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Despite the media frenzy, fans flooding the comments, videos, and social media posts, SKUID had survived one of their worst concerts.
The last Seoul concert had concluded successfully despite the problem they had with the previous wardrobe problem; the first dancer, Ali Abdul, had fallen ill two hours before the event, as well as the substitute dancer missing a cue, to the anguish of the face of the boy band, Seong Gi-hun.
It was early Thursday morning when the train finally arrived in Busan after the weekend’s successful concerts. Besides a couple of interviews with various media, such as streaming channels, and two national TV stations.
So, being early in the morning to avoid a crowd, the boys were asleep in the private cars of the train.
Or at least, almost everyone in SKUID was sleeping.
Kim Shin, the group member known to be a playboy, was listening to music on his headphones as he drew the outlines of the stretch they traveled at night. His eyes strayed to listen to the soft snoring of the smug Cho Sang-woo sleeping on the couch with his back to him.
In front of Sang-woo slept soundly as if he were a burrito, the youngest member of the group, and SKUID’s second-best dancer, Hwang Jun-ho.
His older brother, Hwang In-ho, had been reading something on his phone that had brought out a smile and shown a gleam of interest, which Kim Shin had loudly expressed that In-ho must be reading pornography. The SKUID leader had shown him the middle finger to go back to reading with interest on a website called Archive of Us. Or something like that.
To Kim Shin, In-ho’s eventual sleep from exhaustion, even after a considerable time, was uninteresting.
It was then that Shin heard someone get up from his reclining seat, and he was walking somewhat awkwardly because of his sleepiness.
Kim Shin smiled in joy as he recognized the beautiful figure of his favorite dancer.
“Mr. Seong~” crooned Kim Shin, turning his whole body toward Gi-hun, who was startled at the sound of his name.
Startled by the late-night call mentioning his name, Gi-hun, using his friend Shin’s last name, groaned, “Mister Kim!”
SKUID's visual amplified his smile as if he were the Cheshire cat, leaving his sketchbook on the seat beside him and the blanket that covered him because of the cold of the night. His feet slipped softly into his black panther slippers to face the awakened Gi-hun, who, despite wearing his hair short and now looking straight because of having just completed his mandatory military service, looked crooked after having been asleep until moments before.
“My sweet Dalgona candy, it’s a pleasure to meet you here tonight,” Shin joked, winking at Gi-hun.
For his part, the best dancer, the center and face of SKUID, rolled his eyes at Shin’s absurd flirtation. “You’re a fool, Shin. Stop using the words with which you conquer your fans, they don’t work on me,” admitted Gi-hun, using his phone to light his way to the exit of the wagon.
“My difficult hyung, bewitched by your eyes, where are you going, ignoring my words?” asked Shin flirtatiously, approaching the adorable dancer who was sleeping in a full set of red pajamas with a yellow duckling design. Gi-hun was also wearing fluffy slippers shaped like a white rabbit as a gift from Jun-ho to take extra care of the dancer’s feet.
Gi-hun noticed how Shin used a normal tone of voice, not worried about waking up his other companions, to make a gesture of silence. “Shhh, the others are sleeping. I don’t want to wake Sang-woo up,” Gi-hun complained as he tried to use a low tone of voice.
Shin arched an amused eyebrow, “What? You’re more afraid of Sang-woo but not of falling in love with me and running away together so we can get married in Las Vegas?” complained Kim Shin, clearly offended.
Gi-hun laughed to cover his mouth with his right hand at the ridiculous statements of the group’s playboy. “I’m going to the bathroom if you want to know. But come with me, since I might need your help.”
“Huh?” asked Shin, blinking in interest before seeing Gi-hun closed the distance between them, holding his partner’s arm, trembling slightly. “Are you okay, Hyung?” asked Shin, confused as he noticed the slight tremor in his partner.
“I still hate you for playing that zombie movie set on the train two weeks ago,” Gi-hun complained, reluctant to admit the reason for his fear.
