#field audit tracking

[porcelainseashore]

Teenage Headache Dreams (1)

Series Masterlist

Pairing: High School! College! Leon Kennedy x Dancer! Fem! Reader

Summary: You’re a bored, but ambitious high school student who can’t wait to escape small town life and make it in the big city. You thought you had it all figured out, until you unwittingly befriend the resident golden boy, Leon. A series of events beginning from junior year to college until Resident Evil 2 Remake.

Warnings: 18+ Swearing, Recreational Drug Use, Eventual Smut, No (Y/N), Ambiguous/Open Ending

Content: High School AU, College AU, Pre-Resident Evil 2, Fluff, Romance, Cliche, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Lack of Communication

Author's Note: This is my first RE / Leon fic, but I wanted to try my hand at writing this little self-indulgent and potentially clichéd series. As you can guess, I love dance and high school dramas. I also created this with a sequel in mind, which will take place post-RE4R and involve more horror and mystery elements.

Title from Teenage Headache Dreams by Mura Masa and Ellie Rowsell / Wolf Alice.

AO3 Link

Chapter 1: An Unexpected Friendship

It was one of those beautiful late summer days with endless light and clear blue skies overhead. You leaned back against the bleachers, feeling the sun cast a warm glow on your face and the sultry breeze against your skin, sighing in utter bliss. The football field and the running track surrounding it were completely empty, just how you liked it, silent except for the relentless trilling of insects and the occasional bird that flew by. No one in your face, no one judging you or telling you how you should be like, no one you had to put up a front for. Just peace and quiet. A place where you could sit alone with your thoughts - and you had a lot of them - mostly about leaving this goddamn small town with its insular, mind-numbing inhabitants.

A trail of thick smoke wafted from your mouth as you took a drag from the joint you had been nursing for awhile. You weren’t exactly high as a kite, but you were definitely feeling some of its effects. You chuckled and gave a wry smile as the thought of being caught red-handed visualized in your mind. Sure, it was highly illegal what you were doing, much less on school property, but you were always a bit of a rebel. And frankly, you couldn’t give a shit. It was already August, but most students were still away on holiday. Not you though, you had to work on your extracurriculars. That’s what you had put your mind to this summer. No fancy beach getaways like the rest of your cheerleading mates had jetted off to. Just a grueling dance intensive and showcase you had auditioned successfully for in one of the larger cities nearby, as well as a bunch of campus visits. You needed to perfect your performance technique for that arts college application coming up in about a year’s time. You started way earlier than the rest even thought about it, because you knew you only had one chance for a one-way ticket out of this hole and you sure as hell weren’t taking any chances. Well, except with that funky smelling thing in your hand. 

No one would be here anyway, it’s a Sunday for crying out loud! You shook your head in exasperation. Besides, you needed to relax and take the edge off a little.

Just as if you jinxed it with those thoughts, you heard the gate to the field unlocking and creaking open behind you. 

Shit, shit, shit! Your eyes darted around frantically, but your movements were just so slow. Why the fuck would someone be here now?

Before you could drop the joint and stub it out with your shoe, a mop of dirty blonde hair and what you made out as someone dressed in a blue tracksuit with a duffel bag slung over his right shoulder entered your peripheral vision. It was soon accompanied by a sharp twist of his head in your direction, bangs falling over his deep blue eyes and you knew he had found the source of the offending smell, probably even from a mile away. His gaze trailed their way from your startled face to your joint hanging limply at the edge of your fingers and then back to your face again. His expression turned from confusion to a frown and then into a knowing smirk as he crossed his arms and leaned against the bleachers.

“Oh, hello. Didn’t expect to see you here. You got cheer practice or something?”

God, he was teasing you. At least you hoped that was all it was and not some form of blackmail. Well, no point hiding now.

“I’m off-duty,” you retorted. You tried to jog your memory of the boy standing in front of you. You were social, or at least you had to be with the rest of your girlfriends to keep up appearances, but you never really bothered with the people here beyond superficial conversations. Then you finally found it - a vague recollection of last season’s track and field meet. He had been one of the better sprinters, maybe the best even, you can’t really remember. There was an afterparty, and you congratulated him, but you doubt there was anything more substantive than that.

“Leon, isn’t it?”

His eyes perked up slightly and he smiled. “In the flesh.”

You snorted at his cheesy reply. What was he pulling? 

“They gave you the key?” It almost sounded as if you were jealous.

He uncrossed his arms and placed his duffel bag on one of the benches in front of him, rummaging through its contents. “Yeah, I got a comp in the new term coming up.” Every now and then he glanced up at you, as if he wanted to ask something, but stopped himself.

A sense of boldness surged within you, as you felt like evening the odds a bit. “What? You want some?” You waved the joint in his face.

That certainly caught his attention. He stared for a good moment, before giving another one of his playful smiles and shaking his head. “Maybe after practice.” He unzipped his jacket and put it away. It was warm enough to train in his sports tank and as you admired the lean, muscular structure of his arms and shoulders now bared open, you couldn’t complain.

“So, how did you get in?”

Fuck. You snapped out of your reverie. He got you there, but you didn’t feel like lying. “Jumped the fence. You should try it some time.” You replied as nonchalantly as possible.

“Didn’t know you had it in you,” he laughed.

“Oh, you’d be surprised.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Will I now?” The way it rolled off his tongue felt like a challenge and you secretly enjoyed this banter going on between you, as if you had known each other for years.

Shrugging your shoulders, you took another hit from the joint and let the calmness envelope you. “I never disappoint.”

“I’ll take your word for it.” Leon flashed a wide grin that made you feel a knot forming in your stomach, but you didn’t know why. 

He started to move towards the tracks, but stopped short, turning back to meet your eyes again. “Look, you don’t have to worry about all of that.” He gestured to what you were holding and the general surroundings. “I’m not going to tell.” With that, he made a sign that resembled crossing his heart. “It’ll be between you and me.” 

You would have thought it was a joke if not for the sincere look he gave you, before heading off to train. That, and the fact that he did indeed take up your offer to join you afterwards in sharing what was left of the joint. You didn’t expect someone like him to. He seemed a bit too much of a straight-laced, golden boy for that. But then again, life was filled with surprises and you quietly scolded yourself for playing into stereotypes again - something you despise others doing to you.

It prompted both of you to converse even more until the late evening where you even missed your dinner. The questions and responses just flowed.

It turned out that you would share a number of classes together in the new term, specifically Math, History and Biology. Leon was a real earful when it came to his “insightful” one-liners on the teachers, which made you bury your head in your hands and groan. You never realized he would be such a goofball, but you found it somewhat endearing.

Like you, he was popular at school, but unlike you, he seemed to enjoy the company and appeared to be an open book. He would say it how it is, sometimes to the point of being blunt to a fault. Still, you guessed people found him rather easy-going and likable, in a non-threatening sort of a way. A part you wondered if chance meetings like today were how he made most of his friends.

Leon didn’t really have a plan for college yet. He just knew he wanted to do something good and help other people. You had a word for it - “idealistic”. He just shrugged in response, eyes downcast, until you assured him that it was an admirable quality, and you were the jaded one. He made a toast to your future in some arts college in the big city with his water bottle, remarking with a hint of self-deprecation that he wished he had a clearer idea of what he wanted to do with his life.

In turn, he asked you about your dealer. You had to stifle a laugh at that one. Generally, you weren’t as big into smoking up as he thought, but this time you bummed it off one of the seniors as a favor he owed you for hooking him up with one of your cheerleader friends. It didn’t stop Leon from calling you the “high school’s little pothead” every now and then though. He peered at you intently with his lip curled in amusement, as you rolled your eyes each time.

It had been such a long time since you could joke and speak your mind with someone this way. There wasn’t that suffocating nausea of pretending to be someone else around him and he had been so relaxed with you too. You could finally breathe again, and you’d like to think it wasn’t just the weed talking.

Whatever it was, you guessed this was the beginning of a real friendship - one that happened out of serendipity, but made you feel like you weren’t going to rot away in this small town. Well, not alone anyway.

[mixelation]

wait here's something weird and kind of niche i wrote a while ago

sakura's POV, meant to be a build up to itasaku but barely contains a hint of itachi

From Sakura’s point of view, it goes like this. 

She takes a call from the Office of Public Health, which is located in the Fire Country capital and is a civilian institution. They theoretically have no power over anything Konoha does, but occasionally Sakura has to field angry calls about Konoha shinobi spreading diseases long distance, or putting things in public wells, or that one time some idiot chunin squad caused a landside that wiped out a major delivery of medicines to a rural province. 

“Konoha Hospital, Haruno speaking,” Sakura says, plastering a fake smile across her face even alone in her office. 

“Ah, yes, is this the…” The voice on the other end pauses, and Sakura hears the shuffling of papers. “Lead Medical Jounin?”

The woman says this like she can’t believe it’s a real title. But as of two months ago, it’s Sakura official, very important, and extremely high ranking title. It’s come with more annoying phone calls than she anticipated. 

“That’s me,” Sakura tells her. “To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?”

The woman on the other side is head of Fire Country’s tuberculosis response team. She’s calling because of several very worrisome cases of TB across the Western provinces. 

“Multi-drug resistance is common in Water Country,” Sakura replies airily. She would rather people not be getting MDR-TB in general, but also, this is not her job unless this lady is about to tell her they tracked it to Konoha shinobi. 

Just to be sure, Sakura continues, “As you should know, Konoha includes an annual TB screen for all active shinobi, and a full course of antibiotics for any infected shinobi. Is this, perhaps, a courtesy call that we should be on the lookout for resistant strains?”

“It’s not coming from Water Country,” the woman tells her hotly. “We don’t know where it’s coming from. Contact-tracing hasn’t worked. These towns aren’t even on normal trade routes.”

Sakura’s cheeks are starting to hurt as her fake smile broadens. “Ah, well, if you require Konoha’s assistance, the more appropriate office is Mission Requests–”

“No traceable contacts paired with no obvious source,” the woman interrupts, “is almost always shinobi, Haruno-san.”

Sakura purses her lips, smile failing her. She just said they made sure anyone catching TB on the job was screened for and treated. She knows years ago that Tsunade had to handle some fiasco where a select few Konoha-nin were spreading an STI all over the place, but this situation is different. 

“What exactly do you want?” Sakura asks, voice hardening. 

“We’re auditing you,” the woman says. “I have an order signed by the Daimyo.”

Fuck, Sakura thinks. 

Sakura attempts to dump the audit on Tsunade. Tsunade laughs in her face. Sakura does manage to get approval for funding more overtime for medical ninja and staff to deal with it; Tsunade rarely argues against dumping money into the hospital or Medical Corps. 

Several thousand TB tests later, and many hours of Sakura organizing and photocopying records to prove they really were screening everyone, and she is royally pissed. Also, tired and probably malnourished from resorting to cup ramen for dinner too many nights. The audit is time consuming, and it doesn’t excuse her dealing with numerous other crises the hospital has just by virtue of being a hospital, on top of all her usual duties. 

Ms. TB Response Team deigns to make the trip down to Konoha to go through their audit. She looks exactly how Sakura imagined her on the phone: chin-length graying hair gelled into place, thick-rimmed glasses, a lab coat over a blouse and pencil skirt. It takes her and two other team members three days to go through the documents Sakura offers, and then another day to tour the labs to make sure they’re adequate. 

Ms. TB Response Team seems disappointed when they find nothing. Sakura doesn’t not want to harm a civilian woman just for doing her job, as annoying as it is. But she does sort of want to throw her desk through a window and yell I TOLD YOU SO. 

“This is good news,” Ms. TB Response Team says eventually, seated across from Sakura’s desk, “although inconvenient.”

Inconvenient? Sakura wonders, struggling to keep her smile in place. Yes, from the capital’s perspective, it would be a really convenient explanation if it were just Konoha ninja spreading TB around. They’d have their source and then also the ability to demand Konoha do something about it. 

But also: Tsunade’s Konoha doesn’t do this shit. Not with something as easily detectable as TB. 

“I’m glad we could assist in your investigation,” Sakura replies, surprising herself at how smooth her voice sounds. “Will that be all?”

“Mm, no,” Ms. TB Response Team responds, pushing up her glasses on her nose. “Perhaps the parameters of the audit were unclear. We’d also like to see your records on missing-nin movement.”

Shit, Sakura thinks. 

This one she really does get to dump on Tsunade. She’s positive of it as she opens the office door and gestures Ms. TB Response Team inside. 

Usually a small group like a disease response team wouldn’t be able to convince Konoha to share highly classified information like this. Another Kage probably wouldn’t let them at it, end of story. But Tsunde is a doctor first and Hokage second. She looks at the reports on MDR-TB, leans back in her chair, groans, and mashes the palms of her hands into her eyes. 

