Stray Kid's 9th member

Chp 1- A New Beginning

Waving at the fading sillouhette of my mother, I stepped through the boarding gates as a fresh blast of cool air brushed against my face. Walking towards the plane, I took in a deep breath, heart thumping from excitement. I peered out of the oval shaped window while people around me put on their seatbelts, tucked their suitcases into the overhead compartment and a child screamed from a few rows behind. The sun's golden rays peeked through the distant treetops as the plane gave a jerk before it rumbled along the runaway. The green sweeped past my eyes and before long, I felt the plane tilt. Soon enough, I was soaring in the sky.

I closed my eyes and plugged in my earphones, finding it difficult to believe that it was really happening. Everything seemed to surreal.

Would I feel this same feeling of soaring when I'm in Korea?

After waking up early to catch the morning flight, fatigue rested on my eyelids and soon enough, they closed as music lulled me to sleep.

~Timeskip~

I arrived at the airport and wheeled my luggage out of the arrival hall. A stranger dressed in a formal suit beckoned me, after waiting at the entrance.

"Jung Chaerin?" He asked.

"Yes...may I help you?" I said. Naturally, I was wary and cautious, especially since he knew my name. He smiled and held out a business card with the unmistakable blue logo and his name under it. Head Secretariat. Fancy.

Comprehension dawned but I was still wary. He could be a kidnapper under the pretence of a staff sent by my uncle. The man seemed to read my thoughts and smiled, "Would you like to give JYP PD nim a call?"

I smiled sheepishly and nodded, pulling my phone put of my pocket and scrolling through my contacts. Sure enough, my uncle confirmed that the man was indeed one his staff that he had sent. He then instruct me to follow his staff and meet me at his office where he would brief me further.

To be frank, I wasn't quite sure what I was in for. My mother had told me that my dream was waiting for me in Korea, and set me to work packing my bags.

My dream. A dream that I had put behind me, convinced that it was a dream in vain. A dream long forgotten.

Yet here I was, watching, as tall buildings adorned with advertisements of celebrities I had only seen through screens. Here I was, driving up to the place where I would bleed, sweat, and cry; a place where friendships would be forged and broken, where families are built.

Here I was, getting closer to my dream.

As I walked along the corridors with the staff-guy-whoever-he-is walking by my side, I saw a lot of people quickly bow to him and some were whispering as well. We went into a lift that had a few people but the moment they saw him they quickly bowed and darted out of the lift. When I got to the office, my uncle was sitting behind a large desk in a fully furnished room.

"Woah" I gasped as I stepped into my uncle's office. His office was on the highest floor, with an undeniably fantastic view facing a large river and the city. He looked up from his papers and smiled, standing up to greet me with a warm hug.

"You've grown so much since I last saw you." He smiled fondly as I laughed. The last time he saw me was years ago, many growth spurts back.

"How much money did you spend on your office alone?" My curiosity piqued as I glanced over his shoulder at his large granite desk. "Park Jin Young, CEO" announced as long marbled name stand that stood at the front of his desk. He smiled and walked back, packing up some of his papers. "Oh, not much, just a few billion won, that's all." I almost choked on air.

"How has it been in Australia?" He asked as he sat down on one of his sofas, and beckoned me.

"It's been pretty good! I made lots of friends, and ate lots of good food. The people there are really nice too." I said as I glanced at my luggage bags that were rolled to the back of his office. It felt unreal that everything I mentioned had turned into mere memories in the blink of an eye. I had left everything behind.

"Were you happy?"

His question caught me off guard. Was I really happy in Australia, or was there a part of me that I had buried deep down, that longed for Korea? My birthplace. My home. The land of my dreams.

"I don't know," I whispered.

He placed an open report on the glass table in front of me, and pushed it towards me. At the top, written in bold, were words "EXCLUSIVE CONTRACT". My eyes widened slightly as I looked up at my uncle.

"I have a team that the company will be pushing out in three months. Join this team and train with them, and debut with them in three months." He said with a small smile.

I couldnt believe my ears. I was at a loss for words as I looked at him, then at the contract.

Three months. I was set to debut in three months. On the way to the company, I thought about how long it would take for me to train enough to be like all the other trainees. I wondered if I was even still capable enough to debut. The old videos my mother had sent to him were almost a year ago.

"Thank you so much Uncle! I will do my best before and after debut. Thank you so much!" I said as I jumped out of my seat and bowed to him again and again. Tears welled up in my eyes as I stared at the contract before me, unable to fathom that my dream was really coming through.

"Call me Park Jin Young pd-nim from now onwards. I am your uncle at home, but at the company, I am a producer. I brought you in, not as your uncle, but as a producer. I will be strict with you at time like I am with other trainees, but I will also support you like how I do with other trainees. I just want to make myself clear." He said in a stern but gentle voice. I nodded just as a knock sounded from the door.

"Ah, your other group members must be here," JYP Pd-nim remarked as he looked towards the door. My eyes lit up as I heard the door open and whipped my head around to see...

8...

BOYS?!

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Thank you for reading!!

Just a little disclaimer, although I do get some inspiration from other people, characters and books or stories, this is purely my imagination and my own storyline. Also, this book does not follow how the stray kids really debuted.