Chapter 15
He didn’t enter the changing room even though Jaekyung had moved aside. He looked surprised at Jaekyung’s changed clothes, then turned to Jungwoo.
“Jungwoo. You really picked well.”
He was indirectly saying that Jaekyung looked good in the outfit. Since it wasn’t something he was unaware of, Jaekyung turned his head away in embarrassment. Ah… he’d accidentally turned toward Jungwoo. Jungwoo, whose eyes met his, slightly furrowed his brow as if surprised.
“I did pick well.”
What’s with that self-praise? Jaekyung ignored them and looked around to see if there were any staff nearby.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, have you seen any staff…?”
“I think they were over there earlier… Is there a problem?”
Jaekyung wanted to go find them himself, but Hajun’s repeated questions were becoming annoying.
“I think the clothes are too small,” he answered, hoping to get it over with quickly.
“The clothes are too small?”
But why wasn’t Hajun leaving? Meanwhile, Sowoon came out of the changing room, having changed and even put on a cardigan. Without realizing it, Jaekyung scanned Sowoon’s outfit. The loose cardigan covered his hips. Did he get a large size too?
“The clothes are too small?”
Having apparently heard Jaekyung’s voice from inside, Sowoon tilted his head.
“They don’t seem small.”
Jaekyung shook his head.
“Not the cardigan, the shirt and pants.”
“Hmm…”
Sowoon unbuttoned his cardigan as if to show him and revealed the shoulder area. Jaekyung felt his own shoulder after looking at how Sowoon’s shirt fit. He could feel the shoulder seam of the shirt under the loose cardigan. While his shoulders weren’t particularly broad or narrow, he wondered if this was the right size.
“It seems uncomfortable.”
“I don’t think a size larger would look as good.”
Hajun kindly evaluated Jaekyung’s current size. He also said the pants were right, but it felt burdensome for Jaekyung to accept.
“I still want to try changing.”
Instead of giving in to them, Jaekyung planned to search for staff himself.
“Huh?”
Jaekyung hunched his shoulders when a hand unexpectedly touched the back of his neck. When he turned to see who had put their hand on his neck, he saw only a high nose bridge and a sharp jawline.
“This seems to be the right size…”
Jungwoo checked the size on the label and muttered. Jaekyung swatted his hand away.
How dare he without permission.
Jungwoo raised both hands and shrugged. Jaekyung scanned Jungwoo’s clothes. He didn’t know when Jungwoo had changed, but he was fully dressed with a cardigan, though something about his outfit seemed different.
‘What the…’
Jungwoo’s cardigan was the perfect size, fitting him just right. Both he and Sowoon were given large cardigans while Jungwoo got one that fit him perfectly. Why was everything so arbitrary?
“Alright, please gather around.”
When a man with a camera appeared, Jaekyung secretly glanced at Jungwoo. He seemed to be a photographer, and Jaekyung realized he couldn’t go looking for staff to change clothes while he was there. People who had already changed gathered in a semicircle around the man.
“I have just one thing to tell you.”
The photographer fiddled with his camera, taking test shots of people’s faces. Both Jaekyung, who was still bothered by his clothes being too small or large, and Jungwoo, who was watching Jaekyung, were captured by the camera.
“Don’t deliberately cause NGs to get more camera time.”
Jaekyung’s hand, which had been adjusting his cardigan, froze. To get more camera time?
“It’s fine to create an awkward concept today thinking you’ll show improvement later. However, that will reduce shooting time for others, so please pose appropriately. If you do it right, I’ll finish quickly. Ah, but then you might get less camera time.”
From the photographer’s casually thrown remark, Jaekyung decided how he would approach the profile shoot.
* * *
Jungwoo’s gaze was completely fixed on Jaekyung.
“Lower your chin and look up.”
Following the photographer’s direction, Jaekyung slightly lowered his head.
“Good.”
Just by turning his head slightly, his jawline was perfectly captured by the camera. In that position, with his head lowered, gazing at the camera, his uniquely indifferent aura was fully captured.
When asked to take a different pose, Jaekyung skillfully changed his position. If earlier he was standing straight, this time he put weight on one leg, changing his body’s balance.
Yesterday, despite the long shoot, he hadn’t seemed tired and maintained a straight posture, so Jungwoo hadn’t realized how well a contrapposto stance would suit him. Jaekyung twisted and lowered his head, then raised only his eyes.
The overall expression and posture could have seemed arrogant, but his slightly curved lips gave off a relaxed vibe. With each perfect shot coming one after another, the exclamations from around them didn’t stop.
“His vibe is insane.”
“Is he a former idol?”
“Wasn’t this only for trainees?”
“One photo and he looks ready to debut.”
