"I can't believe we didn't have pasta for dinner." Seulgi said jokingly, and Irene just raised a brow at her from the driver's seat. "But seriously, that sushi was amazing."

Irene had just treated her to dinner at a fancy sushi restaurant downtown. By 'fancy', she meant a sleek, luxurious interior that didn't scream 'sushi restaurant', overdressed people with suits and dresses, and painful prices that she wouldn't be able to afford herself. Seeing the prices alone made her heart clench, but the sheer quality of the food guaranteed that the seemingly absurd prices were worth it. Seulgi didn't think sushi could taste anywhere near that good, though the kind of sushi she usually ended up eating was the cheap, pre-packaged type designed for a quick bite to temporarily satiate some hunger pangs. Was this the standard tier of restaurants that Irene's dates would take her to? If so, Seulgi would feel just a tad bit inadequate. Irene certainly didn't seem like a snobby materialist, but Seulgi had an idea of the top-notch treatment she could be accustomed to.

Irene smiled like an artist proud of her work. "Well, I thought you'd be sick of pasta by now. I'm really glad that you enjoyed the sushi though. We can return to that restaurant anytime you're craving it. It's actually my favorite, and I probably go there at least once a month." Seulgi nodded. Irene appeared to be the type of person to take comfort in patterns and sticking to 'the usual'. It wasn't bad, but it was interesting considering how she was easily bored even by her many dates. Maybe it wasn't a fast pace or constant entertainment that she sought, but stability and something she felt she could rely on and hold onto. What would it mean to Irene when their routine dates eventually came to an end? Seulgi had only thought about the consequences on her end, where she would obtain enough experience and perhaps reputation to be with Wendy. She hadn't thought of the effects that the end of their current relationship would have on Irene. She would probably continue her little hobby of serial dating and hopefully she'd find someone she'd be content to settle with.

Seulgi didn't want to overthink things; at least not now, while she and Irene were on a date. Thank goodness for Yeri's growing attachment to Amber and Luhan. "So where are we headed tonight, Miss Bae? I presume you've prepared other plans?" Irene only grinned knowingly.

At the sight of a red light, Irene stepped on the brakes and slowed down to a stop behind the crosswalk. She quickly rummaged through her purse and pulled out a pair of rectangular-shaped papers. She proudly handed them to Seulgi, who accepted them from her and realized what they were within a few seconds. She gasped, looking both surprised and pleased. "Weren't the tickets for Russian Roulette sold out within half an hour? How did you even get ahold of these?"

"An acquaintance of mine was selling her tickets since she couldn't go. You mentioned the other day that you enjoy listening to musical soundtracks and that you want to be a musical actress so I figured you wouldn't turn down the chance to attend a musical with me. I don't know if a musical like Russian Roulette is your thing, but I've heard a lot about it and it's pretty popular."

"I love it." Seulgi told her, simply and truthfully.

"Great."

"Damn, that was so good!" Seulgi remarked as the musical eased into intermission. She was so immersed into the performance that she'd completely forgotten about the fact that she was on a date, let alone with another person by the name of Irene Bae. Irene seemed pretty pleased herself, at least. She and Irene stood up, like some of the other attendees, to stretch a bit. Irene gestured toward the exit and they began walking down the row of seats.

"I think they're selling snacks at the concession stand. Want to grab something from there?" Irene questioned behind Seulgi.

"Sure." Seulgi was more interested in the musical itself, of course, but she supposed that a small snack couldn't hurt. Irene knew Seulgi was the snacking type, though she wasn't one herself. She was considerate enough to offer at least. As they drew closer to the concession stand, the savory scent of butter grew increasingly stronger. Fortunately for them, the line for the stand was rather short and manageable. The same couldn't be said for the restroom line. Seulgi made a mental note to avoid drinking too much water. She and Irene stood in the line together, and Seulgi finally noticed how Irene stood a few centimeters taller than her tonight because of her heels. It felt a bit weird to Seulgi since she wasn't used to it yet. "Thanks for bringing me here tonight, Irene. This date is waaaay better than the one I planned for us. I think you've done too much, actually."

"Going out and spending more money doesn't necessarily make this a better date, you know." Irene countered as they took a few steps forward in sync with the line moving up. 

"Still. This is really...fun." Seulgi insisted. She truly was having an amazing time, not just because of the fact that they were watching Russian Roulette, a musical that Seulgi had been dying to see for a while, but also because Irene herself made a wonderful companion. Irene's company differed a lot from what Seulgi was used to with Amber, Luhan, and whoever else they brought around to join them - Irene was a different kind of person than what Seulgi was accustomed to, but this difference was far from bad. It was a refreshing learning experience, and Seulgi could almost feel herself grow as a person. It was a strange way to word it, to say the least, but Irene made Seulgi feel different as well. She could feel this difference growing inside of her, with more time they spent with one another. "I need to watch out. You're too good at this whole dating thing. The dating experience helps, I guess."

"Well, I'm glad to know that I've done well. That means you better keep up the standards, Kang. Not by money either; that's not the kind of thing that impresses me. By the way, do you know what you want?"

"Popcorn sounds awesome." Seulgi replied, eyeing the piles of warm popcorn through the glass. "Not too much, I think a 'small' would do."

"One small bag of popcorn, please." Irene told the concession stand employee before pulling some money out of her clutch and paying for the snack. Another employee grabbed a bag and quickly shoveled popcorn into it, filling the bag up then passing it to the employee manning the cash register. They handed it to Seulgi, who gladly received the bag with delight. "Are you going to add anything to it?" Irene asked, her question answering itself as she followed Seulgi to the butter dispenser.

Seulgi positioned the bag underneath the nozzle of the butter dispenser and pressed down on the ejection button, watching with a grin on her face as the greasy liquid dripped onto her popcorn. Seulgi was clearly a fan of sauces (though her feelings about hot sauce were questionable nowadays). When the surface of one side seemed thoroughly soaked with butter, Seulgi shook the bag to soak the popcorn underneath. Although the bag was small and there was relatively little popcorn, this butter-soaking process seemed to go on for a while, and Irene had to check the time on her phone to make sure they wouldn't be late for the continuation of the musical. She took one glance at the bag and tried her hardest not to cringe at the sight.

"Seulgi, isn't that...a bit excessive?"

"What do you mean? You can never have too much butter."

"The butter is dripping through the bag." Irene pointed out.

"What?" Seulgi lifted the ba