"unnie?" yerim cracks open the door to her apartment, a puzzled expression on her face. "what happened to your door lock?" she asks, closing the apartment door behind her as she walks out to where irene is standing.

irene sends the blonde a relieved glance. "thanks for coming out, yerim. nothing happened to it, really. i just came back from work and for some reason it's not functioning."

the younger girl's lips press together as she walks over to inspect irene's door. "it's a digital door lock." she mumurs to herself as she taps at the blank touchscreen. then, her fingers skim the USB charging port on the side of the lock. "i think it's out of battery. the screen isn't showing up."

"oh my god, i didn't think of that." irene exclaims in near-perfect english, "you're so smart. i'm too old for this."

at irene's words, yerim laughs, shaking her head.

"unnie, you're not even that old." the younger girl jokes, eyes twinkling, "do you have a portable charger with you?"

irene runs an exasperated hand through her hair, but somehow the dark strands still manage to land flawlessly over her shoulder. "no, i don't have a portable charger with me." she sighs inwardly, placing her hands on her hips. at this point, the older girl is considering a trip back to her office--after all, it's not the first night irene has slept in her cubicle (although now, it was a grand, glass-doored office she would be holed up in, thanks to namjoon and his extravagance).

"i'll go get mine." yerim says, skittering back into her apartment and picking up the portable charger on her study desk. she returns quickly, plugging in the cord and watching with a satisfied grin as the screen lights up.

irene parts her lips to thank the younger girl just as the door to the staircase opens and son seungwan steps into the hall.

the two girls turn to look at the slumping girl who looks miserable in her heels.

"seungwan, you're back already?" irene asks pleasantly, and seungwan greets the older girl with a smile.

"did you get your door lock figured out?" seungwan returns before explaining, "ah, yes, i finished up my meeting. it was actually the old man downstairs. he wanted me to take a look at his tax returns."

"we figured it out." yerim answers, running over to link arms with seungwan. "unnie...thank god you're home!" the blonde chirps all too merrily.

"you're hungry again, aren't you?" seungwan sighs knowingly. "did we run out of ramen?"

yerim nods aggressively, a serious expression on her face. "exactly as you say, unnie."

irene chuckles from aside. "how about i take you girls out to eat? my treat."

at this, both girls' eyes widen.

"would you really?" yerim's face is filled with delight.

"you guys would have to pick the restaurant, though." irene nods with a small grin. "i'm new to the area, remember?"

yerim claps her hands together. "i know a place."

irene places her briefcase in her apartment and replaces yerim's portable charger with her own before the three girls travel twenty-two flights of stairs down the the parking garage.

from there, the three ride irene's convertible with much gusto (irene had yet to make time to switch the car out at namjoon's house) and lower the retractable roof to let the cold wind tickle their rosy cheeks.

"this place is good." seungwan hums happily as she digs into her food. irene agrees with a nod.

yerim mirrors the older girls' enthusiasm as she stabs at her pork dish. "jungkook used to take me here when he wasn't as busy-" she begins, only to be cut off by an antsy son seungwan.

"yerim, he loves you." seungwan blurts out, unable to keep it in any longer. "everyone may call him a starboy, but maybe that's because jungkook shines brighter whenever you're there. and believe it or not, yerim, but you're practically glowing every time you come back from an outing with jungkook-"

"unnie." yerim interrupts, her eyes trained on her food. "it's not what you're thinking. jungkook, he..."

yerim inhales sharply before murmuring, "you know i don't want to risk it."

the younger girl's eyes become distant and a bit hopeless, leaving seungwan to relinquishe her argument reluctantly. the older girl knows that yerim's greatest insecurity is the a certain fear of losing jeon jungkook, and, despite wanting to knock some sense into the blonde, seungwan decides to leave the matter up to jungkook from now on. by now, seungwan has realized that yerim's not as simple as ignorant to the boy's feelings--it's more appropriate to describe her as in a cycle of denial.

"what about you, irene unnie?" yerim changes the subject with a grin. "seen anything that catches your eye in korea?"

"yeah, irene, i'm surprised you're not married yet!" seungwan chimes in. "guys must flock after a woman like you. rich, successful, and beautiful."

irene lets out a gentle laugh.

"i don't think i'm cut out for dating." irene admits, though it's only a small fraction of the truth.

it's not that irene isn't fit for dating or marriage--in fact, she's had quite the number of pursuers in the past--but irene, however, does have a secret.

irene finds herself staring out the window, her grip on her fork tightening, leaving her kunckles white as the bone beneath them.