“That hyung is an amazing singer too…”
“What do we do about this cheat character?”
“What else? We fight for the 8 spots.”
“Seriously, what is he? Did he come from the future after being an idol…?”
The group members watching Jaekyung’s photoshoot each added their comments. Hajun summarized all opinions into one:
“He definitely doesn’t have an amateur feel.”
For someone considered an amateur, he precisely understood what the camera wanted and satisfied it with small movements. Even though they couldn’t see the photos as they were taken, there wasn’t a single repeated shot.
“Standing out like that…”
Jungwoo muttered quietly. It had been like this since the first preliminary round. Jungwoo, waiting in front of the booth, had debated until the very last minute before submitting his application. The three people from his agency had applied even after being removed from the debut lineup, but Jungwoo’s conditions were different.
For him, this audition was all or nothing. If he could debut through the audition program, that would be great, but if not, he would be expelled from his agency upon elimination. If he didn’t participate in this program, he could have spent a few more years as a trainee, which made him hesitate. The thought of whether he could cancel now and pretend nothing happened kept following him.
That was when it happened. His tangled thoughts were suddenly cleared by a voice he heard from inside. It was erased by a single verse someone was singing.
Just go for it.
That was the only thought he had while listening to the man’s song. Don’t overthink, just try. And debut together with him. With the face of the man coming out of the booth imprinted in his empty mind, Jungwoo found a goal.
Let’s debut together with this man.
“That’s it.”
When the photographer lowered his camera, Jaekyung’s expression returned to normal. His gaze, slightly averted and lowered, and his tightly closed lips concealed his emotions. The long eyelashes were nice, but feeling regret at not seeing more of his eyes, Jungwoo clicked his tongue.
“You seem like a professional, not a trainee.”
Despite the photographer’s compliment, Jaekyung didn’t say anything special. He just lightly bowed his head as if to say “good work” and left his spot. The group member designated as the next person asked dejectedly, “Me?” and was dragged out like a cow to the slaughterhouse, probably because of Jaekyung.
Anyone would hesitate to go after a trainee who had finished the shoot like a professional. Not only were they taking photos, but cameras were continuously rolling on one side.
However, whether he knew this or not, Jaekyung stood in his original spot again, staring into space with unfocused eyes. He didn’t even notice the camera circling around him like a compass.
‘Cute.’
Jungwoo really liked Jaekyung. Since he had become the motivation for Jungwoo to apply for this audition, and since his actions were also cute, Jungwoo couldn’t help but stay by his side.
* * *
After finishing the profile shoot, Jaekyung felt the wariness in the gazes directed at him. Trainees regularly undergo camera tests, but they don’t actually perform on stage or shoot pictorials. Jaekyung had real-world experience that other trainees lacked. So he knew he had done well. Though that might not be a good thing, he didn’t mind as long as his broadcast time was minimal.
In reality, Jaekyung’s profile shoot took less than 10 minutes, but others remained in front of the camera until the desired photos were taken. As his legs started to get numb, Jaekyung counted the number of people left.
Yoon Hajun, Lee Jungwoo.
Just two more people to shoot, then it would be break time, he thought vaguely. Then it was Jungwoo’s turn. As the continuous shooting sounds didn’t stop, Jaekyung’s unwavering eyes changed angle ever so slightly.
‘Let’s watch a bit.’
Trying not to get involved with him was separate from curiosity.
“Raise your arms. Turn your head to the side. Ah, better just look at the lens. Yes, that’s good.”
With the photographer giving unusually many directions, Jaekyung thought Jungwoo wasn’t doing well. Rolling only his eyes to see the transmitted photos, a strong exclamation escaped through Jaekyung’s teeth.
“Holy shit.”
Jaekyung’s expression, which he had maintained until now, crumbled as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Is that a trainee?”
Without even thinking about how he himself had been photographed, Jaekyung looked at Jungwoo as if he were a monster.
“That expression is good.”
Despite the photographer’s praise, Jungwoo maintained his initial expressionlessness. Unlike other trainees who smiled gently or showed embarrassed expressions to display their boyish charm, Jungwoo maintained just one expression from beginning to end.
As if taking an ID photo, he simply stared at the camera without any expression, but both the photographer and Jaekyung read the atmosphere he was emitting.
His eyes, without even the slightest frown, formed a perfect balance that made one wonder if they were computer-generated. The gaze of looking at a stranger drawn from those eyes. Tightly closed lips as if trying not to reveal himself to others at all, and a cool atmosphere.
The photographer didn’t give any directions regarding his expression. He only mentioned posture. Jaekyung read the photographer’s thoughts. This is the only face this man will show.
If you want to glimpse this man’s emotions, there’s only one way.
Shake him up.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
