“I got one! I got one!”

 

Jisoo, who was still in the middle of chugging her last glass for the night, announced as she stared at everyone else on the table.

It's 3am. The gang thought it would be a good idea to stick around a little longer than they usually do. There's a new addition to the group after all, the situation demanded an impromptu celebration.

They're in the middle of playing Never Have I Ever. The two disciples of Sate Anne thought it would be a good idea to help Joohyun get to know everyone, and what better way to do that over a game of subtle exposure.

 

“Never Have I Everrrrrr—Hic— gotten drunk over a non-alcoholic drink!”

 

None of the nine people who were sitting on the table dropped a finger, save for Yeri.

 

“Engk! Engk! Engk! Foul!”

 

Seulgi, now in the peak of her drunkenness, gestured X marks with her hands along with Lisa, Jisoo and Wendy. The four of them laughing along at the stupidity of their younger friend.

 

“Care to share?”

 

Jennie intervenes, pointing a finger at the four. Her alter ego, Rubyjane, now taking charge.

 

Wendy, Jisoo and Seulgi then push Lisa to speak for them. They were too busy teasing Yeri and being drunk to fear the wrath of Rubyjane, and since Lisa is always volunteering to start a conversation with Jennie whenever necessary, they figured it was only fitting.

 

“I asked for Jennie not Rubyjane!”

Lisa whisper-shouts. Earning another budge from Wendy.

 

“You have to accept both sides of the same coin, man.”

“Well?”

 

Joy, who has the same personality as Jennie when she's drunk (minus the alter ego) was now growing impatient too.

Joohyun just stares at the cute interactions going on. They've really come a long way, their friendship looks comfortable, she thinks. She hopes her addition won't be taken as a bad thing.  She's only gotten to know them a few hours ago yet she feels like she's known them for a long time.

 

“Ayt, ayt. When we first met Yeri, she was this clueless underage teenager who just gotten out of High School. Me, Jisoo, Seulgi and Wendy were just chillin' here at the bar. Typical Wednesday night —Hic— Yeri was with a bunch of other kids, who by the way had fake IDs. Can you believe that? Yeri wasn't smart enough to get one for herself back then! Unbelievable, right?”

 

Everyone else, except for Joohyun, agreed. It really did seem impossible. Yeri just giggled, too drunk to even fight back. She's reached her semi-final stage of drunkenness, Prim Yeri.

 

“Anyway, while everyone else was enjoying their night, Yeri was just in the corner reading a book.”

 

Everyone gasped. Yeri not having a fake ID was unbelievable, but Yeri reading a book? It was unimaginable.

 

“A high school girl reading a book at a bar, it seemed too interesting for us. Seulgi said that when Yeri caught her looking at her, she felt chills. That peaked our curiosity. So we called her to our table.”

 

Wendy poured her and Seulgi's glass with a drink. She realizes how long it's been since they all met. And now there's a new addition to their little family. Life gets better indeed.

 

“She approached us and Seulgi wasn't even kidding when she said she felt chills. When Yeri was within our range, the atmosphere suddenly became cold and just... eerie. I felt goosebumps all over my body. Like we were in the same room with Satan himself.”

 

They all glanced at Yeri, who was sitting with her hands on her lap, chuckling shyly and tucking her hair behind her ear. Everyone, even Joohyun, felt chills.

Lisa couldn't continue further, she felt lightheaded so she urged Seulgi to continue the story, suddenly feeling too cautious of her surroundings.

 

“We convinced her to have a drink with us. She rejected it at first, saying she was still underage and that she was only at the bar that night because her parents forced her homebody self to spend time with her peers. We told her not to worry and that it's on us.”

 

Seulgi continued, avoiding Yeri's gaze every chance she could. Eyes focused on her drink. She knew why Lisa wanted her to continue the story, she has more experience with it. First rule in her handbook is to avoid eye contact as much as possible. She was starting to feel lightheaded too. She wanted to finish this story as fast as she can. She doesn't want to drag Wendy and Jisoo into this. Her and Lisa are enough.