Multi-drug resistance means the bacteria do not respond to two or more of the available anti-TB drugs. This makes them difficult to treat, and untreated TB has a high mortality. They can’t let this spread. 

“Fine,” Tsunade eventually says. Ms. TB Response Team perks up. “No, I’m not letting you at our records. But I’ll let you have Sakura.”

Sakura immediately tenses, and the floorboard cracks underneath her as she shifts her position.

“Shishou,” she starts. 

“Sakura can go through the documentation and report back relevant findings,” Tsunade continues. “I assure you she’s highly competent.”

“Shishou,” Sakura repeats. “I have other important duties. Surely another shinobi is more suited to–”

She just got this position, and four out of the six months she’s been doing it have been this stupid audit. She doesn’t even have her feet under herself properly.

Tsunade eyes her levelly. “Learn to delegate,” she says. 

Several more floorboards crack when Sakura stomps out of her office ten minutes later.

[bunchofrandomfandomsandbands]

Random KISS Facts

(That nobody asked for)

Gene

The first time Gene spit fire, he caught his hair on fire

Back in the beginning of KISS, Gene would do a trick with flash paper, but one night his aim was off and the paper blew up in a kid’s face

Paul

During the Hotter Than Hell photoshoot, Paul got so drunk, that Gene had to lock him in the station wagon to keep Paul from hurting himself

Ace

Ace punched Tommy Thayer in the face when he (Tommy) was manager, over Ace having his girlfriend in the dressing room

Ace Frehley almost drowned twice. Once in a hotel bathtub and another time in a pool. Gene saved him both times

A day before the Hotter Than Hell photo shoot, Ace got in a bad car accident and split one side of his face open so. Because of this, Ace couldn’t wear that side of his makeup, so all the shots were profiles

Around 2000, Ace Frehley missed a flight to a concert in Los Angeles and the band got manager Tommy Thayer ready to fill in for Frehley, in costume and makeup. Frehley made it to the show at the last minute via helicopter ride from LAX to the venue

Peter

Peter Criss hardly played during the Reunion/Farewell tour, so they put an amplifier on his drums to make it sound like he was actually playing. That’s why a lot of the crew members would say “don’t sneeze around Peter’s drum set”

Eric C.

After the Dynasty tour was over, Peter Criss left the band. So, after KISS announced his departure, they held auditions for a new drummer and selected Paul Carvello, later renamed Eric Carr

When Eric Carr had to sing “Beth” he called Peter to make sure he (Peter) was ok with him singing his song

When Eric Carr recorded his vocal for the re-recording of “Beth” in 1988, he sat on the same drum stool that Peter Criss used during the original recording of the song in 1976

KISS’s late drummer Eric Carr’s collar on his 1980 “fox” costume was made out of real fox fur

In Paul’s book Face the Music he says that “When the tour stopped in Manhattan for two gigs at the Ritz, Eric Carr came to one of the shows and sat in the balcony with his head resting on the railing through the entire show. Afterwards he came backstage, and out of left field, turned to Eric Singer, and said, ‘You’re going to replace me.’ ‘What are you talking about?’ I spoke. ‘He’s going to replace me in KISS,’ said Eric Carr, nodding at Eric Singer. ‘Listen, Eric, you’re the drummer in KISS, and he’s the drummer of my solo band.’” But as fate would have it, Eric Singer was the perfect fit

Tommy

March 11, 2000, through April 13, 2001, was the Reunion/Farewell Tour with Ace and Peter. Tommy Thayer was KISS’ tour manager at the time, and he had to retrain Ace and Peter all their parts, because they hadn’t played in years. It proved to be difficult, and Tommy almost gave up. But with the reassurance of Paul, he managed to reteach Ace and Peter all their parts

Album/Song Facts

Cannons were recorded and mixed into KISS Alive! to mimic the pyrotechnics that didn’t come through the microphones correctly

Alive! was recorded in multiple different cities with crowd audio combined to make the crowd sound bigger. Alive! was mainly recorded in Detroit

At one point KISS almost went under because Neil Bogart (KISS’ manager) had maxed out his credit card. With the combination of the special effects, levitating drum set (that seldom ever worked), the exploding drumsticks, and Neil’s gambling issue, the band almost went under, but when Alive! went Platinum, it saved the group

On Dynasty Anton Fig played on the tracks except for “Dirty Livin’,” written, and played by Criss even though he wasn’t involved in its production, Peter was still credited on drums, which left Anton Fig uncredited

Psycho Circus was the first album to involve all four original members (though Ace Frehley and Peter Criss only appeared on a select few tracks). "You Wanted the Best" is the only KISS song in which lead vocals are shared by the entire lineup

The radio news announcer at the start of “Detroit Rock City” is KISS’ producer Bob Ezrin. The main news report featured a fatal car accident, and is the backstory of the song, which was based on a reportedly true event that happened to a teen on his way to Detroit KISS concert in 1975

Paul’s yodeling at the beginning of “Heaven’s on Fire” is him warning up. He didn’t realize the camera was rolling, but they decided to keep it in the video

A number of songs from Crazy Nights were performed live during its supporting tour, but during and especially immediately following the tour, most of those songs were dropped and were never performed again

The famous song “Rock and Roll All Nite” was inspired by Slade’s “Mama Weer All Crazee Now”

Towards the end of the Reunion/Farewell tour, fans were shocked to see Eric Singer in full Catman costume and makeup, meaning Peter left the band again for the final time

During the music video for “Heaven’s on Fire” Eric Carr pops up behind Paul, and Paul looks at him for a split second before looking back at the camera. Eric did that randomly. It wasn’t planned. Paul’s reaction was genuine

Other

Neil Bogart came up with Peter’s levitating drum set and his exploding drumsticks

The KISS logo is altered in Germany because of the similarities to the Nazi S

Early in KISS’ career, Larry Harris worked an endorsement deal with Gibson guitars, and they provided free guitars that Paul could smash. In exchange, KISS put Gibson on the back of their album covers

Peter “Moose” Oreckinto, a KISS roadie in the early days, was loading Peter Criss’ exploding drumsticks, when one went off, causing a hole in his hand, his chin and his stomach. This accident almost caused Moose to lose his hand, but doctors were able to save it

KISS was nominated for a Grammy in 1999 for Best Hard Rock Performance for their song “Psycho Circus.” (It lost to “Most High” by Page and Plant of Led Zeppelin fame)

Despite the band’s massive 1970s success and again in the late 1990s, Rolling Stone magazine refused to put KISS on its cover until the band’s 40th anniversary in 2013

KISS refused to play shows in their early days without their trademark giant lighted logo. In some venues, its size required it to be stood up on the side of the stage instead of hanging above it

KISS has had ten members during its 50-year existence. Paul Stanley is reportedly the only member to have participated in every song released

The KISS Army started in Indiana when a local radio station refused to play any KISS songs in the early ‘70s. Protesting fans marched outside of the radio station forcing the radio station to play KISS

Facts are continually added

Tagging: @genesstankycodpiece, @solfihelpmi, @ericsingerisababycat, @foxykissworld, @spacefoxy, @sillyamyy, @ericcarrsworshipper, @2000-man1, @tanookikiss, @sluttery-withoutshame, & @daddycatcriss

[manawari]

Just Friends

Once, Hae-in met a boy.

There was a track and field competition at the stadium. Countless of people flocked together to watch the match from different elementary schools. Hae-in had managed to get in the first place, much to her luck, but the victory came with a price — exhaustion. Her legs had gone sore when she threw herself at the bench, Hae-in looked around to see if there were people watching, so once she was certain, she raised her left leg to take off her shoe and then her sock.

It was a bruise, which she had gotten during her last training. But since Hae-in didn't want to back down from the competition, she went along with it amidst the sting it brought in her flesh.

She got through it anyway.

"You ran with that injury?"

A voice approached her. Hae-in looked up and saw a young boy, who was around her age. He had unruly pitch black hair and sun-kissed skin, he wore a varsity jacket over a shirt that had a school's logo and a pair of shorts that matched his jacket.

He must be a player. Hae-in thought. "Oh, well— I did."

"Are you still hurt?" He tilted his head to the side and stared at her injury.

She shook her head. "Not at all! Thank you."

"Wait, hold on a sec—" the boy reached to his pocket to bring something out. Then, he made his way toward her and got down on both of his knees to wrap a thin cloth around her ankle. His action caught Hae-in off-guard. When she opened her mouth to speak, the boy beat her to it. "I saw how you ran earlier. It was amazing. And now that I know you still competed in this state. . . Do your parents know?"

Hae-in shook her head.

The corner of his mouth twitched. "Well, I hope this helps. But you should get yourself checked since the competition is over."

"Okay," Hae-in nodded. "What's your name?"

"I'm Jin-woo!" The boy's smile extended when he turned up to meet her eyes.

"I'm Hae-in. Please to meet—"

"Hae-in! Sweetie, where are you?"

"That's my mom!" Hae-in hurriedly put on her sock and shoved her foot back on her shoe to get up. She rushed forward, but only then to halt. "N— nice meeting you, Jin-woo!"

She didn't wait for him to respond.

Hae-in would be lying if she said that she wouldn't see him again after that. To her, Jin-woo was the kid whom she met at the stadium. She had no hopes that their paths would cross again. But damn, she wished she had believed her mother's words that there were some people she would meet twice in her life.

When she was done doing her laps, Hae-in found three runners huddled together over a phone. It was blaring pop music that was mixed with cacophonous cheering from people. Hae-in speculated it must be the newly debuted band called ARISE, which was said to be composed of five people from different backgrounds who had passed the auditions.

Though, she could care less. She had no time for such things when she was a busy athlete and she would rather watch something—

"—give it up for Sung Jin-woo!"

The name drop made a pause in her world. It sounded vaguely familiar. So, Hae-in strode toward the young athletes and stole a peek on the phone.

"Ms. Cha!" One of the girls said. "Did you come to check out ARISE's concert last week?"

"Who's that guy?" Hae-in cut off the chase.

"Oh, this?" She pointed at the idol, who was singing in front of the crowd. He wore a black leather jacket with chains dangling on the shoulders, a white top, and a pair of leather pants with knee-high boots. "This is Sung Jin-woo! The main dancer of ARISE."

"Isn't he so cute, Ms. Cha?" The second athlete gushed. "Everything about him is so. . . Enchanting!"

"He can steal your heart in one look!"

Indeed, fans were cheering on top of their lungs at Jin-woo. But Hae-in? All she saw was that moment at the stadium. It was truly the same person. Jin-woo, the boy who had wrapped up her bruise, and Jin-woo, the man that young boy had grown to be and was now ruling the stage by his magnificent voice and breathtaking movements.

The first thing Hae-in did once she got home was open her social media platform and searched up 'ARISE'. And from there, a plethora of posts flooded her screen, each showcasing the band and its members, as well as the manager whom the fans had also been fawning over.

She eventually got to the posts that featured primarily Jin-woo. From his photoshoots, the random photos snapped by his band members, videos of him, fans commenting about him, and various others. Hae-in even chuckled at some of the posts.

Does he still remember me? She wondered.

Part of her wanted to message him, but the other part of her did not. Hae-in was worried that he might not recognize her, or even not respond to her message.

So, she decided to abandon the idea.

The next few days were spent with scrolling through ARISE for updates and Jin-woo's posts. Hae-in would watch his short dance covers that had kept her entertained throughout her break. And that was until she landed upon a post from the band's official account that had featured a video of ARISE's latest interview.

"I have a question for Sung Jin-woo!" The interviewer said. "If you could meet someone again, dead or alive, who would it be?"

"I'd say that girl I met when I was young. Even when she had an injury all along, she still managed to win, which I admired her for her determination." Jin-woo replied. He let out a soft smile. "I'm not sure if she still remembers me, but if there comes a time that I meet her again, I will be happy."

Hae-in's heart raced.

Jin-woo was hoping to meet her. . .

When Hae-in entered her condo later that day, her hands were shaking. Now that she discovered that Jin-woo still remembered her throughout these years, she must make her move, mustn't she?

But what should she say? Hi? Hello? Say that she was the girl he had described in the interview?

Finally, Hae-in mustered up her courage and went to his DMS to type out a message;

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): hey! I don't know if you are able to see this but— I'm actually the girl whom you met a few years ago. ]

She shut her phone off and went to the kitchen to prepare for some dinner. And just as she set her utensils down, her phone let out a single sound.

Hae-in came over and picked it up and. . . Needless to say, she almost dropped it.

Jin-woo had replied to her message!

