“I don’t understand, how’d he know we’re with the girl trainees?” Junhwe muttered.

The boys were packing their belongings. A gloomy atmosphere settled around the room. In response to Junhwe’s question, Donghyuk only grunted. Yunhyeong tossed Jinhwan’s jacket to him and it hit his back before it fell to the floor.

“I told y’all he has spies. None of you believe me,” Yunhyeong muttered.

“We didn’t even get to play,” Donghyuk whined, shoving shirts into his bag.

“Stop, we’re lucky enough he hasn’t delayed our debut again,” Jinhwan said.

As the others chatted, the tension between Bobby and Hanbin was evident. Both were packing in silence, but the way Bobby kept glancing at Hanbin bothered him. After Rhine exclaimed that, it took the trainees a while to formulate what Hanbin had said to Rhine, but none bothered to tell her. They all knew Hanbin had a reason for doing so and even as uncomfortable as it was, they played along with it. After dinner, President Yang called Hanbin’s cell and demanded they head back to the dorm that night, no exceptions. When Hanbin asked him why, Mr. Yang told him he knew the trainees were together and it was against company’s rules.

“Why’d you lie to her?” Bobby finally asked. Hanbin froze in the midst of folding his shirts back into the bag. Beside him, Bobby busied himself with packing. The others had stopped talking and the room was suddenly silent, making Hanbin uncomfortable.

“Honestly? I don’t know.” He put his last shirt in and zipped the bag. He moved across the room and took his wallet from the dresser.

“I know you’re going through a hard time, but was it necessary to mock her lack of Korean?”

“Why do you suddenly care so much about her?”

“She’s a foreigner, Hanbin! She doesn’t know anything.” Bobby gritted his teeth as he harshly zipped his bag. “Your reason for doing so better be good.”

Hanbin grabbed his bag and headed for the door. “I’m sorry for disappointing you all.” He walked out of the room and Bobby cursed under his breath as he turned to look at the doorway.

Rhine exited the girls’ room and ran into Hanbin. She looked at him with a smile and guilt gnawed at him. He wanted to tell her he lied to her, but something about the way she called him jagi made him feel better, a thousand times better. With just that name, his endorphins increased. It was probably a drug, she was probably his drug.

“Is Yunhyeong okay now?” At his confused gaze, she explained, “He was choking earlier.”

He nodded. “Yeah, he’s fine.” They started heading for the living room, bags in hand. “I’m sorry you didn’t get to stay longer.”

She looked at him. “Oh… It’s fine, maybe next time.”

“Do you have your plane ticket?”

“Yeah uh, manager sent them electronically to Iseul.”

Hanbin nodded. He wanted to admit to her that he lied and apologize, but he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. Besides, what could possibly go wrong with one white lie? It’s not like it harmed anyone. It was a lie that benefited him. But still, he didn’t recognize the person he had become. He would never lie to anyone, especially a girl he liked, what came over him?

“Do you think… we’re in trouble?”

“Hm?” He looked up at her with a raised eyebrow. As her sentence registered in his brain, his mouth opened slightly. “Ah, I would tell you ‘no’ but I think we are.”

Her lips slowly curved into a smile and his face flushed. “I like your honesty.” His face fell as he cleared his throat. “Whatever you’re going through, I hope-,” there was a commotion from behind them and Rhine stopped midsentence.

“We should hurry, the plane’s leaving in thirty,” Iseul ushered the girl trainees.

Rhine turned to look at Hanbin as he stepped aside and let the girls through. When the girls passed by, Hanbin met her gaze. Her gaze was mysterious, distant almost, but it was hauntingly beautiful. She was searching his eyes and he was locked in place, unable to tear his gaze away.

“I guess I’ll see you soon?”

All he could muster was a slight nod and she slightly bowed her head. He watched as she turned and walked away. Somewhere deep inside of him, he wanted to reach his arm out and grab her hand. But he didn’t know what to do nor say after he grabs her attention. After she left, a heavy breath escaped his lips. His shoulders felt lighter and his body turned into a relaxed state.

*

On the plane in the seat in front of Rhine, Iseul and Eiseu were communicating. Iseul’s arm was wrapped around the younger one as they laughed at things the others couldn’t decipher. Hei was tracing the skylight outside the window with her finger. On the other side of Rhine, Jae was listening to music with one earphone plugged in. Her fingers were tapping against her ripped denim.

“What song are you listening to?” Rhine asked.

The plane was filled with people chattering. In the far back, a child was wailing as his mother cooed, trying to shush him. The lights were dim, letting passengers take a nap if they needed to.

Jae turned to Rhine, a bit taken aback. “It’s a beat I made.” She held the other earphone towards Rhine. “Would you like to listen?”

Rhine smiled as she plugged the earphone into her ear. A mellow hip-hop beat played. The drums came on slow with a gentle guitar in the background.

“You created this?” Jae hesitantly nodded, anticipating Rhine’s feedback. Rhine leaned back in the seat, closing her eyes and savoring the music that washed over her. Random words popped into her mind. Soon, the words turned into lyrics. An illustration was painted in her mind, the words turning into a story.

In the story, a child was abandoned. A dark street welcomed her, but none of the buildings seemed welcoming. The child walked on, uncertain and lost. She walked and walked. A feeling of someone, a light, awaiting her at the end ignited hope in her. With that hope, she carried on. The light was replaced by desolation. But the little girl was not afraid. She was just lost and vulnerable, but never afraid.

