Oneureun uri jogeum meolli issjiman
Bureooneun baram soge i maeum jeonhaeyo...

Irene smiled as she heard her own groupmate's sweet voice flood her ear.

Then she frowned.

When did I start listening to Seulgi's songs even in my spare time...

It was late at night, and Irene had just finished a whole day's worth of recordings. After waking up ridculously early in the morning to film a commerical, then moving on to a photoshoot, she had travelled all the way from Seoul to Daegu, to film her episode of the Eye Contact Cam. Sure, it was fun making macarons and seeing her old friend, but after acting deliberately bubbly for the entire day, Irene was absolutely drained. She decided to end the day's filming on the train, where she signed off. As she turned the camera off, she stared out of the window and let out a sigh.

i'm tired.....

She watched blindlessly out of the window, where there was nothing but pitch blackness, along with the occasional light here and there. She let out another huff as the train rolled on.

I really want to get back to the dorm....

I wonder if anyone's awake...

I wonder if Seulgi's awake...

Just the pure prospect of thinking of her girlfriend made Irene smile. The two had been dating for some time now. While all the members knew, they had agreed to keep it a secret to the outside world. It was just easier. Probably for the better, as well. Irene couldn't imagine how many fanboys would leave her if she made it clear that she was taken. Besides, Korea wasn't exactly famous for taking this sort of news well. Outside the promotion period, SM usually let the artists focus on personal development. After garnering up fame from promotions and comebacks, it was time to reap what had been sown. Members usually took this time to act in dramas and commercials, raking in large sums of money.

This was a problem for Irene.

A big problem.

She was very famous.

Way too famous.

Night and day, she was travelling all aroud Seoul and Korea, doing shoots here, doing interviews there. Sure, it was great for her income as well as the group, and it kept her occupied.

But boy was it tiring.

After what seemed like an eternity, the train finally reached the grand train station of Seoul. Without almost no hesitation, Irene bolted up from her seat, desperate to get off. She and her manager quickly made their way out of the station, doing their best not to attract any unnecessary attention. It was late at night, and Irene had barely any energy left to sustain herself, let alone do fanservice. After a short car ride back home, courtesy of her manager, she was finally back at her dorm.

She took a quick look at her phone.

It's 2am...

I can't believe I actually made it back... I thought the day was never going to end...

She sluggishly dragged her body across the pavement, her exhausted arms and legs protesting. As she rounded the last corner, the sight that greeted her lit up her face.

It was her dormitory, finally.

Red Velvet's dormitory.

But more importantly, there was a light still on.

Someone was still awake!

She closed the remaining distance in record time, suddenly full of energy, anticipating.

Almost violently, she punched in the security code and flung open the door.

Irene's smile got even bigger.

There she was.

Kang Seulgi, in the flesh.

Seulgi was sitting on the couch in the middle of the living room. She seemed lost in thought, staring into the abyss. She hadn't turned around yet. Most probably becuase of the earphones in her ear. Which was perfect. 

Irene took this chance to let her gaze run over her girfriend. Seulgi was scantily dressed in comfort clothes. A pair of cotton shorts that were way too small hugged her waist, doing little to hide her legs. Irene trully believed that Seulgi was blessed. Despite being a large eater, she didn't seem to bulk up that much. Furthermore, because of the sheer amount of dancing she did, Seulgi had one of the best bodies in Korea. Her legs were slim, yet toned. They also seemed to go on forever, in this wonderful shade of colour, reflecting light from the celing. The white t-shirt that she was wearing was clearly oversized, and yet just by looking at her arms, Irene could see how fit she was. Her arms were slim. There was nearly no trace of fat, yet was well muscled and not too skinny. She let her gaze traverse upwards, gliding over the smooth skin, up to her full chest, her neck, and finally her beautiful face. 

Seulgi finally seemed to notice that the door to the dormitory had opened. She pulled out her earphones, and smiled.

Irene felt her heart a skip a beat.

'Welcome home, Unnie.'

Her tone was light and sincere. 

Irene felt her heart melt.

After all this time... everytime I hear you say that... I just...

'Yah!' Irene exclaimed, putting down her bag and closing the door. 'I come home after a long day and this is what I get?'

'What's wrong?' Seulgi asked, also getting up.

'You know what's wrong.. ' Irene said with a pout.

Seulgi laughed as she walked up to her girlfriend, smiling.

'Really?'

'Yes.' The older girl firmly demanded.

'Do I have to?'

'Yes.'

'Now?'

'Yes.'

'Do I have to?'

'C'mon, we're alone!'

'You do know that you're three years older than me right?'

Irene stood there with her arms crossed, refusing to budge. She stubbornly stared back, putting on her best puppy face.

Seulgi sighed.

There didn't seem to be a way around this. Besides, she would eventually give in anyways if Irene continued putting on that face.

With her hands, she graciously cupped the older's face, marvelling at the smoothness of her skin.

'Welcome home baby.'

Irene beamed.

'See? It wasn't that hard was it?'

Irene being the oldest member and leader of the group, was accustomed to stepping up and taking care of everyone, including Seulgi. She took proper care of her members, and made sure all their worries were sorted. In public, she did her best to act as a role model, gently reminding her members when to act properly, all the while trying to be the perfect idol in her own respect. In other words, she was the mother of the group. She was the glue that held everything together. She was the pillar that kept the sky from falling down, and she was everyone turned to when they needed help.

