Ridiculous

Daniel

If I was given a choice, I would have chosen to be in any of the other members body, so I could be able to interact with Jay. Heck! I wouldn't even have had the heart to choose that option either. If there was an option to just remain being their fan, and to keep watching them from afar, then that's what I was going to choose.

If this isn't a dream, and I'm really in Jay's body, then what does it mean for Jay? Is he in my body all the way in America? How is he going to survive? These troubling thoughts kept popping in my head. It was still so hard to wrap my head around it. I in no way ever believed in magic, or anything out of the ordinary, so I found it shockingly fascinating—in a bad and good way—that I was in another person's body.

A soft tap on my shoulder brought me out of my thoughts. "Jay?" Devon said, his eyebrows raised in question.

"Yes?" I asked, noticing that the video had been paused, and the other members were also looking at me as well.

"Haruto just asked you a question." Minho answered.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't hear you." I sincerely said, "What question was that?"

Haruto pointed to the laptop, and said, "I asked how your experience was, while filming your solo scene."

I looked at the laptop, and noticed that the video was paused at the moment where Jay was singing the bridge along with Joon the lead vocalist. Jay was first of all filmed in a dungeon setting, with his hands and legs being chained, and then suddenly, the chains broke, and then he was suddenly in a palace setting, sitting majestically on a throne made of gold, serving cold visuals, and conveying a sense of reverence and awe.

Uh… I have no idea how the experience was cus' I didn't fucking experience it. That was what was at the tip of my tongue, but I couldn't say that, now could I? "The experience was… great." I finally said.

The looks on their faces, showed that they weren't satisfied with my answer, and I couldn't blame them. If I were in their shoes, I would not be satisfied with my answer too, but I couldn't just fabricate a story, as I didn't want it to contradict what Jay actually experienced. The behind the scenes of the group's music videos was usually released a day or two days after the music video has been uploaded, so it would most likely be released that very day or the next.

"Cut!" The director said, earning himself a couple of frustrated sighs from the boys, but I knew they were directed at me, making me want to crawl into a whole in embarrassment.

"Let's just scrap that part out." He said, and then faced the monitor towards us. On the monitor, I saw a paused frame where the boys all had surprised expressions on their faces, while I had been looking out into space, lost in my thoughts. "This was when Jay's solo part came in, right before Haruto paused the song, so I want you all to recreate this facial expressions, so we get to continue from there. The editor will do the rest."

We all nodded in understanding, but I could feel the tension in the air. The producer faced Haruto. "At the countdown of three, play the video." Then he signaled to the cameraman to resume filming.

"In three… two… one." said the cameraman. We all imitated the image we saw on the monitor as Haruto played the video. I acted as if I was lost in thought, but I then faced the laptop as I heard gasps of surprise and complements from the others.

"Woah, it really looks like a real dungeon!" Haruto exclaimed.

"The aura he possesses is really something else." Ken chimed.

I noticed they didn't bother looking at me as they said these words, and Haruto also didn't bother to pause the video or ask me about how Jay's experience was, while filming the scene this time around. Are they mad at me? I couldn't help being worried. The solo scenes for Jay then passed, and moved on to the others.

Soon, the filming ended with the music video coming to an end, and Joon saying thanks to the fans on behalf of the group for streaming the song on various platforms. He also begged for their continuous support to the group, and then together we greeted goodbye.

"That would be all guys." The director said, dismissing us.

We greeted the staff members goodbye, and left the practice room. On getting to the living room, everyone dispersed, and went their separate ways. I didn't like the atmosphere, especially since I believed I might have been the cause of it.

Without thinking, I blurted, "Are you guys mad at at me?"

They all paused, and turned to look at me, then they looked at each other as if asking who should speak. Minho took a few steps closer to me. "Isn't that the point of this whole fiasco you've been pulling off since you came down those stairs this morning? Suddenly acting like you normally wouldn't on a normal day in order to get under our skin, and then you intentionally acted all confused, ruining the video, and our reputation of never having to need to have more than one take while filming stuff like this."

"That's enough guys!" Ji-Yeong, my savior in a shiny armor came to my rescue. "It was just two takes, and I'm sure it wasn't intentional, right Jay?"

"Yes it wasn't." I quickly answered.

"Then what was it that you were thinking about, that you didn't hear Haruto's question? And when you finally heard it, why did you give such a bland and short answer?" Minho countered.

"Uh… the thing is…." I paused. I didn't want to tell a lie, but I also couldn't tell the whole truth either. "I can't explain what's wrong with me, but the truth is I suddenly can't remember much, either of myself or of the time we've spent together. I just hope you guys would give me time to adjust, and hopefully return to normal." I stopped talking as I went through the words I had just spilled. It wasn't entirely a lie. I really didn't have any memories of Jay, and the time he spent with his teammates, and when I said I hoped they could give me time to adjust and return to normal, I was referring to the time when I would finally be back in my real body, and then Jay gets to be back in his rightful place.

Ken scoffed. "So you are saying you had a memory loss? That's ridiculous." He spat.

"That's enough! You guys can go do whatever you all planned on doing before. I'll have a talk with Jay." Ji-Yeong said, and the boys left, after giving me skeptical glances, all except for Devon.

He faced Ji-Yeong, and said. "Can I be the one to talk to him?"

Ji-Yeong was about to respond, probably planing to protest, but Devon spoke before him. "It's fine, it's going to be a peaceful and short talk."

Ji-Yeong heaved a sigh and shrugged, "If you say so." Then he left us alone in the living room.

Devon patted my shoulder, and said, "Let's have a seat." as he led me the the double seater.

"Just as Ken said, what you said truly is ridiculous, but the sincerity in your eyes and voice says otherwise. So I'm going to ask you to confirm what you said, do you really mean what you said?" He asked. His voice dripping with concern.

My heart felt warmed by Devon's show of trust. He had chosen to try and believe my words, even when they truly sounded ridiculous. I was secretly glad that Jay got to have a friend like Devon. Not that I blamed the other members for being upset.

I nodded, and said, "Yes, I do mean what I said. I can't explain how or why, but It's really the truth."

Devon smiled at me. "Then I believe you."

"Really?" I asked, a bit surprised.

"Of course! But you definitely need to see a doctor or something. This isn't ordinary, and might be medically related." He answered.

I smiled at him in gratitude. "Thanks for believing in me."

"It's nothing bro. Even if the world turns against you, I'll always remain by your side." He said those kind words, which tugged at my heart strings even when I knew that those words were actually meant for Jay, and then before I could realize it, he had pulled me in for a bro hug, patting my back.

OMG! Devon is hugging me!!! I screamed in my head, going back to being a fan once again. This was a memory I would never forget. It would surely live rent free in my head for eternity.

Speaking of rent, isn't today the day when my rent expires? Then if Jay really was in my body, how is he going to cope when my not so nice landlady comes knocking for her rent? All blood got drained from my face at the thought of that.