Chapter 161
Chapter 161
Let’s be honest for a second.
‘It makes sense that Bae Se-jin would want to do a drama.’
He was a former child actor to begin with, and he only appeared on <Idol Inc.> so he could continue his acting career.
Besides, anyone could see that his stats related to acting were better than his idol-related ones.
‘Even I would have been tempted.’
I spoke tentatively to Bae Se-jin, whose complexion looked a bit dark.
“The drama offer must have been a good one.”
“…It’s a drama by a writer I worked with back when I was a child actor. They said… there’s a small role available.”
Bae Se-jin muttered with a slightly depressed face.
“The PD who just talked to me said he’s an acquaintance of that drama’s PD… He said the drama is good, and T1 is even providing production support……”
“Hmm.”
If it was at that level, the offer definitely would have gone to the company as well, but it seemed they cut it off considering our group activities.
‘They probably didn’t want to give him any false hope since a TeSTAR tour is starting to come into view.’
Until a decline hits, a tour is definitely going to be more profitable.
“…Well, whatever. Everyone says their acquaintances’ projects are good anyway.”
Bae Se-jin spoke as if forcing himself to shake it off and headed toward a nearby trash can, seemingly intending to throw the business card away.
“Wait a moment.”
“Why?”
“Why don’t you try talking to the company? It’s been a year since we started promoting, so I think it wouldn’t hurt to at least bring up doing one light project.”
Bae Se-jin’s eyes widened.
Honestly, from my perspective, the best-case scenario is for Bae Se-jin to focus solely on group activities for about three years without any other thoughts.
But human emotions were a variable.
‘If I keep suppressing him, he might just desert the group before the contract ends.’
I could see that he clearly wanted to do it but was bottling it up for fear of causing problems for the team.
There’s a limit to how much a person can endure with logic and social awareness. No matter how much he’s grown to enjoy this, it’s easy to lose your mind if you keep underperforming at something while your actual specialty is right in front of you.
‘It might be better to let him do one drama now.’
From what I heard, it sounded like a small supporting role, so I figured this much would be fine.
Even if he gets a bit of flak, it’s at a level where we can pass it off without much trouble, with people saying, ‘Since T1 produced it, they even mobilized a TeSTAR member for promotion~.’
Besides, letting him loose a little when the timing aligns like this would make it easier for him to act in earnest a few years later.
There would be less public resistance, too.
I subtly added some justification so Bae Se-jin could rationalize it reasonably.
“The atmosphere is shifting toward us doing individual variety shows, photo shoots, and commercials anyway.”
“…….”
However, with a stiff face, Bae Se-jin crumpled the business card and threw it into the trash can.
“……!”
“Forget it. It’ll only distract me.”
Then he muttered as if making a vow.
“I’m barely keeping up as it is… I don’t have the luxury to worry about other things right now.”
I could feel the pressure in his voice.
“…Group activities come first.”
“Hyung……”
“…??”
That wasn’t me.
When I turned my head at the voice that suddenly cut in, Kim Rae-bin was looking at Bae Se-jin with a face full of melancholy.
Seeing the drinks in his hands, it seemed he had been looking for us with the drinks we hadn't received because we weren't in our seats.
‘This guy is still wearing a brace on his foot, what is he doing…?’
It was absurd, but the person in question looked radiant.
“Seeing you so devoted to TeSTAR’s activities, Hyung, makes me want to recover from my injury quickly and contribute to the team as well.”
“W-What! Where did you come from!”
“Ah, please have this!”
Bae Se-jin turned red and recoiled in shock.
‘Well, that’s ruined.’
There was no room or atmosphere left to persuade him further.
‘If he looks really regretful later, I’ll have to bring it up once more.’
I shrugged, took the drink, and followed Kim Rae-bin back toward the rest of the group.
Bae Se-jin was sipping his drink with a grumpy expression, but he didn’t seem to be in a particularly bad mood.
Until then, that is.
“…So I met Bae Se-jin Hyung and Moon-dae Hyung and delivered the drinks.”
“Good job~”
“Still, let’s be careful about walking from now on, Rae-bin. You need to be mindful until you’re fully recovered.”
