Okay so what exactly is this "interlude"? Well I decided after the end of every mini-arc or so I'll put in a short little background story, and sometimes a character's background story will be important for you to know and affects the main plot, and sometimes it isn't. All interlude chapters are flashbacks and have already happened before where we are in the main plot!

A house just outside of Seoul, Korea

Today would be the day.

"Son, I don't know about you doing this idol thing...you know how slim the chances are? And you know your father is completely against it," his mother had hesitated when he told her about the open auditions for Seoul Performing Arts Academy's scholarship.

"Once I'm famous enough to buy you a house far from here you'll thank me," he clutched the auditon flyer tightly, clasping his hands in a begging figure.

His mother regarded him with knowing eyes. "If I say no you'll go anyway, won't you?"

"...maybe."

"Alright, just don't tell your father until you get signed, Lee Howon," the woman was enveloped in a crushing hug before her son dashed out the front door.
 

Seoul Performing Arts Academy, main entrance

"You sure about this?" Howon's best friends accompanied him as he waited in line for try outs. The eldest hyung handed him a water bottle worriedly. "What if they sign you into an unfair contract? What if you can't get out of it?"

"Relax hyung, he's trying out for a scholarship, not a company," his friend Dongwoo slapped the oldest on the back, "yet."

"Sunggyu hyung never listens anyway," the quintet's maknae piped up.

"Yah Lee Sungjong," Sunggyu made a threatening fist and Sungjong snorted.

"You'll do fine," Sungyeol consoled Hoya while the others fought. "Your turn's coming up soon. Just breathe and think, 'Jang Dongwoo has never beat me at dance battles'."

"Yah!" Dongwoo crossed his arms. Sungyeol cackled.

"Thanks," his friends could always be counted on to relax him. Seoul Performing Arts Academy was no joke. Most of its graduates went on to become trainees, partly due to their parents' influence, but Howon believed the school helped them plenty. If he got in, he'd get a fully paid high school experience. He felt bad that he might be leaving the other 4/5 of Infinite behind, but Seoul Performing Arts Academy was the school.

Infinite was the name of their band. Sunggyu hyung started it first, when he met Dongwoo and heard his rap. Over the middle school years, dancer Howon was recruited, and then just before graduating middle school they met childish Sungyeol and confident yet weak Sungjong.

"Number 43 and 44," the announcement rang throughout the school.

Howon watched as two teenagers got up from their spot in the hallway and file inside the main dance practice room door. His eyes scanned the hallway and its occupants, looking out for the competition. The lines stretched all the way down the hall and winded downstairs as well. There were a bunch of scholarship hopefuls.

"Watch it," Sungyeol's harsh voice shook Howon out of his thoughts. The tallest was spitting at some pretty boy that had bumped into him. The guy gave him an arrogant look, and proceeded to walk on before Sungyeol grabbed his arm. "Yah, you!"

"Is there a problem?" Two more boys walked up to them. Sungyeol scowled at the boy, who was smirking and shaking his head no.

The thing about Infinite was, they all had hot tempers, getting them into a lot of trouble at school. They weren't delinquents, just...quick to raise a fist. Sungyeol was always the first to get irritated.

"He spit his gum on my shoe," he testified, raising his new shoes for everyone to see. It now carried a blue glob of gum.

"I don't know what he's talking about, I was just passing by," the guy shrugged.

"You-"

Dongwoo lunged forward and held Sungyeol back once they all sensed that he was about to jump the guy. He called to the maknae, "Yah Lee Sungjong, what are you doing? Help me hold him!"

"Who are you?" Howon asked the two other boys. They had good looks, and from overhearing the whispering girls around them, were well-known too.

"Nam Woohyun," the first one offered a hand, "and he's Myungsoo. Kim Myungsoo."

"You shouldn't fight here," Myungsoo calmly nodded at Sungyeol, who stopped struggling at the sound of his serious tone. "The seonsaengnims might throw you all out, or cancel the auditions right here."

Sungyeol glanced at Howon and roughly shook Dongwoo and Sungjong off his arms, muttering something to himself. He knew how important this was for Howon. The other boy continued on his way with a sneer.

"Nice, Myungsoo-ah," Woohyun patted his friend on the back. Myungsoo shrugged.

