. . . 

Yongsun watches silently from the corner of the studio with anything but a smile on her face as the photographer works his magic, calling out for the model to do various poses. She purses her lips whilst lightly drumming her fingertips against her arm; a tell-tale sign that she was less than impressed. She quirks her eyebrow at his attempts to garner unique and natural expressions from the model. He was definitely not the photographer she had in mind for this particular shoot. She peers over her shoulder and within a second, her trusted assistant is by her side awaiting for further instructions.

"Megan, did I or did I not specifically ask for Gabriel to be the photographer?" she says slowly in a hushed manner but anyone can tell that she was moments away from yelling.

"Y-yes, Ms. Kim but there were scheduling conflicts s-so I drew up a list of other potential photographers but you never read it."

"So." Yongsun turns to fully face her with a narrowed stare, "You're saying that it is my fault that the photographer I had in mind isn't here so you decided to take matters into your own hands and hire any mediocre person that owns a camera. Is that what you're saying?"

Megan widens her eyes and shakes her head vigourously, "Not at all! You just seemed so stressed lately I just..." her voice begins to trail off. 

Yongsun's gaze softens ever so slightly for a fleeting moment that was only visible to those who paid particular attention to her face but fortunately no one dared to look Kim Yongsun in the eyes when something isn't to her satisfaction. This was the case for Megan, and when she finally musters the courage to up at her boss, Yongsun's expression reverts back to her usual hardening stare that seems impenetrable to most. "Get Gabriel on the phone and schedule him for next week." She takes one last look at the amateur photographer before tsking and walking back to her office with a shake of her head. 

. . . 

"Knock, knock."

Yongsun groans at the sound of distraction standing in her doorway and seethes, "Please. For goodness sake, just knock on the damn door." 

Jinah merely grins in reponse as she skips into her office and flops down onto a vacant seat, "Guess what."

"What?"

"Guess."

Yongsun gives her a pointed look and returns her attention back to the notes sprawled across her desk. She had a good work rhythm going for the past hour and a half and now it was close to being shattered by the mere presence of her friend. She hated it with a passion when Jinah did this sort of thing. She knew how much of a curious* (nosy*) person Yongsun was and for her to use that to her advantage just when she was neck deep with organising the features for the upcoming issue seemed cruel. Yongsun steals a glance at Jinah, who was patiently waiting for her to crack. Yongsun purses her lips and resumes her work. 'No. I will not be distracted' she thinks to herself. 

I will not be distracted 

I will not be distracted

I will not be distracted

I will not - 

Yongsun slams her hands against her desk which startles Jinah to the point where she jumps a little out of her seat, "Oh my god, just tell me."

Jinah smiles triumphantly and walks over to the edge of her desk and leans forward, resting her palms on the glass surface, "I managed to convince Marcus to loan not one but two dresses for tonight's gala!" 

"Why would you ask for two?"

Jinah makes a sound of disbelief at how oblivious her friend was being, "One for you, silly!" She claps her hands together in glee, "We're going to be the best dressed tonight."

"I'm not going." 

Her face darkens at her friend's nonchalant attitude, "What do you mean, 'not going'?" 

"As in I am not going," Yongsun waves her hand in a shooing motion in an effort to dismiss the topic of conversation so that she could finally resume working on the next item in her never-ending checklist. 

"You're the backbone of this magazine, of course you have to go. You have to represent!"

"You say this as if being the creative director isn't as elite as being an editor." 

"Well obviously I consider myself an integral part of this magazine," She says with a roll of her eyes, "But I need you there with me."

"I'm just not in the mood to be around snobby rich men and having to fake laugh at their offensive jokes," 

"You won't bump into him."

Yongsun stops typing mid-sentence and finally gives Jinah her undivided attention. Her hands curl up into fists as they hover over the abandoned keyboard. She sighs as she digged the nail of her thumb into the lower part of her index finger, just enough to feel a slight twinge but not enough to pierce the skin and draw blood. "'I know that." She finally says but this time her defenses are down and her voice loses the usual sharp tone and in its place was timidness and vulnerability. 

Jinah relaxes her rigid stance and gazes intently at her friend as she slowly says, "I know it's difficult. I understand that. I just.."

She sighs finding it particularly difficult at that moment to voice her thoughts in a way that didn't seem pushy, "You gotta start picking yourself back up. You're working too much - don't try to deny it," She says as Yongsun opens to protest, "It's okay to rest and relax once in a while. You deserve this more than anyone, that's for sure. Tell you what, come with me tonight and stay for a while and if you feel uncomfortable then just say the word and we'll leave." 

Yongsun bites on her lower lip, as she mulls over her friend's advice and eventually she breaks into a small smile, "Fine. But as soon as I say that I want to leave then I will and you're not allowed to persaude me to stay." Jinah stands tall and gives her a salute, "Yes, Ma'am,"

After a short bargaining session with Jinah over when to get off work, Yongsun finally found herself alone with her thoughts. She runs her hands through her hair and leans back on her office chair. Maybe Jinah was right. Maybe she did need a break, even she felt like she had been on autopilot for the past month. 

