Chapter 187
Chapter 187
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 187
Chapter Title: My Brothers Take Such Good Care of Me
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The ratings for *Melody's Saga* slowly climbed upward. The brief scolding over how the focus had shifted to Iryul was just a momentary thing.
I scrolled down through the comments on the video site's clips.
"Our Jeremy sunbaenim is in trouble."
Every time Jeremy sunbaenim appeared on screen, there were comments about him blowing it. View counts showed a huge gap too.
"If it's this obvious, he should just bow out gracefully..."
But then he wouldn't be our sunbaenim.
I rested my chin on my hand and glanced over at the noisy one. Our sunbaenim had been full of energy since morning.
"Stop with the footwork already."
He'd been oddly irritable since earlier. I closed my eyes as I listened to his pig-squealing voice.
"One issue with our sunbaenim resolved..."
No, since I'm a high school freshman, is it homework? Whatever—living age-appropriately is best.
Anyway, I checked the remaining problems.
"Seungjun's thing, auntie's thing, and Kang Minje..."
These were the obstacles left on Zenith's path to normalcy.
"Out of these, the easiest is Minje hyung?"
The last one wasn't even really homework. Kang Minje was killing it with his solo track. He'd already hit number one multiple times.
"Well, we celebrated his first win pretty grandly."
It was for SNS and our own content, but we gave him a cake the members made ourselves.
The problem was the process.
"I thought we were gonna die."
Never make the members cook again.
The tiramisu we'd barely finished contained blood from Gijae Yoon's cut finger and my tears mixed in.
"He liked it, though."
Kang Minje had smiled genuinely at the barely passable cake.
"Well, a few weeks have passed since then..."
It was about time for him to step down from number one.
"Celebrating him taking a step back from that glorious spot would look like true friendship."
Maybe I should boil some radish soup today.
"Do I have time?"
I skimmed the script. There were quite a few scenes to shoot. The narrative's center definitely had more screen time.
Jeremy's shrill yell rang out again.
"Being a figurehead protagonist is harsh on our sunbaenim."
That's what makes it good, though.
A staff member approached. I gave them a nod.
"You're extra noisy today."
"You must be tired."
"No way. My scenes got cut too..."
I pressed a finger to my lips. The staff member quickly shut their mouth.
"Ah, sorry."
"No. Jeremy sunbaenim is the protagonist of *Melody's Saga*. I'm the villain."
Of course, I handled all the real impact. But Iryul had already eaten up everything.
"You're so humble, Cha Dowon-ssi. Especially at your age."
"No. Oh, can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"My Minje hyung is wrapping up his music promotions soon. I want to celebrate his successful run—what do you think would be good?"
The staff blinked. I kindly gave examples.
"First, homemade food with his favorite side dishes! Second, clothes that match his taste! Third, a digital gadget like a laptop!"
I smiled brightly at the staff. Naturally, they couldn't answer.
"Uh, if it were me, a laptop."
"I see."
"But don't you know Kang Minje-ssi better than I do, Cha Dowon-ssi?"
Exactly the response I wanted. I nodded gratefully.
"Thank you."
"No problem. You guys really get along well. I've heard that, but seeing it..."
Bragging here would make me Jeremy instead of Cha Dowon.
"My hyungs take such good care of me."
"Uh, but you seem to follow them well too."
Well, not really, but no need to say that.
"You think so?"
"Most groups aren't that close. They're lucky if they don't fight..."
Yeah, most probably.
"They're all busy with music promos, but they wait for me while I film this drama. I feel bad and grateful for it."
"I-I see. Dowon-ssi, you should get to filming."
"Ah, yes."
I stood up. The staff ran off ahead, probably to prep something.
"She's got a loose tongue."
She was the one who'd posted tons of photos on her personal SNS when the food truck arrived.
"Hope she spreads some good stories too."
I walked to the set. I smiled a bit seeing Manager approaching from afar. I had a favor to ask anyway.
"Manager Han, hope you're good at grocery shopping."
I'd have to write him a list.
I rolled my shoulders and moved forward. Lots of homework, but it was doable.
"No, I have to do it."
Especially Seungjun's issue—I had to break through that.
"Damn. Why isn't a parenting show coming up?"
Maybe because I was rushing, but thinking about it made me anxious.
I finally pulled out my smartphone and switched back to cheat mode.
[cheat mode 0/3]
[Extend public broadcaster planning meeting times by 5 hours for one week]
[Changed. Side effect: Headache for 5 minutes starting 5 seconds from now.]
[cheat mode 1/3]
If they keep meeting, they'll plan a parenting show somewhere.
I rubbed my forehead. I'd been doing this for weeks, and the side effects were surprisingly mild.
"Why's that?"
Is it no big deal?
"Whatever, not my problem."
I grinned widely and headed to filming. A 5-minute headache was nothing.
***
-Ah, seriously, V is being a total asshole again.
-No, what can you do when Dowon is so good his screen time keeps growing!
-Is it Jeremy's fault he's gained weight and the camera doesn't love him anymore?
-Yeah. Tell him to lose some weight. That jiggling is just...
-Is it skin elasticity? Booze gut? Who cares! Just manage it!
Executive Director Joo scrolled down the mouse wheel.
-They even fought with those Japanese kids. Genen Japanese, me Korean!
-Fight away?
-They used a translator app? LMAO
The two fandoms were blazing fiercely.
"Zenith fans have no time to be bored."
Zenith was relatively peaceful, but the storm was huge. Especially at the center was their most popular maknae.
-Dowon-ah. We'll handle the fights. You just act.
-No. More than acting, drop an album!
-But what is Dowon doing right now?
