shutterjae

[shutterjae]

     for pretty much the entire trip in bali, jae had been alone. she watched the others playing together, going out to eat or explore the surrounding environment whilst she simply sunbathed and sulked. she’d come here to relax and unwind, but found herself sinking even further into the dark thoughts that had driven her to wanting to leave seoul. she glared at chaos and kisu playing by the waterside through her sunglasses and hailed the bartender, gesturing for him to leave the bottle of whiskey with her. it wouldn’t last long, that was for sure. the arguments with chaos and sukwoo pushed her complicated mix of emotions to breaking point and she sprinted to her room, pulling on some vague clothes and shoving random essentials into her carry on bag before storming out of the house and hailing a cab to the airport.

      she’d already made plans to stop off in tokyo on her way back to korea to visit her old friends there, messaging shinji to tell him she’d be arriving on the next available flight, she bought a last minute ticket on a red-eye flight that would be leaving at midnight. she headed to the first class lounge and waited around with a glass of wine, fighting back the angry tears as the arguments floated round her head, how dare they question her dedication to friendship? she’d been nothing but loving and supportive of them both, after all this time. how dare they.      landing in tokyo at around 7:30am, she pulled out her phone and checked her notifications. no one had noticed she had left yet, either that or no-one cared. a likely situation, if she thought about it. walking through arrivals, she adjusted the flu mask on her face as she peered atthe waiting crowd until she spotted a familiar figure, stood with his hands in his pockets, stance cool and casual as he waited for her. lifting one hand up in a lazy salute as she stepped up next to him. “oh jaehwa, long time no see” he smiled, tugging the brim of her bucket hat playfully. “shinji” she replied, pulling herself out of his grip and reaching up to pull on his own baseball cap with a frown “i want breakfast, the plane menu was absolutely disgusting” he nodded and held his arm out to her, she slapped it away and gestured for him to walk, rolling her eyes as he laughed and led the way out of the airport to his waiting car.      they spent a good portion of the morning shopping, she’d left all of her clothes back in bali and japan was significantly colder than there. shinji was a gentleman and carried many of her bags for her, teasing her to try and cheer her up, succeeding in making her laugh a few times. finally, they went to a convenience store and bought some packet ramen and various other ingredients and some alcohol before heading to her apartment in hiroo, an upscale residential area in shibuya, that she used when she was attending promotions and events in japan. keying in the unlock code to the door, she sighed as she stepped inside, looking around as she dropped the shopping bags on the floor in the entrance and gesturing for the male to do the same as she slipped her shoes off. she instructed him to cook the ramen whilst she took a quick shower and got changed out of her travelling clothes. he waved her off as she picked up one of the shopping bags containing the clothes she’d put on.      the steady stream of hot water was soothing on her skin, calming her down and making her feel more human, she’d tied her hair out of the way, not prepared to deal with washing and blow drying it at this moment. when she emerged from the bathroom, cosy in the new jeans and sweater she’d purchased she smiled as she saw that shinji had laid out the food and the beer for them, he grinned and lifted a can in a motion of cheers to her as she approached, making her snort in laughter as she picked up her own can and reciprocated before taking a swig and beginning to eat the food together. as they ate, they talked a lot, she told him the things that were pressing on her mind and he tried to advise her as much as possible, frowning and looking at her mid chew when she mentioned the fight with chaos “huh? that doesn’t sound like him jae. are you sure you didn’t just push his buttons the wrong way? you’re good at that” he swallowed and chuckled, tapping her forehead gently only to laugh more when she batted his hand away and glared at him. “you can clean up too, after that comment” she sniffed, leaning back against the sofa and glaring at him sidelong as he continued to giggle and clear everything away.      one of the things she really liked about shinji and his company was that he was so easygoing, he never took anything to heart and he always tried his hardest to be objective. they’d met when he joined the same entertainment company as kisu and trained with him, the three had been fast friends and she and him had even entertained the idea of dating for a while before he had to leave the company and move back to japan. he currently promoted as a model and they stayed in touch, often sending each other stupid selcas when something happened. their friendship was easy, they didn’t talk all the time but when they did it was as though no time had ever been spent apart. he looked over his shoulder at her whilst she rested her chin on her arms and gazed at him, a cocky smile curling his lips as he winked at her “take a picture, jae” she rolled her eyes and looked away, not bothering to inflate his ego any more.      she was disturbed by a sudden presence flopping down at her side and an arm wrapping across her shoulders, the boy pulled her into a hug as his fingers rubbed her arm comfortingly “cheer up jaejae. i don’t like this version of you” he said quietly, kissing the crown of her head before resting his cheek on it. “sorry. it just feels like the whole world is against me right now” the dark haired girl shrugged, sighing and leaning into the embrace. “you’ll always have me, no matter what” he assured her, leaning back and tucking a finger under her chin to look into her eyes “i’ll take on the world for you, so you don’t have to” he wrinkled his nose at her and pinched her chin between his thumb and finger gently. the sentiment took her off guard, her eyes widened and her mind blanked. before she could register what she was doing, her body moved of its own accord and her lips were on his, her hands in his hair as his snaked down her body, pulling her into an impossibly close embrace. she knew she shouldn’t, but she couldn’t stop herself, plus, he’d already taken off her sweater, it was too late now.

     she sat up in the bed, shinjis head in her lap as she played with his hair absently and glared across the room. she sighed and got up, pulling her underwear back on and grabbing the sweater to tug it over her head, she felt empty, it was nothing against her friend, his doe eyes followed her as she left the room and grabbed the still open beers, downing them quickly. “jaejae... are you okay?” he stood in the doorway, still shirtless as he buttoned up his jeans and looked at her with concern as she cracked open another beer and went to drink it, her eyes flashed open and snapped to him, shaking her head and letting the can drop. “just leave, shinji. sorry. i just need. to be alone right now.“ he stepped forwards and put his hands on her shoulders, trying to get her to look at him “jae...” he started before she shrugged out of his grip and pointed to the door with a trembling hand “i said get out” she spat, the can in her hand creaking as her grip crushed it and the liquid spilled out. the boy sighed and nodded, grabbing his shirt and pulling it on before picking up his jacket. “i’ll call you tomorrow, when you’ve calmed down.” he said, cocking his head before sighing and leaving the apartment with hurried footsteps.      eyes locked on the large mirror on the wall, her own reflection glaring back at her, she sucked her teeth and walked up to it, examining herself closely. the woman she saw reflected back at her was pathetic, a failure, everything she had worked so hard to avoid. rage swelled inside her and her hand balled into a fist, snapping up and colliding with the mirror, causing it to shatter. she felt better after that, the table under the mirror that was laden with trinkets and ornaments was her next target, launching it across the room and into the adjacent wall. it was childish, throwing a tantrum such as this, destroying her things. but she continued, every mirror she came across was smashed, anything loose on the side was discarded, she drank as she did so, her rage only increasing as she got more and more imbibed. finally she rounded on the glass case mounted on her wall, holding a couple of small trophies from her japanese promotions. she regarded it with scorn, who was she to think she deserved trophies? medals? this had to go. she wrenched it from the wall and threw it to the floor, the glass shattering and the contents scattering across the floor. stumbling backwards, she fell onto her sofa and looked around at the carnage that surrounded, her hands hurt, looking down she saw that they were littered with bruises and cuts. she vaguely remembered sending kisu her location before she passed out.

