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For anyone else, a Sunday morning would be a perfect opportunity to lie in bed for a couple of hours and catch up on some much needed rest. For Kotone, it means heading to the dance studio at 5:00 a.m. to catch up on some much needed practice time. At this hour, the rest of the members are still asleep, the dorm otherwise silent save for the quiet gurgle of the coffee pot.
Kotone stirs her instant coffee and stares at the entrance to their dorm. Even for idols in a 24-member girl group, free time is still a rare commodity– for some of them at least. While Kotone would love be sleeping in like the rest of them, the world doesn’t slow down for people with busy schedules and back-to-back subunits.
The quiet click of a latch is the only warning Kotone has before the door is swinging open, startling Kotone into gripping her coffee to ensure it doesn’t spill.
Nien peeks her head past the entrance and meets her eyes with a smile that reaches her eyes, far too bright for this early in the morning.
She’s wearing black leggings and a white tank top, looking like the athletic-wear models that fill billboards throughout Seoul. Nien bounds over towards Kotone, buzzing with energy, squeezing in between stacked boxes of instant ramyeon and all the other snacks crowding the entrance to the kitchen.
“Tone-ah, let’s go running.” Nien beams at her.
Kotone rubs her eyes. “I was planning on practicing at the studio this morning.”
Nien brings a finger to her temple and appears to mull the thought.
“I think Kaede has the studio this morning.” Nien nods to herself, looking like she’s uncovered some kind of ancient wisdom from the universe. “Besides it’s not like you need the practice.”
Kotone only gets as far as scrunching her eyebrows in confusion and forming the protest of, I thought Kaede had an interview this morning before Nien is moving on, artfully leaping from one subject to another like an Olympic gymnast.
Nien pouts, all hammed up as if she’s doing aegyo for the camera and not a thoroughly unimpressed Kotone. “Tone-ah, let’s go running together,” she whines.
Kotone’s mind reluctantly lets go of the subject of the studio– there’s just no way Kaede has it– to address Nien’s request.
Sure, this practice session isn’t necessary per say, but being in a subunit with their main vocalist, leader, and their literal choreographer for this comeback sets an expectation that’s starting to feel increasingly out of reach.
And that’s not even mentioning Nien. Quick to learn and even quicker on a punchline with abs and biceps that probably inspired this whole comeback concept in the first place, Nien is…
Kotone’s gaze traces the slope of her jaw and moves down to where a glimpse of collarbone peeks out from her jacket.
Nien is–
Kotone blinks.
Nien is already skipping towards the doorway, stepping around scattered pairs of shoes with graceful agility.
“It’ll be fun, I’ll be waiting downstairs, maybe change out of pajamas, you’re the best Tone!”
Nien stops in the doorway and throws a brilliant smile back at her.
Kotone sighs and moves to get ready.
After ten minutes of hurriedly fixing her hair and exchanging pajamas for a t-shirt and sweatpants Kotone finds Nien in the lobby of the apartment. They take a taxi to a Hangang park nearby.
It’s early enough that it’s still dark out. To their left a couple sits on a mat with a makeshift table set up, leaning on each other and looking out to the river. Besides them and a handful of joggers milling around, the park is practically empty.
With endless twisting sidewalks and the Han River lethargically flowing in front of them, the world appears to still be dreaming, waiting to wake and start the day. Kotone longingly thinks of sinking into soft pillows and blue sheets.
Nien leads them to a grassy area to warm up. Side by side, they silently move through different stretches. Nien slowly extends into a lunge, long legs stretching out with graceful ease. Kotone swallows and looks away.
She decides to blame nerves for the sweat already forming underneath her collar, uncomfortably cold in the morning air.
Their upcoming comeback, Fly Up, has them working with personal trainers on all kinds of movements, stretches, and one ridiculously difficult Pilates exercise in the case of Nakyoung. Despite all of that, Kotone actually hasn’t gone running in a while. Hasn’t gone running with Nien ever. Sue her for being a little nervous.
Nien stands up and claps her hands together, the lone sound cutting through silence. “Are you ready?”
Kotone startles at the noise and worriedly looks back at the couple, still intertwined in the dark a few meters away. Nien curiously follows her gaze, a glint of something mischievous appearing in her eyes. She inhales, then opens her mouth as if to yell something at them–
Kotone’s eyes widen and she immediately covers her mouth with her hand, preventing disaster before it strikes. Nien giggles against it and Kotone can feel her lips brush against her palm.
