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The lights flicker on as the music comes to a finish, the dancers still cemented in their final poses. Chest heaving up and down, Sunny tries to control his breathing by taking in long, deep breaths. He looks to smile at Basil and other groupmates as the group trainer congratulates them on their performance and the rest of the trainees lightly clap in support.
“That was good! Definitely an improvement from last time,” the trainer says, clapping his clipboard. He then looks down at the notes he had taken during their practice performance. “Now for the part everybody loves, the critique,” he adds as he taps the paper with the end of his pen.
“Sunny, you did a good job with your arm extensions and overall energy. Your vocals were great, and your air control was even better; just be careful of getting pitchy when bending over or raising your legs,” he says as he demonstrates the movements. “Engaging your core more will help with that.
“What could use some work are your stops and maintaining the picture. When doing isolations, you need to focus on what’s not moving more than what is. So, when you stop in this position,” he moves while explaining, “don’t let your right arm drop, or in this position,” he switches his stance, “hold it still without shifting. Other than that, good job, go take a seat.
“Now on to Basil,” the trainer continues as Sunny walks over to the side of the room to go sit by the other trainees. He wipes the sweat off his face with a towel and takes a swig of water before leaning back against the mirrored wall and spreading his legs straight in front of him. Basil soon joins him on the floor and Sunny pats his shoulder, proud of their performance.
After the trainer critiqued the rest of the group, he turns to all of the trainees and announces that that was the last performance of the day. “Go get some rest and remember to hydrate! I’ll see you two days from now,” he finishes and walks over to his stuff to pack it up and answer any of the questions anyone may have.
“You did really well today, Sunny! Definitely manifesting main vocalist energy there,” Basil gushes and turns to Sunny as they collect their items and stand up.
“Maybe, but I still have a while to go before I get to that level,” Sunny admits sheepishly. “Do you want to go grab some dinner?”
They exit the dance studio and Basil turns to Sunny as they stand to the side of the hallway to allow the other trainees to file out and pass by easily. “I have vocal lessons I need to get to so I can’t today,” Basil says while frowning but quickly smiles as he adds, “I’ll see you for breakfast tomorrow, though!”
Sunny nods in understanding; being a trainee for a big company like theirs is hard work and cut-throat so you always need to be working toward improving. In fact, he has a practice room book for two hours and just needs something light to hold him over till he can eat an actual dinner. He especially doesn’t want to have something heavy before he exercises.
They say their goodbyes as they wave to each other and they part. Sunny walks to the cafeteria of their company building and grabs a quick snack with an apple on the side. He takes a seat at one of the tables and quietly eats as he fiddles with his phone. He checks his timeline on Instagram and notices Faraway is having a comeback soon.
Sunny smiles happily. Faraway is a duo group under the same label he’s currently training in that debuted around three years ago. Not to brag, but Sunny’s been a Townie even before they had their concept changed from a cute, summertime vibe to a more dark and badass vibe. The change definitely gave them a lot of popularity, though.
He finishes his snack and walks around the building before it's time to start practice.
“Oh, hey!” a man says as he finishes tying his shoe. He stands and turns to shoot a smile toward Sunny. “Can I help you?”
“Uhh,” Sunny hesitates, “I have this room booked till 9.”
“OH! Sorry, I thought the room was empty and came in early.” The man looks around and points to the corner, “I didn’t even see your stuff. Man, you’re so organized.”
Getting a better look at the man in front of him, he realizes who he is. Sunny just stands there and stares.
It’s Kel.
From Farway.
Sunny’s mouth runs dry as his brain malfunctions because there is no way Kel from the Faraway is standing and talking to him right now in this very room. “I think I’ve seen you around,” Kel continues, probably already used to people being starstruck around him. “Are you a trainee?”
Sunny nods, unable to move his mouth to say anything.
“Nice! How long have you been training?” Kel asks, walking over to Sunny to lessen the gap. Sunny audibly gulps as Kel approaches him. Get a grip, Sunny!
