this is part of a double update; (please) go read chapter nine if you haven't

Just as my major had a half semester concert to judge our progress, so did the others of our performance art field. And as the days toward the first official mark of the half semester drew closer, posters and signs littered about campus, bright arrows directing towards time schedules of coming acts and their ticketing dates.

I was glad as hell ours had ended early and on a good note as well.

Before long, campus was starting to look more like the streets of Hyehwa station than a college.

“Hey buddy, you’re coming to see my act, aren’t you?”

When I’d invited Insoo to my half mark concert, pleading for there to please be a recognizable face in the crowd I can depend on while making a fool of myself on stage, I didn’t realize this had meant that I’d have to sign myself away to day of watching mediocre college students act as well. Not saying that Insoo was bad at acting; it was just weird watching him float about on stage being someone I clearly knew he wasn’t.

“Uh,” but I couldn’t really say no. Insoo had, after all, sat through half my underclassmen squeak and shake through stage fright after all. By bro-code, he rightfully owned my for a day. “Sure, what’re friends for?” It came out as a question and I made quick to cover the hesitation with a laugh.

I still remembered his first half mark drama. It wasn’t something to be exactly too proud of.

And it was either Insoo didn’t notice or simply didn’t care for the weird twitch I made, because he smiled on anyways, choking his grip around my shoulder and neck with a wicked grin. I can’t say I liked this look too much.

“Great, cause I’m giving you two tickets this semester. Just because I’m the bestest friend a loser like you could ever have!”

He didn’t give me a chance to say no - not that I would have been able to say so anyways. It was a flashed grin of all teeth and no smile and a shoved envelope of tickets before he was gone, hollering out for another bestest friend he’d spotted across the yard.

I considered who to bring with me to Insoo’s half mark.

I thought of taking Heechul, a country companion to the scary city life, but shook my head against. Jung Heechul was a sour, ungrateful friend who obviously could properly contain all that is great about the amazing Jung Daehyun. Heechul would complain about there being no pretty girls; no one needed a rude audience to a mid mark.

And like many times before this, my savior came in terms of a smaller boy with squinted eyes and the most gentle of smiles. My dearest and sweetest roommate - and I wasn’t only just saying this because he wasn’t allowed to say no.

“Jongup! Are you busy tomorrow?”

It was Jongup’s first time on my campus. Despite it being not too different from his own, he looked awkward and out of place, forcing a hesitant cough and hiding in my shadow when Insoo came skipping over to thank me for coming. It earned him a weird look.

“Is he,” I could see Insoo’s head churning, searching for a word that wouldn’t be too straight up rude, “alright?”

I shrugged. “He’s shy?”

To be honest, I hadn’t ever seen Jongup out with anyone before. For all I knew, he really was a lot more timid that he’d first come off to me. Maybe I was just special.

(Though I doubt it.)

Insoo seemed to take this for good enough, lifting and dropping shoulders to a half hearted shrug before ushering us to the concert hall, hollering at me to grab a seat where “I can clearly see your stupid face, Jungfatty!”

(I was tempted to hide away in the corner where he’d never be able to find me.)

And with the lights dimming, a senior coming on stage to welcome the audience, it began.

“We thank and welcome you to our half mark stage, though the most of you guys were just forced here by your friends who are soon to come on stage.” There was chuckle from around the seating, meaning I obviously wasn’t the only one who’d come with a threat hanging over my neck. “Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy as we worked hard this year to create an entertaining piece you won’t lose your fingers and toes to.

“This year’s masterpiece is called Auditioning. Please help me welcome on stage our actors.”

The play this year was an impromptu one, where the majority of the actors’ actions depended heavily on the reactions of the audience. At several points in the play, the actors stormed into the seating areas, dragging innocent guests on stage to perform stupid acts they’d surely regret come the end of their little session.

Somewhere in the middle of the play, Insoo’s eyes caught onto mine, sparkling mischieviously before his character twisted to turn my way completely. My smile dropped cold.

“Oh look here!” He pointed and the cast on stage did the same, bouncing dramatically to twist with him. “I see him! I see a star so bright!”

“Who? Who?”

“Him there! Him!” Fingers pointed and excitement cheered. It wasn’t long before several of the cast had crowded around the seating area where Jongup and I sat. “A star I say! A star!”

For a second, I’d thought that Insoo had meant to drag me on stage, force me to sing and successfully ruin the rest of my college career squeaking and embarrassing myself, but he didn’t. The hand he grabbed to pull on stage screaming of brillance wasn’t mine.

It was Jongup’s.

“I’m a scouter! A master scouter I say! I know what I see and this boy I say is a star hidden in the clouds!”

Jongup gave me a worried look, a plea to save him but was too quickly intercepted on stage by a cheer to do something.

“Boy! What can you do!”

“I … I don’t know.”

“Then dance! Shake those hips!”

They kept Jongup on stage a lot longer than the others.

But I wasn’t sorry; he looked so ing lost, but too happy at the same time.

a/n: to anyone surprised, i changed my username + early (double) update in honor of bap third anniversary #3yearswithbap