Madelyn

azywhwa Ⓒ 2026

You wait in front of the cafe, hoping to whichever omniscient being there is that your bestfriend didn‘t get catfished. Your bestfriend is unsuspiciously waiting for her dream boy to arrive as well. As a safety measure, you two have decided that your best friend would monitor your meetup and coach you so that he doesn‘t suspect anything.

Time starts going on pretty slow and you feel like you AND your friend got ghosted. While silently mourning the chance of meeting such a pretty boy — speaking of which has just appeared in front of you, panting and out of breath: “Hi.“ he says once he catches his breath.

The guy is the epitome of your type: Cute, childish and charismatic.

“Hey!“ you say relieved.

You both go inside the cafe and order your acai bowls: “One bowl with strawberries, strawberry purée, whey protein, paçoca, and honey please!“ you and ‘Kyungmin‘ say in unison, making the cashier giggle at how similar you two already are.

Waiting for your orders strain into awkward silence - neither of you know nothing about each other. You smile at him politely and he mirrors your actions.

“Nice weather, huh?“ you hear a facepalm from an unnoticable distance.

At this moment, you slightly spiral, believing you‘ve ruined your best friend‘s chances with the love of her life due to your awkwardness. You try to go through the notes your friend gave you before the date to atleast make him not think you/your friend is an unsociable asshole. He seems to be uninterested in engaging conversation whatsoever since he‘s also on his phone and pursing his lips. That‘s it. You‘ve ruined everything. All your friends hard work, all his hard work. You shouldn‘t have agreed to this it was stupid idea of course he wouldn‘t believe this kind of sham of course he would have seen through this bullshit I mean what were you thinking he may have seemed childish but that is STILL a person who is smart enough to know you‘ve LIED YOU‘RE A LIAR A BIG FAT STUPI-

Your bowls arrive and you both leave out a sigh of relief, making the two of you giggle. Laughing the awkward atmosphere off, the boy finally starts a conversation.

“So I heard you play ball?“ he smiles, smiling as if you could fall in love with him at any moment - FOCUS! He‘s interested in YOUR best friend, they have been basically in a LDR since forever. Don‘t ruin this for her.

“Yep!! You too?“ you take a bite of your bowl, ignoring the butterflies you feel as you realize how similar the two of you are.

The conversation flows smoothly afterwards, you talk about multiple topics and end up with silly but also similar thoughts on each topic. You could talk for hours with him and feel it was only a few seconds and this does happen. At the moment you two suddenly realize how late it‘s become. The sun has already set, your best friend is giving you signs and wrting you to finish up, both of your bowls have been empty for a while now and the cafe is cleaning up the place - a sign that they would like to close up. Even with all those factors that give you both reasons to end the day, you don‘t want the day to end, no, you don‘t want this date to end.

“Since you play, do you want to head up to the court before going home?“ your eyes sparkle with excitement with this offer.

On the way to the weather has gotten a bit chilly, making you shiver as a small breeze blows through. He notices and drapes his windbreaker over your shoulders. You look at him and wanted to express gratitude when you notice that he‘s already looking away from you with a stupid proud grin plastered on his face with red ears. It makes you wonder if he‘s embarassed, shy, crushing or simply just cold.

As you arrive at the basketball court, the rush of playing suddenly kicks in - you‘re ready to play. Before the small game between the two of you start though, ‘Kyungmin‘ packs out a bluetooth speaker and connects his phone to it. “I‘m more in the flow when I listen to my favorite artists.“ he chuckles, trying to play it off. Instead of an irritated expression that he expected, you actually seem overjoyed he shares the same mindset.

“Which artists do you listen to?“ you ask him with astonishment screaming in your eyes.

“It varies sometimes Oasis, maybe Radiohead orrr..“ ‘Kyungmin‘ then starts playing “Dominic Fike!!“ you squeal in excitement “I can‘t believe it, this is my favorite song from him.“ “WAIT?? You too???“ he runs his fingers through his hair “Man, the more i know about you, the more I think I was meant for you!“

Hearing him says that brings a shiver down your spine for some reason. It feels like you‘re stealing him away from your best friend but you can‘t disagree that the chemistry between the two of you is there.

Suddenly you notice eyes glancing towards the both of you while playing (or atleast trying to play - you‘re way too out of it to focus) and that‘s the reminder that you needed. Despite the chemistry, you have to let him go because he was never yours in the first place. Gathering all your courage you go over to your best friend (who seems to have gotten acquainted with somebody? nevermind that isn‘t important), drag her to ‘Kyungmin‘ and finally tell the truth:

“Kyungmin, this is Francis. She accidentally sent a photo of me instead of herself, but she is the person you have been talking to since forever. It‘s her personality that you fell in love with and she‘s the one. Francis is your dream girl.“ You step away from the court, embarassed to believe you two could actually happen and apologize again. That‘s the last thing ‘Kyungmin‘ hears from you before you run away.

