The applause followed LUNA5 all the way backstage.
Even after they stepped off the stage, the echoes of cheering still rang in Minji’s ears.
Staff members congratulated them as they hurried through the narrow hallways, carefully avoiding camera cables and moving stage equipment.
“That was incredible!” one producer said, giving the members a thumbs-up.
“You girls absolutely owned the stage,” another added.
Sora let out a relieved sigh.
“I thought I was going to miss the high note.”
“You didn’t,” Yuri laughed.
“You sounded amazing.”
Hana smiled as she looked at her members.
“I’m proud of all of you.”
Minji smiled too, but only for a moment.
The anonymous message from the night before still lingered in her mind.
You’re almost ready.
Ready for what?
She couldn’t stop asking herself that question.
Back in their dressing room, the atmosphere slowly settled.
Stylists removed microphones and helped the members change out of their stage outfits.
Someone ordered dinner.
Someone else turned on a small speaker, filling the room with soft music.
For the first time all day, everything felt…
normal.
Minji was removing the last of her stage makeup when there was a knock on the door.
Their manager stepped inside.
“There are some guests who wanted to congratulate you.”
Before anyone could ask who, the door opened again.
Several senior artists entered, smiling warmly and congratulating LUNA5 on their comeback stage.
The members bowed respectfully, thanking each of them.
A few minutes later, another familiar face appeared.
Joon.
He had changed out of his performance clothes and was now wearing a simple black hoodie beneath a long coat.
He smiled politely at the entire group.
“Congratulations on your comeback.”
“Thank you, sunbeam,” Hana replied.
“You were amazing,” he continued.
“The choreography was even better than I expected.”
The members beamed with pride.
Minji kept her expression calm, careful not to reveal too much.
Only she noticed the tiny smile Joon gave her before looking away.
It lasted less than a second.
But somehow…
It made her entire day.
After everyone left, Hana quietly closed the dressing room door.
Then she turned around.
“So…”
Yuri grinned.
“So?”
Hana folded her arms.
“Does anyone else think Joon sunbeam looked at Minji a little longer than the rest of us?”I am
Minji nearly dropped the bottle she was holding.
“What?”
“I didn’t notice anything,” Sora replied honestly.
Yuri slowly looked between Hana and Minji.
“…Actually…”
“Oh no,” Minji muttered.
Yuri laughed.
“I’m not saying anything.”
“You were about to!”
“I was thinking it!”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Even Minji couldn’t help smiling.
For a few precious minutes, they forgot about the fear waiting outside those walls.
Late that evening, the members finally returned to their dorm.
The city was quiet.
Rain had begun falling, tapping softly against the windows of the van.
Minji sat beside the glass, watching the droplets race each other down the surface.
Her phone buzzed.
A message from Joon.
Joon: You looked happier on stage today.
She smiled before replying.
Minji: I was.
Joon: I could tell.
She hesitated.
Then typed:
Minji: Thank you…
for always believing in me.
A few seconds later…
Joon: Always.
Just one word.
Yet somehow it made her heart feel lighter.
The next morning, LUNA5 had another rehearsal scheduled.
Security was noticeably tighter.
Every visitor entering the building had to show identification.
Additional guards stood near the elevators.
Even the staff whispered about the recent incidents.
As the members walked toward Studio Three, Minji noticed something unusual.
One security guard was speaking urgently into his radio.
Another hurried down the hallway.
The atmosphere suddenly changed.
Their manager’s phone rang.
He answered immediately.
“…What?”
His face lost all color.
“When?”
The members exchanged nervous glances.
The manager ended the call and looked directly at Minji.
“What happened?” Hana asked.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he led them into a private meeting room and locked the door behind them.
Only then did he speak.
“Someone broke into the old trainee building last night.”
The room fell silent.
Minji frowned.
“The old building?”
He nodded.
“The security cameras recorded someone entering the dance studio you used during your trainee years.”
Minji felt her heartbeat quicken.
“Why would anyone go there?”
“We don’t know.”
He placed a photograph on the table.
It showed the empty practice room.
Everything looked normal…
Except for one thing.
Written across the mirror in bright red paint were six words.
I remember where it all began.
No one spoke.
Minji stared at the photograph, unable to look away.
That was the very room where she had spent countless nights practicing alone.
The room where Joon had first met her before sunrise.
The room where her dream had truly begun.
Someone hadn’t just broken into a building.
They had chosen that room.
Deliberately.
Specifically.
As if they knew exactly what it meant to her.
A chill ran down Minji’s spine.
“They’re getting closer,” she whispered.
The manager nodded grimly.
“I’m afraid you’re right.”
Across the city, inside a dimly lit office, a figure stood in front of a wall covered with photographs.
Pictures of concerts.
Practice schedules.
Magazine covers.
Newspaper clippings.
In the very center…
A photograph of twelve-year-old Minji smiling outside her first concert.
The figure reached out and pinned another photo beside it.
Today’s comeback stage.
Then, almost gently, they whispered,
“The spotlight has finally found you.”
The office fell silent once again.
Outside, rain continued to fall over Seoul.
And somewhere beneath that gray sky, Minji still believed the mystery was only beginning.
She had no idea that the answers she was searching for were hidden in a part of her childhood she could barely remember.