“Almost two years,” he answers, trying to keep calm.
“Well, since I rudely interrupted your practice, would you like some advice from your nice upperclassman?”
Sunny blinks in surprise. “That would be great actually, thank you,” he says appreciatively.
“Yeah, it’s no problem!” Kel smiles radiantly before asking, “What’s been giving you trouble?”
“Dancing, mainly,” Sunny shamefully admits.
“Luckily for you, I’m the main dancer in my group,” Kel proudly says and points his thumb to his chest.
“Wow, that is lucky,” Sunny says a bit dumbly, acting like he’s not already a huge fan of the group.
“So, what critique have you gotten?”
“Um,” Sunny starts, recalling what his trainer said earlier. “I need to work on my stops and holding the position without moving or shifting. I also need to do some core exercises so my singing isn’t affected while dancing.”
“Can you do a routine for me?” He asks and then adds as an afterthought, “You don’t need to sing if you don’t want to.”
“Sure,” Sunny says as he picks up his phone and scrolls down his playlist to find the correct song. The music starts blasting on the mounted speakers and he takes his position in the middle of the room.
Kel nods sage-like and squints his eyes, rubbing his chin between his pointer finger and thumb while humming. He takes a breath like he’s trying to find the right words and then points his hand toward Sunny. “I think you have all the information in your head but your body is not able to correctly implement it, you know? It’s not something you can read in a book or someone can teach you because you already know what you need to do. You just have to keep practicing and get experience under your belt. You have really strong foundations, though. Did you dance before becoming a trainee?”
Sunny shakes his head and says, “I only started seriously dancing when I joined the label.”
“That’s amazing,” Kel exclaims. “You’ve made so much progress in under, what, two years you said, right?” Sunny nods, wide-eyed that one of his idols is actually praising him. “This may sound a little silly,” he adds while giggling slightly, “But to give you an actual tip, you should let your armpits breathe more.”
Sunny shoots him a confused look. “My armpits?” he asks, positive that he misheard Kel.
Kel laughs, “Yep, your armpits! What I mean by that is like, if you’re doing a movement like this,” he says and demonstrates, spreading his feet and crossing one arm in front of him while using the other to lightly tap the side of his head. His elbows are tucked in tightly at his sides.
“See? Now if you just lift your elbows a bit,” he adds as he moves his elbows up and then repeats the movement, “it helps make you look more confident and natural.”
“I see, thanks for the tip,” Sunny says, thoroughly grateful, and then they both jump out of their skin when Sunny’s phone alarm suddenly goes off, still connected to the loud speakers. Sunny rushes over to his phone, spewing profanities and apologies while Kel, coming down from the shock, bursts out into laughter and folds into himself, clutching his stomach and wheezing.
After turning off the alarm, Sunny grabs all his belongings and walks back to Kel. “I am so sorry,” Sunny apologizes profusely.
“It’s all good; no harm, no foul,” Kel reassures after his laughing fit has passed. Kel notices Sunny holding his bag and looks at the clock on the back wall before whistling, “Dang, it’s already been thirty minutes?” He looks back to Sunny and adds, “You gonna head out?”
Sunny nods before Kel gasps and rushes over to his own belongings. He comes back with his phone and thrusts it in front of Sunny, the screen displaying a new contact entry. Sunny looks back up at Kel. “You want my number?” he asks, unsure of Kel’s objective.
The taller boy smile broadly as he explains, “That way you can contact me directly if you need any more tips or advice. Us upperclassmen need to take care of our underclassmen!”
“Oh… Yeah, that makes sense,” Sunny admits, taking the phone from Kel and inputting his own number. He hands it back after he saved the new contact and watches Kel tap something out on the screen. Sunny feels his own phone vibrate a few seconds later and looks down to find a text from an unknown number.
