Hyejin didn’t go home straight away; she stayed for dinner and a movie. By then, it was too late to go home.

“Just stay over,” Wheein said, casually patting Hyejin’s thigh. “It’ll be like old times.” She bit her tongue, suddenly realizing she had said something she shouldn’t. “Sorry, Hyejin-ah…”

Hyejin shook her head and gave her a reassuring smile. “No, it’s okay. I’m sorry that I forgot about…our old times.”

Wheein scowled. “I told you not to say that,” she said angrily. “It’s not your fault. None of it is.”

Hyejin felt the sting behind her eyes and quickly pulled Wheein into her arms.  “Thanks for being patient with me,” she mumbled.

Wheein said nothing and just nodded, squeezing Hyejin tight.

It was nearly midnight when Hyejin stepped out into the balcony and was greeted by the chilly night air. She wrapped her arms around her body and rubbed her upper arms to keep herself warm.

She approached the railing and leaned against it, taking in deep breaths of fresh air. Then, she glanced at her phone and its black screen and let out a long sigh.

You said you’re going to call me...babo Byulyi…

“Still no call?”

Hyejin shook her head without looking to see who it was. Then, she heard the sound of feet shuffling and a moment later, Wheein was standing next to her and leaning against the railing with a beer can in one hand.

“Maybe she’s busy,” Wheein reasoned, sipping on her beer as she watched the lively scenery beneath her.

“Maybe,” Hyejin muttered.

They stood there in comfortable silence, admiring the city lights and the faint music floating from a nearby restaurant. Then, Hyejin spoke.

“Wheein-ah, what if I say I had a crush on you in the past?”

Wheein said nothing and just sipped her beer. After a while, she asked, “Are you asking because you had a flashback about it?”

Hyejin turned her head towards Wheein, frowning. “How did you…”

“When you start asking random questions about the past, I figured it’s because of your flashbacks.” Wheein paused and looked at Hyejin with guarded eyes. “How much do you remember?”

“Not much. I just know that I had a crush on you. That’s all.”

And that I have a rival who looks like a hamster.

Suddenly, it hit Hyejin. “You knew I had a crush on you?” she asked, staring at Wheein in disbelief.

Wheein lowered her head and sighed. “Yes, I knew,” she said softly. Then, she looked up with a knowing smile. “But you still don’t remember how I knew, right?”

Hyejin shook her head. "Not yet…”

“I’ll stop talking then,” Wheein said as she reached out a hand and gently Hyejin’s temple with her thumb. “I don’t want your head to hurt from trying to remember,” she whispered. “It pains me to see you hurting, Hyejin-ah.”

Ah, now I know why I fell for her…

Hyejin smiled. “Wheein-ah, I’ll probably fall for you again if you keep this up,” she said jokingly.

Wheein grinned. “I’m not going to stop, so maybe you will,” she joked back.

Hyejin rolled her eyes. “I change my mind. I don’t want to get my heart broken twice.”

She froze.

Twice? Did Wheein break my heart the first time?

Hyejin saw the sad look in Wheein’s eyes and wondered what exactly happened between them in the past.

“I guess you do remember,” Wheein murmured. She lightly tapped Hyejin’s chest and added, “Maybe your mind doesn’t, but your heart definitely does.”

Hyejin stared blankly at Wheein, trying to process the new information.

She thought knowing about her heartbreak would trigger another flashback; something that would explain to her how and why that happened. But there was no flashback; not even a stupid headache.

“This time, though, I can properly tell you why it won’t work between us,” Wheein was saying, pulling Hyejin out of her thoughts. “You’re just not my type, Hyejin-ah.”

Hyejin’s mouth twitched. “How can I forget? You’re obsessed with pretty unnies.” She paused and frowned when she realized that Byulyi was also pretty and older than both of them. “Obsess all you want, but stay away from Byul,” she growled, lifting a warning finger in Wheein’s face.

Wheein laughed and swatted the finger away. “Wow. She’s not even your girlfriend yet and you’re already being territorial,” she teased. Then, in a more serious tone, she added, “Don’t worry, Hyejin-ah. Nothing’s going to happen between us.”

