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manawari · 8 months

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Five things I hate about you ( & one thing I like about you)

When Jong-in met his band members for the first time, he had different opinions.

Lim Tae-gyu was an unemployed man who got recognized due to an agent hearing his voice at the karaoke to release some stress. He looked rather reserved, but when Jong-in witnessed him speak, Tae-gyu had a crooked grin on his face and quickly cracked a joke. Jong-in was amused, then when he heard him sing, Tae-gyu's vocals were able to reach high notes and synchronized well with Byung-gyu's.

Min Byung-gyu was an average guy who was found from his acoustic covers in his social media page. Jong-in considered that Byung-gyu was a kind and friendly person, who got along well with everyone. He also wrote songs, which made Jong-in to become impressed at the things Byung-gyu could do.

Sung Jin-woo was the youngest member of the group. He got dragged by his family to the auditions to test his talent, and miraculously, he got accepted. Jin-woo was the quietest one, always putting up a stern look, and at first, he only responded in short sentences. But as the more he spent rehearsals with the rest of the members, he had grown comfortable and Jong-in discovered that Jin-woo was that one person who liked to joke around too, as well as messing around that made their manager, Jin-chul, get headaches.

And then there was Baek Yoon-ho.

Before going to the building, Jong-in was about to get on the cab when someone butted in and shut the door. He ended up being the last member to arrive at the studio. And not only that — he also recognized the person who stopped him from getting on that cab earlier.

What Jong-in did? He confronted him.

"Hey! Aren't you the idiot who pushed me away and shoved the door in front of me?!" Jong-in seethed.

Yoon-ho just blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Do you remember seeing a cab to get to the KHA building?"

"Yeah."

"And did you see there was also a person in front of the backseat door? Yeah, person was me."

"That was you? I was in a hurry, so I didn't notice."

Jong-in decided that Yoon-ho was his least favorite person in ARISE.

There were many things Jong-in had become frustrated at Yoon-ho, be it leaving the toilet open, how they always bumped at each other, and a lot more. But one of the common reasons why Jong-in disliked Yoon-ho a lot was the awful smell reeking from his body every time he returned from the gym.

In ARISE, only three people who took frequent visits at the gym: Tae-gyu, Jin-woo, and Yoon-ho. Tae-gyu used to be a tennis athlete, but since he must maintain shape, he'd go to the gym and workout. Jin-woo always had a strong physique and besides using dancing as an exercise, he still had to carry weights every now and then. The two didn't smell a lot, but if it was Yoon-ho, Jong-in felt like he was suffocating.

Yoon-ho had the largest build among the five of them. It was no surprise that fans would scream once it was his turn to perform, as well as dancing that flexed his muscles, which the fashion designers had chosen to make him wear sleeveless shirts or turtlenecks to increase the attention. After all, ARISE had to maintain its high rank in the charts of the music industry in South Korea.

Jong-in knew it, yes, but only when Yoon-ho was far from him.

When the show was over, Tae-gyu practically kicked the door open and stretched his arms above his head as he made his way to the bean bag where he plopped down face first. The rest were exhausted as well, especially when they had to keep smiling throughout the whole interview.

Jong-in sat on the sofa and took off his glasses to close his eyes, leaning further on the headrest. He could use a bit of a nap before heading to the shower. . . But that was until a heavy weight sat right next to him, radiating a particular smell that made his stomach twist..

"Eurgh." Jong-in wrinkled his nose in disgust at Yoon-ho. "Why did you sit here? You stink!"

"What did you just say?" Yoon-ho flashed him a glare. "Cut me some slack, Choi. I'm tired as you are."

"You could've gone to the floor!" Jong-in gritted his teeth. "Or much better, hit the shower!"

"Isn't showering while being exhausted bad for one's health? I don't want to catch a fever afterward."

"Actually, showering while still exhausted doesn't give you fever," Byung-gyu, who was the one on the floor, piped up. "In other words, have a cool down for two minutes or when the sweating stops as it will bring better effects."

Jong-in rolled his eyes at Yoon-ho's earlier statement. "What an idiot."

"You know, if I'm not so tired right now, I could've punched your pretty face."

