6.
“Ah, trainee Choi Taeri. What is this…”
Park Jusung let out a sigh.
What Choi Taeri had grabbed was the fence set up for the game. More precisely, the black rope used to create the fence.
“Now, production team, what happens with this? Does this count as a prop too?”
Choi Taeri, who had finally grasped the situation as his dizziness stopped, lifted his eye mask. Seeing what his hand had grabbed, he hurriedly let go.
It wasn’t an official prop, but since he’d already grabbed it once, they couldn’t give him another chance. Even for Choi Taeri, they couldn’t create fairness controversies.
Everyone waited with their mouths open for Park Jusung’s answer.
“The decision has been made. Trainee Choi Taeri’s profile shoot prop is a black rope.”
Despite Park Jusung’s devastating answer, Taeri smiled leisurely. Rather, it was the other trainees who felt sorry for him.
“What should he do…”
“It’s better than kimchi.”
Lee Juha looked at them and let out a quiet sigh.
Now isn’t the time to worry about Choi Taeri. I’m the legend who’ll become His Majesty wearing a gonryongpo.
“Trainees, please take back your returned mobile phones. From now until 10 PM tonight, you must find reference photos for your profile shoot and submit concept plans together. Shooting begins the morning after tomorrow. If you want to look good on camera, you should start taking care of your skin from today, right?”
Park Jusung’s voice saying “take care of your skin” somehow sounded annoying.
If each trainee decided on their concept by 10 PM, the production team would have to prepare the costumes and additional props needed for each concept in just one day tomorrow. It was a brutal schedule in many ways, but Juha didn’t have the luxury of pitying others right now.
“Hey, I was going to pick the luxury watch, how did I end up with this? Well, this isn’t bad either.”
Yeom Sangyeop looked at his prop and laughed helplessly. What he’d chosen was a dumbbell. For him, who had completed military service and was pushing a muscular sexy concept, the dumbbell was good material to show off solid arm muscles instead of a watch.
Seo Eunwon beside him was sighing heavily while looking at his phone. One of the reasons he thought the production team was really mean was because of what this kid had picked.
Seo Eunwon was 15 years old. But he’d chosen sunglasses that would fit a 50-year-old man playing golf – tight-fitting sunglasses on the face, commonly known as “low eight” sunglasses.
Eunwon had definitely wanted to pick the skateboard next to it.
Since not a single person had picked what they wanted, it was fair in a way.
‘I would have been better off picking that instead.’
Unable to watch anymore, Lee Juha quietly approached him and gave some advice.
“Go retro. With retro fashion. Match it with baggy clothes in skateboard style.”
Then Seo Eunwon’s eyes lit up.
“Th-thank you, hyung…”
Seeing that young expression that looked like he was about to cry made Juha chuckle.
‘I should worry about my own gonryongpo.’
Lee Juha was retro among retro. It was 300-year-old fashion, after all.
Seo Eunwon excitedly searched for photos, sent his concept plan via email, and soon went up to his room.
It was 9 o’clock. Looking around, quite a few trainees had returned to their rooms. Only one hour remained.
“I’ll help you look. I already sent my plan so I have plenty of time.”
Yeom Sangyeop, unable to watch Juha’s deathly pale face, came over with his phone.
“No, hyung. Go rest first. I can concentrate better alone.”
“Rest, my foot. I’ll stay here with you. You can’t be lonely.”
“It’s fine. I really am more comfortable doing it alone.”
“Really?”
“I said really. Go quickly. There’s no time.”
“I’m really going? You can’t cry alone?”
“Yeah. Rest well.”
Eventually Yeom Sangyeop reluctantly went up to his room.
Juha searched mainly for young, handsome actors who appeared in famous historical dramas, but doing exactly that might make his characteristic solemnity look ridiculous. It would be like entering a weekend Gangnam club wearing a gonryongpo.
But if he couldn’t find something by 10 o’clock, he’d have to do even this.
“Sigh.”
As he sighed and turned his head, he made eye contact with Choi Taeri.