“I will keep that in mind!”
Inside the car returning to the dorm.
In response to the members’ questions about where he had gone, Kim Rae-bin told the story of how he found the two of us and brought us back.
Then, from the back seat, Cha Yu-jin poked Kim Rae-bin in the side and asked.
“What were the Hyungs doing??”
“Ah, it seemed Bae Se-jin Hyung was making a vow regarding TeSTAR’s future activities….”
“N-No, I wasn’t!”
From the very front seat, Bae Se-jin hurriedly denied it, his face turning bright red.
Kim Rae-bin tilted his head in confusion, seemingly unable to understand the violent reaction.
“But you were clearly rejecting some kind of activity while vowing your devotion to TeSTAR…….”
“No! That’s not it… Hey, say something…….”
“…….”
Why are you calling me instead of doing it yourself?
I opened my mouth reluctantly.
“Hyung got a drama offer, but he turned it down. He said he wanted to focus on our activities.”
“R-Really?”
I caught a glimpse of Bae Se-jin groaning and covering his face with both hands in the front.
“You worked hard, Se-jin.”
“Try it next time! Challenges are good!”
“I-I’ll work hard on our activities too, Hyung…!”
The inside of the car became warm with a bit of touched sentiment and encouragement. Bae Se-jin couldn't lift his face, seemingly caught in complex and subtle thoughts.
‘Good grief.’
I clicked my tongue and opened a bottle of water. Beside me, Keun Se-jin also tossed out a comment while casually looking at his smartphone.
“That must have been really disappointing, you’re amazing.”
“…….”
Bae Se-jin in the front seat flinched and remained silent for a while.
Then, he blurted out a response as if it had slipped out unconsciously.
“You don’t actually think that.”
“……!”
It was a rather sharp response.
A scoff of disbelief briefly appeared and disappeared from Keun Se-jin’s face upon hearing the answer.
“Huh? Hey, why would you think that? I was just saying something nice.”
“…I know you’re being sarcastic, but don’t do it over something like this. I said I turned it down.”
“So, when did I ever get sarcastic with… No. Yes. I’m sorry. I won’t say anything from now on. Is that okay then?”
“If you’re going to act like that every time, just say it to my face instead.”
The atmosphere in the car suddenly froze.
‘What the fuck is this now?’
Before I could even think, Keun Se-jin looked up from his smartphone.
Keun Se-jin was now scoffing without even trying to hide it.
“Say what to your face? I’m already speaking just fine.”
“Stop subtly making people look weird. You think I don’t know?”
“I’m asking why on earth I would make you look weird. No, I don’t even know why you’re saying this.”
“Guys, wait a second.”
Bae Se-jin whipped his head around. His eyes were blazing.
“You’re doing it right now. You think I’m pathetic, don’t you? I know you think I’m useless but full of pride.”
“……!”
“See.”
“I’m just so dumbfounded that I’m speechless.”
“And then you pretend to be close to me in front of the cameras only when it’s advantageous for you.”
By now, Keun Se-jin’s face was also filled with peak irritation.
“Then should we fight in front of the cameras? Hyung, work isn’t some child’s play, and every time you……”
Bae Se-jin slammed his hand down on the armrest.
“I! I am serious about this work. The one acting like it’s child’s play is you.”
“What?”
The atmosphere became so vicious that the only reason it hadn't turned into a fistfight was entirely because we were inside a car.
At that moment, Keun Se-jin leaned his upper body forward, almost standing up.
“Who do you think you’re talking to…….”
“Hey, stop it.”
‘Are they crazy?’
I quickly pressed my hand against his chest. The others, who had been stunned by the sudden argument, finally snapped out of it and began to pull the two apart.
“Okay, guys, let’s stop! Hyung is going to have a heart attack while driving!”
“P-Please calm d-down…….”
“Let’s just go back to the dorm and talk calmly.”
“We’re in a moving car right now. We could get into an accident!”
“…….”
The two glared at each other before silently sitting back down in their seats.
Of course, the atmosphere remained murderous.
In the car that had become deathly silent, I suppressed a groan.
