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Sky knows he can be protective borderline possessive. Not just over his time or his projects or his too-good-to-be-true boyfriend Prapai, but also over his friends. He glares at anyone who tries to ask Ple out because he hardly trusts anyone’s intentions. Stares down the women who sniff their noses up when Sig and Por get a little rowdy in public. Resists the urge to throw his shoe at anyone who looks to long at Pai or even Phayu for Rain’s sake.But even he could admit that he can be a little more possessive with Rain than any of his other friends. You couldn’t blame him though. Rain was the first person in a while that Sky let get touchy other than his father after Gun. He was wide eyed and naïve, and Sky could never regret helping him out of the first day.No matter how annoying Rain could get sometimes, or when he does something before thinking, Sky will never forget how softly he’d tucked Sky in when Gun had had him. How Rain will cuddle with him and watch One Piece in his car during lunch when he can tell Sky is feeling overwhelmed. How Rain has a whole notes page on his phone dedicated to likes and dislikes and completely-avoid-this just for Prapai.So, when Sky found out his friend was a trainee for five years instead of a regular teenager doing regular teenage things, not that Sky could say anything because his teenage years were hardly normal, he was a little worried. It made sense if Sky was to look at the bigger picture. Rain was scatterbrained and didn’t know how to do basic tasks because he never had to worry about having too much free time or how to change batteries from a fire alarm.It took a while for Sky to wrap his head around it if he could be honest. He’d seen Rain with greasy hair and wearing three-day old clothes after binging an entire K-Drama without stopping. His friend screamed whenever he saw spiders, and tripped over nothing at least twice a week. Picturing Rain on stage doing quick, choreographed movements with perfect hair and make-up acting all suave seemed completely out of the picture.All of that was shoved aside the moment he Rain brought up his weight problem. That’s when Sky was reminded that child stars rarely had the happiest of childhoods. That the K-Pop industry was as toxic as America’s Hollywood with how fast it pumped out stars on the usual. He starts to notice that Rain consistently checks the calory count on any snack he’s given, is an avid people pleaser and perfectionist, and talks to the professors in such a professional voice it puts Prapai to shame.So yeah. Sky is protective over Rain. He comes second place only to Phayu in that regard.But he’s also Rain’s best friend and vise versa. So just like no one can blame him for being protective and possessive, no one can blame him for volunteering Rain for the university’s talent show.Really, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. He’d looked up the videos like Rain’s ex-roommate Decha told him to, but he wants to watch his friend sing live. Or maybe dance. Who knows what Rain’s chaotic brain would think of.“Sky…” his friend whines, hiding his face in his arms at the lunch table. “Why would you do this to me?”“Consider it payment for telling Prapai I was sick that one time.” The computer systems had also been getting on Sky’s nerves, and the faculty could use some new ones. There was a prize, for the winner after all.“But the reward to that was so worth it.”Sky looks over at his friend, who’s peeking up at him from his arms, “Then this shouldn’t be a problem then.”“What’s not a problem?” Ple asks as she joins the table, Sig and Por right behind her.“I signed Rain up for the talent show,” Sky says with a smirk. There. Now let Rain quietly back out of this.Ple lets out a surprised gasp while the other two just look dumbfounded. “Oh Rain, that’s so exciting! I signed up too! What are you going to be doing?” Ple asked with a wide, excited grin on her face. Rain buried his face further in his arms with a whine.“What can you do?” Sig asks, and Sky would kick him if he didn’t also slide a yogurt drink, Rain’s favorite Sky noted, over to his best friend.Rain mumbled something in what Sky thinks is Korean before lifting his head up to face Ple and open the drink, “I’m not sure what I’ll do yet. I can sing and dance, but I haven’t done it together in such a long time it won’t be right if I do.” Rain takes a sip of the drink and shifts his attention back over to Sky. “Why would you do this to me, Sky? I thought you loved me.”Sky rolled his eyes, “You’ll be fine.” If Rain really didn’t want to do it, he could always just not go to rehearsals. Sky wasn’t that mean- his friend had left the industry and hadn’t performed since for a reason.“You can sing?” Por asked.“Never mind that, you can dance? I saw you trip over nothing like an hour ago!” Sig teases.Rain glares at him, “Just for that I’m singing in Korean so you can’t understand a word I say.”Ple and Por make strangled sounds in the back of their throat. “But we can’t understand Korean either! That’s not fair,” Por whines.