How To Manage Your Kpop Group! (A fanfic-ish story!)

STAGE II- GET A JOB

It was the early morning. I rubbed my eyes, slowly waking up. I turned to the side and was stared at with gigantic eyes and a huge smile. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS!!!" Shouted Melinda. I smirked. "TIME FOR THE WAKEY EXCERSIZES!" I screamed back at her. We got up, and did all of these stretches, from touching our toes to reaching our arms over to the side. We both smiled and looked at each other. But then, I noticed something was missing. "Um, hey Melinda.. Do you know where Touya went?" I asked her. "Nope. I woke up just a little before you did." We got up and looked around. We were surprised to see breakfast on the table. An omlette and some dried fish. Melinda's mouth started watering as she went over to gobble down the food. "Melinda, you glutton! Hold on. There's a note!" I picked up the small white piece of paper. "Caramelle and Melinda- I went to work. I'll see you guys tonight. Yes, this means you're welcome to stay here as long as you like! If you need to contact me, here's my number. -- Touya." "TOUYA YOU'RE THE BEST!" I screamed, as Melinda happily gobbled down her food, smiling at me.  "Melinda, hurry up and finish eating. We need to go to a talent agency!" "WTF, dude! We don't even know our way around!" She said to me with her mouth full of egg. I rolled my eyes. "The least we can do is get our own money so we don't have to take Touya's! He's been so nice to us and we've done nothing for him! Well, let's clean up first," I said to Melinda. So we washed the dishes, made up all 3 beds, cleaned the bathroom, mopped the floor, and dusted the fan. Everything was clean. "Alright, now let's get dressed." Melinda said, as we walked to the bathroom. I had on a pair of light blue cut jeans that were rolled up slightly past my knees, a white shirt, and my tan purse. I had long ginger- colored hair that was halfway down my back. Melinda wore a pair of black jeans with a red top and a mini jean jacket with her hair in two ponytails. Her hair was chest- length and jet black. although I was American, I actually looked slightly Asian. I topped off my hairstyle with a giant light pink bow. Melinda pulled out her Iphone. She searched "Talent agencies in Seoul." We scrolled and scrolled until we found one in the area. "GODDAMMIT ITS 8 MILES AWAY!" Screamed Melinda. I shoved her out of the way and snatched the phone away, getting the directions on google maps. "Hmm... Rapture Records Seoul? This agency is famous for producing Kpop groups that appeal to everybody! I began reading as I explained to Melinda. You know, like StarTime, Riibon, and..." I paused as my eyes widened. "MAJOR IDOL!?" I screamed in shock. "THE MAJOR IDOL!?" Melinda screamed back. My eyes became even wider. "The best and sexiest kpop group in the entire universe!!!!! ALL 8 OF THOSE SEXY BOYS CAME FROM RAPTURE RECORDS SEOUL!?" I lied on the bed, drowning in happiness as if a large pitcher full of maple syrup was covering me like a pancake. Melinda was doing the "ponponpon" Dance. It's her happy dance. I couldn't believe that we would be working under the same roof as Major Idol. Melinda and I both put up ridiculous happy faces. "Yep, let's skip all the way there." I looked around, for some paper and a pencil to tell Touya where we were in case he returned early.  I got up and held Melinda's hand. "Agreed, soul sis!" We both skipped through the streets merrily. Block, after block, after block. We were on  the siidewalk for over an hour, but still getting to see more of the beautiful Seoul. I began to develop sweat under my bangs. Melinda'a makeup was coming off. But we trudged on. It had felt like days in the desert. Time passed and passed, and it was very hot outside. I was ready to snap, until I saw a beautful building. Melinda also looked up. "...Rapture" "Records...Seoul" Melinda said, finishing the sentence I had started. We both began to jump up and down, but realizing that we were about to enter a professional environment, we put our badass faces on. It was go time. "Melinda- chan?"  