ChenChenChen: Are you going to be at the company formal tomorrow night?

Me: Yeah, why?

ChenChenChen: Oh okay good, I wanted to see you again before heading over to China for promotions there ^^

The banquet hall was pitch dark, difficult for my eyes to adjust to after coming from such a brightly lit up corridor. It wasn't too loud from I was standing on the outskirts of the dance floor, but I could definitely feel the strong pounding of the bass, vibrating through the floors and the walls. Coloured lights were flashing around, turning in all directions quickly and forming complex patterns on the walls. A couple of strobe lights in the corners flashed occasionally, matching with the intensity of the song thrumming through the giant speakers. It was still early, with not many people here yet, so I went to sit at one of the tables at the side, observing the scattered groups of people in the center.

Tonight's our company's annual party, which was basically a chance for the idols to relax a bit and have fun, but for the trainees that were invited, it also meant a lesson to how to behave appropriately at social gatherings. Back home, I was never much of a party person, but nonetheless, this event had actually seemed quite exciting, and so I made sure to tag along with my group.

The other girls in the dorm had spent an awfully long time getting ready; they had been doing hair and makeup, manicures, pedicures, and picking the perfect outfit through their closets filled with nice things. My outfit for the night was quite simple: a white chiffon blouse with a pretty leopard print high-low skirt, just a dash of makeup, and my long hair in loose curls. It was one of the few occasions that I wore makeup and got all dressed up, so when I had looked in the mirror, I had barely recognized myself.

It was actually amazing how merely a couple of months could change someone so much.

Sure, my feline eyes were brought out by some mascara and a thin line of eyeliner, the curls made me look older and more mature, and I had even put on my only pair of tall stiletto heels borrowed from Jiwoo, to give me a much needed height boost. But when I had looked in the mirror, I had suddenly realized how much I've changed as a person over these couple of months. Gone was the little tomboy girl who's never been away from home, never went out to experience anything new. But I guess that change was good; even if I was going to leave in a couple of months, this would probably be the most memorable experience I've ever had.

Slowly but surely, more people starting trickling into the banquet hall as the night progressed. I wandered around with my group for a while, silently observing other people as they swayed from side to side happily, all dressed up in fancy outfits that shone under the gleaming lights. When the other girls finally headed towards the dance floor, completely ready to show off the dance skills that they had spent so long training to acquire, I retreated to my table in the corner. Dancing already wasn't my cup of tea, and especially not while wearing these dangerously high heels that I felt like I could trip over just by standing.

I sat uncertainly at the side alone, very inexperienced with these types of events. Just then, the crowd roared up in screams and I looked to see some EXO members coming in through the main doors, quickly being engulfed by the crowd, then dispersing amongst everyone. Some members were hanging out with the other trainees, and some were with the few Super Junior seniors that came too. Not many other seniors were here; I guessed that they were too busy with schedules or they probably preferred to celebrate somewhere else.

I edged along the wall, practicing walking in these heels before joining a group of other trainees dancing at the side of the dance floor. I swayed slightly, following the beat of the song, not doing anything that would put potentially put my balance at risk. My eyes scanned the crowd, looking for any familiar faces through the darkness and chaos. 

The crowd suddenly went wild as the music turned up, now blasting Bigbang's Fantastic Baby through the speakers. Everyone started dancing enthusiastically, filling up the dance floor.

"Wow, fantastic baby! Dance...oh ohoh~ I wanna dance, dance, dance, dance, dance!" We jumped up and down, pumping our fists as we watched a group of Super Junior and EXO members have a freestyle dance battle at the front.

My gaze slowly drifted over to the center of the room, where Jiwoo and Miyoung were. I could see them over the crowd as they were dancing on these table-like platforms, hips swaying charismatically, short dresses glinting in the twinkling lights. Their freestyle possibly even better than the choreographies we've learned, and I was a bit surprised that Jiwoo could dance like that, as she's never really been labelled as a dancer. Their smooth moves and perfect collaboration was really amazing, and I found myself wishing that maybe one day, I would be that good as well.

The song changed as I glanced across the room to the other side, where there was a small group of people standing around in a circle, chatting more than dancing. They were partially hidden in the shadows behind the brightness of the dance floor, but even still, I searched for a particular silhouette.

When a beam of light just happened to shoot in that direction, that's when I recognized Minnie as she did a hair flip, her hand wrapped around a guy's arm.

Chen, of course.

The sight of him made me catch my breath, almost accidently stepping off my high heels. He looked stunning in formal clothes today, with his hair up and sleeked back in place. He looked relaxed, smiling so brilliantly it seemed to light up the surroundings.

I remembered the text he had sent me yesterday, breaking the long silence between us. But seeing him this happy...I didn't want to ruin it.

