322: Chapter 302 Lovely Woman

Kim Taeyeon felt like she was going crazy.

It wasn't work pressure, it wasn't a public opinion storm, and it wasn't even those never-ending schedules.

It was—

"Taeyeon! Look, look! Minjeong's Lemm updated again!"

On the living room sofa, Lee Soon-kyu (Sunny) was holding up her phone, her entire body practically sinking into the soft cushions. She was wearing pink loungewear covered in cartoon cats, her hair tied messily into a bun, and a face mask on, leaving only a pair of eyes sparkling with excitement.

Kim Taeyeon curled up on the single sofa, hugging a giant teddy bear, trying to block her ears with the bear's ears.

It was useless.

Sunny's voice was extremely piercing.

"Ah! Slime! Lemm!" Sunny stared at the phone screen, her fingers sliding quickly, "This live stream clip of Minjeong is on the trending searches again! Look, look, her Lami Lemm went out to get delivery by itself again! It's hopping around and even bowing to the delivery guy! My god, this is way too intelligent!"

On the screen, aespa's Kim Minjeong was wearing comfortable loungewear, sitting cross-legged on the dorm floor for her live stream. Beside her, a pale purple, translucent jelly-like creature—Lemm—was wrapping its soft body around a phone, which displayed the interface of a delivery app.

"Lami, I want to eat fried chicken~" Kim Minjeong acted cute toward Lemm.

A text bubble appeared on Lemm's body surface: "[Command received! Filtering highly-rated fried chicken shops for you!]"

Then, it really started sliding across the screen, entering shops, selecting dishes, and even skillfully using coupons. After the order was successful, it returned the phone to Kim Minjeong, and a happy emoticon appeared on its body: "(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧"

The comments in the live stream room were already going crazy:

[What kind of high-tech pet is this?!]

[How much more black technology is TG hiding?!]

[Minjeong, tell Unnie, how much is Lemm? I'll sell a kidney to buy one!]

[President Jiang, look at me! I want a Lemm too!]

Sunny's eyes were fixed on the screen.

"Taeyeon!" She yanked the face mask off her face, bounced up from the sofa, and rushed in front of Kim Taeyeon, "Look! Just look! It's so cute! So intelligent! It even helps you order delivery! Don't you hate going out the most? With a Lemm, you can have it help you pick up packages, buy things, and even..."

She paused, lowered her voice, and said in a tempting tone: "...have it go to the convenience store downstairs to buy you that chocolate you hide away."

Kim Taeyeon's ears twitched.

Chocolate... was indeed very tempting.

But the next second, she shook her head vigorously and buried her head in the teddy bear's embrace: "Ya! Lee Soon-kyu! Can you be quiet for a while! You've been droning on about Lemm for three hours since this morning!"

"Because I really want one!" Sunny said righteously, "Look, Minjeong has one, Seulgi has one, Choi Yena from IZ*ONE has one too... even that little girl Lee Tima supposedly has a custom, color-changing Lemm! Why don't we have one?!"

The more she spoke, the angrier she got, and she started pacing in the living room.

"We are Girls Generation! We're seniors! We're legends! Doesn't that Jiang Zhiyu have any sense? Doesn't he know to proactively send a few over to please his seniors?"

Kim Taeyeon's lip twitched slightly.

Sunny continued her "accusations": "And think about it, if we had Lemm, how many interesting Vlogs could we film? How many topics could we create? We could..."

"You could completely turn into a useless person," Kim Taeyeon said gloomily.

"So what!" Sunny didn't care at all, "Useless is fine! With such a cute companion while being useless, I'm willing!"

She sat back on the sofa, clutching her phone, her expression suddenly becoming resentful: "Sigh... Jiang Zhiyu is really something, not knowing how to maintain good relations with us big seniors. How did someone with such low EQ even become a president?"

This sentence finally poked a certain spot in Kim Taeyeon.

She suddenly looked up and glared at Sunny: "Ya!!"

Her voice wasn't loud, but the displeasure in her tone was obvious.

