It was chaos in the hall, like the auditions all over again. Hye Jin sat in her chair, observing the dressing room through the mirror’s reflection. She watched her peers as they ran around shouting orders, organizing the dressing room and throwing makeup and costumes on each other, all while keeping an eye on the clock hanging above the door.

            Hye Jin swallowed the lump in and focused back on the two girls hovering around her and touching up her hair and makeup. She had neither artistic abilities nor makeup skills, so she was thrown into the care of two crew members handling costumes and makeup. And thank goodness for that.

            As they stepped back to admire their work on her, she was amazed. Not tooting her own horn or anything, but she couldn’t deny the fact that she looked as if she stepped out of a saloon during the Industrial Revolution. The hairdo along with the red lips and rosy cheeks really made her feel in character. She knew it was a placebo, but she didn’t care. She soaked up the courage it gave her and basked in the glory of feeling good about herself. Sort of.

            “You both are amazing, really. Thank you,” Hye Jin gushed, taking their hands and shaking them excitedly. She bowed several times to their surprise and felt her eyes tearing up with gratitude.

            “Please don’t cry; your mascara will run,” one of the girls panicked, snatching up a tissue from the counter and dabbing Hye Jin’s eyes lightly. She let out a breath of relief when all the moisture was blotted away. Smiling down at Hye Jin, the two girls patted her hair and poked and prodded at her dress to smooth out the wrinkles.

            “You’re very welcome, Hye Jin-sshi. We always look forward to working with you since there’s so much we can do.” They helped her away from the chair and gathered up the tail of her dress so it wouldn’t get caught on anything. “Now, off you go. The show’s about to start.” They walked her out of the chaotic dressing room and both gave her quick hugs before slamming the door close.

            “Well, here goes nothing.”

--

            Soft rustling echoed off the halls, soothing down Hye Jin’s high strung nerves. She had gone back stage earlier in hopes of calming herself down, but a little peek past the curtains sent her on a roller coaster of emotions. She felt lightheaded and nauseated, so she took the liberty of strolling through the back halls to calm herself down. It was working so far.

            “Nervous now, are we? Well, that’s too bad. Better get used to it by tonight or else you won’t last the next two weeks.” His voice sent shivers down her spine, but she shook them off. She couldn’t let him psych her out. Turning around with boring eyes, Hye Jin stared him down and held her head high.

            “I have the right to be nervous since I don’t have years of experience like you do.”

            “Oh, so you think I’m skilled?” Kris smirked, taking slow, mocking strides until her stood directly in front of her. Hye Jin stood her ground and didn’t back away despite the little voice screaming in her head to step away.

            “Sure, you’re skilled, skilled in the art douchebaggery.” She shoved past him, heading back to theater, her anger simmering down the further she got away from him. “Giant stupid head,” she mumbled under her breath, cursing him with her colorful, unmentionable vocabulary.

            “Well, aren’t you a little hostile tonight,” Luhan chuckled, startling Hye Jin out of her chanting. She sheepishly scratched the back of her head and looked away. She cleared and let him join her, matching his slow pace as they made their way to the stage. Embarrassment tinted her cheeks as she lightly knocked her head, scolding herself for being caught in her cursing rant. Luhan smiled at her and pulled her arm down, intertwining their fingers almost naturally. “Hey, don’t worry. It was cute, especially the giant stupid head part.”

            “Oh jeez, that’s embarrassing,” she groaned, covering her face with her free hand. He laughed lightly and swung their arms, quickening his pace so that he could avoid stepping on her dress. The play had suffered enough crises already; they couldn’t afford to lose the same character over some idiot move like an accidental trip.

            “So, how are you feeling?” he asked, glancing at her with a mischievous grin.

            Hye Jin sighed with a groan. “Right now? Well, my heart’s racing, my hands are clammy – as you can probably tell – and I think my stomach is going to fall out of my . I guess I’m doing all right,” she replied, her last remark heavily laced with sarcasm. Luhan stopped walking and pulled her to a halt. He held her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes to which she looked away.

            “Hey, look at me.” He lifted her chin and smiled down at her. “I know this is probably the most terrifying thing you’ll ever do, but there’s no turning back now.”

