chapter seven

〈 ♞ 〉NIGHT CIRCUS
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[COVER] Matilda & Shimin - UP (Original by EPIK HIGH)
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Vocal by Matilda (right), Rap by Shimin (left)
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01 MARCH 2015
3:34 AM
THE SEVENTH CHAPTER
 
“Are you kidding me?”

Sookhyun looks over from where he’s talking to Suhwan, a party hat still on his head despite having his birthday a week ago, and he’s confused when he sees Jaesun sitting in front of the computer with a smiling hyung- and noona-line behind him. He’s too busy staring at them to notice Suhwan plucking the party hat off of his head and leaning over to put it on him instead. He flinches when he feels the pressure before a light snap underneath his chin.

“It’s your birthday today,” Suhwan quietly says, a small smile to his lips, “You should be wearing this instead.”

“Huh?” Sookhyun looks up towards the hat, reaching out to poke the tip, before looking to his friend. “But this is yours.”

“It doesn’t have my name on it.”

Sookhyun laughs at that, tilting his head side-to-side cutely. “It should,” he fires back, smile on his face as Suhwan grins at him quickly before looking away to the ground again. His smile softens at Suhwan’s actions, humming as Sookhyun holds onto his cell phone where a song is playing quietly between them.

It’s been at least three months since they became an official team. It’s been at least three months since they’ve been preparing day and night trying to hone their skills so they can work on other areas they are lacking. It’s been at least three months since they’ve learned how to put up with each other and figured out what they needed to do to cover their other members’ weak spots. Well, at least for the most part.

They spent the last week practicing on dancing. It shouldn’t have been so hard, but it was with their group of members. Min needs to practice twice as hard since she has to be somewhere in the front because of her short height while Suhwan needs to practice twice as hard since he has to be somewhere in the back because of his taller height amongst the rest. But he has noodle arms that can be seen from any angle they dance at and Minseok has been getting harder on him every day.

He remembers Min complaining about being sore but Jiwool simply dragged her around some more to loosen up her muscles. Suhwan didn’t verbally complain, but Sookhyun could tell he was sore too by the way he winced and tried to massage his arms longer than the rest. He looks up when he hears Suhwan humming along to the song in his phone. He didn’t even realize he was looking down to the ground as well.

Laughter suddenly rings from the other side of the room and it catches their attentions before they look to each other curiously and Sookhyun is standing up to grab Suhwan’s hand and drag him to the rest of their group. He smiles when he feels Suhwan grip onto his hand in return. He always hears about how they don’t think he’s the youngest but Suhwan is instead. He’s probably going to be hearing about it for the rest of his life until they retire.

When they get there, they’re immediately confused to see Min and Jiwool on the computer screen. It’s a video that’s just finished playing and Seungheon is complaining because “Why don’t I have a video yet?”

“What are you going to do – stare at the camera and fix your hair?”

“Rude alert!”

Hyemi shrugs, laughing as Seungheon frowns at her. “Isn’t that the truth?”

“It really is,” Jaesun pipes up, Min and Jiwool nodding along with him.

“Hey!”

“Hey, yourself.”

This time, Sookhyun and Suhwan laugh with their band mates, only because their interactions are funny. Being rude isn’t a part of them, but they like the smiles it brings to their older friends’ faces. Sookhyun smiles as he reaches out with his free hand and places it on Jaesun’s shoulder, using it as leverage to move himself and Suhwan closer before draping himself all over Jaesun’s back. It should be nasty because they all pretty much smell from practice, but it’s close to four in the morning, and they don’t really care much anymore.

“What is that?” he asks, pointing to the video for emphasis. He likes how none of them react to him being so touchy with them anymore.

Jaesun laughs. “This?” He drags the mouse so the pointer is all over the screen erratically. “This is a video your dumb noonas posted up because they finally got permission to do this.”

“So you don’t want to make one?” Min asks, rising a brow at them. “Because the only ones who are supposed to actually do this are Suhwan and me, but as it stands,” she trails off, giving Suhwan a bright smile that he can barely look at for three seconds before looking away to the computer again. She laughs.

“Wait,” Hyemi says, turning to her, “Why only you two?”

Jiwool pouts then, moving to sit on the ground next to all of them but still be in view of the screen. “Because we’re all famous in our little circles except for them. We all had training or was an underground superstar and they didn’t.”

