Lovebirds

twenty-two

The crowd roared in the background, the screams and awes of fangirls engulfing the set as their idols ran onto the stage, hyping them up with their own voices shouting cheers into their mics. Dazzling lights blinded against her eyelids even though she stood backstage, watching them from a screen. Their faces blurred in their high pumped jumps as if they all their training led up to this moment, this concert, this crowd. 

As neon lights spanned the fangirls, music began to play, electrifying the energy and igniting the determination in the Red Knights. Pretty soon, their voices rumbled through the speakers, deep voices threading between the lyrics, the melody making the crowd spin their hips and rock their bodies to the beat. 

Naira was lucky to be wearing an earpiece to minimize the noise. Still, her eyes were on the screen, specifically on one member of their band. His feet shuffled against the stage, his movements precise, smooth, and in perfect sync with Kyle and Wesley beside him. 

His arms move at the same pace as his legs, lips smiling widely as they formed around the lyrics of their song. She wasn't sure why she was so tuned to his voice, to his aesthetic on stage, but she knew that she was digging her grave the more she lost herself in his movements. 

Naira lowered her gaze away from the screen. Astaghfirullah (may God forgive). Pull it together.

Sighing, Naira fell down on the couch, hating the isolation she felt, the discomfort that grew in her chest. She never went to concerts, never participated in the screaming of fangirls, nor did she ever yearn for a man that could never be hers. 

You set the pace, Naira.

Those were his words, yet she couldn't decipher the meaning. What could she control? What could she pace between them? 

Rayan's voice broke through the speakers. "You all ready for the big surprise?" he grinned into the microphone, dragging Naira away from her thoughts. The crowd responded, but he shook his head. "Nah, that was weak. I said, are you ready?" 

"Yes!"

Kyle clapped a hand on Rayan's shoulder, smirking deviously at the surprise they had planned. "Tonight, we're hitting the classics again," announced Kyle. "We've got the remix of our first single paired with new choreography set to drive you ladies wild."

All it took was one heated look from Kyle, head tilted so that the lights gleamed against his piercings and blonde hair that peeked from his beanie. He winked into the camera, doing a quick dance move for the screaming girls before giving the spotlight to Wesley. 

Naira's lips curled upwards into a small smile. In the same amount of time she'd spent with the boys, each managed to surprise her in different ways. 

Kyle's bad boy charm and cheeky jokes always left her rolling her eyes while Wesley's intellect and calm challenged her as a manager, but it also let her have an ally to plan these events with. Rayan was the piece that tied them together, the positive force that expelled darkness like a holy knight. 

Wesley chuckled into his ear microphone, grabbing an electric guitar. Holding three fingers in the air, he began to countdown. Once he hit zero, his fingers glided across the guitar in rapid speed, the sound resonating like a charged particle bouncing across the room. 

Rayan and Kyle stood on the sides, the spotlight dimming to give them a neon silhouette outlined by their outfits. Their movements were fluid as if they were swimming across a pond of adoration, as if their feet were inhuman in itself. 

Finally, Rayan's voice took charge, dazzling white lights splaying against his mocha skin, eyes a shimmering emerald in a sea of blue. They sparkled like his teeth, and his deep voice chased after the syllables of a love song, chasing for that satisfying release of the chorus.