"You know that's not allowed," smirked Jong-in. "What would fans think if one member shows up with a black eye? Don't give our manager any more stress, kitty."

Yoon-ho scoffed. "Fine. How about this— you hit the shower first and then I'll go once you're done?"

"Deal!" Jong-in got up and strode to the bathroom of the dorm.

About a few moments later, Jong-in was now refreshed. His fatigue was washed away and his energy was restored. He got out of the bathroom with a towel over his hips and a cotton shirt, Jong-in scrubbed his drenched hair with a shorter towel, then he made his way to the table to grab his pair of glasses and put them on.

"Alright, it's your turn, you—" Jong-in paused his sentence.

Yoon-ho, who was supposed to take a shower after him, was snoring on the couch; Jin-woo, Byung-gyu, and Tae-gyu were all passed out as well, still clad on the clothes they wore in the stage. Now, Jong-in was the only one who was awake and cleaned up.

The red-haired member stared at the situation with a dumbfounded expression. It wasn't long until his blood began to boil. Yoon-ho didn't even hold for a little longer for Jong-in to get out of the shower — which had taken only less than ten minutes as far as he could tell.

He decided to approach Yoon-ho and shake him awake, only then to receive one eye opening, but was closed after a second. Yoon-ho shifted to the other side of the couch, facing Jin-woo, who remained dormant amidst the snoring that was close to his ear.

Jong-in groaned. He gave up and left the room.

Second— Jong-in hated how strong Yoon-ho was.

Sure, Yoon-ho had always been seen as muscular and liked to go to the gym a lot, but what frustrated Jong-in the most was that Yoon-ho had zero control of his strength. One time, during one of their live performances, Yoon-ho had accidentally ripped Jin-woo's shirt and it caused the entire stadium to go wild whilst Jong-in could only see Jin-woo die from the inside.

It made Jong-in feel glad that he wasn't dancing next to Yoon-ho. Otherwise, he'd be punching the daylights out of him.

Tae-gyu became a victim as well. But instead of getting his shirt torn, Yoon-ho accidentally used too much strength when he nudged him while laughing. Tae-gyu fell of his stool.

It made Jong-in feel glad he was not near Yoon-ho.

And then when Byung-gyu asked Yoon-ho to open his can of soda, the drink ended up attacking Byung-gyu's face in just a single flick.

It made Jong-in feel glad that he was not used to asking for help.

Yoon-ho wasn't genuinely apologetic for his actions. He couldn't even blame himself for being too strong and not having control over it. And that was another thing Jong-in hated. If Yoon-ho was not being too careful enough, he would cause more mess, and he didn't think he'd be able to hold himself back even if they were in the middle of practice.

"Five, six, seven, eight!" Jin-woo exclaimed as the song began.

The five of them faced the mirror, dancing to the song the band had released a week ago, and afterward, a music video would be filmed with the choreography. Jin-woo barely had a break due to creating the steps since the rest had no expertise in such a skill like his; thus, they would have to follow him.

Jong-in was not much of a dancer, though he managed to adapt the talent. His physique was enough to do smooth dances and synchronized to the music. ARISE had members with different heights and shapes, especially with Yoon-ho being the tallest and Byung-gyu being the shortest, but altogether, they worked in harmony.

Their positions changed. Jong-in stepped forward while Tae-gyu took his place in the back. Unbeknownst to him, Yoon-ho was close by, yet Jong-in chose to concentrate on his reflection, his steps, and the song. Then, he began to walk backward while swaying his arms across his chest as strong as the beat; Yoon-ho moved to his front until he had taken his previous place. Unfortunately, they bumped into each other and Jong-in lost his balance.

The next thing he knew, he saw an outstretched hand and Jong-in's incoming fall was stopped. Yoon-ho held onto the collar of his shirt.

Their eyes met. Then, Yoon-ho asked. "Are you okay?"

Jong-in was about to reply when—

*fwip!*

His back met the floor. If that couldn't get any worse. . .

Jong-in earned a hole on his shirt. The other piece of the fabric, however, was in Yoon-ho's hand.

"You idiot! You could've just let me fall instead!" Jong-in hissed.

"Well, in my defense— you could've moved back quickly." Yoon-ho shrugged. "At least I attempted to save your ass."

