Sitting perfectly still at her seat wearing a silken white dress that seemed to paint her as an angel descended down from the heavens was none other than—
"Yuna…" Michael muttered to himself.
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"Okay, please step back and don't push through the barricades!"
A woman wearing an official black and white suit shouted through the crowd in front of her. The microphone and speaker set clipped onto her back projected her voice throughout the entire open space, commanding everyone's attention. Including Michael.
Michael blended into the crowd of zealous and ardent supporters. He wore the best clothes he could afford: a plaid polo and a lightly stained white shirt underneath.
He may seem underdressed for the occasion, but that didn't matter. As long as he was as energetic as the rest of the crowd here, then he could properly show love and support for the idol of his dreams.
With his lightly shorter stature, he went on his toes and peeked through the tumultuous crowd of people in front of him.
Finally, he could see the arena in its entirety. Since it was still early in the day, he could see the technicians still strapped up on the heights and doing their checks to make sure everything worked for the concert a few hours from now.
And from his vantage point just behind the standing barricade, he saw a glimpse of the backstage, where employees were frantically running back and forth as they completed errands that were supposed to have been completed yesterday.
While most of the people around him were excitedly talking about their favorite songs from Yuna's newest album, Michael instead focused on the arena.
Even though his seat wasn't that great, he was still extremely grateful that he was able to even afford the ticket in the first place.
So, instead of being stuck to his phone, he wanted to look around the arena and cherish this moment forever. He was going to immortalize this memory.
And as he did so, he suddenly saw something white flash through the backstage.
His eyes widened. Through the small gap separating the background for the concert and the backstage, he saw the frills of a white dress peeking through.
The only thing he could see was the left half of her body, with her skirt just peeking through the gap. He couldn't even see her face.
But he was sure. That was Yuna.
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"Hello?"
Michael saw a hand waving through his vision, snapping him out of his wistful reverie.
He turned around, seeing the goofy face of a golden retriever mask staring at him.
"Keo, are you good?" Jot'un asked with concern.
Michael pushed Jot'un's hand away from his face. "Yeah, I'm fine. There was just something in my eye."
Jot'un kept silent for a second before shrugging. "For a second there, I thought you passed out or something. Anyway, I didn't think you knew Yuna."
"I know her," he replied.
"Of course! Everyone knows about the exceptional Yuna of the Montgomery family. She's a literal star!" Jot'un praised.
Michael chuckled. If only he knew how right he was.
"I mean look at her. Even with Gabriel and Cedric here in our presence, she is still completely outshining both of them! She's even brighter than the sun! Too blinding!"
While Gabriel, Cedric, and the rest of the conglomerate nepo babies were being swarmed by their admirers, the only one who was sitting alone at her table was Yuna.
If Gabriel's upbringing as a genius descended down from the Vanderbilt name made him feel like an alien from another planet, then Yuna's presence was completely comparable to something that was of a different reality or dimension entirely.
There was just something about her that transcended the normal. The way she conducted herself was somehow even grander than nobles and queens. Yet, there was a sense of subtle elegance and ethereal grace that made her both human and divine at the same time.
In short, the only reason why no one wanted to approach her was because no one felt worthy of doing so. She was on a completely different level from the rest of them, dwarfing even that of Garbiel or any other conglomerate's aura.
But Yuna didn't seem to care about any of this. She sat on her own, sipping water from the glass and neverminding all of the stares that she received from everyone. She was in her own little world, ruminating in her own thoughts. Ironically, this made her even more alluring, like an enigmatic and masterful painting that would stand against the test of time.
"She seems to be quite solemn today," Jot'un said. "I wonder what's up with her?"
Yuna wore a white fox mask, so the slight shade of a dark cloud rumbling over her head was very noticeable. She seemed to be thinking very deeply about something, and that something was disappointing her a little bit.
"Did something happen?" Michael asked immediately.
"Oh, are you interested in her?" Jot'un teased lightly. "I can see your concern for her bleeding through your mask."
Michael staggered, shaking his head. "What, no. She's… no."
However, his visceral reaction couldn't be hidden away from Jot'un's sharp and incisive eyes.
"Hohoho, don't worry about it my friend. I shall teach you the ways on how to woo a lady. It is a guaranteed success," Jot'un said, grabbing Michael's shoulder.
Michael cleared his throat and untangled himself from Jot'un's grasp. "Ahem… no need. And besides, I don't think I should trust your words."
Who would want advice from someone who had an unrequited love?
"And besides. I don't think she'll need my help solving her problems."
"Even if she doesn't need help, you should insist on doing so! That's your way to slip inside her life and become her special someone," Jot'un advised.
"That's too much," Michael said.
"Fine, then her friend. You'll work your way up to become her lover."
Michael stayed silent as he looked at Yuna from behind.
"I don't even think I'm her friend…"