Chapter 6: “I’ve never been anywhere cold as you- Taylor Swift”

-o0o-

“Baby you’re all that I want,” Sica’s voice echoed in the crowd, wowing them yet again. “And you’re lying here in my arms. Finding it hard to believe, we’re in heaven...”

She smiled at them; it was already midnight and nobody wanted to go home. The alcohol filled their tiny brains, forcing them to ask for more. Jessica, known for her high notes, performed some entertainment for them, as a thank you gift for attending her party. Beside her was her old best friend, the one who could balance her with her gorgeous voice. Hwang Tiffany was a local interior designer in Incheon, doing her best to impress the audience as well.

“And love is all that I need,” Fany sang, eyeing Taeyeon and Sunny at one corner. “And I find it there in your heart. Baby, it isn’t too hard to see, we’re in heaven...”

“Those two make a good duet,” Sunny told Sooyoung, who ended up sitting with the rest of the girls. They were all bugging about with the champagne, easily drunken now by their fifth bottle. Seated next to Sunny was Taeyeon, who was intently listening to the performers at the front. Yuri, who had taken much thought into attending Sica’s party, looked bored, somewhat regretting. If she weren’t too tired, she would have left a while ago. But she was, and getting a headache was seriously not on her schedule. Hyoyeon and Sooyoung were still both in an eating contest, of whoever eats the most marshmallows won. Seohyun was attached to her unnies singing.

“Yuri-ah,” called Hyoyeon as she drank a glass of water to push the gooey mallows down . “Are you sleepy? Sica has guest rooms upstairs. You can take them.”

Yuri yawned, still shaking her head and standing up. “Nah, I think Minho and I are going back to Seoul as soon as possible.”

“You can go tomorrow morning,” Taeyeon suggested. “My twins are in the living room asleep. I can’t possibly tag them along in leaving tonight. It’s practically 12:30.”

“Jinhye’s in Sica’s room,” Sunny added. “Couldn’t anymore take it.”

“I’ll be going after Sica’s song,” Yuri said. “I wonder where Yoona is. Why isn’t she here?”

“Unnie might be busy,” Seohyun replied, drinking another shot. “She’s working very hard.”

Taeyeon nodded in agreement. “We met one time. She’s working at our entertainment company. Yoona’s actually planning to sign up for Eeteuk’s next drama. She’s still as pretty as she was before.”

All of them smiled; as expected, they thought.

Yuri stood up then, heading towards the blonde girl to finally say her last wishes. Sica understood, gave her a kiss on the cheek as Yuri cheerfully but tiredly left the party. Jessica and Tiffany were finished, bowing their heads in unison, the latter girl running back to their table. But Sica paused, seeking after someone in the dense crowd. Onew, still talking with her family, eyed her still, waving his hand ecstatically to indicate that he was with Mr. and Mrs. Jung. She wasn’t looking his way, that when she did, her eyes passed him, going to a different direction afterwards.

Spotting Donghae cheering on Sungmin to finish one glass of vodka, Jessica’s heart fluttered that she couldn’t help herself from grinning at the sight. After succeeding in the bet, Sungmin laughed frantically. Donghae happily looked up, just noticing that the song was finished---Jessica staring at him in pure happiness. He waved back, smiling at her with a baffled spirit.

Feeling neglected, Onew followed where she was smiling at, watching Donghae did the same. Onew’s heart sunk, feeling at lost as Sica skipped happily back to where her friends where. Why did she get to have some fun and he was stuck here, answering her parents’ questions?

“And...as usual, Sungmin is getting himself some good drinks,” Sunny declared, gazing at the other table to where the boys were, enjoying themselves with a bunch of heavier alcohol than what the others had.

“Hey! Stella!” cried Hyoyeon, who finally gave up to Sooyoung, the ultimate glutton. The other girls turned, setting their eyes on the girl, sitting next to Siwon at the men’s table. She seemed shy at first, appearing like she hadn’t taken any drinks at all. She was smiling at the rest of them, as she stood up, excusing herself before the boys.

Sooyoung hadn’t attempted to talk to Siwon yet, still a bit afraid to confront her past and how she ended it quickly just for a man now engaged to the celebrant. Such silly regrets were not worth the pain that throbbed across her chest. Thug...thug...thug...idiocy had no cure. She gave up Siwon only for Onew and afterwards finding it to be the wrong path. Why did she love men that had other women in their lives? Why was she easily attracted to...

Stella approached them. She was lovely in that black dress of hers, perfectly fit with Mr. Choi Siwon’s attire. They must have planned about this party for quite some time. With her fierce eyes burning, Sooyoung got up, her head down as she asked to be excused. She took her bag, the other girls wondering what was suddenly wrong with her.

“Sooyoung-ah,” Sunny said, worried. “What’s the matter?”

Sooyoung continued to walk away, shaking her head towards the rest rooms.

“She just needs to go and let go of the marshmallows!” guessed Hyoyeon, the rest laughing at the conclusion. Stella wondered at what they were laughing about, since she could no longer understand what they were discussing. It confused her listening to their laughter, unknown of why the tall girl left.

