Dance Partners || N.NK ||

Part 60/S2

A few days passed by in a flash of light.
But the words of that one woman walking down the street moments after the paparazzi hadn't.

"What a life...even during his hiatus and after her leaving the industry, they're still chased by the paparazzis".

Her voice kept resurfacing back in your mind, that you just couldn't bring yourself to fall asleep.
Even though it was already past midnight.

"What did she mean by 'even durning his hiatus'...?" you muttered to yourself, tossing here and there on your bed, trying to shake the thoughts off.
"But Ni-ki never told me anything about him being on a hiatus..? No wonder he never mentions about his own idol life..." you whispered so low that only the ghosts living in your room could hear your voice—if there were even any.

You sat up in bed, pulling your knees to your chest as the weight of those words pressed on your mind again.

"Even durning his hiatus..."

It echoed louder now.
Sharper.

Your mind raced with thoughts.
You wanted to dig deeper into this new information you had.
It might be a tiny piece of information you've got, but it was a piece of something bigger.
You needed answers.
As soon as possible.
And, Ni-ki was the only one who could give answers to your question, but it was almost 1 am, he was probably already asleep.

You didn't wanna seem paranoid by suddenly waking him up in middle of the night.

But still...why didn't he tell you?

He had been by your side every single day, comforting you and guiding you back into the life you'd forgotten—but he never once talked about his.
Not his group.
Not his music.
Not even his fans.
Nothing.

Like he left it all behind.
For you.

Your chest tightened with guilt that you couldn't ignore.

Did he really put his career on pause...just to find you again, to help you recover, to resolve the issues caused by you—by your own mother and step-father?

The words hidden in silence, which you never noticed before, were now louder than ever.
Although he never said it himself, you knew he was doing more than just helping you recover your memories...
He was protecting you.
From the world, from the cameras, from the chaos.
From everything that once tore you apart.

And in doing so, he'd quietly let go of his own life.

No rehearsals.
No stages.
No spotlight.

Not a single complaint.

You shut your eyes for a moment, swallowing back the lump rising in your throat.

"Why didn't I notice it sooner...?" you whispered, your voice a bit hoarse from the emotion that lingered.

The clock had now already ticked past 1 a.m., but sleep was the last thing your body could offer you.

With trembling hands, you reached on the nightstand next to your bed for your phone—the one Ni-ki had brought for you a while ago since you just couldn't remember where you lost your previous phone at.

The screen lit brightly in your touch.
Then with a slightly shaking hand, you clicked on his contact number.
The call slowly went through.

Sure, you could just go and knock on his door but you couldn't bring yourself to do so.

The call rang once, then twice before he finally answered the phone.

"...Yn?" Ni-ki spoke from the other end.
His voice low, soft and unmistakably laced with sleepiness...but there was something else too.
Worry.
An emotion you'd never noticed in his voice even though it was always there.

You didn't speak at first.
You couldn't find the words.
You just let the silence pass between you, as if you were hoping he'd say it—anything.

"Hello?" Ni-ki spoke again, the confusion in his voice from your lack of response evident.

"Why didn't you...tell me sooner...Ni-ki?"

~ To be continued

Sorry for the recent updates being short...i am just trying to post more frequently