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She looked up from her phone when she realized the model was ready and she set it onto her worktable before walking over to the white photography backdrop. When the model was seated onto the wooden stool, she gave him a thumbs up as if saying he could start whenever he was ready.

For the next while, she changed positions from standing to crouching and walked left and right to get all the different angles.

When his manager called for an outfit change, she straightened up and walked over towards the computer to see how the photos turned out. She nodded in satisfaction when she realized they came out nicely and wouldn’t need much editing.

She looked up when someone came up behind her and stepped over slightly so he could see the screen.

“They turned out well, don’t you think?” she asked, smiling up at him.

He nodded, turning to her. “They did. You always know where my good angles are, Mina.”

She laughed at his comment and rolled her eyes. “Are you trying to fish for compliments?”

He grinned. “It was worth a try.”

Shaking her head, she turned to walk back to her original spot when he walked across the white floor and towards the stool again.

The process continued for another hour and by then, she had gotten enough photos to cipher through to keep her busy for the rest of the day. She shook hands with his manager and the other staff members who were helping out with their rental hour.

“Thank you for contacting me,” she said. The manager chuckled. “We always do. You’re one of the best photographers around with a big following and not to mention, it’s hard to find a photographer who can put up with Hyungwon.”

Hyungwon, who heard his name amidst the conversation, turned around to shoot his manager a fake laugh before returning to the person he was talking to on the phone.

She laughed. “That’s true. I’ll come by your office and drop off the prints when I’m done.” He nodded. “Sounds good. We’ll keep in touch, then.”

She watched him walk over to Hyungwon and give him a clasp on the shoulder before walking out of the room. She walked over to put her camera back into her bag and she checked her phone in the process.

She was about to open up the text messages she received when Hyungwon called her name from behind and she turned around to see him walking towards her.

“Do you have another shoot after this?” he asked. She hummed, thinking about it for a second before shaking her head.

“No, this was my last one of the day.”

He grinned at her answer. “Let’s go grab dinner, then. I’ll treat.”

Mina chuckled. “You’re not afraid your fangirls will see you? I’m not prepared to have my picture trending on social media with hate messages.”

He rolled his eyes. “It’s late, nobody’s going to recognize me.”

She raised a challenging brow at his comment but still, she got her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

“I’ll pull the car up to the front. I’ll meet you downstairs.”

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Mina reached over for her cup and brought it to her lips while keeping her eyes glued to her computer screen. She frowned when she realized she had no coffee left in her cup after tilting it to her lips. She let out a sigh, pushing her chair back and walking towards her kitchen to put the cup into the sink.

She walked back over to her desk and plopped down into her chair. She stretched her arms over her head, letting out a yawn.

Deciding to take a break from editing, she grabbed her phone and lay down onto the bed.

She almost dropped her phone flat onto her face when it began ringing. She picked up and brought the phone to her ear.

“What?”

“God, is it that hard for you to pick up my phone calls with a proper greeting?”

She laughed, turning to her side. “What do you want, Changkyun?”

“Want to come out? I’m playing tonight.”

She thought about it for a second. “Where?”

“At Club 5:14.”

She froze upon hearing the name and she frowned immediately. “Is this a joke? ‘Cause it’s not funny, Changkyun.”

“A lot of our friends from university will be here tonight. I thought it’d be fun to see them all again.”

She took her phone away, placing it on speaker and rolling to the farther side of the bed. Changkyun noticed her silence and she heard him sigh from the other end.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to go. I just thought I’d ask you. If you do decide to come, I’ll be there with you.”

She stayed quiet.

“Call me if you can make it. Doors open in two hours.”

She heard the dial tone and turned back around after he hung up the phone. She looked at the time and let out a sigh, laying onto her back and putting an arm over her eyes.

She bit her lip, staring at her phone for a few seconds before she let out a groan, throwing her phone onto the bed. Grabbing her bathrobe hanging on her chair, she went into the bathroom to take a shower.

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Mina entered the club and she blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness and strobe lights. The music was blaring in her ears and she could feel the speakers loud enough that her entire body was feeling the vibrations.

She made a straight line towards the back to the DJ booth and called out his name. He turned when he saw her standing on the side and he grinned, giving her a salute. He waved her onto the stage but she shook her head, pointing behind her and he opened his mouth, knowing what she was gesturing to.

She walked past the people, finding the familiar faces that she had texted earlier. She found them off to the side in a booth and she walked over, waving.

“Mina! Changkyun said you wouldn’t make it,” one of the guys said, standing up to pull her into a hug. She laughed. “Well, he managed to drag me out as usual.”

She sat down and turned to the five other people there. “How have you all been? How long has it been since we saw each other?”

Mina got lost catching up with everyone and she realized after a while of drinking, she was beginning to feel light headed. She excused herself to go to the washroom and once she was inside, she bent over the sink, gripping onto the edges.

She shook herself awake, looking into the mirror to see if her makeup had smudged at all. After fixing her makeup and hair, she opened the door to leave the washroom.