Running seemed to be the most natural thing for you. Flight or Fight is human instinct after all. Although you could have never chosen fight - I mean, who would sacrifice their friendship for a boy? Not you, that‘s for sure.

You can‘t help it, but tears slowly start dropping while running away. There‘s a slight pain in your chest that you just can‘t seem to get, as if no medicine in the entire world could ever heal this pain you feel. The sadness hits you in waves, the next one bigger than the one before until it‘s as huge as a tsunami that could drown you in sorrow and drown your hopes and dreams with it. Being so focused from your crying, you hadn‘t noticed the small gap on the trail, which made you trip. Like a salt to a wound, you go from small sobs to uncontrollable wailing in an instant. It reminds you of the little kid who got hurt from playing, crying and sniffling, wishing someone would come over and help you - maybe take you away and comfort you with such softness and love. But you know that would never happen. You always knew.

No one would help you. Just like nobody did when you were a little girl, helpless, alone, unlovable.

You curl up into a ball due to all the pain you‘ve suffered this entire date. And keep weeping.

Just then, you feel a tap on your shoulder - it‘s ‘Kyungmin‘. He seems worried and concerned. Out of breath and panting, he blurts out “Finally. I found you.“ before trying to catch his breath again. You‘re confused. Why is he here? He should have been with Francis. Oh god did he leave her? To chase after you? Did a guy go in between your friendship?

He lets out another huge sigh before giving you a tight hug, as if if he let you go, you would fly away or disappear into thin air. He‘s warm. His hug gives you a sense of comfort. Although you‘re unsure if you should hug back, still worried as to why he ran to you and leaving your best friend alone. At that moment, your best friend is also walking towards you with that mystery acquaintance at the court earlier as well. It seems like you missed a chapter.

Before you get that explanation ‘Kyungmin‘ checks on your wounds, tends to them and questions you if you‘re okay. You nod before he wraps you into a hug again. He helps you off the ground and brings you to a park bench to take a seat. “I haven‘t been totally honest to you either.“ he looks away ashamed “We kinda did the same thing you guys did.“ Your eyes widen at the revelation. Francis intervenes as to hope to not make it awkward “The guy right next to me is the real Kyungmin. We were both scared for some reason and thought we wouldn‘t like the other.“

“Ahhhh this is embarassing. Can we just start off fresh?“ ‘Kyung- no this total stranger asks you. But is he a total stranger? More like your soulmate. Yeah. Your soulmate asks you.

So you answer. “I‘m Yani. I like acai, playing basketball and Dominic Fike. But I also like more things and you‘ll know it soon enough once we get to know each other.“

“Keonho. I‘m Ahn Keonho. I like all those things too but I‘d like to get you more better. I‘m sure we‘re more similar than we think.“ He finally smiles again. God that smile. This time, you‘re glad because you know you can fall in love with him - no consequences.

The members of CORTIS were many things.

They were talented, hardworking, and dedicated.

Professional when cameras were rolling but the second those cameras turned off? Absolute disasters. Which was exactly why the dorm door suddenly swung open at 10:15 p.m and their manager looked seconds away from retirement.

The living room immediately went silent. Martin froze halfway through trying to balance a water bottle on his forehead. Keonho stopped running from Seonghyeon. Juhoon lowered his phone.

Y/n looked up from the couch. James glanced up from his phone. Their manager stood in the doorway holding a folder. A very familiar folder. One everyone immediately recognized.

"Oh no." Someone whispered.

The manager pointed at the couch "Sit."

Nobody argued that's was how serious the situation was. Five minutes later the six members sat shoulder to shoulder on the couch while their manager paced in front of them.

"I received another email."

Collective groans "Noo..."

"Yes."

Martin slowly lowered his head.

"It was one email."

"It was three." He corrected Martin assumption. The room became quiet. Because Three? Where did that come from?

"How do you get three noise complaints in one week?" Their manager sounded genuinely impressed. Which somehow felt worse.

Nobody answered, the manager opened the folder.

"Friday." He began reading. "Loud yelling in hallway after midnight."

Martin pointed at Keonho. "It was him."

Keonho's eyes widened whipping his head to him. "YOU WERE YELLING TOO."

"Not the point." The manager pointed, he continued. "Repeated sounds of running."

The members immediately looked at Martin "Traitors." He narrowed his eyes to his so called friends.

"Someone shouting 'I'M FAST AS FREAK BOY' at 11:43 p.m." The manager continued. The room erupted in laughter. Even Y/n was crying laughing. Martin looked horrified.

"WHO REPORTED THAT?"

The manager continued reading. "Unknown individual screaming after seeing a spider."

Keonho slowly raised his hand. "It was big."

"It was a dust bunny." Seonghyeon laughed

"It was a threatening dust bunny."

