Nice, France

Jessica doesn’t normally wake up early even when she’s on vacation. Krystal’s taken aback when she enters her sister’s bedroom and pauses at the sight of Jessica poring over clothes strewn across her bed. She watches her sister ponder over the various outfits and smiles softly when Jessica reaches for a white off shoulder blouse and blue jeans.

“Are you going somewhere without me, Jung Jessica?” Krystal says, grinning when Jessica turns to her and rolls her eyes as she gets dressed.

“I was going to wake you up for breakfast,” Jessica says, slipping on a denim jacket. She grabs her purse and checks her phone for any notifications, sighing and slipping her phone into the back pocket of her jeans when she’s done.

“Excellent! I’m starving,” Krystal says, grabbing a checkered blazer from Jessica’s bed and making her way out of the hotel room.

“Hey! That’s my clothes,” Jessica pouts, following after her sister.

Krystal just giggles and wraps the blazer closer around her body.

After a hearty breakfast of croissants, French toast and coffee, Krystal pulls Jessica along the streets for some sightseeing. They stop by some of the local stores and entertain themselves silly, with Jessica guffawing when Krystal exits a shop and pouts at her.

They stand together in front of a boutique store when Jessica almost drops her phone when she hears a soft, sweet-toned voice in the distance.

I’m here outside when you’re ready
Think about the shots and confetti
I’ll take you home if you let me
Just promise you won’t forget me

“Unnie, that voice sounds very familiar,” Krystal says, tugging on Jessica’s arm. Jessica nods in agreement but frowns when she sifts through her memories and tries to connect the dots together. She hears a gasp beside her and feels Krystal’s hand disappearing from her arm.

“Doesn’t it sound like Taeyeon-unnie’s voice?”

“What?” Jessica says, snapping her head to the side and blinking when her gaze falls on a family who stare back at her with confused expressions. She apologises and spins around, frowning at Krystal’s figure in the distance.

She quickly walks after Krystal and pushes through a small crowd standing around a water fountain. She falls beside her sister and tugs on her arm, but Krystal just looks at her in disbelief and returns her attention to the busker seated in front of them.

Jessica’s gaze settles on the stranger and she gasps audibly, her voice escaping her as she recognises the singer and her silvery vocals.

“Taeyeon?”

Jessica feels her heart beat faster when the busker pulls her sunglasses down to her nose to peer over the top of the metal frame. The unmistakable glint of mirth and mischief in her eyes and the small quirk at the corner of her lips only increases Jessica’s suspicions on who this mystery individual is. She almost sighs in relief when the woman’s melodious speaking voice fills the air.

“Wow. I didn’t think I’d run into two superstars in Nice,” Taeyeon says, sliding her sunglasses back up her nose. She crosses her arms in front of her chest and leans back on her stool in amusement.

“It really is you!” Krystal says, her hands flying to cover as she stands there in surprise.

Jessica feels her heart flutter when Taeyeon’s laugh escapes her lips – not that polite giggle that she does on screen but that beautiful good-natured laugh she releases whenever she finds something genuinely amusing. She knows Taeyeon finds the situation bizarre and hilarious when her shoulders rise upwards and she leans further back on her stool.

“Yes, it’s me. What are you two doing here?” Taeyeon says, recovering from her giggles and tilting her head to the side. Jessica instantly feels warm when Taeyeon’s eyes stare at her through her sunglasses and she struggles to find the right words to say.

Krystal beats her to it.

“We’re on vacation together so I managed to drag Jess away from her paperwork and get her to walk around and explore the city with me. What about you? I thought you were supposed to be preparing new music or something.”

“I escaped the -hole company for a couple of days. I’m also on a break.”

“So you decided to come here to sing?” Jessica says, raising her eyebrows at the irony of Taeyeon’s words.

Taeyeon tosses her head back and giggles. Jessica’s eyes definitely don’t focus on the chin dimple suddenly appearing on Taeyeon’s face.

“Ironic isn’t it? I flew about eighteen hours to have a holiday only to do the very thing that is my job; sing.”

Jessica’s about to open to reply when a phone’s ringtone disrupts their conversation. Krystal gives the both of them a sheepish look and pulls out her mobile from her coat. She frowns when she registers the ID on her screen and glances up at Jessica with a pout.

“I have to take this phone call,” Krystal says, waving to Taeyeon and patting Jessica on the arm. She brushes past a couple of bystanders and stands off towards the side.

Jessica spins around and blinks when Taeyeon flashes her a dazzling grin and that’s when Jessica realises she’s alone with the one person who she never thought she’d see again.

“You attracted quite the crowd,” Jessica says, leaning against a lamp post and crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“I attract a lot of people,” Taeyeon says, sliding her sunglasses into her blonde hair and giving her a wink.