Choi Taeri, who had also grabbed just a rope as his prop, would obviously be at a loss too, but he didn’t seem particularly anxious.
‘What?’
Juha lifted his chin and picked a fight with Taeri through lip movements. Then he laughed as if it was amusing. Even more annoying.
Taeri seemed to be typing something on his phone, then looked at Juha and pointed to his own phone with his finger.
‘Look.’
From his lip movements, it seemed like he wanted to tell Juha to check his phone.
Just then, his phone vibrated in his hand. It was a text from him.
[Choi Taeri: Yeonsangun]
“Ah…”
Just those three characters “Yeonsangun” solved Juha’s dilemma.
Why didn’t I think of this? Juha felt pathetic for not having even this much of an idea.
Juha’s head had been filled only with middle-aged actors in fake beards lowering their voices to give commands in gonryongpo. But Yeonsangun was different.
A debauched king. There had actually been stages by senior singers with similar motifs, so there would be no controversy.
‘Was he watching what I picked?’
There was no need to think long. Since Lee Juha picking the gonryongpo had been the trainees’ laughing stock today, there was no way Choi Taeri wouldn’t know.
Some trainees secretly envied the gonryongpo, but for Juha, who still had a bland image, the gonryongpo just looked like nothing more than a Gyeongbokgung hanbok outing.
Juha looked at Choi Taeri in the distance. He was chatting and laughing with other team members as if he’d never sent any text.
Every time the corners of his mouth went up, his eyes crinkled and his bright white teeth showed refreshingly. His broad, square shoulders moved slightly each time he laughed. Even Taeri’s sky-blue t-shirt, which Team 1 was all wearing identically, fluttering caught Juha’s attention.
Certainly the trainees around him were also top-tier in terms of looks. But to Juha’s eyes, everyone except Choi Taeri seemed blurred and invisible.
‘Stop it.’
There was no time for this. Juha quickly searched for related photos and decided on a concept.
Since Yeonsangun was an interesting character, there were many works featuring him. But they were all traditional historical drama style, so photos that idols could use were limited.
The motif came from Yeonsangun, but the styling referenced popular fantasy historical drama comics and pictorials. Rather, following historical accuracy too strictly wouldn’t capture the mood.
“Five minutes left!”
When the staff shouted, the remaining trainees buried their heads in their phones.
‘Sent!’
Juha pressed the ‘send’ button and caught his breath.
Then, as if he’d been waiting, Choi Taeri stood up. When his group that had been guarding his side tried to stand up together, Taeri stopped them with his hand.
While Juha watched him from a distance, Taeri approached.
“Did you do well?”
Taeri asked.
“Thanks to you.”
“Going to your room?”
“Yeah.”
Juha got up from his seat and walked together with Taeri.
“But you, are you okay?”
Only after finishing his own task did Juha remember Taeri’s prop.
“What about?”
“The black rope…”
“Ah…”
Taeri chuckled at Juha’s words.
“What’s there to not be okay about? I already sent mine at 7.”
“But why were you there until now?”
“Just. I wanted to watch you do yours.”
Taeri smiled mischievously.
“Why watch that?”
“It’s interesting. But you need to develop some creativity. How could you look at a gonryongpo and have no thoughts at all?”
“…”
It was too accurate to refute. Walking to the elevator with him, Juha felt like his body was getting smaller and smaller.
“When you said you wanted to debut with me, was that sincere?”
At Juha’s question, Taeri, who had been walking ahead, stopped.
“Why do you think it was a joke?”
“Like you said, I have no creativity. What if you regret saying that to me…”
“What have you shown me?”
Taeri cut off Juha’s words and shot back calmly.
“Huh?”
“What have you shown me that I should regret?”
“That’s true.”
Hearing it, it made sense. Since agreeing to share a room, this was only the first mission that had come up.
“If you can’t figure it out even when I give you hints like this, then I might really reconsider.”
Juha quietly kept his mouth shut.
