Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 260

Park Eun-gu lowered his head, his nervous hands betraying his composure as he stood before the younger sibling of his most respected senior.

“Wow… it’s Kinetica. I’ve been following you because of my brother, Aje-gong [a playful nickname for their brother, Dong-hwa].”

Senior Dong-hwa’s sibling. A person who always refers to themself as Ji Mok-hwa, not by their registered name.

‘Getting close to them is always a good thing,’ Eun-gu thought. ‘I’m not good at calculating the pros and cons of relationships, but they’re the sibling of a senior I admire!’

“Yes! Your stage performance this time was amazing, senior.”

However, Ji Mok-hwa was different. They might act like a child in front of their brother, but within the group, besides the leader, they possessed a keen eye for people.

In an instant, they calculated Park Eun-gu’s worth, assessing the benefits they could gain from knowing him and the advantages of forming a closer relationship.

Being next to the leader, a master of political maneuvering, had made it a habit.

‘It’s good to know him, I guess,’ they thought, recognizing him as the type to be easily liked.

A person who gains favor effortlessly, someone whose network would naturally expand.

“I heard you participated in arranging the song this time.”

Immediately, a practiced, public-facing smile appeared on their face.

They dropped a hint, subtly suggesting their desire to get closer. Then, Jin-han, who had been sitting behind them, rushed over, as if he had reached the same conclusion, wearing an insincere smile.

Thanks to their brother, Ji Mok-hwa could observe even the slightest expressions, and saw through Jin-han immediately, but the rookie junior probably wouldn’t notice.

After a short conversation, they even exchanged numbers, initiated by Jin-han.

The junior’s eyes were wide with admiration, his face reflecting the realization of, ‘So this is what idol debut is like…’ As soon as Kinetica left, Ji Mok-hwa slumped into the chair and almost wiped their face.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen with him?”

Jin-han, who was tapping on his phone and organizing the numbers, sat down and asked.

“I’m feeling self-loathing for building connections while calculating.”

“…Doesn’t Senior Dong-hwa do that too?”

Isn’t that how most people in society are anyway? Jin-han muttered, recalling his grandmother’s advice.

“Well, my brother isn’t the type to build connections.”

Perhaps he likes animals more than people, Ji Mok-hwa was sure of it.

He probably wouldn’t try to use his good brain to build connections, but rather try to maintain a vague distance, being polite enough not to get caught picking fights, and ambiguous enough to call it friendship.

So, it’s more accurate to say that he becomes friends by chance rather than building connections.

In fact, eight out of ten stories about Blossoms in the industry are about Ryu Iden, and the remaining two are about Chae Ha-min.

People might praise his songs, but there wasn’t a single word about who he was close to.

‘Can a top idol really have so few connections…?’

Suddenly, Ji Mok-hwa had a question about his brother.

The word ‘top’ might be debatable, but looking at the fandom size alone, there would be no problem calling them that. Is it really okay for a member of such an idol group to be like that?

“Ha… I wish my brother and I could have at least one overlapping holiday or promotion period.”

He hears updates over the phone, but he’s just curious about how he’s doing and how he’s been.

He sent carnations to his brother on Parents’ Day, but he wanted to pin them on him in person.

“Yeah, it’s strange. How does your brother always seem to avoid all the big groups?”

How can he only target empty houses like crazy? [referring to releasing music when there’s less competition]

Of course, at Blossom’s current level, they wouldn’t be buried even if they made a comeback with Blue Jack, and there’s a possibility that it would become an even bigger topic.

“Because he’s my brother, he must have done something.”

Jin-han thought it was nonsense, but Ji Mok-hwa was serious.

“…You should trust me like that.”

“You’re too fake when you deal with people, I can’t trust you even if a lifetime passes.”

Just as Jin-han was about to retort out of frustration, Kim Hyun-jin ran over.

“Breaking news!”

“What is it? It better not be something trivial again.”

When these three get together, there’s a high probability that Jin-han will get grabbed by the collar by Mok-hwa, so Jin-han quickly started preparing to run away.

“Mok-hwa, Jin-han hyung is confirmed to be a guest on the radio show that Dong-hwa hyung hosts.”

“…I’m not.”

“Not you. I bet Jin-han hyung pulled some strings!”

“I didn’t, Hyun-jin!”

The atmosphere soured at Kim Hyun-jin’s words, which he spat out with genuine suspicion, and Jin-han’s premonition became a reality.

The moment Ji Mok-hwa got up from his seat, Jin-han quickly ran and shouted in a friendly voice, “I’ll go buy some drinks!” and disappeared.

Watching him flee, Kim Hyun-jin giggled, and Ji Mok-hwa quickly took out his phone.

* * *

“My sibling…….”

―Hyung, I trusted you. But how could you do that as a radio guest?

It’s crazy. All I did was suggest that I wanted to invite you to my radio show, how could you do this?

How could you do this? You used to like any program I was on, I’m just disappointed.

Ryu Iden sat next to him and glanced at the phone before smiling.

“What did you do again?”

“…I wonder.”

Our Mok-hwa hasn’t seen my face often lately, so there must be a problem.

At the lukewarm reaction, Ryu Iden immediately changed the subject.

“Is your hair doing okay?”

Bleaching, which I never wanted to do again after the Heung promotions. I had to bleach my roots again for the upcoming comeback, so my hair is damaged.

“You have to take good care of it with what I gave you. Or you’ll regret it when you’re over forty.”

