donghyuck head lowered the second he walked out of school, wanting nothing more than to disappear from the surface of this earth. his eyes stayed glued to his feet and to the ground as he tried his best to walk in a straight line without colliding with anyone.

dozens of girls – and even boys – from donghyuck's school were gathered in front of the gates giggling loudly for a very simple reason.

wong yukhei, also known as lucas from super m, was leaning against a car, his charming smile making everyone swoon and go crazy.

the tanned male lifted his head slowly, glancing at his fake-boyfriend in the most discreet way possible. however, lucas immediately noticed him and threw him a wink accompanied with a wave of hand which made everyone around donghyuck turn around to look at him.

a few days ago, donghyuck would have killed to earn such attention from the famous idol. oh god, he was ready to do anything to catch lucas' eyes and be the centre of his attention.

but it wasn't the case anymore.

the boy was living his worst nightmare right now, taking slow and careful steps towards his favourite idol while the crowd followed his every move, whispering and giggling things donghyuck would rather never hear.

"hello lovely..." lucas smiled, wrapping an arm around donghyuck's waist as soon as the boy was close enough.

a collective squeal erupted through the crowd as the student was pulled into lucas' embrace as the idol dropped a loving kiss on his temple.

as beautiful and endearing this all looked like, it was all fake.

there was no love blossoming between lucas and donghyuck.

there was no lucas and donghyuck to start with.

they were just two boys, with different personalities, different interests, and very different lives. and in no way they were meant to be together.

but for the sake of lucas' popularity, they had to.

"take me out of here." donghyuck whispered, his voice muffled by lucas chest against which he was pressed. the tanned male could feel tears welling up in his eyes, just like every single time he thought about how wring all of this was. but he was strong, or at least he had to be.

"huh, sure." lucas nodded, pulling away from the hug and immediately opening the car's door to allow donghyuck to slide inside.

the boy rushed inside, letting lucas wave at 'their fans' one last time before getting in the car as well and allowing the driver – who was none other than the super m manager – to drive away.

"are we going back to the dorms?" lucas asked, passing his head at the front of the car to ask his manager.

the manager looked through the inside mirror, analysing donghyuck's state. just similarly to the other days, he was leaning against the car's door, his forehead pressed against the tinted window while salty pearls rolled down his cheeks.

"no. you have a date." he replied.

donghyuck sighed loudly, using the back of his palm to wipe his wet cheeks.

"where to?" he asked.

"the jungsik restau- "

"woah! isn't that the super expensive gastronomic restaurant a few streets away from sm entertainment?!" lucas exclaimed immediately. "i've always wanted to go there!"

"yeah, well, your wishes are granted." donghyuck snorted before focusing back on the view outside.

he envied all those people who walked anonymously in the streets of seoul.

how much he would love to be like them.

and instead, he was stuck to fake-date an idol, going on fancy dates and trying to catch attention for the more people possible.

this was not the life donghyuck wanted.

but he was stuck with it.

♪

"donghyuck!"

the tanned male kept his eyes focused on his full plate of food while he poked it with the end of his chopsticks. he simply hummed, letting the girl that had disturbed his lunch know that he was listening.

"we're big fans of super m, and lucas and you are so cute, really!" the girl squealed, making her friends that were by her side nod in approval.

"thanks..." donghyuck mumbled uninterestedly.

"so... we were wondering..." she continued. "do you think you would be able to... huh... to get an autograph for us...?"

a scowl appeared on donghyuck's face as he dropped his chopsticks in his plate, lifting his head to glare at the three girls.

"i don't- "

"i'm sorry girls. lucas isn't allowed to give autographs unless it's at a fanmeeting." jaemin interrupted donghyuck's words, standing between his best friend and the girls.

"oh..." the girls sulked. "but donghyuck could still get one... he's his boyfriend..."

"sure, but if donghyuck does it for you three, then he'll have to do it for the chick who came 10 minutes prior to ask for one, and basically for the whole school. so, it's a no." jaemin continued. "now please, leave him alone."

"sorry, guys." the girls bowed before leaving donghyuck and jaemin's table.

with a sigh, jaemin sat back next to donghyuck, placing a comforting hand on his thigh as the tanned male started toying with his food again.

"it's only been two weeks and i can't bear with it anymore..." donghyuck mumbled, and jaemin noticed how hard he was trying to hold back his tears.

everyone else apart from jaemin – and their group of friends who had been informed of the events – thought that donghyuck and lucas' relationship was genuine and happy. donghyuck couldn't be sad at school, he couldn't look depressed when he was supposed to be in a relationship with the most perfect man on this planet.

"hold on for a bit longer, hyuck. i know this is hard for you, but relationships don't last forever. you'll be able to end things with lucas." jaemin murmured, trying to reassure his best friend.

