Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 31

31.

“…Hyung, can I hit you once?”

“…Sure.”

Then, Mok-hwa clenched his fist and tried to punch me in the stomach. Wait, my brother really put some strength into it… The moment his fist hit my stomach, I felt breathless and fell backward.

“Wow! I feel so refreshed, Hyung.”

I sat on the chair, clutching my stomach, and groaned for a while. The other trainees covered their mouths, watching me.

“…Mok-hwa, sit next to me.”

I forced myself to endure the pain and told Mok-hwa to sit on the sofa. He seemed to have come to his senses and became serious.

“…Okay.”

“…Violence is never right. I understand why you want to hit me, but if everyone satisfied their desires, social and moral decay could become rampant.”

He listened seriously and then suddenly burst into laughter.

Then, he looked at me, who was embarrassed by his laughter, while still smiling.

I was happy to see his smile after a long time, but before that, I suspected he might be mentally unstable, so I had to ask.

“…Why?”

“Hyung, I missed being scolded by you like this.”

“…That’s a disease.”

“A disease? My only family disappeared overnight, of course, I’d miss you. Didn’t you miss me, Hyung?”

He made a very sulky face.

…Didn’t I miss you?

You don’t know, but I’ve missed you for over 10 years, almost… No, it’s just a thing of the past world that has now disappeared.

“Hyung, anyway, is tonight a vacation?”

“…Yeah. Until tomorrow.”

“Then, let’s go to the old house together tonight.”

“…That’s what we were planning to do anyway. You emphasized it several times in your texts.”

“Because you might run away?”

“…I’m not going.”

Then, Chae Ha-min approached us. His face was full of anticipation.

“Dong-hwa, introduce me to your brother!”

“…Mok-hwa, Ha-min.”

I pointed to each of them and said their names. Then, Mok-hwa jumped up from his seat and bowed 90 degrees.

“Hello! I’ve watched your performances and respect you a lot!”

…He grew up to be polite. It’s all thanks to me raising him well when he was young.

Because of Mok-hwa’s sudden outburst, Chae Ha-min pursed his lips like a rabbit and flinched. …He finally gave up on being human.

“I’m also an aspiring idol, and you’re really cool when you dance on stage.”

Only then could Chae Ha-min escape his embarrassment and open his mouth.

“Wow, really? Thank you, Mok-hwa-ssi!”

“Ha-min hyung, you can drop the formalities! But can you teach me how to dance later? It’s my dream to perform on stage like you, hyung!”

Um, Mok-hwa seems to have Chae Ha-min as his role model… Wait a minute.

“…Mok-hwa.”

“Why, Hyung?”

…Me. This damn brother of mine. I stayed up for four nights.

I stayed up for four nights to look good to my idol trainee brother.

“…It’s nothing.”

I watched the two guys chatting excitedly next to me, and then I felt someone’s presence next to me and turned my head.

Lee Hyun-jae awkwardly came with a man wearing glasses.

“Hyung, this person is……”

Lee Hyun-jae hesitated and carefully opened his mouth, then stopped. He seemed burdened.

It seemed like the father of Lee Hyun-jae, who was a professor, so I tactfully got up from my seat and greeted him.

“Hello, I’m Ji Dong-hwa.”

“I’m Hyun-jae’s father. I enjoyed reading the academic paper you wrote last time. Are you interested in any particular field of study?”

…Professor, I’m an idol.

“I mainly studied philosophy, astrophysics, and psychology. I applied to the Department of Philosophy in college.”

“Wow, I knew it. Looking at the references in your last paper, it seemed like you had studied psychology.”

And so, the father, whose major was suspected to be psychology, began to ask questions as if to confirm my knowledge.

“Have you read Kim Jae-kwon’s writing?”

“Are you talking about the article explaining the physicalist reduction of psychological elements through functionalist definitions, or are you talking about the objection to strict physicalism?”

…After dozens of back-and-forths like that, Lee Hyun-jae’s father nodded and held my hand tightly.

“I ask for your help in cultivating my child’s intellect, Dong-hwa-gun [term of respect].”