A month.

Come to think of it, it has also been a month since she last spoke to the tech support girl. Subconciously, Yongsun flips through her leather bound notebook until it stops at the section that is bookmarked with a scrap piece of paper. She takes ahold of the flimsy paper with the utmost care and brings it to her eye level. Written in her familar, somewhat contempt handwriting were two phone numbers. She'd lost track on how many times she had come across this piece of paper for the past month or so when making new entries in her notebook. As she continued staring at the piece of paper, her mind drifts to that morning when she woke up after probably the best sleep she had had in a very long time. Her phone that was initially cradled between her head and shoulders, was found on the floor (thankfully with screen still intact) meanwhile her laptop had toppled to the other side of the bed and was left momentarily forgotten as she got ready for the day. It wasn't until she was sitting in her office that morning, that she finally booted the computer up from sleep mode and what happened next was definitely a surprise. The screen was occupied by an unamed document but her confusion faded almost instantly as she read through it:

Hi.

You fell asleep so I didn't get the chance to tell you this. 

xxx-xxx-xxxx*  --> this number is for when you have software issues etc (it will automatically connect to my work desk)

xxx-xxx-xxxx* --> this number is for when you want to chat about something that doesn't concern deadlines or anything fashion related (my mobile # basically... this is most definitely against company policy but you sound like you could use a friend)

P.S Before you freak out, I want you to know I definitely did not snoop through your documents. Scouts honour. (No sarcasm intended. I know I already broke the rules by giving you my number but I do have morals)

P.P.S You snore. 

Yongsun was hesistant at first. The thought of a friendship with this girl seemed a bit weird, the main reason being that she had never met this girl and only knows the sound of her voice yet for some odd reason, this girl had no qualms in giving out her phone number. What a strange person indeed. Didn't this girl learn about stranger danger? Was she comfortable in giving her her phone number just because Yongsun was a female? Females are capable of being serial killers too! Nevertheless, Yongsun eventually got over her reluctance and made a note of the phone numbers (she even saved them in her phone just in case she lost the piece of paper), but despite this, never made use of them.

 . . . 

Yongsun hated to admit it but Jinah did a perfect job in picking out the dresses for tonight's gala. Of course, being the creative director, the girl had an eye for aesthetics and she certainly never fails to impress.

"Wow, they spared no expense huh?" Jinah says as they both make their way up the steps into the main hall. As soon as the doors opened, the chattering of the many guests filled the ears of newcomers. Waiters were trying their best to serve every single guest with appetisers and glasses of champagne as the jazz band plays softly in the background. If there were less people present, Yongsun would definitely be able to enjoy the atmosphere more. Being around so many people made her feel suffocated at times and honestly was the one of the things she disliked about her job. Having to network at these types of events made her toes curl in trepidation.  "Kind of ironic though, don't you think?" She replies as she smiles politely at a few people who were beckoning her over.

"Hm?"

"The whole point of this is to raise money for charity yet they're wasting money on these meaningless things." Yongsun says as she takes a sip of her champagne that she managed to swipe off the tray of a bustling waiter.

Jinah nudges her with her elbow in response, "Don't drink so much." 

"I'll be fine. If I can't make use of the open bar then what is the point of being here?" 

"For charity?"

"I can write a cheque from the comfort of my own bed and it will have the same effect."

"Lighten up. I'm sure you'll have a great time."

Yongsun scoffs quietly as she downs the rest of her drink and discards it on the tray of another passing waiter, "As long as I don't have to talk too long to these people and I have a endless supply of drinks and food then yeah I'll be having the time of my life." 

"Good evening, Ms Kim." 

Yongsun turns around and plasters a fake smile on her face, "Mr Andrews." She beams as he kisses her on the cheek, "How are you?"

Beside her Jinah does little to suppress her giggles as she watches her friend struggle to feign interest in the middle age guy's life update. "Would you excuse me for a moment, I have to speak to Gabriel." Yongsun shoots her a 'please don't leave me' look whereas Jinah merely smiles and mouths, 'Come find me later.' 

"....So she ended up taking the house and the kids and all I'm left with is my condo."

After an excruciating ten minute conversation, Yongsun finally excuses herself and makes a beeline towards the bar where Jinah was already seated, being flirted with by some guy. As she arrives, her friend gives her the 'thank god you're here, help me get rid of him' look but Yongsun looks onwards with a sly smile and orders a gin and tonic instead. Payback for earlier. 

As the night drags on, the talking part starts to become much more tolerable to Yongsun (but she had a feeling it was mostly due to her alcohol consumption). Her buzz was cut short however, when she walks straight into the one person that she wished to avoid at all costs.

He looks as surprised as she does and for a moment neither of them say a word as they look at each other, trying to suss out how the other was doing since they decided to part ways a month ago. 

She breaks the silence and gulps down the lump that formed at the back of , "Theo."