I said to Melinda, looking at her out of the corner of my eye. "Yes, Cara- chan?" She looked at me with the same expression. "Do you see that little building over there?" "Why yes I do, Cara-  chan." "We're going in." We walked in slow motion, the breeze carrying our hair behind us. We were invinsible. Well, until a hand grabbed us each by the shoulder. "What the heck are you two doing here?" Asked a familiar voice. We both turned our heads slowly. It was none other thanTouya. "So I see you got my note." I said to him, with a smile. "Uhuh. Guys, look. this is not a good place to be, just trust me please." Touya begged. "And why not?" Asked Melinda in a testy voice, interrupting Touya. "Look, it just isn't, okay? Please just take my word for it." I felt sorry for what I was about to do, but I did it anyways. "I'm so sorry Touya.... But we have to do this." I pulled away from his grip, and began walking towards the front desk, with Melinda running after me, followed by Touya, who had pulled his hood over his head. I stood over the counter of the front desk. "Hello, do you have a scheduled appointment?"  Asked the lady behind the counter. "No, i'm here for the audition. With my friend Melinda, the girl behind me," I said. "And how about the young man? Is he coming as well?" Asked the lady. I looked at Touya. He nodded his head no with a blank stare. "Yes, him as well," I replied. Touya made an irritated face. "Alright then, right this way to the auditioning hall, make one right and one left for round one. Good luck!" Said the woman, as she smiled and ran back to the counter. "Come on, Melinda. Touya, you too." Touya gave a strange expression as Melina locked arms with me as we walked into the audition room. There had to be about 75 people in there. Melinda and I gulped. As each of us walked in, we had to get a sign around our necks with our number. 76, 77, 78. "And you three are together, right?" Asked the man with the registration papers and the signs. "Yes that's correct," Answered Melinda. We walked over and sat down. There were so many people, everybody looked so different. There were even people with vibrant colored hair, not to mention some pretty sexy boys. I could see the sweat on Touya's face, even though his whole face was shadowed by the hood that was over his head. "It's getting mighty hot in here, isn't it, Touya?" I teased him. He didn't respond. Melinda nudged me and shook her head no as if to tell me not to bother him. I got a flasback. It was 9 months ago, I had a huge crush on the boy named Hari. I remember, he was crying, and I wanted to comfort him. But Melinda shook her head no. I remembered all of the times we were there for each other when either one of us was stressed or upset. I remembered how he looked into my eyes, and how he saved me so many times. But he lied. He was unfaithful. It feels like just yesterday when I could hear his voice calling "Cara. Cara." The sound was getting louder and louder. "Cara. CARA!" Yelled Melinda, as I shook my head and I realized that it was almost our turn. "Now hold on a second. What song are we singing?" Asked Touya, who had no idea what was going on. "Sherlock by Shinee, you dimwit!" Melinda called at Touya. "Hey now, be nice! Touya has done so much for us! And now you're calling him a dimwit!? That's real nice." "WILL BOTH OF YOU JUST SHUT YOUR MOUTHS!?" Touya hissed. There was a long silence. I saw a single tear run down Melinda's cheek. "Oh great, now look what you've done!" I yelled at Touya. "LOOK, WOULD YOU JUST LEAVE ME--" Touya looked at Melinda, who was now sobbing for some reason. There was a horrified look in Touya's eyes. He leaned over and hugged her in a warm ebrace. "I am so sorry I upset you, Melinda- chan. I won't yell at you again." "Look, Melinda, he's sorry. Now stop cryin' before you ruin your makeup."  