Kpop Imagines (On Hold)

#8 - Kris (EXO)

I race through the halls, hurrying past large hordes of people just to catch a last glimpse of him. There, among many others, his broad, manly back stands out of the crowd. "KRIS!" I yell, throwing my arms around him. He looks over his shoulder to see my head. "Don't go..." I plead, tears rolling down my face. "I heard about the news. Just don't go. EXO won't be the same without you. Your fans won't be the same without you... I won't be the same without you."

He smiles faintly and pats my head, "You're going to be just fine without me. The birds will still fly, water will still run, the sun will still shine brightly... Nothing is going to change just because of my parting... _______, I've had enough of the life of a celebrity. All the drama, the limits set on me... I don't even feel human. I know that I have many fans that love me as I do with them, but whenever I have to fake a smile to the audience even when haters and sasaengs pierce arrows at my back, I die, slowly... and no one ever notices."

"We do..." a familiar voice calls out. I turn around to see Suho, hands behind his back, as if he's hiding something from us. "We know how much effort you pay into your work, and we appreciate it. I'm not sure about you, but when we were filming Showtime, every 'EXO, let's love' I said, I meant. I love EXO, and no matter what decision you make at the end, in my heart, you are still a part of EXO. At times we might post or say things on shows that may hurt you, but just know that those aren't the words we mean. What we really want to say is 'Kris-hyung, we love you. Please stay with us'." He hands Kris a bag filled with stuffed plushy dolls, each one wearing a different t-shirt with the numbers of each member of EXO, and having the distinct features of the members. "They aren't the best quality, but we tried. I even pricked my finger about a hundred times while I was at it!" He raises his hands to show bandaged fingers, and Kris starts chuckling. "I want you to have them. We start with twelve, and we're ending with twelve. No matter where you are, what you do, I will always count you as one of my own." 

Kris clasps his arms around Suho and pats his back, "Gomawo."

"ARE WE LATE?" a bunch of humongous babies rush to our side and Tao throws himself onto Kris. "Ge, I'm sorry. I just didn't know how to react to you leaving us. Please don't leave ge!" he sobs ugly and Luhan, Sehun and Baekhyun slowly place their arms around them too. Not after long, Chanyeol, Suho, Lay, Kai, Kyungsoo, Chen and Xiumin join the group hug. "GGGEEEE!!" Tao cries. 

Tears roll down the faces of all of us, including Kris. "Great, you guys. Now I don't even know if I should leave."

"If you leave, we'll all leave," Luhan says. "I've been putting up with the screwed up schedule and the attitude they give us for quite a long time. So, guys, what do you say?"

(10 years later)

The bright sun warms up my skin as I keep my eyes on the road. Suddenly, a well-known, familiar tune comes on the radio, and I sing along to it. 

"Ma? What is this song's title?" my son Ben asks.

"It's Growl by EXO. They were really hit back then," I quickly reply before jamming and singing to my favourite song. 

"Guys, quiet! Here, it's my part!" Kris excitedly hushes us. The child at the back of the car giggles at his deep voice. 

"Yah, Appa, you sound so funny!" Ben comments, making my husband attempt to tickle him from the front seat. He squeals and kicks Kris in the face, who then put a funny-looking, grumpy frown on.

"You guys act mature! I'm driving! Seriously!" I laugh as they continue with their foolish act. I turn right, in front of a large, beautiful mansion. We get out of the car and Kris rings the doorbell. Suho answers it, and they give each other a bear hug.

Then, Suho lifts Ben up, "How's my little Benny-benben? Hah? Have you been good?" Ben nods, which makes Suho laugh, then he swings him into the house, creating laughter and screams from Ben. We enter the house and see that the rest of the gang was already there. 

"KRIS!" Chanyeol does a handshake with his old pal before hugging him. "You're late! Don't tell me you've grown old after you've become a father!"

"Hey, it was ______ who was driving!" I punch him playfully and the ex-members of EXO laugh in unison. 

We talk about the old days, about how cool we were when we all left SM at the same time, making them suffer. Even now, EXO's fans are still asking when they're going to come back.

"Ma, were you also an idol?" Ben asks, looking at me with his large, round eyes. I smile at him and nod, "Yes. We all were idols. Especially these ajhussis. They were the real deal back in the day. Girls would go crazy over them."

Chanyeol starts to laugh, "Hey, hyung, remember that time when a fan stole your underwear?"

Kyungsoo turns beet red, "Oh no, don't you dare remind us about that." He climbs across the table and flies on top of Chanyeol, ruffling his hair. We all burst out laughing and I put my head on Kris' shoulder.

"I'm glad I have you guys," he whispers. "No matter how hard my life may be, as long as you all are with me, I will never give up anymore." 

I kiss him on the cheek and he returns the favour with a long kiss on the lips. Suho covers Ben's eyes and the EXO members groan in disgust.