- twenty three -

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"Rina."

"Karina."

"Yu!"

Karina woke with a start when her blanket was tugged from overtop of her, causing her to fly off the edge of the bed and land on the ground with a thud. She groaned, still half asleep, and glared at Giselle and Ningning standing above her.

"You've brought it upon yourself," Giselle tossed the blanket on the floor. "Today's the day, get dressed and get your ass downstairs for breakfast."

The brown eyed girl waited until her roommates were gone to untangle herself from the blankets and stumble up to her feet. Today was the day. Winter's trial. The day where things could suddenly become 100% more real for her.

Telling herself not to think about it, Karina blasted music from her speakers to keep her mind occupied. She got changed into leggings and a band t-shirt, throwing her leather jacket overtop of it to accommodate the declining temperature.

She looked at herself in the mirror, realizing just how exhausted she looked. It matched the way she felt. Sighing, she splashed cold water on her face to try and wake her up. It didn't help much.

The moment she set foot in the kitchen, a bowl of cereal was shoved into her hands. Yeji gave her a soft smile and nodded towards their other roommates in the living room. Karina sat down on the carpet since the couches were full, realizing she was sitting in Winter's usual spot. She swallowed a lump in her throat and glanced up at her roommates.

"Nervous?" Ningning asked her. Karina nodded, taking a bite of her food and picking at a loose strand of carpet.

"You're not the only one," the light skinned girl responded, motioning to the other two girls on the couch as well as herself. "None of us know what to expect."

Karina bit her lip. At least she wasn't alone in this. She didn't know what she would do if she had been handling this by herself. "Thank you guys," Karina whispered, nodding once. "I dunno what I'd do without you."

"We were thrown in this together, it's only fair that we stick it out together," Yeji nodded, giving the girl on the floor a soft smile. Karina returned the gesture and finished the rest of her breakfast in silence. This was a bad thing, though, because it only allowed her thoughts to race.

Regardless of what happened that day, she would be in the same room as Winter. She would see her face, and she kept trying to hold onto that simple blessing. And maybe, just maybe, she'd get to hug her.

The car ride to the courthouse was dead silent aside from Giselle's occasional complaints about traffic. All four girls were on edge. Karina picked anxiously at her nails, a nervous habit she's had since she was a child.

"Here we are," Giselle breathed out. Parking the car, the Japanese girl gazed at the building in front of them and took a deep breath. The minute Karina saw the name of the building, she felt sick to her stomach. This was really happening, this wasn't just a dream.

The three other girls slid out of the car, but Karina sat frozen, running over everything in her mind. This was real. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, turning to find Giselle holding out a hand to help her out of the car. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Karina allowed the other girl to lead her out of the car and up the steps to the courthouse.

Ten minutes later, the four friends sat on an uncomfortable wooden bench, all scanning the room nervously. Karina bit her lip.

"I feel sick to my stomach," she mumbled. Yeji, who was sitting next to her, placed a hand on her knee and gave her a supportive smile. Karina just sighed and looked down at her hands in her lap.

Yellow - WinrinaWhere stories live. Discover now