Chapter 424
Chapter 424
“Is my landing okay when I turn here?”
“Yeah. But let’s be careful with your arms.”
Mirinae, the junior group from the season of Idol Inc. immediately following TeSTAR’s, was in the middle of a focused rehearsal for a broadcast stage.
Even if that stage was merely a supporting performance for their seniors' live concert.
Of course, it felt a bit awkward.
‘Aren’t we past the point where we should be filling slots like this?’
It wasn’t out of arrogance; it was just common sense.
Mirinae wasn't exactly a struggling rookie group anymore. No matter how they looked at it, the optics of a female group riding the coattails of a male senior group’s performance felt like it would backfire.
‘Well, I guess Spacer will benefit from it.’
They weren't fools; the idols knew exactly what kind of picture the agency was trying to paint.
With complicated feelings, the Mirinae member finished her solo part.
“Whew!”
Even if she wasn't quite at the level of Yul-gi—the group’s de facto center in terms of popularity and visual image—she still had to deliver on the screen time she was given as the main dancer.
Right next to her, another member with significant screen time was staring intensely at a tablet with a serious expression.
It was Park Min-ha, who had debuted in second place on Idol Inc.
In a group without an official leader, she practically filled the role. She was a member the others were grateful for, yet also felt a bit sorry for.
But lately, her behavior had been strange.
‘...Min-ha, are you seeing someone?’
A few days ago, she’d been seen fidgeting with her smartphone or sneaking out with a determined look on her face.
And the clincher was when the member had unintentionally overheard Park Min-ha secretly talking on a manager’s phone in the dorm bathroom.
—Um, Sunbae-nim.
The voice echoing off the narrow tiled walls was unmistakably... a man’s voice, calm and pleasantly melodic.
—It’s alright.
She even knew who it was.
‘Park Moon-dae...’
TeSTAR’s main vocal, AKA Moon-deng-deng.
“Okay!”
The member stopped moving and wiped her forehead.
Honestly, even as a fellow idol of the same age, she could understand catching feelings for him.
‘He is handsome.’
To begin with, TeSTAR’s overall visual average was ridiculously high.
‘It’s a scam.’
Rather than a fluttering heart, it was her sense of crisis as a fellow survival show alum that rang louder. We’re doomed... well, not doomed, but I wish we were doing better. The Mirinae member thought gloomily as she finished practice.
“Min-ha, do you want some water? Want a drink?”
“Ah, I’m fine, Unnie.”
It was while she was listening to the conversation between Jung Yul-gi and Park Min-ha, leaning against the mirrored wall with her earphones in.
“Hey, Ha-rin.”
“Yeah?”
Park Min-ha, sitting next to her, spoke up.
Her expression was odd. It felt like... she had made some sort of resolution.
“By any chance, even if it’s a bit dangerous... No, never mind.”
“...??”
“No, it’s nothing. I must have been mistaken!”
Even if it’s a bit dangerous... what?
‘You weren’t about to say you have someone so great you’d risk danger to set me up with them, were you?’
A creeping sense of unease rose, but she ignored it.
From what she knew of Park Min-ha, she wasn't the type to play matchmaker; she was the type to worry about other members doing exactly that.
‘Let’s test the waters anyway.’
The member rolled her eyes and spoke.
“Min-ha, I’m just asking... but are you, you know... catching a vibe with that Sunbae-nim?”
“Huh? Who?”
The member whispered. “Park Moon-dae.”
The undisputed top-tier male idol!
And Park Min-ha...
“No.”
Her face went dead serious.
“Don’t ever say that anywhere. Absolutely not. It’s impossible.”
She sounded like she was rapping.
“Uh, okay...”
She really meant it. Seeing Park Min-ha react as if she’d been accused of dating a ghost that crawled out of hell, the member, Seong Ha-rin, accepted it with a grain of salt.
‘Then what was that phone call about?’
The tension had seemed quite good, she thought. Ha-rin shrugged and continued practicing.
‘...Are we not practicing the new song?’
She thought of the title track choreography for the new album, which had been postponed indefinitely and wasn't even being mentioned lately.
*
A few days later.
A schedule was booked that wasn't practice or an event for once.
“What is this for?”
“Ah, it’s a mix of a pictorial and an ad.”
It seemed to be related to a fashion magazine.
‘For a pictorial, the fit of these clothes seems strangely off.’
Ha-rin sharply checked the fabric and lines of her outfit, but work was work.
I’ll nail this shoot regardless.
With that thought, she stepped onto the set.
“Oh, it’s TeSTAR Sunbae-nim.”
“...!”
She ran into TeSTAR, who were getting ready to leave after finishing their shoot. They must have been scheduled for the slot right before hers.
“Hello.”
“Hello!”
‘Wow.’
Their clothes were also questionable, but their frames and faces made the outfits look good.
‘Man, I really wonder how they manage themselves.’
Ha-rin thought idly as she watched Kim Rae-bin pass by after a formal bow, only to realize he was wearing an outfit similar to hers.
She groaned inwardly.
‘Are we doing another joint ad?’
Memories of the smart device ad they did early in their debut and the subsequent mockery flashed through her mind. Her mental state almost wavered, but she endured it through years of experience.
I just need to do my part well!
“Wait here for a moment.”
“Okay~”
Mirinae moved to the designated waiting area without a word.
“We’ll just adjust the fit of the costumes one more time~”
“Yes, yes!”
But the moment Jung Yul-gi, who was first in line, stood up excitedly to get ready...
