Chapter 39: Profile Shoot
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 39: Profile Shoot
Although the issue with the group name was still hitting a snag, other preparations were proceeding steadily.
Today’s profile shoot was part of that process.
For this day, I’d been forced to go to bed by 1:00 AM sharp for an entire week.
This was because Jeong Seong-bin, acting on the manager’s instructions, had strictly forbidden late-night work under the pretext of "managing the skin condition of all members."
"Uh, Seong-bin. I’m researching reference materials, so I think this might take a while..."
"We’ll take care of breakfast ourselves this week, so please stop for today and do it tomorrow morning."
I wasn't the only one under Jeong Seong-bin’s special management.
"Seong-bin Hyung, I really feel like I could sleep peacefully if I just wrote one more line of this melody!"
"You said that an hour ago. Cheong-hyeon, you go to bed too."
I confess: I was a bit overwhelmed by the spirit of Jeong Seong-bin, who was still just a high schooler. There was absolutely no room for compromise.
The combination of sufficient and regular sleep, my newly regained youth, and the touch of a professional makeup artist resulted in my dark circles vanishing without a trace.
It was so effective that even Choi Je-ho gave me a backhanded compliment.
"You definitely shouldn't pull all-nighters. You look better without the dark circles."
"Don't say that where Seong-bin can hear you."
I hated working overtime, but compared to work piling up, I’d almost prefer it. Accumulated tasks always lead to headaches.
"Phew. I’m so used to seeing you guys in practice clothes, but seeing you in shirts really brings out your features."
"Really? Should I take a selfie or something?"
Even amidst the chaos, the manager and Lee Cheong-hyeon were chatting excitedly.
It would have been nice if they just kept the fun conversation to themselves, but Lee Cheong-hyeon insisted on running over to where we were.
"Hyung! The manager says we look great in these shirts! Let's take a photo to remember this!"
"Yeah, yeah. You go take a hundred photos of yourself first."
"Aw, why! Let's take one together!"
"Instead of worrying about who to take a photo with, you should be thinking about how to preserve that face of yours."
Lee Cheong-hyeon’s face had delivered a massive shock the first time I saw it.
Nevertheless, it was only natural that the impact of one's appearance dulls and becomes familiar when living together.
I thought I had finally gotten used to Lee Cheong-hyeon’s face...
But a polished and preened handsome man was entirely different from his bare-faced self.
I felt like I finally understood why fans were so desperate for the holy trinity of hair, makeup, and styling to be perfect.
"No way! Do I look that good? Specifically, how much?"
"About 850,000 won per unit area?"
"Why specifically 850,000 won?"
"That’s the current price of gold."
"I’ll take that as a pass, Hyung-nim."
Lee Cheong-hyeon gave a thumbs up with a moved expression.
Over his shoulder, I saw the video team’s camera lens pointed our way. I’d have to ask them to edit that part out later.
Telling them we should sit down so we wouldn't be in the way of the crowd, I finally managed to escape Lee Cheong-hyeon’s range, only to spot Jeong Seong-bin.
'Hair's done. Makeup's done.'
He seemed ready, so I was about to check on the others' progress when the necktie in Jeong Seong-bin’s hand caught my eye.
Our profile photo concept was "Neat Student ID."
It was surprisingly difficult to find decent, clean, straight-on photos of idols. It was even harder to find versions where they were dressed neatly.
My daughter used to photoshop school uniforms and suits onto Spark’s faces for that very reason.
Once they started promoting, they could take conceptual photos every time.
However, ID photos from their fresh, youthful days could only be captured now.
That was why we chose white shirts and gray ties. It was the most basic and clean look.
'But the fact that he's just holding it...'
I pointed at Jeong Seong-bin’s tie and asked.
"Do you know how to tie a necktie?"
"No, our school uniforms use automatic ties."
As I thought. Then again, I don't think I knew how to tie a tie when I was in high school either.
Looking around, the two stylists seemed to be struggling to take care of all six of us.
It felt shameless to call them over to help with a tie in the middle of this madness.
"Come here. I'll do it for you."
"You know how to tie a tie, Hyung?"
"Yeah."
I don't think I’d ever tied one for someone else, but regardless.
Maybe because it was something I used to do even while half-asleep in the mornings, tying it wasn't difficult.
After making sure the knot was shaped nicely, I patted Jeong Seong-bin on the shoulder.
"Done. Learn how to do it later if you're interested. It's not that hard."
"Yes, thank you!"
"Hyung, me too..."
Beside a brightly greeting Seong-bin, Park Ju-woo awkwardly held out his tie with both hands. His politeness made it impossible to refuse.
I should make a note in the handover document to make sure the ties are automatic once they start getting paid well.
Picturing that distant future, I tied the necktie snugly around Park Ju-woo’s neck as well.
The shoot went more smoothly than I expected.
From Choi Je-ho, who seemed to have gotten used to the camera after filming one music video...
To Jeong Seong-bin, who said he’d had three years of camera tests at school...
And even Lee Cheong-hyeon, who had always been quick to adapt to cameras even in the early days of his debut.
Park Ju-woo was also excellent, maintaining a calm atmosphere whether the camera was there or not.
As for me... well, I was an expert at putting on a fake smile that didn't look fake, so I passed both the expressionless and smiling shots in one go.
'Actually, we just need Kang Gi-yeon to finish well.'
The five of us, myself included, watched with bated breath as Kang Gi-yeon walked onto the set last.
We were ready to jump in and tickle him if necessary.
Or so we thought.
"A bit more of a smile! That’s it, looks natural and good!"
Kang Gi-yeon was wearing a faint but clear smile.
It was hard to believe this was the same person whose expression while looking at a cake in a birthday vlog had circulated as "The Young Boss watching an execution."
"Do you guys practice smiling at night too?"