Oh how she wishes she could wipe the smirk off Taeyeon’s face.

“Any particular song requests?”

The random question throws Jessica off balance and opens and closes as she tries to formulate a response. Taeyeon studies her and waits patiently as she takes a quick sip from her water bottle, which only makes Jessica’s mind wander to thoughts and feelings she was sure she had buried away and forgotten.

You didn’t do a very good job at forgetting Taeyeon, her mind says. Jessica pinches herself in the arm to remind herself that it’s visceral, it’s real and she’s not imagining things.

Taeyeon really is in front of her, with her.

“Surprise me.”

The sweet smile Jessica receives makes her chest feel warm. She blushes crimson when Taeyeon winks at her again and stands up from her stool.

Oh, if it was only an attraction
How come nobody ever felt this way?
If it was only a distraction
How come I can’t stay away?

Jessica doesn’t know if Krystal’s a genius or a complete for rattling off some random excuse about having some business to attend to – she’s pretty sure Krystal specifically blocked out her schedule to have some time off to rest – because she finds herself sitting opposite of Taeyeon in another café, this one more quaint but attractive than the one she had visited in the morning. Jessica blinks at the sight of Taeyeon proficiently ordering coffee for the two of them and paying for their drinks.

Again, she has to remind herself that the Taeyeon in front of her is not a figment of her imagination.

“Your English has gotten better,” Jessica muses, frowning when she remembers the late nights she spent teaching Taeyeon basic English words and phrases. That was many years ago when she was still a part of their history, their legacy, their Girls' Generation.

“I had good teachers,” Taeyeon says, flashing her a half-smile as she stirs her coffee and takes a slow sip of the hot beverage.

Jessica takes the few seconds of silence to study Taeyeon, her bright blonde hair splayed over her shoulders and shining brightly in the sunlight filtering through the windows. She observes the way Taeyeon closes her eyes and scrunches her nose at the strong taste of coffee, and how her body relaxes as she swallows the comforting beverage. Jessica’s eyes fall onto the line of Taeyeon’s jaw and she gulps when she notices how defined her features are. She drops her gaze to Taeyeon’s shoulders and frowns when she connects the line of her collarbone to the curve in her neck and registers how prominent her bones are.

She jumps in her chair when Taeyeon coughs and contemplates her with an amused smirk on her face.

“Is everything okay?” Taeyeon says softly, her kind tone not matching the teasing smile she’s wearing.

Jessica quickly recovers and nods, raising her own cup of coffee and bringing it to her lips. She squeals when the hot liquid fills and burns her insides. She carefully places the cup back onto its ceramic plate and sighs contentedly.

“This is better than the coffee I had in the morning and that coffee was delicious.”

“So this is heavenly and comforting?” Taeyeon says, shaking her head in amusement when Jessica nods and takes another sip of her drink.

They make small talk over how long they’re staying in the city and it’s not long after that they finish their coffee. Taeyeon rises from her chair and picks up her jacket resting on the chair beside her.

“Have you had the chance to explore the city?”

Jessica shakes her head, curious as to what Taeyeon’s thinking. She stares at Taeyeon when she slides her sunglasses through her hair to rest on her head and makes eye contact with bright brown orbs that study her with interest.

“Shall we?” Taeyeon says, holding her palm out for Jessica to take.

Maybe there’s a selfish part of Jessica that just wants closure from their past, an indication for her to move on from her life and not dwell and occupy her thoughts about the one person she’s been thinking about for the past few years. Wondering if she’s well, deliberating on whether she’s happy, thinking if there was ever a possibility of them reaching out to each other earlier.

She’s initially not sure why she agrees in the first place but the gentle smile she receives from Taeyeon as she slips her hands into hers makes her think she’s made the correct decision to follow her into the streets and into the unknown.

Jessica blushes when the feeling of Taeyeon’s hand in her own feels natural to her, an act that she remembers occurring many times over the course of her career in Girls' Generation. She allows Taeyeon to tug her along, staring a little too long at the way Taeyeon’s hair blows gently in the wind and falls off her shoulder. When Taeyeon peers at her over her shoulder, Jessica can’t help but shyly duck her head in embarrassment at having been caught in the act. Thankfully, Taeyeon doesn’t laugh at her and continues to pull her along the footpath.

They finally come to a stop and Taeyeon turns to her again.

“Here it is! The Promenade des Anglais, if I’m pronouncing it correctly,” Taeyeon says, giggling at her own lame joke as she releases Jessica’s hand and gestures at the promenade in front of them.

It’s beautiful.

