Three band auditions and a round of fierce discussion later, Taeyeon grinned apologetically at Tiffany. “I forgot that my sketchbook is new. I don’t have the one with your sketches.”

Tiffany looked at her watch. “I have time. I can wait for you to get it.”

“Why can’t you look at it tomorrow?”

“What if you lose the sketchbook? What if a robber breaks into your home and steals it tonight?”

Taeyeon stared at Tiffany as though she had gone mad. “You’re crazy.”

“I’m efficient.”

“I don’t get why you’re so desperate to look at my sketches.”

Tiffany put her hands on her hips. “I’m the kind who goes after what I want and I don’t give up easily.”

“The word you want to say is ‘stubborn’.”

Isn’t that you? Tiffany smiled. “I will stubbornly bug you till I see those sketches.”

“Fine. But you’re coming with me. I’m not your slave.”

“Of course not. You’d be a terrible slave.”

Taeyeon opened and closed .

Tiffany smiled. The rock singer must have realized there was no good comeback for that. Smart woman.

o|v

This is a trap.

Taeyeon was sure something was up. She watched as Tiffany pulled into the parking lot next to hers, thinking about the incidents that led to this moment. First, the baseball game. That had been Jieun’s fault, but Tiffany had agreed to go, presumably to get to know her better. Then the first movie. Tiffany had meant for her to go with Ginna, as a payback for the baseball game but she had ended up going with Tiffany instead.

And the second movie. She had practically twisted Tiffany’s arm to get it. Had she done that because she wanted to know what the movie was about? Bull. Because she was unhappy about Ginna going for Tiffany? She was definitely irritated whenever she saw Tiffany talking and laughing with Ginna.

But why was she irritated?

No way. No ing way. She’s not my type. I don’t like women like her. This smiley, optimistic, overly motivated type. This pink type.

Taeyeon got out of her car and locked it.

Yeah, going for the type I like has been a fantastic experience. Like dating Linji. Look where it got me. And Danni. And Hwaju. And Rina. Going for the type I like works out sooo well.

“Taeyeon? Hello? You there?”

Taeyeon blinked. Tiffany was waving a hand in her face. “You ready?”

“I should be asking you that.”

“Follow me.”

“Do you live alone?”

“I live with a friend.”

“Just friends?”

Taeyeon gave Tiffany a glare. “No. We’re married with kids.”

Tiffany glared back at her. “I was just asking.”

“Part of getting to know me better, eh.”

“It’s not just a job for me, Taeyeon.”

“Not just a job? So what’s this about?”

“This is about two people.”

Taeyeon’s heart quickened in that moment. It’s nothing. Don’t be dumb. “Right. Two people.”

“What’s your friend’s name?”

“Sunny.”

“Is she the one who saw your armpit hair yesterday?” Tiffany asked with a laugh.

Taeyeon felt her cheeks heating up. “She said it just to embarrass me. My armpits are hairless.”

“You can’t prove it.”

“Yeah sure. Believe my troll of a friend.”

“Your friend seems to be a lot like you.”

“Sunny and I?” Taeyeon snorted. “We’re not like each other at all.”

“Is she home right now?”

“Are you coming here to see her or the sketches?”

“Sketches. But if your friend is home, I need be prepared to greet her well.”

“It doesn’t take much to impress Sunny. Just feed her some somaek and she’ll be your best friend.”

“Does she drink a lot?”

Taeyeon laughed. “She’s a bottomless pit.”

“What about you? Just how bad are you with alcohol?”

“It’s my greatest weakness.”

“One mug of beer?”

“One or two’s the most I can take.”

“That’s like nothing.”

“You sound like a potential rival to Sunny.”

“We could probably get along quite well just by drinking.”

Taeyeon pressed the pin number and opened the door for Tiffany. “Come in.”

“Wow, your apartment is nice.”

“What’s nice?” Taeyeon asked as she led Tiffany to her bedroom.

“It’s spacious. Much bigger than mine.”

“But you live alone.”

