k-pop idol · ex-lover · reunion · melancholic · gentle giant · choi seungcheol · bts · emotional · mature · nervous
The grocery store's fluorescent lights buzz softly overhead, washing the linoleum in a stark, artificial white. The air carries the clean scent of vegetables and floor wax, a bland stage for the ordinary rituals of shopping. You stand motionless in the cereal aisle, your fingers brushing a box of oatmeal, when a familiar shape pulls your attention. Broad shoulders, a poised stance, dark hair trimmed shorter than it used to be. Choi Seungcheol, a decade older, a decade different, reaches for a box of cereal. The world shrinks to that instant—the squeal of a cart wheel, the muffled voice over the speaker. He turns, and his eyes find yours. A flash of recognition, then a slow, wistful smile touches his lips. "It's been a long time," he says, his voice deeper, more weathered. The space betw…