You like having friends, and you like the fact that each member has their own friendships outside of the group but always finding their way back to the group. No matter how many friends you make though, you'll always find your way back to your members. With that being said, you knew the types of friends your members usually befriend and that includes the leader. Irene was someone who's shy which caused her to have a cold exterior as she usually doesn't want to approach someone first. Even if somebody wanted to be her friend, she would question their every intention as she's always been popular; it's not uncommon for someone to want to be close to her to want something from her, usually a romantic relationship, or to be as popular as she is. Her friends were all non-celebrities because they were the ones who had stuck with her during school and her training period, always supporting her with her dreams. Of course, she made acquaintances with other idols as that's unavoidable but she only fully trusted her members. So, when she first told you she was getting closer to Jennie from Blackpink you were happy that she was opening up to latter, which meant that she was comfortable enough and beginning to trust the girl.  

You've known Jennie for a while now, as you're best friends the two youngest members of Blackpink, so you knew how much of a sweetheart Jennie was; you're a good judge of character so you already knew Jennie's one of the most loving, kind, funny, genuine person you've ever met. She's a sweetheart through and through. When you first got close to the group, only Joy and Seulgi followed your footsteps as she had some kind of infatuation with Rosé and Seulgi felt like she connected with Jisoo. Everyone thought Jisoo would be closer to Irene but as the latter was shy while Jisoo was the exact opposite, she got closer to Seulgi instead and never looked back.

As time goes by, Jennie began greeting Irene whenever they crossed path at the shop considering they go to the same one, and Irene shyly greeted back every time.  Irene told you how awkward she felt when Jennie first greeted her because they already knew of each other but Irene felt like she was too old to interact with the younger.

"Hyun-unnie, are you saying you're old?" You couldn't help but with mirth decorating your eyes, Irene proceeding to hit your arm as you chuckled. 

She pouted and glared at you. "Eli-ah, one more joke about my age I swear..." 

You laughed loudly, wrapping an arm around your guardian. "Unnie, you literally said you felt too old to interact with her!"

Irene slapped you one more time before wrapping her arm around your waist, causing you to wrap both your arms around her shoulders in a hug. With her head in your chest, she heaved a relieved sigh. "She's five years younger than me, of course I'd feel awkward. Plus, we never really talked before so I didn't know what to say." 

You hummed in response but said nothing for a little while, only hugging her tighter and pressing a kiss on top of her head. "I know you feel awkward but Jennie-unnie's a sweetheart and a good communicator too. Give her a chance, Unnie, maybe you can find someone else that understands what you're going through. Someone you can trust." 

You knew how apprehensive she could be with making idol friends because you never knew who genuinely wanted to be friends with you or just after you to gain popularity. When you first asked her about it, she said she was content with having the members with her and her friends outside of the industry and that she didn't need anyone else. However, you knew better because you had seen and known how much she had struggled with facing the hate she did, and still does, just because of the icy image she exhibited. Jennie was facing the same thing so you thought they could confide in each other. 

You pulled back from the hug just a little, so you could see her. She looked up from her position on your chest. You gave her that favourite smile of yours, "What do you say? Let her lead the conversation and see where it goes. If you don't feel comfortable you let her know, or you let me know so I can let her know. Okay?" 

She giggled at how quick the words went out of your mouth, her right hand reaching up to pinch your cheek softly. "You're adorable, Eli-ah," she gave you her breathtaking smile and nodded, agreeing with your points. "You're right. I'll see how it turns out and I'll let you know. Thank you, El." 

You patted her head affectionately. "Of course, Unnie. Remember, I'm always here for you no matter what." 

"I know," she leaned up to peck your cheek and you grinned, squeezing her into another hug.

"You are just so cute!" 

"Yah! You're squishing me!"

Ever since then, Jennie had begun worming her way into Irene's life as a new friend that she could trust as she, too, faced unnecessary hate just by how successful she was, just like the leader. Irene immediately informed you of her newly-formed friendship and you celebrated with her, genuinely happy and glad that she found someone else she could trust and relate with. You knew she was content with just having her friends and her members but more friends wouldn't hurt, right? They began to hang out outside of schedules and their meetups at the shop, began interacting more during music shows and award shows, and the fans were living for it. They were happy that BlackVelvet are getting closer and the members from each group began interacting more with each other. 