 

“We were bored and looking for something fun to do so we gave her a glass of expired apple juice, saying that it was Jack Daniel's. We gave her about nine glasses, after the tenth glass she was a slurring mess. Bumping into everyone, being overly friendly. It was a fun sight. Our instincts didn't fail us. We kept inviting her to fun activities ever since. The end.”

 

Seulgi said all of that in one breath. The other girls looked at her in confusion. Wendy, Jisoo and Lisa nodded along, knowing full well what they got themselves into. The last experience is the worst yet. They shiver at the memory. They do not want to experience that again.

 

“How bad is it?” Wendy whispers to Seulgi.

“She's still at stage 4. Don't worry. We're done for tonight.”

“Good.” Wendy sighs in relief. Her head was already spinning, it would be too difficult to get through it what with the current state they're all in.

 

 

 

 

“Okay, Chu. Time for bed!”

 

Dwayne, their most trusted bouncer (or The Rock as he likes to call himself) said as he approached their booth. It's almost 4 in the morning. Everyone was either leaning their heads on the table or giggling by themselves. Joohyun was one of the latter.

 

“Pebble! Carrrry!”

 

Seulgi raised both of her hands, gesturing the trusted bouncer to carry her to their apartment, like he's done in the past countless times.

Dwayne chuckled and lifted drunk Seulgi, bridal style. Seulgi settled herself uncomfortably, her head hanging from Dwayne's arms, falling asleep almost instantaneously.

 

“Me too! Me too!”

 

Lisa exclaims. Just as she was about to hop on Dwayne's back, Rubyjane pulled her left leg.

 

“He carried you last time! It's my turn!” Rubyjane proclaims and proceeded to hop on Dwayne's back.

 

Lisa, out of powerlessness, submission (and mostly fear), couldn't protest and stuck her tongue out instead, the weakest rebuttal.

Joy and Jisoo were walking side by side with their arms linked and their heads against each other, Lisa and Wendy were in the same position. Yeri hopped on Lisa's back. Rosé was nowhere in sight. And Joohyun was holding on to Seulgi's head for balance.

 

“You can hold on to my arm, it's much stable.” Dwayne smiles at the new member of the gang.

“Hmm?”

“You must be new to the family. My name's Dwayne, you can call me The Rock if you feel like it. I'm Alc Dior's bouncer slash these guys' nanny.”

 

Joohyun smiles at that. It didn't take long for her to be comfortable around this man. He exudes an overly protective father yet soft nanny aura. If the others trust him enough to be carried like a baby, then she can as well.

Everyone arrived at their floor safely. Wendy and Seulgi's apartment is in room 4B, on the right side (facing stairs). Joy and Yeri's is adjacent to theirs, on the left side, room 4A. Lisa and Jisoo's are right next to Wendy and Seulgi's, room 4D. And Jennie's is right next to Joy and Yeri's, room 4C.

Wendy unlocked the door to their apartment and walked straight to her room, not even bothering to bid everyone good night. I'll bid them good morning as a consolation, she thinks. Dwayne settles Seulgi on their sofa, with Rubyjane still asleep on his back. Lisa, along with Joy, went inside 4A and settled Yeri by the door. I'm too tired to baby her, she said. Jisoo was already sleeping soundly in her room. Rubyjane, who was now awake and downgraded back to being Jennie, thanked Dwayne for the 'ride' and proceeded to do her skincare routine. She instructed Joohyun to use her empty spare room. Her old roommate, Solar, had just moved out a month ago. Kismet! she exclaims. Which part of the city God took Rosé to, they will never know.

 

 

 

 

“AH!”

 

Rosé screams, covering as much of her body as she could, feeling violated.

 

“I'm sorry! Oh my god! I thought the bathroom was unoccupied!”

 

Joohyun quickly closed the bathroom door. Thank god she was still in a daze, her vision was still cloudy. The only assurance she got that it was Rosé was because of her clothes from yesterday that were on the sink.

