Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls Victoria Falls: Two seemingly unrelated girls met as mere tourists and their fateful encounters with one another soon turned into a series of poor impressions on each other. One was late for the coach, delaying the entire expedition while the other appeared aloof and harsh. Will they find love in the most unexpected place? With the most unexpected person? Continue reading to see how their paths intersect with one another. "What?! You can't be serious, you mean we've been waiting for just one person?! That person should be left behind if she was late shouldn't she?!" "May I sit here?" Can I say no? How many people actually know what the Seven Natural Wonders of this World are? Or rather, how many of you have paid attention to the happenings in the nature? My guess, only a handful of people but still, miraculous events continue to take place at such marvellous sites. Let's take a journey into our different natural wonders and peer into the life stories of those who had made miracles there.

#1 The Latecomer and the Hostile "Uncle, aren't we supposed to leave half an hour before?" Tiffany asked with irritation. She was backed by the other passengers who voiced their displeasures subsequently as well. “A girl has yet to board the bus," The coach driver replied coolly. "What?! You can't be serious, you mean we've been waiting for just one person?! That person should be left behind if she was late shouldn't she?!" Her irritation was growing and she was not about to hide it. She was about to unleash more complaints but just then, a girl clambered clumsily up the coach. The girl's height was very much below average and she had shoulder-length, chestnut brown hair tied in an apple hairstyle. Was that supposed to make her look taller? Her complexion was fair and her eyes relatively large and round. She peered around anxiously, lugging her belongings along. "I'm sorry, sorry." She first apologised to the bus driver who gave her a genial smile and then to the other passengers individually. Seeing how flustered and apologetic she was, the rest easily forgave her, everyone but Tiffany. Tiffany Hwang was someone who lived by her principles and unfortunately for her, punctuality was prized above others. Dubbed as a pocket-watch, Tiffany Hwang was most feared and as well respected by her subordinates despite her young age. Everything she was in-charged of would run smoothly without any hiccups and that was her style of working.

In the field of advertising, everything has to fall in place perfectly. From conceptthinking to storyboarding and eventually filming, if any one of its components failed to keep up, everything tumbles consequentially. Half an hour could mean the end of someone's career in the advertising industry and this girl was late by more than that amount of time. Damn! Tiffany was sitting by herself in the last row and what was even more unlucky was that every other seats had been occupied. "May I sit here?" The late comer asked. Can I say no? "Sure," Tiffany faked a smile before turning her head to the side window, scowling. Apparently being in the advertising film also meant that one has to have good PR skills. But the girl was quick too, quick enough to see her seat mate’s reflection from the glass. Well... Seems like I haven't been forgiven by this girl. Oh well... The girl shrugged to herself then kept her face straight. Throughout their journey on the coach, the girl beside her had been gawping and marvelling about every littlest thing. Her mouth would fall open when they passed by a horde of elephants and would squeal when she spotted a lion cub. Seriously?! How old is she? Tiffany groaned inwardly and had been either scowling or grimacing at every single thing upon her arrival in this foreign land, Zimbabwe. This creative director would not have come to this wild place if not for their new advertisement concept. A client of theirs, the CEO of a health product company, had wanted an in-the-wilds theme for his product and he specifically wanted it to be at a place with the most beautiful waterfall. The hint was too obvious, either Niagara or Victoria Falls and Tiffany chose the latter for god-knows-what reason.

The most troublesome request from this client was for her to go to site to look for inspirations. What the bird? Seriously? She literally let exasperation show on her face the other day. Come to think of it, it was quite embarrassing. The client later helped sign her on a sickening tour package to broaden her horizons and hopefully help her find inspirations for the ad. Five days, she would have to follow the tour group for five days to hopefully find some 'inspiration'. How inspiring indeed, if it was an ad for pocket-watches, she would have come up with one already. She side-eyed her fellow tourist then gave a shudder when she found her sucking a lollipop. Wow, amazing, lollipops at this age. The girl seemed to have noticed her seat mate's uneasiness beside her and she decided to initiate a friendly chat with her. "Hi, I am Taeyeon. You're from Korea?" Tiffany was taken by surprise but fortunately this time, she did not let it show on her face. "Hi Taeyeon. Yea," she replied curtly, not wanting to prolong the conversation. No, I am from India. Taeyeon pouted, the girl had not even bothered to divulge her name. Sensing that her seat mate would not be one that is easy to get along with, Taeyeon decided to leave the girl alone. Just then, a scenic view came up, and Taeyeon became too excited while trying to catch a glimpse of the scenery from the side window, she accidentally squished Tiffany. Tiffany felt as if the air has been squeezed out of her lungs as she gave a loud gasp. Damn that lollipop girl! "I'm sorry..." Taeyeon realised it only later.

"I-It's okay..." Tiffany forced a smile while speaking through her gritted teeth. Seems like it has gotten harder for us to get along.

"People, we've arrive at the Zambezi river. The whitewater rafting instructors are already there so get your gears down people!" The coach driver announced. The girl by the name of Taeyeon moved down the aisle as excitedly as a small kid who's eager to receive her Christmas present. On the other hand, Tiffany took her own time to get down from the coach. She used to be a strong kayaker but quitted after she got busy from work. It was a real pity though, she used to be so much more than a workaholic and a mean superior. Now she could only seek solace in receiving spa treatments, shopping and occasionally drinking cocktails at her favourite bar. "Looks fun!" A tourist exclaimed "Not half so fun as kayaking in the rapids," Tiffany commented. The tourist looked in her direction, eyes full of interest. “You've rafted in dangerous rapids before?” "Yea, a couple of times," Tiffany answered nonchalantly. The group later realised that the four whitewater rafts accommodated everyone but two. Tiffany heaved a sigh of relief and was about to opt for sitting out but someone else spoke first.

"I've actually got a kayaker's license so I can ride the Kayak instead, I just need a partner." Tiffany recognised the voice as Taeyeon's, buried somewhere amidst the crowd of tourist. Seriously? Tiffany then glanced over to the side and realised that there were indeed extra double kayaks. Her mouth twitched upon seeing it and she sensed a bad omen. Almost as if to prove her senses right, another tourist suddenly shouted from behind, "that girl has done kayaking in dangerous rapids before!" Before long, everyone turned to Tiffany's direction. What? Me?! "Actually I-I..." Tiffany smiled wryly back at the others. "Can you kayak with that miss over there?" The instructor asked hopefully. "Okay..." Tiffany's smile became even weaker. Damn that girl and Taeyeon! I shouldn't have said a thing. Taeyeon already had her vest on and she passed one to her ex-seat mate, now kayak partners. Tiffany sighed before taking it, still damp from the previous use. She took a whiff at it. And it smells too. Tiffany rolled her eyes.

Taeyeon was beginning to dislike the Tiffany as much as Tiffany had disliked her. Not only was she unforgiving but also fussy. Why travel in groups if she was so disgusted of human contact, Taeyeon thought.

"Ready? The rafts will go first, and then the kayaks last." "Okay!" "Okay..." Tiffany's reply was weak as opposed to her kayak partner.

"The flow of the water is pretty fast at this time of the year, you two sure you can handle it?" An instructor looked worryingly over to the two. No, of course we can't so can we pack our bags and go back to our hotel now? Tiffany had the urge to say it to that instructor. "I'm kind of embarrassed to say it but I actually got a few titles from kayaking, even in rapids as well..." The Taeyeon girl beat her to it again. "Oh that is great! Then this should be relatively safe for you guys. Good for you, you've got a strong partner." The instructor eyed over to Tiffany. The girl felt almost offended by her statement. She was not to be insulted in this way. "Yea sure, I've never gotten less than a gold in kayaking before, we're damn safe." Tiffany flashed her fake smile again causing the atmosphere to be slightly awkward.

Taeyeon pouted slightly, she was sure she disliked this girl. Arrogance and all. Now her worry was, both were strong kayakers, but would they be good partners?

Before long, the four rafts had disappeared out of sight and it was Tiffany and Taeyeon's cue to get into the water. "You push from the back," Tiffany commanded. "Okay," Taeyeon did not mind complying and soon their kayaks were in the water. The instructors had been right. The waters were rough that day. The two were right as well, they were indeed strong kayakers and handled the water pretty well, at first. They paddled a little and allowed the flowing water to carry them for most parts. The two were actually surprised by each other's ability. Who knew that a seemingly careless late comer and a petty, fussy tourist would have such skills? Baby crocodiles lined the rocks by their side and it was a great motivation for them to keep the kayak afloat as much as possible. They do not want to be gnawed or chomped by these reptiles and make headlines back home. "Pretty scary eh?" Taeyeon seemed to have put behind her dislike for the girl momentarily. "Yea... Hope there isn't any more up ahead," Tiffany’s expression was all serious and she too had forgotten about her partner’s misdeed earlier. Moments later, they began to struggle with the kayak along a stretch of rough waters. The gurgling river spluttered angry sprays of water in their faces obscuring

their vision. Things were made worse when they realised that the water does not seem to be slowing down any moment. The kayak threatened to flip over several times. The girls gasped in synchrony every time it did so. "Oh my god." Tiffany had never found herself in such great peril before. "Let's try slowing it down, use the paddle." Taeyeon tried to appear as calm as possible. No, it was not of any use. Instead, Tiffany's paddle got stuck in one of the many rocks and she had not released it in time causing the entire boat to capsize. Tiffany went under water briefly then floated up due to the buoyancy from the safety vest. "Damn!" Water entered her mouth as she cursed; served as a good reminder for her to keep her mouth shut when in peril. Tiffany realised she had floated some distance away from the kayak and was still being washed by the waters. Then something caught her eye, it was Taeyeon, she should have supposedly been safe because of the safety vest but it did not seem to be the case. She was flailing. Her safety vest must be unable to keep her afloat well. What? So I’ve got to save her now?! Tiffany tried to swim over to her partner, against the flow. Her muscles burned and her eyes stung by the waters. Almost... There... Damn! Why is she so unlucky?! She stretched out her arm as far as possible and slid her fingers under her vest, pulling Taeyeon closer to herself and heaving her up slightly. "Damaged vest..." There, Taeyeon had a good drink from the river as well.

Tiffany shook her head to signal to her to not talk and Taeyeon nodded obediently in response. The two huddled each other closely as they drifted along together, their kayak was nowhere to be seen. The most unlikely partner to be with at a time like this but they could care less. They only felt fear in them now for they knew not what they were going to do, where they were heading to and if there would be any crocs waiting to snap their bodies in half. No more judging of each other by looks or tardiness or even arrogance. Fortunately however, both shared something in common. They were tough girls and none of them were about to give in to the tortures from nature. It was actually an odd sort of relief to know that they were not alone despite them not liking each other, initially. They could not risk talking but rather, assured each other with those determined eyes of theirs. Damn this! We will get out of here alive!

#2 Rising Tensions

"Ah choo!" Tiffany sneezed for the umpteenth time and she felt as if her nose was about to drop off. Her body was aching, especially her shoulder muscles. Her palms and the back of her hands were skinned. Her impeccable nails now a ruin. Thanks lollipop girl. She thought bitterly. "Ah choo!" She sneezed into the tissue again, balled it up and aimed it at the small bin in the room. Missed. Again. Her hotel room had been littered with tissue papers since the day before. Then there came knocking on the door. Damn this. All of this! With the blanket over her shoulders, she dragged it across the carpeted floor to answer the door. "What?" Her voice sounded raspy. "Taeyeon here." "Huh? Crayon?" The voice was muffled over the large wooden door and besides Tiffany was not making any effort to strain her hearing. "TAE.YEON!"

