Las Vegas, USA

Spontaneity is a concept Taeyeon has become attached to, which is why she decides to block off her schedules for a couple of days and book a trip to the other side of the world.

When the plane finally lands at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Taeyeon doesn’t exit the aircraft immediately. Instead, she opts to stare outside the window and watch other planes land on the runway or depart from the airport. When the seatbelt sign disappears, Taeyeon takes the opportunity to stretch her limbs from the exhausting flight. She reaches for her carry on luggage and exits the aircraft, mouthing thank yous to the flight crew as she passes by.

Taeyeon passes through immigration and navigates her way to the baggage area to collect her suitcase. Making sure she has her belongings and paperwork, she smoothly passes through customs and takes a deep breath when she finally enters the arrival hall.

Taeyeon takes one last look at the airport through her sunglasses before entering a cab to take her to her hotel.

Travelling alone is a sense of freedom for Taeyeon, who finds it stifling at times when she’s surrounded by her manager and team.

She manages to last thirty minutes of alone time in her hotel room until she connects to the hotel’s WiFi and immediately receives a barrage of unread text messages and missed calls from her manager, her team, her family and several of her friends. Sighing, Taeyeon slumps into an armchair and takes her time to answer each message while munching on some of the hotel mini-bar snacks.

By the time she’s finally done replying and her phone stops vibrating from incoming notifications, Taeyeon’s eyes begin to shut from exhaustion. She clambers into bed, not bothering to pull the sheets over her body as she drifts off into a deep slumber.

When Taeyeon wakes up from her sleep, she frowns at her unfamiliar surroundings. It takes her a couple of seconds to realise that she’s on the other side of the world and it’s probably around dinner time, judging by the evening sky she can see through the door to her balcony.

Her stomach growls in protest and reminds her that she has yet to have a meal. Taeyeon giggles to herself and climbs out of bed. She slips into the shower and washes her hair, spending a little more time than usual under the water as she sings along to her music playlist of Lauv, Twice, Crush, Heize and other artists she’s come to admire over the years.

Taeyeon opts for black jeans and a blue cropped hoodie, smiling when she inspects herself in the mirror. She grabs her purse, phone and hotel keys and closes the door gently behind her.

When Taeyeon steps onto the footpath outside her hotel, she’s greeted by the sound of busy traffic travelling up and down the Boulevard and pedestrians walking around the area. She spends some time trying to orient herself in her surroundings and heads off down the street with her hands in her pocket.

Taeyeon finds herself walking down a familiar path that she visited many years ago when the group was in the city for a photoshoot. Her eyes gleam at the sight of the familiar venue and she pushes the doors to the bar open, smiling as she makes her way over to a table where she’s immediately greeted by a server. She quickly scans the menu and opts for a cocktail to start off her night. 

Taeyeon spends the next few minutes checking her phone for any Instagram updates, commenting and liking on a few posts from her friends. She sends off a quick text to Tiffany letting her know where she is, chuckling to herself when Tiffany immediately replies asking her why she couldn’t stop over in LA for a couple of days.

As Taeyeon sips on her Aperol Spritz, she watches the venue begin to fill up with patrons coming in after a long day from work. Their chatter fills the air as they talk about their lives but it all becomes background noise to Taeyeon when she redirects her gaze to the back of the bar, grinning when she spies the empty stage. She makes her way over to the side of the stage and taps on the sound engineer’s shoulder. He turns to her and smiles politely, nodding his head when Taeyeon asks if the stage is free for her to sing. He hands her a sheet of paper to sign up, thanking her when she hands the clipboard back.

“I’m Steve, the host of tonight’s show. For tonight, you’re free to sing whatever you want. Max is three songs. I see you’re not carrying any instruments or equipment. Do you need to borrow anything for your set?”

Taeyeon shakes her head, pointing to the microphone on stage instead. Steve nods in understanding and taps the clipboard.

“The show starts in about ten minutes so you’re free to grab a drink or a quick bite. I’ll see you soon,” He says, waving and returning his attention to his equipment when Taeyeon nods and disappears into the crowd.

