what was your first impression of hueningkai?

I have a secret name for each of the TXT members (okay, they're not THAT secret, I've posted them on Twitter before). They were first impression names that I gave each of the boys when I saw CROWN for the first time. Hueningkai's was "You're Not From Here, I Can See It In Your Face." I had heard this rumor that one of the boys was foreign, and there's something about the lines of Kai's face that make it easy for me to tell. It's something with the spacing between his eyes and his nose, I can't explain it fully. But it's one of those things that you can just tell immediately, especially if you've been at this K-Pop game for a while, where you look and you're like, "huh, that's different." So that was my very VERY first impression of Hueningkai: that it was cool that companies were opening up to members that weren't originally from Korea. The last time I had heard of that was with the very beginning of EXO, and THAT ended well for everybody involved O.o

what is your impression now of hueningkai?

I think like the second ever video I saw of Hueningkai was the episode of T:TIME where Beomgyu steals his dolphin plushie. Ever since then, I especially see him as portrayed on social media and in stories as the cute, innocent maknae. Writing a maknae has its own special set of rules, but whereas you have to write Jungkook as the confident (and now sexy) Golden Maknae, Hueningkai is incredibly smol. He is Literally That Cinnamon Roll Who Is Too Pure For This World. If you could personify "moe" in a male form, it would be Hueningkai. Most likely to wear Angely Sugar. Would do. It doesn't help that the literal creator of Molang was celebrating his birthday XD

how do you write hueningkai?

When I write any member of a boy band as a character, be it BTS or TXT (or in my past, other bands), I try to think about the things that we do not see. In Hueningkai's case, we see how cute and pure he is, but I'm sure there are parts that we don't see about that. We see the pure on screen, and I'm sure it doesn't fully go away when the cameras are off. But Hueningkai's still a boy, and boys are gonna "be boys," and by that I mean that he probably plays Call of Duty in addition to Smash, probably drinks more than just the grape juice that can be shown on television, and probably has to be reminded about messes in the hallway and laundry day and body odor. I obviously don't know that for sure, but it's hard to believe that Hueningkai is pastel at all times. Teenage boys are a force to be reckoned with in any first world country. Just because Hueningkai is the King of Moe doesn't mean he's exempt from that.

The entire point of a maknae is to be cute, but Hueningkai, in my opinion, doesn't need to be babied. If there is something he wants, he will go get it. He has the ambition to make his dreams come true; he just ends up taking Molang and his other plushies along for the ride. A good example of this in my writing is in Dream On, Cinderella, this year's #BigHitPride entry which turns BTS into Cinderella. Kai is a prince from a neighboring kingdom, hanging out with his new friend Soobin at the ball:

"I guess you're as socially awkward as I can be sometimes," Kai said. "I'm not here for romance. I just wanted to dance, and to see if a business was still open."

"Oh, which business?" The socially anxious Soobin somehow found it easy to talk to Kai.

"Atelier Min, in the Garment District. A long time ago, we commissioned the owner for a series of dolls based off of local Huening wildlife. It's been a long time since we've done that, and my people have been asking me when there will be more dolls! They adore them so much!" He blushed. "And, well, so do I."

In this excerpt, Kai is still adorable, but he's also in the country on a business mission. He doesn't need his parents or his sisters to do it for him. He shows up at the ball, finds the people in charge of the Atelier, and by the end of the book, a deal has been made (that's not a spoiler). To me, beneath the cuteness of Hueningkai hides a secret drive to be as good as he can be, for MOA's sake but also for his own sake. But he never tries too hard; I could easily see someone like Soobin or Yeonjun trying too hard while Hueningkai simply gives his best effort, time and time again, and then makes peace with it. If he has a bad day, he doesn't dwell on it. (Unless it's really bad, and then he starts crying and the other members hug him and it turns into a hurt/comfort fic really quickly.)

what would you like to say to hueningkai on his birthday?

Don't be in too much of a rush to grow up. Any other company would put pressure on your head to think or say or do this thing one or a certain way, but I'm glad you're under Hitman Bang and you can just be yourself. Never compare yourself to any of your other members. If Molang makes you happy, then Molang makes you happy! There are some things that will have to change as you get older, but never let them make you change that core part of you. Remain as you are, Hueningkai. That's my wish for you.