Page 47 of K-Pop Double Life

The music began.

17

THE COST OF LOVE

SANG-HOON — AMSTERDAM

The last note of the encore faded beneath a roar that seemed to shake the rafters of the Ziggo Dome.

I stood in the wings with a towel draped over one arm, waiting where I always waited. Jin was laughing as he waved to the audience, sweat glistening under the lights, his smile bright enough to convince twenty thousand people that nothing in the world could touch him.

Only I knew how exhausted he really was.

The members gathered for their final bow. As they turned to leave the stage, Jin looked toward me. Not just a glance. He smiled.

The smile lasted less than a second before he disappeared into the darkness backstage. “Nice show,” Aidan said quietly beside me.

“It was. Maybe the worst is behind us. No explosions, no panic, just music.”

Exactly what we’d wanted.

Backstage dissolved into organized chaos.

Du-ri collected jackets. Wan-suk hurried forward with blotting paper. Sun-hee-noona was already confirming departure times while Jason coordinated the security bubble around the group.

Jin stepped off the stage breathing hard. “You were amazing,” I said automatically, handing him the towel.

“You watched?”

“I always watch.”

His fingers brushed mine for a heartbeat longer than they should have. Then he moved on toward the dressing room.

I didn’t think anyone noticed. I was wrong, though.

Grace appeared beside me carrying two phones. “You should probably see this.”

She held up the first screen, with a TikTok clip. The caption read: WHO IS THE GUY JIN KEEPS LOOKING AT?

The video zoomed in every time Jin glanced toward stage left.

Another clip, this one a split-screen. One side showed Jin during rehearsal. The other showed tonight’s performance. Arrows circled me standing in exactly the same place.

Same staff member every city.

She showed me another. Someone had slowed the footage until it almost froze.

Look at his face when he sees him.

My stomach tightened.

“There are hundreds already,” Grace said quietly. “The algorithm picked it up.”

I swallowed. “They’re only guessing.”

“For now.” She shook her head. “Be careful, Sang-hoon.”

I left her and walked to the dressing room, where Woo was waving his cellphone madly. “We’re trending!”