Before Her Very Eyes

Chapter 12

4 years ago...

Arin and Minghao held hands when they entered the concert hall, like couples do. They were finally together.

Both of their hearts were beating fast. They were together, and they were going to see Chilli. It was wonderful and exciting and made their heart race.

Finally. When the concert began, it felt like magic.

It was like Arin was being lifted into a supernatural realm. The magic coursed through her body, and it was transforming her, elevating her, kneading her body and soul into one. Arin would sing and yell the fanchant at the top of her lungs. "Choi Seungcheul. Jeon Wonwoo. Kim Mingyu. Choi Hansol."

She could see them up close with her binoculars. How they danced and how they moved. How the sweat formed on their bows. How their outfits accentuated their perfect features. How they smiled when they heard their names.

She loved screaming out their names.

She started to cry when it came time for S.Coups solo part, so much so that the tears blurred her binoculars. She just loved him so much. She wanted to scream his name and make him feel that love. She wiped her eyes and used her hands to project her voice so that he could feel that love.

"Choi Seungcheol!"

Within seconds, the curse took its first victim.

-

Arin was rushing down the stairs to clean the lobby when she heard Chilli music coming from the apartment on the eighth floor. She stopped and listened, a little surprised to know that the tenant listened to Chilli. He seemed like the kind of person that hated idol groups and only listened to obscure indie music or something.

Like any fangirl, she was happy to hear her favorite group being appreciated by others. It made her happy. She put down her cleaning equipment and just stood there, listening.

Unfortunately for her, that was exactly when the tenant decided to open the door.

Arin froze when she saw him.

It looked like he expected her.

"It's you," the tenant said, crossing his arms and leaning casually against the door frame. "The clumsy hostage named Arin that freaks out every time she sees me. Are you going to run away again?"

"I..." Arin didn't know what to say, so she just began picking at the skin around her nails again.

"That's a bad habit," he said, pointing with his chin at her hands. "Find a new coping mechanism that doesn't hurt your body."

Arin felt self-conscious and dropped her hands to the side. Her eyes were glued to the floor.

"Well... what are you waiting for? Run away. Won't your big bad rude boss yell at you if he sees you?"

Arin hesitated and then quickly bent to pick up her bucket of cleaning equipment to flee. Her nerves made her drop the bucket, and the supplies in it scattered.

She immediately began collecting them again, not daring to look up and see him laugh at her, but instead he knelt down and helped her put the things back in her bucket.

"Thank you," she managed to tell him, bowing slightly, eyes still glued to the floor.

"Why do you let people control you?" he suddenly asked before she had the chance to turn and continue down the stairs. "Your boss is an absolute dick, and your long-haired roommate with a knife is acting like some over-protective mom with trust issues. Even Meemo seems to have a way of manipulating you, and she's a cat for crying out loud! You're too easy."