[shutterjae]

  chaostf

                Chaos laughed at the description of her aunt’s house which made him wonder what would she think if she stepped out to his moms’ garden and noticed all their tacky decorations and even a farm for their growing collection of bunny rabbits ( which they swore it wasn’t because those furballs reminded them of him. ) as he opened the car door and started the engine. Was he a confident driver? Absolutely not. However, in times like this he had to push that fear aside as he began to drive down the empty narrow road, his attention solely on the road ahead as his fingers drummed against the steering wheel to the music that was playing on the radio. There was no denying that he was just slightly nervous about how things were going to turn out for them in the evening, his moms’ probably already had set the embarrassing baby pictures of him along with many weird stories of him running around naked covered in mud but he trusted Jae which is why he had asked her to pretend to be his girlfriend for the evening and if they ever asked again about her he could use the simple excuse of her company didn’t want any scandals so they couldn’t be together. They would understand that since they supported Chaos all through his trainee years and debut. They would probably even show Jae their not-so-hidden secret room in which was covered with all his pictures from different era’s and concepts, all his albums, and even his NBS’ band merch that was rarer to find than gold at the moment. The drive was a little bit longer than he anticipated but he did get lost at one point, got distracted by a bird the next moment and then got into a weird stare off with an old lady that was trying to cross the street. But alas, he had made it towards Jae’s location as his eyes landed on the little decorations in the front which he found completely adorable and at one point even wanted to get out of the car and greet her aunt to congratulate her on her choice of decoration. Chaos parked the car right in the driveway of the house, waiting a minute or two as he fixed his hair in the rearview mirror finally taking out his phone and texting Jae that he was outside. It didn’t take very long for her to come out of the house his eyes focused on her as he unlocked the passenger side door. The first words that came out of her mouth made him chuckle as he reached over and turned up his heater a little higher than before not wanting her to freeze to death before arriving at the dinner party. “You look good,” he spoke as he looked over at her, “if you want some extra warmth you can grab my extra coat from the backseat,” he informed her with a soft smile before turning to look straight ahead ready to get back home as his eyes landed on what he assumed was Jae’s aunt who seemed to be glued to the window as he flashed her his famous smile along with a wave as he backed up the car and began to drive down the road. “Your aunt seems to be starstruck, I haven’t seen someone look at me like that since my last fan meet!” he chuckled as he kept his focus on the road ahead.

    shaking her head at his offer, jae simply pulled her jacket tighter round herself and readjusted the heat vents a fraction “it’s alright, i’ll warm up, thanks though.” she smiled at his compliment before her attention was drawn to the woman who was basically pining at the window. the dark haired girl rolled her eyes and flipped the older woman off casually, which made her laugh and return the gesture playfully. “yeah, she was your fan. probably still is to be honest. although her ultimate bias was always sungjae, actually. sorry to break your heart” she chuckled, her voice teasing as they pulled away from the house.      they made vague small talk as they drove, before the quiet radio piqued her interest and she leaned forwards to turn it up “i love this song” she said softly, humming the melody as ed sheeran’s shape of you started crooning through the speakers. she sang along quietly, her head nodding to the beat as her fingers tapped on her thighs. pausing mid sentence, she turned and looked at chaos with a frown “before we get there, how bad is your moms cooking, really? because i’m actually very hungry.” her tone was serious, her stomach growling as though backing up her point. “also what vibe do you want me to go for? doting? sweet? do you want me to hold your hand? i need to get into character before we arrive” she laughed, running her fingers through her hair. she was already in her fan service mindset, an easy smile resting on her lips and her eyes bright an interested. it was the persona she used when on tv programs with her group, when she filmed their music/reality videos and when she attended events and fanmeets. her fans loved her dual personality, how sweet and kind she was when she was my girls jae and when she relaxed and turned into the feisty jaehwa that everyone was used to by now.

[shutterjae]

cosares

               haneul listened as the female spoke, pressing his lips against the glass taking a quick sip of the drink. this situation was rather tricky which is why he was never a big fan of the whole idol industry that his uncle just couldn’t let go of it after flopping so horribly after his debut in the 90s. but still, the older male couldn’t help but feel somewhat useless to his friend since there was nothing he could really do besides watch how things unravel for her strange circumstances. furrowing his brows at the mention of her not being able to even solo debut due to ‘problematic circumstances’ which was a weird way of saying she was simply someone who got caught dating like any normal human being. haneul was about to speak when he noticed that jae had been crying which caused him to instantly place his glass down on the table, setting it next to hers as he moved closer to her not thinking twice about his actions as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder rubbing it softly trying his best to comfort the crying female. if he was honest, he never thought he would live to see the day that he would catch jae breaking down in his living room; she had always been so strong. “this isn’t your fault…you know that right?” he spoke softly, “that’s why i always find all these companies to be so unfair because they take their talented artist and treat them like dolls… you did nothing wrong and this entire culture of dating being scandalous is toxic and disgusting,” he continued on as he placed his other hand on her knee. he didn’t need too much detail to realize that that was the only thing they had over her head at the moment but it was even more shocking that her own father would do this to her but then again; he understood that all too well. his father also placed him in his own weird way of hiatus after his so-called ‘dating scandal’ with jae a few years back and he didn’t want to cause any more trouble or give the media anything to use against him so he kept to himself for a while which is why he can sort of understand where she was coming from. “you need to have a sit down with your father and speak to him about this because this isn’t fair, you belong up on that stage more than anyone i know and you belong to be with the rest of your members.”

     the arm wrapping around her made her start in surprise, she hadn’t expected to be here crying on haneuls sofa so she hadn’t anticipated the idea of him comforting her. it wasn’t that he wasn’t much of a physical person, when they were together he always pined for skinship of some form, it was more that they hadn’t so much as hugged since the break up and she wasn’t expecting him to be so forthcoming with his attention. placing the empty glass back onto the table, she listened to him speak and shook her head slowly, wiping away the incessant tears with shaky hands “no, it is my fault. despite the rules being ridiculous and archaic, they are rules after all and i couldn’t even manage the discipline to follow them” she sniffed “and even more insultingly, i got careless and didn’t even try to hide what i was doing. i’m stupid, and i’m ruining my members careers because of it” she bit her lip, placing her face into her hands and shaking her head again. “i should just quit.” she mumbled through her palms, before lifting head head up and running her hands through her hair. looking at haneul with a watery expression, she shrugged and smiled half heartedly at him “today was the day i had a sit down with my father. he won’t budge on his stance, i tried everything i could. i asked if quitting the gang and focusing solely on the group would change his mind and he dismissed the idea completely. he says i’m not even to go to the company for the next two months unless i’m summoned or i have immediate business with my vocal or dance coaches.” sighing, jae’s brow furrowed “i’m being completely blocked out from anything to do with my girl. i’m isolated.”