When Taeyeon returns from her toilet break, she spots Steve on stage starting off the show and giving a quick introduction to the acts performing that night. He spots Taeyeon standing to the side and smiles.

“Ladies and Gentlemen. I’d like to introduce our first guest for tonight. Please welcome her to the stage!” He says, holding a hand out to help Taeyeon onto the platform.

Taeyeon steps on stage, clenching and unclenching her hands as she bows and waves to the audience in the room. She feels a rush of adrenaline staring at these strangers who probably have no idea who she is and she smiles, knowing that she can be someone else for tonight.

It brings back memories to a few months ago when she ran away to perform in Nice and was approached by someone she never expected to see again – Jessica Jung.

Jessica Jung; her former group member. Her former partner-in-crime when it came to singing the most challenging parts of Girls’ Generation songs.

Taeyeon’s smile widens at the recollection while she adjusts the microphone set up on stage.

Maybe they’ll run into each other here in Vegas.

“Hi. I’m going to be singing acapella tonight. I hope you like this performance,” Taeyeon says, giggling nervously when she receives a round of polite applause and the crowd quietens down to watch her.

Taeyeon mentally counts down in her head and raises the microphone to her lips.

I don’t wanna be alone tonight
It’s pretty clear that I’m not over you
I’m still thinking ‘bout the things you do
So I don’t wanna be alone tonight, alone tonight, alone tonight

As Taeyeon sings, she feels the confidence build in her and finds the courage to stand up and sing.

Just when she finishes singing the chorus and is about to sing the next verse, an ethereal voice breaks her reverie. Taeyeon almost chokes on her spit when she recognises the beautiful voice singing the next verse.

I wasn’t even goin’ out tonight
But, boy, I need to get you off of my mind
I know exactly what I have to do
I don’t wanna be alone tonight, alone tonight, alone tonight

Taeyeon breaks out into a grin when Jessica steps on stage and stands beside her. She quickly recovers from her initial shock and together they finish the song without any further interruptions, their voices harmonising perfectly together.

Jessica finds her hand and together they bow, standing upright and smiling giddily at each other when they receive a standing ovation. Taeyeon spies Steve standing on the side and gives him a thumbs up to indicate she’s finished her set. He smiles and steps on stage, holding out his hand for a handshake. Taeyeon and Jessica return the handshake and he beams, stepping forward and holding up his microphone.

“Thank you, er –”

“Taylor,” Taeyeon says, nodding her head at the host.

“Jessi,” Jessica adds, trying her best to stifle her laughter.

“Yes! Thank you Taylor and Jessi for that fantastic performance. Please give them another round of applause!”

Taeyeon and Jessica bow one last time to the crowd before stepping off stage.

“First you're busking in France and now you're having a free mini concert in Vegas? My my, you’re a greedy singer,” Jessica teases, leaning against the wall and looking up at the stage. Taeyeon giggles and rolls down the sleeves of her hoodie.

“It's open mic night. I’m a singer and I see an empty stage. Of course I’m going to be a little selfish even though I only sang one song,” She says, walking back to the bar. She looks over her shoulder to see if Jessica’s following her, grinning when Jessica rolls her eyes but walks behind her.

They manage to find a table in the corner of the bar and settle down, Jessica’s shoulder bumping into Taeyeon’s as they watch a few more performances.

“How did you know I was singing?” Taeyeon says, turning in her stool to face Jessica.

Jessica sticks her tongue out playfully, only to shriek in surprise when Taeyeon lightly pinches her arm.

“I thought I saw someone that looked like you standing near the stage talking to the host. I went up to talk to him when you were gone and noticed you had signed up to sing so I decided to join in and perform a duet with you. It actually went a lot more smoothly than I thought.”

“These people don’t even know they got the long-awaited Taengsic duet that fans have been wanting to see for years,” Taeyeon muses, eliciting a bubbly laugh from Jessica.

Jessica wraps a hand on Taeyeon’s wrist and redirects her attention so that it’s on her.

“So “Taylor”, why don’t we go somewhere else?” Jessica says, jokingly batting her eyelashes at Taeyeon as she slides off her stool and makes her way to the door.