…I’m burdened.

“…I will teach him well.”

After the long meeting with Lee Hyun-jae’s father, I received gazes from the people around me as if they were looking at something amazing, and I greeted the families of several members.

Ryu Yi-deun’s younger sibling came instead of his parents.

“I heard you’ve been helping our lacking brother a lot.”

…He’s not that lacking.

“…Nice to meet you.”

Seok-jun came with his parents, grandmother, and four younger siblings.

In particular, two of the four younger siblings seemed to be elementary school students, and they asked me crazy questions.

“Oh my, I’m sorry, it’s chaotic, right?”

…I realized that my brother was a really quiet brother.

Chae Ha-min’s parents greeted me wearing clothes that looked wealthy.

However, Chae Ha-min’s father still had his lips sticking out as if he was dissatisfied that his son had become an idol.

…It’s a miraculous scene where a duck gave birth to a rabbit [an unexpected outcome].

“You’re Dong-hwa, right?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t like that our Ha-min became a singer, but still, after hearing your story, it seems okay. Please take care of Ha-min.”

…I’m burdened.

“…Ha-min often takes care of me too.”

After the tour of meeting the parents was over, I returned to my original seat and sat next to Mok-hwa.

Mok-hwa was sitting with a slightly disgruntled expression.

“Hyung.”

“…Why?”

“Everyone here is nice, but you have to take care of me first.”

…You idiot.

I glanced at Mok-hwa, who was looking at me carefully, leaned back on the backrest, and replied.

“…That’s obvious.”

* * *

I walked along the road with Mok-hwa after a long time.

He used to be shorter than me, but now he’s almost the same height.

We walked quietly, feeling the gap created by the four years that had passed since we were alone, and the 13 years that had passed for me.

Then Mok-hwa spoke first.

“…Hyung, was it hard?”

“…Um, what?”

“Raising me.”

If I said it wasn’t hard… that would be a lie.

“…It was hard.”

I immediately added the words so that he wouldn’t misunderstand.

“But watching you grow up made the hard times okay.”

Then Mok-hwa scratched his neck for a moment and opened his mouth. He looked only ahead, as if it was difficult to make eye contact with me.

“Can I ask why?”

“…If you read the writing, you know it pretty well.”

“Still.”

I did my best to keep my voice from trembling by putting strength into my throat.

Mok-hwa took the courage to create this opportunity first. I have to overcome this trauma too.

“…First, I didn’t want you, who was still young, to suffer from poverty.”

I cleared my throat again.

“…Second, I’m ashamed, but I didn’t want to show you my weak side.”

My voice almost trembled in the middle, so I cleared my throat again.

“…Lastly, I thought an adult could raise you better than me.”

Then Mok-hwa takes out a piece of paper from his pocket.

“I knew you would say that logically, so I wrote down what I would say to refute it.”

Then he slowly starts reading.

“First, I think if I have to grow up like that, you should grow up like that too! If not, it would be better to suffer together. And second, I will think you are strong no matter what you show me.”

Then he takes his eyes off the paper, looks at me, and says.

“Finally, third, you are the person who has taken care of his family better than any other family’s parents I know.”

“…What’s the basis?”

“My current self.”

I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at Mok-hwa, who was speaking firmly.

He was saying that he grew up so well now because I raised him well.

If I opposed this, it would be like slandering my brother, so there was no way I could refute it.

“So, don’t think like that from now on, and be my brother for the rest of my life.”

“…I promise.”

I lightly patted Mok-hwa’s shoulder.

“But, Hyung.”

I nodded.

“How on earth did you think of becoming an idol?”

…Yes, I can answer that now.

“I didn’t know why at first, but now I know.”

Mok-hwa makes a curious expression, waiting for my answer.

Maybe, the reason I participated in this survival through space-time travel is…….

“…To reconcile with you.”

Then Mok-hwa clenched his fist and lightly tapped my shoulder.

“Hyung, don’t lie.”

…This guy.

“You… where did you learn such language?”

“Wow, I’m already excited to hear you nag, Hyung.”