[shutterjae]

chaostf

         Chaos rolled his eyes as he picked up his phone to check the text message and looking at the selfie. This could have been used as some pretty good blackmail material whenever he wanted attention but she just looked so cute how could he expose this to the world? Plus, he was still in pretty deep shit because of their latest scandal so he needed to tone it down a little bit for now.

      please don’t try to steal my moms away from me, you are totally their type 🤧✊

                                                                                  SENT.

“Oh! Look how cute! She sent you a selfie with a facemask on! This must be something serious, I never let mama see me without any makeup till after our wedding day, that way she couldn’t run away and scream after she saw me without makeup for the first time!” His mom laughed as she wrapped her arms around him trying to tease him. “Mom, come on! It’s not that serious she is very confident about her barefaced selfies or any selfie for that matter, she wouldn’t send it if she knew she didn’t look good.” he giggled as he tried to push his mom off him playfully but at the end gave in and let her consume him in her bear hug which he never minded, to begin with. Feeling his phone vibrate the boy was able to free his arms from his mother’s grip as he checked his messages laughing softly as he read her message about eating.

                    do eat as much as you can… mama is cooking and it’s never a good time when she brings out her sweet potatoes that always stick to the plate. also, no need to book a taxi my moms would murder me if i let you arrive here on a taxi…just send me your location and i’ll go and pick you up.

                                                                                 SENT.

“Alright Mom, I’m going to go pick her up since I know I’m going to get lost and I better get a headstart on everything…tell Mama not to burn down the house again…oh! and Anakin needs to be woken up in like–” he looked over at the clock on his phone as he furrowed his brows trying to do the math in his mind. “Give him thirty more minutes and then wake him up, his outfit is already picked out and everything so all you have to do is make sure he brushes his teeth.” He instructed his mom as he placed a peck on her forehead pushing her off effortlessly as he headed inside to grab his coat and his car keys.

    she laughed at his reply to her selfie, shaking her head and neglecting to reply for now whilst she applied her foundation with experienced hands, she didn’t want to get any on her phone screen after all. she was mostly done with her make up when he replied once more, applying a final coat of mascara and sitting back to admire her hard work. she looked the same as usual, although perhaps she had tried a little harder than she would for every day considering she was meeting the family after all. picking up her phone, she sent her location to him before quickly tapping out a response.

     “me and eunjin had a fight so i only ate one piece, if worst comes to worse i’ll just pretend to eat it, no fear. okay, thanks. unnies house is up a weird side street. you’ll think you’re going the wrong way but trust me, keep going. she has a stupid floral plaque outside with her name engraved on it, it’s super tacky you can’t miss it. just text me when you’re outside and i’ll come out.”

     usually she’d have invited him inside to meet eunjin, the older woman had been a fan of NBS before and would love the chance to meet chaos in person. but jae was upset with her right now, and she took any opportunity to be petty. she knew it would take the boy a while to drive there, so she had time to pick through the clothes she’d packed and choose an outfit. placing her options on the bed, she stood back and looked at them with a critical eye, immediately tossing the shorter dresses away onto the chair and scolding herself for even considering them. she wasn’t trying to give them a show, she was going for dinner. after about twenty minutes of trying on different combinations, she settled on a high waisted pair of khaki trousers and a black v neck sweater, something casual enough but still looking like she had made a bit of an effort for the occasion. pulling her hair out of the casual bun, she ran her fingers through the loose waves that had formed and smiled triumphantly at her transformation. her phone vibrated and she noted that chaos had arrived, picking up her purse and a jacket she stepped out of the room, pulling on a pair of casual heeled pumps, and headed to the door. “i’m leaving, unnie. you can make up for your earlier misgivings by making sure we go shopping tomorrow, okay?” she called to her aunt, pausing at the doorway to blow the pouting woman a kiss before she headed out to where chaos was waiting.      pulling her jacket on as she stepped outside, she noted the biting cold temperature and frowned as she hurried towards the car, opening the passenger door and sliding inside, grateful for the heated interior. “it’s fucking freezing” she stated obviously, pulling the seatbelt across herself and securing it with a loud snap.

[shutterjae]

chaostf

               Chaos chuckled to himself as he read her text reply shaking his head at the mention of the free copy of Time magazine he hated flying with a passion so he couldn’t relate to that at all, in fact, that is the main reason he decided to drive down here, to begin with; a little field trip is always good for the soul. In all honesty, even cars were something he was terrified but he had a license for a reason and he couldn’t show Anakin that he was still suffering from the trauma of when he was little. His thumbs typing away a rather cheeky reply but he knew that she would always pick up on his humor, that’s why they worked out in the strangest way.

       now before i agree to that selfie will it be sfw…? i am in a rather holy place where lesbians roam freely and are probably sneaking on me as we speak.

                                                                                   SENT.

“Hey, babe can we talk about something?” his mom’s voice appeared out of nowhere as he flipped his phone over on his lap, shifting his attention to the woman as he nodded his head slowly. “Mama said she didn’t want to tell you anything but this is something really important for you to know and we know you are no longer a child so you can handle news like this…” the woman paused for a second as she sat down next to Chaos, his heart dropping expecting the worse. They wanted custody of Anakin because they thought he was an unfit father…no, they were getting divorced? He waited for her answer patiently before feeling his phone vibrate a few times but he decided to ignore it for now. “We think that you should move in back with us and start a normal life here…in Busan! Anakin can go to the school you went to and you can easily find a job here…is that we’re always so worried about you and I know you aren’t taking your medication because… no offense, baby but you look like a total mess…” she chuckled as she rested a cold hand on his cheek, looking at him fondly. “Mom…” he spoke before being cut off. “I know what you’re going to say but…just think about it, okay?” she smiled over at him, the same smile she had given him that same day at the orphanage when they first met. In that smile alone he could tell how much she loved him and wanted the best for him and there was no denying that he never felt safer than being around here with his family. “Alright, enough sappy moments when are we meeting this girl! Mama is in the kitchen trying to make some dinner so you should advise Mystery Woman to eat something before coming over tonight,” she pulled a face which caused Chaos to chuckle. “I heard that! trash talking!” Mama shouted from the open window which caused both of them to laugh to themselves. It was moments like these that Chaos loved to have.

     smirking at her phone, she rolled her eyes and sent the innocent selfie of her with the cute LINE character mask throwing a peace sign before replying to him.

