Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 344

I Didn’t Plan to Become an Idol – 344

‘Nesquick’s Elegant Tea Time.’ The concept revolves around Nesquick, the employer, personally interviewing prospective gardeners to assess their personalities.

While there are brief moments of genuine interaction, the core of the program involves a strangely elegant individual delivering polite insults and posing relentless questions to the guests.

“The tea I’ve prepared today is a hibiscus and mango blend. Truthfully, I don’t know much about tea, so my secretary carefully selected it for me.”

I lifted the teacup and took a sip. The dominant flavor was sour, with a subtle metallic note, complemented by the delicate sweetness of mango.

“It’s delicious,” I said, a genuine smile forming on my face.

Mr. Nesquick, who had also taken a sip, frowned and set down his cup.

“I don’t even know why I bother with tea! It’s just showing off, like, ‘I’m so classy!’ Soju [a Korean distilled spirit] is the best, but the PD [production director] wouldn’t allow it. At this point, we should just do ‘Elegant Tea Party: Soju Edition,’ right?”

“…I suppose so.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be a tea party anymore. And while I don’t want to be biased, if we’re talking soju, we’d have to drop the ‘elegant’ part, leaving us with just ‘Nesquick’s: Soju Edition’.

Chae Hamin took a sip, seemingly oblivious to the conversation, and looked at me with sparkling eyes.

“Wow, this is delicious. It tastes like something you would make.”

Mr. Nesquick’s gaze darted towards me.

“Donghwa actually enjoys tea quite a bit. I’m always nagging him about drinking too many energy drinks.”

Even without trying to read into Chae Hamin’s uniquely innocent expression, I could tell he wasn’t trying to mess with me, but it was still shocking news for Mr. Nesquick.

“Ah, Donghwa enjoys tea.”

“Yes, I’m a bit classy.”

When I repeated his words verbatim, Chae Hamin and Seokjun tilted their heads in confusion. Mr. Nesquick quickly interjected.

“I respect anyone who drinks tea. It shows a sense of dignity. You can tell just by looking at his work!”

I guess he only remembers me consuming coffee or energy drinks to get my caffeine fix.

“…But did you really quit energy drinks? What about coffee? No, seriously, this is like a smoker quitting smoking! I could never do it.”

The deep lines etched on his face revealed his genuine shock.

“I drink less coffee now, and I only have energy drinks when the members aren’t around.”

“That’s like a rebellious teenager. Cosplaying when Dad’s not home!”

An experienced observation.

“Donghwa usually manages everyone except Iden hyung [older brother/male friend]. So, it’s like a role reversal… but wait, you drink energy drinks when we’re not around?”

“You didn’t know?”

“I see. You’re an inattentive parent. A bit careless to be hired as a gardener.”

Chae Hamin was speechless, clearly betrayed. But soon, he tilted his head, a puzzled expression on his face.

“…But, is there ever a time when we’re not around?”

“Not really. So, I’ve practically quit.”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Chae Hamin said, patting his chest in relief. Mr. Nesquick, observing the scene, looked utterly defeated.

“Crazy, you even have separation anxiety, this is a big deal. Do I have to hire you two at the same time?”

“Yes, that’s obvious!”

Mr. Nesquick leaned back in his chair, an expression of utter disillusionment on his face. He looked like a young adult who was disappointed that his dreams were different from his expectations after achieving them.

“The people who changed my life have a relationship like a rebellious father and son with separation anxiety…”

Well, I wonder what he means by ‘changed his life’.

However, Chae Hamin seemed to focus on the latter part of the statement.

“We’ve built a silver town [retirement community] this time.”

“…Wait a minute. What nonsense are you talking about now?”

“Ah, we’re revealing it here for the first time! We have a villa that my father used to own at our house.”

“Right, you have one or two.”

These children of entrepreneurs…

There’s no way they only have one or two. There are many people who can’t even afford their own house.

Mr. Nesquick seemed to be saying it as a joke, but knowing what kind of person his father is, it sounded different.

“I got permission from my father to use it, so we pooled our money and remodeled it completely! We decided to live together when we get old. It was recently completed!”

I covered my eyes.

That’s what they’re talking about. And they’re so proud of it. Well, everyone will find out eventually, so it’s just being revealed about ten years early.

“What…, crazy.”

Confused pupils, eyes darting around, unsure where to land. Finally, his gaze settled on the PD.

“This scale is a bit much, is it even possible to broadcast this?”

“I’m not sure either… Let’s go for it for now.”

“…Okay, sorry for interrupting, can you continue talking?”

He raised his index and middle fingers to his mouth as if he was reaching for a cigarette, but then he realized there was nothing there and slapped his own hand.

“Yes, Donghwa put a curse on us.”

“…A witch-like story straight out of a fairy tale.”

“If anyone breaks off the friendship or leaves the group first, he’ll directly…”

He said he would literally kill them. And that’s for broadcast.

“Kill them?”

And that person isn’t very interested in that.

“…Um, well, rather than killing, um, uh.”

“It’s probably poisoning, right? It’s a typical witch’s method.”

“I think so too―.”

“Ah, now the answer is coming out. Donghwa seems like he would do that. So?”

They think it’s a joke. I’m really serious. But I don’t want to create a crazy image, so I just smiled.

“Anyway, we said we’re a group forever, let’s not break up, we talked about that while drinking, right?”

