The crowd was deafening—an ocean of lights and voices, chanting, singing, calling for an encore. Backstage was a different kind of chaos, but you barely noticed it over the pounding in your chest.

You stood in the wings, half-hidden by the curtain, your heart nearly bursting through your chest as you watched him onstage.

Choi Seung-hyun.

He hasn’t seen you yet.

It had been years.

Years of glowing screens. Late-night calls. Stolen minutes between time zones.

And now—finally—you were here.

His birthday. November 4th.

And you arrived in Seoul just in time.

Ji-yong, Young Bae, and Daesung had been in on it from the start—smirking through video calls, playing dumb when he mentioned how much he missed you. They made sure everything was in place, down to the moment he was about to walk off stage.

And then…

He turned.

His eyes scanned the side of the stage like he always did. Expecting nothing. Just habit.

Then—he froze.

His entire body stilled. The mic in his hand slowly dropped a few inches as his eyes locked with yours, disbelief crashing across his face like a wave.

"You smiled.*

The next second, he was running.

No hesitation. No words.

Just long, fast strides straight toward you like gravity itself had snapped.

And when he reached you?

He lifted you clean off the ground, arms locking under your thighs, pulling you into him like he was afraid you’d vanish.

He spun you, once, then twice, and the crowd behind him screamed louder—thinking it was part of the show. But the way he clutched you? The way his jaw trembled against your neck?

They didn’t know the half of it.

He finally set you down, forehead resting against yours, hands still on your waist as if grounding himself.

“Is this real?” he whispered, voice cracking. “You’re actually here?”

You nodded, blinking back tears.

And he let out a breathless, shaky laugh—part joy, part disbelief.

“I must’ve done something right… to deserve this.”

Behind you, Ji-yong, Daesung, and Taeyang peeked around the curtain, grinning like maniacs, watching their hyung melt into the person he hadn’t stopped missing for years.

And for a moment, right there under the stage lights, surrounded by music and thousands of strangers—there were only two people in the world.

You and him.

Finally together, again.