It wasn't even 10 in the evening and already, Irene was tipsy.

The disgusting combination of vodka and beer punishment she had earlier certainly didn't help, and the fact that it seemed like her members were intent on getting her drunk made everything worse.

Still, Irene had such a strong willpower that she acted unfazed and she worked hard not to lose in the remaining games. 

Thankfully, Wendy and Yeri were disastrous in almost all the games they played. 

Soon, the games progressed to a drinking relay, much to Irene's dismay. She had never been good at this kind of game since she didn't really drink much anyways. She internally thanked the heavens that she was grouped with Yeri and Joy because she knew they would definitely win.

The only thing Irene needed to do was focus.

However, she kept getting distracted by Seulgi. The latter had been on her phone whenever they had a break from playing, even excusing herself and going outside to the balcony a couple of times to talk to Naeun on the phone. 

Irene knew she shouldn't be affected by this. In fact, she spent most of the evening convincing herself that she should just be glad that Seulgi's getting serious with someone else because that would mean that Seulgi was truly over her feelings for her. That was what Irene wanted all along. That way, things can get back to normal and she can finally feel like she can breathe again.

But that's easier said than done especially now that Irene's inhibitions were starting to take a walk. It had already been so hard trying to shut down her feelings for Seulgi when she's sober, what more now that she's well on her way to being drunk?

"Everybody settled in?" Joy called. "Let's do this."

They all gathered around in the living room, discussing the logistics of the relay.

"So who goes first?" Irene asked. Joy, Yeri, and her were huddled close together, figuring out the best strategy in order to win against the 94-liners.

"I think I should go first," Yeri solemnly replied. "That way, I can get a head start."

"Good thinking," Joy nodded. "I'll go next. Joohyun-unnie, you can just go last since you're probably going to be the slowest."

Irene could do nothing but sheepishly agree since this wasn't really her strong suit anyway.

On the other end of the table, Seulgi and Wendy were deep in thought.

"Should I be the one to drink twice," Wendy her chin. "Or would you rather do it?"

"I don't mind going twice." Seulgi simply replied. "I'm way faster anyway."

"Okay, good." Wendy looked over to the three. Joy caught her looking and she stuck her tongue out at Wendy. "Now, do you have any idea what their order will be?"

"It doesn't matter what their order is," Seulgi dismissed. "I'll go first, then you go, then I'll go again."

"Wow," Wendy raised her eyebrows. "You're feeling pretty confident, Seul."

Seulgi just winked as a reply. Although it just came off like she had something in her eye so Wendy burst into laughter, garnering attention from the other team.

"What are you two losers laughing at?" Yeri asked sternly.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Seulgi wiggled her eyebrows.

Soon after, the girls knelt in front of the table, Yeri and Seulgi at the front.

"On the count of three," Wendy announced.

"You're going down, brat." Seulgi muttered.

"Fat chance, Slowgi." Yeri intentionally referred to Seulgi informally to throw the latter off her game.

"One, two, three!"

"Go, go, go!"

The members cheered as Yeri and Seulgi chugged as fast as they could. Yeri had a solid head start but Seulgi was quick to catch up. Next up were Joy and Wendy. Joy, being the evil maknae that she was, nudged Wendy as they drank, causing the girl to sputter, losing valuable time. Lastly, it was Irene's turn against Seulgi, who was shaking her hands as she waited for Wendy to finish in order to help herself focus.

Irene had a considerable lead but since she was so much slower than the maknaes, she and Seulgi were soon head-to-head as they drained the last drop. Irene noticed that they were about to lose and her senses kicked into overdrive. She already felt like she lost a battle with herself because Seulgi already occupied her mind for most of the night so Irene really needed a win.

She was the one to put the glass down first. 

Irene whooped and hugged her teammates as Seulgi and Wendy slumped dramatically onto the sofa. 

"Nooooooooooo!" Wendy groaned into a pillow.

"LOSERS!" Joy, Yeri, and Irene took turns teasing the other two.

"I'm sorry, Seungwan-ah." Seulgi drawled. "I did my best."

---

"I really think that if we had another teammate, we'd definitely win." Seulgi repeated.

"Boo," Yeri brought her thumb down. "Just accept defeat and move on."

"It's really no fair," Seulgi brought her two fingers up. "I had to drink twice."

"What about it?"

"Don't get too cocky," Wendy piped up. "We almost beat you."

"Almost is never enough, Wendy." Yeri rebutted in English. 

They all laughed at that. Katy Kim always comes out whenever Yeri's had one too many.

Wendy and Yeri kept arguing in English with Joy butting in every now and then to slip in some of the English lyrics from their songs. 

Irene just laughed, preferring to just enjoy listening to her members than joining in the conversation. Seulgi got up to make another phone call. 

"Sometimes, you gotta be bald!" Joy interjected suddenly but Irene barely heard them.

Instead, she watched Seulgi's retreating back and she hated the way her heart ached just a little bit. She wondered what could make the horrible feeling go away and her eyes landed on the bottle of alcohol in front of her.

The leader in her did not want to entertain the idea, considering that they all had much to drink that night and someone needed to stay alert in case something goes wrong or someone needs help. That role always fell on her and she never complained about it. She had long embraced her responsibilities but sometimes, she wondered what it would feel like to let go, to be free from her duties and just be carefree for one night.

"It's hot, let me just hop!"

Irene decided to just head to the kitchen to get a glass of water, having resigned to being the one to take care of her members. 

She unexpectedly ran into Seulgi, who was still on the phone. 

"Let's just talk about this tomorrow." Seulgi said then she hung up.

When she turned around, she locked eyes with Irene, who looked like she didn't want to be there.

"I wasn't eavesdropping." Irene said in a small voice. "I was just coming here to fetch some water."

"No, it's fine." Seulgi shook her head. "Go ahead."

She sat down on the chair as Irene slowly trudged to the refrigerator, making sure that she was still walking straight.

"We're falling in and out!" Joy's voice can be heard all the way from the living room.

"What's with them?" Seulgi chuckled.

"They're drunk." Irene stated.

"Wow," Seulgi propped her elbows up on the table. "And you're okay?"

No, I am not okay.

"Of course," Irene replied. "I'm not a lightweight."

"That's because you're being so careful." Seulgi walked over to Irene to steal the water from her hands. "You don't play fair."

Irene wanted to back away because Seulgi was much too close to her liking. 

"Why don't you try letting go just this once, unnie?" Seulgi smiled. "Enjoy yourself for one night."

"I can't." Irene answered. "As your leader--"

"Yes, you always have to think about Red Velvet." Seulgi waved a hand. "But you're home with us right now. On a break. You can be Irene once our time off is over. Tonight, why don't you just try being Joohyun."

Seulgi drank the water and set it on the table. Then she put her hand on Irene's shoulder and stared into her eyes.

"Don't worry about us," Seulgi flashed a smile so wide her eyes disappeared into crescents. "Seungwan will take over the kids and I'll make sure you don't do too much unflattering things if you get drunk."

"That's bold of you to say," Irene managed to say even though she felt a little lightheaded because Seulgi was close enough that she can smell her perfume. "Considering you probably won't last longer than me."

Seulgi raised her eyebrows.

"Wanna bet?"