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Event night is full of frenzy. The crowd is unstoppable. There are people walking in and out of the concert venue and it's chaotic. Behind the scenes, the organizers do their job well. The security is tight and the event is well prepared.

The performers are getting ready by now. SMDJ is already in their waiting room, dressed and ready. Meanwhile, Jeonghan is running late, he unexpectedly woke up late and is caught up in some traffic too unluckily. He's searching for his group's room right now amidst the busy backstage. There are plenty of small room set-ups and but it's lined up in alphabetical order so it becomes easy for him to find their room. But it seems like getting the wrong room is becoming a habit, Jeonghan barges inside the SMDJ's waiting room, instead of S3's, which is just next to it.

"Ah guys, SMDJ's just beside-" he stops his words as he sees the looks on their faces.

Infront of the mirror are Seunghee and Elkie while Minhyun, Dongho and Jonghyun are standing at the back, readying their instruments. They are all eyes on him, looking at him skeptically.

"Ah! Wrong room! Sorry!" he closes the door and walks out but never forgets to get a glimpse of Seunghee who's in the middle of doing her makeup.

As the door closes, they all laugh.

"What was that?" Jonghyun says.

"What a retard," Dongho adds.

"Maybe he can't read," Minhyun ridicules.

Elkie just laughs a little more while Seunghee just sighs at it thinking, If he repeats that, I can say getting the wrong room is really his habit. But she smiles right after.

Minhyun quickly notices her sigh and of course, her smile then asks, "What's with the sigh?"

"Oh nothing," Seunghee tells him but she can't really help but remember that incident.

Minhyun is still looking at her trying to figure her out. She's too attached to him lately. It makes him tick.

"That neighbor of yours must be nervous," Jonghyun utters.

"But did you hear what he said? He said our band's name. He's probably looking out for us," Dongho points out.

"Yeah, and I think their waiting room is next door," Seunghee says in fact.

Minhyun is still fixated on the look on her face. Seunghee is delighted to see her neighbor excessively. She is in fact more than glad. She sees him before the performance and that is enough to make her even more motivated to give it her all.

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Jeonghan walks inside S3's own waiting room scratching the back of his head and murmuring. "Ah, what an idiot..."

Soonyoung and Seungkwan look at him as he talks to himself.

"What happened to you hyung?" Soonyoung asks.

"Ah, never mind. Let's just get ready," he replies.

"We are ready hyung," Seungkwan corrects.

"Then just help me get ready!" he tells them.

The two boys just look at each other and assist the already agitated hyung to get all set. But in the midst of being partly irritated, Jeonghan secretly smiles to himself. He got a glimpse of Seunghee and that's worth the blunder after all.

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One by one, the guest artists perform. Right now, SMDJ comes a few bands before S3. They've been informed before coming today of the lineup and they're all up. It's the first time these 26 rookie bands and groups gather together for an event like this. Everyone is jumpy. They're all hoping for better stages after this. It's a rumble between boy/girl groups and bands. After a group is a band then a group and so on. It's actually a chaotic night.

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Their band is up next. Seunghee is nervous and her band mates too. Minhyun is calm but his eyes are wavering, Dongho is fidgety and Jonghyun is smiling like crazy. Elkie is also tensed on the side. She holds Seunghee's cold hands and hers are even colder it makes Seunghee giggle.

"Elkie-ya, your hands are colder than mine," Seunghee utters.

Elkie sighs and says, "I'm really nervous unnie. This is your first performance with a large crowd like this. I really hope they like the music you're making."

"Don't think about it too much. We can't please everybody. But I know, there will be some who'll greatly appreciate the hard work we've put into our music. It's gonna be alright."

Elkie just nods and in no time, their time is up. Seunghee, Minhyun, Dongho and Jonghyun step up the stage as the emcee calls their name.

""Next act is an indie band who's been around for a couple of years now. It's their first big stage today so be prepared to be captivated! It's SMDJ!""

An acceptable amount of cheers and applause can be heard from the crowd. Seems like their regular customers in the restaurant are there to support them. They all face the mob now while readying their instruments and Seunghee holds the mic-stand with the keyboards at her front as she gazes forward.

Jeonghan is standing near the stage. He hasn't gotten the chance to even say hi to her today. It's a shame. So right now, he's all eyes on her. He can tell the difference. She's different from when she's rehearsing or just purely being his neighbor. Right now, she's captivating. She has since stolen his attention the moment she set foot on stage.

They're ready and at Minhyun's prompt, the music begins. Seunghee starts to play her keyboards and sings.

"[Song - Brighter - Against the Current]
It's a brand new day, it's never too late to start"

There is complete silence as Seunghee continues to sing the lyrics.

