The clock ticked idly in the middle of the lightless night, a minute hypnotic sound echoing in the vast nothingness. Though the ticking wasn’t as loud to be heard throughout, its existence was amplified because that was all she could hear to distract herself.

All the lights were turned off in order for the five-membered idol group to recuperate and rest. Hence, she should be resting and snoozing as well like their cute maknae who is sleeping beside her. But all she could do is to lie awake and stare into the dark ceiling as she waited for sleep to come. Sadly, sleep must be doing a poor job at his work because her eyes were still wide open—or maybe he forgot she existed and went on to make others sleep. Shifting gently to find a comfortable position, she found herself snuggling closer to Yeri, hoping that the younger girl’s soothing body heat would be enough to coax her to dream. Yeri seemed to respond accordingly since she, herself, crept closer and curled herself towards Joy’s chest.

Moments later, the former maknae let out a soft sigh as her hands felt the mattress for her phone. Once her hand came in contact with a familiar device, she played her music and set it on shuffle thinking that if the dull, hypnotic ticking of the clock wasn’t enough to lull her to sleep, then maybe music will. But for whatever reason or some bitter luck, fate must be having fun laughing at her right now because the first song that played was Young Love. Before she knew it, her eyes were already stinging with unwelcomed tears and soft, silent sobs were racking her entire body. She was crying before she could even comprehend and ended up becoming even more frustrated with herself.

Why is she like this? She shouldn’t even cry. She might’ve had fun filming the show but that was all there is to it. Nothing more. What use is there to sob over something so trivial?

Yes, she was sorry that she could no longer do couple things with her on-screen husband, but should she let the end of a measly show affect her private life?

No, she shouldn’t. It’s not a professional thing to do.

But look at her. A sobbing wreck two weeks after their last filming. How unprofessional could she be? Sungjae must’ve moved on already, like the real professional that he was. Two weeks had already passed since the last time he sent her a message—a message where he said his thanks and that he was glad that she was his partner on the show and not somebody else.

Tired and mad at herself, she got her phone and silently left the room, careful not to wake any of the sleeping members.

.oOXOo.

A soft expression was on her face as her swollen eyes looked serenely at the cityscape laid bare before the balcony. Her cheeks were flushed and puffy and marred with tear stains. But she didn’t mind. She couldn’t mind. She was emotionally exhausted and had long stopped feeling anything since 20 minutes ago. As of now, she’s just blankly staring into space, not really appreciating the twinkling view of the city lights nor was she acknowledging the cloudless night’s lack of stars. Her skin felt sticky after all the crying, and she could feel her sweat drying out in the cool open air.

She had been standing there for an hour and a half, and the clock on her phone informed her that it was way past midnight. But even if that were the case, her breathing was still ragged and her heart was still beating erratically. Her puffs of breath cracked every once in a while that she couldn’t help but think, if just for a moment, how annoyed she was with it a while ago, but now…? She couldn’t even bring herself to care anymore. She’s just so tired that she was starting to wonder if she still had the strength to fulfill her job as an entertainer by daylight.

And she fears it.

Once the sun shines, she’ll be facing the camera with all eyes trained on her. She would be expected to smile cheerfully and brightly, and then she’ll be tasked to make cute or y expressions to satisfy her fans. She needed to do all of that even if all she wanted to do was cry. She couldn’t—shouldn’t let her expression slip lest news of her apathy would be plastered all over the web and she can’t allow that. She shouldn’t bring her members down. They don’t deserve it. After all, her actions would reflect upon Red Velvet’s since they were a group and yet…

She sighed.

Hoping for a distraction, she scrolled through her phone’s inbox, idly looking through old messages. Her thumb froze when she caught sight of a familiar name and she couldn’t help but to blink and bite her lip. Her eyes started to sting again but she fought it back. Deep inside her, she was debating if she should send him a message, but the show is over now. There’s no point in checking up on him to ask if his throat’s all ok, or if he had used the fishing reel she had bought for him.

They’re just a junior-senior now. Nothing more, nothing less. She’s no longer his wife and he’s no longer her husband. What’s the point?

She scrolled down further and paused at another name. Before she knew it, she was calling that person.

.oOXOo.

 “Hyunnie, don’t you think this pair reminded you when you and Yonghwa were on WGM?” Tiffany stated out of the blue as they watched the latest episode of We Got Married.

Seohyun hummed a response, letting the lack of honorifics slide off since she had long been used to it, “Ani.” She shook her head, feeling her eyes soften at the sight of a crying Joy who was clutching Sungjae quite tightly. “They were better at it than we ever were, unnie.”

At this, Taeyeon gave a mystic smile, her eyes silently judging their grown-up maknae with a kind of fondness only someone who cared so much could give.

Tiffany smiled at this too, her eyes crinkling up with that understanding look moms typically give their children when they did something that made them proud. “But they gave a similar feel.” Miyoung continued. “They remind you of the sweetness of a pure and innocent love, don’