Backstage | Kwon Soonyoung

23.

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"Take off your clothes."

Mina looked up from the silk jacket pocket she had her face buried into, pulling herself away from him, shocked by his words. "What? Are you insane?" She was grateful that he'd saved her from the media banging on their door just a few inches away but that didn't mean she trusted him. And she was certainly not taking off her clothes!

Min Seuk frowned like he was asking for the obvious, "Strip, Mina. Hurry up."

"No fucking way," Mina spoke, cursing without regret. She wasn't as polite as directors of her stature needed to be but she believed it was all justified in this situation. "Touch a hair on my body and I will make sure you'll cry in pain every time you visit the bathroom." Even if Min Seuk was crazy in love with her, she didn't really think he was the type to do this.

"Ouch." Min Seuk whispered at the sound of it. "That's not what I meant, Mina-yah." Pulling out a bag of clothes and a cap, he handed it to her, "I was asking you to put this on so we can sneak away from the media."

Mina stared at the black hoodie and jeans as she realised. He'd come prepared not to make the best of the situation but to help her, "Oh."

Min Seuk sighed, "Just put it on."

::

Soonyoung pushed his phone down to ignore the paparazzi or any calls that came his way. He didn't want to talk to anyone, not the company, not his members and certainly not reporters until he could get his eyes on Mina's safety. He was thankful he'd spoken to Jihoon before calling Mina, who had ushered Soonyoung out the back door while nobody was watching, just so he could find his girlfriend.

Tapping at the horn for the twentieth time, stuck in an after-work rush, Hoshi grumbled to himself. Nothing was moving on the damn road and he was getting worried. This was the worst for Mina, he knew, considering her name was trending everywhere at #1 right above Seventeen and Hoshi.

But by the time Soonyoung reached the VIP exit, he realised he'd been too late from the way the reporters were lurking around, searching for her. Pulling his hoodie over his head, Hoshi turned the car out of there, a new worry in mind.

If they didn't have her, where was she?

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"So that's who your boyfriend is? A celebrity?" Min Seuk tried sparking a conversation, with his back to Mina as she changed into the clothes he'd brought her.

Mina looked at him, suspiciously. "So, what if he is?" She asked, putting on a shirt. No matter how nice he acted, she had a hard time trusting Min-Seuk. If he could drug her drink, he was capable of anything.

"Nothing." Min-Seuk contemplated turning before realising she might kill him if he tried to peek. "I'll back off. I have no intentions on hitting on a taken woman."

"Oh." For the second time that day, Mina was surprised. When had Min Seuk been so nice and understanding? When she was done changing, she spoke, "You can turn around now."

Watching a confused Mina, Min-Seuk shrugged, "I really like you, I do. But I have some morals. I just didn't think you'd go for a guy like... Him." If he wanted to act innocent, Mina wasn't stopping him. She needed the least drama as possible in a situation like this. But that's when it struck her,

"What do you mean 'like him?'"

Min-Seuk smiled softly, "You know, celebrities. When we talked at the bar the first time we met, you said you were the type who liked things clear cut, no drama, no problems. You said you had so little interest in the entertainment industry that you didn't even remember anyone's names." He shrugged as Mina thought about it. He wasn't entirely wrong.

"You said this job was just a stepping stone to when you get to make your own documentary... Where did that girl go?" Min-Seuk looked at her hands, "Dating a man like Hoshi, are you sure you didn't walk to drama by yourself? Didn't you see this coming?"

"I—I don't know."

"He's the type to stand on the stage with the lights, cameras and all eyes on him. Hoshi lives in the spotlight like he's made for it, Mina. You like being behind the camera, observing, editing, directing. Your place isn't beside him, it's backstage."

::

"Hoshi? Where are you?!" Soonyoung heard Coups yell into the phone the moment the call connected, "Get back home, everyone's worried!"

Soonyoung sighed, "I can't hyung. I can't find Mina. I went to her workplace to pick her up but she's nowhere. Not even the media knows where she is or who she's with. If they don't have her, someone does. And I have this feeling something has gone horribly wrong. Something worse is about to happen."

"Get back home. If the media doesn't have her, she's found a way to escape." Seungcheol spoke, calming himself. "Get back home and we'll find a solution together."

Soonyoung shook his head. He knew Seungcheol cared more about the members than the company but this was beyond his reach. "If I come back, I won't be able to leave, hyung. You know that more than anyone."

"Where will you go then? Everyone's after you two. If the media hasn't found Mina, they'll look for you next. You can't give them what they want on a silver platter." Coups tried his best to convince him, "Come back home, Hoshi-yah."

He wanted to. Hoshi wanted to go back and let someone handle this for him. It was too confusing, too worrisome and he wasn't sure if he could handle it. He knew nothing of scandals and how to get out of it. But there was one thing he knew. It was Mina. She was somewhere out there with no one to depend on, with no friend in the city, no one to back her up. Regretfully, Hoshi cut the call before saying,

"I'm sorry, hyung."

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