TaeNy’s Apartment,

Tiffany’s POV

I don’t know how I felt asleep last night; I kept on replaying the whole revelation scene in my head, again and again. Was I happy? A part of me was but the other part…was even more confused. I’ve always felt something between us, some sort of connection, but that feeling slowly faded apart once Sunye appeared. I haven’t completely given up on my feelings for her…it was impossible to forget how I feel, but I…was trying to face the truth; Taeyeon was with Sunye now and I should at least, try to move on.

But now…I don’t know what to think anymore. She is still with Sunye and after pushing me away so many times, she told me she actually likes me. What am I supposed to do? Nonetheless, she was drunk when said that…I know alcohol can make people say anything. All night, I was struggling between confronting her about her confession or let it go, she might not even remember.

When I woke up, the first thing that I did was to go on the living room and checked on Taeyeon. She was still asleep…but on the floor. No surprised from Taeyeon. I’m happy she didn’t move to the bathroom or balcony though.

I was feeling good enough to go to school today, so I went to change before waking Taeyeon up. I walked to where she was laying and kneeled down beside her. “Taengoo wake up…wake up!!” I shook her body.

“Hmm…hmm…5 minutes…just 5 minutes…” she mumbled, rolling around. Her hands were searching around for a blanket and when they didn’t find any, Taeyeon hugged herself and slept again.

I was quite amused at her, she was so cute. “Taengoo, we’re going to be late for school. Wake up!!!” I shook her again.

“I don’t want to go to school…leave me alone…it’s so cold…”

“I’m going to take picture of you if you don’t wake up!!!”

“I don’t care…”

“Are you sure? So you don’t care that every student in our school sees pictures of you wearing your beloved keroro pjs???? Fine…I’ll take my camera”

“I’m up, I’m up!!!” Taeng literally jumped up and flew to her room.

I couldn’t help but laugh, no matter how awkward and difficult it can be between us, there are moments like this where we simply don’t think about our problems.

I was eating cereals when Taeyeon came out. “I didn’t prepare breakfast, sorry.” I apologized. Usually we always prepare for both of us but I didn’t really have time today.

“It’s ok, I don’t want to get sick so early in the morning” she teased me. A sign that everything was fine…she wasn’t angry anymore.

Taeng took a bowl, put cornflakes in it and went to sit in front of me. None of us talked for a few minutes. I was thinking about Taeng’s confession and felt like asking her but I didn’t dare to. I tried hard to keep my eyes on my cereals instead of looking at Taeng.

“What I said yesterday…I meant everything of it”

I dropped my spoon hearing Taeyeon’s words. Did she really say that? I found myself unable to look at her…remembering every single word she said last night, I became shy. I felt my cheeks becoming red as I looked up, expecting to see her looking deeply at me.

But Taeyeon was looking down at her bowl, playing with her cereals instead of eating them. I could swear her cheeks were a little bit red as well, is she feeling embarrassed because of yesterday?

“I won’t promise anything…I’ll just show you. As time goes by, you will trust me again” she said, this time looking at me and offering me one of her shy smile.

“Are you done? We’ll be late for school” I nodded before she cleaned the table.

“Don’t you have to pick up Sunye?” I bluntly asked. It was a habit…since Sunye is always with us.

“...no…not today…” she simply answered.

“Oh…”

“Why? Something is wrong?” she asked concerned.

I shook my head. “Nonono everything is fine. Let’s GO!” I smiled brightly. It’s been a long time since I smiled like this at Taeng. Way too long.

I know she is trying to make up for the past weeks and I must say; she is starting very well.

S1 High School,

On our way to the school, Taeyeon was back to her quiet self. I felt that something was bothering her, the closer we were to the school, the more anxious she became. I wondered if it has to do with Sunye, as soon as we arrived to the school, I got my answer.