She woke up dizzy and groggily made her way directly towards the bathroom, not even bothering to knock. She was halfway through her pee when she spotted the familiar clothes on the sink. When it hit her, Rosé had already opened the shower curtains. She got up as fast as she could and ran towards the kitchen.

 

“I thought you lived alone!”

 

Jennie, who was making coffee, shot her a confused look.

 

“I do?”

“Then what's Rosé doing in here?”

“Ah, today's Tuesday right? It's my schedule.”

 

Joohyun found herself even more confused.

 

“Can you please emphasize?”

“Chaeng's scheduled to take a shower here today. She has schedules on the others' apartments as well.”

 

Joohyun's temples pulsated.

 

“Why? Is her apartment's bathroom under construction?”

“I don't even know if she has one.”

 

Beat

 

“You don't know if she has an apartment?”

“Yup. No one knows where Chaeng lives. It's been like that for years, ever since the day we met. She just showed up at our apartments the next day and gave each of us a schedule. We just let her be.”

 

Throb

 

“And you never asked her?”

“Nope. Neither did everyone else. It became... a thing. Like a normal thing. She just shows up randomly and leaves clean clothes. When it's our schedule, she sometimes sleeps on our couch, often times we wake up with her next to us on our bed. Nobody questions her about it. It's sort of like an unspoken bond or something.”

 

Joohyun just nods at that. All she got from their conversation were more questions than answers. She decides to shrug it off.

 

 

 

 

Seulgi woke up with a terrible headache. Wendy was sure Dwayne settled her on their couch, she found Seulgi sleeping beside Yeri on her and Joy's couch.

 

“I'm never drinking again. Ever. Never ever.”

“Mark that on the board! Thank god you said it first!”

 

Seulgi groaned and sloppily made her way towards their refrigerator, where a white board hangs.

 

'Hangover Mantra': September

Seulgi - I

Wendy -

 

 

“I have a good feeling about this month. Last month was a huge disadvantage for me. My cousins were in town for a whole week!”

“You broke up with Jihyo last month! Don't blame it on your cousins.” Seulgi reiterated.

 

“AH!”

 

Both of them stopped drinking their hangover fix (two litres of water) when they heard Rosé's scream from Jennie's apartment.

 

“Where's Chaeng scheduled today?” Seulgi asked, refilling her now empty tumbler.

 

Wendy glances over their refrigerator, beneath the whiteboard, a laminated printed copy of their schedule is placed.

 

Monday & Tuesday: Jen's >:[

Wednesday & Thursday: WenSeul's >:D

Friday & Saturday: JoyRi's >:O

Sunday: LiSoo's :P

 

“Jen's.”

“Ah, that explains.”

 

Wendy stares at their copy a little while longer before turning back to face Seulgi.

 

“How come LiSoo's is only scheduled once a week?”

“Because their apartment's the messiest.”

 

Wendy nods. They've been there before. Their couch doesn't look like a couch at all. They don't know where anything is. Room 4D could be passed as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. 

Seulgi then took Wendy's empty tumbler and refilled it.

 

 

 

 

“AH!”

 

Yeri was hanging by the edge of their couch when she was awakened by a loud scream, causing her to fall on the floor, landing face first.

 

“Stupid Chaeng!”

 

Joy was in the middle of blow-drying her hair when she heard the scream. Her body's reaction to the sudden noise caused her to press the reverse button of the blow-dryer.

 

“Yerms! HELP ME!”

 

A quarter of her hair got stuck on the blow-dryer. She got out of the bathroom quickly, her robe was hanging by a thread. Yeri got up at the sight of her roommate struggling. She ran towards her room and quickly grabbed what she thought would be useful at the moment.

 

“Joy! Look at me!”

 

Joy faced her roommate and saw Yeri's phone hovering her face.

 

“Haha! Smile for the camera Joy!”

 

Joy couldn't believe it. Her partner in crime surely isn't this stupid!

 

“You idiot! The lighting is terrible. Let's move to the living room.”

 

Joy walked towards their living room with Yeri trailing behind, and settled on the far end of the couch where a lamp stands. 

