SUGAR

B | ▬●●●

Though Irene seemed to have remained calm and composed the entire time, in actuality, seeing something so absurd in person had caused a greater emotional impact on her than anticipated.

Especially because she was quite familiar with both parties involved. She had technically watched this tragedy play out before her eyes from the closest seat possible. The plot honestly had too many twists and turns; the ending was also quite sorrowful. It was really hard for it not to churn up her already messy feelings.

She sat in the back seat of the car. She rested her forehead against the window and counted the neon signs flying by as a way of distracting herself.

This wasn't actually very effective. Clips of Seulgi and Sunmi still stubbornly rushed forward, along with the dark emotions attached to them, and played in her mind.

In the beginning, it had only been a joke cracked after alcohol. Some unknown person had been jealous that Seulgi switched girlfriends so quickly. They had caused a commotion, saying that no matter how popular or how much of an idol female god the other was, she still wouldn't be able to successfully date Sunmi.

Sunmi was a girl group member, a promising singer dancer. In the entertainment industry, which was filled with handsome and beautiful artists, she had been the odd one out. She had a great temper and always wore a smile on her face. It appeared that she had a pretty good relationship with everyone, but in actuality, she held everyone at an arm's length. As a "target" as popular as Irene and Seulgi with the girls, she surprisingly remained single.

At the time, Seulgi had been young and arrogant. She could easily get anything she wanted in the world. How could she stand to be challenged in such a manner? Regardless of if it was appropriate or not.

On the spot, she had announced that she would definitely successfully woo Sunmi. This pursuit had lasted two years, starting as a national venture and ending as an international one. And, she actually succeeded.

When first hearing about this, Irene's jaw had dropped with surprise. After brief thought, though, she also didn't find it strange, when Seulgi pursued someone, she could give that person the whole world just to receive a smile in response. She was wealthy, interesting, educated, good looking, and smart. She was also much sweeter than a hundred Irenes added together. It was very hard for anyone not to feel touched.

But as soon as the two officially dating, things changed.

In less than three months, Irene was already hearing occasional complaints from Seulgi about how troublesome Sunmi was. After this, during a gathering, Seulgi accidentally let the secret slip. It was heard by Sunmi. The other knew her place and ended the relationship.

Most of their friends praised Seulgi. They said that she was capable of picking people up, but also letting them go – as expected from Miss Kang. They also congratulated her on regaining her freedom. But Irene didn't feel like this was okay. She had visited Sunmi in private once. Sunmi had wanted to act unaffected, but had failed. After all, no matter how composed she pretended to be, she couldn't hide her eyes. As Lisa always said, those eyes never lie.

Even Irene, someone who wasn't so easily affected, was terrified by this. That night, she went home and very seriously rejected the senior singer who had been pursuing her at the time. From that point on, she never dared to involve herself in such situations again. When looking for partners, she also did her best to purely restrict the relationship to sex, accompaniment, and money. Very cautiously, she prevented every possibility of "falling in love".