+82 011-XXX-XXXX
>hey, its kel ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ
Cute , Sunny thinks before shaking his head to rid himself of those types of thoughts. There’s no way Kel liked men and even if he did, he wouldn’t see Sunny that way. They can’t even date anyway as their label contract strictly states that they must remain single.
“I’ll see you around, and don’t hesitate to text me anything!” Kel waves goodbye as Sunny exits the room after waving goodbye as well. In the hallway, Sunny makes a straight path for the bathroom, clutching his bag to his chest. He leans over the sink after placing his bag on the counter hastily and stares at himself in the mirror, unable to fathom what just happened.
After a few minutes, Sunny smirks. Basil’s going to be so jealous.
“You should text him,” Mari says excitedly.
Sunny sighs, slouching and sliding down the back of the couch in the living room of his older sister’s apartment. It’s been a few days since he saw Kel but he hasn’t mustered up the courage to text him back. “I know but what am I supposed to even say?”
“Hey, It’s Sunny? Thanks for the other day?” she supplies like it’s just that easy.
Sunny covers his face with his hands and groans, having almost slid completely off the couch and onto the hardwood floor. “Easier said than done.”
Mari just barks out a laugh and says, “Obviously.” Sunny rolls over and picks himself off the ground and mutters he’s going to the toilet.
He drags his feet as he walks down the hallway and enters the bathroom. He relieves himself quickly and washes his hands before making his way back to the couch. Mari’s now roaming around doing something in the kitchen, so he plops down on the soft cushions and turns the TV on. He’s just started scrolling through Netflix when he receives a notification on his phone.
Kel
>id totally be down for some dinner!
>you have a place and time in mind?
Sunny screeches, “Mari! What did you do !” He looks back over the couch to see Mari grinning ear to ear.
Mari just smugly responds, “Something you should’ve done days ago!” Sunny looks back down at his phone and reads what his sister sent.
And then he reread it a second and then a third time. No doubt about it, Mari is trying to kill him.
Sunny
>Hey, it’s Sunny! I’m super grateful for your help the other day and was actually wondering if you’d let me treat you to dinner as thanks! We could also talk more about dance and the industry in general!
“Mari, why do you hate me,” Sunny moans cynically.
Mari giggles as she takes a seat beside Sunny and places a bowl of popcorn in between them. “Oh, come on, Sunny, it’s just a text,” she says playfully as she leans over to look at his phone. “Look, he’s even responded and wants to go!”
“Where should we even go?” he concedes, not wanting to start an argument on his day off. This may even be a good thing.
“Take him to Gino’s,” Mari suggests as she snatches the remote from Sunny’s other hand and switches on the movie they agreed to watch. She relaxes back into the couch and grabs a handful of popcorn as Sunny thinks over her words. Admittedly, Gino’s isn’t a bad idea; Delicious, authentic Italian food at a reasonable price. He smiles and leans back and types out his response.
Sunny
>Friday, 7 pm at Gino’s?
Almost instantly, he receives another text.
Kel
>see you then! :3ミ
“You’re welcome,” Mari says loftily, seemingly not having looked away from the television. Sunny locks his phone, takes some popcorn, and settles in to watch the movie, silently thankful for his sister’s meddling.
“You’re early.”
Sunny looks up from the menu he was browsing and finds Kel standing on the opposite side of the table. He’s wearing some black ripped jeans with an orange and white jersey, hair ties and bracelets lining his wrists.
“Uh, yeah, it’s just a habit,” Sunny admits modestly.
Kel takes a seat as a waiter comes over and takes Kel’s drink order. He looks back at Sunny and smiles brightly, “Well, it’s a good habit to have! My dad always said ‘If you’re early, you’re on time; if you’re on time, you’re late; and if you’re late, then you’re better off not coming.’” Kel picks up the menu to flip through and continues speaking, “I don’t know about that last one, though. Better late than never, right?”
Sunny hums, “I agree.” He goes back to looking that the menu, not sure what else to say.
