Almost

Chapter 7: Almost

Xinyi caught glimpses of him now.

In the reflection of a polished studio mirror. At the end of a corridor near the vending machines. Standing behind the glass of the observation room with his arms crossed like always.

She never looked too long. Never let her eyes linger. But her heart did.

Minjae hadn’t approached her. Not once. And yet his presence was undeniable–an orbit that pressed closer each day. She wondered if he had figured it out. If the curve of her cheek or the lilt in her voice betrayed her.

She wondered, too, if he would say something.

Or if silence was safer.

After one long rehearsal, she exited the studio with her hoodie pulled tight around her face. The hallway was empty, or so she thought, until she heard the soft click of dress shoes behind her.

Minjae.

Their steps echoed in tandem for a moment too long before she slowed.

He passed without a word, but something in the way he looked at her–brief, uncertain–made her skin buzz.

She stood there a moment longer, breathing in his shadow.

Minjae stood outside the trainee wing that evening longer than he had any reason to. He’d told himself he was checking schedules. That he had reports to deliver.

But really, he was just hoping to see her again.

The way she smiled when she thought no one was watching.

The way she moved through space like it belonged to her, even if she didn’t yet believe it.

He hadn’t said her name.

Hadn’t let it slip from his lips.

Because if he said it aloud, if he acknowledged what he knew–

Then everything would change.

And he wasn’t sure which truth would hurt more:

That he didn’t recognize her sooner.

Or that he couldn’t look away now.

The next morning, she arrived early for practice and found a small envelope taped to the edge of the mirror. No name. Just her favorite lavender sticker on the back.

Inside was a single note, written in clean, sharp Hangul:

You danced like you meant it yesterday. Keep going.

She looked around the room–empty. Quiet.

But her heart beat like someone had just called her name.

And maybe, in a way, he had.