A quiet laugh of her own escapes her and Kotone thinks, not for the first time that this woman is seriously insane. She supposes that you have to be at least slightly crazy to go running this early. Wonders if she’s crazier for agreeing.
Nien gently grabs the hand over her mouth to pull it down. Startled at how close they are, Kotone moves to pull back but Nien firmly holds onto her.
Nien delicately runs a thumb over her knuckles. She leans in, brown eyes twinkling with reflections of distant stars and city lights.
So close Kotone can feel the words on her skin, she whispers, “are you ready?”
Kotone might be holding her breath, it’s hard to say really. She’s helpless as she nods, afraid to speak not knowing what might come out.
Nien beams and turns around. Fingers interlocking, she pulls Kotone into a jog.
Kotone takes a deep inhale of the crisp air and feels the rush of her body waking up. Sort of like relearning a choreography she hasn’t practiced in a while, her muscles slowly remember the right motions, her shoes hitting the pavement in a satisfying rhythm. She trails behind Nien slightly, content to let her lead the way.
In the park itself there isn’t much to see besides the sidewalk in front of them, cast in a warm glow from the streetlamps. Kotone looks beyond the river to the hazy outlines of skyscrapers, LED lights glittering in the distance. Even on a Sunday morning there is no rest for the city.
Her mind drifts towards her schedule for the week.
Dance practice for Fly Up. Review for upcoming Hatchi promotions. Christmas Alone recording. Kotone methodically outlines her mental to-do list squaring away each item into neat little boxes.
Music video in Korea. Promotions in Japan. Preparation for the next comeback, back in Korea.
Kotone pushes out a harsh exhale. The start of an ache creeps into her calves.
Here’s the thing. Kotone is no stranger to endurance challenges. She’s survived multiple seasons of Badge War, memorized a couple hundred formations for Girls Never Die alone, and don’t even get her started on the human rights violations of Girls Planet 999. Sprinting back and forth between countries and subunits with no end in sight is just the nature of the job. It would be difficult for anyone in her position.
Kotone blinks and realizes that the gap between her and Nien has widened to a couple of meters. She pulls her shoulders back, lifts her knees up, and picks up the pace.
If anyone could handle Kotone’s workload though it would probably be Nien. Former track competitor and winner. ISAC 2025 Women’s 60m gold medalist. Their group’s athletic pride and joy.
Kotone looks down to Nien’s obnoxiously pink Nikes reaching forward in long strides, striking the sidewalk at a steady tempo. Even as they jog casually her legs form neat, consistent angles.
Kotone has spent endless hours in practice rooms working on lines and footwork and groove. Moulding her body into something capable of keeping up with any beat necessary.
Right now though, Kotone doesn’t feel graceful or coordinated in the slightest. She thinks back to over a year ago, all twenty-four of them racing at a mudflat in Taean.
With her heavy breathing and sweat beginning to form in uncomfortable places, Kotone can’t help but feel like Kim Chaeyeon: dead last, embarrassment incarnate, shrieking for help as she sinks further into the mud.
Staring at Nien’s back as she takes first place.
Nien chases interviews and promotion opportunities with an eagerness that might come off as greedy or overly ambitious if not for the genuine enthusiasm infused in everything she does.
Likewise, fans and variety show offers chase her back, clamoring for her attention, for a glimpse of that brilliant smile. How could Kotone even begin to run after her, always trailing behind the rest?
“I can hear you thinking back there. It’s so loud!” Nien cranes her head so that she’s looking back at her.
Her face glows in the warm light of the streetlamps and her cheeks have turned a ruddy pink. Looking in the wrong direction Nien could easily crash into an unassuming passerby like this. Not that Kotone would let her.
“What’s that beautiful brain of yours thinking about Tone-ah?”
Kotone puffs out an exhale. “Schedules.”
“Boring!” Nien turns back and faces front.
“What else–” Kotone attempts to breathe a little quieter. “What else is there to think about?”
“I usually think about what to eat while I workout. What do you think Tone? Malatang or jjimdak?”
After some deliberation Kotone decides on jjimdak, the searing spice of malatang seeming unappealing as her skin simultaneously feels both too cold and too warm.
Nien giggles. “That’s exactly what I was thinking Tone-chan, how romantic of you.”
Kotone doesn’t need to see her face to hear the self-satisfied grin in her voice. Kotone feels the corners of her lips turn up in a slight smile of her own and huffs out a breath that’s equal parts amusement and exhaustion.
They’ve been running long enough that the sun has started to rise, liquid pinks and oranges spilling out into the sky.
