it’s honestly some weird twist of fate, right? wrong. it can’t be a mere coincidence. within his first month of becoming an mc for a spop channel segmant, the guests happen to be convex members. talk about yikes. half the time, minho is convinced they’re not allowed to mention him in interviews or anything public really. to cross paths like this? more directly than the brief cross-interaction during the mgas where they at least stood on the same stage again, he can’t wrap his mind around a single centimeter— no, millimeter even— of it.
samsung sure knows how to pick them. if anything, the scheduling team or whoever picked the members to make an appearance on the show. a majority being the original members and two of the same unit that he was in. two unit leaders. hell, the group leader and a new member he’s seen quite a lot in their social updates and other articles. he’s grown quite popular since joining convex and minho is happy to see all of it. he just wasn’t aware he was allowed to witness any of it from this close.
in the days leading up to filming the segment, he’s unable to focus, to pick even a theme or a base flavor to start with. his mind goes everywhere and anywhere to distract himself from what’s going to be right in front of him.
actually, saying who would be more accurate.
chocolate? milk tea? sehun would like those, wouldn’t he? hoseok prefers teas and seungcheol... ah... he doesn’t think of preferences there. not even for hyun. there’s a slim chance he can figure out what link likes too. but he can think of one thing, even if that member isn’t part of the group anymore either. a certain type of tea or hot cocoa made to comfort them all at late hours of night if they needed it, when they needed it. though it’s not that cold yet, maybe a warm drink would be best. once everyone is on set, he sure as hell hopes so or he’s about to spill things all over himself or his cards or, worse, a co-host or one of the convex members.
thankfully, he has two co-hosts to bounce ideas off of, to rely on, because, truth be told, when left on his own minho just might digress so much that the guests never get to try the drinks. alright, a bit of an exaggeration but, hey, it is him after all. after the first day of learning of the segment he was going to be part of, he went deep into the black hole of just what is a drink.
from the chemistry behind certain types to how different containers can enhance the flavor. he’s never gonna be able to aerate some wine to bring onto the show but he’d be damned if he didn’t understand the concept of it by now after getting lost in youtube on that same topic. just how many drink related videos did he watch? pretty sure he lost count after the first five. as his brother likes to joke, math isn’t his forte and he gets bored as soon as it seems like he’ll need a calculator or to write out each step as a so-called ‘explanation.’ great, math is conceptual and all that but, come on teach, if we both get the idea, why do i have to prove it to you? what kind of relationship can be established with a lack of trust— that certainly never flied in school but damn how he used to try.
the experience itself reminds him of when he was new in seoul, barely knew most kinds of alcohol beyond traditional beer and how things changed the more he went out, partied, got to know people in the city. he felt like a tourist back then, which is rich considering he used to be a tour guide in sydney, but now he’s right at home. he does just that— makes himself perfectly comfortable— going up to his co-hosts to ask their strategies and ideas.
okay, maybe he’s scoping out the ‘competition’ but, mostly, he wants to know if they’re just as excited as he is. whether his drink wins today or not, he’s practically dancing in place with the way he moves excitedly back and forth on his feet, facial expressions just as animated as his hand gestures.
WHENEVER I RUN OUT OF BREATH ˟
( WILL YOU BECOME MY SKY )
the amount of mapping out ideas he’s done for this eval is beyond most that he’s done in the past, even those he’s written his own raps to. he just doesn’t get it. a theme he struggles with out of the sheer fact that he can’t decide on a single trait, on one he thinks represents the sign, or him or anything other than a whim, really. if he wants to pick a certain song and mold it to fit one of the supposed traits— which can vary, sometimes drastically, depending on the source he looks at and who the hell knows what is or isn’t a reliable source anyway— couldn’t he essentially do anything?
it feels like a convoluted test and ‘studying’ makes him feel restless to the point that he’s this close to clicking shuffle in his music app and letting siri take the wheel. the apple algorithm, whatever. he looks at the list his sister’s sent over, all the while pointedly ignoring the family group chat messages making fun of him because he didn’t google his zodiac sign to make sure before asking or looking into it. a few words stand out to him but he still can’t decide if they apply to him or how he wants to apply those to a song.
