Decoupled • KTH ✔

Chapter 17

Taehyung

Me:
I miss you, Maya.

Maya:
I miss you too, Taehyung

Maya:
Drop by any time you're free, okay?

Me:
I will, for sure.

The theater falls silent, but my heart doesn't calm down. Before my thoughts could wander off elsewhere, a teacher walks up on to the stage with the spotlight falling on her figure, and she announces the commencement of the program.

Me:
I'll talk to you later

Maya:
Sure, take care 🥰

Me:
You too

Powering off the display, I slip my phone inside the trouser pocket and divert my gaze to the stage where the curtains slowly move aside revealing a group of dainty little dancers standing in a formation that resembles a butterfly.

The first two performances end quickly after which Areum's group tiptoes on to the stage in a straight line, each little dancer holding on to the shoulders of the dancer in front of them. It takes me about a minute to identify my daughter since almost all the girls are of the same height and weight, and they're all dressed identically in powder pink tutus.

However, once I spot her, I move to the edge of my seat and watch how she dances so gracefully. Her pirouettes that she keeps talking about all the time are on point, and the way she leaps and balances are all so picture-perfect, and my heart really beams and brims with pride and happiness.

It takes everything in me not to clap, whistle and hoot once their performance ends.

Once the girls leave the stage, I keep my eyes fixed on the exit door to try and spot Jang-Mi, and soon enough I see her heading towards the door.

Rising from my seat, I quickly jog down the long gallery steps and reach the exit door too and follow her down the backstage hallway where she's walking towards Areum's dressing room.

"Jang-Mi," I call out while running up to her, making her halt and whip her head around.

When I reach her, panting and trying to catch my breath, she turns around to look at me with her hands crossed under her chest and her head tilted to one side, her face sporting a look of total annoyance.

"So, you remembered? I'm surprised," she comments sarcastically, and my eyes lift to look at her.

Barely remembered.

"Of course, I did. Look, let's talk about everything later. Areum wants us to stay till Keira's dance ends. So let's go bac-" she waves her hand in front of my face, indicating that I should stop talking.

"She's been telling that to me as well. But I have lots of other things to take care of. I hope you know that lunch doesn't get prepared on its own," she scoffs in an annoyed manner.

"We'll have lunch outside. I promised her that we would stay till the show ends. So let's not break that," I try to convince her.

"You promised? So then you live up to it. I'm leaving now, and you will pick her up and drop her home. She just recovered from a stomach bug, and she can't eat outside. I don't care if you come back home or not, but I'm leaving right now," she pushes me out of her way and storms down the hallway and disappears from my sight.

I sigh in defeat as I run a hand through my hair and turn around to both sides to make sure that no one witnessed the scene that just happened here—luckily no one did.