Like on her first day, Sunye was waiting for Taeyeon at the school’s gate. Like the first day, she was standing and smiling when she saw Taeng. But unlike that day, Taeyeon didn’t leave me behind. There is no need to say it was extremely weird. I could feel the tension, but I pushed it aside and simply enjoyed walking to class…beside her.

During class, I didn’t pay any special attention to them; their desk was behind mine so it would have been too obvious if I kept on looking back. Jessica and Yuri didn’t wait long before questioning me about my absence. What did I do? How sick I was? What did Taeyeon do…they’re such a noisy couple.

Everything was fine until lunch. We were sitting at our usual spot with the others when I saw Sunye, eating by herself. Usually she eats with Taeng. I looked around to see if Taeyeon was coming but she was nowhere to be seen.

Only one person might know where Taeyeon is hiding.

I discreetly nudged the girl sitting beside me. “Yuri-ah…Yuri-ah…”

I had to nudge her at least 5-6 times before she gave me her attention. The girl was busy spazzing at Jessica eating a sandwich…like really spazzing.

“Yuri, tell me, where is Taeyeon? She is not with Sunye…where is she hiding???”

“Huh…I don’t know…” she looked away, obviously she knew.

”Come on tell me, please…please…I’ll repay you” I begged her.

“Last time you didn’t really help me…”

“I’ll do anything this time…really”

“What are you two gossiping about?” Sooyoung asked us suspiciously.

“You owe me! She’s probably on the roof…” she whispered. “Huh we’re not gossiping at all…ha ha ha”

“Sorry guys…I have to go” I quickly packed the rest of my lunch and ran away.

On the school’s roof,

Like Yuri said, Taeyeon was really on the roof. It was the first time that I came there and it wasn’t like I thought. I expected a dirty place since no one come there but it was actually pretty clean. And where was Taeyeon?

She was lying down, on a blanket, her lunch beside her. Her eyes were closed and she looked really peaceful. I didn’t know if I should stay or not…I was scared she would get angry if I disturbed her.

I struggled with myself before choosing to just turn around and leave her alone.

“Why are you leaving?” Taeyeon’s voice startled me. I froze like a little kid being caught doing something bad.

Slowly I turned around and laughed nervously. “Oh..Taeyeon…didn’t know you were there! Ha ha ha ha…”

“Yuri told you I was there?” Her eyes were still closed…how did she know it was me?

“Nono I found you by myself”

“So you were looking for me? Why?” now she was looking at me…and with her cocky smile.

I let out a sigh and went to sit next to her. “First, please stop with the cocky smile…and yes I was looking for you. What are you doing here by the way?”

“I like it…its quiet”

“Is it your secret place???” I asked a little too excited.

“What’s wrong with you? It’s not really a secret place...I never hide it”

“Huh? But no one knows besides Yuri”

“Well, no one asked either” She had a point, I’ve always wondered where Taeyeon disappeared during lunch break but I never asked her about it.

“Why are you hiding here anyway? Why don’t you come with us?”

“…”

Taeyeon’s quiet and lonely character was something that I’ve always try to understand. How can she only talks to a few people only and be cold and quiet with everyone else?

“Don’t you feel lonely?” I sincerely asked her.

“I’m used to it…”

“Don’t you want to have lot of friends around you?”

“…”

“Or maybe…my company is enough for you?” I imitated her cocky smile.

My cheesy joke was enough to make her smile. Gosh, how I love that smile. “Yeah, your loud voice is enough for me…it can easily make up for 10 people”

“YA! KIM TAE YEON!”

“See?” she sighed.

“Whatever…you’re my least favorite friend!” I told her.

Taeyeon suddenly became serious again. “Does it mean…we’re friends?”

Up until now, we’ve always been friends…maybe not to everyone but I’ve always considered her as a friend. It wasn’t the question…the real question is…are we more than friends?

“I don’t know…you tell me?”

“I won’t mind being your friends…” Taeyeon talking about friendship with me was a huge accomplishment already, but I still felt disappointed. “At least for now” she concluded.