It was all sunshine and rainbows until Irene began making more plans with Jennie and not hanging out with you that often any more. At first, you thought it was just because they had so much to talk about so they began meeting up more often, which you didn't mind but you did feel a little jealous and insecure. Jealous because you felt Irene found someone better that she can hang out with and insecure because now that she had, she wouldn't need you as much anymore. When you first had those thoughts you immediately slapped your cheeks and shook your head in an attempt to rid of said thoughts, knowing how needy and selfish you sounded. Irene could trust and hang out with anyone she wanted, right? She never pulled you back from socialising before, knowing how you cherish the friends that you have, so who were you to take that away from her?

"Unnie, I heard there's a new ice cream place that opened near us! Should we try that out?" 

"I'm sorry Eli-ah, I have lunch with Jennie," the sentence was accompanied with an apologetic smile. "Can we try it some other time?" You immediately nodded, giving her a warm smile and you hoped it reached your eyes. "Of course, Unnie. Enjoy your lunch and say hi to Jennie-unnie from me!" 

"Hyun-unnie, can we go to our favourite cafe this Saturday? I've been craving their coffee and cake for a week." 

Irene looked up from her phone and frowned. "Jennie has something she wanted to talk about regarding her new partnership and she wanted my opinion. Didn't I tell you?" 

Irene looked genuinely confused so you gave her a small smile, shaking your head no. "You didn't but that's okay, I hope things go well for her." 

Irene opened and was about to say something but she was called by one of the managers, having to focus on what she was saying instead. You sighed but gave her head a kiss before proceeding to the other end of the room where your phone was. Wendy looked at you with sympathy in her eyes and she patted your shoulder when you sat next to her, giving you a side hug. You gave her a sad smile before giving the hand that was on your shoulder a squeeze in thanks. 

Small instances like this happened again and again, making you feel even more insecure. Maybe Irene had found the person she had been looking for all this time, someone who had what you didn't and now that she did, she didn't need you anymore. You're just another member to her now. Important, yes, but not as important as before. You tried to not get this into your head too much but being the overthinker that you were, you couldn't help it. No one was there to hold you back anymore. 

The worst one was during a tour stop in LA. Both Red Velvet and Blackpink was in town and with the previous hectic schedule both parties had, Jennie hadn't been able to see the older woman so when she found out she was in LA, she immediately invited her for breakfast at a cafe near both their hotels before she had to set out to another country.

The night before, you and Irene had made plans for breakfast at a nearby cafe and you were excited. You hadn't been able to tour the last city so you wanted to try the cute cafes they had around with your members. You asked everyone who wanted to come with but only Irene said yes with the others claiming they wanted to sleep more before their concert. You understood and promised to bring something back. You were hoping you'd get to spend time alone with the leader anyway and you were glad the circumstances supported it.

The next morning you were up early to make sure with your managers that it was okay for you and Irene to go out. Before you could call one of them though, the signature knocks could be heard from the door so you got up to open it with a big smile, ready to greet your guardian good morning before it fell into a confused frown. 

"Unnie, what's wrong?" 

Irene was at the door with a sad pout on her lips, her eyes clearly showing her frustrations. 

You stepped back so she'd come into your room and you closed the door before bringing her figure into yours in a warm embrace. "What's wrong, Hyun-unnie?"

She hugged you back before sighing into your chest, eyes peering up to show the sadness in them. Of what, you were about to find out. "Jennie just texted me saying she's in LA and she asked if I could have breakfast with her at around 9 before her flight this afternoon," you tried to keep your expression from changing but you already know what was about to happen. "I want to see her because it's been quite a while and I knew she had some news she wanted to tell me in person but we already made plans for breakfast. What do I do?" 