The manager pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Guys." The room quieted. "You live around other people." Silence. "You cannot treat the hallway like a sports arena." More silence not a peep from anyone

"You especially." He pointed directly at Martin.

Martin looked personally attacked. "What did I do?" Every member immediately pointed at him.

"Okay fair."

Their manager sighed. "I don't care what you do tonight." Hope appeared. "But be quiet." The hope vanished. Then he pointed at all six of them.

"Especially after midnight."

And with one final exhausted look, he turned around and headed toward his room. The manager lived in the dorm with them to help keep schedules organized. Unfortunately for him, that also meant living with teenagers .

The second his door closed nobody spoke. Because surprisingly...The lecture worked.

At least a little the dorm slowly settled down.

Juhoon disappeared into his shared room with headphones. Seonghyeon moved to the floor to build a puzzle he'd been working on for weeks.

Keonho curled up on the couch with a game.

Martin attempted whispering however attempted being the key word.

"Guys."

"Martin."

"What?"

"You're yelling."

"I'm literally whispering."

He was not meanwhile James quietly returned to his phoneThe dorm eventually grew comfortable.

It turned into soft and peaceful. The kind of quiet that rarely happened around them. Around 11:30 p.m., Y/n stretched "I'm going to bed."

"Night, noona."

"Goodnight."

"Don't let Martin start another hallway race."

"I HEARD THAT."

Y/n laughed and headed toward her room. For the first time all day. Everything felt calm. She completed her usual routine. Skin care came first. Hair tied back, face washed, moisturizer, lip balm. The whole process practically happened on autopilot. After changing into an oversized t-shirt and pajama shorts, she climbed into bed. Her phone illuminated the dark room.

A random K-drama episode played quietly. Something she'd already seen twice. The familiar voices slowly blended together. Her eyes grew heavier and heavier. Until eventually the phone slipped from her hand and Y/n knocked out completely.

Sunday arrived.

The dorm was unusually peaceful. No schedules, no rehearsals, no content filming, there was nothing. A rare free day.

James woke first. He walked into the kitchen at 7:45 a.m. and didn't see her... Ok weird she's usually up by this time he thinks to himself.

Then Juhoon entered at 7:50. He looked at James becoming confused on why James has a confused look on his face. Eventually everyone slowly emerged from their rooms. Well everyone except Y/n.

At first nobody noticed then Martin looked around. "Where's noona?" The room paused.

Good question where is Y/n? Usually she was already awake by now. Usually she was the one waking everyone else.

"She's probably sleeping."

"At nine?" The members exchanged looks. Strange though not impossible just strange. So naturally. Operation Wake Up Y/n began.

Phase One Keonho. He knocked on her door waiting a few seconds before saying "Noona?"

Nothing.. he tried again "Y/n?"

Nothing again He returned to his members "She's gone."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know."

Phase Two was Juhoon. He was polite, reasonable definitely normal but failed instantly.

Phase Three Martin. He Lasted thirty seconds before a pillow launched from the room and hit him directly in the chest. Mission failed.

Phase Four was Seonghyeon he somehow forgot he was supposed to wake her up. He walked into her room and sat on the floor like it was nothing Scrolled through TikTok and he returned ten minutes later. The members stared in disbelief

"You forgot."

"...Maybe."

At this point it was nearly ten. James eventually checked. He opened the door quietly. Y/n was completely knocked out. She was curled beneath blankets snoring lightly, not moving. James stared for a second then shrugged.

"Let her sleep."

Nobody argued the girl clearly needed it. So they gave up and honestly? They forgot about it. By noon everyone was hanging around the living room. Martin was annoying Juhoon, Keonho was losing a game, Seonghyeon was eating andJames was doom scrolling. It was normal then...

A bedroom door opened nobody noticed. Y/n shuffled into the kitchen still half asleep. Her hair messy, eyes barely open. She grabbed a water bottle twisting the cap taking a long drink and finally turned around. Six inches from her face

"Y/N!"

The scream nearly launched her soul from her body. "WHA—" Water went everywhere.

Martin was laughing so hard he fell off the couch. Keonho was dying. Juhoon couldn't breathe. Even James looked dangerously close to having tears form from how hard he was laughing.

Y/n clutched her chest "I THOUGHT I WAS BEING MURDERED."

"YOU WERE ALIVE."

"OBVIOUSLY." She yelled

"WE DIDN'T KNOW THAT." Keonho said calming down his laughter

"What?" The members immediately began talking over each other.

"You slept until noon."

"We tried waking you up."

"You ignored all of us."

"We thought you entered a coma."

"No, KEONHO thought that."

"Close enough."

Y/n stared then slowly looked around the room. "You all spent your free day trying to wake me up?" Silence.

"...Maybe."

The realization hit they had genuinely been worried because she never overslept. Never and now they looked weirdly relieved. Which made Y/n laugh. "You guys are ridiculous."

