love in the spotlight | lee sangwon

✦ chapter 1 - the last days of trainee a

i still remember the smell of the practice room a mix of polished wood, sweat, and the faint lingering scent of coffee from the old vending machine in the corner.
it was october 2021, and for us, every second felt like it counted. trainee a was supposed to debut in just a few months. we had worked for years, survived the endless evaluations, and every sleepless night felt like a step closer to our dream.

leo was sprawled on the floor, stretching his legs dramatically as usual, complaining about his knees. sangwon was quietly going over the lyrics sheet, correcting a line in his notebook. and me? i was at the mirror, practicing the dance trying to get every detail.
it felt surreal sometimes, how close we had become. the teasing, the fights over choreo, the small victories when someone finally nailed a difficult move it wasn't just training, it was life. we were a unit. a family. a team.

but that's the cruel part about dreams: they can vanish in a single phone call.

i remember that day. the air in the dorm felt heavier than usual. our manager came in, looking hesitant. his phone in hand. he cleared his throat, and the world seemed to slow down.

"trainee a... i'm afraid..."

and then it came. the words that would echo in my head for months: "the debut has been cancelled."

leo sat up so fast, his jaw tightening. sangwon didn't even look up from his notebook. i felt my stomach drop. i couldn't breathe. the room felt smaller, tighter. i wanted to scream, to cry, to throw something anything but all i could do was sink to the floor, clutching my knees.

"it's... it's fine," sangwon whispered, though i could hear the tremor in his voice. leo just stared at the ceiling, jaw rigid.

i didn't want to leave the practice room that day it had been our world, our safe place. but slowly, one by one, we packed our things, boxes of clothes, notebooks, water bottles and the remnants of years of dreams.

and as we walked out for the last time, i realized something nothing would ever feel the same. not the laughter, not the late-night snacks, not the way leo would tease sangwon for being so serious, or how sangwon would quietly make sure i ate enough.

we promised, though. we promised that no matter what happened, we'd stay in touch. that this wasn't the end of us.

and i clung to that promise, because that day, trainee a ended... but somehow, our story hadn't.

— ⋆ ˙ author notes : ౨ৎ

this story start from trainee a in 2021-2022 to 2025 during boys planet 2.

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