Hyemi frowns, muttering petulantly, “I’m no underground superstar.”

“Was I talking about you?”

Sookhyun has to bite his lip at the looks Jiwool and Hyemi are giving each other, trying to stop his laugh before it even comes up, but Jaesun laughs instead at the feeling of Sookhyun tugging on his shirt.

“They’re just worried we’re all going to spill something before debut even happens,” Min explains with her own laugh, “But I reassured them that we wouldn’t spill anything. We’ll even wear masks if we need to.” She gives them all a smile. “Besides, we’re using our stage names in putting up these covers. Hopefully all your idol friends won’t stumble upon it and bring it up in conversation or anything.”

“It’s just going to be a hobby until all we can focus on is our group and the public and everything wonderful in being an idol,” Jiwool adds with a shrug.

Sookhyun hums at that, thinking it sounds like a nice hobby, before he points to the video again. “Can you replay it? I want to see what they did.” He then shakes his hand holding onto Suhwan’s. “Suhwannie-hyung wants to see it too.”

“What?”

Sookhyun laughs as he looks back to see a wide-eyed Suhwan, looking a bit lost as he takes turns staring at him and the computer screen. It takes a minute, but by the time Jaesun is pressing the replay button, Suhwan is leaning in to see the video better too. They’re surprised to see Jiwool hitting all the notes, especially the last long one. Sookhyun looks to her shocked and she just smiles happily at them. Vocal training is helping a lot.

And then it gets to the end of the video, and Sookhyun can’t stop laughing at how odd his two noonas are. He turns to look at them amused and even Suhwan lets out a snort of laughter at their actions.

“Can you believe Min-unnie started it?” Hyemi says first, shaking her head fondly at the video.

“I’m just glad Jiwool followed me up on that,” Min says with a laugh.

Sookhyun giggles, letting go of Suhwan’s hand to replay the ending, and despite how amazed they are at Jiwool’s note, they end up laughing again at seeing the two playing around. He smiles as the video ends before he turns to Suhwan. “Let’s make one.”

Suhwan’s eyes widen at the sudden suggestion. “What?”

“I want to make one too!” Seungheon shouts out, throwing his fist in the air.

“Oh, come on,” Hyemi groans, side-eyeing all of them, “Really?”

Jaesun chuckles at the skepticism before shrugging, despite the extra weight of Sookhyun still hanging onto him. “If they’re doing it, why not? It’s a good way to get used to the cameras being on us all the time.”

“Are you kidding me though? Aren’t we going to blow our covers or something?”

“We’re not secret agents,” Jiwool mutters in response, glaring back at Hyemi when she glares at her. “I’m just saying.”

“But we’re secret idols,” Seungheon says, smiling at all of them, “It’s the same thing.”

Min pouts in thought. “Not really.”

“Thank you,” Hyemi breathes in relief, looking to her elder thankfully, before Sookhyun and Suhwan break it.

“I think it’ll be fun.”

“I’m going to wear a mask.”

Everybody turns to stare at Suhwan, amazed but more than slightly confused. The man is still staring at the video, but they can tell he’s feeling uncomfortable when he reaches out to grab onto Sookhyun’s hand for comfort. Sookhyun smiles at him in return before reaching around Jaesun to click on other videos somehow related to this one video of them.

“It’s Sookhyun’s birthday,” Suhwan eventually mumbles out in discomfort, “Well, kinda,” while trying to curl in on himself because why won’t they stop staring at him?

But that ultimately drives everyone’s attentions away from him and to the party hat on top of Sookhyun’s head. They all stare at him shocked, not really noticing it before – because how could they when there had been a whole pack of party hats lying around everywhere for the past week? – before Jaesun eventually jumps out of the chair, accidentally throwing Sookhyun back for Seungheon to catch him. “It’s your birthday!” he yells out, looking back at him surprised, and then he pauses. “How many February birthdays do we have?”

“Actually, its on February 29,” Sookhyun says with a small smile, the grin growing larger when Seungheon hugs him from behind.

“Three,” Hyemi answers Jaesun.

Min looks at the youngest with wide eyes. “You’re a leap-year baby?”

“I am,” Sookhyun says with a brighter smile, straightening himself up with the help of Seungheon and Suhwan.

“Min, Suhwan, and Sookhyun.”

