It's been a maddeningly stressful promotion period. Their manager had pushed them to their limit: back to back performances on top of interviews, fan meets, and radio broadcasts. The team barely had energy to do their nightly group huddle. More than one exhausted member had passed out, unflattering drool pooling on another’s shoulders while listening to the other members share their progress for the day. Finally the last promotional performance was done, with a final shower of firecrackers amid the heartfelt roar of their fans. Hoshi could not be more done with this whole thing. In the waiting room, their waiting manager had wonderful news: the next week was absolutely cleared for whatever they needed to do in celebration of a job well done. Immediately the room buzzed with talk of returning home, sleeping, and whoops of young men just happy to be free for a little while. The performance team broke into an impromptu happy dance, joined in by Hansol and Seungkwan.

"Yo, let's hit up the Gangnam club scene and shake it down!"

His suggestion was met with cheers from his best friends and some groans. Jun and Minghao had already decided to fly home for the week, and Jihoon had some kind of weak excuse about wanting to work on a personal project. Dino and Hansol declined as well, both being underage and also planning to relieve themselves of homesickness as soon as possible.

The air was alive back at the dorm. Clothes and accessories were strewn all over the living room as they excitedly planned what to wear, trading jackets and giving each other curt nods about what looked good. Hoshi brushed his hands through his bangs and gave the mirror a smug look. After much debate with Seungkwan, he’d decided on a white graphic tank, his favorite black handkerchief headband, and loose, baggy harlem pants with “let the sweat drop” down the sides.