“Rain, I’m pretty sure most of the school doesn’t speak or understand Korean,” Ple says gently, clearly trying to convince Rain to sing something in their native tongue.“I’ll… I’ll use a projector then! Thai lyrics in the back. This is all your fault Sig, remember that.”Sky watched the conversation with amusement. Never let anyone say he didn’t enjoy a good dose of harmless drama. He can’t wait until Phayu finds out- the senior is going to be an entertaining mix of excited and possessive.Sky smirks, and slides the bag of freshly washed strawberries over to Rain, who is currently distracted by bickering with Por.Maybe he should take a video to send to Decha.“So, you’re singing?” Sky asks Rain as they walk around one of the races. They were looking for the popcorn truck, but it moves every time and Sky is sick of it. He just wants his popcorn, damn it.Rain huffed, “Yeah. Phayu pointed out that a lot of the dances I know aren’t very… school appropriate. So.”“We’re all adults. We can handle a little strip show.”“It’s a family event! There’s going to be little baby kids, and I don’t feel like grinding on the stage in front of little children.”Okay, point. But Sky didn’t really want to see Rain grind on a stage in front of people either. At least not if Rain wasn’t getting paid. His friend was attractive, and people couldn’t see all that for free. “What about the choreography you learned when you were a trainee?”Rain thought about it before shaking his head, “Same issue.”“You were like 13? How inappropriate was it?”“I was more like 16 when I started hip hop classes that really focused on those moves. I did musical theatre and ballet before that, and I don’t want to do that in front of the university. Who knows though.”Okay, so that made Sky feel better. Knowing that Rain wasn’t being made to grind on the floor when he was barely a teenager. 16 was still young, but it wasn’t like Sky wasn’t sneaking into clubs around the same time.Sky shook his head to clear away the memories of sneaking into clubs and getting wasted at what probably was way too young an age, “So, what are you going to sing?”Rain just shrugs, “Not sure. It’s going to be in Korean because now I have to.”Sky send Rain a look. The one that lets his friend know he’s being ridiculous. “You don’t have to.”“No, I do,” Rain, his stubborn as hell friend says with a shrug. “Sig’s lucky I don’t sing in Japanese. I might have to go to my mae’s house to get my guitar, though.”Sky didn’t know why he was surprised. He’d seen the videos of his friend, all baby faced and wide eyed, playing the piano and guitar on the videos Phayu had sent him. Rain didn’t do anything by halves, so why would Sky assume this was going to be any different?They bought about a dozen bags of popcorn with the cash Prapai had given him, the events were cash only to avoid anything being left behind, they made their way over to where the pit girls usually hung out when they weren’t walking around or calling races.“Speaking of my mae,” Rain started, “she invited you all over to dinner this weekend. Will you come?”Sky nodded, “I love your mae. Of course, Prapai and I will come.” If Sky went Prapai was going. It was common thing in their relationship that Sky appreciated. How Prapai wanted to be with him. Wanted to spend time with him and love him.“She loves you too. Says you keep my head on straight.”Sky laughed. Rain’s mae was a fierce but loving woman who Sky had met maybe two times. She traveled a lot for work, a nature photojournalist Sky was told, but Sky could tell that she loved Rain very much.“Sky! Rain! We were wondering when you two were going to show up,” One of the pit girls, Hom, greeted with an exciting wave. The tent was emptier than usual with only her and one other girl that Sky didn’t recognize. “The other girls are already out and about, but they’ll filter through eventually.”Rain bounced over to Hom, handing her one of the popcorn bags, putting the rest down on the table, and then turning to help Sky with the ones he was carrying. Sky looked to Hom, “Hi Hom! Who’s this?” He gestured to the other girl, who was staring at Rain.Sky tensed at this. Rain, as smart as he was, completely blind when other people besides Phayu were interested him. Good for Rain! Bad for pretty much everyone else. He tilted his body to be a little closer to Rain’s.Hom pulled the girl closer to her and wrapped her arm around her shoulders, “This is Ziva! It’s her first day and I’m showing her around.”The three wai to each other the girl never once taking her eyes off Rain much to Sky’s displeasure. “Nice to meet you, Ziva,” Rain grins widely, just like always. “My name is Rain, and this is Sky.” Sky simply nods, watching her warily.Ziva smiles, excited, and Sky thinks the woman is about to vibrate out of her thigh highs. “Hi,” She waves, but Sky feels like he’s not even there in her world. