“Are you feeling alright?” Johnny’s eyes are lined with worries as he leans in to get a closer look at her. “You were looking a little out of it earlier.”

Hera shakes her head and takes another long drink from the water bottle he’d fetched her. “I just zoned out for a second. I’m fine,” she clears and tries to quickly change the subject. “I saw you rehearsing earlier.”

Johnny takes the bait and grins. “I saw you too. Was that your roommate with you earlier?”

She nods and catches Wendy’s eyes from across the room. Wendy shoots her a wink and Hera growls back with her eyes. “Yeah, have I mentioned her to you? Seulgi?”

Johnny suddenly straightens up in his seat with a serious expression. “As in like Kang Seulgi?”

“Yeah…” Hera shifts awkwardly in her chair. “Why?”

He leans over the table and drops to a low whisper. “Does Sehun know she’s here?”

Hera sighs into her hand and clears . “You know too? What the hell, how come I was like one of the last people to know about them?”

“Things get deep in those practice rooms at three in the morning.” Johnny falls back into his chair with a chuckle and Hera shakes her head.

***

He’s exactly the same. Seulgi finds it fascinating that even after all this fame and fortune, Sehun is still exactly the same. His fingers are tightly laced in hers as he leads her to an unused VIP room that is located right above the stage. Seulgi steps up to the glass window and she’s offered a perfect view of the fans along with the chaos that naturally goes on backstage. Sehun slides up next to her and leans his back against the cold glass with his arms folded across his chest. He’s only got eyes for her and that’s another thing that hasn’t changed.

“You look beautiful today,” he compliments and it’s enough to get a little twitch from the corner of her lips. “Did you dress up for me?”

She spares him a little side eye action. “Don’t flatter yourself, Oh Sehun.”

Sehun smiles like the fool he is and takes one of her hands into his. He flips it over and like a curious child, he traces the lines in her palm while Seulgi watches in silence.  

“How come you don’t ask why?” Seulgi already knows the answer but she still asks, unsure if she wants the same answer or a different one.

He tilts his head slightly. “Because you’ll tell me when you’re ready.” Sehun lifts his gaze up. “As much as I want to know, I’d rather wait on you. I don’t want to lose you again.”

Seulgi bites down on her jaw. “I don’t think I can run away from you this time. There’s too many connections between us.”

“Do you want to?” Sehun asks quietly. “Is a world without me that much better?”

His question rips right through her chest and Seulgi wishes she can take it all back. She releases a quiet sigh and presses her warm palm against his cheek. Her thumb gently the scar hidden beneath the layers of makeup while Sehun watches her with eyes so vulnerable, it chokes her up. Silently, he wraps both his arms around her tiny waist and pulls her in until his cheek is pressed against her chest. He holds her tight and she snakes her arms around his neck and shoulders to keep him there in her cocoon of warmth. Sehun doesn’t know what he could’ve done to hurt or scare her off so badly but if he were to pick one thing he's sure of, it’s that Seulgi still loves him.

“It’s impossible to have a world without you,” Seulgi mumbles. “Your face is plastered all over Asia. Literally.”

Sehun chuckles and turns to look up at her. She softly smiles back at him and fixes a hair that fell out of place.

“I’m sorry.”

Seulgi sighs. Every single time they meet or talk, he’s always apologizing. “If you don’t stop apologizing, I’m going to really run away.”

Sehun presses his cheek against her chest again and closes his eyes with a quiet chuckle. “Okay, okay.”

Seulgi looks up from Sehun to the stands filled with people and wonders how she can feel so safe when there is only a thin layer of tinted glass protecting them from the eyes of the world. They love all love him but Seulgi knows no one can ever love Sehun as much as she does.

***

After bidding goodbye to the NCT boys, Hera slowly and a little reluctantly makes her way towards the VIP area as the show is about to start. She runs into Wendy and Chanyeol at the door and it makes her feel a little less nervous with them around. Not even a second later, Seulgi emerges from around the corner and once Sehun’s sure she knows where she’s headed, he bids her goodbye and slips back out through a door. Her expression is unreadable so Hera isn’t sure if their time went good or bad but Seulgi’s still here so it probably went well at the very least.

“The both of you are looking pretty out of it,” Wendy whispers as they enter through the doors of the VIP section. “Did something happen?”