Martin pointed dramatically. "And you're terrifying when unconscious."

The room exploded again their manager opened his door. He took one look at the chaos and immediately shut it again. Not his problem. Not today.

…

Martin really was only paying half attention to the show. The introduction was pretty engaging, but otherwise he'd only glance up at the screen occasionally. The flashes of coloured costumes in his peripheral vision grabbed his attention pretty well.

Not that he cares.

They introduced a lot of the hopefuls and veterans early on. He wonders how they select them for TV, they're supposed to be cheerleaders—right? Did they choose girls who already had camera experience or maybe they chose girls who weren't shy.

Regardless, one of the girls caught his eye.

She was sitting on her bed during confessionals, legs crossed with an unsure smile on her face. As all the other girls, she was talking about her dreams of making the team and how stressed she is. She's not from the Dallas area—it's adding to her nerves.

He thinks she's pretty.

He might as well root for her—he didn't catch your name but they'll show it again, they have to.

The episode moves pretty quickly towards the auditions stage, which seemed pretty hardcore. None of the guys realized how desirable a spot on the team was. Apparently people quit their jobs and fly to the other side of the country just for a chance.

Sounds familiar.

"Oh wow, that girl's a really good dancer," Keonho remarks.

"Her technique is so precise. I wonder how long she's been dancing for," James adds.

It's the same girl from earlier. She's more than a good dancer. Beautiful extensions, lively expressions, unreal musicality. Her pink flowy skirt moves as if it's a part of her. Even all the judges are impressed, having good things to say about her in their notes. He doesn't think it's a stretch to say she was made to perform.

He's made a good draft pick.

Eventually the typing of his keys slows, he didn't think anyone would notice. He himself didn't even notice until he felt a nudge on his shoulder. Seonghyeon’s making an expression at him that he can't quite make out. Is he teasing him for paying attention to the show more?

By the time the second episode starts, his computer is closed and has been abandoned on the coffee table in front of him.

"Who are you rooting for so far guys?" Seonghyeon asks.

"I like the goth girl," Keonho says, "She seems cool."

"True, I'm cheering for the Australian girl now," Juhoon says.

"Is it because we shot some of our music videos in New Zealand?"

"Oh she was born there right? Sure why not."

"Martin," Seonghyeon pauses, looking directly at him. "You've been quiet."

"Yeah, Juhoon has been talking more than you," Keonho adds, his tone is uncomfortably mischievous.

It doesn't take much to give in—actually he's glad for the opportunity to say something about you. He says your first name and last name, out of respect, which was maybe a mistake since the boys began to pester him about it.

"Woah fanboy alert."

"She doesn't even know you exist."

"Guys stop," he drags. "I'm just paying attention. Anyway let's keep watching—who has the remote? Guys where's the remote?"

"Somebody's eager," Seonghyeon says, which is met with hushed laughter. Martin thinks the red on his face will show if he tries to retaliate.

Every time the camera is on you he's giving you his full attention. They could make a whole episode dedicated to you and he wouldn't blink the entire time. The guys have taken note of Martin's newfound focus. Now they're making sure he knows that.

"Martin, should I rewind that part so you could listen to her talk more?"

"Guys we have to be quiet when she's on the screen so Martin can listen."

"Woah I think that wink she just did was for Martin."

Unfortunately they are feeding into his recent delusions. What would you think of him? Would you find him attractive? Would you notice him at a game? He'd never admit that though, it'd give his bandmates more ammunition.

While cliché, as the season progresses he finds you more beautiful. Not solely because of your outward appearance but because of your openness and kind heart. The way you comfort girls who got eliminated or talk about the stresses of being a professional dancer. You really do seem fit to be one of America's Sweethearts.

That's why he feels an excitement of his own when it was announced you made the team. The house had gone completely quiet besides the music of TV when the credits began to roll. When he looked down at his phone, 03:00 stared at him. The other guys decided to go to bed before finishing the show—didn't they have an important schedule in the morning?

His smile reflects your own. He wishes he could have congratulated you in person or sent you flowers at the time, despite the season being filmed the year prior.

Holy shit what's going on.

 "The managers asking why you're so tired," Juhoon approaches Martin. He's slouched over on a chair, a stylist is touching up his hair. His iced americano is still half full.

"I was doing some work last night—didn't sleep enough," Martin replies absentmindedly.

It wasn't totally a lie. He just decided to leave out the part where he followed you on all your social media platforms and scrolled through your posts, maybe a little too far. That secret finsta account of his did come in handy.

You're still on the team, which makes sense, you expressed a deep desire to be a DCC. You looked just as pretty as you did happy in all your game day photos. That made him happy.

You've gained a lot of followers from the show and you deserve it all, the praise, the likes, the brand deals. But he couldn't help but feel a slight tinge of something when he saw football players shooting their shot in your instagram comments.

