A/N: First of all, thank you all for the subscriptions and hello to all new readers. A shot to celebrate #HBH! The usual, leave your thoughts in the comments and remember to upvote if you like it ^^ Also, would anyone be interested in having the EPUB or PDF files for these stories? If yes, I'll put up the download links so let me know that too through commenting. In the meantime, enjoy and keep listening to Heartbreak Hotel!

♪ Song of the chapter: Tiffany - Fool ♪ 

***

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

Tiffany opened the door and saw the CEO sitting behind the huge table. It is always stressful to enter this particular room of the agency no matter how many times she has been in here.

“You were looking for me, Mr. Park?”

“Ah yes, Fany. Sit down.”

Tiffany took the seat across the CEO.

“How have you been?”

“Good. A little tired from the schedules but it’s the good kind of tiresome.”

“That’s good. How do you find the agency after being here for almost five years?”

“Awesome, of course.”

“You can speak in all honesty, Fany.” CEO Park laughed.

“I’m not lying, it’s really awesome. Although my family is still back in America, it’s like I have a new family here in this homely agency. You’re like a father to me, I have friends who I’ve made during trainee period, current trainees who are like my younger brothers and sisters…” Tiffany smiled. “I’m not up to you, Mr. Park. It’s pure honesty.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Mr. Park sat up all of a sudden, making Tiffany tensed. “As you probably already know, your contract is coming to an end soon and I wanted to know if you have made any plans yet.”

“Ah, that.” Tiffany played with her fingers. “Not really.”

“I’m interested in signing you for another three more years if you would like. The terms will be almost the same as your current contract but everything is negotiable. I understand that you may want to take a break or go back to America and spend time with your family, it has been five years after all.”

“I um…”

“Relax, Fany. I’m not asking you to make the decision right now. I know you will need time to think about it thoroughly. Consider the offer and let me know your decision by next Friday if possible? We’ll need time to do planning for the next few months, regardless of your decision.”

“Yes, Mr. Park. I’ll let you know by then.”

“That’s pretty much all for now.”

“I’ll get back to practice then.” Tiffany stood up and bowed.

“No stress, Fany. Although I would love to keep you, I respect your decision more. Do what you need to do, okay?”

“Yes, Sir.”

===

Tiffany dragged herself to the kitchen to get a drink. After the talk with her CEO, she couldn’t stop thinking about the offer. Do I take it? Do I not take it? I really like singing, but it has been years since I last had a nice, proper meal with my family. And what about her? How long do I have to hide this? But my fans, the stage…

She felt a pair of arms circling her waist while she stared into space. She jumped a little.

“What were you thinking about that you didn’t even know I came in? Is something wrong?”

“Nothing.” Tiffany patted the hand that was on her abdomen.

The person let go and Tiffany turned around.

“Hi.” Tiffany placed her arms over the person’s shoulder, resting her hands behind the latter’s neck.

“Hi, but are you sure nothing’s wrong? You were so deep in your thoughts.”

“Don’t worry, Taeyeon-ah. Everything’s fine.” I’ll tell you in due time.

“Okay, if you say so.” Taeyeon smiled. “Your listening ear is always here if you need her.”

“I know.”

Tiffany rested her head on Taeyeon’s shoulder, muffling a sigh.

“Long day?” Taeyeon brought her closer, pulling her into a hug.

Tiffany nodded into her shoulder.

“Had dinner yet?”

“Nope.” Tiffany lifted her head while Taeyeon loosened her hold.

“Not hungry, diet, or forgot?”

“Forgot.”

Taeyeon shook her head. “I’m still amazed at how people can forget to eat. How do you forget such an important thing?”

Tiffany chuckled. “You’ll forget when you’re busy.”

“I only look forward to four things in one day so I’ll never forget.”

“What four things?”

“Breakfast, lunch, dinner and seeing you. Although sometimes the day goes by without the last part.”

“Sorry.” Tiffany said apologetically.