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): Hae-in?! Oh my God!! ]

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): I can't believe this. Really! I've been wanting to message you lately, but I was afraid that I might look like a fool to you in case you don't remember me. ]

Hae-in chuckled. Same.

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): I watched your performances through the band's account. You're very amazing! ]

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): haha thanks! ]

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): do you want to meet up? That is, if you're free, of course. It's fine if you're not available:) ]

That was fast. Hae-in thought. But then she remembered that Jin-woo had been waiting for this moment, her lips curled into a smile.

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): sure! ^_^ ]

At that moment, a seed of a beautiful friendship was planted.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Jin-woo could hardly sleep at the excitement.

Hae-in actually messaged him. . . And then agreed to meet up with him after years of not seeing each other. Yes, Jin-woo had not forgotten about her even for such a short time, but it seemed that fate had another plan for the both of them, which was why she remained in the back of his mind.

If anything, he already knew about the life she had right now, based on the news he had been seeing — another athlete had made her mark in South Korea's Olympics and was competing in various competitions while representing her homeland. She reached her fame earlier before he did.

But here he was. . . A star of his own, radiating his newfound status everywhere he went. He sung, he danced, and did the two in the same time. Back then, Jin-woo was a shy young boy who had talents that brought him to the brightest and biggest path he had ever taken.

He was also in charge of his band's choreography. But before the rehearsal, Jin-woo must practice the song by himself until he came up with the right steps to teach his members. It was fun amidst the exhaustion, yet the results always paid off the moment the audience had witnessed it.

The music stopped the moment he clicked the remote. Jin-woo grabbed the collar of his shirt to wipe the sweat on his face. The rest of the members were panting after almost an hour of practicing in front of the broad mirror for their upcoming music video that was set to film next week.

"Please tell me the practice is over," Tae-gyu grumbled. "My arms are so sore!"

Jin-woo took his phone from his pocket to check the time. He grinned. "It is over. We're free to do whatever we want now."

"Finally!" Tae-gyu punched the air. "Anybody wanna order something? I'm starving."

"Your treat?" Byung-gyu eyed him curiously.

"Who said it's my treat?" Tae-gyu huffed. "Hey, Sung! After making us go suffer for one hour, how about you order us some food? Preferably Chinese, 'cuz I'm craving those."

"Sorry, I have plans," Jin-woo shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets as he began to leave the hall. "Enjoy your meals!"

"Wait, what?"

"Plans?"

"Since when did that idiot have plans for something else?"

"Leave him be. He's practically an adult!" Jong-in rolled his eyes at the three.

It had been eleven days since he had begun talking with Hae-in. And by his luck, Hae-in's schedule was cleared up and she was free from her tasks, so the moment she informed him, Jin-woo set up a time and place to where would they meet.

After finishing his shower, Jin-woo made his way to pick through his assortment of clothing. If he was going to head out and not have people swarming him, then he must wear something that disguised his whole self. Surely, Hae-in would do the same since she had gained a lot of public attention for being a skillful athlete.

Jin-woo had gone for a pair of black jeans, a plain white shirt, and a brown jean jacket. Even if it might be against his usual color style, wearing something that was not black would be a nice way not to drive any attention. He also chose a black hat and a black facemask for additional disguise. Once he was satisfied with the way he looked, Jin-woo headed out of his room and went downstairs where his friends were at the living room, facing the television that featured a western action movie.

Yoon-ho was the one who spotted him. "Take care of yourself out there, Sung! And, where are you going anyway?"

"To meet up with a friend."

Before anyone else could ask, Jin-woo strode to the door and left.

He was supposed to meet up with her at the coffee shop. It was a few blocks away from where he lived. So, when he entered the cafe, Jin-woo walked past the counter and went to one of the empty tables in the corner. There wasn't a lot of customers around, considering how the prices for the drinks and pastries were something not many could afford.

Jin-woo sat down and waited. He wasn't sure how far was this place from Hae-in's, though she already said yes when he was about to ask where she lived. His elation got the best of him.

A few moments later, his phone dinged.

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): I'm here. ]

Jin-woo looked across the place and saw a woman clad in a pair of jeans, boots, and a blouse that had puffy sleeves. She had short blonde hair and wore a pink cap with a white facemask.

The corners of his lips tugged into a smile.

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): look to your right. ]

Hae-in got his message from her phone and turned her head to the right direction. Jin-woo raised his hand to get her attention, and it wasn't long until Hae-in met his gaze, he stood up and watched as the star athlete walked toward him.

It felt like a light was coming toward him. Not blinding, but the kind of light that made him see the beauty of every second. Hae-in was shorter than him by several inches, yet her presence felt different than when he was only looking at her through her photos or short clip of her interviews.

"Hi." She said.

"Hey."

Jin-woo smiled behind his facemask, hoping she would still see it just like how he noticed her eyes were glimmering.

They stood in front of each other in silence.

Then, Hae-in cleared her throat. "So, uh. . . " Her hands fidgeted on her sides. "Sorry. I'm not used to talking to people a lot, especially in person."

"Oh! No, it's fine!" Jin-woo said. "I share the same sentiments. We've only been meeting each other for the first time in years, after all."

"I guess you're right," she chuckled.

And so, the two of them sat in front of each other. Jin-woo had the widest smile in his face as he chattered with Hae-in, who was more talkative than she was in her interviews. When he was watching her in his phone, Hae-in would often give short answers, yet enough to satisfy the interviewer and only gave little details of her personal life; she always put on a nice smile, which was one of the things the audience had adored to see, and it made Jin-woo wonder if she was as still shy when he first met her that day.

Turned out, Hae-in only had to be completely comfortable with someone before opening up.

Jin-woo couldn't help but be surprised at the information Hae-in was sharing him. She revealed to him about her struggles with trying to maintain the "perfect" image for the crowds and that she had to suffer from dealing with questions which were out of the line. Jin-woo felt the same. Keeping up with his image was easy, since the media didn't care about the ARISE members being themselves, but the personal questions? No.

Interviewers would ask him about his relationship status, his family, and other things that were past Jin-woo's boundaries. He swore to protect his privacy and could only hope for the media to respect his wishes.

Interviews had always been a torture.

"So how did you become a star?" Hae-in asked.

"It's simple— my family dragged me to the audition," Jin-woo spoke in a slightly low voice. "It's not an exaggeration. They literally dragged me when I was dressed in pajamas."

Hae-in let out a giggle. "Your family is so supportive."

"Yeah, and when they learned that I had to move in with my bandmates, they were supportive instead of being emotional! I thought all of us were like that until Tae-gyu told me his mother cried and threw a farewell party for him." Jin-woo sighed. "I was so jealous in that moment."

"Cute." Hae-in chuckled.

"What's the best competition you have participated in?"

Their time in that café felt like a lifetime.

Jin-woo had lost touch of the time until his phone started ringing. He answered it without looking at the name and realized it was Jin-chul, who demanded where he was and said he was late to the meeting about next month's agendas. Jin-woo hung up after saying a single 'okay' and didn't wait for his manager to complete his sentence.

He turned to Hae-in and said. "Welp, I guess I had to go. I forgot that I still have something to do."

"That's okay! It's been great talking to you, Jin-woo." Hae-in smiled.

"I'll message you later once I'm done," Jin-woo promised her.

Beside his band members, Jin-woo didn't have other friends who were famous, practically because he found them ambitious and quite overbearing. But Hae-in? She was nice. Jin-woo liked talking to her a lot — he even began to secretly message her under the table when someone else was speaking.

And he was never caught.

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He was a star in the music industry. And she was a star in the track and field.

Jin-woo chose to keep his friendship with Hae-in a secret. He didn't know why he did, but he just felt like it. His friends started to become suspicious at the amount of time he was found typing on his phone, though they chose not to say a word about it, considering how Jin-woo responded to their questions sometimes.

"Hey, Sung? Are you sure you told the interviewer that you are not dating someone? You keep checking your phone than usual."

"Hm? What is it? You want to get back to practice?"

Tae-gyu gagged. "It's only past two minutes!"

"Well, I can still dance without taking breaks," smirked Jin-woo.

"Urgh. Whatever."

Jin-woo chuckled. He glanced down again to see the digital poster Hae-in had sent him. It was her upcoming competition against the athletes from France, Romania, Japan, and Thailand.

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): amazing, isn't it? At least I wouldn't have to book a flight this time since the competition will be in Seoul. ]

Jin-woo smiled.

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): then that gives me a reason to see it :D ]

[ Cha Hae-in (@ truly_haein): WHAT?! DON'T YOU HAVE A BUSY SCHEDULE OR SOMETHING??? ]

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): have you ever heard of "if there's a will, there's a way"? Trust me on this. ]

Jin-woo did show up on the competition. He wore a long-haired black wig, a white cap, and a black facemask to watch within the crowd. Hae-in still didn't believe him when he said that he was going to watch her competition, so Jin-woo took it as a challenge to surprise her.

He was supposed to practice with his band, but he snuck out in the middle of their break.

Knowing that his phone would be bombarded with messages, Jin-woo put it on silent to watch the match peacefully. This had been his second time to witness Cha Hae-in run with his own eyes. Back then, he was amazed by her speed that it made him go look and congratulate her for being in the first place.

And he was going to do it again.

When Hae-in won the competition, the crowd went wild. Jin-woo cheered along with them. He took out his phone to take pictures of her receiving her medals and a bouquet of flowers. Hae-in was panting, yet managed to let out a broad smile. Jin-woo snapped a photo out of it too. And once the crowd slowly piled out of the stadium, Jin-woo stayed in his seat until most of the audience had gotten out and approached the nearest worker.

"Excuse me? Do you mind if you tell me where the backroom is?"

The janitor, not knowing who he was, replied in a blunt tone. "The security doesn't accept strangers to personally see Ms. Cha, sir."

"I'm actually a friend of hers."

"You cannot fool me, sir. You are not the first person to say that, so please, go to the exit."

"But I'm not someone pretending to be her friend—"

"Go away before I call the security!"

Jin-woo sighed and took off his mask. "It's me."

The janitor's eyes quickly widened. "Sung Jin—"

"Shh!" Jin-woo cut him off. "Do me a favor? Please? I need to see Hae-in."

"But can I take a picture with you first, though?"

"No."

The janitor frowned. "Alright. If you insist. . . " He began to walk away with his broom.

"W— wait!" Jin-woo called after him.

The janitor turned to the idol with a grin.

Jin-woo walked across the hallway, searching for a particular blonde. The janitor also told him that Hae-in was busy with packing her things, so Jin-woo still had time to see her. He found her in a pair of sweatpants this time instead of the shorts she had worn during the competition, Hae-in had her back turned to him while she was placing her towels inside of her gym bag.

His lips twitched into a grin. Jin-woo tugged his cap lower and started to make his way toward her in soundless steps. Hae-in was still unaware of the nearing presence behind her. Jin-woo crouched low and once he reached the right proximity, he raised his head toward her ear and held his breath.

"Hey~"

Hae-in instantly shrieked.

Jin-woo burst out a loud laugh when he saw her frightened face while she had her arms across her chest, holding onto her shoulders. Once she recovered and realized who it was, a cold glare was formed in Hae-in's eyes.

"Jin-woo!"

"Surprise?" Jin-woo grinned.

Hae-in slapped him on the arm. "Who wouldn't be surprised at what you just did?!"

"Which one? The fact that I scared the heck out of you or the part where I showed up to your competition?"

"You—" Hae-in's ire subsided and lowered her head. Then, she snorted. She looked up to him with a smile. "You really lived up to your words, huh?"

"Now that's one thing you should always remember!" Jin-woo's grin broadened that showed a portion of his teeth. "So. . . No hugs? No 'oh my God! I'm so glad you came'?"

"Idiot." Hae-in rolled her eyes. She laughed and went up to wrap her arms around Jin-woo's shoulders.

They supported each other in every way.

When Jin-woo was busy and couldn't squeeze his time with Hae-in in his schedule, he'd try to make it up to her by checking up on her to see how she was doing. Hae-in did the same. She'd send him a message in the middle of the day and if she was too shy to comment on his posts, she would just slide into his DMs.

There were even occasions where Hae-in would attend the band's concert in her disguise and take a photo of herself when Jin-woo was on stage. She'd send it to him once the concert was over. And of course, Jin-woo would be surprised that he even dropped his phone after seeing the photo.

Eventually, he got used to it.

Jin-woo wasn't expecting that Hae-in would be in the concert, but if she sent him a photo, he would grin broadly. Same with Hae-in. He'd show up in her competitions and snap a selfie of himself to send it to her afterward.

They'd still see each other depending on their availability. Though, part of Jin-woo wished he wouldn't have to wear a disguise when meeting Hae-in. . . But given their reputations, nobody must know.