“Why not?” Hyejin asked, feeling a little offended that Wheein didn’t consider Byulyi a catch.

“Uh, maybe because…we both have different tastes?”

Hyejin narrowed her eyes, detecting a hint of hesitation in Wheein’s voice. But she had to agree; their tastes were completely different when it comes to love.

“Fine,” Hyejin said with a huff. “I’ll believe you.”

Suddenly, an awkward silence fell over them; Wheein was toying with her half-emptied can while Hyejin was fiddling with her phone, thinking of what to say or do next.

Wheein moved first. She leaned in and pecked Hyejin’s cheek, whispering, “I hope Byul calls you soon. I don’t want to wake up and find you freezing to death out here.”

Hyejin playfully hit Wheein on the arm; the smaller woman just laughed as she scurried back inside.

Alone, once again, Hyejin started to feel cold. She jumped up and down, hoping to warm her body up, and then glanced at her phone for the umpteenth time; still nothing from Byul.

She debated whether she should wait for a while longer, but a gust of cold wind blew towards her and she quickly hurried inside the apartment and the warmth it offered, making a mental note to ignore Byul for the next few days.

Hyejin could feel the warm sunlight on her face, but she decided it was still too early to get up. Then, she felt someone roughly shaking her body and she let out a protesting whine.

Wheein’s anime-like voice invaded her ears, saying, “Wakey, wakey. You have a visitor~”

Hyejin pried her eyes open and saw two faces hovering above her; one of them was Wheein and the other was a stranger.

“Who…?” she asked in a hoarse voice.

The stranger smiled brightly and said, “Hello, my name is Kwon Eunbi. I’m your manager starting from today.”

Hyejin furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and looked at Wheein for further explanation.

“Uh, your previous manager quit,” Wheein said with an awkward smile.

Hyejin narrowed her eyes. “Why?”

Wheein cleared , looking extremely uncomfortable. “It might, or might not have been...because of me.”

Hyejin immediately understood what had happened and let out a loud groan. “Jung Wheein, again?”

“It’s not my fault your manager unnie is too pretty to ignore,” Wheein said defensively. “In my defence, I did warn her that I don’t want a relationship. She didn’t listen and-”

Hyejin ignored her rambling best friend and turned to glare at her new manager. “How old are you?” she demanded.

Before Eunbi could answer, Wheein answered for her.

“She’s our age and she already has a boyfriend. I interrogated her when she arrived earlier,” Wheein explained with a shrug and a smile.

Or you were just flirting with my manager. Again.

Hyejin let out a frustrated sigh. Then, she turned to Eunbi and asked curtly, “Why are you here?” She felt bad for the woman, but she was cranky from being woken up so early and so roughly. “You know you could have just called. Or better yet, text me.”

“Oh, that won’t do,” Eunbi said in a serious tone, pushing her glasses further up her nose. “CEO-nim personally asked you to attend an urgent photoshoot today. Like right now.”

Hyejin wanted to throw a tantrum and refuse to go, but she owed the CEO everything and she couldn’t just ignore an urgent request from him.

“Fine,” she muttered. “Give me five minutes. No, wait. Ten. Give me ten minutes.”

Eunbi nodded. “Okay, I’ll wait in the living room.”

“I’ll go and keep her company,” Wheein quickly said and moved to follow Eunbi out of the room.

Hyejin grabbed her arm before she could and whispered, “Don’t screw this up. I’m tired of changing managers.”

Wheein scoffed. “Please. She’s not my type. Don’t worry your pretty little head, Hyejin-ah.”

Hyejin couldn’t help it; not after she saw the faint blush on Wheein’s cheeks, the bounce in her steps and the goofy smile on her face.

Maybe nothing would happen. Kwon Eunbi is not Jung Wheein’s type after all.

Hyejin grunted as she removed herself from the bed and stretched her limbs. Then she picked up her phone from the night stand and her heart skipped when she saw that she had received a text message from Byulyi.

Byul

I’m sorry.

I passed out last night.

Forgive me?

Hyejin’s lips twitched, but she won’t easily forgive the older woman; she almost got sick waiting for her outside on a cold night.

She ignored the text and tossed her phone onto the bed, humming a random song under her breath as she skipped towards the bathroom.