Y/n's POV
The time was around 10:30pm when I finally walked through the door of my apartment. I threw my keys on top of the small table by my door and was thankful to see that my apartment was empty; aside from Apollo. I shrugged my coat off and hung it up, going over to where I had a bottle of red wine. I uncorked it and poured myself a glass because even though I knew eventually something like this would happen, it still hurt a bit. I took a sip and turned on my TV, flopping down onto the couch. A meow came from the hallway, footsteps trotting down the hall towards me. I smiled as my little fluff ball came and made himself comfy on my lap, sensing my mood wasn't the greatest. That's one thing I like about cats, they tend to know when you're sad or not in the best mood. With my free hand, I stroked his fur gently as I watched old SpongeBob episodes.
I didn't keep track of how much wine I drank, but I assumed a decent amount because I woke up on the couch at 11:47am the next morning. I groaned at the light shining through my glass window wall. I was still in my clothes from last night, so I was uncomfortable as I stood up to freshen up in my bathroom. I glanced over at the wine bottle and saw that I drank about half of it. I'm not a lightweight, but I'm not surprised I fell asleep after that much because I needed sleep anyway. I had small bags under my eyes and I didn't look too hot, so I took a warm shower to wake me up. I washed my hair and body without rushing because I had the day off today from work. I say 'day off' loosely because I still have to edit a bunch of photos today, but that's okay.
Once I got out of the shower, I just changed into sweats and a hoodie, opting to be comfy today. I put on my blue beanie and decided to go to Somi's café to edit some photos because I wanted to get out of here for a bit. I checked my phone for the first time today and I was shocked to not see a single text or missed call from her. My eyes did see a few messages that Rosie sent me at 3:44am. I was confused at first, but I remembered the time zones, so it made a lot more sense. I unlocked my phone to see what she said,
Blondie <3: hey, just wanted to
shoot u a quick text asking
when u want to talk again,
like civil people lol
Blondie <3: i know u said
we r fine now, but i just
wanna hear u say it urself
Blondie <3: also goodmorning
to u since its almost 4am for
u!! hope u have a good day!
Blondie <3: also tell me about
aurora and u!!
I smiled a bit at seeing her messages, but that did fade a little when I saw the one about Aurora. I shot her a few messages back,
Me: u can call me whenever
since imma be at somis
for most of the day
Me: and thx for the
goodmorning,
i needed that lol
Me: ill tell u everything when
u call me later :)
I looked myself over in the mirror and made my way out of my apartment. I had my airpods with me this time, so I slipped them in my ears and started listening to Rosie's two songs from her solo album -R-. I've really grown to love all of Blackpink's songs and solos, but I just feel like listening to only Rosie today. I waited for the elevator and when I was looking down at my phone, I saw another pair of shoes come up next to me and stop. I didn't pay any attention to them and just kept scrolling through Twitter. But I swear I could hear a muffled voice, so I glanced to my left and let out a groan,
"Nathan." I turned up my music as I didn't want to deal with him right now. The elevator opened and I walked in, and annoyingly he also got in. I pressed the button for the lobby and stood back against the wall. He then took the opportunity to stand in front of me to get my attention. I stared into his eyes and must've had the look of a killer because he looked away scared and didn't try anything else. He scurried out of the elevator quickly when it opened, making me laugh to myself as I made my way down the street to Somi's.
I opened the door and it wasn't too busy, so Somi looked over at me immediately. I sat at my normal table in the corner and got my laptop set up before a hot chocolate was placed in front of me, along with a body now seated across from me. I looked up and smiled as Somi was staring at me, telling me silently with her eyes to talk about last night. I rolled my eyes and paused my music, taking out my airpods.
"Don't you have a job to do?" I asked her as she shook her head.
"Nope. Took my thirty minute break now and if needed, I can take the rest of the day off. Now stop stalling and tell me what the fuck happened last night." She answered back seriously. I sighed and took a sip of the hot chocolate before telling her,
"We are remaining friends."
"WHAT?!" Somi yelled as she slammed her hands on the table loudly, making me so fucking embarrassed to be her friend. I shushed her as my face was red and stood up, yanking her to her back office. I closed the door and stared her down as she cowered in fear, knowing she embarrassed me and made me extremely pissed off. I walked towards her as she backed up into her desk,
"I swear to god if you ever shout like that in a public place again, I will fucking kill you! I don't care if you own the god damn place, don't do that again." She stayed silent, making my blood boil more, "Do you understand?"