"Ass your face!"

Jin-woo groaned. "Can't we get back to practice already? Save the arguments for later. Jin-chul needs this to be done in four days."

"Four days?!" Tae-gyu's jaw dropped.

Jin-woo scoffed. "I tried convincing him to adjust, but then he hit me up with 'do you think my reports can be adjusted too? No'."

"Oh kill me now," Tae-gyu grumbled.

The members continued practicing, with Jong-in having to dance with a portion of his chest exposed. Apparently, none of them were able to keep a straight face and focus because they were trying, and failing, to hold back their chortle.

Tae-gyu was the first one to break apart from the practice and had collapsed on the floor, laughing on top of his lungs. Jin-woo wheezed. Byung-gyu was holding his stomach from all the laughing. Yoon-ho was the last to burst out as well.

Jong-in didn't know which person he'd murder first.

The obvious choice would be Yoon-ho, but given how physically strong he was, Jong-in would likely have no match against him. If anything, Yoon-ho would end up mocking him to his very core.

Third—

"Baek Yoon-ho! Look over here!"

"So hot!!"

"Your rapping sounds so amazing!"

"Yoon-ho! Marry me!"

. . . Yoon-ho always outshone him.

Being one of the two main rappers, Jong-in felt like he had to fight to get the crowd focus on him. Sure, he had a lot of fans, but it annoyed him how the audience often cheered for Yoon-ho, screaming his name more than his. It was supposed to be the both of them since they performed in sync most of the time.

Jong-in was not jealous. He just wanted things to be fair between them.

Apparently, the fans seemed to be more attracted to Yoon-ho, whose skin was exposed most of the time because the designers had agreed to make his costume a bit different from the rest.

"How about you switch Yoon-ho's verses with mine?"

"Yoon-ho can't do high notes, Jong-in. It won't work."

"Okay, how about this one?"

"If we do that, Yoon-ho wouldn't have anything to rap in the chorus."

"Who cares? He still have other verses to sing."

Byung-gyu groaned. "Trust me, Jong-in. This is the final draft. Our manager will be needing us to record it ASAP."

"Damn it," Jong-in grumbled. "Fine. Let's have it your way then."

"Thank God!" Byung-gyu sighed in relief. "But don't worry! You two are going to have a duet next month and both of you are gonna have equal parts!"

"How's that supposed not to make me worry?!"

A duet? That was even worse. Jong-in didn't know whose idea was it, either Byung-gyu or Jin-chul, but either way, he hated that those two had joined hands and who knew what else they got in store for him and Yoon-ho.

Later on, Jong-in found himself at the grocery store with Yoon-ho. Tae-gyu was out to practice archery, Jin-woo was too busy playing games, and Byung-gyu was talking with the recording team on how will the song would go, so no one else was left with restocking. He and Yoon-ho wore their masks and luckily, they weren't recognized yet.

The list turned out to be longer than he thought, considering that the rest had wanted a specific product and had no time to buy. Jong-in was about to rebuke when they handed him money. At least he wouldn't have to spend more of his budget. . .

They got to the counter afterward, which was then they got recognized. The cashier's lifeless expression lit up and jumped at the sight of the two ARISE members doing grocery. Jong-in put up a kind smile behind his mask and dipped his head in greeting. The cashier began to ramble incoherently as she tapped the barcodes of the products, he and Yoon-ho just chuckled even though they couldn't understand her words.

Once all of the purchased products were inside of the bags, Jong-in grabbed two of them and left the remaining bags for Yoon-ho to carry. Then, the cashier spoke;

"Can I take a picture?"

Jong-in quickly shook his head. "I'm sorry, but—"

"Sure!" Yoon-ho said.

"Wha—" Jong-in flashed him a sharp look. "Yoon-ho, aren't we supposed to go back? We got some things to do."

Yoon-ho scoffed. "A simple picture won't hurt, fire hazard. If you don't want to, then fine."

Jong-in was about to protest, yet closed his mouth and sighed and walked over to join the picture session. Yoon-ho pulled down his mask to present his broad grin. Jong-in, on the other hand, just held up his peace sign while the cashier brought her phone for the three of them. She snapped a phone and giggled at the shot.

