"No. Eunji, you told me you were coming."

"I understand that. I just hoped you told me beforehand and not tell me last minute about it."

"Let's talk later. We have rehearsal now."

Hayeon waited until Taekwoon finished his call with Eunji. She didn't mean to overhear it because she expected Taekwoon to be talking in his usual calm soft voice. It was the first time she heard him talk that way with Eunji. It wasn't even a question if he's irritated.

She'd always thought the two of them were the picture perfect couple. She had never heard or seen them fight. But now, she realized, maybe it was just because when they do, it was just among themselves. She may be Taekwoon's best friend but his relationship was still his and Eunji's, so of course there's bound to be some things even she doesn't know about. 

There was no doubt they had some kind of arguement, and based on how Taekwoon ended the call, they haven't resolved it yet. She really hopes they'll fix whatever it is. She doesn't want them to be fighting for more than the obvious reason that they are both her friends.

Hayeon took a deep breath, collecting herself before making her presence known. 

"Taek!" she called, trying to sound like she just arrived and didn't hear any of the phone call. "We need to gather now. It's almost our turn."

Taekwoon smiled, pocketing his phone and walked ahead. There wasn't even a response that he usually offers Hayeon. Like this, it would be more questionable if Hayeon doesn't ask what's wrong. It's almost like Taekwoon wanted her to ask. Maybe, that was his intention all along.

"Taek?" she asked softly, following closely behind. The outline of Taekwoon's shoulder didn't seem tense so at least there's that.

"Eunji said she can't come." he confessed readily, still walking along the corridor without turning back to look at Hayeon. She hadn't expected to get an answer so directly, Taekwoon usually doesn't offer them so quickly.

"Why? I thought she'll just be swinging by home for a little and come back to watch the rest of evaluations." Eunji had left right after the Drama Department's evaluations two days ago. According to her, her family needs to fix some papers for their trip to the States for vacation so they asked her to return for a while. She had promised the four of them that she will come back in time for the Dance Department's evaluation stage and watch all of them perform on stage. And like always, they would go out to eat for surviving another quarter of the academic year.

"I'll tell you the rest later. We should go get ready for rehearsal." Taekwoon said, finally turning his head to face her. The smile he gave her was small and soft, probably more to reassure her of the promised talk later.

Hayeon understood that they had to be on stage in a few minutes, so discussing this had to be delayed for until later, but it still doesn't stop her from being unsettled. Did some emergency happened? Is Eunji okay?

Taekwoon faced her fully, grabbing her hands and squeezing them a little. "Stop worrying. She's fine. There was no emergency. Just some change of plans."

She nodded, feeling less worried but still unsure. Also, if there was no trouble, then she doesn't need to worry about Eunji, at least not right now.

The rehearsal wasn't much, it was just about the groups checking if there were any more problems with the stage and the music that they will be using. Also, to avoid messing up their makeup, they do them barefaced but already in their stage clothes to cut down the time for preparation later.

Howon's clothes had to be altered to fit Taekwoon and it was their luck that Sojin wasn't too busy with work and was delighted enough to fix the clothes for Taekwoon. The black sleeveless V neck shirt fit perfectly on Taekwoon's broad shoulders and slender waist, although he kind of looked a bit uncomfortable in them. Hayeon had an idea why.

"Are you sure the cut was supposed to be this deep? Or did Sojin somehow had too much fun altering these?" he complained quietly to Hayeon as they waited for the group before them to finish.

She laughed a little, poking Taekwoon's bare arms. The paleness of his skin looks beautiful against the black fabric. "Yeah. Howon wanted them deep, so that's what the original tailor did." Looking at it now, the cut really was deep. It ended around his stomach, which means it showed a lot of skin on his chest. Taekwoon kept trying to cover it with his arms but when it's time to dance, there's no covering that and Taekwoon is too much of a professional to let clothes hinder a stage.

"And does yours have to be so short?" he complained again, eyeing her clothes.

In a similar fashion, she's also wearing a sleeveless top. But as a contrast, Hayeon's clothes were white, and whereas the guys get the deep V for the neck line, the girls get a short turtleneck top that exposed their stomach. The girls had been wearing a jacket before the start of rehearsals, since their costume did show a bit too much skin, so this is the first time Taekwoon has seen the entire thing.

"It's not that short." she countered, looking at her top. She thinks the length is just fine. It won't ride up high to expose anything that shouldn't be exposed and she's quite proud of her flat stomach, so she doesn't really see the issue. It seems like it isn't the same case with Taekwoon though. 

"I think it should've been a bit longer." he said, pouting a little. He also tugged at the end, making a face at how high the end is. Also, Hayeon had avoided commenting on it, but she did notice how Taekwoon seems to be trying to hide her as much as possible. Especially if there are people that walk around the area where they are. Despite being embarrassed himself about his own costume, he still worries too much for her.

She also pouted in response, poking his arms again which in turn made Taekwoon poke at her stomach. They only stopped when the stage coordinator called for them on stage.

"Team 8? You're next!" 

~*~

Hayeon laughed, seeing Taekwoon struggle to wipe his eyes and not mess up his make up at the same time. She knows he's used to getting dolled up. He is an actor. But she also knows that this is his first time getting such a heavy dose of eyeliner and eyeshadow plus contact lenses to top it all off.

"Hayeon..." he whined from the mirror. "Stop laughing and help me." he added, looking at her through watery eyes.

She finally took pity on him and grabbed a few tissues. "Come here, you big baby."