"Work consists of watching cheerleader fancams now?"

"What?" His eyebrows furrow as if he has no idea what Juhoon is talking about.

"I saw you on the couch."

Martin doesn't say anything, partially because he doesn't know how to respond to Juhoon calling out his obvious lie, but mainly because he's so fucking tired. There aren't enough RedBulls in the world to wake him up at the moment.

"I've never seen you with a crush before."

"It's not a crush—let me sleep a little longer please," he hums.

"Okay, we're getting called for a mic check soon though."

Juhoon's last words playback in his head. Maybe he did have a tiny crush on you, but it was casual and the feeling would disappear in a couple days. Most crushes did.

This one, unfortunately, had other plans.

What shows have you guys been into lately?

He's spending the late evening in the studio with Keonho, whose idea it was to start a livestream. The comments are filled with the likes of 'go to sleep' and 'you guys look so tired' They've learned to tolerate the comments because while slightly annoying, they're true.

"Actually, the other day we started watching the cheerleading show," Keonho says.

"Yeah, with the DCC—the football cheerleaders," Martin adds.

"I thought it was pretty cool—they're great athletes."

"Yes they are." Martin purses his lips together, trying to hide the smile forming on his face.

Now Keonho is looking at him, knowing damn well what his following looks like right now. Blue and white profile pictures seem to go on forever. He now follows an account that posts your game videos, one that keeps up with your fashion, and one that makes edits.

Keonho places his hands on Martin's shoulder, taking a deep breath like he has something devastating to say.

"Our very own 'tin…is a fanboy."

"Stop!" Martin says, covering his mouth with his hand. "Guys I'm not a fanboy."

"Okay so then tell me why earlier today you were able to list all those facts about—"

"No, no it's not like that." He waves his hand in front of the camera, encouraging the audience to dismiss whatever (true) nonsense was just said. Is Keonho trying to end their careers?

"I'm just like…I'm really impressed with all the work they do and it's cool to have a glimpse into their lifestyle. It was very interesting and like…I kind of like—obviously I don't fully understand it but I get what they're going through."

He stops for a moment, thinking whether or not he should mention you.

"Actually, if you've seen the show you probably know her, she's really popular right now—she was wearing the pink flowy costume during auditions. Anyway, she said something that really stuck with me. It was about how your dreams could become a reality. I don't know, it just stuck with me."

martin dcc fanboy he knows the exact outfit as well omfg your digital footprints too crazy for her 😭 "its not like that" sure buddy

Keonho's smile grows wider when he looks at the chat.

"Yeah I think she said that during episode four—it was right before training camp ended. Anyway—

"Episode four?!"

"Yeah."

"Dude, you're just digging yourself in deeper."

Hopefully nobody hears the oh shit he said under his breath, even though it's going to get clipped on a twitter account in like two minutes.

"Hm? What was that Keonho?"

"Oh nothing. It just, you kind of sound like a fan—

"Oh look at this comment, Martin's so handsome—thank you so much."

"Oh my gosh girl you've gotten so many new followers!"

"It's probably just from the show," you say, folding your uniform in your suitcase. You've been chosen for group events more lately, the other girls were impressed with you being a rookie and all. That's how you earned the nickname "Firecracker." Well that and partially because Kelli, the director called you that during auditions.

Who knew the job came with so much traveling.

The sudden attention was hard to deal with at first, especially during your first few months on the team. Nosy netizens, pressure to be perfect, constant criticism. It's gotten easier to adapt to it though. It's your dream job after all.

"I'm so happy for you—you deserve it all and more." Reece says, hugging you from the side. It's her last season this year to your dismay. She's been such a supportive role model inside and outside the team.

"Oh! It could also be from that K-pop thing."

"Hm?" You take some things out of your suitcase—you've been meaning to get a bigger one. There's not enough space for your white boots and your favourite hoodie.

"You haven't seen it? It's going viral." Kleine adds.

Chronically online Kleine. She's taught you much of the basics of social media, being a DCC wasn't the only job you had to manage. She's always the first person to hear about current news and participate in the latest trends.

She scrolls on her phone for a minute, trying to find the video you're guessing she's trying to show you. "Here it is!"

"Oh, even I've seen that video," Reece adds. "I'm like a grandma when it comes to social media too."

"I think maybe people have sent it to me before, but you know how bad I am at checking my DM's."

You've never seen him before, yet he looks like someone who could be familiar, kind. He rambles on for most of the video stumbling over his ideas but stays coherent. You can tell he's being sincere.

"Cute," you say. "That's so sweet of him."

"They're pretty famous in Korea—they sing and dance at the same time!" Kleine adds.

"Wow they have a one up on us," you say.

 "Pretty darn cool, right?" Reece adds.

