True to her word IU appeared at the venue alongside Jungkook, her arm carefully woven into his as they walked down the red carpet.

He had not seen her since she stormed off the rooftop but he was confident they would deliver a sensational performance despite their fall out over Lisa and her teddy bear.

He could hear the flashes of cameras go wild as they walked down the aisle. He also heard the murmurs from their hoards of fans, gasping and pointing at her choice of dress for the night.

The exposed back left very little to the imagination and he felt as awkward as he looked as their fans continued with their screams.

"OMG IUKook is real!!"

"You look good together!!"

"Please tell us you are dating!!"

He tried his best to hold himself together at their screams, however it was proving difficult to remain composed and calm when he heard other words above the others.

"No fake poor ugly Thai girl!"

"IU best body! Ugly Thai girl skin and bones!"

"LIZKOOK fake, like her nose!!"

Jungkook didn't care to hear anymore as he quickened his steps, nearly dragging IU along not caring if she wasn't capable of keeping up with his long angry strides.

"Slow down Jungkook!"

"My dress and heels!!"

He couldn't hear her above the chanting as he continued to stalk towards the stage, not waiting as he stood beside IU and posed for the cameras without so much as breaking into a smile.

He was livid that people, fans no less, that they thought so little of Lisa or her feelings.

If she was the one walking next to him would they still have said such horrible things? He didn't want to believe it but he knew that some Army would completely savage her if she was there.

It saddened him to think that the very people who adored him and who helped elevate him to where he is now, were the very people who wouldn't think twice about hurling such horrible abuse at Lisa.

_______________________________________

They were in a dressing room surrounded by hair and makeup stylists, the noise of the background did little to break through his thoughts of what had happened outside.

At the very least they were able to practise a little bit, but it didn't surprise Jungkook that IU chose to ignore him the entire time.

He wished she hadn't chosen to wear such a risque dress because he could only imagine the field day gossip sites were going to have with that one.

The sharp short knock on the door drew him out of his reviere.

It was his manager.

"Ready?"

It was time.

IU nodded curtly and walked out ahead of Jungkook without a backward glance, her heels clicking in fast counts down the brightly lit hallway, passing junior idols who quickly jumped out of her way, bowing politely as she passed them with barely a reply.

His manager barely had time to address her before his eyebrows shot up towards his hairline in a questioning manner.

Jungkook looked at his manager with a silent apology and shook his head as both men moved to follow IU.

He paused at the door before turning back into the room and slowly eyed the stuffed animal still sitting on top of the counter where he had placed it earlier. The inanimate object staring him down as he got closer, the cold plastic eyes almost daring him to take a further step.

Jungkook took the bear and carefully wrapped it with the purple blanket before placing it into his bag and handing the treasured cargo to his manager.

Pleading with his eyes, his manager understood what Jungkook was asking of him. He knew how much the stuffed animal meant to him, and he also knew what or rather who it represented to Jungkook.

Jungkook watched silent and still as his manager took careful hold of his bag, clutching it to his chest before releasing a sigh of relief.

He could feel the pity rubbing off onto him as his manager laced an arm around his shoulders manoeuvring him out into the hallway in the direction of where IU had gone.

_________________________________________

IU & Jungkook stood quietly side by side backstage and watched as the idols on stage exited on the far side. He could feel the tension rolling off her in waves and it made the already sinking feeling in his stomach heavier just thinking about their performance.

He was never one to be overly stressed before a concert or a live talk show,: like Ellen, and he didn't know how IU was feeling but he knew he had so much riding on delivering a great performance.

This time was different because he wasn't just performing for the sake of himself having finally done a duet with IU after daydreaming about it for years, but rather he was singing for Lisa and he so badly wanted reassurance that wherever she was right now, that she was watching the broadcast.

He hadn't heard much about Blackpink at all in the weeks and months since their breakup other than they were working on solo projects away from their career as kpop idols.

All he wanted was for Lisa to hear him singing and hoped to the high heavens above that she would see, hear and understand what he was going to convey in every word that was about to leave his mouth.

There were butterflies of all sizes running rampant in his stomach and he was trying his best to remain calm. He tried biting his lips and even tried lip exercises to relax them so he could sing and enunciate the words better but nothing seemed to work.

The stage hands had placed their seats accordingly and signalled for them to enter.

Jungkook inhaled deeply and stood to the side smiling softly at IU, extending an arm signalling for her to enter the stage before him. After their earlier discussion days before he had hoped that she would take it as nothing more than a friendly gesture.

He needed her to understand that what he had said he meant it wholeheartedly. He had hurt Lisa in the most unforgivable way, he acknowledged what he did was wrong, but Lisa was it for him and he wanted her back.

He had done so many wrong things to her and he knew he had a long road ahead of him; winning back Lisa wasn't going to be as easy as apologising with a friendly session of hugging it out.

Saying sorry to Lisa was just the start, and that was only if she would allow him to see her. He knew her better than anyone else, he knew the strong will she possessed thanks to her father. He knew she was going to make him work harder than he ever had in his whole life, to win her back.

IU was already seated when he looked up and in the process of getting a final checkup by her hair and makeup artists as well as the mic technician.

