Changhyun bounced on his heels as he waited in line. He clutched a banner in one hand and an album in the other. His heart raced as he craned his neck, trying to see the front. The line seemed endless.

He sighed in frustration. It seemed like he would never reach the front. The person in front of him took a step forward and Ricky stumbled into place, almost falling flush against her back. He was too excited. He couldn't stay still.

After months of working odd jobs, he'd finally been able to save up enough money, just in time for the event. The concert was later in the evening, and now Changhyun was waiting in line for the fan sign.

“Oh my god,” he took another step forward, “I'm gonna meet L.Joe.”

Changhyun watched as the line dwindled down and the butterflies in his stomach fluttered restlessly as the girl in front of him knelt in front of the table, placing her poster on top. He lifted his eyes away from her hands and up to the man sitting in front of her. His breath caught.

He'd watched many interviews and countless videos, yet he still wasn't prepared. The man was so handsome, beautiful even. He smiled at the girl as he signed her poster, his fringe flopping into his eyes. He waved goodbye to her and Changhyun's heartbeat picked up. He was next.

The security guard ushered him up the stairs. Changhyun almost stumbled and he reddened in embarrassment. He kneeled down in front of the table, his eyes down, half from mortification and half from nervousness.

“Hey,” a voice quipped, “I'm L.Joe. What's your name?”

Changhyun looked up shyly. His heart almost stopped when he locked eyes with the idol. He was watching him with a small smile on his face. He wasn't even signing his banner yet, instead just focusing on him.

“I'm Changhyun,” he squeaked out.

L.Joe chuckled and picked up his marker. He uncapped it but didn't sign.

“Did you wait a long time?”

Changhyun was surprised by the question. He cleared his throat.

“Yes, but it was my fault. I missed my bus. I didn't want to miss the event, so I ran here.”

“You ran here?” L.Joe asked incredulously.

“I've been waiting for this for months. I finally saved up enough money to come so I didn't want to miss it.”

He blushed and looked down at his hands folded on the table.

“You're my favorite artist.”

L.Joe grinned.

“Yeah?”

Changhyun nodded. L.Joe leaned towards him. The security guard coughed. They both looked up.

“Time's almost up. Gotta keep the line moving.”

L.Joe nodded, lifting his index to signal one minute.

“What's your favorite song from me?”

He looked genuinely curious.

“Um... I like all of your songs. But one of my favorites is At First Sight. I think it was the first song I ever heard from you.”

“That's one of my favorites, too,” L.Joe smiled at him.

The security guard cleared his throat. He was already ushering another fan up the stairs. He motioned for them to hurry up.

“Thank you for coming, Changhyun. Hopefully I'll see you later at the concert.”

He hastily signed the banner before sliding it back to him.

Changhyun stood up and tucked the rolled up banner under his arm. Before he lost his nerve, he lifted his hands and made a heart with his hands. L.Joe laughed and lifted his fingers, sending one back. Changhyun almost squealed. He waved to him and stepped off the stage, giddy.

He unrolled his banner to look at the signature. He smiled widely when he read the words scrawled along the bottom.

“To Changhyun, my biggest fan. I love you!”

 

Later that night, L.Joe performed At First Sight.

“We had an opening for another song. This one is dedicated to a very special fan who came out to see me today, hopefully you know who you are.”

Changhyun's breath hitched as the opening chords started to sound. He recognized the familiar bass line, the melody.

L.Joe scanned the crowd as he started to sing and caught sight of Changhyun a few rows back. He winked. A few girls screamed but Changhyun was frozen. Could L.Joe have been referring to him?

“Come on, everybody sing along,” he coaxed the audience, but he kept his eyes trained on Changhyun.

Once the chorus started, Changhyun finally snapped out of it. He grinned and started to sing along, as loud as he could.

L.Joe moved around the stage, singing to different parts of the audience. But he always circled back to Changhyun. He almost felt like he was singing to him alone.

 

“Hey Changhyun. Did you see this already?”

“Hmm?”

Changhyun rubbed at his eyes sleepily. He yawned as he walked out of his room. He plopped himself down onto the couch, where his roommate Niel was sitting.

“Looks like L.Joe has a new tattoo.”

Changhyun blinked.

“What?”

“Yeah, take a look.”

Niel turned his computer over to him. He pointed to the headline.

“Did famous pop star L.Joe find the love of his life?”

Changhyun read it with wide eyes. He scrolled down the page.

“Last night, the teenage heartthrob made many girls swoon with his comeback concert. But it seems as if the fans weren't the only ones left starry-eyed.

L.Joe was spotted this morning at the airport, heading overseas for a short tour. It looks like he tried to conceal it, but it wasn't hidden well enough. A few lucky fans managed to snap a photo.”

Underneath was a picture of L.Joe strolling through the airport. He was wearing a long-sleeved shirt, but the fans had managed to snap a picture of him with his sleeve rolled up. On his forearm was a tattoo.

