𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 ✓

Chapter 34

THE eight members were busy getting ready for their first performance, Miroh. The stylists were all going back and forth to get the members dressed in their black-themed stage outfits, and the makeup artists were putting foundation on most of the members' faces, and black eye shadow around their mono-lid eyes.

Hyunjin stared at himself in the mirror after the stylists were done. He eyed his appearance which consisted of a black, leather top and tight black jeans. His long, brown hair was resting on his shoulder and two strays of hair were standing on both sides of his handsome face.

He gulped and his eyes dropped to the floor, his fingernails playing and fidgeting with each other. His lower lip pushed out in a pout unconsciously, and he tried his best to hide his face away from the members to not attract their attention or to make them worry about him.

It was enough that he was even surrounded by them, let alone being able to perform alongside them on a popular survival show.

He sighed and gripped the corner of the wooden table in front of him, trying his best to reach out to something to stop his stressed mind from giving him a hard time.

"Hyunjin-ah! Your wife is here!"

His eyes looked up from the floor, a stray of hope glistening in his shiny eyes. He turned around to glance at his surroundings, then spotted his soulmate hurrying towards him to engulf him in a tight hug.

"Beautiful, I missed you so much..." She whispered, careful not to touch his hair to not ruin the stylist's marvellous work.

"I missed you t-too," he replied, stuttering a little on his own words. The stressed-out tone did not go unnoticed by her.

"You want to go somewhere quiet before the performance?"

He nodded almost immediately.

She sent him a soft smile and grabbed his hand to pull him out of the room, instantly getting inside a quieter room with a few furniture. A table, a few chairs, and a whiteboard. She assumed that it was where the managers held their urgent meetings.

"Are you okay, pretty?"

He slowly and hesitantly shook his head, to which she sent him a sympathetic smile. She wrapped an arm around his waist and led him closer to the table.

He returned her side hug and glanced at the floor, watching his fancy leather shoes skip over the floor.

"What's bothering you, beautiful? You know you can tell me anything."

He gulped and bit his bottom lip, tears shining in his eyes.

"W-What if they don't like me, jagiya?" He questioned slowly, his voice shaking. "What if I ruin the show?"

She rested one hand over his hip and the other arm sneaked its way up his waist, holding him close.

"You'll never ruin the show," she replied, "they're lucky you're even in the show. Everyone has seen how talented you are, and I have too. You're the most beautiful, talented artist I know, okay?"

He gulped and nodded in hesitation.

"I love you," she muttered, hugging his waist close, "I won't let you go, you hear me? I'll be the first one to cheer for you when you go on that stage."

The sentence made him smile.

He then glanced at her lips, the very same lips that moved up and down as she told him those encouraging words. He knew that if he went on that stage, he wouldn't be able to be by her side for thirty minutes at most.

Heck, he missed her already.

"Can you kiss me, jagiya?" He asked, his voice hoarse while he licked his lips.

She sent him a smirk, licking her bottom lip as well. She leaned in closer to his face and bit the insides of her cheeks, taking in the sight of her husband's extremely handsome face and the glorious outfit he was wearing.

"Absolutely, pretty," she murmured, soon closing the gap between their lips and capturing his mouth in a deep, passionate kiss. He sighed as his muscles relaxed, all of the tension melting away at her touch.

He wrapped his arms around her torso to pull her closer, butterflies erupting in his insides as she nibbled on his lower lip.

"Jagiya..."

She smirked and pulled her lips away from his for a few seconds, "yes, beautiful?"

"You..." he began, his eyes lazily trailing from her lips to her eyes, then back to her lips, "you make me feel better."

Her heart melted at the words. She squeezed his waist tighter and placed her lips upon his once again.

"You make me feel like myself, like I can be me around you without worrying about anything else in the world," he explained as soon as they broke away once again, "how did you do that to me? I'm so in love with you."

He rested his head against her neck, close to her chest and allowed himself to listen to her heartbeat.

"I love you too, pretty. You're my everything."

He closed his eyes, "you mean everything to me, jagiya. Your support means the world to me."

She continued to hold him close to her chest for a few, long minutes. He raised his head occasionally to peck her lips, his heart pounding loudly between his ribs.

So what was the dark, unshakable feeling she had in her chest while she held him between her arms?