"Li Xingyuan," Kian greeted coolly. There was a faint shift in his posture—a subtle tension which was barely noticeable. He regarded Li Xingyuan with a polite distance. They knew each other, of course, but not well.
Yejun offered a casual "hey", while Yuki chirped out, "Hi, hyung!"
Hyung?... Damien blinked. They're that close?
Li Xingyuan returned the greetings with a nod, but his eyes landed on Damien almost immediately. He smiled.
"Damien, I missed you."
Before anyone could react, he slid his arm around Damien's own like it was the most natural thing in the world.
At this, Yejun nearly spit out his water. Kian's chopsticks slipped from his hand and clattered to the tray.
Damien, unfazed, replied normally. "I moved to the intermediate classes. That's probably why we haven't run into each other." He didn't acknowledge the chaos unfolding beside him. After all, Li Xingyuan's unpredictable antics wasn't new to him—strange to most, maybe, but expected for him.
The same couldn't be said for the other three, though—they had a completely different perspective.
Li Xingyuan sighed and released Damien's arm, leaning back to prop his chin on his hand. "I don't understand what exactly happened. But I'll be waiting for you." He gave Damien a pat on the shoulder. "Don't make me wait too long."
Damien's eyes widened. Does he mean... he'd wait for me to advance? He couldn't understand why, but he felt grateful to Li Xingyuan. With a genuine smile, he said, "Okay."
The others stared, left confused.
What made Damien smile so brightly? Why did he react the way he did?
Kian, still trying to process, slowly retrieved his chopsticks. His eyes flicked between Damien and Li Xingyuan, confusion etched across his usually composed expression.
Yejun, choking a little, smacked his chest with his palm. "Wait, wait, wait—what the hell do you mean 'you'll be waiting for him'? And Damien, why did you just say 'okay' like that!? Don't tell me you guys are... Are you??"
"Maybe." Li Xingyuan shrugged, smirking.
Yejun nearly fell out of his seat. "What!"
"Why are you so confused? Was I not supposed to say that?" Damien tilted his head, honestly puzzled.
"Yes!" Yejun yelped. "I mean—no! I mean—argh! What does that even mean!?"
Damien exhaled, giving up on understanding and just continued to eat calmly. "I don't know what you guys are thinking about. But looking at your reactions, it must be something ridiculous."
Yejun pinched his nose bridge, clearly troubled.
Li Xingyuan laughed. "Lighten up. All I mean is that I have faith in Damien's potential. Whatever happened to him, I know he'll rise back up. And I also miss looking at his face during our classes together."
Yuki made a low "oooh" noise, head moving left and right like he was watching some kind of show.
Kian sighed. "You could've said the first half and stopped talking."
"But where's the fun in that?" Li Xingyuan grinned, unbothered.
Kian looked like he was reconsidering his entire career path. "You're... something else."
"Aren't I? Pretty charming, right?" The red-haired teen crossed his fingers, placing them below his chin.
Yejun groaned and buried his face in his hands. "This table is cursed. Let's just eat. Please."
Damien took a bite of his food. "So chaotic... Is this what dinner is going to be like from now on?"
"I hope so! It's more fun this way," Yuki said, already unlocking his phone. "Speaking chaos—look what someone just posted on the trainee board."
He turned the screen towards them.
The app was a sleek, dark-mode interface titled Starnote—Starlite's very own internal trainee forum. Most trainees used it like a digital message board, boasting everything from venting rants to meal reviews to anonymous polls.
Yuki tapped on a post titled:
[Cafeteria Sighting] A Meal Worth More Than Rent
> 70 Likes | 52 Comments
OP: Saw this group at regular the 'ol cafeteria and felt like I was in the presence of a billion dollar debut group?? My eyes were suddenly blessed. Is this some kind of visual mafia? I could barely afford my food and then THESE GUYS sit down in the CENTRE of the room like they're judging the price of my soul. Someone give me lore. Are they forming a group?
