CHAPTER 27: Taking Chances

WOOYOUNG
•••

"I see nothing but a heavenly made person right in front of me..."

The last thing I expected was to feel San's lips against my own again, but I wasn't upset in the slightest. Deep down I knew I had some growing feelings towards the male, so I felt a sliver of hope that the feeling could still be mutual despite everything that happened between us. However, as soon as I had a moment to realize what was happening and relish in the feeling, he pulled away and shook his head. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't have done that."

"Sannie, it's-"

"No, we had an agreement and I broke it. I'm sorry."

He attempted to make some space between us by walking back to his bed, but I quickly grabbed his wrist to stop him. "Hey, let me speak, please?"

With a slow nod, he sighed. "Okay...I'm listening."

"I was going to say it's fine..." I smiled, ignoring the bile in the back of my throat as I uttered the next few words, "I know you meant nothing by it and that's okay..."

San looked at me, and for a brief second I could've sworn I noticed a slight change in his eyes, but he smiled back at me. "I just wanted to encourage you to go for it and be confident in yourself...because I believe in you Woo..."

"Well thank you, I'll do my best."

There was lingering tension in the room for a moment, but he chose to speak up with a smile and break it. "How about this? Tomorrow, once you ace the audition, I'll treat you to a meal as a reward?"

"You just want an excuse to take me out again, don't you?" I teased, ignoring the fluttering in my chest at the idea.

"If I wanted to take you out on a date, don't you think I would've just asked you directly?" He smirked. "I don't need excuses for that, but I'm trying to maintain the roommate boundary here."

Internally cursing myself for even starting such agreement, I forced a smile. "Right...of course... but I'll only agree if I get the job. If I don't, then I'm not going anywhere but here to wallow in my bed with tears."

San shook his head with a smile before looking at me with all the confidence in the world. "I have a feeling you will get this job without even trying."

•••

It was now Sunday afternoon, the day that could mark a potential breakthrough regarding my current dilemma. Standing outside the massive skyscraper building, the one that was told to be the place for my audition, I couldn't help but feel a combination of mixed emotions. This was to be my last opportunity to find a job and start paying off my tuition. Part of me felt grateful for Yeosang, who managed to secure a one-on-one audition as promised for me to help with my nerves, but another part of my felt like an imposter for even showing up to such a place. In comparison to looks, Yeosang and the others all had something unique about them, which helped to make more sense as to why they even became models, whereas for me, all I could see myself to be was nothing but ordinary.

"You ready?" Yeosang asked with a excited smile

I muttered dejectedly. "...As ready as I'll ever be..."

"Don't worry, you will get this job and join me in the life of easy money." He winked before intertwining his hand with my own, pulling me towards the entrance excitedly. Rolling my eyes, I plastered on a smile as I tried to fight the nerves filling my body the closer we got. Upon entering, I was hit with people rushing by us in a blur, with conversations and phones ringing all around. My mind was instantly overwhelmed by the busy nature of workers, but Yeosang pulled me through the crowd with ease towards the front desk.

"Hello Mr. Kang, how can I help you?" The front desk woman asked with a smile.

"We have an appointment on the top floor, schedule for 2 this afternoon for an audition." He instructed. "Are the secretaries here?"

The woman nodded, her smile growing even wider in realization. "Yes, of course. Please go right on up, and best of luck to you Mr. Jung."

"T-Thank you." I nodded, not even having a chance to fully bow before Yeosang pulled me towards the elevators.

Standing in front of the glass doors, I watched as he pushed the 'up' button before turning to me. "You alright?"

Forcing a smile, I nodded. "It's just a little overwhelming...that's all. How did she know who I was?"

"Because I told her when making the arrangements, duh." Yeosang chuckled. "Don't think about it too much, Woo. You got this in the bag."

"I wish I had as much confidence in myself like you and San do..." I whispered, more to myself than anything.

Yeosang visibly tensed for a moment before relaxing his shoulders, noticing the arrival of the elevator cart reaching the ground. "It's here, let's go."

As soon as the others had cleared out the way, the two of us stepped inside, watching the doors close before beginning its ascend to the designated floor. With each floor increasing, I could slowly feel myself become self conscious in my outfit. "Are you sure this outfit is good enough?"

"Of course it is! Yellow is definitely your color, and the point is to show diverse style. You're beautiful Woo, no matter what you wear." He smiled, squeezing my hand reassuringly before looking back up at the passing floor numbers

Fighting back a blush, I nodded, feeling a little more confident about the upcoming moment. Internally, my nerves were at an all time high, but I knew I had to mask it as best as possible to secure this job.