"Thank you very much!" The cashier said. "You guys light up my day."

"I'm glad." Yoon-ho smiled.

"I hope you have a nice day, miss!" Jong-in said to the cashier. He turned to his companion. "You. Get these bags already."

"Easy! Sheesh." Yoon-ho rolled his eyes and glanced at the woman. "He's the crankiest member in ARISE, so don't mind him. There is the reason why we often associate him with fire."

"Let's go, furball!"

Jong-in got out of the store and headed to the black car that was parked in the empty lot next to the establishment. He pulled the backseat door open to place the two plastic bags inside. Jong-in closed the door, yet paused midway when he noticed that nobody was following him.

Where did that idiot go?

He walked away to search for Yoon-ho. He found him at the grocery store still. However, Yoon-ho had been caught up on the fans asking him for photos and having a small chat with him. Jong-in couldn't believe it. Yoon-ho chose the incongruous time to meddle with fans instead of fulfilling his errands.

Not wanting to ruin both of their reputations, Jong-in just stood with fury in his soul. He would stay like that until Yoon-ho was done and met his gaze where the whole message was already in his eyes.

Fourth.

Not once Jong-in wanted to be near a sleeping Yoon-ho. Never.

When the whole band decided to sleep in the same room, it was not as good as they all thought. It was worse. That was the moment Jong-in learned that Yoon-ho snored like a truck.

He was not the only one suffering though. Tae-gyu was also enduring the noises and Byung-gyu had to pull his blanket away from Jin-woo, who had stolen it while asleep. Jin-woo snored too, but not as loud as Yoon-ho, and if anything, Jong-in got Jin-woo's foot near his cheek while Tae-gyu and Byung-gyu had his leg sprawled across their chests.

Jong-in considered himself as the unluckiest. He was literally laying next to Yoon-ho, of all people.

Since then, there were no longer sleepovers.

But that didn't mean Jong-in would have to no longer hear those awful snores. After a long day at the events, when the whole band was tired, Jong-in leaned further on his seat and plugged in his earphones to his ears to listen to some music. He leaned his head against the window and waited for drowsiness to close his eyes.

And there hadn't been past three minutes when he heard a rumbling noise.

Jong-in increased the volume to block it, but even if it was in its full limit, he could still hear the snores from the back. Yoon-ho was sitting right behind him. On the other hand, the rest were already asleep, at least from Jong-in's perspective. So, he plucked his earphones out and stood up from his seat to make his way over to Yoon-ho.

At first, he placed his right hand on his hip, glaring at him in disapproval. Then he spoke. "Hey! Wake up, you furball!"

Yoon-ho's eyelids cracked open. He stared at the red-haired bluntly. "What now?"

"Easy with the snoring, would you? I'm trying to sleep!"

"Then put on some earphones or something. Don't disturb someone's sleep."

"You're the one who's being a nuisance here."

"Get used to it already."

"Shut up!"

"Oi!" Jin-chul snapped from the front of the van. "Keep it down!"

"I'm just trying to scold Yoon-ho from snoring too much, Mr. Woo," said Jong-in to the band's manager. "Aren't you getting bothered by it?"

"I get bothered by your arguments more, Jong-in."

Jong-in groaned and returns to his seat. He plops down and glances at the window. Sooner or later, Yoon-ho would snore again and there was no way for him to get some shut-eye now.

Fifth.

"Faster! Faster, Byung-gyu! Is that how you run?!"

"I'm at my limit, hyung! I can't handle running at this maximum speed!"

"Don't touch the handles! That's cheating!"

"Gah!"

"Just think that you're running for your life!"

"Running for my life for nothing!"

Jong-in swallowed upon watching Yoon-ho trying to "encourage" Byung-gyu, who was beginning to become exhausted at the treadmill which was at 13.7 speed. Meanwhile, Tae-gyu was busy with pulling the bar in the wall mount and Jin-woo was hauling the barbell gradually in each hand. Jong-in was just sitting on the bench with everyone's bags.

"Hey, Jong-in! Are you just gonna stay there?"

He turned to Tae-gyu. "Uh. . . Yeah. I'm just keeping your bags safe."