     “sfw enough? i’m not scared of lesbians, i have others i could send if they’re more to your mothers tastes ;)”

     chuckling to herself, she heard eunjin calling her and she got up off the bed, padding barefoot through the one story house towards the kitchen. frowning at the scene before her, jae laughed and leaned on the island counter “unnie... i thought you were working all night. what’s this?” her eyes surveyed the counter, a takeout box lay in the middle holding crisp fried chicken and there was a 4 pack of beer also next to it. pulling an apologetic face, eunjin grinned and shrugged “i was hungry, i know you’re having dinner at your boyfriends tonight but i thought i’d ask if you wanted a piece anyway” she teased, wrinkling her nose at jae as she lifted a chicken leg to her lips. the comment about chaos being her boyfriend caused the younger girl to scoff and roll her eyes, picking up a nearby dishtowel and balling it up before throwing it at her aunt “he’s not my boyfriend, and yes i want a piece. i’ll pour us a drink” straightening up and going to grab some glasses from the cupboard placing them down on her side ready to pour. she went to the fridge and grabbed one of the bottles of soju, turning back and spinning it on her hands as she made her way back to the island and deftly poured them both a glass of somek. “ah, ahjussi, you’re so skilled” her aunt teased, reaching over and taking a glass before holding it up in a cheers motion “ung, thank you young man, you could learn a lot from me” jae quipped in return, sitting down and copying the other. picking up her phone again, she took a photo and sent it to chaos alongside a message.

     “konbe... what time should i come over? i’m just stealing a piece of unnies fried chicken and then i’ll get ready. what’s the address? i’ll need to book a taxi.”

     as she typed, she reached over and snagged a piece of the chicken before taking a bite, “hmm, texting your boyfriend?” her aunt giggled, sinking her teeth into her own piece as her eyes glinted mischievously. “unnie!” jae scolded, her mouth full “shtop shaying that!” she took a big gulp of her somek and scowled at the older woman, pouting childishly. “what? i’m only basing it off the evidence i have from your companies case against the malicious commenters” eunjins eyes still held their glint, as jae’s scowl deepened “nice hotels, weren’t they” she winked “he’s just your type too. tall and muscular, ah i’m jealous. i wish i could snag myself someone like tha-agh!” she was cut off by jae throwing the chicken bone at her, hitting her right on the forehead as the younger girl wiped her hands clean and finished her drink. “just focus on doing your job quietly unnie” her voice was low as she dropped the towel on the counter and turned to leave the room to go and get ready. “jaejae! i was only joking! jaejae i’m sorryy~” her aunts voice was whiney and jae ignored her as she went back to her room, sitting down at the vanity and beginning to apply her make-up carefully.

[shutterjae]

     thanks to the hiatus, all of jae’s days were now blurring into one, she awoke every morning at 5am regardless of what time she went to sleep because her body clock refused to readjust, it was ingrained after the past 9 or so years of training, then promoting. she’d found herself drinking a lot more, sometimes with friends but more often alone either at a bar or at home. lying awake in her bed, she glared at the clock on her bedside table that read 5:08am and sighed, kicking the covers off and heading towards her bathroom to shower. she had a few errands to run today at least, she wanted to buy yeonhui a gift to celebrate her upcoming solo debut. no matter the circumstances, the other 3 members of my girl were her biggest pride and the closest thing she had to family, she would love and support them no matter what.      whilst out shopping that afternoon, she received a few text notifications into their group chat, naomi and kisoo talking about stupid articles writing rumors about them the message that stuck out the most read “ah, our maknae jaejae... don’t read them okay~ we love you” frowning, she ignored the messages and dismissed it from her mind altogether. heading into a chanel store to find her friend a nice necklace to wear for her debut stage. yeonhui loved chanel pieces.      sat at home, jae glared at her laptop screen, glass of wine in hand. she’d already finished one bottle, it lay discarded on her kitchen side with the fresh one next to it, half empty. lifting the vessel with its dark red contents to her lips, she tutted in annoyance as she scrolled down. an article about her hiatus, the writer had very kindly listed all of her previous scandals for people to pick apart, and as usual the knetizens were ruthless. [ “ah seriously, she should just fuck off. she betrayed her fans too many times, how could she show her face?” “kkk did you read her apology letter? she wrote ‘i bow my head’ kkk i’ll bet we’re not the first ones to see the top of your head, right, chaos? kkkkkk” “she should leave my girl. the other 3 are so much better without her poisoning their image” “leaving her group on standby and joining a youtube gang? she really has no shame... delete your sns and live quietly oh jaehwa” ] she usually refused to read articles about herself or her group, she knew that nothing good would come from reading these kids of things but the dark haired girl couldn’t stop herself. a comment about her and haneuls previous relationship caused her hand to involuntarily clench, she glass gripped between her fingers shattering and the shards digging themselves into the soft flesh. “ah! shit” she cursed loudly, loosening her fingers and jumping up, her hand and arm now bright red with a mixture of the wine and her own blood. holding it aloft she went to the kitchen sink, running the cold tap and holding her hand under it, tears of frustration and pain glittering in her eyes as she carefully plucked out the larger shards of glass. she kept her hand under the steady stream whilst she rummaged in a drawer for a towel to wrap around it before she make her way to the bathroom where her medical box was. a soft knock at her door bought another curse from her lips as she grabbed the towel with a tight fist to try and stem the bleeding, a constant flow of curse words at the pain as she walked over to her front door and wrenched it open without checking to see who it was.      eyes landing on kisu, she glared at him for a second, arm still held aloft as the white towel was quickly being stained and red dripped down her arm ominously. looking him over, she nodded curtly before turning and heading back inside, allowing him to follow of his own volition. heading into her bathroom, she grabbed her medicine box and went back out to the living area, slamming it down onto the table and opening it one handed. “what do you want?” she asked, not looking at her friend as he hovered awkwardly nearby. she worked with a pair of tweezers to pluck out the small pieces, some were a little embedded and pulling them out bought sharp curses from her as she worked quickly, wanting to bandage the cuts as quickly as possible.

{ @shutterjae

after seeing the news about jae and chaos that wasn’t really news, kisu decided to go see jae. he normally would call or text to make sure it was okay that he comes over, but then he wasn’t sure that jae wouldn’t reject him. she’s rejected his previous attempts to hangout and he just misses his closest and oldest friend. she’s been there with him through everything. even his own mental health problems and incident that would make news if his company hadn’t kept it under wraps so tightly. so thats how he pays for an uber to jae’s apartment and knocking on jae’s door, hoping that she’ll answer and not be too mad that he didn’t call ahead.