“Don’t be. I understand and I knew what I was getting into, remember?” Taeyeon smiled lightly.

Taeyeon always comforted her but Tiffany still felt bad. They started way back before Tiffany got signed to her current agency. They managed to pull through the trainee days by sneaking out at night after Tiffany was done with practice and since it wasn’t as strict for trainees, it was easier. However, after Tiffany made her debut, they found themselves drifting apart since Tiffany was beginning to get busier. It got worse when one of Tiffany’s soundtrack for a drama became a hit and every program wanted her on their show.

There was once when they decided to call it quits, as Taeyeon was tired of the sneaking and the unfulfilled promises that Tiffany made while Tiffany felt sorry for the constant disappointment she caused Taeyeon, but none of them could move on. Taeyeon convinced Tiffany that she would be able to handle it properly this time and that she loved her too much to not be with her. She even suggested them moving in together so that they can have more time to themselves, even if it was late at night. Tiffany gave in at last because she couldn’t forget about Taeyeon as well, on top of Taeyeon’s convincement. Sure enough, staying under the same roof did provide them more time to be with each other. They would still argue every now and then, but none of the fights lasted more than three days.

I understand where you’re coming from, Taeyeon-ah, but…

“Fany?”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t brood over what I’ve said. I’ll take it back.”

“It’s okay. I know I’ve disappointed you a lot throughout these years.”

“Hey,” Taeyeon held Tiffany’s hand tightly. “You are no disappointment, okay? I’m happy just being able to be here with you, holding your hand.” She gave Tiffany’s hand a squeeze. “Even if it just one minute, I’m still happier than if life went on without that sixty seconds.”

“Cheesy dork.” Tiffany chuckled.

“Your cheesy dork.” Taeyeon grinned. “Hungry yet?”

“A little.”

“Go take a rest then. I’ll make you your favorite kimchi fried rice.”

“Okay.” Tiffany kissed Taeyeon on her cheek. “Thank you.”

“No problem.”

Tiffany walked out the kitchen while Taeyeon looked through the fridge for the ingredients. She sighed. What do I do?

===

“Hey Daddy.”

“Hello princess. How have you been?”

“I’ve been well. You, Daddy? The weather’s getting colder there so take care of yourself.”

“I know, sweetie. Don’t worry about me. I’m more worried about you. Are you eating well? I saw photos from the event yesterday. You looked even thinner than before.”

“I’m eating well. Probably lost some weight while preparing for my next album.”

“Remember to have your meals even when you’re busy.”

“I know, Daddy. Don’t worry about me. Taeyeon’s taking good care of me too.”

“That I know.” Mr. Hwang chuckled. “I’ve been keeping tabs on you through her. We call each other quite often.”

“Ah, really?” Even my girlfriend calls my father more often. What kind of daughter am I?

“Yup. She’s my spy.”

“Why would you need a spy beside me?”

“To make sure my princess is well taken care of. She is miles away after all.”

“Daddy, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

Tiffany eanted to ask if she should continue her singing career, but she did not know how to phrase it. She contemplated on how to go about asking the question.

“Princess? Still there?”

“Yeah.”

“What did you want to ask?”

Tiffany decided not to ask.

“Nothing much,” Tiffany said. “I miss you, Daddy.”

“I miss you too. Take good care of yourself, okay? I’m holding Taeyeon responsible if you get any thinner.”

“Why Taeyeon? She’s innocent.”

“I’m joking. I have to get back to work, princess.”

“Okay. Take care too, Daddy. I’ll talk to you again. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Tiffany ended the call and sighed. The phone call made her missed her father even more. What do I do?

===

It was her debut anniversary and a special fanmeeting with her fans was held to celebrate it.

“We’ve just heard Tiffany’s biggest hit and wasn’t it amazing?”

The audience screamed and Tiffany smiled.

