From Thug to Idol: Transmigrating to a Survival Show

June's heart raced inside his chest. Fu had asked him to find his origin, and now, Pablo was mentioning it to him.

Was Pablo Fu all along?

"F U, too!" Pablo exclaimed with a confused expression. "Why are you suddenly cursing me out?"

"I was just telling you to not forget where you came from—where your origin lies," Pablo added.

June's frown deepened as he observed Pablo's eyes. It seemed like he was genuinely confused when he called him Fu. Moreover, Pablo, although having a similar personality to Fu, was definitely a different person now that June thought about it.

Fu loved to make him suffer.

Pablo suffers because of June—just because he likes him so much.

June scratched the back of his head. He might have gotten the wrong idea.

"Right," he said, going back to the topic. "My origin."

"Yes," Pablo said. "I know that your group had gotten big—and rightfully so. I could never pass an alley without seeing your face, and it feels like only yesterday when you were begging me to take your profile shots in my studio."

"Now, it seems like you're unreachable."

"However, even then, I hope you don't forget your origin."

"I could see that you're tired," Pablo acknowledged. "It's human nature. Everybody gets tired at one point—then, you start questioning why you even started this in the first place."

"However, the answer is within your heart—buried," Pablo continued.

June understood Pablo's words. However, he felt like he couldn't really apply it to himself.

Then, he let out a bitter chuckle. "I don't even know where I started."

He was just forced to become an idol in the beginning. He didn't have an ounce of passion. He didn't even want to become an idol back then.

Sometimes, it made him wonder if he truly deserved the spot he was in.

"It doesn't matter where," Pablo said, breaking his thoughts.

"It's a matter of how, why, and who were the people you were doing it for and the people who helped you reach it," he said.

"Like I said, it's hard to look down at the ground when you're already high up in the clouds, but the skies will clear once the storm subsides."

"You might be facing a storm right now," Pablo said.

June didn't say anything since the photographer was right.

June was honestly just ignoring it—his dizzy spells, feeling like 'rest' wasn't truly 'rest' anymore, even hating getting mobbed by his fans.

However, his love for being an idol still hasn't disappeared. Maybe it has diminished...or maybe Pablo was right; he just needed to go back to the beginning.

Although, he still has no clue how he was going to do that.

"It wouldn't be easy," Pablo continued. "You might continue walking a flowery path, or this might be the bumpiest ride just yet. However, I want you to know that I'm always here for you—still waiting for that nude photoshoot."

With Pablo's joke, June burst into chuckles.

However, what he didn't know was Pablo wasn't joking at all.

He was dead serious about that nude photoshoot.

However, seeing June laugh like a little kid, Pablo decided that it would be a topic for another day.

"Anyway," he said, bringing out more packets from his bag. "Here. I stacked up for you. These always seem to be sold out after more and more people discovered that you like them. So, I fought some little girls and brought all of the packets of gummies in the store."

June looked at the seven packs of gummies in surprise.

"These are so many. Why give me seven of these?" June couldn't help but ask.

Pablo shrugged. "I don't know. I just bought everything in the store. Besides," he continued. "I think it's a good number."

June shrugged and looked at the cute gummy on the front of the packaging.

"I better go then," Pablo said. "We still have a shoot with the Rising Stars ladies later."

June nodded and waved goodbye. "Thanks, Pablo."

Pablo quickly gave June a hug before leaving the room.

As he left, June tore open one of the packets and popped the red gummy into his mouth.

As soon as the sweet cola flavor hit his tongue, he couldn't help but smile.

"Just as I remembered," he whispered.

***

"I think she's telling the truth," Lin Zhi said as he placed some files on the table.

Laohu stopped sipping his tea and placed his cigarette on the ashtray as he went through the papers that Lin Zhi had brought in.

"Mei," Laohu muttered as he looked at the girls' supposed birth certificate. Then, he also looked at her application for Rising Stars, seeing that she wrote she didn't have any siblings.

"I thought it was weird that she kept denying her brother when I spoke to her that night, but she might not be acting."

"Look," Lin Zhi said. "These are all photos from Mei's parents' account."

Laohu went through the photos and found that Mei had indeed been living with them for the past year.

"These are all recent, though," Laohu said. "Where are the photos from her childhood?"

Lin Zhi clicked his tongue. "That's something I find strange, too. Right now, I don't think she's lying about not knowing where the briefcase is. But then again, I could be wrong. If she's really Jun Hao's sister, then she must have some tricks up her sleeves."

"Hmm," Laohu hummed, tapping his fingers on the table.

"Moreover, I can't seem to get close to her while she's filming for Rising Stars. For some reason, Azure's security had become tighter this time around. Actually, it's only Mei that I can't get close to. It seems like someone's...protecting her."

Laohu clicked his tongue as he slammed the papers on the table, surprising Lin Zhi.

"It doesn't matter," Laohu said. "Back off from her for now."

"What?" Lin Zhi asked, his eyes wide with surprise. "How are we going to get the briefcase then?"

"I've gotten some crucial information," Laohu said with a smirk. "Fortunately, a certain make-up artist was in dire need of money, and much to her satisfaction, I have some lying around."

"Did you do something?" Lin Zhi asked in confusion.

"Let's just say that I had her record their conversation during their shoot today."

Lin Zhi's eyes widened even more. "What did they say? Did you get some dirt on them?"

Laohu shook his head, causing Lin Zhi to sigh in disappointment.

"It was just some nonsense talk."

"However, I couldn't miss one of their topics—a briefcase."

Lin Zhi turned to him while Laohu's smirk widened further.

"It seems like you're right."

"June must have the briefcase."