#sarangbe

[beyiran]

action! 𓏲 ๋࣭ ࣪ ˖ starter for @sarangbe

yiran still has many conflicting emotions being in sr media, and especially, an acting workshop. it’s bringing him back memories of his younger times when he was a child actor, it certainly isn’t the best feeling out there. it took him a lot of courage to step through the doors, only to find out that everyone is just doing their own thing. what was he expecting, really? that someone may recognise him? hopefully not!

this time though, he came here willingly, instead of getting dragged to acting lessons. it’s a strange feeling. at the back of his head, he wonders if his mother is happy about it, that her son has once again stepped into the world of acting with his own feet. he doesn’t knows how far he’ll pursue acting, so for now, he’s only honing the skill, maybe it’ll come in handy one day.

“this scene … is from a romance drama, right?” yiran squints his eyes. romance. a genre that’s absolutely not for him, but if he has to do it, then he will ensure that it comes out perfect. “we have to act this out together? are you comfortable with that?” he confirms with sarang, first. the latter would probably agree, but a confirmation doesn’t hurts.

the most ‘romantic’ yiran has ever gotten was plainly, fanservice in cosplay. if he thinks about it in this way, isn’t this going to be… professional fanservice? or is he crazy to think that way? “this is… BL…” yiran mumbles, extremely softly with his eyes still squinting. he knows what is BL, but sometimes, he pretends he doesn't. thinking about it, this would be sarang’s first time watching him act after those few years of friendship. “… alright, i can do this.”

[besiwoo]

dress up starter for @sarangbe

siwoo isn’t exactly one to form genuine bonds easily. if anything, he can count the number of people he feels comfortable enough to be his authentic, true – asshole – self with in one hand. one et sized hand ( he doesn’t need all four fingers, either ). still, it had come as a bit of a surprise to him that it was sarang of all people that siwoo had formed this bond with so quickly. they didn’t seem to run in the same circles, hell they weren’t even in the same company; yet somehow sarang had quickly turned into a confidant of sorts to siwoo, someone who siwoo would actively seek out in the axis building, just to hang out with.

and they seemed much more similar to one another than he’d first expected. aside from their need to put up false pretenses at times, being with sarang was like a breath of fresh air. where siwoo was a pessimist through and through, sarang felt like an optimist, a reminder that the deadly thoughts in his head would never really last. so he’d been more than happy to tag along with sarang for some shopping.

that and well, siwoo thinks sarang is cute. he thinks sarang is really fucking cute. he isn’t going to deny it, he doesn’t really hide it either – his attraction for sarang. sarang is exactly his type, a little smaller than him, with cute curves. it’s a blessing to his eyes on a windy sunday, he thinks, as he walks along the rows of outfits beside the smaller boy. 

it’s a shame though, that sarang hadn’t been his coach in next gen. somehow amongst the plethora of episodes, their paths never quite seemed to cross. which was fine, but siwoo would’ve appreciated the advice that sarang would’ve given him back then – and also it would’ve worked as more healing for his eyes after hours of staring at sheets of paper scribbled with nothing but notes on how to dance. 

“you know,” he says, turning to his friend, “i picked out two shirts for myself,” he waves the hangers with his right hand. “but like… fifty for you,” he lifts his left hand, full of clothing he’d picked out for sarang to wear. “should we go try them on?” he gestures to the empty dressing rooms in the far corner of the store. 

“ah… but it’s such a shame. you dressed up all pretty for me, but we'll need to take it off,” he jokes, gently nudging sarang’s shoulder with a smile. he thinks sarang’s reactions are really fucking cute too.