“Hey, I wanted to stay low for this one!” Taeyeon says, laughing along with Jessica at the absurdity of the situation.

“So we went from a bar to a nightclub?” Taeyeon says, shaking her head when Jessica nods eagerly and pulls her through the crowd of people and they soon find themselves standing at the club counter.

"The bar seemed a little sad. Let's have some fun tonight!"

Taeyeon immediately thinks it's a terrible idea to have fun (read: drunk) on a Friday night but she allows herself to be pulled further into the club. Jessica doesn’t let go of her hand even when they push through a large crowd of people

“Can we get ten shots of vodka and two glasses of whiskey neat please?”

“Ten?” Taeyeon says, dropping open at the bizarre request. Jessica flashes her a dazzling smile and nods, handing over her card to pay for the drinks. She seems to know exactly what Taeyeon’s thinking because she places a comforting hand on Taeyeon’s arm and smiles gently at her.

“You paid for coffee and dinner when we were in Nice. I’m returning the favour although I’m probably going to drink most of these shots,” She says, thanking the bartender who slides across ten shot glasses filled with vodka and two old fashioned whiskey glasses in front of them.

“What are you talking about?” Taeyeon says, frowning when Jessica downs each shot at an alarming rate. She reaches out for a glass and blinks when she counts the number of filled vodka shots remaining in front of them: zero.

“Jessica.”

Jessica nods at her as she swirls her whiskey in her glass and brings the cup to her lips, wincing at the strong taste of the alcohol. Taeyeon pries the glass from her hands and grabs Jessica’s hands. She struggles to keep her still as Jessica whimpers and tries to wrench her hands away from her grasp.

“Jessica,” Taeyeon tries again, this time successfully getting her attention for longer than a few seconds. Jessica looks at her intensely and Taeyeon pats her hands softly in an attempt to calm her down, her shoulders relaxing when Jessica relents and unclenches her fists.

“What’s bothering you? You only drink heavily if something’s gotten to you and it must have been something major if it makes you drink this much,” Taeyeon says, waving her hand at the number of glasses on their table.

Jessica sighs and turns their fingers so she’s holding onto Taeyeon’s hands. Taeyeon smiles at the gesture and threads her fingers through Jessica’s; an reassuring act that she had last done many years ago before they began to live different lives.

“My boyfriend and I broke up a couple of months ago but we’ve been fighting back and forth since then. We were arguing an hour ago when I hung up on him and decided to go to the bar for a few drinks. Then I saw you and I forgot I fought with him. Then we came here and I remembered why I wanted to drink in the first place,” Jessica says quickly, knocking over a shot glass on the table as she struggles to stand on her feet.

Taeyeon immediately steadies her and holds onto her arm as Jessica rocks back and forth on the spot.

“I think it’s best we get you back to the hotel,” Taeyeon says.

“I said we should have some fun tonight, right?” Jessica says, ignoring Taeyeon’s words and tugging on her arm to pull her to the dance floor.

Taeyeon holds her back and shakes her head, her hair falling in front of her face as she tries to stop Jessica from moving further.

She blinks when Jessica reaches forward and touches her face, her fingers grazing her skin as she tucks Taeyeon’s hair behind her ear.

“Let’s have some fun tonight,” Jessica drunkenly repeats.

“Jessica,” Taeyeon warns, her hands raised to hold Jessica’s shoulders to push her back. Jessica ignores her warning and slides her arms around Taeyeon’s waist to pull her closer to her body. Taeyeon squeaks when her arms are squished in between their bodies and she can no longer push Jessica away.

She finds it incredibly coincidental that the next song playing in the club is one that perfectly describes what’s running through her mind at that moment in time.

But please don’t touch me
If you don’t mean it
The space between our skin saying more than enough
But once you’ve laid a finger, it can’t be undone
So please don’t touch me
If you don’t mean it
Remember how it’s been, yeah, I’ve been through enough
But once you put your hands here, it can’t be undone
So please don’t touch me
If you don’t mean it
Touch me
If you don’t mean it

Taeyeon’s too focused on the catchy song and its lyrics that her eyes widen when Jessica’s nose bumps into her own and the scent of alcohol hits her nostrils.

