415 A Face Only A Mother Would Love
Today was the day of their group performance. SPADES and EVE were lounging backstage in their waiting room, waiting for the show to finally start. Fortunately, the nerves hadn't kicked in yet since they were bound to perform last. Apparently, aside from a mother, Y had another thing June didn't have—luck. So, when the groups were asked to play rock, paper, and scissors to determine the order of performances, Y quickly won with only one round. "Damn," Akira said, scrolling through his phone. "This bandit guy is blowing up more than I expected." "True," Ren agreed. "He's been the talk of the town after that episode aired. I can't believe he overthrew Hana's and Seobin's first kiss. The fans had even been waiting for it for eight episodes! But this bandit guy took the cake in the end." "Well, the director is even hyping up the bandit," Akira said. "In his most recent interview, the reporters asked who the bandit guy was, but it turns out he doesn't even know him. He seems to also be looking for him." "Hmm," Zeth hummed. "I think that contributed to the popularity of the show. A lot of people are also looking for that bandit." June smirked, casually scrolling through his phone as he listened to their conversation. They were never going to find out. "It's a good thing, though," Jisung chimed. "Now, the show's more popular, and I have more people to talk about it with!" "You're also watching that drama starring Hana Lim?" Chan asked with sparkling eyes. The biggest fans, Akira and Jisung, turned to him excitedly and nodded. "Yeah! Even if we're busy, we can't miss any of the episodes," Akira said. "Eric got me hooked on it," Chan said. "But I've always been a big fan of Hana Lim. She's the first woman after my mom that makes me have tingly feelings in my stomach." "Wait, what?" Jisung asked, a bit weirded out, but Chan brushed him off. "I've watched all of her projects," he continued. "Me too," Ren chimed. "She's my celebrity crush." "I think she's everyone's celebrity crush," Eric joined in on the conversation. "Y, who has a heart of steel, likes her very much, too!" They all turned to Y, who appeared to have blushing cheeks. "I respect you, senior bro," Akira said, standing and crossing his arms in front of his chest. "But Hana Lim is mine!" Y smirked, sizing up Akira. "Sucks for you, buddy. I heard she likes men her age." Akira clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Well, have you ever talked to her in real life? I have!" The members who weren't aware of June's friendship with Hana all turned to him, surprised. "You're lying," Zeth scoffed. "He's not," Jaeyong said. "I was there too." "Yeah," Jisung nodded. "She's super pretty—even prettier in real life." "I can attest to that," Jay casually added.
"What the heck? You guys have spoken to her, and you haven't told us?" Sehun asked. "Well, technically, we didn't really speak," Akira mumbled. "June was the one who…" June cleared his throat, cutting their conversation short. "Enough about Hana Lim," he said. "The show's about to start." ***
Jia thought she wouldn't have to go to another TV station to fight with other people from different fandoms. Yet, here she was now. A group of girls, seemingly older than them, cut through the line and even stepped on her shoes. Her friends frowned, and Bora was about to confront the group of girls, but Jia shook her head. "Excuse me," Jia said, trying to get their attention. However, they merely ignored her. "Excuse me," Jia repeated, louder this time. Fortunately, the group of girls finally turned around, not looking apologetic in the slightest. "Yes?" one of them asked, raising her eyebrow. "The line is back there," Jia said. "People here have been waiting for a long time, so please go to the back of the line." The group looked at each other with humorous expressions. "We're older than you," she said. "We have the privilege of cutting through the line." "Bitch, that doesn't even make sense," Bora chimed from the back.
Their eyes widened in shock. "Bitch? Did this young woman just call us a bitch? How are your mothers raising you?" "At least I don't have a face only a mother would love," Bora snapped. Jia held in her chuckle while the other three held Bora back. This girl truly had no filter. "Look, we mean no disrespect," Jia said. "We lined up early in the morning and even missed our classes for this. We just want to get the spot we deserve." It seemed like the ladies weren't listening to her at all, though. "That's not our problem," one of them said, making Jia extremely frustrated. "I'm going to drag your asses back there if you don't start moving now," Bora snapped. They shook their heads and looked at Jia's group with disgusted expressions. "I can't believe there are fans like this out here. Let's see—whose fans are you?" They recognized the pink lightsticks in their hands and started laughing. "Ah, as expected," the lady in the middle said. "You guys are astras. You know what they say—like idols, like fans." Jia's eyebrows furrowed as they continued saying condescending words. "Your center, June, disrespected our beloved Y. I see where you get your disrespectful attitude from." "Oh, you think this is disrespectful? I'll show you something truly disrespectful—" Jia stopped Bora before she could pull on the older girl's hair. It seemed like it was already thinning, so Jia took pity on her. "Let's drop it," Jia sighed, making her friends look at her with wide eyes. Was the queen of Astras and June's self-proclaimed wife actually allowing someone to speak ill of June? This was new! "They're only three anyway," Jia said. "Let's just run to the barricade." "But they called June disrespectful!" Soomin whisper-shouted. Jia sighed, facing the trio once again. "I'm sure everyone is entitled to everyone's opinion, but I'm sure you don't know June as much as we do. If what you say is true—like idols, like fans, then SPADES should be ashamed," Jia calmly said. "What are you talking about?" the girl with thinning hair asked. "If I were a part of SPADES, I wouldn't want to be associated with a couple of bitches like you."
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