Chapter Two
The older watched amusedly as Donghae’s lips formed the smallest of pouts. “This is it?” He asked, taking in his surroundings with disappointment. He had imagined what Hollywood would look like for days on end back at Mokpo. Donghae had imagined glamour and pageantry; something that would be spectacular enough to draw spectators on end as celebrities crossed the street flanked with many security guards. Anything rather than common hot dog stands and tourists clicking pictures of impersonators that no longer how quick a glance never looked like who they were supposed to.
Giving the crestfallen male a sympathetic smile, Hankyung finally answered his possibly rhetorical question. “Pretty much.” He responded simply, glancing around with little interest. Donghae had insisted he could find his way easily enough, however the older had protested. Hankyung had a car and plenty of free time that day; it was his pleasure to drive his new roommate to where he wanted to go. After a momentary pause, a slightly sly grin crossed over his lips as he continued, “I wouldn’t give up so easily though.”
Donghae raised an eyebrow, urging the other to continue as his curiosity was peaked. “These streets are just an attraction. No scout is seeking talent here.” He gestured to the crowds of bright eyed tourists with plain t-shirts and cargo shorts and small children that took everything with a naïve sense of awe. They pointed to the stars that dotted the cement, with peoples’ names engraved into them, seemingly giddy whenever they came across a name that they recognized.
The younger nodded slowly, wondering idly where scouts did search, when he realized Hankyung had moved on from the walkway and hurried over to rejoin him. Back at the other’s side at one of the crowded stands they had passed earlier, Donghae frowned in disapproval when Hankyung paid for a hot dog for the two of them. As the dark haired male squeezed mustard out carefully, they picked out a picnic table to sit at. Donghae was handed a paper tray with the freshly made hot dog and he thanked the other profusely. The older once again waved away every apology with a content smile on his lips. The two ate in relative silence, both rather hungry from searching every corner of Hollywood for a glimmer of interest. Donghae had not been impressed by the small, plastic snow globes or any other souvenir at the gift shops that lined the streets.
Donghae considered whether or not to bring up the subject of talent scouts again. His unemployment dawned on him and made his head spin with anxiety. The last thing he wanted to do was take advantage of his roommate, so he needed to contribute as much effort possible to help pay the rent and stock the fridge with food. Taking another bite of his lunch, he was just about to mention the topic casually when Hankyung suddenly leaned over the table. The former’s eyes widened as the other ran his thumb over the corner of his mouth before returning to his side of the table. Frozen in his seat, Hankyung’s cheeks seemed to darken as he showed the blob of yellow amassed on his thumb. “You had… mustard there.” He coughed, looking back down at his tray sheepishly. Donghae could feel his stomach swarm with butterflies; however he merely laughed the incident off.
***
“Hy - I mean Hankyung.” Donghae corrected himself, his lips turning up into a lopsided, embarrassed smile. The other did not seem to notice the slipup as is gaze flickered from the faulty television to Donghae’s intent, doe eyes. Hankyung’s eyebrows arched, prodding the younger to continue. Donghae had dropped the notion earlier at lunch; he had been much too taken aback by the older. He wondered how obvious the latter had found it when he was unable to carry on a very coherent conversation.
After they had come back home, Donghae had splashed water on his face in the bathroom and convinced himself he shouldn’t linger on what had happened a moment longer. He had retired to his room with the excuse of straightening out the rest of his things, however he ended up lying on the bed and staring blankly up at the ceiling. Sooner rather than later, he realized how immature he was behaving. Distancing himself from Hankyung was a poor decision to make when the man had been nothing but kind to him from the moment he had arrived there. When he had entered the room once more, his eyes settling on the older that was staring at the TV with a rather stoic expression - as though his mind was on another subject entirely than whatever was on the screen - Hankyung’s eyes had immediately brightened upon sight of the other man. The two had both sat in front of the television, sharing a fresh bowl of popcorn that was set in between the two of them.
Back at the present time, Donghae finally verbalized the question that had been lingering on his tongue for the past several hours. “… How are you making here? If you can’t rely on Hollywood for a job…”
The other was pensive, however nodded with a purse of his lips. “Well.” He started, taking a handful of popcorn and popping one of the kernels into his mouth. After swallowing, he continued, “As a dancer, it’s not easy to make it here. I get jobs here or there, being one of the dancers in the back of music videos or something small like that. Right now though, I’m trying hard to land a deal to be the permanent back-up dancer of Heechul.”
Donghae nearly choked on the own popcorn he had been eating. “You mean… Kim Heechul? One of the few Korean idols that is famous here in the States - even though his English is even worse than mine?”
“That’s the one.” Hankyung replied with a chuckle, before waving off the other’s comment, “He’s not that bad. And even if he was, I don’t think anyone is paying attention to what he’s singing.”
The younger’s nose scrunched as images of the rather androgynous male dressed in tight women’s clothing and high heels popped into his head. He supposed he respected the other for being able to get so popular despite eccentricities that would usually turn others off from his work. The older cleared his throat, seeming to realize he had led Donghae off on a tangent when he summed up his previous point. “His uniqueness makes him stand out.” Hankyung shrugged, “And with all the tours he does I would be more than happy to work for him.”
Before Donghae could wish him luck, the other finally added what he had been refraining from doing so up until that point. “If you really want to know the trick to making it in the entertainment business - it’s actually a rather simple concept. You need to get in with the right crowd; connections are everything here.”
“And I’m guessing you know who this ‘right crowd’ is, don’t you?” Donghae retorted, his heart pounding loudly in his ears as the start to success was just within his reach. With a foxlike grin, the other ate the last kernel that remained in the bowl.
“Of course.”