"i'll take some leftovers for seulgi." yerim says, and the three chat for a small while longer before turning back to level 23 for a deserved night's rest.

as the three girls settle for the night in their respective apartments, a silence descends in the hall of level 23, a small haven of darkness in a city which never seems to sleep.

---

two days pass until joy decides she can't quite take it anymore, especially when her grandmother had just chastised her yesterday morning in front of the other side. (joy had been more than offended at park chaeyoung and park jihyo's sordid simpers.)

perhaps kyungsoo does have a point--it was time park joy took on the image of a businesswoman instead of a spoiled heiress--and besides, joy was already pretending to clean up her party animal tendencies by living in a shabby apartment anyways.

therefore, when irene comes home from work that day, joy is standing at her door, a basket of fruits occupying both of her hands.

"where have you been?" joy shrieks when she sees irene walk out the elevator.

"at the office?" irene answers in confusion with a raise of a single eyebrow.

"did you have unfinished work?" joy then questions, and, when irene shakes her head, squawks in horror, "who in their right mind voluntarily stays at the office until eight?"

irene shakes her head as she inputs the passcode to her apartment door. "do you need anything?" the older girl says, and joy immediately shoves the basket of fruit in her face.

"i'm really, really, really sorry." joy whines, emphasizing each word. "please accept my apology."

irene nods, swinging open the door to her apartment. "okay." she agrees nonchalantly, and joy's eyes widen.

"that's it?" joy gapes, placing her hand on the door and preventing irene from shutting her out.

"what else were you expecting?" irene shrugs, attempting to close the door once more only to be blocked by joy's hand.

suddenly, joy begins to wail like a toddler in daycare.

"irene unnie! take pity on me." joy pouts, almost comically. "i'm an only child with a grandmother who hates me and a certain side of the bloodline who would rather see me dead."

irene's eyebrow raises higher, watching as crocodile tears begin to well in joy's eyes.

"my mom is my dad's second wife. i'm the child of an affair. i'm destined to a life of bitterness living in a ratty place like this." joy continues to blubber, and finally irene relents.

not really out of pity, of course, but simply because she just wanted joy to stop making such a commotion. there had to be some sacrifices made for peace, after all.

"okay what do you need help with?" irene mutters reluctantly, and joy's tears, as predicted, come to an abrupt stop, replaced with a delightful, cheshire grin.

"you're an expert on international stocks, right? teach me how to do business. help me be like you so i can, you know, actually prove myself to my family?"

"it's not an overnight thing," irene warns, but joy's face doesn't fall.

in fact, her grin grows even wider, if possible. "then it's a good thing we're getting started." joy cackles in reply.

the two girls sprawl themselves out in irene's living room, and irene soon finds that joy is quite intelligent and sharp, despite relying too much on mischief and her own little smarting ways.

as the two decide to call it a day, with joy thanking irene profusely, joy suddenly points to the three conjoined monitors sitting on irene's study room desk.

"so that security camera thing really isn't a joke, huh?" joy says as she stares at the monitors, live security footage streaming in from different angles.

"i like my privacy." irene hints with a tight-lipped tug of her lips, and joy wiggles her eyebrows.

"you know, anyone else would mistake you for a ert." joy comments, and the two girls burst into laughter.

meanwhile, apartment #2302 is in less harmonious order.

"yerim, what do i do about jimin?" seulgi asks for the nth time since yerim had arrived home from the bar that day.

the blonde sighs in exasperation, rubbing her temple with two fingers. "talk to him? introduce yourself?" she suggests, stating the obvious.

seulgi sits beside yerim on her bed as the younger girl attempts to fall asleep.

"it's not that easy for me, yerim. i don't have guys waiting on me since high school." seulgi huffs, shaking her head dejectedly.

"seulgi, it's not that hard to talk to a guy. just be yourself. and if you find that you like him, just tell him. i get that you're nervous and everything-"

yerim is cut off by a grumble from the brunette.

"so why can't you own up to it that you like jungkook?" seulgi asks, and yerim's eyes flutter open.

"because i don't like jungkook." she hisses, ignoring the tiny twinge in her that makes her feel like it's a lie. "look seul, i've been working sixteen hours a day lately. i don't have time to run after a guy who probably won't be interested in a girl like me anyways."

seulgi scoffs. "you know what yerim? dont tell me what to do if you cant figure out what you're doing yourself."

at this, yerim sits up from the bed. "seulgi, what the . i'm just trying to help. you've been miserable these past few days-"

"at least i'm coming to terms with my feelings." seulgi says, "you've been dragging jungkook through the mud ever since i met you."

