Jihyo and Jongkook were on their way back to her apartment after eating lunch. They had enjoyed their meal, but, before they ordered, Jihyo asked Jongkook why they ate at such an exclusive restaurant when there was no occasion. “It doesn’t make sense to spend this much on a random lunch Oppa,” Jihyo said as she eyed the items on the menu.

Jongkook just shrugged with a smile, and she knew it was a losing battle. They were both frugal with themselves to a fault, but she knew that he was the type to spend on the people and things that matter to him. She appreciated being part of that list.

Over the meal, Jihyo shared about the offers she had gone through, noting what she liked about each one of them. Her Runningman character was blank, but she was the total opposite when it came to her craft. He noticed how meticulously she dissected the characters she was being offered to play, and how they were similar or different from all her previous work. He couldn’t help but smile at how passionate she was about acting.

“Ah I’ve been talking too much Oppa,” she suddenly said, when she realized that Jongkook was almost done with the food on his plate. She started telling her stories before the food even came in.

“Aniya Sooyeon-ah,” he said. “I always enjoy these stories, and it’s a welcome change. I know how talkative I can get.” He took a bite of his food, willing for her to continue but she was silent now. So he prodded her, “So which of those are you thinking of getting?”

She looked at him, and he could see the gears turning in her head, as she considered his question. “I’m not yet fully decided, Oppa, but I’m leaning towards the fantasy one. It’s different from what I’ve done so far, and it’s lighter. I’ve done some pretty dark stuff this year, so that drama could be a welcome change.”

She, then, focused again on her food, before asking him, “How about you, Oppa? Which one do you think I should do?”

He thought about it for a moment. “Well, it might be better if I try to read the scripts. But, at least, based on what you told me, that drama does sound interesting. But the first one you mentioned also has a different edge to it. You should probably consider that as well. I know it’s more on the dark side, but there are a few actresses like you who can do that. So it would make sense to play on your strengths also.”

She ruminated on what he said, before he added, “Actually, can’t you do both?”

“I don’t want to tire myself out, Oppa,” she said, taking a bite of her meal.

“That’s true. But also, you shouldn’t be tied to too many commitments next year. What if we decide to get married?” he joked, sniggering at the thought. He remembered the velvet box that sat in the drawer of his bedside table, and smiled. When he looked at her, she continued to eat from her plate, opting not to make any comment.

There was a bit of silence after that, until Jongkook asked, “Everything alright?”

“Ne, oppa. Wae?” she returned the question. Jongkook really didn’t have an answer to it; he was probably just overthinking things. He blinked twice, and Jihyo knew that he was thinking about her lack of response to his joke, so she tried to divert the conversation.

“How about you, Oppa? I heard they’re eyeing you for Daesang this year. Is that why you’re showing up everywhere?”

“Is this your way of saying you’re getting tired of me?” he joked again.

This time, she laughed and joked back. “You can be on all variety shows, Oppa, but it still doesn’t mean I’ll be like Kwangsoo and watch the episodes, waiting for you to show up.”

“Yah!” he called her out, biting his bottom lip.

She giggled, “Aniya, Oppa. I’m only kidding. Even before we were dating, you know you’re the only exception to my being clueless about everything everybody does.”

He genuinely smiled at that, because he knew it was true, and he should probably have known even then that he wasn’t just an ordinary friend to her. He steered back to her initial question, “Anyway, well, I think that’s partly it. Promotions are already starting for the awards in December, so they’ve booked some appearances which they think will hype me up enough for the Daesang. We have to see if it’s going to work though.”

“Do you want to win though?” Jihyo asked, as she took her final bite. Jongkook was already finished with his meal, so before answering her, he looked at her with questioning eyes as if to ask if they were ready to go. She nodded, so he signalled to the staff to give them the bill.

He looked back at her, “It would be cool to win it for sure. But you know how these awards can be. Plus have you heard about the other nominees? They’re all really great at variety.” The bill had come to their table by now; he paid in cash, opting not to leave a record of their lunch, in case some nosy tabloid writers caught wind of their appearance there.

He looked at Jihyo, indicating that they could leave. So they began to walk out of the restaurant, making their way to his car. As they boarded, he continued telling her about the other nominees and the work they were currently doing. Jihyo just took everything in, but she seriously wondered why Jongkook sold himself short every time he compared himself to them.

When he finally ended his monologue, they were already quite close to Jihyo’s apartment. He drove to the parking area, and blushed when he remembered the last time he was here with her. It was a beautiful night.

“I just don’t understand why you think you won’t win. You already won Top Excellence last year,” Jihyo now concluded for him, taking him away from his thoughts.

“Well, I won that on a tie with Jinyoung,” he tried to counter.

“Are you saying that win was because of your loveline?” she asked. Jongkook couldn’t help but notice the slight pout she had upon giving that question.

“Not really, no…” he immediately denied.

“Then what is it?”

“The other nominees are really just good. And they’re born entertainers. Most of them are comedians, and, well, if you look at it, I started out as a singer. Even if I decided to focus my efforts on entertainment now, it’s still a pretty hard transition. Only Hyori so far has been able to win a Daesang in both singing and entertainment, you know. And that was what? More than a decade ago?”

Jihyo was silent. He did make good points; there was cause to worry. Of all the people in the industry, she knew how one’s past roles could affect how people saw them in their future work.

But it still didn’t sit well with her that he believed his past would make him a bad entertainer. Sure, he was different from others in that he never deliberately did things badly to make people laugh, but, it was his capability and chemistry with just about everyone he worked with that made him a great entertainer.

“I can’t really deny that would be a problem, Oppa,” she began. “People do tend to judge us based on what we did in the past.”

Jongkook felt the need to look at her, remembering how Jihyo struggled with the same problem, probably more so than he’s ever had to in both his singing and entertainment careers. He looked back at the times when she would cry upon seeing comments about her, still making some lewd references to a provocative yet award-winning acting role she took when she was young. He remembered how she struggled with getting kicked out of Runningman, thinking that the only value she brought to the show was her loveline, not her humor, her wit, or her capabilities which she strived to show in every chall