here is a very long teaser (2k+ words haha rip) to celebrate 12 apps ! and the miraculous 69 subs ;^)) also for this teaser i had to look up all the bt21 names and stuff so pls acknowledge my hard work thank u lmao

this is also a very information heavy teaser !! and since i don't want to make an updates page, all of the new breakthroughs are comin' in here ! please read this entire tofu note !

firstly : there is a deadline in place ! the deadline is september 1 !! so get your apps in by then !

second : character reveal !! the first member of the tkana cast is kim joonyoung by derponimous ! so congratulations derponimous !! your boy is officially sentenced to the hellhole that is jaehyuk's apartment.

third : the main cast number is now going to be expanded from 5 to 6 characters. thus, despite joonyoung's selection, there are still 4 open spots. i didn't realize i would get this many apps so ... i'm expanding the available spots .. but this is really as far as i can go with this so,,,no more expansions after this lmao.

thank you guys so so much for all the love and support you've given me and tkana !! here's to me hopefully repaying you guys for all that you've given me !! <3

it begins with a dog biting at his ankles on the way to work.

jaehyuk's already late, already barely making it to the store in the nick of time, already feeling his heart rate increasing to a threatening degree. his shirt is only half buttoned, zipper still down on his pants, and feet shoved into his shoes as if they were sandals. his hair is split between sticking up in different directions and pasting itself to his forehead with his sweat. his glasses are on, contacts not even option as he sprung out of the house. why oh why did this have to happen. he's crying internally (and shedding a single physical tear).

the dog bites his ankles when he's only a block away from the line store. jaehyuk can see the store, can see the familiar green sign beckoning to him and extending its arms out in a welcoming embrace. he can almost allow himself to smile through his wheezing breaths, shoes flapping along the pavement wildly--and just wildly enough to attract the attention of a local pomeranian who lunges for his foot in a flash. 

jaehyuk screams as the dog gnaws at his bony ankles and growls at the floppy backs of his converse. it begins scratching at his heels and jaehyuk emits garbled noises that are borderline inhuman. everyone on the street stops to look at him, staring in wide eyed awe as he wrestles with the ball of fur in a battle for the shoes. he barely makes it out alive, finally picking up the dog and dropping it a bit aways before he sprints the last stretch to the store. he walks through the threshold and is greeted by his coworkers doubled over as they laugh at him. figures he would be working with hyeonsoo and chaerim today. (internally, he's shaking a fist at the sky)

jaehyuk cleans up in the employee break room, wiping kleenex all over him in an attempt to sop up all of his sweat. his hands are wracked with tremors and he has to take a moment to gather his breathing and regain some semblance of his composure. jaehyuk leaves the break room with half a box of tissues in the garbage and newfound confidence. 

then the girls hit the store.

not just any girls, but the fangirls. the girls who nearly mow him down to see brown, to see the bt21 merchandise, to see sally or cony or any of their beloved characters. his eyes are watering as he's ignored for the millionth time, waving his arms about as he tries to tell these girls to just wait--but to no avail.

"i thought you were good with the ladies, jaehyuk," says hyeonsoo while clapping jaehyuk on the back. "but for some reason, all you do is chase them away."

"it's not that!" jaehyuk says exasperatedly.

hyeonsoo throws a couple of laughs over his shoulder and goes to corral the girls perfectly. just like he always does. jaehyuk mutters under his breath some combination of "stupid prick" and "cocky ". he then scrunches his nose, appalled by his own lack of good insults.

jaehyuk feels his patience wearing thin as it nears about 11:45am.. almost two hours into his shift. he still grits his teeth, slaps on a smile, brushes his sweaty bangs back and calls out a cheery "welcome to line friends!" to whoever looks his way. 

but when a little girl walks up to the bt21 merchandise and knocks the shelves down as she catapults herself into a sea of plush dolls, jaehyuk truly feels as though the universe is out to get him and he's the lucky victim of one of the greatest ' you"s of all time. 

he helps the girl up, checkng her for injuries whilst simultaneously glancing over her shoulder for her mother. the girl is crying, bawling, overflowing with tears and distress. jaehyuk can only dab at her tears with her sleeve and attempt to reassure her that everything is alright. 

surprisingly, the girl takes to him quckly. 

"shh, shh...it's okay. it's okay," his thumb swipes across the corners of her eyes. "you're not hurt are you?"

"no," she blubbers out. "i'm okay."

"do you know where your mother is?" he asks, hands placed delicately on her shaking shoulders.

"no," her lips wobble and tears threaten to bubble out once more. "i don't where she went."

he schools his face into a bright mask of cheer. "we'll find her, i promise. in the meantime, can you tell me which of these dolls is your favorite?"

the girl's face brightens at once. she stares at jaehyuk as if he asked something she had always wanted to hear--almost like a dog hearing his owner ask if it wants to go on a walk. the girl eagerly drags him over to the dilapidated shelf and gives him a breakdown of every single doll and why she loves each one. he finds himself smiling for real, listening to her enthusiastically gush about her love and affection for the little plushes. as she rants, he combs her hair away from her face with his fingertips, rubs soothing circles into her back, and watches her with all the fondness of a father observing his daughter. 

despite what his friends say about his advice to each of them, jaehyuk is damn good with kids.

there's a pause as the girl finishes up her ted talk, catching her breath. jaehyuk takes the opportunity to pull one of the chimmy dolls off of the shelf and place it in her arms. 