"Yes I understand! Now please back away because seeing you pissed off is the scariest sight known to man." I backed up and took a deep breath, calming myself down.
"Now what questions do you have?"
"How come she rejected you? Is there another person? Are you still going to be friends? How are you going to work together?" Somi rambled on as I held up a finger to tell her to shut up because I was going to answer them.
"Well first off, I didn't even ask her to be my girlfriend."
"What? Why?" She asked me, completely confused and intrigued.
"I knew she wouldn't say yes. I knew her ex came back into her life and he still had her heart. So I told her to be happy and go with him since she still wants to be with him." I explained sadly as Somi's jaw dropped a bit.
"So she's back with her ex now?" I nodded my head, "no shit. So how are you taking it?"
"I guess okay. I could sense that her heart wasn't mine for the taking the second she first talked about her ex. I just hoped that I could change what her heart wanted, but I couldn't, and that's okay. She told me that there's someone out there for me, so I'm just waiting on them now."
"I'm sorry, y/n. I know how much you liked her." I shrugged my shoulders,
"It's fine. We are remaining friends though because we clicked naturally and I would want to keep her in my life." I said with a small smile. Somi opened up her arms and ushered me to give her a hug. I scoffed and crossed my arms at her, "I am not giving you a hug after you embarrassed me."
"If you don't hug me I'll tell everyone out there that when you were 15, you asked a gir-" I wrapped her up in a hug at lightning speed, making her laugh as she wrapped her arms around my neck. We actually hugged for a good ten seconds which is the longest we've hugged in over a year. I pulled back from her and she smiled brightly at me, making me a little suspicious at how quickly her mood changed.
"What are you thinking?"
"Let's go to the club tonight!" I stared at her blankly, not liking the idea of being around drunk and sweaty people one bit. As the silence between us grew, her excitement faded as she realized there was no way I'm fucking going out. A dramatic sigh of disappointment fell from her lips as she dragged me out of her office while I laughed. She went back to work and I sat back down, drinking my hot chocolate and pulling up the software to edit some photos. I popped my airpods back in and started to quietly hum along to my music as I breezed through the photos. About two hours had gone by and I heard my phone buzzing on the table, so I picked it up and smiled seeing that it was Rosie.
"Rosie!" I answered happily as I heard her giggle on the other side,
"It's me! So cutting straight to the point, tell me everything." I rolled my eyes playfully at how she didn't even bother asking how my day was.
"Long story short, I am still single."
"Oh." I chuckled at her simple response,
"Yeah, it just didn't work out and she's back with her ex. I knew deep down I never had her heart, so it's okay. I'll find my lover some day." I said hopefully as I saved an edited photo before moving onto the next.
"...can I call her a bitch now?" I sighed as I knew she would bring this up.
"You may call her a bitch if it ma-"
"SHE'S SUCH A BITCH!" Rosie yelled, making me move my phone away from my ear a bit, cringing at how loud she was. She continued to rant loudly about how terrible of a person Aurora is and I did nothing to stop her because I know she'll feel better afterwards. Rosie went on for a solid 5 minutes before realizing I haven't spoken a single word yet.
"Are you still there?" She asked me quietly, making me smile.
"I am still here. Are you done yet?"
"Um, yeah." She replied awkwardly.
"Alright, do you feel better getting your anger out?" I asked her as I heard her sigh,
"I do feel better. But wait- how are you feeling?"
"I'm feeling fine, thank you for asking. I say we move onto another topic than my love life right now, which at the moment is no longer a thing. So tell me what day you four are going to be here."
"We are going to land on Thursday morning and then go right to 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon' for an interview and performance of our pre-release song. Then Friday is 'The Late Show With Stephan Colbert' for the same stuff. We are also going on 'Good Morning America' to perform in the morning on Saturday. But we have the rest of Saturday off and all of Sunday which we can spend with you and Somi."
"So what I'm hearing is you guys are going to be worked to the bone for some interviews and performances for three days?"
"That's how things go around here." Rosie said sadly as I started to also feel bad for her. I know her and the girls get pushed a lot and that's not good for their health; short or long term.
"I'm sorry to hear about that, Rosie. Have you been eating and getting at least a little bit of sleep?"
"Yes I have. I usually have to skip one meal a day which I hate, but I snack throughout the day, so it's not horrible I guess. Oh and I have something to tell you."
"I'm glad you're eating and I'm all ears, blondie." I said as I just leaned back in my chair, not even working anymore right now.
