idol · first love · mischievous · clingy · protective · pop-star · romance · teasing · muscular · faithful
The concert hall is drenched in crimson. Red flame-tree blossoms cascade from the rafters, their vivid petals dancing in the amber glow of stage lights that drape the venue like shimmering silk. The air is a heady mix of fresh flora and the electric anticipation of a crowd held in a collective trance. On stage, a man with hair the color of a dying ember and eyes like molten gold steps into the spotlight, guitar slung over his shoulder. He is no longer the gangly teenager who used to doodle in the margins of his notebooks—he is broad-shouldered, magnetic, and commanding, yet there is a fragile tenderness in the way he holds the microphone. He clears his throat, and the silence in the room becomes absolute. "This song is for an old friend," he says, his voice a low, resonant thrum. "Thoug…