Addicted To You

15 - Steal Your Heart

We had a nice visit before they had to finish getting ready. The girls were smitten, and by the looks of it so was Martha. She seemed to be into Shownu and Hyungwon the most. I suspected that Andrew would reap the benefit of that later. I recognized that look and the girls were having a sleepover at my house.

We were escorted to our seats a few minutes before the crowd was let in. We went to the restroom, got refreshments, and got back to our seats just in time. The VIPs started coming in then. Some of them recognized me and came to say hello. The girls looked at me in a whole new light. They were related to a celebrity, of a sort.

If the energy in that arena could have been captured, it would have powered the city for a week. I had been to every show on that tour so far, and there was something different in Atlanta. Even the guys felt it. Minhyuk had even said before that if he could live in the US, he would choose "A-Town". I understood why. The energy was different in my hometown than in the other cities for some reason.

It was Amber and Alicia's first live concert and they were a little overwhelmed by all the people, the noise, the huge stage, and the lights. I felt their excitement because it matched mine. I had butterflies and I felt like I was high. High on Monsta X.

I was sitting between the girls and they were each holding my hands. They were looking around at everything, trying to take it all in. They had no idea what they were in for. Online concerts and YouTube videos cannot prepare you for these boys... these men. Yes, definitely men.

Martha was beside Amber, then Andrew next to Martha. On the other side, Eric sat next to Alicia and Uncle Larry was on the end. We were sitting very close to the stage, out at the end of the extended stage. We were going to have an amazing view of the show.

The house lights dimmed, and the stage lights came up. The intro music started and everyone screamed, including me and the girls. I had been to over a dozen shows now, and it was still just as exciting each time. We were on our feet, Mondoongies in the air. Martha was glued forward as the center portion of the stage rose and seven shadowy figures appeared. Screams filled the arena and I could feel the vibrations from the speakers in my body.

The stage lights glinted off the rhinestones on their custom jackets as the shadows emerged from the mist, casting millions of sparkles around the space. And then suddenly they were standing in front of us, looking like the kings they are. My heart skipped a beat, more than one when Minhyuk spotted me and winked.

I felt the now familiar flutter as I screamed my head off with everyone else. Amber and Alicia followed my lead. They were probably more comfortable because I was fangirling so hard. Martha was mesmerized. She had this look of wonder on her face. You know the one... the one when you first discovered K-pop. The one when you watched a performance video for the first time and fell in love with men you may never see in person. Yeah, that look.

They kicked off with their latest song, another bop written and produced by Jooheon. They stopped after the song to introduce themselves and get a better look at the audience. They were smiling and kidding around with each other. They did two more songs and then stopped again to talk to us. Changkyun was the first to speak.

"Do you guys know our 8th member? Rileigh-shi, stand up and say hello!"

The crowd roared. My girls squealed and squeezed my hands, not expecting me to be called out.

"Did you guys know this is her town? A-Town!" He threw his head back as he growled. I felt that growl in my loins, but managed to maintain my composure. More screams from the audience.

"She is here with her family tonight!" He found me in the crowd and walked to the edge of the stage. The other members followed. They motioned for us to stand. The girls were nervous and looked at me to see what I was going to do. I smiled and stood, waving my hands in the air and turning to the crowd. The girls swung their Mondoongies and looked around. The rest of the family stood up too. The audience cheered and started chanting, "Rileigh! Rileigh!" I couldn't believe it.