Chapter Text
Overcast clouds crowded the gloomy sky as the wind blew softly carrying a small breeze across the street.
Kim Dokja shivered from the slight cold, internally scolding himself for not bringing a warmer jacket.
He trudged on the sidewalk, not making an effort to keep a straight posture, hissing at each step due to the stinging pain of his knees and the cuts he could still feel on his limbs. His backpack weighed him down, as if he wasn't already exhausted supporting his fatigued and aching body.
On the bright side, he’d found the newly released book by his favorite author at the library, it made it worth it to continue carrying his bag full of assignments and other junk he stuffed at the bottom.
Normally, he would’ve rushed to his apartment to start reading, except he promised to cover a shift as a favor for one of his coworkers, which he already regrets.
He begrudgingly made his way towards the convenience store with its neon open sign flickering with words barely readable, in which he assumes the owner can’t afford to replace, but he doesn’t bother to ask.
He opened the door and was met with the familiar scenery of stocked shelves of packaged food that were likely expired and barely touched refrigerated drinks — probably frozen solid. Still, the lukewarm air inside was a mild relief from the aggravating cold outside.
He then turned towards his half-awake coworker to greet them, and as in greet he means a nonchalant nod and cough with a displeased grunt from the interruption of their slumber.
And there’s the start of his tedious, agonizingly long shift.
Dokja waited at the counter, squirming out of disgust at the freshly chewed gum stuck underneath it, slowly distancing himself from the lack of decency of his coworker.
He then reminisced about the comforting rigidness of his bed he could’ve been lazing in, before pulling out his phone to browse for some web novels hoping one of them could pick his interest and relieve him of this unbearable boredom.
He scrolled through the endless catalogue, scoffing at the cliché, but undeniably intriguing titles, and gawking at the
hot men
beautiful covers.
(He’s not into that. Probably.)
His hand slowly succumbed to numbness, until his finger paused at one particular cover.
“Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World” He read aloud while muttering curious of the book’s content.
The moment he was about to read the summary; the familiar chime of the door rang as he heard slightly louder than necessary steps stride into the store.
Dokja slowly looked up; his eyes glancing at the petite, slim silhouette entering.
He rubbed his eyes due to the strain from staring too long at his screen, only to jump at the piercing stare he met.
Though the stranger wore sunglasses, they did not diminish the intimidating nature of the penetrating gaze.
The owner of said gaze had long, wavy platinum hair tied in a half-up, half-down style, she was dressed in a long black coat with frilly laces, underneath you could notice a black laced collar peeking out. The lady looked to be an elite businesswoman of some sort in her early twenties, exuding an air that she should not be underestimated.
She continued to peer at him without a shame, her eyes moving up and down, scrutinizing his every feature and wordlessly judging him.
He awkwardly shifted in his posture to stand upright, feeling tense under the eyes of the strange lady.
He was about to open his mouth to interrupt her intrusive observation but was soon stopped as the woman spoke instead;
“You” she said decisively without any other words.
“Me?” he blurted out leading a finger to point at himself, confused from her bizarre manner of speaking.
She took a small pause, removing her glasses and placing them in her pocket, then continued;
“Have you ever considered on being an idol?” the lady asked suddenly in an enthusiastic, shrill voice as she leaned into him, teetering on the edge of invasion of personal space.
Her frightening presence magically disappeared with her sunglasses causing her to seem like an angelic being with bright, round, emerald, green eyes that stared ardently at him nearly blinding him by how intensely they shone as curled, blond locks cascaded down the sides of her face.
“Uh-I... no, not really...?” he leaned back abruptly almost stumbling backwards by the unexpected movement.
Kim Dokja never once dreamed of becoming an idol.
Between minimum wage shifts, bone-deep exhaustion, and trashy web novels, he barely had time to breathe — let alone sparkle.
He didn’t even know the reason she was asking him because –– in all honesty –– she is much more suitable to be an idol than him.
“Oh.”
A silence stretched, her eyes still roamed over him, unblinking.
“Uh, ma’am do you need-”
Without warning a gloved hand reached to grab his chin, swaying his face side to side quite harshly as the lady inspected his face closer.
“That’s a shame, you are quite pretty with good facial structure and features, you would be beautiful if you learnt the word “self-care”, seeing your eyebags are as deep as the pacific ocean and it looks like you’re cosplaying a skeleton with your fragile body, but you have good skin; smooth and silky... and worryingly pale.”
“Excuse me-”
She let go of his chin and whipped out a notepad from who knows where and started scribbling aggressively.
“Trimming and fixing your hair would be great too... also you have a bruise here. She pointed at his cheek with her pen, then clicked her tongue as if chiding him. You have a nice, lulling voice, do you sing?”