"Oh it's you." Tiffany unlocked the door clumsily and scampered over to her bed almost immediately leaving the door open carelessly for her guest. Both girls met with an unfortunate accident at the Zambezi river. They had fallen into the water and lost their kayak. Almost as if the rescue team had anticipated the accident, they arrived shortly after their kayak had capsized. Coupled with their strong will to survive, both returned relatively safe. Taeyeon suffered a few bruises to her knees and swallowed a few mouthfuls of water other than that, she was pretty fine. Tiffany on the other hand, was in a worse shape. She had found a large rock and clung onto it preventing themselves from being washed further. Unfortunately however, only she could reach out to the rock and Taeyeon had to cling onto her body for support. Her fingers slipped several times on the rough edges, tearing her skin. Further adding on to her misfortune, she had scraped her hands and legs against some nasty underwater ledge as well. Though the two shared an intimate moment during the crisis, their loathing for each other did not seem to dispel completely. However, one thing was for sure, they were grateful to each other. Tiffany was mildly surprise when she realised Taeyeon had not come emptyhanded. She had a bowl of steaming-hot porridge cupped in between her hands. Taeyeon had used her leg to kick and her body to push open the door wider when she came in. Sighs... Still the same even when she is sick, unhelpful. "Here." Taeyeon settled the bowl of porridge on a space in front of Tiffany. The patient eyed the bowl of goo suspiciously. "You made it?"

"Yea, of course, bought a portable stove and went to the local market for a bowl of rice," the sarcasm in Taeyeon's voice was overflowing. Tiffany's eyebrow shot up sharply. Who knew that this girl could be so sarcastic. "Nah, called for special service from the kitchen," Taeyeon flapped a hand while saying. "Yea, I figured that part out myself, thanks," Tiffany spat back. Both glared at each other for a damn long time. What the hell, why is she still so stubborn and mean when she is sick? I've never met any one half so obnoxious before. She did not even thank me for that bowl of porridge. What is the point of looking pretty if you have a character that isn't wellliked? Those thoughts swam in Taeyeon's mind. I'm sick and yet she is sarcastic and all. What happened to her sucking-on-lollipop image? Is she bipolar? Why is she staring at me like this? Is she expecting me to thank her for this goo? Hell, no way! I am in this state all because of her, wow, so much for requesting to ride in a kayak. "Thanks," Tiffany was surprised she actually thanked the girl against her own will. What the hell is wrong with me. Taeyeon was taken aback by her response as well. She blinked rapidly, searching for words. "U-Uh... For the porridge?" No, for causing my plight. Tiffany realised that her self-restraint was much better than she had expected. Normally she would not have cared if she had hurt anyone

else with her sarcastic remarks but it would do no good in this situation and she knew. After all, she had already given in by thanking the lollipop girl first. "Yea, for this mush."

"You're welcome? Thanks for saving me as well..." "Well, it's nothing, I did it so as to not make myself look like a jerk." "Tch," Taeyeon scoffed and waved her hand in the air again, "whatever. Anyway, we're heading off soon, want me to bring you any pictures? They say those lion cubs have the ability to melt people's heart." Probably not yours though, even if you did have one in the first place. "Nah, no thank you, not in the least interested in animals." The same goes for humans. Taeyeon thought. The girl nodded afterwards. "Okay." It was just the answer she had expected, the only surprise was that she had not used nastier words.

Taeyeon had been snapping still shots of animals and almost every other inanimate object that she found 'attractive' or 'interesting' in her own opinion. The tour group had been dissolved to allow the tour members to roam freely for two hours in the wild and Taeyeon was beyond grateful for this arrangement. "Hey, wait up!" Tiffany called up to her temporary photographer in her raspy voice, blowing into her used piece of tissue every now and then. Oddly enough, the patient had not only changed her mind for Taeyeon to bring back photos but had even asked to be brought along despite of her condition.

"A-ah choo!" Tiffany sent another spray of mucus into her tissue. "Ah! Damn this flu!" She cursed. "Cursing won't make you any better or allow you to go even faster," Taeyeon merely commented in between her shots as she adjusted her lenses professionally, "here take this." The shorty passed her another packet of tissue. "Thanks." Tiffany accepted it without hesitation. Just then, the pair stumbled upon a pair of lion cubs. "Oh my god!! So cute so cute!!" Taeyeon broke out into a half jog towards the cubs and began clicking furiously on the camera. One of the lion cubs jerked cutely when Tiffany let out a mega loud sneeze. Timely it was, one of the lion cubs broke out into a series of small sneeze, jerking every once it did so. Taeyeon could not help but let out a cute 'awh' at its actions. "Too cute, too cute," Taeyeon chimed, "it's imitating you!" Tiffany scowled. She was never fond if babies, much less baby animals. "Hey, soften up a little. I know you are not a fan of animals but surely you will find baby animals cute?" She asked hopefully. "Nope. I hate young animals more than the adult ones, as for humans," Tiffany spoke as a matter-of-factly then strode off. Taeyeon sighed, it seemed as if nothing was ever to Tiffany's likings. Taeyeon watched the figure's back view as she thought. Taeyeon continued clicking away as the pair strolled in the wilderness. The Sun began to set before they knew it but the two were too engrossed, apparently in separate things. Taeyeon as always, had been too occupied and mesmerised by

every single animal. She later realised that her partner seemed to finally found interest in something else. Tiffany had been staring into the yellowish-orange sky ahead of them, her face reflected sentiments, she looked somewhat sorrowful even. The black outline of the mammoth animals against the sunset backdrop would have made this picture a beautiful one but not nearly perfect. Taeyeon knew what was missing in the entire scene, it was exactly the emotions that Tiffany had expressed. It was so apt for the entire imagery. Taeyeon smiled as she clicked the shutters, silently, capturing both the girl and the perfect setting in her art piece. Usually a person who exudes a most cunning sense of alertness, Tiffany had not even noticed that Taeyeon had directed her camera lens at her and much less to know that she had been included in her pictures gallery. A tiny crease formed in between her brows as she reminisced those times. Times where she had witnessed the sun setting on numerous occasions, reflecting different emotions each time she observed the entire process. Sorrow, happiness, disappointment. How long has it been since she last seen a sun set? She could not even remember. This particular one however, made her feel a weird sort of loneliness. Sure, she was surrounded by people in her workplace, in the cafeteria she frequent, she even found people who were more than willing to entertain her in so many other places but she felt so alone. I really am a pathetic loner after all. A small, sorrowful smile crept into her face. She was never one to be pitied, much less to exercise self-pity but right at that moment, she had to admit that she was indeed a pitiful creature. Taeyeon’s lips were pressed tightly together as she took the tenth photo of her partner. The photographer was beginning to wonder if the arrogant tourist she had known from before was the same as this silent, sentimental girl before her. I don't

think that girl is as bad as she seems. After all, she saved me.

Taeyeon had gone to the washroom and was about to join the tour group for their dinner until she witnessed a commotion. "Go away, you punk! You've got no rights to even be standing on the grounds of this grand hotel, you skunk!" People's heads turned to where the yelling was taking place. Even from a distance, Taeyeon could hear the vile words Tiffany had used on a child. Fortunately, most of the people at the hotel lobby could not understand Korean. If not, they could have pelted eggs at that vicious girl for insulting a kid like that. The little bit of admiration and respect Taeyeon had for Tiffany from the incident evaporated immediately. Taeyeon strode up to the adult, determined to give her a lecture no matter what. "Why the hell would you be yelling at a kid?!" Breaking point. "What?!" Tiffany's attention turned towards her as she screeched, "Yah! Mind your own business you nosey latecomer!" Taeyeon's mouth fell open disbelievingly, her nose flared and her angry breaths were audible. She had badly wanted to shout back at that senseless, petty, incorrigible woman but the other party never gave her a chance to. Tiffany flicked her hair right in Taeyeon's face and strode off, muttering inaudibly under her breaths.

Taeyeon ground her teeth together in anger. Why the hell would someone like her exist! I'd rather live ten years lesser than to meet her in my life! Taeyeon's attention later returned to the kid Tiffany had scolded but surprisingly he was nowhere to be found. Taeyeon’s anger meter eventually subsided by dinner time. The tour group dined together at a local restaurant but Tiffany was absent. Taeyeon was mildly surprise when she could not spot her at the gathering. Probably too ashamed to dine with us. A small group of tourists had been comparing and sharing with each other the photos that they have taken earlier and this gave Taeyeon the idea to check the pictures from her DSLR camera as well. She scrolled through the images, the smile on her face growing wider each time she passed a satisfactory shot. Her smiles vanished suddenly when she came upon the set of photos she took of her ‘obnoxious’ partner. She bit into her bottom lip deeper as she scrolled on to the next picture of that girl. Her eyes squinting slightly as she passed one of the photos. Was that a tear or was it a reflection? That girl could actually shed tears? "I am getting coffee, would you like some?" A girl who had introduced herself as Sunny earlier offered her, disrupting her flow of emotions abruptly. "Sure," Taeyeon replied with a smile briefly, her eyes then wandered off to her surroundings. She really isn't here.

The group had their stomachs filled and were ready to head back to their hotel. On

their way back, Taeyeon spotted a familiar figure hunched over in a local cafe. It was Tiffany. She seemed to be working on her laptop, a frown deeply etched into her forehead as she typed furiously, scratching the side of her head every now and then. Taeyeon found herself pouting grumpily at that girl but unable to take her eyes off her. This part of Tiffany, being frustrated as she always was, having a dissatisfied expression as always as well seemed much likable than usual but Taeyeon could not describe why. It was probably due to the set of photos she had been examining earlier. Shortly after letting out a frustrated sigh, Tiffany went on to gather her paraphernalia at god's speed then strutted out of the cafeteria. Taeyeon quickly scrambled behind a sturdy looking tree so as to avoid being spotted by her. The girl is indeed an odd one. Oh wait! I don’t even know her name yet. What the hell, what the hell?! She didn’t even take the initiative to tell me!

It was the third day of their tour and already there were surprises in the morning. A small boy aged around five or six had been waiting patiently at the hotel lobby with two matching keychains in his tiny hands. His cute, round eyes peered anxiously into the faces of passers-by and lobbyists.

The two girls exited their hotel rooms simultaneously. Even though their rooms were not adjacent to one another, it was still along the same corridor and they could see each other clearly from where they were. Taeyeon broke out into a half yawn while stepping out from her room but paused momentarily when her eyes met with the proud girl. Tiffany merely glanced at her once and then strode past her as if she were invisible. Taeyeon scrunched up and nose and scowled after the girl.

The temperature within the elevator seemed to have dropped past the freezing point as the two rode in it together. Both merely wanted to escape from this confined space as quickly as possible. Why can’t she be kinder? What’s the use of being pretty if your heart isn’t beautiful as well! Oh wait did I just admit that she’s beautiful? What the hell is wrong with me?! Taeyeon was having an internal debate between her mind and gut feelings. How dare she scream at me yesterday! She should have gotten her facts right before doing so. Damn shorty! To think I was about to give her credits for being my photographer. Tiffany was facing a conflict within herself as well.