-LOL dying LOL
-LOL grocery shopping LOL Minje hyung trade.
-LOL I'm dying. Yeah Dowon-ah. Cook hyung home food. We'll handle the dogfight LOL
-Why isn't Dowon at our house LOL He's seriously better than me LOL
Executive Director Joo tilted her head.
"Cha Dowon, does he know he's doing this?"
She often thought it, but taming this guy was no joke.
"Fans usually say idols should do whatever they want, but..."
She'd never seen them unite like this for real.
"From the start, he was hurt and struggling, maybe that's why."
The fans seemed ready to grab hammers if Dowon got even a little scratched.
"Fans aside, Zenith fights too well."
Once they taste victory, they burn with anything. Funny thing was, Zenith—no, Cha Dowon—always won. So the fans believed they always won too.
"Groups like this are rare."
Somehow, it felt like big trouble was brewing...
Executive Director Joo sighed deeply. Thinking like this built momentum, but one thing bugged her.
"Seungjun-ah..."
Ugh. Threatening my kid? You bastard. I'd feel better frying you in a furnace.
"I want him broke enough to need loan sharks."
The demands for money were getting more frequent.
"Damn! Why no parenting shows!"
She felt like she'd die of frustration. Should she eavesdrop on broadcaster planning meetings? Lately, she seriously wanted to.
Then, the intercom rang.
"Yes. Really? A parenting show? What is it! Public broadcast! Call! Call! Call right now!... But say we're positively considering it."
Executive Director Joo took a deep breath. She didn't know what happened, but solutions were appearing bit by bit.
"Adjust the schedule."
She didn't know yet, but at least opportunity knocked.
"Let's do this."
Executive Director Joo bit her lip. Now it was time to show her skills.
***
"Zenith will do it?"
PD Yoo said indifferently. The head writer sighed.
"But among idols, Zenith is the only one that comes to mind."
"That Cha Dowon is topping drama ratings on another network, and the other guy's hitting music show number ones with his solo?"
"They're doing great. But I really like Zenith."
The head writer searched more about Zenith on her laptop.
"They're said to be really nice."
"Those types cause scandals?"
"It's internal reputation, not external."
That had some credibility. PD Yoo muttered at the ceiling.
"Parenting shows get hate from all sides if they mess up."
"Topic selection is tough, and items have to be spot-on."
"Choosing performers is half the battle. For this."
They sighed in unison.
"Use a weird group, and it's not ending with a written apology."
"That's why Zenith came up. They don't seem like the type."
"You're trusting too much?"
"I've heard a lot about that. The issue is if they'll do it."
She spun the laptop around.
"They're killing it!"
Searching 'Zenith' brought up tons of articles. Drama ratings, music shows, even minor SNS stuff. It was intimidating.
"I politely reached out."
"But will they do a parenting show? Trend's passed, honestly."
"It'd be great if they did..."
They muttered at the ceiling. Maybe the station head changed? Meetings were dragging lately.
"I'll contact them again."
"Yeah. Good luck."
The head writer picked up her smartphone again. The PD stared quietly out the window. Endless meetings drained the soul. She wanted out fast.
"Zenith could bring ratings..."
Another trivial meeting soon. PD Yoo gazed at the sun. For some reason, she missed the old station head.
"Ah, hate meetings."
Why were they so long? Even good ideas got nitpicked endlessly by the new station head.
"So that's why the parenting show?"
Will it work? Do I have to do this? Zenith would be a godsend if they agreed, but will they?
He blinked.
Maybe the sun was too bright. His eyes teared up.
***
On screen, I was drenched and pale. The heroine pressed on my chest.
"Iryul! Iryul!"
She pressed frantically. But Iryul still hadn't come to.
"Ah..."
When a soaked person isn't breathing, there's another method. Just as she leaned in to kiss—
"Iryul's opening his eyes."
Iryul suddenly opened his eyes and coughed harshly.
"But is this medically accurate?"
The script said so, but I was skeptical. A real drowning victim would spew water dramatically, but drama Iryul just wiped his lips.
The on-screen Iryul said,
"What the... You..."
Iryul grabbed the heroine's hem with trembling hands.
"Why'd you... save me..."
The heroine glared at the angry-faced Iryul. That was the end of the scene.
Senior Bitna behind me said,
"Good take."
She wiped her wet hair with a towel. I nodded and asked,
"Director, no retake?"
"Yes. Good work. It came out great."
The set was heartwarmingly positive. I turned and bowed slightly to Senior Bitna.
"Good work, sunbaenim."
"You too. Brr. Cold."
I handed her my hot pack. She snatched it quickly.
"Hey. This scene was originally that, right?"
"That" covered a lot. I smiled awkwardly.
"Originally, Jeremy sunbaenim was supposed to save Iryul."
But in the new script, the heroine saved Iryul.
"Thanks to that, the heroine and Iryul are more entangled."
Screen time aside, the narrative center shifted completely.
"Yeah? You worked hard. It wasn't even in the original script."
"I'm the heroine—I can handle this much."
Senior Bitna said stoutly.
"Director, I can do more!"
The director laughed and shook his head. Such a warm scene.
"She looks relaxed."
No pressure. Well, *Melody's Saga*'s ratings were soaring.
"Now we've shot most of the tough scenes?"
As far as I knew.
"Well, scripts can change."
Manager approached from afar with another towel. I shivered a bit from the cold, and Senior Bitna slipped the hot pack back into my hands.
"You'll catch a cold."
"Thank you."
Unlike someone, she was kind.
"Who that someone is—Jeremy sunbaenim—better keep secret."
Then, Manager said,
"Dowon-ssi. Call from Executive Director Joo."