Tiffany wandered numbly down the night streets of Seoul. She had no idea where she was going, nor did she have any sense of how much time had passed. About five minutes after she had made her escape, her phone had started to ring off the hook, buzzing madly like an angry hornet in her pocket. Tiffany had sent one short terse message to Jessica and then had turned her phone off. She wanted to be alone.

Tiffany looked up.

Her feet had blindly led her to a place where the alcohol ran thicker than blood and everything ran on the principle of money. The more you had, the better you felt.

Tiffany her phone and dialed a number.

“Hello?”

“It’s me…”

“You sound terrible.”

“…Make me forget tonight.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Unnie...do you think Tiffany unnie is ok?”

“I…I don’t know maknae…”

“Hey Jeshika…is she answering?”

“No. She turned off her phone after sending me that one message. ‘I’m ok. Don’t worry.’ Couldn’t she have said more?! Doesn’t she know how we worry about her?! Doesn’t she care at all?!”

“Jeshika…”

“She should have told us! We can deal with this together! Why does she have to always be such a loner?! Why is she always the martyr?! Does she have a fascination with masochism?! Why couldn’t she trust us enough to let us help Taeyeon?! WHY?! I hate her! I hate her!”

“Yah…Jeshika…you don’t mean that. Don’t say words in the heat of the moment that you will soon regret. You know your girlfriend better than any one of us. You know why she wants to be alone. She’s always been that way.”

“I know…I’m just…I’m scared I’m losing her. I want to be there for her. I…I don’t hate her Taengoo…I love her…I really do.”

“I know, I know. Tiffany’s strong. We won’t lose her. Come on girls. There’s not much we can do right now, I’m sure Tiffany just needs some time alone to calm down. Go to sleep. We’ll look for her tomorrow. The president gave us a week off. Now go-go-go…”

“What about you Taeyeon?”

“I have a few things I need to do. I’ll sleep in a bit. Now go!”

Taeyeon watched as the younger girls went to brush up for bed. She was sure none of them would actually really be able to sleep tonight, not even their sleeping beauty, Jessica. In fact, Taeyeon was sure Jessica would most definitely be staring at her ceiling all night, but laying down for some rest is better than nothing. Taeyeon needed to keep the girls healthy. The kid-leader sighed and slumped into the couch.

She was going to wait for Tiffany to come home.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Kahi watched as Tiffany downed another shot. The girl didn’t even wince as the alcohol slid down , it was like she was completely incapable of feeling anything. This was the young girl’s seventh shot and it honestly didn’t look like the alcohol was having much of an effect on her.

Tiffany had come to her looking to drown her night away in alcoholic debauchery and Kahi had seen the hollowness in her eyes. It was obvious something terrible had happened. Tiffany looked worse than when Kahi had first met her. That first time, Tiffany was physically beaten and battered, but there was a fiery determination in her eyes. Now…there was nothing but empty pain and sorrow. And Kahi definitely didn’t like that defeated deadened air around the girl, almost like an old dog that was beaten one too many times.

Kahi also understood that most people in such states weren’t in the mood to talk and share their problems. Rather, it was better to let them drink their sorrows and way and simply be there to pick up the pieces. Kahi would not question the girl and ask for her story, Tiffany would share it soon enough if she wished.

Tiffany downed another shot. A double-shot this time. The young girl suddenly turned to the woman.

“Just alcohol tonight. I don’t wish to drown my problems in women…make sure I don’t do anything stupid.”

“Who’s the lucky girl who made an honest one out of you?”

“A princess…” Tiffany muttered as she downed another with recklessness.

So Kahi spent the night with Tiffany at the bar of DaMasque, just watching the young girl drink away her troubled consciousness. When Tiffany finally collapsed, slumping in her barstool with her head on the counter, Kahi motioned for one of the bouncers to carry Tiffany to the girls’ dorms upstairs. Then she told Jungah, who was bartending that night, to take the night off and take care of Tiffany as Kahi herself needed to stay and manage the floor.

Jungah changed Tiffany’s clothes, which smelled like alcohol. As she stripped Tiffany, she noticed the multiple scars on the young girl’s body. But apart from the one long scar down Tiffany’s back, Jungah was unfazed. Many of the girls here had scars themselves, Jungah included. It was definitely not something to gape at about, especially not here in DaMasque.