Jessica recognises the tourist attraction from photos but to be standing there is a different story. She watches as couples and families walk hand in hand along the esplanade. She gazes at the waves crashing into each other and the blue ocean glistening in the sunlight. Jessica smiles at the sight of people gleefully playing in the sand or sunbathing and takes her phone out to snap a few pictures of the picturesque attraction.

“You’re very familiar with this place,” Jessica comments, sitting down on a bench and leaning back to marvel at the scenery in front of her. Taeyeon nods and settles down beside her. Jessica laughs when she notices Taeyeon kicking her legs in the air out of the corner of her eyes.

“We came here to film whilst we were promoting our sub-unit. It’s been a few years since I last came here but the memories came back to me when I first landed here.”

The reminder of Taeyeon’s successes in her career jolts Jessica and she reminisces about her former role in the group. It also reminds her that they live two very different lives now; whilst she’s advanced and made a name for herself in the fashion industry, Taeyeon’s cemented her status as an incredible soloist with chart-topping songs and albums and sold-out concerts.

Jessica hates to be the party-pooper and ruin the amicable atmosphere between them but she needs to know Taeyeon’s thoughts on this unexpected and bizarre reunion. She sighs, knowing that this conversation won’t be an easy one.

“I’m surprised you’re okay with talking to me and being in the same space as me.”

Taeyeon chuckles – she actually has the audacity to throw her head back and let out another one of her good-natured laughs.

Again, Jessica definitely doesn’t stare at the re-emergence of Taeyeon’s chin dimple.

“There isn’t any point in hating you when I’m proud of what you’ve achieved. You’ve come a long way in your career but that’s what makes you an incredible person. You push yourself to do better, to achieve greater things in life and to be the best version of yourself. I always knew you were one to break free and carve your own pathway and I think you’ve done an amazing job of being yourself, of being you.”

Jessica falls silent at the admission, too stunned to say a word. She studies Taeyeon’s expression for any hint of bluffing or factitious concern, only to be surprised when Taeyeon regards her with a warm smile.

“You didn’t know about my contract negotiations or what was happening behind the scenes with the company.”

“I didn’t. I could see it in your face and how you would act around us. You wanted to leave but you wanted to leave on your terms. It just wasn’t what we all wanted because we all had different ideas of addressing your departure,” Taeyeon says, sliding her sunglasses onto her nose even though the sun is setting in the distance.

Jessica wants to say more. She wants to say that whilst Taeyeon’s heartfelt words ring true, the past will always be a part of her identity and she’s never going to deny it. She’s always going to be proud of herself for the tears, the sweat and the hard work she put into Girls Generation and there’s nothing that can take that away from her.

The proud beam Taeyeon gives her is enough for her to know that she doesn’t need to say anything at all because Taeyeon understands.

Taeyeon gets her.

“Where are you staying?” Jessica says as they approach her hotel, their pathway illuminated by the bright street lampposts.

“Not far from here so you don’t need to walk me there,” Taeyeon replies, taking her time to admire the beautiful architecture surrounding her.

They fall into a comfortable silence as their departure grows closer by the minute. Jessica doesn’t want the night to end when she hears Taeyeon softly hum to herself as she falls into step beside her, the corners of turning upwards when she recognises the famous song.

And you come to me on a summer breeze
Keep me warm in your love, then you softly leave
And it’s me you need to show

They pause outside the entrance to the hotel; Jessica not knowing how to part ways with Taeyeon and Taeyeon standing there with her hands in her pockets.

“Seeing that we’re in Nice, I’d like for you to know that it was nice to see you again,” Taeyeon says, her shoulders shaking as she silently laughs at another one of her lame puns.

“Likewise,” Jessica says, unsure if she should take the next step and ask for Taeyeon’s phone number (not that she spent several nights in the past with her thumb hovering over Taeyeon’s name in her contact list). She’s about to open when Taeyeon holds out her iPhone with the new contact screen already loaded.

“I changed my phone and phone number and I heard you changed yours so I don’t have you on my contact list,” Taeyeon says, her hand still extended hesitantly in the air.

Jessica smiles and takes the phone in her hands, thumbing in her contact details. She makes a missed call to her phone to remind herself to enter Taeyeon’s new number into her phone and returns the iPhone to its owner.

“Thank you,” Taeyeon says, pocketing her device and pulling the sleeves of her jacket down to cover her arms. She glances back up and smiles softly at Jessica.

“Until we meet again,” She says, nodding her head and heading off down the street.

Jessica watches as Taeyeon spins on her feet and gives her a two wave before disappearing around the corner.

Songs included in this chapter:

• Khalid with John Mayer – Outta My Head
• Carly Rae Jepsen – Felt This Way
• Bee Gees – How Deep Is Your Love