Seulgi shakes her head while Hera looks down as Baekhyun turns to glance at them over his shoulder. They notice her weird reaction but dismiss it for now when Chanyeol walks over to lead them towards their seats. Hera pulls up right beside Baekhyun and he pretends like he doesn’t notice but she can feel the slight shift in his demeanor. The lights darken and Hera exhales as the crowd roars over the opening VCR. She looks down at her hands that are fumbling around nervously in her lap and wishes the burning sensation in her chest would stop already. She clenches her jaw as another roar rips through the air and she uses the opportunity to steal a glance at Baekhyun. Immediately, she notices how tense his jaw is before she looks down at his arms that are folded across his chest with clenched fists.

“Your boyfriend is on the screen.”

Hera gasps quietly and he turns to her with unreadable eyes. He nods towards the VCR where Johnny is signing with his hands as his voiceover played overhead. Still, Hera doesn’t look away from Baekhyun because his eyes are so clouded that it sends a chill down her spine. Baekhyun notices her observing him but he also refuses to turn away. Her eyes eventually travel up from his lips and Baekhyun keeps their gaze locked with the slightest hint of a smile. It’s suddenly not so nerve wrecking and there’s a mutual warmth that only they can feel. His eyes soften and the anxiety inside Hera’s chest slowly melts away. Her fingers itch to reach out for him but she fights against the urge and curl her fingers up into fists by her side. Baekhyun’s gaze inches slowly down to her clenched hands and Hera watches in complete silence as he hesitantly reaches over to her knuckles. The touch is feathery light but it’s enough to soothe her free of all her anxiety. Her fingers relax but his hand continues to hang there, just millimeters away from hers as if waiting for her to close the tiny gap. She almost does but they jump when the music starts and Taeyeon’s voice fills the stadium for the opening song. The audience goes wild at the appearance of their favorite stars who all begin systematically appearing one by one in different variations of white and pink outfits. Hera uses the opportunity to tear herself away from Baekhyun and quietly slips out into the hall. Her legs give up the moment she’s out and she collaspse against the nearest wall with a hand pressed to her chest. Everything about him is so enticing yet haunting at the same time.

A moment later, Seulgi steps out and immediately crouches down in front of Hera who didn’t get very far from the entrance. Hera looks up from her trembling hands in her lap and Seulgi shoots her a sympathetic smile. She slips her hand into Hera’s and gives it a tight squeeze.

“I’m going crazy, Seulgi,” Hera mumbles with a dazed look. “Is this heart beating for the prince I once loved a thousand years ago or the producer who I can’t have.”

Seulgi looks up from their hands with warm eyes. “At the end of the day, aren’t they still just the same person?”

Rather than a question, it’s a statement and that’s what the most. Seulgi is right. A thousand years and rebirth or not, these feelings are very real and Hera doesn’t know what to do with them.

“Take your time, we’re gonna eventually have to go back in there though. I mean,” Seulgi holds up her VIP badge. “We’re freaking VIP. If I have to give this up because of you, you’re never gonna hear the end from me.”

Hera snickers and playfully shoves her roommate. “Don’t worry, you won’t be missing any TVXQ performances.”

Seulgi snorts. “I better not. Urgh, stupid Oh Sehun. I asked him to introduce me to Changmin but before I could even finish, he cut me off and flat out refused.” She rolls her eyes and Hera laughs with a lighter heart.

“We can have Chanyeol introduce us.” Hera winks. “If only I was able to stay another two weeks in the studio, I could’ve met them and probably could have became friends with them by now.”

The two girls sigh in unison before Seulgi helps Hera get back onto her feet. When they return, everyone including Baekhyun are loudly cheering for NCT Dream so the girls try to slip back in as quietly as possible. As she steps back up towards Baekhyun, he silently hands them both a lightstick and for the rest of the show, neither says a word to each other.

When the show ends, Chanyeol continues his role as the “cool, awesome, boyfriend of our roommate” and does his duty of introducing them to TVXQ. Seulgi is swooning before they even enter the dressing room so the moment a sweaty Changmin appears in a shirt that is so shredded it’s barely even there anymore, she’s gripping onto dear life. He’s grinning brightly with the stage adrenaline obviously still pumping in his veins. Chanyeol starts with Wendy and finishes off with Seulgi who is as red as a tomato.

“Seulgi...Seulgi…” Changmin mumbles the name over and over as he tries to recollect an earlier conversation. “Oh! Are you Sehun’s f