the day of the evaluation, part of him questions if what he chose is good enough, if it emphasizes how being a perfectionist can lead to a melancholy feeling, that how passionate his sign can be also comes across as intense. most of all, he hopes it emphasizes the hidden [or maybe that’s just him] sensitiveness of virgos.
because the song itself reminds him of his long journey to get to this point, to waiting for his turn, guitar in hand and new acoustic arrangement ready to go. virgos can be single-minded but it means they’re also determined. now that might be a trait he can get behind no problem. because it has its negatives and positives, because he wouldn’t be back in a company without being that way. whether his zodiac sign influenced that, he has not a single damn clue, but it can’t hurt, now can it?
if his zodiac sign is all about running for success, being strong-minded and willed to achieve it, he wants to embrace it the way he does the guitar as he strums and plucks. he’s decisive in his motions, his gestures with the idea of it highlighting the determination of his sign and, by the time he gets to the final line— the world feels different to me— he understands that as his will power, of the single-minded actions and thoughts he might pursue. to change his world, it starts with his perspective and that is definitely how he’s gotten through life.
MEANINGLESS DAYS, AS I’M GETTING USED TO IT ˟
( AS I’M GETTING TIRED OF IT, I CLOSE MY EYES AND THINK OF YOU )
when he hears of the theme or topic— he never knows what to call it— for the month’s evaluations, he wonders if it’s because of the trendiness of astrology lately with all the retrogrades or whatever his sister told him about going on this year or as a test of their creativity, of their ability to interpret and perform. either way, he has no clue where to begin other than research, something he’s never been that good at from a young age. no matter how much he’s researched, how much he wants to improve, he tends to lose focus early on, would much rather experience or talk things out than read about them so he does ask his sister who laughs at him and asks if he even knows what sign he is— which he does, thank you very much.
it just so happens that... you know... maybe he doesn’t know much more beyond the name. truthfully, it’s more embarrassing that he turns out to be wrong. that he’s a entire, er, time period [maybe] off from what he really is.
he swears his sister laughs for hours at him but just as the supposed traits suggest, he stays cheerful and strong despite the teasing. huh, imagine that.
the more they delve into the topic, the more restless he feels while considering what route to take and what song to sing. because, truthfully, an argument could be made to defend any song as representative if you explain it well enough. with a reminder that he could’ve become a lawyer if he really thinks that way and a roll of his eyes, he ends up thanking his sister for the help [or, at least, correcting him on what he is] before he tries asking around to see what others are working on.
it’s only when he’s back home for the night, a mere handful of hours before he has to head back in the early morning, that he decides to go for what he knows. for what suits his mood during this transition into fall and after falling way too deep into astrology tiktok. didn’t know that was a thing til now either. the more you know!
“of course i’m great at this, i’m great at everything,” he says, his faux confidence on full display. he continues to photograph minho in probably the worst way possible, arms moving way too fast, angles way too high and low, close and far. honestly, he’s not even looking at the screen of his phone at this point, and he’s sure he has way too many photos of minho in his camera roll, but does it really matter in the end? (maybe a little bit, he’ll have to go through and delete at least some of them later, just so he can save some space on his phone.) “you can call me vincent van photograph.”
he grins at his own pun, finally putting his arms down because they’ve grown a bit tired both from the way he’d been moving them and with how long he’d been holding the camera up. he’s already lost track of how long he’s been doing it. “if you can afford me, i’m all yours,” he says cheekily, finding his way to the floor, crossing his legs in front of him as he navigates his phone to view all the photos he’d taken.
as expected, most of them have come out blurry and unusable, some of them missing minho completely, shots of the ceiling, the floor, and the wall interspersed among the others. to his surprise, though, a few of them have come out okay looking at least, and he can’t help but laugh at this unexpected out come. it only goes to prove that old saying—even a broken clock is right twice a day. “bro, you’re either super photogenic or i’m really a genius photographer. am i going into the wrong profession?”
