𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 ✓

Chapter 19

HE stared at the plain walls of the studio with sharp, focused eyes while his body began moving. Rhythmically. Smoothly. He bent his back and moved his legs with grace, his eyes still fixated on the mirrors that were placed on the walls.

The floor squeaked beneath him at the pressure of his shoes. A sound that calmed him down and made him close his eyes, his body still moving gracefully and rhythmically in front of the mirrors. He could see his movements, and he was almost satisfied with the outcome of practicing for the past few days.

Almost.

Thoughts of his past crossed his mind. Painful, unnecessary thoughts.

He continued to dance, his heart aching with worry.

The thought of his father telling him that he wasn't good enough.

And the fact that he thought so too.

Maybe he wasn't that good of a dancer, after all, was he?

Or a rapper? Singer?

He sighed, his breath hitching and his chest heaving up and down.

Maybe he wasn't that good of a painter either?

The thought made his heart ache harder in despair.

His body continued to move with the beat. Slower. Less accurate. Sharper.

Maybe his wife felt pity for him because he was talentless?

After all, she was the great, powerful Mal and he was just a commoner. Yes, his family was wealthy. He was rich. But not 'private plane' and 'going to the most powerful parties to meet with leaders all around the world' kind of rich.

Not to mention that they called her to perform at the Grammys. Not his group, and not him.

Tears filled his eyes at the harsh, painful thoughts.

The squeaks on the floor became sharper. Louder. Less tolerable.

Less relaxing.

Pain overwhelmed his body to the point where all he could feel was pain.

Suddenly he wasn't aware of his movements anymore. Nor his train of painful thoughts. Suddenly he was just spinning in a ball like a hamster trapped in a cage, waiting to get out.

A stream of hot tears escaped his eyes and poured down his face as time passed. His legs began to ache. Just a numb, dull ache.

But he was aware of it nonetheless.

He continued to dance, losing track of the time. He stared at his image in the mirror and continued to eye his sharp movements, his eyebrows furrowed unpleasantly.

And just then, before he could even tell what happened, his foot slipped on the smooth ceramic.

And his body fell, hitting the floor with a loud, sickening thud.

A loud groan escaped his mouth, pain jolting up and down his body. Tears continued to stream down his face. He let out a few, distressed sobs.

Putting his hand on the floor to push himself back up, he let out another groan and continued to sob, soon realizing that he couldn't move.

The thoughts of his parents scolding him and telling him he was nothing but a disgrace overwhelmed his mind. The thoughts of other people telling him that he was a bully, a selfish snake that deserved nothing but hatred filled his mind as well, making him sob and shift in his position on the floor.

Why was he like this?

❆

Mal sighed in relief and got up from her seat, quickly followed by her younger friend Millie.

The cast has been listening to the writers and the directors talk about the next plot for over an hour, quickly followed by the cast being handed scripts of what the next season was supposed to be like before they actually start writing the screenplay.

They were told to read the scripts and generate a good idea of what their character development should be, then write it down and give it to the writers to gain ideas.

Mal waved at the writers, the Duffer brothers, and headed out of the room, waving at the other cast members as well.

"So where do you plan on going?" Millie asked, fumbling through her purse to search for her phone. Mal did the same and let out her device from her purse, opening it to see if she got any new messages.

Only from a few people. Her mother, her brother, her two sisters, and finally, her husband.

A smile crept to her face as she turned to Millie, who had her eyebrows furrowed in curiosity.

"Look! Hyunjin just texted me." She spoke in pure enthusiasm, her heart melting in her chest.

"Aww! What did he say? He seems like a nice person."

She glanced at the text to read it out loud.

"Good morning, Jagiya! I've been thinking about you ever since I woke up. Can't wait for you to get home, xoxo."

The two girls giggled and let out noises of awestruck.

"I was right, he is sweet!"

Mal nodded and muttered a similar reply, then proceeded to tell her a story as the two walked towards their cars that were parked in the parking lot.

"Who's that standing by your car?" Millie spoke as she squinted at Mal's BMW, noticing a blonde woman standing by the driver's seat door.

Mal looked up almost immediately, glancing at her car to notice the woman, who was smirking at the two.

"Oh, look, you're finally here!" The woman spoke in a sarcastic tone, rolling her eyes.

Lauren.

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