From Thug to Idol: Transmigrating to a Survival Show

1026  Anti-climactic

The sun was barely peeking over the horizon as DAWN stepped out of Incheon International Airport. A soft glow coveed their faces, illuminating the post-concert euphoria engraved across every member's features. The boys waved with their signature smiles, the type that could light up a room—or, in this case, an entire airport.

Hundreds—no, thousands—of fans were there, holding up signs that said, "DAWN, the light of Korea!" and "Forever our sunshine!" Phones were up, cameras clicked away, and fans screamed at the top of their lungs.

It was organized chaos, with airport security guiding DAWN through the crowd as they blew kisses and made heart signs.

After the past incident when they first went to China, Phoenix knew better than to scrimp on security for DAWN. They arrived at the boarding gate and talked about the concert they had just a few nights ago. "80,000 people in total," Ren murmured, still in a trance.

He gazed at Akira, who looked equally dazed, clutching a handful of goodbye gifts and plushies that fans had tossed their way. "We sold out three nights in a row. The biggest dome in Korea."

"And all we had to do was threaten June to lift his shirt for once," Casper teased, dodging the playful swat June aimed at him.

"Shut up. I didn't even do it," June sighed. "They came to watch our performances." "Well, of course," Zeth said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "But if you're asking me, I believe they stayed because I showed my abs in the end." The group shook their heads. "Next stop, North America!" Akira exclaimed, raising his coffee cup high in the air. "It's still weird, though," Jisung said. "Most groups would start in Asia for their tour. We're going to North America all of a sudden." "That's because we're also invited to that international music awards show," Jaeyong said. "NTC?" June asked, frowning slightly.

"Are you kidding me?" Ren leaned back. "It's NTV, not NTC! The NTV Music Video Awards! Do you know nothing about Western media?"

June shrugged. "I don't keep up with it. I only have Navel." "Figures," Akira muttered, shaking his head. "I nearly forgot you live under a rock."

Even though they were exhausted, they couldn't help but feel excited for the new leg of their tour. Their first concert tour as DAWN was already shaping up to be a monumental success, and they were eager to meet their fans abroad.

The flight was a long one, with over ten hours of air travel before they landed at LAX. It had been mostly smooth—well, aside from Akira accidentally spilling his drink on June's lap mid-flight."

"You're not supposed to baptize me," June groaned, wiping the soda off his pants.

"Consider it a blessing," Akira smirked. "You'll need it for this leg of the tour."

June shook his head as the plane began its descent, with the iconic LAX landing strip coming into view. The group exchanged excited glances, imagining the crowd that would await them.

"I bet the fans are already camping outside the airport," Jisung said, practically bouncing in his seat.

"You think?" Ren grinned. "I can't wait to see their faces."

As they disembarked, the members were confident that the love they'd felt in Korea would extend across the Pacific. Their security team led them through the arrival gates, where they were prepared to greet the crowd of American fans.

Except… there was not a crowd at all. The members stepped into the arrivals area, waving instinctively, only to be met with a few awkward coughs and the distant sound of someone vacuuming.

The boys were so used to being mobbed everywhere they went that seeing such serenity made them feel strange. Casper was the first to break the silence. He turned slowly. "Uh, did we get the right flight information?"

Ren pulled out his phone and double-checked their schedule. "Yeah, this is the right time and terminal…"

"Hey, do people even know we're here?" Jaeyong asked, squinting to see if fans were hiding in the shadows. Zeth pulled out his mirror to look at his face. "Do they have a different beauty standard here?" Akira's face fell in disbelief. "But… we're DAWN. We just had a sold-out concert in Korea!"

"Maybe they don't get the news here," Jisung suggested, though he didn't sound convinced.

"Or maybe they just don't know us," June matter-of-factly added, sounding the most rational in the group. "I told you—it's hard to monitor matters when you're from the other side of the world. We're not known here." "Maybe they have really tight security," Sehun said, still not wanting to accept the fact that no one came to greet them at the airport! Even CHAOS was greeted warmly when they had their tour here! They walked a bit further, trying to salvage the situation. Akira, never one to be embarrassed, began waving again, this time more energetically, wanting to summon the fans with his enthusiasm. "Hello, Los Angeles! We're here!"

June sighed and massaged the bridge of his nose. "Akira, stop embarrassing us." A lone janitor, pushing a mop across the floor, looked up and gave a small, confused wave back before returning to his work.

"I guess that's our first American fan," Casper said with a snort.

Akira, clearly unwilling to accept this fate, pulled his hood lower over his face. "Maybe if I hide, it'll feel less awkward."

Casper clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, look on the bright side. No crowd means no chaos."

"Or it means no one cares," Akira muttered, sinking further into his hoodie. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

They shuffled through the empty terminal, drawing a few curious looks from travelers who clearly had no idea who they were. It was a sharp contrast to the packed crowd at Incheon, and the difference was enough to leave them all slightly deflated.

As they reached their van outside, Jaeyong couldn't help but laugh. "Well, that was anticlimactic."