Late one May morning, Jessica and Krystal arrived at Café Tov in Cheongchamdong for brunch. They sat down at the table in the corner to the far left of the entrance. The café was empty as it was around the time people were expected to arrive at work. Only a few people came in on coffee runs to take back to work. Jessica had been in a funk all morning and hadn’t said a word during the walk there from the SME building. On that particular day, she didn’t want to be around certain SNSD members. It was not because she did not want to see them, but because she did not want to make them feel bad for her own problem. So that morning she called Krystal and asked if she was free to spend the day with her. Krystal hesitated at first, but the need in Jessica’s voice made her reconsider.

Jessica’s hair was tied back in a ponytail. She hid her light brown locks by donning a navy blue baseball cap and a black hoodie. She hated having her hair tied back, but she didn’t want people to recognize her from her dyed hair. That day, she didn’t have the energy to act happy and cheerful for the fans. Just that one day, she wanted to be left alone. She scanned the café a second time before she removed her brown aviator sunglasses. They revealed eyes that were slightly pink a swollen. Anyone who saw her could tell she had been crying the night before. Krystal looked worried and rested her hand supportively on Jessica’s arm.

“Unnie, what’s wrong?” Krystal asked. When Jessica ignored her, she shook Jessica’s arm to prompt an answer. Jessica sighed. She crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on them. She turned her head towards the window that overlooked the main road and closed her eyes. One of the waiters came by to take their order.

“My name is Jeongsu and I will be your waiter today. What would you like to order?” he asked.

“Unnie, what do you want?” Krystal asked. Jessica waved her hand above her head, telling Krystal to order anything.

“We’ll have two servings of insam cha and honey bread please,” said Krystal. The waiter left and Jessica continued to mope.

“Unnie, you’re making me worried. Can’t you tell me what’s wrong? Say something at least,” said a concerned Krystal.

Jessica raised her head slightly and turned to face Krystal. She rested her chin on her left arm and reached for Krystal’s hand. She squeezed it.

“I’ll be fine. Just promise me that you’ll think twice before dating a celebrity,” said Jessica.

“Celebrities, especially idols, have many restrictions that make it difficult to maintain a relationship. You’re more likely to get hurt than not,” she advised. Krystal shifted around uncomfortably in her seat. Jessica’s eye’s narrowed. She looked into Krystal’s eyes, but Krystal looked away.

“Don’t tell me… you already like someone!,” said Jessica in an accusing tone.

“Aniyah… I just have a friend I get along with very well,” said Krystal shyly.

“A celebrity? An idol?!” whispered Jessica. Krystal nodded. Jessica rose from her stooped position and held both of Krystal’s hands in her own.

“If you like someone tell me right now,” she whispered. Krystal stayed silent.

“Krys, tell me right now or I’m going to get ugly when I do find out who it is. And trust me, I will find out,” said Jessica in a protective tone.

 “Just promise you won’t do or say anything first. He doesn’t even know I like him,” said Krystal.

Krystal’s request only made Jessica more worried. Coming from anyone else, Jessica wouldn’t have thought twice about it, but this was her full of self-confidence sister Krystal. Krystal’s shyness about the guy scared Jessica. Krystal was walking through dangerous territory, where she was liable to get hurt. She just hoped it wasn’t one of the oppas. As much as Jessica loved and cared for her Dong Bang Shin Ki and Super Junior sunbaenims, they were much older and more experienced than Krystal, though she tried to act older and more mature than her age.

Jessica nodded in agreement to Krystal’s request. Krystal shyly began to trace circles on the table with her index finger.

“It’s Minho-shi,” she whispered to Jessica without looking up from the table.

“Minho… Choi Minho?” asked Jessica with raised eyebrows. She was more surprised than anxious. “From SHINee?”

“Dae… We’ve always hung out a lot since his trainee days. We listen to the same music and play sports with each other,” said Krystal. She interlaced her fingers on her lap and began twiddling her thumbs.

“He’s always looking out for me and caring for me. Sometimes I think he has feelings for me too,” she said. Jessica kept a straight face, but was grinning inside. She thought this shy side of Krystal was cute, besides Krystal and Minho would make a cute couple. The guy was so young and sports crazy that he was unlikely to hurt Krystal, at least not anytime soon.

 “Minho you say… Well he’s a good guy, but don’t commit your heart to him,” said Jessica.

“I’m not saying I’m in love with him, but I like spending time with him,” insisted Krystal, but a smile appeared on her face as she thought of him.

“I know. What I mean is, if you do like each other, just date for a while. Don’t rush into a committed relationship. For idols it…” Jessica trailed off and looked a little pained. She closed her eyes and struggled to vocalize what she wanted to say.

“For idols, a committed relationship can be more pressure than we can handle,” concluded Jessica and became quiet again.

“Araseo Umma,” said Krystal jokingly, not noticing Jessica’s slightly shaky voice.

The waiter returned with their tea and bread. The tea had a rich red color and a bitter ginseng flavor, while the bread released wafts of steam as they tore off little pieces to eat. The fragrance was sweet and the bread was soft and doughy with a honey butter coating that delighted their taste buds.

“Tiffany wasn’t lying when she said it was the best honey bread she had ever tasted,” commented Jessica.

“Yeah no kidding,” agreed Krystal. “How did she find out about this place? It’s close to SM, but I’ve never eaten here before” Jessica paused before answering.

“Wooyoung met up with her here last week,” said Jessica.

“In public! What if they were seen?” asked Krystal.

“It was really late at night, so the place was more or less empty,” said Jessica. She took another sip.

“Still, it is really close to SM. People could have been looking out for SM artists,” said Krystal.

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter. Why are we talking about this? They weren’t caught, so that’s that,” said Jessica annoyed.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you being so irritable about your friends?” asked Krystal. Jessica looked guilty.

“Mianhe. I just…” she began, but the words wouldn’t come out. Jessica closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She let it out slowly as she tried to calm down. She wrapped her hands around her cup of tea. The warmth was comforting. She raised it to her lips and paused. She stared at the rich red color.

“Toda