Chapter 275: Year-End (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 275: Year-End (3)
A graphic of falling snow appeared on the electronic display above the dark, unlit stage.
As a stark white spotlight fell onto the center of the stage, Baek Hae-won gasped at the face captured in the close-up.
『When the sun sets,
The festival begins』
Silver-haired Jeong Seong-bin, a white lace ribbon tied around his neck, filled the screen.
『When the surroundings are dyed,
When it grows dark,
The brilliant cluster of stars
That lights up the sky』
Every time the members spread out while performing their footwork, a faint orange light flickered onto the stage. A thin layer of artificial mist settled over the floor.
So, white pants could actually look beautiful on someone. When a person is drenched in white from head to toe, they can look that noble. And the shirt that suits a man in his twenties best is a frilled one.
Watching Kim I-wol walk through the mist on the snowy stage, Baek Hae-won fell into a deep, wistful reverie.
≫ Kim I-wol’s legs are already miles long, but with those high-waisted pants, they’re reaching for the heavens.
└ Someone please update the "How high can they go?" meme.
Contrary to her sentimental thoughts, her fingers were being extremely secular and intuitive. However, having lived this way for over a decade, Baek Hae-won didn't mind.
‘Your very existence is a variety gift set.’
There were the older members singing the song the youngest had written without a single pitch deviation; the sincerity of presenting a revised version of the choreography they had created themselves; and the visual beauty of the silver accessories glimpsed beneath their snow-white outfits.
There wasn't a single thing that wasn't satisfying. The image of the troublemakers who looked like they’d just hopped out of a pink paint bucket was nowhere to be found; only the birch trees of a Finnish snowfield stood there.
『When the fireworks go off,
Between the stars,
The flames burst』
As all the lights on the stage floor turned on and the electronic display glowed in five colors, the Finnish snowfield sparkled as if it had been transformed into a festival grounds.
『Shining brightly』
Park Ju-woo’s golden hair fluttered in the winter wind.
Amidst the intense, rugged music and flashy group dances of other performers, Spark’s song stood out. It felt as grand as a festival yet as distant as a night landscape. Those two contradictory elements blended perfectly on stage.
And Choi Je-ho’s solo dance brought it all together.
His hair slicked back with wax, his dark, straight eyebrows, and the sharp bridge of his nose that cast a shadow every time he lifted his chin were all beautiful.
But it was his gaze—making even the smallest movement look atmospheric—that proved exactly why Choi Je-ho had to be the center of this group.
Ah, and including his incredible muscles, of course...
Until now, the Performance Award usually went to teams where backup dancers and a large number of idols performed jaw-dropping, perfectly synchronized stages.
But if "performance" was a word that encompassed the entirety of artistic expression in its literal sense...
『When everything disappears,
The world that bound us
Freezes over,
And only we can dance
Through the night』
...Couldn't a stage where they spun in waltz pairs with such happy expressions, then stood in a line to take turns pirouetting and kneeling, also be a candidate for the Performance Award?
Perfectly synchronized dancing wasn't the only kind of dance in the world. You didn't have to perform acrobatics to "tear up the stage." There were many ways to express things through dance.
‘So the waltz was what they were learning from Je-ho and Gi-yeon.’
The fan meeting had been a spoiler. They should have given a bit more of a hint. Her heart almost exploded. Baek Hae-won sobbed silently as she watched the members holding hands.
Lee Cheong-hyeon’s rap rode smoothly over the melody. His voice carried through the microphone clearly, yet sounded like a whisper.
It was Baek Hae-won’s favorite part.
『On top of these stairs,
I want to tell you』
Specifically, the part where Lee Cheong-hyeon’s vow...
『Look at this, isn't it beautiful?』
...was turned into reality by Kim I-wol.
A live broadcast from a long time ago flickered through Baek Hae-won’s mind. It was the day Lee Cheong-hyeon and Jeong Seong-bin had done a live stream together.
