Tiffany nudged his arm through her elbow and said, "How have you been? We never talked for like… 5 years? Wow." 
 
Gray looked uncomfortable and shy when he replied, "Yeah. It was a long time ago." 
 
"You stopped contacting me. What happened back then?" 
 
"Eh?" He felt extremely uneasy after being thrown a straightforward question he wanted to get rid of from the past. Suddenly, he felt cold sweats forming on his forehead as he tried to gather the courage to answer. Guilty of what he did before, Tiffany laughed after seeing him struggling. 
 
She playfully hit his arm and said, "I'm kidding! Loosen up. That was part of the past. Consider it history." 
 
Gray didn't know how to react but it clearly showed in his face that he didn't want to be in her presence. Tiffany was not too dumb not to notice it so she added "I think they set us up. I want to go home too but I guess we could at least spend an hour together, if that's okay with you?" 
 
Gray answered a bit off the topic, trying to figure out AOMG's plan, "A set-up? Did they tell you anything while they were inviting you?" 
 
"Hmm…" She tried to remember. "They asked me if I am interested in going out on a date with you. I said yes. Even if you hurt my feelings before, you're forgiven by the way, but yeah… I just want to catch-up with you." 
 
"Don't you have a boyfriend?"  
 
"Not at the moment. Why would I go here if I have one, silly."  
 
"Ahh. I never heard from you again, that's why I don't have an idea." 
 
She just nodded then asked again, "So what are you up to these days? Do you still watch our favorite American TV shows?" 
 
Gray paused to remember that she was the one who influenced her to watch American movies and series. She had a portion from his life that he still carries through his current hobbies. But why didn't they work out before? 
 
Tiffany added "You've gone quieter these days." 
 
Gray answered her question with such delay, "Yeah. I still watch them. It's still my favorite show." 
 
She excitedly jumped and joyfully responded, "FRIENDS? I told you! That's a good one."
 
"Thank you for recommending me that." 
 
"It's good to have a good laugh every now and then. It's rare to be able to do it these days. Days have gone too stressful~ Ugh."  
 
She looked away and stayed silent. Only the jazz music playing in the background was the sound he could hear. He took the chance to stare at her and reminisce that the one in his sight right now was the same girl he had feelings for. But he knew he would never get her the same way twice. 
She was stronger now and more carefree. She wore her emotions within her sleeves while displaying her fierce and bold look in front like a titled woman.  
He could admit that the time she was in his life was amazing and he would always cherish their memories. She would always be special to him. Although they didn't work out before and they ended way too soon before they could blossom into something wonderful, he knew she would always be a part of his past chapter and for that, he was thankful.
 
He changed his mood when he realized that she had pure intentions and that maybe AOMG had good intentions as well. They wanted them to reconnect. So while he stared at her, he said, "How have you been anyway?"

Tiffany looked back at him, smiling, then replied, "I'm good. Thanks for asking. How about you? You're grinding these days. I love your songs!" 
 
As a sign of respect and gratitude for her time, he paused, with a lingering smile on his face and offered to eat while they chat to make the most of their remaining time. She immediately agreed and so they spent their night talking and laughing like the old times. It felt like a new acquaintance between two people with familiar faces, like rereading a finished book. It was a warm and fuzzy feeling yet again. 
 
While they talk, back in the restaurant, Dara was still talking to Kiyong after Hyoni and Seyoung left for a toilet break. 
 
Kiyong took a sip from his bottle and spoke, "Stop keeping people at arm's length, noona. Be brave enough to show your true self and accepting enough to get to know others. Just know that no one can meet all your needs. Everyone has flaws. You see… Relationships are simple but not easy. It takes two imperfect people working on themselves for each other."  
 
She replied, "Ackkk. I know. I thought maybe I was too old for dating now that's why I'm confused on what I should do."

He shook his head and opposed, "You're not confused on what to do. You just don't have the courage to do what you already had in mind."  
 
Dara was speechless and looked at Kiyong who was also looking at her so deeply as if he could see right through her soul and read her mind. He knew what she's thinking. It was given in her thoughts and actions and Kiyong never missed out on the signs.  
Dara then questioned herself on what could he have possibly read from her mind. He knew Kiyong was a keen observer so rest assured he sensed the answer. She didn't talk because she wasn't sure on what to say just yet so Kiyong filled the blanks in her thoughts with the words, "Stop replaying the past. It's gone. Each moment is a chance to recreate something or yourself."
 
By that, Dara knew what Kiyong was trying to say. It left her staring into space, not knowing how to react to her friend's advice. She couldn't deny that everything he said that night shot straight into her mind and heart. It was full-on accurate. 
 
Kiyong continued to eat the remaining foods on the table. As he minded his own business, picking foods here and there, he casually asked "So did you really date Gray hyung?" 
 
Dara suddenly remembered Gray and replied, "We haven't talked yet but we did before. Those were friendly dates." 
 
"Did you consider him?" 
 
"Well… now I would say that—"  
 
Before she completed her answer, Hyoni and Seyoung came back with a worried look. It halted Kiyong and Dara's conversation for they got distracted by their troubled friends. 
 