“Are you feeling tired? We can take a break,” Nien says, her voice perfectly even.
The slow squeezing grip on her lungs holds a clear answer but wounded pride and something defiant pumping through her veins answers instead.
“It’s fine.” Kotone redirects the conversation to a question that’s been nagging at her.
“Why did you ask me to go running after all this time?”
Nien takes a beat to respond.
“I just– I love running, you know? And the sunrise is always really pretty as this hour.”
“I see.” Kotone doesn’t really see. Tries again: “But why did you ask me to go running?”
Nien pauses again.
Somehow, Kotone gets the feeling that she’s treading carefully with her. Nien, always the one sent out to interviews, skips around explosive questions with the agility of a professional soccer player. Kotone didn’t even realize they were in a minefield.
“You know you can always ask me to slow down,” Nien says. Each syllable is tentative but deliberate, a weight to each word.
Humiliation surges through Kotone, rising up her nape to the red tips of her ears.
“I can keep up.”
“I really don’t mind.”
Kotone grits her teeth. “I can keep up.”
Nien hums contemplatively at that. For a second, she thinks Nien might let it go.
Then–
What the hell?
Nien abruptly comes to a halt and before Kotone can react she’s crashing into her with the full force of a highway collision. Kotone reaches out for anything to find her balance, gripping Nien’s right arm as they both flail to avoid face planting into the concrete.
“Are you genuinely crazy?” A swirl of confusion and adrenaline courses through Kotone, her pulse throbbing in her skull. She lets go of Nien and takes a step back, stumbling over her own feet. Kotone feels removed from her own body as she starts to laugh at the absurdity of it all, sounding a little hysterical to her own ears.
Nien joins in, collapsing into a giggle session of her own. Something about the way Nien laughs– doubled over, her eyes crinkling with the force of her smile– makes Kotone feel warm all over.
She suddenly grips Kotone by both shoulders, almost knocking them over again as she sways unsteadily. Sweat clings to the edges of her hairline.
Kotone can feel her heart in her throat. Her entire body pulses from the exertion. Whether it has anything to do with how close Nien is standing is none of her business.
“I just don’t think you understand how running works,” Nien says, her voice laced with amusement.
“What?”
“You just don’t get it.” Nien’s lips curl, like she knows a secret.
“Well then why don’t you run with someone like Yubin?”
“Someone like Yubin?”
“Someone who can keep up better.”
Nien’s hands migrate to Kotone’s collar, lightly tugging at the worn material of her t-shirt.
“See, you don’t get it. We’re not racing Tone, we’re running,” she stresses, speaking slowly says as if explaining a concept to a five year-old. “I slow down for you, you slow down for me, and together we make it to the end.”
Kotone scoffs. “I don’t think anyone has ever needed to slow down for you.”
“You really don’t get it.”
“Well stop speaking in circles, I don’t understand–”
Nien cuts her off. “I want to run next to you. Dance next to you.” She leans into Kotone’s space, lightly squeezing her shoulders as if to emphasize her words.
“You’re so ambitious in everything you do and you work so hard.” Nien smiles. “I really like that.”
Kotone flushes at the blunt honesty.
“But sometimes, I feel like you don’t take time to slow down.” Nien pauses. “I want that,” she says, short and simple, like it’s obvious. “Slow down for me.”
Maybe it has been obvious. Kotone’s probably been too caught up in the rat race of comebacks and performances to even notice.
“Okay,” Kotone says, her voice breathless and unmoored. Her legs almost feel like they are about to give out but Nien holds her firmly in place. “Yeah, I want– I can do that.”
Nien’s expression brightens, one thousand watts of light, outshining the warm glow of the sun slowly waking up across the river. She looks around, seemingly checking to see if people are around.
Quickly, she kisses Kotone, lightly pecking her on the lips.
God, she feels dizzy. Kotone's entire world spins on its axis at the realization that this is possible. Wait, but she wasn’t ready. She’s prepared now. They should try that again–
Nien straightens up like she just remembered something important.
“Tone I’m really hungry. What did we decide on earlier?”
“Jjimdak,” Kotone answers, still dazed. She didn’t even get to kiss her back really.
Nien cheers and starts heading in the direction of some restaurant presumably, her mind already moved onto the highly important topic of breakfast. Kotone inhales, taking in the morning air and everything that just occurred. The sun continues to lazily rise above the horizon as people start to slowly filter into the park, moving like they have all the time in the world.
Nien takes Kotone by the hand and pulls her along.