Soju and fried chicken – Inna really knew her.

This was her go-to stress reliever during her school and trainee days, but now she barely eats these because she has to take care of her appearance and fried, fatty, salty food make her look bloated the next day. Not that she was a good drinker – it was mostly Inna who drank while she feasted on the fried chicken. But today was an especially difficult day and she couldn’t care less about how she’d look like when she wakes up tomorrow.

Jieun released a deep sigh before taking a sip from her shot glass. Yes, just a sip. She’s known for being incredibly candid and spotaneous when she gets drunk and tonight is not the night she’d like to pour out all her thoughts in the open, even if it’s Inna. Knowing how Inna is, she’ll probably worry about her and hover around for a month just to make sure she’s okay.

Munching on a chicken leg, Jieun thought about how exhausted she’s been the last three months during the planning and preparation for the album and the showcase. It was a blessing that she declined  the reality show guesting that KBS offered her, or else she would be too exhausted to function.

But it wasn’t just the physical exhaustion. Today she finally figured out why she’s been so stressed and exhausted.

It’s all because of Jung Jihoon.

She knew it was going to be tough to work with him. But the last couple of weeks of actually working with him in the studio, and today during dance practice, was a different kind of stress. Not to mention this thing she felt while watching him dance. It’s crazy because when Hyunseung was teaching her the moves, she thought she’s going to do well. But when it was time for her to dance with Jihoon and everytime she saw him watching her with those hawk-like eyes, ready to spot another mistake, her body seemed to betray her by making one mistake after another.

She winced as she looked back on how terrible she was during practice. Frustrated, she hid her face in between her legs and released a frustrated sound.

“Aigoo, it’s going to be okay, Jieun.” Inna said soothingly, rubbing Jieun’s back with her hand. “Here, since I’m such a good friend, I’ll let you eat all the chicken thighs and wings.”

She didn’t budge. She just wanted to disappear from the face of the earth.

With a sigh, she took another piece of chicken and started chewing.

“There you go. What did you used to say? Perfectly seasoned fried chicken makes you forget your troubles for the day.”

“I wish that’s true though. That was just something dumb I used to tell myself when I was younger.”

“Admit it though, the chicken is so good.”

Inna nudged her on the shoulder, which she responded with a nudge back.

“It is! This chicken place never fails.” Jieun took a bite and gave her old room a good look. “It feels like I’m back to being ten. My mom didn’t even remove the posters from the wall.”

The posters and her old collection of albums were still intact – as if time didn’t pass. It gave her this warm feeling coupled with a sudden rush of nostalgia.

She asked Hanteo to drive them to her parents’ house instead of her apartment. A sleepover with Inna just didn’t feel right if it was in her chic, empty apartment in Gangnam. They had to do it where the magic happened.

“Look at that! Do you want me to remove it?” Inna said with a laugh.

She pointed to the many posters of the man that was making her life difficult at the moment. One from his first album – Bad Guy, another from his 3rd album and many other printed photos which she printed and posted on the walls of her tiny room.

“Gosh, I almost forgot how completely obsessed I was with that man.”

“I doubt that. I saw you almost drooling when he was dancing earlier.” Inna paused and gave a squeal. “You can deny it, but I won’t. My heart fluttered earlier, as if it’s 2002 all over again.”

Jieun didn’t answer, but Inna saw a small smile start to form on her friend’s lips.

“You were completely obsessed with him. If I remember correctly, Jihoon oppa was the reason you started your blog in the first place.” Inna said. “It’s kinda funny how things turn out, huh? Now you’re working with him and you completely hate hi