Sunny was stunned.

She looked at Kim Taeyeon—on that face that was usually gentle, occasionally wacky but rarely truly angry, "unhappy" was clearly written right now.

A few seconds later, Sunny's eyes slowly lit up.

The corners of her mouth began to curl up.

That kind of smile... Kim Taeyeon was very familiar with it. It was the cunning, mischievous smile Sunny had when she discovered something interesting.

"Oh~" Sunny drew out her voice and leaned closer to Kim Taeyeon, "So... our Taeyeon only talks back when it involves Jiang Zhiyu?"

Kim Taeyeon's heart skipped a beat.

"I said so much nonsense just now and you didn't react. As soon as I said Jiang Zhiyu has low EQ, you immediately went 'Ya'." Sunny acted like she'd discovered a new continent, the fire of gossip burning in her eyes, "What does this mean? Hmm?"

"It means you talk too much." Kim Taeyeon turned to leave.

But how could Sunny let her go.

"Don't go, don't go!" Sunny grabbed her arm, laughing like a villain, "Come, come, let's have a good talk. Taeyeon, you and Jiang Zhiyu... is there some progress we don't know about?"

"No," Kim Taeyeon denied quickly.

"Really?" Sunny narrowed her eyes, "Then why was your reaction so big when I mentioned him?" A mischievous smile played on her lips, "Could it be... you have special feelings for him, Taeyeon?"

"What nonsense!" Kim Taeyeon's face turned a bit red, whether from anger or something else, "I just... I just think it's wrong for you to say that! President Jiang is a very good person, and he's very respectful to his seniors! You're just talking behind his back because you can't get a Lemm—that kind of behavior is what's called low EQ."

"Is that so?" Sunny tilted her head, "Then why didn't he give us a Lemm?"

"He..." Kim Taeyeon opened her mouth, then closed it again.

She couldn't tell Sunny.

She couldn't tell this "big mouth" who would broadcast any secret she knew to the whole world what Jiang Zhiyu had said to her in the elevator after the Fish-killing Banquet ended.

.

She had always remembered those words.

Every time Sunny complained about not being able to get a Lemm, a secret sense of superiority would well up in Kim Taeyeon's heart—

You want one but can't get it, while someone proactively offered one to me.

Even though she hadn't received the physical item yet, and even though it might have just been polite talk, at least... he had proactively said it.

That was enough.

Kim Taeyeon hid this little thought very well. But being stirred up by Sunny like this now only made her feel more flustered.

"Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong—"

The doorbell suddenly rang, as urgent as the heartbeat of the person knocking.

Kim Taeyeon and Sunny looked toward the door at the same time.

"At this time... who is it?" Sunny frowned.

Kim Taeyeon walked to the door and looked out through the peephole.

Under the hallway light, Im Yoona was standing there.

Short hair, a cream-colored suit, holding a paper bag in her hand, her expression looking... a bit tired, a bit lost, a bit in need of comfort.

Kim Taeyeon's heart softened.

She immediately opened the door, her face unconsciously showing a "saved" expression—finally, someone was here to interrupt Sunny's interrogation!

"Yoona!" Kim Taeyeon's voice was lighter than usual, "How was the interview?"

Im Yoona stood at the door, seeing the joy of "meeting a savior" on Kim Taeyeon's face and catching a glimpse of Sunny's gossip-filled face peeking out from inside, suddenly feeling... she might have come at the wrong time.

But she had no retreat.

After the audition ended today, she had stayed at the company alone for a long time. Watching other actors come and go, watching the TG staff busy themselves, watching the sky grow dark... that unresolved anxiety wrapped around her like vines.

She needed someone to talk to.

She needed to shed all her disguises in a safe place and confess her unease and expectations.

And Kim Taeyeon's home had always been the "safe house" for Girls Generation members. There were no cameras here, no outsiders, only sisters and their truest selves.

"Unnie..." Im Yoona spoke, her voice a bit raspy, "Can I come in?"

