𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝟐𝟒 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬

{Chapter 18: The Makeup Artist}

"Oh! You must be Tomorrow X Together!" 

Ms. Chae greets the five guys almost immediately after we step out of the elevator. She introduces herself, while I keep quiet. My own thoughts were blocking Ms. Chae's words, so when she goes silent, I already forgot what they were talking about.

She turns to me. "This is—"

But she was cut off by Soobin's sudden moves. He takes a step forward and does something I least expected. He wraps his arms around me, tightly. My feet are glued to the ground and I can't move or breathe. I stay still to keep the tears at bay. How I wish I could stop time this very moment. I wish I could tell him how much I miss this... how much I miss him.

I catch a whiff of the perfume. So it really was him. He pulls back and I look away so I won't see his eyes. I see the shock, a bit of confusion, in Ms. Chae's face. She turns to the other guys, but their expressions were still. Almost sad, in my opinion. He snaps me out of my daze when he calls my name.

"I-I'm sorry, this isn't very professional of you." I try my best to speak Korean in a foreign accent. I will my face to look confused and it breaks my heart to see the sadness in his face. As much as it hurts me, I brush his arms off of me. "Well, there's no time for that. Your show is about to start in two hours and you guys barely finished hair and makeup."

Ms. Chae nods in agreement. "R-Right! Off to the dressing room!"

Another girl, who I think is the chief make-up artist, guides the boys to a room. Soobin doesn't move an inch. She gently holds his wrist, and when she does, Soobin turns to her and smiles sadly. He follows her towards the dressing room. Once they're out of sight, I break down to a silent cry, freeing the tears I've been holding in for so long.

"Are you alright?" Ms. Chae whispers with alarm in her voice. "Was that— Is he the...?"

I nod, a sob escaping my lips. She frowns and offers me a handkerchief. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know... Do you still want to...?"

"Of course." I nod again. I wipe under my eyes and my cheeks, and sniff. "I'm here because of work. I promise this won't happen again. I won't get my feelings in the way. Let's go?"

That moment I begin to rethink my relationship with the universe. Do they have a problem with me? Why out of all places, out of all K-Pop Groups, send me here? Why universe, why?

"Which shirt was it again?" Hueningkai's voice snaps me back into real life. I hand him the hoodie with green and yellow stripes. 

"Thank you! I'm glad to see you again."

I look over my shoulders, my heart squeezing at the sight of the makeup artist and Soobin together. She holds a brush near his forehead-- their faces so close. I want to sew my eyes shut.

"Her name is Yu-cheol." A voice speaks up beside me. It's Beomgyu, greeting me with his sparkly eyes. I couldn't help but smile. "You didn't really forget about us, did you?"

"Of course not." I giggle. Then I sigh. "No matter how hard I try, you five dorks just won't leave my mind."

I hand him an orange button-up and a white shirt with orange and yellow paint splashes. I almost forgot the orange headband. "Here, I know how much you love wearing these."

I quickly finish handing out and helping with their outfits, but Ms. Chae suggests that I go with them to the studio in case of wardrobe malfunctions or touch ups. I say yes, of course, trying not to look or sound affected.

We reach a huge studio, with large screens taking up the majority of the stage. They flash images with the words TXT, CROWN, and Blue Orange... something. I turn to the guys, who are admiring the set up with awe. I'm sure to them this feels surreal.

"I want to be able to write my own songs, sing them even— I just want to show the whole world what I'm capable of." He looks up at the ceiling. "You think I could become a celebrity?"

His voice echoes back into my mind. I don't want to admit it, but if I liked Soobin, it's because of these tiny informations he entrust only to me. Even the itty-bittiest thing makes my heart flutter. Maybe because thinking that he trusts me means a lot to me. I think that's the how he makes me fall... made me fall in love with him... But that was three years ago.

"Hi." 

A small voice speaks up behind me. I turn to see the makeup artist. Now that I see her up close I notice that she's shorter than me by a few inches. She also has short hair, but somehow she manages to make an oversized shirt and a pair of leggings girly. I try not to look shocked when she says my name. She introduces herself. "I'm Kim Yu-cheol. But you can just call me by my first name."

I smile politely and turn back to the stage. She still won't leave my side. "You know, Soobin mentioned a lot about you..."

My ears immediately perk up. I face her again. "He did?" I shock myself when I notice the surprised tone in my voice. I clear my throat. "What did he say?"

She looks up to think, a habit she probably got from Soobin. "I couldn't keep track, maybe later. You'll join us for the celebration, right?"

"I don't know... I'm a little tired from all the travel."

"But it's their first show." She insists. I could see the hope and desperation in her eyes, which gets me a little confused. If she and Soobin were so close, why would she want me there? She asks. "Please?"

I sigh in defeat. I force a smile. "Fine, I'll go."