Only his parents knew about the friendship he had with the famous track and field athlete.

"So! You and I will do this part—" Byung-gyu drew a circle around the verse with his pen. "And then Tae-gyu will sing solo on the next part up until Yoon-ho's rap."

"Got it!" Jin-woo nodded. "Say, how about we practice our parts together?"

"Oka—"

The door was bursted open.

"Jin-woo! What's the meaning of this?!"

Byung-gyu and Jin-woo turned over their shoulders to face a panting Tae-gyu. Jin-woo raised an eyebrow. "But I didn't leak anything?"

"Not that! Check Twitter right now!"

Jin-woo took out his phone and so did Byung-gyu. He clicked on the app and found the "trending" option where—

"Oh my god!" Byung-gyu gasped.

He turned to his friend. "What—"

"You're dating Cha Hae-in?!"

"What?!" Jin-woo's jaw dropped. "Who did—"

Byung-gyu almost shoved his phone to his face that Jin-woo had to lean away a little to check the post.

His eyes became wide as spheres.

The post came from one of the popular entertainment agencies in South Korea that featured updates from various celebrities. Mainly, it posted rumors of two people dating. . . And it seemed Jin-woo had become one of those topics.

Him and none other than Hae-in.

[ Sung Jin-woo of #ARISE and Star Athlete Cha Hae-in are found in the park together! ] — the post stated.

It was indeed him and Hae-in. They had just finished jogging around the park and secluded themselves under the shady tree to peel their masks off a little to let themselves breathe. Unbeknownst to them, a couple was taking a picture of themselves, only then to notice two very familiar people behind

Hence, why the photo of him and Hae-in looked like it had been zoomed in and cropped.

This is bad. He thought. Very bad!

Jin-woo turned to his phone and his breath caught up at the center of his throats. There were comments. Dozens of them. All of them were astounded to see him together with Hae-in. And there were some who were skeptical if it was really them and that they were together.

[ user1: Jin-woo?? And Hae-in?? They are in a secret relationship all along?? ]

[ user2: Jin-woo has been lying in the interviews! Now this explains why he looks disinterested in questions about his dating life. HE'S JUST TRYING TO PROTECT HIS PRIVACY! ]

[ user3: congrats to the couple!!! ]

[ user4: I did not expect this. But since I'm a fan of both Hae-in and Jin-woo, I shall support these lovebirds! ]

[ user5: they look so adorable together!! ]

Jin-woo scrolled deeper until he had enough of the comments, especially the ones who were congratulating him for his relationship with Hae-in — which was not true. He and Hae-in never even dated.

"Is the post true?!" Tae-gyu snapped him out of his thoughts. "Look, I understand that you have every right to keep things for yourself, but it's your love life we are talking about! Like, how did you even—"

"We're not dating!" Jin-woo exclaimed. "Hae-in and I are not in a romantic relationship. We're just close friends."

"Then why didn't you tell us?" Byung-gyu raised an eyebrow.

"It's not that entirely big. And besides, I know how you guys will react if I bring her here." Jin-woo scoffed. "How did we become friends? It's simple. I've already met Hae-in as a kid, but never heard of her again until I made my debut in the industry."

"Since then, you hang out with her behind our backs?"

"Yeah."

Tae-gyu let out a glare. "So that's why you keep sneaking out like you're meeting up with your forbidden lover!"

"She's not!" Jin-woo argued. "But as much as I want to stay and argue, I must fix this mess up before it gets worse!"

Especially for Hae-in.

Sooner or later, she would be see those rumors and start getting nervous. But first, Jin-woo needed to prioritize the media, knowing how rapid it could get, and the more people would believe that it was true if he must not act early.

Without leaving his chair, Jin-woo made a new post in his account:

[ Sung Jin-woo (@ sjwofficial): in regards to the rumors, Hae-in and I are not romantically involved with each other. She's someone whom I've met when I was young and met for the second time this year. She's amazing, yes, but I support her and she supports me like how friends should. To anyone who hasn't known what's going on, please do not listen to the rumors. Thank you! ]

He pressed the button and his post showed up in his feed within a second. Byung-gyu and Tae-gyu saw it and snickered together.

"Supporting each other, huh? How many times have Ms. Cha came to see our concerts?" Tae-gyu grinned.

"Seven times. She sends me a photo every time she's in the crowd."

"Woah. . . I'm guessing you do the same?"

"Yeah."

Byung-gyu and Tae-gyu shared a glance at each other as if Jin-woo had gone mad. Jin-woo shook his head and got up from his chair to leave the two alone before something else might happen to him.

He called Hae-in when he got inside of his room. As anticipated, Hae-in had already known about the rumors and other athletes had begun to ask her about her relationship with the ARISE member. Jin-woo's heart pinched in worry and could imagine how tough it was going to be for her.

Instead, Hae-in just laughed.

"You don't have to worry about me, Jin-woo! Yeah, I was bombarded with questions, but I managed to clear everything to them." Hae-in said. "And besides, those are just rumors. Let people believe what they want to believe."

Jin-woo sighed. "I just don't want to let you get into this mess. You got an upcoming prelims next week."

"Yeah, but I'm not stressing about that," shrugged Hae-in. "Are you still coming?"

"Me? Of course! I'm not gonna let those rumors hold me back."

"See? That's what I want to hear from Sung Jin-woo!"

He snorted. "Why? Does it sound very unlike me?"

"Well, you're supposed not to care because that's how you are in interviews."

"That's different. I know you're trying to keep a low profile and not let your private life be invaded, so that's why."

"You worry too much." Jin-woo could feel her rolling her eyes. "As long as we know to ourselves that we're just friends and nothing more, that's it."

"Yeah," a subtle smile formed across his lips.

Just friends.

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They were friends.

Friends who supported each other on and off cameras. Hae-in and Jin-woo even became confident enough to comment on each other's posts. Even though the media hadn't seen photos of Hae-in being in ARISE's concerts and Jin-woo being in her competitions, the fans pretty much knew it due to the way Jin-woo and Hae-in complimented each other in social media.

They were friends.

Friends who never listened to the amount of rumors about them in a romantic relationship. Jin-woo had grown used to it, but it didn't stop him from posting a statement. The rest of the ARISE members just laughed at it when they saw the notification.

"You know, since you hardly post anything, your page is going to be filled with you debunking rumors." Yoon-ho said to him.

"So what? Dealing with rumors is like fighting bacteria." Jin-woo rolled his eyes.

"Shush!" Jong-in chastised him. "There are cameras around."

"Oh, please. . . I doubt they're gonna post it on the internet that I'm trashing people." Jin-woo muttered. The photographer gestured his hand to command the idol to move to the right. Jin-woo stepped down from the stool to lean his elbow against it, facing the camera as it let out another flash. "I'll keep doing it until they finally had enough of assuming Hae-in and I are not in a relationship. Byung-gyu's friends with Hee-jin, but there isn't a single rumor of them dating."

"That's because the media has nothing to use between her and I for creating fake news," replied Byung-gyu behind him. "Have you seen us act sweet toward each other?"

"Yeah. Last week, I guess?"

"That's because she wanted something from me."

"See the difference, Sung?" Tae-gyu piped up. "How about this— have you tried insulting Hae-in at least once?"

Jin-woo abruptly turned to the oldest member of the band, flashing him with a daggering glare that looked like he could kill. "No! Why would I even do that to her? We're not like Hee-jin and Byung-gyu, or even Yoon-ho and Jong-in."

"Huh?"

"What?"

He ignored them. "There are plenty of ways to prove that we're just friends. Not just throwing insults."

"Face the camera, please!" The photographer shouted.

Jin-woo faced the camera once again and another photo was snapped. Then, he caught Jin-ho appearing in his peripheral vision. The younger man held out his phone, which showed the ongoing call from Park Kyung-hye, so Jin-woo raised his hand to the photographers and then drew it across his neck to insinuate something. They nodded and paused the session, allowing everyone else to take a break. Some makeup artists rushed up to check if the members still looked presentable, but Jin-woo went past them to make his way to Jin-ho.

"Yes, mom?" He asked.

"Are you busy today, son?"

"Not really. I'm just doing a couple of photoshoots this whole afternoon."

"I see. . . " Kyung-hye said. "I was wondering if you'd be up for some dinner with us."

            He chuckled. "You know that I'd drop everything just to have dinner with you, dad, and Jin-ah. Of course, I will be there!"

            "Can you invite Hae-in too? I haven't seen her for the past few weeks. Jin-ah misses her too, so I think this should be a great time to have her around again and know how she's been doing."

            "Alright. I'll ask her if she's free tonight." Jin-woo smiled.

            "Love you, Jin-woo!"

            "Love you too, mom."

            It was always heartwarming on how fond his family was to Hae-in. Jin-woo remembered their reactions when he told them that he had met the young athlete runner again after many years. They were happy for him. Hae-in was even surprised when Kyung-hye had instantly welcomed her the moment he brought her to his house. Since then, his family adored her as if she was their own.

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Alone the rehearsal hall, Jin-woo was dancing to the music. There was no deadline or a particular event, he just wanted to dance to release some sweat. The others were off to do their own thing, so Jin-woo decided to do his. Being the lead dancer of the band, he had the liability to use the hall anytime he wished, whether it was doing his hobby or practicing, Jin-woo was the owner of the keys.

His jacket was discarded next to the small portable speaker which was blaring the music, leaving Jin-woo in his grey sleeveless top and a pair of black sweatpants. The white shoes he wore were light and made of cotton, so he wouldn't have to be bothered by hearing those squeaking noises each time his feet rubbed against the clean floor.

Jin-woo felt like he was in his own world. It was different when he was doing exercises — he had to be concentrated, but when he was dancing, his body moved naturally. Jin-woo could close his eyes and pay less attention to the beat, but he would still be on sync with the music.

Sometimes, he'd post short videos of his dances, whether it was solo of one of his band's songs or a dance cover. But other times, Jin-woo liked to keep the dances to himself just like how he frequently danced in his bedroom, which also explained his well-built physique.

The song was a personal favorite of his. It also included a choreography, allowing Jin-woo to feel in touch with the lyrics and beat more. It was not emotional, rather it had a specific rhythm that made him invigorated and didn't exert his muscles to exhaustion.

It was him and the music alone.

When the song ended, the corner of Jin-woo's mouth twitched into a grin as he turned around to make his way to his possessions. He still had some energy. So, he picked his phone up and began to scroll through his array of songs saved in his playlist. A certain song captured his attention, so he was about to press his thumb on it when he heard some clapping that echoed across the room.

"That was spectacular."

He raised his head and to his surprise, it was Hae-in. His jaw loosened upon the sight of her walking toward him with her lips curled into a smile. She wore a simple white blouse and a pair of blue leggings above her brown sandals. A cap also sat above her head.

"H— Hae-in?" Jin-woo stammered. "How. . . Have you been watching this whole time?"

"I only caught up in the middle of the song," she shrugged. "Why? Are you embarrassed?"

Jin-woo flushed a little. "No. . . Why should I?"

Hae-in had seen him dance before. Therefore, he mustn't be flustered when she caught him in the middle of the hall.

He cleared his throat. "So, uh. . . What brings you here?"

"I just wanted to visit you. I asked the guys and they told me that you're in the rehearsal hall, and since I don't know where that is, I asked Jin-ho for help." Hae-in explained.

"I see," he nodded.

"But since you're busy— I'll just sit here and watch." She concluded.

"Won't that make you feel bored?" Jin-woo huffed. "And besides, I have a better idea."

Hae-in arched an eyebrow. "And that is. . . ?"

"Dance with me."

" . . . " The athlete stared at him. "I'm sorry?"

"You heard me, Ms. Cha," Jin-woo grinned at her. "Instead of sitting there and acting like a stranger, why don't you join me?"

"I don't dance, Jin-woo."

"You wouldn't know until you try!" Jin-woo snickered. "Trust me, I'll make sure you won't feel embarrassed after this. I know a song that is great for beginners."

Hae-in swallowed before she reluctantly nodded. "Oh— okay."

Jin-woo lightly grabbed her wrist to bring her to the center and walked back to place his phone next to his speaker to press the play button, putting it on loop as well, and rushed back to Hae-in. The song began in a soft electric guitar stringing and the sound of a piano. He faced Hae-in fully and instructed;

"The first steps are similar to waltzing, so all you have to do is place your hand on my shoulder and put your foot back once I move mine forward. And don't worry, I'll guide you through it."

Hae-in nodded.

Now.

Her hand found his shoulder. His found her waist.

