charming giant

hey guys, i just wanted to let you all know that unfortunately after nine months here at famed i’ll be leaving :( i just really haven’t had a lot of time for rping lately, and i’ll be taking classes during the summer so i can get through college faster and graduate early, so i’m trying to put all my focus on that! i just wanna say thank you all for being such great rpers and making my time here so fun and enjoyable. i love all of you, even if we haven’t interacted or spoken to each other much! i’m sorry that i’m going to be dropping so many plots i’ve had planned with people, but i think it’s better for me to just take my leave instead of half assing my activity, you know? 

as for jihoon, xiu and wonpil, feel free to refer to them as npcs! i don’t mind at all. we’ll just say that jihoon finally went to get help with his issues, xiu went back to the states and wonpil is off modeling somewhere in italy lmao. 

i wish all of you the best, and i hope you all continue to enjoy this wonderful place that beth has created for us! 

“Are you sure about that, Choo Jihoon?” Trying not to laugh, Theo shook his head as he tried his best to keep up the act of pretending to scold Jihoon. Despite the other’s low mood, it was nice to be able to joke around like this with the younger boy; Theo didn’t get to spend as much time as he would like with Jihoon, but there was only so much you could share between twelve other boys. He couldn’t help but laugh quietly at Jihoon’s words, words he’d heard repeated to him at least a million times by this point. “Yeah, I’ve been told that’s a particularly strong weakness of mine,” He smiled slightly, focusing his attention on the brightly coloured packaging of the snacks he had bought as Jihoon talked. “The second coming? That’s exaggerating a little,” He replied, slightly amused at the thought before turning to look at the other again. “Everyone deserves help, Jihoon. If you’re not comfortable asking for help now then that’s okay, but you know most of the boys would be more than happy to give you a shoulder to lean whenever you feel ready.”

“I’m positive. You really shouldn’t doubt me so much. It’s a little offensive that you have such little faith in me, hyung.” The lighthearted back and forth made Jihoon feel a little bit better in that moment. It was nice to have a few moments of some slither of happiness. It was like a sparse ray of light shining through the dark cloud that had permanently taken up residence over his head for the past three years now. In the beginning it was easier to pretend like it wasn’t there, especially when he had so many loving and supportive people around him, but the past few months with everything that had happened it became increasingly difficult for him to force himself to smile through it all. “I don’t think it’s an exaggeration. You’d be surprised to find out just how many people would agree with me if I told them that’s what I thought about you. You’re a great person, hyung.” And he sincerely meant that. “Of course I know that. I just.. I don’t know, I’m just being stupid, I guess.”

    ─ the elder of the two was no s t r a n g e r to hostile run-ins with authoritative figures, at times forced to steal stale bread and half-rotten fruit from street vendors to feed his younger sister while their father laid in some ditch, drunk or beaten unconscious. it was with the same carefree bite to his smile that he greeted the torch bearing intruder, quite determined to r e m a i n seated for the entirety of the movie, uncaring of the scene they were causing or the repercussions that could be had, if anyone were to pinpoint them as two members of a boy group. the sudden thrill at being caught, the prospect of running and laughing into the air without a c a r e in the world made him reckless, broken out of such a stupor only by the firm tugging on his sleeve, reminding him that he had another person under his watch and that he was no longer just a boy on the streets.

    ( somehow, he knew ─ had he been a l o n e, the jut of his chin would have remained stubborn, refusal to move giving rigidity to his limbs. he could not do that with jihoon by his side, however, not wanting to drag the other member into the mud alongside him. )

    pride is s w a l l o w e d as his body lifts up from the seat, following in surprisingly silence with jihoon’s words, a subtle curl of distaste to his lips. “i was not causing a scene. people were just eavesdropping.” muttered excuse to his companion as they were marched down the aisle, akin to doing a walk of shame ─ he glances over to make sure jihoon’s head is ducked down to c o n c e a l his identity, the darkness of the room aiding in their trial to remain incognito. “are you alright ? got everything with you ? they didn’t push you around too much, did they ?”

it was frustrating, to say the least, that they had been asked to leave. even though jihoon wasn’t really paying attention to the film they had bought tickets for, he still didn’t want to leave. there was just something so deliciously normal and tedious about going to a movie theater that he loved. it was a place he could go without being recognized by people, because it was so dark and usually he had a face mask to pair along with it, so his identity was definitely protected. only real, diehard fans would be able to identify him, but luckily the two members of charm hadn’t run into any of those as of yet. he was worried that on their way out of the theater they would be noticed, but those worries were quickly wiped away when they escaped with no problem. with his free hand, he dug around in his pocket, pulling out his face mask and slipping it on with practiced ease.

he wanted to say that he was mad at jihyuk. that he wanted to yell at him and tell him off for being so difficult and not letting the subject go when he had asked him to, but he couldn’t find it in himself to hold onto any anger or irritation. those emotions had bled out of him as soon as they entered the lit hallway of the theater.