"I have something in my eye." he told her, trying to keep his eyes open for Hayeon to see. She carefully dabbed at the tears pooling at the corners of his eyes before looking for that something. She has a suspicion it's probably an eyelash since that's the most common thing that gets in the way especially after applying the mascara.

"Look up." she instructed, which he complied to immediately. She's tall, that much is established. But it doesn't erase the fact that Taekwoon is still more than a couple of inches taller than her. "You're too tall." she complained after a while.

Hayeon looked around. She considered making Taekwoon sit but then he'll be too low. She then looked behind Taekwoon, at the mirror and at the counter. "Sit over there." she said, pushing him a little to lead him to the empty counter top.

Taekwoon opened his legs without being told so, in which Hayeon occupied automatically. They were so close to each other, but not at a proximity they haven't been in before.

It was an eyelash as she had suspected. She managed to get it out, but his make up did get erased a little, especially at the inner corner of his eye.

"Let me fix your make up a bit." she said, procuring the eyeshadow they used. Taekwoon closed his eyes and let Hayeon work on him. It wasn't the first time she did his make up for him, but she'll never tire of appreciating how truly handsome her best friend is. The sharp eyes and tall nose, down to the prominent cheeks and small mouth. He had shed off the boyish aura of his face from high school and is quickly transitioning to that of a man. He'd managed to look sharp while still keeping the softness of his features. It was something she'll forever be fascinated about.

It was a good thing that Taekwoon was loyal down to every bone in his body or Eunji will have a hard time swatting off the increasing population of people following Taekwoon around.

"Thanks." he said, opening his eyes after Hayeon's hands left his face. She was momentarily caught off guard with the gold eyes, forgetting that they were all wearing gold contacts for maximum effect. It made Taekwoon more beautiful, mesmerizing, enchanting, more so than he is normally. She actually feels sorry that Eunji won't be able to see her boyfriend in this get up. She's surely missing out on a lot.

She stepped back from Taekwoon, so he could get down from the counter. She faced the rest of the group, intending to ask them if everyone is set and caught them still in a daze, like they had been staring at them the entire time. They all stammered out of it almost at the same time, hastily fixing their own things and not meeting her eyes, while Taekwoon had already busied himself with fixing his own stuff, oblivious to the mood in the room.

She turned to the only other person she can ask. Minhyuk was approaching, already scratching the back of his neck. Gold contacts and heavy eyeshadow also fixed on his face. "It's fine. They just aren't used to how you and Taekwoon interact too close at times." She tilted her head, confused. She knows that she and Taekwoon get really close at times, but it isn't something worth to avoid her eyes for.

Minhyuk just patted her shoulder. "Don't mind it so much. Let's go?"

~*~

Like how she expected, all forms of shyness drops from Taekwoon's form as they stood under the dim light of the stage. The air around him changing akin to the change she witnesses every time he will act out a character. Before the music plays, she tore her eyes away from her partner, settling into her own role, her character on the stage. It wasn't a competition between her and Taekwoon, but she can't let herself be beaten down. She's the dancer between them. She can't let him own this stage alone.

The music starts. Days of practice showed its fruit as their bodies moved with the sound. Hayeon finds herself expressing more, feeling more, because with every glimpse she will see of Taekwoon, she can see the dark reflection of her character on him. Hyde and Jekyll. They are there on the stage to show one person with two different identities. And it was such a thrill to see how the movements of the dance leads them to complement each other in a mad sort of way.

Hayeon knows Taekwoon had always declined the offer to dance, knows that his true love is acting. But it doesn't change the fact that from the awkward limbs that Hayeon had to help him with in the first place, he had improved so much to the point that he can easily squeeze into the Dance Department and claim himself as a dancer. Hayeon won't stop him if he ever does change his career path to dancing.

The music was nearing its end and Hayeon lets her body get pushed in one last quick succession of movements. It ends with an abrupt finish, of every pair standing face to face, as close as they possibly could. The girls' backs are to the audience, ending with a clawed hug from the black and white entities they acted out.

She could feel Taekwoon's ragged breath on her sweat slicked neck, can almost hear how his and her heart pound loudly in unison with the proximity. With the staged hug, Taekwoon had left a little space between his arms and Hayeon's body but as the lights dimmed again, he let them fall comfortably on her, hugging her a little closer. He'd also dropped his head on her shoulder, his breathing still harsh, and he laughed. Hayeon understood the feeling, that euphoric moment after a stage, the adrenaline rush still clinging heavily.

"That was... amazing!" he said in between huge gulps of air.

The lights were still dimmed, but Hayeon can still see the blissful expression on Taekwoon's face. It made her feel warm all over, coupled with the fact that Taekwoon was still hugging her, although loosely now. His make up was also a little smudged, he was sweating a lot, but his smile and the pure happiness on his face made him more beautiful. The most beautiful Hayeon had seen him. She almost managed to reach out, touch his cheek, direct his face to her just so she can see him smile, see how much he had enjoyed performing on the stage Hayeon loved so much.

Then Taekwoon was pulling away, pulling Hayeon by the elbow because it was time for them to get off the stage. She had forgotten that they were still on stage, still with her group, still in front of an entire crowd even if they were hidden in the darkness. She had forgotten everything completely, was so focused on Taekwoon, on his smudged eye make up and ragged breath, by his smile and the bliss on his face. The moment was gone. She knows her heart was pounding partly due to exhaustion, partly from the adrenaline rush, but also partly due to... Taekwoon.