"real relationships don't last." donghyuck scoffed. "fake ones do. mostly when the rest of the world loves them. and in my case, they do love it..." he added, lifting his head and meeting eyes with a few girls that were staring at him and immediately waved their hands in excitement when donghyuck looked at them.

the public eye loved too much lucas and donghyuck. it was a fact.

and so, there was no way this relationship would stop soon.

♪

donghyuck's phone screen brightened as the boy was dozing off to sleep, making him open his eyes fully and roll around his bed to reach for the device. he switched it on immediately, his heart melting as he read the sweet message that was displayed on the screen.

mark lee

hello donghyuck

i know you're not feeling happy nor perfectly fine

and it's perfectly okay not to be fine

life is sometimes tough and everyone has their downsides

but i want you to know that you absolutely don't deserve that

you're such a precious golden boy, donghyuck

you deserve to be happy and loved, and to live the life you want

and i know all of this isn't what you expected your life to become

but i think you should know that your sole existence makes me so happy

i'm so glad i could meet you that day

and even if i am the reason everything is messy right now

i want to help you solve it so that you can shine brighter than the sun again

i want to help you become happy again

i just care so much about you donghyuck

despite the endless nightmare donghyuck's life had become, only a few things allowed the tanned male to feel like things could get better. one of those were his friends, always supportive of him, protecting him from crazy fans and willing to make him feel better. the other was mark lee.

because donghyuck was supposedly lucas' boyfriend, he hung out with super m considerably more, meaning he spent more time with mark.

the canadian male was as supportive of donghyuuck as his friends were, and he kept trying to put a smile on the younger boy's face, even when things weren't good for him. donghyuck truly appreciated mark's presence and help, and it definitely prevented him from losing his sanity fully.

mark was always so kind and comprehensive, and he would always make sure donghyuck was alright, checking on him either by message or just by approaching him and asking him.

all of this attention donghyuck was receiving from the idol had never failed to make his heart beat faster these past weeks, and he liked this feeling very much. mark made him feel like everything was normal, as if none of them was famous, and that's all donghyuck needed to feel better.

"thank you for being there for me, mark..." donghyuck whispered as the screen of his device switched off, leaving him all alone in a dark nightmare again. 

♪

"mark, i need your help."

the younger idol hummed, lifting his head to look at his groupmate who was standing in front of him while fidgeting with his fingers.

"mark, can you... huh... can i sit with you?"

"sure, lucas." mark smiled, patting the space next to him on the sofa for lucas to sit by his side.

the taller boy plopped on the couch, letting out a sigh as he started fidgeting with his fingers again. he seemed like he had a lot on his mind.

"so... you needed my help?" mark broke the silence when he realised lucas wasn't going to speak first.

"yeah." the chinese male answered.

mark raised a brow, expecting a longer answer. "yeah...?"

"yeah. i need your help." lucas nodded.

"what for?"

lucas blinked a few times, stopping to nibble at the dead skin around his nails as he looked into mark's eyes.

"i feel like... i don't know... i think... i think donghyuck's not happy."

mark held a scoff in. it seemed like donghyuck was not happy?

he didn't know what could have given lucas the hint.

maybe the fact donghyuck was uncomfortable when having to stand by super m's side anywhere where fans were?

maybe the fact donghyuck never talked to them and always held himself from crying?

maybe the fact donghyuck always tried to run away and escape from the famous world by refusing everything the manager or lee sooman proposed?

maybe donghyuck had just told him?

"that... wasn't too hard to notice..." mark replied the calmest possible.

"i feel like this whole situation is making him depressed." lucas continued.

"yes, you can say it that way." mark nodded. "he didn't want to be famous in the first place. he just wants to have a normal life, doing normal things, and being normally anonymous."

"but now he's famous..." lucas sighed.

the canadian male hummed in agreement.

since the rumours had started, donghyuck had gained a lot of fame. both in the good and in the bad way.

his social media accounts that previously had under 100 followers had now reached thousands. he received messages daily from fans who wanted to have a chance to get closer to super m. he received lots of questions and compliments on his good looks and how cute lucas and him were. but his social medias were also littered with hate, mean comments, insults and death threats.

famous people were used to receiving hate. that was the problem of being an artist. there would inevitably be people who didn't like what they did. but usually, idols tried to compensate those harmful words by reading the hundreds of loving comments they recievied.

except that, for donghyuck, it seemed like all the cute and loving messages were overwhelming and he hated receiving those even more than the hateful words he would receive.

"i want to make him happy, mark, happier at least." lucas told, breaking the silence and looking at the younger male straight in the eye. "i know nothing i can do will change the way he became famous and hates it, but maybe i can try putting a smile on his face for a while. i really want that..."