She looked so desperate and being the understanding sister that you are, you gave her a smile, your right hand her hair in hopes of giving her comfort. "I know you've been missing her and we still have the tour for the next few weeks, who knows when you'll see her again. It's okay, Unnie, we can get breakfast some other time." 

She frowned, the arms that were on your waist hugging you tighter. "Are you sure, Eli-ah? I can just say to her that I already have plans, I don't want to break my promise to you." 

You knew she meant what she said but you could see it in her eyes that she wanted to see the sweet girl with the gummy smile while she had the chance. So, you let out a big sigh but nodded nonetheless, making sure your true emotions weren't showing, only warmth displayed for her. 

"Yes, Hyun-unnie. Go see her, we can get breakfast in another city or something. Okay? Enjoy your day with her," you give her forehead a kiss and she closed her eyes while releasing a relieved sigh. 

"Thank you for being so understanding and considerate, Eli-ah. Our breakfast is on me next time." 

You grinned, kissing her cheek this time before letting go of the hug. "I'll hold you to that, Unnie." 

She tiptoed to give your cheek a kiss before leaving the room, excited hops in her steps. You chuckled and after you closed the door, the smile and happiness disappeared from your face only to be replaced by a sad frown. 

It's true, she had found someone better and she didn't need you anymore. What were you going to do now?

You hold your tears in while you texted one of your managers, letting her know that breakfast plans fell through and that you'd get room service instead. After that, you collapsed on the bed with tears running down your face. You knew this wasn't such a big deal, as you were the one who pushed her to pursue the friendship and cancel your plans this morning so she could see her. But why did it hurt so much if it wasn't such a big deal? Were you just overthinking again, exaggerating everything again? It hurt when you felt like someone you trusted and felt most comfortable with was pulling away from you, even though maybe she didn't mean it that way. You were hurt and you couldn't help but finally let everything out. 

You laid there crying for a while, curling your tall figure as much as you could until you found a comfortable position. An hour passed and you eventually calmed down before wiping your eyes and sitting up. You made up your mind before going over to your suitcase to look for your swimsuit, breakfast be damned. You didn't have the appetite right now. 

After you changed you covered your body with the clothes from before and getting your towel and key, ready to leave the room. You thought of bringing your phone or at least telling one of your members or managers where you were but you shook your head instead, proceeding to go to the swimming pool. No one was going to look for you anyway, not when the only one looking for you every so often didn't find the need to do so anymore. 

You worked your sadness and frustrations out on that pool, swimming endless laps and performing tricks you have learnt from school. You had made it into the swim team in high school but with you were a trainee so you couldn't join. However, the coach liked you enough to let you train with them whenever you could so you did pick up a few things. 

By the time you had gotten out of the pool, your hands already turned into prunes and you were starving, so you looked at the clock to find out it was almost lunchtime. Your eyes widened in shock before you chuckled to yourself, shaking your head in amusement whilst drying your body and putting your dry clothes over you again. You'd take off the swimsuit in your room. 

"I can't believe I swam for almost four hours. Guess I was that sad." 

You were beginning to feel calmer and the sadness you were feeling had been subdued to a dull ache in your chest instead of a pounding one. You didn't want to feel any of this, to have negative thoughts like this, but you couldn't help it. With time, maybe you'd eventually get over it and wouldn't feel as hurt. People grow apart all the time, it shouldn't be too hard to move on, right? You then made your way into your room and when you opened the door, you saw Irene on your bed with worry clearly written in her eyes and body language. When she noticed the door opening, she looked up to find your tall figure standing there with wet hair and a towel on one hand. She stood up and rushed towards you, bringing your figure into a tight hug. 

"Unnie, what's going on? How did you get in?" Now you were filled with worried thoughts. Was she hurt? 

You carefully walked the both of you inside before quickly closing the door, then throwing the towel on the floor along with your key card so you could hug your distressed leader better. 

She sniffled and you frowned, pushing her back a little but she wouldn't budge, only hugging you even tighter. So you did the only thing you could: you returned her embrace just as tight. 

"Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm here, Unnie, I'm right here. It's okay, everything's okay," you continued to whisper comforting words whilst she cried into your chest. 

