groupie

-four-

"You did amazing, Chae!" HyunJin lifts her up and spins her around, oblivious to her impending tears.

"Jinnie—put her down—" Felix steps in, doing his best to put an end to the unwanted embrace.

"Huh—" HyunJin obliges, but not without confusion.

"She needs time." JeongIn tugs on HyunJin's arm, trying to give her more space.

"I—I'm okay." EunChae insists, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. She's not struggling—at least not in a bad way. The rush of it all was a lot for her to take in for the very first time.

"Let's go sit down for a few minutes—then we can hand out the albums and do our introductions." MinHo suggests, attempting to give her a minute to breathe.

"No—can we do his first? Can we give him his album now?" EunChae decides it's best to face Chan head on. If she gets it done and over with, maybe she'll feel better later when they perform for real.

"Are you sure? I don't even know if they're in their waiting room. I think they're going next—so we may have to do them last. Wouldn't that be better anyway? That way you're not all worked up for the rest of our introductions." Felix mumbles, not wanting to go against her wishes, but truly concerned they won't be there.

"I guess you're right." EunChae nods in agreement, tugging on her uncomfortable stage outfit.

"Let's go get the albums—me and you." SeungMin suggests, taking EunChae's hand in his and squeezing tightly. He smiles at her, earning a nervous sigh in return.

The two walk hand in hand, silently making their way toward their waiting room. EunChae keeps her head low, her heart racing in her chest at the thought of seeing him face to face for the first time in what feels like years. Every so often, SeungMin tosses her a worried glance, but he doesn't say anything. He knows better. She has to sort it out on her own. If she wanted his input she'd ask.

SeungMin's hand slips from hers the moment they reach their dressing room. He moves to pick up the first stack of signed albums before glancing back at her. EunChae's head remains low and her hands tremble slightly as she takes a shaky breath.

"What the—" SeungMin mumbles, stopping as he lays eyes on a strange addition to the room.

On the coffee table sits a bouquet of bright pink roses and a package of sour gummy worms. A small pink card sits on the table next to it. SeungMin looks towards EunChae expecting her to notice it as well, but she's oblivious to its existence.

"Chae." SeungMin reaches out to gently tap her shoulder, trying to get her attention.

"Hm?" She lifts her head hesitantly. SeungMin nods in the direction of the gift, her named etched messily on the card.

She awkwardly makes her way toward it, picking up the card to examine it. The handwriting doesn't look like anything she's ever seen before. It's messier than anyone she knows—especially anyone who would have access to their waiting room. Her heart drops the minute she reads the names inside.

Seo ChangBin. Han JiSung. Bang Chan.

"Who's it from?" SeungMin does his best to look over her shoulder without making her feel crowded.

"Uh—n—no one." EunChae quickly shoved the card into her bag on the couch.

"No one, huh? Well—someone clearly had to have brought it here. Is there a secret someone you aren't telling us about?" SeungMin teases, trying to lighten her mood, but truthfully dreading the idea of actually being right.

"Yeah. Clearly. I have so many guys lined up to date me." EunChae rolls her eyes, turning away from the present without a second thought.

That's not Chan's writing. She knows his handwriting like the back of her hand. If she has any chance of figuring out who's it is, she's going to have to do it at home. She has both of the other boys' signatures at home to compare.