"Also firecracker—I think you should scroll through your tags sometime." Kleine says, trying to hide her very obvious giggles.

"Oh really? Why?"

You're met with giggles as if that's her new way of communicating.

"Kleine you have to tell me more—or Reece, wait tell me what's going on, please."

She just giggles along.

"Hey do you want to try this dance challenge—we could do it with poms and make it really cute!"

Curiosity really did kill the cat but satisfaction brought it back. It's so funny how you didn't notice the abundance of ship edits that were being made between you and the boy from the video—Martin was it? You couldn't even avoid it if you want to, you always seem to be tagged in CORTIS related posts. You even consulted with your pseudo social media manager when seeing some of the things people were making.

kleine why are they making wedding edits? dont ask me 🤭 its so somber tho wait martin come back~ 😭😭😭

You made sure to do your research thoroughly. Checking out their popular songs and music videos. The choreography for their song REDRED really caught your eye. Martin seems pretty fun too, based on the clips you've seen.

"It looks kind of hard, don'tcha think?" Reece says.

"We danced in heeled boots for 3 hours in boiling weather. We can do anything," Kleine adds.

"Says the literal human barbie!"

"I think once we break it down it'll be easier." you say.

Reece was right, it did look really hard. It wasn't too bad though, you've danced in a style similar to it during the Thanksgiving performance. You made sure to add some signature DCC flair: bright smiles, hair flips, clean lines. Especially since you're wearing branded gear.

"Okay I think that went well," you say, brushing your hair out of your face and playing back the video. "Do you think we should tag them in the post?"

"I meant that one guy shouted you out pretty heavily."

"So, yes?" you say, taking off your boots which has got to be one of the best feelings in the world.

"Yup. Also, I've been meaning to ask—what'dya think of him?" Reece says.

"I mean he's cute and a good performer, yeah he seems nice."

"Everyone thinks that about you too!" Kleine giggles, nudging you. "You're around the same age too."

"Guys, it's not like we even live in the same country—i'll probably never meet him!"

"We travel a lot with this job you know," she adds.

"Holy Shit!" Martin exclaims.

It's one of those stances where they're all waiting on set, scrolling on their phones and eating snacks while waiting to start filming or whatever was on the schedule for the day.

He's dreamt of it before, yes, but a tiny part of him knew it wasn't likely. You, noticing him? It seems like your worlds are too different for that to ever happen.

You gotta love some social media.

"Jeez Martin, some of us are trying to sleep." Seonghyeon says, rubbing his eyes.

"No no wait guys look at this." He moves over to the leather couch where a couple of members are lounging.

If this could happen, what else could?

"No way," Keonho and Seonghyeon say at the same time.

"They did it with the pom poms and everything—very nice." James says, hand on chin, impressed.

He's seen you participate in dance challenges before—he even thought of attempting Thunderstruck but that jumpsplit may have split him in half. Never in a million years did he expect you to do one of his own dances. You may have done it better than him.

"Someone needs to get our management to comment on the post, like now." Martin says.

"They're probably already working on it." Seonghyeon says. "Can I see the video again?"

"You have your own phone and since when were you into the DCC too?"

"Everyones into the DCC," Keonho says.

"Yeah we're just not as obsessed as you." Seonghyeon adds.

"Hey, I'm not obsessed—I just admire their work ethic and—"

"Is that why you follow all of that one girl's accounts?" Juhoon says

"He probably has made a fanpage for her at this point." Keonho laughs.

"Oh wait guys look at the caption," James says, looking at the post from his home. "dc to our darlings @/cortis 💕 They put a heart emoji at the end."

You would've thought they'd just scored Taylor Swift tickets with the way they gasped.

Martin stares for a moment, almost forgetting how to breathe. He thinks to himself that it's probably just the way they type, it doesn't mean anything. It doesn't mean anything.

"Guys guys it's just a dance video it's not that serious," he says, which earns him unimpressed looks from his bandmates.

"Says the guy who's been smiling at his phone while the video loops for the eighteenth time."

"I need some water," Martin gets up quickly, leaving the room without looking back. Why did he have to blush so easily?

"Oh look girls—they commented on our post!"

"Who—oh those K-pop boys right? Reece says. "What'd they say?"

"Oh looks like PR already answered for us but they said:"

do we have to do your kickline now?👀

and we responded

We'd love to see you try!!💙🤍

"I would really like to see that kickline," you giggle.

"They even reposted it," Kleine says.

"Aw, that's nice," you say.

"Firecracker."

"Hm?"

"Do you know the effect you have on that man?"

"What?"

"I don't think she does," Reece laughs, and Kleine joins in.

"Wait guys explain," you drag. "Please, I want to laugh along too!"

"Just keep checking your tags," Reece says through laughter.

"I am!"

"Okay team, you'll be attending the RedBull dance your style finals in L.A. next week. You've been at this event a few times before I'm sure you know what to expect. There is going to be lots of different talent this year so I expect you all to be on your best behaviour."

