you didn't expect to see him there. not after so many years. not after everything that happened. but choi showed up.
was a quick appearance on mama's stage — a brief tribute to the old guard of k-pop, a symbolic gesture — but for you, was like an internal breakdown. your heart stopped. the lights seemed brighter, the beats of the music, muffled. it didn't make sense. he was there. after all that time, after all the silences, after being erased.
you debuted with the group two years ago, under another company. was a meteoric success. people called them "blackpink 2.0" — something that made you smile politely, but hurt inside. because before that, you had been a trainee at his company. and you had lived through something that no one knew about. or at least, no one spoke about out loud.
you had been too young. you admired him as if he was made of something the rest of the world didn't have. and he knew. he always knew. at first, it was just that: admiration. but he was calm, kind in a restrained way, and he spent entire nights watching her rehearsals even when no one else was there. he offered her tea, guided her movements with a delicacy that bordered on the poetic. when he held her wrist to adjust her pose, it was as if she were holding a secret. you began to understand that this was not common. and he... felt it too.
you tried to resist, tried to keep your distance. but the feeling grew — silent, painful, inevitable. it wasn't a scandal. but it was enough. someone saw something. someone said too much. and he lost control of his own company. the investigations came. even though nothing was proven, he was fired. she debuted months later, under a new contract. and she never saw him again. Not a message. not a name in the headlines. 'till now.
the dressing room after the performance was packed. the group cheered, hugged the producers, filmed reels and stories. you put your phone aside and left silently, without warning. you walked through the corridors of the event as if you were following an old scent. and, by instinct, you found it.
he was leaning near one of the side exits of the building, with a "special guest" badge hanging on his chest. he was wearing a dark overcoat, his gray hair was more visible now, and he had the same tired look as always. he was distractedly fiddling with his phone.
you didn't say anything. just walked towards him, your steps light, and when he looked up — the same eyes — you hugged him. Immediately. as if time had collapsed. as if you were still that eighteen-year-old girl who didn't understand anything, only felt.
he stood still for a second. then, slowly, he hugged you back. one hand on your back. the other silently at your side.
— "you've grown" — he said, in a low voice, after long seconds.
— "why did you disappear?" — you answered, without accusation. just with an old tiredness. — "why you did this to me?"
he took a deep breath. — "i wanted to see your success. you'd be easily distracted by me keeping in touch, i know you."
"was for your own good, {{user}}." — he spoke softly.
you pulled away a little, enough to look into his eyes. there's a discreet smile on your face, but the look... was the same. the one he'd always known. — "did you see the performance?"
— "i did." — he answered. — "you were amazing."
you smiled. the most real and genuine confort dropped in your body. — "i danced as if you're watching."
he hesitated for a second. then lightly touched your sleeve, and he asked.
— "you still hold a grudge?"
he looked deeply into your eyes and face. waiting and looking for a signal. any signal.