"Myungsoo...oppa..." a girl timidly stepped forward, tapping the quiet boy on the arm. "What are you doing here? Are you auditioning?"

He shook his head, "We were turning in our registration forms and decided to come see our potential classmates."

So Woohyun and Myungsoo weren't the competition. They were the rich ones. Howon felt relieved, how would he have gone up against Myungsoo with his face?

"45, 46!"

"We should be going," Woohyun nudged Myungsoo and raised a hand to the boys before leaving. "Good luck!"

"Good luck," Sunggyu scoffed, "says the boy with the money."

"Incoming!! I'm late!!" A voice shouted down the hallway, and a boy flew past Infinite into the practice room, leaving a wind trailing behind him. Everyone in the hall could hear him as he shut the door, "Yang Yoseob is present!!"

"Why is everyone running?!" Sungyeol exclaimed.

Howon looked at his audition name tag. His turn was next. Who was 48?

"Lee Howon, fighting!" Sunggyu and Dongwoo hyung clapped his back hard when the speaker announced his number.

The inside of the practice room was large, larger than any other practice room he'd seen around town. Along the two brick walls of the room, a long table was set up on each, and behind it were a number of teachers - all famous celebrities.

On one side was fashion icon Lee Hyori, y dancing couple Hyuna and Hyunseung, and idol actor Lee Joon.

On the other side sat variety veteran Yoo Jae Suk, actress Song Ji Hyo, singer Kim Jong Kook, and flower boy Kim Jaejoong. In the most important seat, though, was a woman Howon recognized as Headmaster Ma.

Another boy entered the room right after, looking like he just woke up.

"Kids are all in a rush today for some reason," Hyuna muttered, crossing her arms.

"Alright, please introduce yourselves," Jae Suk motioned for them to speak.

"Number 47, Lee Howon, from Busan."

"Number 48, Jung Daehyun, also from Busan."

Howon side-eyed the other boy. His Busan satoori was almost non-existant. He fixed it well.

"Jung Daehyun, will you please move aside. Lee Howon," Kim Jong Kook nodded firmly at him, "you may start."

Howon pressed play on the stereo he'd prepared and started a routine he'd been planning for weeks. He put every single drop of sweat into it, planning the moves and executing them perfectly as he planned, from the popping and locking to the fluid spins and rigid turns.

"Good~" Hyori marked something down on her paper, and called for Daehyun to step up. "You'll be singing today?"

He nodded, and was handed a mic. "Begin."

The teachers all looked surprised when he sang an English song perfectly, ad libs and all. Howon would be lying if he said he wasn't impressed.

"How did you learn a Michael Jackson song in this time? Do you understand it?" Lee Joon's eyes widened. Coming from Hollywood himself, he knew a bit of English.

"I lived in America for a while, so I know some," he nodded.

The teachers wrote something down, and nodded again.

"Any other special talents?"

"Rapping," Howon raised a hand, and proceeded to show off his talent when he was allowed.

"Beatboxing," Daehyun did the same.

"I can beatbox too."

"I can go nine high notes," the America kid volunteered, surprising the teachers again. He actually did reach nine high notes, to Howon's disappointment.

"Acting," Howon was given a last chance to prove himself.

"Everything was great, but Howon, your acting is a little weak," Jaejoong said while he made notes. "You two can leave, results will be posted by the front gates tomorrow."

After exiting Daehyun turned to him with an outstretched hand, "May the best guy win."

"You do have an accent," he noticed now that they were out of sight of the teachers that his satoori wasn't exactly all gone.

"I can switch easily."

"That was your competition?" Dongwoo and everyone came over to congratulate Howon on finishing the audition.

"Yeah..." Howon nodded as he watched Daehyun leave, "all that practicing, it wasn't enough. I think I was only okay compared to him..."

"But?"

"But may the best man win."
 

So as you can see I guess Hoya's background story isn't so important but it was fun to write lol i wanted INFINITE to cameo somewhere in here and who knows you may see them again

But yes, sadly Hoya lost, because right now Daehyun is enrolled in Seoul Performing Arts Academy on a scholarship c:

Yeah some interludes are unimportant and just for fun ....and it's my last day of after-school classes for the year so yay more time for this fic!

Also I count interludes as like half chapters so on "interlude" weeks I'll most likely update twice!

And thank you for all your comments!! they make my day hehe