Kim Shin could laugh at having insisted on marathoning horror movies weeks ago before SKUID’s comeback to the stage. But seeing Gi-hun in pure terror or anguish upset him.
Maybe not to the extent of reacting like In-ho as an overprotective knight-errant, or that Sang-woo would also act in a calculating manner to any trouble that afflicted a third person over Gi-hun. But SKUID’s Visual would not joke about harming the person whom he considered his other half.
“Come on, honey. I’ll accompany you to the restroom and defend you from any zombies that come in. Only you and Ju-jun, I will defend with my life. In-ho is so bitter, and Sang-woo so cold, that someone will gladly eat them.”
“You’re hopeless, Shin.” Gi-hun chuckled at his partner’s nonsense, clinging a little tighter to the gentle movement of the train, before entering the restroom.
Shin stood guard until Gi-hun came out a few minutes later.
“Thank you,” said Gi-hun, relieved to have his friend taking care of him. Then Gi-hun noticed Shin was a little serious, shortening the distance between them, causing the dancer to step back, trapped between the closed toilet door and the Visual’s body. “Shin?”
“I’m sorry.”
Gi-hun felt his cheeks burn from the intensity of the SKUID’s most handsome member’s gaze. Sure, Kim Shin was one of the most handsome guys he had ever seen in his life, even though his teasing, his weird sense of humor, and his flirtations were not always to his liking. But he still cared about Kim Shin.
SKUID’s visual had such a powerful attraction that it enveloped him, and it seemed inevitable to always fall into his hands.
“Shin?” asked Gi-hun in a stifled way before that intense look, plus the honest apology of his friend and fellow group member.
“I’m so sorry for scaring you with that movie,” Kim Shin admitted seriously, raising his right hand, and with his thumb, he gently stroked Gi-hun’s cheek.
“It’s okay, Shin. I think I scared myself too much because the train looks right now like a scene from the movie,” admitted Gi-hun, swallowing saliva in a nervous gesture.
Determined to lower his hand, and grasping Gi-hun’s wrist, the visual and second rapper of the group guided him at a steady pace back to the private wagon in which SKUID was traveling. “Let’s go, and don’t make noise, or In-ho will wake up like Dracula to take revenge on us.”
Gi-hun smiled again at Shin’s slightest provocation in teasing In-ho and Sang-woo.
When they both returned to Shin’s seat, the visual took his notebook and travel blanket to go to where Gi-hun had slept, and arranged both seats as slanted as possible. He even prepared the pillows around Gi-hun to create as close to a comfortable nest for him as possible, leaving the window seat for his companion.
“It’s ready, my red Ddakji. In compensation for having stolen your sleep with the horror movie of the actor Gong Yoo, who is not as handsome as I am, I will watch over your sleep. And at the slightest attack, we’ll take Ju-jun, who is drooling here a meter away, and we’ll run away together,” promised Shin gallantly, making an exaggerated bow.
Touched by Shin’s thoughtful gesture, Gi-hun leaned in for a kiss on Shin’s left cheek, then settled in to rest. “Thanks, S.”
Shin smiled, satisfied that he had made Gi-hun feel better, and settled back in his seat.
Before Hwang In-ho’s furious look.
The SKUID's leader had seen everything and now looked like Kim Shin was a gallant gentleman who had protected Gi-hun. Worse, In-ho had even tried to get Gi-hun to sleep in the seat next to him, but the dancer refused, saying he moved around too much when he slept.
But Kim Shin had beaten him by sleeping next to their treasured Dalgona beauty.
So with a huge smile, Kim Shin teasingly stuck his tongue out at his hyung, to take his place next to the adorable Seong Gi-hun.
Contrary to what many fans speculated, that SKUID would take a flight, the five guys had taken a train to avoid enormous crowds.
And while the plan seemed to have worked, fans appeared to have surrounded the station that SKUID would arrive at, and there were several crowds expecting their arrival.