[kouxbe]

careful // starter for @sarangbe

kou had never thought of himself as a model – in truth, he'd never thought of himself as much of anything aside from well, a dude. a really average dude that made and enjoyed music on the side. still, through some odd twist of fate, he'd found himself signed to sr media of all places. a company more known for acting and modeling than most.

and kou has had little to no modeling experiences at all. the closest he'd ever gotten was perhaps standing in front of a particularly well lit landscape and posing for instagram. that's it – that's all it is, really.

still, he isn't exactly the type to say 'no' to things, and had somehow found himself here, at a workshop solely dedicated to modeling, dressed in nothing but a white tank top, and bermuda shorts. they've done up his face as well, added makeup to accentuate certain features. kou isn't too sure either, what exactly had been done. instead, sitting down and simply letting the makeup artists have their way with his face ( he'd never been one to comment on much, anyway ).

he stands in the middle of the beach set up, toes digging into the sand, when he spots sarang. now that's a visual, kou thinks. perfect sr media material. "ah, careful," he says, walking over to sarang as he gestures to one of the props – a box with some drinks on it. "the edges are sharp, i cut myself on there earlier," he lifts his shorts slightly, revealing a cut on his thigh, that was now covered by a cat band-aid.

[jueunbe]

✦ . ˚ — @sarangbe

while jueun was ecstatic about getting to perform an original song, she was struggling to figure out the concept of it. starry dream sounded a bit on the slower side, and it definitely had a dreamy vibe to it. however, she wasn't sure if that's the concept she should be portraying on stage.

thankfully, she had sarang as her mentor this time around, and she knew he'd be the upmost help when it came to figuring out facial expressions and presence on stage. she had been practicing in front of the mirror but found herself hitting a deadend when she spotted sarang in the practice room.

"i'm trying to figure out how i want to deliver the message of the song. the overall sound is very dreamy, but i feel like the lyrics portray a different story, like it's supposed to be more hopeful. am i making sense?" with pursed lips, she glanced up at sarang, hoping he could answer the questions she had.

[bejoomi]

* ♪ – somebody new

( cw: suggestive content )

sarang is sweet. sarang is nice and friendly and soft and joomi is sad and lonely and that isn't really enough of an excuse to sleep with him, but it's enough of an excuse for joomi, apparently, because that's what he does.

plus, why does he need an excuse? jinyoung is distant and jinyoung is not his boyfriend and with each passing day joomi feels more and more like he needs to move on. it's not like his unfortunate feelings for the man he used to hate are that longstanding; if anything, they're newfound feelings, but they're exhausting and it's painful and joomi knows it will never end well for him. whatever it even is. (nothing, really.)

so sarang says he wants to take him on a date and joomi says like, a friend date? and sarang agrees, and joomi thinks, why not? he deserves to do something fun with someone that actually wants to spend time with him, and he hopes he can forget about moon jinyoung for a while. even if it wasn't just a friend date, he deserves that too, doesn't he? it doesn't matter if he wishes he was with someone else, because what he wants is never going to happen. he'll just try to have fun, and to stop thinking about it.

it works and it doesn't. he does have fun, and he stops thinking just long enough to feel guilty once he starts thinking again.

guilty, because now, laying in between the sheets next to sarang, he really just misses jinyoung, and sarang deserves better than getting used as a distraction. he knows sarang will probably tell him that he doesn't mind, but joomi minds. god, he just wants to be happy. why is it so hard for any happiness to stay?

he knows sarang is perceptive enough to know something is wrong, too, and joomi doesn't want to make him ask. "sorry," he croaks, and he has no idea what to say next, really. "i, um..." he knows it's not that deep. he is not here with sarang because sarang is in love with him or vice versa, and he is still too embarrassed to express his unwanted affection for jinyoung out loud, but...he'll try, to do it in some way that isn't humiliating. "i've been sleeping with this guy...? and he's been like...busy, and weird, lately, so i haven't seen him as much, and i really just fucked you and was immediately like...damn...sarang is so nice but i miss the idiot that doesn't give a shit about me."

it's a little funny when he says it like that, but it's also pathetic, and joomi mostly feels the second part. "and i feel really bad. i know, or at least i think, you don't like me like that, but you're...a really nice guy, and never wanna use anybody, especially not...nice guys. and it's not your fault. you're genuinely great, i'm just..." his voice trails off, and when he finishes his thought, he says it quieter than the rest: "stupid."

– @sarangbe

[bexstevie]

dream dance.

< w. @sarangbe >

stevie’s had a lot of dreams, when he thinks about it. surfing had been his longest—and while it still is (as a fall back, if anything), dancing has taken the forefront as of recently. and even more recent, an idol. huh, crazy— when he thinks about it.  

he’s going through the lyrics, humming the tune under his breath. the overall point of the song is a focus on dreams and aspirations— growth and development. it kinda fits him a little, doesn’t it? so it should be pretty easy, right? it sure doesn’t feel like it, all of a sudden.