Behind the closed curtains he could hear the loud chanting of the fans. No doubt Armys and IUKook shippers who were obviously all growing impatient, waiting in anticipation for the curtains to rise.

Shifting his eyes back to IU he watched as she stared back at him with cold indifference, and it saddened him that she was behaving in a way he didn't think was possible until that day.

Turning his back to the unexpected coldness of her glare, he closed his eyes and raised both hands, palms meeting together. Inhaling deeply Jungkook willed the heavy feeling in his chest to disappear as he thought about a pair of brown doe eyes lined with thick black lashes smiling back at him.

He imagined Lisa there with him, her infectious laughter weaving spells of brightness around him as he relaxes himself into her warm embrace.

"I'm so happy for you Kookie." he imagines her whispering into his ear, her fingers curling themself into the back of his head as she draws him into her, their lips touching in a soft whisper of a kiss.

It wasn't much, and to be fair he knew he didn't deserve to see Lisa's face in his imagination at all muchless an imaginary kiss, but it was all that he had to go by. It was all that he had to help him make it through the next 15 minutes.

He prayed that wherever she was right now, she would hear him sing and by some small miracle, maybe, just maybe she would reach out to him.

It was a very much wishful thinking on his behalf and he doubted that it would happen but that was all he had. He didn't have anything other than wishing her to hear him sing.

"Please Lisa, hear me."

"Just listen, just like you used to." he finished sadly to himself.

Before too long it was his turn to step onto the stage as the mic technician checked his equipment.

Running sweaty palms down his thighs his eyes shift towards IU. Jungkook didn't want things to end with her on bad terms and even though she was glaring at him accusingly, he smiled at her nonetheless.

After all was said and done; at the very least he'd like to remain as friends or acquaintances.

He was about to bare his soul on national tv for a young beautiful Thai woman who wanted nothing to do with him.

He had nothing left to lose.

This was it.

_________________

Jeong Sewoon - Its You

Without even being able to go to you

I'm always here, looking at you

Even though you can't enter my heart, I know

Like destiny, it's always you

It's you, even when I close my eyes

It's you, I can only see you

It's you, like the stars in the night sky

You're the only one who shines in my heart

It's you

It's you

Even if I'm not in your heart anymore

I'm in your eyes

Even if I can't go into your arms

Still, it's only you for me

It's you, even when I close my eyes

It's you, I can only see you

It's you, like the stars in the night sky

You're the only one who shines in my heart

It's you

Because it's my first time, I don't know

How to give you everything

But I'll always protect you

It's you, I already know

It's you, that you feel the same way

It's you, we're looking at the same place

And walking together on this endless road

It's you

From the moment the curtain was raised Jungkook sang every note in tune with IU. The melodic tones of their vocal range blended so beautifully that it left the audience quietly stunned.

The camera had managed to capture the perfect picture of two idols seated facing each other, their knees almost touching.

IU's milky goddess skin shone brightly as her eyes equaled that of stars as she stared at Jungkook, her harmonisation matching well with Jungkooks soft melodic tones that he carried with every word.

There were moments that she noticed he would look at the camera, his gaze staring through the lens, reaching out through song at something or someone that she nor anyone else could see but Jungkook.

IU wasn't gullible to not know who he was singing his heart out for and it infuriated her that she now knew, during their actual performance, why he chose this particular song.

As they reached the end of the song the crowd let out bursts of loud gasps followed by an almighty unending loud cheers.

It was far too late to do anything other than stare at her with open eyes filled with shock that IU had leant far enough to touch her lips with his.

On national tv

_______________________________________

It had taken all of Jungkooks willpower to remain seated next to the woman who had kissed him on national tv without his permission.

It was unplanned, uncalled for and most definitely unwanted.

They sat with other idols who threw curious looks at him and he could feel the hairs standing at the back of his neck as he turned his head, his eyes locking with those of an angry Bambam.

Before he could say anything to his young Thai friend the curtains dimmed and an announcement was heard across the auditorium.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to announce that we have a surprise secret performance for you all tonight."

All eyes shifted towards the curtains as they slowly departed to show two people who's backs were facing the audience.

All his breath left his body at the magnificent sight before him as the couple slowly turned revealing themselves.

It was his Lisa and she was blindfolded.

Her body in a stance of vulnerability and fear and the young man beside her looked manly and fiercely strong. He knew who it was, he'd seen him many times before. He gathered from their attire that their dance performance was going to be a contemporary piece.

The voice over continued.

"Please welcome a surprise dance performance by JB of Got7 and Lisa of Blackpink."

There was a roar of cheers and Junkgook looked at Bambam but his silent look of shock told him that the Got7 boys had no idea of this performance either.

Turning his gaze back to the stage his eyes witnessed a tiny almost unnoticeable act that anyone would have missed if they hadn't seen it at that moment, just as he had.

JB raised a hand and brushed Lisa's bangs to the side of the blindfold. It would've looked like a simple act of preparation to the hundreds watching, but Jungkook saw the way she chewed on her lower lip.

Something she'd done out of habit when she was unsure of things. Just as soon as JB touched her bangs Jungkook saw his lips move as he whispered something to her and Lisa smiled.

Lisa smiled at another man, that wasn't him, and his heart sank with it.