Chapter 169
Chapter 169
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 169
Chapter Title: Cha Dowon's Rebellion
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Schedules were packed endlessly, yet he was churning out his own content on top of it all.
"How many hours does Dowon sleep?"
"Thirty minutes. Sometimes he doesn't even get that."
"And then he heads straight to the next schedule?"
"Yeah."
Yoo Hajin propped his chin on his hand.
"I've already talked to the company. Asked them to cut back a bit. It's obvious he's pushing too hard."
Kang Minje sipped his herbal tea. A bitter scent rose from within.
"As expected from the leader."
"But what's the point."
Yoo Hajin sighed under his breath.
"They cut back on broadcast schedules, and suddenly he starts doing live streams."
Yeah. That was the problem.
Cha Dowon had been doing live streams on video sites nonstop ever since.
"And the variety is wild."
"I've caught a few here and there."
"Oh? What does he do?"
Lee Seungjun kept staring at the ceiling as he spoke.
"The clothes we gave him. He coordinates outfits with those."
"Just changing into them?"
"Yeah. Whatever the fans pick."
Where did these ideas come from? Yoo Hajin clicked his tongue in amazement.
"They could pick something ridiculous."
"He wears the weird ones too. That's part of the fun of the streams."
"Man, our maknae is driving me crazy."
Of course the fans loved it. The three of them let out heavy sighs.
"What else?"
"He does cooking streams too. Eats, and sometimes feeds others."
"Does he make weird recipes?"
"Fans suggest throwing in bizarre stuff sometimes. But Dowon takes food seriously, so he ignores them."
"That's Dowon for you."
The guy hated wasting ingredients like nobody's business.
Yoo Hajin spun his coffee cup as he spoke.
"Speaking of cooking, I told him to take a break."
"And he didn't?"
"Nope. Heard rustling from his room, so I went to the living room. Thought it was Jaeyoon sneaking a snack again..."
Yoo Hajin rubbed his temples.
"Dowon was cleaning out the fridge."
"Our maknae is a neat freak too."
Lee Seungjun gazed back at the ceiling.
"Honestly, the cleaning lady handles that."
"It's not something he needs to do."
"Why's he doing it, though?"
The question circled back to square one. Lee Seungjun slowly recalled that moment.
"I actually asked him."
"What'd he say?"
"That it's to get Zenith to the top faster."
Kang Minje shook his head immediately.
"That's bullshit."
"You think so too, hyung?"
"Feels like a lie to me. No way that's the reason. The real issue is..."
Yoo Hajin pressed his forehead to the table. The cool surface felt grounding.
"He's actually gotten super popular."
Cha Dowon had broad appeal like a true trendsetter. But after constantly pumping out content, his core fans had solidified.
"He keeps churning out fresh sides without getting stale."
"Like a broadcasting god descended on him."
"He was always good, but now it's matured."
"Doesn't even look tired."
On screen, Cha Dowon brimmed with energy. Barely sleeping, yet perfectly fine.
"Even fans tried to stop him. Like, 'Dowon, you aren't sleeping?'"
"Fans checking his schedule must think something's off."
The kid had no downtime outside of sleep. He'd do leg workouts while eating, core exercises while reviewing scripts in waiting rooms.
"Our maknae is gonna crash hard at this rate."
"Even fans from other groups are tuning into his lives."
"No matter how good Dowon is, accidents happen like that."
Lee Seungjun shook his head.
"Not yet."
"He's just lucky. Squeezing himself dry like that..."
The three sighed deeply. Back to square one again.
Yoo Hajin swallowed hard. A strange bitterness lingered on his tongue.
"Why's he doing this?"
"Hyungs."
Lee Seungjun spoke cautiously.
"Let's just accept we don't know why. He won't answer anyway. How about we try something else instead?"
Kang Minje tilted his head.
"Like what?"
"Stop him. For now."
Lee Seungjun clenched and unclenched his fist.
"We have to stop him first. He'll really collapse like this."
"How?"
"No clue. Can't exactly tie him to the bed."
"Dowon's sneakily strong though?"
All three nodded at once. Truth be told, Zenith's maknae was strong and had great stamina.
"He'd resist like crazy."
"Have to tie down his arms and legs."
Yoo Hajin said matter-of-factly.
"No. Block his mouth first."
Spot on. They nodded again in unison.
"Good call, Seungjun."
"His mouth is the problem with Dowon."
"He'll talk his way out."
Each imagined tying Cha Dowon up and tossing him on the bed.
"But the aftermath is the issue."
"How do we handle him pissed?"
"Dowon's scary when he's mad."
All three bowed their heads. They were honestly scared.
How long did they sit like that?
Lee Seungjun lifted his head first.
"I've got an idea."
The two hyungs snapped their heads up.
"What is it?"
"Got a plan?"
"Dowon takes work seriously."
Obvious as day.
"But he takes fans seriously too."
"He treasures them. Makes me reflect sometimes."
Lee Seungjun's lips twitched. It weighed on him, but he said it anyway.
"We use work against him."
"How?"
"Is that okay?"
They knew it wasn't right. But it was the only way now.
"I know. But if we don't, he won't rest. It's simple."
Lee Seungjun let out a long sigh.
"We do a live stream. Goal: put Cha Dowon to sleep. If he wakes up mad later, say it was work."
He'd still be angry, but he'd get it.
Kang Minje sipped his herbal tea.
"Good idea."
"Yeah. But one day won't cut it. Can't do it every day."
"If we keep it up daily, won't he quit overworking?"
"What if Dowon gets mad and stops coming back to the dorm?"
Lee Seungjun shook his head right away.
