mistalee_

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Winter Chu has everything figured out. Ever since he attended the concert of a popular boy band as a child, he has never wanted anything more than to become an idol himself. 

And with his exotic half European half Korean features gaining him a ticket to be a trainee in a popular entertainment agency, Winter is sure he is well on the road to becoming one.

But Fate is a witch and after three years of struggling as a trainee, he realises this is as far as the road goes. When the line up for the company's next boy group drops, his name isn't anywhere near the list. Worse, his best friend's name— with whom Winter made the promise of 'conquering the stage together'— is there at the top. Bold and shiny. 

Just when things couldn't get any worse, Winter is forced to make a gambling decision.

Thrown into a new, no-name company with handpicked strangers, it is a race against time as Winter buckles up for his much delayed debut. But life isn't a bed of roses and hand in hand with the cruel reality of the entertainment world, his past comes crashing down on him as his best friend —now a rookie super star— waltzes back into his muddled life screaming muted revenge. 

What happens when the second chance Winter sought out isn't as easy as he thought it would be? And what happens when even with a knife hanging on his neck, Winter is slowly falling in love with said ex best friend? 


This is a quirky coming of age story about two teenage boys trying to find themselves and each other while trying to chase after ambitions as big as the ocean.

Stardom For Dummies

Liu Xuejun looks ridiculous wearing the sauna's clothes. His legs are pulled up beneath him and his chin is rested on his fist, looking extremely like a bored grade schooler. But the cherry on top is the lamb head towel that he painstakingly wore on his head. I stifle a laugh but a squeak still escapes and Xuejun glances up. 


Even tourists don't do their towels like that anymore.


His face looks extremely tired, dark circles running mercilessly underneath his eyes. They are red, like he had just cried a river and his face is flushed. In the dimly lit sauna room, his single earring catches the light, looking out of place on him. His other hand is wrapped around a boiled egg and though he is sitting, he is a lot bigger than the last time I saw him. 


His gaze finds me a second later and I look at them run over my face, the same way mine did over his. Then they rest on my red nose. 


We stare at each other for a long time, none making the first move. Talking over the phone was easy— at least you didn't have to be under a burning scrutiny. But here we are. And though I used to know this kid like the back of my hand, I truly could not decipher him in that instant. To be honest, my mind is a mess too. 


Understanding that no one would make the move, I steal my nerves and drop my marvelous opening statement. 


Liu Xuejun's eyes tremble and he sucks in a breath before a sarcastic chuckle escapes his mouth. 


The silence kicks in again and I glance at the floor. I feel Xuejun's big eyes on me but I don't dare look up. Oh god, why is it so awkward?


The snore of the uncle I had passed on my way carries louder, coming in between us and I thank him internally for filling the palpable silence. 


Xuejun's gaze on me doesn't falter and I feel it like worms crawling up my neck. Finally, I can't take more and I break the stalemate once again. 


He scoffs. "128 annoying calls. Really, what do you think?"


I sigh, clenching my fists to retain the tiny amount of patience I had. Normally, Xuejun was the pacifier. He was a crazy introvert who was all out weird once you got to know him but in our relationship, he was also the one who made amends whenever we fought. But again, we rarely fought. Thinking about it, I don't think we've ever fought in the past.


Still, this is the first time I was on the pacifying side ever in my entire seventeen years of life  and I swear to god, my patience is thin. I'm this close to smacking his pompous head off. 


I stop and press two fingers to the bridge of my nose. I feel a pulsing vein on my forehead and it's only a matter of time before the headache kicks in. The snoring in the background continues and suddenly, I don't feel thankful for it anymore. 


Suddenly my nose stings and I feel a tickling discomfort deep down my throat. It grows, and grows and finally— "achoo..!" 


The sneeze rattles me and I suck in desperately. My runny nose grows heavier and I sneeze again. Xuejun looks at me for a second before he lies down, scooting a little. The boiled egg is long forgotten and with slender fingers, he points at his empty mat. 


He then turns to the opposite direction, completely ignoring me and though I don't know how to feel, I don't hesitate before lying down on his mat, using mine to wrap it around me. Politeness isn't exactly my forte.


"Three hours," his voice sounds behind me. "The alarm is at eight."


We both don't talk after that and as I close my eyes snuggling thin air, I feel Xuejun's warmth melting like unrestrained lava through my back. There is a huge possibility that he might take this chance and run away when I'm in lala-land but for some reason, I don't think too much. 


With Xuejun's cold, untouching presence wrapping me in a familiar cocoon, I close my eyes. 


CHAPTER 4 (PT 2) - Lamb head towel