"Dude, we're the only ones here. I don't think a ghost will steal them either."

"Coco might mess with these bags."

"Uhm, Coco is over there."

The dog was at the corner, happily chewing on the toys Byung-gyu had brought along since Jin-chul was not available to watch over the canine.

Urgh. . .

"Come on! Here, try this one." Tae-gyu got up from the equipment and gestured to the now empty spot. "All you have to do is pull!"

"You're saying like it's easy," Jong-in grumbled as he reluctantly got up from the bench.

He sat on Tae-gyu's previous spot and reached his hands up to the leather bar. Jong-in curled his fingers around it and pursed his lips in concentration. He started to tug down the bar, which exerted a portion of his strength as he held his breath. His biceps twitched. Unlike Tae-gyu, who managed to pull down in front of his chest, Jong-in barely reached his shoulders and was already panting.

"This. . . " His chest heaved. "I can't take it anymore!"

"It's been barely a minute since you sat there." Tae-gyu deadpanned.

"How do you even pull these things?!"

"Maybe those are not your type. Try lifting these ones instead." Jin-woo offered a barbell to Jong-in. "It's not as heavy as you think."

Jong-in wrinkled his nose. "Pass. That single barbell is heavier than a bag of ice."

"You haven't even carried a bag of ice."

"I did. Using my imagination."

"What's going on here?" Yoon-ho stepped into the scene. "I gave Byung-gyu a break after listening to his complaints."

"Is he still alive?"

"Still breathing."

"Welp! I have to go and check on Byung-gyu!" Jong-in let go of the bar and left the spot.

He was about to walk past Yoon-ho when a broad hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. His stomach twisted. Jong-in looked at the corner of his eye and saw the mischievous glint in Yoon-ho's irises.

"Are you trying to workout?" He asked.

"Uh. . . No." Jong-in answered. "Tae-gyu just forced me to."

"It seems like you need a bit of help."

"Haha— no!"

"Come on, you wouldn't know completely unless you try! You're the only one here who hasn't broken a sweat yet."

"Gross."

"Oh, wow! Get off your high horse and let me help you enhance those muscles up!" Yoon-ho threw his arms over Jong-in's shoulders. Jong-in fought against his grip, yet made no escape.

"Get your hands off me, you fool! Urgh, I can smell your armpits!" Jong-in protested.

Yoon-ho rolled his eyes. "Quit being dramatic. Try doing twenty push-ups and then I'll leave you alone."

"Twenty?! If I die, I'm gonna—"

"Kill me? Haunt me in my sleep? Yeah, I memorized every damn threat of yours, Choi."

As Jong-in was proceeded to be dragged, he looked pleadingly at Tae-gyu and Jin-woo, who both just snickered at him. Byung-gyu, however, was too exhausted to bat an eye on a friend who was about to suffer under Yoon-ho's intense training session.

When Yoon-ho wanted everyone to be in healthy shapes, Jong-in just wished he'd exclude him. He had been slender figured since he was a young boy. It was not his fault that he could never get buffed as Yoon-ho.

He wondered what sin he had committed to suffer from working out. . .

Other times, Jong-in hated Yoon-ho. But other times, Jong-in actually liked Yoon-ho's company. Were they enemies? No. Were they rivals? Kinda. Were they friends? A little.

They were frenemies.

Even the fans knew it. They found Yoon-ho and Jong-in's onscreen bickering entertaining even though it made the rest of the members to endure the situation, including Jin-chul, who had been watching behind the stage. And sometimes, Jong-in and Yoon-ho openly expressed how they were supportive of each other as much as the whole band was to one another.

Even if Jong-in wouldn't want to admit it completely, he was glad that Yoon-ho was around. Yoon-ho always encouraged everyone to stay in shape and was willing to help for someone in need, especially when his strength was needed. Besides Jin-woo, Yoon-ho was the one who could cook for the whole band, given how the rest were not as skilled as him and Jin-woo.

Byung-gyu could only make food when it was ramen, Tae-gyu only knew how to reheat leftovers, and heavens help Jong-in when touching the stove. Yoon-ho had mocked him for his lack of cooking skills because he was raised in a rich family, Jong-in yelled back at him even though it was partially true.

