CUPIDS CHOKEHOLD. NCT

048

"jae just texted me, he said he'll be here in a minute. are you ready?"

jungwoo and nari had just finished getting ready for the day while blasting a few françoise hardy songs to get into the mood. jungwoo had decided to dress formally yet also casually so he'd put on a white button up, black trousers and a black coat on top. nari was wearing a black a-line off shoulder dress that reached down right above her knees. the dress had also a black ribbon right by her bellybutton. her hair was wavy and shed also put on some light makeup.

the two made sure the cats had food and then quickly left her apartment and ran down the stairwell. they didnt have to wait long before jae showed up with his car. they got in to the back and sat down next to lucas with jaehyun driving and yuta sitting on the passenger seat.

"so jungwoo, hows life living with that one." jaehyun asked while gesturing towards nari.

"weird. shes always licking her phone screen while watching hange and yelena edits on instagram, she never wears pants, she forced me to learn the torture dance from some anime called jojo, all of her neighbors hate her because she blasts annoying music on full volume, i dont know if yall have ever heard her laugh but its terrifying and the worst part is that she always watches weird videos w her headphones in the middle of the night while im trying to sleep and she just randomly starts laughing and i swear i cry every time."

"oh come on my laughs not that bad."

"it is nari, it really is."

they arrived to the city theatre and took the opportunity to take a smoke while waiting for the others to arrive. johnny was supposed to pick sicheng, doyoung, taeyong and ten up while donghyuck was taking mark with him on his bike. aera didnt need anyone to come pick her up since her dorm wasnt far away and riko and riyu were obviously already there.

donghyuck and mark were the first ones to pull up to the theatre after jae and the others. they parked his motorbike and made their way towards the others. "ayo whats up guy- NARI YOURE WEARING A DRESS" hyuck ran up to the girl and threw himself onto her, squeezing her in a tight hug. "i never knew this day would come oh my god youre so pretty i might seriously cry."

she raised an eyebrow and awkwardly let her arms dangle by her sides before slowly making their way up to his waist, hugging him back. "right,"

the others looked at each other in confusion while mark shook his head, feeling second hand embarrassment for the youngest.

hyuck eventually let go of her and scratched the back of his neck, awkwardly chuckling. "yeah so anyways happy late birthday yuta."

"yeah thanks."

johnny and the others eventually showed up as well as aera. all the guys were basically wearing something fancy while aera was clad in a black lace crop top and a black skirt along with a coat. they finally made their way into the beautiful old building. they walked into the actual room with all the seats and the stage. it wasnt the biggest theatre in the world or anything but it was pretty huge and there were a lot of seats. they decided to sit in the middle. donghyuck shoved past lucas and sat down next to nari who was sitting beside aera.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE JAEMIN JENO REN TARO AND YANGYANG DOING HERE??"

"i think jaemin has a sister who goes to your school so theyre just probably here to watch her perform."

"oh yeah right sorry i forgot about jaehee. god renjun looks so hot with his white turtle neck, black coat and glasses im getting seriously turned o- OW NARI WHYD YOU DO THAT??"

the show had begun and the crowd went completely quiet as the principal of the school started talking. the first ones out were some violinists who were playing together. another violinist walked on stage as soon as the others were done, along with a pianist who was there for accompaniment. the piece he was playing was called "zigeunerweisen" by pablo de sarasate. nari leaned in close the hyuck and whispered, "who is that?"

"thats kang joohyuk. hes probably one of the most talented people at our school so im not surprise he got a solo."

all the people performing were really talented and a lot of the performances hit really hard in the heart due to the amount of passion put into all of it. riko was playing cello with a few other people and everyone in their group was really surprised to see how talented she was even though she didnt get to perform alone. she also looked really pretty while playing her instrument.

after all the instruments and singers, it was finally time for all the dancers. the ballerinas were the first ones to perform, riyu being one of them. she had dyed her hair dark which was surprising since they all remembered her with blonde hair. you could really see that she had been practicing a lot. her dancing was beautiful and she was one of those dancers who made it all seem really easy.

nari noticed hyuck looking around a lot during all the performances and especially when that hyunjin guy was on stage. she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as he slowly stood up and gave her a smile. "i'll be right back, ok?"

she waited for a minute after he left but stood up and walked out to the hallway leading to the toilets. she couldnt find him at first but noticed the sound of someone playing bike race on their phone. she saw him sitting on the ground with his phone in his hands so she walked over to him and slid down the wall to sit next to him. "hyuck are you ok?"

"yo donghyuck,"

the two looked up to see where the voice came from. renjun was standing in front of them with his hands shoved into his pockets and his lips pressed together into a straight line. "you saw her too?"

"saw who?"

"you know who, i could literally see you staring at her."

"why were you looking at me, still got a crush?"

"jesus fuck why are you so annoying?"

"i dont know but you didnt mind while you were dating me for five months."

"dont remind me it makes me wanna puke."

"aw come on ren its embarrassing how into me you were."

"you were the one who cried when we broke up. thats embarrassing."

the two continued to bicker when a girl with long black hair, ring snake bites, a nose stud and black button up halfway tucked into her black jeans showed up from around the corner. both hyuck and renjun shut their mouths when they saw her and the tension grew thicker and thicker for every second that passed.

"hey sunflower."

♡