June's face showed fury as he stared at Tyler King's retreating figure. It was monts like this where his past self resurfaced. Tyler's face didn't look like a human's anymore, but a re
target.
His eyes were dark, and his jaw was set in a way that could only be described as murderous.
Casper, standing closest to him, saw it first-the rigid tension in June's shoulders and the way his fingers twitched, ready to curl into fists.
"Oh no," Ren muttered, catching sight of June's expression. "He's about to lose it."
Jisung, sensing the storm, moved quickly, grabbing June by the elbow and pulling him back. "Not here, June," he chuckled nervously, trying to keep his voice calm despite the panic bubbling up inside him. "We can't make a scene."
"Let go!" June harshly whispered. He tried to wrench himself free, but Ren and Jaeyong were on him in an instant, each gripping one of his arms.
"Easy there, tiger," Jaeyong said, attempting to keep his voice light. "You can't just go around punching popstars on live TV."
"But did you hear what he said?" June retorted, eyes still locked onto Tyler, who was laughing with his entourage a few feet away. "He's freaking racist!"
Sehun patted June's back, trying to soothe him. "Yeah, we heard him," he said. "But you punching him isn't going to solve anything."
From a few feet away, Tyler seed to notice the commotion and turned back, smirking as he caught June's furious gaze. "What's the matter?" he called out, voice dripping with mockery. "Did I hurt your feelings?"
Before June could lunge, Casper stepped between them, raising a hand to physically block June's path. "Go away, man," Casper said coldly, his smile now replaced with a look of irritation. "Before he does sothing bad."
Tyler's smirk faltered for a mont, his eyes flicking back to June. He seed to assess the situation, eyeing June's lean figure up and down.
He felt a shiver run down his spine. Those eyes-despite him looking as delicate as a doll, it felt like he could murder him if he wanted to. Tyler gulped while the rest of DAWN dragged June away from the scene.
As soon as they were gone, he gave a dismissive snort.
"Him? Do sothing bad?" He turned to his manager, who had been watching the exchange with mild interest. "Who are those Asians?" Tyler asked.
"You're nominated in the sa category," his manager replied dryly. "Fans' Choice Award."
Tyler's eyebrows shot up, and then he laughed a loud, barking sound. "They're up against ?" Tyler scoffed. "Please. That award is mine."
"Co on," Jisung muttered, pulling June away before he could throw any more glares in Tyler's direction. "Let's just get to our seats."
"Yeah," Ren added, nudging June forward. "We've got better things to do than waste our energy on that guy."
June took a deep breath, trying to let the anger lt. He allowed himself to be dragged along, but not before casting one last glare at Tyler. "He's lucky," June muttered under his breath. "Lucky I didn't knock his teeth out."
Casper gave him a sideways glance. "I know, buddy. But we've got a performance tonight. Let's focus on that."
Jaeyong chuckled as they continued their way to their seats. "It's tis like this when June feels like one of the youngest."
"Nah, he feels the scariest," Akira chid. "I couldn't even crack a joke back there."
As they made their way to their seats, the atmosphere seed to lighten a bit. They passed by rows filled with celebrities, so of whom looked at them with curiosity, others of whom seed genuinely pleased to see them. When they finally reached their section, they were relieved to find they were seated next to Sabrina Thatcher again.
Sabrina greeted them with a bright smile, clearly happy to see them. "Hey, it's you guys again!" she exclaid. "You ready for tonight?"
"As ready as we'll ever be," Casper said, grinning. "How about you?"
"Oh, I'm not performing," Sabrina said, waving a hand. "Just here to present an award. But I'm excited to see you guys perform."
"Really?" Jisung asked, looking surprised.
"Yeah, of course!" Sabrina leaned in closer, lowering her voice. "You guys have this... energy. It's different. I like it."
"Thank you," Jaeyong said.
As they settled into their seats, the boys couldn't help but take in their surroundings.
It was surreal being here, surrounded by the biggest nas in Western music. They could see the likes of Ariana Freezer and Olive Rogers in the distance, laughing and chatting with their Taylor Sweep and the Jonas Sisters.
"You know," Ren said quietly, leaning towards Casper, "it feels like we're in a different world here."
Sehun nodded, his eyes scanning the room. "It kind of is, isn't it? Even though K-pop is making waves globally, there's still this...barrier."
"Yeah," Jaeyong agreed, frowning thoughtfully. "It's like we're accepted, but only to a certain point. Like, we're a novelty but not part of the main act."
Jisung sighed. "We get criticized for things that Western artists don't even have to think about. The training system, the manufactured image-people act like it's a bad thing without understanding the hard work that goes into it."
"And don't even get started on the language barrier," Akira added, shaking his head. "If you're not fluent in English, you're automatically seen as lesser."
June's thoughts led back to Tyler. He folded his arms across his chest, staring ahead with a stormy expression. "You should have let punch him," he said flatly.
Jaeyong chuckled in amusent. "I know you wouldn't be able to do it."
June grumbled under his breath. He just found a more annoying person than Joonie!
"Relax," Akira said. "Tyler King is the opener," he reminded June. "We're performing in the middle of the show. By the ti we're done, no one's going to rember his set."
"Of course," June said, a small smirk appearing on his face.
"We're the best at that. Performing-like we always do."
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