The two girls fought to get out of the elevators first, nudging each other causing a few people to turn their heads towards them. Just then... "Noonas!" A little boy called out to the both of them. Unexpectedly, the two girls broke out into similar wide smiles as they spotted the little figure running towards them. “Morning Mavin!” “Hello, Vin!” The two echoed at the same time. Both their eyes went wide in bewilderment and they gaped at each other. “You know him?!” They asked in synchrony.

#3 Budding Relationship Victoria Falls (Part 3) The two girls sat opposite each other at the cafeteria at loss of what to do. Taeyeon had been fiddling with the keychain in her hands awkwardly while Tiffany had been sipping away at her coffee, fingering the edges of her keychain every now and then. "U-Uh..." Taeyeon started, it has been awhile since she fumbled for words. "The weather's good eh?" Oh yes, talk about the weather, good move Kim Taeyeon. "Yeah, the weather's pretty good today." Tiffany's lips were pressed into a hard line right after she replied. Apparently surprised by her own reply or amazed that she even bothered to respond to it at all. They made eye contact for a brief moment then Tiffany broke it off first, almost immediately. The two then looked elsewhere embarrassedly. Tiffany was looking up to the ceiling, searching for nothing in particular. Taeyeon merely pouted. "U-Uh so... You were late for the coach that day because you were helping Mavin to find his parents?" This time, it was Tiffany who attempted to kick-start the conversation. "Y-Yea... He gave me the lollipop as well..." Taeyeon bit into her bottom lip. Why had she even bothered to explain that part? "And you were shouting at that kid the other day cause he bullied Mavin?" She found her curiosity creeping in.

Tiffany just gave a tiny nod, unsure of what else to say. She did not feel proud about helping anybody much less to accord herself credit for doing so. She just thought she had to do it. Silence lingered between the two of them for a while and when they decided to speak again, both of them did it at the same time. "I'm sorry..." The two girls were again surprised that they had apologised at the same time. Odd, had they built up a sense of camaraderie during such a short period as to exude such synchronisation skills? "Well, seems like the misunderstanding between us has been cleared up." Wow, such insights Tiffany Hwang, why had I state the obvious. My brain must have rotted in the Zambezi. "Un..." Taeyeon leant forwards suddenly, grinning at her with a smile so wide Tiffany swore she bore some semblance to Totoro for a split second. Tiffany also gave her eye smile, her first genuine smile to her partner in days and a small blush graced Taeyeon's face. "Y-You have a pretty smile, you should do it often," Taeyeon found herself saying. The blush on Taeyeon's face seemed to have crept onto Tiffany's face and this might be the first time in so many years her face had that natural tinge of red on her cheeks. "U-U-Uh thanks," stuttering for the first time as well. Feeling like a stranger in this situation, Tiffany tried to deviate to another topic. "Uh... We're finally visiting the waterfall later right?" No, Tiffany, you signed up for this package to catch a cold and look at animals.

Taeyeon bobbed her head up and down cutely with a small pout. Rather than feeling repulsed, Tiffany seemed to have developed an appreciation for Taeyeon's cute antics. "Well then... We should prepare."

The two of them were seat mates, yet again. Taeyeon, as usual, got excited at every single thing. However, what was different was that the easily-excited girl forced her newly attained friend to join in her excitement. Taeyeon nudged Tiffany in the ribs every few minutes, squeezed Tiffany's arms to get her attention and even went as far as to slap Tiffany's thighs as she laughed. Tiffany was not used to the 'affection' her seat mate was showing but rather than becoming really annoyed like how she usually would get, the girl merely clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes jokingly. "Look at that!" Taeyeon tugged at Tiffany's arm. "What what what!" Tiffany peered around, showing only the slightest interest. "Lion cubs!" "Seriously?! Haven't we been looking at that since day one?!" The girl complained and Taeyeon pouted her lips back cutely in response. "Okay, okay. They are so 'damn' cute." Tiffany scratched her nose as she spoke. "You don't really mean that. But I will accept it." Taeyeon smiled to herself and her smile had made Tiffany smile unknowingly as well.

They group of tourists gasped at the scene before their eyes.

Before them, it was one of the most stunning sight, one of the world's renowned natural wonder, one of the hottest destination for couples to read their vows, Victoria Falls. "Wow." Taeyeon found herself leaning on to Tiffany unknowingly. "Pretty eh?" Tiffany seemed rather comfortable with their mild contact. "Mhmm... Quite pretty." Taeyeon clicked her tongue once and stared fiercely at Tiffany, unafraid to show her annoyance. "What?" "That is the problem with you! Always so stingy with praises for anything. Can't you just drop the 'quite' and say that it is pretty?" Taeyeon lectured. "Okay, okay, it is the most beautiful scenery I've ever witnessed and will ever witness in this lifetime." Tiffany flapped her hand as she spoke and that caused Taeyeon to chuckle.

Soon, the tour guide began explaining everything about Victoria Falls, including how its name got derived. Apparently the local name for this magnificent waterfall was 'Mosi-ao-Tunya' which meant 'the smoke that thunders'. That was the last

piece of information the two girls received before both of them got distracted by each other. Taeyeon found herself sniggering uncontrollably at the foreign name and Tiffany too, was more amused by Taeyeon reactions than entertained by the information the tour guide was providing. The two girls began slapping each other's arms playfully instead of listening to their guide seriously, the rest of the tourists could tell that the guide was mildly irritated by the two of them. Their teasing and playing continued for quite a while before the guide announced that they would be travelling to the top of the great waterfall, the Devil’s pool they call it. That announcement had grasped the two girls' attention briefly then the two returned to chattering, arguing and even debating how the pool got its name, soon, they will know.

It seemed as if the entire tour had been planned solely for the two girls when they had been volunteered first by the guide to try out swimming in the devil's pool with the local instructors. Was the guide looking for payback at the girls for not having paid attention to his speech? They could not tell. However, the two could not have done better to conceal their shock, "Eh?!" The other tourists looked over to them with so much anticipation and both of them returned it with weak smiles. Later, it seemed as if two other girls, who revealed their names to be Sunny and Hyomin had volunteered themselves for this activity while the rest opted to watch the four of them before deciding to join. Tiffany never imagined that the bikini that she had prepared would be put to such use. She had initially expected herself to be sipping juice by the poolside in it.

Great… Bikini babe in the devil’s pool. Tiffany sighed audibly in the changing room. “Hey… You scared? I thought you’ve never gotten less than a gold in kayaking?” Taeyeon teased. That shorty was in the changing room beside her. “Yes at kayaking but I did not say I am good at swimming.” Tiffany argued. “Oh bother! A great kayaker cannot be too lousy at swimming, who are you trying to kid?” Taeyeon shouted over. “Yea yea, I am a great swimmer! Good enough to swim against the rapids to save you!” Tiffany relented. “What?! My vest was damaged!” Now it was Taeyeon’s turn to protest. After what seemed like a whole fifteen minutes of volleying of arguments. Someone else spoke. “Erm… hello, I know it is rude to intrude into your lovey dovey exchanges but I think the rest are waiting.” Taeyeon recognised voice as the girl by the name of Sunny. The two of them came out from their changing rooms, apparently slightly embarrassed as they have totally forgotten that they were not the only ones in the room. The embarrassment soon turned out into a pure look of surprise from each other. “W-Woah. You look good.” Tiffany accidentally blurted out. Taeyeon looked away shyly, “You too…”

It was the first time Taeyeon had worn a bikini, something that was considered excessively revealing and she had bought it for some forgotten reasons. Though her body shape was not exactly perfect, she still looked good, that she had to admit herself. Tiffany on the other hand, had been rather used to exposing herself to the sun in her bikini-clad self. Her shoulder length hair was pulled back into an athletic ponytail. A tall, beautiful brunette soon came into sight and she stopped beside Sunny, her arms snaked around the shorter girl’s waist. The pair of girls still had their shirts and shorts on, apparently having worn their swimming gear underneath. “Awh… the two of them are behaving like how we did in the past, so cute.” The girl by the name of Hyomin teased. That statement had caused the two of them to blush at the same time. “Uh…” Taeyeon’s eyes darted about as if guilty of something. “Hyominnie ah, we should go first…” Sunny, the shorter sensing that the two were slightly awkward in their presence suggested to her partner and they later left. “Don’t make us wait too long!” The beautiful brunette’s head popped back into the washroom and gave a small wink before disappearing shortly after. “Erhem, I don’t think we should keep the rest waiting. Let’s just go.” Tiffany beckoned and Taeyeon nodded.

“I seriously don’t think I can do this!” Tiffany spoke, horrified. It was a rare moment since Tiffany Hwang rarely proclaimed her incompetence in anything but right now as they stood on the bank of the Devil’s pool, she felt nauseated. The Devil’s pool was an extensive area of water body right atop the great Victoria Falls with a hundred meter drop below. The tour group had arrived at the Living Stone’s island by a relatively safe boat ride but what they were about to face was anything but safe. The two girls, Sunny and Hyomin had stripped down to their bikini in a matter of seconds, revealing their beautifully toned body; sculpted abs, slim but muscular thighs and arms. It was later revealed that both were professional competitive athletes and had been doing extreme sports for a good long time. This has made both Tiffany and Taeyeon’s worries go up by several notches. “Don’t worry, it’s gonna be fun. The last fatality here was years ago, it’s quite safe,” Hyomin assured them however it did not seem to be helping one least bit. The other tourists lined themselves by the rocks, some biting their fingernails as they watched the four of them nervously, “Okay girls, I know that look from you guys, we are so used to it.” An instructor in a covered swimming gear spoke in English and he was eyeing Tiffany. Tiffany, at that point of time had no idea whether she should be glad because of her American citizenship by birth or to feel jinxed by it as she looked at Taeyeon’s confused face. Time to play the translator. Tiffany decided that she should help translate to the other two girls as well but surprisingly, the girl by the name of Sunny seemed to understand and was helping to translate to the Hyomin girl. Right, she has an English name.

“My only rule to allow you to join me in this exhilarating activity is for you guys to follow my instructions.” The instructor’s eyes scanned through their faces, locked on especially with Hyomin’s one who seemed to be the most playful. “Each of you will take a dive into the water concurrently and the first thing we are going to do once we are in the water is to form a human wall, with two of the other instructors.” Tiffany nodded, Sunny too and the two other girls followed. “Who will go first?” Taeyeon and Tiffany quickly eyed over to the athletic pair. The tall brunette immediately volunteered herself but was quickly stopped by Sunny. “Being the first is always the most dangerous, I am better in the water than you are. Go after me.” Hyomin pouted but knew that her short partner was right. Taeyeon and Tiffany had no idea why but both their hearts were warmed but this simple action of love between the two. Their eyes met again and this time neither broke away. Taeyeon gulped. “You scared?” Tiffany gave an uneasy laugh. “Quite. Are you?” Taeyeon nodded. “Never been this afraid before.” “Nah, don’t be afraid, I’m here anyway.” Tiffany found herself saying unknowingly. “Yea, glad you’re in this with me.” Taeyeon smiled back.

