Becoming An Idol Wasn’T On My Plan [EN]: Chapter 62

62.

The day after finishing the arrangement and first recording of ‘Cliff and Boy,’ I lay sprawled on my bed and pulled out my laptop.

Lee Hyun-jae was lying next to me in a similar position, looking at my laptop with me.

“Hyung [older brother or male friend], my parents told me to thank you for helping me get into the top 10 in the school.”

I answer while accessing the official SNS account.

“…You did well.”

I showed the effectiveness of tutoring in this midterm exam, so it will help me persuade my parents in the future.

“Hey, if I were smart, I wouldn’t have needed it in the first place…”

Lee Hyun-jae, who was about to retort, paused as he looked at my laptop screen and stared at me blankly.

“…Hyung, why do you always put ‘chongchong’ at the end of every mention?”

…Huh? That’s what you usually put at the end of a letter.

I look at the text I typed.

—Are you all doing well, Luminous [Blossence’s fan name]? I miss you. I want to see you, but since I can’t, I’ll show you us instead. Goodbye, chongchong. P.S. I watched a movie with Hyun-jae. Only Ones, have you Luminous seen it?

(A picture of Lee Hyun-jae and me watching ‘Only Ones’ together. The picture quality is not good because the phone is old.)

During the team meeting, we made a rule to post something at least twice a week for no reason, so I wrote something really useless.

“…That’s what you put at the end of a letter.”

Lee Hyun-jae picks up his phone and starts searching.

“…Really? Then… do you put that in every letter, hyung?”

“Yeah.”

“Hyung, did you live in Cheonghak-dong [a traditional village known for its adherence to old customs]?”

What a ridiculous thing to say.

“…Hyun-jin is coming to the practice room today.”

I naturally change the subject because I have nothing to say, and Lee Hyun-jae’s expression becomes half excited, half ambiguous.

“…Hyun-jin will debut soon, right?”

I nod with a dubious expression. I guess Giji-saeng [a reliable source, possibly a journalist or insider] wouldn’t lie.

‘He definitely said he turned to a better possibility, so wouldn’t he debut?’

…If he doesn’t debut, Kim Hyun-jin might have had a genius talent in another field. That life would have been more satisfying.

“…Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen hyung say someone will do well without any basis.”

Well, it’s not without basis.

* * *

When I entered the practice room, Kim Hyun-jin was dancing in the middle.

As soon as he saw us, he ran to Ryu Iden like crazy, hugged him, and shouted.

“Wow! Hyungs! Hyun-jae! I missed you! I love you!”

…Ha, this gangster-like good guy. The loudest human has returned.

“I watched all of your debut activities. Donghwa hyung is really good at composing, and everyone is really good on stage, and you were all really cool!”

Kim Hyun-jin felt excessively happy to see us after a long time, and he acted like a puppy who met his owner after not seeing them for three days.

He shook hands with each of the members, waving his hands wildly.

“How have you been, Hyun-jin?”

Ryu Iden asks, and Hyun-jin tilts his head with a strange expression, then smiles and answers.

“I told you all the updates on the phone, so what are you asking, hyung!”

“No, but there’s such a thing as etiquette.”

“These days… well, it’s a little awkward since I moved agencies.”

He answers with a sad expression, as if he hasn’t made any close friends yet.

Hmm, seeing us, who he was quite close to, in that situation might make him feel sentimental.

I nodded, watching their conversation without thinking.

“Ah! But one hyung is very nice to me. His name is Mokhwa, and at first, I was surprised because he was similar to Donghwa hyung. He’s also a really good dancer!”

…Hey, does he not know? I made a mistake thinking he would know.

I smiled slightly at the compliment that my brother dances well and answered.

“He’s my brother.”

“…Yes?”

“Mokhwa, he’s my brother.”

Kim Hyun-jin screams weakly and stares at me intently.

“…You don’t look alike at all?”

Of course not. It’s the same as being able to make both desks and chairs from the same tree.

“Hyung has a completely cold impression, but Mokhwa hyung looks completely kind, so I didn’t expect it.”

…Well, Mokhwa is kind.

A staff member diligently takes pictures of us chatting.

They said they were filming our daily lives as content to fill the gap.

“That’s amazing. I only knew that hyung’s brother was a trainee.”

“But other than you, we didn’t know that Mokhwa was in Diony Entertainment until recently.”

Ryu Iden says with a smile and glares at me.

…What are you looking at?

“Donghwa hides Mokhwa too well.”

Don’t just repeat what you heard from Mokhwa, Hamin.

* * *

The sound of ‘Horizon’ after a long time. It was made in winter, but it suits the summer atmosphere better.

Come on, let’s go, beyond that horizon over there

‘…Wow, it’s more emotional than I expected.’

Maybe this will be the last time this song is on stage.

Surprisingly, after experiencing so many incidents, it feels like the survival show is completely over now.

A feeling of passing a station that I can never return to.

The feeling that I, who lived as a novelist, no longer exists anywhere, a sense that a possibility within me has completely turned into a latent form.

I thought busily in my head while doing the choreography after a long time.

‘…Not bad.’

Certainly, being an idol is a job with clear advantages and disadvantages, but it’s not bad.

“Donghwa was half a beat too fast just now!”

At Chae Hamin’s command, I snap out of it and focus on the choreography again.

“Wow, it’s been a while since Donghwa hyung made a mistake in the choreography!”

Lee Hyun-jae shouts happily, and Seok-joon adds.

“If that didn’t happen, Donghwa hyung wouldn’t be human.”

…Ha, you damn things. They pounce on me without rest whenever they see a chance to tease me.

Finally, when the song ends for the last time, everyone collapses on the floor.