"Of course, of course!" Kim Taeyeon stepped aside to let her in and conveniently took the paper bag from her hand—it smelled like coffee and desserts.

Sunny had already leaned over, her eyes scanning Im Yoona's face: "Oh my, our Yoona looks... a bit different today."

Im Yoona forced a smile: "Sunny Unnie is here too."

"I've been staying here lately," Sunny said with a grin, then lowered her voice, "How was it? Did you see Jiang Zhiyu? Did he give you any inside information?"

"Sunny!" Kim Taeyeon glared at her.

Im Yoona smiled bitterly: "President Jiang... was very professional. It was strictly business throughout, no special treatment."

"Really?" Sunny raised an eyebrow, "Then what about the audition? What did you perform? Who were the judges? How did they react?"

A string of questions was thrown at her, and Im Yoona was a bit overwhelmed.

Kim Taeyeon saw her fatigue, pulled her to sit on the sofa, and said to Sunny: "Go pour some water for Yoona, don't ask so much."

Sunny curled her lip but still obediently went to the kitchen.

Only Kim Taeyeon and Im Yoona were left in the living room.

"You're tired, aren't you?" Kim Taeyeon asked softly, her gaze gentle.

Im Yoona nodded, leaned back against the sofa, and closed her eyes.

"I performed the third act... the scene where I find out I'm being used as a dead pawn," she said softly, as if talking to herself, "I feel like I did my best... but when I came out, the judges' expressions were very calm. Chairwoman Kim Soo-yeon just told me to wait for notice."

Kim Taeyeon listened quietly without interrupting.

"I know what this role means to me." Im Yoona opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling, "A chance to transition, a chance to prove myself, and..."

She paused and didn't finish.

But Kim Taeyeon understood.

And—a chance to get closer to that person.

Not as senior and junior, not as artists who have collaborated, but as director and actor, as an equal relationship capable of standing side by side in the same work.

"Yoona," Kim Taeyeon reached out and gently patted her shoulder, "You've already done very well. Leave the rest to fate."

Im Yoona turned to look at her, her eyes a bit red.

"Unnie... tell me, can I do it? Can I really play Withe well? A mercenary, someone with blood on her hands... someone completely different from me."

Kim Taeyeon looked at her and suddenly smiled.

"Yoona, do you remember when we first debuted?" Her voice was very light, carrying the warmth of memories, "Everyone was saying Girls Generation was just a bunch of pretty faces, okay at singing and dancing, but that was it. No one believed we could get to where we are today."

Im Yoona nodded.

"But we proved them wrong." Kim Taeyeon's gaze was firm, "So now, if someone doesn't believe you can play Withe well, then prove it to them—that you, Im Yoona, can do it."

These words were like a warm current flowing into Im Yoona's cold heart.

She took a deep breath and nodded vigorously: "Mm!"

At this moment, Sunny came over with a glass of water, and seeing the "sisterly affection" scene between the two, she couldn't help but interject: "But Yoona, if you really get this role... you and Jiang Zhiyu will be spending day and night together for three months~"

She winked, her tone suggestive: "During the training period, he'll be personally guiding you~ Tsk tsk, what a rare opportunity~"

Im Yoona's face turned red, and she grabbed a cushion to throw at her: "Unnie!"

Kim Taeyeon also glared at Sunny, but in a corner of her heart, she felt a slight sting because of those words.

Three months...

Spending day and night together...

She looked down at her empty hands.

When would that Lemm he promised to send her arrive?

—

Two o'clock in the morning.

Kim Taeyeon's bedroom was completely dark, with only the light from her phone screen reflecting on her face, flickering.

Im Yoona was already asleep—after drinking half a bottle of soju and pouring out all her anxieties, she had finally collapsed onto the guest room bed in exhaustion. Sunny had also long since fallen asleep in her own room, muttering before bed about "definitely finding a way to get a Lemm tomorrow...".

Only Kim Taeyeon couldn't fall asleep no matter what.

