Hope is a dream that doesn't sleep.

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Jieun’s POV

            There were ten minutes before curtain time, and I couldn’t find the confidence to stand up. I stayed seated like a lifeless corpse in front of a mirror rimmed with flashing LED lights just staring blankly. My make-up and hair was done to perfection for this performance, and even my parents were sitting somewhere in the audience eagerly waiting for my appearance. My dad seemed annoyed when I gave him the tickets and he realized I was performing the exact same play that I did back in high school. I could’ve guessed that the immediate thought that popped in his head was the reality of the kiss scene, but since I was going professional this time he had no say in what I could or could not do.

            “Jieun-ah, Eunjung’s performance is almost done.” Kikwang crept up behind me so stealthily that I missed the sound of his footsteps on the creaky floorboards. Staring into the same mirror as I, he placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and bent down so that his head was directly beside mine; his lips close to my ears.

            “We got this.” He whispered, his lips curving into a confident and self-upholding smile. For some reason his gesture did the opposite of calming me, it made my mind fluster. Instinctively I placed my corresponding hand on his and gently removed it from my shoulder, and in order to not offend him, I returned his smile with one of my own. The only difference was that it was forced; my expression was so faked that anyone could tell just how hard I tried to keep it plastered on my face.

            “Let’s go.” I breathed, closing my eyes and reopening them as I eyed the circle on the ground visible due to the spotlight above. I took my place at the centre and waited for the curtains to open. Tonight, I prayed that the stage would give me a positive response because then, and only then would I know for sure that I was ready--not just in high school.

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            We were at the last scene finally but there was a different feeling than the first time. My mind raced to uncover what it was at this exact moment that made everything so different. I remembered that instant not even a year ago on stage with Wooyoung at my side, my eyes glued shut just as they were before. Kikwang’s warm breath touched my pink cheeks, causing my eyes to open. From my cheeks, his breath trickled down to my neck and I shivered. There was one difference I remembered though; my legs were not weakened to the state of jelly and my shoulders didn’t shake vigorously—the common reactions I had when I got nervous. Kikwang’s eyes were serious, and as I stared into them I saw something that separated his gaze from Wooyoung’s. Despite the fact that those two are completely different people, a part of me wanted to run at this moment. His face was so close to mine that I could see my own reflection in his pupils and the reflection of me revealed nothing but sheer fear. That was the difference! I wasn’t nervous, I was scared. There was something about Kikwang at this moment that made my mind scream at my consciousness to pull away, run, or do anything to leave the situation. This was my body’s flight response, but Kikwang’s strong arms held me possessively close. He was different from Wooyoung more-so in that the feeling of being held in Wooyoung’s arms was protective and sincere, not possessive. This was what scared me.

            “Do you trust me?” Kikwang’s voice was no more than a gentle whisper; his lips moved ever so slowly that it would be impossible to tell that we were talking even from the very front seats. My heart skipped a beat the moment he asked and my mind jolted back to the memory of Wooyoung and I on stage, fluorescent pink and blue lights showering over our heads as the anticipating crowd waited for the act that was to come. Do you trust me? Those were the exact four words Wooyoung spoke to me that night. Even in the same context, why did it sound so different coming from Kikwang? My heart knew it but it took a lot more for my mind to admit that I didn’t trust Kikwang. It didn’t matter that I had agreed to a few weeks ago after running off during our first dance class, I only knew for certain that I didn’t. My body was now stuck in ‘freeze mode’, and like court, Kikwang took my right to remain silence as an agreement. Closing his eyes, he leaned in closer to close whatever distance we had between each other. I felt strangely confused, because my heart didn’t beat rapidly in my chest, but legs weren’t shaking nervously, but my mind was racing. It was racing for a method of escape. Before Kikwang’s lips could befall mine, I forced myself to turn towards the back of the stage slightly so that when he made contact, it was with the side of my right cheek, slightly off from my lips. The moment we made contact the curtains closed in and when we were finally separated from the audience, we immediately pulled away from each other. Kikwang stood tall in front of me with confused eyes, and all I could say to explain what I did was ‘sorry’. With my brief apology I fled to the change room with my casual clothes in a small duffel bag.

Wooyoung’s POV

            “Saengil chukhahaeyo, Suzy!” I cheered alongside Taecyeon who shoved his lighter back in his pocket and then clapped his hands excitedly together. Suzy stood wide eyed in front of her round, two layered birthday cake with the words “Happy Birthday Bae Suzy” written in bright red gel. Today was October 10, and we weren’t sure how to celebrate such a date with her. I had a feeling Taecyeon would know considering their history roots back to their pre-potty trained days but he was just as clueless as I. How does one set up a birthday celebration for someone with a personality as peculiar as Suzy? We settled on just getting a simple cake for now, and from the looks of it so far it seems like we were successful. A wide smile appeared on Suzy’s pale face, her eyes as bright as the candle flames as she puffed her cheeks with air and blew them out. Immediately after she blew out her candles we broke out in song; the traditional happy birthday song to be exact. There was one twist though; we sang it in Korean. After singing the last words in out perfect harmonic duet, instead of receiving a round of applause from the birthday girl we received equivalently large chunks of cake in our face.