“you were causing a scene. i asked you to please let it go but you kept pushing and now we’re being kicked out.” he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “i’m fine, hyung. don’t worry about me.” that was a response that had become so engrained in him that he said it without even thinking - a reflex if you will. “are you alright?” it seemed as though the older male was more upset than he was that they had been asked to leave the theater. “did you want to go somewhere else? we can go get something to eat if you want.” jihoon’s stomach rumbled as soon as he brought up food, and it dawned on him that he hadn’t eaten since that morning.

        sock — covered feet lifted up & tucked underneath the weight of his thighs ; his curvy legs forming a graceful criss — cross as his rotund rear — end sank further into the couch in their living room. nights spent in the comfortable company of his roommates were his absolute favorite, especially when he was able to reconnect with one that he hadn’t necessarily gotten a chance to talk to nearly as much as the others. in their household, the maknae was closest to théo, but he also was able to connect with tommy & the remainder of the PERFORMANCE UNIT more than the remaining seven men. it wasn’t as though their company caused rifts between them, but it was natural as each sub — group focused on different elements of performance, so whenever rehearsals or whatever else would ensue, they would stick to those in the same category until running each track in completion was approprate. in this case, he & jihoon were friends —— more like BROTHERS at this rate —— but due to their contrasting strengths, they didn’t get a whole lot of bonding time in unless it was the hours spent sleeping when they shared a bed, or whenever the smallest would ask for guidance as far as singing was concerned. the tallest member of CHARM had an effortlessly stunning voice, & being that he, too, would ultimately have to lend vocals to a song in order to contribute to the music they’d release, learning proper technique & support was crucial to him. after all, he hoped that, at some point, he’d be featured more in title tracks if he worked hard enough. either way, he was glad that he was welcomed to sit beside his elder in a moment like this ; a fond smile decorating his visage as he glanced over to his comrade. ❝ & that’s okay with me, hoon — hyung. just wanted you to know that my ears are yours if you need them. ❞

        however, in that moment, an inquiry ran through his mind that he hadn’t asked very many people yet, & he hoped that he wasn’t going to be too intrusive by doing so. swallowing nerves, he licked over his lips, & set his cinnamon — dusted hues back on the main vocalist. ❝ hey, hyung ?? ah, i’m sorry that i keep interrupting your show, but i have a question for you. ❞ yunyeong began, dampening his petals with his tongue. ❝ h — have you ever been in love ?? ❞

dancing wasn’t one of jihoon’s strongest suits. he tended to stick to what he knew, and that was singing. he could dance well enough to get by, and he wasn’t horrible at it, but he did struggle with it a lot in the beginning of his training. his years under bc as a trainee had taught him enough dance technique to be able to not fall behind the others too much, but it was still quite noticeable that he wasn’t a strong dancer. there was a reason he wasn’t in the performance unit after all. his singing surpassed his dancing by far, and that was what really mattered to him. he could sing and he had proper stamina, so he didn’t sound bad while doing both at the same time. that was all that mattered, right? because of their separated groupings, he didn’t get many opportunities to hang out with yunyeong as much as the other performance unit members did. most of the time jihoon was either in vocal practice, in the studio or doing something cf or brand endorsement related. he considered yunyeong to fall under the same category he placed every other member of charm - brother, but they weren’t particularly close. they didn’t spend enough time with one another to be considered the best of friends. jihoon was the closest with taeho, theo and astral being very close seconds to his best friend. it wasn’t that jihoon didn’t like yunyeong, they just didn’t get the chance to spend time with one another. in the three years they had known one another, they hadn’t had any real alone time. someone else was always in the room with them, or they just weren’t in the same room alone for too long before one of them or both of them had to go. “you don’t have to call me hyung, you know? we’re only two months apart in age.” 