She lay on her side in bed, her finger sliding across the phone screen, finally stopping at that familiar chat interface.

Contact: Jiang Zhiyu

The last conversation was from a month ago.

Jiang Zhiyu: [Have arrived safely in Seoul. Noona, get some rest early.]

Kim Taeyeon: [Okay, be careful on the road.]

Then, there was a whole month of blank space.

No daily greetings, no work exchanges, not even holiday blessings—there was a minor holiday at the end of last month, and she had hesitated for a long time about whether to send a message, but in the end, she didn't.

It would be too deliberate.

She told herself that. Like two lines that briefly intersected and then returned to their respective orbits.

But now, her fingers were uncontrollably tapping in the input box.

She typed a line: [Yoona went to the audition today, she looks very tired.]

Delete.

No, too deliberate. Yoona went to the audition herself; what would it mean for her as an older sister to come forward and inquire?

She typed again: [Lemm... when will it be ready?]

Delete.

Too direct. It would make her seem very anxious, as if she wanted it badly.

Typed again: [I've been writing a new song lately about memories of Jeonju. Do you have time to listen to it?]

Delete.

Too... intimate. As if they were very close.

So annoying, so annoying, so annoying!

Kim Taeyeon buried her entire face hard into the pillow, letting out a series of muffled, suppressed "ahhh" sounds.

Most of the sound was absorbed by the down pillow, leaving only a faint, blurry echo in the silent room, like the whimpering of a trapped small animal.

She felt like an adolescent girl, troubled by a crush, tossing and turning.

But she was clearly a thirty-one-year-old adult who had experienced storms, seen the world, been in love, and gone through breakups. She shouldn't be like this.

But feelings were things that never followed logic.

They wouldn't become more mature just because you were older, and they wouldn't become more controllable just because you had more experience. They would only entwine you in more complex ways and torture you with more subtle pain.

Kim Taeyeon lifted her face from the pillow, her hair messily stuck to her cheeks and forehead, with a few strands even clinging to the corners of her mouth. She didn't bother with it, just stared at the ceiling with empty eyes.

Her mind uncontrollably replayed what Sunny said today:

"Jiang Zhiyu is really something, not knowing how to maintain good relations with us big seniors."

Actually, it wasn't like that.

Kim Taeyeon knew that Jiang Zhiyu was very good at "managing relationships"—but his way wasn't through worldly flattery, fawning, or greasy social rhetoric.

His way was delicate, long-term, and sincere.

For example—

He remembered that her father had a weak heart, excessive internal heat, and poor sleep. After returning from Jeonju, he not only organized medicinal diet recipes into a detailed document for Mother Kim but also kept in touch with her frequently to teach her specific preparation methods and precautions.

Last week, when she video-called home, she saw her father looking healthy and in high spirits. Her mother was smiling ear to ear on the other side of the camera: "Taeyeon, you've really met a good boy. That child Zhiyu asks about your father's health every week and has even sent over many medicinal herbs, saying he asked someone to bring them from China because the quality is better."

Her mother even said: "Taeyeon, you're truly lucky to know a child like him."

Another example—

He noticed her long-term insomnia. On their last night in Jeonju, he said seemingly casually: "Noona, you can massage this acupoint on the inside of your wrist before bed; it's called the Neiguan point. It helps calm the mind."

He also mentioned he would send her a bottle of sleep-aid perfume, using a formula he blended himself.

Even though it hasn't arrived yet.

But he remembered. Kim Taeyeon believed he remembered.

Yet another example—

He gave her absolute respect and recognition in her professional field. Even though she was eleven years older than him, he never used the senior-junior dynamic to define their relationship. In front of her, he wasn't the powerful President of TG, but a listener, a collaborator, an... equal friend?

No, it didn't seem entirely like a friendship either.

Kim Taeyeon couldn't put her finger on it.

But he also maintained his distance.

A distance that was just right, polite, and wouldn't cross any lines.