            “What the hell, Suzy?” Taecyeon scolded, wiping the cream off his eyelashes. She folded her arms after wiping her hands with a paper towel and explained,

            “We’re in Canada. If you’re going to sing at all you should’ve just sang it in English.” I rolled my eyes at her. Despite the fact that we were now getting along perfectly fine, her obsession with being westernized sometimes got to me. Sure, we’re in Canada right now but she was born in South Korea. She’s South Korean, her parents are South Korean, she has South Korean roots and it’s not like she doesn’t understand the language. In a country as pluralistic as Canada I was amazed by how culturally intolerant she was—to her own background. Seeing as how she just dyed her hair blonde not too long ago I was wondering why she didn’t go and hook up with a Caucasian along the way. Then again, knowing her personality quite roundly now, the fact that she didn’t have a boyfriend didn’t shock me. Taecyeon didn’t get mad though. Instead, he laughed it off and nodded, smiling at her. Her cold gaze loosened and she coughed, cutting another 2 pieces of cake and handing them to us. Even after two months I was amazed that Taecyeon never sought a fight with her or disagreed with anything she said or did. I on the other hand had my fair share of arguments.

            “I’m going to go wash off the cream from my face; you two chat for a bit.” Taecyeon insisted and left with a clean white towel in his hands. I sighed and sat down, staring at the piece of cake in front of me. Suddenly a piece of towel paper was waving up and down in front of my face and I graciously took it from Suzy’s hands and wiped cream off my own face. I had to admit that Taecyeon had it far worse than me. Remembering that today was Suzy’s special day, I decided to ask,

            “What did you wish for?” I remembered the common western tradition of making a wish before blowing out the candles, and knowing how westernized Suzy was I was certain she made a wish. Staring directly at me for a few seconds with her usual emotionless expression, I immediately regretted asking. The tension softened after her sigh and she mumbled,

            “It’s never going to come true.” Feeling slightly more compassionate for her today, probably because it was her birthday after all, I decided to coax,

            “I don’t know what you wished for, but if you’re sincere about achieving that desire then you won’t sit in the sidelines passively waiting for it to come to you. Part of being a dreamer is running after your dreams until the point where you don’t just follow them, but you lead them.” I ended my brief lecture with a sincere smile, and Suzy chuckled almost evilly.

            “Do you hear yourself right now?” She retorted offensively. I saw her attitude impulse coming. I practically asked for it the moment I chose to be sympathetic towards her.

            “You preach to others about pursing dreams and yet you yourself don’t even follow your advice. I don’t waste time considering advice from hypocrites.” She attacked, leaving me shocked and confused in my seat. It was then that I wondered why Taecyeon was taking so long in the washroom, but after hearing a few grumbles in his direction I had a feeling he wouldn’t be out soon to rescue me from this difficult situation.

            “Hypocrite?”

            “Yes. You’re a hypocrite, Jang Wooyoung.” I looked her deep in the eyes, seeing that she was confident in what she proclaimed and had no intentions of letting this drop. Still, she was right. I’m a hypocrite, but I would love to see the look on her face the day that her words get thrown right back at her face. I won’t be so easily stepped on forever, so she should enjoy this while it lasts. Smirking, I pushed the plate of cake away from me and left. I knew that there will come a day when I won’t be merely a follower of my dreams, but someone who leads them to a point where all obstacles seem insignificant. This vision of mine may be distant for the time being, but time has been said to pass quickly when you’re having fun. There was never a rule set stating that ambitious pursuits couldn’t be enjoyable. They say that in this world there are two kinds of happiness, one kind of happiness you only know when the moment has passed and the other happiness you only feel in the moment. That happiness you feel in the moment is so precious that they say that the memories of this kind of happiness can stay with you and enlighten your life. I want to make every experience here the kind that I will cherish forever.

A/N: I seriously have a tendency to make Taecyeon randomly walk off hahaha XD Suzy's birthday wish will be revealed soon (: Wooyoung is finally becoming a man :D! And Jieun... is just an emotionally tortured person hehe... ^^;; I guess they're staying apart longer than I expected but Wooyoung will be back in Korea soon! Soon as in... a few chapters. Anyways, thank you all for your support :D Silent readers are appreciated as well! I'm almost out of Dream High quoets to use ):

They say that in this world there are two kinds of happiness, one kind of happiness you only know when the moment has passed and the other happiness you only feel in the moment. That happiness you feel in the moment is so precious that they say that the memories of this kind of happiness can stay with you and enlighten your life. 

- Jinguk Dream High Episode 16