She was about to put her right hand as well when Jin-woo gently stopped her and told her that only one hand was required. Hae-in nodded again. Then, he and gently pushed forward. As told, Hae-in moved her foot backward and their feet slid across the floor to close the distance. Jin-woo did the same to his right foot and Hae-in followed.

They did the same steps with each feet until Jin-woo stopped, though it took a few seconds before he removed his hand. Hae-in waited for him to speak next.

"Now," Jin-woo took her hand. "The next step is I'm gonna spin you. If you'd like, I can do it slowly."

"Uh, I think I will be fine," said Hae-in. "Just do what you have to do."

Jin-woo nodded and heard her gasp when he twirled her around and tugged her back. Hae-in's hand found his bicep as though to balance herself. An airy chuckle escaped his mouth when he saw her wide-eyed reaction.

"Why so surprised, Ms. Cha? I thought you'll be fine?"

"I'm just caught off guard!" Hae-in exclaimed.

"Cute," Jin-woo grinned.

Hae-in was flexible, so it was easy for her to do some of the steps, but if she struggled a little, Jin-woo was there to guide her. The hall had never been so lively with their laughter in between the music. Their eyes almost never left each other as they repeated the steps when the song returned to the beginning.

There was no doubt that Jin-woo was astonished at Hae-in.

As she got used to it, Hae-in now wore a smile on her face. Jin-woo couldn't help but smile back. Moments ago, he was in his own world, but when Hae-in joined him, he felt as if he was sharing his world with his best friend.

When they got to the chorus, the two found themselves walking in circle with their hands on each other's shoulders. Jin-woo craned his neck down a little and Hae-in had to look up to meet his gaze due to their differences in height. It was as if there was magnetic field between them. It was just him and her.

Jin-woo had probably lost track on the amount of times their skins had touched. He had never made a lot of physical contact when dancing with someone. Hae-in, who would instantly flush when she got touched, had not complained. She was comfortable. Jin-woo wondered if he was the only one she had acted this way or there was someone else.

He spun her again when the song slowly reached its end note. Jin-woo gradually tugged her until her back was pressed against his side. With their hands still linked, he gently brought brought it down until his arm was wrapped around her waist as the last piano keys sang into silence.

He heard Hae-in chuckle. "Well, that was fun."

"Exhausted?"

"Quite. But it feels different when I'm doing my la—"

"Oh my God!"

Jin-woo and Hae-in almost jumped. She quickly retracted herself from him while he turned around and saw none other than Tae-gyu, who looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"What are you doing here?!" Jin-woo hissed. On the other hand, Hae-in was in deep red.

"I was just gonna ask if I can burrow your— you know what? Nevermind! Just keep whatever you two are doing." Tae-gyu turned around to face the exit.

Heat crept up to Jin-woo's neck. "I— it's not what you think!"

"Of course, it's not. What do you think I am thinking?"

"I. . . I don't know."

Tae-gyu let out a snicker and shot him a smirk over his shoulder. "Angry that you two's romantic dance got interrupted?"

"Scratch the romance part for the love of God!" Jin-woo groaned. "I was just teaching her."

"Yeah, keep saying that, Sung. Aren't you supposed to get ready? If you don't wanna go, then I will happily replace you."

"Get out!"

Once Tae-gyu left, Jin-woo sighed. He looked over and saw Hae-in wipe her sweating neck with her handkerchief — though, the mortification was still visible in her visage. Jin-woo couldn't blame her. Tae-gyu, of all people, had to ruin the moment and opened that annoying mouth of his.

Right! Jin-woo remembered that he had one thing to do since Hae-in was there. "Uh, Hae-in?"

"Hm?"

"My mom called earlier and told me to come home," said Jin-woo. "She also said that I should invite you to join us."

Hae-in's eyes finally lit up. "Sure! What time?"

"7 PM. But I'll pick you up instead."

"Okay," she smiled. "I'll wait for you."

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

"Unnie! You're finally here!"

"Careful, Jin-ah! Let our guest breathe."

"It's fine, Mr. Sung!"

"Thank you for coming, dear. It feels like it's been so long since you've set foot in this household."

"I'm happy to be here again, ma'am."

"You're so gonna love this night's dinner!"

*chuckle* "Your mom's food always taste the best, Jin-ah."

Jin-woo smiled as he watched the loving sight of his family welcoming Hae-in. Jin-ah looked as if she didn't want to let go from Hae-in. He hung his coat over the hook, leaving him in his black turtleneck, then cleared his throat. "What about me? You haven't seen me for a long time too!"

"It's only been six weeks, brother," Jin-ah rolled her eyes.

He gaped. "Hey! That's long enough!"

"Here we go again," Kyung-hye sighed. "How about you two set up the table instead of arguing already?"

"Yes, mom." The siblings said in unison.

Before he was famous, Jin-woo and his family only lived in an apartment. But now that he was earning thousands of money, Jin-woo bought a new house for them to move in. It was not entirely big or fancy, rather it was enough to feel the simplicity of life. Kyung-hye was the one who set everything up, from the decorations to the photos, and Ill-hwang maintained the house's tidiness if he had no work.

Jin-woo had pretty much invested 70% his money into his family, only wanting nothing but the best for his parents and little sister, who was close to finishing high school. And at this, Jin-ah could choose any university she wished and Jin-woo would happily enroll her.

He didn't stop his father from continuing his job as a fireman. Jin-woo knew how Ill-hwang liked helping people's lives — which he admired his old man for that. As long as he still had capability, Ill-hwang would continue his job and earn to support his family without relying on his son most of the time.

The meal was a traditional seafood stew. It was perfect for the beginning of the cold season. Hae-in, who sat next to Jin-woo, laughed along with Jin-ah. Kyung-hye and Ill-hwang watched the two warmly as they exchanged short remarks to each other. Jin-woo just happily indulged in his meal, content with being surrounded by the people who meant to him the most.

"It's amazing that you managed to accept Jin-woo's invitation for having dinner with us, dear. For some reason, I thought that you won't be coming because of being busy." Kyung-hye said.

"I will always choose to spend time with you guys if there is an opportunity," Hae-in smiled.

The old woman chuckled softly. "That's almost the exact same thing Jin-woo had told me when I first called. How are you and your family?"

"We're doing good. Other times, they get very busy, so we don't have a lot of time to talk to each other a lot."

"I see," nodded Kyung-hye. "Do you have any upcoming competitions?"

"I do! However, it's in America. I'll be leaving in two days."

"America? That's too far!" Jin-ah piped up and then eyed her brother. "I guess oppa won't be able to see it since he might have a lot of projects to work on."

"That's fine by me. I'll just treat Hae-in for a meal or something." Jin-woo shrugged.

Jin-ah snickered. "And then someone snaps a photo of you two and rumors rise again!"

"Who cares about rumors?"

"Says you — I've seen your latest statement!"

"You know what I have to do," Jin-woo rolled his eyes. "Plus, if I don't say anything about it, the media won't shut up."

"But did it work? No. I even heard some of my classmates talk about you two. It was so hard for me not to join them." Jin-ah snorted. "Come on, brother! You're in the right age to date anyway."

"I will have to agree with your sister, son," Ill-hwang chimed in. "Sure, the decision is up to you, but try not to hesitate when you found someone. After all, your mom and I have raised you well and know you will treat someone genuinely."

Kyung-hye nodded. "And don't forget to choose wisely, Jin-woo. Fall for someone who loves you not because of your reputation, but for who you really are. I know a lot of celebrities who end up single despite having such good hearts."

"I'll keep that in mind, mom." Jin-woo agreed. He returned to his meal and looked at the corner of his eye, finding Hae-in, who had fallen into silence as she proceeded to eat.

When the dinner had come to an end, Jin-woo and Hae-in lingered for a little more to spend time with Ill-hwang, Kyung-hye, and Jin-ah in the living room. They conversed and laughed. Then, Jin-ah took out her phone and gathered everyone for a selfie. She moved the camera in front while the adults stood behind her, and unbeknownst to him, Jin-woo's hand held Hae-in's shoulder as they smiled for the picture.

Finally, the pair bid their farewell. Jin-woo grabbed their coats from the hooks and handed the blue one to Hae-in. The Sung family waved their hands as they watched the two depart from their home and walk toward the black car.

Hae-in sat on the passenger's seat while Jin-woo inserted the keys into the ignition. He pulled from the driveway and drove down the path that led to the road. Streetlights grazed over the windows as vehicles ran past, the city was lively with the bright lights beneath the dark sky, Jin-woo rested his elbow on the armrest to prop the side of his jaw against it, staring ahead of the open road. His pupils moved to the corner of his eyes again and spotted Hae-in, whom he noticed had uttered nary a single word since they had left.

Jin-woo cleared his throat. "How are you feeling?"

"Hm?" Hae-in met his gaze and realized. "Oh! Uh, yeah, I'm fine."

"Really? Your silence tells otherwise," said Jin-woo. "Is there something bothering you? Or did me or my family said something wrong?"

"No! None of you said something wrong." Hae-in shook her head. "It's just that. . . I keep thinking about what your mother said in the middle of dinner."

"Oh?"

"Remember when she said that you should fall for someone who will love you regardless of your reputation? Yeah. . . But I don't know why those words stayed in my mind longer." Hae-in explained. "I haven't thought of dating yet, but you know that I'll be flying to America soon, right?"

He nodded.

"I won't just be there for the competition. There's. . . There's someone who wants to meet me. My parents said he's around my age, so I'll be able to get along with him easily."

Something seemed to pinch a small portion of his heart. Jin-woo evaded it and responded. "Are your parents setting you up?"

"I guess? Based on their words, they kinda do." Hae-in sighed and leaned against the headrest. "Do you think I'm fit enough to be someone's girlfriend?"

"Of course. You're down-to-earth, sweet, and supportive. Why do you think otherwise?" Jin-woo told her. "That is, if you're not ready for a relationship yet."

"I'm not sure. Besides, I don't him personally, so I have no idea what kind of person is he going to be."

Part of Jin-woo felt lucky that his parents had never set him up with someone. He also felt bad for Hae-in. He had only known little details of her relationship with her parents, but learning that they had actually set up their daughter with someone she didn't know. . . It made him quite worried.

Sure, that was out of his business. If Hae-in ended up wanting to date the guy, he'd be happy for her.

The corner of his mouth slowly tugged upward. He stared as Hae-in faced the window for a few moments until an idea sparked in his head. So, Jin-woo stirred the wheel to maneuver the car to the intersection, causing Hae-in to move away from the window when she noticed they were going on a different way.

"Wait— where are we going?" She asked.

"You'll see," Jin-woo grinned. "Sit back and take a nap too. I'll let you know once we've arrived."

There was a place only he knew.

Jin-woo hardly went there, unless he needed to cool off alone. And with the nighttime shrouding the whole country, he thought he had perfect timing. Hae-in had remained awake throughout the journey, curious to see where he was taking her, and Jin-woo had a tinge of excitement in his stomach.

He was confident that she would love the place.

After several minutes of driving in an empty road, Jin-woo finally arrived in his desired destination. The place was quiet and nothing captivating, but there was an old steel fence at the edge of the land that blocked anyone from accidentally setting foot on the sea, and on the other side, it was the distant view of the glimmering lights of Seoul. And far above them. . . It was the clear dark sky tainted with vague mists of clouds and dotted stars scattered across the ether; the moon clung high and bright.

The car halted in the center of the area and Jin-woo got out of the door. He strode around his vehicle to open the other door for Hae-in, who was wrapping her white scarf around her neck; her eyes turned wide at the sight of his hand extended out for her to take. She eventually accepted it and allowed him to lead her out of the car, shutting the door behind her with his free hand.

Jin-woo brought her to the front of his car, leaning his weight against the hood. The wind was as soft as the whispers of the sea across them. It was a perfect place to be without having to hide himself from being recognized.

"It may not be as amazing as you think, but the view is everything you need," he said.

"It is amazing. To be frank, I only see this place in shows." Hae-in chuckled. "Now I understand why directors often choose this place to shoot."

Jin-woo hummed. "I just thought I'd bring you here to ease your mind — at least you won't have to think about the guy your parents had set you up with."

"Have you ever dated before, Jin-woo?" She asked him.

"Me? Pfft—" Jin-woo huffed. "That's the last thing I would do. Sure, I've met a lot of nice girls, but none of them felt right for me."

"ARISE members really have high standards, huh?"

He chuckled. "Not really. As far as I know, all of us have simple standards that are hard to find. I mean, Byung-gyu has been expressing what kind of girl he likes through the songs he wrote, Yoon-ho and Jong-in's are quite hard to tell, and Tae-gyu is. . . Well, I don't wanna think about that."

"What about you?"

"Why do you want to know?" Jin-woo let out a grin.

"Why not?"

