Not Your Lover (2PARK✔️)

Step Eight: Drinking

euijin in the group of backups is a MALE dancer, not another female, just to clear that up since the unit had both a female and male finalist with the name.

No Me Queda Más by Selena, yes a song in Spanish, is about a desperate love for someone you can't be with, the lyrics describing the pain one goes through to get past the heartbreak and try to just live beside your love as friends

.

"Honestly, we're excited to have someone else join us, even though we have to redesign our choreography formations." Euijin, the oldest member of Next5's backup dancers, smiles gently as our new group of six piles into an elevator. "We had five originally to match up with the whole group, so there would be an even ten."

"But, it's harder to fill a stage when everything is even and in line." Daewon, a wide-faced young man with a tragic bowl-cut smiles broadly. "It looks just horrid with two lines of five onstage."

The other three nod vehemently, but I can't bring myself to fully grasp that anyone has spoken directly to me. I keep replaying the same junk files in my mind's eye. Kissing Jihoon in the hallways of this agency, stripping him in studios, screaming at him when he wouldn't listen-

"Hey new guy!"

I flinch at the words, hearing Jihoon's voice though a girl has spoken. I glance to my right as the elevator doors open to the fourth floor, a small face staring up at me through her lashes. "What?" I ask cautiously as we all shuffle out into the hall. My hands feel clammy as we move in a group towards the end of the hall. I'm thankful that we've arrived on the floor with the larger studios, the third floor suddenly feeling cursed to me.

"You weren't listening to us," she points out, pushing her hair behind her ears in annoyance. I can't remember her name, though she was quick to announce that she was my Noona.

"Sorry," I mumble halfheartedly. "I just uh," I wave my hand through the air as if the words will come to me, though my thoughts are still jumbled. "Sorry," I say again.

"So how long have you been training?" The other girl asks me from the front of the group, dark hair spilling out from beneath a baseball cap. I remember her as Jin Ye only because the name is printed across the back of her shirt like a tag.

"I trained for 'round two years before leaving about six months ago." Five pairs of eyes glance back at me as a studio door opens, their shock clear as day.

"Oh," the girl beside me says quietly. "So you're out of practice then?"

I shrug, my eyes roaming the studio floors. It's nostalgic to be back in here, though I wish it were just me in front of these mirrors. Or perhaps with a certain red-head beside me. "I've still been dancing since then, just not formally training."

A few nods are aimed my way, though the topic thankfully dies before the conversation can get too heavy. "Well, do you know any of the choreography for Next5? Have you seen any music videos or anything?"

I nod my head, though another shrug lifts my shoulders a few inches. "I've seen the video for their debut song, but I've kinda been avoiding news about them. I have some issues with one of their members."

"Jinyoung?" Daewon guesses, his chuckle lightening his words. "Don't we all?"

I crack a smile at that, thinking back on the angry youngster always ready to insult my character. "Not him. I mean, he and I have issues in a sense, but..." I glance down to the floor, realizing that none of my history with Jihoon is actually their business. In fact, the more they know about it, the more dangerous they are to me and to him.