 

“Make sure to get my good side.”

“Wait, I'll get the polaroid!”

 

 

 

 

“HH!”

 

A muffled scream woke Jisoo from her slumber. She couldn't feel her arms nor her legs and she feels like she's gonna die from suffocation. Gasp. Or she's already dead? Her body started panicking. Is she in heaven? Did that scream come from earth?

 

She squirmed underneath all the weight. She kept pushing and pushing but the weight never ceased. She was about to close her eyes, ready to accept her fate, Thank god I paid my debt yesterday, if today really is my final day, at least I'll die knowing Lisa has enough money for food to last her an entire week.

 

“Hnggg.”

 

Her eyes snapped open.

 

“Get off me, you meerkat!”

 

 

 

 

It's a lovely Tuesday morning. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the leaves falling, the people around her are smiling as brightly as their faces can muster and Joohyun's head is throbbing.

She's never experienced a hangover before. Not even once!

Okay, maybe once. But never this severe!

 

“Maam, the young man is back.” is what Nayeon greets her the moment she sets foot on her shop. She doesn't have the energy to deal with the moron right now. Not to mention feels dry.

“Just give him what he asks for.” Joohyun says, massaging her temples as she made her way to her office. The lavender scent calming her tense nerves.

“He's asking for the price of a Regular Burger with extra patty.”

 

MOTHERF—

 

“Hey!”

“Rosé? What are you doing here?”

 

Rosé gave her a look. A look she's yet to be familiar with. She looks around her office and approaches Joohyun.

 

“Here.”

 

She hands Joohyun her own copy of the schedule.

 

“Is that all?”

 

Rosé shot her a smirk before turning away. Just as she was about to exit the office, she glances back at Joohyun. Smirk still visible on her sharp features.

 

“I'll get you for what you did this morning. You'll see.” and proceeds to leave the room.

 

Nayeon looked back and forth between Joohyun and the door. Unable to comprehend the conversation that took place.

Joohyun gave her a dismissing look, urging her to forget about the conversation. She stood up from her seat, chugged what's left of her Gatorade, and spoke to Nayeon. With her firm Irene voice. The voice that could silence an entire arena.

 

“Listen to me Nayeon, and you listen well. We have an enemy in our territory, a very moronic but threatening enemy. If I see his face one more time, the vein on my temples will pop! I cannot handle that moron again so listen carefully to my instructions.”

 

Nayeon gulped, she's willing to do whatever it takes to protect their turf.

 

“Relay this to the rest of the platoon. Whatever he asks for, give it to him! His attacks are based on mental capacity. Do. Not. Be. Fooled. Think logically! If he orders a Regular Burger with extra patty, you give him a Double Patty special. And if he asks for a receipt, punch in what he demanded but the details, Nayeon! The details!”

 

Joohyun shook her ally for emphasis. She needs all of Nayeon's focus to be on her strategy.

 

“Think. Logically. He's asking for a Regular with extra patty and you give him a Double Patty special. He asks for a receipt, you punch in his demands. How do you write the price? Punch in the price of the Regular. And for the extra patty, deduct the price of the Double Patty special from the Regular. The difference will be the price of the patty. Do you understand?”

 

Nayeon inhaled deeply. Her mind was still processing the information. She has to relay this accurately for their platoon! The safety of their territory lies in her hands.

 

“I said DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!”

“Maam, yes maam!”

 

Joohyun squints at her anxious ally.

 

“If he asks for a Double Patty special with extra patty, what do you do?”

“Give him the Three Meatsketeers!”

“If he asks for a receipt, what do you punch in?”

“The Double Patty special with extra patty.”

“Details?”

“Punch in the price of the Double Patty. Subtract the price of the Three Meatsketeers from the price of the Double Patty, use the difference for the price of the extra patty.”

 

Joohyun nods, feeling slightly proud.

 

“Good. Now if he asks for a Grilled Chicken burger but with meat, what do you do?”

 

Nayeon gulps. Her mind couldn't comprehend the question. She wasn't prepared for this!

