Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 202

202. First Paycheck

The talk show, known for its stinging questions like bee stings, featured a moderately popular idol as its guest today.

Although a boy group, they consistently released popular songs that appealed to all ages, showing strength in digital music rather than physical albums, and steadily building their recognition.

Unlike Wild Animal, who suddenly shot to fame, they were a group that slowly but safely gained popularity.

This was their strength, but because they had built their popularity so smoothly, it was difficult to highlight the unique aspects of this talk show when they appeared on a program known for sharp questioning.

If they had suddenly become famous from the start, they could have used that as a topic. But this group had no such unique selling point.

Watching the idols give textbook answers and vaguely gloss over every question, the PD [Production Director] thought, “Ah, this episode is a flop.”

The talk show host had similar thoughts.

Even the idols themselves were thinking, ‘What if we’re called boring?’ But as a group that maximized their smooth and unremarkable image, they couldn’t risk ruining their upright and sincere image with unnecessary gambles.

In the midst of this, the main MC [Master of Ceremonies, or host] spoke to the youngest member.

“But Dong-geurami [lit. Circle], I heard you’re somewhat close to Woo Yeonwoo. Is that true?”

“Why am I Dong-geurami?”

“Your name. Won. Calling you Won-ssi [Korean honorific suffix] sounds a bit strange…”

The MCs chuckled among themselves, and Kim Won, thinking, ‘What’s so funny about that?’ cautiously answered in the affirmative.

“We’re not very close. Just somewhat acquainted.”

In reality, they only exchanged greetings and a few words when they ran into each other, but in the scriptwriting process, ‘knowing each other’s faces and exchanging greetings’ had turned into ‘moderate acquaintance.’

During the preliminary survey, the writer of this show had included a question asking, ‘Do you know any popular figures?’ and writing Woo Yeonwoo’s name there was the beginning of it all.

In any case, the main MC was pleased with Kim Won’s answer. Woo Yeonwoo was the most famous person these days. Even if he didn’t appear himself, many viewers would stay tuned if Woo Yeonwoo was mentioned.

“What’s Woo Yeonwoo like in private? Woo Yeonwoo has his own unique way of speaking, that pretty way of talking where he just charges ahead on his own.”

“My way style.”

The MCs laughed among themselves again, but Kim Won remained silent with a sincere smile.

“Is he like that off-camera too?”

As the MC’s rambling ended with a question, Kim Won finally opened his mouth.

“The camera actually doesn’t capture Yeonwoo well enough.”

The MCs burst into laughter.

“He’s even more so off-camera? What do you usually do with Woo Yeonwoo?”

Kim Won waved his hands with an embarrassed smile.

“Ah, no, we’re not close enough to see what we do usually. We just see each other when waiting during music shows? Ah.”

“That’s enough to be friends!”

“Right! Aren’t you the same age?”

“Then you’re friends.”

“I guess?”

As Kim Won awkwardly responded, the main MC thought, ‘Even if I set the stage for him, he can’t add any flavor on his own,’ and pressed him again.

“Then what do you talk about and do in the waiting room? I can’t imagine Woo Yeonwoo talking and playing normally.”

The leader nudged Kim Won and whispered.

“Tell them that.”

Although it was a whisper, it was loud enough for the people in the studio to hear because he was wearing a microphone.

“There’s something?”

“Tell us. It’s okay. Woo Yeonwoo even told the story of crawling between Maeng Wooshin’s legs and getting hit when he was on the show before.”

As the MCs egged him on and his colleagues sent him ‘tell us, tell us’ glances, Kim Won finally revealed.

“He told me to go to a heart hospital.”

As Kim Won revealed this, everyone wore a shocked expression.

“Woo Yeonwoo did?”

“Yes. His face looked bad, so I thought, ‘What? Is he picking a fight?’ But even though he speaks strangely, he’s not the type of friend who goes around picking fights.”

As a few members smiled with strange expressions, the main MC asked with a glint in his eyes.

“So? Did you go where he told you to go?”

“Yes. There were posts written by Yeonwoo’s fans… and San Sora’s interview, so I thought, just in case… I went…”

* * *

“Wow. Why is everyone doing this from all directions?”

Jongwoo muttered, turning off the TV screen and looking at Rembrary.

However, Rembrary had a relatively calm expression, so Jongwoo sighed.

It was true that strange rumors were circulating, but within the agency, everyone was pretending not to know under CEO Im’s instructions.

To think that another idol would use it as entertainment material on a broadcast.

“Did you really say that?”

Kesh, who was texting Yuri nearby, asked, having heard everything even while texting.

Rembrary shrugged.

“I told him to go to the hospital.”

He didn’t remember anything else. He hadn’t said it with much thought.

Then Hyegyeol immediately stuck her face in.

“What about me? Do I have anything wrong with me?”

Jongwoo grabbed Hyegyeol’s ankle and dragged her away.

“Don’t tease him when he’s already upset.”

“I’m not teasing!”

* * *

Jongwoo was very worried about the aftermath of that broadcast, but before any reaction to the broadcast appeared, Rembrary’s bank account reacted first.

