The stadium was buzzing with the sound of the crowd even when the concert had finished. It was the last show BIGBANG had in Korea and it would take years before they could perform again as a group. The atmosphere was bittersweet to say the least. Four young women were being ushered backstage and into the waiting room of their seniors. It was almost obligatory to greet the five men they looked up to at this crucial moment. And Lisa could already feel her palms sweat in anticipation as the white double doors opened.

“BLACKPINK IN OUR AREA!” Seungri’s loud voice greeted them and the four giggled nervously as they bowed in sync. Lisa was too shy to initiate something as she tried to keep a pleasant smile on her face.

As usual, it was Jisoo who spoke first—the innate friendliness oozing out of her. “You were all amazing tonight.”

“Thanks, Jisoo-yah.” Daesung was sitting on a stool—his makeup was being removed. He shot heart fingers at her and the young woman’s confidence suddenly faltered as she blushed scarlet. “I haven’t forgiven you yet.”

“It was a mistake, oppa!”

Jisoo covered her face with her hands as the others laughed. It was well-known how Jisoo accidentally answered something on Running Man a month ago. She mentioned Daesung as someone she didn’t want to be friends with in YG. It was a spur of the moment thing and she got confused with her answers. Everyone knew she didn’t mean anything bad but their seniors wouldn’t let her live the light of day after that incident.

“Still, you hurt my feelings.” Daesung pouted as he turned back to the mirror. Jisoo immediately half-ran towards his direction and brought out something from her bag.

Daesung’s small eyes widened as he saw his Krunk stuffed toy holding a red heart. Jisoo had written on the heart what exactly she said to redeem herself on the show.

Daesung-oppa, you’re the best!

“Aww. You’re forgiven.” He grinned at her and Jisoo flushed even more. Her embarrassment was easily masked by her outgoing personality as she engaged him in a conversation.

There was small talk happening among G-Dragon, Jennie, and Chae Young—the three were particularly more familiar with each other since they had collaborated before. It had been years since they started calling G-Dragon “Jiyong-oppa”. And it was only recently after they debuted that Lisa finally had the chance to call him and the other members in that manner. Speaking of oppa, her eyes scanned the wide room and noticed that the person she had been looking forward to seeing was nowhere in sight. Her heart suddenly felt heavy at the realization.

“Why are you so quiet?” The familiar deep voice suddenly asked from behind her.

Instantly turning around, she saw Seung Hyun looking at her with a neutral expression on his face. His pink hair was damp and his eyes were red and puffy.

Did he cry? Lisa thought as she surveyed her senior closely.

“Did Youngbae-hyung kick you out of the massage room?” Seungri asked the oldest hyung and the latter just nodded—a scowl forming on his face as he sat down on a chair nearby.

“My shoulders haven’t even been massaged yet.”

Seungri noticed that Lisa was staring curiously at the two of them. “One of our masseuses suddenly called in sick so we had to take turns.”

Lisa watched as Seung Hyun stretched his neck from side to side with discomfort clearly etched on his face.

“Don’t strain your neck.” She suddenly found herself saying and she was met with his gaze. Seungri perked up at her attention. “I mean you might injure yourself.”

“You’re Thai, right?” Seungri asked and before she could even answer, he followed up with, “Do you know Thai massage?”

Seung Hyun sighed. “That’s a stupid question.”

“I do.” Lisa chuckled nervously as Seung Hyun’s eyes widened in surprise and Seungri laughed.

“Lisa gives the best massage.” Chae Young quipped. “We always bully her into giving us one.”

“Chaeng…” The youngest wanted to argue but decided against it. “I don’t think our seniors would want to know how awful you all are to me.”

Laughter echoed around the small group. Suddenly, Seungri stood up from his seat and took Lisa by the arms. Not knowing how to react, Lisa just found herself being guided behind where Seung Hyun was. Her hands were casually placed on top of his shoulders as Seungri said, “Before you start ing about your old shoulders, here’s the best Thai massage you will ever have.”

Lisa could feel how tense his shoulders were and she was too surprised to do anything but look at the people around the room. Daesung and Jisoo were both talking with a stylist—laughing about something Lisa couldn’t understand. At the other side of the room were Jiyong and Jennie who looked like they were working on something by how serious they were talking. Seungri was finally having his makeup removed. And Chae Young was sitting on the couch’s arm as she egged Lisa to just do it.

