Xander could only roll his eyes. “Noona-” the words slipped out so easily but somewhat oddly. This caused him to change the tone of his voice. “I mean, yes, noona…that isn’t the wises thing to do. I will find those videos and burn them, even if that means burning your phone” he smiled while trying to come off nice. His eyes focused on the screen of the TV as the music began playing. “I don’t know what kind of singer you are…sorry…but I chose a soft ballad-ish song. Do you know the song Just One Day? It’s kinda slow, but it’s a good starter for norebang…” he trailed off before the rapping began.
Xander enjoyed rapping, ever since he was younger he loved it. Hearing his voice blend in with another artist song made his heart warm, almost as if he was surpassing that rapper. Soon it came to Jiho’s part as he turned to see how the girl sang. This would be the first time hearing her sing.
Narrowing her eyes, Jiho put both hands in the pockets of her jeans. “You wouldn’t dare,” she murmured. “If you did, that would mean I would have to burn you.” She attempted to laugh after making such a threat, but it came out hollow; she just couldn’t process why the other boy felt comfortable enough to even joke about destroying her property. Maybe agreeing to go grocery shopping with him really was a bad idea.
Sighing, she shrugged before nodding. “I think I’ve heard it at least once or twice, so I can give it a shot...” Her voice trailed off as the song started off with a fast-paced rap, contrary to the instrumental’s seemingly slow pace. She listened intently, unsurprised by the other’s show of skill. She already knew that Xander wasn’t the best or worst rapper she had heard by any means, and she hadn’t thought anything much of the lines he delivered for ACME songs. However, through his cover, she could tell he had a lot of potential through the way the lyrics flowed easily from his mouth. Either he had spent a lot of time practicing this particular song, or he actually had a better sense of rhythm than she had previously thought.
Humming to herself, she flashed a smile when the other started looking at her, indicating that a vocal chorus was coming up. Bringing the microphone to her mouth, she closed her eyes in an attempt to imagine she was performing for an audience of Iris fans rather than just Xander. She then picked up right where the other left off and began to sing the chorus.
Hana’s day hadn’t been the best. After spending the morning unpacking her seemingly endless number of bags, with nobody offering to help, she was exhausted and honestly - slightly lonely. She was still new to the house, and since no one offered her a tour she decided to see the estate for herself, wandering up the stairs to the second floor. Having spent her entire life in various hotel rooms, a house was a refreshing change for the girl and she felt her spirits rise while exploring the various rooms and areas of the building.
As she was walking, Hana heard the melodic song a familiar voice, and the soft strums of a guitar. She couldn’t quite pinpoint who’s voice it was exactly - certainly not anyone she’s met in the house so far. The blonde followed the sound into the common area where she discovered whom she presumed to be one of the roommates, sat singing and playing the guitar. The girl was undeniably cute, and Hana watched silently for a brief moment before lugubriously coughing - making the other aware of her presence. “I don’t really even like music, but you were pretty good. I wish I knew how to play.” She grinned.
Jolting out of her reverie, Jiho slowly turned her head once she heard the sound of loud coughing. Exhaling sharply, her eyes widened for more reasons than one as she laid eyes on the source of the interruption. For one, the girl she was looking at was undeniably, objectively beautiful. For another, that same girl had just stumbled upon her singing some of the lyrics for their impending comeback. Impending, as in it hadn’t happened yet. No one should have heard anything, and now at least one person had; it was all Jiho’s fault.
Carefully, she leaned back further into the couch, as if she could disappear into it if she applied enough pressure to the cushions. “Th-Thanks,” she stammered out, laying her guitar down next to her. “Just keep it a secret what you heard just now though, okay?” Turning away from the other’s gaze, she smiled sheepishly before looking back at the other. “Are you a new roommate? I’m really surprised to see that we’ve received such a pretty girl this time.” At first glance, the girl before her was definitely better than all those horrid, horrid males that had been coming in nowadays.
