Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 36

36.

Amidst a busy schedule of production meetings and lessons, it was unusual to find only Chae Hamin and me at the entrance.

Ryu Ideun was seeing us off, instead of Lee Hyunjae and Seokjun, who were out at school.

“Do well, you two. Always bow politely and be careful. Even if you meet strange people, don’t show it on your face, especially you, Donghwa.”

…I made him the leader, and now he’s nagging even more.

He even gave a social skills lecture yesterday, brainwashing us with instructions on how to act when meeting people.

Manager Kang Seungjun drove us in the car.

Skillfully navigating the streets, he began to outline the key points to remember during the *Detection* production meeting.

“The PD [Production Director] we’re meeting isn’t a bad person. He has a good relationship with our company, too. However…”

…Is there a problem?

“He’s just… very unique, so you need to be careful.”

“Oh, how is he unique?”

“How should I put it? His world is so distinct that you shouldn’t intrude upon it.”

…Isn’t that just basic etiquette, Manager?

“Junseong said that if you intrude, you’ll have a terrible time.”

…Junseong isn’t exactly in a position to say that.

We entered the WEB broadcasting station, and following Kang Seungjun’s lead, we greeted people here and there.

‘…I’m already tired. I want to go home.’

“Now, go inside and wait. The PD will be in shortly. I’ll be there too, but try to avoid making mistakes.”

“…Yes.”

“Yes!”

Kang Seungjun sighed deeply after hearing my delayed response and Chae Hamin’s seemingly thoughtless answer.

Creak—

The sound of the door opening felt eerie, and then we heard clapping from inside.

And TOT’s album track ‘Welcome!’, often used as background music for arrivals, played loudly.

When the door opened fully, a banner that read ‘(Wel) Blossoms First Variety Show Celebration (Come)’ was unfurled.

…My mind is fading.

Even Chae Hamin, whose brain rarely stops, stood there blankly, as if his mind had short-circuited.

“My beloved juniors! Welcome!”

Junseong ran out with a cake.

…Isn’t that guy supposed to be a top idol? Why is he so free?

“My juniors are appearing on a variety show I’m on, so I had to be here! Director Jang is eccentric, but it’ll be easier if I help!”

“Wow! Junseong-nim [term of respect]! I’m a fan!”

Chae Hamin shouted and jumped up and down, then grabbed the cake Junseong was holding.

…The cake is the goal. Note: rabbits can be caught with cake.

Junseong quietly approached me, put his arm around my shoulder, and said,

“I was a little sad that you ignored my text, junior.”

…Um, that *I Want You* poster? Sorry, but I *I Hate You*.

“…Is it okay for the meeting room to be such a mess, senior?”

“Ah! Of course, I got permission from Director Jang. Actually, he’s already sitting over there.”

…What?

I hadn’t noticed because I was avoiding Junseong, and Chae Hamin hadn’t noticed because he was eating the strawberries on the cake.

I immediately abandoned Junseong and bowed deeply.

“…Hello, PD-nim, I’m Donghwa from BLOSSOMS.”

Then Chae Hamin also broke free from the sweetness of the strawberries and bent over 90 degrees next to me.

“Hello! I’m Hamin!”

“Wow! You’re full of energy because you’re rookies! Shall we start the meeting in earnest now?”

All of this is thanks to Ryu Ideun’s social skills training.

It’s thanks to brainwashing us with the manual on how to act when meeting a PD for over three hours yesterday, that damn puppy.

The meeting that followed was simple. It covered the concept and progress of the broadcast, with Junseong’s unnecessary remarks sprinkled throughout.

“So, to summarize, you memorize the settings on the role cards, act according to those settings, and deduce the one murderer hidden among the cast.”

“The murderer makes tricks in the middle and commits murder! It’s easy, juniors! If the murderer kills everyone except one person, they win; if they are caught before that, they are eliminated. The rules are the same as the Mafia game.”

“Now, shall we draw the role cards? You have to continue the role you draw now during the broadcast, so please draw carefully!”

…The odds are all the same, what’s the point of being careful?

I immediately picked up a card.

‘I hope it’s a quiet concept if possible.’

[Congratulations! You are now a ‘Left-Handed Man’.]

…What kind of role is this?

“Oh, a left-handed man!”

Director Jang looked at the role card I chose and smiled subtly.

“You’re going to have a hard time; this character is unique.”

Junseong’s eyes widened, and he looked my way.

“Director Jang, isn’t Hamin’s junior character a bit strange?”

“What is it?”

Chae Hamin showed his card with a bright smile.

“I’m a prima donna [leading female opera singer]—what is this, Donghwa?”

…Wow, a popular opera singer.

“Oh! You two are connected! The left-handed man is the prima donna’s manager!”

