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Jeonghan and Seunghee arrive together at the venue the very next day for rehearsals. They directly walk to where her band is, at the corner of the stage, at the front row. And of course, everyone’s quite surprised to see him with her.

“Guys,” Seunghee greets them with a tense smile on her face.

“Anyounghaseyo,” Jeonghan greets them.

It takes the others a few moments to react. Elkie communicates solely to Seunghee using her eyes, which were widening quite a lot and Seunghee just gestures for her to keep it to herself for the moment. Dongho elbows Jonghyun, as Jonghyun is enjoying the scene, while Minhyun looks irate as hell on the side, looking at them. The fact that Seunghee arrived with him is irritating enough, but him carrying her stuff is one more outrageous thing. It makes him really mad. How can she carelessly let him carry those? Are they close enough for him to do that? They didn’t seem like it the last time he saw him and that was just a few days ago.

“Ah, Seunghee-ssi, here’s your bag,” Jeonghan puts it down beside her. “I think I’ll go to my team now.”

“Yeah sure, thanks Jeonghan-ssi,” Seunghee tells him.

Jeonghan bows to the others again before running to his group mates just at the other corner of the place. Soonyoung and Seungkwan have been there since they arrived too. And they’ve seen him arrive with Seunghee. And as Jeonghan goes, there starts the others’ burning reactions.

“Wow, you have a luggage boy now?” Dongho asks, amused.

“How come I didn’t know about this unnie?” Elkie probes, assuming something.

Jonghyun defends Seunghee though, “Guys, it’s her private life. Just let her be.” He’s just too entertained about Minhyun’s reaction that he wants to see more of how he reacts.

But Minhyun’s all silent, he’s actually waiting for Seunghee’s explanation before completely jumping into a conclusion.

Seunghee just rolls her eyes. She knows they’re gonna make a big deal out of it but she couldn’t refuse Jeonghan’s generosity. “You know how heavy this is right? (pointing to the bag) He offered so I let him. It’s as simple as that. No big deal about it guys,” though the smile on the corner of her mouth implies she’s pleased about it.

But before the others get to tease her even more about the princely neighbor, Minhyun refrains them from doing so by walking up to her and picking up her bag, “Stop with the nonsense. Now that we’re all here, let’s get everything ready. Come on guys.”

He walks ahead of them to their waiting area at the right side of the venue where their instruments are. Dongho just gestures like what the hell and Jonghyun just shakes his head. They can’t really add to the flame. They know him long enough and they know he can’t take much more infuriation than this so they follow his lead. Elkie goes over Seunghee though.

She whispers to her, “What was that about unnie? Don’t tell me you’ve been hiding things from me?”

Seunghee just sighs, “There is nothing to tell you about. Well… I guess there’s some bit.”

“Kyaa!!” Elkie exclaims still in a tiny voice. “Tell me about it later unnie. I’m all ears on you.”

“Alright, alright. But it’s not really a big deal. Yet.”

“It doesn’t matter, just tell me.”

“Okay…”

And the two girls follow the guys too.

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On the other part of the venue, Jeonghan’s being interrogated by his two dongsaengs too. They are sitting at one of the benches infront of the stage.

“So is everything ready? Are we good to go?” Jeonghan asks them.

Soonyoung and Seungkwan look at each other and start to banter their hyung.

“You sound brighter than usual today hyung,” Soonyoung starts.

“Yeah, you seem a little more enthusiastic than usual,” Seungkwan seconds. He hands Jeonghan the copy of the song’s lyrics they’re gonna sing.

Jeonghan tries his best to ignore their mockeries and just concentrate on the piece of paper but they impose on getting him to react about it.

“I think SMDJ’s performing last on today’s batch,” Soonyoung starts again.

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to see their performance,” Seungkwan adds.

“What genre do you think their band plays?” Soonyoung asks.

Seungkwan answers, “Maybe alternative. I don’t think Seunghee-ssi sings rock. You can tell she’s feminine enough for that type of genre. It can’t be rock for sure.”

“Hm... and she carries this keyboards around. It can be a little pop rock or something,” Soonyoung utters.