Jungah settled Tiffany down on her own bed. She knelt beside Tiffany, just staring at the young girl for a bit. Jungah wondered what her story was. Tiffany intrigued her for some reason. Jungah was a worldly-wise woman. Not much daunted her after so many years of seeing the malicious and vindictive ways of the world and the men in it. Jungah had seen too much to be able to really bring herself to care about others. But when she had first met Tiffany, she had seen much of the same jaded callousness in the girl’s eyes. Tiffany was so young…Jungah wondered of the tragedies that must have struck to create such callousness in such a young girl’s eyes.

She didn’t know what made her do it, but Jungah leaned in and kissed the unconscious Tiffany full on the lips, tasting the bitter hint of alcohol mingled with something piquant and exotic, something that was entirely Tiffany. Jungah pulled back, a little surprised by how much the kiss excited her.

She had slept with many of the girls that worked here. It was hard not to as all the girls were quite ually high-strung after all that teasing and they often took it out on each other. It was safer and they did whatever they wanted in the confines of their dorm.

Jungah was good in bed. She knew exactly what the female body wanted and craved, knew exactly which buttons to press, knew the dirty lusts of flesh better than anyone else. She rarely came across a girl that excited her like Tiffany did. And all this simply from one kiss. Jungah wanted to run her hands all over Tiffany’s body, kiss every inch of that beautifully scarred skin, touch the girl in ways she had never been touched before. But…Jungah was no predator. She would never stoop to the level of those despicable men that used and abused women. She wouldn’t take advantage of Tiffany. Not in this state.

Sighing, Jungah settled herself on the blanket she had laid on the floor and fell asleep, dreaming hot, dreams of the girl that laid an arms-reach away from her.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

She sat in the dark, her body slumped against the wooden door, her ear pressed to the rough surface. She bit her already torn and bloody lip to keep her sobs from escaping and waking Yuri.

The black pearl had stayed up for hours already, holding a crying Jessica in her arms and rocking her to sleep. Feeling sorry for the younger girl and no longer wanting to burden her, Jessica had feigned falling asleep. She laid there for another half hour after Yuri had laid her to on the bed, waiting for the tanned girl’s breathing to become deep and even before slipping out of bed.

She knew Taeyeon was still waiting outside and didn’t want to worry the older girl either, so Jessica had simply slumped by the door, crying and waiting for Tiffany to come home.

Jessica cried in vain.

Tiffany never came home that night.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Tiffany woke up with a pounding headache. She groaned as she slowly turned her head to the side. She spotted three other girls in the room, each sleeping sounded in their beds, then she saw Jungah, splayed out on the floor, in a messy tangle of limbs and blankets.

Taking a glance at the digital clock on her bedside, she saw that it was 4:46 in the morning. Tiffany her parched lips. She was about to slide out of bed when she tasted something. Something different. Tiffany brought her fingers up to brush lightly against her lips and felt the slightly slippery feel of the remnants of chapstick.

Rose-flavored chapstick to be exact.

Tiffany glanced at Jungah on the ground beside her. Curious, she leaned over in the bed and slowly brought her face to hover overtop of the older woman’s lips.

Tiffany frowned.

The gentle effusions of Tiffany’s breath on her face woke the older woman. Jungah stirred and started to wake up…with Tiffany still leaning over her.

The woman’s eyes fluttered open and stared into Tiffany.

“Good morning…” the woman said in a husky voice that sent shivers down Tiffany’s spine.

Tiffany reeled back and sat on the edge of the bed, giving Jungah a cold, hard look.

“You kissed me,” the young girl stated. It was not a question but a statement of fact.

Jungah was surprised the girl had picked it up so quickly, but her face betrayed nothing.

“You’re very kissable.”

“I am grateful you took care of me, but I warn you to stay away. I will not hesitate to hurt you in ways that will make you think twice about coming within ten meters of me.”

“How do you know if I just kissed you? Maybe I als–”

“You think I don’t know if someone used my body without my consent? No, you just kissed me, nothing more, for which I am glad. Where are my clothes?”

“Are you sure you want to leave at this hour?”