“I say it was the witch Han who has cursed us for fining her,” complained Jun-ho, annoyed that the plan seemed to have failed.
“Well, she might have let the rumor go out to the press about when and how we would arrive at Busan,” Sang-woo thought aloud, of how she might have taken revenge on them.
“Even our sacrifice of breaking the hours of restful sleep hasn’t worked,” complained Kim Shin with a pout. “Well, in In-ho’s case, his face is already like this; all that’s left to be pretty would be to perform a few cosmetic surgeries.”
In-ho glared at that fool for being angry earlier, since he was stealing Gi-hun’s attention and personal space hours ago.
“Please don’t fight. We must wait to get out of this,” Gi-hun said to his friends.
“Well, but I guess any plan will be better than being cooped up here,” In-ho admitted wearily to the screaming fans.
“If we wait, it will be worse because more fans will arrive, besides the increased transit time,” concluded SKUID manager Kang No-Eul in a speaker phone call trying to assess the situation.
“And after almost fucking around on stage, your numbers even increased even more. Congratulations, squid gays,” teased the manager’s niece, Kang Sae-byeok.
“Get to work on getting us out of here, Miss Kang,” Sang-woo growled in annoyance at Sae-byeok’s mocking attitude.
“SKUID, I need you to split up with a group of bodyguards, to meet at the Westin Josun Busan. Please follow the instructions of the bodyguards. And keep in communication with me.”
The five band members looked at each other to nod, wanting to get out of trouble as soon as possible in the face of their growing fame.
Unfortunately, the three most persecuted members were In-ho, Shin, and Gi-hun, with the last one being the easiest to recognize because of his colorful and youthful attire, behavior, and inability to go unnoticed.
Gi-hun’s bodyguards formed a barricade around the nervous dancer, who waved to her anxious fans, trying to reassure them while trying to escape to the security van.
“Thank you for coming,” admitted Gi-hun, trying to be cordial despite the fans’ firm push to get to him.
“GI-HUNSSI, I LOVE YOU!”
“PLEASE LOOK AT ME, OPPA!”
“GI-HUN, I NEED YOU TO BE MY BRIDE!”
The last comment made Gi-hun laugh nervously, as it was not the first time he had heard it. It had also been a common comment among everyone in SKUID.
Gi-hun took a breath, trying to calm the fans, before pushing from behind, two of the bodyguards lost their balance, falling against Gi-hun, causing some fans to reach in and try to pull Gi-hun by his hair or his clothes.
The bodyguards were trying to keep Gi-hun away from the fans as much as possible. Until one of them took Gi-hun on his shoulders to get away from the same fans who were pulling Gi-hun’s clothes.
As he left the station, the bodyguard lost his way to get away from the fans.
Suddenly, one fan reached out to pull one of Gi-hun’s shoes, robbing him shamelessly and even showing off his booty among the other fans.
Gi-hun’s fear stemmed from fans who aggressively sought pieces of him, such as his clothing or hair, as mementos.
A motorcycle approached the fans, who moved a little, to stop perfectly in front of the back guard, who hugged Gi-hun even more protectively.
But the dancer immediately recognized the fox helmet’s design. “It’s Ddakji, Mr. Lee!”
Kim Shin raised the glasses on his helmet so that the bodyguard would recognize him. “I will take him to a safe place, trust me.”
Gallantly, Shin offered his hand to Gi-hun, who was lowered by his bodyguard. Then, Gi-hun climbed on the back of the motorcycle, hugging Shin tightly for fear of falling off.
“Please be careful,” requested Gi-hun’s bodyguard to get the motorcycle back on the road and away from the fans who had returned to take pictures and even try to get them off the vehicle.
“Nope. They are still not here. Shin has his phone glued to his hands,” complained In-ho, walking impatiently around the common area of the Westin Josun Busan hotel.