 

“Think Nayeon, think!”

“Give him the Barbecue burger!”

 

Joohyun grins. Her ally is ready. She was right in trusting her entire troop for this. She's got the best team after all. That young man will never be clever enough to trick their turf. She trained them herself!

 

“Excellent. You're ready.”

 

Nayeon gives her a warm smile. This is their territory, their battleground. They will not allow a mere moron to disrupt their peace. She will lead this turf with the guidance of her boss. Her boss never failed to lead them to a sturdier path, and so will she!

 

“Be safe out there.”

 

They salute each other. As soon as Nayeon gets out of her office, the real battle will begin. The only help she could offer them now is to pray for their safety.

 

 

 

 

“What's up with them?”

 

Seulgi points to the group of waitresses who were huddled up in the far corner of the shop. The cashier looked slightly alarmed too. She glances over to where Joohyun's office is located and sees her peeking through the small office window of her door, an idea already forming in her head. She chuckles. Some things never change.

The entrance chimes, signalling the arrival of a new customer. The entire shop, even Joohyun, felt a chill run up and down their spines. Seulgi, Wendy and Rosé look around and spots a very serious Yeri talking to a short man.

 

“Since when did Big Ed and Yeri become friends?”

 

Wendy wonders. Yeri looks over to them and waves but weirdly enough, doesn't approach them. Rosé raises her left eyebrow.

 

“What's up with her?”

 

The three of them looked around the entire shop. The waitresses were now in their positions. One of the waitresses was talking to the cashier, relaying their game plan. The entire demeanor of the place changed. The atmosphere was heavy. But one thing caught Wendy's attention.

 

“What's up with him?”

 

They look over towards the direction of booth three, where a young man is seated. Smiling at them, more specifically at Seulgi, looking back and forth between their table and Yeri. Seulgi looked away, slightly confused. She glanced back to where Joohyun's office is located and sees her looking very much annoyed at the young man. She notices Seulgi staring at her and waves. She disappears for a while and when she came back, she pasted a piece of paper on the glass window. It was a message. In big bold letters, reads:

 

SORZ. X COME OUT 2 HANG. 2 HUNGOVER. & annoyed.

 

Seulgi couldn't read the last part of the message, but she understood Joohyun's dilemma loud and clear.

She took out the fountain pen she always carries with her, picked up a tissue and wrote:

 

Pro tip: Binge drink at least two litres of water. You're welcome. :D

 

Seulgi calls a waitress over to their table and placed their orders. Wendy couldn't hide her curiosity any longer.

 

“'sup with the weird vibe 'round here, man?”

 

Dahyun wasn't allowed to divulge any information to the outsiders. For all she knows, they could be spies. Or worse, Trump supporters.

She shrugged and proceeded to repeat their orders but the three of them wouldn't let it go. Dahyun was starting to get anxious

 

“Hey, tofu. What's the deal?”

 

Rosé eyes the waitress and the other waitresses from head to toe. Mind set on digging up information.

 

“Come on. You can trust us.”

 

Seulgi said while flexing her bright smile. Hoping to charm their way for an access to this intriguing setup. Dahyun sighs, feeling defeated. She looked around for other outsiders who could evesdrop. She's not gonna give off any vital information. Just the gist of it all.

 

“A war has just commenced.”

 

She said plainly. Cautiously eyeing the three for any outbursts that could ruin their cover. She expected them to be stunned by the very vague information, or maybe even laugh at the silliness of it all but the three just nodded at her in understanding and.... pity? As if saying, We pray for your victory. Dahyun took it as a sign of patriotism.

Before Dahyun could leave, Seulgi asked the waitress for a favor.

 

“Can you please send this over to your boss on your way? Thank you.”

 

Dahyun gave her an honest smile and promised not to open the private message. When Dahyun reached the counter, she subtly opened the tissue and read its contents, shooting Seulgi a confused look. The boss is hungover?