Reaching the top, the doors opened to an empty floor, a stark contrast to the commotion below. I gave Yeosang full control in pulling me towards the audition room, trying my best not to let my nerves get the best of me in the process.

"We're here." Yeosang smiled, opening up the door to reveal a spacious studio. There were different kinds of props and backdrops, such as an earthy grass wall or a black velvet couch ensemble. However, there was one particular setup that brought a blush to my face:

A red room with BDSM toys

Clearing my throat, I noticed two males standing up from their chairs before striding over to us with smiles. Yeosang greeted them before gesturing to me. "This is the man of the hour, my best friend Wooyoung."

"Wow Yeosang, you weren't kidding. Are you sure he needs to audition?" One male gasped.

The other one rolled their eyes. "Per instructions Yujun, we have to audition him. Even though it seems like a waste of time consider how he looks."

"Woo, this is Yechan and Yujun. They are the top secretaries of the company." Yeosang introduced.

Yujun held out his hand with a smile. "Pleasure to meet you, Wooyoung. I'll be the one taking your pictures today."

"And I'll be styling you in three outfits. It's nothing crazy, but we just want to see which style fits you best, that's all." Yechan concluded.

Nodding silently, I looked over at Yeosang before turning to the two. "Can Yeosang be here? It'll help me feel more comfortable..."

"Of course! If anything, he can help you with poses as well if you need extra assistance." Yujun grinned.

Yechan, however, interjected with soft smile. "He can be here for two of the shoots, but the last one has to be alone. We need to see how well you can do in single portraits, if you understand what I mean..."

"No I understand. That's not a problem."

The two males nodded and began to converse amongst each other while Yeosang turned to me with an encouraging smile. "Woo...don't worry. You can do this, okay?"

"I just...don't wanna mess up." I said sadly. "I feel like I can't even breathe in here properly without fucking up."

With a soft squeeze of hand, he shook his head before leaning next to my ear. "These two are the easiest people to impress, trust me. You will get the job, even with your eyes close shut."

Giggling, I smiled and nodded. "Thank you Sangie...seriously."

Yujun clapped his hands with a smile before looking over at me. "Alright Wooyoung, you ready to start?"

"Let's do this."

•••

"Turn to the left...perfect. Yes with the slight tilt of head...awesome Wooyoung!" Yujun grinned while clicking away at the camera.

We had finished up with the first two shoots with little hiccups and now with the last one, I could my confidence radiating. Yeosang helped with the first one regarding posing, which consisted of the outfit I had arrived in: a yellow button up top with light blue jeans and white sneakers. After that shoot, I chose to do the second and last one by myself, almost in a way of proving to myself that I indeed had the capability of doing this.

The second outfit was completely opposite from the first, which consisted of black top with leather jacket and pants, as well as a fake lip ring. Overall the outfit was dark, but somehow I found myself liking the edgier look over the first. Throughout the whole process, I could see why Yeosang chose to do a job like this, as the idea of taking picture in different color identities was more fun than I imagined.

Now with this last shoot, which was just a simple white shirt with denim jeans, I could already envisioned myself working here. Both Yujun and Yechan were very encouraging in their own ways, the two of them giving compliments and constructive criticism to allow my best performance for the audition. Deep down I was still worried of not obtaining the job, but part of me could see that the worry was for nothing.

"And....we are done! Great job Wooyoung!" Yujun smiled, placing the camera cover lense on before turning to the other male with the back previews. "You see how awesome these came out?"

Yechan nodded with a soft smile. "You did amazing, truly. You're a natural talent."

"Thank you for the chance..." I smiled, bowing softly before making my way back to the changing rooms. However, Yechan called out to me to stop. "Wait a minute, please."

Raising an eyebrow, I turned to the male curiously. "Is something wrong?"

He shook his head with a smile. "We actually have been sending the photos to our boss to allow you an answer right away regarding your hire."

My breath hitched, and before I could question further, a phone ring was heard throughout the studio. Yechan reached into his pocket and his smile grew even bigger as he placed the phone to his ear. "Yes sir, hello..."

Nerves grew within my stomach as Yechan continued on the phone, exchanging a few 'yes' and 'no's along the conversation. However, I could feel my throat choke up as he concluded the call, turning around to me before speaking to Yujun. "Call in Yeosang, for me please."

"Yeosang, you can come in now!" Yujun yelled while packing up his camera equipment.

On cue, Yeosang stepped back inside the studio and rushed over to me with curious eyes. "Are you guys all done?"

"Yeah, and I wanted you to be here for this." Yechan smirked for a moment, before breaking out into a smile.

"Congratulations Wooyoung, you're hired."