Hi hi! Welcome to today's episode. I hope you enjoy it. See you at the end of the chapter!
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"Do you think P'Zee will actually show up today?" Nunew asked Nat as they sat side by side, dabbing foundation on his cheek, trying to sound casual while hiding the excitement in his voice.
They were preparing for the company's 2020 calendar shoot, and the dressing room buzzed with stylists and chatter.
Nat shrugged. "No idea. He's unpredictable these days."
"He'll be here," the makeup artist said while lining Nat's eyes. "Everyone in the company has to attend the shoot." Then, with a curious tilt of the head, "Are you a fan of Zee?" they asked
Nunew's ears warmed as he nodded shyly, while lowering his eyes.
The makeup artist chuckled. "Most of the newly recruited nongs are his fans. But you guys joined at the worst possible time... he's not in a good place."
Nunew blinked. "What do you mean?"
"I heard he refuses to join any ship now," they whispered, lowering their voice to gossip range. "And he might stop acting BL altogether. The way his last ship ended must've wrecked him. He barely speaks to anyone. Doesn't trust people anymore."
The brush paused near Nunew's cheekbone. "He's... colder. Like he built a wall overnight." They added
Before Nunew could ask anything else, the atmosphere shifted, as if someone important had entered the room. Then Zee walked in and the Conversation died immediately. The makeup artist shut up instantly.
Zee greeted a few people politely but without warmth, then sat down for his turn. His presence felt heavy, but not to the point of making everyone uncomfortable.
He looked like he just wanted to finish the job and disappear. Just a man enduring the day.
Nunew found himself staring. His eyes followed the way the makeup brush traced softly along Zee's cheekbones, the way the artist treated him like something fragile like touching him wrong might make him break apart.
"So handsome," Nunew breathed without realizing he'd spoken out loud.
Zee turned and their eyes locked, Zee's cold gaze meeting Nunew's wide, startled innocent eyes.
Nunew expected the look in Zee's eyes to be indifference, maybe annoyance. But beneath Zee's icy surface, he saw something else: exhaustion, loneliness, disappointment that Zee was trying to hide.
It hit Nunew like a punch. This was his idol, the person he admired, someone he'd defended online and dreamed of working with. Seeing him like this made Nunew's chest tighten painfully. He wished he could fix it, even though he didn't know how to.
After a few long seconds, Zee looked away and the spell snapped and Nunew finally remembered how to breathe. He lowered his gaze, cheeks burning.
"Wow," Nat whispered, leaning in. "You held eye contact with him. I can't even look Max in the eye for more than a second."
"I didn't do it on purpose," Nunew hissed as they got up and moved toward the changing room. "What if he thinks I'm rude? Oh my God, I stared at him like a crazy person."
"You are a new face he might not even remember your face. He probably didn't even notice what happened," Nat said, "Relax."
But Zee had noticed.
As Nat and Nunew got up from their seats Zee found his eyes tracking Nunew's reflection in the mirror.
That look Nunew had given him... it burned into him. Like the kid had stared straight through the coldness and touched something Zee was trying so desperately to hide
After the door shut behind them, Zee's eyes lingered on the empty space where Nunew had been.
"Who's the kid in red?" Zee asked quietly.
"That's Nunew. He's one of the new nongs, newly signed to the company" the makeup artist replied, casually. They kept applying Zee's makeup
Zee didn't ask anything else, but when Nunew walked out of the changing room in his next outfit, Zee's eyes found him again without effort. The outfit was simple, nothing flashy, yet somehow it made Nunew look strikingly soft, innocent almost annoyingly adorable.
"This outfit is really plain..." Nunew complained to Nat, pouting as he tugged at the hem.
The little pout that followed made Zee's mouth curve before he realized he was smiling. He erased it instantly.
Why the hell am I smiling? He's not even that funny, Zee thought, forcing himself to stop paying attention.
He tried to focus on his makeup and not on the irritatingly adorable new Nong who kept tugging his attention away from the world he was trying so hard to stay numb in.
....
The shoot turned chaotic fast. With so many artists on set, the photographer kept shuffling bodies around like puzzle pieces. People stepped up, stepped down, swapped sides, rotated, squeezed together only to be rearranged again.
Nunew was pushed and pulled through formation after formation until, suddenly, he was placed right beside Zee.
"Nong next to Zee, relax," the photographer called out, squinting through the camera. "You're too stiff."
Relax? How was he supposed to relax? Zee-his Zee-was right there. Close enough that Nunew could smell the warm, expensive perfume clinging to his clothes. His heart kept beating hard against his ribs, and he couldn't stop shifting and twisting nervously like he was malfunctioning.
Then a hand settled on his shoulder.
Nunew froze, eyes widening. He didn't have to look to know whose hand it was.
"Relax," Zee murmured, voice low enough that only Nunew could hear. "It'll be over soon."
The words weren't commanding, but coming from Zee who was gentle, unexpected, softly spoken they hit straight through Nunew's nervous panic. His nerves calmed. His breathing steadied and he focused.
The camera clicked. The lights flashed. And for a fleeting moment, Nunew wasn't the trembling fanboy he was part of the frame beside the person he admired most.
When the shot ended and they stepped down from the podium, someone behind Nunew bumped into him. He stumbled, lost balance for a second, and.
His shoe landed directly on top of Zee's pristine shoe, leaving a large dusty mark across the leather.
"Oh-Phi, I'm so sorry," Nunew blurted, panic exploding in his chest. He bent down immediately to try to clean it, but Zee stopped him with a quick shake of his head.
"It's fine. I'll clean it later," Zee said, already turning away.
He walked off, leaving Nunew frozen in humiliation.
"I've just been making bad first impressions," Nunew muttered to himself, watching Zee head toward P'Aof's office.
His stomach twisted. Zee probably thought he was some annoying mess of a rookie who stared too much, talked too much, and ruined shoes.
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