After studying for three years and a half, the time has finally come - the university entrance exam. Early in the morning, Kyla woke up with a migraine. On this important date, she couldn't afford to be sick. Ignoring the heaviness in her head, she quickly washed up, double checked her belongings and stuffed everything in her bag.
Due to the itch in her throat, she didn't have appetite for breakfast. When she walked downstairs, she found her parents eating in the dining area. Before she could tell her mother about skipping breakfast, her father interrupted. "We didn't make an extra serving for you. If you need food, buy it yourself. I don't have spare change for you either. So, either you have money for food, or you don't."
Kyla ignored his words and walked over to pour herself a glass of orange juice. A few seconds before her fingers could touch the orange juice container; her father had taken it and poured it into separate cups. "We didn't go grocery shopping, so this bit of juice is only enough for us. Go get some tap water if you're thirsty. Your mother didn't boil water this morning."
Her hand tightened its grip around her mug, but she relaxed her muscles. It was not worth a fight. If she had such energy, she'd rather save it for the entrance exam. She turned around, walked to the sink and washed her mug. Ever since she placed a bet with her father, he had been making everything difficult for her. Still, she didn't bother complaining.
Upon opening the door, an icy breeze showered kisses to her pale face. A shiver ran down her spine as she tightened the scarf around her neck. It was in the middle of winter, and the weather was not the friendliest today. Under great struggles, Kyla reached the university location.
Fortunately, the line was not long, and the university allowed students who arrived early to find their assigned examination rooms first. As soon as Kyla sat down, she took out her phone and replied to a few texts from Jessica, Isaac and Zach.
Staring out the window, Kyla controlled her breathing to minimize the signs of her being ill in front of the proctor. She suppressed the uncomfortable scratch in her throat and clogged nose. Her body was fatigue and her migraine wasn't going away.
Soon, the exam began. At first, her head throbbed as if someone was actively hammering her head. It affected her performance to the point where she wished to leave, but she didn't. Her father's words repeated to her mind, "You only have one chance to take the university exam. If you fail, you don't get a second chance. I don't care even if you were sick or overslept. Only one chance."
With a strong determination to change her fate, she closed her eyes and buried all thoughts about her migraine. She managed to numb the pain with the thought of how regretful she would feel if she gave up now. Perhaps because she stopped focusing on her headache, the exam questions became easier to answer.
In two hours, Kyla completed her exam and walked out of the building. At the entrance of the university gates, Zach had been waiting for her since half an hour ago. He calculated the amount of time she would need for the exam and decided to wait for her good news.
The good news he anticipated never came. As soon as she saw him, her legs weakened and her body fell forward; kneeling on one knee. She held her head and whimpered in pain. Zach quickly helped her up, suggested bringing her to the hospital and asked about her parents' contact information.
Flashbacks from this morning surfaced in her mind. A small laugh echoed into his ear as she whispered, "They won't care. Just bring me home. I'll be fine after a sleep. I have medicine in my room."
- Kyla's Room -
Zach covered her with blankets and started searching for the medicine she was talking about. "Where did you put the medicine? On your desk? Drawers?" He didn't know what he should do because nobody was in the house right now.
"In the first drawer of my desk...." She mumbled.
"I found it. Hold on, I'll get you a warm cup of water." He walked downstairs and came back with a pink mug in his hand.
Kyla was half conscious and didn't seem to have heard his words. He frowned and walked over to her bedside. After adjusting her position to support her with his torso, he carefully placed the medicine in her mouth and fed her some water. He felt relieved when he saw her waking up. She held her forehead and leaned forward in a slouching posture.
"The painkillers should take effect soon. If you're still feeling unwell later, go see a doctor. Call me if you need me to take you there. You should've stayed home if you didn't feel well." He didn't notice it, but Kyla's expression turned sour. Her eyes, cheeks and nose flushed. Tears streamed down her delicate skin as she heard his voice.
The fever and massive headache triggered her mixed emotions, leaving her in a confused state. Under her blurred vision, she mistook Zach for Isaac. It's been a while since she had last seen him and she missed him dearly. Feeling a pair of warm hands holding her wrist, she looked up to meet Zach's eyes. In her eyes, though, he was Isaac.
"Isaac..Did you know how hard I worked for the past few years? I stopped myself from seeing you and kept my free time focused on my studies. I wanted to catch up to you. I wanted to one day smile at you and tell you my feelings again. I wanted you to see a new me, but I ruined everything at the end. Maybe I'm a failure like what my father had always told me. Maybe I really can't do anything right."
"But I still fought for myself. I still can't bear to leave here and go overseas. The exam had so many words, and many were floating from the paper earlier. I got so scared, but I still tried my best to complete it. So...Can I tell you now? I've done many silly things, hoping the feeling you expressed were the same as mine. I don't want to be your sister nor your friend. But if this time...Everything doesn't work out...Then...I...should I give up?"