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but do you go by another name by chance? It’s just you look a lot like someone else…”Sky rolled his eyes and sighed- he was pretty sure he knew where this was going. If only Phayu was here.“Oh! I have my Korean name?” Rain responds, face looking an adorable mix of surprised and confused. “It’s-”“Joon woo, right?” Ziva interrupts, now actually bouncing on the tips of her toes. “Oh my gosh, you’re Joon woo!”Sky watches as his friend has this sort of dawn of realization. “Oh, you’re a fan!” he smiles, “I didn’t think I had those still!”Ziva lets out a squeak, grabbing Hom by the arm to shake it in excitement, “Oh my God, P’Hom, you didn’t tell me that celebrities came to these events!”Hom blinks, looking to Sky and Rain in confusion, “I didn’t know that Rain was a celebrity…”Sky snorts into his hand, the picture of Rain as a celebrity is just so funny to him. Rain rambles on about anything and everything. He wakes up in the morning with drool marks on his cheeks after exams. He’ll sleep in all day if no one woke him up. Rain’s just a normal person.Rain gives him a dry look, and then sends Ziva and Hom a smile, “I’m really not. I’m surprised you recognized me!”Ziva makes a strangled sound, “I’m part of your fan club! Can I have a picture, please? I promise not to upload it until tomorrow!”“Fan club?” Sky whispers to himself. This is the best day of his life. He has to join. And then he can make Pai and Phayu join too.Hom shook herself out of whatever stupor she was in, “No pictures, Ziva! I thought we went over that.”“Right, yes. Sorry, P’Hom,” the younger woman apologizes. At least she isn’t staring at Rain anymore. “I just got excited. Jo- I mean Rain, sorry about that.”Rain smiled, but it does look different from his normal ones, Sky notices, so he decides to change the subject. He has two options, end the conversation and make their way back to Phayu, or the one he’s already decided to do.“You said something about a fan club?” Sky asks. “How do I join?”He ignores the betrayed look Rain sends him in favor of listening to Ziva- who had visibly perked up. “It’s not as active anymore, because Rain isn’t a trainee or an idol, but there’s still a few of us! What’s your Line? I’ll send it to you.”“P’Hom, you have to stop them!” Sky hears as he gives his Line to Ziva. “Sky’s going to see pre-pubescent me.”“I want to see pre-pubescent you,” Hom coos. “I bet you were so cute!”“He was!” Ziva confirms, “Look, I have some of his pictures right here…”Sky looks over to his extremely embarrassed friend and decides to show some mercy. He’ll have plenty of time to tease Rain when the Ple, Sig, and Por find out. “We should probably make our way back to P’Phayu,” he says to the girls, both of their eyes glued to Ziva’s phone. “You know how he gets when he’s away from Rain for too long.”He starts leading an affronted looking Rain away, a bag of popcorn for himself in his hands and a smug smile on his face. “As if you aren’t the same with P’Pai!” Rain hisses.Sky shrugs, having no leg to stand on for defense. He’s gotten shockingly clingy with his boyfriend. He visits him at work when he knows Pai is staying late. Will jump into bed under the blanket Pai had been invitingly holding up. When Pai drives him anywhere, they hold hands over the center consul. They’ve made a resolve to have a romantic bath together at least once a week that usually leads to both collapsed into bed after passionate love making. Not fucking. Love making.Sky feels so small when he’s with Pai. But unlike with Gun, where all he felt was scared and confused, he just feels adored and safe. Like nothing could hurt him if Pai was there. He’d been alone for so long, and University was a storm of people lovingly bullying their way into his life. He felt taken care of for the first time since his dad had sent him to Bangkok for a better education. That he could finally let go, and someone would be there to catch him. Like he could finally rest, and someone would make sure the world was still okay when he woke up.“Sky?” Rain asked shaking his shoulder slightly. “Are you okay?”Sky glanced at his friend, all wide concerned eyes, and sent him a grin that made the other relax. “So how was meeting a fan, Joon woo,” he said his friend’s name in a voice mimicking Ziva. “Was it how you remember it?”Rain scrunched his face up, “It was weird. I didn’t think I had fans since I basically ghosted all of them.” Rain shrugged, “At least she was nice.”Sky felt the drop in his gut he always got when his gut sensed something was wrong. “Have there been many… rude ones?” Sky asked.He watched his friends face become uncomfortable as he hesitated, and felt his gut tighten further. But before he could change the subject Rain started talking again, “There’s always going to be rude people if you’re going into the industry.” Sky hated how tired Rain sounded when he said that. Like it was a fact he’d long learned to accept. “Whether it was because I was only half Korean, or my skin wasn’t pale enough- it’s just how it is.”Sky pulled them to a stop beside one of the trailers, a couple tents down from Phayu. This was a him and Rain conversation. Overprotective boyfriends can move out of the way- it was overprotective friend time. “You know you don’t have to deal with people like them, right? If someone’s ever rude to you you’ll tell me or P’Phayu or P’Pai, hm?”Rain blinked at Sky in shock, like he hadn’t realized what he’d said would worry his friend, before he nodded with a serious face, “I know, Sky. If anyone treats me like that, I’ll tell you right away!”