Chapter 16: That’s Why You Can’t Make It

The first team evaluation was less than a week away.

Naturally, practice continued until dawn.

We were adjusting the formation while squeezing out our remaining stamina.

“One, two, three, four. Two-two… Hold on. I think it’d be better if Haim moved back there?”

The eldest in the team, Ha Junseo, quickly reorganized the formation.

I added my opinion to that.

“Or what if you and Sehyun move forward at the same time? If you burst out together, it might have more impact.”

Somehow, I had essentially taken the main dancer position.

It was my job, along with Seo Haim, to roughly block out the formation and choreography.

I was also helping Jin Sehyun with the arrangement, and being a leader meant more responsibilities than I had expected.

After thinking for a moment, Ha Junseo nodded at my suggestion.

“Oh, that sounds good.”

“And if the early part of the choreography has a sentimental vibe, it might be better to bend the dance lines softly rather than going in strong.”

“Oh, I like that too.”

While most youngest members in other teams couldn’t even squeak and just read the room, these people weren’t the type to exert seniority in that way.

Besides, Ha Junseo had come to trust me a lot after the last song selection.

Not bad at all.

In fact, this direction for the arrangement and this type of narrative fit the song better.

We were navigating countless crossroads, trying to find the best path.

“Good, let’s take a short break, everyone!”

“Oh, that’s the best.”

“Ugh… I feel like I’m going to die….”

It was one of our rare short breaks.

Everyone had their own way of relaxing.

Ha Junseo threw his water bottle on the floor and collapsed in the practice room, while Jin Sehyun quietly went to sit by the window.

Seo Haim came up to me, panting.

“Seohan!”

“Yes, hyung?”

We’d grown quite close by now, so I just casually called him hyung instead of awkward titles.

Seo Haim rubbed his eyes and muttered softly.

“Aren’t you sleepy? I feel like I’m dying.”

“I passed out as soon as I got back yesterday. So I feel a bit better today. What about Sehyun-hyung?”

“…He’s probably already dead….”

Jin Sehyun blinked his dazed eyes and let out a sigh.

“Man, we’re going through hell.”

He said that, but he must’ve been exhausted from dealing with Lee Junhyeok all day.

Seriously, where does that guy keep disappearing to every time he gets the chance?

Whenever things didn’t go his way, he’d vanish saying he needed a smoke break.

Given Ha Junseo’s personality, he wasn’t the type to confront someone like that, so in the end, it was always Jin Sehyun who delivered the cold, hard truth.

Everyone already knew what kind of person that guy was.

Lee Junhyeok seemed to want to drag the team along according to his own will, but the more he did, the more isolated he became.

Like a tyrant acting alone on a land no one supported.

In a way, maybe it was thanks to this shared enemy that we all grew closer.

Now that we’d bonded, we even shared personal stories.

Seo Haim’s eyes sparkled as he asked me,

“Seohan, do you have any younger siblings?”

“No, I have an older brother.”

“Really? But why do you seem so… older? That’s weird.”

“…….”

“It’s like… every time I look at you, it feels like you’ve lived twice. You seem more mature than me.”

“Seo Haim. Maybe you’re just childish.”

“What?”

Jin Sehyun calmly delivered a heavy fact and shrugged.

I totally agreed with that, but somehow I felt I shouldn’t say so.

Instead, I threw a question back.

“Are you the youngest at home, hyung?”

“Yeah, I have an older sister.”

Jin Sehyun, who’d been listening seriously to Haim’s cheerful answer, suddenly looked up.

“I’ve really been wondering.”

“Hmm?”

“If your name is Seo Haim, is your sister named Choco?”

Choco Haim, huh.

The ridiculous joke made me burst out laughing.

Jin Sehyun… that hyung.

I didn’t think he’d make that kind of joke, but he actually seemed serious, which made it even more absurd.

“No way. That’s impossible.”

“It could happen.”

I thought it was a joke, but what was with that genuinely curious expression?

I glanced at Seo Haim, and an unexpected line popped out of his mouth.

“…How did you know?”

Wait, what?

No, seriously, why is that true?!

How can someone’s name be Choco…?

“…….”

Ha Junseo returned, munching on jerky, and asked curiously when he saw our shocked faces.

“What? Were you guys having fun without me?”

“His sister’s name is Seo Choco.”

“Huh? Oh, because your name is Haim?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, whose joke was that? You’d get roasted if you said that on camera.”

“It was our parents.”

“…….”

Ha Junseo’s eyes darted around quickly as he realized the situation.

“Your parents are… trendy?”

“…….”

“They’ve got such new-generation sense.”

Come to think of it, there was really no good way to defend it.

“Uh… that’s wild.”

Best name ever.

Ha Junseo gave a shaky thumbs-up.