Like now—not having a private chat for a month seemed quite normal. They weren't in a relationship where they contacted each other every day anyway. He was a president, she was a singer, and both had endless work to do. Communicating only when there was an occasional collaboration—that was the social rule for adults.

But...

But why did her heart feel so empty?

Kim Taeyeon lifted her face from the pillow, her hair messily sticking to her sweat-dampened cheeks. She ran her fingers through her hair irritably, strands tangling between them.

She picked up her phone; the screen had already gone dark from inactivity. She lit it up, stared at the chat interface for a full minute, and then pressed the side button firmly.

The screen went completely black.

She felt like she was going crazy.

She clearly shouldn't be thinking about this.

She clearly should maintain her distance.

She clearly knew there were too many things standing between them.

She tossed the phone aside and buried her entire person back into the pillow. This time, she couldn't even manage a sob, only suppressed breathing.

In the darkness, her senses became exceptionally sharp.

She heard Yoona's steady breathing beside her, the faint ticking of the clock in the distant living room, and her own heart beating rapidly and uncontrollably in her chest.

She closed her eyes.

But it wasn't darkness before her eyes.

It was the Nambu Market in Jeonju.

That crowded, noisy night filled with the atmosphere of daily life.

That night, to avoid the crowds closing in—perhaps because the scents on Jiang Zhiyu and Lee Tima were too alluring, or perhaps because someone recognized her as Kim Taeyeon—she had instinctively grabbed both of their hands at the same time.

Her left hand held Jiang Zhiyu, her right held Lee Tima.

The three of them ran through the narrow market alleys.

Jiang Zhiyu's palm was very warm, his fingers long, and there was a firm sense of strength when he held her. Lee Tima's hand was small and soft, gripping her tightly like a child afraid of getting lost.

In that moment, she truly had an illusion—

Like what?

Like...

"A family of three."

Her mother's voice echoed in her mind.

That morning, in the kitchen of the Hanok, her mother had looked at her, Jiang Zhiyu, and Lee Tima standing together and blurted out:

"Aigoo, this looks exactly like a family of three."

At the time, Jiang Zhiyu had coughed awkwardly, Lee Tima had excitedly played along, and she had retorted in embarrassed annoyance.

But thinking back now...

Kim Taeyeon's face rapidly heated up in the dark.

She snapped her eyes open and took several sharp breaths, like a fish out of water.

But her brain had already lost control, continuing to play the memories on its own.

The kitchen of the Kim family's Hanok.

Half-awake, she had followed the aroma inside and hugged Jiang Zhiyu, who was preparing breakfast, from behind.

Her cheek was pressed against his warm back, and her palm had unintentionally landed on his abdomen—through the thin cotton T-shirt, she could clearly feel the firm lines of muscle, block by block, distinct and powerful.

Her... what was her hand doing?

Her hand had actually... touched his abs.

Through the thin shirt, she could clearly feel the well-defined contours. Warm, firm, slightly undulating with his movements as he chopped vegetables.

She had even... rubbed against them.

Like a spoiled cat, letting out a satisfied, silly "hehe" giggle.

And then—

Jiang Zhiyu's body stiffened.

He stopped his movements and asked softly: "Noona?"

Kim Taeyeon snapped awake instantly.

She let go as if burned, backed away two steps, and stammered: "I-I've been sleepwalking since I was a kid! Right! Sleepwalking!"

She fled in panic.

After returning to her room, she buried herself under the covers, so ashamed she wanted to disappear from the face of the earth immediately.

But what was even scarier was...

That scent.

The sweet fragrance of ripe fruit she had smelled up close by his neck, mixed with the faint smell of cooking fumes from the morning kitchen, formed an eerie yet alluring aura.

And then there were the words he whispered in her ear, in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"Lemm... I'll give it to Noona in a while."

"Don't tell anyone else."

Those words were spoken right against her ear, his breath brushing against her auricle, itchy and tingling.

It was a secret belonging only to the two of them.

That sentence was like an incantation.