“Okay,” Sky exhaled a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Okay.”“At least she wasn’t, like, a sasaeng. Those are so much harder to get rid of.”Sky took a deep breath with his eyes closed to try and calm himself down. “Rain,” he said slowly, “this is another thing you need to explain more.”“A sasaeng,” Rain repeated like repetition would clear up everything. “Like… a stalker fan. The overly obsessive ones.”“Rain, did you have a stalker?” Sky asked, placing his hands on Rain’s shoulders, and shaking him a little. Did his friend have a stalker? Was that still something he should be worried about? Sky remembers how scared Rain had been after Stop. How jumpy he’d been, with bruises and a split lip.Sky had been ready to try to beat the absolute shit out of Phayu- thinking that the senior had done something to his friend until Rain had told him everything.“Only once! She came really close to proposing to me for some reason? Also finding out where my dad lived. I got a restraining order against her and haven’t heard a word of it since.”Sky dropped his head. Every time he thinks he’s reached the depths of his friend; Rain has to pull the craziest story or question out. He’s pretty sure Rain is dialing down him having a stalker. It reminds him of when they had been relaxing by the pool and Rain asked about Pai’s dick size and confessed to calling Phayu daddy.There are things that he wants to know about Rain, and there are things that he doesn’t. The sexual adventures between Rain and Phayu fall strictly on the side of information he doesn’t want to know.“Okay, you know what? Let’s get back to P’Phayu. I want to eat my popcorn in relative peace.”Rain visibly brightened up at his boyfriend’s name, “Okay, let’s go then.” Rain started to quickly walk to Phayu’s tent.Sky hummed, “Yeah, I need to tell him about this fan club.”“SKY!”The following weekend, Sky found himself having a delicious home cooked meal at the hand carved table in Rain’s mae’s house. There was panang curry as the main dish with premade baked tilapia in a banana leaf as a side. Sky knew that he’d be getting sent home with leftovers- it was the only reason he could think of that fit in why Rain’s mae cooked as much as she did.“So, the Philippines was nice, Mae?” Rain asked as Phayu put food on the younger’s plate.“Oh, just beautiful. And the food! I’ll have to make some for you all soon. I’m positive you’ll love it.”“We’ll eat anything you put in front of us,” Pai said with a smile that made Sky all soft. “You’re one of the best cooks I know.”“Don’t let your Pa hear that,” Phayu pointed at Pai across the table with the rice spoon. “He’ll get butt hurt.”“Oh no,” Pai sighed dramatically, “Pa will get slightly offended and cook us enough food to feed Sky and Rain’s entire faculty. We would want to avoid that at all costs, wouldn’t we?”Sky laughed, Pai’s dad could cook, but he didn’t want to be the one to compare his and Rain’s mae’s cooking.Plus, Sky held that his dad’s baking skills were the best in the groups. No questions accepted.The dinner went on smoothly. It was loud, but Sky never once wanted it to quiet down. It felt like home. Like when Pai came over to watch One Piece with him when Sky was stressed. Or when he, Rain, Ple, Sig, and Por would come over to his dorm to do last minute study sessions. Or how Phayu would let him stay in his tent when he got nervous at the races and keep an even sharper eye on him. Like when he and his dad used to drink hand brewed tea on the porch during the cooler nights and just talk.He should call his dad.After dinner, Rain’s mae was instructed on showing Pai and Sky the garden outside while Phayu insisted on staying in the kitchen to help clean up.“Your mae really plants all these by herself?” Sky asked as he gently looked at the flowers and vegetables. One day he’d have a garden like this. One word to Pai, Sky knew, and he’d have the green house of his dreams within a month tops. Never mind that he didn’t have the time needed to take care of them all. “Who takes care of them while she’s gone?”“One of the neighbor’s does. She gets paid as a side job for plant sitting and the like,” Rain explained with a smile. “I bet Mae’d let you take some of the ripe tomatoes or bitter melon with you when they’re ready. She usually sells them at the markets.”