Wild Crowds, Unshakable Tethers

After a week of expertly dodging scandals like your life depended on it and spending enough time apart to make even the most patient romantic question reality you were finally given another shot at love. Praise the gods. Miraculously, there were no physical casualties... just a few emotional injuries, and a comment section that briefly resembled a war zone. Nothing you couldn't pretend never happened.

But there was no time to dwell on that.

This was the final stretch, your last real chance to turn absolutely nothing into something... Remember the company had extended your stay in Korea by an entire month, wasting it wasn't an option.

The concert was scheduled exactly twenty days before your departure, meaning you had two battles ahead of you.

Surviving the weeks leading up to it and somehow making the weeks afterward count even more.

No pressure.

Just your love life, career, sanity, and probably the universe hanging in the balance.

So, you did what any completely rational person would do.

You started planning.

Dates. Meet-ups. Coffee runs. Random excuses to “accidentally” bump into her. If there was even a 0.01% chance it could help this life-or-death mission succeed, it went onto the list.

Your first move? You texted Sakura.

Hey

Are you busy

before the concert!?!??!

Yes

Of course.

Her reply came back almost immediately.

An ordinary person would've accepted defeat. You, however, were not an ordinary person. You were the B-list actor/Model the best combo to achieve your goal.

If she was busy, then clearly the solution was to become part of what was keeping her busy.

So you offered to help with concert production. After all, you'd spent enough time lurking around backstage and watching production teams work that you were practically... an honorary expert. Right?

It was the kind of flawless, grade A strategy only a certified genius could come up with.

Every second spent helping production was another second spent around her.

Completely professional, of course... Mostly.

I could help!

You always help

Ever since we were kids

what are you?

some kind of selfless altruist?

Oh big words

no

I

Your fingers hovered over the keyboard, preparing the corniest response known to mankind.

Before you could send it...

Don’t use me as a reason

Don’t say anything cheesy either

I don’t need my emotions fluctuating before the concert.

She knew you far too well.

You sighed dramatically before typing the only reasonable response.

I’ve reached enlightenment. I simply wish to help others.

So please? Let me help?

Besides, it wasn't like you'd be some random outsider. The staff already knew you, her members knew you, and ever since the scandal had finally died down, you'd been hanging around often enough that nobody really questioned your existence anymore.

So why couldn't you all just hang out like normal people again?

Come on. Please. The mission depended on it.

And then... By some miracle granted by the gods themselves

She agreed.

Now the real question was: had she actually been convinced by your “I've reached enlightenment” routine or were you simply the luckiest bastard alive?

Honestly, it didn't matter.

You stared at the screen for a solid ten seconds just to make sure you weren't hallucinating. Nope. The message was still there.

She said yes.

In your excitement, you managed to spill your drink all over the place, but that was a problem for future you. Present you had more important responsibilities. Like celebrating.

So you did the only logical thing.