Chapter 70: Anniversary of the First Day of Work (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 70: Anniversary of the First Day of Work (1)
Entrance ceremonies, the first day at a job, the day you join a club…
There are many days in life when you start something new.
On some days, I was so frantic with preparations that I lost my head; on others, I checked my alarm over and over for fear of being late on the very first day. And then there were days when I felt absolutely nothing at all.
But in my life, a 'debut day' was a first.
Today, a day destined to be historic for Spark, was busy from the crack of dawn.
"We’re going straight to the set after the shop, so everyone stay sharp! Once we get to the broadcasting station, make sure you greet everyone properly!"
"You heard him, right? If you don't greet people properly, you're going to see something very 'interesting' tonight."
"You're seriously exhausting, you know that…?"
I had only added a word to the manager's instructions, but Choi Je-ho responded with a look of pure disgust.
Does he think he’s not exhausting to me? He’s a ridiculous guy, honestly.
Whether Choi Je-ho recoiled in horror or not, Lee Cheong-hyeon didn't care and continued to radiate positive energy.
"Isn't the weather amazing today? Should I say it's a good omen for our start?"
I knew the weather would be good. Even as the years passed, the weather around this time was always decent for winter.
In the past, Spark had also debuted on a late winter day with sunshine just like this.
In terms of the date, it was exactly today.
Since the debut year had been moved up because of me, I wanted to at least keep the debut date the same, and fortunately, things worked out.
How much time had passed since we all got decked out at the shop and headed for the station?
"Guys, let's get out!"
At the manager's signal to disembark, Lee Cheong-hyeon opened the car door.
An idol rookie's profile photos are always followed by all sorts of suspicion.
People claim it must be heavy editing, or that a human's skin tone can't possibly look like that.
But all those words would become meaningless in the face of Lee Cheong-hyeon's actual visage.
I didn't send Lee Cheong-hyeon out as the first batter for nothing.
Sure enough, as soon as Lee Cheong-hyeon stepped out of the car, I could feel the surrounding area buzzing even from inside the vehicle.
"Whoa, hyungs! There are so many people!"
"Don't shout in a public place."
I lectured Lee Cheong-hyeon through gritted teeth—a bit of ventriloquism—as I stepped out of the car.
Soon, as the guys with legs as long as moving company ladder trucks climbed out one after another, gazes turned toward us with terrifying intensity.
I looked for a spot where I could be reasonably hidden by them and followed along. My intention was to avoid being caught in photos as much as possible.
Even though it was still early, a crowd had gathered in front of the photo zone.
They were likely fans of the singers appearing on today's music show.
I looked at the slogans people were holding and tried to guess who today's lineup would be.
At that moment, I heard a familiar name from somewhere.
"Spark is so handsome!"
I quickly turned my head and saw a woman waving her hand toward us.
She said... Spark, just now?
Are there already people who recognize Spark?
No, more importantly, I have to greet her.
My mind became a mess in an instant. From that chaotic mess, I pulled out the files of fancams I had meticulously archived in the past.
In the countless 'on the way to work' fancams I had looked up for a smooth arrival, idols would wave both hands or lightly raise one hand while giving a bright greeting.
But was that really okay?
On a day with such a biting winter wind, in a barren environment where she likely didn't even have a single fellow fan to share 'fan-talk' with while waiting for entry... was it really okay to end the greeting with just a wave?
To me, someone who used to bow until my back nearly snapped at Hanpyeong Industry, a one-handed wave felt like an act that weighed too heavily on my conscience.
So, I simply gave a 90-degree bow. I only hoped that person would recognize my deep sense of gratitude.
After entering the station following a greeting where I didn't even have time to lift my head, what awaited us next was a staggering amount of waiting time.
I had heard this was common for rookies, but hearing about it and actually being left idle for over three hours were two different things.
Still, it wasn't boring. All six of us were busy immersing ourselves in self-development activities.
'Productive activities we can do in the waiting room?'
'Yeah. But nothing that requires too much focus. We might film some of it for a video in the middle.'
As soon as I answered Jeong Seong-bin's question, Lee Cheong-hyeon jumped in to ask.
'Are you going to film something like a waiting room vlog?'
'That too, but you're not going to waste hours of waiting time doing nothing, are you? If you're not going to sleep, bring something to do.'
At my final words, the guys for some reason took on slightly determined expressions.
I had partially meant they should just sleep rather than drain their stamina doing useless things, but they had all diligently brought something along.
Since everyone was so seriously pulling work out of their bags, I ended up taking the camera from the video team to film the scene in the waiting room.
I held the camcorder and approached Jeong Seong-bin and Park Ju-woo to ask a question.
"First, the leader. What did you bring?"
"There's a song I want to try singing, so I brought transcription materials to memorize the lyrics!"
"What about Ju-woo?"
"To study English... I brought a vocabulary book."
The two of them even neatly held out the notebook and vocabulary book toward the camera, following the flow of the insert shot.
How exemplary. They are exactly the kind of idols I'd want to introduce to a child at an age where they should be focused on their studies. I should make these two do something like a 'Study With Me' live broadcast later.
Next, I filmed the youngest members who had taken up a spot in the corner.
"What did you guys bring?"
"A Rubik's cube. Lee Cheong-hyeon said he'd buy me something from the convenience store if I solve it today."