"is that seriously what you think of me?" yerim shakes her head, irritated. "whatever. i'm going over to jungkook's for the night so you can continue to mope about jimin. i shouldnt have said anything in the first place."

and just like that, yerim is out the door, dressed in pajamas and a puffer coat with only her cell phone and keys in her hands.

---

"yerim?" jungkook exclaims confusedly when he opens his apartment door to see her standing there, fiddling with the zipper of her coat. his pretty pink lips morph into a grin. "did you miss me-"

"shove a sock in it, jeon. the only reason i'm here is because i'm in a little fall out with seulgi." yerim explains before tilting her head so she can see past him into the apartment.

"you weren't in the middle of ing someone, were you?" she asks, and jungkook shakes his head hastily.

"good, because i'm crashing here for the night." yerim announces, leaving no room for jungkook to negotiate.

"i only have one bed." jungkook warns, but she simply saunters past him and into his apartment like she owns the place.

"yah! kim yerim! you didn't even wait for me to say okay." he calls after her, even though he inwardly isn't complaining. in fact, he's quite ecstatic to see her find him voluntarily.

when it comes to kim yerim, jeon jungkook is content on being an obedient puppy.

yerim ignores his protests with a roll of her eyes. she places her keys and phone on the kitchen counter before immediately drifting towards his refrigerator in search of ice cream.

"there it is." she murmurs happily to herself as she takes out a pint of ben and jerry's cookies n' cream.

she doesn't bother to ask jungkook if she can eat it before she takes the lid off and digs through the cabinets of his kitchen for a spoon.

she knows jungkook only keeps a stash of cookies and cream it in the fridge just in case she needs it, anyways.

yerim hums in content as she seats herself on jungkook's couch, shoveling the sweet dessert into like her life depends on it. if stress eating and post-i-just-had-an-argument-with-my-friend eating were sports, yerim would easily win the world championships.

"you know, you're the cutest when eating ice cream." jungkook says as he shuffles into the room, sitting beside her on the couch.

his arm slings over her shoulder naturally, and, like always, she doesn't bother to shake it off.

yerim laughs with ugly snorts in between. "thanks, jeon. if you were trying to cheer me up, it worked." she murmurs.

"i wasn't trying to cheer you up." jungkook frowns, because once again, his intentions are misread. or, for lack of a better term, ignored. "i'm being genuine." he huffs, perplexed.

he is in fact, telling the truth. yerim's love for ice cream was one of the first things jungkook had learned about her. throughout the years, it definitely hadn't helped a smitten boy that the girl he'd been running after for a good amount of his lifetime always seemed to be eating it. if it came in a carton, she'd her spoon dry to the tip, and if it came on a stick, she'd make sure to get every last drop in a manner that was so unbearably ual.

jungkook was often kept late up at night trying to shut the sound of yerim practically while devouring her ice cream out his head.

"don't worry, kook." yerim reassures him with her best puppy eyes. "i won't take out my frustration with seulgi out on you. in fact, i take back fifty percent of all those insulting things i called you in the past." she states with a grin, "here, just to prove it, you can have some ice cream."

she digs her spoon into the carton before extending it in jungkook's direction expectantly. "say 'ah' for me." she coaxes by opening her own mouth in demonstration.

he complies, obedient as ever. the sweetness melts into jungkook's mouth as he says, "you know, this is my favorite flavor now, too."

"since when?" yerim retorts, because by now, she has jeon jungkook's favorite foods and flavors practically etched on her heart. "i always thought it was chocolate."

"it was chocolate," jungkook nuzzles his head into her shoulder. "but it's been cookies and cream ever since you told me you liked it."

"oh really?" yerim rolls her eyes skeptically. "you're such a hoe, jungkook. betraying your favorite ice cream flavor like that."

"i'm not a hoe if i have a very compelling reason behind my decision." jungkook argues in defense.

"and what reason is that?"

yerim can practically hear jungkook's smirk in his voice.

"well technically, you call me kook, which is short for kookie, which is code word for cookie." jungkook says. "so that means cookies and cream is your favorite ice cream flavor because i'm your favorite flavor."

yerim blinks. "but i also call you jungle book, coconut-brain, junk-kook, kooka troopa, overgrown easter bunny, and-"

"yerim, stop ruining my moment." jungkook sighs as he runs a hand through his hair.

he watches the ice cream eventually diminish until there is nothing but melted liquid left before he asks, "wanna take a shower?"

yerim almost chokes on her last spoonful of ice cream. "jeon jungkook!" she shakes the poor boy's head off of her shoulder with a menacing glare. "you shameless ert!" she accuses as she whacks him with her spoon.