Miyeon couldn’t help but giggle at the beginning of the song. The song had always been one of her favorites. It’s catchy tune and upbeat melody always managed to get her out of her seat. On cue, Miyeon began to carry out the rest of the tune. “너무 너무 멋져. 눈이 눈이 부셔. 숨을 못 쉬겠어 떨리는 Girl. Gee, gee, gee, gee, baby, baby, baby. Gee, gee, gee, gee, baby, baby, baby.”
Jiho smiled as she listened to the other girl sing such a familiar tune. “What was that earlier? About wailing?” she teased once they had finished performing their first song. “You did just fine, Miyeon. Now what?” She looked up at the other just as their score for “Gee” blinked on the television screen. Was it supposed to be a competition? Were they not supposed to sing together?
I want to go back home, Haru thought to himself as he felt his mood dropping rapidly. He didn’t know what this girl’s problem was - they’d only met once and he’d literally just arrived, did she even have the right to treat him like this? Whatever her reasons, Haru felt more and more disheartened by the second. So much for making friends. He hoped that the other roommates weren’t like this, because he didn’t think he’d be able to last a week feeling like this.
“Are you sure? I could just go and let you go back to what you were doing…” He replied, his voice quiet as he noticed the clearly fake smile plastered on her face. Why she was bothering to help him when she had an apparent personal vendetta against him was beyond his understanding, and the only thing Haru wanted to do at that moment was to escape the situation and stay as far away from her as possible. Looking down at his fingers, he let out a soft sigh. “I’m in room twenty-three.”
Smiling wider, she shook her head before gesturing towards his luggage. “No, no, it’s quite all right. I insist. Just let me pack up here a bit first.” With that said, she quickly gathered up her things and slung her guitar over her back. “Did you say 23? That’s downstairs then. Off we go.” Smile slowly transforming into a grimace as she passed him by, she walked over to the stairs leading towards the basement before silently descending them without turning back.
Moving some loose strands out of the way, she finally turned around once she was at the foot of the stairs. “Why are you joining ‘Roommate’ anyway?” Jiho suddenly asked, curious as to why a radio host of all professions would join. Did he need to promote for his radio show or something? If so, wouldn’t it have been better to join a show with more international acclaim, like Abnormal Summit or something?
Minki nodded along in agreement with all the other was saying, glad to have found someone who seemed to have this in common with her now. “I think my list is more like a pile now honestly. I have so many recommendations of dramas to watch and then the ones I want and it’s just hectic. I tried making an actual list once and it didn’t go well.” She mused to herself. “I’m only on the third episode right now, but it does seem like it’s going to be good– I’ll make sure to tell you my thoughts when it’s done then.” She smiled, hitching her bag up on her shoulder again as she felt it slipping. Looking over and spotting her room, she let out a thankful sigh, at least that was one thing down in this house then. “Thanks, and I will, though I’m not entirely sure what I’m thinking of it yet but it seems pretty good.” Looking over at her, eye smile taking over Minki nodded at the suggestion. “Of course, it’d be nice to watch one with someone else, it gives me someone to talk to about it.”
Jiho couldn’t help raising both her eyebrows. She herself kept an actual list on an app within her smartphone, but she couldn’t imagine making an actual list and having it fail to help. “Did you just have that much to watch?” she asked, before giving the other a thumbs up in reply to her comment about Pinocchio. “Awesome, yeah, do let me know. Thank you.”
Reflecting the other’s smile with one of her own, she bowed her head before handing over her phone. “Let’s exchange numbers then, cool? We can organize a drama-watching date or something.”
Hyunshik gasped in realization. “Oh! You’re in that flower group, too! I met one of the others, didn’t seem too fond of me,” he chuckled before running a hand through his hair. “Hyunshik, that’s me,” he smirked, although it quickly dropped from his face at her comment. She looked extremely uncomfortable, which was unnerving. Already? Has to be some sort of record, He thought to himself. “Someone like me? What do you mean by that?” He asked, his tone quickly becoming snippy.