"Eh. You might probably do something. Or worse, you'll realize that you got everything I look for a—"

"Shut up!" Hae-in shoved him from finishing the sentence, laughing.

"If that guy doesn't make you laugh this hard, then he's not the right one for you!" Jin-woo laughed back.

Her laugh was like a symphony.

Even under the night sky, Hae-in was as vibrant as the sun. Jin-woo could still see her smile amidst the low brightness around them. The warmth in his heart had spread throughout his body, no longer feeling the cold in the air.

"Whatever, Jin-woo! What if he does it better than you?"

"I doubt it," Jin-woo scoffed and crossed his arms. "If he manages to make you laugh, it means he succeeded in making you comfortable with him. But remember this, Hae-in — the moment you feel something strange in a bad way, don't hesitate to distance yourself."

Hae-in rolled her eyes. "Of course. Why should I still stay with someone who makes me feel uneasy?"

"That's the Cha Hae-in I know," Jin-woo smiled. "As long as you're not ready, the guy must wait, especially if he genuinely wants to be with you. If anything, he should be lucky that he's about to meet someone as nice as you."

Little did he know, something was pinching the back of his heart. Jin-woo chose to evade it and focused on the moment he shared with his best friend. Was he afraid that once Hae-in returned from the states, her heart already belonged to someone else? No, she was not like that. Jin-woo had nothing to fear.

Hae-in was her own person. It was up to her whom she wished to give her heart to.

Jin-woo had spent years deeply hoping to meet the unnamed girl he met at the stadium. All he had wished was nothing but the best. And when he saw her on TV, it stole his breath away. It was the moment he learned her name. Hae-in came into his life and brought such happiness he never felt in the people around him.

Now. . . He hoped that she would bring the same impact on the person she was yet to meet in America.

"You know, meeting you has been the highlight of my year," said Hae-in. She looked ahead, a soft smile curving on her lips. "I'm glad that our paths had crossed once again. I don't think nobody else can compare to that. No amount of words can simply express how thankful I am for you and this bond we have."

"Likewise, Hae-in," Jin-woo smiled tenderly. "That is why I keep wishing but the very best in your life."

"I'd still be able to share those moments with you, right?"

"I'm right beside you in every step of the way."

No matter what, he'd be there for her.

He'd be happy for her.

In the middle of the silence, Jin-woo felt Hae-in rest her head on his shoulder. His heart almost skipped a beat. Shaking his head, he turned to the stars, reflecting upon his eyes like the sea. Two heads of young people slowly became one. His gaze landed on their hands, a mere inch away from each other, then his pinky finger twitched, yet he held himself back from interlocking their hands together.

He believed he was not the right person to hold intertwine their hands together and not let go.

She already had someone waiting for her.

A shooting star sprinted above them.

This time, Jin-woo wished his best friend would be treated right by that person.

[bookwyrminspiration]

KOTLC Graphic Novel: B&N Virtual Event Summary

There are no spoilers

Shannon Messenger was accompanied by Stuart Gibbs, author of Spy School and other series, who asked the questions

Enjoy!

Event's theme was Iggy Celebration--Shannon chose to wear dark blue, as it's secretly her favorite Iggy

It's officially called Dark Blue Iggy in the books, but the actual color nomination from fans was "tardis blue". She couldn't use that for potential legal issues, but she knows it's actually Tardis blue, making it her favorite

Shannon can't take credit for Iggy's changing color

She'd made him pink in book 2, and so a fan at an event asked her what color he'd be in the next book

Shannon asked her what color she wanted him to be. This fan, dressed in head to toe purple, leaned in and very seriously said "Orange." So Iggy was orange

Opened it to fans after that--but sadly never got the name of that one fan to thank her properly ("Whoever you are girl in purple, thank you!")

Book 10 doesn't have an official release date because Shannon's still writing it (as fast as she can!)

Iggy's color options for Book 10 are still undecided as well

Shannon thanks everyone immensely for their patience; "it's my focus! I want to get to them as fast as possible," but she also wants the book to be good and worth the wait

"Naive Shannon thought the later I got into the series the easier the books would be to write. WRONG!"

she has so many planted seeds to keep track of and constantly feels the pressure to one up her previous books

"I kinda wish I'd set the bar a little lower from the beginning"

She can't make a perfect book; there's always going to be someone who doesn't like something

She's reached the point of realizing her plans, and it's a delicate balance. You don't want reveals to feel like they came completely out of left field, but also don't want them to be like "I guessed that six books ago"

Finding the balance between feeling earned and still surprising is a daunting task ahead of her; it's more labor intensive than she thought it'd be

Stuart Gibbs points out that even if it takes a while, Shannon gives us a lot of book per book, so it's worth it

Shannon never intended to write such long books; she used to say every time that the next one she'd get the hang of being concise and it would be shorter, but everyone stopped believing her by book four

Was a graphic novel adaptation ever part of her plans? Secretly yes--she started as an art major and loves seeing illustrated versions of her characters. The highlight of her year is the cover art, and graphic novels are entire books!

It was on her author bucket-list, but she wasn't sure it'd would be possible; some books just don't work as graphic novels and they're expensive for publishers

When she found out she got the adaptation she "did a happy dance I was very grateful no one could see"

How involved were you in this process? Very involved, since her publishers know she has an art background

They let her pick from writers who auditioned--she wasn't sure that was a great idea because she didn't know if she could be objective; "no, I wrote it this way because it needs to be this way!"

Celina "knocked it out of the park" with her audition

For Gabriella, the artist, she was exactly what Shannon was looking for; she wanted a new style--Jason Chan (the cover artist) is incredible, but she wanted the GN to be distinct and more illustrated

She describes the GN as "like Disney meets manga," cartoonish but not

Shannon gave notes on rough drafts, inked pages, and colored versions--she's sure they got sick of her notes by the end of it

She remembers thinking "certain Keefe jokes MUST make it in," but then seeing them in the visual format they realized "huh, this joke isn't funny anymore"

Anything that surprised you about the process? Definitely some of those Keefe jokes not working, but also the fact they had to split it. At first she thought they could work it all into one, but emotion takes longer to convey visually, and they were "robbing the heart out of the book" by trying to fit it in one

Shannon jokes everything she writes ends up longer than they expect

Do you have any idea about part two? It's in the works, but it's a herculean task for the artists, so it all depends on them; "do not blame them at all! this is a daunting, daunting, massive work load"

Shannon owes Gabriella "all the cookies ever"

it's a very tight timeline, so they'll share the release date when they have it, but for now just let the artist do their thing

Was it weird to spend so much time with book 1 again? Forget anything? Want to change anything? There were some sentences she wanted to rewrite--"a book is never done, it's just due"

Thought about adding Gisela in book one, since she wishes she'd introduced her then; she always knew she'd play a huge role, but thought it'd be more clever to not introduce her until she was ready to bring her into play.

Now she disagrees with that decision and wishes she'd been there from book one, but decided that "it's not bad the way she did it, but it would've been more elegant" so she didn't change it

Does Gibbs have anything he would change about his book? He says you don't always know which characters will catch on, some some that become important he wishes he spent more time with in the beginning--"if I'd done this in book one, I couldn't done this in book 7!"

Any movie news? Hollywood is so much hurry up and wait, a ladder with thousands of rungs; they got caught at the script stage when the writer's strike happened, and even though the strike ended that doesn't mean the gears start turning again immediately.

the script is the most important thing, especially since KOTLC would be a very expensive movie, so the more solid the foundation the better the chance they have of getting greenlit

Her fingers are crossed; she wants a movie/show, but she wants it to be a good movie/show

Fans often don't realize how much work it is and how out of the author's hands it is

Reader questions! (name spellings are to the best of my ability)

Celiana: what advice do you have for young authors? Focus on writing and enjoying that part of the process before publishing! Publishing is stressful and complicated

Shannon throws the question to Gibbs. He says a lot of the times fans tell them they don't like their writing, it's their first draft. "Well that would be the problem."

Very few people hit it out of the park on their first try. Editing is a super important part of the process!

Shannon writers her books weird (editing intensely as she goes because she's always behind on deadlines, and hopes to go back to normal one day), but before that she'd have 2 or 3 drafts each. Book 1 was draft 20, Exile was draft 3, Everblaze was 2.

Gibbs does about 10 drafts each (though admits his outlines process isn't nearly as rigorous as Shannon's)

Shannon reached a point where she said "I don't think I'm smart enough to do this alone anymore!" Her books are like houses of cards, and she simply doesn't have time for the drafts to fall apart

She and her team frequently painstakingly plan things out--and even then sometimes have to scrap things. Remember that scene we rigorously went through last week? "it's not working! Now what?"

Mary Claire: Was it hard for you to find a publisher? Yes. First she got an agent, as that's important when traditionally publishing. She got her at draft 13--said that while she loved the book and its idea, you could tell this was Shannon's first book.

They went through a few edits and thought draft 15 was the one, but she got LOTS of rejections

her confidence was shaken, and draft 16 turned into a mess

At draft 18 it was sold, and then they went through 2 more versions with an actual editor; "so so much rewriting..."

Gibbs tried to get published as a kid, but was rejected throughout all of his schooling, so "to heck with this! I'm going to Hollywood to write movies"...which was actually pretty similar

he came back to writing 15.5 years ago during the last writers strike--"hey maybe I should try this book thing again"

They don't share their experiences to scare you; it's worth it, but you have to love writing to be an author given how much work and rejection it is

That's why Shannon says to enjoy the writing stage as long as you can; you need to fall in love with writing and with your story and truly believe in it

Were you always reading as a kid? Writing stories? When did you decide to write a book? Shannon was very focused on art as a kid and wanted to be a Disney animator, but her art doesn't work for that; she can't draw what's in her head, she can only copy, which "makes me about as useful as a camera"

She thought she could learn the skill, but couldn't in art classes; she realized she was always going to be frustrated if she kept at it

She'd started college at 16 and now her life plan was falling to pieces, so her mom advised her to take a class for fun

it was a film class, since she thought she'd be able to watch TV for school

she was, but her teacher also encouraged her to go to film school since she could finally bring things out properly on the page how they were in her head

"You have a lot to learn, but I see something in you." "Cool, I'm a film major now. Answered!"

Turns out film is too collaborative for her and she wanted more control; "there's those book things, I guess I could try those."

She doesn't regret the journey

Addie: How do you et the ideas to write? Shannon wishes she had a tree that sprouted money and great ideas, but really ideas are everywhere and it's a matter of paying attention.

You don't need your whole idea all at once--can be small like "I wonder if that hat...wasn't a hat at all!"

She knew she wanted to work with elves, and she knew she wanted to strip the magic from the story in favor of sci-fi/superhero logistics. The rest came bit by bit

Some days she couldn't write fast enough, others it was "oo, what if they wore capes?"

Elizabeth: what do you do when you have writers' block? Shannon doesn't like to call it that because that makes it seem scarier than it is; to her it's just being stuck, and she plays the "what if?" game

What if I got rid of the previous scene? What if they went here instead? What if, what if, what if? Open yourself to new possibilities

Gibbs is a big going for a walk person for when you're stuck. We all get stuck, not just young writers. he also likes hiking--walking but not coming back for a while.

At this point a poll was sent to the audience asking them to choose between 5 pairs. Bolded won with percentage included afterwards

Teleporting or light leaping? (63%). Eternalia or Mysterium? (63%). Bathe a T-Rex or Pet a Verminion? (55%). Telepath or Empath? (62%). Cape or No Cape? (60%)

Shannon's surprised the Keefe fans didn't pull through with the Empath vote

No matter what Shannon writes, someone's going to be unhappy, so she started pulling back on appealing to fans and prioritizes what fits the story

Marissa: Will Iggy ever go back to grey? That's up to the readers! Shannon leaves it completely in our hands, so if we ever nominate and vote for grey, she'll write it.

Shannon thanks everyone for reading and being patient, as she's writing as fast as she can

When a book is released she usually celebrates with a dessert; she ordered a bunch of fall flavor donuts from Krispy Kreme today, so she's not sure if she'll save one for tomorrow or get something new

It's dangerous that she can just push a button and donuts will show up at her house (doordash)

Gibbs and Shannon hope everyone love the graphic novel as much as they do--and stay tuned for part 2!