Since Kim Hyun-jin belongs to another company and we have debuted, it is quite cumbersome to coordinate schedules, so we ran non-stop today to regain our old senses, and this is the result.

I moved my legs, which didn’t move well, and sat on a chair to drink water.

I can’t eat well because I’m managing my weight, but my body is still moving, so I guess I’m still young.

* * *

A notice posted on the Blossence official fan community.

[Notice of Appreciation Festival to Commemorate the End of the First Album Activities]

Hello, Luminous.

This is Donghwa, who is in charge of today’s announcement. I will show you the table of contents of the announcement first.

…Table of Contents…

1. Introduction: Expression of gratitude to Luminous

2. Main Subject: Ways to repay gratitude

2.1. A week with Blossence

2.2. Blossence’s outdoor street performance

3. Conclusion: Closing and greetings

1. Introduction: Expression of gratitude to Luminous

Thanks to your support, ‘1st, Blue, Blooming, Blossence’ activities were nominated for first place and were successfully completed.

(Omitted)

Therefore, we promise the following ways to repay you. First, we have planned an appreciation festival performance with Blossence. Second, three self-produced contents will be provided while waiting for this performance. Third, the above two contents will be uploaded to the official account. Let’s take a look at the details in the main subject.

(Omitted)

3. Conclusion: Closing and greetings

I am always finishing the day with a grateful heart. Tonight, although it is especially dark, I believe that the stars shining in it are the hearts of each and every Luminous. I’ll see you on the W app first.

I’ll cut my words short, chongchong.

P.S. I will prohibit writing Idea in the comments. Please.

Comments

—Donghwa, why do you write the notice in a thesis style… I’m getting PTSD from college assignments… ㅠㅠㅠㅠ [crying emoticons]

—ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅜㅠㅠ Ah, why do I have to go to work that day ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

—Chongchong… Chongchong… Did you write it… with those white fingers…?

—I’m happy because I’m stanning Blossence [supporting Blossence]. There’s no other idol like this

Based on the content that ‘must’ be included every time a notice is posted, the members write the posts themselves, and the notice is posted after receiving confirmation from the planning team.

This is a long-standing tradition created according to the members’ request to communicate with fans as often as possible during TOT [Time of Transition, likely referring to promotional periods].

In the Luminous fandom, anticipation for Ji Donghwa’s thesis-like notice, the upcoming W app week-long content, and the outdoor performance (about an hour) swelled.

* * *

…That’s what I said.

“Donghwa, are you okay?”

Chae Hamin is cutting fruit next to me with very clumsy hand movements.

It seems like… about half of the flesh is falling off.

“Donghwa… I told you to stop working so much. You keep trying to suffer alone, and I’m really upset.”

Seeing the guys gathered in my room and at the head of my bed with Chae Hamin makes my already aching head hurt even more.

Why am I in bed after just working in the studio as usual?

“I’m glad I brought coffee, hyung. Otherwise, you would have kept collapsing there, hyung.”

…I guess the problem was that I kept practicing and working at the same time, thinking, ‘I guess I’m still young.’

“The hospital said I’ll get better if I rest, but still, don’t even think about working or practicing today and tomorrow, Donghwa. This is a leader’s order.”

Seeing Ryu Iden speaking with a stern expression, I guess my condition isn’t good.

…Let’s think. Although it’s not going well.

After receiving confirmation for yesterday’s notice, I practiced for about five hours and then kept tinkering with the song I was making to give to Chae Hamin as a gift… Damn it. My head doesn’t turn anymore.

“Hyungnim—sometimes I see—that hyungnim—has too many—thoughts. Rest—well now.”

If that insensitive dinosaur can see through it like that, I guess my expression isn’t being properly managed.

“…I’m fine, so go and rest.”

…Goodness, my voice is terrible. It’s not a good voice to begin with, but it’s cracking as if it’s been basking in the sun in the middle of the desert.

The other members were surprised by my voice, which they heard for the first time since waking up, and their expressions hardened, and they started running around.

“What should I do! At times like this! I have to make tea!”

Ryu Iden runs to the kitchen and goes out to look at the various teas I bought for the members’ throat care.

“Should I tell the team leader, hyung?”

“I—don’t know either—”

The two youngest members are jumping around and running around frivolously.

“Donghwa! I’ll make you porridge!”

Chae Hamin sentenced me to death. Chae Hamin’s cooking is a high-level assassination technique, so caution is required.

In that chaos, my head rings dizzily, and I murmured in a colder voice than expected, but without realizing it at the time.

“…Everyone get out.”

At that moment, the room became as silent as if it had frozen. Only then did I feel satisfied and lie back in bed and burrow into the blanket.

I’m used to being sick with a cold. During my teenage years, when I was working secretly from Mokhwa, I often endured headaches and colds to save on hospital bills.

So, if I rest a little like then, I’ll soon return to normal. So that I’m not as dazed as I am now. So that my head can turn properly.

I heard the sound of the members opening the door and leaving in my fading consciousness.

* * *

“Let’s start the meeting now.”

At Ryu Iden’s words, the other members gathered at the table and nodded with serious expressions.

“Donghwa… is angry. Everyone saw that it was completely different from his usual annoyance, right?”

Nodding again.

“Let’s come up with a plan. It seems like he’s angry because we’re being noisy next to him while he’s sick. What should we do?”

And then comes the silence.

All the members knew that Ji Donghwa liked ‘Mokhwa, Wiener Schnitzel, and reading,’ and they also knew that all he did when he rested was work.

And they also knew that all of this was useless information right now.

“…Wouldn’t it be best to nurse him as quietly as possible, as if we were not there?”

Lee Hyun-jae, who is recognized by the members as the number one brain to trust when Ji Donghwa is absent and who has similar tendencies, said, and everyone nodded in agreement.