"no, not like that!" jungkook exclaims, fending off her attacks easily. "i meant that if you wanted to, you could go first. not whatever you were thinking." he explains sincerely before his lips tug into a -eating grin. "but you know, if you actually want to take one together, i have no objection-"

"jeon. ing. jungkook." yerim shrieks in horror before proceeding to jump on him, furious.

it's a tangle of flailing limbs until somehow, they both end up breathless, with yerim straddling jungkook on his lap and jungkook gripping yerim stubbornly by the waist.

when yerim comes to her senses, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks, she wills herself not to blush. because this is jeon jungkook, for 's sake. why would she be embarrassed?

"i'll go take that shower." yerim mumbles awkwardly, feeling his strong hands loosen their hold. she clambers off him somewhat apologetically, because if someone-say, hoseok, were to enter the room at the moment, the two would come off as a couple having animalistic on the couch.

which is definitely not what they are and what they were doing.

by the time yerim is out the bathroom, smelling like jungkook's shampoo and wearing one of his white t-shirts with nothing else underneath save her , jungkook is already throwing her old clothes in the washer for her to wear tomorrow.

like the thoughtful best friend he is.

yerim plops down on the couch once more, and jungkook approaches with a large towel in hand. he takes her wet blonde hair into the towel, rubbing the water off carefully.

"i'll be back in a few minutes." jungkook informs her after he's done drying her hair for her.

yerim nods sleepily, curling into a fetal position on the leather couch as she hears him head off to the bathroom for his own shower.

she doesn't notice entirely when he comes back, but when he nudges her on the shoulder and she opens one eye to stare, her tongue swipes over her lips at the sight she is welcomed by.

no, she's definitely not attracted to her best friend, but she can't deny he's extremely hot--especially just out the shower. after all, the name jeon jungkook isn't infamous among yerim's peers for nothing.

"yeri-ah." jungkook murmurs, and yerim greets him groggily with a childish smile.

"jungkook." she pouts cutely in return, eyes still half-closed. she leans into his touch unconsciously when he reaches out to her cheek.

"i'm not letting you sleep on the couch, princess." he says when he retracts his hand, earning him a tired glare.

"since when do you tell me what to do?" she shoots back, indignant.

"since you walked right into my apartment, baby." he answers cheekily.

suddenly, yerim feels her face press into a familiar embrace. her body becomes feather-light and before she knows it he's carrying her bridal-style to the bedroom.

"what the hell? put me down, kook." yerim squirms against his hold, but his grip is unwavering.

jungkook sets her gently on the bed. "there. i put you down." he says, holding down her bare legs before she can kick him in the chest.

"nice try, princess, but i'm not falling for that again."

"jeon jungkook-"

jungkook places a light kiss on yerim's forehead before she can protest further. he tucks her in gently, pulling his white sheets (which smell so much like him yerim thinks she'll be high on a certain drug named jeon jungkook in no time) over her chest.

"night, yerim." he sighs, reaching over to switch off the lamp on his nightstand.

just as he turns to leave, yerim reaches out and catches a hold of his hand.

"it's not fair of me to let you sleep on the couch." she pouts in the dark, and he turns to stare at her. "are you sure we can't just share the bed?"

jungkook suddenly finds it difficult to swallow.

"it's fine. i don't trust my self-control around you anyways." he admits, his starry eyes glinting nervously.

jeon jungkook is not as smooth as he thinks when it comes to the game that is their love. (yerim doesn't know she's playing it yet, but she is playing it quite well.)

yerim simply giggles.

"whatever." she brushes off his comment smoothly. "just climb in, kook. there's room for two. and it's nothing we haven't done before."

she shifts aside so there is room on the bed, and, when she tugs on his hand once more, jungkook relents, laying down in the space yerim has made for him.

at first they settle under the sheets a good amount apart from each other, but just as they are both on the brink of sleep, jungkook's arms reach out beneath the sheets and pull her entirety closer to him, entrapping her in his strong hold and pressing his nose into her neck.

yerim shifts slightly, but she doesn't disentangle herself from his grasp.

it's true the warmth of jeon jungkook's embrace is a bit overwhelming, but for some reason, yerim doesn't mind at all.

in fact, she discovers she (kind of, sort of, really) likes it.

yerim falls asleep before she can hear jungkook whisper against her skin.

"i love you, kim yerim."