“Sorry,” Kel says suddenly. “I ramble when I’m nervous. Just let me know if I get too annoying.”
Sunny’s stunned, completely dumbfounded. “You’re nervous?” he finally asks.
Kel chuckles anxiously, “Well, yeah… I want to make a good impression and all. As your upperclassman, of course!”
“Right,” Sunny replies, a bit disappointed. Wait, disappointed? Sunny thinks, Just what are you expecting to happen, Sunny?
“Anyway,” Kel says as he quickly changes the subject, “I’ve heard the pizza here is good. Do you want to split one?”
“Sure, what toppings do you want?” Just as they decided on the type of pizza they want, the waiter comes back with Kel’s water and takes their order. He quickly jots it down on his notepad and tells them it will be about in about ten to fifteen minutes. He then turns and leaves them to chat with each other.
They talk about nothing in particular at first. Each one of the boys asks the other how their day has been and what they did before moving on to how they joined the label and more idol-related topics.
As Kel’s recalling an adventure he had when he went overseas to Japan with his groupmate, Aubrey, the waiter comes back with their food and places it in front of the two. He asks if they need anything else and when they respond with no, he leaves them to enjoy their meal.
Kel leans forward, admiring the cheesy goodness in front of him. “This looks so good and I’m starving!” he professes enthusiastically as places a slice on his plate. “Oh,” Kel says as if he remembered something and grabs his phone. Just as Sunny reaches in to grab a second slice, Kel takes a picture of their food.
Sunny looks at him in surprise and Kel clarifies as he messes with his phone, “Management wants me to post to Instagram once a day and I still needed a picture.”
Nodding in understanding, Sunny takes the second slice and bits into it. Absolutely delicious , Sunny thinks blissfully.
They each savor the pizza, Sunny eating three slices while Kel is already working on his fifth. When he sees Sunny’s bewildered face, he just casually says, “I’m a growing boy.” Sunny snickers and they continue their amicable chatter as Kel continues eating.
Just as Kel finishes his sixth slice, the waiter comes to ask if they want dessert and if they want the check split or together. They decline the dessert and after some light persuading from Sunny to let him pay, Kel surrenders and tells the waiter that the bill is together.
“You get to have the leftovers then,” Kel states firmly as Sunny’s already pulling out his debit card. The waiter swiftly returns with their total and Sunny asks for a to-go box as he hands the card to him.
After the check is paid and the rest of the pizza is packed away, they stand and exit the restaurant. They sit on a nearby bench and gaze at the nightlife of Seoul, not wanting to leave each other's company just yet.
“I had a really good time tonight,” Kel eventually says as he leans forward past the edge of the bench, arms straight but relaxed as the grips the metal seat. He looks to his right toward Sunny and smiles fondly, “We should do this again sometime.”
Sunny looks down and clutches the to-go box in his lap as he bleakly reminds himself that this definitely wasn’t a date and to not get his hopes up. He plasters on a plastic smile and faces Kel before speaking, “I had fun, too. I really liked getting to talk to you.”
Kel’s grin widens and he stands to stretch. He turns back to Sunny and tells him, “Text me when you get home, okay?”
“Okay. I’ll see you later,” Sunny says as he waves at Kel’s retreating figure.
Sunny’s scrolling his Instagram feed as he’s taking a break in a practice room. He sees the usual amount of scenic landscapes and food porn before he lands on a familiar-looking photograph. It’s a picture of the pizza he shared with Kel last night. He instantly double taps to like the post.
Against Sunny’s better judgment, he decides to read the comments. The first one is from Aubrey asking if he saved any for her while a few of the comments below Aubrey’s are of fans saying how good the pizza looks. As he continues to read, concerning comments start to show up.
kelslargeintestine Who’s the bitch with him? It’s obviously not Aubrey
orangejoelover This is at Gino’s in Seoul! The address is XX XXXXX-XXX XXXXXX!
givemeyourpisskel @kelslargeintestine looking into it right now
“Sasaengs*, gross,” Sunny says, sickened. He locks his phone and wishes he could sanitize his eyes after reading some of the stuff he saw. Just as he’s about to get back to practicing, a loud banging comes from the door. In the window, he can see Kel mouthing something and excitedly pointing to himself. Sunny waves him in as he giggles behind his other hand.