Before long, they heard a splash and the Sunny girl had already dove from the rocks into the water. Hyomin looked on anxiously, her fists clenched in front of her chest so tightly. Sunny surfaced from the water a few seconds later and Hyomin relaxed a little. Sunny swam expertly towards where the instructor was, a few feet away from the edge of the waterfall. Hyomin blew out a long steady breath of air and readied herself. As with Sunny, she dove elegantly in the waters and surfaced shortly after. The girl proved herself to be a powerful swimmer as well. Before long, it was Tiffany’s turn. Calm down, Tiff. It’s nothing, it’s nothing. She looked at the people who had gone before, looked into their expectant eyes then glanced over to Taeyeon. She had not realised that Taeyeon have had such worried eyes before, trained on her especially. Her brows were furrowed and she was biting down on her bottom lip, the shorty later nodded to her, beckoning her to go. Tiffany nodded back resolutely. Okay here we go… The creative directive dove, not nearly as perfect as the two others but it was a good attempt. The girl fought to open her eyes underwater and before she knew it, she was taking gulps of fresh air from the surface, it felt so good. She could see the instructors and the two other girls just a few feet away from her and she swam towards them. The instructor held out his hand and pulled the girl from the water. Finally it was Taeyeon. It was apparent that that shorty was scared but she was definitely hiding that fact, she dove but did not surface quite so quickly and that had gotten Tiffany worried. Tiffany took a step forward but was restraint by one of

the instructors. The anxious girl felt her heart drumming savagely on her chest. Where the hell is she?!

#4 Passions Ignited

Tiffany yelped suddenly when she felt someone grab her thighs from beneath. She felt all the tension in her chest released for a moment. It has to be Taeyeon. Tiffany bent over fishing in the water for the girl, occasionally getting her arms entangled in Taeyeon’s hair. Finally, she caught the girl by her slippery arm and heaved her upwards. Taeyeon stood up unsteadily, gasping for breath. "I swear this is so darn tough..." The girl spoke in between her breaths. "Who told you to swim underwater?" Tiffany chuckled, partially amused by the girl and also relieved that that shorty is fine after all. "The bottom was too slippery, I kept slipping while trying to stand up! And the underwater current kept sweeping me away." The girl complained. "Well glad you weren't swept over the edge." Tiffany grinned naughtily.

"Must you be so mean?! I could have died," Taeyeon slapped the girl's arms repeatedly. “Yea, you could have been the first casualty in many years, if not for me,” The creative director emphasised on the last part. “Right! If not for you, we wouldn’t even have to be volunteered for this! You talk too loudly!” Taeyeon did not want the creative director to be overly smug about her rescue attempts. “Ha! Ha!” Tiffany then sent a spray of water into the shorter girl’s face, giggling at her own work. Her giggles were later drowned in sprays of water fired back by the other girl. The two then continued playing in the water as if there were no danger and ignored the presence of the others. How long has it been since she last laughed so heartily? When was the last time she ever enjoyed interacting with another? Tiffany began questioning herself. "Erhem." One of the instructors cleared his throat audibly in an attempt to grasp their attention. The girls' faces flushed red both from playing and from the embarrassment but kept up with teasing each other. The group of tourist proceeded to the foot of the waterfall after spending half the day at the devil's pool trying to convince people to try out the activity as well as waiting for most of them to overcome their fears. Taeyeon suddenly clutched onto Tiffany's arm, her cold naked skin plastered onto Tiffany's own. The usually calm and unfeeling creative director who believed

herself to be unmoved by the hottest models or most charming celebrities felt her heart palpitating for the first time in forever. What is this feeling?! "I'm cold." Taeyeon's bottom lip trembled. "U-Uh..." Tiffany stuttered, unsure of what to say or do. Timely it was, Tiffany and Taeyeon both caught sight of the athletic couple before them in a hugging position. The shorter girl had wrapped the taller girl with a towel and they were in a back-hugging position. "I don't want you to fall sick." The shorter girl spoke affectionately. "But Sunny... You're cold too..." Her partner pouted and tried to shrug the towel of but was restrained by the shorter girl. “Knowing that you will be warm keeps me warm too,” Sunny replied, her tone teasing yet loving at the same time.

Both Tiffany and Taeyeon looked away shyly from the couple's public display of affection but they had to admit that it was rather sweet. Tiffany suddenly felt her short friend shuddering, she looked at her friend with a raised brow while Taeyeon returned it with an apologetic smile. “Sorry… cold…” Even her voice was trembling. The creative director sighed and then pulled the short girl closer to her body, to share her warmth. Taeyeon gasped at her sudden action. "Shh..." Tiffany whispered in her ears.

Taeyeon's heart beat wildly in its place, threatening to bruise her chest and her breathing was too audible, temperature surged from within her body. Oh no... Kim Taeyeon what is happening to you? The girl could as well feel Tiffany's erratic heart beat with their body moulded so closely onto one another. Taeyeon dared herself to look at Tiffany and found her blinking uncontrollably, gulping several times even. "I... Think I feel better now," thinking that Tiffany might be uncomfortable with the contact, Taeyeon tried to break away from her hold. Oddly however, Tiffany did not release her hold on the girl but instead slung another arm across Taeyeon's neck. "Stay." Tiffany whispered into her ears again, her hot breath brushed against her skin lightly and Taeyeon found it the most gratifying feeling ever. The short girl then shuddered at her own thoughts. I-I am not falling for her am I? Yet, Taeyeon nodded obediently and hugged Tiffany's arm instinctively. Definitely too intimate. The girl later wondered if this was actually Tiffany’s warm side to her usually cold and harsh nature. It definitely was, and if so why had Tiffany warmed up to her now? The cogwheels in her mind spun the more she thought about it.

**

That night, the tourists were all treated to traditional African dance performances. Tiffany and Taeyeon tasted African brew for the first time. Though it tasted odd initially, the two were soon drinking heartily. Alcohol began to take effect on

Taeyeon. The shorter girl began clapping and cheering loudly as the performance went on. Instead of feeling embarrassed, Tiffany found herself smiling at the shorty’s actions and joined her shortly after. When asked for volunteers, Taeyeon had taken the lead and sabotaged her travel companion to join her. Though the creative director was slightly hesitant, she was soon immersed in the dance. Tiffany had never enjoyed herself so much before. It did not matter how many times Taeyeon had spun her around, it did not matter how Taeyeon had made her laughed unglamorously, she was finally letting go of her herself, revealing her inner-self to fellow tourists, to strangers and more importantly, to Taeyeon. The dance went on and on. Their bodies were stank of sweat yet their enthusiasm smelt pleasant. Their bodies were drunken and tired yet their minds were clear and rejuvenated. Tiffany had never found herself to be a good dancer, but she felt so right beside Taeyeon. The two were so synchronised, even at making mistakes. It finally occurred to them that they were falling, falling into the embrace of their environment, of Victoria Falls and in love with each other. When the drum beat had halted, the dancers and the volunteers were lauded by the audience and the two girls collapsed immediately on the spot, panting and laughing heartily, not caring where they were only caring who they were with.

**

Passions.

That night the two girls had no idea how they ended up in the same room. They shared a kiss with each other ferociously, attempting to devour what little innocence the other party had. The door-bell to their room rang abruptly and Tiffany groaned in annoyance at that brief interruption. The girl was greeted by a bellboy and was handed the tray of foodstuffs she had requested. Tiffany smiled despite not having done this before. It's just like in those movies. Tiffany returned to the other girl, swirling the precious bottle of vintage wine. More alcohol for the night. The sweet smell of the wine permeated across the room as the creative director popped it open expertly. She poured a glass for Taeyeon then for herself. The director proved her high tolerance for alcohol as she downed a glass then savoured another sip by sip, a smile played over her lips as she urged the other girl to do the same. Taeyeon followed and felt her cheeks warming in an instant. It felt good. The two talked about everything and anything they had in mind as if it was the most natural thing to do. They first shared about their hobbies, it further escalated to talks about more intimate topics. The excessive amount of lights in the room soon became a hindrance to the two. Tiffany smiled sinisterly at Taeyeon as she moved away from her yet again tracing a finger across the wall to where the light dimmer switch was. Taeyeon bit her lips timidly as she watched on. The hostile stranger whom she knew just days before had unexpectedly transformed into the most desirable being right at that moment. She yielded, letting out a frustrated groan as she went up to where Tiffany was and pinned her against the wall.

"You're lonely aren't you?" Taeyeon growled "Not anymore..." Tiffany’s voice was slurred from the alcohol. Tiffany released a high-pitched laughter before the other girl crashed her lips onto her own. The creative director's fingers managed to get control of the switch amidst the haste. Darkness descends as their kiss deepened and their breaths quickened.

**

Taeyeon woke up to aches she has never experienced before. Her head felt heavy from all the drinking and her body… well her body felt sore. Bits and pieces of memories came flurrying back to her and that caused another wave of pain. The sudden realisation that she was alone snapped her mind to attention. Where is Tiffany?! The girl sat upright immediately and as if it were a scene in the movies, she found a bedside note. Sighing, the lone girl took it, she knows fully well what will follow. I know it is cliché to apologise but I will still do it. Sorry Taeyeon, you are a really nice girl and I have enjoyed my time with you these past few days but I don’t think I’m ready to accept this. I’ve never in my life thought that I would have fallen in love, especially not with another girl. Yet, you made me fall. I thank you for letting me experience the best few days of my life but I need some time to clear my

thoughts and think through this. I’m so sorry for my cowardice but I promise I will contact you again when I’ve straightened out my thoughts. P/S I’m taking a flight back to Seoul this morning. Enjoy your breakfast and remaining time in Zimbabwe. Tiffany, signing off.

#5 The Directors Tiffany looked out of the circular windows listlessly with her breakfast left untouched on the airplane desk. Her expressionless face could not convey the emotional turmoil she was actually going through right at that moment. That morning, she had made one of the most difficult decision in what she considers as the most difficult situation in her entire life. She had actually abandoned Taeyeon in the hotel room, like a coward. Even she finds coward too mild a word, jerk is a more accurate term. A crease appeared between her brows as memories of the time she spent with Taeyeon came flooding back to her like an unstoppable tide. Her jaw tightened as she realised that it was truly folly on her

part. She should not have left, not that irresponsibly at the very least. Tiffany almost had the urge to want to correct her mistake and go back to the girl’s side right at that moment, but that would mean that she would have to turn the plane around. It was impossible, a mistake had been committed, and she would have to atone for her it later. Later, she promised.

**

"Ah Tiffany, you're back. I am already eager to hear your ideas." The bald headed overall project manager clasped his hands together in anticipation. "I regret to disappoint you but sir, I've got no ideas worthy to be made into an ad," Tiffany spoke, no hint of regret in her voice. A frown found its way into the bald's face. "Oh, is it? I did not send you there for such delayed insights my dear. The best advertisement concepts come to you at the most appropriate place. Besides, tardiness is never a policy of Amoeba," he snapped. Apparently that was not a most appropriate place for me you old bald. Besides you did not pay out of your own pocket nor from the company's budget to send me over, it had been a most 'generous' offer made by the client. "And I had presumed you returned prematurely because an idea had already been hatched in your mind. Why... How disappointing..." He continued sneering.

"I am deeply regretful my sir. I might like to atone for my sins by leaving my post to someone who is more 'punctual' than I am,” Tiffany’s words were dripping with sarcasm she gave not a care who she was speaking to. I've had enough of you milking from my talent anyway as well. "No, wait. Tiffany, you should know I meant it as a joke." The bald stood up, one arm stretched out in front of him. "Oh no sir, you have many other talented people who have been hankering after my post for a long time. It may do your reputation some good if you break out such joyful news to them." Was it words of anger? She knew not but she sure was not keen on working, at least not for these few days. The creative director needs time to get things straightened out. “You wouldn’t want to worry your dad by leaving your post do you?” Her manager reminded, a hint of threat in his voice. Tiffany narrowed her eyes malevolently at the old bald. She was not one to take threats lightly, especially not if it concerns her family as well.