"you’re right! how could i forget?” he scoffs, hand on his chest as if unable to fathom how he’d lost faith, even if only for a fleeting second. course chanyeol’s great at everything, minho knows that well. after all, they’re both the best at this whole ‘bravado’ thing. he doesn’t even care if that’s the right word for it or not. “you know, i don’t think he’d be very fond of this art medium but, uh, wait, his art is more, uh...” how offensive is it if minho calls it blurry? moderate or very? because he admits it looks pretty nice but there’s no denying it’s not particular about fine details. the image of it gives him more of a ‘bigger picture’ type of vibe.
“you’re kidding right? aw, come on, where’s that t-rex discount? you know, or like... a bruce discount. since you’re a special unicorn and all,” he snickers, still adamant that bruce was a weird unicorn name but there’s that one viral video with charlie and unicorns, right? damn, he got tired of that joke so quickly. he doesn’t know what’s worse, the unicorn one or the kid who bit his brother’s finger.
“yeah? that good?” straightening up, he slides a hand down his chest to smooth his shirt down with some notion of making himself look more presentable when, really, he’s gone with wearing his normal training clothes for the day. “come on, lemme see,” he grins, holding a hand out for the phone and settling for looking over chanyeol’s shoulder, bursting into fits of laughter when he sees the first blurry one. “a genius! you’re a genius. really captured my essence there, didn’t ya?”
he can’t help but laugh at minho’s overly dramatic reaction to his words. it’s true that they’re always hyping each other up to the point that many people seem to question the nature of their relationship, but as far as he’s concerned there’s also nothing wrong with a little teasing between friends either, even if it does happen only once in a blue moon. “i think you’re forgetting that hanzo isn’t exactly considered a cool hero in the overwatch community,” he says with another laugh. he can’t recall all the times he’s been called a ‘hanzo main’ by people in game chat and over voice as an insult. “but if you’re gonna be a villain, i think loki suits you best. isn’t he considered sexy by the general public? then again, there are people who think thanos is sexy, too…”
his voice trails off, brow furrowing in worry for those people, but he shakes it off with a grin, reaching out for his friend’s arm and latching on as he bats his eyelashes at him. “you doubted me?” he asks in his best whiny girlfriend voice, shaking his shoulders like those girls in dramas. “how could you!”
his smile slowly grows into a mischievous grin before melting into his clueless expression, eyes widening before he speaks. “but at least your three are awake and working!” he says, feigning exasperation. he rolls his eyes up as if he’s trying to roll them back far enough that he could look into his brain and see the cells inside. “out of the two that i have, one’s in a coma, and the other is always asleep. no condition or anything, he just likes to sleep. if he’s not sleeping then he’s making music, but he never actually finishes a song to his own liking.” it’s a jab at his own habits, funny because it’s true. “we gotta find someone else to borrow more cells from.”
"what do you mean hanzo isn’t considered a cool hero? sounds fake to me.” besides, he didn’t ask the overwatch community what’s cool. he knows exactly why people don’t like hanzo mains but he’s got nothing to say as a junkrat main, even if that choice was largely fueled by the fact that they’re both aussies. gotta represent after all. “hold up, did you just say loki like i’m not better suited for thor? come on, i could totally rock a hammer. ha, get it. rock a hammer.” but he damn near shudders at the thought of thanos being sexy. that’s just gotta be some hardcore josh brolin fans right? people into aliens, purple? a man— er, alien that’s into extremes? because it’s a pretty extreme solution to overpopulation and lack of resources.