‘This is driving me crazy.’
The friction that had been visible since debut suddenly exploded over a fuse that wasn't even that significant.
‘Has the limit of tolerating each other finally been reached?’
Just thinking about whether there was a solution to this gave me a headache.
‘…For now, I’ll mediate the conversation once we get to the dorm.’
It was a pain, but I had no choice. I closed my eyes and decided to wait until we arrived.
However, far from having a conversation, the moment they entered the dorm, they both quickly holed up in their respective rooms.
To be precise, the moment Bae Se-jin went straight to his room, Lee Se-jin also snorted and went into his own.
It wasn't so much avoidance as… they both seemed incredibly pissed off.
‘Fuck.’
There’s no answer for this.
“…….”
The rest of the TeSTAR members sitting in the living room were silently staring at the TV screen.
Coincidentally, an advertisement I didn't want to see came on.
[A warm touch, just like a warm heart.]
[Meet the future guide dogs of Osung Guide Dog School!]
It was the commercial I shot with Cheong-ryeo. In a bright-filtered outdoor field, yellow dogs were shown in a repeating cut jumping out and hanging onto my head. My face looked quite stupid.
“Oh, Moon-dae Hyung.”
“I like puppies….”
Cha Yu-jin’s voice saying he liked dogs sounded more listless than usual.
Actually, it wasn't just Cha Yu-jin; everyone seemed a bit dazed and flustered.
‘This team has been getting along fairly harmoniously.’
Since we debuted, there had never been such a blatant fight.
It was understandable that they were flustered.
In contrast to the bitter reality of the atmosphere, the screen showed a lively pack of dogs and Cheong-ryeo.
[Grown with your love.]
[Thank you! Citizens of the nation!]
[The Nation’s Insurance - Osung Life Insurance]
It was a mess over there, and a mess over here.
“Phew.”
A sigh escaped on its own. I ran a hand through the back of my hair and organized the situation in my head.
Let’s think.
‘First of all… the timing was bad.’
Bae Se-jin probably hadn't settled his feelings yet because he had made the difficult decision to reject the drama.
He was already a sensitive guy. It seemed he had been piling up stress from noticing Keun Se-jin’s subtle way of speaking, and this time, it just rubbed him the wrong way.
‘And Keun Se-jin is a guy obsessed with career achievement anyway.’
He probably doesn't have a status abnormality like I do, but he’s the type to be hyper-sensitive about results.
So it was obvious that he didn't look kindly on Bae Se-jin, who had lower stats and lacked social skills but was stiff-necked.
Therefore, there was a high probability he thought the guy he had been ‘tolerating’ was now throwing a fit instead.
‘And above all… the two of them just don’t click.’
Aside from working hard, they have nothing in common. It was clear they had no affection for each other and couldn't understand each other's actions.
I pressed my temples.
Honestly, I just wanted to leave them alone and tell them to just act right when the cameras were rolling, but…….
‘I should still try to do something.’
…I did receive consideration during Ryu Cheong-woo’s incident, after all.
I stood up from the sofa with a look of disgust and headed toward the kitchen.
“Moon-dae.”
“Hyung.”
Ryu Cheong-woo followed me quietly and gave a bitter smile.
“I’ll go to Se-jin—I mean, Lee Se-jin—so… do you want to go to Bae Se-jin? The two of them need to talk.”
“Hmm.”
It seemed like a distribution considering the fact that I am currently Bae Se-jin’s roommate.
I pondered for a moment but shook my head.
“I think it’s better if I go to Lee Se-jin.”
“Really?”
Yes. Looking back, there was something weighing on my mind, and I was the only one among the members who knew about it.
Ryu Cheong-woo nodded readily.
“Okay. Being the same age might be better.”
“Yes.”
“Then… let’s do our best.”
Ryu Cheong-woo patted my shoulder and left the kitchen. I turned my head and opened the refrigerator.
‘Alcohol would probably have the opposite effect.’
Let’s just take some cold water.
I went to Lee Se-jin’s door with two bottles of water in one hand.
Knock, knock.
“It’s me.”
“…….”
After a moment, the door opened with a small sigh.