We exit the shopping complex and stand on the wide sidewalk that lines Orchard Road, and I feel that same sense of disorientation that you get after an afternoon movie. Only this time, instead of going from a dark theater to the bright daylight, it’s the opposite—after the neon lights of the plaza, I’m shocked to find that the sky is streaked with pink and purple and the sun has nearly set. Leah checks the time. “Should we start heading back now? The girls will kill me if I miss our practice.”

I can’t believe it’s already been three hours. “Yeah, we should go,” I agree, but I can’t hide the regret in my voice. It feels so good to just be out and about, exploring the city. Our night out feels like it was way too short.

“Or… I can head back first, and you can enjoy some more solo shopping time,” Leah says. She grins. “I can tell by your face. You have the Rachel’s-still-in-it furrow.”

“Ugh, I do not have a furrow!” I swat her playfully, then hesitate, rubbing smooth the supposed furrow in my forehead while looking wistfully down Orchard Road. “You sure you’re okay to go back on your own?”

“Of course. It’s like a ten-minute walk back to the hotel.” Leah blows me a kiss and says, “Just don’t party too hard without me, okay?”

I laugh and blow her a kiss back, waving as she heads toward the hotel. Wow. When’s the last time I got to hang out by myself like this? Sure, I travel around the world for work, but I’m always surrounded by my groupmates, a security team, and usually a DB exec or two. Being on my own in a foreign city, no less, is kind of exhilarating.

Just then my phone buzzes with a Kakao message.

Are you in Singapore right now?!

For a second I’m startled, checking behind myself for someone lurking. But it’s just my group chat with the Cho twins, my best friends since middle school. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if the twins were here. They’re both always jet-setting for their jobs, Juhyun to different fashion and beauty events (she took her YouTube channel full-time) and Hyeri to various conferences about eco-friendly engineering and design practices (she’s working as an engineer for Molly Folly, her family’s makeup corporation).