**

“I’m back…” Taeyeon said as she flung herself tiredly onto the couch.

“About time you came back,” her roommate remarked with a spoon in her mouth. “Move, I need to catch this episode.” The glutton roommate shoved Taeyeon aside unceremoniously and plopped down beside her. “Yoona, I cannot believe how you can watch television, eat all day and not gain any weight!” The girl complained. Her roommate by the name of Yoona gave her killer doe-eyed smile before replying, “and I cannot believe how someone can stop growing from the age of fourteen.” Taeyeon knows her roommate was referring to her height and smacked a pillow into Yoona’s face. “Ouch… That hurts you know?” Her roommate complained. “Good. Cause you hurt my feelings too.” Taeyeon retorted wittily. “I never knew your feelings could be hurt so easily,” Yoona teased but had unknowingly struck a sensitive chord in Taeyeon’s heart as her mind reeled back to the girl whom she met during her trip. Yes, I never knew my feelings could be hurt that easily until she came into my life. “Hey, so what inspirations did you get from your trip?” Yoona interrupted her thoughts abruptly. The girl shrugged her shoulders. “Nothing much, really. I was there to survey settings, it’s all up to Amoeba’s Creative Director to come up with the advert idea.”

Yoona’s eyes widened at the name of the famed advertising agency. “Amoeba?! Goodness gracious, that’s a famous company. But, oh come on, I’m pretty sure you will have some say in the advertisement concept. After all our famed director Kim Tae Yeon is amongst the best of the best in the filming industry.” Yoona pinched the side of the girl’s cheeks as the Film Director stared daggers at her. “Yes, Amoeba, but they haven’t told me which creative director I would be working with. Stop it!” Taeyeon slapped her roommate’s hands away, “you know I am not that famous yet.” “Not yet,” Yoona emphasised. “You will be, I’ve seen my friends’ reactions to your screenplays. Besides, not all Film Director gets a scholarship to the most prestigious school in Europe,” Yoona grinned proudly. “Yea right,” Taeyeon mumbled. “My duties wouldn’t have gotten suspended if I really were the best of the best,” the girl added bitterly. Yoona let out a theatrical sigh as she slung an arm over the short girl. “Accidents do happen and it was no fault of yours anyway…” “It was…” Taeyeon interrupted. Her friend put a finger to her lips and shook her head, disagreeing. “It was not,” Yoona spoke firmly. “It was an unfortunate accident in which you had no control of. Who could have expected those cables which have passed the quality checks to snap?” “I should have taken more precautions… I…” Taeyeon began again, guiltily.

“Yes you could have taken more precautions only if you knew that that accident was going to happen,” Yoona spoke logically. “Well, anyway you should put this incident behind you and focus on filming your first advertisement since your return. They must be so glad to have you back, you are the best of the best,” her friend emphasised on that phrase again. Taeyeon gave her a small genial smile. The pair later headed to where the shorty’s luggage was and began to rummage through them. “These are Sooyoung and Hyoyeon’s presents,” Taeyeon spoke as she tossed out some foreign snacks and proceeded on to pull out other gifts. “Jessica and Yuri’s,” she threw the gift into Yoona’s already-filled arms and dug into her luggage once again. Yoona whined when Taeyeon took a longer time than usual to produce her gift. “Where is mine?” Her eyes then caught something of interest and she snatched it up. “I like this keychain! It’s so cute! Can I have this?” Taeyeon was distracted and had forgotten about the existence of the keychain. She looked at the item held in the girl’s hand, it was a lion cub carved from a block of wood, a gift from a boy named Mavin whom was connected to both Tiffany and her in a similar way. Tiffany had a similar lion cub but hers was carved from ebony wood, of a darker shade of colour. I wonder how she is doing now. The girl thought to herself momentarily and her mind began to wander to their moments in Zimbabwe once again. Yoona then dangled the keychain before the dazed girl to get her attention back. “So I can claim this as mine, right?”

“What?” The girl who had just snapped out of reverie asked confusedly. Yoona pouted. “I said, this is mine already.” “No!” Taeyeon snatched the keychain back from the girl’s hand. Yoona yelped as she did so, surprised at the girl’s reaction. “Okay, chill. People would think that it was from your late parents or boyfriend judging from your reaction earlier.” Taeyeon glared grudgingly at her roommate.

**

The creative director had just finished her fourth can of red bull that day. She had her hair tied up in a bun and an oversized spectacles resting on her nose bridge. She was back to story boarding. Messy was an understatement to describe the state of Tiffany’s room. Her previous storyboards were sprawled in front of her and yet no idea would come into her mind. Her thoughts kept reeling back to the events that took place in Zimbabwe. Her memory was especially vivid where it concerned a certain girl named Taeyeon. It was all Taeyeon, Taeyeon and more Taeyeon. Her guilt gnawed at her and would not go away yet. It has been a week since she last promised herself to contact the other girl and yet she still could not. Stop thinking about her. Her mind shouted.

Just then an idea hit her and the creative director glided across the room on her wheeled chair. She began drawing furiously. Yet, hours later, she let out a frustrated sigh for the umpteenth time. No matter how much she tried to alter her storyboards, it still depicted a budding love relationship, not just any budding love relationships, it was her budding love relationship. The misadventure she had with Taeyeon at the Zambezi River, of them spending their time together during sunset in the wildings, even the dive at the Devil’s pool. All of which clung to her mind but were unfortunately were utterly unsuitable to be use to advertise for her client in her opinion. “What is wrong with me?” Tiffany knocked her palms on the side of her head, frustratingly. She then tore down the storyboard from her whiteboard and pinned up fresh pieces of drawing block.

**

“That’s great! I knew I should not have expected anything less from Tiffany Hwang, our Amoeba’s gem indeed!" The supervisor exclaimed Tiffany gave a wry smile, glad that his supervisor had not noticed that she had recycled the idea from one of her previous ads. The creative director just could not get rid of the creative-block. “Tiffany the company told me that you will be working with a young film director,” the supervisor informed.

The creative director was not interested in how young the director was but rather the skill of the director. “Who is it? Is it any name that I know?” The girl questioned suspiciously. “I remember it is a Kim something… No, I reckon you would not know that person.” Tiffany frowned, there were so many Kims in the industry and it was apparent that her supervisor had not done his homework. “A greenhorn I presume?” The supervisor wriggled his brow as he pretended to think hard. “I haven’t heard this person’s name either so I guess so. They promised me that this director is no less capable than the previous ones that we have worked with.” Still a greenhorn. Tiffany thought to herself sulkily.

**

“Hey Yoong,” “What’s up Taeng?” Yoona spoke while munching on her bag of chips, she was sprawled on her couch. “What if I don’t do a good job tomorrow?” Taeyeon asked worriedly. Yoona chuckled as a funny scene comes on the television causing the short girl to nudge her in her ribs with her pointed toes.

“Ouch!” Yoona whined with crisps flying out of her mouth. “They’d probably suspend your duties again I guess,” the girl spoke mindlessly. A look of pure worry washed over Taeyeon’s face. Yoona chuckled once again, but this time it was at her friend. “Taengoo ah. Why should you worry so much? I was just kidding and remember you’re still highly sought after? Probably not by boys but a lot of company still wants you. I have no idea why you let your company suspend you and stayed on though. You could have just left.” “It is a matter of principle! I cannot just shirk my responsibilities and move on to another company as if nothing has happened. I still get nightmares from time to time.” Tears were brought to her eyes and Taeyeon shuddered as she spoke. Her friend then scooted closer to her and hugged her. “I know I know. You will get better someday.” Taeyeon leaned against her friend and was immediately reminded of Tiffany once more. How she felt when she was in Tiffany’s embrace was drastically different from how she felt in her friend’s arms now. I really need to stop thinking about her, it has been weeks. How can she not contact me at all? She really is a coward, no she is a jerk.

**

The creative director had employed every means to keep herself calm in this stifling heat. She had been tasked to personally oversee this project up till the very end and this had frustrate her even more. "Tiffany, the director wants to have a word with you regarding this particular scene." Her assistant spoke with very much care. "What about?" Tiffany was trying very hard to reign in her temper, fanning herself rigorously. "Some safety issues, she wants to talk to you personally,” her assistant winced as she anticipated the onslaught of Tiffany Hwang’s rage but there was none. The creative director merely let out a frustrated huff and strode towards where the said Filming Director was leaving her assistant to blink her eyes in bewilderment. Our Creative Director has changed. "I don't care how noble this scene is nor how great a feat it would be for me if the shot comes out successful. Safety is an issue here and unless you guys had hired professionals for this, I would not risk the models to take this shot." The director shouted angrily at one of Tiffany's staffs. Tiffany could hear a female shouting even from a great distance, it did sound strangely familiar but the creative director was too preoccupied with another thought. A female director? Damn it, all the more tough to handle. "What is this commotion about?!" Tiffany intervened, trying to gain the upperhand of this situation.

The film director turned sharply and both their eyes met. It felt as if time had frozen at that point of the time as both the creative director and film director gaped at each other. "T-T-Taeyeon?!" Tiffany choked.

#6 Stay Taeyeon stabbed viciously at the sausage in her takeaway lunch box with a plastic fork while glaring in the direction of Tiffany Hwang. The other director seemed to have developed a sudden interest in the prop settings after their brief reunion just a while ago. Taeyeon could never forget that look of shock without any hint of guilt in her eyes. Tiffany could feel the Film Director staring daggers at her and she could not help but turn away, trying to avoid her stares as much as possible by doing random things. She had promised herself that she would contact the girl but there was no longer a need for that, fate has brought them back together, not in the most pleasant way though. Tiffany cringed as she reflected back on her reaction from earlier. Her expression was of pure shock, likened to how a jerk who had coldly abandoned her girlfriend would react from seeing her once again. Actually the abandoning part

was very applicable. Tiffany sighed as she flipped through the clothing articles with no apparent interest. The filming crew as well as all the others involved were on indefinite break until the two directors had managed to resolve the troubling safety issue at hand. There were no progress however, as the two directors had refused to talk to each other for no rhyme or reason, in other people's eyes, after their encounter. All they knew were that the two must have had been in some conflict with one another. The Amoeba’s team found it strange that their Creative Director had lost all her feistiness after their bizarre meeting. “Ms Hwang, are you looking for something? Can we help you?” The wardrobe artiste asked, her voice quivering slightly, worried about the tension in the air. “N-No, it’s nothing, I can manage this myself, thank you,” Tiffany replied hastily, and snaked her way deeper into the make-up room, almost knocking over some racks in her way. Taeyeon cursed inaudibly under her breath, her sight never leaving the flustered Creative Director until she had fully disappeared out of her sight but even so, she continued cursing. It was not until her phone rang that she stopped. “Taeng!” The caller squealed into her ears causing the Film Director to flinch. “Damn it! What is it Yoona?! I am busy here!” Taeyeon spoke irritably into the receiver. “Oops… Sorry…”

Taeyeon could mentally picture the doe-eyed girl sticking out her tongue in an apologetic way and that calmed her down a bit. “Sorry Yoong, I am just tired… What is it that you want to tell me?” Taeyeon’s voice softened. “I know you are tired, I can tell from your voice, but don’t forget we have a sleepover party tonight! Seohyun is already here with me to help with the food and Sooyoung is at the supermarket buying truckloads of alcohol. Ouch…” Taeyeon could hear Seohyun, the youngest and most decent girl in their clique lecturing the doe-eyed girl about drinking too much. The Film Director could not help but let out a chuckle. “Seohyun just hit me…” Yoona complained. “You deserved it,” Taeyeon commented coldly but could not help but chuckled again when she heard the girl’s wails. “Okay, okay, I get it. I will try to be home earlier! Save some beer for me,” Taeyeon added cheerily. The girl on the other line let out a cheer before they say their goodbyes. The Creative Director had been hiding behind the curtains of the make-up room, observing the actions of the other director. A smile was brought into her face when she saw how Taeyeon had chuckled so light-heartedly like how she did in Zimbabwe. She really looks better when she is happy. The Film Director suddenly clapped both hands together before giving a slew of instructions. “Come on guys, we will film those scenes that do not require the use of safety cables first with or without the cooperation of Amoeba’s team.”