“i’d say if i had some kind of brother complex, hell yeah i’m down to be loki but those horns? the green? i think you’d look better in that than me. besides, the whole horn thing is better on maleficent these days, yeah? angelina jolie looks incredible.” not his favorite movie with her but pretty good. rolling his eyes, he tries to pinpoint why this whiny behavior seems familiar and it dawns on him with a laugh. right. the dramatic girlfriend in movies and dramas. something like that. he’s glad naeun doesn’t even tease him with things like that but something like doubt doesn’t exist that easily between them. he doesn’t believe so.
“when did i say my three are alive and working? maybe some of them are constantly asleep! barely working. doing whatever the hell they want because i can’t seem to control them much. but one of yours always sleeping? yeah? somehow doesn’t seem right. you never sleep but you like making music. is that why you don’t? gotta balance out all the sleep your one brain cell gets? i don’t think that’s how it works, mate.” looking around, he pretends to survey the area for someone to borrow from. “alright, but how are we gonna go about that? find someone with excess? think they’ll be willing to, like it’s a cup of sugar or somethin’?” he snorts, shaking his head at the idea. at least it sounds cool to be able to share brain cells or thoughts like that.
he didn’t know what he expected once the results came out but he can say this much— he didn’t think his name would be among those who made it. if anything, he expected chanyeol again, knew his friend deserved it and everything else in between. but seeing his name alongside another trainee’s. because heck yeah he even gets a partner out of all of it, is awe-inspiring.
one of the first things he wants to do is tell naeun, to shout and cheer about it with chanyeol, and he realizes this joyous feeling is probably what he needed again. what he needed to find again. that doubt but hope instead of the looming elimination he felt every episode of the mgas.
as exhilarating as the experience was, it can tear a person apart from the inside out if you let it. though that might’ve been more on him than anyone or anything else. instead of letting hope bloom in his heart, he let despair overshadow it. ain’t that something?
idol cafe.
he can imagine it now, how he has friends who’ve worked in cafes and bars rippin’ him one because how is he gonna make drinks out of all people? and for a youtube channel? maybe drink making skills or cooking should’ve been part of the application or interview because how is he gonna pull this one off? first things first, he texts his favorite people in the world, including his mom who expresses the same doubts while asking him if he’s cleaned his kitchen at home. thanks ma. always his biggest fan.
when he thinks of it, hell, he might have a better chance making alcoholic drinks and mixing those but he doubts that’s gonna fly unless there’s some night version of the show. so he starts to spend his free time looking up recipes and studying drinks, watching youtube videos for the right method and approach. there is one approach he really likes taking . . . all for entertainment, right?
she feels a little out of place here, and while everyone is loud and bright and having fun at this party, she’s thinking about how she wants to go home and take a nap. being around so many people was never really her vibe, and she would rather be sitting at home with heejin, eating a bag of chips and watching a drama while doing her ab exercises. she suddenly remembers that she might not have all that long with her best friend living with her anymore, and the thought makes her a little sad.
yeji is taken out of her thoughts by a voice next to her, and she looks up to see minho, smiling gratefully at the familiar face. “minho! hi!” her eyes go immediately to the lei that he has, gesturing it to it casually. “i didn’t know you were a lei kind of person, but it’s a good look!”
“me?” she laughs, waving it off. “i don’t know, i think it suits you though. it’s like a juxtaposition of soft and manly.” she doesn’t really know what she’s saying, but it does fit him more admittedly than she would have expected. “i don’t want to ruin your vibe!”
"what does being a ‘lei’ person mean? but, hey, i am from down under. continent and an island. i should feel right at home here, right?” in the end, it’s more so the party vibe that he’s used to than any stereotypical island themes. from tiki huts to drinks in fake coconuts, he’s lived through a lot of it when his mother had a fondness for it. now that he’s older, he thinks she must’ve done it to embarrass him and his siblings. didn’t work but it was fun to do that kind of thing, fun to not care about image or this and that.
wanting to be an idol, he wonders if that’s possible anymore. “i’m glad it’s a good look. here’s hoping i get a beach concept if i debut again, right?” laughing at the contrast of soft and manly, he grins at the notion of coming off as manly. most of the time, he considers himself a clown and that’s why he’d gone along with that idea for so long, hide his own feelings with jokes. a classic comedian trick, isn’t it?