“Soo -- No, Violet or Yerin?” Tilting her head to the side, she frowned as she wondered what the boy before her could have said or done to garner such an impression.
Laughing wryly, she simply gestured back towards the other male, as if she had been presenting him like a prize of a quiz show. “Someone like you,” she repeated. “Someone so quick to criticize, I guess,” she muttered, raising an eyebrow at the other’s change in tone. To be fair, she was fully aware she was just as guilty of the vice; to be fair, she was doing it right now. But she had her reasons, and she was sure the other had his own; what she wasn’t sure of was why he would always be so quick to criticize even his own members on variety shows.
Yerin squeezed Jiho’s hand in return. She wanted to tell Jiho, but again it wasn’t really the other girl’s problem. It was just Yerin being overly clingy and overly needy. No surprises there. It seemed like she was good at being the one who was needy and clingy and generally a nuisance.
Yerin had to laugh when Jiho mentioned Sooki. She couldn’t imagine Sooki saying YOLO. The maknae was too ladylike and refined. “I think we’re better off asking Yoo Yi or Junmyeon. Sooki would probably be just as lost as we are.”
At the other’s hand squeeze in return, Jiho sat up and attempted to get the other girl to do the same. She looked down at their hands that were still connected before mumbling, “Well, if you’re sure that’s it, I’m going to go back to my room.” She glanced up, attempting to gauge the other’s reaction. She wondered if the idea of her leaving would push Yerin to ask her to stay, to tell her a little more.
Nodding in agreement, Jiho grinned before clapping her hands together. “Maybe we should ask to change our concept to a hip-hop one. Maybe we’d learn a lot more hip lingo that way, get it? Hip, because hip-hop.” She slapped her knee then, before letting out a laugh at her own joke.
The time has come for the highly anticipated comeback of Iris! The girls promised us a new sound and that’s exactly what we got. With its addictive beat and edgy choreography, the group has proved to us that they’ve certainly grown up since their debut in 2013. Iris shows off a spunky side completely different from the aegyo image we’ve all grown used to.
Don’t forget to purchase Rum Pum Pum Pum on iTunes or in stores near you!
If you spit and curse at it, the world will spit and curse back at you.
If you laugh, the world will follow and laugh with you, too.”
Word Count: 2.7K
i.
“Here, my card. Think about it.”
And just like that, after accepting the ACE Entertainment scout’s business card, Hwa Jiho’s life began to change.
It took her a day to figure out that she wanted this, wanted the opportunity to become a singer, wanted to turn play into work, wanted the opportunity to provide more for her mother than she ever could with the pocket change she made as a street musician. It took her a week to convince her mother that things would be okay, that she would be okay, that they would be okay -- mother and daughter.
Jiho called the number on the card on a cool, April morning. “I thought about it,” she began. “When can I start?”
ii.
Right in the beginning, Jiho was isolated from others as a trainee. As soon as she walked into a room, hushed whispers would begin. It seemed like everyone had heard of her having been scouted instead of having auditioned, and they reacted as they would to any other threat. They reacted with fear, and their fear transformed into cold stares and inaudible responses.
She didn’t mind the lack of social interaction though. She had come to ACE with one thing in mind and that was debut. The idea of acquiring friends in the process was never something she had even considered; she had already become accustomed to being alone, anyway, ever since grade school.
Yet when, half a year into her debut, a boy with sharp eyes extended a hand to her... She took it, gladly.
(”I’m new here,” he had confessed, looking down at the ground. “But I heard you were pretty talented, and there’s no harm in getting to know your competition, right?”
“I-I guess not,” she had stammered out in reply. Hesitantly, she gave her name, worried over how he would react. “I’m Hwa Jiho, and you are?”
“Yu Hamin,” he looked up then, in order to extend a hand in greeting. “Jiho, huh? That’s a pretty cool name.”
Cool. He had called her name “pretty cool.” And that was enough for her to fall a little bit in love with him, right then and there.)
iii.
After she and Hamin became friends, other people became more willing to associate themselves with her. People stopped ignoring her outright, and the whispers even stopped happening every time she stepped into a practice room.