Tiffany could sense Taeyeon’s provocations towards her and almost wanted to rebut that shorty. Almost. Fortunately, she had remembered that she had no rights to be angry at the director since she was the party at fault, be it on a personal or work level. She could only watch quietly by the side as the Film Director and her filming crew worked. As the hours go by, Tiffany found herself in awe at Taeyeon’s work of professionalism. Despite her young age, the level of concentration and skills displayed by the Film Director was out-of-worldly and could even compete with the best directors Tiffany had previously worked with. The Creative Director found herself unable to contain her surprise as they reviewed the shots taken, they were simply marvellous. Tiffany found herself throwing occasional glances at Taeyeon taking advantage of her deep concentration with reviewing her own shots. The Film Director, did not seem too satisfied with her own shots despite her crew members and Amoeba’s team’s praises for her. The crease between Taeyeon’s brows grew deeper as she watched the scenes she had taken. Some element is still missing. The director thought to herself but she knew not what exactly these scenes lack of. More shots were taken and retaken then followed by reviewing of shots. The cycle repeated and hours passed. The shots are turned out well and were commended upon yet the Film Director’s dissatisfaction only grew. Not noticing how much time had passed, the Film Director had requested for certain parts to be retaken again but was politely reminded by her filming crew of the time. They had overrun by two hours and it was well past midnight.

“WHAT?!” Taeyeon jumped when she saw the time on her watch and saw the tired expressions on her work partners who were nodding back sullenly at her. “Oh my god, you guys should have reminded me earlier! Pack up guys!” The director began packing up hastily and had not notice that she had dropped a set of keys. The girls are going to kill me!

**

Taeyeon just could not believe her luck after putting in so much effort to rush back home. Admittedly, it would have been better if she had put in more effort in remembering that she was supposed to go back early for the sleepover party. She had been locked out of her own apartment because she could not find her set of keys and ringing her house-mate did not help either. The girls were already deep in slumber after their drunken stupor, even Seohyun. Besides their drunken state, the music left playing from the inside of the apartment also played a part in drowning out her calls. Taeyeon pounded on the heavy oak door. “Damn it! Im Yoona, I swear I am going to set fire to this apartment if you do not wake!” Taeyeon threatened uselessly. She then heard her neighbour’s door creak open and scampered away to conceal herself. She had forgotten that yelling at night was not a good option since they were living in condominiums. The Film Director has also learnt enough to never

incur the wrath of a neighbour, especially not one who was a woman and in her mid-forties. “I really hate you guys,” Taeyeon muttered angrily under her breath. It was bad luck enough that she had encountered Tiffany Hwang on her first day of work and now this happened. She had regretted allowing Yoona to organize a sleepover party to celebrate her first day back at work. Now the girls are enjoying a sleepover session but not her, she was in for a sleep-out session. Taeyeon began rummaging her bag once more for the precious set of keys. She remembered leaving home with them tugged away in the side pockets of her bag. Where could it be? An attempt at retracing her memory proved to be useful and the girl hurried along to hail a cab. “Uncle, to Amoeba’s studios please.” How could I have been so careless as to drop my keys there?! The girl chided herself mentally

**

Tiffany Hwang had no clue what was with the dissatisfied expression on the Film Director earlier but one thing was for sure, Tiffany was bothered by it. The Creative Director had stayed on to continue reviewing the shots taken even after every single one of the Amoeba’s staff has left.

She tugged at her hair frustratingly, no matter how many times she viewed the shots, they still seem perfectly taken to her. What was the problem then? Tiffany slapped her cheeks to urge her to think harder and that was when a sudden thought came into her mind. Was she unhappy because of the safety issues she mentioned earlier? The Creative Director then concluded that Taeyeon must have been harping on that issue and had gotten herself upset. The Creative Director sighed as she dragged her feet reluctantly to find some papers and pinned them up on a wheeled whiteboard. She then began drawing furiously on her makeshift drawing board, adjusting her story board here and there. Taeyeon had to beg the security guard to let her into the building. The security guard had reluctantly allowed her to do so. Even though Taeyeon was no worker of Amoeba, she managed to produce names which were notable enough in the company for her to creep back in, one of which was undoubtedly Tiffany Hwang. “Just fifteen minutes. If you don’t come out by then, I will blacklist you,” The uncle threatened jokingly. “Thank you uncle!” The girl then sped off, towards the dark building. Taeyeon tapped the visitor’s pass on the card reader and pushed back the door silently after it let out a soft beep. She was surprised to find that a small area of the studio was still brightly-lit and even more surprised to find a person still working, Tiffany Hwang. The short girl observed the Creative Director in the darkness, crying out in frustration but still working relentlessly to modify her storyboard so as to meet the “safety” criteria set by herself. How did she know? It was written in big bold letters on the white board.

“SAFETY CABLES.” “TRAINED PROFESSIONALS.” “FUSSY TAEYEON.” Taeyeon scoffed at the last two words but found herself smiling afterwards. She cares. The sight of Tiffany being frustrated while at work reminded her of the scene where she had spied on Tiffany working on her laptop in the café back at Zimbabwe and brought back sweet memories to her. She felt her heart warmed for an instant. Back then she had found Tiffany lonely, now she finds her even lonelier, always working alone and always having to keep her own frustrations to herself. Taeyeon crept forward, as soundlessly as possible in an attempt to search for the keys in the dark without disturbing the still-working girl. She remembered she had only fifteen precious minutes. Unfortunately, she had missed a cable in the way and produced some scuffling noises. “Who is that?!” Tiffany demanded, her voice slightly wary. Taeyeon squeezed her eyes tightly shut as she felt the girl inching towards her. She will find out it is me sooner or later. Taeyeon then threw up both hands, as if she was surrendering. “It’s me, it’s me!” Instead of allowing Tiffany to let her guards down, the Creative Director got an even bigger shock and tripped herself over the very same cable. Taeyeon heard a crash followed by a sickening pop sound.

“Ouch! Damn, it hurts,” The Creative Director whined. “Oh my god! Are you okay?!” Taeyeon tried to help but there were insufficient lights. The girl ended up being more of a trouble than help when she had slipped as well and fallen on top of the other girl. A louder pop sound. “Ouch!!! Damn, damn, damn! It hurts even more now!” Tiffany screamed. The lights in the entire studio flickered on suddenly. “What happened in here?!” A voice shouted over to them. “Hey, the Kim girl, you in there?! You promised fifteen minutes, that was a good half an hour!” “U-Uh uncle I-I am here! I-I am sorry.” Taeyeon got up clumsily before trying to help the other girl up. Tiffany groaned as she got up with Taeyeon’s help but slumped before she could even fully stand straight up. Fortunately, Taeyeon caught her before the girl fell again.

**

I must have owed you something in my previous life. Tiffany complained mentally as she attempted to hop to her sofa without using any help. She winced when she had accidentally shifted her weight to her now-swollen ankle.

“Here, let me help you.” Taeyeon then slid an arm under the injured girl’s armpit and helped her to the sofa. Tiffany eyed the short girl with her injured leg propped up on the sofa. Taeyeon was busy helping her arrange her heels and preparing her painkillers. The injured girl pretended that she was not looking when Taeyeon walked over to her with some pills in her tiny hand and a cup of water. “Eat up.” The girl offered without looking at her. Tiffany took it sulkily and grimaced when she swallowed those bitter pills. “Follow the doctor’s instructions and eat the painkillers only when it hurts. Get your ankle re-bandaged when you find the need to,” Taeyeon instructed her expressionlessly. She is still angry... But damn, I am injured here, can’t she show more care and concern? Her conscious then scolded her when she thought again. She wouldn’t have sent you to the hospital and back home and even help you with your meds if she did not care for you. You idiot. “O-Okay. I will,” Tiffany answered like an obedient child. Silence then lingered between them like when they were in the café after discovering that they have misunderstood each other. The only difference was, there was no weather to talk about this time round. “U-Um… I am sorry for causing your plight.” Taeyeon nodded over to her injured ankle as she spoke but still avoiding Tiffany’s gaze.

You should at least look at me if you are sorry. Tiffany thought. “It’s okay.” That was all the mighty Tiffany Hwang could say before the uncomfortable silence took over the atmosphere once more. “Well then, I should get going…” Taeyeon spoke suddenly and headed for the door. Tiffany’s eyes widened as the girl turned to leave. “H-Hey… why did you go back to the studio for?” A part of Tiffany was actually hoping that she was back there for her but she knew it was not possible since Tiffany had been a jerk to her. It was all the more impossible since Taeyeon could not have known that she was there. It was then Taeyeon had remembered. The keys… She groaned inwardly for leaving the studio again without her keys. I’m going to sleep on the streets tonight… “U-Uh… well?” Tiffany urged her for a reply. “I was there to look for my keys,” Taeyeon grumbled. I would have found it if not for you, you clumsy girl. “Keys? You mean the keys to your house? Why did you leave it there?” Tiffany asked, genuinely surprised. Taeyeon let out an exasperated sigh and turned back to face her. “I, the clumsy Film Director, dropped it there, satisfied with the answer?” “U-Uh… so you do not have access to your house now?” Tiffany pressed on gently. She was clearly hoping for something but the short girl was too dense to sieve out that hint.

“Why else would I go back to retrieve it then?” Taeyeon asked with a raised brow. “It’s late now, besides you have got no transport of your own… Why don’t you…” Tiffany paused before stating the obvious. Is she… hinting for me to stay? The Film Director then scrutinised the injured girl’s face more closely. Indeed, there was a tinge of red spreading over her face. “Stay?” Tiffany suggested. Did she just tell me to stay?! In her house?! Taeyeon stared back at her host, flabbergasted. W-Why is she looking at me like that? Does she not want to stay? Tiffany thought as her eyes implored into Taeyeon’s own.

