Chapter Text
Mira couldn’t fucking believe she was actually here, at this lame ass camp. Her driver pulled up to the entrance, choosing wisely to avoid announcing their arrival lest Mira bite his head off. She sneered at the welcome sign, painstakingly hand-painted with a tacky explosion of flowers and doves, trees and crosses, all surrounding that stupid name and motto.
Camp Saja - Stars Advancing Jesus’ Agenda.
Mira knew of the camp long before her parents lured her into its stifling embrace. A Christian camp meant for aspiring idols rapidly hurtling towards aging out of their debut period. Toted as the last chance for fame hungry young adults seeking to enter into Korea’s KPop scene, Camp Saja was known for its ability to take disastrous prospects with adequate talent and turn them into squeaky clean stars less than three months after stepping foot onto the remote campus.
Wealth and notoriety couldn’t be further from Mira’s mind, however. All she’d ever wanted to do was dance, and maybe help other people like her, who were stifled and misunderstood, find freedom in moving their bodies too. She’d gladly trade away her family name and inheritance for a quiet dance studio tucked away towards the outskirts of Seoul, a desire that her parents used to their advantage.
After she’d been fired from the most recent business-adjacent job that her father secured for her, they’d given her an ultimatum. She could have her freedom, alongside enough money to open her dance studio without any interference from them. They’d let her detach herself from the Hong family name, with all its suffocating responsibilities and stuffy formalities. She could finally get out from under her parents’ thumbs and discover how it felt to take a fucking breath for once -
- If she completed a summer at Camp Saja, cleaning up her act and allowing her parents time to craft a story to support her quiet exit from the family and their business.
Mira almost hadn’t taken them up on their offer, wanting to prove her independence and reveling in the idea of a messy separation tarnishing her family’s good name. But she’d done the math, calculated all the expenses she’d have if she moved out and opened a studio. She figured two months of hell was worth bypassing the years of struggling she’d experience if she was all on her own.
So here she was, muddying her designer boots with the tightly packed dirt lining the entrance of the main lodge. She ground her teeth together as she looked around, catching glimpses of other campers sitting on rocks playing guitars and laying in stacked hammocks harmonizing with their newfound friends. Mira could sense the thinly-veiled desperation seeping off them, the all-consuming need they hid behind easy laughs and wide smiles to make something of themselves before it was too late. She caught a few of them staring, her pink hair and resting bitch face confirming the suspicions that Hong Mira would be slumming it with a bunch of wannabe hopefuls for the summer.
Mira rolled her eyes and slipped her sunglasses on, tuning out a much too chipper camp staffer excitedly promising her a life-changing summer. Just 68 days until she could be done with these losers and start a brand new life away from anyone who knew to attach her to the Hong family.
- - -
Zoey couldn’t stop her leg from bouncing against the seat as her bus arrived at Camp Saja. Truthfully, she was pretty sure she hadn’t stopped visibly vibrating since receiving her acceptance in the mail a month ago. Thank God it was accompanied by a scholarship courtesy of some Korean Christian rapper who made it big after a summer at Saja and wanted to “see more God-fearing rappers like him” break into the industry, or she never would have been able to afford such a prestigious program. Ultimately, she didn’t care what self important B-list idol was footing the bill; Zoey knew she belonged in a place like this, surrounded by other young creatives busting at the seams to share their craft with the world.
Zoey was less confident about fitting in with the other potential idols. Making friends had never been her strongest suit, and that was before adding the whole Jesus thing to the equation. Sure, Zoey believed in God in an abstract way, just like she looked at nature as something of a higher power. Plus, she’d attended Christmas services with her parents every year when she was little, but she’d been more drawn in by the twinkling candles, organ music, and six-part choir than she’d cared about a little baby inside a barn. Still, this was her chance to learn from some of the best in the industry - she’d even heard a rumor that Ryu Rumi was this year’s peer mentor (!!!) and she wasn’t about to waste a moment.
Zoey pulled the cord to alert the bus driver of her stop, even though she’d been the only passenger on the bus for the last 25 miles. She grabbed her suitcase from the compartment above her seat, nearly toppling over from the distribution of weight against her small frame.
“Everything okay back there?” The driver asked, concerned about the status of her spine.
