Chapter Text
It wasn’t uncommon for TeSTAR to get swarmed in public these days, which was why Park Moondae was currently walking down in Hongdae with a hoodie over his head and wireless headphones in place. He sent out a silent prayer that no one would recognize him.
He wasn’t alone, though. Seon Ahyeon and Keun Sejin flanked him on either side, keeping up a quiet conversation between themselves and casting occasional glances at Moondae without pushing him to talk.
They weren’t dumb. Even Sejin, for all his loudmouth antics and never-ending jokes behind and infront cameras, had the emotional range to tell when Moondae was exhausted. And Ahyeon, gentle and perceptive Ahyeon, never intruded unless invited. They both gave him space in their own ways.
Moondae appreciated it, even if he didn’t say so.
Instead, he kept his headphones on, the familiar voice of Huntrix’s main vocalist, Rumi, flooding his ears.
"I'm done hidin', now I'm shinin'~
Like I'm born to be..."
He stared straight ahead, watching the flow of people move past, but his mind was anywhere but here.
‘Born to be, huh…’
The song hit a little too close lately. Not because he related to the lyrics… well, not entirely. It was more the question that never seemed to go away: who exactly was he supposed to be?
He was living in someone else’s body. He had taken someone else's name. Every moment onstage was a performance, not just as an idol, but as a person. As Park Moondae.
Would the members still stand beside him if they knew?
Would the fans?
He exhaled quietly. No use spiraling here. He probably looked like he was spacing out as usual. He’s aware that his members know he’s prone to spacing out, although most of the time, it’s due to staring at his status window.
He reached up and pulled his headphones down to hang around his neck. His surroundings were louder now. There was a low thump of street music, distant chatter, crisp snap of someone’s drink being opened… and then, loud and joyful cheers.
Sure enough, at the end of the sidewalk stretch was a temporary stage setup for a standard busking gear: speakers, amp, a light rig, and a sizable crowd already gathering.
Ahyeon tapped his elbow softly, “Moondae, look. There’s a performance happening.”
Sejin was already grinning. “Looks like a new rookie group doing promo. I saw someone post about them earlier. Let’s go check it out.”
Moondae followed their gaze.
Five boys were already mid-performance. The choreography was sharp, aggressively smooth, like they were born for the stage. It wasn’t the usual sloppy busking attempt. These guys had professional timing, charisma, and presence.
Ahyeon swayed slightly to the rhythm, hands behind his back, smoothly entranced by the performance. Sejin, on the other hand, was already bobbing his head and mimicking a few dance moves with a grin.
The song was catchy… flirtatious and addictive, heavy on the metaphor.
"You're my soda pop~ My little soda pop~"
“Saja Boys,” Ahyeon muttered after reading the name in the banner behind the performing group. Then Sejin started snapping his fingers to the beat. “Damn. They’re good.”
Moondae might’ve agreed. If not for the status window that suddenly popped into his field of vision.
Attribute Scan [ACTIVE]
Target: [Name: ??????????] | Alias: Baby Saja
Race: DEMON
Vocal: B
Dance: A
Rap: S
Star Quality: B+
Charm: A+
Stage Presence: A
Special Trait: [Data Corrupted]
Condition: Death-Bound
His breath caught.
He immediately glanced at the others.
Attribute Scan [ACTIVE]
Target: [Name: ??????????] | Alias: Mystery Saja
Race: DEMON
Vocal: C+
Dance: A+
Rap: B
Star Quality: A
Charm: A-
Stage Presence: A+
Special Trait: [Data Corrupted]
Condition: Death-Bound
That wasn’t normal.
He grit his teeth and focused. He scanned the other two that had similar levels and painfully similar race attribute… and then one more scan. The one in the center with the strongest presence.
Attribute Scan [ACTIVE]
Target: [Name: Jinu]
Race: Demon
Vocal: A
Dance: A+
Rap: B
Star Quality: S
Charm: S
Stage Presence: S
Special Trait: Stealer of Souls
Condition: Death-bound – currently in stabilizing contract.
Moondae’s skin prickled.
“What the hell…”
“Moondae?” Ahyeon asked, glancing his way worriedly, breaking away from the spell like focus on the performance before them. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah” Moondae said automatically, forcing his voice to steady. “Just… surprised.”
But he couldn’t take his eyes off Jinu. The center of Saja Boys turned his head, as if sensing the stare and their eyes locked.
A slow, knowing smile curved on Jinu’s lips.
Moondae stiffened.
‘He saw me. Did he see my ability to see other people’s attributes. No… He shouldn’t know that.’
His stomach twisted.
But his body wouldn’t move. Like everyone else, he was caught.
The performance didn’t end so much as dissolve with glitter and cheers, polite bows, a casual step down from the busking platform.
And then, they were approaching.
Sejin noticed first. “Oh hey, is it just me or are they heading towards us?”
Ahyeon blinked. “Did they recognize us?”
Moondae didn’t answer. He couldn’t.
The five boys walked with practiced ease, all smiles and good posture, stage charisma barely turned down from performance mode. The black-haired center led the way. Up close, he was even worse… up-close gorgeous, with sharp eyes and a confident half-smile that seemed carved onto his face.
