A Date with the Male Lead

"What are you doing here?" Valentin asked Seojin. "Don't tell me that you are my date," he added jokingly. There was no way that this was going to happen. Maybe there was some kind of mistake. Why would the kid even choose him for his date? Maybe he didn't know whom to choose, so he chose Valentin on impulse.

"Can't I choose you for my date?" Seojin asked while sniffing. He acted courageously and decided that he would tell Valentin his feelings. But seeing the judge's expression, maybe it was not a good idea.

"Wait, that's not what I'm saying." Valentin coaxed Seojin and wiped his tears. "You have to tell me why you did that, so I can understand. I don't want us to have any misunderstandings."

Seojin breathed a breath of fresh air and tightened his fist. He had to be courageous today. If he dragged things, it would be harder for both of them.

"I like you," Seojin sputtered out as his cheeks blushed. He finally said the words he had been keeping for himself.

"I like you too," Valentin replied as if it were the normal thing to say. The male lead was one of the few people whom he liked and admired.

Seojin shook his head violently as tears streamed down his face. The judge didn't get what he wanted to say. "I like you romantically. I want us to be lovers!" Seojin exclaimed.

Shocked, Valentin stayed silent. He needed time to think. The male lead liked him? Why? Was it because he helped him?

"Maybe you are mistaking your love for something else. Maybe it was only because I was the only adult who helped you when you needed the most, so you are just thankful," Valentin suggested. 

The kid cried even harder; his blue eyes were filled with tears. How dare the judge say his love wasn't real? He even went on a date with a random girl to test out his feelings.

"I love you, I really do," Seojin cried.

Seeing Seojin's heartbreaking expression, Valentin wiped away his tears gently and tried to calm him down. He wasn't against the male lead's feelings. He just needed time to figure things out.

"Don't cry, I trust your words. I'm sorry I doubted your feelings. Can you give me some time before I reply to your confession? In the meantime, let's go on that date," Valentin soothed the kid.

Seojin raised his head in shock. He thought that the judge was going to give him a hard beating or curse him for being gay. He didn't expect the judge to be so lenient with him. Seojin jumped into the man's arms and smiled brightly. Valentin sighed and ruffled the kid's hair. Maybe he was being too nice to the male lead. Seojin might have gotten taller than him, but he was still acting like a kid. Where was the cool male lead?

Seojin held the judge's hand and guided him to the scuba diving place. The filming crew was already there, by the sea, ready to film their date. They dressed in their black diving suits and rode a boat to get to the location they were going to explore underwater.

Valentin decided to worry about Seojin's confession later. He'll just enjoy the moment with his date. The judge joined Seojin, who had already jumped into the water. Surrounded by calm water, they observed the beautiful view quietly. The fish were swimming along with them, looking at them with their big eyes.

Seojin pointed at the translucid jellyfish. He liked to observe the marine life underwater. He couldn't hear anything, which made him momentarily forget about the bad things. On the school trip, he also tried scuba diving. That's when he realized how fun the activity was.

They swam with the fish and observed the corals. Seojin even used his body to make a heart shape, expressing his love for Valentin. Embarrassed, Valentin avoided looking at the camera. He knew that everything was being recorded.

Finishing their activity, they took off their suit on the boat. To give them privacy, the filming crew didn't film them when they were naked. Seojin glanced at Valentin's body. The water coming from the suit glided down Valentin's chest. Under the bright sunlight, Valentin shook off the water from his hair handsomely. The male lead couldn't take his eyes off. The judge was mesmerizing with his sexy red eyes.

Feeling Seojin's gaze on him, Valentin also stared at the kid's body. When did he get so muscular? He didn't have as many muscles then Valentin, but it was a big change from how he looked before. He was wondering why the kid was working out every day at home.

Seeing Valentin's gaze trace down his body, Seojin hid his upper body shyly. He knew he didn't have a beautiful body like Valentin. He promised himself that he would work out harder after they finished filming the show.

"Where are we going next?" Valentin asked. Since Seojin was the one who chose him, he was the one who planned out the date.

"We'll be driving to the city and have our dinner there."

Since Valentin loved to eat Chinese hot pot, Seojin chose a Hai Di Lao (Chinese hot pot) restaurant. He had already made a reservation for them. When Valentin saw the familiar restaurant, his lips curved into a smile. The kid had done his homework. He knew that it was one of his favourite foods. In his past life, he ate hot pot rarely, because he didn't have anyone to eat with. He loved the dish, but it wasn't fun to eat alone. When the temperature grew cold, he always craved hot pot, but his parents weren't even willing to eat with him. Now, he could eat as much as he wanted because the male lead was here with him. Seojin would always accompany him even though it's not his favourite food.

A bouquet was placed on the table. Seojin had bought the flowers, hoping that Valentin would choose him. Valentin sniffed the flowers and smiled.

"Thank you for the flowers," Valentin said. It was the first time he received flowers from someone. He never knew that he would be on the receiving end.

Seojin fidgeted with his fingers nervously, not knowing what to say. He still couldn't believe that he was on a date with the judge. He had thought of it a million times, but that was only in his fantasies.

"What's going on? Cat's got your tongue?" Valentin joked. It was funny to see the male lead all nervous. It was cute. Valentin felt that he was slowly opening himself up because of Seojin. He was happier and had more expectations for this life. He didn't know how he managed to live in the darkness of his past life. Every day was dull and had the same routine. He was tired of taking care of the people who acted like trash.

Seojin blushed and tried to hide his face from Valentin. He didn't want the judge to see him in such an uncool way. Valentin laughed and reassured Seojin that he liked him the way he was. The male lead was much cuter that way. He didn't want the male lead to become a cold killer, like the one he was in the story.

After they finished eating, they walked into the city under the colourful street lights. Hand in hand, they sipped their drinks and headed back to the villa.

When they finally arrived near the villa, the other contestants were gathered around the fire pit. Their shocked expressions could be seen from far away. They never imagined that the most popular male candidate would go on a date with the youngest of them. They looked incredibly handsome together.

"Is this even real?" one of the girls murmured. She knew that same-sex relationships were allowed, but it was rare for participants to do so. Seeing them tenderly looking at each other, the woman knew that she had lost her chance to compete.

Yuna looked at them in confusion. She knew that Valentin only considered her his friend, but she thought that she had a slim chance of changing his mind. Seeing Valentin laughing freely and looking at Seojin tenderly, she knew that she didn't have any chances left. Yuna sighed and smiled. As long as Valentin was happy, everything would be fine.

'Goodbye, my first love,' Yuna thought as she forced a smile, trying to hold in her tears.