Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 367

Living my school days not as a trainee is a new experience. I’m aiming for Korea University, but unlike my brother, I’m not that smart, so I’m not sure if I can get in.

At 6:30 AM, when I wake up and go to wash up, my brother is already up and in the kitchen.

“Did you sleep well?”

I paused, my body stiffening at that routine question.

I don’t remember the time when our parents passed away very well, but the life afterward is vivid. The way he asks that question is surprisingly unchanged from when I was nine years old.

‘Did you sleep well?’

It was probably 7 AM back then. He was cooking with a much smaller frame than now, yet he never seemed tired. There’s still a question I have, and I’ve asked another brother who’s watching us from afar.

“Hyung [older brother or close male friend],”

“Yeah.”

“…When you were young, weren’t you ever tired?”

Back then, my brother answered like this. Still at the peak of his idol career, cooking the same braised spicy chicken, he said, ‘Never.’

“Hmm?”

So, what answer will I get this time?

“Never.”

It’s the same.

Mok-hwa moved and stood next to him.

To realize that a person is tired, they need rest. Like the fatigue that rushes in all at once when the immersion and sprint stop.

Even in the previous possibility, Dong-hwa hyung only admitted he was struggling after Simba died.

So, until then, he was just sprinting. The excessive obsession with work wasn’t just because of affection for the members, his brother, and the fans.

“Hyung.”

“Yeah.”

“About what you said yesterday.”

“…What time?”

“Hyung, you’re being weird again. Do you remember what time it was?”

“Roughly.”

“…You’re even weirder. Anyway, that club.”

“Yeah.”

“Join it.”

“I have to cook for you.”

For Ji Dong-hwa, who was once globally popular, that’s a very simple reason for refusal.

It’s not like celebrities can’t cook for their families, but this is what a college student with free time looks like.

“Things that aren’t planned suit you better, hyung. The longer your education, the weirder your plans get.”

Who knows? Maybe your heart will melt sooner than last time.

“A degree in Early Childhood Education is enough, Mok-hwa. How much of my plan included tutoring young children in Gangnam [affluent district in Seoul]?”

With fluency in German, French, and especially English, as well as a sufficient level of Japanese and Chinese for teaching young children (they both started learning as soon as they came here), my brother started tutoring based on his official language test scores and his Korea University Early Childhood Education degree.

He asked Chae Ha-min for various favors and met some good families who were wealthy and treated him well.

“I’m being supported by that money, so I shouldn’t be the one saying this, but cut back on work. I told you I could get a part-time job.”

“You shouldn’t be working when you’re young.”

And yet, he did every job he could from the age of fifteen, what a load of crap…

Mok-hwa clicked his tongue several times inwardly.

It’s always like this. Last time, it took several years and several people working together to change Ji Dong-hwa, but how much longer will it take this time?

Even if I don’t remember clearly, there’s someone else besides Ha-min hyung. I definitely remember at least three members, but there were definitely more.

There’s a saint-like person you’d see at church, and a cult leader-like person, and a cool person who oversees their control… There’s more, but who was it?

“Anyway, join. And I’m going to start working too. I’ve been loafing around for half a year, so I need to earn my keep now.”

“If I refuse?”

“Hyung will have to watch me ruin my life with my own hands.”

I’ll commit crimes multiple times and act like a thug. My brother is too weak for me, so he’ll have no choice but to accept this offer.

I’ve never done anything like this before, but things are so different now, so wouldn’t it be okay?

“What the hell did that bastard do to raise you, Mok-hwa?”

“I take after hyung, either way.”

“…Certainly, if it’s useful, I’d be willing to adopt it, but.”

For a moment, a sharp current flowed. I even momentarily suspected that the first ‘Mok-dong’s game’ in this possibility would start with who ruins their life better.

But, I know. Ji Dong-hwa would never think of trying to beat his younger brother right now.

With no basis, a clear insistence, or rather, a tantrum. Currently, there are only two people who can get through to Ji Dong-hwa by using this. Me and Chae Ha-min.

“Okay. I’ll cut back on work too, so don’t overdo it either.”

With a thud, as if declaring the end of the war of nerves, Ji Dong-hwa turned off the gas.

How weak. Mok-hwa smiled brightly inside.

It was a worthwhile war of nerves just for the fact that Ha-min hyung suggested that Dong-hwa hyung join together.

Could there be anyone more of an expert in handling Ji Dong-hwa than that person?

* * *

What am I doing here during this winter vacation that’s perfect for getting a good part-time job?

It’s a theater club. A place that does plays.

The exact name is ‘Nol-Nom’ (Playing Guys). And in front of me, there’s a guy who looks like a dog, who’s the president of the club, smiling brightly.

“…Wow, Dong-hwa-ssi [honorific title]. How many languages do you speak?”

Ryoo I-deun. Why are you here? I expected you to be smart, but I thought you’d be at the Military Academy or the Police University, so I figured it would take a few years.

“I told you. My friend is quite amazing.”

“Ha-min-ah, if you had someone like this, you should have brought him sooner!”

The students majoring in humanities at Korea University, especially in languages and literature, usually have a theater club in each department.

Usually, the departments that are most serious about theater club activities are German, French, and Russian literature, but it’s not like other departments are less passionate.

When I was in college, I wasn’t interested in anything, but I went to see a play in German for a while. They were doing their best with the directing and acting.

