Idol of the Heavenly One - vanish into fiction

It was meant as a joke, but the weight behind those words was far from light. For a moment, I thought I should deny it, but my strength had already drained, and even the slightest movement sent heat coursing through my entire body. Words rose to my throat but never made it out. I clenched my eyes shut instead.

A complaint slipped past my lips. In truth, I had nothing to refute with.

“Ha, damn it…”

Then came a low chuckle beside me.

“Honest, huh.”

I drew in a slow breath. That bastard… was he toying with me right now? Or did he actually mean it? My thoughts tangled messily together, making me even hotter. I told myself it was all because of the fever—my racing heart, the way I was getting swept up by his nonsense. Yet the look in his eyes just moments ago wasn’t something I could easily dismiss as a joke.

The bedspring dipped slightly, followed by the soft rustle of the blanket being straightened. I didn’t open my eyes, but I could clearly feel Baek Jae-heon’s hands pulling the blanket back over me. His quiet breathing reached my ears. He said nothing more, but I could tell he was still sitting there, looking down at me.

I wanted to meet his eyes and read the meaning behind his gaze, but my head started spinning again. Even the sound of his breathing faded away as I drifted off, like my consciousness had been cut.

The next morning.

I had to get ready for our overseas departure, but by the time my mind had cleared a little, I was already being dressed and prepared by the others. Go Hee-min helped me into the clothes he had picked out, I pulled a mask over my face and a cap low over my head. I couldn’t even shoulder my bag properly, so Lee Soonbok carried it for me, while Joo I-rip nagged at Hee-min to bundle me up tighter. Kwon Ji-hak, usually the loudest of the bunch, stayed unusually quiet.

I fell asleep the moment I got in the car. I had no idea how long we’d been on the road. Before I knew it, my heavy head had tipped to the side and rested against someone’s shoulder. It felt broad and solid, so I assumed it was Soonbok’s. The others were talking softly around me, but their voices faded away like waves receding from shore.

“Hyung, wake up. We’re almost there.”

Someone shook my arm, and I barely managed to open my eyes. It was Ji-hak.

“We’re here…?”

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

Outside the car window, the airport entrance came into view. As I stirred, trying to sit up, someone beside me suddenly caught my arm. When I looked up, the familiar face filling my vision made my mind go blank.

It was Baek Jae-heon.

So he was the one sitting next to me. Before I could even fully wake, he silently adjusted my cap and mask.

Damn it, he’s doing it again. The faint heat I thought had subsided came rushing back. At this rate, my fever wouldn’t go down—it might even get worse.

“Let’s get off.”

His short, firm voice left no room to argue, and I followed without thinking.

The airport lobby was already packed with people. The flood of eyes turning toward us pressed heavily on my shoulders. The members formed a tight wall around me as we walked. Amid the noise, a reporter’s voice rang out clearly.

“Myeong-hyeon, are you feeling unwell?”

I wanted to answer, but just moving through the crowd was exhausting. All I could do was keep walking and lift a hand weakly in response.

Even so, cheers erupted, followed by a flurry of camera shutters.

For celebrities, even being sick becomes news.

That realization hit me, and suddenly my family came to mind. How worried would they be when they saw my face in an article? I promised myself that once we arrived in China, I’d at least send them a short message to say I was okay.

“Please don’t push—!”

The manager’s voice echoed through the airport, but it did little good. The crowd kept surging forward. Arms and shoulders brushed against me, jostling me from all sides.

And just as my steps began to falter, right when I felt I couldn’t keep up—