“Hyung, take it easy. We almost got here fifty minutes ago,” Jun-ho commented, “Traffic might have held them up,” though he looked worried, he wanted to stay optimistic.
“Or they have been kidnapped by now,” joked Sang-woo as he scrolled down on his phone the news about SKUID, finding a publication that made him fear the worst, and showing it to In-ho, who seemed to lose his mind.
“What are the fans doing? How are they celebrating taking a shoe off Gi-hun?” complained In-ho, looking at the TikTok video of a fan showing a stolen sneaker from all angles before uploading photos of Gi-hun wearing those same pink sneakers. “Those damn sneakers were his favorites.”
“We shouldn’t have split up. And we shouldn’t have trusted privacy, Han Mi-nye,” concluded Sang-woo, retrieving his phone, noticed an incoming call with Dalgona’s nickname, which was from Gi-hun’s number. “Wait, he is calling!” announced to answer with his phone ringing, clicking on it in speaker mode. “Gi-hun?”
“Almost, hyung. But we are safe,” replied Kim Shin proudly, with the background noise of some people.
“Where the hell are you both? And please tell me Gi-hun is all right," In-ho demanded nervously.
“Ah, Hwang Hyung, how I missed your howls of an ogre clamoring for every second of my dear Gi-hun’s attention. But yes, he is fine. We need to give Mr. Lee a raise for protecting him so well," Shin admitted, looking at his nails and pouting.
“Why aren’t you here, or are you driving and answering a call from Gi-hun’s cell phone?" asked Sang-woo, pushing his glasses over his eyes, trying to keep a cool head.
“Ah, I’m sorry, hyung. We might be late because I stole my beloved Gi-hun so he could go on a date with me~”
“WHAT DID YOU SAY?!?!”
Kim Shin smiled mischievously after listening to In-ho’s bellow of fury.
“Hyung, watch your vocal cords!” complained Jun-ho, worried about the upcoming concert and how his older brother seemed to lose his mind in more ways than one about everything related to Gi-hun.
“Shin, explain yourself, or I’m going to bring you back,” Sang-woo ordered, trying to keep a cool head despite also feeling jealous at the opportunity to go out with their hyung on a date because of SKUID’s busy schedule for the rest of the year.
Kim Shin would have preferred to make a video call to watch In-ho smash whatever he could get his hands on. While Sang-woo had to grimace in eternal constipation, just hearing that he had stolen everyone’s crush on a date. But for privacy and the safety of both him and his adored red Ddakji, he was to make a brief call.
“I’m not going to say where we are, but I had to acquire a few things. We will eat something and come back later. So if I have fulfilled what Noona No-Eul has said, we will stay together and keep her informed. So don’t wait for us~”
In-ho picked up the phone, raising his voice. “You sick bastard, if you do anything to Gi-hun, I’m going to kill you!”
“What if it’s something he likes, and he asks me for more?” asked Shin, smiling at the thought of his answer, to hang up, figuring that In-ho must have been furious as soon as he had hung up.
SKUID’s mischievous and flirtatious visual delighted to tease Hwang In-ho, before seeing someone waving his hand at him.
“Shin, do I need to change my clothes too? It’s hot,” complained Gi-hun, peeking out of the fitting room now, wearing other clothes, hiding his figure.
“I’m sorry, hyung. But the fans know what we wear, so it’s necessary,” admitted Shin in a pout to bow and wink, “But your new slippers look nicer than the other one you lost, my dear Cinderella.”
Gi-hun looked down at his shoes, where now two white sneakers that had designs in his favorite colors: red and pink, would barely cover the loss he had suffered in the theft of his footwear. “I can’t believe I lost a sneaker.”
Shin solemnly admitted, “I can’t either, but I won’t let anything bad happen to my pretty hyung.” Leaning closer, he kissed Gi-hun’s nose, who blushed. “Or have you fitted your new clothes ready already?” I want to try something,~” he admitted before pushing Gi-hun inside the fitting room cubicle.