At first, Rembrary didn’t even know if money was being deposited into his account.

“What are you going to do with your first paycheck?”

If Jeongseo hadn’t asked while making tomato juice, he probably wouldn’t have known for a long time.

Only after hearing Jeongseo’s words did Rembrary realize that he had been paid and asked.

“Has it been settled?”

“Didn’t you check?”

“How do I know?”

Rembrary quickly took out his phone.

“It would have come in a text.”

Rembrary was startled to check the text that had arrived in the early morning.

The text had a string of numbers. So long that he couldn’t immediately grasp what kind of number it was.

“It’ll say it’s been deposited, right?”

Rembrary nodded, but was still too surprised to speak.

“I see.”

Still, feeling like he was showing too much excitement, Rembrary nonchalantly pressed the power button on his phone again.

After drinking the tomato juice, he went to the bathroom to brush his teeth, then sat on the edge of the bathtub and turned on his phone again.

Counting the numbers one by one from the back, Rembrary was amazed.

‘Why did they give me so much?’

He was happy to receive a lot, but he also wondered if he deserved to receive this much.

Even when he was a high priest, Rembrary certainly had even more immense wealth, but back then, it felt more awkward because he wasn’t directly receiving the money.

In fact, this was because Rembrary had a lot of individual activities this year, so he received a particularly large amount.

The members of Wild Animal also received a large sum of money at once, but it was less than Rembrary’s.

Rembrary, unaware of this, thought, ‘In this world, famous people earn a lot of money, it’s true.’

After brushing his teeth and going out, he saw that the other members were also excited after checking their texts.

Hyegyeol asked.

“What are you going to do with your first paycheck, hyung [older brother]?”

It was the same question Jeongseo had asked earlier.

“What will you do?”

“Save it!”

The realistic youngest member shouted with unusually bright eyes.

“What about you?”

Rembrary looked down at the numbers on his phone again.

Before long, a faint fantasy came to mind.

“I’m going to…”

Rembrary opened his mouth with difficulty. What he had always wanted to do once he got paid. That was…

“Pizza. Buying and eating as much as I want with my own money.”

* * *

“No, you should eat moderately no matter what you order! What is this?”

Jongwoo shouted in horror as he returned to the dorm. The living room was filled with pizza boxes, so many that the floor was not visible.

“And why are you guys eating along without stopping him!”

Jongwoo covered his face with both hands and yelled. He was very angry.

The members were walking around the living room, eating the pizzas that had been laid out in various types.

Seeing Jongwoo, they smiled awkwardly, but they didn’t stop eating, so Jongwoo desperately ran around collecting the pizzas.

“No! The awards ceremony isn’t far away! What is this! Are you going to ruin all the dieting you’ve done?”

“Ah, hyung, but this is the first time I’ve actually eaten like this!”

Hyegyeol tried to run away with a pizza, but was caught not far away.

“Of course! Because no one eats like this! Open your mouth! Take the pizza out of your mouth!”

Meanwhile, Rembrary slyly put the remaining pizzas into the refrigerator and took one box into the bathroom, locking the door.

“Woo Yeonwoo! I saw you too!”

“It’s fortunate that the doorknob is sturdy.”

“I can hear you!”

In the end, Jongwoo confiscated all but one box of the remaining pizza.

The members were disappointed, but they had already eaten a few slices, so they seemed to accept it.

After Jongwoo left, Rembrary smiled contentedly with his hands behind his back. Although the pizza was taken away, he was happy at the thought that he could now eat whatever he wanted without relying on other people.

However, as soon as he entered his room, Jeongseo advised.

“I didn’t stop you today because it’s your first paycheck, but you should save a little in the future.”

“I received a lot, Jeongseo. This much. Enough to cover the emotional wounds I’ve received so far.”

Jeongseo asked in surprise.

“You’ve been emotionally hurt? Because people keep saying you have a bad personality?”

“No. Let’s just say that’s what I mean.”

Rembrary was pleased, but Jeongseo still advised again.

“You’re establishing yourself as an actor, so it’s okay, but income in this field is not constant. Other jobs increase in salary as you get older and gain experience, but idols are the opposite. You earn the most when you’re a young professional. So, save for the long term.”

Rembrary looked down at the money on his phone and nodded.

“I understand.”

Then I guess I should get food from the two CEOs. Rembrary thought regretfully and decided to keep the money to himself.

* * *

Title: I don’t know if I can talk about this, but Woo Yeonwoo…

I’m Woo Yeonwoo’s school classmate. XX Middle School and can verify with graduation photos.

Woo Yeonwoo has been a hot topic lately because he sees ghosts and has superpowers lol [laughing out loud]. So I’m writing this.

He often missed school because he was a trainee (he was a trainee back then too), so he originally felt like a voluntary outsider? He wasn’t bullied or anything, but he was fine on his own.

But the reason why the kids didn’t get close to Woo Yeonwoo wasn’t just because of his trainee life. He originally seemed to be possessed by spirits or something.

Is it genetic? That’s why his brother too. He’s with his brother in the viral video, I’m right ㅇㅇ [Korean slang for ‘yes, I’m right’]