“I call it the Hamin Effect,” she joked one afternoon, the two of them splitting a boxed lunch from a convenience store. “It’s fascinating; it’s like you’re an already-debuted sunbae or something, the way they treat me now that I’m associated with you.”
Hamin had laughed before feeding himself a piece of kimbap. “When you put it that way, I guess it is strange. Maybe it’s because I’m older than most of the trainees?” He stuck out his tongue.
It was true though. At the time of their conversation, Jiho was barely 15 and Hamin was 17 going on 18. Most of the other trainees were Jiho’s age or a little younger.
Jiho shook her head before feeding herself some more of their split lunch. “I still refuse to call you ‘oppa’ though.”
“It hurts that we’ve been friends for half a year and you still refuse to call me such a term of endearment.”
“Details, details. Time is relative.”
“What if,” Hamin began, folding his hands in his lap. He stared at her then, sharp eyes unwavering as his lips thinned into a line. “What if we started dating then? Would you call me ‘oppa’ then?”
“That’s not your way of asking me out, is it? Because that’s a shitty way to ask someone out.” She laughed nervously, hand stilling as her stomach flipped inside her torso.
“It is, isn’t it?” His lips curled upwards into a wry smile before he closed his eyes. He reached out then, hand lightly brushing through the ends of her hair. Jiho stiffened as he leaned closer and placed his hand atop hers. “But I -- I do want to date you, Jiho, so just consider it for a moment.”
iv.
It was a cold, December evening; it was a month since the first time Hamin had put the idea of a relationship into her head. They were walking back to the dorms together, and they were standing a foot apart from each other. It was as they passed by a street lamp that Hamin asked her to stop walking.
“Please,” he had begged softly. He got down on one knee before pulling an origami flower out of jacket pocket. “Hwa Jiho, will you go out with me?”
Dating as a trainee was risky business. First of all, it was explicitly forbidden to date as a trainee; it was in the contract they all signed in hopes of being able to debut. Secondly, the competition between trainees was still high, and people usually couldn’t handle the additional stress of worrying over another’s possibility for debut.
Despite all this, Jiho reached out with trembling fingers to retrieve the paper flower out of the other’s hands. “Yes, all right. Let’s give this -- us -- a try.”
Thus, on December 18th of 2008, Hwa Jiho went into her first relationship with a little bit of reluctance but also a lot of high hopes.
(They ended up walking the remainder of the way to the dorms hand-in-hand and walking very, very close together.
“This will be our little secret,” he had stated once they reached the front doors. “Okay?”
Their hands separated now, Jiho squeezed her hand tightly in an attempt to keep as much of the other’s warmth as possible. “Okay.”)
v.
People always say the first stage of dating should be called the “honeymoon” phase, and Jiho would agree with those people. Their first months together were like a honeymoon that she never wanted to end. Shy glances at each other during dance practices, smiles thrown over shoulders at vocal practices, casual hand squeezes when passing each other in the halls, etc and so forth.
(What hurts her nowadays, more than not being able to remember the good times, is how vividly she’s able to remember them instead.
Sometimes, she wonders if her current misandry would have been easily resolved if she could just forget how great those good times were.)
vi.
Problems first arose when it was their first anniversary and Hamin had leaned in for a kiss on the lips. Jiho had turned away, flustered, and his lips had ended up meeting her cheek instead.
When she faced forward once again, the other man had a deep frown on his face. “Jiho, we’ve been dating for a year now, and you still haven’t let me kiss you on the lips yet.”
“Sorry, I’m just -- it makes me a little nervous, okay?” She fidgeted, eyes darting to the ground, then to their dinner, anywhere but the other male’s eyes.
“We’ve been dating for a year,” he repeated, frown slightly looser now. “Don’t you trust me?”
“Well, I-I guess,” she stammered.
“That’s good enough for me. Good enough for a kiss, anyway.”