"Sunbaenims!" he called brightly. "We didn’t expect to see TeSTAR here. What an honor." The five members bowed with practiced ease.
Ahyeon beamed and bowed instinctively.
Sejin gave a quick bow, prefering to give a casual salute with two fingers and grinned.
Moondae just dipped his head in acknowledgment. His pulse was thundering.
“Are you guys out filming something?” the black-haired guy asked. “Or is this a break day?”
“Day off,” Sejin said, ever the group’s PR charm without giving away details. “But you guys really went all out! That choreo was tight. What's the name of your group again?”
“Saja Boys,” replied the demon-idol smoothly. “We’re still getting our name out there. Thank you for watching our performance.”
He gave another slight bow. The others followed.
Moondae noticed they all had different vibes. They looked like fanservice archetypes thrown into a blender.
“Moondae-sunbaenim,” the center said suddenly, turning to him with a deeper bow. “It’s really good to meet you in person. I’m Jinu, the leader and main vocalist of Saja boys.”
He extended a hand. Moondae blinked.
He knows my name. Of course he does. It was established they know TeSTAR. It’s definitely not because of anything eerie… right?
He forced himself to breathe. Image. Don’t mess it up.
“…We’re in disguise for a reason,” he muttered, forcing a faint smile that came in brand of him. “But thanks.”
A soft laugh. “You’re good at it. I almost didn’t catch you.”
Moondae finally shook his hand. As contact is made, his skin crawled.
In that instant, the demon’s expression shifted.
The smile almost faltered but managed to stay. The eyes didn’t. It narrowed and focused like he was reading a map on Moondae’s face.
“…Interesting,” he murmured. “You’re not what I expected.”
“I get that a lot,” Moondae deadpanned, pulling his hand back as subtly as possible.
In the background, one of the pink-haired demons had roped Sejin into a conversation about choreography styles. Another was holding Ahyeon’s phone for a selfie. They were too normal for… demons. Too charming. Ah, maybe that’s the point.
“Would it be alright if we took a quick photo together?” Jinu, the suspicious yet charming leader, asked.
Before Moondae could say no, Sejin chimed in: “Sure! Let’s do it.”
Moondae didn’t remember smiling. He barely remembered breathing.
The moment the Saja Boys stepped away, waving and thanking them again before returning to their newly gained fans, he exhaled.
Sejin was reviewing the photo. “Not bad. I’ll send it to manager-hyung later. It might go viral.”
Ahyeon tucked his phone away. “They really had stage presence.”
“Right? I couldn’t look away,” Sejin agreed. “They’ve got that… unexplainable pull.”
Moondae nodded once, hollowly.
Inside, he was still stuck on one word: Demon.
They walked in silence for another block before Sejin finally asked, “Hey, Moondae… are you sure you’re okay?”
Moondae forced a breath. “Yeah. Just thinking.”
“Was it that performance? They were really flashy, huh?”
Ahyeon nodded thoughtfully but not without awe, “They reminded me of an actual music video. There were so many things happening, I couldn’t explain it.”
Moondae, having an idea why, didn’t answer.
Instead, he put his headphones back on. The familiar swell of Golden filled his ears again.
“No more hiding, I’ll be shining… ”
But the lyrics felt off now.
They weren’t comforting. They felt like a spotlight.
He tugged his hoodie lower, heart still racing.
Why did the demon have to become aware of him?
[📸 @sajaboy_jinu | 2:11 PM | posted to Instagram]
busking today in hongdae 💋
thx to the sunbaenims who dropped by 🐾✨
#SajaBoys #SodaPop #streetstage
[attached images: 1. group photo with TeSTAR, 2. Jinu mid-performance grinning at camera, 3. fan-captured handshake with Park Moondae]
[🗨️ @ddaengiMoondae | 2:18 PM | COMMENT]
WAIT IS THAT TESTAR SAME-AGE LINE???????
[🗨️ @chungwoosideeye | 2:19 PM | COMMENT]
NOT THE OG TRIO THEMSELVES AT A RANDOM STREET STAGE 😭😭😭😭
[🗨️ @testarsloveiwer000 | 2:22 PM | REPLY]
bro had a full system reboot... moondae-yah, what happened?
[🗨️ @keunsesleftpinky | 2:23 PM | REPLY]
Is it just the 3 of them??? the same-age line are bonding 🥲
[🗨️ @EagleLeader_Chungwoo | 2:24 PM | REPLY]
bet chungwoo is already writing down a media response just in case
[🎥 Video clip reposted to Instagram Story: "SAJA BOYS meet TeSTAR?!"]
Caption: i was just filming soda pop for the choreo and then. AND THEN.
[Clip shows Moondae removing his headphones and blinking in visible alarm. The moment Jinu bows and calls him sunbaenim, Moondae’s hand twitches.]
[Clip ends with a zoomed screenshot of the handshake, with captions: "their eyes. do you SEE the tension."]