 

 

 

 

Joy and Jennie swears they could feel eyes on them. They were at Moonsun Café visiting the owner, Jennie's ex-roommate. They were already in the middle of the line when Joy felt uneasy. Like she, they, were being watched. She looked around and spotted nothing unfamiliar. The place had just opened. There weren't that much people around. Still, Joy and Jennie couldn't help but feel like they're being watched.

 

“Let's get what we need then leave, Joy.”

 

Suddenly, the air around them became chilly. The feeling of being watched still lingering. But the new feeling was overpowering, much more intense. The entire shop felt it too. Solar, who was busy polishing her crystal ball, felt the somewhat eerie energy and anxiously looked around. The energy leading her line of sight towards a familiar face.

 

“Just as I thought.” Solar said, as she slipped on her rings.

“Oh, hey, Yerms!”

 

Jennie waved her hand towards the direction of Yeri, who was at the back of the line along with the short man she was with at CRABae Patty.

When their eyes met, Jennie felt the hair on her nape tingle. It was strange, somewhat unfamiliar. Joy saw how Jennie felt uneasy, just as she was before. The scene was peculiar given the fact that she and Yeri have been friends for a long time. This was the first time Jennie feared their shorter friend.

Joy squints her eyes at her younger roommate. It's been a while, she thinks.

 

When they got out of the café, away from the chilly atmosphere, the feeling of being watched came back. This time, it felt closer than ever.

They walked back to their shops as fast as they could, arms linked together.

 

“Hey.” a robotic voice called out to them.

 

Joy and Jennie frantically looked around for the source. They turned around and saw a short figure, wearing an Attack on Titan bodysuit.

The figure walked closer. The two girls were too scared to move. Jennie was too anxious to come up with a plan. Thankfully, Joy remembered something vital.

 

“Karate-chop his nape!” she whisper-shouts.

“What?!” Jennie screamed back. Not sure why Joy thought of such a thing.

“Just do it!”

 

And Jennie did just that. While Joy was distracting the figure, bravely asking the stranger to take pictures of her, Jennie slipped her way towards the stranger's back and karate-chopped its nape.

A thick cloud of smoke started covering its entire body and the area around it. Joy and Jennie took it as a sign of success. They quickly ran away from the scene as fast as they could, without looking back.

 

“Dude, what's that thing?” a guy, who had just opened the door to a Vape Shop, kept coughing and waving the smoke coming out of the shop. Revealing the disoriented figure from before who was now unconsciously lying in front of the shop.

“I don't know, man.” his mate coughed back, trying to wave off as much smoke from the area as he could.

 

 

 

 

Jisoo eyes the people surrounding the counter. Stares at Dwayne, who was staring at her with a neutral look. She shifts her gaze to Lisa, who seemed confident and intent on closing the deal.

She needed more time to think it through. The deal wasn't so bad, she just wanted an upper hand. She contemplates a little while longer. Sweat dripping from her forehead. They had just arrived at Lili's Arena, didn't even spare a second to turn on the air conditioner. As soon as Dwayne got inside, Lisa and Jisoo immediately went into position. The heat seeping through her black shirt. Suddenly, time stood still.

The three glanced at each other. Confusion evident on their faces. It's that feeling again.

 

“Can mayonnaise really strengthen your hair and make it look shiny?” a voice from outside the shop said.

 

They noticed the eerie rustling of the leaves, the thick autumn air filling the empty gameshop with the wind chimes' tune. Yeri had just passed by, her fingers were caressing Big Ed's long, greasy hair.

They shudder at the strange feeling. Not this again, God forbid.

 

“Jisoo.”

 

Lisa diverts their attention back to their business. They have more important matters to discuss.

 

“My men will arrive at noon. They'll be expecting it. So, do we have a deal?”

 

Jisoo rests her chin on the back of her hand. Her fingers tapping the glass counter in a nervous symphony. Dwayne was standing behind her, supporting whatever decision his boss will come to terms with.

Lisa squints her eyes at the sight of her roommate struggling. Her confident aura unprovoked.

 

“I refuse.”

“What?”

 

Lisa couldn't believe it. It was a fair deal, the best she could come up with. She knows Jisoo's weakness at the moment.

