Chapter Text
Youtube University: An academy for elite students with only the highest prospects of becoming professional youtubers. Attending the academy alone made you a household name. But graduation? You’d be written in the halls of Youtube Rewind History forever.
Amatuer youtubers like myself had no shot of attending. The baseline number of subscribers for admission was 50,000. And I had fallen short of that number by probably more than half. Yet despite everything, it was my dream school. Becoming a big youtuber was my dream.
Key word: was.
For by some strange stroke of luck, I had been accepted. Well… not as a student. Each year the school hosts a summer program where 10 rising youtubers learn how to bring their channels from niche to trending, and meet the requirements for attending the school. It was a highly competitive program, but somehow, I made it into the final selection. The silly little troom troom reaction videos that I had started filming in some bloke’s basement propelled me into the final selection.
So finally, after years and years of sitting behind the screen, I was finally stepping through it. And today’s my first day of school.
Wait! I’m going to be late!
I throw a piece of bread in my mouth and hum along to a copyright free song before speeding out of the house. I caught a glimpse of the bus as I ran down the street, but there was no time for its detours. I had only 12 minutes till my first assembly and that route would take 20!
I put my Gucci slides into sport mode and took off. Despite jumping over garbage bins and running over a few children, I managed to make it to school just in time. But as soon as I made it inside, my forehead collided with another.
The impact sent both me and the stranger hurling to the ground.
“You dunderhead!” they shouted, taking the time to look me up and down. I did the same. It was a short woman, her blonde hair tied in two pigtails and her piercing brown eyes tearing into my flesh. Baby Hazel. She was an upcoming youtube star, and despite her channel name, there was nothing ‘Babyish’ about her. She was a grown woman but… yeah. Idk.
One thing I was certain of, however, is the fact that at 45,000 subscribers, there was certainly no need for her to attend the workshop.
“Wait a minute… What’s your name?” she spoke, disgust written across her face.
“My name’s JoiBoi, Nice to–”
“So it is you!” She rolled her eyes. “I thought that instagram post was a joke. No way this Joinen wannabe is in the same set as me!"
“I’m not a–”
“Suck it loser. You just made me late for the assembly,” she said before getting up to brush off her dress. “Go home if you have any self respect.”
As I watched her walk away, I lingered in the hall for a moment.
A Joinen wannabe? That hurt.
I’m no wannabe… just a fan of his work. He was the person that inspired me to start Youtube. So yes, I may have stolen most of his video ideas. Big deal. And yeah, I may have copied his name a little… but don't people share names? And sure, we did look a bit similar… but so what? I wasn’t a wannabe.
I tried brushing it off, but for some reason the comment stuck with me as I got up and walked into the assembly hall. Just as expected, the assembly had already begun and I was the only student not seated. I quickly slipped into the seat reserved for me, ignoring the stares of everyone around. I didn’t belong there.
But before I could let the thought sow itself into my brain, the words were drawn out of me.
There he was: Long, golden beachy waves. A thick, scruffy beard. Full globes to fill out his cargo shorts. A pink hoodie to top off the fit.
My Idol.
“Joinen, I– I’m your biggest fan!”
“Joinen, we love you”
“Joinen, pose!”
Cheers erupted from the audience.
“Thanks, chat.” He said as he confidently stepped center stage. Nothing he ever did was hesitant.
That was Joinen. A prodigy among prodigies. He started Youtube just last year and already has over 300k followers… on his second channel. He makes people like me look sad. Yet somehow I was in his presence.
“You guys are about to embark on an insane youtube journey, and I’m glad to have been chosen as your mentor for this summer program. I look forward to meeting you all.” Like water, his words tickled my spine. I didn’t know what he was talking about. I was just too fixated on his dazzling orbs to care. And just like that, the assembly ended as quickly as it began.
And at the end, Joinen approached all 10 of us students to introduce himself. But as he walked up, I could help but notice that his eyes were locked on mine. Was I imagining that?
“Like I mentioned before, you all can depend on me for anything this summer. Hopefully we’ll grow closer” He said as his eyes flickered back to mine.
I had to be going crazy.
Before I could think on it more however, Hazel stepped out of the crowd and took his arm in hers. “Yes, hopefully we can grow… much closer.” She pouted. I cringe in every single capacity.
Joinen smiled before uncomfortably slipping his hand out of hers and beginning to walk backstage. And as he disappeared from the light, my legs got the sudden urge to run after him. I couldn’t not talk to him!
“Wait J-Joinen!” I shouted, still unable to believe that I was in the presence of my greatest inspiration. “You’re my idol. A-Any advice..?”
Joinen paused mid stride, flipping his hair as he looked over his shoulder–eyes tracing my stature.
“The Gucci slides are a good place to start, but… ” he smirked.
With that, my attention shifts immediately to his much cooler cargo shorts. From this angle, his globes looked ten times rounder than before. Youtube videos were a disgrace to this man’s true form. A throaty cough slings me out of the trance, and as soon as my eyes meet his, I know exactly who it came from. He caught me staring. Hard.
My first instinct was to explain myself–to tell him that it wasn’t what it looked like. But for some reason, every single word I had ever known ceased to exist. Especially as he turned to face me head on.
Without warning, he approaches my side and leans in… dangerously close to my lips. My cheeks turn Australian-Kangaroo red.
“...ditch the jeans,” he whispers against my skin.
And just like that, he was gone again: his globes swaying side to side as he walked out. I stood there breathless, my eyes glued to his pink hoodie as he walked away.
“Woah…” I whisper.