“You’re picking on your poor hyung, that’s what” Theo replied, letting out a soft laugh as he placed some more snacks into his mouth. “What’s with you kids in the maknae line suddenly talking back?” It always left Theo in disbelief when he realised how much the younger members of Charm had grown up; it felt like only yesterday when they were still being rushed out of the door to get to school in time, and now here they were, all adults now. “Because I’m trying to help you not end up like me, Jihoon,” Theo replied in a rare moment of openness. It wasn’t often that he would openly share his feelings with the younger members, rather trying to sort his problems out by himself or with the help of the older members. However, in this case, he decided that maybe it was necessary for Jihoon to understand what it was like for him. “There are lots of things I’m working on improving, this is one of them. I’m trying my best to make myself a better person, to myself and to other people. I just don’t want you to have to go through carrying similar burdens to the ones I have, you know?”

“I’m not picking on you, I’m just trying to ask you some questions.” He kept his tone sweet and innocent, adding a shoulder shrug for good measure. “Talking back? I don’t know what you’re talking about. I thought we were just having a conversation about how wrong you are.” Jihoon smiled brightly at him. "End up like you?” He scoffed, his eyebrows furrowing together. “There’s nothing wrong with you. I mean, besides your inability to realize that you shouldn’t be so down on yourself and that you need to start putting yourself first a lot more.” Besides that, Jihoon didn’t see any faults in Theo. Apart from what he had just said, he thought the older male was virtually perfect. Almost to the point that Jihoon was envious. “You don’t need to be a better person to other people. If you were any better, people would think you were the second coming. I know, but I just don’t think that anyone else should have to deal with my burdens because it’s not like I deserve the help. It’s my fault I have them.” 

『 Exhaustion was all Doohwan felt upon looking at the mess before him. He came to his favorite restaurant that specializes in homemade food. He’s been doing this since he arrived in Seoul. The place has a very affordable menu and the owner was an old woman who enjoyed watching her customers enjoy her food. Seeing now the messy table that some people left, he was boiling up. How can someone even leave the table like this? Do they not realize how hard it is for employees to tend so many tables? He was annoyed and yet he couldn’t just ignore the mess. 

Doohwan lets out a heavy sigh while piling up the dishes. “Do these people even know what table manners are?” The male starts mumbling to himself. His fans would faint at the sight of him trying to help. It would do good for Origin’s image but it wasn’t doing him any good because he was getting annoyed. It was evident. His face tells it all. He glanced at the old woman who was clearing up the tables. “Auntie, let me help you with those.“ Doohwan smiles at the old woman who looks at him with kind eyes and a wide smile before thanking him and leaving. Not expecting another person to help out of the blue. He looks at the person and grins. “I didn’t expect to see you here.” 』

Jihoon had made a habit of making sure that he left a good impression on everyone that he met. He had been frequenting that restaurant for as long as he could remember, his parents taking him and his siblings there when he was younger. He had taken many friends there when he was a trainee, and even when he had become an idol. It was one of his favorite restaurants and he loved the food there. Most importantly, he loved the owner. His first encounter with her had been when he was a little boy and he had helped her clean up a bunch of silverware that had been knocked over. Ever since then she had referred to him as her “favorite little helper”, which always made him laugh. 

The present time was no different. He had been waiting to order when he noticed that there was a rather cluttered table a few feet away. That was one of his biggest pet peeves. It was only worse because everyone knew that the old woman did pretty much everything around the restaurant, including cleaning up, so they knowingly left that big mess for her to clean up on her own. He got up to go over to help, smiling slightly when he realized who it was. “Hey, sunbaenim.” He bowed his head slightly, before moving on to collect the dirty dishes. “I come here a lot, whenever I have free time. I’ve been coming here since I was a little boy.”

Taking a late walk around Han River, Anna was enjoying the evening spring breeze. It wasn’t that late. It was just that around that time of the day that most people would be home already. Resting after a long day of hard work and spending time with their loved ones, but Anna only has her dogs at home and they were sleeping when she left them. Having decided it was better to maybe drive off somewhere, take a long walk to clear her mind and find some nice coffee shop nearby and drink some coffee. 

It was a nice time to be alone and she can probably eat something, hoping this small walk would boost her appetite. Taking photos of the peaceful scenery before her, she checks the photos she took and sees a familiar face in the photo. Zooming in, it surprised her to see that person there. Probably because she didn’t expect another idol to be at the same place at such hour of the day. She walks towards them, pulling down her hoodie as she walks towards them. “Hi.” She greets with an excited wave of her hand. “I took your photo by chance so I thought I should at least greet you and say hello.”

The past few weeks had been surprisingly calm for Jihoon. Despite what had happened two months ago with the whole scandal involving him and being dropped from brand deals and drama roles, things had been good. Things were slowly but surely getting better. On the surface, that is. Almost everyone had gone back to thinking that Jihoon was okay and that he was getting over the little rebellious streak he had gone through those several weeks when he was going to bars whenever he had the free time. That was what he wanted them to think.