“do you think it’s…kinda corny?” stevie asks aloud to sarang, tone a little embarrassed. it’s wholesome and it’s heart filled, sure. it’s cheesy and family friendly. it’s cute, stevie will admit. but it’s vulnerable in a way that he’s still learning to be. “i think it fits and it goes well conceptually which is like, y’know, the point– but…i dunno.” 

he rubs the back of his neck. stevie’s just not sure. how do you be vulnerable without like, actually being vulnerable? and have it come across as genuine? is that where the acting comes in? fake it til you make it-- is that the route he should go? “maybe i’m just shy. an inner monologue and my baby pics for everyone to witness?” jokingly, he slaps his hands on his cheeks– the most he can do to show how embarrassed he feels at the idea without actually humilating himself. “wow,” he says in english. “scary.”

[betouma]

touma is usually optimistic, full of positive energy and always trying to see the silver line. this time around though, he thinks it's a little hard to have that mindset right now. as much as he wants to stay hopeful—and he does want to do good, if only to not hold back his team—he believes reality is finally dawning on him. he's made it to the finale, so he should be proud of himself, at least a little bit.

he isn't though, not really.

it's frustrating—but there's no use in stewing those feelings. the only thing he can do now, is to keep working hard. keep himself afloat ( after all, maybe he really can only be passable, for now ). he doesn't want the dash of negativity in his mind to seep through his expressions, so he tries to smile as @sarangbe is mentoring him. if anything, he hopes to be a reliable team member.

"i think... my stage presence is kind of lacking, right now." he says, honest, admitting his faults. "changing that so late in the game significantly doesn't feel realistic, but i don't want to drag my team down either. i'd hope to at least... match them? be balanced?"

touma scratches the back of his head, kind of sheepish. his smile feels strained—it's been a while since he felt that. "apparently, my expressions were only believable when i'm bouncing off of someone's energy." or maybe not, it could just be because back then it was jihyun, someone he's really familiar with.

"i want to at least be able to stand alone so my teammates don't have to worry about me." he doesn't think he'd get signed from this show, at this point.

[bejaeyoung]

soft.

he doesn't know what to make of @sarangbe, truthfully.

that's not necessarily a bad thing, in jay's opinion. he certainly didn't mean it in a manner that's negative. after the criticism and feedback dished out to him, and how they seem to dislike the way he goes about things in general; jay expected to be paired up with someone a lot more strict. hard and tight in all the wrong places, basically. a sucker for rules, someone who refuses to let loose and would force jay's head in the game. not in the fun way, though.

but that isn't exactly how sarang turned out to be. in fact, sarang can probably be described as the complete opposite of that. sarang is… soft, gentle. not the most coach material, not that jay would say that out loud. then again, sarang basically won the last season of next gen, so jay clearly doesn't know what he's talking about. either way, there's something to learn from sarang. he just… doesn't know what yet.

the other boy had been encouraging, though. which is another thing jay hadn't expected, because he thought he'd be hearing another onslaught of critical comments up until their performance. but even after jay had been practicing and rehearsing his lines in front of sarang, spitting his verses out like they're fire on his tongue, sarang had nothing bad to say.

"i can take your criticism, you know." jay informs, throat rather dry after repeating his lines over and over in an attempt to get it perfect. "i don't need any sugarcoating either," he adds. "surely there's something off you wanted to point out this whole time you've been watching and listening to me."

he turns to sarang, eyebrow raised. "or what, are you just having fun watching me?" he says in jest, not forgetting to add in the sarcasm to his tone.