"Can't live this life with an empty heart
Every single time that we lay it on the line
It's a rollercoaster ride for one
When you know it's do or die
And we're running out of time
We've gotta give it all we've got, all we've got
I want something more a life worth fighting for
I don't need a reason to set the world on fire
And burn a little bit brighter now
There's something beautiful hiding in the shadows
So set the world on fire, let's burn a little bit brighter now..."

After the chorus, there starts the crowd screams and they follow the rhythm by clapping their hands together. Elkie brightens up at last, and the band's morale also rise a bit. They're finally reaching out to the audience. Seunghee sings the rest of the song a little bit more proud now. They've achieved a nice reaction from the crowd, it's an accomplishment.

Jeonghan is impressed, not just because she's flawless in singing but her song is equally as great as her. It's only his second time hearing it but he's getting addicted to it now. He's getting more and more drawn to her. It's inevitable.

Performance level? 101%. Seunghee ends the song with fascination and passion. Minhyun, Dongho and Jonghyun execute the same. It's a success. The crowd's participation is momentous for the band. They couldn't ask for more. After bowing all together, they leave the stage with smiles on their faces. Seunghee finally sees Jeonghan clapping at the corner of the stage. And it adds to her satisfaction.

Backstage, the band group hugs for real this time. This stage is a feat for all of them.

"Let's have more stages like this in the future," Minhyun, as the leader, utters proudly.

"Yeah!!" they all shout.

Every one of them has incomparable smiles on their faces. It's a night they have to celebrate. But for a moment, Seunghee remembers Jeonghan. She wishes him and his friends well. She'll give him her support later, like he gave her his.

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It's S3's stage and Seunghee can't believe her eyes. It's not her thing, but the way Jeonghan dances makes her knees weak. She's confused as to what it is, but she's really hooked. She's watching at the side near the stage and she's overwhelmed. She has her hands on her chest as her heart beats like a drum it might explode. This can't be, she has to calm down. But she can't take her eyes off him.

Unfortunately, Jeonghan can't see where she is. It's a little dark on the side with the spot light on them. But he's sure he saw her coming out from backstage before they perform. It's a pity that he can't see her, but he's sure she's watching so it doesn't make him feel any less inspired.

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After the S3 performance, Seunghee and her band with Elkie sit with the other performers on their allotted part of the seat plan. Jeonghan and his friends have also sat down a few tables away from them but they can see each other perfectly.

Seunghee sits infront of the group. They're watching the performers after them and just having a good time. Just behind her is Minhyun who's been watching her all this time. He's staring at her back, at the back of her neck precisely. She has her hair tied up and she's wearing a simple sleeveless dress she changed into after their stage. It's not all that revealing or anything but the way he looks at her says a lot about what he's feeling.

He can't help it so he draws closer to her and suddenly pulls the tie off her hair.

She turns to him surprised and annoyed at the same time, "What are you doing?! You ruined my hair and it's kinda hot in here!" she exclaims.

"Don't put it up again. It doesn't suit you. And refrain from putting your hair up," he tells her, averting his eyes every now and then. He even puts the hair tie in his pocket.

"Ah! You'll have your day Minhyun-ah!" she just cries at him.

Seunghee can only try to fix her hair in frustration while Minhyun just sighs at himself. Lately, he notices himself. He's meddling too much on her affairs. And he's acting really biased when it concerns her. He knows it himself that he likes her. And it's growing where he can't control it anymore. So he decides himself that he has to tell her soon. Despite having drawn the borderline between band members, he's the first one who crosses it. And he doesn't really care anymore.

Elkie, Dongho and Jonghyun all saw what Minhyun did and they can only deduce one thing. Change is coming.

Apparently, Jeonghan has seen Minhyun pulling off Seunghee's hair tie too. He somehow feels vexed about it. They're close enough that he can do that to her and annoy her big time like she is right now. He watches as Seunghee seems like jabbering her complaints at him with a maddened face. And it makes him feel even more exasperated than before.

Soonyoung notices the grimace on his face and elbows him saying, "Hey, hyung, what's wrong?"

He looks down on his feet trying to ease his anger, "Nothing. It's nothing."

But it's obviously something, even Seungkwan can see that look on his face. But the two boys just glance at each other and let it go. Right then the girl group 16 comes up the stage and Soonyoung automatically applaud the beautiful girls. One of the girls is his long time crush Sana and he's her number one fan.

"16 jjang!" he exclaims.

The music starts and Soonyoung's attention focuses on her alone. Seungkwan can't help but laugh at him secretly. While Jeonghan is still absorbed in his dilemma. He glances at Seunghee every now and then and still grits his teeth at the thought.

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TO BE CONTINUED...

Published: 09/22/17