#& begin

191031 |   it’s no wonder that the wonderland preparations feel chaotic, with staff and stylists shared between all of the idols and employees under samsung for a single event. the frazzled rushing, the excited noise level, the fumes from hairspray and face paint laced through stuffy air, all mixed with lingering exhaustion from comeback prep; none of it is new to him but combined, it’s more than enough to give jinwook the beginnings of a claustrophobic headache. with only a few finishing touches left to complete his woody costume, jinwook seeks out a quieter corner, and finds a friend who looks less stressed among the crowd.

“hyung!~ do you have a minute?” he catches woohyun’s attention, and gives him his most pleading eyes. “do you remember this part of toy story?” he clutches a thick permanent marker in one hand and in the other, his phone, lit with a reference picture of A И D Y scrawled beneath the sheriff’s shoe.

“i’m looking for a friend to do me the honors~” offering woohyun both the marker and the phone, jinwook props his foot on top of the table and contemplates its blank sole. “and i’m wondering if we should copy down the andy, or something like convex?” the stylists have definitely helped him stay movie-true to character so far, but maybe acknowledging his group could be sentimental. or just cheesy? or acknowledging that he’s property of sphere might be more accurate. jinwook stretches his leg into a more accessible position as he muses over the options, but only then, hamstring twinging uncomfortably, does he finally reconsider the request. “wait a second. i definitely could have done this before i put on the boots!”

october 22nd

( text → jinwook 😠: ) hey loser ( text → jinwook 😠: ) i got to go to baek jiyoung’s office today ( text → jinwook 😠: ) and there was a guy from royal there. they want me to transfer my contract there?? so ( text → jinwook 😠: ) this might seem like an odd choice but i’m pretty sure i’m going to do it ( text → jinwook 😠: ) why is classified, and if you really begged me i might tell you, but i also don’t trust you to keep it a secret so i WON’T ( text → jinwook 😠: ) but i hope you can trust me in this being the right decision. i think it is ( text → jinwook 😠: )  i’m trusting the legacy of creativity in sphere to you and you have very big shoes to fill!! you’re going to make really cool songs for convex and i’ll promo them on twitter when you do, you’re going to be sooo lucky ( text → jinwook 😠: ) it’s not like you’ll never see me again though, so don’t miss me too much

sms → @rkluna 💥 — U already know we won on the show!! I thought u couldnt call me loser anymore! 😭😭😭😭 — Whoaa… — I thought you guys decided- — unsent — Royal? — Is eve okay?— unsent — Can i call you??

190721  |   jinwook does his best not to over-practice the choreography to rock as he scans the waiting room for distractions, the room swelling with noise but nothing significant going on. his gaze lands on one of his roommates for the weekend, and his mouth stretches with a grin at the wardrobe reveal. “the fact that you can pull off that outfit is totally unfair!” jinwook’s tone is whiny despite the bright laughter that follows. he picks at a star patch sewn into sehun’s jean jacket, not mentioning the way he has to reach up to the maknae’s shoulder to even do so. if anyone on the shorter side of convex had been dressed in denim head-to-toe, they would’ve been swallowed up by it. sehun just looks long and lean, and good-looking in a ranch-hand-glamour sort of way. he’ll be a denim center in their sea of summery white t-shirts.

peering into the mirror, jinwook adjusts the collar of his own shirt, red-accented and hanging comfortably loose. it’s a nice contrast against the fresh black of his hair, and jinwook feels good about performing again, despite his upcoming mga appearance lingering heavily in the back of his mind. up on stage before acts like tooice and eyeiz, it’d felt like a big deal to even be invited. jinwook straightens, his expression settling thoughtfully. “i just hope it won’t be too hot for you up there. it’s not as nice and breezy as it was yesterday, since we aren’t on the beach...”

190717  |  the arrival of mid-summer has filled their schedules to the brim again, and jinwook has welcomed the shift in activity even if his body still protests the pre-dawn wakeup calls of filming days. soon, they’ll be on the beach and performing again, and it’s those days that he looks forward to most. jinwook reaches up to run a hand through his hair. it’s a little stiff from styling, but dyed black, so he takes comfort in knowing that as his roots will grow in, they’ll be softer to the touch. it’ll be touched up after lunch break, too, and he’s too interested in monitoring the current shot to keep still for long.

“hyung looks pretty cool behind that drum set,” says jinwook, settling down next to kibum to watch the playback. he grabs one of the stray green screen props, absently spinning it on its edges between both hands. “i think you’re believable! the attitude, i mean.” it might be easy to tell if the dancer doesn’t totally know what he’s doing with the instrument itself, but jinwook’s eye is more trained than most, and it’s all in good fun anyway. he simpers, nudging kibum with an elbow. “what do you think? maybe baek jiyoung is trying us out in a special band concept~”

190405 |  “hyun, sit next to me on the ride back to the dorms.” jinwook yawns, fluttering his eyelashes up at hyun as he sits up from the casual lean against his roommate. the clock, when jinwook squints against the too-bright light of his phone screen, is quickly approaching midnight, but there is still some cleanup work and finishing shots to complete before the team can officially call their long filming day a success.

190112 |  @rkseokwoo

convex finishes up their promotions relatively early in the set list, and though jinwook is exhausted from it, he decides not to rest until after the rest of his seniors and juniors in sphere are done performing. there isn’t much time to waste, anyway. he wants to make it back in time to monitor woohyun’s duet. jinwook heads to the waiting room for the sphere trainees with a few bottled drinks in hand, intent on cheering them on. he enters with a smile on his face and as many encouraging words as he can think of. for many, it may be their first public performance ever. a pretty big deal, especially during a new year’s special, opening for an artist like she’z.

190110 |  06:49AM GMP ✈️ CJU

it’s hardly earlier than jinwook is accustomed to beginning his day. he’s never been a morning person, but they catch a nap in the van, and jinwook rubs sleep from his eyes in time to look presentable for the small scattering of fans who’ve caught wind of the idols’ schedules. jinwook doesn’t mind airports, either, not on principle. not the tedious lines or the uncomfortable chairs; he doesn’t mind the feeling of travel but yet... there’s something about boarding a plane that always makes him shiver as the boys shuffle through the gate.

he’s always preferred to ferry across the strait. ocean travel is something familiar. the cadence of the waves and scent of the sea breeze have been ingrained in jinwook since he was a child. it’s nothing like the suffocating, breathless confinement of an airplane. jinwook closes his eyes as soon as he finds his seat and turns his music up, wishing he were there instead.

he knows there’s nothing to worry about. logic doesn’t cut it though, especially in this pre-dawn haze. and really, jinwook doesn’t like to pretend. he doesn’t cover it up; it’s just never come up with these boys, and he doesn’t have some insecurity complex about it but still — still, out of everyone, he’s relieved to have yixing by his side.

he tugs down the window shade, mumbling something about the sunrise hurting his eyes. it’s easy, to rest his head on yixing’s shoulder. his sweatshirt is fresh and oversized, the hood large enough to shield part of his face. it’s cozier like this, and no one can see the tension in jinwook’s jaw when the engines start to rev for takeoff.