The sofa hadn't been the most comfortable place for Rose to spend the night, but she managed to doze off for a few hours before she heard the first chime of the alarm on Yuta's phone from the next room. Exhausted, she dragged herself off the cushions and staggered to her feet. There was no need for a shower, and she dressed once more in comfortable clothes, so she wouldn't have trouble changing in and out of them if there was more fitting to be done. Unlike the previous day, Rose put a little more thought into her outfit, and did her best to cover the speckles of bruising on her cheek with makeup. She couldn't do a lot about her lip, but it wasn't as painful as the previous evening and she hoped they could hide it at the studio. The jeans were back on, but she paired them with a cute white off the shoulder top with blue embroidery around the neckline and small red flowers. Despite its vintage seventies appearance, it was a brand-new item, and gave the look a summery feel. Satisfied that her clothes hid her tiredness – the impression being that she was as fresh and bright as her shirt – Rose scribbled out a quick note to Yuta, telling him that she was heading out to the nearby store before they left for work.
It was too early to be busy, and the morning staff were still stocking some of the shelves with fresh deliveries of prepared lunches and baked goods. Rose smiled and bowed her head lightly in greeting as she passed the staff, not knowing enough Korean to say good morning but wanting to be polite. She browsed the aisles slowly, picking up medicines and searching for translations on the labels so that she could make educated guesses at what might be inside. She had a small headache coming on, but Rose knew it would be nothing compared to Si-woo's.
'Um, excuse me?' she asked a younger member of staff in English. The woman looked like a university student, and Rose knew they taught English as part of the curriculum in Korea. It was her hope that she might know enough to give her a rough idea of what she was looking for. Rose pointed her finger at one of the bottles on the shelf and asked, 'Hangover? This helps?'
'Drinking?' the girl asked, and then tapped her head to indicate where the pain might reside. 'Next morning?'
'Yes,' Rose said, beaming. She'd never travelled outside of Japan and wasn't used to language barriers. Any manner of understanding between her and someone who only spoke Korean felt like a triumph. 'Does this help? Energy? No pain?'
Through their broken English, the pair managed to find tablets, energy drinks, and other items which might soothe the effects of the night before. It might have seemed a generous act for Rose to perform given the fact that Si-woo was still a relative stranger, but she'd abandoned him in the bar when he was in need to help and support, and Rose couldn't help feeling guilty about it. While she'd been dragged around Myeongdong by Tae-won, Si-woo had probably been acquainting himself with an obliging toilet while he purged his system of everything he'd had to eat and drink that night.
Before she made it to the checkout, Rose spotted a display of sweet milks and grabbed a banana bottle for Tae-won. They were never going to be friends, that much was obvious, but without his intervention something terrible might have become of her the previous evening and she wanted to show her gratitude. After finding out he had a sweet tooth, she had a sneaking suspicion he'd appreciate anything with sugar in it.
It wasn't long before Rose was standing outside of the apartment building waiting for Hitomi and Yuta. She didn't mind sitting outside; the streets were bustling but there was a certain familiarity in the bustle of people hurrying to get to school and work, and she was strongly reminded of early mornings in Tokyo when she and Hitomi would walk at a leisurely pace through the crowds in their uniforms, knowing they'd left early enough that they could take their time and breathe in the crisp, fresh dawn air.
Rose never thought she'd feel nostalgic for her dreaded high school days, but now she was faced with the prospect of being a model, she was starting to realise how good they'd had it.
The staff were lethargic, slumping over their desks, their glassy eyes fixed on their computer screens. It was fair to say that Si-woo wasn't the only one who'd had a heavy night. Yuta found Eun-young quickly and she handed him a coffee before she ran quickly over the schedule for the day.
Rose was the first to ask, 'Where's Si-woo?'
'Down in the studio,' Eun-young said. 'He's... not feeling well.'
'And, Jung-wook?' Hitomi added, eager to see him even if they'd spent all evening talking. 'Is he there, too?'
'No,' Eun-young said. 'He's running coffees. Believe me, we need them.'
Hitomi's arm shot up in the air like she was still in class. 'Ooh! I can help!'
'Um,' Eun-young looked her up and down, taken aback by her enthusiasm. 'Okay...?' Hitomi ran off before she even knew where she was meant to be headed. Eun-young shouted after her, 'The cafeteria!' which made Hitomi take a sharp turn off to the right, giving the group a thumbs-up as she went to indicate she'd heard.
'I'm gonna go check on Si-woo,' Rose said. 'Unless you need me here...?'
'Go ahead. Until he tells us he's ready to go, we can photograph anything.'
The lights were out in the studio and at first, Rose thought Eun-young had been wrong to think Si-woo was down there. She kept a hand on the wall as she descended the stairs and squinted against the dark. With no signs of movement in the shadows which pooled beneath the equipment and gathered in the corners, she had no choice but to slap her hand against the light switch to illuminate the space. At once, she found the man. A groan passed Si-woo's lips and he brought his arm up to shield his eyes against the glare.
'Turn it off,' he moaned. 'Off!'
Rose shut it off again and brought her phone from her pocket, using the dim screen to show her the way across to the tables where Si-woo had taken refuge in the peace and quiet, avoiding the bustle of the office upstairs. Rose didn't have the heart to tell him he might have been better off up there; the people were like zombies, shuffling slowly and muttering to one another to avoid setting off anyone's headaches. They'd have understood that he wasn't to be disturbed. Lurking in the dark as he was, Si-woo was at risk of people invading his privacy the way Rose had, uncertain as to whether he was in the studio as Eun-young had said.
'Sorry,' she apologised in a hushed voice as she crept across the room. 'I didn't mean to wake you or anything.'
'Rose?' he asked, his voice groggy. 'It's okay. Sorry, I didn't mean to snap.'
'How's your head?'
'I never want to drink again,' he complained. 'Did I throw up?'
'On Tae-won's shoes, yeah.'
Rose saw Si-woo drop his arms down in despair. He tilted his head back and groaned, 'He'll kill me.'
'He won't,' Rose said, not believing the claim even as she said it. She just wanted to make him feel better. 'Look, I got you some stuff to help. I figured you'd be feeling bad today.'
'You bought me something?'
There was a renewed interest in the way he asked and a lightness to his tone, as if he was delighted to hear that she'd given him any consideration. Rose wasn't sure why, she'd have done the same for anyone who'd been in his position, but Si-woo didn't know that and must have thought it was because she thought he was special in some way. To Rose, he was. That is to say, she thought he was handsome and good natured, and he'd given her no reason to be wary of him or to argue the way Tae-won had. As far as Rose could see it, Si-woo was a good guy, and she was happy to be able to help him.
Blushing, and glad that he couldn't see in the low light, she said, 'It's nothing super special. Just, you know, some medicine and energy drinks. Things to help you with your head and stomach if you're still feeling sick.'
'That is special,' he said. 'Thank you. No one else has brought me anything.'
Rose grabbed the banana milk from the bag for Tae-won and handed the rest to Si-woo. 'Eun-young wanted to know about photography today, too. Should I tell her you need to rest a little longer?'
'If you don't mind. I'll be up as soon as I can. Promise.'
'Okay,' Rose smiled even though he couldn't see. 'I'll let you rest.'
Si-woo reached out and placed his hand over hers. 'I know it sounds stupid now I'm a mess, but I liked talking to you last night.'
Rose smiled despite herself. 'I liked it, too.'