Among our members, Chae Ha-min and Lee Hyun-jae are the ones who dye their hair the most often, but this time, the ones chosen were Chae Ha-min, Ryu Iden, Lee Hyun-jae, and me, a total of four people.

Among them, Ryu Iden has neat brown hair with no damage, but Chae Ha-min, who has reddish-wine hair with a natural perm, and Lee Hyun-jae, who didn’t get a perm but has been maintaining blonde hair for a long time, are a different story.

I tapped my silver hair.

Well, it’s excessively tame compared to Chae Ha-min.

“Isn’t Ha-min more of a problem?”

“His hair is so strong, I’m not worried.”

Well, certainly, Chae Ha-min’s father had a lot of hair for his age.

Today is the day to film the VCR for the upcoming comeback show. I fidgeted with the tightly buttoned shirt, feeling suffocated.

I don’t know why our stylists get anxious if they don’t make my neck feel constricted.

It’s even more suffocating because it’s a three-piece suit, so I’m wearing a vest.

The concept for this outfit was a suit that people like office workers or past butlers would wear.

However, compared to Ryu Iden, who wasn’t wearing a jacket and had his vest and shirt buttons undone, I was the only one dressed up to the nines, so I couldn’t shake the question of ‘Why only me?’

“…But this album, the concept is a bit…”

I wrote the song, but no matter how I look at it, everything from the set to the costumes looks like a mafia den.

“It’s inhumane.”

Even so, such an illegal organization-like atmosphere.

“…You know you look the best, right?”

“Where else would you find such an innocent impression like mine?”

Pfft, Ryu Iden laughed. To be exact, it was somewhere between a sneer and a laugh.

“…You got a problem?”

“I got water too [a pun, implying he’s also wet from laughing].”

Oh my god. I had to hear such a terrible sound. Such trashy gag, calling it a gag.

The saying that not everything that comes out of your mouth is a word must have been made with Ryu Iden in mind.

Lee Hyun-jae, who was approaching us, also frowned with a terrible face.

“…Hyung is.”

I agree, Hyun-jae. Perhaps the unspoken words were ‘Is it really rabies?’

“You guys are reacting so well, I can’t help but do it.”

Lee Hyun-jae looked at Ryu Iden with contempt and turned his head to me.

“Hyung, they’re starting our filming.”

The time to be freed from Ryu Iden has finally come.

* * *

It looks like a mafia organization no matter how I look at it.

I sat cross-legged in the middle of the long sofa, fiddling with my leather gloves.

On the table were teacups filled with black tea, a stack of papers, and a phonograph…….

Why does the set look so similar to the set from the first mental lesson? The memories of knitting in the middle of Hongdae are vividly coming back to me, making me feel unpleasant.

The only difference was that poker cards and money were scattered on the table.

I was definitely wearing a suit, but when blonde Lee Hyun-jae, who looked like a student from a prestigious high school, sat next to me, the filming direction began in earnest.

“Dong-hwa-ssi!”

“Yes.”

“Please look a little more cold-blooded!”

Even now, I’m already crossing my legs, slicking my hair back, and looking down at the paper with my glasses casually perched on my nose, is it not enough?

I tried to completely erase my expression. It’s cruel to ask this of a country grandmother [an expression meaning it’s difficult to do].

However, despite such efforts, my expression soon crumbled.

“Hyun-jae-ssi, it would be nice if you looked a little more innocent.”

“…Yes?”

Ah, it’s funny. Innocence to Lee Hyun-jae, not even Seok-jun.

The corners of my lips twitched slightly, and instead of becoming a cold-blooded human, I became a human in the middle of a laugh-suppressing challenge.

“I want you to be lost in your own world, and feel like that world is so beautiful that you’re dying.”

The PD is asking Lee Hyun-jae for a Seok-jun documentary. He’s asking a dog to look like a cat [asking someone to do something completely against their nature].

If it were Seok-jun, it would be a goal achieved just by his existence, but Lee Hyun-jae failed.

Then, Lee Hyun-jae suddenly stared silently into the PD’s eyes and muttered.

“…Wow, so story-wise, I’m supposed to be crazy?”

I put down the paper and thought about it. The gist of the worldview so far.

Roughly, ‘Lee Hyun-jae experiences delusions or a similar fantastic situation, and receives treatment from a doctor named Ji Dong-hwa.’

In various eras and spaces, Lee Hyun-jae and I have always existed, and unlike the other members, Lee Hyun-jae seems to remember all those moments, so it seems certain that he is either mentally ill or remembers his past life.

‘Heung’ was in the Joseon Dynasty, ‘The Time Waiting for You’ was in medieval Western Europe, and ‘Cherry Blossom Falling’ was in the present.

“No wonder I’ve only been filming scenes where I turn around when I pass by the members all day today. It feels strange. From the beginning of my debut, I was a crazy person. Without me knowing. I need to get treatment from hyung quickly.”

I pondered again.

In my narrow view, whether Lee Hyun-jae is crazy or not is not actually a very important matter.

Ethically, the violence inherent in the word ‘treatment’ clearly exists, so stories of this nature essentially make us think.

In other words, it makes us think about whether ‘I’ have the right to force someone to choose between a happy delusion and an unhappy reality.

Leaving aside which is right, is it right for someone else to force it?

“…Is that so?”

“I heard you put in artificial tears during your solo shoot today.”

“…Ah, pain.”

“Shall we read a book together for the first time in a while, Hyun-jae?”

I know a good book on the subject.

An invisible wall is formed around the sofa, and they fall into their own conversation as if it were a workshop.

“Um, excuse me.”