“I’ll buy them,” Pai said before Sky could. His boyfriend ignored the look Sky sent him. “If your mae sells them, I’ll be more than happy to buy them.”Rain scoffed, “You guys are practically family. She won’t take your money, P’Pai.”Sky could tell Pai was figuring out a way to fight Rain on this, and because Rain didn’t disagree with his boyfriend, he excused himself to the bathroom.On his way, he heard Rain’s mae talking with Phayu while they were doing dishes. He was going to just keep walking but…“I was worried about him, you know?” She says. Sky stops.“I… About Rain?”She hums in agreement, “My Rain is smart, you know this, but… he’s been through a lot.” She took a shaky breath, “I was worried. Leaving him alone at home so much so soon after he left the industry and his Pa died… I was going to start looking for new jobs so I could be with him more.”Sky hears the clink of a plate. “Mae…” Phayu starts.“He was so skinny when he came back,” Rain’s mae laughs but it’s dry and humorless. “And his eyes… it was so hard to get him to go out of his room. To eat a meal. It’s terrifying, to see your child waste away before your eyes. I’m… glad that you weren’t in his life yet. He doesn’t like to talk about it much, but I know he would’ve hated for you to see him in that state. He hates that I saw him in that state.”“I wouldn’t have judged him,” Phayu says hurriedly. Sky has never heard Phayu speak in this tone before. Like he’s scared of not being good enough. Sky is familiar enough with it to recognize it. “I would never judge him for that.”“Oh, I know, sweetheart. I see the way you look at him. The way you give him food and make sure he focuses on school. Rain is my son, and we talk. He adores you, won’t stop talking about you half the time.”“I love him.”“Even if you didn’t say it, son, I would have known. I’m happy you’re here for him now. The number of times I wanted to put my foot down and insist Rain stopped being a trainee… it’s a harsh environment. And Rain has always been sensitive to criticism, as I’m sure you’ve realized already.”“He’s… told me some things. Nothing in detail, and most of it I don’t think he really meant to say,” Phayu says. “Was it really that bad?”“It had its ups and downs,” Rain’s mae says after a beat of silence. “But Rain wanted to do it. And you know how he is when he puts his mind to something.”Phayu laughs, “He’s stubborn that way.”“He gets it from his Pa,” this time her laugh is livelier. “But what I wanted to say, Phayu, is thank you for looking after my son.”“You don’t have to thank me,” Phayu whispers. “I’ll do it for the rest of my life if Rain allows me.”“I know. And if you are your brother ever need anything, Phayu, you know you’ll always have me, yes?”Sky decided then, as he heard Phayu let out a sniffle, that he didn’t really need to pee at that moment. He made his way back out to the garden, eyes set on Rain and Pai who were now sitting at the deck table deep in conversation.He sat next to Pai, loving the way Pai’s arm automatically made its way around his waist, and rested his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. Pai landed a soft kiss on Sky’s head before he nuzzled into his hair.Sky would feel embarrassed by how physical his boyfriend was around other people if he didn’t know how shameless Rain could be in comparison. He eyed his best friend as the two continued their conversation, thinking about the conversation he’d overheard. He couldn’t imagine Rain being anything other than being in his state of constant motion. He’d seen him burnt out a few times of course. He always hated the defeated tilt in his friend’s shoulders that would appear when he didn’t get the grade he wanted.He tangled his fingers in Pai’s, squeezing tight for a second and resisted kicking his feet like a school girl at Pai’s responding squeeze.Fuck, he loved his boyfriend.He’d have to show as much when they got back home.Sky really, really wished rehearsals for the talent show weren’t closed and that the no videos or pictures rule wasn’t strictly enforced. Because anytime the show was brought up around Ple and Rain they’d make eye contact and laugh their asses off. Sky was getting tired of it.“I can tell you that the dance group I was part of merged with Rain’s act. That’s pretty much all you’re getting,” Ple smirked. Sky forgot just how devious his classmate could get. He’d never do it again.He couldn’t wait the week that was left until the show. He was impatient! Ziva was hounding him on tickets for the thing, and he was starting to get annoyed since now the entirety of the fan club was in arms about not being able to see it live.After classes, Rain nabbed Sky by his forearm, “Skyyyy, can you help me with something?”Sky rolled his eyes, “What’s up?”“Can you come with me to grab some hair dye? I want to dye my hair black for the show.”