“This tattoo is definitely new. When L.Joe embarked on his summer tour earlier this year, his arm wasn’t marked.

Who is the special person who caught this pop star's eye?”

Changhyun scrolled back up to the picture. He could kind of make out the shape, but the details were a little blurry. He zoomed it in, but it made the picture all pixelated. He squinted.

“Niel? Does that look like...?”

Niel leaned in too.

“It looks a little familiar…”

They looked at each other. Realization seemed to hit them both at the same time. Niel reached for Changhyun's pant leg and yanked it up. They stared at the tattoo on his ankle.

They looked back and forth between Changhyun's ankle and the picture. 

“No way,” Niel broke the silence, “L.Joe's in love with you.”

Changhyun struggled to shut his mouth as it had been hanging open, and rolled back down his pant leg, shaking his head reverently.

“It might just look similar. It's probably not even mine at all.”

Niel raised his eyebrows.

“Didn't you tell me that he performed At First Sight last night? You favorite song that you personally requested from him? And weren't you just telling me that he was watching you almost the whole time?”

“Yeah, but maybe that was the delusional fan in me talking. It's probably just a coincidence,” he babbled.

Niel sighed and placed his laptop on the coffee table.

“Think what you want. I think it's yours. It'd make sense. Plus, shouldn't you be happy about this right now? Don't you have the biggest crush on him?”

Changhyun flushed. He couldn't deny that he did, and maybe felt a little more. He often called L.Joe his ray of sunshine, because the idol could light up his entire day with just a smile. But could it be the same for him? He stared at the picture.

“Maybe.”

 

“Come on! You have to meet him again.”

Changhyun groaned and slammed his head on the table.

“I already told you guys. I can't afford it. Plus it might now even be mine.”

Chanhee scoffed.

“Stop denying it. You know it's yours.”

The five of them had met up for dinner and Niel just couldn't help blurting out Changhyun's dilemma. Minsoo and Jonghyun had looked on amused as Chanhee and Niel cooed over their little baby growing up. Changhyun hid in his hands, mortified.

“You are going to his next fan sign.”

Changhyun sighed.

“I can try.”

 

“Hi.”

L.Joe looked up and dropped his pen. He seemed shocked to see him.

“Changhyun?”

Changhyun smiled at his surprised expression and his heart fluttered. He still remembered him.

“You remember me?”

“Of course. I mean, how could I not?” L.Joe grinned.

Changhyun's gaze flitted down to his arm, but it was covered. He deflated a little bit. No way to tell.

L.Joe noticed his gaze. He glanced down and realization hit him. He looked back up and they locked gazes. Changhyun imagined he was looking back with curiosity, but in L.Joe's eyes he could see a little bit of worry and fear.

“Do you want to talk after?” he whispered lowly.

L.Joe nodded.

“Wait outside the venue for me.”

Changhyun moved away from the table. Under L.Joe's worried gaze, he lifted his hand to wave and shot him a small smile. L.Joe's face softened and he looked relieved.

 

Changhyun sat on the curb as he waited. What was he going to say? What could he say? He puffed his cheeks.

What if it wasn't even his? His heart dropped.

He was in the middle of reassuring himself when the footsteps stopped next to him. He looked up, startled. L.Joe stood over him, hardly recognizable. He had changed into different clothes, a little more inconspicuous. He was wrapped in his jacket and had a hat pulled over his face.

“Hey.”

Changhyun scrambled to his feet. His heart beat faster now that it was just the two of them. He smiled shyly.

“Hi.”

L.Joe shuffled his feet.

“Um, if you still want to talk, I know a good café a few blocks from here.”

Changhyun nodded.

“Okay.”

They walked quietly side by side. Nobody recognized the idol, so he slowly sidled up closer to Changhyun. He brushed his hand tentatively against his. L.Joe bit his lip and suppressed a grin when the other didn’t pull away.

Once they got to the café, Changhyun went up and ordered them coffees. He picked up the steaming cups and joined L.Joe at the table.

“Thanks,” L.Joe wrapped his fingers around his mug, “So I guess you heard the news.”

“Yeah.”

Changhyun blushed, he still couldn't believe it.

“Can I... Can I see it?”

L.Joe hesitantly reached out his arm, and pulled up the sleeve. He placed it in front of Changhyun.

He reached out with shaky fingers, and traced the outline of the tattoo, identical to the ones on his own ankle. L.Joe shivered at his touch.

“Are you mad?”

Changhyun looked up, surprised.

“Of course I'm not mad. Surprised, yes. This definitely wasn't something I was expecting.”

L.Joe sighed.

“Changhyun, I’m really sorry about everything. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen and I know it’s only a matter of time before the fans find out who this tattoo belongs to and the hate begins.”

Changhyun cut him off before he could continue.

“Look, L.Joe-”

“You can call me Byunghun.”

“Okay,” Changhyun blushed, “Uh, Byunghun, you don’t have to worry about that. I definitely don’t consider this a bad thing, so there’s no need to apologize.”

He stared down at his coffee.

