Page 44 of Idol Prize
“No shit?” The tall dancer beamed, tapping the shorter dancer, who was busy using his brief brush with fame to flirt with one of the girls from the crowd. “Hey, look, dumbass. It’s Andy Kim.”
“What?” The short dancer whirled around in shock. “Holy shit! It really is.” He rushed toward Andy, stopping to bow a full 90 degrees. “It’s an honor to meet you, sunbaenim. Your team’sKingmakerperformance was our inspiration to try it! What did you think?”
“Yeah,” the pink-haired girl added. “Be honest.”
Andy chuckled. “Honest?” She nodded. “Okay. You’ve all got moves. Individually, you looked great. You just need to work a little more on your coordination as a team. But you were so fun to watch.”
The pink-haired girl, looking half-pleased, nodded again. “Okay, that’s fair. Can you stick around for one more? We’ve got more we can show you.”
Andy would’ve gladly stuck around, and maybe even joined in, if only to escape from his life for a little longer. But his life needed dealing with, one way or another. Putting it off would only make it worse. “I wish I could, but I’m actually a little lost. In fact, could you maybe help me figure out where I’m trying to go?”
It took several minutes of Andy accounting for his trip from the Metro station to Min Jae’s house as best he could when they finally stumbled on a landmark they all recognized.
“That little corner market with the big, red awning over the door?” confirmed the taller dancer. Andy nodded. “Yeah, I know where that is.” He turned to point toward the nearby main road. “Just head over to Samyang-ro and take a left. It’s about a twenty minute walk. Turn left again when you get to the bulgogi place with the blue roof.”
Armed with fresh directions, Andy set off with a lighter step and a clearer purpose. Discovering that little dance crew hadn’t been the universe fucking with him at all. He’d desperately needed them, in fact, to remind him of what it was he loved the most about dancing, and why he wanted to debut in the first place. And get directions, too. All it cost him was a bit of his time and a selfie.
The sun passed overhead by the time Andy found Min Jae’s house again–warm enough that he’d tied his hoodie around hiswaist to keep from overheating. He was amazed that he’d managed to find it at all, wandering around as a stranger in a foreign country with only the vaguest idea where he was. Storming off had been a stupid idea. Almost as stupid as trusting Min Jae in the first place. But the time had done him some good, and his righteous fury had mellowed to a more manageable simmer.
Alerted by the squeaky front gate, Min Jae was waiting at the door when Andy walked up. His frown could’ve meant concern or anger. His deeply furrowed brows, the same. Either would’ve been fine, because neither mattered at that point. “You’re back.”
Andy snorted, not sure whether he should smirk or frown, settling for something in the middle. “Still got a grasp of the obvious, I see.”
Min Jae’s frown dipped lower. “You’re still angry with me.”
Yep. Still got it. “No, not really. Look, if you don’t want me to come back in, just give me my stuff and I’ll leave you alone.”
Min Jae’s eyebrows shot up. “Why would I not–” He crashed to a halt, wrestling with his sudden understanding. He finally stepped back, clearing the way for Andy. “Of course, you can come inside. You don’t have to leave if you don’t want to.”
Okay, maybe Min Jae had finally seen the error of his ways. Or, maybe he was just being fake and polite. Still, neither mattered. “Alright, good.” He slipped past Min Jae and walked inside, stopping to remove his shoes. “Because we need to talk.”
Min Jae nodded. “Okay. Do you want something to drink? You look hot.” He paused, frowning, as he closed the door. “Heated. Sweaty.” He huffed, shaking his head. “You know what I mean. I’ve got bottled water. Or there’s a pitcher of iced green tea my grandmother made.”
Andy chuckled, enjoying Min Jae’s flustered display a little too much. “I’d take some tea. Is she here?”
“No.” Min Jae stepped around Andy and walked toward the kitchen. “She likes to play cards with some of her friends at thesenior center.” He poured a pitcher of cold tea into a glass with some ice and handed it to Andy. “She’ll be gone all afternoon.”
Andy drank the tea almost in one go. Once he finished it, he handed the glass back to Min Jae. “I’ll take another, if you don’t mind.”
“I don’t.” Min Jae refilled the glass for Andy. “Look, about earlier. I just wanted to say I’m sorry.”
Andy swallowed half the second glass, finally cooling down from his long walk. “You want to do this right now? Okay.” He pulled out the closest chair and sat at the kitchen table, nodding toward the other seat. “Tell me what you’re sorry for.”
Min Jae’s gaze flickered between Andy and the empty chair. “I don’t understand.”
“Sit,” Andy commanded, waiting until Min Jae finally joined him at the table. “I want you to tell me what you’re sorry about so I’ll know if you’re actually sorry or if you’re just saying that because you think you’re supposed to.”
Min Jae sat up straighter, gently rubbing his knuckles as he rested his hands on the table. “That’s not fair.” He waited. Andy shrugged. “Fine. I’m sorry I made you angry. I’m sorry you felt like you had to walk off like that.”
Andy shook his head. “Nah. See, that’s what I meant. Sorry you made me angry? No. Try again. What did you do that made me angry?”
Min Jae huffed, his jaw tensing, his shoulders stiffening. “I wanted to talk about show strategy, but you wanted to talk about something else.”
Andy slowly nodded. “Better. What did I want to talk about?”
“What?” Min Jae frowned, shoving his brows together. “How the hell should I know that? You just left me there on the trail without a word.”
Andy quietly chuckled. “So close.” He leaned forward to set his glass down and rest his elbows on the table, clasping his hands. “I think you know damn well what I wanted to talk about.And I think you’d rather rip out your own tongue than talk about that with me. Which is why I should probably go.” He shoved his chair back, the legs gently whining, and stood, turning toward the kitchen door
