Chapter Text
Yeonjun always got nervous when he had a partnership coming up. To a seasoned celebrity, it might simply consist of a navy suit, a glass of champagne and a handshake, a smile for the camera and a quick word with a news reporter. Try not to frown, and remember to look delighted that you’re participating in such an opportunistic ordeal. But Yeonjun was no Kai of EXO on the red carpet, even after his nearly three years of stardom, and this celebration of a company partnership with one of South Korea’s most prevalent beauty labels had his heart pumping the moment his manager, Soobin, pulled him into the dressing room.
Not a navy suit, but a deep emerald green one with beautiful black lace webbing up the collar, and matte black boots with a very shiny silver watch. As Yeonjun was hurried out by the stylist, he jumped in the face of Soobin standing right outside the door in the hallway.
“Try to pretend to not be so tense at the event, will you?” Soobin looked his client/best friend since debut up and down, checking his phone. “We’re behind schedule, so we won’t have time to retouch your hair. Either that or we convince the beautician to do your makeup at the same time.”
Yeonjun began walking behind Soobin’s high pace to catch up to his side. “Will I still have time to practice my speech?”
His manager looked at him with a wonky smirk. “It’s hardly a speech, and didn’t you practice this morning?” He started a light jog around the corner which Yeonjun painfully emulated in his dress pants.
“Why do you think I was late?”
Soobin slowed down outside the prep room door, which had a paper slide on it saying “YEONJUN” and put his hand on the handle. He turned around and looked the star in the eye. “It’s four sentences, Jun,” he grinned in disbelief with a mocking shake of his head. “Get in there. We can practice in the car after I tell you about the attendees.”
****
Yeonjun snuck his way into the sleek black car that would drive him to Lunoire Beauty Company HQ, a fresh face of smoky makeup and a capturing shade of lipstick, straight from Lunoire Beauty’s L’ADORATION DE LA LUNE collection. His makeup artist refused to do his face while someone touched up his hair, but after looking in the mirror with everything coming together, he found that he preferred the dark roots against the silver body anyways.
He’d sidled up next to Soobin, who was reading an email on his phone from under his cap. “Do you wanna practice, or are you good?” he asked absently. The only times Soobin ever got so blunt with him was when he was submerged in the vitalities of a professional appearance, and Yeonjun admitted to himself that he quite disliked it, but his closest friend had always been the no-frills get-down-to-business type. Probably a good quality to have in a manager.
He had, in fact, squeezed in a prac or two with the stylist, and after finding out that he’d be at a podium anyways, his faith in himself had taken quite the leap. “I think I’ll be alright,” he breathed and unscrewed the cap on a water bottle as the car accelerated.
“Good, because there are a few people you need to learn the names of.” His manager looked up at him and showed him his phone screen – a picture of a wrinkled man and his much less wrinkled wife smiling at a press shoot. Great – Yeonjun hated learning names of old people he’d never meet again. He hated the business side of his career in general, but this part especially.
“This is Kang Shin-Il and his wife, Son Mi Ryung, the CEO and founder of Lunoire. I doubt either of them will be at the presentation themselves, but they might make an appearance. They will, however,” he scrolled down the page and stopped at another man, who looked much younger and very… imperious, “definitely be sending their chairman, Im Byeongho. He’ll probably approach you at the afterparty, but nothing too serious.”
“Nothing too serious” was the indiscreet way of saying that Yeonjun was simply the celeb representative. He was their model, someone they could get an advertisement out of, maybe even a collaboration song. As long as he was wearing their primer in an up-close with their logo plastered underneath, he needn’t be bothered with the details.
“Any idea what he’ll say to me?” Yeonjun asked with a concerned arc of his brow.
Soobin brushed it off. “Eh, he’ll congratulate you and mention your comeback. You know what to do if he asks about a deal.” He switched to his browser on his phone and showed Yeonjun another picture. It was a girl and a boy, who looked roughly his age. “These are Mi Ryung’s children. The daughter is Kang Taeryung, who’s a law student, but just ignore her.” He zoomed in on the other child. “You should be much more concerned about Kang Taehyun, their son. He doubles as Lunoire’s feature model, and he’s recently finished filming for a Netflix drama.”