“Don’t,” Taeyeon says weakly, gasping when Jessica slants over hers.

.

Taeyeon runs a weary hand through her brown locks as she holds back Jessica’s hair while she throws up in the bathroom sink. Jessica lets out a groan and wipes clean with a paper towel before standing upright and flashing Taeyeon a sheepish smile.

“Sorry,” She slurs, pouting when Taeyeon shakes her head.

“That’s what you get for drinking too much,” Taeyeon says softly, letting go of Jessica’s hair. She opens a water bottle and hands it to Jessica, who gladly accepts the drink and rinses from the foul taste of vomit. Satisfied that she’s cleaned up, Taeyeon hands Jessica a mint and pops one into to freshen herself up.

Jessica stands and drowsily watches as Taeyeon washes her hands again and checks to see that they have everything with them. When Taeyeon glances back up at Jessica, she frowns at the goofy smile on her face.

“What?”

“I’m tipsy!” Jessica says, stumbling over to Taeyeon and wrapping her arms around her neck. Taeyeon freezes at the embrace, her hands awkwardly raised in mid-air. When she hears Jessica hiccup behind her, Taeyeon giggles and pats her back reassuringly.

“I know, you silly woman. Come on, let’s get you back to your hotel,” Taeyeon says, readjusting their positions so that Jessica leans on one side of her body.

Jessica giggles again and wraps her arms around Taeyeon’s waist, pressing her head into the space between Taeyeon’s neck and her shoulder.

“Thank you, Taengoo,” Jessica whispers just loudly enough for Taeyeon to hear.

It makes Taeyeon’s heart ache when she hears that familiar nickname roll off Jessica’s lips.

They barely manage to leave the club when Jessica falls asleep on Taeyeon, her head resting at an uncomfortable angle on Taeyeon’s shoulder. Taeyeon exhales and half-walks, half-drags Jessica to her hotel. She sighs in relief when she recalls that Jessica had mentioned staying close by and she spots the flashing neon sign of the hotel a couple of metres away. She carefully helps Jessica through the lobby, flashing a polite smile at the receptionists who look over at them with concern and rush forward to assist. Taeyeon waves them away and thanks them for the offer before she and Jessica stumble into the elevator.

She just manages to catch Jessica mumble her floor number before she presses herself closer to Taeyeon’s body.

When the doors close and the lift starts to move, Taeyeon loosens her grip on Jessica and shuts her eyes. She reopens them when the doors open and she helps Jessica exit the elevator.

It takes her a couple of minutes to find Jessica’s room, sighing in relief when they finally stand in front of the door. Taeyeon tries to nudge Jessica awake but when Jessica mumbles incoherently in her sleep and tightens her arms around Taeyeon’s waist, Taeyeon gives up and extracts the hotel keys from Jessica’s purse.

She slots the hotel key card into the reader, pushing the door open when the light on the reader turns green. She carries Jessica over to her bed and gently pushes her down before removing her boots and carefully placing them at the foot of the bed.

Taeyeon giggles when Jessica twists and turns for a few moments before settling into a comfortable position sprawled across the mattress. She tucks Jessica into bed, wrapping the blanket tightly around her frame.

Taeyeon takes a few minutes to stare at Jessica’s serene face and brushes her hair aside, the corners of her lips turning upwards when Jessica shifts in her sleep and smiles into her pillow.

She leaves a pill sheet of ibuprofen and an unopened bottle of water on the bedside table. Taeyeon grabs a pen and scribbles down a short note for Jessica to read in the morning, sliding the paper under the bottled water to prevent it from falling away.

Taeyeon takes one last look at Jessica sleeping peacefully and spins around.

She quietly shuffles over to the door, turning the lock from the inside and exits the hotel room.

Ooooh can you feel the tension between the two?

Songs included in this chapter:

• Sam Smith and Normani – Dancing with a Stranger
• Raye – Please Don’t Touch