Just as I was going to look away, I watched as his eyes wandered from the group, scanning the crowd, looking for something or someone. His eyes stopped as they met mine.

Heart pounding, the music in the background completely disappeared. We caught each other’s gazes just for a mere second before other people on the dance floor obstructed our view. 

I went over to the drink table and got a coke, sipping it slowly while I continued to people-watch. Flashes of him seemed to appear here and there, in between the sea of people and all the flashing lights, almost like a hallucination.

When I looked up again, our eyes met again.

Whatever song that was playing ended, and the crowd went wild as it changed into one of EXO's songs. It was a remix version that had a strong beat, heavy in the pulsating bass, perfect for dancing. With screams, people at the sides of the room rushed over onto the dance floor.

He didn't seem to notice anything though, as he walked towards my direction. I glanced over at him, dodging the sea of people, crossing the infinite space in between us.

"Kim Jongdae!" A shrill voice shouted, over the loud volume of the pounding music just before he reached my table. Minnie abruptly came to Chen's side, pulling him away, not even glancing in my direction once. She pointed towards the front of the room, where there were EXO members gathered there, dancing to their own song. I chuckled at the incredulous look on his face when he came to realization that he was supposed to be up there with them.  

I watched as Chen quickly went to his place and joined the others, completely changing his demeanor. Everyone was so different on stage than off stage, that it was hard to get used to at first. Off stage, all of the members were super dorky and playful, well maybe except Kris, who was still a little intimidating, but on stage they were all so charismatic, with intense smothering looks in their eyes. After they finished, the crowd went wild, shouting out the names of the members, one by one, like a fan-chant. Minnie ran up to Chen as soon as they were done performing, giving him a high-five. 

I barely noticed as the song then changed to After School's Love Beat, as I headed over towards where Chen was, to congratulate him on the awesome performance too. But suddenly, I saw Minnie clinging onto Chen's arm, whispering something into his ear, then drag him onto the dance floor. Their chemistry was perfect and seemed to match each other flawlessly as they flowed to the rhythm together. I sat down by the drink table again and turned away, not wanting to watch. My heart sank and my insides twisted, feeling really queasy. I couldn't help it when my eyes flicked to them again and saw them pressed closely together, dancing and laughing wildly. I downed the rest of my coke and got ready to leave the place. 

I thought you wanted to see me, but maybe it's better this way.

"Now for some slow dance," the DJ said, in English. 

The song changed to B2ST's "Will You Be Alright?", a calming the atmosphere down to a slow andante. Their soulful voices filled the room as I saw a few Girls' Generation members walk in through the front doors, dropping by to enjoy the last song. They quickly went to the dance floor, joining the circle of EXO and Super Junior members before some of them paired up and dispersed.

"Hey," a voice said into my ear. I flinched, startled, then turned around to see him there, eyes sparkling, so close and so, so handsome. 

"Hey," I replied simply. I had had so much I wanted to say, but now that he was here, all the words just disappeared from my mind. 

"Come dance with me," he said softly, offering a hand. 

"What about Minnie?" I asked warily. I didn't want to hurt her, and also didn't need her to hate me more than she already did.

Chen frowned, almost looking taken aback, then glanced over to the crowd where Minnie was dancing with a guy that looked like Baekhyun. He shrugged nonchalantly, concerned eyes only focusing on me. "Someone else asked her," he ran his other hand through his hair, "...and besides, I wanted to save the last song for someone special," he said sheepishly, giving me one of his heart-warming smiles.

My stomach was doing little flips and my heart pounded hard, going faster than a metronome on presto. I didn't want it to be like this, but why was it so easy to forget?

I put a smile on my face, and placed my hand in his, and together, we headed over to the dance floor. 

Even with such tall heels on, I was still shorter than him. My arms came around his neck and he held my waist gently, bringing our bodies close together. His familiar scent surrounded me in a tender embrace and I closed my eyes, trying to relax my quickening pulse that was just as fast as the light thrum of his heart felt. He leaned in, his forehead resting lightly against mine. We melted together as we swayed slowly in time with the music.

From one glance, I could tell that he had just as much to say, to express, but when it came down to it, words didn't matter anymore.

I've missed you, and I'll miss you.

Will you be alright? Even if I'm not by your side? 

Even if this might be the last time I'll ever see him in person, even if I go back to my home, and even if he was never mine in the first place.

He left me with such amazing memories over these past two months that I'd keep close to my heart.

Would I be alright without him? 

This chapter was not supposed to be so angsty I'M SORRY
Oh yeah the songs mentioned in here are pretty old, mostly 2013 because that's when I wrote this chapter
Sorry for the late update, it's hell week/month with midterms and assignments all overlapping, I'm dying
Thanks for all the subscribers and comments <3