Chapter 163
Chapter 163
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 163
Chapter Title: They're All Acting Weird!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Kang Minje said something straight out of a textbook again.
"Ah, you threw this, right?"
A mask isn't a ball—why throw it?
Lee Seungjun looked at the prop and said,
"You changed the eye color while throwing it."
Aha. I got it now. They change the eye color of the mask right in front of the camera after catching it.
'Well, if they pull it off, it'll be fine.'
Though I doubted they did.
I picked up the mask and tried changing the eye color. But the ring was stuck and wouldn't budge.
That's when my esteemed seniors spoke up.
"Give it a try."
Wow.
'Is this a bit of petty mischief?'
It was childish to the point of brutality. What was this? They'd broken the ring just to mess with me?
'And all it takes is unhooking the ring.'
It was caught, but not impossible to fix. Right then, Lee Seungjun snatched the mask I'd been fiddling with.
"This changes the eye color when you pull it, right?"
Lee Seungjun tugged, then winced. No one else might notice, but I did—his grip tightened.
Thud—
A weird noise came from the mask.
'Oh no.'
The eye color changed. And it even glowed red.
He'd yanked it with brute force, huh? You.
"It's changed."
"Hmm..."
I checked the ring on the mask he'd messed up. One part was frayed, but I could fix it back.
'Alright, should I toss it back?'
I threw their prop mask. I worried for a second they might not catch it, but luckily, one of the seniors grabbed it cleanly.
"Ah, so that's how it's done!"
"This thing's broken."
"Just one ring's loose. Pop it back in, and it'll work."
I smiled brightly as I said,
"Unlike our umbrella."
Our Giu umbrella—sure, it was factory-made and clunky, but we'd grown attached to it on stage. Smashing it like that? Unforgivable.
The mood soured even more. Delighted, I grinned wider.
"You just need to fix the ring, right?"
Their faces turned downright ferocious. Oh dear, how scary. Why so serious? We're idols—smile!
Right then, our peace-dove Leader Hyung spoke up.
"L-Let's move to the next segment."
Oh no. Hajin Hyung.
"Let's swap songs and sing each other's! Kids... I mean, seniors, you want to go first? Ah, sorry. I got mixed up."
Hyung, you'd fully adapted to kids' TV. What a tearjerker of an MC gig.
'Well, anyone can slip when flustered.'
I patted Hajin Hyung's shoulder in comfort. But the seniors seemed even angrier, glaring at me with fiery eyes.
I smiled even brighter.
'What're you gonna do? Hit me on camera?'
The staff fidgeted in the tense atmosphere, unsure what to do.
Then, some nameless VIP member said,
"I'll do it. I'm ready."
He stepped forward. I gave a standard reaction.
"Wow~ Looking forward to it."
"Spring Fragrance?"
"How're you gonna sing it?"
Kang Minje chimed in slyly, and Hajin Hyung followed up. In this bizarre setup, the nameless member sang our song.
~Your scent drifts to me through winter's snow~ I follow~ and there you are~ blooming in the flowers~
Of all parts, why'd he pick Kang Minje's?
'His volume and breath control are lacking, though.'
A couple months under Kang Minje's training, and he might manage decently.
'The fox cub really is a monster.'
He nailed it effortlessly while dancing.
'Well, Spring Fragrance does throw tough parts my way...'
Still, the breath-heavy sections were all Kang Minje's.
The VIP senior finished his part, oblivious. I clapped textbook-style.
"Wow, cool."
Kang Minje smiled softly and said,
"You've got a solo coming up, right? I'll cheer for you."
Ah, so he's the one dropping around the same time. I scanned the senior up and down. Honestly, I only knew Jeremy and Kao—didn't realize they had a member like this.
I patted Kang Minje's shoulder. Meeting his eyes, I poured my heart into a beaming smile.
'Don't you dare lose to a guy like that. Kang Minje?'
He got the message and let out a small sigh.
"Got it. Our turn."
Huh?
"We did an a cappella version of Psychopath."
I hadn't meant to jump to the next segment?
'Well, we'd have done it anyway.'
Good things are good, right? I glanced around at the seniors. They looked bummed about the broken ring, tossing and catching the mask in the air nonstop.
'If they nail it, they'll toss it.'
I stared straight at Kang Minje. The fox cub was quietly clearing his throat.
'Better if I take the hit.'
He was bulking up but still slim.
'Though I'd rather dodge.'
Kang Minje tuned his pitch carefully. I sang just like in the waiting room.
"Psychopath. Psychopath."
Kang Minje's ad-libs kicked in. I matched him while keeping my pitch steady.
"You can't handle me~ When you turn back~"
The short a cappella ended. I turned to the now-silent seniors. Their crumpled faces—like they'd bitten into something bitter—were pure gold.
'The fox cub's a monster for a reason.'
He'd snuck in more ad-libs.
Right then, a chill ran down my neck. I reached out on instinct. One esteemed senior had just chucked the gas mask my way.
Thwack—
My finger scraped the mask, but thanks to the cheat, no pain. I snatched the one flying at Kang Minje's throat and grinned.
'What, didn't like our a cappella?'
I hurled the caught mask right back at VIP. No reflexes—they took it with their bodies.
Thud—
Their gas mask rolled across the floor. I smiled sweetly as I apologized.
"Ah, sorry. I figured you'd catch it, of course."
"You little..."
"Guess you weren't tossing it to pass back?"
I looked at Jeremy. His glare was hilarious.