But when she was alone with Seulgi... everything changed.

She resembled a girl in her teenage years more than a leader of a group. She was bubbly, and couldn't get enough of Seulgi, taking every opportunity to fight for her attention.

And Seulgi absolutely loved this side of her.

Fans loved the duality of Irene between her onstage and offstage time. 

Seulgi loved the duality of Irene between when they were with everyone else, and when they were alone.

This personal side of Irene, that she only showed to her, and her alone.

She couldn't help but find herself smiling.

'So,' Seulgi contiuned, finding something to stay before she lost control of herself, 'how was your day?'

'Yah! How do you think it went?'

'I presume good ... ? You got to see your friend in Daegu right?'

'You won't be able to fathom how tired I am right now... '

'How tired can you get.... '

'I woke up so early today!'

'Maybe you're getting tired more easily because of your age... ' Seulgi said, pondering. 

'Hey!'

'People get more tired and need more rest when the age... '

'Let m-'

'I mean you are nearly thirty after all..'

'Hey list-'

'Not long till fourty then...'

'First of al-'

'What are you trying to say unnie?'

'Let me SPEAK FOR ONCE AND YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY HEAR!'

Seulgi reeled back, laughing and clapping her hands, struggling to control herself. 

'Haha alright.'

'FIRST OF ALL,' Irene said seriously, ponting a finger at the still laughing girl in front of her, 'I will still be prettier than you are right now at forty.'

'No yo- ......' Seulgi stopped mid sentence.

Fair enough...  She thought.

'And secondly?'

'You won't believe what I went through today! I had to wake up so early! Then at the commercial the director kept trying to make me say these cute things and act cute! You know I hate acting cute on purpose! Especially in front of the camera! It's comes out so unatural and weird-'

'But you are cute unnie...' Seulgi blurted.

Irene felt her face redden.

'NONONO stop saying these things when i'm talking I can't focus like that!'

Seulgi smiled. She loved teasing her girlfriend way too much.

'And then', Irene contiuned, barely pausing to draw a breath, 'The photoshoot afterwards, oh my god the photoshoot. I had to wear these ugly clothes, like who would even want to promote and those clothes! Then they kept blowing me with gigantic wind machine! I told them to stop cause I was cold but they said no because they said they had to make my hair wavy! I was so cold I was thinking to myself how good it would've been if you were there to hold m-'

Irene stopped mid-sentence.

Wait...

What did I just say?

Seulgi shrugged.

'I could hold you now if you wanted.'

With that, wordlessly, the older girl melted into her arms.

Seulgi was slightly taller than Irene. What that translated into was the perfect height difference. Furthermore, with the sheer amount of time that they had spent in each other's arms, everything seemed to come so naturally. As Seulgi moved closer, her arms slid smoothly around Irene's back, while Irene slipped hers around Seulgi's waist. She closed her eyes and rested her head on the taller girl's chest, letting the outside world fade away from her. Right there, in Seulgi's arms, was her favourite place in the world to be. She could feel warmth radiating from Seulgi's frame, seeping into her heart. She loved the way how she made her feel safe, her hair from time, and blowing kisses into her ear. It was the only place where she could let go of everything, and just breathe. Being this close, she could feel all the contours of Seulgi's body. Her flat stomach, her rising chest, and most importantly, her steady and reassuring heartbeat. She remembered that they had been this close, Seulgi's heartbeat had gone into panic mode, hammering against her chest like an alarm bell. Now, it was smooth and steady, almost like a lullaby to Irene, calming her. 

'Hmm.. this is nice.. ' Irene murmured.

'Hmm...' Seulgi agreed. 

'I can stay here forever if you allow me to...'

'I-... wouldn't mind...' Seulgi whispered.

Irene smiled. She raised her head and nuzzled Seulgi's neck, taking her scent. That intoxicating yet pure smell filled nose again, giving her a fuzzy feeling. She traced Seulgi's neckline with her nose, gliding herself over the smooth skin, giving playful prods here and there. Seulgi unconsiously let out a moan, her body reacting. She arched her neck upwards, giving Irene more and more access. Irene could no longer constrain herself, and nuzzling turned to kissing. She was in her girlfriend's arms, and there was nothing stopping her from tasting she wanted. She planted kisses wherever her heart desired. One the nape of Seulgi's neck, then to her collarbone, eventually to the back of her ear...

'U- unnie..'Seulgi managed.

'Hmm-mm...?' Came the muffled reply. Irene was still enjoying herself. 

'Hey focus here...'

'Pffhmm...'

'Unnie..'

'...'

'...'

*kiss*

'Hello..?'

'...'

*kiss*

'...'

'JOOHYUN UNNIE!'

'Wha...?' Irene blurted, startled. She raised her gaze to meet Seulgi's. 

'I've been trying to get your attention!'

'Oh..'

'Oh?' Seulgi exclaimed, bewildered.

'Why tho...' Irene protested. 

Seulgi reached down with her thumb and index finger, holding Irene's chin lightly in her grasp. She pulled the girl upwards, to meet her waiting lips.

Hello everyone! Thank you so much for subscribing and reading. I haven't written in a proper while, so hope this wasn't too bad! Anyways, it felt nice to come back to writing fics, since I've got a bit more free time on my hands now. Feel free to tell me what you think about the fic, or any questions in the comments below! Hope to see you next time. 

Happyhatts~