“You don’t want to get it done professionally? Sky asked with an arched brow.Rain’s face scrunched, “No I want you to do it. Only if you want to though. If not, I’ll ask Phayu to do it later tonight.” Sky gagged at the dreamy look his friend got as he presumably imagined Phayu dying his hair.“No, I’ll do it,” Sky said, wrapping his arm around his friend’s shoulders and walking to Rain’s car. “I have no idea what I’m doing though.”Rain shrugged, “I’ll tell you. I had my hair dyed enough times to know the steps.”Sky climbed into the passenger seat, tossing his bag into the backseat, and connecting his phone to the Bluetooth. “How many times did you dye your hair?” he asked, clicking on the playlist full of songs contributed by their group for car rides. Por listened to a surprising amount of Babymetal. Ple was the reason Sky knew the lyrics to half of Ariana Grandé’s music. Sig surprisingly listened to a lot of theatre songs.“Um, maybe like five times? This red was a while ago, and I’ve never touched it up, which ugh, but my hair’s healed enough after murdering it with chemicals.”“You murdered your hair.”Rain nodded solemnly, “They needed to see what looked best on me. Definitely could have been worse. And they let me pick the color sometimes.”Sky shifted in his seat, facing Rain more. He remembers off hand remarks made by Rain that made Sky reevaluate his friend. Remembered Rain’s mae and Phayu’s conversation in the kitchen. “You said you’d tell me stuff if I asked you? About being a trainee?”Rain gave him a weird look, “Yeah, I’m up to answer whatever, I guess?”“You don’t have to answer anything that makes you uncomfortable,” Sky assured. The day he made his friend uncomfortable while talking about his past was the day Sky gave up One Piece. “Okay?”Rain nodded.“What were some of your least favorite parts of being a trainee? Or being an idol.”“I was never an idol.”“If you had been one,” Sky corrects himself, “then what would have been your least favorite part?”Rain bit his lip and tapped a beat on the steering wheel, “Hm… I didn’t really like the weekly weight checks.”Sky wanted to punch whoever made Rain, fresh on puberty, do weekly weight checks.“They posted results in the hall. I remember we would cut our nails to get even the smallest amount of weight off the results,” Rain hummed, fingers tapping a bit quicker. “We were only allowed to have our phone for maybe an hour a week to talk with family. That sucked too… and don’t get me started on dancing with growing pains.”Sky could only picture Rain, overworked and away from his parents with chubby cheeks and wide, teary eyes. Had he been curled up with a heating pad on his bed? Did P’Decha go through the same thing?“We couldn’t talk to the female trainees. The guys, I mean. It was different for some, but they wanted us to focus on work,” Rain continued.No wonder he had been so awkward around Ple at first, Sky realized. Fresh off grief of losing his dad and five years of not talking regularly to other girls?“Oh! After we debuted, we were heavily encouraged to not contact friends as much for about three years. To focus on image, you know?”No, Sky did not know. “Were you allowed to date after you debuted?” Sky asked.“Depends on the company. Generally, there’s a period of time before you can, and even then, it’s hard to after so long on stage. Plus, the fact that work is almost your life? You don’t have much time for it.”“Wow,” Sky whispered. “And you still wanted to do it?”“I liked creating things,” Rain shrugged. “I wanted to share my creations with people, and I liked music. When I stopped…” Rain hesitated and took a deep breath. “When I stopped, I don’t think I was just mourning my dad. I think I was mourning my future, too.”Sky felt a thickness in his throat, his chest heavy with the raw honesty his friend had just spoken. He rested his hand on Rain’s shoulder, squeezing comfortingly. “Do you… regret not continuing?”Rain shook his head, and Sky pretended not to see the tears he wiped off his cheeks. “No, I don’t regret it. I wouldn’t have met you, or P’Phayu, or P’Pai if I hadn’t stopped,” Rain sends him a smile. “I miss it, yeah, which is why I’m excited about the talent show. And I’ll always wonder what would have happened if I had debuted, but I don’t regret it.“I get to share my creations in a different way now. Architecture is the only thing that interested me enough.”“Not makeup?” Sky asked trying to lighten up the mood.“That’s a hobby,” Rain whined. “Making it into a job would ruin the fun.”“There’s always YouTube,” Sky shrugged. “You’ve gained a pretty solid following ever since P’Decha posted you on his story.”“As if I have time for that,” Rain laughed, pulling into the beauty store’s parking lot.“You had time for rehearsal, and you’re managing that pretty well.”