"Yongsun."

"How-"

"How-" They both laugh lightly and he makes a gesture for her to talk. 

"How have you been?" 

He shrugs, "Good I guess...how about you?" 

She nods, "Same." 

He smiles that smile that she misses so much and nods towards the group of people that were standing nearby, "I was just about to talk to them, you want to join?" 

Say no. "Yes." Damn it.

He manoeuvres her towards the group with one hand lightly pressed to the small of her back with some familiarity and it was a fleeting moment where Yongsun feels at ease for the first time that night -no scratch that, in a long time. 

"Gentlemen, I'm sure you know Ms. Kim, my girl-" He blushes at his mistake before quickly correcting himself, "The editor of Chic." 

"Ah, yes. A pleasure." One says as his eyes travel up her body slowly. When he meets her gaze, he smirks. unbashfully. Whilst Theo chatters away about some business deal in the background, another one of the men nods along feigning interest yet occasionally, when given the chance, his eyes would briefly flicker to Yongsun and roam her body in lust until eventually she feels physically sick to the stomach about the thought that these men on the cusp of sixty, were still looking for some thrill at these types of events. She excuses herself from the conversation and to her disappointment, Theo barely notices.

. . . 

Yongsun shivers slightly as she leans against the wall, watching her breath form due to the cold night. She wobbles as she unbuckles the clasps of both of her insanely high heels and lets out a sigh of relief as her feet touches the cold, hard (a bit wet) ground. Damn, this night was proving to be one large obstacle between her and her bed. Yongsun digs out the small box of cigarettes from her purse and sticks one in . ' it. If I have to endure this I should at least treat myself' (she had a bad habit of smoking during dire times and this night was definitely an unpleasant one indeed).

"You shouldn't be smoking here."

Yongsun jumps up in fright and drops her cigarette in the process. "Don't sneak up on people like that!" 

The person fails to give her an apology and instead points to the sign beside her that read 'No smoking on these premises'

"Thanks for ruining my night." Yongsun mutters as she tosses her cigarette in the nearby bin.

"I may have just saved your life," 

She scoffs, "Gee, thanks."

The girl hesitates at the fact that Yongsun didn't see the humorous side and offers her a slight smile (though she was unsure whether she would see it considering how dark it was outside), "Tough night?"

"You could say that."

"Can't be as tough as mine."

Yongsun turns to face the person, though it was hard to make out what she looked like, all she could see was the length of her hair, "It's not a competition but if it was, I'd beat you for sure."

"Nah. You're a guest at this event," She motions at her designer dress and shoes, "I'm working at this event. Pretty sure my night is worse."

Yongsun shakes her head in disagreement, "No. You can't play that card. You get to take breaks but I'm expected to network nonstop."

"Oh the horror." The girl replies with a roll of her eyes (presumably), "Can't imagine anything worse than having to talk to people while sipping on a month's rent worth of champagne and eating all night." She chuckles after a lack of a comeback from Yongsun and adds, "Besides, aren't you taking a break right now?"

"Alright alright. I get your point. I'm the privileged one in this scenario." 

"Mhm."

Time that had seemingly passed by slowly when Yongsun first arrived at the gala, appeared to whizz by at that very moment as the pair continued to compare the events of the night that were deemed unpleasant. It was nice to not be on guard for once (which was what she always felt at these types of occasions) and had it not been for the gust of wind that slaps the both of them out of their little world, there was no doubt that Yongsun would have spent the reminder of the night talking to the girl.

But alas, all good things come to an end. 

The girl heaves herself off the wall and stands up straight whilst adjusting her uniform, "It's getting a bit chilly. And I think we both have taken a long enough break."

Yongsun sighs, "Yeah."

"I'm right again. Look at that, I'm winning." 

"You're lucky I'm too exhausted to argue with you."

As they both make their way back into the clearly lit foyer, Yongsun finally gets a better look at her new friend. She was pretty but not in the conventional sense which made her look even more appealing to the eyes. Having been around models literally every day, it was refreshing to see a different type of beauty.

"Well, I better get back inside, the champagne isn't going to serve itself." The girl laughs lightly at the thought of it, her eyes crinkle in amusement, "Thanks for keeping me company, Miss." 

Yongsun's eyes widen at the familiar sound of that word. Her voice. It sounds exactly like that tech girl's. Before she could introduce herself, her gaze lands onto the name tag pinned to the girl's blouse which reads 'Jung Wheein'. 'Wasn't the girl's name, Moonbyul?' And just like that her excitement vanishes almost instantly. She knew it was too good to be true. 

"Try not to talk to the guests like the way you talked to me, I don't think they'd be as forgiving as I am."

The girl grins, "Of course not. They're not as pretty as you." 

Yongsun stares at her with an open mouth as the girl happily walks back into the hall with a light skip to her step. 

Did she just get hit on?

. . . 

author's note: *I didn't want to use real numbers so just use your imagination lol. 

Sorry for the long wait.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and leave comments :)