—‘Is it because I-wol Hyung was the reason I started composing? When it comes to music, I’m really grateful to him.’
—‘Have you ever told him you’re grateful?’
—‘Not yet. But I want to do it before this year ends. Because of him, I was able to let the Sparklers hear the songs I made for a whole year.’
Then, a short while later, Kim I-wol had appeared on a live stream with Kang Gi-yeon.
—‘Cheong-hyeon and Seong-bin’s live? I didn't watch it. Cheong-hyeon told me not to.’
—‘But Hyung, you monitor everything.’
—‘I figured he had a reason for telling me not to, so I didn't. Seong-bin was there, so I’m sure he didn't say anything reckless.’
And a few days after that, in their self-produced content...
—‘This is my part?’
—‘Yes, Seong-bin Hyung distributed it himself.’
—‘Is the fact that the lyrics are similar to "Flowering" intentional?’
—‘Yes. Don't worry, it's not because we ran out of material!’
To Kim I-wol’s words about showing a one-time magic, Lee Cheong-hyeon responded by experiencing a magical world and returning to express his gratitude in front of the most beautiful scenery.
The sight of the older brother telling his younger brother to look at how beautiful it was overlapped with their previous "Teacher's Grace" stage, making Baek Hae-won feel even more strangely moved.
『The stars are starting to fall,
It must be a miracle』
Over Kang Gi-yeon’s part, Park Ju-woo’s high notes—which weren't in the original song—layered on top. It was a voice as solid and sharp as an ice pick, as if it would crack the frozen winter sky wide open.
The lingering resonance of the ad-lib remained in Baek Hae-won’s ears like falling powder snow.
『The bells are ringing』
Kim I-wol smiled brightly. His blue eyes curved like a crescent moon in the daytime.
The members gathered around Kim I-wol. The way they hugged each other's shoulders as if saying they’d worked hard this year felt so much like a family that it warmed her heart like a crackling campfire.
As soon as the stage ended, we received blankets from our manager and moved to the audience seating. After greeting the idols who had arrived before us, we sat in a row in the very back corner. Because of us, the last row was filled instantly.
"Is anyone cold?"
Perhaps because the stage had just ended, everyone’s faces were flushed. After handing a blanket to Park Ju-woo, who was in the high-risk group for catching a cold, the next stage began.
Giving an enthusiastic reaction to someone else's stage is the proper attitude for a member of society. Just as one would hit a tambourine even harder for a colleague forced to sing at a company dinner, we had a duty to watch our colleagues' stages intently and show our admiration.
After watching the stages from the back row for a long while...
"Man, the year-end shows really are something else."
"Lee Cheong-hyeon, sit down. I can't see."
"No, Gi-yeon-ssi, did you see the seniors doing those mid-air flips just now?!"
...Spark ended up becoming idols who were just thoroughly enjoying the show.
Is this okay? Is it okay to go from wandering through a mysterious and beautiful fairy-tale world just moments ago to suddenly becoming sincere fans shouting, "Seniors, you're so cool!" in reality?
"Let's do mid-air flips next year too. Ah, is that too much of an idea theft? Right?"
"How about doing a double mid-air rotation instead? Choi Je-ho can do it."
"Me?"
Choi Je-ho asked back. I didn't bother confirming that he would.
Despite it being mid-winter, we fanned ourselves with our hands to cool down from the heated atmosphere. The passion of the people who had come to cheer, the crowds, and the noise all gathered to create a muggy, boisterous environment.
While the VCR for the live broadcast was playing, the atmosphere in the venue settled down a bit. The scene consisted mostly of staff moving around the concert hall to prepare for the next stage.
As I was watching the pre-recorded VCR on the electronic display, a powerful shout erupted from somewhere in the audience.
"Choi Je-ho, button up!!"
...Excuse me?
Button up... Choi Je-ho?
But his mouth is closed?