They sound like a comic duo aiming undeniably at him. So Jeonghan has had it, he can’t really ignore the way they’re talking about her. He’s curious himself about her type of music. “You guys. Why are you even talking about her right now?”

The two boys form little smiles on their faces as they continue to tease him.

“Aren’t you excited to see her perform? It’s your first time seeing her today right?” Seungkwan inquires.

“And why should I?” Jeonghan replies calmly, still holding on denying it.

“You know hyung, you can be a gentleman to any girl if it’s your usual nature,” Soonyoung finally points it out. “But to be a gentleman to only a certain woman is an act worth acknowledging.”

“Have you seen him help out any other woman before?” Seungkwan asks.

“I can’t remember anyone else. So that leaves only Seunghee -ssi,” Soonyoung quickly responds.

Jeonghan just sighs, “I’ll carry her things whenever I have the chance to. I like her so you guys just shut up and let’s get this done. I don’t want to make a mess infront of her.”

“Whoaa!!!!” the two boys are impressed of the way he coolly articulated how he likes her.

“You guys, really,” Jeonghan can’t hide his amusement of these two. “Isn’t it obvious enough?”

“We just don’t wanna get ahead of you hyung,” Soonyoung utters.

“So when are you gonna tell her?” Seungkwan excitedly asks.

“Ah, I haven’t thought about that. Hey! We’re in the middle of- Let’s stop talking about me. Come on you guys, we have a rehearsal to finish,” Jeonghan reprimands.

“I knew hyung has a crush on that girl,” Soonyoung intervenes.

“Shut up, Soonyoung,” Jeonghan scolds again.

From then they focus on the performance they’ll be having and vocalize for a start.

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The rehearsals start soon enough. From among the five groups, there are two bands including SMDJ and three groups, two boy groups, one’s S3 and one girl group.

S3 is the second one to rehearse. As they walk to the stage, Jeonghan glimpses at the crowd every now and then, he’s looking if Seunghee is in the crowd. But she’s nowhere to be found. Maybe they’re still readying their instruments.

Soonyoung whispers to him, “Looks like she’s not watching.”

“Yeah, maybe they’re still busy,” Jeonghan replies. “Never mind. Come on, let’s get this over with.”

He was expecting her to check him out, but maybe he’s expecting too much. Now that he thinks about it, it doesn’t really look like she’s into him, maybe she’s just being friendly.

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Seunghee and her band are still doing sound checks with their instruments on the left side of the stage. There are booths around the place and they can’t really see the stage from where they are. But they can clearly hear the loud music. And there plays an instrumental version of the song she usually hears on the radio these days, a boy group’s song.

“Is that S3?” Elkie asks and looks on the list. “Wow, they’re singing something catchy. What’s this song’s title again? Do you guys know?”

“That’s probably a boy group’s,” Dongho chuckles on it. He’s making fun of the group’s genre.

Jonghyun and Minhyun just snicker with him.

“It can’t be a girl group’s right? Or it can be,” Jonghyun adds, still tittering.

“Well it can be. They look flowery enough,” Minhyun adds, laughing along with them.

Seunghee usually jives with them on a topic like this, but this time she feels a little frustrated at how they’re mocking Jeonghan’s group. For the first time, she’s not so biased about their type of music being the superior one. So she takes the silence.

“Hey Seunghee-ya, aren’t you a little silent today?” Dongho asks.

“Your luggage boy’s performing, aren’t you gonna cheer for him as her boss?” Jonghyun utters.

Minhyun’s just watching her. He doesn’t want to see any more reaction from her. But it seems like he’s gonna get upset about it again. Cuz she’s obviously getting annoyed at them, her face says it all. She’s frowning.

“Just shut up guys. Let them do their thing. It’s not yours to concern yourselves about,” she comments while setting up her keyboards.

Dongho and Jonghyun just silently mimic her with some funny facial expressions while Minhyun is just upset once again. She’s definitely taking the neighbor’s side. It’s so damn annoying for him.

Elkie walks over her and whispers. “Hey, unnie. I’m dying to know what you’re about to tell me later.”

