I-Doll | Choi Seungcheol

03.

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"Do you have a thing with Woozi or something?" Yuri briefly glanced at the tall silhouette of Seventeen's Kim Mingyu towering over her while she stood near the waiting rooms, adjusting her mic before the performance. Mingyu'a prominent features made him an attractive pick but his stance then suggested a different purpose. Contrary to any sort of camaraderie, the man was merely looking for an answer to his question. "Do you like Woozi?"

"Excuse me?" Yuri was surprised by the direct question with the very weird time. Minutes away from her performance, how was she to focus on such a question?

But Mingyu did not know of patience. Sighing, he walked by her while she was on standby, pressing for an answer with his position, "I'm asking if you like Woozi-hyung or not."

The stage manager called for standby just then and Yuri let her nerves take over with a few short jumps as a warm-up. She looked at Mingyu who was eyeing her suspiciously. Yuri frowned, disliking this kind of informality that Mingyu was showing. Sunbae or not, she wasn't used to answering questions on the spot. "No matter what the answer is, don't you think this is a question you should be asking me over a meal, at the least, Mingyu-sunbaenim?" She stressed the last two words to express her displeasure while remaining polite. It was the least she could do to remain respectful—a simple way of saying it wasn't his business.

Yuri turned away from Mingyu, deciding that it was the end of their conversation when she was stopped by Mingyu's grip on her arm. It wasn't tight but Mingyu's hand was bigger than hers, covering her arm in one palm. Yuri stopped and turned to look back at him. Pulling out every single bit of respect she had for him, Yuri spoke, "Leave my hand, please." Her eyes were fierce and it made Mingyu's grasp falter. Yuri took the opportunity and shook him off, walking away.

Backstage, as she put on her mic and adjusted the strap of the sound recorder, Yuri grew slightly nervous. It didn't seem right without her members somehow and standing on the stage alone, with millions of eyes on her was getting on her nerves. Promoting a solo album was difficult, a lot more lonely than she had expected. Could she do well? Alone? With no one to cheer her on? From the corner of her eye, she watched Choi Seuncheol walk in her direction.

Was he here to pester her about her relationship with Woozi-Oppa like Mingyu did? It would certainly do the opposite of cheering her on. Her nerves were bad as is, she didn't need a handsome man putting her off her game. Frowning she decided to ignore him as she took in a deep breath and focus on her performance.

"Good Luck." Her eyes opened to see Seungcheol look at her with an encouraging smile. "Believe you're the best and it will happen." His words of encouragement relieved her subconscious worry of him coming to pressure her into answering something personal.

With a nod and small smile, Yuri took S.S.Coups'sords of motivation and walked onto the stage. All of a sudden, she didn't feel lonely—she was no longer alone. If he was gonna watch, she would do well.

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Many claps followed her as she got off the stage, her skirt billowing with her every step. It had gone well just as Coups had predicted and Yuri had given one of her best performances yet. It made her so happy to receive positive applause from the audience and the backstage staff as she stepped down the stage and to where the other idols were sitting.

Choi Seuncheol too, with the rest of Seventeen, was sitting on their seats, right behind her designated area. As Yuri sat down, she felt a small tap on her shoulder and a note being passed down to her discreetly. The fans were watching them as they were sitting in public so it was best for her to not show any connection to male idols. They had to be secretive to not get caught by the gazes of many fans to avoid an unnecessary scandal.

Yuri received the note when she bowed to greet her sunbaenims before taking her seat. Silently opening it, she read it,

Join us for dinner? -Choi Seungcheol

Her heart fluttered at the sight of those curved letters. Was he asking her out? No, it couldn't be. Or could it? The note said 'us' meaning more than just Seungcheol-ssi. Yuri wondered if Mingyu would be there too. Was Seungcheol trying to patch things up or get an answer out of her regarding her Jihoon-Oppa? Was the dinner going to be uncomfortable or heart-fluttering?

Yuri was bundled up in her thoughts when someone called out for her, "—is Lee Yuri of I-Doll!" She looked up to see applause erupt from all around her and her fans screaming her name. She looked around, what was going on? She looked towards the stage and saw a trophy coming her way. Unbelieving, she stood up. Had she won?
She looked towards her manager who was crying already, nodding and asking her to go on the stage.

Yuri staggered in her place. No way. Had she won? With absolute confusion and disbelief splashed on her face, she walked up to the stage, Seungcheol's note resting within her fingers. Holding her dress with her fingers, she walked up to the person giving the award.

Hands trembling and chaos around her, she thanked the person and received the beautiful glass trophy, reading the writing on it. Daesang award. Tears crawled up to her eyes upon reading it and dribbled down her cheeks. Three group albums and one solo album just this year, ten years of waiting and dreaming all her life, Lee Yuri had finally won the Daesang for Day 1.

"I-I-I" her words were mumbled as she hid her tears with her hands, "Thank you." For some, the Daesang for Day 1 (because it was for soloists and newbies) of the three-day award ceremony may not be as important as Day 2 and Day 3 but it was completely different for Yuri. It was the happiest occasion for her in all her life. Like Woozi had said, she'd focused on her work and the result had shown. Facing the crowd, she could spot Choi Seuncheol with a proud smile on his face.

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