With a father who was the CEO of a bank company and a mother being a co-owner of a publishing house, Jong-in was definitely born with a silver spoon. He had nannies growing up who could make him any dish he wanted. And back when he was living at the hotel, Jong-in would just order room service and sandwiches were few of the food he could make, which didn't involve switching the stove on.

Yoon-ho, on the other hand, was the exact opposite and had been living in his apartment with no roommate and his family being in the United States, so he had to rely on himself in terms of necessities. He knew how to do his own laundry, wash the dishes, fix appliances, and make food for himself.

Jong-in envied him. Jong-in admired him.

Yoon-ho's omelettes were probably his favorite. Jong-in couldn't get enough of the taste and the juiciness when Yoon-ho had added ground beef on the inside. Yoon-ho was usually in charge of breakfast since Jin-woo always woke up an hour after him if there was no agenda for the day.

"Oh! What's that smell?" Tae-gyu said. He stretched his arms above his head and craned his neck sideways. "Is Yoon-ho cooking?"

"Who else?" Byung-gyu yawned. "Hey, hyung! What's for breakfast?"

"Why don't you fools see it for yourselves?" Yoon-ho replied. His back was turned since he was still busy with cooking whatever was in the pan.

On the table was four plates containing an omelette over a rice and the condiments stood in the center for anyone who wished to add on their omelette. Tae-gyu, Jin-woo, Byung-gyu, and Jong-in made their way to the stools to grab their plates; however, there were no other utensils for them.

Tae-gyu turned to the youngest member. "Jin-woo, mind if you grab us chopsticks? And glasses too."

"Why me?" Jin-woo flashed him a glare. "You do it."

"You're the one who's sitting in the corner of the counter here."

Jin-woo groaned and got down from the stool to go to the drawers and took four pairs of steel chopsticks to hand them each to the rest.

"Ahem!" Tae-gyu feigned clearing his throat, then grinned like a Cheshire cat. "Didn't I say glasses too?"

Jin-woo's glare deepened and grumbled something as he turned around to the cupboards.

Jong-in got his chopsticks into the right position in his fingers and was about to dig in when his omelette was taken away by none other than Yoon-ho. His eyebrows furrowed and shot him a sharp look. "Why did you just—"

"This one has onions. You don't like onions, right?" Yoon-ho said. "I made one that doesn't have those and replaced it with chopped lettuce instead."

"Oh," Jong-in's infuriation subsided. "Thanks."

Yoon-ho switched their plates and handed Jong-in the right one, which turned out to be the only omelette in the table to have a different ingredient. Jong-in finally started eating his breakfast, tearing the omelette apart and mixing it with the yellow rice. He brought it to his mouth and his stomach almost growled in satisfaction.

Even though he hardly mentioned the food he disliked, Yoon-ho still remembered just like other details in their band.

There was a reason why the rest preferred him to buy groceries. Yoon-ho knew what his friends wanted and would just ask for their money instead of a list. He was quick to memorize the smallest details even if dance steps were not included in his mind.

"Roll call. Tae-gyu?"

"Here!"

"Byung-gyu?"

"Here, Mr. Woo!"

"Jin-woo?"

"Yes!"

"Jong-in?"

"Here."

"And. . . Yoon-ho?" Jin-chul looked up from the paper he was holding. "Is he here?"

The four looked around and realized Yoon-ho was not in the studio yet. Jin-chul sighed. "Did someone remind him that there's an interview today?"

"I did. But I guess he just got stuck in traffic." Byung-gyu shrugged. "He didn't use a motorcycle this time."

"Then can somebody please—"

"I'm here, Manager Woo!" Yoon-ho finally appeared in the scene. He was in his suit just like the rest, but then he was holding a plastic bag in his hand. "Sorry to keep you all waiting. I was in the parking lot when I saw a juice stand next to the entrance and thought I should buy one for each of you all."

"How thoughtful," Jin-chul remarked. He checked his watch. "Well, since it's only 1:30 and the show is starting by 1:35, you guys should get refreshed."

"Catch!"

Jin-chul looked up and caught a can of juice in his hand. It was cold and had a lemon flavor. He turned to Yoon-ho. "Uh— thank you, Yoon-ho."

