“Thank you, everyone! We'll be sure to come back soon!” L.Joe shouted to the fans before exiting the stage with the rest of his group. They had just finished their High Jump Tour in the States, with Florida being the last stop. All of the other members were lethargic yet still joked with one another, while L.Joe was more focused on taking off the sponsored clothing. He struggled a bit with his outfit before giving in and approaching one of his outfit coordinators. “Noona can you help me with this?” With all the weird zippers and buttons it was quite difficult to take off without someone else's help. His respect for the coordi noonas grew immensely.
 

“Thank you,” He said before rushing away in a tank and skinny jeans.

 

“Hyung, have you been holding in your poop or something?” Niel shouted at the other who was rushing towards the bathrooms near the back of the dressing room.

 

“Shut up! I don't have time right now.” L.Joe's voice echoed from the small hallway which led to the restrooms as he made his way in to one of the shower stalls.

 

“Maybe he's got diarrhea,” C.A.P said, putting in his two cents before continuing to play on his tablet. Niel chuckled and leaned back in to his chair, while bringing both hands to the back of his head for added support. Although he teased the older boy, he knew exactly why he was in such a hurry.

 

~Three Months Ago~

 

“Gin saengmeori geunyeo!” Changjo belted out the last note of their song “Miss Right,” as Teen Top was practicing for their World Tour which was beginning in less than a month.

 

“Alright. Looking good as always,” their choreography director shouted while sitting on the floor behind the six boys. “Take a ten minute break. Be back here so we can finalize the revised choreo for 'Let's Dance'.”

 

“Yes!” They all shouted as they scattered around the room in search of their phones, water bottles, and seats for their tired bodies.

 

“Finally,” L.Joe muttered under his breath as he went for his bag and retrieved his phone. He squatted in front of his bag and looked at his most recent texts.

 

1:17 am Inbox.

From: Michelle

Byungie~ I just bought my ticket

for Teen Top's concert in Florida!

Look out for me in the front row!

I'll be carrying a sign that's just a

picture of a thumbs up. I can put

your face on it if you want b^.^d

 

 

1:20 am Inbox.

From: Michelle

Message: It's 1 am or something

where you are, so I'm not sure if

you're still up right now... But call

me when you get this regardless!

 

1:23 am Inbox.

From: Michelle

Message: Omg I just remembered

you said you had practice today..

Ignore my messages, you're

probably busy. Sorry!

 

L.Joe chuckled quietly to himself at the series of cute texts sent by his girlfriend. He hadn't told anybody yet that he was dating. He didn't want to. The situation was mildly embarrassing since he hadn't met her in real life... yet.

 

He first noticed her back in 2014 when he realized that she would leave constant thumbs up in reply to each of their posts on twitter. He took notice of her twitter user name immediately, as it was short and simple. On a whim, he held a twitter chat; and of course, she appeared and twitted nothing but thumbs up emoticons. Defeated by his curiosity, L.Joe took this as an opportunity to ask her why she only tweeted that and that only.

 

@Padfoot I love u <3 but is that the only finger you have? keke

 

@TEEN_TOP “@Padfoot I love u <3 but is that the only finger you have? keke"

No, I also have this one, kuku

[image]

Humorously, she sent a picture of a smiling emoticon giving the middle finger. Of course at first, L.Joe was astonished, as were the fans who replied to her tweet with various OMGs and LOLs. Soon after, she sent a direct message to their inbox, excusing her impulsive reaction with apologies and sad-faced emoticons. Somehow, an apology led to a full-blown conversation between the two, which eventually led to L.Joe giving his number to a fan for the first time―and quite riskily as well. Since then they've become great friends, though naturally their relationship fell in to a more serious one over time.

 

With about eight minutes left for his break, he stood up and headed outside, dialing Michelle's number as he walked. The phone rang about two times before he heard someone shuffling to pick up on the other side.

 

“Byunghoney~” Michelle cooed through the other end of the phone.

 

“Mmm~ How are you?”

 

“Good! Oh, I'm sorry for all my texts earlier! I completely forgot that you were practicing. I hope your phone wasn't going off or anything.”

 

L.Joe chuckled as he pushed his way passed the double doors and on to the balcony of the building. “Don't worry. My phone was on silent. And besides, messages from you wouldn't bother me anyway.”

 

“Awww. Aren't you cute.”

 

“I know.” He moved towards one of the balcony chairs and sat down rather quickly, grunting in the process as though signaling his exhaustion. “I have five more minutes until I have to be back in the practice room.”

 

“Only five minutes??” Michelle exclaimed, clearly disappointed at the amount of time she had to talk to him. L.Joe checked his watch and calculated the time.

 

“Mhm. Oh wait... now four minutes.”

 

“Ughh. What do I need to say... I'm under so much pressure right now...” She began to panic as time was against her side.

 

“3:56... 3:55... 3:54...”

 

“L.Joe, really?!”