Over the past month, whenever Sunny screamed at a video of Lemm, a secret, petty sense of superiority would well up in her heart.

None of you have it.

I do.

He promised to give it to me.

Kim Taeyeon opened her eyes and took several sharp breaths in the dark.

The alcohol made her body feel hot, but her mind was exceptionally clear—so clear that every detail was vivid in her mind.

She rubbed her hair irritably, turned off her phone screen, tossed it aside, buried herself in the pillow, and let out another muffled "aaah" sound.

Crazy.

Truly crazy.

Kim Taeyeon rolled over to face the sleeping Yoona. Moonlight peeked through the gaps in the curtains, casting gentle shadows on Yoona's face. Looking at her younger sister's peaceful sleeping face, a surge of complex guilt rose in her heart.

Yoona was so sad and insecure today; as her Unnie, she should be comforting her wholeheartedly.

But why was her mind full of that man who was eleven years younger than her?

Thirty-one.

Nineteen.

These two numbers were like two mountains, weighing her down until she couldn't breathe.

She thought of the gossip within the industry about "Noona romances," how female celebrities were judged by the media after finding younger boyfriends, and the vicious comments: "An old cow eating tender grass," "Using money to keep a young boyfriend," "She'll be dumped in a few years."

"Aaaaaah—"

Kim Taeyeon buried her face in the pillow again, this time with a hint of despair in her voice.

It's over.

She seemed... truly not right anymore.

To have these messy thoughts about a man eleven years younger, the president of a partner company, and someone her sister (Yoona) might like (?).

The age gap, the status gap, and then there was Yoona...

Each one was an uncrossable chasm.

"Kim Taeyeon, wake up."

She whispered to herself in the darkness.

"He just treats you as a senior, a partner, a... friend's Unnie."

"That thoughtfulness and care are just because he's naturally a thoughtful person."

"He dotes on Lee Tima more, he respects Kim Soo-yeon more, and he's more... more special towards Im Yoona."

"You're nothing special."

By the last sentence, her voice was so low it was almost inaudible.

She rolled over and faced the ceiling.

Her eyes were wide open in the dark, yet she could see nothing.

Only memories played repeatedly in her mind like a silent film.

The night they ran while holding hands.

The awkward hug in the morning.

The whispered promise in the elevator.

And his amber eyes, the way they curved slightly when he smiled.

"So annoying..."

She closed her eyes and forced herself to count sheep.

One sheep, two sheep, three sheep...

"Lemm, I'll give it to Noona in a while, don't tell anyone else..."

The warm breath brushed her ear, carrying his unique scent.

"Don't tell anyone else."

This sentence was like an incantation, pulling her into a secret known only to the two of them.

A secret about Lemm, about a promise, about... some kind of inexplicable intimacy.

These memory fragments were infinitely magnified in the darkness, every detail terrifyingly clear.

Kim Taeyeon snapped her eyes open and took several sharp breaths.

Her chest heaved, her heart drumming.

She sat up, turned on the bedside lamp, and took a large gulp of cold water from her glass.

The icy liquid slid down her throat, slightly calming the internal agitation.

But her brain still couldn't stop replaying those images over and over again.

She looked at her phone and eventually couldn't resist unlocking the screen again.

This time, she didn't open the chat box but instead opened her photo album.

She scrolled to a photo—one Lee Tima had sneakily taken in Jeonju.

In the photo, she and Jiang Zhiyu were standing side by side in the Hanok courtyard, with a blooming osmanthus tree in the background. She was looking up at the tree with a smile; Jiang Zhiyu was looking at her sideways, his gaze gentle.

Lee Tima had even captioned it at the time: "Mom and Dad enjoying the flowers~"

She had been so angry then that she chased Lee Tima all over the courtyard, but in the end, she couldn't bring herself to delete the photo.

Kim Taeyeon's finger gently brushed over Jiang Zhiyu's face on the screen.

Under the light, the expression on her face was complex and hard to read.

There was confusion, struggle, a hint of sweetness, but mostly...

Fear.

