Chapter Text
Till was never particularly drawn to other people. He was always fine in his own bubble, occasionally letting a few people in, such as Mizi and Sua. He had his music, what else could he need? When his fingers touch the metal strings, an electric shock goes through his fingertips, all the way to his heart. That's how love feels like, Till thought, and what a shame it would be to not share this feeling with the world. He wanted nothing more than to make others feel that same electrifying pleasure he feels through music.
And so, the band “Unknown” was born.
___________
Ivan never took interest in rock music, especially not the punk type. He never took Mizi as the type to listen to it either, and yet, here he was, at a punk rock concert with his best friend. Mizi originally wanted to attend with her girlfriend, Sua, who coincidentally was his sister, but unfortunately she caught the flu and couldn't come. So, being the nice friend and brother that he is, he offered to go instead.
He didn't know what to expect, I mean, he's your typical jock! He's tall, popular with the girls, gets amazing grades without trying and practically has the picture perfect life. He was a walking stereotype himself, he didn't have the right to judge anyone attending this concert. From the information he gathered from Mizi, this new band, Unknown, was rising in popularity recently due to their new album, as well as the mystery behind the singer's faces. At live concerts, the light was positioned in such a way that the only thing you could make out was their outfit. Ivan thought it was odd, who wouldn't want to bask in their fame these days? But then again, it could be just a marketing stunt, a way for them to get media outlets interested.
As Ivan was lost in thought, analyzing all of this, the lights suddenly went dark, engulfing the arena in a deadly calm, snapping Ivan out of his train of thoughts. As he raised his head up, the main stage’s special light turned on, showcasing the singer's outfits. The main singer and guitarist, who was sitting the closest to the crowd, was dressed in a black, sheer tanktop, with grommets attached on the sides, allowing for a thin chain to slip through, creating an alluring pattern. His leather pants were flared at the bottom, yet still slightly ripped, adding to that organised mess aesthetic. From what Ivan could make out, one of his hands held multiple bracelets, many with spikes, while the other was embraced by a tight hand warmer with a striped pattern. And yet, in the shadow, Ivan caught it – the prettiest shade of teal he has ever seen. His breath hitched, feeling his cheeks warming up slowly. The band was in its zone, singing at its fullest, and all that Ivan could focus on was the main singer. His eyes were such a beautiful, breathtaking sight. How wasn't anyone else affected by that shine? Perhaps he was the only one who caught that split second vulnerability, he sure hoped so.
Thanks to Mizi, she and Ivan were sitting pretty close to the front of the stage, so it wasn't difficult for Ivan to notice all these small details. The more he looked at him, listened to the singer's voice and relaxed, the more he became obsessed. You could only make out his overall figure, the light was shining diagonally, hitting only his body, making teal light scatter across the singer's curves.
Ivan was truly mesmerized, staring like a little kid seeing the ocean for the very first time. How has he managed to live for 21 full years without seeing those beautiful eyes? As he slowly started to drift back to reality, the singer's voice also registered in his brain. It was higher than his own, but had a certain roughness to it, something he has never heard of in someone. His voice was soft when the lyrics were gentle, yet rough, consuming, when he needed to add emotion. Truly, Ivan could listen to him all day long and never get tired of it.
“Fuck, I should've asked Mizi to bring me sooner..”
Mizi has been a fan of this band since they started out, attending nearly every single one of their concerts with Sua (who was lovingly dragged to them). Mizi had invited Ivan before on numerous occasions, but he declined as he had football training most evenings. And now, standing before the main stage, Ivan was silently lecturing himself for missing this angelic voice because of something as stupid as practice. He was never going to miss another concert again, in fact he was determined to attend all of their next ones.
Their last song had started, a much calmer one compared to their previous ones, “Ruler of my heart”. Ivan's breath hitched at the chorus, as the singer’s voice would fluctuate between gentle and rough. He truly, truly, needed to hear more, he needed his head filled with that beautiful voice. The lyrics had a somewhat romantic connotation to it, Ivan was praying to any god willing to hear him out that the singer was not taken and was available (preferably for him).
Ivan was staring, hard.
“My savior 가련한 여인이여
Make me your God,
I can give you everything!”
And they made eye contact. They made eye contact for several seconds, those hypnotizing teal eyes looking straight into his soul. Ivan could feel his face warming, heart beating quicker (and a certain zipper getting tighter), but he couldn't look away. It was as if listening to a siren's voice, and Ivan was willing to become fish food.
The room went dark once the song finished, the concert hall exploding in applause. And so, the concert ended, leaving Ivan a hot, flustered mess. He couldn't believe what just happened, he couldn't believe he experienced what so many call “love at first sight”. He needed more.
“Mizi”, he spoke sternly, “can you.. let me know when the next concert is?”
Mizi giggled softly, “Is our star player turning emo? I didn't know you were into this kind of music!”
Was he into this kind of music? Sort of. Was he into the singer? God yes.
“The singer… his voice is really good, like really good. He's – gosh, I don't even know how to tell you. Mizi, it was as if it was the first time I could hear clearly in my life, I've never heard anything so…” he trailed off, lost in his admiration.
The cheerleader laughed silently, putting her hand on the jock's shoulder.
“Gosh Ivan, if I knew he was your type, I would've brought you here a lot sooner. Ahh I've never heard you speak of anyone or anything with such a flustered look”. The girl was grinning, making the jock even redder in the face. He could only imagine how he currently looked, flustered, red, eyes dazed, his hair sticking to his forehead.
___________
After the concert, Ivan had planned to take Mizi to his place for a sleepover with Sua after a long debate from the cheerleader. In the car, he let Mizi play music, asking her to show him more songs from Unknown. She was singing along with some, but mostly rambling about how she came to discover this band.