Taeyeon felt Stella being out of place, so she took her hand, letting her sit on the spot where Sooyoung stayed. “How are you, sweetie?”

She just stared at her, shaking her head. “Taeyeon-unnie? I...can’t...understand Korean. Can we use English, instead?”

They all giggled, understanding very well the communication bridges. Tiffany agreed, hugging her snuggly that Stella was silent.

“Stella, I miss you!” shrieked Fany, using English. “Aish, it’s been so long.”

Sunny tapped her shoulder. “Mind if we start drinking? Wait...do you drink?”

Stella nodded. “A little bit. But Siwon told me not to overdo it.”

“Ah, ah,” Sica interrupted, grinning. “Are you going out with that man?”

Seohyun respectfully cleared , head lowered down.  “Please introduce me.”

Hyoyeon chuckled. “Oh yeah, I forgot Seohyun wasn’t there yet when Stella was in her first year. Seohyun, this is Ms. Kim Stella. She used to be the maknae of the dorm before you came. She’s our age.”

Seohyun nodded exaggeratedly, holding her hand out as Stella shook it, also beaming at her. “Nice to meet you, Stella. I’m Seohyun. I’m a pediatrician, at times taking part in the pharmacy. But...yes, it’s quite nice to meet you.”

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you, too.”

“It’s so good you came,” Taeyeon told her. “You and Siwon are actually dating?”

The quiet girl’s face was silent, not at all telling her unnies the truth. “Perhaps. But...we’re most likely mistaken as just friends. Siwon and I are not into ‘skin-ship’ as you call it here in Korea.”

Sunny tilted her head, puzzled. “Oh? So...safe to say, you guys are...just friends?”

“More than that, but...not into physicality,” Stella clarified. “Once in a while, we get kisses on the cheeks as a sign of greeting. But...even holding hands feel awkward.”

“Aish, Sooyoung must have left,” Hyoyeon whispered in Korean, at once knowing why she moved out of the table.

“See, she’s so pure,” Jessica commented, all them laughing. “Our maknae Seohyun has two guys in her life.”

“Yeah, Sijoong and Yonghwa,” Seohyun retorted, still giggling. “But I’m not into skin-ship either.”

She was drunk. If she weren’t, she would not be kidding around when it came to her love affairs. They all rolled their eyes, except maybe for Stella who fell at lost again at whom she was referring.

“Tell that to him,” Hyoyeon replied, pointing with her lips the man standing behind Seohyun. She turned, surprised to find him already bugging her tonight. She hastily fixed her hair, getting up and bowing her head.

“Yonghwa-oppa, shall we go now?” Seohyun questioned him. Yonghwa still found their conversation to be quite amusing that he couldn’t stop himself from chuckling. Seohyun knew Yonghwa didn’t drink much, he didn’t even smell like beer tonight, which was a good thing because he was driving her home.

“Did you enjoy the party, Yonghwa-sshi?” asked Jessica, raising her glass with champagne and drinking it all down.

The man nodded. “Definitely. Met up with a few friends. It’s a great gathering, Sica. Oh, and Happy Birthday. I believe I haven’t greeted you yet.”

Seohyun pushed him messily, tripping on her own sandals as she balanced herself upright again, Yonghwa now supporting her arm. “I believe you’re drunk,” he commented, snickering.

She smiled contentedly, hugging him close. “No, I still want to stay. Can we stay for a little while? Are you bored?”

“You’re drunk,” Yonghwa replied. “You can’t even stand up straight.”

“Well...it’s normal!” she complained. “Let me see you stand straight after sitting for four long hours.”

The girls laughed, clapping their hands at this show. It was rather funny to see Seohyun drunk, which is why they enjoyed filling up her glass every time it ran out. Tonight, Seohyun drank the most, even ordering some bottles just for herself. No wonder she would come out this way.

Jessica stood up, holding Seohyun by her other arm. “Do you want to stay in for the night?”

Yonghwa shook his head, sure of the decision. “We don’t want to be a bother the next morning. Seohyun can...be...well, cranky after drinking a few shots. It’d be bad if she---”

“She’s one of my dearest friends,” Sica told him. “I’d do anything for little Seohyun.”

Seohyun grinned. “Sica-unnie should always be drinking. That way, she’d be nicer.”

Tiffany giggled. “You guys should stay. It’s a long way. I can sense Seohyun’s really tired.”

Yonghwa sighed, gazing at his girlfriend who was fighting back the drowsiness. Any minute and she’d be knocked out, asleep. He finally agreed, smiling faintly as he took Seohyun over his back, carrying her easily like a backpack.

“Hey!” moaned Seohyun, realizing that she was piggybacked. “Are we really leaving?”

“I am, but you’ll be staying,” Yonghwa answered her, knowing she wouldn’t even remember it the next morning. He looked at Jessica who repressed her laughter with her fist. “I have to leave her to you guys. I apologize if she gets...yes, weird tomorrow. Please accept my apology. Seohyun can be a major pain when overdosed with alcohol.”

“Oh? You’re not sleeping with her?” Sunny wondered.

He shook his head modestly. “Like she said, we’re not into skin-ship that way.”

“Then, I will go with oppa,” Seohyun muttered,