[lindszeppelin]

hi i never come on here to talk about a and k but, i recently found your blog. I just want to thank you for crafting such a safe space on here to be real. i really admire how vocal you are on your own thoughts and how you don’t let any haters comments get to you. you’re truly badass linds! with this in mind i feel comfortable enough to share a thought that has been nagging at me for so long, if you’re willing to hear my take!

the truth of the matter is that k gets everything she wants handed on a silver platter. shippers can claim it’s not true, that she gets parts rightfully so for her talent, but everyone knows damn straight it’s not. this whole book club thing is just some added shit to make her look better than she really is.

as someone who is the same age as her and has worked a minimum wage job at a library for seven years straight, her being called the supposed “internet’s librarian” feels like such a slap in the face to not just me but anyone else, who has worked within a public domain such as this, or spent years and money on schooling to obtain a degree within this field. sure, she reads, but what does she really know about books? about the true essence of being a librarian dealing with patrons on a daily basis, answering reference questions, archiving, cataloging, and filing via digital platforms? what makes her so “qualified” in interviewing all these people? nothing. it’s all for show. all for an irrelevant chain of networking that she hasn’t obtained herself. all work from her parents. and to top it all off, she’s praised for it. for what? her pretty privilege and being rich of course.

i’ll never forget being heavily made fun of when i first got my library job, especially if someone saw me with my nose in a book in high school. this doesn’t bother me now of course! i love reading and i don’t give a flying fuck what anyone else thinks. it’s just extremely disheartening to know that she’s put on a pedestal for a pasttime so ordinary and common. given a supposed title for something that she never actually worked for.

i can truly see now more than ever, especially at this book event that a attended, that her true colors are shining through. a’s a hard working man that built himself up. years and years of auditioning and obtaining mediocre rolls to become the professional oscar nominated actor he is today! yet, what is she doing? absolutely nothing, but suddenly getting casted in all these blockbuster movies or whatever the fuck it is. (i’m not keeping much track as is with that. whatever she’s gonna be in doesn’t interest me anyways.) i just find what she’s doing to be super disgraceful, especially in the context of a’s own well-deserved success and obvious hard work! k wouldn’t last a day being an actual “internet librarian” nor a well-renowned actress if you look at the big picture of it all.

obviously we can only hope the end of the summer will hold some break throughs for this man in regards to his love life. he deserves a partner that truly loves him and doesn’t just see him as a pawn in her little game!

thanks linds again for being so open :)

Hi anon welcome in! Thank you for sharing your story with us! Her bookish thing is clearly just a persona that she puts on. Her book club isn’t groundbreaking, from what people have said that have seen her lives…it sounds like she doesn’t even read those books, and the questions she asks aren’t good. It’s all just a means to an end to appear more serious, and a means for her to promote more stuff. When she can’t get acting roles or modeling gigs she has the book club, y’know.

[sanrrioz]

RIO BAILEY, known professionally as RIO, is the sole female member in co-ed K-Pop group TOMORROX X TOGETHER. She debuted under BIGHIT ENTERTAINMENT with the mini album THE DREAM CHAPTER : STAR in 2019. Since her debut, RIO has been praised for her excellent performances and due to the impact she has made on the industry has been named the 4TH GEN IT GIRL.

##. CAREER

STAGE NAME : RIO

REPRESENTATIVE EMOJI : 🐨

COMPANY : BIGHIT ENTERTAINMENT / HYBE

TRAINEE PERIOD : 2 YEARS (2017 - 2019)

DEBUT DATE : MARCH 4 2019

DEBUT ALBUM : THE DREAM CHAPTER : STAR

SOLO FANDOM NAME : STARIOZ

##. PERSONAL

FULL NAME : RIO BAILEY

NICKNAMES : RI , RORO , CHEERIO , BYEOL ("STAR" - YEONJUN) , SARANGIO

BIRTHDAY : 17 JUNE 2002

ZODIAC SIGN : GEMINI

BIRTHPLACE : MANCHESTER , UNITED KINGDOM

NATIONALITY : BRITISH - KOREAN

ETHNICITY : NIGERIAN-JAMAICAN

LANGUAGES : ENGLISH (FIRST LANGUAGE) , KOREAN (FLUENT) , BRITISH & KOREAN SIGN LANGUAGE (FLUENT)

##. PHYSICAL

FACE CLAIM : RENEE DOWNER (FLO)

VOICE CLAIM : NATTY (KISS OF LIFE)

DANCE CLAIM : XIAOTING (KEP1ER)

RAP CLAIM : RYUJIN (ITZY)

##. APPEARANCE

HEIGHT : 175CM (5'8)

PIERCINGS : 7

TATOOS : 2

SEXUALITY : BISEXUAL

##. FAMILY

FATHER : ABENI EZE (b. 1976)

MOTHER : NAOMI BAILEY (b. 1976)

BROTHER : CAIRO BAIELY (b. 1999)

SISTER : MILAN BAILEY (b. 2000)

##. FACTS

although RIO was born in MANCHESTER, she moved to INCHEON with her family in 2014 for her mom's teaching job

her dad is hard of hearing and her older brother was born deaf so she grew up signing

RIO is extremely athletic and grew up playing a lot of sports including swimming, volleyball and others, though track and field was her favourite

it was while living in KOREA that RIO started taking after school dance classes as she couldn't maintain all the same sports as before

she was scouted by three companies while on a trip to SEOUL with her siblings and it was her older sister who encouraged her to audition

she love love loves the ocean and any opportunity to go to the beach, she will take it

her instagram account RIIOZZ is the most followed out of the members and all of 4th gen idols with 18 million followers

she is a collector; fridge magnets, postcards, movie ticket stubs, she keeps them all

[k-n-e-o]

Nct Dream as high school students

This has been in my drafts for years! I’ve just reread it now and I think it’s pretty decent to post lol.

This is also mildly based off of my own highschool experience (which it’s now been years since I’ve graduated so obviously not current experience lol)

Disclaimer: this doesn’t have mark in it because he wasn’t back in nct dream at the time of writing, so I had it in my head that he already graduated and is in college

—————-

[ Renjun ]

This is used a lot but it fits him so well

He’s our little artist

Loved art class

Helps the drama kids make the props and costumes

Made a chair once for an art project, absolutely hated it (this was taken from something a friend of mine had to do once lol)

He was covered in black, red, yellow, and blue wood stain for weeks

He also smelled like saw dust for a while too

I think he’s the only one that would make and bring his lunch just because he doesn’t want to have to deal with the other idiots at the school during lunch

Him and the boys stay in the art room at lunch, it’s quieter

I want to say he’s the only one in the group that actually studies

But knowing this group of boys,

None of them are getting anything done lol

[ Jeno ]

We all know this boy is the jock of the group.

He’s also one of the responsible ones

Being the driver of the dreams carpool to school everyday

He also uses the schools fitness centre (basically a weight room and stuff)

Gets his lunch money stolen by Haechan all the time so he now brings double so he’s not asking Jaemin to steal stuff from the cafeteria

Track and field boy

Probably beats his own records every year

Also probably does football with Jaemin (spoiler?)

A goofball in all his classes, especially the ones he shares with Jaemin

Leaves little smiley faces on his friends work when they aren’t looking.

[ Haechan ]

I’m sorry but he’s a theatre boy

Auditions for all of the plays

Leaves his I.D card on the stage all the damn time

So he can’t sign out a computer when he needs one

Ends up using his phone instead and sometimes gets in trouble for it

He’s known all around the school even if people don’t actually know him they know of him

Every teacher knows him too

And they only roll their eyes when he’s loud and goofy in class

I won’t lie he probably doesn’t know any of the names of people in his class so he has to ask whenever he’s paired up with them for projects even though he’s been going to school with them for years already (how can you tell I was the person who people forgot lol)

But they can’t be mad at him for long when he’s got them bent over in laughter a few seconds later

[ Jaemin ]

In culinary arts, so he gets free food sometimes

Especially when he works in the cafeteria at lunch

Sometimes if jeno doesn’t have lunch money Jaemin will sneak some fries out for him

Also on the football team

(I don’t know why I see him doing this but I do so fight me)

Forgets his water bottle all the damn time so had to do push-ups whenever any of the football coaches catch him

Heart breaker of the century

Has girls (and some guys) staring at him and stalking his social media

Taking bio and chem at the same time

Quickly regrets that choice he made lol

Spends his spares annoying Renjun in art

Ends up painting his arm or hand and gets scolded by the art teacher

Friends with almost all of his teachers

Yes like Haechan he’s also that kid who the teachers know instantly by name and who they tell their other classes funny stories about

Probably almost blew up the chemistry lab with Haechan once

Now Haechan and him aren’t allowed to touch any of the lab equipment

Works out with jeno but sometimes slacks off

Makes jeno stop by the local coffee shop every morning on the dreamies way to school

[ Chenle ]

I don’t know why but I struggled so much with Chenles

It’s weird

He’s probably a band student who uses the piano in the room as often as he can.

He goes into the band room in the morning when jeno and Jaemin have early football practice and he goes when he has a spare

And when he’s still there after the school he plays the piano

I mean, he probably has like three pianos at home

But there’s something about the giant nearly empty room

And just playing the piano just to play

He’s a simple boy with simple desires

You can expect this boy will try out for the basketball team

And if he’s not with his friends or at a piano in the band room

He’ll probably be in the gym shooting hoops

Hate hate hates doing homework

He’s the main reason why Jisung gets nothing done too lol

Also if the dreamies aren’t “studying” at a cafe you can bet they are at Chenles house

And the only reason is because his house is the only one that can fit all six of them comfortably

Sometimes mark joins too, for old times sake

[ Jisung ]

You can fight me on this but this boy would be in the poetry slam club

He’s that quite cute boy who everyone glances at through out the meeting

Never used his locker

Instead he puts all his stuff in Chenles locker because, and I quote

“It’s easier”

Goes to all the sports games cause Chenle drags him there

Attempts to study

But we all not that ain’t happening

Gets really stressed during exam season

Probably eats one to many instant ramen packages

(He found Chenles secret stash)

Probably doesn’t skip class

Although he tried it once with Haechan but decided it wasn’t his thing

Eats lunch with the others at a near by food place every Friday as an end of the week treat

Is late to his afternoon class because they lost track of time

He’s the one always asking for a pencil or a pen

Probably tried out for the soccer team

And obviously got in

Kinda disappointed that the soccer season is short tho

But works hard none the less

Always forgetting his water bottle

Works on his writing when he has a moment of free time in class

Probably the kind to leave little love notes in his crushes locker

I don’t think he’s a huge party person

But he gets invited to a lot of them

Always complains about his student I.D photo 

But it’s not as bad as he says it is

Hands in assignments late because he keeps forgetting to do them

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[goldenboywrites]

end of beginning

“I wasn’t invited?” Iggy slammed the memo from the palace down on the table and threw himself into a chair. “What bullshit is that?” His eyes cut to his mentor, brow raised. “I’m at the top of the class. This doesn’t make any sense.” He picked up the flyer and crumbled it up before snapping his fingers and setting it on fire. “And I thought anyone recruited to Wixrose Academy was allowed to audition in front of the royal family.” 

Victor sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We knew this could happen, Ignatius. While you are the best of your year, dare I say the best in the academy, we know they don’t want to risk the chance of the prince picking you as his wizard. They decided to invite wizard candidates this year in the hopes that you will not know and not show up.” 

Iggy pursed his lips, shaking his head. “I won’t apologize for how I chose to wield my magic. It’s not my fault that they won’t allow-”

“You are not someone the academy can control. You never have been. This is why you are a threat to them. Like I said, they hope you will not show up. They cannot ban you from participating.”

His four years at Winxrose Academy of Sorcery had been difficult but he wouldn’t change it for anything because everything he had gone through here made him and his magic better. No one, except for Victor believed in him that much was apparent, but all he needed was Victor’s vote of confidence to continue on. Throughout the kingdom, instructors from Wixrose worked endlessly to track magical abilities. Those that showed promise were recruited to the school where they were paired up with one professor who taught them everything. Victor, like Iggy, was the blacksheep of the academy. 

There was no minimum or maximum of years spent at the academy. Students stayed until their mentors decided to graduate them. In this case, one of them would be graduating. The prince had come of age to receive his own wizard. Whoever he picked, would be bond to him for life. They would fight, live, breathe, and wield magic for the prince. It was something Ignatius had been looking forward to since he moved into the academy. Nothing and no one would be able to keep him away from this event.

He would be the prince’s wizard. 

__________________________________________________________

There were about fifteen students from the academy presenting today - including Iggy. He scanned the students waiting, sniffing out the competition and noticed a handful of people he knew. Iggy himself was covered in dark robes with the hood pulled over his head. The last thing he wanted was for an official to see him and try to kick him out or worse, for a student to try and sabotage him into failing. He was a threat. His fellow students and professors (aside from Victor) felt differently about how to wield magic. Iggy didn’t hold the same beliefs as them and it was the sole reason why his magic was simply better. 