Her voice rasped as her body trembled. Slowly, she cried herself to sleep while Zach stood like a statue - not knowing how he should react. At this moment, his fists tightened. 'How I wish this was a confession for me and not for Isaac. Silly girl, you should treat yourself better.'
Seeing her lying in bed, he covered her body up with blankets. After making sure she was warm and asleep, he started confessing. "Maybe when it's only like this can I come up with the courage to tell you that I like you. At first, I thought you were only joking around about liking a guy and studying for him. Later, I noticed you were very serious, and I became more engaged as well."
"From meeting you five to six days a week for the past three years and a half till this moment, I really had the best times of high school. I changed my thoughts about you and didn't even know. Every time you talked about Isaac; your eyes would sparkle like a gem. I'm really envious of how lucky Isaac was to catch your attention. Sometimes..I wonder what would happen if I met you before he did? Would anything be any different?"
"Oh, right. I forgot to tell you something. When I stayed quiet and pretended to focus on my studies while you asked if you looked beautiful, my heart was actually very nervous. I really wanted to have the guts to say to you...Kyla, you're really beautiful. Your smile is your best weapon, and I hope you'll maintain this sharp blade wherever you go. I wanted to cheer you on..."
He sighed with a helpless smile on his face. Shaking his head lightly, he said to her in a slightly higher tone. "But..Silly girl, don't hurt yourself anymore. If that guy doesn't like you back, and you want a fresh start, maybe one day...when you notice the people around you...you'll see me. Haha, what am I saying? Anyway, you deserve someone who cherishes you. Do you understand?"
The second he finished speaking, Kyla's phone rang. Seeing Jessica's name as the caller ID, he picked it up. He met Jessica a few times through Kyla, so he knew she was her best friend. "Hello? Kyla is ill. She's at home. Okay, I'll open the door when you come with the doctor."
Fifteen minutes later, Jessica rushed into Kyla's house with her private family doctor following from behind. To be exact, she was dragging him by his arm. It took the doctor less than ten minutes to give Kyla a needle shot and medicine prescription.
After seeing the doctor out, Jessica crossed her arms and stood outside the hallway. "You like her, don't you?" She didn't beat around the bush and questioned him straightforwardly.
"Yes. I do." He curved a smile.
"Then you should know she loves my brother very much." Jessica reminded him about Isaac.
"I know her heart belongs to someone else, so I won't interfere. I have no interest in making a girl's heart mine when she likes another guy. It's not my style. Besides, I'm leaving soon. So, relax. But if your brother doesn't step up his game, she will be the one who voluntarily quits. Take good care of her. Now that you're here, I will take my leave. And don't let her cry alone anymore." Zach walked down the steps while Jessica stared at his retreating figure.
"Sorry, you're a good guy. If Kyla didn't like my brother, I would probably ship the two of you together." Jessica walked back into Kyla's room after she made sure the main entrance was locked from the inside.
Holding Kyla's hand in hers, Jessica's eyes teared up. "If you're not feeling well, why didn't say something? Why do you always force yourself to the breaking point? Dear, You can't do this to yourself. You're not a robot and even if you are, you have a limit. If you're tired, you could tell me. You shouldn't have to keep these feelings to yourself."
"Mm.. Jess...W..what should I do? Should I..Should I give up? But I'm not ready to let him go yet...not ready..." Kyla talked in her sleep. From the corner of her eyes, her eyelashes became drenched from her tears. Salty tear-droplets trailed down her temples as she expressed her sadness.
"Silly, why do you have to give up? My brother likes you. He likes you. He doesn't realize it, but I do. You don't have to feel sad anymore. He will realize it. If not, I'll beat him up until he understands it. Look at you, how many times did he make you cry alone like this? Did you cry in your sleep too?" Jessica wiped her tears as she dried the wet stains on Kyla's face.
Hearing the door slammed open from downstairs, Jessica quickly calmed her emotions. She wanted to go downstairs to greet Kyla's parents, but paused when she heard their conversation.
Kyla's father: "What do you mean let her do what she wants? I will find a way to keep her here. I purposely opened the windows to her room and changed the medicine for vitamins to make her sick for today. You suggested this method, so you can't stop now."
Kyla's mother: "But you know how stubborn she is. What if she passed?"
Jessica's eyes turned bloodshot red as she walked down the staircase. Kyla's parents froze in place when they saw Jessica's intensive murderous gaze directed at them. "You call yourselves her parents? What kind of parents would make their kids sick and force them overseas for a career she never wanted to pursue?! What parent would starve their kid because she wanted to study and achieve the dreams she had in her life?"
