8D - NCT U

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It hadn't been long since Nina last saw the dance practice of NCT U's Make A Wish. But she was fascinated. Enchanted almost. By Lucas's beauty. And Jaemin too. And Jaehyun. The whole group really. Something about the way their bodies moved, almost being controlled by the music and yet somehow having control over her since then.

Nina shuddered for the fourth time listening to Mark's delicious vocals on the recent episode of SuperM's variety show. She watched as his lips moved to the melody his fingers played on the piano. He can rap, sing, dance, play the piano. How perfect can he be?

Nina shuddered again. Only this time it was because she felt a hand ghost over the small of her back. Her head whipped around just as her left earphone was pulled out.

"What are you watching?"

It was Kim Hana. Nina's best friend of 8 years. She was the only one that knew of Nina's guilty pleasures of listening to NCT's music as if they were the only religious verse that mattered.

"NCT," Nina said sheepishly.

Hana puffed her lips out. "Again? Aren't you going to pay attention during today's assembly? I worked really hard for it you know."

Nina gave a quick sweep of the auditorium. Students had started filing in, the noise suddenly deafening to her. It was an arts assembly that day and Hana, being the student body president, had been toiling away for months to plan this supposedly "life-changing" assembly. Her words.

"Okay okay. I'll pay attention. I know how hard you worked for it."

"You better. If I catch you even sneaking a glance at your phone I'll make sure to expose just how much you love NCT," Hana said with a smirk, her hand on her hip.

Nina's eyes widened. It was almost embarrassing for her if people found out. She was the opposite of Hana. Hana loved being the center of attention, she was extroverted and bubbly and never ran out of things to talk about even if she was meeting someone for the first time. She was an open book. Not one secret to be kept.

Nina... well, she was the opposite. Nina enjoyed being behind the scenes. She was more of the kind to leave the talking to Hana.

"Please don't expose me like that. I don't want any attention on me. You know that," Nina huffed, tugging on Hana's sleeve with a pleading look in her eyes.

"I'm kidding. Or am I?"

Nina playfully slapped her arm and they both laughed.

"Okay. I have to go get ready. Before assembly starts go and listen to NCT Dream's Boom in 8D. It's like, life changing."

8D? Nina had never heard that before but her fingers soon quickly flew over the keyboard, typing the words faster than her brain could process. She plugged in her earphones and pressed play.

You know that feeling when the roller coaster dips and your stomach lurches? That was how Nina felt. She was left breathless at the sheer aura of the music. The music had been amplified, leaving her eardrums painfully in pleasure. She could hear every detail of the backing track, the way the bass drums to the rhythm of her heartbeat, or the way the vocals shine through. Her eyes widened as she looked around desparately, feeling almost as if they were right there with her.

She was only greeted with the dimming lights of the auditorium as she watched everyone settle down. Assembly was starting. She should be stopping the music. But her fingers moved before she could stop herself. She was already clicking on the next 8D video.

Sorry Hana.

She closed her eyes and let herself drown in the sheer bliss of having Doyoung serenade in her ears. Her heart felt full just by listening. She let the corners of her lips lift and soon she was smiling.

She ignored the harsh taps on her arm. Her classmate was probably trying to stop her. She knew assembly was starting. She just didn't care. Not at the moment.

Nina lost track of time, letting autoplay do its thing. It wasnt until she felt her left earphone get pulled out again that she finally opened her eyes and turned.

To say she was shocked would be the understatement of the century. Nina's jaw dropped as soon as she laid eyes on him. He smiled, pinching her chin slightly to close her jaw.

She blinked once. Twice. Thrice. He was real. He really was. And here he was, putting the earphone into his own ear and that was when she noticed how incredibly close he was to her. She could feel his warmth radiating off his lean figure as he smiled at her, showing off the pristine set of teeth that lined perfectly behind a pair of plump lips.

"I heard you like listening to us. How about you listen to us live instead of sticking to 8D?" Mark said. Mark. Mark from NCT. Mark.

Nina's heart was flipping, her stomach was doing somersaults and a thousand thoughts filled her head.

Her head immediately whipped to look at the stage as she saw a few members of NCT on stage. Jaehyun, Jaemin, Lucas and Winwin.

"Wow," Nina breathed, absolutely captivated by the breathtaking visuals busking in the spotlight shining on them.

She heard a low chuckle from her right as she turned to see Mark's shoulders bounce from seeing her reaction.

"C'mon. Pay attention will you? You promised your friend Hana didn't you?"

Nina's attention fell on the small girl standing next to the taller idols. A knowing smirk branded on her face.

×××

Hana watched as the lights dimmed.

It's showtime.

She took her place on stage as the spotlight shone on her. She was doing this for her best friend. She knew how much she liked NCT and she couldn't wait to see the reaction on her face.

Hana politely welcomed NCT on stage and the auditorium burst into a thunderous applause. Pride bloomed in her chest as she metally gave herself a pat on her back for managing to bring about such an enthusiastic response. That is until her eyes searched the crowd and landed on her best friend. Eyes closed, earphones plugged in.

Annoyance replaced the pride she previously felt as she huffed into the microphone.

"I know most of you are excited to see NCT here but for those who are too precoccupied," she glanced at Nina. The classmate next to her tapped her arm furiously, to no avail. "at least be respectful."

No response from Nina. She sighed.

"What's wrong?" Mark whispered.

"My best friend promised me she would pay attention but she's obviously not."

Hana was aware of the hushed whispers that have begun to fill the auditorium. Mark smiled and pointed.

"That's her right? The one with earphones? I'll handle it."

Before Hana could protest he skipped a few steps to jump off the stage and moved over to Nina, the action earning a few squeals from the audience.

Hana saw it all. From the look of shock, to confusion and then pure happiness as Mark smiles at Nina. And then Hana and Nina made eye contact.

Hana smirked.

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