“Candidates line up please,” The announcer called and all of the wizards moved side by side. Iggy placed himself at the end. He turned his head, looking up at the box in the crowd that held the royal family. He studied the prince, reminding himself what this was all for. If he didn’t get picked his magic would be wasted.

“Your first task is to summon a weapon and throw it at the target across the field.” Iggy turned towards the field and squinted, barely able to make out what he was meant to hit. Someone had magicked fog to cover the field. “You may begin.” 

Ignatius closed his eyes and slowed his breathing. His hand swung at his waist and he spread his fingers, calling forth the warmth of his magic. He glanced at the prince again and this time caught his gaze. He smirked and summoned the sword from the King’s personal guard. The man felt the loss of weight off of his hip and frowned, looking around for where it went. Ignatius didn’t wait for the man to figure it out. He brought the sword up and behind his head before he threw it, pushing his magic onto the object to keep it study as it whizzed by. A dull thud was heard in the distance. Followed by another and another until all of the wizards had completed their task. 

The fog cleared and Iggy smirked. His sword landed in the dummy’s head.

The second task was to create a fire ball. 

Iggy turned to the prince again and yawned, snapping his fingers to make a fireball appear in his hands. While the other students did the same, summoning fire was more advanced and unfortunately one of Iggy’s specialities, he bounced his against the palm of his hand, changing the color of the fireball every few seconds. He would have changed the shape too but he didn’t want to be a show off.

They were asked to teleport. Ignatius waited until the other candidates had gone. Two couldn’t get it to work. One snapped the bones in their feet and was carried off screaming. The rest did it successfully, reappearing variously throughout the field in front of them. Iggy waited until he had the full attention of the crowd. He twisted his fingers until they were a blur of movement. He pulled the image of where he wanted to go before he stopped and disappeared into a whirl of black smoke. Then the wizard reappeared in the empty seat next to the prince in the royal box. “Just an FYI, I’m banking on you grading us for creativity,” He whispered loudly, smirking at the man next to him. “For you,” He said, holding out his hand and waving his other one around it. A rose appeared in his hand and he passed it off to the prince just as very strong arms wrapped around his arm but before he could be yanked away, Iggy reappeared on the field. 

Where vines shot out of the ground and enclosed around his ankles. They vines grew, growing up his body and covered him completely. He was gasping for his last breath of oxygen before he felt himself being pulled back by other’s magic. His body crashed onto the floor. Ignatius coughed and gasped for air. Once his lungs stopped burning, he sat up and opened to eyes to find Victor sitting in front of him at his desk. “How many?” He asked, his eyes never leaving the book he was reading. 

Iggy grinned and stood up on wobbly legs. He hated being transported by someone else’s magic. It always felt wrong and left him sick for days. “Completed 3 tasks out of 5.” He brushed his robes and lowered his hood. “I was hoping for one more but I’m certain I made an impression on the prince. I suspect he will come in a few days to whisk me away from this horrible place!”

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Super 091

“All right, so after fifteen hours of careful consideration, I believe the key to victory is to avoid getting thrown off the edge of the stage.”

“Yes, but shouldn’t we also throw our opponents over the edge as well?”

“Hmmm... you raise an excellent point, sir.  We may need several more episodes to discuss this matter.  It’s a good thing we have these photos of our team roster to help us remember who’s on our team.”

All right, this is another potpourri episode, like 85 and 88.  The framing sequence here is the two Grand Zenos, who are bored with their game of hitting each other with a toy hammer.  The Grand Minister gives them an update on preparations for the Tournament of Power.

Vegeta’s going to spend some time in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber again, but Mr. Popo warns him that if he blows up the entrance again, he’ll be banned for life. 

In Universe 9, they still haven’t gotten their team assembled, and they only have the three guys they fielded for the Zeno Expo.  Also, when they try to tell anyone about the tournament, riots break out when people hear about the impending erasure.  So the planet they’re currently scouting is a lost cause.  Sidrah destroys it and they move on to the next world.

In Universe 6, Hit tracks down Frost and informs him that he’s been drafted for the Tournament of Power.  If he refuses the invitation, Hit will assassinate him, but Frost is eager for the chance to redeem himself.  Hit warns him to remove all the poison needles from his body, as they’re forbidden.

In Universe 7, Yamcha is still waiting for his invitation to join the team, but Roshi wants Puar instead. 

Yeah, so Puar’s a shapeshifter, and Roshi wants him to turn into a sexy woman so that Roshi can train himself to overcome his horniness.  Puar hates this idea, because duh.  But Yamcha tells him to go through with it, because it seems important.

Yeah... this is pretty awful.

Believe it or not, this sounds worse than it looks.

Also, why is there a wooden shed on top of Yamcha’s apartment building?  This is what I mean when I say zero thought was put into his home.  It’s not a dump or a fancy bachelor pad.  They just drew some stuff and called it a day.   “Wait, where’s Yamcha supposed to park his riding lawn mower?”  “He can just leave it on the roof?”  “What if it rains?” “Good point, we’d better add a shed.”

Oolong hates this scene so much that he asks if he can just leave.  I don’t know why he came here in the first place.

Since Vegeta isn’t around, Goku and Whis spar in Vegeta’s gravity room.  Goku bites Whis’ hand.

In Universe 11, Top has summoned the Pride Troopers to assemble for the Tournament, but General Khaseral is running late.  They call him to find out what the hold up is...

And he’s trying to save a cat from a tangle of power lines.  Or something.  I feel like a superhuman should be able to solve this problem more decisively, but the general insists he save this life before he worries about the rest of his universe. 

In Universe 2... Well, I don’t know what this guy is supposed to be.  I thought they were going to zoom out and show this image was part of a billboard or something, but no.  They just smash cut from this...

To this.  I mean, it’s all pretty.  I like the aesthetic, but I don’t understand any of it.  Universe 2 is holding auditions for their team, and people are lined up to try out.

This one lady cuts to the front of the line, and these two hopefuls object.  Are they supposed to be drag queens?  I think that’s what the dub is going for.  I mean, do they have super powers or what’s going on here, exactly?

Anyway, the lady who cuts ahead of them is Brianne De Chateau, and she responds to their objections by going a whole transformation into...

Rebrianne, who blows them up with some sort of magical girl attack.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge Rebrianne mark.  She fucking rules.  But I don’t pretend to understand anything that happened in this scene.  Like, I know U2 is all about beauty and love, and that somehow translates into fighting power, but this episode makes it look like she just rolled up to an open casting call and brazenly attacked anyone in her way.  Also, I thought Brianne was a celebrity of sorts?  Kind of like the Pride Troopers in U11?  Maybe that’s what this scene was trying to convey.  She doesn’t have to stand in line because she already has a spot on the team, and those two ladies she blew away didn’t recognize her. 

All I know for sure is this:  There’s a new Budokai Tenkaichi game coming.  And Rebrianne better be in it.  Because I want to do this move on Vegeta. 

“Tee-hee!  It’s on sight, Vegeta!”

Meanwhile, the U10 team is recording a stupid video as a team-building exercise.  Gowasu thinks this will get him a lot of hits on Godtube.

This is dumb as hell, but what makes it dumber is that they’re still wearing those stupid robes!  How is this supposed to do numbers on GodTube when you can’t see anyone?!  This is exactly why U10 loses hard.

And finally, back in Universe 7, Bulma gets a call from Mr. Satan and it turns out Buu has fallen asleep and won’t wake up.  Beerus is outraged, and lists all of the other times Buu has fucked him over in the past.  You know, when you put it that way, it’s kind of badass the way Majin Buu keeps ruining Beerus’s day.  All he’s done is take three naps and eat a bunch of pudding, and now this cat-dude is traumatized for life.

[madlyn5ever]

A list of which version of the HSM/Camp Rock/HSMTMTS songs I think are the best:

Can I have This Dance: HSMTMTS, it’s just how Gina and Ricky sing it, and the choreographed dance they stayed up all night making. They make me actually want to vom!t, stop being cute.

All In This Together: HSM. The HSMTMTS version is them doing a play so the HSM one is much bigger and cooler choreography/set wise.

High School Musical: I perfer the dance of the original on the field but I perfer the song in HSMTMTS.

Night To Remember: again, perfer the sequence in HSM but I love the “don’t know what a corsage is” dance line in HSMTMTS, when everyone is in the petticoats and stuff and the song is just better in HSMTMTS.

Breaking Free: it’s a tie, but when Ricky comes in and replaces EJ It’s just one of the best musical moments of the series so I think they get a leg up for that but also the Troy and Gabriella audition moment with him in his basketball uniform and her in the lab coat is great too, so. Tie.

Fabulous: Sharpay in HSM for sure. No contest, but I did love that Carlos choreographed a whole dance seemingly in one morning just for Corbin Bleu.

Stick to the Status Quo: specifically the rehearsal version in HSMTMTS, because it’s just so many amazing vocals without a cluttered back track drowning them out. not that it does it a lot but hearing the vocals with just a piano makes them stand out so much more in my opinion. Maybe I’m just a piano lover at heart and that’s my bias.

But Stick To The Status Quo is maybe one of my favorite songs of the series and the movies combined.

It’s On (Camp Rock): vocally, HSMTMTS wins because I think the point was it was more about singing. But we have Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers in Camp Rock and Visually it’s better because the flash mob is much bigger. They had drum and guitar sequences where the characters were holding actual instruments (which obviously wasn’t the point of the color war competition, but it’s a point in Camp rocks favor) and they had more space to do it whereas HSMTMTS tied themselves to one specific area and while it was cool, and I liked it, it wasn’t as good as Camp Rock.

Although some of the camp rock flash mob is a little disconnected literally because they used all of the big space they had, and they separated camp rock and camp star for individual group dances in separate areas in certain parts. But it’s definitely cooler overall.

Wouldn’t Change a Thing: okay, listen, I love that the HSMTMTS version is more upbeat, but there’s some things that are just.. not it. First of all, it’s a song about two lovers being in different headspace’s while trying to save the camp, but they wouldn’t change anything bc they love each other. And Jet and Maddox are siblings (“JET AND MADDOX ARE SIBLINGS?!”).

So while I get that that’s their childhood movie, and lots of the lyrics do apply out of context, I gotta take some points away for that. But Saylor, Adrian, Frankie, and Joe have amazing voices so extra points for that (the camp rock cast has great voices too but I feel like I can tell more in HSMTMTS idk)

Also, they change the line from “just wanna let my music play” to “I just wanna watch the game” which, is one of those adjusted lines that kind of bothers me. Camp Rock gets points because it was Shane and Mitchies big lovers rift song moment of CR2. And they weren’t having siblings sing a romantic relationship song bc, obviously, Mitchie and Shane aren’t related (thank. god.).

This Is Me: both. They’re both so good and Liamani’s vocals are everything, and the HSMTMTS scene had everyone in white in a black space with lights on them but, Demi Lovato. And the fact that the song in CR was Mitchie’s big thing that she wrote and it was the big song of the movie (right?)

Bop To The Top: obviously the vocals in HSMTMTS are amazing, but we don’t get enough, and the original with Sharpay and Ryan is great. However, I raise you, Suite Life of Zack and Cody Maddie and London version.

Start Of Something New: Nini version. Enough said.

You Are The Music In Me: HSMTMTS drama club piano version. But I also haven’t heard the original in a long time so who knows. But I think it’s the HSMTMTS version.

Bet On It: Ricky singing in Big Reds room doing jumps and summer salts, Ricky apparently singing it in the car to Nini all the way to Ashlyn’s, just Ricky singing Bet On It the whole first half of season 2. But Zac Efron and his basketball thing is great cinematically.

Getcha’Head In The Game: HSM. Just because Zac Efron really feels like a guy who has to choose between basketball and theatre and in HSMTMTS it’s just a play about HSM, but in the movie it’s not a play and Troy is actually in a basketball game singing and I find that hilarious. “My heads in the game but my hearts in the song”

Now Or Never: The audition scene in HSMTMTS is my favorite so I’m gonna give it to HSMTMTS, but in context of the plot of HSM I’m gonna give points to them for Basketball and stuff.

I just love the sequence of everyone in HSMTMTS running down the hall to get to miss Jenns audition. So I guess HSMTMTS wins.

And an honorable mention that wasn’t in the show that I think should have been: We Rock (Camp Rock)

It’s probably my favorite Camp Rock song mostly because of the way they sing it and the way the melody goes. I feel like it would’ve been a great addition either in season 3 because it was camp, or in season four but they change all the camp rock lines to like, just the we rock parts or to something close enough. But I get that the shows about HSM so they had to finish it with the big HSM song.

(I know this isn’t all of them but looking up both of these movies plus the show and comparing them in three separate tabs was getting annoying and I didn’t think to write them down when I started this so, this is all I did.)

[dhanusagar]

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