Fear of these tangled emotions.

Fear of sinking deeper and deeper.

Fear that the boy who was only nineteen but already at the top of the industry would ultimately only be an interlude in her life.

In the darkness, her eyes were startlingly bright.

Kim Taeyeon, wake up!

She shouted to herself in her mind.

The age is mismatched—you're 31, he's 19 (actual age), a 12-year difference!

The status is mismatched—you're a pillar of SM, he's the President of TG, a partner, a producer; it's not a relationship where you can just let your imagination run wild!

The roles are mismatched—you're the senior, he's the junior. Even if he never follows those rules, society's eyes won't let you off!

Maintain professional distance! Stay awake! Stay rational!

She slapped her cheeks hard, trying to beat those messy thoughts out.

But...

Why was her heart still racing?

Why did her lips uncontrollably curl upward whenever she thought of him?

Why did she feel a secret joy of "but he promised to give it to me" when she heard Sunny complaining about him not giving her Lemm?

Why was she so irritable after not being in contact for a month?

Why...

Kim Taeyeon lay back down, turned on her side, and curled up.

She remembered the first time she met Jiang Zhiyu.

Four years ago, in SM's recording studio. He was a new producer intern assigned to record a demo for her. He was only seventeen then, wearing a simple white T-shirt and jeans, looking like a clean-cut youth.

But the moment he started talking about music, his eyes changed.

Calm, sharp, and full of confidence.

He played her the demo for "prince ruperts drop," explaining the concept and analyzing the arrangement. His Korean still had a bit of an American accent, but his choice of words was precise and his logic was clear.

Kim Taeyeon thought at the time: This kid is not simple.

And sure enough.

"prince ruperts drop" became a huge hit, and Jiang Zhiyu rose rapidly within SM. He wrote songs for Red Velvet, planned concepts for the aespa trainees, and even began instructing trainees.

Later, he left SM to establish TG Entertainment.

In just a few short years, TG became an industry legend.

And Jiang Zhiyu himself had grown from that clean-cut youth into the poised and powerful young president he was today.

She had witnessed his transformation.

Or rather, she had always... been watching him.

From the perspective of a senior watching a junior.

From the perspective of a collaborator watching a partner.

From... the perspective of a woman watching a man.

No! Stop!

Kim Taeyeon shook her head vigorously, trying to throw out those forbidden thoughts.

She sat up and picked up her phone again.

The screen lit up again, still on that chat box.

She grit her teeth and began to type.

[2021.06.17 02:38]

Kim Taeyeon: Are you asleep?

After typing it, she stared at it for three seconds and then quickly deleted it.

Too deliberate. Asking someone if they're asleep at half past one in the morning—what does that mean?

Re-type.

[2021.06.17 02:39]

Kim Taeyeon: Yoona went to an audition today. She seems to be working very hard; I'm a bit worried about her.

Still not good. It sounds like she's fishing for information.

Delete again.

[2021.06.17 02:40]

Kim Taeyeon: The script is very well-written; it suits Yoona well.

Hypocrite! You haven't even read the full script!

Kim Taeyeon messily ruffled her hair in frustration.

Finally, she typed the simplest and safest line:

[2021.06.17 02:41]

Kim Taeyeon: Have you been busy lately?

The cursor blinked at the end of the sentence.

Her thumb hovered over the send button; with just a light tap, this message would be transmitted to Jiang Zhiyu's phone.

Maybe he wasn't asleep yet.

Maybe he would reply.

Maybe...

Kim Taeyeon stared at that sentence for a full minute.

Then, slowly, bit by bit, she deleted every character.

The screen returned to blank.

She exited the chat box, turned off her phone, and put it back on the nightstand.

She lay down and pulled the covers over her head.

In the darkness, there was only the sound of her own heartbeat, one after another.

Jiang Zhiyu, when are you actually going to contact me~

This thought drifted through her mind like a sigh.

Carrying grievance, carrying expectation, and carrying a... longing that even she herself was unwilling to admit.