𝐎𝐓𝐀𝐀𝐓 [𝟏] 𝐃𝐞𝐣𝐚 𝐯𝐮 || 𝐋𝐞𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟔

POV Minho

In approximately fourteen minutes, I will see Dayu again.

I'm already dreading the inevitable awkward silence. The same question keeps running through my mind.

How did she get my number?

I'm sure I never gave it to her, and only Mi-cha has it. Yet, I can't see any reason why Mi-cha would lie to me.

Anyway, my glaring at Chan obviously isn't enough to convey how much I despise him right now, as he's calmly whistling a tune from "Domino."

I hate him.

Especially since the morning started so well: I woke up peacefully—which hasn't happened in a month—without the usual shouting matches between Seungmin and Jeongin. Jisung announced that the girls' scandal was resolved after a Sunshine—a fan—revealed a photo of the credits, proving that the trio of producers didn't make the song.

Then he had to tell me that the seven-member group was coming over tonight to celebrate our album release.

I calmly pointed out that celebrating an album release a week after its release wasn't the most logical thing, but he politely told me to shut up.

Well, if throwing a slipper at my head can be considered polite, then yes, politely.

- "They're here!"

He rushes to open the door, and the girls walk in one by one, greeting all the guys. Our dorm isn't small, but with fifteen people, it quickly feels cramped.

- "Hi, Lee Know!" Dayu exclaims, sitting next to me after arriving a few minutes later than the others. "Did you get my message?"

- "Yes, I even replied," I say, raising an eyebrow.

She laughs nervously and admits:

- "I get nervous around your group, you're quite intimidating."

I laugh and reassure her, understanding. I get her point of view; she's only eighteen and surrounded by guys in their twenties. Plus, she isn't friends with any of us, and I must admit she's not the one I thought I'd get close to.

Of course, there's Shizuka—currently laughing with Changbin—but I have to admit that Malee and Jiu impress me a lot too. I have a lot of admiration for them since I trained with the two girls and Yeou for a few months. They joined in 2013, 2017—same as me—and 2016, respectively.

I never took a deep interest in the survival show details, but I know the general events. I know Yeou and Shizuka sacrificed themselves for Dayu during a challenge, and also that Shizuka and Malee were the prodigies of the group. I heard about the Thai girl two days after I joined the agency. It was about the basic dance moves JYP asks us all to learn. She supposedly learned them in two weeks—like me—and never missed an evaluation.

- "Hey, are you listening?"

I look at the Chinese girl, not realizing she was talking to me, and nod.

- "I was lost in my thoughts. What were you saying?"

She sighs, seemingly annoyed, and resumes her monologue about a TV series she watched a few days ago, complaining about the main actor's poor performance.

But my eyes remain fixed on the black-haired girl sitting next to 3Racha. I've probably been staring at her for several minutes, and I'm even surprised Dayu hasn't commented.

She's not my usual type: long black hair, gray eyes, freckles, and most notably ten centimeters shorter than me, but when she's in a room, I automatically focus on her.

It's probably just pure and simple admiration, but that's enough for Jisung to tease me weekly. I give him a dark look when he flashes me a mischievous smile, and Dayu finally finishes her story.

- "Dayu, can I ask you a question?"

She looks up at me, a bright smile on her face.

- "How did you get my number?"

- "Oh, Mi-cha gave it to me," she lies, waving her hand dismissively. "Does it bother you?"

Yes.

- "She didn't give it to you," Malee states. "Mi-cha told us yesterday."

The Chinese girl shoots a frosty look at her older sister, who raises her hands in innocence.

- "Someone asked if I gave it to you, and I told the truth."

All eyes are on Dayu, except for Seungmin and Jeongin, who are fighting over what to watch on TV.

- "I snooped through your phone when you went to shower," she admits, looking at the brunette with the bob. "I didn't want to wait, and you always take forty minutes!"

My friend sighs and is about to say something when Jiu steps in.

- "It's not a big deal, we should let it go."

Several people shrug, and the evening resumes normally.

Even if listening to the fifteen stories about the Chinese girl's favorite series wasn't what I had in mind.

- "I'm going to get some beers upstairs," the blonde announces, standing up.

- "Wait for me, Ha-yoon!" Dayu exclaims, jumping off the couch to join her older sister.

Finally rid of her. Sorry, that was mean.

I smile as the Japanese girl sits next to me and ask:

- "So, how's the album release going?"

- "Great," she assures me. "Now that the scandal is over, everything's going smoothly. We even have a concert in Seoul tomorrow."

I congratulate her when we suddenly hear screams. We all rush outside and see Yeou at the bottom of the stairs, and Dayu kneeling beside her.

- "I slipped," the dancer grunts, holding her ankle. "The stairs were wet."

Dayu and Jiu help her up and sit her on the couch.

- "I'll call a doctor," Chan says, taking out his phone.

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- "I sprained my ankle a day before a concert, what an idiot," the injured girl mutters, looking sadly at her brace.

- "And no way are you dancing," Jiu adds, crossing her arms over her chest.

- "She's the center from what I understand," Felix points out.

A silence hangs, and the second dancer suggests, "Since Dayu wanted to do that part, she can fill in until Ha-yoon recovers, right?"

I see Shizuka's pursed lips and Malee's grimace, but they eventually nod.

- "I have to go," the Thai girl then says.

The evening ends with fourteen people, and only two are drunk by the end: Hyunjin and Jisung.