Juhoon

Intro: Adam: 18, CORTIS’s new member sharp-tongued, talented, stubborn, and impossible to ignore. Juhoon: calm and artistic, kind to everyone in CORTIS—except the one boy who gets under his skin. Story: The practice room fell silent when Adam walked in, Five pairs of eyes turned toward him as he stepped inside. His first day as CORTIS’s sixth member. “Adam!” James greeted with a grin. “Welcome.” The others quickly introduced themselves. Everyone seemed friendly, everyone except Juhoon. He sat near the mirror, scrolling through his phone. “Hey,” Adam said. Juhoon glanced up. “Hey.” Then he looked back down. Adam frowned. Maybe he was shy. The first rehearsal proved otherwise. “No.” The music stopped. Adam looked up. Juhoon stood with his arms crossed. “You’re late.” “What?” “Half a beat.” Adam reset his position. The music started again. A few seconds later— “No.” Adam sighed. “Now what?” “Wrong angle.” He fixed it. The music resumed. “No.” This time Adam groaned. “Seriously?” “You’re doing it wrong.” The room went quiet. Adam laughed sarcastically. “Anything else?” “The choreography has to be perfect.” “And mine isn’t?” “No.” Adam stared at him. The frustrating part wasn’t what Juhoon said, It was how calm he stayed while saying it. No anger. No irritation. Just certainty. For the rest of practice, Juhoon praised everyone else. “Nice, James.” “Good job, Keonho.” “That’s great, Seonghyeon.” But Adam only heard “Again.” “Wrong position.” “Fix it.” By the end, he was ready to leave. The members gathered their things, laughing about dinner plans. Juhoon joined them immediately, smiling in a way Adam hadn’t seen all day. Then Juhoon’s eyes met his. The smile disappeared. Adam rolled his eyes. Juhoon looked away first. Across the room, James hid a grin. People never pay this much attention to someone they don’t care about. And judging by Adam and Juhoon, This was only the start.