Chapter 2

Hiding behind a pair of glasses, he pulled down his scarf and blew on his hands. Despite wearing multiple layers, he was still cold. It was seven in the morning, and he was on the streets alone, aimlessly walking around.

He had woken that morning with a start, panting heavily. His heart was beating quickly, as if he had just ran a marathon in ten minutes. He could barely fall asleep last night, and when he finally did, he kept waking up in a panic.

Hyukjae was highly disturbed that he could not spend Christmas with Gina. Normally, he was an understanding boyfriend. As an idol, he fully understood that he had to set his priorities straight, that his fans always come first. Likewise, it was the same for Gina. However, after what had happened the past year, he felt that it was unfair that the two still could not be with each other. They had gone through so many struggles and so many conflicts that had not only involved Gina but his brothers and friends as well. Now that there were no longer any more troubles, wasn’t it only fair that he and Gina would have more time together?

True, unlike Kyuhyun and Moira, their relationship was still not in the open. Her career was finally starting to pick up, and there was no way that he would interfere. He wouldn’t even dream of it. Even so, he wanted to be next to her every waking moment.

Sighing, he briskly walked through the streets, not stopping at any particular store for a short while. He didn’t want to risk getting discovered by his fans.

Deep in his thoughts, he walked past a certain store, only to turn around and return. A silver glint had caught his eye, and he wanted to make sure that it was what he had thought it was. Slowly, inch by inch, his trademark gummy smile returned.

He was certainly going to look forward to meeting Gina backstage at the MBC New Year’s Eve concert.