"Bet you thought I hadn't bought one for ya?" Yoon-ho smirked. "You're welcome, manager!"

Jin-chul shook his head and opened his drink. The rest got their own, preferably their favorite flavors. Jong-in received his in a tangerine flavor. He let out a smile at that, Yoon-ho must've noticed his expression and just grinned and chattered with Byung-gyu.

Among the five of them, Yoon-ho was the most thoughtful. Even when he was out, if something reminded him of his band members, he would get it and included his manager if Jin-chul was around.

Jong-in liked that about him.

Unselfish and down-to-earth. Yoon-ho never took his fame at heart.

#first fic of the sl boyband au!#i decided to finish this one first since i already knew the start and finish #the next one is probably jinhae or minlee #solo leveling #solo leveling boyband au: arise #choi jong in #baek yoon ho #choibaek #sl fics by rei

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dr3amofagame · 10 months

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dr3's attempted serious of c!dream duo rankings based on lore importance (note: probably wrong, definitely argue)

c!Dream and c!Tommy: This is kinda undeniable. Like, in terms of their story, in terms of the Dream SMP, they are absolutely the heart and soul of the server. The c!Dream and c!Tommy show was such a thing that it has been like intentionally referenced and parodied within the story itself a million times. The story literally hinged on the idea of their opposing each other, c!Tommy-as-hero and c!Dream-as-villain, to the point where their whole you know finale and the closure for both characters involved realizing that they actually wanted the same thing and intentionally stepping out of the roles given them. Nothing really compares, sorry c!Discduo for the poll (but the heart wants what it wants XD)

c!Dream and c!Wilbur: I cannot believe they ended up ranking so low like I'm actually appalled. SLASH JAY but like . guys. Guys Please. c!Dream and c!Tommy's whole schtick forms the beating heart of this server because the story c!Wilbur wrote about them was its backbone. Like it's incredibly difficult to actually overstate how much c!Wilbur actually influences how c!Dream ends up--the paranoid spiral he ends up on is a direct influence of the increasing isolation he lived up until November 16th--this is why c!Quackity is so confident when he states c!Dream has no one left during dethronement and this is why c!Wilbur knows that c!Dream has no one in inconsolable differences. c!Dream doesn't exist in a vacuum and the whole, L'manburg narrative tyrant-villain-monster idea that originates from Wilbur ends up culminating in the identity that c!Dream ends up assuming to accomplish what he wants like hoooly shit he quotes "unfinished symphony" in Doomsday and he expects c!Wilbur to save him from the prison to the point of calling on him as his savior before basically Anyone and he lists c!Wilbur's name with c!Sam and c!Quackity post-prison like. Shit's fucked. Anyway.

c!Dream and c!Sam: Look I warned you guys I was going to be a little selfish. A Tad. Though, you know, it's kinda hard to compare in terms of like, you know, the fact that they literally spent a fuckin year together with almost no one else--sure there were visitors, sure Quackity happened, but like so much about them is very much isolated to. Them. (Also the ccs very clearly got a little carried away w/ these two and this reflects onto their like, Everything XD). With c!Sam and c!Dream it's less about well, straightforward comparisons and more about the Multitudes--c!Sam as the Plan, and c!Sam as part of the time and part of the server that c!Dream idealizes, and c!Sam as the cage for the monster the punishment for the evil the one that holds the villain away. And obviously while c!Dream doesn't um redefine his whole identity to base it on c!Sam the way that c!Sam does with c!Dream, the power of the trauma bond established over a year of Nothing Else does makes c!Dream noticeably more comfortable, almost, with c!Sam compared to like quite literally everyone else post-prison. Which is. Y'know.

c!Dteam (emphasis on c!Dnf): Admittedly, I'm not the biggest c!dnfer around by a long shot, so I don't really have as much to say here--but you know, considering c!Dteam very literally symbolize what c!Dream desires like. They're an extremely important part of who he is, what he wants, and why he does what he does. There's a reason why dethronement (and the cutting ties with c!Sapnap and c!George) is such a defining moment in terms of showing when he's fully burned bridges with the rest of the server, when he totally stands alone, etc. Obviously c!George is the originator of the "big happy family" line and well his mutual interests line up with c!Dream's quite a bit more than c!Sapnap's do, but as far as c!Dream is concerned both relationships are very much important to him and symbolic of happier times (and he's quite convinced that well. Both of them kinda want him dead, for reasonable reasons. So.)

