The recording booth was silent, save for the faint hum of equipment in the background. Jisoo and Rosé sat across from each other, their earlier confrontation leaving a charged energy in the room. Neither of them dared to speak first, the weight of their conversation still heavy in the air.
“Where do we go from here?” Jisoo finally asked, her voice low.
Rosé hesitated, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her coat. “I don’t know. I just know I don’t want us to keep pretending like everything’s fine when it isn’t.”
Jisoo leaned back in her chair, studying Rosé with an unreadable expression. “You think this is something we can just talk through? A few conversations and suddenly everything’s okay again?”
“No,” Rosé admitted. “I know it’s not that simple. But we have to start somewhere. We owe it to ourselves to at least try.”
The sincerity in her voice softened Jisoo’s defenses. She sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Do you even know why we fell apart in the first place?”
Rosé looked down, her throat tightening. “Because we stopped being honest with each other. I started hiding how I felt, and so did you. And then we let the world come between us.”
Jisoo nodded slowly. “It wasn’t just the world, Rosé. It was us. The pressure, the expectations... I think we both got so caught up in trying to be perfect that we forgot how to just be ourselves.”
Rosé met her gaze, tears welling in her eyes. “I never wanted perfect. I just wanted you.”
---
The words hung in the air, raw and vulnerable. Jisoo felt her own walls crumbling, the pain she had buried for so long threatening to surface. “Then why did you leave?” she asked, her voice trembling.
Rosé swallowed hard, her hands gripping the edge of her chair. “Because I was scared. I thought... I thought if I stayed, I’d just make things worse. You were so focused on your career, and I didn’t want to be the reason you lost yourself.”
Jisoo frowned. “Lost myself? Rosé, you were the one thing keeping me grounded. When you left, it felt like I was drifting without an anchor.”
“I didn’t know that,” Rosé whispered. “I thought I was helping by giving you space.”
“Well, you didn’t,” Jisoo snapped, then immediately softened. “I mean, I get why you thought that, but it wasn’t what I needed. What I needed was you to stay, to fight for us instead of walking away.”
Rosé wiped at her eyes, her voice cracking. “I’m here now. I’m fighting now. Is it too late?”
Jisoo stared at her for a long moment, her expression conflicted. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “But I want to believe it’s not.”
---
They spent the next hour talking, their words hesitant at first but growing more open as they delved into the past. They revisited moments of joy and pain, the memories both a reminder of what they had lost and what they still might salvage.
“I hated seeing those photos of you in Hawai'i,” Jisoo confessed. “Not because of Jaehyun—well, maybe a little because of him—but mostly because you looked so happy without me.”
Rosé shook her head. “I wasn’t happy. I was trying to convince myself I was. Every smile, every photo... it was all just for show. I thought if I acted like I was okay, I might eventually believe it.”
Jisoo’s expression softened. “You don’t have to pretend with me.”
“I know that now,” Rosé said. “But back then, I felt like I had to. I was afraid of being vulnerable, of admitting how much I missed you.”
Jisoo reached across the table, her hand covering Rosé’s. “I missed you too. Every day.”
---
As the hours passed, the conversation shifted from their breakup to their present. Jisoo spoke about the songs she had written, each one a reflection of her pain and longing. Rosé shared stories from her time in Hawai'i, moments that felt empty despite the beauty of the surroundings.
“There was this one night,” Rosé said, her voice tinged with melancholy. “The sunset was incredible—like something out of a dream. But all I could think about was how much I wished you were there to see it with me.”
Jisoo’s eyes softened, a faint smile playing on her lips. “You always loved sunsets.”
“And you always pretended not to care,” Rosé teased, her tone lighter.
Jisoo chuckled. “I cared. I just didn’t want you to know how much.”
They both laughed, the sound breaking through the tension that had lingered between them. For the first time in what felt like forever, they allowed themselves to simply enjoy each other’s company.
---
By the time they left the studio, the sun had set, casting the city in a blanket of darkness. The cold air nipped at their cheeks as they stepped outside, their breaths visible in the crisp night.
“Do you want to grab dinner?” Jisoo asked, her tone casual but hopeful.
Rosé hesitated, glancing at her phone. She had a meeting scheduled for the next morning and a dozen unread messages from her manager. But none of it felt as important as this moment.
“Yeah,” she said with a smile. “I’d like that.”
They found a small restaurant nearby, its cozy interior a welcome refuge from the cold. Over steaming bowls of ramen, they continued their conversation, the barriers between them slowly dissolving.
“I forgot how easy this was,” Rosé said, her voice filled with warmth.
Jisoo smiled. “What, eating ramen?”
“No,” Rosé said, laughing. “Being with you.”
Jisoo’s expression softened, her gaze meeting Rosé’s. “It doesn’t have to be hard, you know. We just have to be honest—with each other and with ourselves.”
Rosé nodded, her heart feeling lighter than it had in months. “I’m ready for that. For us.”
Jisoo reached across the table, her hand finding Rosé’s. “So am I.”
---
As they walked out of the restaurant, the night sky stretched above them, clear and full of stars. They strolled in silence for a while, the quiet between them comfortable.
“Do you think we can really do this?” Rosé asked, her voice filled with both hope and uncertainty.
Jisoo stopped walking, turning to face her. “I think we can try. And that’s enough for now.”
Rosé smiled, a genuine smile that reached her eyes. “Trying sounds good.”
They stood there for a moment, the world around them fading away. In that quiet street, under the glow of the streetlights, they took their first real step toward rebuilding what they had lost.
YOU ARE READING
Hawái (Chaesoo)
FanfictionIn the glittering yet isolating world of fame, Jisoo and Rosé's love crumbles under pressure and misunderstandings. After a painful breakup, Rosé escapes to Hawai'i with Jaehyun, sharing glamorous photos that mask her heartbreak. Jisoo, left behind...
