Chapter 252: Jessica

Evening.

In 2013 Seoul, the sky had just been dyed with a layer of soft orange-red; the sky looked like a watercolor painting gently blurred by someone, carrying a quiet warmth.

The members of Girls' Generation, having been busy all day, finally finished today's rehearsal and began to pack their things one after another.

Today's rehearsal ended earlier than usual, mainly because Sunny had to go to a radio event later, and Kwon Yuri also had filming arrangements.

Coupled with the fact that Jessica left early, there were quite a few people missing, so continuing to rehearse wouldn't be efficient, and thus everyone finished work early.

At this moment in the practice room, the music had only just stopped, and the final echoes still lingered in the air, as if the rhythm of the dance was still pulsing on the walls and wooden floor.

The faint scent of sweat mixed with the aroma of the wooden floor, carrying a trace of youthful restlessness.

Kim Taeyeon was bending over, stuffing water bottles, towels, and spare practice clothes scattered all over the floor into her bag one by one.

Just as she was lowering her head to tidy up, her arm was suddenly nudged hard by someone's elbow.

"Taeyeon~"

Sunny's familiar voice rang in her ear; she was squatting beside her, tilting her head and smiling with a face full of gossip, her eyes seemingly sparkling.

"What do you think is up with Jessica today?" She blinked and leaned in closer. "After taking a call, she ran off in a hurry. I've never seen this happen before."

"Ah~"

Kim Taeyeon, who was looking down while packing, raised her head to look at her, blinked, and revealed a slightly helpless smile on her face. "I don't know either. Probably an urgent matter."

Sunny immediately rolled her eyes, swinging the towel in her hand, her tone carrying a little dissatisfaction. "Nonsense, of course I know it's an urgent matter. I'm asking you what the matter is!"

Kim Taeyeon, amused by her expression, shook her head gently, looking like she truly didn't know.

But in reality, she already had a few guesses in her heart.

Because when Jessica received the call, both she and Lin Xiaolu heard the other person blurt out the name "Lin Xiuyuan."

Thinking of this, Kim Taeyeon's gaze involuntarily looked toward Lin Xiaolu, who was packing her things on the other side.

Lin Xiaolu over there seemed to have thought of the same thing; she happened to look up and meet her gaze. The two of them exchanged a look of tacit understanding for a moment, and almost simultaneously nodded gently, confirming each other's thoughts.

Sunny, who had been watching the two's reactions all along, saw this small, tacit interaction and felt even more itchy. She couldn't help but put her hands on her hips and hummed in frustration. "Hey, hey, hey!!! What is the meaning of these little actions between you two? Can you include me in the gossip? My heart is itching like crazy right now."

Lin Xiaolu just smiled faintly and didn't say anything, as if deliberately keeping her in suspense.

Kim Taeyeon, on the other hand, pretended to be serious and shrugged. "There's no gossip. I just made an appointment with YoonA to go to the bistro later."

"Tch, the bistro again."

Sunny sighed while reaching out to pinch her shoulder, her expression exaggerated. "Fine, fine, I knew you two bad eggs would definitely use this excuse to fob me off again."

After saying this, she grabbed her coat and bag and walked out nimbly.

Before leaving, she didn't forget to turn back and wave at them, her voice carrying a trace of helpless amusement. "But forget it, I still have to go work for the radio station. Even if there's gossip, I don't have time to eat it. Leaving now~"

After Sunny left, the remaining members also left one after another, and soon the practice room became a bit quieter.

Lin Xiaolu finished packing her things, tied her hair into a neat ponytail, and walked out of the building one after the other with Kim Taeyeon.

By this time, the sunset had already dyed the entire parking lot a warm orange, and the dim yellow light fell on their shadows, stretching them very long.

After arriving at the parking lot, Lin Xiaolu sat right into Kim Taeyeon's car, and with the roar of the engine, the car slowly drove away from the company.

And in the car, Lin Xiaolu, who had just fastened her seatbelt, spoke up. "I already asked Sulli just now."

Her brows were slightly furrowed as she spoke, her tone carrying undisguisable worry. "But she said it's hard to explain over the phone, and we'll talk when we meet."

Upon hearing this, Kim Taeyeon's brows also furrowed slightly, and the premonition in her heart deepened by another layer.

So she didn't say much, just took a deep breath, and her foot pressed deeper on the accelerator unconsciously, speeding toward Lin Xiuyuan's apartment.

The sunset sank bit by bit, the sky turned dim yellow, and the city lights began to light up one after another at the street corners.

By the time the car slowly stopped downstairs at Lin Xiuyuan's apartment, the sky had completely faded from the brightness of the day, revealing a bit of stillness.

Kim Taeyeon took a deep breath first to calm herself down, then got out of the car with Lin Xiaolu and walked quickly into the apartment building.