If I remember correctly, ‘Nol-Nom’ is a theater club connected to the German literature department.

“DELF C2 [advanced French language diploma], Goethe C2 [advanced German language diploma], TEPS over 900 [Korean English proficiency test]. I thought we needed someone with these abilities!”

“He’s also fluent in Chinese and Japanese.”

Shut up, Ha-min. It’s not your ability.

“Anyway, thank you for your support. We’ll take good care of you. We’re taking another valuable talent from the upper grades!”

“I’ve heard what kind of activities you do, but what will I be doing?”

“In simple terms, an employee in the labor market?”

What the hell. Is being sold to a deep-sea fishing vessel for my brother’s sake like this?

“More precisely, a beloved position that goes and helps when asked.”

That’s just a regular errand boy. The most difficult position, damn it.

“By the way, no quitting! If you say you won’t do it, we’ll tie your feet and bring you anyway!”

“Dong-hwa, that hyung, if he says he’ll do it, he really does it. He seems crazy, no matter what.”

A whispering voice. Ryoo I-deun is listening to it as if it’s fun. It’s a useless effort, Ha-min.

“Why did you join?”

This time, Ryoo I-deun frowned.

You can’t hear it. How annoying. I can see why Ji Dong-hwa fought with Ryoo I-deun so much.

Rather, I have a more twisted personality than Ji Dong-hwa, so maybe that will happen more often.

“I knew that hyung before. He dragged me here, asking if I knew a lot about stage movements and gestures.”

That damn guy again. Feeding me connections like this.

“Anyway, that’s it. You can do simple contact work, or you can do planning work, but for now, the basic task will be reviewing the grammar of the adapted script, right? Originally, a foreigner was coming, but this time, things got messed up.”

Korea University isn’t a collection of idiots, and if they need external help for grammar review when they’re adapting in the language they’re learning, wouldn’t it be better for them to all drop out for the sake of the country and themselves?

Of course, there may be errors that the person who wrote the text directly didn’t notice, but the twisted circumstances didn’t sound pleasant.

The sound of the door opening was heard.

“Oh, President, who are these people?”

…Oh, this Jin Dong-soo, he’s familiar. Originally, I’m the type to stay still because I don’t want to bother checking faces even if a stranger suddenly enters, but this time, I habitually turned my head.

It’s Lee Hyun-jae. He’s a high school senior by age, how is he here?

“The new operating committee members! Say hello!”

“Hello, I’m Lee Hyun-jae from the Korean Literature Department.”

I thought he had graduated early after entering science high school, but I guess not.

There’s no way he’d do something crazy like entering the Korean Literature Department after graduating early from science high school, so maybe he took the GED [General Educational Development test, high school equivalency].

“Our maknae [youngest member]!”

Ryoo I-deun’s eyes instantly filled with exaggerated affection. He got up from his seat and immediately ran to hug him.

The sight of him protesting and telling him to put him down was very, very missed.

Ah, I feel like I’m going to do something stupid.

Even though we’re meeting for the first time here, I want to act like I know him, and I want to be the first to listen to his concerns kindly.

I wanted to apologize for ignoring the signals you sent to become friends until the end, and I wanted to thank you for coming to check on my health even breaking down the door at the end.

…Damn it.

Ji Dong-hwa got up from his seat and ran to the bathroom.

I’m just as mentally weak. Chae Ha-min and Mok-hwa were with me from the beginning, so it wasn’t obvious, but if they weren’t, I would have caused an anomaly long ago.

Deep breaths, take deep breaths. I need to calm down first. Lee Hyun-jae doesn’t know me. Lee Hyun-jae doesn’t know me. And I don’t know him either.

It’s easy to suppress memories. The way to handle the brain has evolved over a long time of living. If I suppress it and suppress it, it will be okay.

Whew, I finally calmed down after catching my breath.

“…Dong-hwa, I’m really upset.”

The dog-like voice was heard, and the sense of stability shattered.

When I turned my head, Ryoo I-deun was there, holding a rope in one hand and looking at me with sad puppy-like eyes.

“You hated working with me that much. To the point of crying…”

Even so, he pulled the rope once, making a snapping sound.

“Are you perhaps trying to leave?”

That’s a threat, you crazy bastard. As if I’d leave. Lee Hyun-jae is here.

I don’t know how to become friends first. That’s not a concept in my head.

But I owe that fox a great debt of gratitude.

“…No.”

“Hey, between us. You can drop the honorifics!”

“I’m fine.”

“So strong! I can’t help it, should we drink together today and try to get closer?”

As if I’d drink with a moron whose alcohol tolerance is one glass.

Behind Ryoo I-deun, Lee Hyun-jae was watching quietly with a worried expression.

What should I do? I don’t know how to become friends with people.

Ji Dong-hwa was sweating cold. When I first came here, I was going to stay still because there would be time until I met Lee Hyun-jae, but nothing goes according to plan.

“…If it’s a meal, I’ll join you.”

“Ah, you want to get close to our maknae. …Wait, how do you know? That the maknae is a minor [underage].”

“You didn’t call Chae Ha-min the maknae.”

I answered simply and passed by.

I wondered if I should ask to have coffee together when I passed by Lee Hyun-jae, but I held back.

There must be a theory and academic basis for becoming friends.

First, I need to read that famous book by Carnegie [likely referring to ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ by Dale Carnegie].