“We’ll be moving on to the next corner now while we let Tiffany drink and take a breath,” The emcee said. “We’ve asked you guys for your burning questions for Tiffany earlier and they’re in this box right now.” He tapped on the box that was in between him and Tiffany. “What kind of questions are there for the star right next to me? Go ahead and pick one whenever you’re ready, Tiffany.”

“I’m done catching my breath. I’m ready.” Tiffany laughed.

She picked out one of the pieces of paper from the box and gave it to the emcee. The emcee looked at the paper and chuckled.

“Wow, what a start to this Q&A.”

“What is it?”

“It says ‘Will you marry me?’”

“What a start indeed,” Tiffany laughed. “But I’m sorry to the person who asked this question.”

“Does that mean you’re dating right now?”

“As expected of emcees. You guys grasp any opportunities you have huh?”

“Of course. Emcees are quick on catching onto things. We’re literally grabbers,” The emcee joked. “So, back to the question. Are you dating?”

“I’m not going to answer that.” Tiffany giggled.

“Does that mean yes?”

“Let’s go on to the next question, oppa.”

“Alright then. Don’t want your fans to start throwing bottles at me for torturing you with the interrogation.”

“My fans are nice and they wouldn’t do that, but let’s move on since we’re running out of time.” Tiffany dug her hand into the box again. She passed another piece of paper to the emcee.

“And the next question is…” The emcee read the piece of paper. “Are there any comeback plans?”

“Since it’s my debut anniversary and a happy day, I’ll just leak a part of the secret. Yes, there is a comeback plan that’s in the works right now.”

The audience cheered loudly at the news.

“That has gotten your fans to be really excited. Is it possible to leak just a little bit more?”

“Okay, I’ll just leak just a bit more. You can expect self-composed songs in the upcoming album.”

The audience cheered again, even louder this time.

“Now I really have to stop here before my agency scolds me for leaking the plans.” Tiffany laughed. “Please wait and look forward to it.”

The question and answer session went on for another fifteen minutes before they were asked to move on due to the lack of time.

“Unfortunately, that was our last question since we’re running out of time. I had a great time hosting your fanmeeting, Tiffany. Thank you for calling me.”

“Thank you, oppa.”

“It’s time to say goodbye to your idol but before this ends, you’re going to sing one more song for your fans right?”

“Yes. It’s an unreleased song, actually. It’s a self-written track and I wanted to share it with all of you on such a special day. I hope you’ll like it.”

“Sounds exciting already. I’ll let you take back the stage again then. Thank you again and have a great night everyone!”

“Thank you too, oppa.” Tiffany turned back to face the audience after giving the leaving emcee a bow. “Here’s Bittersweet and Crazy and I hope you’ll enjoy it.”

===

The fanmeeting gave Tiffany an even harder time. She was stuck between the two choices. Now that she got her lifelong dream fulfilled, which was making and touching the world with her music, she wanted to spend more time with her loved ones, but on the other hand, she did not want to leave the stage. It has given her so many precious memories and also because she still loves singing. Her passion is still burning. Every time she hears her fans cheering for her while she’s standing up there, the feeling inside her is inexplicable. Of course, her family and Taeyeon are able to make her happy too, but it was a different feeling. A feeling that she doesn’t know how to describe either.

She was on the bed, leaning against the headboard, while scrolling her Twitter timeline and checking the mentions from her fans when Taeyeon lied down next to her. Tiffany placed her phone aside.

“How was work?”

“The usual,” Taeyeon sighed. “Got a really difficult client to handle but I’ll survive.”

“I hope the client isn’t pretty.”

“I don’t care if she’s pretty if she’s this difficult.”

“But I’m not liking the idea of you facing a pretty client.” Tiffany frowned.

“Possessive huh, Miyoung?” Taeyeon smirked. She gave Tiffany a peck on her lips. “Don’t worry, the client’s an ahjusshi.”

“Thank god.”

“Maybe I should find a pretty client. I like possessive Miyoung.”

“Don’t you dare.”

“Feisty.” Taeyeon laughed. “I’ll try to avoid them then.”