But Andy only left Min Jae hanging as he returned to the cafeteria to make his presence known again. Hopefully, he hadn’t pushed his teasing too far. Min Jae was far too much fun to tease. A few stragglers were still stuffing themselves with a week’s worth of calories, but most of the guys had already moved on. Andy found Leo in their room hanging up the last of his clothing from his suitcase.
“Hey, Sacramento. I thought you’d ghosted for a bit.”
Andy nodded, affecting a frown and patting his stomach. After all the years of hiding being gay from half the people in his life, making up harmless lies on the spot was second nature. “Yeah, sorry. I was in the bathroom.” He grinned. That wasn’t even much of a lie.
“Ah, yeah your famous stomach strikes again.” Leo snorted. “I keep telling you to stay away from fried foods.”
Andy good-naturedly chuckled as he picked up his bag and set it on one of the newly vacated beds. “They’ll be the death of me, for sure. I assume Tae Oh and Si On found another room situation.”
Leo nodded. “Yeah, they took over the empty room next door. I’ll miss having them around, but, between you and me, I won’t miss Si On’s snoring one bit.”
“I’m sure you’ll still hear it through the walls.” Andy flipped his bag open and inspected the bundled wad of clothing he’d stuffed inside, frowning. He’d put off packing his stuff until the last minute that morning, and was suffering the consequences. “Not to mention Tae Oh’s wicked gas.”
“Yeah, that. For sure.” Leo snorted, jokingly waving his hand in front of his nose. “I don’t care how bad your stomach is. You’ve never touched Tae Oh’s after he goes too hard on thekimchi.” He closed his suitcase and sat beside it on his bed. “Did you ever talk to Min Jae at the party?”
Andy shook his head, sorting through the sweatshirts and t-shirts he’d brought to Min Jae’s house. “No. He was too busy putting together his Andy-hating committee.” Again, technically not a lie. He’d only talked to Min Jae after luring him away from the cafeteria. “It’s no biggie.”
Leo frowned. “I still say you’re taking things awfully well. I’d be pissed as hell to find out someone was using me like that just to get their top spot back.”
“I am pissed,” Andy confirmed. “But it’s not like I didn’t expect some backhandedness in a survival competition like this.” Also not really a lie. He was absolutely pissed as hell. Just not at Min Jae. But Director Choi wanted his act, so he’d get it. “It’s what the industry does to us. They use us for our talents and throw us away when we’re no longer needed.”
Leo slowly nodded, eyes narrowed. “That’s pretty dark. Especially for someone like you.”
“Maybe.” Andy put another hoodie back on its hanger. “Just because I’m a goofball half the time doesn’t mean I don’t see what’s really going on here.” He turned back to face Leo, knowing full well that he was probably pushing things a little too far with his ruthless honesty. But, fuck it. Choi had dropped the gauntlet. Andy was only picking it up. “But that’s not gonna stop me from debuting. I’ve worked way too hard to get here just to let some small-minded, self-important asshole get in the way.”
Leo thankfully shifted the conversation back to lighter topics after that, speculating about what the next mission would be, and openly hoping for the cafeteria to serve some of the leftover chicken during breakfast the next morning. Cold, leftover fried chicken was apparently one of his comfort foods.
Unfortunately, Leo didn’t get his wish. When he and Andy sauntered into the cafeteria the next morning, he was disappointed to discover that the crew had eaten the rest the nightbefore. Andy didn’t mind so much. He’d finally been able to take his time getting ready, only having to share the bathroom with Leo. They were scheduled to film the final mission announcement that morning, so he’d taken the time to be thoughtful about his wardrobe.
Trapped by the unseen maneuvers of a ruthless entertainment executive, Andy went with what felt like home. His favorite flannel—a soft, oversized blue and gray plaid that had been sun-faded to perfection—leaving it open over a simple white tee with the graphic of a California poppy so faded it was almost a ghost. A pair of relaxed-fit, faded black work pants, cuffed just above the ankles of his beat-up skate shoes. A simple silver chain and a gray beanie pushed back on his hair. Nothing flashy. Nothing high-fashion Seoul. Just pure Sacramento.
Andy and Leo ate breakfast with former roomies turned neighbors Tae Oh and Si On, who had already managed to devise at least a dozen inside jokes in the short time they’d roomed together as a twosome, including nicknames. Or, maybe they’d been like that all along and he just never noticed before.
A dozen sudden, hushed stares announced Min Jae’s entrance into the cafeteria. Andy sat facing away from the door, but Min Jae’s powerful presence loomed behind him, daring him to turn around. He didn’t, ignoring the questioning stares and his lingering, defiant need to see Min Jae’s face again. That would happen soon enough anyway, since it was mission day.
Andy and Leo had speculated at length about what the final mission would be. They were both almost certain it would involve original songs. That part excited Andy enough that he got chills every time he thought about it. Original song missions were the ultimate final test of a potential idol’s ability to make their presence known. Felt. Do well, and, even if you didn’t make the final cut, you were almost sure to debut with another company and group. Do poorly, and you’d better hope you didn’t burn too many bridges at your last barista job.
What Andy avoided speculating about–at least, out loud–was how the Dream Boys would be divided into their group. Would they be assigned by rank again? That would put Andy on Min Jae’s team, ensuring that the next week of having to work together as supposed rivals would be hell. But that wasn’t likely, not with Choi’s agenda. No, they’d be choosing their own teams somehow. Or, they’d have their teams chosen for them by the mentors or showrunners. However they managed it, Andy and Min Jae would have to end up on separate teams. It was the only way to guarantee a boost to the rivalry narrative. Min Jae and Andy, number one and number two ranks, whose #MinDy ship had sunk, going head-to-head in a final matchup. The Dream Makers would eat that shit right up.
Andy easily tracked Min Jae’s movements, even with his back turned, just by following the trails left by Tae Oh and Si On’s eyes. Their thoughts may as well have been written on their foreheads. He sighed. “If you keep staring at him like that, he’s gonna think you’re both mad at him, too.”
Tae Oh’s eyes widened in near panic as he immediately looked away. “I’m sorry, sunbaenim.”
Andy snorted. “And now I’m sunbae? What happened to hyung?” He shook his head. “One night away, and suddenly I’m a stranger?”
Tae Oh quickly shook his head. “No, not at all.” He shared a brief look with Si On, and Andy understood. They’d been talking about him, and it hadn’t all been good.
Andy sighed again. “Just say what’s on your mind, Tae Oh.”
Tae Oh frowned, glancing at Si On again. “It’s not like that, hyungnim.”
Andy huffed. Somehow, while he was dealing with all the drama from Choi and his enforced rivalry, Andy hadn’t considered that it might turn his allies against him, too. So much for loyalty. “And I’m asking, as your hyung, to tell me what’s on your mind.”
“It’s just,” Tae Oh began, pausing to share a third look with Si On. A sudden flare of irritation twitched in Andy’s hand as he fought off the urge to grab Tae Oh’s chin and force him to maintain eye contact. “Well, we don’t exactly understand what happened, hyungnim. We were talking with some of the other guys, and they said you were overreacting and blowing things out of proportion.”
It hadn’t even been 24 hours since his public blowup with Min Jae, and Andy was already losing support. If that was happening with the other Dream Boys, what would the Dream Makers think? Normally, Andy would just brush it off as gossip and hearsay. In an ideal world, he wouldn’t even be dealing with that bullshit at all. But he didn’t live in that world, leaving his only real option to double down.
“Blowing things out of proportion?” Andy leaned forward, fixing Tae Oh in place with a narrow-eyed glare. “Have I ever lied to you, Tae Oh?”