She ran into someone and she stumbled back, feeling dizzy from the impact. She felt someone reach out to grab her arm to steady her and she looked up to see who it was.

“Are you okay?”

She frowned, seeing that it was an unfamiliar face. Nonetheless, she nodded and thanked him. However, as she made her way past him, he grabbed onto her arm again and pulled her back. She collided against his chest and she winced.

“I recognize you. You’re Song Mina, aren’t you?”

Upon hearing her name, she looked up. She blinked, trying to get a clearer picture of who this man was standing in front of her but no names matched up with the face.

“I am, yes,” she nodded.

The man grinned, pointing to himself. “You don’t remember me? You shot for me a few months ago. Jang Daeho?”

She shook her head, even more confused and lost. “I don’t, sorry.” She furrowed her eyebrows when she saw his expression drop and he rolled his eyes.

“Wow, after ignoring my texts for so long, you’re even ignoring me in person?”

Her frown deepened and she pushed him off her. She cocked her head. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She let out a yelp when he pulled her back and leaned down. “Then why not have a couple of drinks with me to jog your memory? We can catch up.”

She was beginning to grow annoyed but with the light-headedness she was feeling, she wasn’t in the right mind to refute when he began to drag her away. It was only when someone pulled her arm from behind did she startle awake.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?”

She looked back and her eyes rounded, seeing Hyunwoo standing there. He was staring at the man who had ahold of her other arm.

“I was just catching up with a friend. Who are you?”

Hyunwoo raised an eyebrow, looking between her confused expression and his eyes. “I don’t think that’s the case. Let her go.”

“Chill, are you her boyfriend or something?”

Hyunwoo pulled her behind him. “It doesn’t matter who I am to her but as the manager of this club, it’s my duty to keep an eye out if there’s people trying to take advantage of someone drunk.”

The man’s eyes widened and he held up his hands. “I’m sorry, man. I crossed the line.” He kept his head down as he walked past Hyunwoo and her before disappearing around the corner.

Hyunwoo let out a sigh, looking down at Mina who had her head leaning against his arm and was barely awake. He tapped her cheek and when she made incomprehensible sounds as a response, he took her hand and led her towards his office in the back.

He helped her sit down onto the couch he had in the corner before he crouched down in front of her.

“Hey, you came for Changkyun right?”

She nodded, letting her head roll against the headrest. Hyunwoo nodded, straightening up. “I’ll let him know you’re back here. Just stay here and rest for now.”

He walked over to his water dispenser and poured her a cup of cold water. He set it onto the table beside the chair.

“Wait, were you drinking with other people? If so, you might want to text them to let them know where you are. Or do you want me to do it for you?”

She shook her head, blindly reaching into her pocket to grab her phone. After seeing that she was finished sending the message, he moved the cup closer to her before closing the office door behind him.

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Mina had fallen asleep on the couch after drinking half of the water. She was still deep in her sleep when someone opened the door to the office and walked in.

The person the lights and when his eyes landed on the person passed out on the couch, he froze. His mouth parted and he stayed there for a while, staring at her. He looked behind him, checking that no one else was in the hall before closing the door behind him.

He set his jacket onto one of the empty chairs before walking over to her. He waved his hands in front of her face a few times and when she made no reaction, he drew back. The smell of alcohol lingering on her clothes made him wrinkle his face.

“You haven’t changed at all,” he whispered, tilting his head. “You still go all out when you drink, don’t you?”

She stirred in her sleep and his eyes widened. He quickly stepped back and was about to leave the office when she stopped, turning her head into the couch instead.

He paused with his hand around the door handle. His eyes flitted back to the jacket on the chair and back to her. After debating with himself in a mental battle, he walked over to grab his jacket and place it over her bare arms.

He bent over to brush the hair sticking to her face, suddenly clenching his fist. He shook his head, stopping himself from doing anything else.

He looked up when he heard the door open and he stopped when he saw who had just come in.

Changkyun looked between him and Mina sleeping on the couch and immediately his eyes narrowed. He walked over, grabbing him by the collar.

“What do you think you’re doing?” he hissed, keeping his voice down in case she woke up.

“I came in and saw her sleeping. I didn’t do anything,” he replied, tapping against Changkyun’s wrist for him to let go.

“That’s bull, Wonho,” he spat, throwing him off.

Wonho stumbled back into the desk, grabbing onto the edge to stabilize himself. He rubbed at his collar, glaring at Changkyun. Then, his eyes softened.

“Has she been doing okay?”

Changkyun turned around to face him. “You’re asking if she’s okay? Do you think she’s okay?”

Wonho’s face fell. “I’m sorry. I just haven’t found the courage to explain-” He stopped when Changkyun held up a hand.

“No, save it. I don’t want to hear any of this. Inviting her out was my mistake. I figured she’d be with our friends the whole night but I guess I didn’t calculate in the fact that she might run into you.” He turned around, walking over to Mina.

“I’d suggest you leave before I wake her up. I don’t want her to go into another panic attack after seeing your face.”

Wonho stared at him for a second before walking towards the door. He paused and turned back to look at them once more before shaking his head and closing the door.

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