After their promotions, there was little time for lying idle. SM Town in Tokyo was in a couple of days, and with the simultaneous release of Hot Summer in Japanese version, promoting was inevitable. The harsh practices that stretched to late nights were back.

But at the very least, Amber managed to catch up with the rest of the world. With the birth of her Twitter account, fans (especially international ones) embraced her presence in the world wide web. She even sales-talked the rest of the members into making their own accounts. 

Victoria said she was advised to make a Weibo account really soon since she's the strongest in the Chinese market and could easily gain a mass of followers.

Luna said she hadn't really thought about having another SNS account other than me2day. 

Krystal said she wouldn't know what to post.

"You could post anything as long as you're really careful." Amber told her while waiting in one of the company's conference room. They were to meet with the staff and their managers for the final preparations for Luna's birthday which was next week. "The hundreds of selcas in your phone would be put to good use."

"You know the hundreds of pictures in my phone aren't just of me, right?" Krystal smirked. She was seated between Amber and Victoria, while Luna sat on Victoria's other side. Sulli's absence due to her individual schedule was duly noted.

Amber's face darkened, "No. Don't. Please don't."

"Why are you nervous? Besides, I think we're talking about the wrong social media platform." 

"What? Facebook? Weibo? This instant-- something?" 

"Instagram." Krystal reached out to the stack of folders in the middle of the table. "It's not entirely personal, right?"

"Mostly, but we'd have to promote one way or another." Amber, who was closer to the pile, reached out as well and handed her one. She purposely let their fingers brush against each other.

Their eyes met and while Krystal raised an eyebrow, stoic as ever, Amber was trying to fight a smile off. Victoria looked up from the paper she was reading, and they went on to their own businesses, checking and double checking the plans for Luna's party.

The rest of the staff arrived and they watched and reviewed the presentation of the event. Around ten people were in the room, mostly the managers and the staff exchaging words about details such as which fans were going to be allowed, if Luna's twin sister was going to be there as well, what kind of food will be served, and the like. 

Luna was very lively despite the consecutive nights of lack of sleep. Victoria asked questions and was very good in not hinting anything about the surprise part of the event. Amber was suddenly asked about her opinion about being a part of the emcee committee with Victoria but she started stuttering mostly because underneath the long table, Krystal was tracing the outline of her fingers with her own. 

Krystal pulled her hand and turned away. When Amber glanced at her, Krystal grabbed a handful of her hair to cover her nose and mouth. She proceeded to laugh quietly by herself.

It had been almost half a day since they last held hands. 

The need to touch Krystal grew every day. Whenever Amber was out with people there were times when all she could think about was being able to hold her again.

Not to be greedy (which Amber denied herself to be), but they had been sleeping together every night, alternating between her room and Krystal's. To be fair. When they were alone they talked and laughed and played. But that was it. By the end of the night, the space between them remained unoccupied except for their linked hands. 

They made a deal (Krystal pitched the idea) that the visitor of the room they occupied would have to get up and go back to her own room before the rest of the members wake up. 

When Amber asked why they needed to hide, Krystal reasoned that they were not hiding, as there was nothing to hide, but rather, they were being careful. The rest of the members might think they're drifting farther from the group.

It was basically the same thing as hiding but, well...

Whatever.

It became their special game of hide-and-seek.

The routine grew more troublesome everyday, mostly because everyone's schedule kept on changing. Their practices pushed their sleeping hours past midnight. In turn, their morning alarms extended for several, unpredictable minutes.

After the meeting, the four of them went straight to the practice rooms. Most of their sunbaes were there too, practicing rigorously in the middle of the night for the Tokyo tour. Curt bows and greetings were exchanged. Amber had to hype Krystal up after finding out SNSD had already left an hour earlier. They missed SNSD again.

When they got back to their dorm, no one was speaking anymore. The past few days, the four of them and Sulli arrive home almost at the same time. Amber, Sulli and Krystal were spending a few minutes dozing off in the living room, waiting for their turn for the bathrooms to remove their make-up.

While Sulli and Krystal shared a couch, Amber occupied one seat herself. Even at a distance of a seat apart, their hands remained linked, albeit loosely, fingers curled around each other.

"Am I dreaming or are you holding hands again?" Sulli asked with half-closed eyes.

"Does it matter?" Krystal muttered under her breath.

Amber heaved a sigh. When everyone was done removing their makeup, they all mumbled tired good-nights. Victoria reminded them that though their flight to Japan was around noon so they have to wake up early for practice.

Amber went to her room as Krystal went