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“I’m flattered, but I don’t have enough time to start a relationship right now. I’m sorry.”

Countless times you had heard those words come out of Jang Wonyoung’s mouth.

It didn’t matter if they were senior or junior idols, actors, or even international artists.

The answer was always the same.

Some of them, the most naive, were filled with a false hope provided by that gentle rejection. Others, maybe more experienced in this field, knew perfectly well the cold cruelty that lay behind those words.

It wasn’t hard to imagine that Jang Wonyoung had a long list of suitors. She had been one of the most recognized idols since her early debut; her fame skyrocketed thanks to her enormous talent and, though it’s wrong to say so, her incredible beauty.

From Iz*one to Ive, and including any advertising campaign: clothing brands, drinks, jewelry…

Everything she touched was synonymous with success, everything that ended up in her hands became out of stock in minutes, the country’s capital was plastered with her image: Shops, boutiques, bus stops… It didn’t matter at all, everything oozed Wonyoung.

When she came of age, the expected happened, as if it were a prophecy: Countless men trying to be her partner.

It was certainly a bit creepy to read some things on the internet, but you weren’t in a position to judge, because you too were head over heels for her.

There was even speculation that she hated men after the endless string of rejections. Rumors even reached your ears that she had also rejected girls who had approached her in the same way.

At that moment, you wholeheartedly believed her words. She worked as an idol, was an MC at various events and award shows, and worked as a model for numerous brands. It was simply impossible to find time for a normal private life.

Did that stop you? Not for a second.

You had nothing to lose, neither to fear. You could replay the entire sentence in your mind as she was rejecting you.

“Alright.”

What?

You remember perfectly how your body froze, how your legs trembled as if you were about to faint, and how you swear you believe your heart stopped pumping blood for a second.

After that, the proposals from other men didn’t stop. The news of your relationship didn’t reach the idols close to you, like your own groups. But from then on, her usual response took on a whole new meaning for you.

The first few days you felt like you were in heaven, like you could fly, you dared to do anything. The first few days, that’s all your ecstatic state lasted.

You immediately understood what it meant to “date” Jang Wonyoung.

Idols generally had to hide their private relationships for fear of the press and the reaction of their most passionate fans.

In your case this was neither necessary nor a risk.

Five months after your declaration of love, you could count on one hand the number of in-person dates you had had with your girlfriend. And you’d still have a few fingers to spare.

Your relationship was more like a friendship, a long distance friendship, since your conversations only took place via mobile phone chat.

You recalled the excuse: “I don’t have enough time for a relationship right now.”

It was a damned and painful truth.

When she wasn’t recording her group’s new comeback, she had to record tons of content for the brands she represented or that her agency assigned her on his own, in addition to attending events, shows, concerts around the world, galas and awards.

Even just having a conversation with her via text message was tedious; days could pass before she was free to reply to a single message.

Did you give up? Absolutely not.

You had experience in masochism.

You had only been with your group for one and a half years since your official debut. You were incredibly “lucky” that all the trainees under Cube Entertainment’s roof left overnight after witnessing the continued mistreatment of each and every one of their groups.

The disagreements with the girls from Gidle over their contract renewals were the final straw. “They destroyed 4Minute, they destroyed CLC, they destroyed Pentagon, was Lightsum still alive?” The general consensus among the trainees at the time was unanimous. And to top it all off, your star group wanted to leave as soon as possible; they had to give them the keys to the building to stop them.

Only a group of brave souls remained, avoiding the cuts. You and your team mates quickly became a mid-level group; you gave it your all, but in this business, giving it your all didn’t matter if those who were supposed to manage the rest for you screwed it up, as always.

Even so, it helped you get invited back to most of the end-of-year events. You were happy because it was a chance to admire your girlfriend for much longer, even though you couldn’t get close to her or talk to her; just being able to share the space with her was more than enough. Although you had to be careful, you couldn’t spend three hours staring at her with hundreds of cameras around. One wrong move and it would all be over.

“Hey!”

A voice behind you from the practice room startled you out of your thoughts. You turned to find Yuqi leaning against the doorframe, watching you with a bored expression.

“Dude, are you still alive?”

A bubble of chewing gum formed in her mouth before it popped and she went back to chewing it.

You forgot the main reason you were there that morning. You still had to prepare the special stage you were going to present with Yuqi at one of this year’s events.

“Let’s rehearse,” you commented, returning to the ground.

The morning of rehearsal passed peacefully. The dynamic between you and Yuqi worked well; you had known each other for many years and you considered her practically a sister—an annoying and irritating sister.

There were no disagreements in the preparation of the entire stage. Well, there was one: The choreographer gave you two dance versions to try, one of them was sexier, more catchy, with more contact and rubbing between your bodies.

You both had enough confidence in each other to pull it off, that is, until Wonyoung clouded your judgment again. You thought for a moment that it wasn’t pleasant to do this kind of choreography with a girlfriend, much less if she was going to be there watching everything, so you put that option on the back burner and opted for the other one.

You collapsed onto the floor of the practice room, tired and panting. You took a swig of water from your bottle; the hard weeks of work were over, it was time for the real action.

…

The first awards ceremony of the year was about to begin. You were sitting in the artists’ section with your colleagues; the rest of the artists were still taking their seats when suddenly the lights went out—the show was about to start.

A spotlight illuminated the center of the stage, blinding everyone for a moment. You looked at the big screen, and when the image stabilized, you could see the two main MCs of the event: Jang Wonyoung, your girlfriend, along with another male idol.

You smiled like an idiot when you saw her on the screen and turned your gaze to the stage to see her live. Your stupid grin widened but faded in an instant as the music began to resonate through the venue.

Both MCs began their special stage performance as the opening act of the event. A calm rhythm, soft voices, elegant outfits.

All the attendees were amazed, enjoying the moment.