#7 Falling Just a day ago, Taeyeon would not have thought that she would ever meet Tiffany again. Now, here she was, sitting awkwardly in her ex-travelling-partner’s sofa, waiting for her turn to wash up. It all feels so hazy to her, actually, she still could not believe that this was happening. Fate had brought them together again and made them stay this way. Taeyeon shook those thoughts away from her head. Even though she was a great

fan of dramas and is a film director herself, she knew that the vicissitudes of life has forbidden their relationship to be a smooth-sailing one and will continue to hinder their progress. Besides, Taeyeon had not forgiven Tiffany, not when she had abandoned her in the hotel room and fled back to the country like a coward. Taeyeon knew it was rude for guests to explore the house on her own but since her host had told her to “treat the place as her own”, she had decided to take it literally. Besides, she was dying of boredom and Tiffany was taking far too long to shower. Taeyeon had not noticed that the Creative Director’s apartment was actually pretty impressive. Earlier, she had been slightly annoyed and did not have the mind to observe the place. The apartment boasted of a tasteful selection of furniture and art pieces to complement the interior layout of the house. However, there was one glaring omission from the house and Taeyeon took notice of it after she had finished touring the living room. They were no photos displayed unlike any other girl’s house. The Film Director could not hold back her curiosity and decided to scout for pictures, ignoring all guest protocols. Taeyeon scuttled over to what she thinks is Tiffany’s bedroom, turned the knob with much care and pushed open the door excitedly. She was greeted by a roomful of pink and the girl retched in reaction to the excessive amount of offensive colour. The girl only skimmed through the contents of the room and concluded that there was no photos in that room as well. The intruder could not bear to stay in that pink room any second longer and shut the door quickly behind her. Upon her exit, the guest giggled to herself shortly after. Who knew that Tiffany Hwang would have an obsession over the colour pink? The more she thought about it, the more uncontrollable her giggles grew. Taeyeon had nearly forgotten her original intentions to search for Tiffany’s pictures.

After she managed to regain control of her emotions, the girl then tried her luck with another door. What she discovered in the next second was beyond the imagination of the intruder. Taeyeon thought that she had stumbled into the messiest work room in her entire life. The floor was littered with sketches as well as stationaries, mostly broken pencils and crushed papers. Just as the intruder was about to give up search in this particular room, her eyes caught familiar sketches pinned up on the board. The intruder felt as if she was reeled in by those familiar sketches and tried to get closer to them, careful to avoid stepping on the “litters” scattered throughout the room. Despite having seen countless of storyboards, never has any one of it tug at her heartstrings like this before and she knew the reason why she felt this way. The storyboards were a vivid depiction of her time spent with Tiffany in Zimbabwe, particularly at the Victoria Falls. Every minute detail were sketched out to reflect the very emotions they felt back then. Their frustrated first meeting, their heightened tolerance for each other and their subsequent intimacy with each other. The girl felt her heart warming up at the sight of them. She had missed those moments too, and was glad that the Creative Director felt the same way as her. An inconspicuous sticky note jutting out from the side of the storyboard caught her attention and she leant in closer to scrutinise the piece of paper. Almost in an instant, she felt yet another flurry of emotions washing through her. It was a contact number but it was not any other contact number, it was her contact number. The girl stared at the piece of sticky note with her mouth opened stupidly. Tiffany she… she tried to contact me.

As if echoing her thoughts, Tiffany spoke from behind and almost caused her to jump. “I tried to contact you, you know?” Taeyeon then turned to meet her eyes with her host. She had no idea how she could not hear the injured girl coming but guessed that she had probably been too engrossed in the sketches. “I couldn’t bring myself to press the call button.” Tiffany’s eyes fell as she continued. “I am sorry I have been a jerk to you.” Taeyeon’s eyes widened at the girl’s confessions but knew not what else to say. It seemed as though Tiffany had given really serious thoughts about her words, the host let out a mirthless laugh before she spoke again. “I know it still does not change the fact that I am a jerk. Still… it would have been good if you could forgive me for my actions. I never thought that I would ever say something like this in my life but you made me want to do this. You make me feel like it is worth giving up my pride… I…” Tiffany did not have the chance to continue as the shorter girl had rammed herself into her chest, knocking out all the air from her and hugged her tightly. It felt like the first time when Taeyeon had accidentally squished her during their first meeting on the coach. “I like you, Tiffany Hwang. I tried to forget the fact that I fell for you in Zimbabwe but it didn’t go away. I like you way too much, jerk,” Taeyeon felt tears brimming her eyes as she confessed shamelessly.

Tiffany then pulled back and held the girl by her shoulders at arm’s length. She flashed a smile, it was such a genial and joyful smile that it brought a smile onto the Taeyeon’s tear-stained face. “Would be nice if you could call it quits on account that I’ve saved you countless times,” Tiffany teased then nodded down to her injured ankle. “Including today’s injury as well.” Taeyeon scoffed but broke out into an unstoppable chuckle. “You are such a jerk.” “Perhaps I am… your jerk. Your height makes it such a convenience for me to do this.” Tiffany then landed a kiss on the top of Taeyeon’s forehead who blushed a deep red in return. Tiffany gave a playful smirk at her own work. “Can we lie down somewhere else? My ankle’s kinda hurting already, you know.” “W-What?” Taeyeon was momentarily stunned at that suggestion. A witty comeback to the girl’s suggestion then hit her like a comet. “Sure, but can we not lie down in that pink room of yours?” The red on Taeyeon’s face seemed to have crept into Tiffany’s face. “Y-You are a really bad house guest.” Taeyeon then shrugged her shoulders. “You told me to treat this place as my own and so I naturally did.” “Since it is ‘so natural’ as you had claim then perhaps you should really make this place your own as well.” The same playful smirk then found its way back into Tiffany’s face as she spoke.

Taeyeon scoffed as her mind whizzed for another intelligent rebuttal. Their squabbles and volleying of witty comments did not cease even as the night grew deeper.

** During the next filming session, nearly a week later, the filming crew, as well as Amoeba’s team were both surprised to find the two Directors to be so much in tandem with each other. Not only were had they been working in harmony for the past several hours, the respective directors had also treated their staffs kinder than they ought to be. Taeyeon has finally discovered what the missing element during their previous filming session was. It was the element of thrill and feel. Yet, the Film Director still had her uncertainties and consulted the Creative Director. “Tiffany, is it really necessary to film such dangerous scenes? We could use graphic effects, you know?” Tiffany then tilted her head and made a scowl. “It wouldn’t feel the same. As you’ve pointed out earlier, these advertisement would be better with the element of thrill in it. Otherwise, the feels aren’t there.” “But…” Taeyeon wanted to argue but she could not come up with any good points. After all, she was the one who had brought up the lack of thrill and feel in their shots. “Very well then, we will proceed with these shots.” Tiffany found it odd that the Film Director seemed reluctant to film shots with involved the use of stunts, and by stunts, Tiffany meant those which requires their

artistes to be in the air. The Creative Director had thought it was every Film Director’s dream to be able to experiment with these hard-to-do shots, especially since Taeyeon had an exceptional amount of talent in filming and breathing life into her scenes. The Creative Director also realised that the Film Director was becoming more jittery and had been checking and rechecking the safety equipment for the past hour. Her nervousness soon became apparent to all the staffs instead of only Tiffany and whispers began to break out amongst them. The Creative Director was never one to eavesdrop, yet, she did so. Her curiosity was invoked because it involved Taeyeon and she genuinely cared about her. She scuttled close to a pair of gossipers who is amongst Taeyeon’s filming crew and listened. Between their exchange, Tiffany could distinctly make out two phrases. One of which was “her phobia was acting up” and the other “took a leave from filming”. That left the Creative Director more puzzled than ever. She could no longer reign in her curiosity and decided to interrupt the pair’s conversation. “What and whose phobia are you two talking about?” Tiffany tried to join in the duo’s conversation as naturally as possible even though she knew that there was only a slim chance that these two would be completely honest. This is especially so since all those who were involved in filming seemed to have gotten a hint that the two Directors shared an intimate relationship, or should have guessed so. As expected, the duo kept mum, and was surprised that the Creative Director was so near them during their conversation. “Go on, tell me, I promise your Director would not know of these, I already know you two are talking about her actually. I would not tell her who betrayed

information to me even if she did know.” Tiffany had decided to shed off her pretence and be as direct as possible. “I don’t even know the two of you anyway, so just hurry up and tell me.” The taller of the duo casted furtive glances all around her before speaking in a hushed tone. “Director Kim has traumatophobia and it is a well-known fact in the company.” Tiffany’s brows were knitted together in an instant when she heard the unfamiliar vocabulary. “Could you be kind enough to enlighten me what that actually means?” The staff sighed as she explained. “It actually means injury phobia. The fear of causing injury to oneself or to others.” That revelation caused Tiffany’s eyebrows to shoot up this time. Well then… I do not see her exhibit any fear when I got injured for her… “Director Kim has a big fear of injuries pertaining to the use of cables,” the staff hastily added upon noticing the incredulous look on the Creative Director’s face. Makes much more sense now. Cables? Something nasty must have happened when she used those cables then. Tiffany was beginning to piece the newly-attained information together by herself but decided to ask anyway. “What trouble did she get into when she used those cables?” Tiffany pressed on determinedly. Both the staffs were awe-stricken by the Creative Director’s quick-thinking as well as straightforwardness. They decided that there was no point in hiding anything

from her and that was how Tiffany got nearly all the information she wanted in no time. They had revealed that Taeyeon’s gifts for filming had actually been long recognised and was given a chance to be part of an important project of the company. She was an apprentice director for an action film, a sequel to a highestgrossing film and was performing up to expectations from both herself and others until a misfortunate incident happened. A stuntman who was to perform multiple dangerous scenes while on a safety cable had actually fallen from great heights when the safety cables that held him snapped suddenly. It happened on the first day Taeyeon became the supervising director for an action scene. Despite having rushed the stuntman to the hospital, the doctor concluded that he had lost the use of both his legs due to a fractured spine and can never fully recover. After several investigations and questionings had been conducted, the investigators ruled this as an unfortunate mishap. There were no foul-play on set and everyone, which obviously included Taeyeon, had adhered to all safety regulations. Taeyeon however, had blamed herself and attempted to resign from her post but was denied. Frustrated, the Film Director requested for a break instead and the company approved of her request conditionally. Tiffany pursed her lips as she concentrated on obvserving the paranoid director. Taeyeon was panicking over every single slip-up and apparent slack attitude. The situation finally reached a boiling point for the Film Director when the stuntman had disobeyed her instructions and almost slipped off a beam.

Tiffany saw the Film Director’s face ashen in an instant and thought the girl might just collapse right there and then. She hurriedly made her way towards Taeyeon and wrapped an arm around her waist when the Film Director was within reach. “You okay?” She asked, her voice full of concern. The Film Director merely shut her eyes and nodded. Her face was tired-looking, Tiffany reckoned it must be because the colour had not returned to her cheeks yet. “Let’s take a break from here,” Tiffany called out to the rest in the Film Director’s stead. Taeyeon muttered a weak ‘thank you’ to the other girl before going limp in her arms shortly after.

**

“Cut!” The girl shouted in her dream before she woke up with a start. Taeyeon felt someone dabbing wet towel carelessly against her forehead and strained her eyes to see who it was. “Hey, I thought I could finally have the house to myself,” the familiar voice exclaimed. Taeyeon let out a sigh but wore a smile shortly afterwards. “Yea, you’d wish I was dead then you would have to pay the full rent by yourself.”

Her housemate pouted defiantly in response. Taeyeon’s brought up a hand to her throbbing head as she attempted to get into her sitting position. “Hey, easy… You just fainted during work,” Yoona explained. “How did I get home so quickly?” The girl asked, she could only remember as far back to collapsing into the Creative Director’s arms. “Well… she sent you home?” “Who is she?” Taeyeon had a pretty good idea who she was but thought she should confirm her deductions. “Well… you can go outside to have a look, if you desperately wish to know.” Her housemate jerked a thumb to the door. The short girl got up with the help of her friend. A smile was plastered on her face once she witnessed the scene outside. The mighty Creative Director of Amoeba had fallen asleep in the most ungraceful sleeping position. Yoona rolled her eyes upon seeing the silly grin on her friend but was fortunate enough to hide it before her housemate could see. “Why is she sleeping on our sofa?” Taeyeon asked. Yoona shrugged. “She insisted on staying till you wake.” Yoona later shuddered at the sight of her friend’s cheeks growing redder and chewing her lips with all shyness. Something is definitely going on between them.