The manager is briefing the members, as well as their staff for their next trip. Everything that is said is so repetitive, they're just restating the contract they signed 10 months ago.

Martin wonders why, in particular, the manager glanced directly at him when he mentioned the part about 'best behaviour'—what did he ever do?

"Any questions?"

"Yeah," James says. "What type of talent will be there?"

"The ones you'll be familiar with are the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders—

"Which," Martin accidently interrupts. He tries faking a cough to cover it up. "Sorry, continue, excuse me."

"Yeah," The manager gives him the same glance as before. "The cheerleaders as well as Kirsten Dodgen and Bada Lee."

The entire room nods, they're familiar with those dancers—hell most the dance world is.

Keonho glances over at Martin, spinning his swivel chair around, hiding his smile in his fist. Martin shakes his head at Keonho, do not even think about it.

"Martin, do you have something you'd like to ask? Sir, I think Martin has a question." Keonho says.

"Go ahead."

The whole room's attention is on him, the walls may as well be watching. He sighs, now he has to ask.

"Yeah uhm, so you mentioned the DCC—the cheerleaders, do you know which ones are going to be there?" He spins the pen he's holding between his fingers.

Seonghyeon fails to hide his laugh.

The manager looks at Seonghyeon then back at Martin. "I don't know exactly who but probably the ones who are popular. Does that help?"

"Yes it does, thank you."

"Interesing," Keonho mutters under his breath.

…

"Seems like someone's excited for our L.A. trip now." Seonghyeon wraps his arm around Martin's shoulder.

They're back at the dorm now, some members are eating, some are already packing up for the trip. Others, like Martin, pace around the halls.

He's had to convince himself about twelve times that everything is real. Your appearance at the event was only confirmed by the post you made on your instagram story. It was a picture of you holding up a can of redbull, wearing that smile that he loves so much. The caption read 'see ya'll in la! 💞' He genuinely thought he was losing his mind the first time he saw that.

"What do you mean? I've always been excited to go."

"What will you say if you meet her? Will you tell her she's pretty and has a good work ethic? Or will you tell her you follow all those fanpages of her."

"No, no—what?" he says, shrugging Seonghyeon's arm off of his shoulder. "And don't say anything."

"No promises," he smiles.

"Yes, promises."

"Let me borrow your Rick Owens sweater for the trip."

"No and stop asking."

"Hey, I'm the one with the leverage here."

He weighs the pros and cons in his head. Seonhyeon wouldn't actually think of doing that to him right? Right? No way he can risk it, not in front of you of all people.

"Okay fine but you have to give it back the second we land back home."

Seonghyeon sticks his tongue out at him.

"Be careful Seonghyeon, he might diss you on the next album," Juhoon says, passing by.

He's done everything he could've done to prepare for the moment.

But now that he's here, possibly in the same vicinity as you, he doesn't know how to act.

He's gone through the routine and all the different possible outcomes in his head. He's planned it out meticulously. He'd start off by introducing himself, then he'd talk about how much he loved the show and how great of a dancer you are—especially in the REDRED dance challenge video. And eventually it would get to the point where he asks for your number or some sort of contact info.

Simple right.

"What should we do now?" Keonho asks.

They just finished up the mic check for their performance in the evening. The stage is even bigger than it was last time, more people will be attending, more eyes to watch any potential slip ups.

"There are a few things," James starts. "We could hang out by the pool, go shopping nearby, go to the skate park.

He pauses, hiding his smile before he states the last option.

"Martin stay calm—actually all of you stay calm but we could go watch the DCC do their showcase in the park across the street."

The smiles are immediate.

"Why would you even give us the other options?" Seonghyeon says.

"Let me just put some better shoes on quickly," Juhoon adds

"I think I need my hair touched up before we go," Keonho says, running his fingers through his hair.

Martin tries to find the words but ironically, his lack of words speak for themselves.

Watching you perform would be just as good as getting to meet you.

Dreams can become a reality.

"Sure and while we're at it Martin needs a higher coverage foundation." Seonghyeon remarks

"It's fine—he'll just be promoting our new song." Juhoon smiles.

It's so bright outside, he's glad he brought his pair of sunglasses.

There's already a huge crowd at the park even though they arrived a few minutes early. He knew the show was big but the impact was insane. Lots of people showed up wearing Cowboys merch and even had posters up for some of the girls. He's seen your name the most on the signs.

He recognized the tour bus that the DCC travelled in from the show. It must be a replica though, there's no way they did a road trip all the way from Texas.

"Hey Martin," Keonho nudges. "Lots of people seem to be here for your girl."

"Yeah." He's not really paying attention, glancing off into the distance at the silver and blue coloured bus close by.

Keonho laughs. "Your girl? I knew you were going a bit crazy but seriously."