“Shin!” complained Gi-hun at the surprise of his crazy friend’s actions.
“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything wrong. Although if you don’t have to pay for your new clothes, you can do it with your body,” Shin joked with a glint of mischief in his eyes.
Gi-hun’s heart raced; Shin was practically on top of him, and that comment? No way was Gi-hun looking at him. He even heard how Shin had placed the latch on the fitting room that both young men occupied.
Shin smiled in amusement at the self-conscious attitudes Gi-hun displayed, contrary to his great dancing skills on stage, and a huge smile at the fans.
So cautiously, Shin hugged Gi-hun, kissing the crown of his head.
“Shin?” asked Gi-hun, confused at the tenderness shown by the SKUID’s visual.
“I’d never let anything bad happen to you, my sweet Dalgona,” Shin promised, sadly touching Gi-hun’s short hair. “Damn. I miss your long hair.”
Gi-hun laughed and nodded, “So do I, but at least this way it was harder for them to pull my hair a while ago.”
Shin made an angry gesture at that comment. “Don’t remind me about those pervert fans, I’m still angry about it. But you what? I got an idea that I hope you can keep up with me.”
“How bad is your idea?” asked Gi-hun with an arched eyebrow, suspicious of Kim Shin’s witticisms.
“Just wait! I know you’ll love it!“The mischievous visual admitted to pulling Gi-hun’s phone from his pocket, having replaced the broken phone case with the fans’ escape, and explaining why he had it.
“Oh no,” Sang-woo groaned as he received a notification from Kim Shin’s cell phone.
Jun-ho, who was playing with his Nintendo Switch and eating a treat, jumped up from his chair to see Sang-woo, who was frowning reproachfully. “What happened?”
“He sent a picture to the group, dummy," Sang-woo complained to see In-ho, who was typing on his laptop was shopping online for Gi-hun a pair of shoes to replace the stolen sneakers. “Uh, In-ho.”
“Tell me they’re coming back, Cho. I don’t want to hear another thing from that lunatic until Gi-hun comes back," In-ho waved with his left hand not to interrupt him while asking for another pair of pink tennis shoes.
“... they might be coming back soon because Shin posted a picture on Instagram. And he sent us the link in the private group we have,” Sang-woo ventured cautiously.
“What kind of picture?” asked In-ho, looking confused at Sang-woo to take his cell phone and enter his private messaging group among SKUID members, click on the link, and see a picture that made him lose all color in his face.
Gi-hun seemed to be in Shin’s arms as the visual devil took the picture. They were both wearing face masks to avoid being recognized, but from the sparse expression of Gi-hun’s one visible eye, he seemed to be laughing. Shin hid his face completely behind his cell phone while taking the picture. Besides that, their faces were extremely close together, especially their lips.
In-ho dropped Sang-woo’s phone, whose owner was thankful that he had bought a better case to protect his phone from situations like this.
“Hyung?” asked Jun-ho, concerned about his older brother’s countenance.
“Kim is out of the group.”
Sang-woo snorted at the younger members’ nonsense, “Stop throwing your tantrum. It’s not like Gi-hun kissed him.”
“Uh, but Gi-hun has kissed him before. Like when we played the bottle after the first concert in Canada.”
“Jun-ho, shush. You are not helping,” Sang-woo lamented as he saw In-ho’s expression, which seemed to have remembered that event.
Suddenly, the door to the common room opened, and in walked Kim Shin, wearing dark glasses and a casual black jacket despite his preference to dress more elegantly, as was his aesthetic and personality. In his hands, he carried several shopping bags.
“SKUID’s most handsome member is back!”
“...”
“...”
“...fuck you Kim, where is he?” asked In-ho to walk hurriedly to the door where Shin seemed disinterested.