Seunghee whispers to her too, “Not now Elkie-ya.”

“Yes... Later.”

Her bad mood is obvious. Who thought she’ll be this affected when it comes to Jeonghan? She only learns now and it’s surprising even herself. So she likes him to this point now? She has to do something about it soon.

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“Really? Are you serious?” Elkie exclaims at her. They’re at a distance with the guys who are now watching the rehearsal of the band before them.

Jeonghan and his group are at the other side of the stage, also watching the rehearsals.

“Are you really surprised? I think I’ve been obvious enough these past few days,” Seunghee tells her.

“Well… I noticed that. But I thought it wasn’t serious. And I really want you and Minhyun oppa to end up together,” Elkie honestly tells her.

“Really now? Minhyun’s all about the band, and besides, I’ve never been attracted to him. And I think he’s never been to me either,” Seunghee responds.

“I know, but still…”

“I like Jeonghan-ssi. I can freely say it now and you’re the first person I told about it. And I don’t think I care about what they say, though I still want to keep this a secret until he finds it out himself.”

Elkie can’t help but support her unnie. She finally found someone she likes after a while. “Fighting unnie!”

“Thanks Elkie-ya.” She takes a glimpse at Jeonghan who’s watching the band carefully from the other side.

What Seunghee doesn’t know is he’s actually excited for the performance to end and watch her instead.

“Hey, hyung, they’re ready anytime,” Seungkwan tells Jeonghan after looking at the other side of the stage.

“I know. Why can’t this band just finish this song already?” Jeonghan is being impatient.

Soonyoung just chuckles. “You guys are all telling me off whenever I see Sana-ssi but now look at you hyung.”

But the two boys quickly shut him off, “You’re way overboard than this.” So Soonyoung just zips his mouth and watches the performance ahead.

Soon enough, Seunghee and her band step up the stage and get their instruments ready. She’s standing on the right side of the stage, where Jeonghan is with his friends. It makes her a little nervous. She’s finally showing him what she’s like on stage. It makes her feel a little more tensed than usual so she refrains from looking at his side for the moment.

“Fighting!!” Elkie screams at the other corner.

Hearing Elkie, Seungkwan just smiles at her gesture. She’s always the perky one and it’s cute. He wonders when he can spend a little more time with her soon? It’s been a couple of years, but he hasn’t gotten rid of his crush on her. And with the circumstances letting him meet her again, maybe it’s probably time he get to know her more for real. It’s been going on his mind for a while now. And with his hyung’s resolve to tell the girl he likes, he’ll possibly do the same. Cuz he won’t find chances better these.

Minhyun doesn’t let anything distract him except for Seunghee who looks a little more nervous than usual. He hates to think it’s because that guy Jeonghan is watching, so without further delay, he signals for them to start to get it over with.

Right then, Seunghee and Minhyun starts playing the intro and she sings.

Jeonghan is all eyes and ears on her. She’s fantastic. Her voice is so good. The song is what they expected, alternative. It’s the first time he watches her on stage and he wishes he can see more of her soon. He can’t wait.

And then the song ends.

Without even giving them time to breathe, the coordinator tells them across the sound system, “Nice work guys. This wraps up today’s rehearsals. See you on the day of the event. Thank you very much.”

Down the stage, Soonyoung reminds Jeonghan of the something, “Hyung we still have some appointment after this. We can’t be late.”

“Oh, yeah. Let’s go then,” Jeonghan replies.

Jeonghan doesn’t turn back to Seunghee on stage anymore. He might want to turn back and talk to her if he does. First things first right now. He has to take care of his career first. He will devote a lot of time for her later, once he tells her his real feelings.

Still on stage, Seunghee notices Jeonghan’s group leaving and feels a kinda upset. But she doesn’t dwell on it. They’re only acquaintances right now and she still has nothing to do with him yet. But she’ll make sure, that time will come.

For now, it’s up to their schedules to make time for both of them. But eventually, they’ll have to cuz the heart can’t be stopped.

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TO BE CONTINUED…

Published: 09/15/17