 

“Three Yves photocards for Kyungsoo's forehead selfie isn't a fair deal at all.”

 

Lisa grunts at that. She was confident Jisoo wouldn't be able to come up with a much more tempting deal than this.

 

“One Yves photocard and Heejin's latest Season's Greetings photocard for what I want.”

 

Lisa became speechless. She did not expect that. She knew Jisoo's weakness, what she didn't know was that she herself has a weakness of her own. And Jisoo saw through it.

Dwayne smiled proudly behind Jisoo. He was right to put all his faith on his boss.

 

“Deal.”

 

Jisoo and Lisa shook their hands signalling the end of their business deal. It was a success.

 

“I'll be expecting your men.”

 

And with that, Jisoo left the gameshop with Dwayne in tow, feeling satisfied.

 

 

 

 

The gang was gathered in CRABae Patty. Joohyun reserved them a booth beforehand. It's lunchtime. Everyone, except Yeri, were huddled up in their little booth.

 

“Copy, thank you Nayeon.”

 

Joohyun says to her waitress, who whispered something in her ear. It seemed private, the gang noted and minded their own business. They noticed something strange though. All of the staff had a walkie-talkie with them. The head waitress, Nayeon, was wearing an armband with a star and a huge “C” stitched to it. What seemed like sacks of potatoes where stacked near booth three, looking like a barricade.

 

Jennie was fidgetting. She was still shaken up from the events that transpired this morning. Joy noticed it.

 

“Jennie, stop being obvious!”

“I can't help it, Joy. It was a near death experience!”

 

Joy sighed heavily. She knows how difficult it must be for Jennie, she's not as strong as she makes it out to be.

 

“Let's be strong together. We'll figure this out. The others don't need to know, we can't put them in danger.”

 

Jennie nods at that. Joy was right, she needed to be fierce. Unleash Rubyjane if she needs to. Not just for herself, but for her little family as well.

 

 

 

 

Wendy was in the middle of cleaning ketchup off of Seulgi's fingers when her breathing slowed. Seulgi was busy convincing Joohyun why Laa-Laa is the best Teletubby when she felt closing up. Lisa, Jisoo and Rosé suddenly stopped pouring ketchup on Seulgi's hand when they felt a sudden rise in their temperatures. Everyone else in the table felt it too. The waitresses and the other customers looked around the entire shop, panic evident in their eyes. The music playing in the background was suddenly drowned by the erratic sound coming from the wind-chimes. Everyone in the room simultaneously looked over to where Yeri and Big Ed stood by the entrance.

 

“Welp, place is full. Chicken wings?” Big Ed suggested when they noticed the place is indeed filled with customers.

“Ayt. As I was saying, it takes a lot more than just practice and focus to make kimbap. It needs experience.”

 

Yeri and Big Ed proceeded to leave the place and the entire world that existed inside CRABae Patty, as quickly as it stopped spinning, resumed.

 

“It's about damn time the four of you start talking.”

 

Jennie says after half a minute of recovering from the intense aura.

Wendy, Seulgi, Jisoo and Lisa looked at each other. Reluctant to share their experiences. They've only ever held on to each other for strength. Sometimes, when the night is too quiet and the moon is nowhere in sight, the four of them would be bundled up in one bed seeking each other's warmth, too scared to be left alone with their memories.

Joohyun raises her right eyebrow at the four of them, Seulgi shudders at the sight. She hid behind Wendy and started pushing her to speak for the four of them.

Wendy was too scared, compared to the other three, she was the weakest link. In her three years of acquaintance with her, she has yet to master the art of taming it.

Lisa was too frightened as well. The lightheadedness from last night kept her up till 5AM, which prompted her to sleep next to Jisoo for comfort.

Jisoo volunteered to speak for them. Lisa and Seulgi had enough from last night. It was her turn to be brave for them. She understands how fragile Wendy still is, so she spoke first.

 

 

 

 

 

“It all started three years ago. A week after The Expired Apple Juice Incident. The night we met Katie.”