Zoey straightened her yellow bucket hat and grinned brightly. “I’m all good! Just excited for camp.” She giggled, feeling a little bit like a school girl on her first day of kindergarten, rather than a young adult stepping into a potentially life-changing possibility. She walked to the front of the bus, waiting expectedly by the door. The driver, Zoey could see now from his ID that his name was Bobby, looked her up and down, taking in her oversized hoodie, giant hiking backpack, and well-worn suitcase.
“This is your stop?” He asked incredulously.
Bobby’s surprised tone didn’t phase Zoey, after all, she was used to people not taking her abilities seriously. She just grinned wider and answered, “Yep! I’m a Saja girl now!”
A small smile pulled at Bobby’s lips, nearly concealing a spark of worry in his eyes. “Take a bus schedule,” he added, shoving a pamphlet into Zoey’s hands. “We don’t get out here every day. Wouldn’t want you to wind up stranded.”
Zoey laughed, brushing off his concerns. “Don’t worry Bobby, the camp takes care of all our transportation needs.”
Bobby couldn’t keep a small grimace from his face. “They do seem to have a hand in everything out here, don’t they.”
Zoey just smiled and picked her belongings up off the bus floor. “Bye Bobby!” She said with a wave, skipping out of the vehicle. “Maybe I’ll see you at the end of the summer!”
Bobby raised his hand back to wave, muttering under his breath. “I sure hope so, kid.”
Zoey scrambled off the bus, tripping over her shoelace in the process, just barely righting herself before she landed face down in the dirt.
“I’m fine!” Zoey shouted instinctively, as a woman just a few years older than her rushed over to help her.
“Oh don’t bother with that,” the woman shouted as Zoey attempted to juggle her bags again. She waved her hand and two young men with muscles bursting out the sleeves of their Camp Saja button down shirts appeared seemingly out of nowhere. “The boys will take your things ahead to your cabin.” Zoey noticed the woman examining the spot on her duffel bag where Zoey had haphazardly stretched a strip of duct tape over a large rip in the seam. “Be careful with them,” she instructed the boys, who both nodded before lifting all her luggage over their shoulders and sauntering away.
“You must be Zoey,” the woman asserted, warmth radiating through her tone. “I’m Na-bi, one of the directors here at Camp Saja.”
Zoey matched her smile and reached out her hand in introduction. “That’s me!”
Na-bi ignored Zoey’s hand and pulled her into a bone crushing hug. “We are just so excited to have the inaugural recipient of Si-Woo’s “Rap for Rapture” scholarship here with us!”
A small giggle escaped from Zoey’s lips upon hearing the name of the grant again, unable to contain her opinion of the cheesy name. Na-bi didn’t seem to find the situation as humorous.
Zoey quickly warped her face into something more respectful and nodded sagely. “I’m honored to have been chosen.” Zoey thought of the long hours she spent working on her application, all the rewrites and mixing that went into the final tape she sent to Saja’s talent team, and smiled with more genuine excitement. “I’ve heard amazing things about Camp Saja, but I never dreamed I’d be able to attend myself!”
Na-bi clasped her hands together eagerly. “Isn’t it just wonderful how God seems to work things out?”
Zoey squeezed her mouth shut and nodded gently, unsure how else to respond to the director’s exclamation.
“Let’s get you all settled in!” Na-bi flipped through her clipboard until she found what she was looking for. “I have you in our west-most dorm, Joyful Noise.” She motioned for Zoey to come with her. “You’re going to love the location, it looks out on such a beautiful section of the lake! And the dock over there is the perfect spot for morning devotions.”
This time, Zoey knew better than to laugh at the camp’s ridiculous naming tendencies and instead followed closely behind Na-bi, excitement and nerves fluttering in her stomach as she let herself be led further into the campus.
- - -
Rumi was double checking her packing list when Celine sat down carefully on the edge of her bed.
“I still don’t understand why you want to spend an entire summer at Camp Saja of all places.”
Rumi paused and took a deep breath, counting to three before releasing it quietly out pursed lips. She should have known her aunt would bring this up again right before they had to leave.
“We talked about this Imo,” Rumi noticed Celine relaxing minutely at the term of endearment. “It’s going to be a great opportunity for me to practice what I’ve learned and help other young potential idols.”
“You’re the potential idol here Rumi,” Celine responded sharply. “Although I can’t imagine why.”
Rumi rolled her eyes at Celine’s dramatics. “I told you, I’m not ready!” She glanced down at her phone and huffed when she saw the time. “The car will be here any minute, I have to go.”