“I really like you a lot,” his cheeks turned pink, “And you obviously like me too. W-we can give it a try. Date and stuff, I mean, if you want to, of course.”

“You know what, I think I’d like that,” Byunghun grinned at him.

 

“I miss doing this.”

“Doing what?”

“Just… nothing. Looking at the stars,” Byunghun gazed up at the night sky, “Sometimes you get so busy you forget about the simple little pleasures in life.”

Changhyun looked at him fondly. He’d finally taken off his hat, thanks to Changhyun’s urging.

“Come on, it’s the middle of the night,” he’d said, “There’s no one here. Plus, I want to see your face.”

They sat together on a park bench, their shoulders pressed together. They leaned their heads back, pointing out constellations. At some point, Byunghun had mustered up enough courage to take the other’s hand, lacing their fingers together.

Beside him, Byunghun yawned.

“Tired?”

“A little.”

He blinked blearily.

“Here,” Changhyun patted his shoulder, “Lean on me.”

“But-”

“Come on,” he pulled him closer, “Just rest for a little bit.”

Byunghun didn’t argue. He leaned his head on the other’s shoulder and sighed, relaxing. Changhyun knew he was the one who offered, but he couldn’t help but inhale sharply when he felt the other’s breath hit his neck.

“I’m really glad I met you,” he heard the other whisper quietly.

Changhyun was sure his face would never revert back to its normal color.

He turned his head to look at Byunghun. The other had closed his eyes and his mouth fell open slightly as he dozed off.

“Same here,” he murmured, even though he knew he wouldn’t hear.

His eyes roamed over the other’s face. He had washed off all the makeup, yet Changhyun thought he looked more beautiful than ever. He could see the dark circles and the blemishes, but he looked real. Not like an idol, but someone Changhyun could see himself spending the rest of his life with.

Under his sleeve, where their wrists touched, his skin warmed.

 

“So, L.Joe, the fans have heard the news, but I’m sure they would want to hear your side of the story as well.”

Byunghun swallowed nervously. Beside him, Changhyun squeezed his henad reassuringly.

“The news is true. I am not renewing my contract for next year. My last song will be released in a week and after that I will be retiring from idol life.”

“Is there a reason behind your decision?”

Byunghun took a deep breath.

“I think that my journey in this idol life is over. I’ve had a great time making music for all my fans, and I’ve spent a great deal of time thinking about my decision, but ultimately, I think it’s my time to move on.

I know this may come across as a little cliché, but the biggest reason is because of Changhyun. Dating and all that is something we could have done when I was an idol, but it’s not what we, what I, wanted.”

“I know that must have been a hard decision to make,” the interviewer sympathized, “Why don’t you tell us about your relationship and how everything started?”

“Our meeting was kind of like a fairy tale, when you think about it,” Changhyun laughed, “I met Byunghun at a fansign and, I don’t know, I guess we had a connection?”

“I originally wanted to hide the tattoo, maybe get it removed, but the news spread before I could. I was afraid, afraid of the fans’ reactions, of Changhyun’s reaction. But everything worked out fine in the end.”

“Could you show us?”

“Of course.”

They both held out their arms as the camera panned in. Even months after receiving them, Byunghun still couldn’t help but smile when he saw his own tattoo printed on the other’s arm.

“They’re quite beautiful,” the camera zoomed out, “What exactly made you decide to reveal your relationship to the public?”

“It took us months to stop hesitating and just come out with it. People would have started to notice sooner or later, so why wait?” Changhyun leaned forward, “I was very scared, to tell the truth. All these thoughts just kept running through my mind. What if they don’t accept us? What if Byunghun’s career falls apart because of me? But he reassured me and gave me strength, and I’m really glad he did, because we don’t have to hide anymore. And the fans have showed us endless support.”

“Could you tell us about any plans you may have for the future?”

“Well, nothing really big. Our song releases next week, so please look out for that. We wrote and composed the song ourselves, so every word comes from the heart. We hope you like it as much as we do. And after that, well, we’re not quite sure yet,” Changhyun shrugged.

Byunghun smiled to himself as he let his mind wander to the little black velvet box sitting in the pocket of his coat. He knew inside was nestled a simple silver band. Just a little longer.

“Who knows what the future might bring us?” he smiled at Changhyun, “I just hope we’ll be living it together.”

“Well, it seems like we’re running out of time. L.Joe, a last message to your fans?”

He turned to the camera.

“First of all, thank you to everyone who has supported me throughout the years, old fans and new. I really appreciate the love you’ve all given me and I hope that I made your days a little happier.”

“And thank you for accepting me,” Changhyun said quietly, bowing his head.

Byunghun wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“It’s been a wonderful journey and I will never forget these past few years with you. It’s time for me to step off stage and hand the microphone to someone else, and maybe,” he looked at the younger male who smiled back at him, “Start a new adventure.”

He looked at the camera, the little light blinking at him.

“So thank you again, for everything,” he stood up and bowed.

When he looked up again, the light flickered off.