[shutterjae]

♡ 

[shutterjae]

She has my full attention

[shutterjae]

     it was still relatively freezing in korea and thus the windows in jaes car were firmly rolled up, heating on and her stereo blasting as she made her way towards her destination, the abandoned amusement park yongma land. it was a popular tourist spot, and many groups (including her own) had shot pictorials or music videos there in the past. but she was going to be staying there for the next two night and exploring it in depth, for some reason. the dark haired girl wasn’t used to being front and centre in the ghost gang videos, she was more of a behind the scenes kind of gal. but she had experience vlogging from her groups reality show they filmed on and off. still, it was a new experience in this particular setting and the idea of it all set her a little on edge, though she’d never admit it. she caught a glimpse of her destination in the distance and made to take her exit, pursing her lips and humming along to the song playing on the radio.

the first night

     making her way up the steps to the amusement park, she smiled and bowed in greeting to the groundskeeper handing over the money for her stay and a little extra so that he would turn on the merry go round lights later that evening. bidding him farewell and late new years greetings, she hitched the heavy bags of equipment on her shoulder and looked around with a sigh. it would soon be dusk, so she should probably set everything up and get ready. she’d been filming little snippets as she’d been going about her day, but nothing of real value, just getting used to having the camera in her hand and documenting the little things. heading over to the staff building that would serve as her bed for the night, she unlocked the door and stepped in to find it relatively welcoming, with a bathroom and a little bed made out of a futon and some cushions in the corner. tossing her sleeping bag on top of it, she let the bag down to the floor and began organising all the equipment she would need.      the bright light of the setting sun lit the park up beautifully, and jae wasn’t afraid to admit she was ready to some wonderful photos, both of the landscape and herself, and decided to flip on the handheld vlogging camera to begin the investigation. “annyeonghaseyo yeorobun, ghosteu gang oh jaehwa imnida” she paused,frowning “ah, otteokhae, is this awkward? should i speak in korean? or maybe english? i think the majority of our viewers are english? ah vivi can just sub this later, sorry vivs” she laughed, throwing a wink at the camera “i’m here at the deserted amusement park, yongma land!” she grinned, lifting the camera up out to her full arm span and doing a twirl to show off her surroundings. “i’m not used to vlogging these days guys, so, just be patient, i feel a bit dumb talking to myself” she laughed, making her way into the park and shaking her head “but this place is really creepy, even if the ghost stories have no clout. i’ve got goosebumps just looking at this place up close” she sighed, wrinkling her nose and shaking her head. “but anyway, can you see this lighting?” she turned the camera round and gave a view of the soft orange and red hues that were bouncing off every surface before turning the camera back to herself “i’m gonna take this opportunity to take some photo’s on that ride over there so... cue montage” she winked again, biting her lip and setting the camera down on a ledge, making sure it was still recording as it faced the run down viking ship and began the long process of taking both a mixture of selfies and wide shots of the entire park.      she’d been investigating and filming for a couple of hours and the sun had fully set, it was about time for the maintenance guy to turn on the merry go round lights for her, she made her way there, chattering aimlessly to the camera as she did so, much more comfortable with talking to herself than she was earlier on. she was mid sentence, talking about the history of the park and the rumours of the ghosts when a sight stopped her in her tracks and she almost dropped the camera. “omo...yeorobun... igeo jinjja yeppeundae” she sighed happily, the merry go round lit up beautifully against the dark inky black of the rest of the park “would you just look at... wow” she hurried over, wanting to take a closer look. climbing onto the ride, she wove in between the different seats and horses, filming as she did so before turning the camera on herself “hm, is the lighting good for me too? nope, too yellow” she pouted, wrinkling her nose before a movement in the corner of her eye caused her to flinch and turn her head sharply. “hello? ajeoshi?” she called, stepping forwards towards the edge of the merry go round and looking around with wide eyes. “huh, must have been my imagination...” she frowned, looking back down at the camera “weird. i could have sworn i saw.. ah it’s nothing.” she laughed a little nervously, brushing it off. “shall we get some pictures of the lights before they turn off?” she resumed brightly, setting the camera down again so she could get to work.      after about an hour or so more, jae found herself yawning and felt she’d done enough for that day. heading back to base camp, she unlocked the door and stepped in, making sure to lock it behind her before getting ready for bed, washing up in the small bathroom and getting into her pyjamas before settling into her sleeping bag and switching the camera on again “i’m going to head to sleep as it’s now... almost midnight.” she squinted at her watch in the dark “i’ve got a motion camera set up outside the door and there are microphones that’ll probably only pick up the odd raccoon or whatever. goodnight!”