Seeing as how he couldn’t drink to put his mind at ease, he started going on walks in the late evening to get his thoughts together. It had proven to be quite effective for him, although not as much as his previous vices, but it was a nice substitute. The Han River was his favorite place to take a stroll, the entire atmosphere being relaxing and calming. People rarely bothered him when he was there, which was why he was so surprised when someone approached him. The removal of their hood made him relax a little, and he smiled. “Hi, sunbaenim!” He bowed his head. “You did? Can I see it?” 

“Let’s not get too cheeky now, I’m still your hyung. I can take away your allowance if I want to,” Theo replied back, his tone firm but the smile on his face indicating that he was teasing Jihoon just as much as Jihoon was teasing him. It pleased Theo to see Jihoon acting at least the slightest bit happier, even if it was at his expense. However, he wasn’t sure he exactly wanted to talk to Jihoon about something like this - not because he felt like the other didn’t deserve to know how he felt, but rather he just didn’t want to burden Jihoon when he clearly had his own problems to deal with first. “It’s not something I can stop so easily, Jihoon-ah,” Theo began with a sigh, turning to look at the younger properly. “There’s a lot of people who look up to me for help or guidance or something, I can’t just basically tell them to go away and sort things out themselves.” Turning his body to rest his head on the couch, he shrugged a little as he began to speak once again. “Hyung will be okay, I always am. I don’t want you to worry too much about me, Jihoon. I’ve managed to deal with it for this long already, right?”

“I’m not being cheeky, I’m just stating the facts. Are you only saying I’m being cheeky because you know that I’m right?” The slight teasing back and forth made Jihoon feel a little bit better, if only for a few moments. Soon enough, much sooner than he would have liked, he found his smile fading away again and he rest his head back against the couch, closing his eyes and letting out a heavy sigh. The few fleeting moments of happiness were starting to become fewer and farther in between, and he found himself having a hard time enjoying even small exchanges like that. Or if he did enjoy them, the enjoyment was only there for a few moments. When he was really lucky, it last for a few hours. “Think about what you’re saying, hyung. How you’re feeling right now, how you don’t want people to worry about you, how it’s hard for you to talk about what’s bothering you. I feel the same way. I’ve dealt with my own problems for a long time too. So how can you sit there and give me advice when you can’t even take your own?”

        it was inevitable that living in a dormitory that housed an array of different personality types had its UPSIDES & DOWNSIDES. however, the overwhelming sense of family that the smaller male felt whenever all twelve of his hyungs were home with him made him feel so secure, & the lack of privacy was hardly noticed by the youngest in the few years that they’d been in their usual residential complex. though, just because he didn’t have any severe issues with their arrangements didn’t mean that the others didn’t, so whenever jihoon craved to be left to his own devices, the smallest would have to understand & not take it to heart, which he’d gotten great about doing after a few months. so, without hesitating, he nodded his head & sat on his own side of the couch ; pupils fixated to the television screen before the two of them as they lounged. ❝ is this the drama that you’ve been talking to us about ?? i wish i would’ve started watching it with you sooner ! ❞ he spoke in a hushed tone, not wanting to disrupt anything important. ❝ are you sure that everything’s okay with you, by the way ?? you don’t have to, y’know, talk about anything if you don’t want to, but just know that, if you ever wanted to, I’M HERE FOR YOU, okay ?? yunnie’s always got your back. ❞ a giggle escaped from betwixt his lips, & offered a genuine smile to emphasize his words further. the first main vocalist of their group had always leant him ears whenever he needed to vent, so he’d always return the favor. 

sometimes, all dax needed to do was get the fuck away from everything. there would be times where his head just seemed to fill up too much with pointless garbage to a point where even dancing it out didn’t help. it didn’t happen often; normally he could go to the studio or out to a club and decompress, but that night was the exception. it was nearly midnight and the streets weren’t too busy at the moment, most people probably already asleep for their workday the next day. with his phone turned off, cap pulled low on his face and mask covering the bottom half, he strolled quietly through the streets of seoul until he reached his destination. the cgv. 

pulling his wallet out of his back pocket, he ordered one back row ticket for some random action movie that looked like it could distract him from himself for almost two hours. dax grabbed a large popcorn and soda before heading to the theater, pleased to see only one other person in the entire room. they were sitting a few rows ahead of him, so he propped his feet up onto the seat directly in front of him. the trailers droned on and he took off his face mask to get more comfortable, resting his head in his hand while he waited for the show to finally begin. that is, until, he heard someone calling his name. apparently, only-other-person-in-this-theater knew his face in dim theater lighting and knew him well enough to disturb him in a place where most people kept their distance. 