            “Thanks for the pep talk, Luhan,” Hye Jin scoffed, pulling away from him with a scowl. She thought he would at least sympathize with her, not give her a lecture. She took a step away only to be pulled back into his arm.

            “At least let me finish. What I was trying to say was, even though you’re nervous and have no other choice but to go on, at least you won’t be alone. Remember, I’ll be there on stage with you. Just look for me if you feel anything at all, okay? Besides, looking at my handsome face beats looking out to the audience, doesn’t it?” He pulled back and grinned. Hye Jin laughed and nodded in agreement, her nerves slowly going away with the humor he brought her.

            “Hey, you two! The play started already. GET.TO.YOUR.PLACES.” Director Kim barked at them from the end of the hall, motioning towards the stage with flushed cheeks. She was just as nervous as they were.

            “Let’s go before she actually bites somebody’s head off.” Luhan dragged Hye Jin along, pulling her towards the theater. They got to the door backstage door in seconds and heard the curtains being raised. Just as he reached out to turn the handle, Hye Jin tugged on his jacket.

            “Luhan?” she mumbled, still holding onto his shirt.

            He turned around and took her hand. “Yeah?”

            “Thanks for everything, for always being there when I needed someone.” She rubbed her nose as a blush crept onto her cheeks. Luhan patted the top of her head lightly to avoid ruining her hairdo.

            “No problem, Hye Jin. It’s all in a day’s work. Now come on, or we’ll miss our cue.” He held her hand and led her through the door, putting a finger to his lips as the opening act was already on stage. Hye Jin tugged on his hand and leaned towards him.

            “If there’s anything I can do to make it up to you, just ask.”

            Luhan nodded his head and pulled her towards the wings to wait for their scene. He let her stand before him so that she could see what was happening on stage. Just as the lights dimmed for the set change, Luhan leaned down and rest his chin against her shoulder.

            “How about a date tomorrow and we’ll call it even?” he whispered softly. Hye Jin shivered in a mixture of shock and delight. His breath against her ear made her body tingle in excitement and she turned to him with a nod.

            “Okay, deal,” she whispered in response, giving him a quick peck on the cheek right when the lights came back on. She ducked her head bashfully and shuffled onto stage, grateful that the heavy makeup covered up her beet red cheeks.

--

            No! What are you doing? You’re not supposed to do that; at least, you’re not supposed to do that with him. Your lips are for me. Only me. Kris forced himself not to storm onto the stage as everyone entered the scene, his eyes trained on Hye Jin the entire time. He watched as she took her place next to the piano, casually leaning on it as she got into character. She eyed the other actors flirtatiously, playing her role of the seductress in the saloon. Breathing in several times to calm his anger, Kris his character of Jack and strolled on stage, sitting down at his table to cue the music. Luhan began playing his piece and Hye Jin promptly sang along.

            What is she doing? Why isn’t she looking at me? She’s supposed to be seducing me. Why is she staring at him? Kris tried not to scowl, but his emotions got the better of him. His expression darkened and he turned his head away from the audience, missing his cue.

            “What are you doing?! Say your lines!” Director Kim whispered from the wings, waving her arms frantically at Kris. Hye Jin had stopped singing and was sitting on his table, awkwardly waiting for his lines. She saw him still zoned out and anxiously locked eyes with Luhan who gave her a comforting smile. He mouthed a few words to her and nodded discreetly towards Kris. Giving him a timid nod, she walked behind Kris’ chair and s an arm down his chest.

            “Playing hard to get now, huh?” she breathed against his ear. The audience all held their breaths in anticipation as Kris instinctively groaned, shutting his eyes. He let out a shaky breath and shut off his personal thoughts, turning his character’s persona back on. Grabbing her sleeve, he pulled off her arm with a grimace, dropping it like it was a piece of rotting meat.

            “You shouldn’t do that,” he snarled, smoothly transitioning back into the script. He stood up from his seat abruptly and dusted off his coat, picking up his hat to leave. Hye Jin circled around him with an alluring smile, dragging her hand along his shoulder and catching hold of his collar as she sauntered by.

            “Oh? But what if I want to?” she hummed, leaning into him. He shook her off and pushed her away with a grunt.

            “Stop it. You don’t know what you’re doing,” he hissed. She stepped forward again, latching herself onto his arm.