(picture)
<>
savemefromtraining21: Woah since when did three out of the Big Four actually hang out with each other wtf?
↳ yejiah135: @savemefromtraining21 Ikr? If they start teaming up, aren't we screwed?
Chickenismy_life: Are they friends? Rivals?
sleepdeprived24/7: Holy the visuals are insane. Someone take more pictures please.
waiting4time: Who are the other two? They look hella fine.
↳ Hana_0102: Song Yejun and Yeong Myeongho but I think he goes by Damien.
↳ __kokodae: so jealous… are they close with the Big Four? Let me in the group too~
↳ not_slaying: isn't Damien that guy that fainted during the monthly eval? heard it was due to some kind of rut.
↳ __kokodae: @not_slaying really? feels bad… what bad timing.
indenial: me trying to eavesdrop without getting caught *dead*
minmin2563: Can someone take clearer pics next time? Asking for... research purposes.
Damien leaned in. "What the—?"
On the phone screen was a photo clearly taken just minutes ago. It was their table, all five mid-meal—or rather—mid-banter. The angle was a bit skewed and slightly blurry, but it was unmistakably this very group.
Kian took a closer look. "That's... the trainee board? It's from the confession thread."
"Wait, scroll down. Let me see more comments." Yejun snatched the phone.
babyheemini: do you see xingyuan's smirk? and his freaking red hair. lowkey, isn't he hot?
↳ Anonymous: @babyheemini 'lowkey'? do you hear yourself bro? it should be highkey.
↳ SeoheeMin_: Omg one time he laughed in class and I swear three people blushed. Including me.
↳ idonttrain: I wonder what his pheromones are like,, do you think they smell like cinnamon?
↳ goldenboi_96: all ya'll are so down bad. please stop.
Yejun stared, jaw dropping. "Why is everyone thirsting over you? What is this?!"
Li Xingyuan laughed so hard that water droplets started forming at the corner of his eyes. "Hahaha!"
Damien squinted, reading a comment out loud. "He could step on me and I wouldn't mind...?"
"Pfft!" Yuki tried to stifle a laugh.
Damien looked at the phone in disbelief, he couldn't believe how unhinged people were.
Kian gave a sigh like he'd aged five years but didn't leave.
Damien leaned back, watching the group bicker and laugh.
This is strange. He thought. But… kind of nice.
"Huh...? What's this?" Yuki, who took back his phone, scrolled further down the trainee board.
Yejun turned to Yuki. "What is it this time?"
"That..." Yuki's face was no longer smiling. He showed the screen of his phone once more.
The post made everyone pause.
...
Down the hallways of Starlite Media, Hajoon was with his usual crew. They were mid-conversation about the monthly rankings when one of them interrupted.
"Guys... Do you see this?"
Hajoon turned around and saw one of the trainee's click on a caption on the message board. What he saw made his pupils dilate.
One of the trainees spoke. "Is he really coming back?"
Another trainee asked, "Who's coming back?"
"Y'know. Him. Apparently the van arrived just a few minutes ago."
A long silence settled between the group.
Hajoon's jaw clenched and his fists tightened. "Two years," he muttered. His eyes had darkened and a thin sheen of tension spread across his face.
No. This can't be real.
Not him.
Why the f*ck is he coming back? Now out of all times...
...
A few moments ago, a sleek black van glided through the streets of Seoul. Neon signs and traffic lights painted streaks of colour across the windows as they passed. In the back seat, a lone silver-eyed teen sat in silence. He rested his temple against the cool window, watching Seoul's skyline blur.
From the driver's seat, a staff manager glanced at the rearview mirror, observing the young man. He cleared his throat, attempting a smile. "Been two years, huh?"
The silver-eyed boy did not turn from the window. His breath fogged the patch on the glass.
For a moment, it seemed he hadn't heard the driver's comment. The manager was about to repeat himself when the boy finally spoke.
"Yes, it has..."