"I thought that's why you threw it?"
Tension thickened. Then our peace-dove Leader Hyung quickly faced the camera.
"That's behind-the-scenes for today! What a great time. Right, Dowon?"
Why ask me?
Leader Hyung's eyes pleaded desperately. I nodded like I got it.
"Yeah. Great time. Learned some cool ways groups use props!"
"Thanks for the super educational session. Anyway, bye! See you next time!"
I waved at the camera for good measure.
"Uh, Hyung, shouldn't we wrap up alone? Don't the seniors back there need to say bye too?"
"That'd be nice, but think they will?"
I glanced back. Mood was murderous, so I flashed a bright smile at the camera.
"Nah, no clue why they're so mad."
"I had fun with behind-the-scenes! See ya!"
I'd figured the camera would swing to VIP too. But nope—it cut off like it was waiting.
'Huh?'
Staff bolted, cleaning up like they were fleeing.
'Something's off with the vibe.'
Leader Hyung grabbed my arm.
"Come on, let's go! Wrap it up!"
Hajin Hyung shoved my head down.
"Good work!"
"Uh, Hyung?"
"Let's go! Back to the peaceful waiting room!"
What's with him, seriously?
Leader Hyung dragged me into the hall by force. Wait, this looks like we're running. I still had more trolling to do!
"Hyung, why the rush?"
Hajin Hyung scanned around, then just walked silently. But he didn't let go of my arm.
"Leader Hyung?"
Yoo Hajin didn't answer. He just sped up. We walked so fast our outfits brushed. Hajin Hyung herded us into the waiting room and slammed the door.
Bang—
"Hajin?"
"What the hell's wrong with you guys?"
Yoo Hajin slid down against the door.
"No, you're all acting weird!"
I looked at Lee Seungjun and Ki Jaeyoon.
"Weird how?"
"Why're you all itching for a fight!"
"We didn't even throw a punch."
One solid swing, and they'd be satisfied.
"Ugh! Fine, Dowon's wild—that's one thing. But why're you all jumping in? Especially you, Seungjun!"
Lee Seungjun pretended not to hear, staring elsewhere.
"Minje, you too!"
Kang Minje smiled and tilted his head.
"Jaeyoon, you as well!"
"Ah, Hyung, you saying you didn't catch the fever?"
Ki Jaeyoon mumbled without meeting eyes.
"It's blatant bullshit. VIP gets a pass? Nah, we crushed them flat."
"Losing once doesn't mean keep losing."
I grinned as I said,
"Bump us again, and you'll keep getting crushed."
Kang Minje nodded and whispered,
"Looked like we would."
"You felt it too, Hyung?"
"Saw rifts between members. Some had that 'what's this?' look."
"One good smack, and they'd crumble."
Hajin Hyung grabbed Kang Minje's shoulder.
"Minje. You gotta hold 'em back."
"Don't wanna."
Leader Hyung's pupils shook wildly.
"They're coming at us. We've got the power—why hold back?"
"M-Minje!"
"We already went through Sarhyeok. It's a warzone anyway."
Stop. Leader Hyung's about to collapse, fox cub.
Then Lee Seungjun said,
"I agree."
"Seungjun!"
"Can't watch anyone get hurt anymore."
Oh boy.
'Time to bail.'
Felt like this mess was my fault. I edged toward the door, but Leader Hyung grabbed my shoulder instantly.
"Dowon. What the hell did you spread?"
"No idea what you mean, Hyung."
"Don't dodge!"
"Am I a virus? Everyone just grew up, that's all."
Hey, stronger is better. Top idols need humility, sure—but not to be pushovers.
"Uwaaah!"
"Calm down, Hyung."
"Being leader this tough?"
Then Ki Jaeyoon said,
"They broke our Giu umbrella first anyway."
"Even you, Jaeyoon!"
Huh. But something clicked.
'Hang on, Jaeyoon—you started it, pissing off Jeremy with that mid-air pose first.'
I gazed at our suffering Leader Hyung. Growth is quicker the better. Shells are made to crack. I drew a cross and prayed for Hajin Hyung's progress.
Right on cue, the door opened, and staff said,
"Zenith, get ready for main broadcast."
Oh.
"Yep, coming."
I bounced out lightly. Hajin Hyung trailed, muttering,
"Is 'badass' contagious?"
No one answered Leader Hyung. Feeling bad, I patted his shoulder.
***
What're you scheming now, Kang Minje?
'Better prep ahead.'
Kept doing core workouts because of it. But D-Day came sooner than expected.
"Dowon, got time?"
I nodded. Manager said no more schedules today.
'Well, it's past midnight already.'
Clock read 11 already.
"All clear."
"Then, let's record."
"All-nighter?"
Kang Minje grinned.
"Depends how good you are."
Might be an all-nighter. I sighed and stood.
"Let's go. Recording studio."
"Haha. Giving up quick."
"Better take the hit early, y'know."
No clue tomorrow's schedule, but wrapping fast was best. Kang Minje slung an arm around me and told Manager,
"Off to the studio."
"Whoa! I'll tag along."
"It's five minutes from the company."
"These kids talk scary. What if we run into someone!"
Come to think of it, security ramped up post-hit-and-run. I grabbed just my smartphone and let Kang Minje drag me along.
"Man, spring's already here. Weather's nice and warm."
"Sure is."
"Not excited for recording?"
You might be. For me, it was Highway to Hell, version 12.
"Beautiful night."
Had the fox cub finally lost it?