Chapter 190: Preparing for the Follow-up Project (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 190: Preparing for the Follow-up Project (1)
The announcement for Spark’s comeback was finally posted. Because the members, who valued confidentiality, rarely dropped any bait, the Sparklers had to face the comeback as if struck by a bolt of lightning.
Baek Hae-won was no exception. With final exams approaching, the fact that Spark was returning at the same time made her heart twice as heavy. Spark, my handsome men who have come to ruin my life.
‘I hope they come back with insane makeup and killer styling.’
This was the first comeback since UA formed a dedicated team for Spark (excluding the fan song, since the boys supposedly did everything for that one). It was impossible not to feel anxious.
Until now, our I-wol had handled everything perfectly and with style on his own, but she worried whether she could trust this incompetent agency.
However, with visuals like theirs, it was hard to mess things up. Baek Hae-won thought more than once that if they couldn't even achieve a mediocre result with Spark, the UA employees deserved a good flogging.
≫ If UA loses their minds and brings out something weird, they’re dead.
≫ It’s time to show the sincerity of that apology you posted. Show us how much you’ve reflected through your investment.
≫ Boys, come back quickly and show the idol scene who’s boss with your faces. But if you do a sh*tty job just to put them out fast, UA is seriously dead.
Correction. She didn't just think it; she posted it on social media.
‘Since the comeback is happening anyway, I’ll finish all my studying before then!’
Baek Hae-won made a grim resolution and powered through math problems for about two hours on pure passion.
And just as her concentration was beginning to wane...
≫ @spArk_official
J / Leader
#Spark #spArk #Seongbin #MISSION
The first concept photo was released.
As expected, the world is fair. It rewards those who work hard!
Baek Hae-won’s spinal cord reacted to the notification.
A shot of Jeong Seong-bin’s upper body, sitting arrogantly in a chairman’s chair, filled the screen.
‘A suit? A SUIT? A three-piece all-black suit?’
A leader wearing a vest over a dress shirt with sleeve garters on his forearms.
Biting the end of a pen while looking toward a light source in a space that looked like a dark meeting room.
The man who, until the day before yesterday, was the most sorrowful man in the group, was now staring straight ahead with a expressionless face and not a hint of a smile!
≫ f*ck
≫ Sh*t
≫ No, f*ck, Seongbin-ah
≫ Excuse me, sir, no, F*CK, what is this even
≫ Thank you, UA. I always believed in you.
≫ What’s with the sleeve garters? I’m so mad. I love you to death. But you started it.
└ Someone calm this person down.
Calm down? There’s no time to be calm. I have to go show off my baby’s concept photo everywhere, like a lion king showing off his cub from a cliff.
Baek Hae-won reposted the concept photo, quoted it, and expressed her overflowing heart by downloading the photo and re-attaching it.
She didn't forget to give a long lecture on why each part was so good, capturing new close-ups of the killer details.
≫ The way he’s... the way he’s ‘barely biting’ the end of that pen makes me so obsessed. So did he bite it? Or not? There’s a shadow on his lips, so he definitely bit it, right? Tell me he bit it, hurry.
≫ Leather gloves.
(Gasp)
≫ Are these seriously the upper arm muscles of a 19-year-old high schooler? Are they? Stop going to the gym with your hyungs. No, keep going. Boasting these forearms with a face as white as jade is a deception, a display of vanity, and pure greed.
└ The boys’ frames are insane, seriously ㅠㅠㅠㅠ Wear suits for the rest of your lives.
└ What are you talking about??? They need to wear uniforms and rash guards too. I’m going to see the boys’ shoulder lines from the top, bottom, left, right, front, and back before I die.
└ LOL
≫ Men look best with their hair down.
└ I feel like I’ve seen Mi-heon for about three years now, and you’re really consistent.
└ I haven’t lost my original spark.
Something big is coming.
Something huge!
Her heart pounded as if it would explode. She was desperate for the comeback date—no, for the next concept photo to drop.
“Let’s try matching that part one more time.”
Jeong Seong-bin stopped the music and dragged the playback bar back. Heavy breathing could be heard from all over.
Lee Cheong-hyeon, who was also panting, raised his hand and stepped out of the formation.
“Hyung, I’m passing for a second.”
“Does it hurt a lot?”
“I think I’ll be okay if I just rest for one round.”
Taped knees were visible beneath his practice shorts.
He wasn't injured. It was just that the kid was growing like a bean sprout in a steamer.
‘Ack!’
‘What?!’
When he woke up screaming in the middle of the night, I wondered what was wrong, but it was just growth pains. He was rolling around and groaning so much that I stayed up all night massaging his legs.
No wonder he seemed to be tearing his hair out more than usual during the ‘In My Office’ OST work. It was a type of work he hadn't done before, and his legs hurt, so he must have been more sensitive than usual.
Anyway, now that we know the cause, we’re practicing while taking appropriate breaks. It’s not like Lee Cheong-hyeon takes a long time to learn choreography, and a visual member’s height is more important than anything.
I made eye contact with Lee Cheong-hyeon through the mirror. The kid, who was massaging his knees, grinned.
