[A/N: I have a separate author's note below. ]

Where  and how do you even start?

It was six in the morning after her 26th birthday. Moon Ah Reum looked at the unfamiliar surroundings. This was not her bed nor her apartment walls.

"Ah, right. Right." She mumbled to herself upon remembering that she spent the night of her birthday in one of the premium suites of the luxurious JW Marriott Hotel Seoul. 

It was no ordinary birthday, though. She made plans to spend the night with Ji Hoon at the hotel , but Im Ji Hoon ditched her. Instead, a certain 6-ft tall "idol rapper" from EXO was kind enough to provide some company, and...

"warmth."

Ah Reum attempted to sit up from the bed, but her body ached all over. Her temples palpitated, and it came to her that wine and Ah Reum did not go so well together.

It was already six fifteen, and Ah Reum's getting tempted to take a sick leave from work today. Her body felt sore, and her hangover was a pain in the neck, literally.

"Ugh, ouch." Ah Reum winced in pain as she took small, baby steps to the full length mirror. She let out a controlled, mini gasp when she saw her body in the mirror.

Her collarbones were tattooed with purple, her s had bright, red marks-all those were the doings of  The Certain "idol rapper" from EXO who lives by the name Park Chanyeol. Ah, Park Chanyeol.

Now where was he? Surely, he's not in her hotel room anymore.

Ah Reum simply shrugged. She had expected Chanyeol to be the first to leave anyway, since he had a Master's Degree in one night stands. But then again, Chanyeol had already declared his love for Ah Reum. For a second, Ah Reum wondered where Chanyeol went, but then she shrugged twice in a row. It was only a desperate one night stand with someone despite exclusively dating her dream guy, Im Ji Hoon.

Strange, Ah Reum's not feeling an inch bit of guilt for sleeping with some guy who's not Im Ji Hoon. And even more strange, she had a gut feel that Ji Hoon wouldn't really care if he ever finds out that she slept with another guy. 

"Maybe it's my gut saying that Ji Hoon's also sleeping with some other girl." She whispered to herself, but bit her tongue for assuming things.

Ah Reum attempted to walk to the bathroom to take a cold shower, but her legs failed her. She was that sore.

"Guess who's skipping work for the first time today? Me." 

Right before she checked out of her pristine hotel room, Ah Reum had already sent a group e-mail to SM's publicity department, informing the team of her sick leave, and managed to answer some e-mails from Dispatch.

And since today was her off, Ah Reum found enjoyment in reading the newspaper, shopping for vegan groceries online, and talking to clients interested in adopting the pets in her animal shelter. By four thirty in the afternoon, she took a long, relaxing bath. Thankfully, the bath helped soothe her sore body. 

Her sore body was somehow relieved, but it was still painful to walk, so imagine her surprise when her phone buzzed: A Line chat from Ji Hoon.

“Hi baby. I was supposed to message you this a.m. How are you? You’re sick? Really really sorry for not celebrating with you last night. If you feel better by dinner, why don’t we meet at Champetre for a nice celebratory meal? Sounds good, yeah?” 

Her reply was a brief and equally sweet one. “No need to apologize, Ji Hoon. Hmm, I am not so sure if I could do dinner out tonight, but would it be alright if you go to my apartment instead?” 

In a matter of two minutes, Ji Hoon replied. “I’ll visit you after work. I’ll be off at five.”

The sweet and apologetic message from Ji Hoon made her heart flutter. Despite Ji Hoon’s shortcomings as a boyfriend, Ah Reum’s heart still longed for Ji Hoon’s affection. I mean, he liked her, but he had made it clear that he’s not there yet. Ah Reum did not mind waiting to be loved back by Ji Hoon. After all, you cannot force love to happen. Love is patient, love is kind. There’s no need to rush. 

especially when Ji Hoon's trying to move on from a former girlfriend whom he described as "similar" to Ah Reum.

While that hurt Ah Reum, she figured that she was not in the position to tell Ji Hoon what he's supposed