The music came to a stop and the vision in her mind shattered into a thousand little pieces. The pieces reflected nothing, but she was convinced it meant something deeper.

“I don’t mean to come off as pestering, but what’d you think?” Jae’s voice broke through the surface of her thoughts, reeling her back to reality. Rhine slowly turned to her, unsure what to say. She cleared , noticing the pang in her chest.

“It’s…” Jae’s expression was odd: it was like she anticipated a good review, but at the same time, it seemed like she couldn’t care less if Rhine criticized it. “It’s really, really emotional.” That was the only way Rhine knew how to describe it. Most musicians aspire to make their audience emotional, but only a few can accomplish it. Saying that she was speechless was an understatement. “What went through your mind when you composed this?”

Jae’s gaze did not falter. “You don’t know what you’re capable of creating until you’ve been in a dark place.”

“Isn’t that why some people never come out of the dark?”

“It makes us powerful when we’ve got nothing else to fear because we’ve already lost everything.”

They looked at each other and a connection linked between them. There was more to Jae than she let on, but Rhine suddenly realized that the only way she can get inside Jae’s mind was through the music Jae composed. Warmth spread all over Rhine’s body. She felt content knowing that Jae allowed Rhine a glimpse into her world.

*

Right after landing back in Seoul, the girls were called to see President Yang. They waited outside his office, each of them uneasy. The door opened and they all looked up to watch the boy trainees shuffle out. The first one to make eye contact with Rhine was Bobby and he flashed her a cheeky grin, allowing Rhine to come to the conclusion that President Yang wasn’t too upset with them. The last to come out was Hanbin and he politely bowed in the girls’ direction. His eyes landed on her for a brief second before he followed after his boys.

When the girls were called in, they shuffled into the room. They greeted their president before he motioned for them to sit down. He studied them with a cold expression and the room was suddenly filled with tension. Rhine shifted in her spot, uncomfortable.

“Did you know you were going to Jeju with the boys?” his tone was harsh and penetrating.

Iseul slightly bowed her head, “Yes.”

“What’s the first rule of being a trainee at YG?”

“No dating, President Yang.”

“Do you know why the girl trainees are training at the company instead of one of the trainee facilities?”

“So the boys and girls wouldn’t cross paths, President.”

“If you’re aware of this, why would you go to Jeju and stay at the same place with the boys?” None of the girls responded. “You’re fully aware that iKon are debuting in less than a month, is this a plan of vengeance? Iseul, I know you’ve been here longer than most of the iKon members and you probably think it’s unfair, but this is a business. Whoever gains the most hype and secures a bigger fanbase gets to debut. I hope this isn’t your plan to jeopardize their debut.”

Iseul’s face flared and she avoided eye contact. “No, President.”

“President Yang, it was a coincidence. Iseul had no idea iKon were gonna be there,” Eiseu interjected.

“Did I ask you to speak?” His cold voice silenced Eiseu as she apologized, looking down at her hands.

“I’m sorry President Yang, but Eiseu is right. Iseul and the girls have nothing to do with this. None of us knew iKon was going to be there. Manager rented a room in that house, oblivious iKon would also be there,” Rhine said.

He looked at her with disapproval, but let out a sigh. “Fine, I’ll think of this as just a coincidence. How is the monthly evaluation coming along?”

“We’re thinking of a song, President,” Iseul replied.

“You’re all aware that you’ll be against the new trainees, am I correct?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not a safe zone like it was before. If any of you is lacking, I’ll replace you immediately.”

“Yes, President.”

“You may leave.”

They stood up and bowed before shuffling out the door. When the door shuts behind them, they all let out heavy breaths. Hei turned to Iseul, who didn’t look fazed at all about President Yang’s accusation.

“I’m sorry, Iseul,” Hei said. She put a loving hand on Iseul’s shoulder and the leader shook her head.

“Let’s all work hard, okay?” She smiled bravely at them before walking away. The other girls agreed and followed after her, the hallway suddenly filling with voices. A frown creased her forehead as she ran to catch up with them. An unsettling feeling nestled in the pit of her stomach.

“Wait, wait! I don’t understand.” She moved through them to walk beside Iseul. The girls stopped talking.

“What don’t you understand?” The leader glanced behind her shoulder.

“Why did President Yang assume that? He’s putting the blame on you and us as if it’s our fault.”

“That’s the way it’s always done, isn’t it?”

“But how can he assume it’s our fault?”

Iseul stopped and turned to face Rhine. “You don’t get it, do you? When the boys came out, they looked relieved, meaning President Yang didn’t so much as give them a slap on the wrist. When we went in there, he scolded and accused me. It’s as if we, the girls, tried to seduce them.”

“So it doesn’t matter where we are, it’s still a double-standard system.”

“Good. I don’t know what your relationship is with Hanbin and Bobby, but it has to stop. If President Yang catches any of us with them again, we’ll probably never see the debut stage.”

“How so?”

“President’s favoritism is obvious, it’s almost disgusting. Anyone who stands in the way of iKon debuting successfully will be eliminated. It doesn’t matter if only one of us is friends with iKon, if one of us gets caught, we all burn together.” She looked at all of the trainees. “Whatever you do, remember that you’re not only digging yourself a grave, but you’re dragging all of us down with you. Did I make myself clear?”

“Yes,” the girls said in unison.

Before Iseul walked away, she looked at Rhine. “Be careful with that jagi of yours. He might come back to bite you.” 

A/N Hey y'all! I hope you enjoyed the chapter :D I'm graduating high school this weekend so I might be able to update more often!

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