“You’re nineteen now?” Min asks again, only to get a shake of the head.

“Twenty.”

Min frowns at the answer, confused because isn’t he only nineteen? He was just eighteen before today. She looks to Seungheon who puts a hand on her shoulder in understanding. “Add a year,” is all he says.

“Ah.” Min forgot about that. “So, am I a half-fifty noona like Lu Han and Minseok?” She scrunches her nose in distaste. “Well, they’re half-fifty hyungs, but I’m a year younger than them. So are they no longer half-fifty… people?”

Her question has the rest going quiet, but she doesn’t notice it. Instead, she turns to Sookhyun after a few, questionable silent minutes and opens her arms out before tackling him for a hug. “Happy birthday, Sookhyunnie!”

Sookhyun laughs at the sudden attack, eagerly hugging his noona back and letting her cling onto him. None of them answer her question about being a half-fifty noona, but they do look at her intently, although partly curious, partly confused. She slips up every now and then, but the only one it really affects is Jiwool. It’s not even in a bad way anymore.

Sookhyun smiles as he accepts hugs and hi-fives from everyone else before taking off his hat and putting it back on Suhwan. “I’ll get my own later,” he says as an excuse, watching as Suhwan stops in the middle of taking it off. They flinch when they hear the front door of the building opening. Didn’t they lock it after the last coach and trainee left?

Minseok stops dead in his tracks when he sees them, mid-yawn. Next to him, one of their new managers is staring at them confused. “What are you guys still doing here?”

“What?” Seungheon questions back. All of them are staring at them similarly confused.

“It’s almost five in the morning,” Sunyoung states, looking to the watch on her wrist before looking to Minseok next to her. “You should invest in thin mattresses or something if they’re always going to be here this late.”

“Why are you here this early?” Jaesun asks, looking at them weirdly.

Minseok shrugs, trying to look nonchalant even though they all know better. “I gave Hyunchul the tour yesterday. So, I’m giving her the tour today.”

“What tour? There are only three rooms and a bathroom.”

Sookhyun stifles a laugh at Hyemi’s blunt statement.

“I’m just being nice, guys,” Minseok grumbles, “Just let me be the nice dongsaeng for once.”

That causes the rest of them to laugh, even Suhwan, at the way Minseok walks away from them and Sunyoung stares at all of them amused. She lets out a soft laugh when they all hear a door close, presumably to the recording room – if the direction she’s looking at in the hallway is any indication.

Several minutes pass where they try to hear if anything is going on in the other room, but it’s all eventually useless anyways. The recording room is mainly soundproof.

Sunyoung smiles, as she turns to them. “Go home and rest for a couple hours,” she says, eyeing the birthday hat on Suhwan, “Come back at eight after you’ve showered and napped. I’ll try convincing the others and investing in some cheap, good mattresses for you guys to use when you spend the night here.” She tilts her head curiously. “And we’ll celebrate Sookhyun’s birthday then.”

It catches Sookhyun off-guard, looking to her with wide eyes. “You know when my birthday is?” Suhwan is the one wearing the hat.

Sunyoung laughs at the surprise tone trickling into his voice, nodding as she walks towards them and puts her bag on the table at the side of the room. “I have to know when my kids’ birthdays are.” She smiles as she digs through her purse for her cell phone. “February 29 will come next year. We’ll have a bigger, better celebration then.”

“I like her better than Hyunchul-hyung,” Sookhyun says without thinking, wincing when he hears a sudden cough from the hallway.

“I know when your birthday is too, kid.”

Sookhyun swallows down the lump in his throat, Suhwan smiling at the turn of events. “Hi, Hyunchul-hyung,” he greets quietly, hesitating to actually meet his gaze and needing to turn away after briefly seeing him.

Hyunchul looks so warm compared to Sunyoung, features more friendly than hers, but their personalities are the complete opposite of their appearances. He gives them a half-hearted smile, tilting his head back in the direction of the door. “Now, get out. You’re fired until eight o’clock.” His smile turns into a smirk, and they’re all slowly realizing it’s just his way of hiding his smile. “Don’t come crawling back until then like she said.”