Mok-hwa…….

* * *

Mok-hwa and I, who entered the house, shared the rice I made as if we had returned to the past. I’m glad I dragged my tired body to go grocery shopping.

“But, the house is very clean? I thought it would have turned into a ruin after being empty for four years.”

I watched him wrap soy sauce egg rice in seaweed and munch on it deliciously, and I cut kimchi and said.

“…I came and cleaned it once a week.”

Probably, in the previous world, I did that for about 5 years, and then I used a cleaning company after I started making money.

“Hyung, if you were going to have so much attachment, why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“…Human psychology is much more complex and multi-layered than expected, so it’s perhaps natural that there are cases where understanding is impossible.”

“So, you were dying to check if I was growing up well, but you couldn’t check because you were bothered by what you said and did to me, so you cleaned the house instead? You’re completely foolish, really.”

…As expected, my brother is sharp and smart.

I replaced the words by putting kimchi on Mok-hwa’s plate.

“Hyung, you still haven’t fixed the habit of your ears turning red?”

“…Eat your rice.”

* * *

I had to break the nonsense that today would be perfectly completed if I slept in the same bed as Mok-hwa like when he was young, so I laid Mok-hwa on the bed, spread a blanket on the floor, and lay down.

“Hyung, sleeping in the same bed is the completion of the childhood experience!”

“…Look at the size of your shoulders and mine. The size doesn’t fit, Mok-hwa.”

I ignored Mok-hwa, who was feeling disappointed, and asked.

“…Where are you doing your trainee life?”

“You’re a trainee too, so you’ll know the place! Dioni Entertainment!”

…I know Dionysus. Hyung [term of endearment for older brother] only studied idol songs, not the companies.

Not knowing is not shameful, but it’s a different story if it’s in front of my brother. I quickly changed the subject.

“What about your debut?”

“Um, I have to take an internal audition, but the manager told me they’re making a new group in a year.”

…I should ask Chae Ha-min to tutor him when I have time.

I resolutely made up my mind, opened Chae Ha-min’s text message window that I had been ignoring for several hours, left a message asking him to teach my brother, and closed my phone.

* * *

‘Gijisaeng [MC/Host], quest completed.’

[Quest completed!

You have overcome a long ordeal and finally succeeded in debuting. Please do your best as an idol in the future!

Reward: Piece of Possibility]

And suddenly, another notification pops up.

[Caution! Please be sure to check the Piece of Possibility.]

…Ha, I don’t know why, but it’s making a fuss about making sure to check the Piece of Possibility.

‘Okay, I subtly led you to reconcile with Mok-hwa, so can’t you do that one thing, Gijisaeng [MC/Host].’

I used the Piece of Possibility.

* * *

I look ahead, feeling a strange sensation of my body floating in the sky.

‘That’s… me.’

Looking at the face, it seems to be about 50 years old. Even though I’m old, I can recognize myself.

I am reading a book without saying anything. The title of the book is not clearly visible, but the cover design seems to be related to astrophysics.

And around me, who is just reading a book, no one exists.

There are much more books piled up everywhere in the house than the books I had before, and there are papers with my handwriting scattered here and there in between, but I am alone without anyone.

I shift my gaze to the paper and check what is written. It’s too far away to see well, but there are many formulas written.

‘The world where I didn’t meet Mok-hwa… is just being alone. Until I reach this age.’

And suddenly, the scene in front of my eyes blurs and changes to another scene.

‘Here is…….’

It’s in front of the house I used to live in.

I blankly stare at the house and look around.

And in front of the house, Mok-hwa, a considerably old Mok-hwa, is sitting quietly in front of the door.

Mok-hwa, who looks to be in his 40s, sitting in front of our house, keeps sighing and then makes a phone call from his seat.

“…Yes, yes. So, you still haven’t found Hyung [term of endearment for older brother]. Yes, thank you.”

He tries to leave, then turns around once and mutters.

“…Where on earth could he be.”

There was so much regret and unfairness in that voice that even I, who was listening, could know the emotion.