[benayoung]

* ❁┆inferno

nayoung is serious about this. granted, nayoung is serious about most things, especially involving competition. next gen just so happens to be about the biggest competition she can possibly be involved in, and she demands excellence from everyone. she might be a little too hard on some of the contestants, but she doesn't think so; they're improving, and that's all that matters.

she also demands excellence from her fellow coaches, or at least her fellow coach from sr media: sarang. she isn't getting it.

she's pretty disappointed in him, though she doesn't know why she's surprised. as far as nayoung is concerned, sarang has coasted by in just about everything she knows of him being involved in; next gen, training, and his relationship with alex now – or lackthereof, in the past. he gets lucky and gets his way over and over again by putting in the bare minimum effort. why? because he's cute? charismatic? fuck, so is nayoung; they even have dating alex in common. nayoung, however, is significantly less useless, but also significantly less...adored. privileged. whatever. she doesn't have nearly as much as sarang does despite working her ass off. it's annoying at best – infuriating at worst.

she sees it already here, too: beloved sarang, flashing his smiles, offering no feedback of significance. batting his eyelashes and looking pretty for the cameras, likely to receive glowing feedback from everyone watching, judges included. she's been watching him; she's noticed he hasn't offered anyone a proper critique. only encouragement. she gets it – he probably wants to look good, and that's what being nice will get him. nayoung just thinks he's shallow. superficial.

nayoung isn't afraid to be the bad guy. she isn't afraid to call out next gen's darling sarang where no one else will. so when she catches him during a break, she approaches him, perfectly aware of the cameras trained on them in every practice room.

"hey," she greets him briefly, and then doesn't beat around the bush for a second: "why haven't you given anyone a legitimate critique all week? you know these contestants aren't as great as you're telling them they are." she realizes that sounds harsh. she'll probably get evil edited no matter what she adds, but she tries to salvage it anyway: "they need our help to be great. they don't need you to lie to them to make them feel better about themselves." okay, maybe she didn't make it much better.

❁┆@sarangbe

[bexalex]

tiger in my heart again ,

@sarangbe — BACKDATED TO OCT. 2022

in the beginning, alex didn't really think all that much about what he was doing or the future consequences of his actions. he saw someone interesting, someone who shined just a little bit brighter than the rest, and he wanted to know what would happen if he made himself close to them. he just happened to get lucky that that someone wanted to get closer to him too. and that shine never wore off; if anything, he was warmer and brighter than alex had even imagined, loving so openly and freely in a way that was completely unheard of in alex's world. alex kept coming back and eventually, he had to admit to himself that he coveted more.

i don't want to change a single thing about you. he's tried to tell sarang that aloud, in different ways, and he means every word. does sarang notice the way alex looks at him with stars in his eyes, watching his brilliance even as sarang flits and flirts with other men? can he tell that alex kisses him a little differently when sarang lets his guard down a little bit, drops that perfect mask and unveils a little bit of his truest self? alex isn't sure if he's ever met a more beautifully messy person; someone so unafraid to be himself and to enjoy and indulge in life's pleasures.

they don't call this a date. they don't call themselves anything at all. but as alex sits next to sarang, something he doesn't care about on the television and a homemade meal on the coffee table in front of them, he can't help but wish that he did have... something. it's easy to dote on sarang and alex doesn't think twice about it; when the other man has a bit of sauce on the corner of his mouth, alex just murmurs a soft "hey," as a warning not to startle his companion before swiping his thumb over the spot himself. he smiles, eyes as warm as the feeling that's been growing in his chest for weeks. i want to bottle this moment and keep it forever, he thinks.

he wonders if he can.

among all of the tender things he's feeling, there's also a low but ever-present buzz of anxiety. inviting sarang over hadn't just been for dinner and idle company. alex has something he wants to talk about. but for now, he lets himself enjoy this moment while he can. he lets himself imagine a universe where he can enjoy this feeling all of the time, waking up to it and falling asleep beside it. maybe that's a bit dramatic and entirely out of alex's normal character. they do say that the heart makes people think and do crazy things, though.

[noelxbe]

late hours

noel had found himself staying late more often when it came to practice. noel was a slow learner, he wanted to be as good as the people around him, but that was difficult. noel hadn’t been singing, dancing nor rapping for long, all of this felt new to him. so whenever he didn’t have work after practice, he’d stay late, practice a little more, hope to soon be as good as the trainees among him. another trainee is staying late in the same practice room as noel, but their music is so loud, the male decides to find somewhere else to practice.

he walks down the halls, looking for an empty room, instead he finds a room with the lights still on too, the male can’t help but wonder who is staying this late too, so he decides to take a sneak peak. “sarang?” ( @sarangbe ) he tilts his head, the two met during next gen, the other male got first place, so hyoseop can’t help but find the other cool, suddenly he’s staring as the other is practicing. 