They don’t know how they’re going to survive with these new personnel added to their team. It shouldn’t be too hard though. They hope.
 
 
co-author's note: hi lovely people. so this is the surprise we were talking about. you're going to be able to see pre-debut videos of them! kinda. you know. so i hope you enjoyed the video! the ark are my babies and minju is so cute omg. anyways. i don't have much to say? work is taking over my life so. i'm hoping to get the next chapter out soon. each chapter from now on will have a 'pre-debut' video, so at least three more chapters after this! and then debut time! muahahahah i wonder whose video is next :3 (psssst. it's going to ft. shiin)

(pls ignore the fact min is supposed to be shorter than jiwool in the video. like. yeah. min is 155 cm so ;u;)

question of the day: HOW WAS YOUR SUMMER. or are you guys still in summer? it's currently raining right now and it's kinda really dreary but my summer was cool. i went to the philippines and hong kong :D.

ps. leader votes will happen within the next three chapters! uh, uh. i don't know how to do this yet. probably through comments or a blog post so.... i'll let you know relatively soon!


updated: august 22, 2015 (oh hey look. a month after the last update. not bad ;u;)
created by -catalyst
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-catalyst
〈 ♞ 〉i swear i'm going to spam this entire story with new chapters by september/october! ( 1 aug 2017 )

Comments

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AliceReverie
#1
Seriously one of my fave apply fics! ♡ TT.TT
-yinghua
#2
"〈 ♞ 〉i swear i'm going to spam this entire story with new chapters by september/october! ( 1 aug 2017 )"

THEM LIES
wsyoung
#3
Chapter 33: this chapter has made me realize that Night Circus are a bunch of really different people who somehow came together as a group. i really like how different they are yet they synchronize so well together!
about Suhwan, i don't know.. maybe cahange it with someone else and act like it was them all along?
AliceReverie
#4
Chapter 33: Loving the balance of comedic and serious moments! 8D
*will reply later with a more detailed comment*
wsyoung
#5
Chapter 33: an update!!! I'm gonna save this for later to read and comeback with a real comment lol
AliceReverie
#6
Chapter 32: Okay lots to comment about! 8D

First... Sleepy Sookhyun is too funny! XD And I was wondering who would be roommates for this trip! LOL trust Seungheon to be one of the last out (that "hairstyle is important" part XDDDD) And Poor maknae! Don't grow up too fast!!! D8 And lol~ lost Seungie is lost. And then Jaesun is lost! XD For some reason that whole part made me laugh more than I should have. ^^" But poor Min, having to lead pretty much all the crew as well as the group! >.< Why did Seungheon get switched to the other van though? To support Min? Honestly I feel like they have a good bond going since the whole getting lost incident before their debut performance. ^o^ TBH I liked Yongha & Jiwool's interactions a lot! Especially the "You're not all newbies" and "We're all rookies though" exchange. ^^

*another comment to follow*
Sidereal
#7
Chapter 32: I love the members' interactions with each other! They're so nice and caring it's so cute.
They're performing at a festival and filming! So exciting :D
I can't wait to see the depth of each character that you mentioned! It's hard to portray it, but you've been doing great. :3
And defiantly can't wait to see the website!
wsyoung
#8
Chapter 32: xDD totally loved how clueless Jaesun felt when Min and Soonwook were talking about the filming location! I mean, out of everyone, you would never expect Jaesun to not know something and he's a leader xD
Min got me worried :( hope everything is ok. It would be nice of the members teamed up to try cheer her up and get her mind off things a bit.
loving Jaesun and Hyemi <3 <3 i think it would be cool if Jaesun was Hyemi's to-go-for when she needs a guy advice^^
this way of texting is nice, i really liked it^^
one question, i didn't quite get it when Min said, 'Self-camera'. Did she mean that they should take a group Selfie together or something?
wsyoung
#9
Chapter 31: i just saw this! couldn't login to my account for a long time cause of my bad, bad browser :-( now i can! love the little min and hyemi moment <3 they're lovely together!! this trip is going to bring a lot of responsibility on Min so hopefully she can manage. i really loved how they all ended up sleeping in Min's room. it would be cute if the managers took a pic of them and posted it on they're facebook or twitter <3 <3 <3
AliceReverie
#10
Chapter 31: Happy new year! I like that we already get to see them debut in another country (because these days idols barely promote their first mini album before flying to Japan or wherever to promote). And BTW, lol at everyone crashing Min's room and taking over the phone convo! XD *will comment about the rest ASAP*