"you seem to really love chimmy," he says softly. "and i'm sure he loves you just as much. why don't you take him with you as we go to find your mom?"

she beams, and hugs the doll closer to her chest. with a free hand, she takes jaehyuk's hand and they proceed to walk downstairs together.

at the foot of the stairs, a frazzled mother welcomes the girl with open arms and a stern warning to "never run off like that again or i'll really lose it!!!" the girl turns and waves to jaehyuk with a blinding smile--one that he can't help but mirror. she grabs her mother's hand and they go off to the checkout line with no further issues. jaehyuk's whole body deflates as he absorbs his small moment of calm amid the chaos. 

but of course, hyeonsoo comes over to ruin it all. 

"holy hell, jaehyuk!!' hyeonsoo cries, shoving jaehyuk with a little more force than necessary. "what did you do upstairs?!"

jaehyuk's face falls and he gnaws at his lower lip. "a little girl ran into the display and knocked it all over but--"

"and you didn't clean it up??" hyeonsoo huffs. "i had to do it for you. me. clean up your mess."

"but i was going to--"

"save it," hyeonsoo waves him off, already running off to go tend to the fangirls. "but you owe me, jaehyuk."

jaehyuk watches hyeonsoo's back disappear within the mob of girls upfront. he suddenly decides that now would be a great time to use the employee restroom.

and so jaehyuk barricades himself in the restroom and pulls out his cell phone. he frantically scrolls through his contacts before locking onto the one number he can count on to bail him out. he checks the time before calling-- a little past noon.

jaehyuk's savior picks up on the second ring.

"hello? what is it? what do you need?" 

jaehyuk flinches at the onslaught of questions, but he's so stressed that he's rambling out words before he can snark back. "can you, like, please bail me out of work today please please i'm at my wit's end."

there's a bit of silence. the phone crackles between them and there's the faint sound of city noise in the background. 

"you know, you're not going to get anywhere in life if you always quit." the other says, chuckling.

"i'm not quitting it's just--!" jaehyuk pauses, bites his tongue. "okay, i'm quitting today. not the job, i'm just .. checking out of today's activities. i'm siiiiiiiiick."

more laughter. "yeah. sick of the fangirls. but that usually doesn't hinder you enough to call it quits. what's different today?"

in his mind, he can see all of the countless blows to his poor, tender heart over the course of the day. his hands are still trembling just faintly and with a quick glance in the mirror, he looks like a hot mess. plus, now he owes hyeonsoo. why should he owe that anything? hyeonsoo didn't have to clean up the shelves, jaehyuk was gonna get to it as soon as the girl was okay--

"i'm taking your silence as a bad sign," the other says, voice suddenly firm. "i'm coming. just got off work. i'll be there in five."

"bless your soul," jaehyuk squeaks out. "i'll treat you to anything just come as fast as you can."

he hangs up just as chaerim starts banging on the door complaining that jaehyuk's taking too big of a and that he's going to clog the toilet. jaehyuk throws her a middle finger before he realizes that she can't see him. he reluctantly gives the toilet a courtesy flush, surrendering his safe haven, and exits the restroom. as he exits, chaerim gives him a disgusted look before pushing past him and slamming the door shut.

jaehyuk takes another few moments to collect himself in the break room before reemerging back into the line friends warzone.

it really only takes five minutes before jaehyuk peers over at the entrance to see kim joonyoung pushing his way past the girls to reach him. in moments like these, jaehyuk lauds joonyoung's precision.

"hyuk!" joonyoung gasps, finally making it through the sea of people. "i'm here!"

jaehyuk wants to laugh at how lame it sounds, but can only give a wavering smile in response. joonyoung throws his arm around jaehyuk's neck and all but drags him through the hoardes of people. as they push through it all, hyeonsoo approaches them with a raised eyebrow.

"where do you think you're going, kim jaehyuk?" hyeonsoo frowns. "you still have four more hours!"

"a family emergency popped up," joonyoung supplies. "we have to go immediately. jaehyuk's mother is in danger."

hyeonsoo looks between them. his face is a torrent of mixed emotions. jaehyuk can practically see the gears turning in the boy's head. 

"we really don't have time to spare," joonyoung frowns. "every minute we waste is a minute we don't have with her."

and with that, joonyoung drags jaehyuk the rest of the way out and they're scurrying back onto the streets of myeongdong. jaehyuk heaves a big sigh as joonyoung wipes the sweat beginning to build on his brow. they both stare up at the behemoth that is line friends, chests heaving.

the two boys then proceed to turn on their heel and make their way back to the apartment. neither one speaks. they push their way through the crowds out of habit, barely sparing anyone more than a glance. 

"you're never having me do that again," joonyoung says as they pop out onto the street of their abode. "i mean it."

"it was a one time deal!!" jaehyuk says adamantly. "i promise."

joonyoung scrutinizes him. "you're lucky i'm used to your ."

"i know."

"and you're lucky that i'm such a good friend."

"i know."

"and you're lucky that i'm willing to tolerate your bull!"

"i knooooow, joonyoungie," jaehyuk whines. "can't we just go inside now?"

they're standing outside of their apartment door at this point. joonyoung scowls at jaehyuk, crossing his arms and glaring daggers. jaehyuk rubs his hands together in an act of pleading, giving the other boy the strongest puppy eyes he can muster. wtih a resigned sigh, joonyoung deflates.

"you're lucky you're so cute," joonyoung sticks his tongue out, unlocking the door with strong passive aggressive action. "otherwise i would kick your out of this apartment."

"but it's my apartment," jaehyuk pouts. "i'm the one who got everyone on board. including you."

"but who's the responsible one?" joonyoung holds up a finger before jaehyuk can speak. "and be honest with yourself."

jaehyuk closes the door and huffs. "you are."

joonyoung cackles as he retreats to their shared room. jaehyuk in turn collapses onto the couch and attempts to burn the entirety of the workday from his memory.