Crowds formed outside and within Jinyoung High School as the talent show was about to begin.
I rushed through the floods of people to make sure my friends were ready for the show.

“Everything is going fine,” Bambam muttered when I passed by, “Can you stay away from the control booth…please?”

I nodded at the boy and walked away as he ordered some students around.

“You want a cookie???”

Jaebum and Jinyoung were walking around the hallway giving out cookies with other members of the school’s foodie club. They always did that every year during the talent show. Bambam gave them a NOT-RIGHT-NOW look and they proceeded to pester Yugyeom.

I moved past them and saw Jae and the DAY6 boys prepping their instruments in a classroom, giving me a thumbs-up.

I finally made my way to the dance practice room where the gang was watching Jihyo, Momo and Mina’s rehearsals.
Sana was there too.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

We both greeted each other awkwardly.
The background music to the dance routine prevented the atmosphere from getting too awkward.

“We can talk after the talent show…” I muttered and Sana nodded in response.

“HEY GUYS!”

Jimin came rushing in before we could say more, a Tupperware box in hand, “I got some cookies off the foodie club for the dance crew!”

Momo’s mouth watered even though she was technically still practicing her moves. Soon after the practice, the three girls started munching away.

“I mean I would love one but you guys are finishing it soooo quickly…” Jackson groaned as he saw the number of cookies dwindle before his eyes.

“You can get some more off Jaebum and Jinyoung in the hallway,” Jimin shrugged, “Just come with me!”

Jackson looked somewhat conflicted for a moment but Jungyeon pulled him with her as she followed Jimin out.
“You know you want to do that,” the short-haired girl noted.

Seeing the room getting emptier, Sana stood up suddenly.
“I am going to the bathroom,” she announced, seemingly trying to prolong avoiding me until we have to talk after the talent show. Before I could react, she was out of the room already.

As if trying to make me feel less bad, Jihyo passed me a cookie.

“And now please welcome our first performer – The NCT Boys who are going to kick things off with Lost in Love!”

I was sitting in the audience beside Jackson, Jungyeon and Jimin when Doyoung, Jaehyun and some boy I don’t know went on stage.
It seemed like they named themselves after the tea sold at SMTown Café.

The three boys took the stage and stood behind mic stands as Bambam and the tech crew dimmed the lights. A soothing ballad begins to play.

“It must be a dream, exactly like how I remember it…,” Doyoung sang.
The crowd awed and so did you. This quiet boy had honey vocals.

“How weird is it even after a long time has passed,” Jaehyun continued, also with a beautiful voice, “my heart keeps replaying that days…”

“I can’t seem to see this through, I am not able to send you away~” the boy I did not know belted. So, it was a breakup, goodbye type of song.

As they continued the song, I noticed girls swooning in the crowd. I searched the crowd to see the person Doyoung may have been singing to but recalled Jihyo and the other performers are backstage.

Soon, the song was over and the boys ended with, “…This isn’t the end~”

The audience clapped and cheered.
Jaehyun and the other boy smiled while Doyoung looked awkwardly away.
He then seemed to be looking somewhere nearby and you notice Chaeyoung and Dahyun clapping around that area.
Interesting.

“Are you freaking serious?!” Bambam cried at the first aid room.

Ten sat on a bench, icing his foot as Lisa and her dance crew looked at each other.

“Why would you offer to carry stage props when we have staff for that?!” Bambam said shaking his head, “And now sprain your ankle 10 minutes before the performance!?”

Ten shrugged, “I did not know this would happen….”
He then turned to s, “I am sorry…”

“Well, guess we can quit now,” some girl called Seulgi grumbled, “There goes two months of training…”

“Well, well. If it is not Bambam…”

Everyone turned around to see Principal Park Jinyoung senior walking backstage.

Momo felt like throwing up.
She did not know why.
All she could feel besides that was as if someone was stabbing her stomach a gazillion times.

Mina was sweating profusely too.
Her face pale as a sheet of paper.

“We are performing in 20 minutes! What is going on?” Jihyo muttered, also feeling the pain as she paced backstage with the girls.

“Maybe we ate something wrong?” Mina grimaced.

“But what?!?” Momo retorted, “We have not had anything the others did not have?!”

“True,” Jihyo contemplated, “But let us first work out what we are going to do with the performance now…that is more pressing.”

The other girls nodded and they started discussing any changes they should make to the choreography.
However, at the back of Jihyo’s mind, she knew what caused their sudden upset stomachs.
There was only one thing they had that most of the others did not have.

I sat in the bathroom unable to handle the excruciating pain.

“What did I eat?” I wondered.
This was worse than the time he had that sketchy street toppoki with Jackson and Jimin.

“Next up! We have the collaborative performance of the Yanggun High School and Soo Man High School dance teams…” belted the speakers.
“..and wait a second, there seems to be a sudden inclusion of some Jinyoung High School dancers…”

I wondered who the new dancers could be as I pulled his pants back on and ran back to the assembly hall.