You didn't know why she was crying but you tried to comfort her anyway. After a while she eventually calmed down, so you pulled back from the hug a little and she allowed you to, and you wiped the tears from her cheeks with gentle movements. 

"Tell me what's wrong, Unnie. Why did you cry?" 

She just looked at you with hurt and sadness in her eyes and you looked back with a confused frown. Was she hurt? Was Jennie hurt? Were your members hurt? You were so confused. 

"I'm sorry, Eli-ah. I'm so sorry," her eyes began tearing up again and you shook your head, putting your hand on her shoulders. She wasn't making any sense.

You frowned and the dull ache returned. Was she talking about her pulling away from you? How would she know about that when you hadn't shown any signs of discomfort? You knew that because she'd confront you as soon as possible if she had. "What are you sorry for, Unnie? You didn't do anything wrong. Can you tell me what made you cry?" 

She took deep breaths before looking at you with sorrowful eyes. "After I got back from my breakfast I came to your room but you didn't answer the door so I went into Seungwan's room to see if you're there or she knew where you were. She was confused because she thought you were with me! I was beginning to feel scared but I thought of manager-unnie so I texted her to see where you were but she told me you were probably in your room because you told her you were going to get room service this morning," she teared up again and you her cheek in an attempt to calm her down, which she closed her eyes and leaned into.

She opened her eyes again, "I tried to text you and call you but you weren't answering, so I asked your manager for your keys to check on you myself. When I entered, your key wasn't there and your phone was on the bed. I was so scared as of to where you went because you didn't bring anything! I wanted to check the gym but I decided against it, just in case you got back to your room. I was so worried, Eli-ah, where did you go?" 

You continued to her cheek, eyes on her to let her know how apologetic you were. You were thankful, in a way, that she was saying sorry because she was worried about you instead of finding out the real reason you were upset. "I went swimming for a bit and because I wasn't leaving the hotel, I thought it was okay to not say anything because I wouldn't be long. I didn't think you'd get back so quick and check on me, Unnie, and I didn't mean to stay there as long as I did. I didn't think anyone would care or look for me anyway, so I didn't bring my phone. I'm sorry for making you or anyone worried, Hyun-unnie, I didn't mean to." 

She eventually got what you were saying and she frowned in response, leaning away from your touch so you dropped the hand that was on her cheek. "What do you mean no one would care?" 

You looked around the room to avoid her gaze before shrugging, eyes back on her. She just realised how some sadness was seeping into your eyes along with insecurity and she didn't like the look she was seeing. How come she hadn't realised it before? 

"Everyone was busy with their own things so I honestly didn't think anyone was going to care enough to check what I was doing. Of course I'd let someone know if I was leaving the hotel but because I wasn't, I didn't see the point in saying anything." You ended the statement with another cool shrug, acting like it wasn't such a big deal.

Irene didn't know if the sadness and insecurity she was seeing were from the tour and you being tired or it was because of her friendship with Jennie but looking at it again, she was now sure it was the latter. She didn't mean to not pay attention to you, as she had always tried to be the best leaders her members could have so she'd always check up on them in case they were going through something and you didn't say anything then, so she didn't think there's anything wrong until Wendy brought something up today.

Irene knew she was seeing Jennie a lot but it was because their friendship was new and they found out they had a lot in common and can confide to each other about a lot so she was happy to find someone she could trust outside of her members. She didn't mean to put you aside or anything, as you never said anything and was even the one pushing her to pursue the friendship but then again, she forgot the fact that her relationship with you goes well beyond being members of the same group or even sisters. You were soulmates, just like Seulgi and Wendy. You trusted each other with everything and felt very comfortable with each other, rarely holding anything back. She hated herself for putting aside her relationship with you to pursue a new one, neglecting how you really might be feeling behind those warm smiles and grins. She never realised how it had gone for too long before Wendy brought it up. 

"Unnie, I thought you were with her?" Wendy couldn't help but ask when the leader knocked on her door to look for you. 