“Do your shoulders often hurt?” Lisa asked Seung Hyun quietly. He didn’t seem particularly bothered when she started pressing her fingers gently on his muscles.

“I’m just tired from the show.”

“Where does it hurt?”

He pointed at the area Lisa knew how to massage well. And without saying another word, she worked on loosening the muscles that had been used for too much. Stress was also probably a reason. Her palms and fingers firmly massaged the expanse of his shoulder and upper back area. She kneaded until she felt the muscles relax. And with the way he sighed contentedly, she knew she was doing a decent job. She moved to his side, took his right arm and stretched it upwards. She bent his elbow until his fingers touched his shoulder. Holding his elbow, she massaged his inner arm and felt the muscle underneath the black dress shirt. Lisa knew she was already blushing hard and she wanted to kick herself for not being able to control her emotions. Looking up, she saw that no one was really paying attention to them—all busy with their own thing… even Chae Young who had gone back to Jennie and Jiyong.

“Is it okay if I massage your hand?” She asked again and that was when she saw that Seung Hyun had his eyes closed the whole time. He hummed in response.

Hesitating a little, she massaged each of his finger. When she stretched his arm to his side, she held his hand and pressed the inside of his palm with her thumbs. She could clearly remember how her mother taught this technique. She grasped his hand on her own and shook his whole arm gently—trying so hard not to notice how big and soft his hand was. And how she felt so giddy at the fact that they were holding hands… no matter what the situation was.

She repeated the process on his other side.

It took her quite some time to realize where her confusion had stemmed from. Everything was new to her. She was turning 20 in a couple of months but in all the years she had spent on this earth, she had never really gotten a crush on someone. She had been too focused on dancing when she was a kid… then training since she came to Korea. There was no time to find a boy to like. Sure, she sometimes thought that a few guys were cute and swoon-worthy... but nothing compared to how much she found Seung Hyun incredibly attractive. It wasn’t just his looks that pulled her in. It was his humor and sincerity whenever they talked... the way he simply treated her so nicely.

After months of beating herself up for being confused, she had finally admitted that she had a big fat crush on Choi Seung Hyun… a man who was part of the group she looked up to and who was 10 years her senior. The gap was too much—both in career and age. It was simply unrealistic. He was someone who had no obligation to give her a time of his day.

Yet he did.

And that was the dilemma Lisa had to face.

“You’ve gotten very comfy there, hyung.” Jiyong’s soft voice spoke from the other side of the room.

Seung Hyun opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings—as if he had fallen asleep in the brief time Lisa was massaging him. She was pressing her thumbs on his palm when the door opened and Yang Hyun Suk came in. Startled, Lisa dropped Seung Hyun’s hand and moved away from him a little. She had no idea why she reacted that way. It was only when she met her CEO’s gaze that she felt she did the right thing.

“Lisa-yah, are you okay?” The older man asked—his signature black cap sitting neatly on his head. “You look like a deer caught in headlights.”

Jiyong chuckled. “She’s fine, hyung. She probably just got scared to see you so suddenly.”

“That’s not—”

Lisa was interrupted by the CEO’s laughter and he paid her no mind as he wandered around the room to talk separately with the members. The girls gathered together and Lisa was feeling more awkward by the second for reasons she couldn’t understand. Was it because of how she reacted when sajangnim came in? Or was it because she secretly wanted to prolong that massage just a little bit more?

Young Bae suddenly came in looking like he would pass out at any given second.

“Let’s take a photo together.” Jiyong announced and the two groups went to the center of the room.

With Lisa and Chae Young being the tallest amongst the four girls, they naturally stood behind. Jiyong and Young Bae both crouched in front as Jennie and Jisoo slightly bent their knees. Daesung stood beside Chae Young and Lisa on her right. In a split second, Lisa saw Seungri approach her but was immediately blocked by none other than Seung Hyun. She could only stare as the man briefly glanced down at her before feeling his left hand on the small of her back. He was so close that Lisa almost forgot what they were doing at that moment.

Two photos and that was it. The fleeting moment was over.

Th