Celine stood silently, lifting a lone tank top from Rumi’s bag and refolding it precisely. “I just don’t want to see you throw away God’s plan.” She reached around Rumi and shut the suitcase, zipping it closed. “Mi-Yeong wanted nothing more for you.”
Rumi bristled at the mention of her mother. Of course she wanted to become someone Mi-Yeong would be proud of - she held her mother’s approval second only to God’s, but Rumi needed space. Time away from her aunt’s prying eyes and all the expectations that came with being the talented daughter of a famous Christian Idol.
She needed to go somewhere she could hear God’s voice without all the other noise.
Grabbing the suitcase off her bed with finality, Rumi turned to face Celine. “Camp Saja is where I'm supposed to be right now, Imo. Trust me.”
Celine’s shoulders dropped in resignation. “If you say so.”
Rumi wrapped her arms briefly around Celine’s waist. “Plus it’s only 2 months.”
Celine froze in surprise at the gesture, but returned Rumi’s hug. She pressed a soft kiss into her hair before pulling away and meeting Rumi’s eyes. “You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” she said firmly. “You can always come home early. You know the record company would represent you tomorrow if you let them.”
Rumi ignored the impulse to scoff aloud. If the executives had their say, they would have signed her before she could toddle.
“Thanks, Celine, but I’m going to be okay.” Rumi grabbed her things, resisting help from one of Celine’s assistants, her smile uncannily wide. “See you at the end of the summer!”
The moment Rumi shut the car door, she felt like she could breathe fully for the first time in months. She would always be grateful to Celine for taking her in, but the strict rules and pressure to become the perfect role model and idol weighed Rumi down some days.
When Rumi started seeing signs for Camp Saja, her excitement increased tenfold. Since she’d practically been born into the industry, everyone felt she would make a good mentor to the less experienced students. Rumi tried to argue, stating that she was interested in learning from Saja’s core values of dedication and faith rather than relying on her industry connections to jumpstart her career. In the end, an agreement was reached that allowed Rumi to attend music and personal development classes with other campers while also committing to hosting her own workshops on professionalism and the expectations of idols. While Rumi hoped she would be able to blend into the background this summer, she knew Celine never would have agreed to her registering as a standard camper.
Still, Rumi hadn’t expected all the fanfare the camp staff welcomed her with upon her arrival. A woman Rumi recognized as one of the camp directors greeted her brightly. “Ryu Rumi!” She shouted excitedly and bowed deeply. “We are ecstatic that you’ve chosen to bring your talents to Camp Saja this summer.”
Rumi bowed in response, hoping the gesture would ease the formalities. “You’re Na-bi, correct?” Rumi asked despite already knowing the answer. “Thank you for all your help setting up my accommodations for the next few months.”
Na-bi grinned brightly. “We want to make sure you receive the best treatment available at our campus.” She gestured for other staff members to take care of Rumi’s luggage. “I’d love to show you around once you’re more settled. We have someone ready now to take you to your private quarters on the north end of the island.”
A golf cart materialized next to Rumi as a young man quickly hopped out of the vehicle and offered his hand to help her board. Rumi politely stepped back from the transport and turned to Na-mi in confusion. “I wasn’t expecting my own cabin, in fact, I was looking forward to bunking with some of the other campers.”
Na-mi’s face paled at Rumi’s request. “I can’t set you up in one of the dorms! While we pride ourselves on the comfortability of our lodging, it wouldn’t be appropriate for someone of your status.”
Rumi smiled kindly but firmly and walked over towards her belongings. “And I can’t spend a summer tucked away alone in a residence so far away from the heart of the camp.” She took one of the larger bags out of the arms of a bewildered staff member. “Also, I’m completely capable of helping transport my things.”
Na-mi’s cheeks now flamed red, although Rumi couldn’t tell if it was out of embarrassment or anger. “Are you sure you want to stay in our main cabins?”
Rumi nodded with finality “Absolutely positive.”
Na-mi shook her head and sighed aloud, dropping the niceties. “Ro, will you please notify the housing staff about this change?” She faced Rumi again, tone clipped with annoyance. “Am I to assume you will insist on being placed in the same room as another camper?”
Rumi’s posture relaxed as she relished her victory. “That is correct. I would like to be treated as any other camper enrolled at Saja.”