c!Techno and c!Dream: This is where numbers get finicky, admittedly. As much as I love c!Rivals, and I love them a lot, I struggle a bit to put them on a definitive ranking. Because...well, on one hand, c!Techno is absolutely very high on c!Dream's priority list like as a character. I have said before and I'll say again that some of the most like outstanding displays of loyalty on the server come from c!Dream coming in c!Techno's defense at GREAT risk of personal harm--this guy literally stares down and denies both of his fucking torturers for c!Techno, like holy shit. c!Dream really fucking likes the guy like. So damn much. At the same time though, we're talking more...narrative importance versus importance to the character from a character's perspective--which is part of why c!Dteam is as high as they are, imo--while they're extremely important in terms of c!Dream's motivations and how he defines the whole "happy family" ideal around the idea of them living peacefully as a family, as far as actually looking at character interactions...especially post-dethronement they mostly just. Exist as figures that c!Dream yearns for but is also really fucking scared of. There's not as much consistent character interaction and frankly when we're talking about a character that's actively suppressing what he actually wants, they're not exactly high on his mental priority list either. All this being said, c!Techno definitely gets points by being one of the main vehicles by which we see c!Dream's like, humanity--being one of the few characters not to treat him as just a monster to be defeated and having similar ideals and therefore being an obvious comparison to make. Which is obviously important when we're talking about c!Dream, who was keeping himself rather in the dark.

c!Dream and c!Punz: Another real struggle to rank--I'd understand putting them up higher, but what really holds me back is well. c!Dream and c!Punz is the same as c!Dream and the Plan. And don't get me wrong, the Plan is extremely important to c!Dream as a character and like defines a lot of his actions especially post-revive book onwards, but what complicates this is like...well c!Punz as a character in terms of c!Dream? Like, he's just. He's just the Plan. That is his purpose, that's who he is supposed to be, and of course the Plan is important and of course c!Punz's like motivations here end up playing a big part in the tangled mess of what c!Dream ends up doing when we're talking what he starts ranting about in the third finale stream, but like. Well it's really not about c!Punz, innit, it's about what they're working together towards. c!Punz is secondary to the plan in a way that you really can't say the same for when you're talking about, say, c!Wilbur + the L'manburg narrative, or c!Sam and the prison. I can see an argument for them being higher just because like, if we're talking major c!Dream arcs, it's reasonable to have c!Dream and c!Tommy as being like a presence as the "main characters" in Wilbur's story starting the revolutionary war and ending at the genuine finale with c!Dream's main character development being split between the previously-named season finales--c!Wilbur being the main influence leading up to November 16th as c!Dream takes on the villain mantle, The Plan (and therefore c!Punz) driving him until Staged Finale, and the c!Sam and the Prison being the main force until the prison break...but well. There's just not enough of c!Punz and c!Dream actually acting together as a duo in terms of give and take in this dynamic to really make me put them higher--what's really important about c!Punz and c!Dream is just. The Plan and the Plan alone. Anyway, I'm decently flexible about this, but eeeeeeeh.

#c!dreamisms #look the punz thing is complicated because on one hand i think that the ranking should be higher because. The Plan is so important #but on the other hand it feels like it should be less for that exact same reason #like c!punz is just kinda there to Be The Plan. which is important to c!dream sure but like.#like it just feels so much less like it's abt a character duo and more about well dream and the plan and punz is the walking plot device #that symbolizes that #ultimately tho some of my c!dteam thoughts kinda skew in that direction as well...where it's less abt the characters and more abt what #they mean. but well even then the conflict that arises between c!dteam means that it's pretty different #from c!punz just being there to symbolize driving c!dream forward #idk 🤷#honestly techno is pretty easily argued lower as well like as much as i love c!rivals (and i love c!rivals a lot)#narrative importance re. c!dream specifically is a lot more finicky #anyway honestly i have strong feelings on the first two and everything else is harder . c!awesamdream is number three In My Heart

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