ten.

Amalia's POV

After Taemin's performance, he disappeared from the stage and was replaced by the DJ who got the party back into full swing. I'd already felt as though my ribs were tightening around my lungs with how many people there were, and as more began to gather on the dance floor it soon felt like I was being surrounded. I'd never been good with crowds and so I had no idea why I agreed to come to such a place; Riley was very difficult to say no to and knowing Taemin was going to be here, I don't doubt she would've just dragged me along even if I did.

I could feel my face heating up quickly, causing me to take a deep breath as I flexed my hands at my sides. My palms were clammy and my fingertips felt like static, tingling all over; I just wrapped them around the strap of my bag for some sense of grounding. Feeling my heart rate increase by the minute, my eyes darted around the room in search of a way out and once I spotted a small gap between the growing crowd, I split off from Riley and Yuna. There was no reason to ruin their good time, and besides, I'd probably be fine after a break and some fresh air.

Nobody seemed bothered by me squeezing by them, as a matter of fact, very few people even spared a glance in my direction. It was clear some of them had already had a good few drinks, though, particularly a group of friends who were hanging around near the bar. A couple looked me up and down as I passed, then one of the girls stumbled and fell into me which made me freeze. I had no idea how to react as she giggled like a child, hands gripping my arms in order to keep herself upright.

"I— Sorry," I mumbled, trying to simply scoot away. It took longer than I'd have liked to get her off of me, and once I did, I headed for the first exit I could find.

The way we came in seemed to have disappeared behind the crowds so the second another door came into view, I wandered through it to end up in a quiet hallway. Although the lack of people was a nice contrast to the main area, it made me believe I was somewhere I shouldn't be and I was already anxious enough without getting caught trespassing.

I was presented with a couple of different ways to go, though after rounding a corner I spotted an exit sign above a metal door and sighed with relief as I made my way to it. I didn't care at the time if it was a fire door; I needed fresh air. Just as my hands wrapped around the cold steel handle, however, the door was pushed open from the other side and slammed into my forehead.

"Ah!" I staggered backwards and fell to the ground, just about putting my hands out to catch myself. "Ow..."

"Oh, shit—" A male voice spoke, stepping toward me and crouching down to my level. "Did I hit you?" Wincing a little, I glanced up at the guy and frowned at him, clearly unamused by what he'd asked. "Right, sorry... dumb question. Let me take a look."

With little hesitation, he reached out and took my face in his hands, tilting my head to get a better view of it in the light. He wasn't being particularly careful and ended up grazing the spot the door had hit with his thumb, which caused me to suck in a sharp breath through gritted teeth.

"Really? You smack me in the face with a door and now you wanna make it worse?" The irritation in my voice was clear, but the aching in my head was bad enough already without being aggravated; it was difficult to be anything other than annoyed. "Just— don't touch it."

"Okay, alright. I was just trying to help."

I blinked hard, my vision which was slightly blurred clearing up as I looked at the guy once more, finally realising who was crouched beside me.

"Wait a second... you're Taemin—"

"Shh, shh!" My eyes widened as he slapped a hand over my mouth to silence me. "Just be quiet."

I frowned and pulled his hand off of me, causing a surge of pain through my head. "What? Are you so godly that nobody's allowed to say your name?"

"...you think I'm godly?"

"It was sarcasm, dumbass." Despite feeling dizzy, I pushed myself to my feet and tried my best to stay upright. "And for the record, if you ever put your hand over my mouth again, I will bite you."

Although Taemin gave no verbal response, the corners of his lips twitched up into somewhat of a smirk as he stood up with me; I could only wonder what he was thinking. The sound of voices from the end of the hallway jumped him back to reality, however, and he quickly grabbed my hand and pulled me through the door into the cold night air.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?"

Tae slowly closed the door behind him and turned to face me. "I'm sorry, I just didn't want anyone to see."

"See what? An international superstar talking to a poor, ordinary person?"

"What? No, I just—" Glancing down, he ran his hands through his hair and let out a sigh. "Tonight was supposed to be simple."

"Yeah, for me too. But I don't—" I paused suddenly as a feeling of nausea began to linger and grow. "Oh man, I don't feel so good..."

The ache in my head began to throb again and my legs wobbled, making me worried I was going to fall until an arm wrapped around my waist and kept me steady.

"Woah, woah, easy there... we gotta get you to a hospital, get that checked out. Come on," Tae said, leading me down the alley to where his car was parked and opening the passenger door. I wanted to pull away from him but with the way I was feeling, I don't doubt I would've been on the ground in seconds. His grip on me was only released once I dropped into the seat, leaving me to watch as he wandered around to the other side and got in beside me. "Buckle up."

Although it sounded like an instruction for me, he leaned across and grabbed the seatbelt himself; I just awkwardly laid my hands on my lap since I didn't have the energy to fight much more.

As Tae took care of his own seatbelt and started the car, I leaned my head back against the headrest and mumbled to myself, "What a night..."