Jin Sehyun simply offered a short remark instead of anything more.

“Lucky you weren’t the firstborn, huh.”

Was that supposed to be a recovery line…?

“I think so too!”

…So this actually works.

Seo Haim nodded brightly and added.

“They told me to be a sweet person, and thanks to that, I think I was born handsome.”

He really said that out loud…

That hyung is seriously so positive.

“It’s not wrong, so I can’t argue.”

While we were still reeling from the whole “Choco Haim” theory, 15 minutes had already passed.

“Ugh, let’s start practice again.”

Bodies that had been sprawled out like rag dolls began to rise one by one.

Ha Junseo stretched and looked at the clock.

“By the way, when is Junhyeok coming?”

It felt like he’d been gone for at least 30 minutes.

It was like watching someone who slacks off in a group project but still puts their name on the final presentation.

Was his personality always this bad?

It felt like I was uncovering a darker side I never noticed in my first life.

Back then, we didn’t really cross paths, so I didn’t know.

Maybe he didn’t appear on camera much, but I bet the teammates suffered more than once.

Not being on the same team as that guy at the time was a blessing.

Given the situation, we were all slowly starting to give up.

This wasn’t a one-day or two-day problem.

“…Let’s just start without him.”

Just as Jin Sehyun muttered that in resignation—

Bang.

“Oh man, I’m late. Had a place to stop by!”

Lee Junhyeok flung open the door with a smirk. A strong, acrid smell hit our noses at the same time.

Did he just come back from smoking?

No matter how I looked at it, it seemed like he’d gone off to play around until he was exhausted.

Instead of criticizing him, Ha Junseo raised his voice to avoid a tense atmosphere.

“Sh-shall we start?”

“Yeah, let’s.”

Lee Junhyeok plopped down in the corner without even a hint of an apology.

“…….”

But did that guy even know?

There were cameras in the practice room, too.

After finishing practice, it was almost dawn when we finally returned to the dorms.

Everyone was so exhausted that we walked like zombies without a single word.

The only one who kept talking was Lee Junhyeok.

Obviously, since he hadn’t practiced properly, he was still full of energy.

I was pretty sure he wasn’t like this in the first timeline.

What twisted turn had caused him to spiral like this?

Just as I hoped he wouldn’t talk to me—

“Hey, Do Seohan?”

“…….”

“Seohan?”

Why did he keep calling my name when we weren’t even close?

Annoyance surged, but I let out a sigh instead.

That guy probably already knew. That I didn’t like him very much.

That’s why he was clinging to me—the one he thought was easiest to handle.

But I didn’t expect the question he asked next.

“I want to get closer to you, Seohan, but I don’t know much about you.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Say something about yourself once in a while. Are you doing some kind of mysterious concept?”

“Ah….”

“What agency were you with before this?”

His arrogant tone grated on my nerves, but I answered calmly.

“I’ve been to a few.”

It wasn’t uncommon. People moved between small agencies and transferred to others just before debut. Some went to bigger companies to gain experience.

“Besides Doubles, did you go to any other major ones?”

But why was he asking?

The sly smile on Lee Junhyeok’s face gave it away.

He clearly heard something somewhere.

Trying to dig up dirt on me, showing his intentions openly.

“I was at KJ briefly.”

Normally, I wouldn’t have said that.

But this was an empty hallway. No cameras. No one around to hear us.

The other three were already quite a distance ahead.

Lee Junhyeok’s eyes gleamed coldly.

“Why did you leave?”

There it was—a direct hit.

How much scheming must he have done just to ask that?

His intentions were so clear it was almost funny.

No matter how many years older than me he was—

I had lived much longer.

It all just felt like clumsy immaturity, and I could only laugh.

Of course, that didn’t mean I’d tolerate such a lame provocation.

“Tell me. I’m curious. KJ is a big deal. You must be talented?”

There were no cameras here.

And this guy would be eliminated soon anyway.

“There was nothing like what you’re thinking.”

Lee Junhyeok’s expression hardened coldly.

Maybe because I saw right through him, or maybe because he didn’t expect me to say it out loud.

I didn’t know the reason, but it was a satisfying face to see.

“…Unfortunately for you.”

“You… you!”

I leaned in and whispered softly into Lee Junhyeok’s ear, smiling gently.

He didn’t expect that kind of response.

He probably imagined I’d tremble in fear right in front of him.

Sorry, that’s not the case.

“You won’t find anything, even if you look. Don’t waste your time.”

“Hey, you…!”

Lee Junhyeok’s face turned red, like it could explode any second.

“Hey, Do Seohan!”

His furious voice echoed behind me.

“You little…!”

Any louder and the others might come out.

I bowed calmly toward his angry, trembling face.

“I’m sleepy, so I’ll go in first. Good night.”

That’s why you’ll never make it.

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