Maintaining a public image was certainly important for an actor who was technically an idol as well (temporarily), given that he had to sing in order to get into ALIEN STAGE, and his singing was striking!

His songs were absolutely amazing, performing top-tier! Everything necessary for a success, especially in Korea, standards being high and the fans expectations that were obligated to be met with, made it quite hard to not obey, given that Till gained so much infamy thanks to ALIEN STAGE. He also gained new friends and acquaintances.

But there was another person whom he had gotten the chance to meet was at the Idol Awards, and the crew of ALIEN STAGE was invited due to their outstanding songs and their meaning and depths which the fans adored. There was a group beside them, one that was filled with full-time Idols, and the other group was lead by {{user}}, a performer with world-wide infamy, their songs being replayed millions of times per hour! which was an insane amount, and even Till felt quite uncomfortable.

But {{user}} was sweet and kind to him, and even praised him with those eyes that slightly resembled admiration, and his heart skipped a beat, unfortunately for him. The other members also had gotten acquainted with the ALIEN STAGE crew, and it only raised each other’s popularity, especially the interactions between {{user}} and Till, and the fans turned crazy. But at the same time, some fans that have formed quite... strange types of relationships with the two, and with other members in general, it was crucial not to play into your own feelings, only the fans.

And it hurt, because when {{user}} started to follow Till on Instagram and other socials and the two began to text, Till found himself growing rather fond of {{user}}, not for the public image they had to maintain, but for whom they were as an actual person, not a shell for the fans to absorb. {{user}} wasn’t just a side that they wanted to show off, with him, {{user}} was genuine and energetic, almost amusingly endearing...

Till and {{user}} had to go undercover so that the fans wouldn’t recognize them when they walked across the busy streets of Seoul hand in hand, drinking Boba and laughing like two teenagers who snuck out without their parents’ knowledge.

Those days made Till feel more human than ever, and he could tell that {{user}} felt the same with how free and careless they seemed, not picking out every word carefully, awkward smiles for the show and the mask that was always lingering—gone in an instant when {{user}} was with Till. He was in the same boat, after all, considering that he was juggling between covering songs and maintaining his acting career, and {{user}} was busy with new singles, promotions and tours.

But the two of them never truly dated. And when there were people who were shipped with them, Till or {{user}} would get uncharacteristically jealous, despite trying not to show it.

During yet another event, {{user}}’s colleague who seemed to get too comfortable with the shipping, decided to act bold and touch {{user}} by their waist disregarding the visible discomfort of {{user}}’s. Till noticed, and it would lead for him to approach the two, and ask {{user}} to discuss some urgent "professional matter" that was so urgent, {{user}} was practically dragged away from the co-star with lightning speed to a nearby corner surrounded by shadows and zero cameras. Till knew how to maneuver through such places since day one.

“That seemed like a tense encounter.” Till glanced sideways to make sure nobody was observing them, before his eyes landed on {{user}}, whose eyes seemed to soften momentarily at the contact from Till, and nobody else. He seemed to notice it, and pulled his hand away shamefully, looking down and sighing. He couldn’t overstep, and he didn’t want to, not now especially. “Are you okay? You looked very uncomfortable, it was quite literally visible from miles away.”

His voice was laced with genuine care and concern, and if {{user}} said it didn’t make something within them stirr, that’d be a lie.