Fragile | Seonghwa

6

"Sorry guys, I'm going to meet a friend now so I'll go my separate way" Yunho announces as your group is standing in front of the cafe after paying. You thought Yunho had an interest in Seonghwa, but now it's clear that he's switched to Mingi. You're curious about what the pair talked about in that first lab class. 

"That's cool, have fun!" you say, holding back a wink. He nods and bounces away, waving without turning back.

"So... does anyone live in the dorms on campus? We could walk home together" you suggest. 

"No." is all Seonghwa bluntly states, before walking away with his hands in his pockets, not even bothering to wave or say bye. "That's odd... he isn't usually like that" Hongjoong thoughtfully mutters to himself. "Anyway, Jongho and I live on campus so let's walk back together!" he adds on. You smile happily, glad you don't have to walk home alone.

You're relieved you managed to make friends, especially ones that didn't seem like snakes. Well, most of them anyway. You're not too sure if you can call Seonghwa a friend and that bothered you.

You're standing at the foot of the staircase leading to your front door as you wave goodbye to Hongjoong and Jongho. You start to make your way up, but you stop in your tracks as you hear a faint sound.

Is that music?

You know you shouldn't shove your nose into others' business, but you can't help but feel curious. You walk back down the steps and start to follow the sound. As you walk down the path, it gets louder. At this point you don't know if the loud beating sound reverberating through your body is your heartbeat or the intense bass coming from the speakers nearby.

All of a sudden, you find the source of the music. You pray silently that whoever is blasting this music doesn't mind too much. You realise you're in front of a dance studio of some sort, the front door slightly ajar. You stand outside for a while, noticing the fact that the music stops every few seconds, only to be repeated anyway. You don't even think about excuses for snooping around, too hypnotised by your interest in the contents behind the studio door.

Your hand creepily pushes the door open. Thankfully it doesn't make any noise, not that it would be audible anyway with this loud music. You slide in and close the door behind you before seeing what you never thought you'd see.

It's a man, dancing.

It's Seonghwa. 

Your breathing begins to get more shallow and rapid, panic setting in. If Seonghwa notices you, he'll be extremely displeased. You quickly come to the realisation that you can't escape without notifying him, and it's only a matter of seconds before you're discovered. So you decide to watch quietly.

His face is dripping with three things: passion, determination and sweat. You can tell he's been working hard and that he's been here a while by seeing the sweat rolling on his skin from the side of his head to his jawline. Even his top is soaking, and you feel yourself going red. You watch him dance energetically, his sharp moves keeping you mesmerised. 

"What the hell!" Seonghwa shrieks, while leaping backwards and nearly falling after noticing you.

You panic and struggle to think of an excuse, or even the truth. The only thing you manage to say is "I didn't know you danced! You're really good!" you try to lighten the mood, but Seonghwa's expression is still twisted into a frown and his face is getting redder by the second.

"How much did you see." He demands. You feel like leaping off a cliff in that moment but try to answer honestly anyway. "Only a few minutes" is the only thing you could muster. Say more than just that you scream to yourself internally.

"Why did you follow me?" He asks through gritted teeth. The music has stopped at this point and all that's left is an uncomfortable silence. His glare so filled with nothing but pure rage which makes you feel terrified. 

"I'm not lying when I say that I didn't follow you! I was going home but I heard loud music coming from here so I followed it out of curiosity and noticed that the door was open, so I entered and saw you and your dancing was so c-cool that I...s-stayed" you progressively get more and more panicked.

"Leave. And do not mention this to anyone or I'll make sure you regret it" he threatens. Suddenly you feel tired of letting Seonghwa treat you this way for absolutely no reason, and you feel a new energy pulsing through your veins.

"Why should I even listen to you in the first place? There's nothing wrong with dancing, it's not my fault you're friends with close-minded people! And why are you always so cold to me? What did I ever do to you? Park Seonghwa, stop being so childish and consider how I feel too for once" you blurt out, letting all of your feelings out into your rant.

You feel taken aback when you see Seonghwa's face change into a look of hurt. Did your words actually get to him? "Sorry" is all he mumbles, hanging his head in shame. You start to panic once again, not intending to hurt Seonghwa. You didn't expect him to take your words to heart.

"It's ok, I'm sorry for screaming at you. I should've controlled my feelings" you sincerely apologise, guilt creeping up on you. Before he says anything else, you run out of the studio as fast as you can. You feel so embarrassed that you can't tolerate standing there anymore. At this point it has already started to get dark, the streetlights starting to turn on. 

You rush through your front door and plant your face into your pillow on your bed. You groan to yourself recalling the events from earlier on in the day. Are you the only one who knows this secret of Seonghwa's? You feel so emotionally confused. You feel guilty for screaming at Seonghwa, but you also feel a bit angry at him. At the same time though, your heart flutters at the thought of Seonghwa dancing. Why is that so attractive? 

Suddenly, your phone beside you buzzes. You briefly check your notifications, expecting to see a text from Yunho, but you feel puzzled by what you see. 

New Message from XX-XXXX-XXXX