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As soon as the director’s voice rang out with applause and words of congratulations, Luka finally exhaled all the air he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in. His chest ached from the release, but a smile broke through anyway.
Without hesitation, he wrapped Hyuna in a tight embrace, clinging to her as if the intensity of the scene hadn’t just drained every nerve in his body.
Hyuna returned the hug quickly, her own shoulders trembling with leftover adrenaline. “I didn’t expect it to feel so real,” she murmured against him, half-laughing, half-shaken. “For a second, I thought I was actually dying.”
Luka let out a laugh of his own—rough, breathless, and far too relieved. “If you were really dying,” he said, pressing his forehead briefly against hers, “I’d be a sobbing disaster on the floor. Trust me, I’d ruin the whole stage.”
That made Hyuna laugh harder, the tension breaking just enough for them both to breathe. Slowly, they began to pull themselves back up, their bodies heavy with exhaustion from the performance. When they turned, Luka caught sight of Ivan moving across the stage. He was already helping Till to his feet, steadying him with quiet efficiency before handing him a towel and a bottle of water. He did the same for Mizi, offering her a reassuring pat on the shoulder before finally making his way toward Luka and Hyuna.
Luka wasn’t expecting Ivan to stop directly in front of them, but he did. With a faint smile, Ivan extended two bottles and a pair of towels. “Well done, both of you,” he said, his voice calm but sincere.
Hyuna accepted quickly, her legs still unsteady as she leaned subtly against Ivan for balance. Luka noticed the look this earned her—curious glances from a few others nearby—but Ivan only chuckled softly, steadying her without a word of judgment.
“You both okay?” Ivan asked after a beat. “I know that scene can be… a little too much emotionally, especially with the two of you playing it out. Considering you’re a ‘relatively new’ couple, I wasn’t sure if it’d be harder on you.”
Luka shook his head, managing another tired grin. “We’re fine. Honestly, if we didn’t have to keep up appearances, I’d make you carry both of us straight to the dressing room.”
Ivan actually laughed at that—quiet, but genuine. Before Luka could react, Ivan pulled him into a quick half-hug. Luka stiffened in surprise. Ivan was usually reserved, cold even, the type to keep his distance. That brief show of warmth felt completely out of character.
“Wait—why are you freezing?” Luka asked as the embrace ended.
Ivan gave him a wry look. “Because they had me standing under the AC vent for the entire scene. I was a human ice sculpture.”
Hyuna snorted into her towel, Luka groaned with exaggerated sympathy, and for the first time that evening, the shadows of the performance truly lifted.
Hyuna leaned against him with a tired grin, her voice playful but still carrying that lingering adrenaline from the performance.
“If I wasn’t already taken, right now I’d be all over you. God, what is it about these sets and costumes that makes everything feel so much hotter than it should?”
Luka turned his head toward her, pretending to look offended, though the amused curve of his lips betrayed him.
“Oh please,” he teased, placing a hand dramatically over his chest, “do you honestly think you’d even get the chance to claim this man before I did?”
Hyuna let out a breathless laugh, shoving his shoulder lightly. “Cocky much?”
“Confident,” Luka corrected with a smirk, leaning closer as if to seal his words with a challenge.
Their playful back-and-forth only made Ivan chuckle, shaking his head at their antics. To him, it was endearing how quickly the pair could go from bleeding hearts on stage to bickering lovers off it. Luka, catching Ivan’s laughter, shot him a mischievous grin, as if daring him to join in on their banter.
But then, Luka’s gaze drifted past them, toward the rest of the cast. His expression shifted ever so slightly when he noticed Till standing off to the side, watching them silently. Sua and Mizi were nearby, speaking in hushed tones, their faces tense with something that didn’t look like celebration. It struck Luka that not everyone had managed to shake off the intensity of the scene as quickly as he and Hyuna had.
Ivan excused himself with a wave, patting Luka’s shoulder before turning his attention toward Till. The speed with which he moved to reach him felt deliberate, almost protective. Luka raised a brow at that, but said nothing. Instead, Hyuna nudged him lightly.
“You good?” she asked, her tone suddenly softer.
“Yeah,” Luka replied, though he let out a small laugh that betrayed a touch of lingering unease. “I guess I just got too deep into the scene. For a moment it felt too real. But…” He glanced back toward where Ivan and Till now stood together, then back to Hyuna. “Joking around with you two kind of snapped me out of it. Reminded me nothing actually bad happened.”
Hyuna studied him for a moment longer, but let the subject drop when he shifted to another thought that had been lingering in the back of his mind.
“Hey,” Luka started carefully, lowering his voice, “do you know if Till and Ivan are… you know… actually together? Till’s never given me a straight answer, and I’ve never bothered to ask Ivan directly.”
Hyuna’s lips curled into a sly smile. “That,” she said with mock seriousness, “is the single greatest mystery of our entire cast. Nobody knows. And trust me, everyone’s tried to figure it out.”
The two of them shared a small laugh before deciding to finally retreat from the whirlwind of noise and celebration. They made their way down the hall toward the dressing rooms, both moving slower now that the adrenaline had fully ebbed away. Inside, they sank onto the sofa, a quiet haven compared to the chaos outside.
Hyuna curled her legs over Luka’s lap, and he didn’t hesitate to entwine their limbs, his fingers naturally finding hers. The world outside could wait; for now, there was only this shared pocket of warmth.
“So,” Hyuna asked lazily, her head resting against his shoulder, “where are we going for dinner after all this?”
Luka gave a hum of consideration, squeezing her hand gently. “Anywhere that feels like the exact opposite of dying on stage.”
She snorted, squeezing back. “So… not spicy food then.”
Their laughter filled the room, soft and easy. For a moment, the earlier weight of the performance seemed distant, replaced by the kind of comfort that only came from holding onto someone who made the world feel survivable.