Kel enters and lets his bag fall to the ground as he takes a seat by Sunny. “Back to practicing, huh? You’re so dedicated.”
“Well, you have to be in this industry,” Sunny replies as he straightens his sheet music out. Sunny sighs, “One thing I’m not thrilled about is getting sasaengs.”
Kel grimaces before tiredly saying, “Yeah, they can be pretty insane.”
“Insane is an understatement. I just saw your Insta post. They think you were on a date,” he laughs bitterly. “Just wait till they find out it was just dinner with a male underclassman.”
When he doesn’t hear Kel laugh along, Sunny looks over to Kel to see an upset frown on his face. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Kel asks, almost spitefully.
Sunny physically flinches at Kel’s sudden shift in tone and immediately backtracks. “N-nothing!” he frantically cries out, distraught that he’s said the wrong thing.
“I don’t find homophobia funny,” Kel says coldly.
“No!” Sunny shouts. “No, that’s not what I meant!”
“Then what did you mean?”
Pressured, Sunny tries to think of anything to say but his racing mind can’t find the words. Desperate to say something, he blurts out the first coherent thought that comes to mind, “I’m bi!”
Taken aback, Kel stares at him with wide eyes. When Sunny’s brain finally processes what he just confessed, he gasps and slaps his hands over his mouth as if trying to stop the words that have already been spoken aloud.
“Wait, seriously?” Kel asks apprehensively as if in disbelief.
Sunny takes a deep breath to try and calm his fluttering heart before sincerely responding with a yes . Kel lets out a bright guffaw and leans forward, grabbing Sunny’s hand into his own. “Then who’s to say it wasn’t a date?”
Uncertain, Sunny asks, “Are you saying it was a date?”
“That’s what I thought,” Kel confirms, nodding.
“Oh my God…” Sunny trails off, placing his hand on his forehead and leaning back, suddenly light-headed. Sunny let out a laugh of his own and looks at Kel as he repeats himself, “Oh my God, it was a date!”
“That’s what I’m saying!”
“What do you even see in me though?” Sunny asks, mystified that Kel could possibly like him that way.
“Are you kidding me?” Kel says, exasperated. “Sunny, look at you! When I first saw you in the cafeteria, I thought you were drop-dead gorgeous! You could easily be the visual of a group. And now, after getting to know you a bit, how could anyone not want to date you?” Kel asks, incredulous, hands and arms above his head in utter awe of how completely oblivious Sunny is. “I don’t know and I don’t care to find out.”
Kel lowers his arms takes one of Sunny’s hands into his own again and gently rubs circles on his skin before continuing to speak, “What I do know is that I would love to get to know you more by, I don’t know…” He rolls his head before hitting Sunny with the puppy dog eyes, “Going on a second date?”
Sunny smiles and then remember one huge factor that could get in their way. “But, wait, the label doesn’t allow anyone to date.”
Kel sighs and puts his hand on his hips as he shakes his head back and forth. “Let your upperclassman tell you something very valuable,” he says as he motions for Sunny to lean in. He cups his hands around Sunny’s ear and whispers, “There’s this amazing thing called dating secretly.”
Scandalized, Sunny sharply turns his head to face Kel. “But that’s breaking your contract.”
A bit dejected at Sunny’s response, Kel asks, “Do you not want to?”
Sunny pouts and looks away from Kel, crossing his arms over his chest. “I never said that,” he grumbles out.
Kel bursts into jovial laughter and sweeps Sunny into a great, big hug. Sunny freezes, initially surprised by the sudden contact before swiftly melting into Kel’s warm embrace.