Director Jang looked at the ceiling, ecstatic.

“Ah, perfect… The two roles have to be close.”

Junseong grabbed my ear and whispered,

“You have to stay still at that time; don’t touch him, junior.”

…I’m curious now. Is this Pandora’s box?

But then Chae Hamin, who didn’t hear Junseong’s whisper, asked,

“PD-nim, how did you know Donghwa and I are close?”

“…This is a disaster.”

Junseong shook his head like a doctor facing a patient with no chance of survival.

“Hamin, sit here next to me! I’ll tell you the behind-the-scenes story of how I created this character!”

Ah… that’s the type.

“…Are you going to talk for about 20 minutes?”

I quietly whispered to Junseong.

“An hour. I was hit hard at first, too.”

Oh dear.

An hour and a half later, we were in the car on our way back to the dorm.

“…Donghwa, am I still alive?”

“…You’re not dead.”

Though he looked half in the coffin.

Chae Hamin listened to Director Jang’s character-creation story, which he didn’t want to hear, for over an hour with a smiling face, and as a result, his facial muscles were now half-paralyzed.

“But Donghwa, have you ever seen *Detection*?”

“No, have you?”

“I’m going to watch the recent episodes before filming.”

Chae Hamin asked, lying down in the car.

“By the way, Donghwa, since you’re my manager, can I boss you around during filming?”

…Theoretically, yes. You damn rabbit.

* * *

“Ah, so that means if you take this to the extreme, it becomes an area?”

“Yes, you need to know the process of deriving the basic definite integral concept to use it. The numerator here is 2. Let’s think about what to do in this case.”

Lee Hyunjae frowned and started to think about my question.

‘Definitely… smart.’

Since I’m roommates with Chae Hamin, I can definitely make comparisons at times like this.

“…Would this work?”

I quickly checked the formula Lee Hyunjae showed me.

“…Accurate. You learn quickly, Hyunjae.”

“The strange thing is, I understand it when I see it the way hyung [older brother/male friend] thinks!”

It’s Lee Hyunjae’s tutoring time right now. I thought he wouldn’t have time once debut preparations started in earnest, so I’m tutoring him now.

“But Donghwa hyung, it’s really amazing that our title song is the one hyung wrote.”

“…We wrote it.”

Did he already forget that I tormented him so much?

“Do you know that it’s really comfortable to sing with a song that hyung arranged or composed?”

…It’s custom-made; isn’t it obvious? It’s a song that tried to bring out your strengths and hide your weaknesses.

“And I’m going to film tomorrow, but you’re giving me tutoring like this… is it okay?”

The moment those words fell, Ryu Ideun opened the door and came in. He had fruit in his hands. …Looks like me when I was fifteen.

“Oh, my babies! It makes me feel good to see you studying like this.”

Correction: he’s just a protective fool.

“But if you do it for too long, it’s not good for your health, so take a break.”

He put the fruit on the desk and stroked Lee Hyunjae’s head.

“Let’s go work out together tomorrow, Hyunjae.”

“…Wow, I’d love to.”

That health addict. He keeps trying to win people over with his sly personality.

“Donghwa, let’s go together in two days.”

Ha, I’ll let it slide because he’s the leader.

“…Okay.”

Ryu Ideun saw the camera hanging in Lee Hyunjae’s room and waved his hand.

“Fans! I’ve finally dragged Donghwa out of the house and made him exercise! I haven’t seen Donghwa go out except for recording and choreography practice, but finally!”

…It’s a big deal. That extrovert.

* * *

“Okay, Hamin, what are the names of the people you’re appearing with today?”

“Junseong hyung, Jane-ssi [term of respect], Gyeonhwon-ssi, Sohwi-ssi!”

“Correct. What are their recent activities?”

“Pass on Junseong hyung. Jane-ssi is the lead in *My Son’s Lover*, Gyeonhwon-ssi is on the *Two O’Clock Rhythm* radio, Sohwi-ssi released the album *Leave Me Behind*!”

“…Not bad. What to do when you meet them?”

“Bow 90 degrees!”

Manager Kang Seungjun, who was driving in the front, kept chuckling as he looked at us. …I’m sincerely worried, Manager.

“What’s important in *Detection*?”

“Deducing the culprit from the traces left by the murderer when they commit the murder and the dying message left by the murdered person!”

“Are you the culprit?”

“I’m not!”

I see. I should use it usefully. I have to stay close to him.

We arrived at a large performance hall in Daehakro and continued to greet everyone we met.

“Hello, I’m Donghwa and Hamin from BLOSSOMS.”

“Oh! You’re the new guest! Nice to meet you; I’m Jane. I don’t know if you know me.”

“…I was deeply moved by *My Son’s Lover*.”