Shin pretended to look everywhere by annoying In-ho. “Who? Our cute hamster? He’s coming up, he’s brought food for the staff” Shin shrugged his shoulders for Gi-hun to enter a few seconds later, wearing a red-haired wig, a white baggy blouse, and a pair of jeans, as well as another pair of sneakers that weren’t the brand Gi-hun was wearing, but that prevented him from having walked in only one shoe.
“Hello, sorry for being late. We went to get something to eat, and we brought something for everyone,” greeted Gi-hun, smiling, and he seemed in a good mood after the fans’ assault.
“Gi-hun! Are you all right?" asked Jun-ho, coming closer to his favorite hyung after his brother.
“We’re fine. We just went to the mall to take a walk," admitted Gi-hun to greet his companions.
In-ho, who had been the closest, drifted closer to Gi-hun, enraptured to see him well, even with an aura of having had a good time. “I missed you.”
Gi-hun smiled gratefully at the welcome from his friends. “I’ve missed you all, too. But I was thankful for how the situation was settled. I don’t know if I would have gotten rid of the fan,” admitted the SKUID lead dancer with concern.
“Don’t say that. The fans were not kind at the point of pulling your hair and clothes. They could’ve hurt you,” Sang-woo cut him off as well, coming closer to smell the aroma of fast food on Gi-hun’s hands, “Ew. Did you bring McDonald’s?”
“Hurrah! Let’s eat!” celebrated Jun-ho, taking the bag to go to the dining room, and putting the bag down, looking to divide everyone’s food.
“Couldn’t you bring something else, Gi-hun?” Sang-woo asked grimly, being a picky eater since he preferred healthier food.
“Oh, come on, hyung. I’m not a big fan either, but Gi-hun wanted us to eat together,” shrugged Shin, downplaying the importance of breaking their strict eating routines by seeing a smile on his red Ddakji.
“What about that hair?" asked In-ho, taking a lock of Gi-hun’s red hair in reproach.
“Ah, it’s a wig. I used it to hide myself a little. Do you like it, In-ho?" asked Gi-hun, forgetting that detail about the disguise that he had to use while taking a stroll with Shin.
In-ho contemplated Gi-hun’s face, looking at him expectantly for his answer, thinking about how he now looked like a cute strawberry related to all the red color. “Yes, I think it looks good on you.”
Gi-hun smiled in relief.
“Good, so if our cute hamster changes his hair, the manager must approve it!" celebrated Shin to hug Gi-hun’s back in a friendly way, even though his arm went around the dancer’s right shoulder, resting his hand close to his chest.
“Those hands, Kim," growled In-ho, still annoyed at having stolen Gi-hun for a few hours. Kim Shin just laughed but made no move to leave his hyung’s personal space.
Impatient to eat, Jun-ho complained, “Stop fighting! Otherwise, I’ll eat everything!”
Shin let go of Gi-hun to hug In-ho instead, who seemed angrier at his annoying friend’s embrace, and they both made their way to the table.
“Gi-hun, are you all right?” asked Sang-woo, worried about his childhood friend.
Gi-hun smiled at Sang-woo. “I am. I guess I’ve been tense since the trouble at the concert the other day. Going out helped me relax,” he admitted sheepishly.
Sang-woo arched an eyebrow to notice a red mark on Gi-hun Hyung’s neck, something that he didn’t notice in the photo they had taken in the dressing room. “Nothing happened with Shin, right?”
At that question, Gi-hun colored his cheeks like a tomato, dodging his friend’s gaze, “Sang-woo! Nothing happened!” complained Gi-hun in the most obvious way he was lying.
“Hey, Gi-hun! Wait, what’s on your neck?” Sang-woo insisted on following him, but Gi-hun excused himself to go to the bathroom.
Sang-woo and Shin’s eyes connected, showing confusion and mischief.
“Think what you will, hyung~ But a gentleman doesn’t reveal his secrets,” chuckled the visual, taking a seat at the table with a calm gesture despite the growing doubt in Cho Sang-woo about what those two had done in their impromptu outing.
THE END (?).