"i do too, trust me." mark approved.

"that's why i need your help." lucas explained. "you seem to know him more than any of us. you have to have an idea of what could make him happy. we have a fake-date planned in a few days, and i really want this one to make him smile sincerely."

mark thought for a few seconds, searching for something that donghyuck could have told him that would make him happy. sadly, most of his ideas involved not being famous, which was impossible now.

"mark?" lucas questioned as the younger idol had been silent for a while.

"i know what you can do."

♪

"so, how are you liking this date so far?" lucas asked, taking a sip of his apple juice from an elegant glass flute.

"fake date." donghyuck corrected, taking his eyes away from his plate to look at his surroundings. "and it's a bit too crowdy for me."

lucas lifted his head as well to look around.

both him and donghyuck were sitting on a large piece of cloth in the middle of a park, a beautiful picnic displayed in front of them while they enjoyed the warm weather for their picnic date.

however, both of them were famous, and so, dozens of fans were surrounding them, trying to take pictures or ask for an autograph to the two boys. thankfully, lucas had set barriers and asked guards to stand within a large perimeter of their eating spot so that they weren't disturbed.

"i'm sorry for the crowd, i tried to have them the furthest away from us, but the direction of the park didn't want us to make it wider because this is a public place, and we're already using too much space..." lucas explained, looking guilty.

"it's fine, don't worry." donghyuck shook his head. "i appreciate the gesture."

"i really wanted you to enjoy this fake date. i know things aren't the way you want them to be, but nevertheless, you deserve to be happy, and that's why i wanted to have a date that you would enjoy."

donghyuck smiled lightly but sincerely at his bias. he had never imagined he would one day be having the most romantic and perfect date with lucas from super m. and independently from all the mess that was happening, this made him feel so happy.

"thank you, lucas." donghyuck spoke, his smile widening. "you worked so hard to make me happy and you succeeded. i love this fake date."

"well..." lucas smiled back, his hand rubbing the back of his neck. "actually, i could never have done that without mark's help." he confessed. "i know i'm supposed to be your fake boyfriend, and it's my job to create perfect dates for you, but since mark knows you really well, i asked him if he could help and... and he basically did everything."

the tanned male's heart started fluttering in his chest at those words.

he wasn't going to lie; he had a suspicion that lucas wasn't the one that had fully prepared the date. why? first of all, this was all too romantic for lucas who seemed to be less careful and attentive to details than that. second of all, the date was perfectly organised, and lucas wasn't known to be the king of organisation. and third of all, the date was exactly like donghyuck ideal romantic date, and lucas wouldn't have read that in his thoughts.

so, he knew lucas wasn't the only person responsible for this perfect date, but he hadn't imagined mark could be behind all of this. and if he had been, he hadn't imagined lucas would openly say it.

"please, don't tell mark i said that." lucas almost begged placing his hand over donghyuck's tanned one that was resting on the cloth. "he told me i should say i was the one who had organised everything, but i cannot say that, because i could never do something so romantic. it's not that i don't want or anything, i just can't, it's too sophisticated and detailed for me. i'm sorry, i'm just so bad at this, thank god mark was here, because i wouldn't have been able to make you happy, and that's all i wanted to do. but once again, i beg you, don't tell him i said all of that."

donghyuck couldn't help but chuckle at lucas' panicked state.

the light sound made lucas look at donghyuck's face immediately, his gaze softening when he realised that donghyuck was smiling and laughing sincerely.

"i won't tell anything to mark, lucas, don't worry." donghyuck replied. "thank you so much for being honest with me, and for wanting to make me happy."

♪

"twice is out in three minutes!! super m and... dong... donghyuck!! on stage right after, get ready!" one of the backstage organizers yelled before rushing somewhere else.

donghyuck heaved out a sigh as he looked at all of the famous people standing around him.

he felt completely out of place, standing on the backstage of a popular tv show, broadcasting kpop idols singing, dancing and being interviewed by famous tv presenters.

he wasn't an idol in the first place, so, why did he even need to be here? since when idols' boyfriends had a right to gain fame and talk on national tv?

"sorry, sir, this is a no public area, please leave backstage." a security guard told donghyuck, startling him.

"h-huh...?"

"please, leave backstage or i will have to use force." he repeated.

"b-but- ouch!" the tanned male exclaimed as the guard gripped his arm and started pulling him away.

struggling in the man's grip, donghyuck tried to escape in vain. and if he didn't hate his life enough yet, he wanted to die at the sight of all the other idols looking at him with pity.

"you dumbass, what the hell are you doing?!" another voice caught donghyuck's attention.

"a fan has sneaked in backstage, and he refused to leave!" the guard that was holding donghyuck explained.