When the two took the elevator to the 7th floor and pushed open the apartment door to enter.

They found that the lights in the living room were already on, but the atmosphere was unusually quiet.

Just as they looked at each other and exchanged a glance, a familiar figure suddenly appeared at the doorway of the bedroom not far away.

"Unnie, you're here."

Sulli was holding a glass of water with a straw, a bright smile on her face, her tone carrying a trace of relief, but also a bit of caution.

"Mm, just got off work." Kim Taeyeon nodded and went straight to the point. "By the way, Xueqiu~ Jessica ran over suddenly this afternoon, did something happen on Lin Xiuyuan's side?"

"You said just now it's hard to talk over the phone, what's going on?" Lin Xiaolu also asked.

Sulli put the water glass back on the coffee table, tilted her head to look at the bedroom door behind her, raised her hand to scratch her hair, and revealed a helpless and subtle expression. "Actually, the answer is inside... How about you go in and see for yourselves?"

The two looked at each other and, almost without hesitation, pushed the door open and walked in one after the other.

The bedroom lights were soft, and the air was mixed with a faint woody fragrance and a bit of tension.

The two who had just stepped into the room were stunned on the spot in the blink of an eye.

On that large bed, Jessica was lying there, tied up tightly.

Her hands were tied to her sides, her posture appearing somewhat disheveled, yet surprisingly she was not struggling; instead, there was a calmness on her face that was almost eerie, as if she had already accepted this situation.

At the same time, she was no longer wearing a gag, having switched to a simple medical mask; Sulli had clearly just fed her water.

It was mainly because Sulli had communicated with Jessica earlier that the soundproofing of this room was specially designed, so even if she really shouted, it would be useless, and she would end up with props instead.

At that time, Jessica nodded, which counted as agreeing to Sulli.

Her eyes were complex at the time, and the look she gave Sulli contained surprise, relief, and a bit of softness as if she were recalling the past.

Returning to the present, when Kim Taeyeon and Lin Xiaolu saw this scene in the room, they were completely scared silly by this sight.

It was mainly because they didn't know Krystal's plan at all, and only thought Lin Xiuyuan had gone crazy, actually tying the 25-year-old Jessica directly here.

As for why the two recognized at a glance that the person on the bed was Jessica and not the other Jessica, it was very simple.

The clothes and hair color were different.

"This... what is going on?"

Lin Xiaolu stood frozen on the spot, looking back at Sulli in disbelief, her voice half a degree higher than usual.

Kim Taeyeon also couldn't help but raise her volume. "Are you guys playing for real?!"

Sulli spread her hands, her expression a bit helpless, and had no choice but to spill everything that happened in the afternoon.

She told the whole process of how Lin Xiuyuan said Jessica suddenly blocked the door and then refused to leave, and how he had no choice but to "invite" the other party here.

Jessica on the bed listened quietly, the frustration and annoyance in her eyes deepening bit by bit, yet she never interrupted.

She could feel that her current situation and condition were incomparably absurd, but for a moment she didn't know how to speak, so she could only look at the ceiling silently, as if only silence could maintain her final calmness.

And as Sulli's explanation gradually became complete, the shock of Kim Taeyeon and the other slowly turned into complex silence.

Soon, Kim Taeyeon, having finished listening to the answer, stepped to the bedside and couldn't help but lower her head to examine Jessica lying on the bed.

This was her first time seeing Jessica twelve years later.

The corners of her eyes and brows were sharper than in her memory, yet she had more elegance and restraint precipitated by time. Even though she was tied up at this moment, she still carried that cold temperament, like a piece of jade polished smooth by time but still cold.

The two's gazes met in the air.

Jessica also looked quietly at Kim Taeyeon before her.

This young version of Kim Taeyeon still had some baby fat that hadn't completely faded, and between her brows was a clarity and straightforwardness that hadn't been bent by heavy burdens.

This sudden meeting made Jessica feel a soreness in her heart, as if she had seen the stage she had tried so hard to protect.

So, they were that bright back then.

Her thoughts inevitably drifted back to the past ten years, recalling those heavy and difficult moments.

And Kim Taeyeon stared at Jessica on the bed, complex emotions surging in her heart.

Before this, she had long known the other party's direction from the 2025 news, seeing this name in various rumors, but only when truly seeing this future Jessica face-to-face did that heartache and regret truly land in her heart.

"Long time no see, Taeyeon~"

At this moment, Jessica's voice spilled out gently from under the mask, coldness carrying a trace of imperceptible nostalgia.

The team leader from twelve years ago... she indeed hadn't seen her for a long time.

At the same time.

Over at the 25-year-old villa, Lin Xiuyuan and the others, who had been called down by Krystal after she finished talking, were once again sitting around the sofa.

