The Conditions for Becoming a Kind Idol Leader — Chapter 26
26
I wasn’t even expecting to win, and then the winners were announced the day before, so I had to rush to get ready T_T I was so nervous I figured I wouldn’t be able to say anything except jokes, so I just went and did jokes the whole time lol.
Since I’m writing this from memory, I’m not totally sure about the order, but I’ll go roughly oldest to youngest.
/Se-bin/
Me: Se-bin, want to see something pretty?
Se-bin: Yes. Okay.
Me: Ta-da~ (shows him a mirror)
Se-bin:(his pupils shake) I don’t like it.
LOL I’m dying—he got so shy and flustered. I guess he didn’t know the joke? The second I held up the mirror and he saw his own face reflected back, he wouldn’t even look at the mirror after that lol. He was adorable T_T Now I get why people keep cracking jokes at Se-bin. His reactions are the freshest by far. The others all seemed to know the jokes, but Se-bin was the only one who never did, every single time. It makes you want to tease him, lol.
/In-woo/
In-woo: Noona. Look at this.
Me: Hm...?
In-woo:(shows a mirror) My lover.
Me:(why are you doing this?)
In-woo: AHAHAHA lol
That wasn’t even all of it—I’d done a husband joke before that, but I was so nervous I forgot it, damn it. Kyeon In-woo, you crazy bastard, you’re not even going to marry me, so stop pulling stunts like that T_T LOL. That hope-torture was insane. He kept laughing, and then when he hit me with the “my lover” line, he said it with such a serious face I almost went and filled out a marriage registration form for real. Whew. He nearly had me fooled. I almost had my whole life put up as collateral. Actually, it’s already been mortgaged, T_T
/Young-in/
Me: Young-in, everything about you is great, but if I could just get one thing fixed...
Young-in: Really...? (wilting)
Me:(damn it, that was my fault) No!! No, wait!! I mean, fix my heart!!
Young-in:(brightening at once)
Me: I’m sorry.
Young-in: I won’t fix it...
Damn it lol T_T I’m sorry for that horrible joke. I swear I’ll never say anything like that again. The second he looked dejected, my mind ran wild and I felt like a criminal lol. He’s adorable, but he’s so pitiful at the same time. Still adorable... When he droops like that, I just can’t leave him alone... I told him I was sorry and that I was only kidding because I knew he’d understand the joke, and I comforted him for a long time. Also, I figured if he fixed me, then maybe he wouldn’t come see me again, so he said he wouldn’t fix it. Sigh lol. Don’t worry, I’m beyond fixing anyway T_T
/Sa-yoon/
Me: Sa-yoon, I’m going to do a two-line acrostic poem with “carp.” Can you give me the first syllable?
Sa-yoon: Sureeee, ing ^^
Me: Ink, please.
Sa-yoon: Would just that really be enough? What about the rest? (eye-smile, damn it)
Me: No.
Cheon Sa-yoon is seriously insane lol. He said that, then winked at me and smiled the whole time like he was trying to kill me. This is attempted murder, honestly. An attempt, anyway. I thought that would be the end of it, but then he somehow knew I’d brought a headband, bowed his head, and told me to put it on for him instead. I really came away understanding why people say Cheon Sa-yoon will feed you everything without you even asking T_T
/Jae-ho/
Me: Jae-ho, what am I supposed to do...? I was told not to keep enemies in my life, but somehow I ended up with one...
Jae-ho: In that case, you should report it to the police.
Me: Ah... marry you? (I wanted to say, “You’re a miracle,” but I missed my timing and drifted into another joke.)
Jae-ho: I’m a minor.
LOL I really got rejected twice by Jae-ho. The way he said it with such a dead-serious face made me go all solemn on the spot T_T Our maknae is going to go through life never getting scammed and living smart and square, I can tell. Thank goodness. Jae-ho, this noona feels reassured. Yeah, that’s right—never fall for stuff like that, okay? T_T
I didn’t get picked, so I’m literally crying blood while looking up reviews, but why do the Pyo Jae-ho reviews all sound almost exactly the same? Why does everyone come back from Pyo Jae-ho after talking about music and nothing else? What happened?
