Snowflakes clung to Raze's eyelashes, melting slowly as he stood beside the tilted van. His breath came out in short, shaky clouds.
He was supposed to be perfect—calm, untouchable, composed.
But right now, he was anything but.
Aiven didn't know what to say. The idol looked different up close.
Not cold.
Not unreachable.
Just… tired.
Too tired.
"Um…" Aiven stepped forward carefully. "Maybe you should sit down. That crash looked serious."
Raze stared at him for a long moment—as if trying to decide whether to stay in idol mode or finally, just for a second, be human.
Then his shoulders dropped.
"Yeah… maybe."
They walked to the side of the van. Raze leaned against it, letting out a shaky exhale. Aiven felt something twist in his chest.
He didn't even like idols, but this—this felt different.
"Do you want me to call someone?" Aiven asked.
"No." Raze shook his head too quickly. "No manager. No staff. No fans. Please."
The word please sounded strange coming from a superstar.
Aiven frowned. "Then who?"
Raze hesitated… then whispered almost painfully:
"I just… need a moment to breathe."
Aiven quieted.
He understood that too well.
---
Footsteps approached—fast, loud, frantic.
"RAZE!"
A man in a long coat came running toward them—his manager.
Great.
Drama.
"Aish, what were you thinking? Why did you get out? Why weren't you wearing a mask? The fans could've—"
Raze didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Didn't even blink.
Aiven stepped back awkwardly, feeling out of place.
The manager finally noticed him.
"Who's this?"
His voice was sharp, suspicious.
"A pedestrian," Raze said softly. "He helped."
Aiven opened his mouth to correct him—he didn't really help anything—but Raze shot him a small, warning glance.
The manager exhaled harshly. "Fine. Whatever. Raze, get in the van. We need to leave before someone recognizes you."
Aiven took another step back.
This was it.
Their weird, almost magical snow-moment was over.
But then—
"A moment," Raze said.
His manager froze. "What?"
Raze turned, eyes locked onto Aiven like he was trying to memorize his face before the world pulled him away again.
Aiven swallowed.
"Thank you," Raze said quietly.
"For… not freaking out. And for not filming."
A soft laugh escaped Aiven. "Why would I film?"
Raze stared at him like he'd just asked something impossible.
"Because everyone films," he whispered. "Always."
Aiven didn't know why, but that sentence stabbed him.
It made Raze look heartbreakingly alone.
"Oh," Aiven said softly. "Well… I'm not everyone."
A small smile tugged the corner of Raze's mouth—tiny, but real.
The first real thing Aiven had seen from him all night.
Before Aiven could process it, the manager grabbed Raze's arm.
"We're going."
Raze stepped back into the van, but just before the door slid shut—
He whispered, almost too softly to hear:
"I hope… we meet again."
And then the door closed.
The van pulled away.
The streetlights flickered against the fresh snow.
Aiven stood there alone, heart pounding, breath uneven.
"Meet again?" he muttered to himself. "Why would he ever want to meet me again?"
He shook his head, embarrassed at even thinking about it.
He was Aiven Hale—
nobody special.
He worked at a café.
He struggled to pay rent.
He lived quietly, invisibly.
Raze was a star—
untouchable.
Wanted by millions.
Their worlds would never cross again.
Right?
…Except fate had other plans.
---
THE NEXT MORNING
Aiven woke up to the sound of his phone exploding with notifications.
PING. PING. PING. PING—
Suri was screaming through messages.
> SURI: AIVEENNNN WAKE UP WAKE UP
SURI: DO YOU KNOW WHO WAS SPOTTED IN OUR STREET LAST NIGHT?!
SURI: RAZE FROM ECLYPSE!!!
SURI: I SWEAR I SAW A BOY WHO LOOKED LIKE YOU IN THE BACKGROUND!!!
SURI: PLEASE TELL ME YOU SAW HIM
SURI: PLEASE TELL ME YOU TOUCHED HIS HAND OR SOMETHING
Aiven groaned and buried his face in his pillow.
She saw him?
No way.
He didn't want anyone to know.
Especially not his sister who worshipped ECLYPSE like gods.
Let's just pretend nothing happened, Aiven told himself.
But when he arrived at the café…
Miss Liora greeted him with a strange smile.
"Aiven… dear…"
She held up her phone.
A paused video glowed on the screen.
A news clip.
Of last night's accident.
Of a silver-haired idol stepping out of a van.
And behind him—
half-hidden, blurry, but unmistakable—
Aiven.
"Dear…" Miss Liora whispered.
"Why is there a superstar standing two inches from your face?"
Aiven's soul left his body.
"Oh no," he whispered.
"Oh no no no—this cannot be happening."
But it was too late.
The video ended with a reporter saying:
> "Raze was seen with an unknown boy last night. Fans are dying to know—who is he?"
Aiven sank to the floor.
The moment of fate he thought was small…
was about to turn his entire life upside down.