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Thunderous screams erupted as soon as the members of the new rookie group exited the terminal. Swarms of fans held up various signs as they bounced up and down on the balls of their feet, trying to catch a better glimpse of the idols. The boys greeted their supporters with kind and gracious smiles as they were ushered towards the exit. The crowd, which was dominated by the female population, was so overwhelmed by their presence that they failed to notice the absence of the group’s resident alien.

“Has anyone heard anything from Taehyung?” Their manager questioned after they were settled in the van.

“His phone is going straight to voicemail.” Jimin announced.

“He hasn’t looked at any of his messages either.” Jungkook added in.

“That kid,” Namjoon sighed, shaking his head. “I’m sure they’re on the next flight out here. Let’s just get going. He’ll contact us when they land. We’ve got a busy day ahead of us.”  

•••

The music ceased playing and the muffled sound of a baby wailing woke Taehyung up. He removed his headphones and looked around. A mother was pacing up and down the aisle, rocking an upset infant in her arms. Through one of the windows located on the other side of where he was seated, Taehyung could see nothing but the bright blue sky accompanied by the fluffy white clouds. This told him that they were still in the air. They hadn’t arrived in Japan yet? How strange, considering it felt like he had been sleeping for decades. He must have been more fatigued than he had thought.

Taehyung didn’t contemplate on the matter any further though since his attention was quickly directed elsewhere. Precisely speaking, less than twelve inches to the right where his supposed counterpart was still resting. Arang was in a deep slumber; her arms were crossed in front of her chest while her head tilted downwards at an angle which looked rather uncomfortable. The boy was positive that if she continued to sleep in such a manner, she would undoubtedly rouse with an achingly stiff neck. He couldn’t afford to show up to Japan with a cranky girlfriend.

Upon removal of the curved pillow he had been using, Taehyung proceeded to cautiously coil it around Arang’s neck. Out of instinct, she naturally fixed her posture thanks to the support of the cushion. The baby continued to bawl, disrupting the passengers and Taehyung grew alarmed when he saw the girl’s eyebrows bunching up. Thinking on his toes, he took his headphones and placed them over her ears. Her expression relaxed and he exhaled in relief. That was a close call. 

When you like someone, you put their needs ahead of your own. 

“Excuse me,” the stewardess cleared politely and Taehyung’s consciousness returned. He must have fallen asleep without realizing it. “We’ve landed. Please wake up your girlfriend and grab your belongings. Thank you for choosing Korean Air. We hope you enjoy your stay.”

“Finally,” Taehyung stood up and stretched his tired muscles. He rotated his neck, which was tense, and massaged it for a brief second to loosen it up a bit. It would have been better if he had stayed awake. After he retrieved their luggage from the compartment above his head, Arang jolted awake on her own accord. For a moment she was lost as she scoped her surroundings. It took a minute for her to recall where she was.

The two of them locked eyes before Taehyung cleared his throat and yanked the headphone off of her. “Where’d that come from?” Arang blinked, startled.

“Don’t worry about. We’re here. Let’s go find everyone else.” He instructed as he scurried off the plane. Arang got up and the pillow wrapped around her neck fell down. She cocked her head to the side and bent down to pick it up.

“Isn’t this his?” She mumbled as she peered over to the exit where she could no longer see Taehyung. Just as they were about to enter the airport, Taehyung stopped them. “What are you doing now?” Arang groaned. She was starving and still in the process of waking up.

The boy placed a plain black surgical mask over his face and held the one he had personally bought for her out. “Put this on. There’s going to be dozens of reporters and fans waiting for us.”

Arang pushed his hand away. “I’ll pass. I don’t need it.” She rejected curtly. Her ignorance caused Taehyung to roll his eyes. She tried to strut by him but was unable to do so because he had latched onto her arm and spun her around.

Did this girl seriously not learn anything while she was in the spotlight these last couple of few weeks? Sighing, he took a step closer to her and leaned in. She shrunk back, flustered by the abrupt decrease in distance between the two of them. What was he doing? The tips of his fingers brushed against her ear as he secured the mask over half of her face. The contact, although miniscule, summoned an army of chills to march down her spine.

Feeling extremely uneasy, Arang pulled away and adjusted the piece of fabric on her own. “Okay, I got it. I can do it myself.” She grumbled under her breath.

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