“You’re the type to get cute when you drink, I like it. You’re hired as a gardener, so?”

Seokjun quietly muttered next to him, ‘He wasn’t cute at all,’ but surprisingly, no one paid attention.

“So we filmed it and played it on the living room TV…”

“The public execution is the national rule for the witch.”

“That’s right―.”

“Then the story came out. To avoid Donghwa’s curse, we should live close to each other even when we’re old. So the Blossoms Silver Town story came out. So we remodeled my father’s villa into a building where we’ll live in our old age!”

Mr. Nesquick raised his eyebrows and bit one side of his lip as if he was dizzy after hearing that. He looked like someone who had woken up from a nightmare.

“…I suspected this was a lie, but if it was a lie, Donghwa wouldn’t be so quiet, right?”

He just gave up.

Chae Hamin doesn’t fully understand what’s wrong with this story, and I’m not confident in persuading Chae Hamin.

And above all, he seems to be enjoying talking, so I can’t stop him.

“…Yes.”

“So is this all true?”

“…Yes.”

“What can I bet!”

Bang, Mr. Nesquick slammed the table and stood up from his seat. Exquisite control of power so that the teacup doesn’t fall over.

A loan shark in a dress, very fresh.

“One rule in our garden! Do not lie! Put up collateral!”

A loud voice, making full use of the abdominal muscles trained by rapping, yet roughly scraping his throat, the sound like a dragon breathing fire spread through the garden.

This is just entertainment, so, we have to match it, right.

I faced Mr. Nesquick with a determined look.

“…I’ll bet my neck.”

“…Okay. Jun!”

“Yes!”

“Is there not a single lie? Swear on Wizney!”

“Everything is true except that Donghwa hyung gets cute when he drinks!”

“Crazy, f*ck, what should I do. What kind of people are you!”

Seokjun’s statement that he would bet on Wizney is more reliable than my statement that I would bet my neck. What kind of image do I have in Mr. Nesquick’s mind?

More than that, please maintain your dignity, Mr. Nesquick. Your hair is disheveled.

“It’s not like a fairy tale, you promised eternity?”

“That’s right. It’s eternal! The curse is always valid!”

“…What does it mean that the curse is valid again.”

“There’s a music video that went up today!”

“…Hamin, if you say that, Hyunjae will.”

I couldn’t bring myself to say the rest.

“Will he kill you again? You’re going to die! Why is it natural for you to kill each other, and you accept it so sweetly! What is Hyunjae? Is it poison?”

“Hyunjae bites directly―.”

“That’s right, he’s still at the age where his teeth are itchy, because he’s the youngest. Hyunjae is smart, but he has to grind his teeth!”

Mr. Nesquick seems to have given up now.

“Hamin, choose. Are you going to be bitten by the youngest, or are you going to reveal the truth?”

“Ah…, everyone in the world should know how cute our youngest is…”

How twisted we are. Now, including the fans, everyone who is interested in us will know.

The agency will decide on its own. Whether it’s good to broadcast this or not.

“Still, I really want to let you know how much our youngest loves us!”

I don’t know anymore. You can’t plan everything alone in life.

* * *

When the broadcast ended, it was assumed that we would be the ones who were exhausted. Answering questions inevitably drains energy, and we constantly had to check whether it was okay to say certain things.

But the one who was exhausted was Mr. Nesquick. As soon as the filming wrapped, she jumped up, dragged her dress, and shouted, ‘Nicotine, I need nicotine! Please wait a moment, everyone!’

“…Donghwa, actually, I got permission from Hyunjae to talk about that today?”

“For the fun of the broadcast?”

“Yeah. I thought it would be more fun. Did I do well?”

How are you still alive?

If Ryu Iden had said it, he would have fallen into eternal sleep. I knew that Lee Hyunjae was weak to affection, but I didn’t know he was this weak.

“…You did well.”

Except for starting the story. No matter how I look at it, it’s too extreme to be released to the public.

“Hyungnim [term of endearment for an older brother or male friend], I’m glad that it’s finally officially revealed how much hyungnim loves us―.”

“…Okay.”

If you guys are happy, well.

While we were talking among ourselves for a while, Mr. Nesquick, who was running in heels while maintaining perfect balance, returned.

Since there’s no smell, it seems that even if you go to the smoking area on the set, you still use e-cigarettes.

“No, but is this real? Without MSG [monosodium glutamate, implying exaggeration] for broadcasting?”

“Yes, I’ve talked about Donghwa’s drinking habits in passing, but I’ve toned it down a lot.”

So that means he reduced it rather than exaggerating it.

“No, aren’t you guys getting married? I wanted to ask this so badly, but I shut up because I thought it was crazy to ask an idol that.”

“If we do, we have to buy a house nearby.”

Chae Hamin looked at Mr. Nesquick with unwavering eyes. There is no hesitation. Like when asked ‘1+1’, as if it were a mathematical axiom.

Thud, when the camera was turned off, he forgot to maintain his dignity. He just messed up his dress and rested his face on both hands.

“It’s really like a fairy tale. It’s romantic.”

So, it’s a fairy tale where a witch seduces four good people and makes them swear eternity.

…It’s just a normal picaresque [a genre of fiction that depicts the adventures of a roguish hero]. Why am I the villain?

“Wow, I was going to surprise you with the story that I reconciled with my father, but I can’t compete with this.”