Already beginning a portfolio. It would take years for him to get an opportunity like that. Company offspring were always spoilt with chances and nothing earnt through hard work. What a pompous, unknowing asshole. Yeonjun wanted to sneer.
He looked at Soobin, who was already looking back. “Why?”
Soobin gave him a look and shook his head, like duh. “I don’t know, because he’s your key to getting into Lunoire’s good book? Befriend him, and you’ve sealed the deal on modelling, stocks, collaborations, even real estate. He could propel you into international recognition, get on his good side.”
The enthusiasm one could have for a business deal. Yeonjun didn’t really feel like making friends with him, if he was being honest. If only he had an eye for agency like his manager, then maybe he could make a compromise.
Then Soobin showed him a picture of the one and only. “I’m sure you know who this is.” Kai of EXO was attending.
****
Refined. That was the word for how Kang Taehyun was feeling in his satin suit. He slid his hands down the fabric around the collar, straightened his tie, struck a pose, and sighed contently. Today was a good day. An exciting day.
Taeryung shifted on the end of the colossal grey bed against the wall of her younger brother’s bedroom. “You better not fuck this up with your antics, Taehyun,” she warned when she looked up from her phone, and Taehyun swerved.
“I won’t,” he snapped back. “I know how to control myself.” He walked over and sat beside her to put on his shoes. Taeryung raised her brow and motioned to the rest of the room.
Taehyun widened his eyes at her and leered. The walls covered in posters and magazine pull-outs of Yeonjun said otherwise, along with the bookcase he had in the corner with a shelf full of every version of every physical album he’d ever released, even limited edition official CDs of his digital singles and debut song that had cost him a fortune. He had first release copies of all five times he’d appeared on W Korea’s front page, and an unused skincare kit that Yeonjun had sponsored in 2019. Not to mention the speakers at the other end of the room, which were playing Taehyun’s playlist dedicated to his songs and his songs only. Complete with an aesthetic icon he stole off Pinterest and cute symbols in the description.
“It was a horrible idea to let you represent,” Taeryung sulked and shoved a middle finger in the face of a pre-ordered poster featuring Yeonjun in cargo pants and a patched black tank, littered with chains and earrings and that incredible lip piercing that made Taehyun feel a way he couldn’t quite desribe, the possessor of an addictive voice that tickled the senses.
“You’re just jealous,” Taehyun sang and stood up with both shoes now on. He poured a glass of water from the jug on his desk and watched his sister scoff as she followed behind him.
“Am not.” She made her way over to him, her long dark hair flipping over her shoulder and her soft bangs billowing in his face as she lent in and poked his chest firmly. “I just know you’re gonna freak out when you have to shake his hand or something. You just aren’t the right person for the job,” she said sweetly and prodded his gut.
Taehyun crossed his arms to protect himself. “And you are? You’d bore him to death with your degree and cases and, like, criminal psychology or whatever. Let me have my moment.”
He couldn’t even finish his sentence before she let out a mocking laugh and adjusted her handbag higher on her shoulder, just as Taehyun’s advisor poked his head into the room to tell them the driver had arrived. Taehyun followed his sibling towards his door and stopped when she turned to him. Under her breath, pointing at him directly in the face, she gritted out, “Don’t fuck this up for us, Taehyunnie. Don’t. Fuck. This. Up.”
She spun on her heel and Taehyun grumbled to his advisor about how she was definitely on a power trip.
****
Maybe his sister was right, maybe Taehyun wasn’t the right person for the job. Maybe he should run away, just floor it all the way until he got past the miscellaneous attendees outside the event hall. Call his mom? His advisor? Introduce his sister and conveniently slip away?
He’d only caught a glimpse of his favourite idol when he passed the podium on to Yeonjun, who thanked him by name after his opening speech – which consisted of an apology that his mother couldn’t be present, reciting a list of celebrities and businessmen that were participating, formally introducing the L’ADORATION DE LA LUNE palette and skin kit along with a star-studded plethora of models, announcing future endeavours, and finally, thanking Jang Yoon Ju, Kai of EXO, Lee Sungkyung, Ahn Jae-hyun, and Yeonjun for their support and collaboration, as well as their appearance.