I immediately looked at Tae, wanting her to confirm her words or say more but she closed her eyes again and smiled. I knew our conversation has ended. She said more than I hoped for.

The Kwon Residence,

Yuri’s POV

I had a great surprise when I came home. My beloved grandparents are in town to visit us. They don’t live in Seoul so I don’t get to see them often. The thing is, every time I see them, there is this question that they love to ask me.

“My Yuri! Look at how beautiful my granddaughter is!” my grandma hugged me and pats my head.

“Yes yes we know that she is beautiful” my grandpa nodded and smiled at me.

Between them, my grandfather is the quiet one whereas my grandmother is…on the same level of craziness as my mom, sometimes even more.

“See how big you are now! When are you going to get married and have a cute little baby??” she said while pinching my cheeks.

My grandfather and I sighed simultaneously. “You know I’m only 18 years old…so the baby thing is way too fast” I told her.

She pouted. Yes, my grandmother pouts…”Then at least a girlfriend! You need to have a girlfriend! Tell me you have a girlfriend?!”

Then out of nowhere, Yoona jumped in. “She has a girlfriend! A very pretty one too!” she gave me a wink, proud of herself.

I was starting at Yoong, shocked.

“Oh! Is it true Yuri? You have a beautiful girlfriend? What’s her name? Since when? How is she?” she started questioning me.

“Her name is Jessica and they’ve been dating for weeks now! She’s pretty cool” Yoona said again.

I was praying that someone will save me from this situation. I knew already what will happen next.

“But that’s amazing! A girlfriend with an English name! You have to introduce her to us Yuri-ah!”

“Huh? Nono she is very very very shy so it’s better now. Ha ha” I tried to get away from the trap.

“What? You won’t even introduce your girlfriend to your grandparents who love you very much?”

“Grandma…”

“No it’s fine…I understand…you don’t love us enough…” she acted sad and disappointed.

“Aigoo…don’t say that…okay okay, I’ll introduce her to you”

Her face brightened again. “You promise? We can have dinner tomorrow night!”

“Huh? That fast? Why? Give me some time!”

“We won’t stay long Yuri so tomorrow is the best. Why do you need time? It’s not like you have to find yourself a girlfriend for tomorrow since you have already one, right?”

Wow does she know that I’m actually faking the girlfriend thing? “Ha ha of course I have one…tomorrow its fine. I’ll tell her later” I started to panicked.

How in the world am I going to convince Jessica? I already have trouble asking her for dinner, just the two of us so with my grandparents…she is going to freak out.

But then, I remember that Tiffany owe me a favor. If I can’t convince Sica, I can still ask her best friend to do it instead.

I went back to my room and called Jessica.

“…what do you want Kwon Yuri?” Her voice sounded…sleepy, and it was not even 7pm.

“Did I wake you up?”

“No…but you’re keeping me awake…so be fast”

“Well…I need you help…”

“No”

“Huh? No? But I…”

“It’s still no”

“Wait…I really really need you! It’s an emergency! Just a dinner with my grandparents please please!!!”

“Why would I have dinner with your grandparents??”

“Because…hmmm…you have an English name, yeah because my grandmother loves girls who can speak English and have an English name and I told her about you and now, she wanted to meet you!” Wow…what a bunch of nonsense I was able to spit out.

“Your story is weird…”

“My grandma is special...and she really insisted and I couldn’t say no. Please Sica! It can be fun; they’re going to love you!”

“And why should I help you?”

“Because you’re a very nice person and I’m sure you’ll feel good afterwards. I’ll buy you American foods as a reward”

“I can buy it myself, babo”

“For a whole month…if you need something I’ll go and buy it for you! I’ll be your personal delivery girl! So????”

“Interesting…but I say, 2 months!” she bargained.

If only I could tell her that even for a year, I would still agree. “Ok accepted! 2 months it is. So tomorrow I’ll pick you up around 7, okay?”