"He won't."
Zenith's maknae was tough and shameless, but persuasion worked on him.
"Say it's for his sake, and he'll cave. He's weak to emotions deep down."
Yoo Hajin raised his hand.
"I'll handle that part. Leader's duty."
"Sounds right."
The three gulped down their drinks. With a lead in sight, their shoulders felt lighter.
Kang Minje smiled softly.
"Still, I wanna hold onto hope."
"What hope?"
"That after a week more, he'll quit."
Lee Seungjun shook his head, but Yoo Hajin pondered.
"Dunno. Hard to say."
"I doubt it."
"Let's wait a bit."
Yoo Hajin slowly nodded to Kang Minje's words.
"Yeah. Wait a little. Our maknae's smart. He'll realize he's gonna crash and rest."
Lee Seungjun still objected.
"He handles himself fine usually, but not this time."
Yoo Hajin patted his back.
"Still, let's trust him a bit."
When the leader put it like that, no choice. Lee Seungjun nodded reluctantly.
That's when it happened. The study room door flew open. The three men plotting in secret jolted in surprise.
"Whoa! Hyungs! Seungjun! What's up?"
His steps were light as could be. Ki Jaeyoon sauntered over, plopping down.
"This cafe's cake was good! And the macarons!"
Yoo Hajin muttered in disbelief.
"Jaeyoon, you're banned from that stuff!"
"Aw, come on! What's the point of members if not sharing the good stuff? Not buying for me? Fine, I'll buy my own..."
The leader sighed deeply.
"Let's head out."
"Sure."
"Yeah."
The three stood. Freshly arrived Ki Jaeyoon yelled.
"What? I just got here!"
"Jaeyoon. I'll summarize for you."
Yoo Hajin relayed their discussion.
"Help tie Dowon up."
Short and sweet. Ki Jaeyoon sprang up like a spring.
"W-Wait, aren't you scared, hyung? What if Cha Dowon kills me later?"
"He won't kill you..."
"He won't k-kill me, but he could make me wish I was dead."
Yoo Hajin smiled wryly. Our Jaeyoon gets it. So why'd you charge in like that before? Ki Jaeyoon shivered as he spoke.
"Can I sit this out?"
The leader placed a hand on his shoulder.
"No."
"Eek!"
"And let's go home!"
"I need that cake!"
"That's why we're going home."
Ki Jaeyoon grabbed Kang Minje's sleeve. But the other hyung gently pried it off.
"Listen to the leader, Jaeyoon. You're wrong anyway."
"About what?"
"Dowon won't torment you to death."
Kang Minje smiled softly, whispering.
"Unless it's bad enough you'd prefer dying."
"Eek!"
"He'll probably personally train you if you gain weight."
Ki Jaeyoon pictured Cha Dowon charging at full speed with dumbbells. Just the thought paled his face and shook his hands.
"N-No, I won't eat it."
"Good. Let's go?"
Ki Jaeyoon nodded stiffly. They rose with soft smiles.
Watching, Lee Seungjun said nothing. But he thought to himself.
'Why's Dowon the terror king?'
Why? He's decent enough. Or maybe that's why.
Curious, but he didn't ask. Felt like he shouldn't.
***
A week passed like that. They gathered at the cafe again, exchanging glances and nodding.
Kang Minje bowed his head first.
"Sorry. I was wrong."
"Told you. Seungjun was right."
Lee Seungjun sighed slowly.
"I know Dowon best, don't I?"
Kang Minje covered his face with both hands. Embarrassed in front of the dongsaengs.
"Ah, I thought I knew him well too..."
"Minje hyung's known him since he was little, after all."
His mouth tasted bitter. So Lee Seungjun forced a smile.
"I hoped you were right too, hyung."
Yoo Hajin pressed his forehead to the table.
"He's not cutting back on work?"
"Doing more."
Cha Dowon wasn't sleeping at all now. He handled schedules, went to school, and of course added live streams.
"Popularity's skyrocketing."
"You can see it. Feel it on your skin."
"He slips in Zenith promos during lives too."
True to form, he relentlessly showed off their great group bond. Fans watching would post, 'Okay, okay, we get it, Dowon. Zenith gets along great.'
"Dowon instinctively knows what fans want."
"Diligence first off."
"Overly diligent."
Into the third week now. Posts about Cha Dowon's lives even trickled into major communities.
"The trendsetter idol living a day like a year."
"The truly hardworking trendsetter idol."
Showing up on variety shows was a given.
"How about the core fans?"
"They love it."
"Figures."
The three sighed in unison.
"Even overseas fans popping up."
"Before we've even debuted abroad."
"Our maknae's too amazing..."
All three said at once.
"He's gonna die like this."
They exchanged looks. Couldn't let it go on.
"Tie him up."
"Put him to sleep."
"Blame it on a broadcast."
No more delaying. They downed their drinks in one go and stood.
Yoo Hajin pressed a hand to his chest.
"Ah, I'm nervous."
"Hajin, we still gotta do it."
"Takes more guts than I thought. Our maknae will get mad if we tie him and toss him on the bed, right?"
"Obviously."
No telling what came after. But they couldn't stop.
Kang Minje whispered soothingly.
"But he'll understand if we explain."
"H-Hope so."
Yoo Hajin took a deep breath. Lee Seungjun cleared their cups as he spoke.
"I'll grab his arms first."
"Y-Yeah. Count on you."
"Minje hyung, you take the legs. Hajin hyung ties him."
Positions set, they nodded together.
That's when the door opened. Ki Jaeyoon walked in.
"They've got seasonal strawberry cake. Wait, why are you all standing?"