“Or would you rather she be resting in your bed?” Yoona suggested testily and that yielded positive results. The blush on Taeyeon became more obvious by the second and the girl was even twiddling her own fingers. Her housemate could no longer conceal her disgust at her friend’s display of shyness and did a grimace. “What?!” Taeyeon asked, sounding offended. “Ask yourself.” Her housemate began imitating her earlier actions and that caused Taeyeon’s face to flush red a third time from embarrassment. The girl then began assaulting her friend in every way she could think of and Yoona retaliated not realising that they were causing a din. Their fight was soon interrupted when their sleeping guest awoke. “Eh…? You’re awake already?” Tiffany mumbled as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, not noticing that a fight was taking place. The fight between the housemates was paused momentarily as the flustered Taeyeon attempted to make herself look right before their house guest and that left Yoona to giggle to herself. “U-Uh yea… I am fine already,” Taeyeon replied, throwing warning glances to her housemate. “Yeap, she is fine enough to fight me after I exposed of the relationship between the two-” Yoona’s sentence was cut short when Taeyeon slapped a hand over her mouth, refusing to let her elaborate. Yoona tried to wriggle out of the short girl’s grasp causing odd noises to be emitted from her covered mouth. Tiffany squinted her eyes at the bizarre action from the two. “Okay, well then. I should be leaving now since you’ve woken,” the girl spoke while stretching.

“So soon?! I-I mean…” Taeyeon’s eyes fell to the ground as she searched for words. “She means that she wants you to stay,” Yoona explained helpfully. Both Taeyeon and Tiffany’s eyes bulged in synchronisation at Yoona’s words. Yoona grinned to herself at the couple’s awkwardness in that situation. “Tiffany, on behalf of Taeyeon, I invite you to stay for the night. Would you be agreeable to it?” Yoona asked their guest playfully. “Y-Yea… I guess I am good with staying,” the guest replied, her eyes looking everywhere else except her two hosts. It was truly a miracle how the two could always end up staying with each other for the night. That was not to say that it was a bad thing for either of them, in fact, they were quietly glad about it. Tiffany however, was the gladder of the two that night. The Creative Director had some questions of her own that required answering from the other director. “Kim Taeyeon, is there something you want to tell me?” Tiffany began, her voice was gentle and understanding. Taeyeon bit on her bottom lips as she contemplated, hugging her soft toy tighter. Tiffany found her action adorable but that would not make her give in in her search of answers. “Well? Is there something a Creative Director should know of her work partner?” Tiffany pressed on, her voice slightly firmer this time round.

Taeyeon stammered and paused a few times before she took a deep breath and confessed. “I don’t think I can do those scenes for you Director Hwang. I am so sorry but I guess you’ve got to find another more competent director.” Her voice sounded strained as she tried to hold back those defiant tears. The Creative Director had been listening patiently to the girl the entire time, a feat for her actually. Her face remained stoic even when the Film Director had revealed her inability to complete the advertisement for her. Instead, she pulled the girl towards her into a hug and stroked her shoulders lightly. “It will be okay, really. I’ve learnt about your incident. I am not going to say words of consolation that others have already said to you but instead, I will be here for you and help you get over it,” Tiffany cooed and felt Taeyeon pressing herself against her own body more closely. A warm, wet patch then began spreading over her chest area. The Film Director had finally released her tears. “You’ve changed you know? From the first time I met you. You were so hostile back then... but now, now you are so gentle and loving,” Taeyeon spoke in between her sobs. Tiffany smiled reminiscently, it was true and she knew it herself. “Well… your image to me is still the same. Clumsy but cute. A minor correction there in your observation, I am only gentle and loving to a certain someone. A certain someone who is currently crying in my arms now.” Tiffany pulled back and offered her a smile, using a thumb to wipe off any remaining tears in the girl’s eyes. “But I will continue to be gentle and loving to this person for fear of seeing her tears once again.”

Taeyeon’s face reddened immediately then pulled the gentle and loving Tiffany into a bone-crushing hug. “You’re such a loving jerk.” Tiffany chuckled reply and said nothing more, nuzzling her head into the crook of the girl’s neck. The two remained in that position for a good hour before they fell asleep but they were still hugging even when they’re sleeping. Thank you Tiffany, thank you for being so gentle and loving to me. Thank you Taeyeon, for letting me have the chance to be gentle and loving to you.

**

Epilogue Taeyeon could not believe why she had actually complied with Tiffany’s request. Her legs had turned into jelly and were trembling uncontrollably as she willed herself to look down from the bridge. “Oh my god…” Even her voice was trembling. Her hands gripped onto the handrail till her knuckles had turned white as if she was holding on to her dear life.

“Afraid?” Tiffany spoke behind her, like Taeyeon, her safety gears and equipment were already secured. Taeyeon nodded her head rapidly, her eyes squeezed tightly shut, her pouty lips quivering slightly. The pair had made their way to Zimbabwe once again, however, they had made the trip there on their own accord this time round. There were no commitments to fulfil to their companies, only commitments to each other and themselves. The two Directors had requested for a week long break from their respective companies. They had come up with the most cliché excuse of requiring a break in order to improvise their advertisement concept. Now, here they are, back in Zimbabwe, standing on a bridge which was a hundred and eleven metres above the flowing rapids of the Zambezi River. The same river that they had met an accident with and almost drowned in. Once, they had been terrified of kayaking in fast-flowing water and now, they were afraid of having to plummet down towards the rushing rapids. Goosebumps rose all over Taeyeon as their safety instructor performed a final safety check on her harness and multiple safety ropes. I am going to kill myself. Taeyeon could not help but think of this insane activity as a suicide and her face had exposed her fear. Upon noticing the agonised expression on Taeyeon’s face, the Creative Director began to stroke the terrified girl’s hair affectionately. “You are going to be fine. Don’t worry, we are doing it together,” Tiffany soothed. “C-Can we do it tomorrow instead?” Taeyeon pleaded, her puppy eyes almost shining with tears.

Tiffany shook her head sternly. “Nope, we’re going according to our schedules. Tomorrow, we’re going to visit your favourite lion cubs again.” “B-B-But…” Taeyeon tried to protest but Tiffany had not given her a chance to. “No more buts. Let’s get ready.” Tiffany then guided the girl’s hands away from the railings to wrap around her own waist and did the same to the other girl, a couple bungee jump, as they called it. Tiffany then dragged the reluctant Taeyeon over to the edge when they heard the instructor’s commands. The Creative Director felt pity but amused at the same time when she felt the other girl’s body shaking uncontrollably against her bodice. “I am with you,” Tiffany whispered into the girl’s ears and pecked a gentle kiss on it. Taeyeon nodded hurriedly, praying for the ordeal to end soon. The instructor shouted commands that only Tiffany could understand. The Creative Director nodded her head calmly and inched closer towards the edge where they would leap from. Soft whimpers from Taeyeon were produced with each step made and Tiffany could only hugged the girl tighter to comfort her. This was actually Tiffany’s first bungee jump and like all first-timers, she was afraid. However, no matter how afraid she was, she promised to not let it show, especially not before Taeyeon. The Creative Director felt it her responsibility to become braver for the girl. I can do this. Tiffany felt adrenaline course through her body when she eyed the scene from below her. “Ready?! Jump!”

Another pathetic whimper from Taeyeon and then Tiffany let her body fall over the edge, bringing along the other girl with her. They fell. What happened next was a blur for the two girls. Tiffany could hardly see anything with the rush of cold wind stinging her eyes, it was not as if she wanted to see anything anyway. Her ears were tormented both from the angry rumblings of the Zambezi River as well as from Taeyeon’s piercing screams. The Creative Director made it a mental note to bring out mufflers the next time they bungee jump together. Then, the rope became taut and the two girls bounced with its rhythm, Taeyeon’s screams jerking with it. The pair continued bouncing for a while before they began to spin in mid-air. “Open your eyes Kim Taeyeon, you’ve made it,” Tiffany urged gently. Taeyeon felt a soft finger caress her tightly-shut lids and her eyes fluttered open, letting out a gasp while doing so. She was greeted by Tiffany’s smiling face. Taeyeon could not believe that they had actually taken the leap and were now hanging upside down. Despite herself hanging upside down, Taeyeon was once again enraptured by the scenery offered by nature, by Victoria Falls. Her mouth hung open stupidly as they continued spinning on the bungee rope. Her world had turned upside down and was spinning but she felt strangely comfortable in Tiffany’s arms. There were no responses from her partner initially and Tiffany’s worries grew, Taeyeon seemed to be in a complete daze and Tiffany thought that the girl had gone full retard. “Hey, talk to me, Kim Taeyeon. Are you okay?”

All her worries dissipated when Taeyeon squealed delightedly out of sudden and hugged her partner tighter than ever. Tiffany felt the air squeezed out of her lungs but was fortunately prepared for that, she had gotten so used to Taeyeon’s bonecrushing hugs. “We made it, we made it, we made it,” Taeyeon chanted in elation. Doing this together with Tiffany was indeed a beautiful choice. “Yes we did, but I may not be able to make it if you do not release me soon,” Tiffany joked. “Oh… I am sorry…” Taeyeon apologised, flustered, and slacken her hold around the girl in an instant. Tiffany chuckled and let out a sigh of contentment. “Well… this is the best feeling ever,” the girl proclaimed. “What is? Hanging upside down and in perpetual danger of falling into the rushing waters below? I disagree!” Taeyeon argued even though she felt otherwise. They had grown too used to bickering with one another after all. “This is an entirely new experience isn’t it? Quit complaining, you scaredy-cat. Who was the one who said I should start giving my praises generously the last time we were at Zimbabwe?” "That is the problem with you! Always so stingy with praises for anything. Can't you just drop the 'quite' and say that it is pretty?" Taeyeon lectured.

Taeyeon smiled as she reminisced, she had lectured the Creative Director for being stingy with her praises. “That does not mean that you need to praise everything especially not things like this. I swear this jump has shortened my life by at least ten years.” “It is okay, we still have tens of years to live together,” Tiffany assured. Taeyeon then began to find points to rebut her and once again, their volleying of arguments had started, even in the midst of a bungee jump. Taeyeon’s mind was completely distracted from the fact that she was still swinging from great heights of Victoria Falls. “You guys all right down there? Ready to come up?” They were finally interrupted when the echoes from the instructor reached them. There was a hint of irritation in his voice. The couple realised that they always managed to annoy their instructors during their visit to Victoria Falls. “U-Uh… yea. Help us up please,” Tiffany managed to reply. The two stuck out their tongues at each other when they had remembered that they were actually amidst performing a dangerous activity and put a pause to their arguments. Upon reflections, the couple learnt that there would be endless disagreements and arguments between them and they would be bickering in any and every place. Yet, not one of this disagreements nor arguments could be big enough to weaken the relationship they share. The bond that was formed during their travel to the world’s natural wonder, Victoria Falls. Instead of leaving our footprints behind in Victoria Falls, we left many of our cherished arguments and memories behind. We will never forget this place, the

place where many bonds were forged and many wonders were created, Victoria Falls.

**