[beyiran]

goddess and devil 𓏲 ๋࣭ ࣪ ˖ starter for @sarangbe

just a few days ago, yiran thought about quitting cosplaying to diligently focus on his training as a trainee. now, he’s at the company halloween party eating his own words and cosplaying again. he’s completely sure no one will recognise him. first of all, he’s new; secondly, he’s cosplaying as homura in her demon form. yiran had initially refused after looking at her outfit, but after some convincing from sarang, and the fact that the boy has been making his outfits for a while now—he gave in. he made little adjustments to the outfit, covering up more skin but retaining the elegance and the concept of a fallen angel, and then wearing a sheer glittery shawl over his shoulders. he didn’t have time for the wings since it was all too sudden, which was a pity, but then it saves him from a potential backache.

then he pretends he isn’t xie yiran at the party. he takes out his cushion compact and stares into the small mirror, looking at his face over and over again, making sure everything is as perfect as it can be. yiran doesn’t thinks he’s good-looking, and he’s unsure with how he looks like in this kind of makeup style. it’s more gothic, but also a little… alluring? he genuinely isn’t sure if he looks good in this, but sarang helped him out with the makeup, which he’s grateful for. though, yiran still finds it strange that the boy had to sit on his lap during the whole thing. it was embarrassing, but maybe it was the angles… yiran doesn’t thinks too hard about it.

“sarang. the runway,” yiran begins, “are we allowed to do that together, or not?” they were dressed up as a pair, so naturally, it makes sense to go together. there’s nothing planned, but yiran is sure he can come up with something eye catching, somehow.

[beyuji]

a starter for @sarangbe ( after moon )

yuji doesn't know how to bring it up.

she's not sure if it'll ever be easy. at least not right now. it's still-- new. the concept of coming to terms with it. and she understands that it shouldn't matter to anyone but her. it's her business, after all. all her friends have to do is support her-- and that's all she really wants, at the core of it. yuji knows sarang would. he's supportive and sweet and kind, and he's queer, overall. it's a safe space.

but it's still difficult to just bring up. what's the best time? is there a good time for it? her eyes are staring at her notebook blankly, scribbles of lyrics there but nothing substantial. not when she's overthinking a mile a minute on how to say hey, i thought you should know. i like girls! there i said it!

it should be easy. it's not like it's being ripped from her in a fit of hysteria. she's had time to process it a little. yuji's had time to think on how to approach this-- but everytime she opens her mouth, the words escape her.

yuji glances up, tapping her pen on her bottom lip as she glances up at sarang. her tongue pokes against her cheek, brows furrowing as she thinks. should she write it down? should she make a song out of it? it feels so extra. this should be easy. it is that easy.

"sarang," she calls out quietly, nervously tapping the end of her pen on the paper. "can i...tell you something?"

[srmedia]

— COMPANY NOTICE

YEOM SARANG has joined sr media as of MAY 24, 2023.

he is on a full contract which expires MAY 24, 2024.

[bejun]

{ 𝐀 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐄 }

𝐀𝐗𝐈𝐒 𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐁𝐔𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆, Seoul, SK October 28th, 2023 w. 𝐘𝐄𝐎𝐌 𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆

Halloween has always been a time of great excitement for Junho. Becoming someone else for a single night, whether that be a movie character, a mythical creature, or even just a walking corpse, it offered him the opportunity of momentary escape. There’s a thrill to dressing up like someone he isn’t. Even if, this year, he’d been too busy to put in as much effort as he had last year—he’d at least gone for something that made him look good. A decision he was now profusely thanking himself for as he spotted a familiar figure at the end of a corridor he was headed down. He’d know that waist-to-hip ratio anywhere—Yeom Sarang. It had been months since he’d seen him, and yet he approaches with all the confidence of someone who was part of Sarang’s innermost social circle. After all, they’d formed an intimate connection upon their first meeting. 