“it’s not gonna ruin my vibe! ‘sides, i think it would even better on you,” pulling it over his head, he gently lays it atop her head, looking more like a crown for a moment instead of bringing it any lower, leaving that choice to her. “ohhh, now i get it. i think you suit flower crowns more. wonder if there’s any around.”
singing and dancing are always a given when it comes to monthly evaluations, and once in a blue moon, they even get rap-focused evaluations if he’s lucky, so he’s thrown off when he hears that they’ll be modeling for the august evaluations. he can’t remember the last time they’ve done something like this, or even if they’ve done anything like it at all, but he’s always up for a challenge, so like always, he tries not to think about it too much. it’s not like he hasn’t thought about it before—coincidentally, he’d recently been focusing on modeling and being photographed, so it really had come at an opportune time.
still, preparations for this sort of thing is kind of beyond him. he isn’t quite sure how to practice for a photoshoot, but that certainly doesn’t stop him from trying, from both in front of the camera, and behind it.
“yes, that’s it!” he exclaims, running around minho in circles, taking photographs from different angles and heights. admittedly, he isn’t really paying attention to composition or lighting or anything like that, but they won’t be behind the camera for the actual evaluation anyway, so he might as well have some fun with it. he’s even clicking his tongue, imitating the sound of a shutter. “yes! smize! smile with those eyes! you’re a natural!”
after acting and variety— hell, even a party last month— minho wonders if the evaluations were like this before. if he found them this fun or if this amount of variety [ignore the pun, even if he’s amused by it], or if it’s him that’s different. maybe it’s the person practicing with him. no matter what friends he made at nova before or sphere, having chanyeol around puts him more at ease than he realized before. more freedom to be himself. in the end, though, he wonders if it’s self-growth at the same time.
right now, he decides it’s the idiotic way he decides to pose, especially with chanyeol’s words egging him on. he carries on in a flashy manner, crossing his legs here and there, throwing them up in the air and flailing his arms about in weird poses because he’s at least gotta have fun with it and mess around at some point til the official day of.
with the way chanyeol is running around him, minho’s almost certain that there’s no usable photos to judge off of anyway. if there’s only a handful of blurry ones, he’d be impressed and he can’t tell what would be more amusing, the potential blurriness or the weird poses and expressions he makes, feeling loopier by this time of the day. “what’s your model coach name? you’re great at this. can you come along with me for any photoshoot in the future?”
the first time auditions came around, he can’t say he remembers any of it that clearly, as if the end of the last year and the beginning of the new year was too overwhelming at once. then again, returning back to the trainee cycle, being a few months into it, part of him didn’t think he should be so frivolous to think he could. the process was fun, he remembers that much, joking around with his partner, and hoping the best more so for them than for himself. hell, he’d been ecstatic that chanyeol got it.
there’s moments he doesn’t tell his own friend that the chances he got? he thinks chanyeol wouldn’t have squandered them like he did, that the los angeles native has a helluva lot more resolution than he does, more decisiveness. to this day, he thinks the most confident decisions he’s made since uprooting his entire life to move to seoul once he was legal is pursuing naeun. maybe doing the mgas too but even that came with its ups and downs.
thinking back on it now, he can laugh but, back then, it was never-ending. that gut-wrenching feeling of pending elimination or, worse, the idea that he was being kept on for views only. the win convinced him they worked hard and deserved it. everyone did in the end. it brings him back to this moment, to knowing that he should continue to strive, to make up his damn mind, and go after everything he wants without shame.
the thought of debut, of whether or not he can again, consumed him til now, til he decides he just wants to enjoy the opportunities given to him, from assisting in a class to auditions. back when he moved to seoul, that thrill was one of the best and it’s only fitting that he continues to do auditions when it comes to trc, isn’t it? his first official audition in seoul.
