fate - bangchan » book two

part two

The show had ended almost as quickly as it started and Haeun was making her way to the backstage dressing rooms to congratulate Jisung, Changbin, and Chan.

Luckily, she was able to convince her manager to let her speak to her friends alone, with no bodyguards. Don't get her wrong, she loved them and all, but she wanted to see her friends without them being intimidated by two strong men taller than both Changbin and Jisung combined- maybe that was an exaggeration.

Haeun paused at the door, allowing herself to eavesdrop on the conversation behind it, even though she knew she shouldn't.

"Why did they use THEM names!? I swear I specifically told the host to address you by CB97, J. One and SpearB! Ugh." The squeak in the woman's voice made Haeun physically cringe like nails on a chalkboard, she assumed it was their new manager.

A light chuckle could be heard, followed by a soft, "I'm sure it was just a mix-up, Seoyeon, don't stress about it."

Haeun stepped back a bit from the door, the voice ringing as clear as day in her head, Chan. She needed to go in, but the thought of seeing him made her hesitate. She had so many questions for both Chan and, well, everyone. Like, why didn't Changbin and Jisung tell her that he was debuting with them?

Before another thought could back her away, Haeun twisted the door knob and stared at the people inside the room. For a moment, she lost her voice- forgetting why she had gone into the room. All heads turned to her sudden appearance and from the corner of her eye, she saw Chan's eyes widen and his posture straighten.

"Haeun-ah!!" Jisung was the first to speak, a big toothy grin squishing his features as he made his way to hug the shorter girl.

"Jisung!" She copied his enthusiasm and swayed him side-to-side, letting out a soft laugh. "You've grown so much-"

"I saw you yesterday!!" Jisung complained, pulling away from the hug and pouting.

" Hauen!" Changbin stood from his seat shortly after they had separated and ruffled her hair causing Haeun to glare at him playfully.

"Don't mess it up that much-" She swatted his hand away but didn't hold back her smile as she looked at the two boys in front of her.

Awkwardly behind the boys, their manager, Haeun assumed, and Chan sat there, unsure of how to react at her sudden appearance.

"Oh my gosh- you're the Lee Haeun! It is such a pleasure to meet you- oh Uhm, Kim Seoyeon!" Seoyeon jumped up from her seat and rushed over to shake Haeun hand excitedly, making Haeun's eyes widen, not expecting that to happen. "It's always been my dream to finally see you in person- oh.."

Seoyeon paused, her smile altering a little as she let go of Haeun's hand, regaining her  professionalism.

"It's nice to meet you too, Seoyeon." Haeun smiled, bowing in respect.

The room suddenly grew silent as Haeun locked eyes with Chan, an overwhelming sense of every emotion rushing through her body. She wasn't sure whether to be angry by his presence or to be glad he was actually alive, not that she would have known.

"I came here to congratulate you all on your debut and I truly hope you have a very long and successful career ahead of you."  Her only thought was to ignore the elephant in the room, Haeun didn't want to make this awkward for everyone- but she definitely  needed to have a talk with Changbin and Jisung later. 

With her eyes still locked with Chan's, she could see the guilt and sadness in his gaze- she had known him long enough to notice. 

"I hope you all can excuse me." Haeun paused, bowing in respect and continued, "I'll talk to you later, Changbin, Jisung." She emphasized the boys names and glared at them, causing the boys to shuffle uncomfortably under her gaze.

And with that, she spun on her heels and left, mentally praising herself for handling the situation the best she could have.