Accompanying Jaemin to the audition

Evening 7:15, Gangnam district;

Two young men stepped outside of the cab and took a glimpse at a building. On the ground floor, there's a restaurant. On the first floor, there's a dance studio named 'Beat'. The top floor seemed to be a Gym.

Jun's mood turned a lot better when he saw it was a dance studio located in the middle of Gangnam instead of some secluded place.

He knew the dirty side of the industry. So, this is why he was worried about Jaemin going alone as the latter is only 18-years old and probably might take advantage of his desperation to fulfill his dreams. Still, the only thing that doesn't add up is the time. Not to mention, it is below 5 degrees outside. Even in an overcoat over the jacket, he can still feel cold.

"Call them to confirm it once again." He told his friend.

Jaemin then called the person that contacted him.

After confirming the place, both of them walked into the building and went to the first floor by stairs.

Three men were seen discussing something between themselves while looking at files.

A look of surprise appeared on Jun as he stared at the one sat in the middle, "this guy, Song Zuko-Chuwon, the former CEO of ZC Entertainment?"

The three of them took a glimpse at the two of them.

Jun was wearing a mask and hood on purpose so as to not stand out. After all, it is Jaemin who is the main star here. He doesn't want to steal attention from him. But, now, after seeing his former boss, Jun really felt like he did great.

But, even then, his 8.4 points appearance didn't escape the attention of the three of them for some reason, especially Zuko-Chuwon who find Jun a lot familiar, although he couldn't put his finger on it. Jun's brown contact lenses helped in this situation.

Jaemin greeted them, "hello." He was at high clouds as he never expected ZC would contact him. Zuko-Chuwon is also a public figure. Jaemin recognized him at first glance.

Jun inwardly sighed in relief upon realizing that he misunderstood the situation. Considering ZC Entertainment is one of the Big 3 agencies here, Jun felt a bit at ease and greeted them with a bow before speaking to his friend, "I'll wait outside."

"We don't mind. You can take a seat over there." One of them stopped him, pointing his finger at the empty chair.

If he's probably in the US or any other country, Jun would be able to get out of there pretty much with ease. But, unfortunately, he's a South Korean and is in Seoul. When an elder who is in an influential position is offering you a seat, becoming too modest and refusing it will be seen as rude.

Moreover, there was a possibility that his actions might negatively impact Jaemin.

No matter the differences between him and his former boss who fired him, it is still ZC Entertainment. For Jaemin, it can be considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

In the end, Jun took the seat while looking down, not intending to meet his eyes or talk with his former boss in the fear of getting recognized.

"Na Jaemin-ssi, first, please show what you have prepared." The man with glasses sitting on the left to Chuwon spoke to him. He is a producer at the company.

Jaemin handed the Pendrive.

On the other hand, the middle-aged fellow who is sitting on the right to Chuwon and has a file in his hands seemed not interested in Jaemin and turned towards Jun, "Is he your friend?"

Jun nodded politely, "Yes."

"What do you do?"

"I…" Jun realized that he doesn't have an answer. Should he tell that he's a high school dropout? That will bring down his image and might impact his friend. He can't take the chance. Then, should he tell that he's participating in Treasure Campus? No, that would blow his identity. He definitely doesn't want to chat with his former boss either. So, he can't reveal his profession or the name.

After brief thinking, Jun finally replied, "I'm preparing for Geom-jeong-go-shi (Korean GED) while doing a part-time job at a music store."

The guy quickly lost his interest and shifted his focus on Jaemin who was performing a dance on Justin Beiber's Company with his own choreo. While he was aiming for this sexy image, his innocent face and his expressions gave a cute kind of vibes, well, at least for Jun.

The audition took a whole hour. They were making him sing and dance to random plays. When Jaemin told them that he can act too, they seemed enthusiastic and proceeded with telling him a few situations for their entertainment.

After everything is finished, former CEO Chuwon simply evaluated that he is good but not the one he was searching for.

A frown appeared on Jun's face. He naturally got angry with such a response. At the same time, Jaemin also appeared to be dispirited. After all, he worked very hard during the past weeks. If he was bad, he might work harder even more but ZC said that his dance and singing style is different and won't fit with their company. The eighteen-year-old doesn't know what to say to that.

It was just then, the one who was silently sitting beside Jun suddenly opened his mouth, "Chuwon-ssi, if you aren't interested in him, then, how about giving him to us?"

"Hmm?" Everyone turned towards him.

The man then stood up from his seat and gave a visiting card, "Jaemin-ssi, let me introduce myself. I'm Kang Shi-woo, executive director at Star C Entertainment. If you are interested, you can come to our agency and start as an interim trainee from the 2nd of December. Once your first monthly evaluation is over, we'll talk about whether our company will be interested to invest in you or not."

"Star C Entertainment? If I remember correctly, they produced Infinite and Shinee in this world, right?" Jun tried to remember the things he read on the internet. At the same time, he was wondering what he is doing with ZC.

Jaemin's face instantly changed 180 degrees. With a huge smile on his face, he bowed deeply and thanked him, taking the visiting card.

The two of them were told to leave the studio for these three men in suits to have an important meeting to be continued along with another audition for someone else.

"Hyung, let's have meat (Beef). My treat." Jaemin took him to a BBQ restaurant. Considering how his friend isn't at a legal age to drink, considering how he needed to wake up early tomorrow to practice, Jun didn't touch alcohol and just enjoyed the smoky meat. Little did he know that he would realize something very important had he drank even a glass of beer or soju.

Jun returned to the dorm by 10 o'clock in the evening and saw Shonwu was busy playing COD on his mobile phone while Kang Daniel is busy texting with his friends on kakao talk.

"Hyung, you are back." Daniel was the first to greet him. "You took time, did you go on a date or what," Shonwu commented in the background, hitting right on the spot.

In response, Jun just threw the package towards him directly, "here, the robe was different from what we thought. Wear it and see if it fits. I'm going for a shower."

After he finished with the shower, he saw both of them are still busy and he lie down on the bed. There was a notification about a private message that came about half an hour ago.

"Hmm? Yuna-ssi?" He opened the messenger app.

Yuna: Did you return to the dorm?

Jun sent a reply, seeing that she was still online.

Jun: Sorry, just saw the text.

Jun: And yeah, just returned to the dorm, ten minutes ago.

After sending the message, he put aside the phone and decided to sleep but within half a minute, there was a reply from here.

*Buzz*

Yuna: It was a little bit awkward in the afternoon.

Yuna: Sorry for barging on your date, unknowingly.

Jun: As I have said before, we aren't a couple. And in our circle, we can't afford to date someone either if we are interested in someone.

Yuna: So, are you interested in her?

Yuna: Ah!

Yuna: Sorry, that was too blunt. I just asked out of curiosity. Don't need to answer.

Jun: Nah, it's alright.

Jun: As for your question, a definite "No".

Jun doesn't know what's in her mind but just in case, he felt that he also needed to draw a line between them too. In the end, he added another message.

Jun: at least currently.