[🌐 trending hashtags | Korea regional trends - 2:45 PM]
#SodaPopLive
#MoondaeSunbaenim
#TeSTARxSajaBoys
#CenterToCenter
#JinuSmile
#MoondaePanic
#MoondaeTibetanFox
#BigSejinLostIt
[🧵 anonymous netizen thread - trending on music blogs]
- idk if anyone else noticed this but TeSTAR usually maintains a very polished casual image during outings.
- look at keun sejin and ahyeon—both dancing and vibing like pros.
- but moondae? bro was STIFF. his hands were CLENCHED.
- like that wasn’t discomfort. that was fight or flight.
- and i get it. did you see those Saja Boys? they were all perfectly styled archetypes. not a hair out of place. one of them blinked ONCE during a full verse. that’s not normal.
[🎬 Tiktok edit - user @icecoldyerim]
Audio: mashup of generic instrumental + Saja Boys' Soda Pop
Caption: when ur existential crisis gets an idol soundtrack 🎧
Clip: Moondae looking stunned while Jinu smiles like he owns the street
Ending screen: "Cunning vs. Nonchalant"
[📄 KPOP FAN BLOG: "Accidental Chemistry or Planned Viral Drop?"]
It’s not every day you see top idols mingling with busking rookies, but that’s exactly what happened when TeSTAR’s Park Moondae, Lee Sejin, and Seon Ahyeon crossed paths with Saja Boys during their performance in Hongdae. While Sejin and Ahyeon were all smiles and dance moves, Moondae looked... well, stunned.
Fans have speculated the moment wasn’t planned due to how uncharacteristically frozen Moondae looked. Yet others argue it could be a teaser for a larger collab.
One thing is clear: The Saja Boys made a lasting impression. One member in particular, Jinu, seemed to have caught the attention of our very own Park Moondae. With visuals out of a fantasy game and a grin that screamed confidence, his handshake with PMD has already become meme-worthy.
[🕵️ anonymous post on kpop-forum.kr]
i checked their performance three times. they're not normal rookies. they don't even have pre-debut content?? and one of them has a fanbase already despite no official profile release?? what management are they even under?????????
something about their aura style feels off too!!
anyone else think they’re AI mascots or holograms??
EDIT: some fans claim one of them had eyes that glowed in their fancam. no confirmation yet but... 👀
[📻 conspiracy blog post: "K-idol or Cult Entity? A Deep Dive into Saja Boys"]
by user: FringeTheoryFan
The sudden debut of the five-member group "Saja Boys" has raised questions. Their lack of pre-debut coverage. The abnormal synchronization. The uncanny charisma. The mystery entertainment label that they are under? Are they self-made?
Are they an experimental group? Occult idols? Or something stranger? We've seen K-idols debut under gimmicks—but this might go deeper.
I’ve tracked symbolic references in their lyrics, particularly the repeated motif of thirst and possession in "Soda Pop." There are ritualistic implications.
Keep your eyes open. Trust no one who grins that confidently while singing about addiction.
[📸 @sajababy_official | 3:22 PM | POSTED]
🍭 we luv our hyungs 💗 thx 4 stoppin by~ #SodaPopSugar
[photo: Abby Saja doing a finger heart with Ahyeon and Sejin grinning in the background with Baby Saja]
[🗨️ @softAhyeon | REPLY]
AHHH MY BABY SUNS !!!
[🗨️ @kimdokjaswifey | REPLY]
the aura battle here was insane i am sweating
[📷 Instagram story: @bigsejin_official]
📹: [selfie clip with Ahyeon, loud background music]
Sejin: "Did y’all see that?? Soda Pop goes HARD live. I almost joined in. Moondae, say hi!"
Moondae: [off-screen] "…"
Ahyeon: [laughing shyly] "hello loviewers!"
[📸 @fullmoonbaby | 3:55 PM | FAN ACCOUNT POST]
I KNOW I HAVEN’T BEEN POSTING LATELY BUT I JUST GOT BACK FROM A HIKE AND CAME HOME TO THIS.
Moondae looked SO good and SO nervous. He's so BABIEEEE. TT
SJB's own baby will have a hard time taking our MoonPuppy's throne
#FullMoonBaby #Moondae #WhatIsHappening
[🗨️ @jiwon_backdoor | COMMENT]
jiwon logging on after six hours to find 500 fancams, 80 edits, 20 gifs, and 1 death threat to someone who said Moondae flinched. why is it always like this 😭
[🗨️ @nielslatte | REPLY]
UNNIE YOU HAVEN’T CHANGED YOUR LAYOUT SINCE INC ROUND TWO PLS
[🗨️ @jiwon_backdoor | REPLY]
you’ll pry it from my cold dead hands
[📸 @fullmoonbaby | 4:12 PM | POST]
okay yes I changed my layout... BUT ONLY BECAUSE HE LOOKED SO GOOD. [image: cropped close-up of Moondae shaking Jinu’s hand, expression caught mid-blink.]
[🗨️ @moopup_enthusiast | COMMENT]
jiwon bestie I’m scared of the new group?? they’re hot but they scare me??
[🗨️ @jiwon_backdoor | REPLY]
they feel like the final boss version of debut trainees. like endgame content in a rhythm game. but I trust Moondae can out-vocal anyone!