The eyes of everyone who knew Choi Je-ho turned toward him. He was just sitting there with a blank expression.
In that moment, acting on instinct, I grabbed the open chest area of the shirt he was wearing with one hand.
"What are you doing?"
"They told you to button up...!"
Whether it was because Choi Je-ho looked cold or because the exposure was precarious, it would be a disaster if that shout got caught on broadcast. It was a relief that the live feed wasn't currently on the venue.
Breaking into a cold sweat, I checked the cameras. A few lenses were pointed this way.
Before long, a massive shot of Choi Je-ho, with his chest being held shut, appeared on the electronic display. Laughter erupted from the audience.
'Dammit.'
In the midst of this, I felt the fabric of the shirt cruelly slipping through my fingers. Since my grip strength is above that of the average male, the problem must lie either with Choi Je-ho’s pecs or the design of the shirt, which was exceptionally wide at the chest. Why did they make the top like this when the pants were tightened so much with a corset?
Choi Je-ho looked down at the veins popping out on my hand and spoke.
"Should I do up the buttons?"
"Are there buttons?"
"...There aren't any."
Then don't even bring it up. My blood pressure kept rising.
To make matters worse, my hands were slippery. It was because the stylist had generously applied body highlighter—the kind used by top international stars and apparently hard to find during the year-end season—all over him. Consequently, my hands were now sparkling too.
"Hyung, the blanket...!"
Park Ju-woo hurriedly handed his blanket to Choi Je-ho. He looked determined not to see his hyung get kicked off the year-end stage for a censorship violation.
"Thanks."
I let go while he draped the blanket over himself, and good heavens. I could see why they told him to button up. That was not a chest meant to be seen at a family dinner table.
A headache started to form, but I endured it. Then, I tightly fastened his blanket using the decorative chain I had been wearing around my waist.
At this point, I couldn't tell if year-end tax settlements were harder or year-end stages. I’ve looked after a drunk department head’s jacket before, but this was my first time policing someone else's exposure.
As I was wiping away the sweat, the end of Part 1 approached. I felt like I was going to collapse from exhaustion. If Jeong Seong-bin hadn't handed me some water from under his chair, my mouth would have been so dry a cactus could have grown in it.
While I was parched, two seniors in flashy outfits appeared on stage arm-in-arm for a special award presentation.
Usually, award ceremonies are crammed into the end. But since there are so many awards and just doing presentations can get boring, the setlist had been changed to distribute awards at the end of both Part 1 and Part 2.
"Is the one coming up now the Rookie Award and the New Star Award?"
"Yes."
"What's the difference between a Rookie and a New Star...?"
Park Ju-woo asked a question that hit the nail on the head. It was a good thing we were talking while pretending to have a pleasant conversation with harmonious smiles; otherwise, we would have been rumored to be gutsy idols who came to their first award ceremony and openly criticized the broadcast system. The rigorous training had paid off.
"The Rookie Award is given to a team that debuted this year and had good results, and the New Star Award is given to one rising idol who was very active during the year," Jeong Seong-bin answered. I’d noticed him reading the setlist meticulously, and it turned out he’d memorized everything.
"Whatever it is, let's get ready to congratulate them."
"Okay."
At my words, everyone except Choi Je-ho got ready to clap. Choi Je-ho... seemed to be planning to give a moderate congratulatory applause. The angle of his palms was different from ours.
"Many idols debuted this year as well, heating up the music industry, right?"
"That's right. Especially since the Rookie Award is a precious prize you can only receive once after your debut, I'm sure the emotions will be special."
The smooth hosting commentary flowed.
I should sincerely congratulate whoever wins. Once you graduate high school and enter society, there aren't many chances to receive awards.
Just as I was leaning forward to get a better look at the stage with that thought...
"The winner of the 20XX Music Grand Festival Rookie Award is... Spark!"
I heard a familiar name. Every member of Spark widened their eyes and froze like statues.