Amber's POV
Someone's shaking you.
"Go away Hyuna," you mumble, but the shaking just gets rougher.
"Who's Hyuna?" you hear someone ask snappishly.
That voice. You open your eyes and see Krystal glaring down at you.
"Who's Hyuna?" she repeats.
"Uh, my ex."
At that Krystal's mouth forms into a tight line but she releases you. You gingerly get up. Sleeping on a very soft sofa definitely did nothing for your back. You slowly try touching your toes but give up halfway. Krystal's still standing next to you and she looks pissed.
"What's up Krystal?"
"Nothing," she peevishly says. You give her a shrug and drop the subject.
After a beat.
"So, there's this really good casual burrito place nearby. I thought maybe if you're hungry you'd like to go with me? Cause I'm starving."
She still looks like a grumpy lioness but her tone is calmer. You get the feeling that she's trying to say sorry for last night. You feel a bit guilty. She did nothing wrong.
"I'll come. Thanks for choosing a more chill place." You try to put an apology in those words. Maybe she feels it because her posture relaxes and she gives you a hesitant smile.
"Well get ready then, we're meeting my friend in the lobby. Here're your clothes."
She hands you your shirt and pants. They're very wrinkly from sitting in a heap on the floor.
"Give me a sec. I'm going to iron these." You go to the closet and take out an ironing board and iron. "Get me a cup of water."
Krystal jogs to the restroom and comes back with a goblet of water. You fill up the iron's tank and let it heat up. Running the iron a few times over your clothes smooths out the fabric.
"Can I try?"
You look into her earnest eyes.
"Okay, but be careful. These are the only clothes I brought."
She nods and you let her hold the iron.
"It's not moving!"
"You have to push it. Here, let me show you." You gently enclose her small hand in your own and help her run the blade over your pants. After a few tries you let go and watch her go over each seam.
"I'm doing it! Look!"
She proudly presses the iron into the fabric again. The smell of burning cloth wafts toward your nose. Crap. You knock her hand out of the way and pick up the iron. It lifts with a sizzle, leaving a smoking hole in the crotch of your pants.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry Amber!"
Krystal gives you a teary gaze. You resignedly pick up your pants and examine the damage. There was no way you'd be able to sew this back up—the hole's too large and ragged. How did she manage to burn through denim?
"Amber, I promise I'll take you shopping. I'll get you even better pants than these!"
"Krystal," you sigh, "you can't just replace these. These are my lucky pants. I always wear them before a test."
She gathers your pants up in her arms, tears streaming down her face. "Then I'll find some way to repair them! I'm sorry Amber, I just keep messing up."
Her apology softens your heart and you try to not look so grim. Who knows, maybe with enough money Krystal could get a seamstress to patch over the hole so well that no one would notice.
"All right, well, what am I going to wear to breakfast then?"
She seems relieved that you didn't blow up at her. "I'll tell my friend to get you a pair of pants from the boutique downstairs for now."
She pulls out her phone and texts someone.
"Who's this friend I'm meeting?" you inquire.
"Her name's Moon Byulyi. She says you're her TA for biochem."
Byulyi. You wrack your brains. Biochem 101 is a huge class with hundreds of students.
"Oh you mean Byul! I know her. She's such a rascal, always talking in class to this other girl—what's her name?"
"Yongsun. Byul and Yongsun. Yep, they're sort of a thing although both of them won't admit it." Krystal smiles tenderly as her phone buzzes again. "Oh, Byul said she got you shorts. Wear the bathrobe for now. Let's go down."
She carefully folds your pants and places them on the coffee table before exiting the room. You follow her, grabbing a glass bottle of water on the way out. Uncapping the bottle, you take a large swig. The water literally burns. You choke, spewing water everywhere from your nose. It's the fizziest water you've ever drunk.
"Yeah, the Vichy Catalan takes some time getting used to. But it's my favorite water in the world."
Of course Krystal would have a favorite water. Your tongue stings as you follow her down the curving staircase and into the elevators. She presses the button for the ground floor and the doors close. Soft music plays in the background. The elevator is taking its sweet time. You sneak a glance at Krystal. She's wearing a dark blue dress that could pass for an oversized shirt. On anyone else it would look dumpy, but on her it accentuates the pale cream of her skin, elongating her toned legs. Your eyes travel up her body to her face and you realize she's watching you check her out. You whip your head around so quickly that crick your neck.
You can almost hear Krystal smirking.
The elevator dings loudly as you arrive in the grand lobby. Before the doors even fully open a large mass throws itself at you.
"Krystal! Yo!" someone shrieks in your ear.
"Wha—"
"Omo, you're not Krystal! My bad!" they shout as they untangle themselves from you.
"Jesus, Byul, get a grip. I'm sorry, I apologize for her on her behalf," someone else chimes in.
You take a step back and come face to face with Moon Byulyi and Kim Yongsun. Both of them look sheepishly at you, like two kids caught in some wrongdoing.
"Sorry! I should've looked before I jumped in. Please don't fail me!" Byul begs as she gets on her knees. Yongsun smacks her and pulls her up.
"Don't worry about it guys, I'm sure Amber's fine. Although the next time you jump Amber without my permission I'll personally make sure Amber fails you," Krystal threateningly says. "Yongsun why are you here? And Byul, where're the pants?"
"Byul missed me and asked me to breakfast this morning," Yongsun answered.
"Yah! I didn't miss you! I just felt like seeing you earlier today," Byul chides Yongsun as she hands you a white bag. "Here're the pants. Do you like 'em?"
You pull out a mound of tissue paper. Underneath are a pair of navy blue shorts, the exact shade of Krystal's dress. They look simple but sturdy. You pull them on under your bathrobe. Krystal takes off your robe and gives it to an attendant.
"Yeah, I love them! They're a perfect fit! How'd you know my size?" you ask, marveling at how the cloth snugly hugs your hips.
"Ah well, let's just say it's more interesting watching you than whatever you're writing on the board during lecture," Byul says mischievously.
You feel your ears get hot. "Er, I really should tell you to focus on the board."
"Don't listen to that liar," Yongsun interrupts, "I was the one who picked out the pants."
"Okay, fine, Yongsun did pick them out, but how did she know what size to pick?" Byul shoots back.
"Enough!" Krystal abruptly says. For some reason her face is also red. "You charged it to the room right guys?"
They nod in unison. You start to see what Krystal means about them being a thing without realizing it yet. Byul is standing slightly in front of Yongsun, almost protectively. Yongsun's head is resting on Byul's shoulder. When Byul speaks, Yongsun stares at her with loving affection, her face an inch away from Byul's. You feel a twang of jealously. If only you could have someone look at you like that.
"Let's get going. We can walk to the burrito place," Krystal orders.
You all obediently follow her as she gracefully walks out of the lobby and into the quaint college town.