Chapter 9

Ji-an

The tour bus rumbled to a stop, the soft hum of the engine fading as the door swung open. 

Outside, the air was dry and crisp, the silence almost unsettling after weeks of city noise—no honking cars, no neon-lit chaos, just endless hills rolling toward the river. 

Moses Lake had been quaint enough—tiny by any real standard, gorgeous sunsets, and the tranquility of the lake. But The Gorge? 

It was breathtaking. 

The amphitheater sat on the edge of a canyon, overlooking the Columbia River, carved into the land like it belonged there. The cliffs, the endless sky, the sheer openness of it all—it was nothing like the arenas we usually played. 

It felt almost too peaceful for a Nova concert. 

"Wow," Min-ji murmured, pressing her forehead against the window. "I didn't think it would be this pretty." 

"I did," Hye-won said, stretching. "I looked it up. This place is legendary." 

Jisoo made a face. "It looks like the kind of place people go camping. Are we performing, or are we supposed to be pitching tents?" 

Hye-won smirked. "You wouldn't last ten minutes outside." 

I barely registered the conversation. 

I wasn't listening. 

I was too busy scrolling through my messages. Checking for an update that wasn't there. 

I had messaged Logan last night, the last thing I'd done before falling asleep. 

So, you're famous now? 

His response was casual. 

Logan: You saw that did you. Dumb right? People are too attached to their phones. Didn't realize having dinner was a viral event and isn't like super early where you are? Should you be working or something? I should get to bed. I am going to have a long day tomorrow. 

And that was it. 

No extra message. 

No Talk to you later. 

Nothing. 

Which was stupid because it wasn't like we had planned to meet up. It wasn't like Logan even knew I was secretly messaging him from a second account because I was too much of a coward to message him directly. I knew all that. But still— 

I had expected something more. 

Something that acknowledged the fact that I was going to be in his orbit again. 

And now? 

Now I was already here, stepping off the bus, the dry air hitting my skin, the venue's security team lining up near the entrance— 

And then I saw him. 

Way sooner than I expected. 

Logan. 

Walking the grounds like he belonged there. 

Which, of course, he did. 

Broad shoulders, confident stride. Tanned forearms. He looked handsome. So damn handsome even from this far away. 

I froze. 

My stomach did something weird, and I hated it. 

I had spent weeks thinking about this moment. Imagining what it would be like to see him again. 

I had pictured a lot of scenarios. 

This wasn't one of them. 

Because in all my overthinking, I had assumed we would meet gradually. Like I would open the door and slip on a banana peal and fall into his arms. 

Yes. I know that is ridiculous. Shut up. The point is I wasn't expecting to see him right after I got to the freaking venue. My heart isn't ready. 

Ready or not…now he was right there, completely unaware that I was watching him. 

I wanted to march over and demand his attention tell him I missed him, I was actually Jess and I had been thinking about him for this whole year. 

instead, I just stood there. Caught between annoyance and something dangerously close to excitement. 

The others were still gathering their things, chatting with staff, completely oblivious to the fact that I had just been mentally punched in the gut. 

And Logan? 

Logan didn't even look in my direction. 

Which was ridiculous. 

I was right here. 

There was no way he hadn't noticed the entire tour group pulling in. No way he hadn't clocked the arrival of one of the biggest acts in the world. No way he didn't know that the girl that he talked to last year was the same standing in front of him. 

And yet— 

He wasn't rushing over. 

Wasn't making eye contact. 

Wasn't acknowledging me at all. 

He just kept walking. Focused. Professional. Talking to his security team like I wasn't even there. 

My jaw tightened. 

The logical part of me knew this was fine. 

He was working. He wasn't some random fan at the barricades—he was security, handling a high-profile event and he was incharge. 

And I was an artist here to perform. 

There was no reason for him to stop what he was doing just to talk to me. He didn't know I was Jess and that we were friends. 

But that didn't mean it didn't annoy the hell out of me. 

Because it did, in fact, annoy the ever-loving hell out of me. 

I folded my arms, watching him move through the venue. He should know. He should not that I am here and that he should just that we have a connection. 

Stupid man. 

Jisoo, still standing next to me, finally noticed my mood shift. 

"Uh… you good?" 

I exhaled sharply, snapping myself out of it. 

"Fine," I muttered, grabbing my bag and heading toward the dressing rooms. 

Jisoo blinked after me. "O-kay." 

I barely heard her. 

My mind was already elsewhere. 

Because as much as I tried to pretend otherwise, this had rattled me. 

And I hated that. 

I hadn't expected to feel this thrown off. 

I hadn't expected to care this much. 

But now, all I could think about was that the next time I saw Logan— 

I wasn't going to let him walk away so easily.