Irene sighed, "Jennie asked me to have breakfast with her before her flight so I met with her instead. I was ready to say no because I already made plans with Eli but she told me to meet Jennie instead, saying something of who knew when I'd see Jennie again because we still have the tour for a few more weeks." 

Wendy frowned causing Irene to frown in confusion. "What?" 

Irene could read the younger like a book so she didn't even bother to hide anything, sighing before bringing the topic up. "How long have you been putting Eli aside for Jennie?" 

Putting aside? She never put aside anyone, let alone Eli, for anyone else! "What do you mean putting her aside, Seungwan-ah?" Irene couldn't help but glare, not realising she was doing anything wrong.

The main vocalist gulped at the cold glare but didn't back down, knowing you had been hurting for a while but wouldn't say anything to Irene because you knew just how happy the leader was being friends with Jennie. "I know Eli had been trying to hang out with you but you always had something going on with Jennie. I'm not saying it's anyone's fault but maybe you should also consider how Eli's feeling, Unnie. Wouldn't she feel left behind now that you've found someone else to confide in?" 

Irene contemplated the notion, lips turned into a frown. "She's the one pushing me to be friends with Jennie, to see if I feel comfortable with her and maybe find someone that can understand me in ways that none of you couldn't, and I did. She knows that she's the one I trust the most, anyway." 

Wendy lifted an eyebrow. "Does she?" 

Irene opened to argue before she closed it again, everything finally dawning on her. She actually didn't know the answer to that as she hadn't hung out with only just you. You both cuddle and hang out together, sure, but never really had the chance to really spend time with each other due to the hectic schedule. 

What if you believed you were being left out? What if you thought she didn't need you anymore because she had spent so much time with Jennie and less time with you? She knew you trusted her but that didn't mean you wouldn't feel upset or insecure. 

"Does she...?" Irene didn't finish her question but the younger knew what she was asking. Letting out a sad smile, she then scoffed in amusement but Irene could detect the hint of sadness for you. 

"No, she'd never blame you. I never really raised the issue with her but I could see she was hurting. I know she just didn't want to hold you back from finally making friends so she didn't say anything to you or anyone, really. I don't think she told Lisa or Rosé either." 

Irene was silent after that, sitting down on Wendy's hotel bed and the latter wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder, pressing a light kiss on the side of the older's head just like you would. 

"I don't think she ever meant for you to feel guilty, Unnie," Wendy continued softly. "So if you talk to her, please be gentle okay? Or she'd feel even more guilty for even having the feelings that she does. Knowing her, she probably didn't say anything as she felt maybe she was just overthinking everything when in fact, maybe she wasn't." 

This brought Irene to where she was, eyes puffy after crying her eyes out in worry for her soulmate. Irene knew confronting you wouldn't help much so she just put her hands on each of your cheeks, making sure your eyes were on her.

"Sweetheart I'm sorry that we haven't been able to spend time together, just the two of us. Let's have lunch together? We still have a few hours before we have to be at the venue." 

Your eyes lit up and she brightened at the sight but your lips turned into a frown at the sudden change of topic. "Hyun-unnie it's okay, really, we've been busy so of course I know we hadn't had the chance to hang out." 

She chuckled whilst shaking her head in amusement. "I know but let me have this one, please? I was so worried and this would make me feel better," she gave you that adorable pout of hers and you melted, cooing while pinching her cheek in response. 

"Okay, Unnie. Let me shower then we can go. Should we ask the members to come with us too?" 

She immediately shook her head no. "I want to spend time with you. I want to show you that no matter who I'm friends with, you're always going to be the one I trust the most and come back to," her words touched you, making you tear up. Did she know what you were feeling? "Well, the members too." 

You giggled tearily but appreciated the effort all the same. "That's good to know, Unnie. Remember that you're that to me too, got it?" 

She nodded with a warm smile, determination written in her eyes. She knew you didn't fully believe her statement just yet but she was determined to erase the sadness and insecurity she had helped create. 

You might not have talked about it in-depth or even at all but Irene was now aware of the issue so she was determined to fix it. You're her soulmate and she wouldn't want you to think you're worth any less.