“You know, I was soooo surprised when I first heard their songs, I mean the singer doesn't usually sound like that!”
“Mhm..” Ivan wasn't really listening, his mind being captivated by the voice blasting through his car.
“He sounds quieter, more assertive when speaking normally. Ahhh and he was so little when he started making music, gosh I always told him to pursue it in university but he insisted on arts. Ugh, men”
“Uh uh…”
“And like, he tries to be so nonchalant online or on stage, I find it soooo funny. He's actually the sweetest person ever!!! He's so gentle and he takes care of the people around him in such an attentive matter.”
“Haha, I'm sure he is– What?”
Ivan gripped the steering wheel, Mizi’s words only now registering in his brain. She knows the singer. Personally. She's known him before he started this band, holy shit.
“Yea, Till is the sweetest person ever!! He looks as if he bites, but in reality he's a softie”.
Ivan wished he would bite him.
___________
Sitting in his living room was him, Sua and Mizi, all in comfortable clothing, watching a movie neither of them cared about. Suddenly Mizi's phone lights up, making the pink haired girl giggle and show the raven her screen. His sister also gives a small chuckle, as Mizi quickly gives a reply.
“Ivan”
“Mh?”
Mizi laughed silently, turning her phone screen towards him.
—
Tillie!! 🎸🩵
23:02
mizi, help.
who was that friend you brought?????
yk, that absolute hunk of meat next to you????
Hunk of meat????
You mean Ivan? ಠಿ_ಠ
Read 23:02
—
Ivan felt the air in his lungs get knocked out. He was used to getting compliments, he had girls throw themselves at him pretty often and he never felt himself get affected by it. Now, this boy called him… “a hunk of meat” and he couldn't control himself. Did Till like how he looked? Was he attractive in his eyes? Did he catch his attention, just how Till caught his?
He could feel the room getting hotter.
___________
What the fuck? Till was having an internal breakdown. God, since when does Mizi have such hot friends? Why hasn't he seen him before? When Till saw Mizi, his dearest friend, with a guy that looked like a total jackass, he was tempted to get off the stage and start a fight. Mizi was a complete angel, she was kind to everyone, even people who don't deserve it, it was normal for him (and Sua) to get protective of her, especially in the presence of potential douche bags.
However, whatever he thought of that friend of hers changed once the concert actually started and their eyes met for half a second. Ever since, the man looked hypnotised, dazed even. His eyes were big, these black orbs with a red center, looking so closely as if he wanted to imprint every single detail onto his brain. His cheeks had a slight red flush, his mouth slightly agape, absolutely consumed by Till's singing. And if that face wasn't enough, his body was… he was absolutely jacked! Like, Till knew jocks work out and had some type of meat on their bones, but this guy? He could compete with Mizi in bra sizes and it would be a tie. A fucking tie! It was absurd! How was he walking around with that chest (and not letting Till touch it?)???
The concert had long since ended, Till being all curled up in his bed, quickly texting Mizi.
—
Mizi 🩷🎀
23:02
mizi, help.
who was that friend you brought?????
yk, that absolute hunk of meat next to you????
Hunk of meat????
You mean Ivan? ಠಿ_ಠ
Read 23:02
—
So that was his name, Ivan. It had a nice roll on it, it was fitting. Classy, but not too much, perfect for a jock like him.
—
Mizi 🩷🎀
23:03
yh, him.
was this his first time coming to my concert?
Yea! I was supposed to come with my dear Sua, but she got sick.
Can you believe it???? My goddess was in soooo much pain (｡•́︿•̀｡)
ah, I see.
did he like it?
the concert I mean.
Till…
We were sitting in the front row and you couldn't tell he was absolutely mesmerised?
Read 23:03
—
Till took in a sharp breath. So he wasn't seeing things, Ivan really did like his concert. He felt… relieved? What the fuck? Since when does he care what others think? Whenever someone would comment on his YouTube covers and make fun of his voice, he didn't care, in fact he would retaliate by spam reporting the comment and the account. He had freedom of speech, he could sing whatever and however he liked!
It's… unusual. For him to care this much about an unknown opinion (no pun intended?).
—
Mizi 🩷🎀
23:04
Anyway, he loved the concert !!
I was honestly surprised, it's not his style of music at all, yet he still willing came.
Till, I think you found yourself a new fan!! (≧▽≦)
could you ask him if he'd like to attend my next one?
uh with you and sua ofc
I'll get you vip tickets if he does
OMG!!!!! Yes I'll ask him!! (*´ω｀*)
He's sitting right next to me!
Read 23:05
—
What? WHAT?
Till could feel his face getting hotter. What the hell, what the hell, what the HELL??? What was Mizi thinking???? Surely she could've let him know the man he just called a “hunk of meat” was next to her, potentially seeing the texts. He was never going to go outside of his house again, in fact he was never inviting Mizi, Sua or Ivan to his concerts.
___________
Ivan could feel himself short circuiting. After a short giggle break between Mizi and Sua, the pink haired girl forwarded Till’s number to Ivan. His number. His personal phone number. Ivan was so happy, yet so… nervous. He didn't really know what to say to the singer, “hey your compliment turned me on and I'd love to make your gorgeous eyes roll back tonight” felt inappropriate..
He settled on a simple, straightforward message as to not spook the other boy.
___________
Till groaned, opening his phone reluctantly, expecting some stupid message from Mizi-
—
Unknown
23:11
Hey, hunk of meat here :)
I'd love to attend your next show (*´ω｀*)
Read 23:12
—
Till almost choked on his own saliva seeing that message, blood rushing to his cheeks, warming his whole face up. The familiar electric buzz was tingling at his fingertips as he added Ivan to his contacts.
He was going to kill Mizi, then himself, he was sure of it.