Melinda looked forward, and then at Touya. "No-- No it's my fault." Said Melinda, still crying. "I'm sorry I aggrivated you, Touya- kun. I know you don't want to be here yet you're staying here for us. Although we've only known each other for a day-- Thank you for all of the thigs you've done for Caramelle and I." Touya looked shocked. "It's no big deal, really. You guys are the best to be around. Even though it's only been a day, my life has seemed much happier when you two came around. So no, thank you." "AUDITION NUMBERS 76, 77, and 78! PLEASE STEP INTO THE EVALUATION ROOM!" "Well, that's us!" I called to Touya and Melinda, Touya kept his hood way over his face now. Melinda smiled, and dragged Touya by the hand behind her. We opened the room door. There, we found 5 judges starring at us."Greetings, contestants 76, 77, and 78. I hope you know that only 3 groups or solo singers can be chosen for a recors label here. " "I am well aware of that, sir." I said, bowing. Melinda and Touya bowed as well."Nice to see you again, Mr. KIm." Said one of the judges. Touya just grunted and turned his face. Melinda stepped forward. "Now what do you ladies have for us today?" The main judge asked. "We're Melinda and Caramelle, and we're going to be singing Sherlock by Shinee." "Alright, then! Whenever you're ready!" He called. Melinda and I looked at each other, and nodded our heads as the judges counted down. "Three... Two.... One." The music started and Melinda and I began to dance to the beat. Touya was tapping his foot as well. He stood up and began dancing with us. One judge whispered to the other "So Kim stepped in, huh?" The other nodded and whispered back. "Yep. He's definitely back." Touya eyed the judges who were talking to each other. The others were watching attentively. Jigeumbuteo all stop eoneu nugura haedo I hyeonjangeul beoseonaseon an dwae myeongbaekhan i sageon soge ginjanghaji ma Nan milsil aneseo deo jayurowo imi" We all began to sing. Melinda and I were singing the loudest, with Touya barely singing at all. That is, until we hit the chorus. "Oh i’m curious yeah sajin sok nega sungan misojieo wae Oh i’m so curious yeah, i’m so curious yeah!" Touya sang, improvising like crazy, his amazing loud and creative voice sounding lush and passionate. Melinda and I toned down a bit to let him have his chance to sing. We did harmony and he did melody. We just wanted to back him up to hear him sing. It wasn't even about us at the moment. He finished out the last part of the song with a huge climax. Tonight shinee’s in the house wo hoo So give it up give it up give it up for shinee Give it up give it up give it up for shinee!" The judges were silent for about 5 senconds. They looked astonished. They then talked for about 15 minutes, which was way too long just to calculate the results. "Well, we think we have a winner." Melinda and I jumped up and down, Touya gave a sinister smirk. "But, notice how I said 'winner,' not 'winners'." The vibe of happiness and joy suddenly changed. "What do you mean, sir?" I asked, with an innocent look. "What I mean to say is, you two girls are very cute and talented, but we feel that your singing and appearance will not reach the audience enough to captivate people. I am very sorry. Mr. Kim, on the other hand, is a tall, handsome young man with a truly unique voice that is unlike any i've ever heard before." Touya's face began to get red with anger, as Melinda and I starred at the ground. "WAIT, SO YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT THESE GIRLS WORKED THIS HARD AND YOU'RE NOT GOING TO CHOSE THIM JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T THINK YOU'LL MAKE A PROFIT!!? IF ANYBODY DESERVES THIS, IT'S THEM! DO YOU REALIZE THAT THEY CAME ALL THE WAY FROM TOKYO TO BECOME SINGERS!? YOU GUYS ARE SICK! YOU TREATED MY MOM LIKE SHIT HERE 8 YEARS AGO AND I REFUSE TO SEE SOMEONE ELSE GET HURT BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPID COMPANY! AFTER WHAT YOU DID TO MY MOTHER, I WANT TO KILL YOU ALL! Come on, Cara and Melinda. We're done here." Touya took us each by the hand and pulled us out. of the room. "Soon enough you wil find your way back to rapture records Seoul. It's inevitable. Especially for you, Mr. Kim." Touya gave the main judge a cold, evil, vengeful look out of the corner of his eye and began walking away. "Piece of crap," Touya whispered to himself. We walked out of the building. Although Melinda and I were obviously upset, something was definitely wrong with Touya. He looked extremely hurt. "Hey guys, do you mind if we go grab a coffee or something? I'm not feeling too great." We both nodded yes. We walked to a cafe about 3 blocks away, nobody said anything. "Alright, order whatever you want. It's on me." We ordered, then sat down at a table. Melinda and I picked up our coffees. "Here's to not winning!" I said with a smile as Melinda and I toasted our coffees with a