19 Old accomplices.

[REMINDER: Characters introduced so far: Lucas, Cassey, Christopher, Liam, Adrian)

Liam smiled at the boy next to him.

A rather plain-looking man approached them and looked gently towards them.

"Adrian, your English tutor is here, Liam... let's go practise dancing. After an hour, we have a meeting."

Adrian nodded and cheerfully ran off. Liam sighed and asked.

"We still didn't start."

"We'll do it when we have 7 members... at least."

Liam looked a little downcast, his heart beating furiously.

Did I make the right decision? Zac's gone too...

The man noticed Liam with his head low and his chest shrunken.

"You'll make it, I promise."

...

"A little more up!"

"That's satisfactory, I heard your Rap's gotten better?"

The choreographer asked Liam.

"Well, that's where my talent is, it would be a shame if it didn't improve."

The choreographer simply smiled. He knew that Liam was naturally very pessimistic.

He saw the sweaty teenager wiping his face with a towel. He dabbed his smooth skin spontaneously and looked worried. His blonde hair fluttered as the air-conditioning system threw cold air at his face.

"See you in the meeting room."

"Mhm"

Liam looked around, as he saw vinyl flooring and wallpaper. He smiled sadly and kicked into the air, full of frustration.

"I'm never gonna improve, never gonna debut, no one's going to join here." He murmured under his breath.

Lucas looked down. His eyes reflected his average-quality black dance shoes and lean legs.

His mind was cloudy. He remembered what he saw that day.

Adrian's dance, his skill, how fast he was learning the language.

It was all... beyond what... others could do... what he could do...

Why is he here?

Adrian had 13 agencies scouting him, including theirs. Even QUESO agency scouted him, but he chose it here.

He's here to make me feel inferior...

Liam realised what he was thinking and smiled unhappily.

Now you are blaming it on others, it's just I don't have talent.

No matter how hard I work, it's not working is it...?

"Liam! Are you coming or dreaming?"

"Ah, yes." Liam hurriedly looked above and jogged to the room.

....

...

.

Adrian was also coming back, he was laughing happily with the instructor.

The instructor was speaking to their CEO cheerfully.

"He's really good, I've never seen anyone pick up a language this fast!"

"Of course, he's one of my boys." The CEO warmly replied. He thought of Adrian and Liam as the children he never had.

Little did he know, his family would soon have 7 more little boys.

"Hehe, he's a goldmine you picked up. When I thought Liam and Adrian were going to debut as a duo, I felt a little conflicted. I felt like you wasted their talents!"

"Well, it's all settled today because-"

Liam's head blanked out for a moment.

He couldn't hear what they were talking for a while.

How is... he here?

A beautiful black haired boy, with symmetrical features, stood there. His presence seemed to change the aura significantly.

...

.

"...Lucas...?"

"Nice to see you, Liam." The youth's piercing gaze was directed to him.