“okay, i can’t see you at all, but please let me enjoy my movie in piece. i’ll sign an autograph or take a selfie with you afterwards,” dax deadpanned, not particularly in the mood to entertain a fan.

jihoon didn’t really have the time to go to movie theaters and actually sit down to enjoy a film. usually there were so many things that were on his plate that he barely had time to breathe, and he knew that would only get worse as time went on. charm were only getting bigger and bigger and the bigger they got, the more things bc would give them. of course it was logical and it made sense that the more popular you were, the more work you would get, but that didn’t make it any less physically exhausting. luckily for him, april was looking to be a pretty slow month, for them, and he had a lot of free time on his hands. 

he found himself at a movie theater late at night, or early in the morning depending on how you looked at things, eyes scanning the movie titles that were currently playing. unsurprisingly, he didn’t recognize any of them. he was so behind on current pop culture that didn’t regard music, it was a little embarrassing. he just decided on the title that was the most eye catching to him. it sounded like an action film, so hopefully there would be enough explosions and intense fighting scenes to keep him entertained for the next few hours. sitting alone in the empty theater was a lot more peaceful than jihoon assumed it would be, although that peace soon came to an end when the doors opened and someone else entered. he turned his head slightly to get a look at them, surprise coloring his expression when he realized who it was. he hesitated for a moment, before parting his lips and calling his name.

( ✉ → ?) okay…..

( ✉ →?) would you kill me if i got a pet?

( ✉ →?) i’m tossing up between a rosy boa, a turtle or a whippet

( ✉ →? ) the girls in my dorm, wouldn’t mind……

( ✉ →?) actually i’m not sure about hyejung and snakes…

( ✉ → eunwoo) a pet?

( ✉ → eunwoo) are you sure that’s a good idea?

( ✉ →eunwoo) not that i’m saying you’d be a bad pet owner but 

open starter.

the past couple of weeks have been hell for eunchae. when the news first broke about her grandmother’s condition, she was in the studio— she couldn’t remember what exactly she was doing exactly— but all she remembered was the feeling of her heart dropping and her whole world stopping. she told nobody about what she was going through as she hated the feeling of people feeling sorry for her, looking at her with sympathy; she didn’t need them. what she needed was her grandmother to get better. for the longest time, her grandmother was her support system, her pillar, her foundation and without her, eunchae would crumble.

when news broke of her hiatus, she could care less about how the public reacted. she needed to be with her family right now. hours turned into days and days into weeks. eunchae lost track of time as she’s been at the hospital, hoping and praying for some sort of improvement. it was sad that she had to leave in the middle of idolized and the only time she’d hear about it was when she’d check her phone or when she’d miraculously decide to leave the hospital when she’d feel a little too suffocated. 

the female adjusted the mask on her face and the cap on her head in the hopes to hide her identity and to conceal how much of a mess she was being cooped up in the hospital for too long. coffee. she needed coffee. and so she got one. the stronger, the better. hey, it was better than alcohol. as she looked up from taking a large sip from her warm cup, her eyes connected with some familiar. “were you buying coffee as well?” eunchae’s voice a bit weary— tired maybe. “here, let me pay for yours. don’t even worry about it.” the mask dangling on the side of her face. “im glad i ran into you. how’s the documentary?” the one she was missing out. 

with everything charm had been through the past two months, mostly because of jihoon and his mistake several weeks ago, things had been particularly stressful for the thirteen members, but it seemed to be getting a little better. now that they didn’t have to live with their manager twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, things had eased up around the dorm. jihoon had began to feel a little bit less guilty about his mistakes. there were only so many times that he could apologize to his group mates for what he had done before the apologies began to get a little repetitive, and he had gone well over that limit weeks ago. 

april was turning out to be one of their slower months, which was just fine for jihoon. he didn’t mind taking a little bit of a break, without really taking a break. they were still doing performances here and there and they had filming for idolized, but they were also working on their japanese album. that was just enough work for jihoon to not feel overwhelmed, but also not feel underwhelmed or restless either. when charm didn’t have anything scheduled, he tended to feel antsy and restless. he was able to distract himself with perfecting his japanese and recording for the album, but he had more than enough time for breaks whenever he felt as though he needed them.