"are you fucking stupid!" the other man, who was in fact another guard, exclaimed. "that's donghyuck! he's lucas' boyfriend, from super m!"

"oh!" the guard that was previously holding donghyuck immediately let go his arm. "i'm so sorry, i... i didn't know it was you..."

"it's okay..." donghyuck mumbled.

"oh my god, i can't deal with you anymore..." donghyuck's saviour rolled his eyes. "come with me immediately." he added, pulling the other guard with him, and leaving donghyuck alone.

the tanned male blinked a few times, trying to process what had just happened. in his reflextion, his eyes fell on a clock that had him gasping when he realised he had to go on stage with super m in less than two minutes.

"it's hard to believe you're part of the idol world." a feminine voice said, stopping donghyuck in his tracks as a few girls stood in front of him, glaring at him.

"s-sorry, i have to go." donghyuck apologised, trying to pass near them.

"you don't belong here." another girl spoke. "idols should stay between idols and date idols instead of picking useless boys that cannot even defend themselves."

"yeah, how can they expect you to go on stage by super m's side with your non-existent charisma?"the girls laughed.

"i'm sure you blackmailed lucas so that he could become your boyfriend. lucas would never date someone as miserable as you."

donghyuck tried holding back his tears the best he could because he didn't want to ruin the makeup that had been applied on his face, but it was starting to get hard. he was used to receiving such harmful comments, but usually, they were from anonymous people. in fact, it was the first time idols attacked him, and although he had no idea who this girl group could be, he couldn't help but feel even worse.

"you should just go back home. we know you'll ridicule super m by standing by their side on stage. national tv isn't a charity, they don't take care of lost causes." the girls continued being mean.

"you're no one to be standing there with all those idols who worked their ass to reach this. what did you do? nothing. you just- "

"donghyuck, i was looking for you!"

the tanned male's body relaxed completely at the sound of the familiar voice.

"m-mark..." he mumbled, a bright smile appearing on his face despite the fact his eyes were still glossy. "let's go, we have to be on stage in a minute..." he continued.

"just one second." mark informed. "i want to have a talk with those beautiful ladies."

the group of girls – who had replaced their frowns with bright smiles when mark had appeared by their side – all giggled at the endearing formula mark had used to describe them.

"hello, mark." one of them batted her lashes, giving mark her most beautiful smile.

"there's no 'hello, mark', you rats." mark spat, startling both the girls and donghyuck.

"w-what?!" one of the girls blinked in confusion.

"stop spilling shit and harassing donghyuck. you know nothing about him neither about his and lucas' relationship. so, i advice you to shut up if you don't want a nasty rumour to be spilled on your already barely known group." he continued. 

"w-we would never say such- "

"sure, keep lying. i heard you, you know?" mark scoffed. "the miserable ones here are you, and only you. you're so salty that donghyuck gained more fame than you in a month. keep being jealous all you want, he's ten thousand times better than all of you anyway, but never ever try to disrespect donghyuck when you know nothing."

the group of girls stayed frozen on their spot, their eyes wide in disbelief as they looked at mark who appeared to be a perfect gentleman, but had just dissed them rather violently.

"let's go, hyuck. we have to be on stage." mark informed, wrapping an arm around donghyuck's shoulders before walking away with him. he didn't forget to glare one last time at the girls, mouthing a 'i got an eye on you' to them before concentrating fully on donghyuck.

"are you okay?" he asked the younger boy.

"y-yeah..." donghyuck nodded sadly. "it's fine... i guess that's what happens when you become famous without working..."

"they're just salty bitches, don't worry about them." mark sighed. "they've been working for so long, but they don't have talent, so they aren't that well-known. and they can't bear the fact that you could gain more fame than them. but they're useless, so of course, they won't gain more fame." mark explained.

"yeah..." donghyuck shrugged. "thank you for saving me from them..."

"it's normal, hyuck." mark smiled sincerely.

"no, it's not. i should be able to do it on my own. but i can't. i'm just helpless and useless..."

"donghyuck, no." mark stated.

the idol stopped walking, facing donghyuck and cupping his cheeks with his palms as he forced the younger boy to look into his eyes. donghyuck gulped, his face flushing at the close proximity.

"the idol world is so shitty and corrupted, and you absolutely don't deserve all the hate you'll be getting from it. but sadly, we can't really do anything about it, that's just the way things are..." mark continued.

"yeah, so... i better start getting used to it." donghyuck frowned.

mark used his thumb to caress donghyuck's cheek lightly while he smiled sadly at the beautiful male.

"you won't need to get used to it." he told. "i'll always be by your side to help you, donghyuck." he added, bending forward slightly for his lips to brush against the soft skin of donghyuck's cheek in a sweet kiss.