No Strings Attached

Chapter One

The loft apartment had a minimalist design, with white, black and silver tones. Furniture and decorations were kept to a minimum. A large 50 inch LED TV and Bose sound system occupied most of the cosy living room. There was a bar counter tucked in the corner of the living room and it was always well stocked with various liquors. It was one of her favourite spots in the apartment, besides the balcony. It was where she would gather with Rosé to chat and get drunk together.

The kitchen was partially hidden by the staircase that led upstairs to the bedroom. Her kitchen was adorned with mostly stainless steel and marble finishing. There was a row of silver knives hanging from the rack on the wall. An island with an induction cooktop stood in the middle of the kitchen. The seamless white floors, frosted glass shelving and dark coloured crockery provided a contrast in this play of light and shadows.

Ding Dong

Jennie set her glass of Baileys on the coffee table as she went to open the door for her guest.

“Jen! How are ya? Bought any Merlion stuff for me?” Rosé enveloped her best friend in a hug and kissed her cheek before stepping into the apartment.

“Go ahead and wake up the whole block,” Jennie grunted. “Fortunately I have a private lift, else I’m sure I’ll receive a stack of complaint mails from the building management and neighbours each time you visit.”

“I got you some ddeokbokki and mandu. I know you miss Korean food at the rate you’re going on your world tour,” Rosé smiled as she set the food on the dining table, ignoring her friend’s grumblings.

“Smells good. So what’s the hot gossip you’re dying to tell me?” Jennie poked a mandu with her fork and took a bite. Korean food always made her feel at home, no matter which part of the world she was at. Her job required her to travel a lot, especially in the recent two years when she got promoted to as the senior consultant of her company. She was practically living out of her suitcase and hardly had the chance to spend time at home.

“You know, that new hot guy at my office? He actually asked me out for dinner tomorrow? Like…just the two of us?” Rosé squealed. “Do you think he’s interested in me?”

“Who knows? You should know the male species better than me. I have no interest in them,” Jennie replied coldly, chewing on her mandu.

“Oh come on, your best friend here hasn’t been on a date for ages. Show some enthusiasm will ya? At least give me some constructive advice on what to wear,” Rosé beamed while poking her friend’s arm.

Jennie forced a smile on her face. Truthfully her guy-crazy best friend had gone on a blind date two weeks ago, just that it didn’t work out.

“Go pick anything you want from my wardrobe. Promise me you’ll treat them with care and send them for dry cleaning before returning them back to me.”

“Jen, you’re the best! Thank you Wifey!!” Rosé planted a kiss on Jennie’s cheek and ran up the stairs to rummage Jennie’s wardrobe.

~*~*~*~

“So where are you off to next?” Rosé picked an unopened bottle of red wine from the wine chiller and poured herself a glass. She sat next to Jennie, linking an arm with hers and filling Jennie’s empty wine glass with red wine.

“The land of the rising sun. Do you need anything from there?” Jennie swirled the red wine in her glass before taking a sip.

“Nah, nothing much. You travel there so often, I ran out of things to buy. I’m also kinda broke recently. Need to curb my spending else I’m gonna have to bunk in with ya,” Rosé teased.