different segments and scripts are given and he can’t help thinking it’d be crazier if they had to improv it all but this is probably how most variety goes, right? a script that the audience is unaware of, despite the cards held in idols’ hands at times. it’s an image he falls for too but, that all aside, he likes the casual moments the most, the impromptu ones, the reactions of the idols and the mcs in reaction to them the most. it gives that feeling of friendship and genuine camaraderie that he thrives off of so before they head in, he’s talking to his partner, trying to hype him up, and the excitement is electrifying by the time they’re called in. he wants to hold onto that feeling for as long as he can and he looks to his partner with a sly grin right when they’re told to start.
when it’s his turn to introduce himself, he’s too proud of his joke, too proud to say “hey, what’s up everyone, it’s your favorite mc, mason choi.” the ‘m’ emphasized as he draws it out, pointing to himself and clapping his hands together with a bright laugh. “we’ve got plenty of sweet treats up our sleeve. honey, are you still guessing?” his partner’s laugh is infectious and minho pretends just as he’s meant to, scratching the back of his head for good measure. “ah, yes, it’s in the video’s title after all. aren’t you all a bunch of smarti— ah, can we say a candy name here?” snickering, he holds up the script, gesturing towards the camera with a smile. “park doha’s candy. whoo!” he claps once again, giving a small wave of his body as he sings again, “girl i’m your candy.”
their chemistry is better than he could’ve expected and relief is only one word to describe how he feels as they continue through one script to the next segment. with added props for games, minho can’t help getting distracted at first, enthusiastically shaking his head.
he leaves the explanation of the game to his partner for the most part because, thankfully, he took the other part and truth be told he’s not sure how the game works but he’s more than ready to go all out. it’s the obvious loss that gets him in the end and it’s his luck that he’s meant to act exasperated, genuinely feeling so once the headband is free of his head and he holds up the slinky-headband combo with a heavy sigh. “as expected, our guest is the best,” he alludes to one of their released song tracks— though pretending someone is there as a guest is odd after pretending to play a game with them too, one he still doesn’t understand.
“though our guests have to slink away, don’t forget to check out their latest comeback and to follow our channel’s social media for more content!” he almost launches into the typical youtuber ending and, as a joke, when they walk out of the room, he’s leaning closer to his partner, hand on their shoulder to say it anyway, thanking them for the experience. “no matter what, it was really fun.”
he isn’t too sure of how he got one on his own. in passing makes sense but you’d think he’d remember when someone handed him a lei. did he accept one earlier? did he take it from chanyeol who got it somehow? yeah, that seems most likely to be honest. either way, the colorful flowers of the lei are more realistic than the ones he used to see as a kid. looks fancier too and odds are he shouldn’t just randomly have it. hell, he wonders if someone brought it in particular for someone else.
if he could, he would’ve done that for naeun but distance is needed and he can’t risk it as much as he did before, not when he got tied to a royal girl before and it hits a little too close to home.
debating looking for chanyeol again, which wouldn’t be hard considering he’s got ‘bruce,’ minho changes his mind once he spots yeji, walking up to her with a wave in greeting. “hey! so, i’ve given you flowers before but... want this lei? i think it’d look much better on you.”
he’s still chuckling even as he struggles to swim toward the edge of the pool again, arm wrapped around the unicorn’s neck. he may have majestically failed getting on the first time, but even if he has to stay there all night, he’s going to get onto this raft and enjoy his time feeling like pool royalty. he’s sure all it’s going to take is another good college try, but when it comes to things like this, you just never know. he’s seen enough videos online to know that much, at least.
“brain cells?” he says as he briefly lets go of the unicorn to hoist himself up and out of the water, turning so he sits at the pool’s edge. “when have i ever needed those?” he grins from ear to ear, indeed the perfect picture of acting before he has a chance to think. it’s how he’s always lived his life, and he doesn’t see a need to change now, especially when it’s brought him so many good things so far. he honestly doesn’t see anything in his life worth complaining about (though he does wish a debut would come sooner than later).