Hamin had tasted like cigarettes and the fish they had been having for dinner. Later that night, Jiho couldn’t explain why she was vomiting in the bathroom when one of her roommates had walked in to check up on her.
vii.
Their honeymoon phase was well past over when spring of 2009 rolled around. Hamin had begun to decide that chaste kisses, quickly held hands, and glances across practice rooms were no longer enough. He grew bolder with his acts of affection, and it made Jiho increasingly uncomfortable.
“We’re going to get caught,” she had whispered once, when Hamin had hugged her from behind after a particularly tiring joint dance practice between the male and female trainees. He started pressing kisses down the nape of her neck, and Jiho could feel her stomach churning from anxiety.
“No, we won’t. We’ll be fine. Stop worrying so much.”
It was when a hand had wandered too far, pulling the hem of her t-shirt before going beneath it, that Jiho finally elbowed the other in an effort to push him away.
“What the fuck was that for, Jiho?” He let out a groan of pain before clutching his chest. “If you left a bruise on my chest from that hard hit, you’re dead.”
“E-excuse me?”
Realizing the gravity of his words, he shook his head before muttering, “Forget it. I thought you were my girlfriend, but I don’t think girlfriends hit their boyfriends.”
The words struck an odd chord with her as she remembered her parents. First, married and happy. Then, separated and... She shook her head, right hand gripping her left arm as a shiver ran up her spine. Was she becoming her father? Attempting to resolve things with violence?
Hamin’s words lingered in her mind, digging a hole for themselves deep, deep within the confines of her subconscious. Perhaps that was why, a week later, when her boyfriend had dared to bring her over to his dorm, she clenched her teeth and let him touch her in ways she’d never been touched. Hands wandered over her shirt and under it, fingers trailed around the waistband of her shorts... She had to stop him when he attempted to unzip her shorts, and the other male fell asleep in a huff, back turned away. Jiho ended up lying there, wide awake, listening to the sound of the other’s breathing until it settled.
She returned to her own dormitory the morning after, and once again, her roommate found her in the bathroom, vomiting nothing more than confused thoughts and memories of unwanted advances.
viii.
On their second year anniversary, Jiho wound up at her boyfriend’s dorm once again. This time, however, the older male had managed to procure a bottle of alcohol for them to consume alongside their dinner.
Jiho can’t remember much of what happened during dinner. All she remembers, even now, is a single glass of red wine -- then, darkness. The next thing she knows, she is waking up in the arms of the other. She cannot remember anything, but she knows her bra is unclasped and her button up is on the chair next to Hamin’s bed. She cannot remember anything, but her jeans are unbuttoned and hanging low on her waist.
She thinks she’s still a virgin, hopes she’s still a virgin. She skips that day’s practice, horrified by the purpling of a love bite on the left side of her neck.
(In retrospect, she doesn’t consider it a love bite anymore; she refers to it as a hickey, because it definitely wasn’t a bite made from the throes of love or passion.)
ix.
They’re on the phone the next day, Hamin calling out of concern. “Ji, seonsaengnim was pissed you missed dance practice yesterday. Are you okay?”
“O-Oppa, what happened yesterday? I don’t -- I don’t remember anything.”
“Honestly? I don’t remember myself. But I’m sure it was great, because we woke up in bed together. Don’t overthink it, Ji.”
x.
She can only stay in bed for so many days, hiding from the world, before someone notices. After spending two days in bed, she wraps a scarf around her bruised neck and heads to vocal practice. It’s when the vocal coach lightly slaps her on the back, claiming a job well done, that Jiho realizes things weren’t great.
She’s shaking, and the vocal coach is apologizing to her. He’s confused; it’s written all over his face, but she can’t say anything other than, “It’s fine. I’m just a little sick. Sorry.”
She decides to go over to Hamin’s dorm right after, seeking comfort and (hopefully) a better explanation than what was communicated over the phone. He had given her a spare key, so when she gets to his place, she inserts it without a second thought. It is only after placing her hand on the door handle, however, that she is worried that one of his roommates might be home. So, she slowly opens the door only to catch sound of a familiar low chuckle.