the second night

     to say she slept well would be the overstatement of the century, jae wasn’t used to sleeping on a futon and the temperature plummeted further than she expected, forcing her to put her coat on whilst in her sleeping bag. plus she kept on hearing noises outside, that she could only attricute to local wildlife. waking up at about 6am feeling thoroughly unrefreshed, she went and washed her face again and bruhsing her teeth before applying some light make up and checking all her notifications, making sure to message her group members a selfie ensuring them she was still alive and well. “ugh” she groaned, stretching “i need coffee... and breakfast” she sighed, grabbing the camera and making sure it had fresh batteries and sd card, putting all the old ones in her bag for safe keeping before heading to her car to go and find a cafe.    sat in the parking lot of a small shopping district, jae put on some sunglasses and a hat and bundled herself up in her coat, heading inside the quaint cafe to order herself something warm and comforting to start her day. sat at her table waiting, she turned on the camera and spoke quietly into it “guys... i’m in this cute as heck cafe, and i’m pretty sure no one here has recognised me. god bless i can eat my breakfast in peace” she smiled, winking and posing a cute v pose into the lens. she didn’t usually act like this, but she knew how to ham up her persona for the audience and make people believe she was really this bright and cheerful in reality. when her food and drink arrived, she thanked the waitress politely and ate her breakfast in relative peace, if it wasn’t for her phone ringing halfway through, yeonhui.      whiling her day away doing some vague shopping and sight seeing in the surrounding areas, jae finally returned to the amusement park tonight, she planned to do more in depth investigating, heading towards the ride where a girl had supposedly died and settling down on the steps to it. grabbing the spirit box, she turned on her camera once more. “it’s nighttime on day 2, everyone” she smiled, showing the camera her surroundings “i’m going to do a spirit box session, even though i hate this thing” she frowned, looking down at the device with distaste “and let’s see if we can’t get a conversation, right?” she turned it on and let it skip for a few seconds before looking around into the night “hello... my name is jae... if there’s anyone here, who wants to say anything... you can use this here to talk to me” she held it up, pursing her lips. she jumped when a fraction of a second of garbled mumbo jumbo came from the box and she almost dropped it, before laughing it herself. “okay, lets start: uh, ireumi mwoyeyo?” she asked tentatively, waiting a few seconds for a reply that never came “um, mwo sal-eyo?” she offered again, her voice lilting at the ends childishly, because let’s be real she was talking to a kid here. another fragmented section of nothing that could possibly be interpreted as ‘ship-i’ to anyone who listened hard enough “oh, apeuni?” she asked a few more odd questions, never getting much from the box before she decided to just turn it off altogether. sighing, she shook her head before she frowned. she could hear a distant rattling,coming from the direction of her temporary living. bolting upright, she squinted in the distance but she couldn’t see anything.      she ran towards the small building, slowing her pace to a light jog as she rounded on the door that had been locked when she left it. stepping forwards, jae tentatively pushed the door open, fist balled ready to lash out if she needed to and found the small room pretty much ransacked. her phone started ringing simultaneously as she stepped over the threshold, her horrified face caught in the frame of the camera as it was held by her side. pulling her phone out of her pocket, she noted it was a number she didn’t recognise and she declined the call, only to immediately receive a barrage of messages from numbers she didn’t know. looking around, she could see movement in the shadows by one of the rides and didn’t hesitate to bolt from the room to her car, her high school sprint showing its true colours as she turned her phone off, slipped it into her bag and grabbed her keys all in one swift movement. unlocking the door, she jumped inside and threw her bag onto the passenger seat, slamming the door behind her and locking the doors. putting the keys into the ignition with angry, shaky hands, the lights came on and illuminated a group of about 4 or 5 people, she couldn’t tell if they were men or women but she started the engine quickly, only to look behind her in the mirror and see two of them blocking her exit. revving the engine threateningly, she shouted for them to get out of the way and honked her horn loudly, they didn’t obey so she reversed a foot or so, honking again and they scattered finally. speeding out of the car park, she drove to a hotel she was familiar with about an hour away, not the one she was actually booked in (under an alias, naturally) because clearly the sasaengs had all of her travel information.      sat in the luxury suite of the hotel, she sighed and leaned back as she sipped on a glass of wine, her face a portrait of anger. she’d had to leave behind the motion camera, the microphones and her wash bag at the park. all small losses, in the long run. but irritating nonetheless she’d called her manager using the hotels phone to explain what had happened. a knock sounded at her door and she got up, walking over to the peep hole to see one of the hotel staff holding a small box. opening it a crack, she looked through the gap and raised a brow in question. “delivery for miss oh from SHY” she smiled, holding it up. a new phone. “thanks” she sighed, dryly and holding her hand out for the token. “can i get you anything else, miss?” the irl asked eagerly, clearly not used to dealing with celebrities as jae could tell from her glistening eyes and the flush in her cheeks “just another bottle of malbec, please” the dark haired girl responded with a brief smile. nodding a bow in response to the younger girls eager one.

what a dud this had turned out to be.

[shutterjae]

cosares

           “not at all, you know my house is always open to you and you’d never be intruding in my day,” he assured her with a smile which was true, he didn’t care what he was doing at the moment it wasn’t more important as helping out a friend ( even if they dated in the past it didn’t matter to him since he still worried for her deeply. ) his eyes focusing on jae, noticing something off about her right off the back. after all these years he had learned to read her body language pretty well and was able to tell her mood just by her mannerism which was something he was proud of. haneul shut the door as he turned on his heels to face her, as she mentioned a drink the tall statured male made his way over towards his bar area grabbing two glasses, looking around the selection of alcohol he had collected his eyes landing on a bottle of japanese whiskey that was begging to be opened. “kibum drank the last of that but i do have this,” he said holding up the unopened bottle, “which i’m sure will do just as nicely,” he chuckled as he opened the bottle before pouring some into both glasses. her words caught his attention as he placed the cap back on the drink with furrowed brows, concern written all over his face as he grabbed the glasses and walked over towards jae, sitting down next to her before extending his arm out offering her the glass. “what’s going on? what did they tell you?” he inquired, “did they tell you no again?” he wondered, not really giving her time to reply since he knew all too well what the situation was about and he felt terrible for her but at the same time it made him angry that her company was treating her so poorly and for what reason? because of ‘scandals’ ( if they could even be considered that. ) that just didn’t make sense to him. “you shouldn’t give up now, keep fighting for what you want…” he mumbled before taking a sip from his drink, “have you thought about changing companies?” he blurted out knowing that it was easier said than done, but he just wanted to see jae happy again and doing what she loved.

     looking across at him through her hair, she pouted slightly at the fact her favourite whiskey was all out, but trusted the older males taste in liquor and merely shrugged in response. closing her eyes, she focused on counting her breaths like she would in vocal practise in order to calm her heartrate and stop the tears that she could still feel threatening behind her eyes. she heard his footsteps coming over and straightened up, flipping her hair ouf of the way of her face nonchalantly and accepting the outstretched glass with a vague smile. “thanks.” immediately she lifted it to her lips and took a generous gulp, appreciating the burning in her throat “mm. that’s nice” she murmured appreciatively, taking another sip for good measure before reaching over and placing the glass on the table in front of her. sighing, she tried to organise her thoughts to tell the other what exactly had happened when she visited her father, pressing her hands together and tapping her lips gently as she did so.      “well” she began, sitting a little straighter and stretching her arms out in front of her “it wasn’t a solid no per say. it was a definite ‘not in the next six months definitely’.” she laughed dryly, shaking her head. “they’re planning to debut yeonhui solo, kisoo is being benched to write and produce for others and they’re pushing naomi to take acting classes so she can be in some dramas or whatever” jae rolled a shoulder in a vague shrug “he said my variety success was promising last year, and there are talks of me permanently guesting on a variety show towards the end of summer.” her head shook slowly, lips pouting in distaste “no matter how much i said, we all want to stand together on the stage. we’re sick of individual activities. our MAMA performance was a one off to thank for the award we were nominated for. he saw how much fun we had and he just said... because of problematic circumstances... it’s just not possible.” her eyes welled up, and she lifted a hand to her face to cover it, shaking her head again. “it’s all my fault. i’m the problematic circumstances” her voice was cold and biting, as tears spilled down her cheeks and she reached forwards to grip the glass again with a shaking hand. “maybe i should change companies, i’ve only got two years left of my contract. and the others would be able to promote without me.” staring at the brown liquid as it trembled in her hand, she sniffed and quickly knocked it back, swiping at her cheek angrily as she internally cursed herself out for crying.

