"Growth spurt. Six months after he joined, this kid shot up like six inches. Just boom. Suddenly not so tiny anymore." He laughed. "People who met him after the growth spurt had no idea he was actually only ten. Thought he was thirteen, fourteen. We never corrected them."
"Why not?"
"Because it was easier. Less questions. Less judgment. Less 'he's too young for this' comments. We just... let people assume."
Soorin smiled. "Sneaky."
"Strategic. There's a difference."
They walked a bit further. Comfortable silence.
Then Haejin continued. Unprompted. Like the memories were flowing.
"You know what's funny? Jisoo's the reason we debuted."
"What? How?"
Haejin's expression shifted. Became nostalgic. Warm.
"The resort talent show. During our training retreat. We'd been trainees for years at that point. Working. Practicing. But no debut in sight. The company wasn't sure about us yet."
"What changed?"
