“Are you leaving already?”   Jungwoo was wearing her outfit silently, mind as scattered as the clothes around the room when Suzy asked the question with a rasp. For once, it didn’t appeal to her for another go at the younger one. For once, she felt uneasy about how things unfolded. And for once, she felt as if she did something wrong, yet she couldn’t put her finger on why.   It was weird. The shoot went fairly smoothly at first but proceeded quickly when Suzy herself came to monitor and gave her approval on the spot. It shouldn’t come as a surprise when the singer invited her for a follow-up meeting at the hotel she stayed in to conclude their collaboration and talk about the prospects for future projects. Jungwoo clenched her jaw and feigned a delighted smile at the offer in front of the crews, swallowing her disapproval of Suzy’s public invitation.   It also shouldn’t come as a surprise when the singer melded their lips together once they were in the room. It’s usually like this – them succumbing to carnal desires before a ‘hi’ was even exchanged – and yet Jungwoo was on pins and needles, a feeling she doesn’t usually feel afterward.   “Unnie?”   It took Jungwoo a few deep breaths to compose herself before responding with a slight edge in his voice. She had to be assertive. “That was too reckless.”   “What was?”   “You, asking me for a private meeting, in a hotel of all places, in broad daylight, in front of your crews.”   The seriousness wasn’t lost in translation. Shin Jungwoo was not one to beat around the bush, which was one of the charms Bae Suzy was attracted to. This time, however, there was a dispassionate undertone that put her on edge. “What’s with the sudden lecture? There was nothing suspicious about what I said.”   “You thought it wasn’t suspicious when you picked me out of everybody, for a song you haven’t created?”   “I told them I like your style. That was an honest truth, you know that.”   But Jungwoo wasn’t finished. “After the song was done, you didn’t give any direction on what kind of dance you want me to do or the concept you want for the music video. Suzy-ah, as much as I appreciate the creative freedom, I couldn’t help but be uneasy at how people might perceive this as nepotism.”   “I thought you don’t care what people think?”   Turning around to see the young singer right in her eyes, Jungwoo wasn’t surprised when there was no empathy there. A sudden rush of irritation engulfed her, prompting her to blurt, “Forgive me when I start concerning about how this might affect my career and the people working with me.”   Jungwoo pulled her padding jacket from the ground with a quick tug, settling to fix the rest of her outfit someplace where she couldn’t see Suzy lest she’d lose her temper (if she hadn’t already). Call it gut feeling, but she felt as if she was at the wrong place with the wrong person.   “Unnie.”   With her phone in hand, Jungwoo was about to leave the room, stopping immediately at the voice.   “Did something happen? This is the first time I see you so bothered.”   The dancer was almost apprehensive about seeing Suzy, in case the latter had no single thread on. As luck would have it, however, she had her sweater on to cover her body up to her upper thighs. “Let’s not meet each other for a while,” Jungwoo stated resolutely, not leaving any room for discussion in case she got side-tracked.   “Suddenly?”   “Just in case people are onto us.”   Suzy sighed heavily, probably trying to make a sense of the sudden change in Jungwoo’s behavior. Since they had agreed to make arrangements in a way that would keep their meetings a secret, the singer had to admit that the sudden anxiousness from the older woman was understandable; it was a first for them to meet up in broad daylight. In her defense, it had been a while since they met in person, and since she knew Jungwoo would be unavailable that night, she had to make use of whatever time was available, including announcing their meeting out in the open to make it ‘public’ and less suspicious. Her crews knew of her preference to have a private meeting with her friends; it was nothing new.   As apprehensive as she was, Suzy knew Jungwoo had her own concerns, and she had to respect that. “Fine, if that’s what you want. My label would probably still call you for meetings, though.”   “I will. Thank you for understanding.”   Taking a step forward intending for a kiss goodbye, Suzy was stopped in her tracks when Jungwoo turned around and left the room, exchanging no more words.   Now that, was odd.   #   Jungwoo made use of her driving time to Seoul by checking up on her studio management for the day and whether there were issues she needed to be aware of. The remaining time was spent thinking about the last several hours and her urgency to leave the place as quickly as possible. She wasn’t late for her meeting with Jihye; it only takes an hour of driving to get to Seoul from Gangwon-do, after all. And yet, even as she was done washing up and driving to the studio, she still couldn’t discern her erratic behavior.   “Oh? You’re here, Unnie.”   Turning around from her monitor, Jungwoo found Hyowon in her training clothes, rummaging in her bag for a hair tie. She hummed in recognition, knowing very well that her roommate was about to teach the last class of the day.   “I thought you’re taking the rest of the day off. How’s the shoot?”
  “It’s fine,” the older woman responded very briefly, not wanting to get into the details of what transpired in the day. At the same time, she didn’t want to admit that her roommate’s concerns were valid enough to make her rush away from Suzy.   Aware that the older woman was probably not in the mood for small talks (but not worn out enough to stop by at the studio), Hyowon left the small office to begin her c