[shutterjae]

chaostf

                this trip to busan was something chaos had been looking forward to since december started; he wouldn’t classify himself as a ‘mamas’ boy’ but there was no place he’d rather be than around his family. just being around them was enough to bring up his mood and after all the events that went down the past few days he really needed a break from being around the gang but lil’ ole chaos had already told his mothers that he was going to bring his ‘girlfriend’ since they have been bothering him slightly and were trying to set him up with some of their friends daughters but even with all the love he had for them it just wasn’t what he wanted to do. so, he asked one of his close friends ( with benefits but his moms didn’t need to know that. ) to please pretend to be his girlfriend even if for a day. there wasn’t much planned between them just that he’d introduce jae as his girlfriend during a family party and hopefully that would be enough to get his family off his back for a few days or weeks…or hopefully forever.         “so, when are we meeting this mystery woman?” asked his mom as he turned to face her, his cheeks turning a soft baby pink color.        “you’ll meet her when it’s time, she’s a busy woman you know,” chaos mentioned as he focused back on the program him and his moms were watching as he nestled himself right in the middle of the two women.       “isn’t she that one famous girl? from that girl group? i forget the name but you know which one i’m talking about!” his mama said as she turned to him, awaiting an answer.       “i can’t neither confirm or deny that,” he looked over at her before pressing his focus back on the tv, which caused both his moms to laugh. it wasn’t that he didn’t trust his moms’, no it’s was the total opposite of it actually he just didn’t want to talk a lot about jae so that way his moms’ didn’t think this was something serious because they knew how his mind worked when in love; if he couldn’t stop talking about someone it was that he was already head over heels for them but when the mentions were here and there, you know brief; he wasn’t totally in love but it was worth meeting the family and those around him. being around family was something he loved, it was something he really needed at the moment especially with the holidays now here and after everything, he had to deal with his mental health slowly declining after recent events but this was nice and refreshing. “speaking of the mystery woman, i should probably text her and see if she made it here safely,” he announced as he got up from his spot and went into his room to grab his phone off the table where it was charging. walking down the hallway to check up on anakin who was napping in his room. chaos made his way outside as he sat on the porch of the house, that had a nice view of the ocean as he inhaled softly feeling his phone buzz as he picked it up to read the name on the screen, stifling a giggle.

                           i was just about to text you! my trip went well, you know having a fussy six-year-old is never easy but what can one do? how ‘bout you? how was your trip?

                                       SENT.

     oh! before i forget my moms are over here playing twenty questions wondering who are you really and it’s really funny lmfao

                                      SENT.

he texted back rather giddy as he placed his phone back down on his lap as he bit down on his lower lip anxiously hoping that this plan doesn’t backfire on him since then it’ll be double the embarrassment and right now he couldn’t handle anything more.

     after messaging him, jae resigned herself to picking up her hairbrush and running it through her long, dark wet tresses to detangle it before she began blow drying. the ding of her notification sound made her jump, not anticipating the immediacy of his reply.a second ding caused her to curse “give me a fuckin’ second” she grumbled as she tossed the brush onto the bed beside her and reached to pick up her phone. smirking at his reply, she shook her head before tapping out her own, nails clicking satisfyingly against the glass of her screen.

     “my trip was fine, thanks. i got free champagne and a copy of time magazine. eunjin unnie is busy doing some work from home before we have dinner so i just showered and got comfy. oh, are they really? how adorable. i’m doing a facepack right now, should i send them a selfie? kkkk”

     she chuckled to herself as she fired off the reply, picking up the brush and resuming the brushing of her hair, snapping a vague selfie just in case chaos wanted it. ignoring her phone for the time being, she dried her hair, tying it up into a loose bun and pulled on some lounge clothes, finally removing the face pack and making sure the rest of the essence was absorbed into her skin. sighing, she wondered what she had gotten herself into. chaos was a good friend, and he had very politely asked her this favour, shaking her head, she decided not to think too much into it and picked up her phone again to check if he’d replied whilst she’d tidied herself up.

[shutterjae]

cosares

       it had been a rather long week for haneul, trying to balance work and the fact that his sides were still rather bruised for the fight the other night but he had to pretend that he was okay since he didn’t want to worry anyone about him. with vivi and astra now gone to do some shopping since vivi had planned out on making a homecooked meal which he wasn’t going to deny he was looking forward to it since he was getting a bit tired of the same old cuisines that his private chef would make. the tall statured male hummed a random melody as he read over the reports of his job, proud of how well the business has been doing considering he’s been barely there these past few months but yet, it seemed that everything was doing overly well and that made his pleased. upon hearing the buzzer, his eyebrow quirked up wondering who it could have been since it was rather unusual to have a guest, “yes?” he asked before hearing the voice coming through which took him by surprise but then he remembered having told the female that she could come over after talking with her ceo ( which assuming from the sound of her voice didn’t go very well. ) haneul cleared his throat as he opened the door, “hey, jae,” he greeted the female as he stood to the side, gesturing the girl to come in not wanting any of his overly obnoxious and gossipy neighbors to start spreading rumors about this since they already seemed to be having a field trip with vivi living there.

     it didn’t take long for haneul to answer, she nodded a small bow before crossing the threshold into his home. “sorry for intruding on your day” she mumbled quietly, tucking her hair behind her ears as she removed her jacket and hung it in the coat closet, removing her shoes too. the others house was still familiar to her, they had broken up many years ago, and whilst the initial few months afterwards had been bitter and cold, they had managed to work through it all and maintain a stable friendship. tapping at her undereyes, with her ring fingers, she noted that they were mercifully dry. crying in front of haneul wasn’t something she really wanted to have on her calendar for today.      he gestured for her to walk ahead of him, ever the gentleman, and taking off her sunglasses, she smiled at him as she folded the arms down and slipped them into her purse. “do you have any of that nice oak barrel aged whiskey still? I need a drink” she laughed softly, making her way to the plush sofa that she had curled up on so many times before and sitting down on it with a sigh. she rested her elbows on her knees and placed her face in her hands, her nails scratching comfortingly into her scalp as she did so. “everything’s just a mess” she mumbled, shaking her head gently.

[shutterjae]

@cosares

driving along the busy streets, jae sniffed and rearranged the sunglasses on her face. she’d just been at SHY-ent’s building to speak with her father about the likelihood of her group being able to promote soon and, well, the answer had been one she had expected, but it was still upsetting to say the least. pulling into the parking garage of the familiar luxury apartment complex, she found a space in the visitors bay easily and made her way round to the lobby, the security on the reception recognised her, buzzing her through as she bowed politely, offering quiet new years greetings before heading towards the elevator. pressing the button for the floor she wanted with a delicately manicured nail, she saw someone approaching the open doors and pressed the ‘close door’ button frantically until they finally slid closed and the elevator started to move. sighing in relief, she lifted a hand and swiped gently at her cheeks. she didn’t really want a strangers company right now, not in this state. stepping out of the elevator, she walked to the door she wanted and pressed the buzzer, waiting for him to answer. haneuls voice rang through the intercom, clear as though he were stood right next to her “yes?”