"I got you and Somi tickets to see us on Jimmy Fallon." That got me to sit up straight in my chair real fucking quick.
"Are you kidding me? Those were gone so fast!" My eyes widened at what I had just said, but I just hope she doesn't catch on.
"Were you trying to get tickets?" Rosie asked me, and I could hear the damn smirk on her lips. I was embarrassed and slammed my head lightly on the table,
"Maybe." I mumbled to her, getting a laugh out of her.
"Awe, that's so sweet! And stupid because you really thought I wouldn't get you two ticket!"
"I get it, now stop making fun of me!" I groaned as she just continued to laugh, "I'll hang up now if you don't stop laughing."
Dead silence followed immediately after I said that, making me smile proudly.
"Look how much you enjoy my company, Park."
"I do not enjoy your company that much. Don't let your ego get bigger."
"Jokes on you, I never had an ego to begin with," I shot back as I heard her sigh out of annoyance, making me bite back a smile, "now as much as I love hearing your voice, I have to get back to editing these photos because you're a distraction."
"So you love my voice and I'm a distraction?"
"Now don't get your ego boosted or anything there. I can take back what I said." I told her as I could hear a smirk on her lips. She laughed and we talked for a few more minutes before she let me go to do my work. When I put my phone down, Somi slid back into the chair across from me,
"So what made you all flustered talking to Rosie?" I should've seen this coming from a fucking mile away.
"Just how I tried to get tickets to Jimmy Fallon and they sold out really fast."
"Why's that embarrassing?" She asked me, placing her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her hands.
"It's embarrassing because she got you and I tickets, so I said all that afterwards and she made fun of me." I mumbled as Somi laughed at me. I kicked her shin and she groaned out in some pain, shutting up real quick.
"Can't wait to see them though in a few days."
"Me too."
~~~~~
Rosie's POV
We just landed at JFK and the absolute mob of people that were here waiting for us was insane. But I do understand where they are coming from because we haven't had a comeback in over a year. I do worry for all there safety as there is a lot of pushing and shoving going on. Shouting can be heard from every angle and I'm just putting on a smile and waving a little to fansites I see. But a majority of the time I am looking at the ground because this stuff can still get overwhelming. I made sure to keep glancing over to Jennie because her anxiety goes through the roof when there's this many people. I smiled internally when I saw Jisoo holding hands with her in order to bring her girlfriend comfort. I felt an arm link with mine and thankfully it was just Lisa, so we continued through the airport as security tried to make a path for us.
Soon enough all four of us were sighing in relief as the van door slid closed. Jisoo and Jennie were in the back; Jennie's head was resting on Jisoo's shoulder as she started to calm her rapid breathing. Lisa was doing fine next to me as I just turned my attention to my window and watched as we slowly made our way to the hotel. Traffic was annoying, but we got there and dropped our stuff off in our rooms before going straight to get our hair, makeup, and outfits done for Jimmy Fallon, which is in 2.5 hours.
We have to be there at 5pm because obviously the thing isn't live. So we'll do the interview first and then the performance last. I sat in a chair as my hair was getting styled and my face was getting foundation on it. I glanced at my phone and saw y/n texted me, wishing us good luck and that if I ever feel nervous to just look for her. I know where she'll be sitting because I bought the tickets, and I made sure they would be in my line of sight from the couches. That also means that we will be performing right in front of her and Somi, which I am excited for.
No allowing them to get a chance to run away again.
Once we were all ready to go, we got back into the van and headed to the studio where the talk show is filmed. There were some blinks waiting around by the entrance of the building, but we drove past them as we went around the back. We've been on the show before, but it was through zoom because we had a bunch of schedules right after (a/n: covid isn't a thing in this story btw). So I know I'm excited to actually meet Jimmy himself.
We were backstage and there was a ton of staff running around to get everything set up. We would be interviewed second, just after some smaller actress who I honestly have no idea what their name is. I could hear clapping and some shouts as the show started. Jimmy did his monologue and the crowd was giving good reactions. He soon introduced the actress and they got on with the interview. Our makeup artists were doing final touch ups as the four of us impatiently waited for our turn to get interviewed.
About ten minutes went by and the actress finished up the interview. I grabbed Jennie's hand and squeezed it, knowing she's nervous. A small smile flashed at me and I gathered the other two idiots and we did our little cheer before Jimmy announced us.