Looking at the two pairs of almost identical twins, herself and Zheng Xiujing, Park Jiyeon couldn't help but become interested, tilting her head and asking curiously, "Xiujing, how should we address you two? We can't just call you both Xiujing."

Zheng Xiujing was stunned for a moment, subconsciously looking at Krystal.

And the latter just shrugged gently, her expression very calm as she indicated, "Didn't we divide it up before? I'm called Krystal, she's called Zheng Xiujing, one name for each person, how could we not tell them apart?"

The originally somewhat tense atmosphere was lightly dissolved by her words.

To this, Park Jiyeon immediately curled her lips, and her gaze instantly turned to herself... uh, Dalongzai.

That look carried a bit of disgust, and some helplessness, and even faintly revealed provocation. "Hear that? Names are for young people to use, 'Park Jiyeon' is what I'm using."

Dalongzai couldn't help but laugh out loud, lazily replying, "The way you say that, according to your logic, what about YoonA unnie, and Taeyeon unnie?"

Seeing the two were about to bicker again, Jessica stood out from the side and clapped her hands to interrupt them. "Alright, alright, you can argue later. Now that we've handled the situation here, shouldn't we go back to the apartment to check on Jessica?"

Hearing this, everyone looked at Lin Xiuyuan one after another.

Lin Xiuyuan raised his eyebrows, his gaze sweeping over everyone, and seeing that everyone nodded, he stood up and took the lead to walk toward the Time Gate.

It was just the time to open a door, and the group returned to the 2013 apartment just like that.

Zheng Xiujing, who had experienced this thrilling situation again, was still a bit dazed and somewhat trance-like.

Such a big thing as time travel, was it really that simple?

Lin Xiuyuan, who had just entered the door, saw at a glance that Kim Taeyeon and Lin Xiaolu were already sitting on the sofa in the living room, clearly having just finished talking about something with Sulli beside them.

Others also found a seat one after another, and this space, neither big nor small, was filled with people in the blink of an eye.

Then Lin Xiuyuan looked at the two, Lin Xiaolu, with some curiosity. "Why are you two here?"

"Mm, about the afternoon. You called unnie away so anxiously, could we not be anxious?" Lin Xiaolu replied.

Her gaze swept over the bedroom door, carrying a bit of inquiry.

And Krystal looked at the living room, which was getting more and more crowded, thought for a moment, and still invited everyone to the small hall next door, leaving the living room and bedroom space here for herself and Jessica.

As the bedroom door was gently closed, along with the departure of the people outside, the air suddenly quieted down, leaving only the sound of the two's breathing as they looked at each other.

Jessica was still lying on the bed as before; although her hands and feet were tied, the expression on her face had recovered a bit of calmness and coldness.

She looked at Krystal, silent for a long while, before speaking. "Xiujing, what exactly are you thinking?"

Krystal pursed her lips, sat on the edge of the bed cautiously, and awkwardly avoided the gaze of her own sister, not quite willing to admit her plan for a moment.

"Are you really planning to let that guy... fill me up?" Jessica, speaking again, had a tone carrying a bit of cold humor.

For this, Krystal's expression was also a bit complex, her brows furrowed, not knowing how to start.

Clearly, all the rhetoric she had thought of before became useless words when facing Jessica.

Jessica narrowed her eyes, smiling but not smiling. "Looks like you have other ideas? Can you tell me, this 'victim', so I can also know how I was schemed against?"

Facing this thorny ridicule, this time Krystal was silent for a moment, did not avoid it again, but took a deep breath and pointed to her own face.

"Unnie, don't you want to know what's going on with me now? Actually, this is Xiuyuan's masterpiece. Not just me, but also YoonA unnie, Taeyeon unnie, and Jiyeon, Juli unnie and the others."

Jessica was stunned for a moment, her gaze lingering on Krystal's face for a long time, her brows furrowing slightly.

Immediately after, Krystal also patiently explained Lin Xiuyuan's "Time Gate" concept, the connection between the past and the future, and the situation of the Anywhere Door to Jessica bit by bit.

Compared to the kind of passing-by narration Lin Xiuyuan had given Jessica before.

Krystal spoke more meticulously and with more patience, almost without missing any details.

As the narration progressed, Jessica's expression went from suspicion and solemnity to emotions surging layer by layer in her eyes, as if she had experienced a silent storm.

Finally, after Krystal finished speaking, Jessica had digested it almost enough, raised her eyes to look at this younger sister of hers, and opened her mouth with a sentence. "So this is the reason you plan to send me to Lin Xiuyuan's bed?"

Seeing Krystal did not answer her.

Jessica shook her head slowly again and added a sentence lightly. "Not enough, give me another reason to make me willing."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 253 =====