23.

23 is bright and cheeky, cheeky in more than one ways. because guess what 23 has the most pinchable cheeks ever known to my fingers. God knows my fingers are experienced in that field. 23 is very warm, adorable and beautiful, patient and hardworking. not necessarily in every day tasks but in waiting for goals and dreams and that is really admirable. 23 reminds me of who i was when i was younger, full of hope and happy to be where i was, excited at a future that seemed to shine bright and 23 does it justice. you shine like no one else does, you shine in the way you walk, talk and move and you need to know that you do. i hope you know that you do. 

23 is probably breaking and mending a lot of hearts in the world now. i am a bit over protective of that, the way 23 might attract the spotlight. i know what it is like after all, but i’ve heard you’ve had your share of the bad that there is to fame. no matter how small, no matter how big. there’s a wish to protect you from that, but not by covering your eyes, simply by being there and letting you know that it’ll never be the end of the world unless you let it be. you’re the wheel of your own destiny, got it? 

23 needs to be cherished, as everyone else, but really, really needs to be cherished. ambitions seems to run rampant with you, joy and sadness, unfortunately. you’ve lived many years to tell about, fortunately and unfortunately. but above all 23,

you’re beautiful
you’re strong
you’re wonderful
kim hyuna will always be with you. 

_{Start of the line, @misshyeona.}

_{Days were ticking by and the awaited annual occasion was to come. It seemed to approach faster this time around because of schedules that occupied her’s and her group’s previously dull days spent within the confinement of the training grounds; dull days followed by more of the same routine with the holidays set aside for other priorities, all work-related. It was different this time. This year, in general, she was looking forward to Christmas in all her zeal. Especially with her unnie, also known as her pseudo umma, taking her out to shop. Cherry on top of the sundae.}

_{The theme was ugly sweaters. Fitting for the season. She would normally do her shopping online, as what has become the most convenient with her lifestyle. What she couldn’t get at the local store, she’d find there but Jennie could not shop in the cool and perfect indifference of an air-conditioned mall. Not the way the average population would anyway. She would drink in the colors, the aromas and the atmosphere like an elixir. She pawed over fabrics and textures; thrived on interacting with the attendants, basking in the attention of each one almost a caricature of bubbly friendliness. It could be genuine, it could be the protocol to bring in the so-called holiday spirit. Something that had to be done and came along with being an employee in retail.}

_{Regardless, in humor, you could say this is a shopaholic being let out of her cage. So whichever the case was, she still enjoyed every bit of it. She’s even turning around to her companion just to exclaim, “I could do this all day,” as her fingers brush through all sorts of material, whether or not it was part of their agenda for the day. At this point, her bag’s halfway through being filled. Edging through the flow of people and it’s getting full by the minute.}

_{She comes running back to her senior, who she’s almost lost, with some options to choose from. Among the miscellaneous items that she’d picked up, one was a sweater that had Will Smith wearing a Santa hat plastered right at the center; another was the reindeer Rudolph whose nose was sticking out as a literal foam nose attached to the cloth; then there’s the striped shirt of green and white that she’d laughed at the moment she’s caught sight of because of the red sock sewn into the fabric, serving as a pocket to emulate an actual… Christmas sock. In the midst of her giggling, she asks, “So… which one do you want?”}