“Yes”

“Great! Thank you Sica! See you tomorrow, goodnight!”

“Bye”

Earlier this afternoon at Kim Corporation,

Taeyeon’s POV

After my weird confession last night, I thought Tiffany would have freaked out and ignored me but she didn’t. I was quite surprised this morning to see her act so…normal. It helped actually; I felt much more comfortable which led to my other confession.

I’ve come to the point where…I don’t feel like hiding anymore. I know it’s gonna take some time to build up our relationship if we were to have one, so I have to start being honest now and show her how I feel.

I dropped Fany at home after school and went to the office. I had to clean up the mess that I caused after canceling my meeting yesterday.

“Miss. Taeyeon, Mister Sungmin is asking for you” my secretary called in.

“Let him in”

What is he doing here?

A few seconds later, Sungmin came in. I pointed to the chair in front of me and he sat down.

“What can I do for you Sungmin?” I said politely. There was no reason to pick a fight with him, especially in the office.

“I’ll go straight to the point then. I don’t want you to mess up with Tiffany”

Did I hear it right? “I beg your pardon?”

“I don’t like what you’re doing right now”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“On one hand, you’re with my sister and on the other hand, you’re chasing after Tiffany? Does it seem right to you?”

“First of all, it’s none of your business but if I have to justify myself, I’m not chasing after Tiffany and about Sunye…it’s complicated”

“You told her you will try…”

“I will solve the problem between Sunye and me. I ain’t gonna cheat if that’s what you’re worried about”

“So I was right? You want Tiffany…”

“Once again, care about your own business. Don’t come in my own office to tell me what to do”

“I’m not. I came here to tell you I am not gonna let you have Tiffany so easily. Don’t count on me to simply disappear and clear the way”

“Excuse me?”

Was it a threat? Am I supposed to feel scare of this competition?

“I really like Tiffany and I won’t give up on her love because you suddenly decided to like her too. So I came here to tell you, I will fight for her, whether you like it or not”

“Should I feel proud of you?” I said ironically.

“I’m just asking you to stop acting like a kid when I’m around because I’m going to stay and I’m going to see her again and spend time with her, be prepare for it” He stood up.

I simply looked at him without saying anything.

“Let’s have a fair competition. See you next time Kim Tae Yeon” he finally left my office.

I wasn’t prepared for that…Sungmin has always been very discreet, I don’t remember him being so confident and fighting for a girl. I know I shouldn’t be afraid of his little announcement, but I was. After all, Tiffany chose him more than once…

I have no choice now; I really need to solve my problem with Sunye before working on my relationship with Tiffany…and I have to do it fast.

Next day, in a restaurant around Seoul,

Yuri’s POV

I can’t believe I’m taking Jessica for dinner with my grandparents. And I can’t believe I didn’t tell Jessica the truth…I already know my grandma will ask a lot of questions to Sica, thinking she is my girlfriend and knowing Jessica…I don’t know if she is going to play the game.

We arrived at the restaurant before my grandparents and I tried to brief Jessica a little bit for tonight without telling her which role she was going to play.

“So you understand right? Just answer at their questions…don’t think too much about the questions, just reply that will make her really happy”

“I heard you, repeat it again and I’ll make you eat this napkin!” Sica threatened me. Gosh…she is so hot when she does that.

Right after her little threat, my grandparents appeared. They were following the waiter and I immediately saw my grandma’s face brightened as she saw us. She looked so happy. I didn’t know that me having a girlfriend could make her so happy.

The waiter led them to our table, we stood up to greet them but my grandma simply walked to Sica and gave her a big hug…then she said…

“You’re Jessica? Oh my…you’re so beautiful! I’m so happy!! My Yuri has such a gorgeous girlfriend!”

Sica looked at my grandma with her trademark blank expression. “Pardon?”

I knew right away that by the end of the night, I’ll be dead…there is no way Sica won’t kill me after dinner.