Chapter 14: CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Everything Thame had predicted came true at Winner Entertainment: the press release, the chaos within the company, and Jun walking in and out of Pemika’s office. When Po crossed paths with Jun by the elevator, Jun shot him a glance that sent a shiver down his spine.

Thame had instructed Po to act as normal as possible. He said he would handle Jun personally by visiting him on set. Thame knew exactly how to deal with someone as cunning as Jun. The only thing Po had to do was wait until Thame had Jun firmly under control before trying to interview him. If Po attempted an interview beforehand, Jun would surely outmaneuver him.

Po had asked Thame why they couldn’t focus on getting the other bandmates on board first - they could help deal with Jun. But Thame insisted that Jun had to be the first. “Jun is my closest friend,” Thame had said. Po didn’t understand; Jun and Thame seemed like complete opposites.

“When are you going to interview me, Mr. Director?” Jun teased casually.

“I’ll come to the set after you finish shooting.”

“You’re coming to the set?”

“Yep.”

Jun fell silent for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. Po could only hope Jun wasn’t planning to force the interview now. If that happened, Thame wouldn’t get the chance to speak with Jun, and Po was certain Jun would corner him.

“Alright,” Jun finally said, adjusting his cap before stepping into the elevator. He whistled a carefree tune as the doors closed, leaving Po relieved that things were still going according to plan.

Po turned to head back to his department, ready to tackle some unfinished work, when the elevator dinged again.

“Hey,” Jun’s voice called out behind him. Po turned to see Jun stepping out of the elevator.

“Let’s do the interview now. There’s probably a free room around here.”

Po gulped, his nerves kicking in. “But I think it’d be better if we did it on set. The atmosphere would....”

“Atmosphere doesn’t matter. It’s all about what I say,” Jun interrupted, flashing a wide grin.

“Grab your camera and follow me.”

“But I have a meeting with Mick.”

“Yeah, right,” Jun scoffed. “Mick hates meetings. He doesn’t work, does he? Anyway, I want to get this done now. Ah, there we go—this room’s empty.” Without waiting for Po’s consent, Jun pulled him into a nearby lounge.

Po thought to himself,

This is bad. None of this is going according to plan.

—

Jun, 22 years old and the same age as Thame, sprawled comfortably on a couch, acting as if the room were his personal space. Thame had warned Po about this tendency of Jun’s.

“Got a script?” Jun asked.

“Yeah, but it’s in another room. Can you wait a sec?”

Po moved toward the door, thinking he could use the time to warn Thame that Jun wasn’t going to the set. But before he could step out, Jun stopped him.

“Don’t you have it in your email? Everything here is usually sent through email for confirmation. Why do you need to fetch it from a room?”

Po froze.

This guy knows everything.

“I thought you’d want a printed copy.”

“AirDrop it. Don’t be stupid.”

Po clenched his fists slightly at the insult.

How does this guy even have fans?

Forcing a smile, Po sent the script via AirDrop.

Jun quickly read through it and nodded.

“Okay, I’m ready.”

“Alright, let me just set up the camera—”

“Wait,” Jun interrupted. “Are you sure I can talk about the game center like it says in the script?”

“Yeah, the script was approved by Pemika.”

“Cool.”

“Alright. Camera rolling. Can you say something about Thame?”

Jun’s demeanor shifted instantly from casual to professional, his expression becoming heartfelt and sincere.

“Thame, I’m really proud of you for getting this far, but I’m not surprised. You’ve always been talented. I still remember our trainee days, when you, Pepper, and I started together. You were so focused it was annoying -straight to the practice room, no distractions. And yet, somehow, we became friends, even though I once tricked you into ditching practice.”

Through the camera, Po could almost see the memories Jun was reliving:

him and Thame playing games at the arcade during their trainee days -racing, shooting, air hockey.

“I thought if you skipped practice once, your scores might drop just enough for me to make it to the next round. I figured you’d get scolded, and that’d be good for you. And yeah, we both got scolded. Pemika even found out it was my idea. But you…” Jun chuckled. “You lied and said it was your idea.

You told her you were bored with practice and dragged me along because you knew I’d come. You even said if I really wanted to sabotage you, I wouldn’t have stayed and played with you until the end.”

Jun’s gaze softened as he continued, “Honestly, I don’t know why I stayed with you until the end that day. I should’ve left to save my own skin. But being with you was fun, I guess. You said I was your first friend. Well, you were my first friend, too. Even if we’re not together in the future, remember this: I’ll always be your friend.”

Jun smiled at the camera until Po finally said, “Cut.”

Jun dropped his professional demeanor instantly, leaning back on the couch like he hadn’t just delivered a heartfelt monologue.

“Let me see how I looked,” Jun said, holding out his hand for the camera.

Po handed it over, watching nervously. He remembered Thame’s warning:

“Jun’s going to try to find the files in your camera,” Thame had said while locking up the suit shop. “If he finds the footage of me saying what I really feel about the band, he’ll know you’re involved and use it against you.

Transfer that file to another hard drive and delete it from the camera. Leave only the scripted footage.”

Po had followed Thame’s instructions, though he had been amazed at Thame’s ability to predict Jun’s moves.

“Also, if anything unexpected happens, call me immediately.”

“But you said the company might block you from coming to the building.”

“Then call me anyway,” Thame had replied nonchalantly, punching his phone number into Po’s contact list. He had smiled as he handed the phone back. “24/7, Po.”

Jun opened the file, but all he found was the scripted interview footage.

“Why are you looking at Thame’s files?” Po asked casually. “Weren’t you checking how you looked?”

“What I look at is my business,” Jun snapped, though he avoided eye contact.

“So, how did you look?”

“Handsome as always,” Jun replied with irritating confidence, handing the camera back. Po felt a small wave of relief; Thame’s precautions had worked.

As Po packed up his gear, he asked, “Do you need a ride to the set?”

“Not going,” Jun said casually, heading for the door.

“What?”

“I have something else to do first.”

“Like what?”

“Turn you in to Pemika,” Jun said, locking the door and facing Po. “You’re the one who made Thame like this, aren’t you?”

Po froze. How did Jun know? There was no evidence in the camera, was there?

TO BE CONTINUED.