If Choi Taeri hadn’t given him the hint about Yeonsangun, it was horrifying to think how he would have taken his concept photos.
The two stopped in front of the elevator.
“I still want to do it with you.”
Taeri held his breath briefly before uttering the next word.
“Debut.”
When the follow-up ended, Juha swallowed hard. Embarrassment rushed over him as he remembered waking up hearing those words as hallucinations.
Behind them, trainees who had just finished their tasks approached, chattering. At the same time, the elevator arrived with a ding.
“Let’s go. Before the kids crowd in.”
Taeri grabbed Juha’s wrist and pulled him into the elevator. His wrist felt burning hot from the tight grip.
While the elevator carrying the two went up to the top floor, Taeri didn’t let go of Juha’s wrist.
Juha couldn’t bring himself to tell him to let go of his wrist now.
He didn’t know why.
***
When Juha finished showering and came out, Choi Taeri was lying against the bed reading a book, just like yesterday.
He too wasn’t covered with a blanket, probably because the room was hot. His left leg in dark navy pajamas was stretched straight on the bed. His right leg was bent at the knee, supporting the book, so his ankle was slightly visible.
‘Even his feet are pretty.’
Defying the prejudice that dancers would have ugly feet, each toe was neat and clean. Crudely speaking, it looked like it wouldn’t be unpleasant to put in one’s mouth right away.
Wondering if he should be watching while having such crude thoughts, he tried to look elsewhere, but he couldn’t resist the curiosity that Choi Taeri’s very existence exuded.
Juha’s gaze slowly moved up.
The pajama pants weren’t tight, but he could definitely tell Taeri’s thighs were thick. He was curious what kind of exercise he did to be so sturdy.
The hand holding the book obscured the center of his lower body. Juha hurriedly raised his gaze, but his face had already warmed slightly.
Today, instead of a white t-shirt, Choi Taeri wore a silk pajama top in the same color as his navy pants. The thin fabric softly settled along Taeri’s shoulders and chest line.
Flawless excellent physique and appearance.
He thought that Choi Taeri might possess all the dominant genes a human could have.
As he naturally raised his gaze, he met eyes with Choi Taeri wearing glasses. Juha’s breath stopped as if he’d been caught stealing.
“What are you staring at like that?”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize.”
Juha hurriedly turned around to find a place for the wet towel.
“You can put it anywhere. The penthouse has someone who cleans and puts things away every day.”
“Ah, okay.”
Juha roughly hung the towel on a chair by the table. When he approached the bed again, Taeri focused on his book with uninterested eyes.
“This is just something I’m curious about, but after saying that to me, how many people did you tell that you wanted to debut together?”
At Juha’s question, Taeri looked at Juha over his glasses. It probably wasn’t a pleasant question for Taeri, but his expression didn’t feel sharp.
“Why? Scared I might have spread it around everywhere?”
“If you really intend to debut with me, it would be good if you could share that kind of information.”
It was a reasonable request. It was natural for Juha to be curious about which of these 80 trainees Choi Taeri wanted to team up with.
“Even if I had five or ten people I wanted to team up with, who do you think I wanted to work with most?”
“Please answer the question. Don’t answer with a question.”
Juha barely held back the irritation that almost surged up. Since he deflected everything he asked, all of Taeri’s words felt like jokes.
“While sharing this big room and this big bed with me, do you want to hear that answer?”
“…What?”
Choi Taeri closed his book and took off his glasses. As if his eyes were tired, he pressed his forehead firmly and let out a low sigh.
“You were the only one I wanted to sleep in the same room with.”
“…”
Against the backdrop of the city’s scenery sparkling brilliantly even in the dark night outside the window, Choi Taeri’s low voice.
The words that you were the only one he wanted to sleep with.
He knew well that those words weren’t a confession of love. He should recognize that it meant wanting to get close for business reasons, but Juha’s body wouldn’t listen.
Hot heat rushed to the tips of his ears. Afraid his parched lips might be noticeable, Juha licked his lips with his tongue before opening his mouth again.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