“It was so easy; she drank the wine I handed her like it was water.” Another chuckle. “I should have thought of using sleeping pills on her ages ago. Man, you wouldn’t think it with the clothing she normally wears, but she’s actually got a pretty decent body. Ten out of ten would bang. Yeah? No, yeah, I didn’t actually get to fuck her last night. She woke up in the middle or some shit, whimpered and tried to move my hand back out of her pants. Next time though, for sure.”
Jiho isn’t sure what she’s hearing. The voice is familiar, yet unfamiliar. Familiar in tone, but unfamiliar in speech. The Hamin she knew said he didn’t know what happened. The Hamin she knew would never do something like drug her drink. He called her his, and she had been all too happy to call him hers as well.
Then again, thoughts and memories swirling in her head, her father had been like this too. Always claiming now would be the last time that he’d hit her or her mother, always apologizing before doing the exact same thing only three drinks later.
She allows herself to shed a single tear -- only one, no more, no less -- before slamming the door shut behind her. Hamin stops talking then, and he peers around the corner. As they meet eyes, she realizes that it was her fault for misjudging his character; she stares into those eyes, and she realizes they have always been cold, she just refused to see it.
“Let’s break up, oppa.” The last word stings her more than a jellyfish or a bee ever could. “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear anything just now, but we’re through.”
He had always been taller than her, but in this moment -- walking over in three steps, slamming an arm over her head, glaring at her with brows furrowed -- he looks more imposing than she’s ever remembered him looking. “You better not say anything,” he snarls. “I want to debut as much as you do, and let’s just say I took one incriminating-ass photograph.”
xi.
When they break up, Jiho learns the truth behind their secret relationship -- that it hadn’t been so secret after all. That Hamin had only come up to her out of a bet, that he had been ordered to ask out the one with the most promise and date her until she was going to debut. They were hoping Jiho would end up broken-hearted enough from the relationship that it would mess with her chances, causing her to no longer be able to debut.
He and a group of boys had wanted to see her fail, and they had wanted to see her fall. They had only succeeded with the latter, however, because she debuts with renewed determination two years later.
(Fall, however, she did. She had fallen hard for Yu Hamin, and she had trusted him to be able to catch her when she fell.)
It is only after her split that she suddenly realizes not all the girls were out to get her, that some wouldn’t mind the possibility of even debuting with her. She makes friends, some that she debuts with -- like Yerin -- and some that debut in other ways. She realizes girls are genuine smiles and soft edges, unlike the men in her life who have been made of jeers and rough edges.
When she is pulled into a room with six other girls and the word “debut” is thrown into the air, she decides to never trust a male ever again.
After all...
“Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”
Haru’s face fell when he noticed the scowl the girl was giving her. He did definitely remember her - and her group, it had been a particularly successful broadcast - but he wasn’t exactly sure what she had done to be at the end of such an expression. “Yes,” he began, trying to be as polite as he could. “I had fun, and the listeners really enjoyed it too.” As he pulled in his bag, he tried to think of anything he had during the broadcast that would’ve warranted such a response. Looking around the entrance way, he let out a soft sigh - this wasn’t the start he had been expecting, and he felt worse and worse by the second. “Uh…” He began, looking down at his hands before shrugging his shoulders. “Don’t worry, I don’t want to burden you. I can just look for my room myself if you just let me know which direction I have to go in.”
Jiho watched as the other male fidgeted in the doorway. She could already see the headlines now -- Iris Member Bullies Innocent Foreign Radio Host. She couldn’t control her harsh reaction towards the other, however; she just couldn’t stand guys who acted one way in some circumstances and another way in other situations. It reminded her too much of someone she had been trying very, very hard to forget.
Shaking her head, a strained smile appeared upon her face as she tilted her head towards the other male. Well, she at least had to try and be polite, or her manager would be barking in her ear for poor manners later in the week. “You would burden me more if you didn’t let me help you. Anyway, what room are you living in?”