Kang Gi-yeon held up a small cube.
It seemed Lee Cheong-hyeon had used his brain a bit, worried his friend might get nervous before their debut stage. I guess I won't need to pull out the bubble wrap I scavenged from the UA warehouse just in case.
Lee Cheong-hyeon was busily drawing notes on staff paper.
I was careful not to capture the staff paper on camera as I asked.
"What song is this?"
"Oh, it's okay to film! I'm just thinking about the arrangement direction for our debut song."
"Do people still draw scores by hand these days?"
"You can do it automatically, but maybe because I first learned by writing by hand, this feels more comfortable. Want to see?"
With that, Lee Cheong-hyeon suddenly thrust the staff paper toward me.
The notes were arranged neatly, drawn as straight as if he had used a ruler. It did look impressive.
"You're filming the members, right? Are we the last?"
"No. I haven't filmed Choi Je-ho yet."
I lifted the camera to film Choi Je-ho, who was doing 'fiery' push-ups in the opposite corner of the waiting room.
I approached Choi Je-ho and asked.
"How many is that?"
"Exactly fifty right now."
"Don't break a sweat. What if you use up all the energy you need for dancing?"
"That's not going to happen with just this much."
As if it wasn't a bluff, Choi Je-ho stood up with a calm face. Then he reached out toward me.
"What?"
"Give me the camera. You need to be filmed too."
It was an unexpected remark.
I had only thought about filming them; I hadn't considered that someone would film me.
While I stood there dazed, Choi Je-ho took the camera and asked.
"What did you bring?"
What did I bring?
I told you, I didn't plan on doing anything here.
It was obvious that just filming these five would take up all my time, so why would I do anything else?
It wasn't that there was no one in charge of filming. We had support from the video team.
However, I couldn't rely solely on the video team. This is because the 'behind-the-scenes' camera for an idol and the camera for a ballad singer have slightly different vibes.
From the distinction between group and individual shots to the flow and atmosphere, everything is slightly different…
The problem was that this difference was so subtle that to filming professionals, it felt like nothing more than a 'personal preference.'
Then, who feels this difference enough to make me volunteer as the cameraman?
≫ PLEASE just film the kids' faces, I beg youuuuuu
≫ I don't care about the waiting room, I want to see the kids!!
≫ Stop focusing on weird things!!!!
≫ No, seriously... increase the number of cameras... they're having a conversation but only one kid is on screen...
└ My bias only appeared in the subtitles lol. I thought he was a ghost or something lol.
≫ I like that the shots are clear.
≫ The problem is the kids aren't in the shots lololol.
The answer was the fans who loved Spark dearly.
UA, having realized the situation too late, promised to increase the staff next time, but until the next promotion cycle, Spark's fans had to find their favorites by their voices alone.
I had volunteered as a cameraman to prevent such a disaster, but…
Still, I didn't panic. I had brought some small hobby items just in case.
I confidently pulled my supplies out of my bag.
"I brought a coloring book."
"…You brought what?"
I shook the coloring book at Choi Je-ho, who went out of his way to look past the camcorder to see it with his own eyes.
"A coloring book. I brought colored pencils, too."
"Did you buy that?"
"No, it was at the dorm."
"Why was that at the dorm?"
"It's the manager's. He said he wasn't going to use it and gave it to me."
"Why did that hyung buy a coloring book in the first place?"
He said he bought it to make you do it for some 'mental cultivation.'
But apparently, on the day the manager brought the coloring book, you threw a bucket of cold water on the atmosphere at the dorm.
He said it hadn't seen the light of day since then, so I brought it. I'll put it to good use.
"Hyung, do you like drawing?"
Now even Jeong Seong-bin popped up from somewhere to ask.
This is problematic.
If a former member and a current member appear on the same screen, the fans will have a hard time blurring them out.
For the sake of future Jeong Seong-bin fans, I lowered my head as much as possible, pretending to pick out a colored pencil, and said.
"Not really. But it's a waste not to use what's available."
Wasting resources is already being handled sufficiently by the air conditioning provided to people like Department Head Nam. Since one side is using it up, I should at least be frugal.
Whether I was burying my head to choose from the 12-color pencil set or not, Jeong Seong-bin and Choi Je-ho didn't stop chatting above my head.
"That's true. Frugality is important…"
"Don't you think we're at a level where we're not wasting anything?"
Enough. If you're done filming, just go already.
While everyone finished their respective self-development activities and only Kang Gi-yeon was still failing to solve the Rubik's cube, the manager called us.
It was time for the 'greeting rounds'—visiting the waiting rooms of all the singers appearing on the music show to introduce the group and give them albums.
I heard this practice was on the decline, but apparently, it still depended on the broadcasting station.
Still, there was nothing to worry about. I had reconstructed... no, corrected the postures of all five members so they would look polite wherever they were spotted.
With idol groups popping up by the dozens every month, there was no way any senior singer would pay us special attention.
At most, those who had been around a long time and were close to UA artists would look out for us, saying, "Ah, so these are the kids from ○○ Noona's place."
Except for everyone flinching upon seeing Lee Cheong-hyeon's face, it was a very smooth first greeting.
Until we entered the waiting room of Parte, who was filming their last broadcast today, the final stop on our rounds.