“How did you know that?”

Taeyeon closed the door behind them. “Sooyoung mentioned it before.”

“I see.”

“Here.” Taeyeon opened her bookshelf and took a sketchbook out. “Two hours.”

o|v

Tiffany liked the look of Taeyeon’s room. It was dominated by white and blue, soothing colours. A clean white bedsheet, a white bookshelf and wardrobe matched the white tiles on the floor. The walls and curtains were white too, and the afternoon sun’s rays were pushing in, lighting the room up nicely. Light blues in little things like the photo frames sitting on a shelf above the writing table added colour to the otherwise spartan room.

She had spotted Taeyeon’s Jack on the bed from the moment she stepped in and its existence amused her. A person like Taeyeon hugging Jack to sleep at night? That image was too adorable to reconcile. Yet, Jack wasn’t the only toy the rock singer had in her room. Tiffany spotted some green pea plushies on the ledge above the bed. And a green chameleon with big eyes. And a little yellow pill in blue jumpers. And a white snowman with two front teeth. Was this the softer side of the rock singer?

“Are you here to look at the sketches or my room?”

Tiffany’s eyes landed on the rock singer who was currently lying on her side, hair sprawled over her pillow. “I’m just surprised to see so many toys in your room.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

Tiffany smiled. “Nothing.”

Taeyeon sat up. “That’s a ‘something’ nothing.”

“What?”

“You’re not saying what you’re thinking.”

“Do you really wanna know?”

Taeyeon nodded. “Tell me.”

“I think it’s cute.”

The rock singer held up the black and white skeleton man. “Jack is not cute. He’s a skeleton in a suit.”

“It’s not about the toys. It’s the concept of you with your toys that’s cute.”

“There’s nothing cute about that.”

Tiffany shrugged and opened the sketchbook. The very first page was a sketch of her in the café. She was in a long white blouse, hair tied in a ponytail, with shades on. Oddly enough, she remembered the day she wore that blouse. It was the day she first moved into her new apartment. It had been a terrible day, plagued by problems with furniture delivery and the water heating system, resulting in ice cold showers and sleeping on the cold, hard floor lined by all the towels and clothes she had.

That had been a horrible day but the sketch portrayed her beautifully. The perk of her nose, the soft fabric of her blouse over the curves of her body, ending high up her thighs. Her lips were shaded. Yes, she had been wearing a stronger red lipstick that day. Wow, what a memory.

The next sketch was of her face. A close up. No shades this time and her eyes were crescent moons, smiling at something. It ended at her shoulders so she had no idea which day it was. But there was a date. It was a week after the first sketch.

The third sketch featured a detailed drawing of her bum in a pair of jeans. Dated ten days after the first sketch, it was literally nothing but her .

“I can’t believe you focused on my like that,” Tiffany said while showing Taeyeon the sketch in question.

“See? You’re judging like everybody else. You don’t understand the art of it.”

“You’re right. I don’t quite understand how my is art.”

“It has a great curve. I had to concentrate ing hard to get it right.”

“Which means you were staring at my for a long time.”

“You won’t understand what I see. When I look at your , it’s not a I see. It’s a curve. A ing beautiful curve. A y curve.”

“y?”

“Art can be y without being sleazy.”

“I’m not saying your sketch is sleazy. It’s just the thought of your eyes on my for—how long did it take?”

“For as long as it took you to get your coffee.”

“That’s faster than I thought.”

“I’ve been sketching since forever. I can sketch very quickly now.”

Tiffany locked gazes with Taeyeon. “Can you sketch me now?”

“You want me to sketch you now?”

“Can you?” Tiffany asked as her heart thumped with anticipation. She could see the indecision on Taeyeon’s face. “Please?”

“Fine. But it will be deducted from your two hours.”

‘’That’s no problem. You can sketch me while I look at your sketches.”

Taeyeon chuckled. “That’s a new concept I’ve never tried.”

Tiffany smiled. “Sketch me, Taeyeon.”

o|v