            “Really? I think I do, Mister. How about you come take a drink with me over there? It’s on the house,” she wooed, tugging on his arm to take him to the bar. He pulled back, struggling out of her grip before forcing her off of him. She staggered into one of the tables and turned to him with a glower. “Sir, is that how you treat a lady?”

            He scoffed at her and sneered right back, “You’re working in a saloon, Miss. Do you really think you’re still a ‘lady’?” With one last glare, he turned around and stormed towards the wings. Stopping just before the curtains, he looked back at her. “You don’t know what you’ve just done,” he muttered under his breath. She threw him a dirty look before stalking off haughtily, unsuspecting of what was to come.

--

            “You sounded great, Hye Jin,” Luhan spoke to her in hushed tones, beaming at her as she frowned down at her dress, fussing with the layers. He pulled her hands away and helped fix her hair and costume as she nervously prepared for her murder scene.

            “Thanks, Luhan, but I still have one more scene and you’re not going to be there to help me.” She murmured back. “Without you, I wouldn’t have been able to continue that act earlier.”

            “It was nothing.”

            “You gave me the lines. That wasn’t ‘nothing’, Luhan.” She turned to him and gave him a hug, breathing in his comforting scent. She felt his chest vibrate as he chuckled softly, hugging her closer and resting his chin on her shoulder.

            “Fine, I helped you a lot. Tomorrow’s date better be freaking amazing,” he teased, pecking her on the top of her head before turning her around. “Now don’t be nervous and just breath. They won’t see your face anyway, so you can always find me here in the wings.” He gave her shoulders a comforting squeeze before nudging her towards the stage. She turned to him with a pout, but quickly got into character before strutting away.

            Luhan willed himself to keep watching the scene even though his heart wrenched every time. He didn’t like how close Kris got to her or his lustful gaze. It was unsettling and it made him feel threatened. Now that he had a date with her, he felt even more protective of her than he already was.

            Nervously, he watched as Hye Jin walked across the stage towards the alleyway where Kris hid. His fists balled up as Kris emerged from the shadows and yanked her in, pinning her against the wall.

            “I told you to stop, but you didn’t. Now look where it got you,” he growled into her ear, crushing her against the wall. The audience gasped as he began to “take advantage” of her, pulling up her skirts and muffling her cries with his palm.

            Hye Jin struggled as best as she could and exaggerated her movements to make it seem more realistic. felt hoarse by her silenced screams and she fought hard not to kick Kris. He was holding her a little harder than usual and she started to feel a bit panicked. Her squirming turned into thrashing and she glanced over at Luhan, an alarmed and frantic look in her eyes.

            Perturbed by her distressed look, Luhan jumped to his feet, taking a step forward. He felt a hand hold him back and turned to see Director Kim with an incomprehensible expression masking her face. She shook her head at him, signaling him not to take action or else they would screw up the scene, much to his dismay.

            Torturously, Luhan watched on. He winced as Kris threw aside her detachable sleeves and hiked up her skirts even more. His anger rose as Kris actually planted kisses against her collarbones and up her neck. He placed rough kisses along her jaw to her ear, nipping at it roughly before pausing unexpectedly.

            “He should’ve killed her by now. What is he doing?!” Luhan whispered to the Director. She only shrugged her shoulders and kept silent. What could she do now? They couldn’t just enter the scene and drag him off of her, nor could they throw in any improvisation. The scene had only one purpose and outcome, and there was nothing they could do about it.

            Hye Jin tried to push Kris away and tugged at his hands. She tried to catch his eye and signal for him to stop and end the scene, but he was too immersed in his own little world. Tears began to pool and dripped from the corners of her eyes and she grew tired from struggling so much. She didn’t know how much more she could take and was about to give up when the sound of a dagger being unsheathed caught her attention.

            It’s finally going to be over, she rejoiced, cheering in her head as he brought the tip of the fake dagger against her side. Just stab me now and it’ll all be over. She waited for the blade to retract and the familiar coldness of the hilt against her stomach, but it never came.

            She felt nothing. No restraint on her body and no palm cupping . Puzzled, she opened her eyes to see what Kris was doing when he closed in on her, the familiar pressure of the hilt against her side and a foreign feeling against her lips.