Seyoung said, "We need to go to the nearest convenience store. I need to buy something." 
 
Hyoni said, "I don't have one with me. Dara unnie, do you have one with you?" 
 
Kiyong was curious so he butted in, "What are you guys talking about?" 
 
Dara immediately got what they meant and replied to Hyoni, "Oh no… I don't have one." 
 
Kiyong spoke again, "I'll buy them for you." 
 
The girls said in chorus, "No!" 
 
Kiyong put his arms up in mock surrender and said, "Okay, okay. I'm sorry. What's wrong with me buying tissue in a convenience store?" 
He thought that the emergency was something normal for all humans. 
Dara laughed at Kiyong's innocence with womanhood then said, "Alright. Let's buy it altogether." 
 
Hyoni said, "Kiyong, you have a lot to learn from your noonas." 
 
They paid the bill and hurriedly went out to buy and to appease Seyoung's panic state.
 
Later that night, as the streets in Seoul got darker, the sun shone brighter in Paris. It was a sunny afternoon in Paris. 
The cold air was blowing inside Donghae's room through an open window so he stood up and shut it. 
He heaved a sigh with a problematic look. His day didn't go well and he was filled with negativity so he couldn't even curve his lips for a smile. 
He waited for her messages and calls but she kept ignoring him. He felt awful because of it. It could have been because of her busy schedule in Korea that she didn't have time to reply, he thought. But because what happened to them last night in Paris was special to him and her ignoring him made him feel like it meant nothing to her.  
What Dara also didn't know was that he was scolded by his manager for not reporting to work for two days. He wasn't able to go the next day after her last night because he was too hungover so he slept the whole daytime. 
He got into a serious trouble because part of the contract that he and the other members signed for the program/show required a complete attendance and consistent exposure in which he failed so they had to cut his whole parts even though he participated the days before in order to avoid confusion to the audience as to why he was gone in some parts.
 
Because of it, he was also scolded by s because they had to make up for his lost parts. They told him to be more responsible and professional next time. Now the members were working and he was left inside his hotel room alone and overthinking everything after being suspended from the program for not following what's written in the contract.
 
He lied on his bed and sighed again while staring at the ceiling. In the silence, his thoughts were noisier. He tried to snap out of it by hastily rising from his bed and sat up to play games on his phone to temporarily divert his attention. But after he checked his phone, he received another message from Irene. 
 
It says, "Oppa. I'm sorry for going off on you the other day." 
 
He then looked at her previous messages which said, "I heard you're in Paris, can we talk once your work is over?", "I'm sorry and I want to make up with you.", "Oppa. I know you have read my messages. Are you intentionally ignoring me?", "Why do you always treat me this way? ㅠㅠ" 
 
He figured he shouldn't avoid her messages anymore and face it head on to put an end to it. Without smiling, he keyed in "It's fine. Why are you still awake? Isn't it midnight there?"  
 
She replied as fast as lightning, "It is. How are you? Did you receive my messages?"  
 
"Joohyun-ah, I know I've wronged you. I'm really sorry. But I don't think making up will be the solution to make things better with the both of us. We can be friends and happy with someone else." 
 
"What is it that you didn't like about me? Was I lacking something?" 
 
"Nothing's wrong with you. Don't change yourself for me because I was probably not the person for you. Maybe I'm bad for you or maybe not. I don't know, I just believe there is going to be someone else who's going to appreciate everything that you could offer without you doubting yourself." 
 
"Okay. I'm not mad that you don't want me. I'm mad because you took advantage of that soft spot I have because you know that I'll always run back to you."  
 
"I hope you can forgive me someday. I understand why you're mad and I'm sorry if I made you feel that way. As hard as it was to let go of our moments together, I think it's time for us to build new ones separately. I'll pray for your healing and I hope that the right person for you arrives soon. Believe me, it's going to feel worth it." 
 
"I hope she's worth it too." 
 
"Good night, Joohyun-ah." 
 
He closed his eyes and felt heavy once again now that the baggage from Irene was back hanging on his shoulder. It would always be the feeling that would haunt him forever. He thought that no matter how much he tried to change, he still had to pay the price to pay for his actions. Feeling miserable in his situation, given what happened to him and Dara, the trouble he had from his job in Paris and now the guilt he felt from his closure with Irene, he screamed all his frustrations out in one go.
 
He couldn't book a flight back to Korea because they had an agreement to go back altogether. He abided with the rules this time to not be any cause of disappointment anymore. So then he remained idle and waited until the whole week of filming was done and over with. He didn't speak much to s because he felt out of place. s noticed it right away so out of concern, they informed his brother about his situation so he could help him out because he wouldn't reach out to them and barely even talked for days. They were sure he would listen to his brother, whom he trusted the most.
 
As someone close to Donghae, being the usual protective older brother, Donghwa called Donghae from Korea and they talked about his concerns. 
Donghwa felt like a warm pillow for Donghae, a comfort blanket during his coldest times. He liked talking to his brother. His call meant a lot because no one else could feel like home except his brother who became his main support after his dad passed away more than a decade ago.  
 
Donghwa's voice was soothing for Donghae's ears and just what he needed at the moment when he badly needed emot