He can smell him moment before he reaches him—that pleasant scent of something distinctly Sarang. It’s hard to forget those little details, just like he could never forget the feeling of Sarang’s fingers in his hair, or his breath on his skin. With a cautionary glance around to check they’re alone, he steps up behind him, and, reassured that they are, in fact, the only two in this hallway, he reaches out to rest a hand on Sarang’s waist, stepping close enough to speak softly beside his ear. “What a pleasant surprise.” While a part of Junho finds a sense of excitement in stumbling across Sarang, there’s another part that perks up in hesitant hope. Despite being on Next Gen together, and having each other's numbers, they’d failed to meet up since then. He supposes, with them both becoming trainees, things had been too busy to make much time for going out of their way to socialise. The reality of being a trainee had come as something of a nasty surprise to Junho. He’d thought he knew about what being a trainee would be like, but living it was something else entirely. 

“I feel a little underdressed.” Junho comments as he steps round to face Sarang properly, letting the hand on his waist drop to his side. It’s easy to fall into a baseline level of comfort with affection when it came to Sarang, given their history, but it had been a while since they’d seen each other—for all Jun knew, Sarang’s circumstances, or tastes, could have changed. “It’s nice to see you though. You look incredible.” The fitted black outfit hugs Sarang in all the right places, accentuating his curves. “How have you been? It’s been a while, huh?” He’d never been good at ‘catching up’ with people. The pleasantries of ‘renewing’ a friendship, as though they had to give a step-by-step account of the months they’d missed of each other’s lives, purely to be polite. He cared, of course, about how Sarang had been, and how training had been going for him, especially after his great win many months ago, but something about the typical conversation starters felt hollow.

[besaem]

[ BELLA NOTTE ]

𝐇𝐀𝐍 𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑, Seoul, SK Late August, 2023 w. 𝐘𝐄𝐎𝐌 𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆

[ tw: mentions of suicide/suicidal ideation ]

The late summers night breeze ruffles Saem's hair as he stands on the dock, looking out over the city lights reflecting off the water. Above, he can just about see some stars, shining their way through the light pollution he'd never not known. Then, his eyes fall to Sarang, stood beside him, looking as breathtaking as the first time Saem laid eyes on him. No, he thinks, he looks even better than he did then. Since that fateful day, nearing a year ago now, he'd delved into parts of Sarang that he never thought he'd reach in another person, and in turn he'd unfurled himself for the man before him. In growing so close, his beauty had only increased, in Saem's eyes, at the very least. He stands against the backdrop of the city, their home, and Saem understands what they mean when people say they felt as if the world stopped, and all that remained was them two.

Sarang is his anchor in this world; that much he had known for a while now.

There's a weight put on words like that, especially when, along the periphery of Saem's existence, was the unforgettable state of his psyche only a year prior. He doesn't mean it in the way it sounds—not entirely. While Sarang has opened his eyes to the beauty of the world, and the people and experiences in it, Saem's existence doesn't rely on him, and in fact relies on nothing more than his own, surprising, will to live. He'd not taken note of when that returned to him, nor did he feel it's presence like an extra weight. In fact, when not thinking about it, he merely forgot that he no longer wanted to leave this mortal plane prematurely. All it had taken was a light at the end of, what had felt like, an endless tunnel.

"It should be here any minute." Saem says softly, his voice no louder than it needed to be, as he lifts his left arm up and pulls back his crisp white shirt-cuff to reveal the expensive watch fastened beneath. "Thank you for making time for me, and this date, this evening." A fond smile settles on his lips, and he can't help himself—he reaches out and curls his arm around Sarang's waist to pull him to his side, the sensation of his familiar, warm body tucked against him a pleasant relief to the nerves coursing through his veins. He'd not told Sarang what this date entailed, but he'd informed him that the dress code was a loose 'semi-formal', and had watched over him as he picked an outfit, and had, in turn, let Sarang dress him. He'd grown to like the outfits Sarang picked out for him more than the ones he'd pick out for himself, though mostly due to how well Sarang knew his tastes by now.

"You look entirely too good." He whispers, voice a little wistful as he leans down ever so slightly to allow Sarang to hear him, his lips ghosting over the shell of the other man's ear.