A Star Is Born | Chanrosé - HIATUS

3 | Are they dating?

Playlist linked in bio or just go to    >>>    bit.ly/roses_are_exopink

_____

Following the concert, Chaeyoung left the dome with Chanyeol and went to his hotel suite. They didn't need to discuss arrangements; they had already silently agreed to not leave each other's side. The performance had only strengthened the bond that had formed between them the night before.

She changed into one of his T-shirts like it was a normal part of her nightly routine and washed off her makeup in the bathroom. When she came out to the bedroom, however, disappointment spread across her face when she saw Chanyeol passed out flat on his back on the bed.

Chaeyoung sighed but smiled slightly. She felt exhausted from the one performance, and she couldn't imagine how tired he must be from putting on an entire solo concert. The two bottles of soju he drank before the gig probably didn't help his fatigue either. She took off his shoes and pulled the covers up over him, cuddling next to him.

"Sweet dreams, Chanyeol," she whispered and kissed his cheek. She thought she saw the corners of his mouth turn slightly upward.

On the flight back to Seoul the next morning, the two sat across from each other in the private jet. Suho sat away from them in the back, his fingers not leaving the keys of his laptop. Chaeyoung looked out the window at the clouds most of the time and occasionally wrote in her notepad. Chanyeol alternated between admiring her profile and drifting to sleep. The pilot's voice rang softly over the speakers to announce they were entering South Korean airspace.

"Would you mind going to a recording studio once we land?" he asked her expectantly.

Her heart raced. "For what?"

"Apparently, people really liked 'Stay With Me,'" he said with a shy smile. "Suho thinks we should put out a studio version as soon as possible. You know, for streaming, digital downloads. That kind of stuff."

She paused for a moment to control the sudden tightness in her throat. She had never been to a recording studio. No one in the music industry had ever noticed her. But after meeting Chanyeol just two days ago, she was already making more progress in her career than she ever had in her whole adult life.

"You'll get compensated, of course," he added quickly, mistaking her awestruck silence for professionalism. "I figured we could split the royalties 50-50. Or you can even have more of the cut, if you want."

If the "Fasten Seatbelt" sign hadn't been lit, Chaeyoung would've bolted into his lap and wrapped her arms around him without hesitation. But she just nodded slightly, her eyes shining.

"I'd love to," she said softly, earning a huge smile from Chanyeol.

After landing in Seoul and driving to one of Chanyeol's favorite studios, Chaeyoung found herself placing a pair of giant headphones over her ears. Chanyeol sat alone by the control panel on the other side of the glass.

"Can you hear me?" he said into the mic on his desk. She gave him a thumbs-up.

"Suho went kinda crazy last night after hearing the song and had some guys go ahead and record the instrumentation," he explained as she listened attentively. "All we have to do is add in the vocals."

For the next several hours, Chanyeol and Chaeyoung went back and forth from recording to listening back to the track. He taught her the basics of using the soundboard for when he needed to record his own parts, and she didn't hesitate to give him feedback.

"I think you're going in a little too hard," she said after he finished a rap section. He nodded, hanging on to her every word. "Why don't you try holding back a little, you know, to go with the song's tone?"