“Hm, maybe. Now come on, this should just be in and out.”It was not just in and out. They spent an hour in the store.Sky wasn’t complaining, though. He liked spending time with Rain, no matter how many times he rolled his eyes at his antics.Sky sat right in the front row of the outdoor performance area, video camera in front of him even though individual videos of the acts would be uploaded online later. Wide steps topped with grass and stone made up “seats”, but Pai had brought a picnic blanket, so Sky wasn’t too bothered. The stage itself was only elevated about a foot off the ground, fresh vinyl sheeting put down by the manufacturing faculty. Phayu sat next to them, a bouquet of tulips and red roses in hand for after the show.The sun was setting right behind the stage, and Sky couldn’t wait until it was dark.Pai whistled as the last of the crowd entered, “I didn’t realize this was so big.”“It’s a yearly event,” Phayu shrugged. “Plus, the winner’s faculty gets a budget bonus for next semester. There are bragging rights behind it as well.”Sky nodded, “There’s a reason I volunteered Rain, who was an actual K-Pop trainee, for our faculty. I want new computer systems.”“Rain was a what?” Sky heard Por’s voice from where he and Sig walked up next to them, blanket in hand.“A trainee,” Phayu says nonchalantly. Sky settles heavily against Pai, skin tingling as Pai moved him to sit in between his open legs- Sky’s back against Pai’s chest, and watches realization come on Por and Sig.“No fucking way,” Sig whispers, shaking Por’s arm slightly. “So, this talent show- you volunteering him-”“I want new computer systems,” Sky repeats, moving Pai’s hands in front of Sky so he could play with them.“You also wanted to see Rain perform,” Pai laughs, kissing his cheeks. His eyes are adoring, and the look takes away Sky’s breath every time.To be so revered is something he only imagined when he was younger. And then Gun happened, and Sky thought it was only an impossible dream. To be fair, that’s what Prapai felt like sometimes to Sky. An impossible dream.But every late-night snack, every show or work binge, and every tight hug Prapai gave him after a nightmare proved otherwise. The loving look that never went away no matter how often Sky checked.Sky really loved his Prapai.Sky brought Pai’s hand, the space where he’d drawn the wind symbol all those months ago, up to his mouth to press a gentle kiss to it. He felt Pai’s breath hitch.Before any of them could day anything else, the lights on stage flickered and the MC, the dean of the university, came out.Sky wouldn’t be able to tell anyone what was said. Nor could he describe half of the acts. There were some monologues, singing, dancing, and the like. One second year painted a portrait of The Avengers in under five minutes using spray paint that Sky had been impressed with.Really, he was sure everyone was impressive, but Sky just wanted to see Rain and Ple perform.“Phayu said he was the last act,” Pai whispered in his ear as the MC spoke to change acts. “According to the playbill, there’s only a couple performances left.”“I just want to see what he and Ple have been planning,” Sky pouted. “He hasn’t told me anything.” Which was so unlike Rain and had to be all Ple because everyone was well aware Rain was awful at keeping secrets.“Two more acts and your curiosity will be sated, Love,” Pai said. He kissed the area under Sky ear.“P’Pai!” Sky whispered startled, moving away from the kiss.“Sorry,” his boyfriend whispered, but his grin made it clear he was anything but.Sky clicked his tongue, glaring playfully at Pai before turning back fully to the stage. It was a magic trick this time, and Sky felt the minutes creeping by like hours.He glanced over at Phayu, and by the relaxed posture he had, Sky was sure Phayu knew exactly what Rain was going to do.What a traitor.Finally, after what seemed like a full school day and another monologue, the MC announced Rain’s act.The light’s dimmed and Sky quickly turned the camera on, double checking it was recording before leaning back against Pai’s chest.The audience quieted down as they heard rushed footsteps get to their places. Red stage lights turned on the same time with the music, and Sky whistled as he saw Rain kneeling center stage with his wrists together, Ple and three other girls behind him. The wall behind them all had a red full moon projected onto it and translated lyrics in black against it.“La-la-la, la-la-la-la-la…” Came a surprisingly deep voice from Rain. Sky could just see a mic taped to his face. “La-la-la, la-la-la-la-la…”“Holy shit,” Sig cursed from beside them.Sky had to agree with him. As the performance went on, Sky could hardly recognize Rain. All movements smooth and planned out. Voice never shaking as he sang in Korean, and as confident as Sky remembered seeing on the videos of his as a trainee. His stage presence was unbelievable. When he body rolled the girl behind Sky say an audible prayer.Sky saw out of the corner of his eye Phayu smile as Rain, in a moment before a beat drop, swayed up to the audience and pointed right at them and Sky’s camera. The crowd screamed, and the possessive side of Sky reared its head. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea.The performance ended with Rain back on his knees, and when the normal stage lights came on, Rain stood up, suddenly back to his playful self and cute smile. Rain bowed to the crowd and walked off stage into the wings.“Oh my God,” Por mumbled from besides them. Sky looked over at his classmates as he stopped the recording and turned the camera off. “Was that really Rain? Our trip over nothing, would lose his head if it wasn’t attached to him Rain?”Phayu chuckled, “That was him.” The senior’s eyes looked around as everyone spoke about Rain’s performance. “Yeah, he’s never doing this again.”“Don’t be spoil sport, P’Phayu,” Prapai laughed. “Your Rainy-boy just go the faculty a budget bonus. Good idea, Sky.”“I know,” Sky replied with a smirk. If Rain didn’t win after that then the contest was rigged.Getting backstage was easy when Phayu was with them, they got further than they should have until they couldn’t go further- not wanting to get caught in the mess of cleaning up. Soon enough Ple and Rain came out with large smiles, first place trophy in hand ready to be placed in the Architecture Faculty area.While Ple automatically went over to Sig and Por, Rain shot over to P’Phayu, who caught him with an ease that told of practice, and hugged him tight, “P’Phayu! Did you like it?”Now that he was closer and in normal light, Sky could see how handsome Rain looked. Red crop top under an open red cropped jacket that was longer in the back but did nothing to hide how the black pants hugged his friend’s ass. Black combat boots made Rain seem taller than usual, and silver chain necklaces brought attention Rain’s collarbones. His newly black hair was fluffed and curled, and his makeup made his seem angelic yet more somehow. The subtle red eyeshadow just adding to that effect.He looked all the idol he’d trained five years to be.Phayu gave a deep kiss to Rain on the lips, arms wrapped around his lower waist, before pulling away and handing over the flowers. “I loved it,” he said, “You were breathtaking.”“He’s right,” Pai agreed, “I didn’t know you had it in you, N’Rain.” Pai arched an eyebrow to Phayu, “I’m surprised you’re as fine as you are with this.”Phayu moved to hug Rain from the back, arms covering the skin Rain’s red crop top revealed, and hooking his chin on Rain’s shoulder, “Don’t get used to it.”“But I want to get used to it,” Ple came in playfully. She looked stunning in her black halter and jeans. Tucked into the same black boots Rain wore, with the similar silver jewelry. Her makeup was sharp, and her scarlet lipstick made her look like a temptress.Sky was gay, not blind.Hm, he wondered how Pai would react if he wore lipstick like that. He’d have to ask Ple for the shade.“You did amazing, Ple,” Sky said with a smile as he gave her a hug.“Thank you!” She practically chirped. “After we heard Rain sing, the girls and I knew we had to dance with him. It was perfect.”“You all were great,” Pai added. “I’m surprised you went into architecture instead of dance, N’Ple.”“It was a pass time before university. I do it for stress relief mostly now,” Ple explained with a shrug.“Okay, as stunning as Ple’s dancing was,” Sig interrupted. “Rain, why are you not, like, on a tour on stage right now? Are you just wanting the university experience?”Por let out an exaugurated gasp, “Are you studying university students before leaving us suddenly until we never see you again until we turn on the TV and suddenly you’re on actor on a university show?”Rain gave Por the driest look, “Yes. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing. You’ve foiled my master plan, and now I have to stay until I graduate. Obviously not, Por!”Sky snorted at his friend. This was the Rain he knew. Not the one who strut across the stage as if he’d been there his entire life. Well, Rain had been there for a good chunk of his life, but that was besides Sky’s point.“I was actually going to debut about after I quit,” Rain revealed.Sky stared at him, he’d never asked Rain this, he realized. He’d always focused more on the effects his friend was obviously going through from the trainee life.“Why didn’t you?” Sig asked. “Cause, Dude, you were good.”“Thank you,” Rain responded, “Some personal stuff happened before I could, and I couldn’t keep training. The group I was supposed to debut with had their first EP a month ago. We’ve recently been in more contact.”“Wow,” Por whispered, before turning to Sky, “And you knew this already?”“Obviously,” Sky scoffed.Ple laughed, “Well, I need to go see my brother. Are we still okay with meeting up for dinner soon?”There was a series of agreements, and Sky saw Rain bounce on his heels, messing with Phayu’s fingers. “Great! Let’s go. I’m starving.”That seemed to put everyone into action, as they all made their way out to the parking lot, chatting about the show.When Rain almost face planted going up the stairs, Sky laughed. Idol trainee or not, Rain would always be Rain.