 

“I'm just kidding. Take your time.”

 

“I know I had something to say, but my mind just went blank.”

 

“Yeah, that's one of the side effects of being my girlfriend.”

 

“Eww....... I take back what I said earlier, you're not cute.”

 

L.Joe laughed, throwing his head back instinctively. “I accept that. Besides, I can't be the cute one, that's your job.”

 

“HAHAHA! I am definitely not 'cute'” Michelle argued.

 

“Says who?”

 

“Says everyone. I'm not the cute type.”

 

“Hmm. I think I might have a problem, then.”

 

“Why do you say so?”

 

“You say everyone else doesn't see you as cute, but I think you are. You're adorable, actually; it kinda hurts. Should I go see a doctor?”

 

Michelle's body weakened upon hearing him utter those words into her ear. She released a small chuckle and sighed into the phone. “No, you sound fine.”

 

“But it really hurts! You know, in that one area down there where-”

 

“Hey, hey―HEY!” Michelle's face went completely red, and tainted thoughts instantly clouded her head. “D-Don't say things like th-that! I-I mean, I understand where you're coming from and all, but have some control. I mean...” She swallowed the building saliva in and exhaled breathlessly. “I also get like that sometimes too... But that's a feeling that we're just gonna have to learn how to control until we can do something about it! So please, calm your hormones for now.”

“Hormones? What―Michelle I think you heard wrong.”

 

“No I understand what you were saying loud and clear, and I don't appreciate you sharing the ual frustration.”

 

“ual―oh my god.” L.Joe busted out into loud laughter once he realized what she had in mind. “No, no. I was going to say my chest hurts. You know, down where my heart is.”

 

“Yes I know―...What? … Oh I mean, of COURSE. What do you think I was thinking? PFFTT.......Oh god,” L.Joe could hear her face palming through the phone call.

 

“Don't worry. I understand how you feel. But hey, In three months you can do something about it finally.” L.Joe suggested in a low, yet slightly seductive voice.

 

“Lee Byunghun, what are you trying to do to me.” Michelle questioned rhetorically.

 

“I won't be trying anything. You can be in charge of everything when the time comes.” L.Joe's tongue broke through a grin that was impossible to hide, as he awaited his girlfriend's response.

 

“..................................... I hate you.”

 

“I love you, too.”

 

Michelle sighed through the phone, though it wasn't exactly one that showed disappointment “Oh, right! I told you this in the text I sent, but I got VIP for your concert in Florida. If my make-up runs off because of my sweat and tears, just know that it was because of my love for you.”

 

“I knew you loved me. And don't worry. Because you're so naturally cute, your make up isn't all that important.”

 

“You're killing me.”

 

“Don't die―I need you.”

 

Michelle felt her insides turn to pudding. “Look at the time! It's almost time for you to go back. I'll talk to you later, Byunghun.”

 

“Mmm, you're right; I better go back now.”

 

“Bye~ Saranghae!” Michelle chuckled at her cheap attempt at korean.

 

“Mmm, me too. Saranghae! Muah~” He blew a kiss to the girl on the other end and waited for her to hang up. They had only been speaking for a few minutes, but the phone already felt hot touching the side of his face. A broad grin grew on his face, as he leaned back into the chair and reminisced back to the conversation he just had. They had only seen each other through facetime and skype; so this coming November they would finally meet in person. L.Joe was elated at this thought. What made it even better was that Florida was their last stop, and their manager promised them a free day after the concert to relax and de-stress. He knew exactly who he would be with during this time.

 

Not wanting to be late, L.Joe hopped off of the balcony chair and slid the phone in his pocket before walking back in to the building. However, someone was standing in front of the doors which lead inside. Niel stared at L.Joe with an amused, yet surprised face. He looked as though he had struck gold. “Hyung, I don't speak perfect english, and neither do you to be honest, but from the sound of things it seems as though hyung's got a girlfriend.”

 

L.Joe stared incredulously at the younger one, releasing a sigh once he realized that his relationship might have been compromised. “How much did you hear?”

 

“I need you~ Saranghae~ Muah~” Niel mimicked L.Joe's words with cringing-worthy gestures.

 

“Ahn Daniel I swear if you tell anyone–” L.Joe took a step in the taller boy's direction.

 

“I wont, hyung. I wont. But!” He placed a hand on the other's shoulder. “Tell. Me. Everything. I'm curious.”

 

L.Joe closed his eyes and breathed a few times before nodding and opening them back up. “Alright, alright fine. But the moment you tell anyone else I swear–”

 

“Hyung, please! Your threats are not necessary. You can trust me.” Niel placed a hand on his own heart, as though silently swearing to his statement.

 

“Good.” L.Joe brushed his way past Niel and entered the building. The younger boy turned around with a swift spin and followed. He laughed to himself as they walked back to their practice room.

 

“Muah~”

 

“SHUT UP!”