loud "WOO!" at the end. "You guys, that's not funny." Touya said, with a furrow in his brow. "Touya..." I said, frowning all of a sudden. "What happened to you? Why are you so ashamed of your voice? Why do you hate rapture records seoul so much?" "Why," He said with no emotion. "WHY?!" He slammed both fists onto the table. "THAT GODDAMN RECORD COMPANY RUINED MY LIFE AND DREAMS!" He screamed, looking like he was about to tear up. He took a deep breath. "I was eleven years old, and my father had just passed away from an unknown illness. It had affected my mother so much, that she ended up in the hospital, her health was very low. Ever since I was little, I dreamed of being a musician just like my father was. I wanted to sing to the world and make my mother proud of me, and hopefully return her to full health. I looked for the biggest record company I could, and I came up with Rapture Records Seoul. Time and time again, my mother's only wish was for me to not  go to that company. They had a reputation for being harsh and strict, and my mother didn't want to become stressed or get upset if I didn't get accepted. We were running out of money to pay for her hospital bill, and I felt I had no choice but to go and audition. I can remember my mother saying "Touya, don't go! You don't have to try to fix somebody else's problems to be a man!" I can just remember running out of the hospital room, my weak mother coming after me. All I wanted to do was fix this mess. I went miles and miles to Rapture Records Seoul, and I went into that same auditioning room. I went and auditioned. "My name is Touya Kim." I said. I sang my goddamn heart out. After we finished, all I heard from the judges was "This kid sucks. Get him out of here. Hey kid, get out of never return. You have no talent at all." I would have never imagined that my mother was standing right at the door, with a horrified look from what the judges had said. I didn't realize that. "You guys are meanies! You'll never understand!" I screamed, as I sank down to the floor on my knees and began crying. "Now what am I going to do for my mom!?" I screamed. "It's alright honey, you've already done enough for this old woman," My mom said. "You're brought joy into my life and a smile on my face. That is all I could ever ask for." She looked up at the judges. "YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED! TELLING A CHILD THAT HE HAS NO TALENT AND THAT HE SHALL NEVER RETURN! YOU ARE HORRIBLE PEOPLE!" "Well ma'am, that's just how the industry works." It was like an arrow was shot through my poor mother's chest. She was so shocked, she collapsed onto the floor. "MOM! MOM! SPEAK TO ME, MOM!" I began to cry and cry, and I watched her being lifted onto the stretch and into the ambulance. My mom managed to look at me one last time before the ambulance doors closed, and she smiled while mumbling the words "I love you." I cried harder and harder, while being escorted away by a policeman. The next day, I visited my mom's hospital room. There were nothing but red roses on the desk next to the bed, and a bed with a person underneath it. There were covers over the person. I took it all in. Mom was dead. I could no longer cry, or say a word. It was all over." Touya started to cry a little. Melinda and I both walked over to his side of the table. He stood up and we both hugged him as hard as we could, I even wiped away his tears and Melinda gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, guys. It means a lot to know that somebody cares." I looked at him in the eyes. "Of course we care. Touya, you're awesome! And you're also like our idol!" I smiled, as Melinda patted him on the back and smiled as well. He began to giggle a little bit and we all laughed. "I'm really glad you guys are here," Said Touya. "We know. We're both happy that we're friends and that we met!" Touya said "Yokkatta" With a smile. "But that doesn't mean I want to stop singing. I just want to stay away from Rapture." I nodded. "I know. But how the heck are we going to pull that off? Not like we can put together a kpop group." Melinda and Touya both starred at me. "Caramelle Harper, you are a freaking genius," Said Melinda. "And that's how we get revenge on Rapture." Said Touya. I smiled, and looked out of the cafe window.