“You said it hurts, so why are you so happy?”
“I can’t help but smile thinking about looking down on you hyungs!”
“Not a chance.”
A hollow laugh escaped me. Do you have any idea how many centimeters tall you’d have to be to look down on Choi Je-ho or me?
Still, I’m relieved that everyone seems to be growing well. At least they seem to be growing faster than before.
From Kang Gi-yeon, who I thought would never grow, to Lee Cheong-hyeon, there were members who were growing so fast it was visible. On the other hand, Jeong Seong-bin and Park Ju-woo were the types to fill out their frames first.
I’m also satisfied because my muscles have been building well again since I turned off that labor support whatever...
“Hey, face forward after the turn.”
“My bad.”
A bit of a problem had arisen.
Because Kang Gi-yeon volunteered to cover for Lee Cheong-hyeon’s slow progress, my dance teacher had been swapped to Choi Je-ho.
“No, I told you to look forward after you spin.”
“Wait. I’ve got the spinning part down for now. Now I’ll look forward.”
“Did Kang Gi-yeon say he grew Buddhist relics while teaching you?”
“He said he grew so many he made a necklace and sold it. Happy now?”
Maybe it’s because I’ve been picking on him so much, but Choi Je-ho’s ability to pick on me has improved. I guess this is what they call getting back what you give. I’ll have to nag him even harder next time.
After repeating the same movement several more times.
“Just sleep here today.”
Choi Je-ho announced. I accepted it humbly.
When is ‘In My Office’ going to be released?
Hurry up and come out so I can raise my dance proficiency...
+
[SYSTEM] A work order from the ‘Person in Charge’ has arrived.
▶ Assistant Manager Kim, how is the KPI achievement going?
+
To see a system like that as soon as I open my eyes. I want to resign.
Oh right, I’m a freelancer who isn't enrolled in employment insurance. I need to get my first settlement soon so I can at least pay into the national pension.
My retirement security is worse than when I was at Hanpyeong Industry. Since I have to give the money from the stock sale to my sister, I basically don't have a penny to my name. What should I do?
Maybe I should get a heavy machinery license, immigrate to Australia, live miserably in a share house, and save money like crazy...
While I was racking my brain, Lee Cheong-hyeon, who was getting off the bed, spoke to me.
“Hyung, why are you still lying down for once?”
“Because I’m worrying about the future.”
“Did you reach a conclusion?”
“I thought I should learn English more diligently.”
“The workbooks aren't going to last for a while, then.”
Still, I have to live diligently. Haven't I done all sorts of things to achieve the KPIs?
If we don't get first place with this album, the KPI achievement will be delayed until next year. I won't let that happen.
Today’s schedule is the music video shoot. I won't be able to return to the dorm for the next three days and two nights starting today. That’s just how an idol’s MV shoot is.
Park Ju-woo, Lee Cheong-hyeon, and Kang Gi-yeon got into the car, tightly hiding their newly styled hair for today.
I pulled their hoods over their heads and tightened the drawstrings, making them all look like webfoot octopuses. I made sure to take plenty of photos of the octopus trio so I could post them on the official account whenever I wanted.
At the shop, everyone succeeded in their transformation. Their faces and fits showed the results of sweating at the gym and grooming themselves every night.
On top of that, a lot of effort went into the eye makeup to express maturity. I don't know how many layers of eyeshadow were applied.
Lee Cheong-hyeon, who had rarely worn heavy makeup, kept making ‘Oh... ohhh...’ sounds while looking in the mirror.
“Everyone, take 50 selfies each. I’m going to check.”
“The quota is low today...?”
Park Ju-woo asked, sounding puzzled.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take the other 50 myself.”
“O-okay...”
There’s a demand for photos of my boys taken by someone else, too. I’ll make sure to take plenty of shots while you guys are standing against walls or sitting on sofas.
For the first shoot, which was a standard choreography scene, everyone wore suits. While there were slight variations, they maintained a sense of unity with black half-palm gloves and plain-toe shoes.
“We’re going to shoot the group choreography shots once against this gray background and once against that burgundy background over there. After the outfit change, we’ll shoot together on that set.”
The assistant director gave a brief explanation based on the storyboard we had received in advance.
I looked back and forth between the two sets and asked.
“Since all of our colors are dark, won't the members get lost against a burgundy background?”
“We decided to use very strong lighting on that background. You might actually have to worry about the makeup being washed out.”
Looking around myself, I saw a gray set on one side that was empty to focus attention on the members, and a burgundy set on the other side with black paint splattered across it.
It feels like just yesterday we were filming a music video at a closed school I scouted myself. Now we’re filming in a proper set. I’m filled with emotion.
“And besides the group choreography, we have the individual shots for each member from number 3 to 8, Gi-yeon’s blind shot at number 13, I-wol’s half-body shot at number 14, Ju-woo’s meeting room shot at number 27...”
Ah, this isn't the time to be sentimental.
Good grief. I have a mountain of work to do, and here I am thinking about other things. I’ve gotten soft, truly soft...