His head felt light when he stepped off the wide platform at the back of the room, which was torturously large when one had to walk amidst the dead silence of a waiting audience, and Taeryung gave him a subtle eyeroll when he stopped beside her, wringing his hands and glancing at her with glee. He would have retaliated with a sneer had a ginormous camera not focused on them, and they were suddenly obliged to smile side-by-side for a few brief shots.
Yeonjun’s presentation would be the first of several according to the schedule, but the minutes flitted by and soon enough the stability of the accomplished Kang Taeryung strode to a group of chairmen, reps, and their wives, leaving Taehyun to fend for himself in the sea of very rich, very clever, very shrewd guests.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Kang,” a man’s smooth, built-for-bargaining voice greeted behind him. Taehyun swivelled and caught onto Lunoire’s chairman’s hand for a firm handshake, giving him a quick bow.
“Hello, Mr. Im,” he replied with his best professional-y tone, and accepted the second glass of sparkling wine his senior was offering.
“Having a good time?” Mr. Im grinned and let go of his hand for him. “I was surprised that your mother handed you the responsibility of opening, but you handled it perfectly! I imagine your sister wasn’t as pleased?”
Ah… Rich person small talk. Taehyun should have seen this coming. He watched awkwardly as Mr. Im took a waiting sip of his wine before breaking into a laugh and nodding with a smile. “No, she’s always been a sore loser,” he said, feigning a secret, and the chairman burst into a chuckle. Fuck yeah, perfectly executed.
Mr. Im gave him a wink and took another quipped swig of his drink, which reminded Taehyun to do so as well. “As are most lawyers, but you didn’t hear that from me,” he chortled heartily and looked around. “How’s your series going?”
More small talk. At least now it was about something he kind of cared for. “I just finished filming a couple of weeks ago! It’s set to be available in a few months, hopefully.”
“Wonderful! I’m glad the Kang family has branched out into more… entertainment, public-based territory. You’ve certainly got the face for it, I can see you going very far with the right influence,” he cocked a playful brow and wagged a finger at him, downing his glass.
Of course he’d made his career about the Kang family, not him, the star of the show, literally. Oh well.
Mr. Im inhaled shortly and leant in, glancing around the room before muttering, “Speaking of, I can give you a poke in the right direction there.” Taehyun watched this very tall man looming over him wave his hand to people around the room, before it landed on a group of people crowding inwards. “I’m sure you know Yeonjun, yes? He’s not much older than you, I don’t think. That singer with the I don’t wanna dance, girl song?”
The song went I just wanna dance, girl, FYI, but he held back and simply nodded. “Mm.”
“Yeah, well he’s our next big ticket. All these other people like Yoon Ju and Kai and Sungkyung have been partners since we took off, but that idol is Lunoire’s step forward. If today goes well, he can be our feature model, right beside you, and I think he’ll take most kindly to someone more, his generation.”
Taehyun’s heart skipped a few beats before dropping dead in the pit of his stomach like a stone. “Do you want me to go talk to him?” It was less of an offer and more of an Oh God, Please Don’t Say You Want Me To Go Talk To Him. Mr. Im’s expression spread on his face like he’d just inherited something from an uncle he’d never heard of in his life.
“I would appreciate it if you did, yes.”
Whatever. He was going to talk to Choi Yeonjun, the most talented, sexy, amazing, gorgeous man the universe could ever throw at him. He was going to meet the man on his wall and on his Pinterest boards and on his playlists, even sometimes in his dreams. Man, they were always amazing dreams. And he’d get to prove to his older sister that he was capable of controlling himself. And like, help his mother’s company or whatever. Triple whammy.
“Sure, Mr. Im. I’ll talk to you later, maybe.”
Mr. Im beamed and clapped the junior on the shoulder. “Good boy! See you at the afterparty!”