“Well...I mean sometimes when I’m alone...? But what’s the-”
“That’s perfect! I wonder if you’re interested in signing up as a trainee under our agency, it’s-”
“Pardon me, but who are you?” he asked before she rambled on more, slightly irritated as he rubbed his chin to soothe the stinging; the woman had a strong grip.
She settled her notepad on the counter.
“Oh, my utmost apologies,” she said suddenly.
“My name is Uriel, new agent at Constellations Ent.”
She extended a hand, “It’s a pleasure to meet you...uh, what’s your name?” while displaying a wide, sincere smile, her pearly white teeth shone as brightly as her eyes.
Uriel stared anticipatingly at the cashier.
“Uh...Kim Dokja, nice to meet you too, I guess?” he hesitantly grabbed her hand, planning to shake it slowly, sadly his plan failed; Uriel swiftly took both of his hands and started shaking them vigorously.
“Ah, a lovely, unique name! Dokja as in alone?” she abruptly let go of his hand and started writing in her notebook once more, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
“No, well, my mom prefers as in reader and my dad... He awkwardly cleared his throat before continuing. He preferred as in alone.”
She momentarily glanced at him, her eyes glinting with slight sadness sensing his discomfort at the mention of his parents, she then started speaking in a cheery manner;
“Alright! So now that we’ve finished our introductions, let’s rewind back to my question; Would you be interested in joining our agency?”
“Oh... well, I’m not sure I’m really fit to join your agency...” he responded uneasy from her eagerness.
“Nonsense! When I first glanced at you, I knew you had potential to be a STAR ! You got this soothing vibe, this undeniable charm that I cannot ignore! If you had to ask me, I would say you would be the person where thousands and millions of people would be looking up to, shining in the spotlight and hearing the overwhelming cheers of the crowd as they chant your name.”
“...Thank you, but are you sure? I don’t even sing that well not to mention I’ve never seriously danced in my life.”
“Stop doubting yourself, it might be all you see, yet that’s because you’re not looking closely, I see millions of possibilities brewing with vehemence with this talent you just glow! Therefore, stop doubting and start believing in yourself because YOU are made to be a star!”
Dokja slightly clenched his hands before glancing at Uriel beaming with fervor while her hands gripped the edge of the counter.
“Could you give me some time to think about it? I’m not really sure yet.”
“Of course! Wait let me grab my business card, contact me once you’ve made your decision.”
The lady searched in her pockets for a few seconds before pulling out a neat, sleek black card with white writing.
She placed it on the counter, winked at him while doing a call sign then slipped out of the store with a cheerful smile and a vigorous wave of both hands, it seemed like a trail of sparkles followed her everywhere she went.
“Constellations Ent.” Dokja mumbled to himself, his finger tracing the intricate designs on the card and the outlined stars that embellished the corners.
‘Pretty fancy...and tacky’
His thoughts were soon interrupted as the familiar chime of the door rang again.
He hastily stuffed the card in his pocket, hoping he’ll not forget it in there –– well he didn’t really care for it though.
-
The cacophonous harmony of the bustling streets sounded in the night as rush hour came, the exuberant beeping of cars paraded the streets as the drunken chatter of the crowd drowned the silence.
Dokja laid quietly on his stiff mattress, constantly shifting with the bed creaking at each slight movement as he adjusted himself into a more comfortable position.
He settled on the dented space he found before his thin blanket slipped onto the carpeted floor, but he didn’t bother to pick it up since he already found the perfect and only spot on his bed that wasn’t rigid and was too tired to move once more.
He pulled out the slightly crumpled card out of his clenched hand that he surprisingly didn’t forget and scrutinized it, fidgeting it between his slender fingers while mulling over the intriguing proposition of Uriel.
He whipped out his phone and slowly searched the company’s name.
Search: Constellations Entertainment
Constellation Entertainment
Https://www.constellationsent.com
Constellations Entertainment Corporation is a South Korean multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate founded in –– by Star Stream International. It proudly stands as one of South Korea’s largest entertainment companies and has been dutiful by cultivating and launching numerous careers of globally recognized artists in the entertainment industry garnering huge global fanbases.
Operating as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management company, concert production company and music publishing house, it is known to have led world-wide stars and many music phenomenons and early oversea successes.
The label currently represents music artists such as...
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‘Huh, they’re pretty renowned in the entertainment industry, high benefits, fair compensation...’
‘Would I even fit in?’
He fiddled with his phone, watching as his battery slowly decrease, chewing his inside cheek while contemplating whether he should contact her or not.
‘Should I? I mean she can wait if she didn’t give a deadline...Maybe she already forgot me.’
‘I can’t wait on this too long... I’ll think for a bit and give my answer tomorrow, it’s not like I have anything to do anyways.’
‘Also, I never got to read the summary of that book.’
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