just in time to rest, and aeri sinks herself to the couch of their dorm. she wasn't even halfway to their room and she plopped on the soft cushion, feeling her insides shut down. today's practice was terribly long, specifically eleven hours, and who wouldn't tire out from that?

"so much for being rookies," aeri mutters as she was followed by minjeong, only to sit beside the wasted girl. ning had cold water bottles under her fingers as jimin removed her hair tie.

indeed, aespa is tired.

"giselle, you have to drink, you look super dehydrated!" ning nudges the almost asleep aeri on the couch as she groans and forced herself to sit up. "i could just sleep this off, yknow" an attempt to roll her eyes, but due to being tired, can't. she goes back to throwing her body on the foam.

"are you dumb? i mean you are, but if you don't get to drink water, you're just upsetting your veins. take that from my experience" minjeong huffs and crosses her arms.

"i'm very sure you forgot the times aeri lasted a day without even having to consume drinks. she's like," jimin was reaching out for a word that would best fit the description, "superman—woman, or something" jimin laughs as she was all am i making sense?

"but that's not cool! here," minjeong grabs the water bottle from ning's hand and opens it, crouching down just infront of aeri's level on the couch. ",please, unnie, drink up a little?"

something about minjeong's doe-eyes(or was it puppy-eyes? aeri couldn't really decide) made her cheeks flush up a little, and she hides it by burying her face. "i said i don't need it."

the three look at each other and came to the point where they would just tolerate her stubbornness. "well, fine. but can you atleast just do me a favor and push yourself back to our room?" minjeong asks as jimin and ning fix up, ready to go to theirs.

it took them almost five minutes to persuade aeri and off she goes, like a tired bunny, hopping her way to their bunk bed. minjeong was supposed to sleep on the bottom, but since aeri got in too fast, what choice does she have? (plus, she didn't liked getting hit by a grumpy giselle. no one wants that.)

although sometimes, she wants aeri to drift off first. no, it wasn't because of the songs she jams up until like god knows what time, piercing minjeong's eardrums(okay maybe a little bit for that reason), no, it wasn't because aeri likes to sleep with the lights off so minjeong stays up and leaves it open, but because of the funny encounters she happens to witness.

"jealous." aeri says in almost a whisper.

minjeong turns to her quietly, since she was on the floor with her back leaning at the side of the bed.

"you were jealous? why?" minjeong asks, although probably she'd get cut off phrases as an answer. after all, aeri only gets to sleep talk when she's obviously tired.

"...hands...karina...holding.." ah. minjeong tries to remember the practice they had awhile ago. she does have been holding jimin's hand because heck, the venue was freezing cold. she doesn't ask more, and just let aeri continue to let out her unconscious thoughts.

"minjeong is mine.. .. i just...can't tell her...yet.. " a blush on the brunette's face. she turns her head away, going back to the position she was before aeri uttered some words.

"but minjeong...is dense...oblivious..." aeri's face deforms and she scrunches her face, as if she was uncomfortable. minjeong's ears reddened at what she just heard.

of course it offended minjeong. after all, she was clearly kinda showing signs of interest for the japanese girl. maybe she's just as dense as she was. or maybe it's because they're both dumb, like what they label to each other.

----

a scheduled radio interview. aeri puts on her simplest yet most elegant clothes she could find in her closet, and minjeong was waiting for her to finish.

"hey, good morning" aeri warmly greets like she wasn't the grinch she was last night. minjeong was lightly startled, and she nods as return.

well, that was awkward? but aeri didn't mind and proceeded to walk back to their dressing table. she blowers her hair and from the view in the mirror, minjeong was still standing there. aeri turns her head at minjeong's direction and it disturbed her from her thoughts again.

"why do you look like you never got any sleep last night?" aeri asks.

because i really haven't, stupid.

minjeong grits her teeth awkwardly and inhales. "i'm just pre-occupied. never mind me" minjeong starts shuffling her closet to find her fit for today's schedule.

----

"point is, it's nothing serious, really. we just like calling each other pen names" jimin laughs as the radio host let out a few teasing whines.

minjeong laughed along with them as well, feeling a bit of tension at the questions being asked. aeri and ning were seated together and as for jimin and minjeong, they were just beside the host.

the whole time, it feels like minjeong can feel herself melting. it has been a whole forty minutes and aeri's gaze never left her, or maybe it did, but only when the host asks her to rap or do fanservice.

"how about a curious question for our lovely giselle? if you were to pick between karina or winter, who would it be and why?" ning let out a few ppui ppui ppui's as jimin jokingly threatens aeri to pick her.

aeri was contemplating for awhile when her eyes met minjeong's, and wow, was it that someone splashed the temperature to negative seventeen or did it get colder?

"i choose myself. after all, no one's got you but you. bars!" aeri answered with all swag, earning a frown from both jimin and minjeong. it's only that minjeong's was more sincere.

the radio show ended with a few takes on group pictures and escaping the media, they rush to their assigned vans quickly. this time, unlike before, minjeong and aeri ought to ride this van together.

"why didn't you pick me?" minjeong asks, trying to hide the childish tone because it surely is embarrassing to feel this way. but who can blame her?

"i wanted to pick myself in the first place," aeri answers as she was scrolling on her music library.

wrong. if anything; she'd choose minjeong over and over again, like a mixtape on a broken cassette player. having to witness seeing minjeong's affection towards jimin is just holding her back.

but of course, the younger wasn't satisfied with her answer.

"that's not even a valid reason, and also, you kept staring at me the whole time. what the hell was that?" minjeong's tone started to irk her as she sighs and pauses her music.

"god, you're already annoyed by that? then i'm sorry, since there was a bug on your hair!" aeri lied.

"no, it's not like i was a