“Guys, you worked hard today. You heard about tomorrow’s schedule too, right? I’ll come pick you up on time, so go to bed early. Young-in, make sure you take good care of them. You’ll do fine without me telling you, but still.”
“Yes. Don’t worry about us and head inside.”
At last, with every schedule for the day finished, they returned to the dorm. Go Young-in answered manager Do Sa-jin politely, but inside he was already grimacing. I will be taking care of them, yes. But I’m not confident in myself either, so please don’t trust me too much... Ha... ha...
...Sigh. The sigh came out before he could stop it. At this rate, he was going to punch holes straight through the ceiling. Young-in dragged himself toward the room, too drained to even see the manager out properly. He was completely wrung out.
It’s all because of that hopeless Pyo Jae-ho bastard.
<Yes. Whatever.>
That was just a portion of today’s Pyo Jae-ho fan sign answers that he’d wanted to stop and couldn’t stop.
At least the status window only judged him on whether the action had meaning and didn’t care whether it technically succeeded or failed. If it hadn’t been like that, today would have been a reset for sure.
By the time it was almost over, the whole thing had overflowed so badly he was practically dredging up the worst lines in his record books. That alone said everything.
At this rate, are people going to start posting public complaint threads on community sites?
They probably would. This was definitely Pyo Jae-ho’s own fault, so Young-in didn’t even know what to say. The status window had been barking at him nonstop in the middle of the fansign to offer something useful, so he’d tried to slip in a bit of conversation here and there, but it had all been pointless. Their conversations had only ever gone in circles.
How am I supposed to talk him around?
How to control your temper
The art of persuasion
How to win an argument
How to talk to a teenage child
The psychology of people who speak abusively
No matter what he searched, there wasn’t much to gain. Damn it. If only he’d studied psychology or something.
While Young-in was sitting there with his head in his hands, Cheon Sa-yoon, who had been fiddling with his own phone nearby, let out a light sigh.
“Ah, Young-in hyung.”
“Hm?”
He’d actually forgotten for a moment that Sa-yoon was sitting beside him. Since they were roommates, they’d been walking back the same way.
“I need to take a call for a second. Go on ahead.”
“Got it. Come in slowly.”
That wasn’t just a figure of speech. He genuinely hoped Sa-yoon would come in slowly. He desperately needed some time alone.
But why was this guy, who normally didn’t even bother saying when he was going out, suddenly announcing that he was about to do something? That was weird in its own way.
What is that bastard plotting this time?
Sa-yoon’s back as he headed toward the living room balcony somehow looked suspicious for no good reason. Then again, this was the same guy who’d never once had a normal conversation when he’d been the one to call Young-in over.
Clause 35: A gentle idol leader doesn’t suspect members without cause.
Right. Of course it was just something that had come to mind on its own. He didn’t trust the status window, but it also wasn’t often wrong, so he let go of his suspicious stare. It definitely wasn’t because he was worried he’d get hit with a Caution for keeping on glaring.
Young-in decided that, for the sake of his own peace of mind and rest, he should shower quickly and then collapse onto the bed.
What a hard life I lead.
* * *
“Huh?”
Even after showering, Sa-yoon still wasn’t back in the room. When Young-in checked the time, almost an hour had already passed. Should he have gone to look on the balcony? Something about this felt wrong.
“He still hasn’t come in.”
What, did this bastard really go out without saying anything again? Young-in wasn’t worried about Sa-yoon’s safety, but in another sense, he was very worried.
He was already in no mood after remembering what Lim Se-bin had said, and now Pyo Jae-ho and Cheon Sa-yoon were adding themselves to the list. One by one, like this? At this point, he’d believe it if someone told him the three of them had made a group pact.
“What on earth is he trying to do... Cheon Sa-yoon is really mo...”
─Ding.
Now?
Clause 18: A perfect idol doesn’t say or do anything careless anywhere.
The words on top of the status window looked strangely familiar. He hadn’t read it wrong, had he? He looked at it again, but it still hadn’t changed.
Young-in blinked. No, it was familiar, sure, but...
Why is that popping up when I’m alone in the room?