"No, that’s the result of self-study."
'Smiling to look pretty' is actually quite difficult.
A natural, bright smile makes the viewer happy, but idols have to worry about how they look even when they smile.
If it’s even slightly awkward, they become targets for being called "forced."
But they can't just smile any old way, either. If their smiling face doesn't fit the public standard of beauty, malicious comments will follow along with nasty screen captures.
It wasn't quite the same as being an idol, but I understood the feeling. I once saw Department Head Nam off with a smile, wishing him a good lunch, only to be hounded like a rat because my eye supposedly twitched.
I only looked like that because I’d been working without even a sip of water.
Anyway.
It was truly surprising that Kang Gi-yeon, who was the stiffest among us—especially in front of a camera—could smile so refreshingly.
We stared intensely at the monitor, and once the shoot ended successfully, we surrounded the returning Kang Gi-yeon.
"Gi-yeon, the photos came out great!"
"They really did look good."
"I mean, it's just a photo, what's the big deal..."
If it had been me or Lee Cheong-hyeon, he would have said, "What? Get lost," but he looked incredibly bashful at the praise from Jeong Seong-bin and Park Ju-woo. It was a little annoying.
"They say there aren't many people who praise you once you're out in society. So let's enjoy it now, Kang Gyeon!"
"Who said that?"
"Iwol Hyung did."
"I'm telling you, that Hyung is on his second life. His thoughts are way too jaded by the world."
"Unless you want a lesson in etiquette from a jaded Hyung, both of you should stop right there."
Regardless of being jaded, I was curious. How did that wooden guy suddenly manage to pull off an idol smile?
But the answer was simple.
"I practiced."
"When?"
"Just... whenever there was a mirror around."
As expected, an attitude that would move even this instructor.
The saying that effort doesn't betray you was absolutely true.
Unexpectedly, I felt the most uncomfortable during the group photo.
I experienced cognitive dissonance at the fact that I was standing among these five.
In my head, the image of Spark walking the red carpet at year-end award ceremonies was still vivid.
I thought I was prepared for the comparison from the moment I decided to debut by piggybacking on them.
But taking photos with these sparkling faces made me feel like my own face was fading into the background.
To prepare for this, when I suggested the profile photo concept, I had even provided the composition in advance. It was a layout where I stood at the very edge.
This way, even after I leave the group, they can just crop the edges of the photo.
I resolved to stand at the very end as much as possible for future group photos as well.
'I should make a five-member version in Photoshop later and back it up separately.'
Leaving myself a new task in my heart, the profile shoot ended successfully.
How should I put it? It was a very strange feeling.
"Now that we've even taken photos, doesn't it feel like we're really debuting? My heart was racing so much I couldn't even sleep last night."
"You have to sleep. That's how you grow taller."
"Look at this Hyung killing the mood again."
Lee Cheong-hyeon had recovered so quickly it was hard to believe he had once run away from the pressure.
He was talking non-stop, eating watermelon with one hand and solving an English workbook with the other.
I looked at today’s portion of the workbook in front of me and thought.
'The fact that I'm solving workbooks at this age is more than enough to make it feel real, you brat.'
To think I’d be solving private education workbooks at this age—something I couldn't even do during my teens because I didn't have the money. I was deeply moved.
"Cheong-hyeon, let's focus during the time we agreed to study."
"I knew you'd get scolded."
After getting a word from Jeong Seong-bin and Kang Gi-yeon, Lee Cheong-hyeon finally shut his mouth and started on his share of the homework.
In line with global trends, every idol group had at least one or two members in charge of foreign languages.
Furthermore, there was a general consensus that everyone should at least know basic greetings in English.
That was why we were gathered in the dorm living room at 10:30 PM, solving English workbooks.
Since we couldn't take too much time out of the practice schedule, we met with an instructor once a week for a group lesson, and on other days, we had to complete a set amount of homework.
Honestly, it wasn't hard. I had prepared for TOEIC Speaking back when I was job hunting.
But the feeling was a different matter.
After twelve years of forced study and four years of studying something that didn't suit my aptitude, I had finally escaped, only to be dragged back to a desk. It was agonizing.
I recognized the necessity of studying, though. All the English expressions I remembered were business English.
An idol telling an overseas fan on a livestream, "Thank you for taking the time out of your precious schedule to attend."
I didn't know much, but I was certain rumors would spread that I was a weirdo.
Still, I couldn't complain. Even Lee Cheong-hyeon, who was fluent in English, was out in the living room studying music theory under the guise of studying with the members.
Thanks to that, Lee Cheong-hyeon was utilizing his excellent English skills to act as a private tutor for the studious Jeong Seong-bin.
"Lee Cheong-hyeon, when did you learn English?"
Perhaps his concentration had hit rock bottom, as Choi Je-ho put down his mechanical pencil and asked. I was already thinking you'd lasted a long time.
"These are skills polished and refined at an English kindergarten."
"You can speak fluently just by going to an English kindergarten?"
"There was a whole string of compulsory education after that, Hyung."
Lee Cheong-hyeon said with a smile that looked like he’d burned himself out completely.
There was no need to explain that tedious feeling.
"Iwol Hyung... couldn't you hold a conversation too?"
"I can only answer things I know. I’ve had too many scripts drilled into me."
"For someone who says that, you were very precise when asking for a receipt."
"You guys should definitely memorize that one. If you spend money, supporting documentation is a must. Got it?"
As soon as I said it, I remembered the employees who would beg me to process their dinner or transportation expenses even though they hadn't gotten a receipt.
Or they’d upload the receipt but forget to write their bank account, or the amount they wrote didn't match...
'Thinking about this too much is bad for my mental health.'
I really should learn some kind of peace-finding meditation soon. My mind and body were far too exhausted.