One of the male staff members behind her snickered before schooling his face into a more neutral expression. Na-mi’s head whipped towards the sound, singling him out from the small crowd of staff that had gathered to assist with Rumi’s arrival. “Thank you Jinu for volunteering to accompany our respected guest to her new accommodations.” Her tone dripped with sarcasm.
The young man Rumi now knew was named Jinu reached a hand up to rub at his neck which was tinged pink with embarrassment. “Of course. Miss Ryu, please follow me.”
Jimu led Rumi back to the golf cart, but Rumi picked up her bag and started off in the other direction. “I’d much rather walk if that’s okay with you, Jinu.”
Jinu looked at her incredulously before turning off the golf cart. “Whatever you say, ma’am.”
Rumi cringed at the moniker, about to correct him when Ro returned and whispered something in Na-mi’s ear. Na-mi, now free from any pretenses, groaned aloud.
“Miss Ryu, it seems that all of our double rooms already have campers residing in them. It will take us a few moments to rearrange bunks.”
“What about Joy?” Jinu asked, clearly not afraid to speak out of turn. “The lake side room is surely big enough to become a quad.”
If Na-mi could shoot lasers out her eyes, Rumi suspected there would be a singed mark on the ground where Jinu currently stood.
“Jinu, if you’d been listening during our staff meeting earlier, you’d know that we assigned Lake Side to our most esteemed traditional camper and our scholarship recipient.”
Rumi’s eyebrows raised at Na-mi’s statement and found herself wondering who the two women placed in Saja’s best cabin were. Presumably, one of them was a prodigy while the other likely commanded some type of financial influence. The roommates sounded as opposite as night and day, but Rumi chose Camp Saja to get to know all different types of people.
Plus, Celine would be proud of her for making the most of a networking opportunity.
“That sounds perfect,” Rumi responded with a little too much force. “Plus a view of the lake would be lovely.”
Jinu laughed again and gave her an incredulous look. Rumi had a feeling the original lodging she’d been offered held much more than a glimpse of the water.
Na-mi sighed and made a note on her clipboard. “I guess that will be fine, we just need to move an extra bed into the room.” She nodded towards Jinu. “Take care of that too.”
Jinu groaned loudly, nearly covering a few chuckles at his misfortune from the other staff. He motioned for Rumi to come with him along one of the well-worn paths to their left. “Make sure to drown me in the lake when we get there, would you?”
Rumi chuckled and followed closely behind Jinu. “So, do you know about these girls I’ll be living with?”
Jinu smiled slyly. “They’re both hot as hell.”
Rumi felt her face warm at the thought. She shook her head to clear it. Obviously she’d just been responding to Jinu’s rude comment. And okay, maybe she was a little curious to meet these pretty girls that made such an impression in Jinu’s otherwise empty head.
Rumi coughed to cover her embarrassment. “I was looking for something more than a superficial note about how gorgeous they are.”
“I never used the word gorgeous, gorgeous.” Jinu said with a wink.
This time, Rumi’s cheeks grew red from anger. She flipped her long braid over her shoulder, hitting Jinu across the face in the process.
“Hey, watch it!” Jinu exclaimed.
Rumi snickered and shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe don’t talk about women like that and you’ll stop getting knocked around by a girl.”
Jinu rolled his eyes. “You won’t have any problem fitting in with your roommates.”
“What does that mean?” Rumi inquired suspiciously.
“Why don’t you see for yourself.” Jinu stopped in front of a small quaint log cabin before cupping his hands around his mouth. “Mira! Zoey! Your new roommate is here!”
A short, small girl wearing two twin buns came bursting out the front door and down the steps, squealing the entire way. Trailing behind her was a second woman with long pink hair and even longer legs. She leaned against the exterior wall, a small, honest smile pulling at her lips as she watched the other girl launch her body into Rumi’s arms.
Rumi gulped when she caught the taller girl’s gaze, her eyes staring into Rumi’s with quiet, reserved interest.
“Hi, I’m Zoey,” the smaller girl muttered into Rumi’s shoulder before throwing her thumb over her shoulder. “And that tall glass of water over there is Mira!”
Rumi blushed deeply, refusing to look at Jinu lest she see the smirk on his face.
Gorgeous didn’t even begin to describe these women - and she’d just signed up to sleep six feet away from both of them for the next 10 weeks. Rumi didn’t know why, but that thought lights a molten hot ball in the pit of her stomach.
It’s going to be a long summer.