“Me too! I really liked the emotional lines of the senior who appeared in episode 5!”

“Oh! You guys know each other! It wasn’t that successful.”

…Of course, I don’t know. I just memorized it, just now.

Jane, a fairly popular actress, is said to be blooming as a rising star. Of course, it’s the first time we’ve met, both in reality and on TV.

“I heard, too. Junseong’s company’s new idol group, right? Sign my album later.”

…Certainly, as Junseong said, she has a good personality. I heard that there aren’t many established people who are friendly to such rookies.

“Don’t you guys have to get dressed up, too? What roles did you pick? We guests choose roles first.”

“I’m a prima donna!”

“…I’m the madam’s manager.”

“Oh! I’m a primo uomo [leading male opera singer].”

…The role of the leading male actor.

“I have a three-piece suit and an opera mask, Hamin… you said? What kind of makeup do you have?”

“I have a dress!”

A giant rabbit who is 181cm tall and has a fairly large frame wearing a dress, really….

“Oh my gosh! I hope it’s off-the-shoulder!”

“I hope it’s pretty since I’m wearing it anyway. It’s the first time I’ve worn it in my life.”

“Wow, he’s quite funny.”

Thanks to Chae Hamin taking his brain out, a friendly atmosphere was formed.

While we were having a short conversation, one more person entered the dressing room.

Gyeonhwon and Junseong. They’re coming in together.

“Oh! Junseong, are these the kids you plugged in?”

“Hey, senior, plugged in? The PD accepted it well.”

“Hey, haven’t I seen this world once or twice? But isn’t our show too conceptual to promote rookies?”

I took the opportunity to greet him.

“…Hello, I always enjoy listening to your radio. I’m Donghwa from BLOSSOMS.”

“Oh, you listen to my radio. Thank you. Was the story from the radio yesterday interesting?”

Ha, I knew this would happen, so I memorized all the legendary stories from yesterday’s radio and the ones that came out before.

“…I found the story of the 45-year-old housewife living in Ansan, Gyeonggi-do, interesting, especially what she said to her husband.”

I feel like my social skills are already dropping because I’m trying to please someone I’m meeting for the first time. …From now on, I should unconditionally recommend Chae Hamin and Ryu Ideun for variety shows.

But Gyeonhwon actually looked embarrassed. I pretended to listen hard to make him feel good, but why is he like that?

Ryu Ideun did his best to give a social skills lecture, but I can’t go without doing it properly.

“…What about other stories?”

…Ah, what is it? Should I tell you more details?

“The story of the 24-year-old academy instructor living in Myeongil-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, wasn’t bad either. The sense of skepticism about education felt like a concern about human existence.”

Then Gyeonhwon looked even more embarrassed and glanced at Junseong.

…Why? Is there a problem?

“Haha, our junior has a good memory, senior.”

“I felt like I was talking to an AI, Junseong. He said his character was unique, and he is.”

…I don’t know. It’s difficult, really. It would be easier to read a philosophy book.

While the conversation was progressing in a friendly atmosphere, Sohwi entered the room.

I, who was already tired, and Chae Hamin, who was still energetic, immediately went to greet her.

…Ryu Ideun, your efforts will not be in vain.

Sohwi glanced at us as we greeted her and smiled.

“Are you guys idols?”

Hmm, her tone is aggressive.

“…Yes.”

“There are so many idols these days that I don’t know them well. The scene is the scene, so if you don’t have the skills, you’ll disappear quickly.”

She smiled and passed by.

…Oh, she’s politely dissing us. She’s saying that you guys will disappear soon anyway, so what’s the point of getting close to you.

At least I don’t have to show social skills to one person, so it’s a win for me.

Chae Hamin, who doesn’t have this kind of sense, grabbed me and whispered,

“Donghwa, I think that person has a bad memory.”

Ha, really amazing, Madam.

“…I guess so.”

* * *

When it was our turn to get dressed up, we received our costumes and props.

“…Why am I wearing a monocle?”

I looked in the mirror, wearing a black tailcoat, a monocle, and half of my hair slicked back. I have no idea what this concept is.

“Ah! Donghwa-ssi, you forgot this.”

“Ah, thank you.”

I bowed with my neck and waist in a straight line.

“…You really look like a gentleman.”

I roughly nodded and waited for Chae Hamin to come out.

“Wow! Donghwa! Look at this! Air comes in from below!”

…Crazy bastard.

Chae Hamin was wearing a yellow dance dress, low-heeled shoes, and a large-brimmed hat. The skirt was large, and the top was loose, emphasizing a lively image.

“…Madam, let’s go film.”

“Oh! You’re already acting. Then me too.”

Chae Hamin walked out with an elegant posture and said,

“Okay, manager, come and put a parasol over me.”

…We’re indoors, Madam.