"That was a trap, you know I don't think that," he dismisses. "But yeah, a lot of people are here for her."

"She's a fan favourite, sorry dude."

"No, no that's good—I'm glad she deserves it." He thinks whether or not he should ask—he'll get made fun of for sure but, he couldn't care less at this point. "Hey Keonho."

"Yeah."

"Don't make fun of me."

"I'm going to make fun of you."

"Please be serious."

"Okay, okay"

"Do you… do you think I still have a chance at talking to her?"

He almost laughs, he looks like he's trying to suppress one more than anything but he changes his approach halfway.

"Pfft, dream on." …

The door of the bus opens and a line of cheerleaders comes rushing out, ruffling their poms in their hands and wearing huge smiles. The crowd goes absolutely crazy, signs wave around frantically, cheers get louder, you get even closer.

The camera certainly doesn't do you justice. Maybe it couldn't capture the energy of actually being here, the way your smile reached the back of the crowd. From your perfect hair to your sparkling white boots, he can't look away. Everyone else seems so focused too, none of the boys are trying to tease him.

For the entire duration of your Thunderstruck performance, he can't take his eyes off of you. Watching your hair flips and high kicks as if it's the only thing left to look at in the world. He couldn't even bring himself to clap after the performance, still processing what he just watched.

"What're you, crazy? Clap." One of his bandmates says, he can't make out who though.

"Yeah, sorry," he starts, his hands moving on their own.

…

After the performance, a meet and greet was announced. The girls sit down at a long table, signing cards and taking pictures with the people in front of them. He thought long and hard about joining the line but the queue was too long. He has to start heading back to the arena soon, plus he has important business to attend too.

"I'm going to the bathroom real quick."

"Okay, we'll wait for you and then we'll head back," Juhoon says.

There's a rectangular grey building in the distance, there's two actually but he chooses the closer one. They both have 'washroom' spelt out vertically on the sides.

The distance isn't that far but he feels every grassy step it takes to get there. The sun seems to have gotten higher, thank god he'll be indoors shortly. How did the cheerleaders not melt?

The white lighting of the building is dim. He takes his sunglasses off and rests them on his hairline. The bathrooms seem clean though, smelling pleasantly of flowery perfume, which is unusual.

"Kleine is that you?"

He thinks the voice sounds familiar, it's coming from one of the stalls. On the other hand that name sounds familiar too but maybe he's thinking about underwear. "No?" he answers.

"Who the fuck are you?"

The voice is as scathing as it is scared. Did he accidentally walk into the women's restroom?

"Oh uhm, I'm just…using the restroom? Sorry am I in the wrong—"

"Did you follow me here? Don't try anything, security is right outside."

He's definitely in the wrong restroom.

"No, but uh I'm sorry I'll get out right—"

The door slams open and he thinks he might go into shock, maybe he's already in shock. This can't be real.

There you are, hair out of your face, frown on your glossed lips. Still very beautiful, but he brushes off that thought. You're uncomfortable.

"What are you doing? Get out!"

"Oh shit, shit, shit," he mutters under his breath. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, sorry I didn't mean."

"Wait, wait—Martin?"

No way, you know his name. It was possible of course, but a reality? He can't help but stop in his footsteps. His brain feels like a static TV screen at this point.

You take a couple steps towards him, hesitating. Once you confirm who he is, you stop.

"Did I shock you? You aren't some creep right?" Your hands crossed over your chest, keeping enough distance between the two of you.

"No, not at all! Uh, I was just trying to use the bathroom, but I think I went to the wrong building." He rubs the back of his neck as his face begins to flush.

You sigh, a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry then, like really sorry about that, embarrassed actually. A lot of pervs come with the job." You pause, shaking your head. "Yeah, It's easy to get the buildings confused—they should probably do something about that."

"Oh no, don't apologize at all, your reaction is totally expected I—I really should try and read signs more carefully. Here I'll go now."

"Wait, Martin, just one thing before you go."

"…"

"Martin?"

"Huh, what sorry. I don't know what's gotten into me today," he smiles nervously.

He thinks his heart might fall out of his chest.

"It's fine!" you smile. "You know, what you said in your live was really sweet—it made me really happy to hear that!"

"Oh really? Oh, I'm glad to hear that."

You smile nodding as he heads for the exit. "You're pretty tall too! Not even my boots give me a decent lift."

"Oh me? I mean yeah, guess so." He bites his lip.

"So maybe I'll see you at the after party tonight?"

"Oh yeah maybe, bye."

Oh yeah maybe, bye. Could he have chosen the worst response? He even had imagined this situation, well almost, and he had much better things to say than whatever that was.

Just as Martin leaves, Kleine enters. She stares up and down at him at the door, then back at you. Her jaw is wide open, not even bothering to give a poker face.

"Firecracker!"

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