“it’s me.” she replied simply, wrapping her jacket tighter around herself as she waited patiently.

[shutterjae]

kwonsukwoo

it was unexpected for him to actually not ruin a date, even though she had no choice but spend the night until it was time to get rid of the masks he didn’t want to give the wrong impression. he was not really a fan of dates since most his romantic endeavours have been causal enough to never deal with anything like this since he was not really good at getting emotionally involved and liked to keep things as superficial as possible but one thing he had learned as a lawyer and it’s to be both empathetic and charming so he could simply translate it to the situation he was on, and he wasn’t going to lie so far things were going pretty well and he was even enjoying his conversation with the other. he was pretty much a talker and an introvert so when he saw her stand up and call for him he was caught off guard, pointing at himself dumbfoundedly not believing things would go downhill so quickly. he followed her sheepishly after taking her hand not really sure whether if this was a good choice but after all it was a blind date and after it ended that’d be it even if they ended up knowing who they were. “i’m not a good dancer,” he commented lowly not really knowing what to do by the moment they arrived to th dancefloor.

thanks to her years of training and her parents influence, jae was incredibly good at schmoozing and giving the right impression when she needed to. sure in the company of her friends she relaxed and was more carefree, but usually she held her cool and chic personality that the company encouraged her to wear so often. it’s not that she was ever fake, but she rarely let down the veil of attitude to show people that she was in fact, quite a soft girl underneath. with this boy, and the relative anonymity of the event she didn’t feel as though she had to try so hard to be a stone cold bitch, she could let her hair down and enjoy herself. gripping his long fingers with her own delicately manicured ones gently, she pulled him into the crowd and laughed when he claimed to be a bad dancer. “just follow my rhythm, you don’t need to be great at dancing to have fun” she winked playfully, lifting his hand and spinning him round before beginning to move her body in time with the music that was playing. her group wasn’t known for their excellent choreography or tricky dancemoves, but she knew her way around a dance routine and was able to let go and enjoy herself on the floor when she was with friends, “you should relax a little, just enjoy yourself” she teased with a giggle.

[shutterjae]

@kwonsukwoo

the evening was going pleasantly enough, jae was enjoying herself as her alter-ego ‘fox’ and the anonymity had offered her a comforting blanket that allowed her to drop the fierce walls she often kept up to protect herself from the public and their opinion of her. her date ‘sundown’ was gentlemanly and kind, pleasant to talk to and kept her laughing enough that she stayed interested in him. this wasn’t chaos or haneul for sure, she’d have known those two straight away before they even spoke. she kept her attention on the unfamiliar male, trying to figure out which of her group members it could be, without much luck.    they’d spent a lot of time chatting and eating, drinking their drinks together and having fun. they were in the middle of a discussion about the current economic status of the country when she hear the familiar notes of one of her favourite songs beginning to play. perking up immediately, she held her hand out and grinned at the boy sat opposite her “we’ve been sat down for long enough, lets go dance” she insisted, curling her fingers in a ‘come hither’ motion for him to take her hand so they could go and blend into the dancefloor that was already rife with people moving their bodies to the beat.

[shutterjae]

@chaostf

The trip to Busan was painless enough, Jae had phoned her aunt and informed her she was coming to stay for a few days, which had been welcomed gladly by the other woman (they were close in age, and often hung out together when they could). Packing a bag with the essentials, anything else she could borrow from Eunjin, she booked a last minute flight and headed to the airport. Vivi dropped her off, the smaller girl offering her a warm hug and comforting words before sending Jae off on her way. She had dressed down, and no-one really recognised her, thankfully, so she was able to make it through security and onto boarding in peace.    Business class was the usual standard for Jaehwa, lounging in her seat as she read a magazine, the dark haired girl sipped the glass of complimentary champagne she had been given and listened to a random playlist from her phone. Sighing, she folded the pages shut and took to simply staring out of the window, watching the clouds get closer to them as the craft made its descent.    Eunjin’s house wasn’t far from the airport, a 20 minute taxi at a push (and that was only because there was traffic) the older woman was waiting for her when the car pulled up and she pulled Jae into a tight and welcoming hug “Jaejae, it’s been too long” she whined playfully, ruffling her hair and planting a kiss on her cheek “I’m glad you decided to come though, I know my sister and her husband aren’t the best of company during the holiday season.” Jae chuckled and nodded, adjusting the bag on her shoulder and wrapping an arm around her aunt with a bright smile “unnie, thanks for having me.” her voice held an uncharacteristic warmth that was reserved for those whom she truly enjoyed spending time with. Looking at the other with a fond expression, Jae studied Eunjin closely, she looked tired. She was a lawyer, and a damn good one at that, one of the leading advisors in her brother-in-laws legal team who had been able to quell many lawsuits before they’d even been able to gain traction on the ground “unnie have you been sleeping well?” she asked, pouting and resting a hand on the others face, thumb hovering delicately over the others dark circles. “As a matter of fact, I have not” the older female laughed, brushing away the hand and grabbing it in her own to lead Jae inside “and it’s all a certain someones fault” she shot accusingly over her shoulder, narrowing her eyes before laughing to show she was only joking.

   After taking an hour or so to unpack and shower, Jae lay on the familiar bed that she always slept in when she stayed here and pulled out her phone to scroll through any notifications. She’d learned to turn off social media ones a long time ago and simply replied to the texts in her inbox, her groupmates still teasing her relentlessly, one from Hanseul wishing her a nice trip and one from Chaos telling her to message him when she landed. Typing out her reply, with one hand, she gently tapped the facepack on her skin with the other      “sup, landed a couple hours ago. just settled in. how was your trip?”

[shutterjae]

wtfmisun

misun continued to hold the drink hostage for a quite a few moments. “i gotta be smart with you. it keeps you on your toes.” he says. “he wanted to have a sleepover with a friend, i came here after dropping him off. i can’t leave you to edit everything. there’s so much footage to shift through.”  misun finally placed jae’s drink by her laptop and followed her to the fridge. “yeah, i want that salad. it looks good.”

scoffing at his retort, jae rolled her eyes at her friend before offering him a smirk. “cute, i miss being the age where sleepovers were fun and cute instead of a mental workout” she chuckled darkly. rifling through the tubs, she held up the salad to him and looked at it through the clear plastic “oh shit, she made those cute octopus sausages. she’s such a fucking mom” the dark haired girl laughed, shaking the tupperware so the sausages jiggled around inside. picking up a serving of kimbap for herself, jae straightened up and closed the fridge with her foot, walking back over to her laptop and getting comfy in her chair again picking up the drink and taking a sip. “thanks, by the way” she smiled at him, holding the cup up in a gesture of gratitude.