When Jiho took interest in what she’d said, Minki beamed a bit at her with a nod. “Seriously? That’s great, hey something in common!” She didn’t normally get excited like this, but most people she knew weren’t too keen on sitting and watching them constantly. Maybe she could find a drama buddy. “Mm my favorite? Shut Up Flower Boy Band? Purely because it was the first one that I actually got myself to sit through and now I’m just kind of an addict of all them.” She told her after taking a few moments of thought. It was kind of like when the first thing that introduces you to something becomes your favorite really, like she’d seen plenty but that was by far her favorite. “Right now I’m just trying to catch up some really– like Pinocchio, I’m trying to get into that but I’m also trying to watch The Heirs and School 2013 at the same time. It’s a hard life honestly. A girl only has so much free time and I still have so many more I want to watch.”
Jiho laughed before giving the other a thumbs up. “Shut Up Flower Boy Band was really good; I actually only finished it a few days ago. I liked all the OSTs that were produced for it too.” Smiling softly, she remembered how just yesterday, she was attempting to do her own cover of, “How Come.”
Nodding sympathetically, she continued walking down the hallway. “I feel you. I feel like my ‘To Watch’ list only grows and grows. School 2013 is a 10 out of 10, in my opinion, by the way. Do tell me what you think when you finish it.” As they finally reached the door to room seventeen, she tilted her head in the room’s direction. “Well, here’s your room. I haven’t watched Pinocchio yet, so let me know what you end up thinking of it. I’ll probably pick it up after finishing my current drama.” Fidgeting slightly, she stared at her hands before twiddling her thumbs. “Maybe we could also start a new drama together? Maybe, I don’t know, if you have time. Or something.”
Hyunshik was taking yet another trip to the kitchen to snack. He really needed to go buy food for himself, but if food wasn’t labeled in the fridge, no one could blame him for taking it. Not like they’d find out until the show aired anyway. He grabbed whatever he could find, shoving it in his mouth before running out the kitchen and towards the stairs. He didn’t expect to run straight into someone’s back, though.
“Ugh, ow!” he groaned, frowning down at the other person. He couldn’t help but laugh at her reaction. Who was this girl and why did she dislike him already? “Yes, it’s me? And you are?” he began, trailing off as he waited for her to answer. It wasn’t unusual for people to form opinions on him from what they saw on TV, but they were mostly inaccurate in the bad ways. At least he told everyone he was critical out of love on TV.
“Sorry,” Jiho responded in a clipped tone. Exhaling slowly, she tried her best to smile politely before bowing her head. “I’m Jeni, lead vocal of Iris.” She struggled to remember the other man’s name, but all she could remember was that it began with a 현. “You’re Hyunbin? Hyunsik? Hyunwoo? Something like that, right?” She rubbed the back of her neck before taking a step to the side to allow the other male to walk around her, if need be. “I was just surprised to see someone like you here. In this house.” Her smile was tight, thin-lipped, and she bowed her head once more before looking away.
“Ah, I know.” She sighed with fake sadness, holding out the sound longer than necessary. “It’d be my own dream concert of 2015. But that’s okay, I’m very happy with the company I’m keeping.” Miyeon gave the idol a cheesy grin as she handed her a mic. “Alright, show me how it’s done.” She giggled, letting the instrumental play out as she waited to begin singing.
Jiho felt her cheeks warm at the other’s comment, for it wasn’t often that people said they enjoyed her company. Much less that she helped induce happiness with her presence. “Well, I’m glad I’m fine company then,” she replied with a wide smile. “And will do, let’s go.”
Clearing her throat, she started singing the familiar intro lyrics. “Uh huh! Listen boy! My first love story! My angel and my girls! Uh, uh, let’s go!” She burst out into giggles then before pointing her mic at the other girl. It was strange -- covering her own song, but not singing her own parts. In the back of her mind, she wondered if this was how idols usually enjoyed noraebang outings.
