True Liars | Stray Kids • Reader

Chapter Seventeen

[Chan's POV]

"Are you out of your mind?!"

"Oh, god. Tell me you're kidding."

"What on earth were you fucking thinking?!"

Ah, the sound of their furious roars. Lovely.

"You guys are overreacting." I rolled my eyes, trying to tune them out.

Changbin scoffed, "Overreacting? Are you fucking serious? The success of the album is at stake here. Damn right we should be overreacting!"

"It seems like you don't have any confidence with me at all."

That shut them up. Jisung scratched the back of his head as he sat back down. "It's not tha—"

"Then perhaps you don't trust Y/N to do a good job?" I countered, raising an eyebrow.

Jisung gaped at me like a fish, trying to find the right words. Changbin sighed, "We do. We trust you and Y/N to do great. But hyung, Y/N's still a trainee. A new one, at that. This could all go wrong."

"At which part would go wrong, exactly? If we win this, we can finally get Hyeri off of our backs. Y/N could debut early. She can finally be an idol, just like she wanted."

"Exactly. She'll debut early. What do you think the other trainees will think? Some have been training for years and haven't debuted yet. They'll think it's unf—"

"They'll think nothing of it." I sternly said, cutting Changbin off. "Y/N will do great and that would be enough reason for her to debut earlier than them. Isn't that the point of training? To prove to everyone you're capable of being an idol. This is her chance to do that."

None of them said a word but I know they were still skeptical about it. If I'm being honest, I feel a bit nervous as well. But thinking back to the time when I heard Y/N sing at the screening, I know she can help me win this competition.

"Just trust me, okay?"

"Fine." Changbin sighed in defeat while Jisung silently nodded.

I smiled, "Then shall we get started?"

[Y/N's POV]

Oh, god. My back is killing me.

Minho wanted me to come with him and Felix but I insisted on going home to rest. Today's session almost killed me. Good news is that I finally got a compliment from Minho for my dancing skills.

He always complimented trainees if they do well in his classes. Guess I did a good job today. My hard work gave me back pains. Gotta love it.

"Y/N,"

Great, just great. The person who I least wanted to deal with right now.

"Hi, Hyeri." I smiled as I stopped in front of her.

"I just wanted to say good luck. May the best singer wins."

The smile fell from my face as I was washed over with confusion. "What?"

Hyeri smirked, crossing her arms. "Chan chose you to compete against me. I guess he's pretty confident with you actually beating me."

Competition? I never heard of any competition. And especially against Hyeri.

"What do you mean?"

"You can go ask Chan and see for yourself."

Without another word, I walked past her. I need to see Chan. What was he thinking? Did he want me to embarrass myself?

I barged into the studio without knocking. The three of them stared at me with wide eyes, obviously startled.

"Y/N—"

"We need to talk." I demanded, cutting Jisung off.

So many thoughts ran around my mind, I didn't even notice Chan dismissing Changbin and Jisung until he cleared his throat for me to see we were left alone.

"Sit do—"

"No. What did you do?"

He sighed, standing up to walk towards me. "Just calm down. I'll expl—"

"Calm down?! Hyeri just told me I was competing against her! Me, a trainee who just got accepted after numerous times of failing. How can I compete against her?! I'll become a laughing stock."

"Hey, hey." He cooed, reaching to hold my trembling hands. "I won't let that happen. You can trust me."

I stared back to his eyes. His brown orbs were filled with assurance, but why do I feel doubtful?

"I can't even dance properly yet..." I trailed off in embarrassment.

"We can have people to tutor you privately. You can choose whoever you want. Jisung and I can help with your vocals, Changbin will help with your rap. We can make it work." He convinced me as he  gently squeezed my hands.

He spoke so softly and gently massaged my hands as if trying to calm me down. I didn't even notice I was already having a panic attack until I noticed how heavy I was breathing.

He helped me sit down, not letting go of my hands.

Wow, seriously. I felt pathetic. I was supposed to be mad and throw a fit about this shit Chan started, but I'm having a panic attack instead.

"Is everything ok—" Jisung, who peeked his head through the door, widened his eyes when he saw me catching my breath. "Y/N, are you okay?"

"She's doing better than earlier." Chan answered, still massaging my hands.

Jisung stared at our clasped hands for a moment before looking back at me. "Should I take you home?"

I nodded, not saying another word.

"I think I should be the one to take her home, Jisung."

Okay, what the actual fuck.

"No, hyung. Look at her. This happened because you probably said something to—"

"Are you saying it's my fault?"

"I—"

"Look, if y'all are just gonna argue, I might as well just go home by myself. I can manage." I said, breaking off the two.

And that's how I ended up inside a car with 3racha.