“here, why don’t you lend me your hands instead,” he says, pulling the unicorn toward him, bringing it as close to the edge as possible. it’s at his point that he notices a little pocket in the raft, a place to put a drink, probably. he contemplates going to grab a juice or something just so he can place one in there, but it’s probably better to learn how to get on it first; wouldn’t want to get juice all up in the pool, after all. “can you hold bruce—that’s his name, bruce—while i try to get on? he’s a slippery one, you know.”
“seriously, where did you even get this thing?” he’s been staring at it the entire time because are these easily found everywhere? he can’t even imagine where chanyeol bought it and if he bought it online, just how long ago did he prepare this? but it is chanyeol after all and minho knows you gotta be prepared to be feel unprepared around the gentle giant. expect to be surprised, is another way to put it.
“wow, you’ve forgotten asking me to lend you a few huh? really are missing some,” he jokes, wiggling his brows and sitting at the pool’s edge once chanyeol climbs up to do the same.
“oh, you can borrow my hands for whatever you want anytime,” he manages to not snicker for at least three second. doesn’t even wiggle his brows this time and had somewhat of a straight face. “oh, that’s what you want. how about... i’ll help you with bruce— not a very unicorn name if you ask me— if i get a a turn later. deal?”
he says that but, without waiting for an answer, he hops into the pool, letting out a loud “wherw” at how refreshingly cool the water is. unable to resist ducking his head under the water, he reemerges and throws his upper body over the edge of ‘bruce,’ grinning at chanyeol. “alright, hop on.”
there’s a vague memory at the back of his mind of another time they’d been given a chance like this, to relax and just have fun. there had been water involved back then too, along with a feeling of lightheadedness and a shortness of breath associated with trying to blow up a huge floating device without proper equipment. he’s learned since then, and this time brought along air pump to aid in the process. things went much more smoothly then, and the inflatable unicorn had been filled with air in no time, and it’s a bit bigger than he’d expected. he hopes none of the other people in the pool mind it when he places it in, positioning it so that he can get on.
“hey, check out my new ride,” he says to minho with a grin, using one hand to keep it steady and the other to gesture toward it. his concentration is then spent elsewhere, trying to board the inflatable object, but finding it more difficult than he’d anticipated. after a few mere moments of trying to think it over, he does what he does best and just goes for it, hopping off the concrete around the deep end of the pool and onto the flat surface of the unicorn’s base.
bad idea, as it turns out. as soon as he lands, the inflatable unicorn flips, sending him into the depths of the chlorinated water, sending the both of them upside down as he makes a grab for the unicorns neck. still, he’s laughing once he emerges from the water, immediately splashing water toward minho as he does. “don’t laugh,” he warns, even as he continues to do so himself. “it’s a learning process.”
deja vu strikes him and he can’t pinpoint exactly why. that doesn’t stop him from enjoying the moment as it is and he swears he’s on the verge of losing his mind when he spots chanyeol, looking at the inflatable unicorn and wondering just where the hell it came from. was that here earlier? if it was and he saw it, he surely would’ve ran for it, along with more than a handful of other trainees, that much he’s pretty damn sure of.
“did you...” he trails off, staring at chanyeol in disbelief, his scoff cut short by his laughter as he shakes his head, hands on his hips. “man, tell me you did not bring your own floatie to the party.” it looks fun as hell but also precarious. the odds of it having a hole or not being able to hold chanyeol’s weight is—
he doesn’t have time to consider all the logistics [and, truthfully, he doesn’t care all too much about them in the end] when chanyeol goes and practically launches himself at the thing. bursting into more laughter, minho falls to the floor, hand clutching his stomach and damn does he wish he had happened to take his phone out to record at the time. [there’s that rule about no phones but semantics, right?] snorting, his face twists in amused perplexity. “you think i could resist laughing?” in fact, being told not to sends him into another fit of laughter, wiping at his right eye as he imagines it all over again and nearly tears up. “i don’t think that involved brain cells at all, man. take mine again. you need it.”
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