"If she was eighteen, I would bring her away. Since she is not, please do not step anywhere near her bedroom. If you do, I will not guarantee the safety of your head security position in my family. I will personally take care of her until she gets better. As for the two of you? Scram out of my sight. This is the first time I've ever spoken to elders like this, but you two don't deserve my respect. Since your existence doesn't contribute to her recovery, you can get out of her sight."
For the rest of the week, Kyla recovered slowly under Jessica's care. Doctors would come every day to check her condition. Meanwhile, Jessica's personal chef would deliver the specialty dishes cooked according to the nutritionist's suggested diet plan. By the end of the week, Kyla's fever had gone away and her throat infection became much better.
Because of how sick she felt during the examination, Kyla lost all confidence in passing the entrance exam. It took Kyla several days to comfort herself and decide to give Isaac one last confession before accepting her fate.
The second week after her examination, the results were delivered through mail. Kyla snuck out at 10 A.M. while Jessica was still sleeping to confess to Isaac. She wondered what would be a good time to text Isaac because it was neither early nor late by the time she arrived at the university gates.
"Kyla?" Isaac was surprised to see her standing outside the university's residence hall.
"Isaac. You're up early." She looked at the way he was dressed and knew he was going somewhere fancy.
"It's almost lunch time. Why are you here?" Isaac had no idea she was sick for the past week. She made Jessica promise not to tell him anything. Therefore, he didn't think much about her sudden appearance nor would he have expected a confession from her.
"I came here to look for you. Isaac, I'm seventeen. I will be turning eighteen soon. About four years ago, I confessed to you at the university dorms and was turned down. Now, I want to ask you once more. Isaac Wang, I love you. I've been loving you since I was as young as five. I've worked hard, so I could one day chase up to you and be by your side. But even if that day never comes, I still hope to tell you how I feel."
"I love you more than what you could ever imagine. So, if you only want to see me as your sister, then I'm sorry; I can't be your sister. Because my heart wouldn't be able to receive another blow...Because it will hurt to the point where I won't stand back up again. So, I'll say it again. For the last time I'm saying this as your friend, Isaac, I love you. Will you go out with me?" She forced a smile as she stared at him.
At the very moment, Isaac's cellphone rang. It was his mother. Thinking about the blind date he had been threatened to attend at City Z, he felt a headache coming. Before he could respond to her confession, the driver that his mother had personally arranged for him began waving his arm as if he was rushing him to the car.
"Sorry Kyla, let's talk when I come back. I have to go." He answered the call in front of her. As he walked past her, Kyla could hear his mother's loud voice reminding him about a blind date tonight.
"Isaac, this is the last chance. Really, the last." She whispered and knew he had heard it because he halted in his steps.
He whispered, "sorry. Not now."
With the last of her final hopes shattered, Kyla went straight home to her room. She saw Jessica sitting on the bed with crossed arms. She didn't speak and directly reached out for the yellow envelope on her desk. Fearlessly unfolding the envelope, she took out the mail inside of it.
Her eyes widened and knees weakened. In the following minute, her body slid down on the floor and tears fell from her eyes. Her hands wrinkled the edges of the letter, and Jessica ran to pull her in for a hug.
"It's okay, sweetie. It's alright if you don't get in. You still have more chances, and I will help you move out. You won't have to move-"
"I passed." Kyla cut her off.
"W..what did you say? You passed?! Then why are you-" Jessica read the acceptance letter on Kyla's lap and observed the expression on Kyla's face. 'These aren't happy tears. They're bitter tears from a heart break...Right, because she went to see Isaac earlier...'
Meanwhile, in the middle of a highway traffic, Isaac's agitated voice could be heard from a miles range. "I said let me get off! I need to find Kyla! Something was definitely wrong with her! Tell my mother I don't want those company shares nor do I care if she hands the family business to a stranger!!! Let me off!"
The driver responded calmly with the same answer as before. "My apologies. This is Madam Wang's instructions. I am only following her words. We will arrive at City Z shortly. Please sit back and relax."
Earlier, when Isaac settled in the car, the throb in his heart increased. The more he thought about it, the heavier his heart weighed. He turned around and saw the sadness in her eyes. He wanted to get out of the vehicle and tell Kyla his thoughts! He wanted to tell her he loves her and to wait for him to come back after he clarifies everything with his parents.
Unfortunately, the driver auto locked the doors in the car and began driving away at a racing speed. Hence, Isaac lost his opportunity to talk to Kyla about his feelings. Reading the time on his watch, he started calculating how long it'll take him to get back to meet Kyla. At this rate, he will get back around 10 P.M.
'Tch. I'll give them a quick rejection and come back as quickly as possible. Wait for me Kyla.' Isaac thought inwardly as he tapped his fingertip against the surface of his watch.