corner and out of Jessica’s vision.

“She got what she deserved, plus…” she paused as if it was for some sort of effect, leaning a bit closer to whisper in my ear. “It was kind of hot.”

I almost jumped away in surprise because I did not need to hear that at all. Don’t tell me Sooyoung had a thing for Jessica?

“Are you forgetting one tiny detail here?” I asked as I could only look at her oddly, but she only laughed before lightly pushing me. “I’m just kidding Ara; I would never do that to you. She seemed too stuck up for me anyway.”

I found myself wanting to retort that because she really wasn’t when you got to know her, and there was this look on Sooyoung’s face I couldn’t quite comprehend, but I didn’t see a reason for defending her as we simply kept on walking away.