Starfall. |Lee Know

Thirteen.

Christopher and Hyunjin's faces were pale as they looked at Dabin, questioning her actions cause Minho never plays the piano!

Minho's eyes were very wide as he looked at her and she looked back at him with a smile. The crowd started clapping and cheering, preparing their recordings for the special performance of their prince. Minho stood up to his feet to face Dabin who was still smiling warmly at him, urging him to move to the piano behind them. He was freaking nervous.

Gulping and shaking, Minho walked to the piano and sat down behind it. From where Dabin stood, she saw how hands were trembling drastically. She started to regret what she did. But he played very well earlier when the lights were off and it was just him. Why was he so nervous then?

A thought sparked in her mind. She looked at the crowd and spotted Felix. Signaling him and pointing at the lights, the panicked Felix understood and nodded at her. At once, Felix disappeared and when he came back, the lights were turning off one by one, leaving only a single spotlight shining brightly on Minho.

Dabin looked back at him to see how he was still panicked. This was turning into a more serious disaster than what she intended!

Dabin turned her heels and walked up to Minho. She sat down on the piano seat right beside him, making the poor boy flinch and open his eyes. He looked at her and right then, Dabin saw the same look. Lost, confused, afraid, looking for help. His face was screaming 'save me'. It was the look that his people never understood. He wasn't scowling at them. He was afraid of their judgments. He was always looking for a supporting face among them but always, found none.

"Hey," Dabin whispered softly. "I know you can play the piano so well. Why are you panicking?"

"They will snap photos." He gasped his words out. "They will publish them and make fun of my failure. They will call me names and criticize my father." He panicked a little. It seemed as if he knew what would happen exactly. As if he was in the same spot before.

"You've done perfectly good so far. You even stood up for me earlier when they were cornering me! No one would dare to make fun of you or criticize you!" Dabin assured. "Just close your eyes, and play the first thing that comes to your mind."

Minho didn't reply and just shook his head and closed his eyes again. Dabin sighed and looked at the piano ahead of them. The attendees were starting to question what was happening on stage and Dabin was really starting to regret her deeds, but she had to do something.

She softly pushed the fallboard up, revealing the elegant white and black keys. She breathed in, closed her eyes, and let the memories of one of her favorite pieces flow through her mind and down to her fingers that started pressing the keys so diligently, allowing the sweet dreamy melody to echo in the hall.

Minho's eyes shot open once he recognized what she was playing. It was his favorite piece ever. It was a piece that gave him comfort and solace. It acted like a warm hand patting his back. It was like a lullaby to him. A sweet melody. A Summer Dream and a Winter Sonata. He played that piece whenever his fingers reached for a piano. He always let it play on repeat in his chambers.

And right then, Dabin was by his side playing it so flawlessly.

Minho didn't think before his hands landed on the keyboard and started striking the keys effortlessly, as if he was enchanted to play it, letting all the emotions that he felt through that piece get to the surface and reach whoever was listening to that melody played by two strangers who talked to each other for the first time that day.

Once he got immersed in it, Dabin lifted her hands off and let him do his magic of captivating the hearts of every single human being in that hall. She looked at him, and she was captivated too. She forgot she was sharing a piano seat with him that was designed for one, not two. She was so close to him. So close to see him clearly under the spotlight.

He was shining.

He was breathtaking.

He was a work of art.

Dabin was so lost in him and how he was immersed in his melodies. She was lost in his perfection and emotions that were obvious on his face and in his played notes. She was so lost to notice that he had already reached the climax of his piece and that it was going to end soon. She was about to get caught ogling again but she couldn't stop herself from staying where she was, staring at him.

As the music started to slow down and fade into a calm melody before it stopped completely, Dabin was already enchanted. Her heart was running miles and her hands were the ones trembling by then.

The music stopped and Minho breathed in deeply. He lifted his fingers gracefully off the keyboard and turned his face to hers which was so close by. The lights started to illuminate the hall again. People standing to their feet and clapping, including Felix, Hyunjin, and Christopher who knew nothing about their friend's talent in playing the piano.

It was chaos all around the hall but time had stopped for Dabin and Minho who were looking at each other with very blank faces.

His previous nervousness was nowhere on his face. Dabin wasn't sure if he had really gotten over it so quickly or if it was his adrenaline still kicking in.

"You were the one who sneaked in earlier, right?" Minho questioned, ignoring the loud claps in the background.

Dabin knitted her brows. "You didn't know it was me?"

"How could I? It was dark!" He shrugged.

Dabin wanted to facepalm herself. He didn't know she was the one ogling but she just exposed herself.

"Can I invite you for a dinner tonight?" Minho asked, earning a weird look from Dabin.

"W-Why?" Dabin stuttered and gulped.

Still having his ever-serious face, Minho replied. "I feel like I want to know more about you. So," He breathed in. "Do you want to have dinner with me?"

***

Another update cause why notttt?
By the way, the music in the header is the ones this story is named after. I listened to it while writing the whooooole story. The whooooole thing. Except two specific chapters and you'll get to know them later.
So, you'd better listen to it🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️