Sitting in the second floor common area, Jiho hummed as she strummed a couple chords on her guitar. She was already working on an acoustic cover of their upcoming title track, and it was putting her in a good mood despite the sudden wave of new male roommates.
Looking left and right, she observed how she was alone, and that’s when she decided it would be all right for her to even sing a few of the verses. No one was going to be around anyway, right? So it wasn’t as if she was going to be spoiling the comeback for anyone. With that in mind, she sang a few lines before closing her eyes.
Following after once again until they made their approach to the bottom of the staircase in the basement, she glanced around after their stop as she listened in on what she was telling her. Minki made sure to try and brand the new information on where things were into her mind honestly. “Got it.” She nodded, heading after her again. “Mm, I do like gaming quite a bit actually. I’ll keep that in mind. I mostly just enjoy reading or marathoning dramas though honestly. It’s a nice tone down from schedules.”
At the word “dramas,” Jiho did a double take. No one would have expected it, but she was an avid drama watcher. The Iris members used to laugh at how absorbed she’d get into them; it fascinated them how, despite Jiho’s disdain for practically the entire male gender, she didn’t mind watching them on screen, even if they were being assholes towards female leads or the like.
“Did you just say ‘marathoning dramas’? I-I love watching dramas.” Eyes gleaming, she turned around with expectation written all over her face. “What’s your favorite? Are you following anything right now?”
Stretching her hands above her head, Jiho let out a yawn as she let herself into the house. With their comeback fast approaching, Iris practices were getting held more and more often. This meant she was also tired, more and more often, and right now? Right now, all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for until morning -- even if it was only eight p.m.
She stopped in her tracks, however, when she bumped into someone while walking towards the stairs. “My apologies -- oh.” Narrowing her eyes, she tilted her head to the side as she looked the male up and down. All these new roommates coming into the house, and she had to run into this one right this moment. “It’s you,” she stated, exhaling slowly before bringing a hand to her forehead in order to massage her temples. Jiho and the man before her had never formally met, but she’s managed to catch him on variety enough times to form her own opinion. Needless to say, it wasn’t a good one.
“But what if I embarrass myself the moment I step inside–”
“Worrying will just make it seem worse, Haru. You’ll be fine.”
Standing in front of the door, his manager’s encouraging words seemed to have had no effect on the boy. He looked back a few times as he fidgeted with the handle of his suitcase, as if his manager would reappear by magic to whisk him off back home so that he could spend the rest of his day in the comfort of his own bed. Sadly, the force of magic didn’t seem to be on Haru’s side as he was met with a very manager-less sight before him each time. It wasn’t that he wasn’t excited - no, he was definitely excited at the thought of making new friends - but the thought of so many people watching his every move was a bit nerve-wracking for the boy who had been living alone for so many years, not to mention the possibility of saying something incorrectly.
“You can do this. They’ve all been in the same position, you’ll do great.” He quietly mumbled in Japanese, feeling a little better after his quick pep-talk. Knowing it was better to get this over and done with, he briefly fussed over his appearance (even though he’d spent all morning making sure that he looked okay) before raising his hand to knock on the door. Taking a deep breath as he heard the doorknob moving, he made sure to muster the friendliest smile he could before bowing to the stranger.
The living room had been surprisingly empty today, so Jiho had decided to take the opportunity to try and finish writing lyrics in the open area. Humming softly, right hand strumming notes on her guitar, she closed her eyes in an attempt to focus on the emotions she had been feeling when initially composing this piece.
It was then that a knock rattled her out of her reverie, and she frowned. The fact that there was a knock meant it couldn’t have been a roommate already living in the house, so she had deduced it was probably a new roommate. “Boy? Girl?” Jiho mumbled these questions to herself before padding over and opening the door. As she was greeted by a male face -- a familiar male face, actually -- she scowled before opening the door wider. “I remember you. I -- no, Iris went on your radio show once.” She huffed before walking back to her notebook that was laid open on the table. Closing it, she stared longingly at her guitar before glaring daggers at Haru. “I guess I won’t be able to write lyrics anymore,” she murmured to herself.