"And next I have the kpop sensation Blackpink! They have been on a long break and are finally coming back with a new song! So please give a warm welcome to the lovely ladies of Blackpink!" He said happily as the curtain was slightly pulled back, allowing us to enter the stage area. I smiled brightly at the crowd cheering so loudly for us.
And I knew exactly where to look for y/n and Somi. And thank god they were both there with huge smiles on their faces.
I walked up to Jimmy first and gave him a hug, the girls following my lead as I sat down closest to his desk on the couch. Lisa sat next to me, then Jisoo, then Jennie at the end. The crowd died down and he started talking to us,
"It's so great to finally meet you girls in person! Please do introduce yourselves to the camera for the people that don't know you."
I turned my attention towards the camera and smiled brightly, doing a little wave,
"Hello, my name is Rosé."
"Hi, my name is Lisa!" Lisa said with a beautiful smile and waving both her hands cutely.
"Hi, I'm Jisoo." She said softly, making me smile at her speaking English. She always doubts her abilities, but she's really improved since the last comeback.
"Hello, I'm Jennie." Jennie said as a tiny bit of her Kiwi accent slipped out. Cheers and shouts were heard after each of us introduced ourselves, making me smile. I'm glad that there are so many people here that truly love all of us.
"How have you all been?" Jimmy asked us. I glanced down the couch and decided to answer this question.
"Well we are also super happy to finally meet you in person by the way. It's definitely different being here than seeing you through a screen," I joked with him, "but we have been doing really well. All four of us are excited for this comeback." I told him as he smiled at us.
"I can't believe that it has been over a year since you four have had a comeback! What was that kind of down time like?" He asked us as Jennie decided to take this question,
"Well for two of our members, Rosé and Lisa, they were able to do their solos, which were fantastic. Jisoo also did her drama 'Snowdrop' and it's really a great show. The final episode was definitely shocking, so I recommend it. But there really wasn't 'down time' for us as we were always doing certain things. Whether it was in the studio with music, dancing, doing campaigns, etc." Jennie answered expertly. To be honest, I wasn't paying that much attention to her as I was literally glancing over to Somi and y/n.
Y/n was smiling brightly at me and the girls, making my heart flutter. Somi was smirking and whispered something to her, causing y/n to pinch her arm. I tore my gaze away from them as I overlooked the crowd, not wanting to be suspicious or anything.
"Now your new single 'Ready For Love' is a pre-release single. What does that mean?" Jimmy asked as he held up the cover art for the song.
"It means that it's almost like a teaser for the actual comeback. There will be another lead single for the project, which is what we call the title track."
"Ah, that makes sense! And now the song was released a few nights ago and it's already breaking records. It accumulated over 100 million views in the first 24 hours, which is mind blowing. It became the most watched music video by a female act in that span of 24 hours and has already 10 million likes. It was also the fastest song by a kpop act to hit #1 on Apple Music in the United States. Congratulations to all of those amazing achievements!"
We were all shy as he read off those achievements. It's insane that so many people waited for us and have shown us this much support. Blinks have always given us so much love from the beginning and it sometimes just doesn't sink in.
"Blinks are the best fans, so we thank you all! Love you!" Jisoo said to the camera as we chuckled seeing her do a little heart afterwards.
The interview continued on and I kept catching y/n's gaze every so often, which always made me buzz in happiness. Soon, he rolled us into a commercial break and our interview was done. Now one more interview is going to take place before we perform 'Ready For Love'.
I was getting the nervous jitters and after about twenty minutes, it was time. I made sure my in-ears were good and that my mic was working, my members doing the same. We walked out and got into position, waiting for Jimmy to introduce us again and the music to begin. I looked for y/n and saw her giving me an encouraging smile and a thumbs up. She mouthed a 'you are going to do great' to me, helping calm my nerves.
"And now I would like to welcome back Blackpink as they are performing their new song 'Ready For Love'!"
I heard the countdown in my in-ear and the music started right on time. The lights turned towards us and we started our performance. I sang first and thankfully sung it really nicely, not that people can hear it over the loud-ass backing vocals. The performance was going really well and then it was my turn to sing part of the chorus. Jennie said her line and for mine, I said fuck the camera and sang it to y/n, looking into her eyes,
"I'm ready for love."
—————
look at rosie being bold at the end. i hope u guys enjoyed the chapter and i wanted to thank u all for the birthday wishes, they were all so sweet <3. so i cant wait to see you guys in the next one, I LOVE U ALL!!!!!!!!!!!