Park Min-ha carefully slipped out the back door.
As if she were sneaking off to meet someone.
“......?”
Wait, if there was someone on this set worth meeting secretly... no, if there was a group, only one came to mind.
‘Isn’t this... too much of a signal?’
No way, surely not!
Seong Ha-rin found herself sneaking out after Park Min-ha to prevent a potential catastrophe.
And she actually witnessed it.
Park Min-ha and Park Moon-dae, standing together in the hallway!
“...!”
Hey, you two... come to think of it, don’t they have the same surname and clan? No, no. Calm down. Ha-rin looked away in shock, trying to assess the situation calmly.
They were standing somewhat close, but there was no physical contact. Yet, there was a strange tension in the air.
Listening in on the conversation...
“Sunbae-nim, is this what you mentioned last time...?”
“Yes. But I didn't know it would be in this format either.”
“...Understood!”
...Based on the conversation, they didn't sound like they were flirting; they sounded like secret agents plotting something.
Ha-rin’s pupils shook, but she soon sighed and backed away from the hallway.
‘Whatever, I don’t know anymore.’
At any rate, Min-ha wasn't the type to do anything reckless, so it was best to leave it at that. She felt she had already crossed a line by following her.
‘It wouldn’t be right to grill Min-ha about it, either.’
I’ll just focus on my own idol life. With that thought, she returned to the waiting room and successfully completed the shoot.
Checking the monitors periodically, she was relieved to see the photos were turning out beautifully.
‘On a day like this, I have to post!’
She naturally logged into her SNS.
*
[Receive today’s Ha-rin! (Fire emoji)]
*
She had already received permission to post a shot where only the upper half of the pictorial outfit was visible...
...The outfit?
‘Wait, wait!’
Sensing a bad omen, she paused the upload.
She searched a certain account and checked the latest posts... Just as she feared!
*
[It’s hot, but I’m enduring it (Rolling eyes emoji) (Fire emoji)]
[(Photo)]
*
“Ugh!”
It was TeSTAR’s SNS.
A perfectly timed, humorous, and well-colored photo of Lee Se-jin and Cha Yu-jin grinning mischievously while Park Moon-dae looked at them with an incomprehensible expression had just been posted.
‘They filmed first, so they posted first!’
To make matters worse, the composition was similar.
Similar outfits, accessories, background, and the exact same emoji? This was a recipe for controversy.
Even if it could be explained later as overlapping schedules, she couldn't risk being branded as a "lovestagram" couple or an attention-seeker for even a second.
‘Ah, this is so annoying!’
Thinking of the tiresome rumor-mongering "wreckers" on WeTube, the Mirinae member gritted her teeth and deleted her draft.
‘I’m going to make it big...!’
I’ll become an idol with better digital sales than TeSTAR, so even if dating rumors break out, people will say I’m the one who’s too good for him.
Even she felt the possibility was remote, but wasn't ambition only meaningful when it burned bright?
Then, it suddenly occurred to her that she had juniors of her own now.
‘...Are they filming this too?’
That new girl group that had taken away all the staff she used to work with.
Ha-rin hesitated for a moment but decided not to think about it further.
‘Let’s just practice.’
Since that was something she couldn't control, it was better to do her best in the things she could.
And Ha-rin’s somewhat gloomy prediction was proven true a few days later through news articles.
[<T1-Stars> X <Tusle-A> Joint Line Launch]
[Idols from Survival Powerhouse Tnet Reborn as Brand Apparel... ‘Tusle-A’s’ Innovative Attempt]
Along with press reports overflowing with flowery rhetoric.
The summary was this:
—T1 Stars is launching a collaboration line with a clothing brand! Their idols will serve as exclusive models, and direct participation in design is being considered.
‘Ah, of course.’
The reason it looked tacky was that the agency did it themselves.
Ha-rin nodded. She stopped her thoughts there, deciding not to waste emotional energy by clicking on the rookie group’s pictorial or browsing the comments.
So she didn't know.
[Did you see this? T1 idol clothes (12)]
[I knew they were money-hungry, but they’re really doing everything now... (7)]
[Let Kim Rae-bin design (8)]
[But I kind of like it since I like merch lol (3)]
The reactions, which had been lukewarm and mediocre, began to shift...
[The content of this article is a bit weird (534)]
...starting from that point.
So, a few days later, on the day of the TeSTAR concert broadcast.
[Clothes Only Idols Can Wear: Such Blatant Stratification of Fashion]
Articles like these began to pour out.
[“Platinum Grade is not for the likes of you”... The Impact of Tnet’s Survival Shows on Us]
[T1 Stars Fans Begin Boycott... A Mistake by <Tusle-A>?]
While waiting backstage for the live broadcast, the Mirinae member was slightly flustered by the commotion.
‘Wow, it’s a mess.’
Even the manager ran off after receiving a call.
She knew boycotts against agencies were common, but the atmosphere felt unusually heavy.
‘What is it?’
In fact, these articles hadn't appeared out of nowhere.
The chaos had already erupted on SNS and had been simmering like lava on WeTube before finally boiling over. Having stayed off the internet for a few days, she was unaware.
“Ah... um.”
“Alright, everyone. Focus on the stage!”
Among the members trying to shift the mood, sensing that the agency was the one taking the heat rather than them, she saw it.
Park Min-ha was breaking into a cold sweat, her movements stiff.
“...?”
The pressure of being the leader...?
“Min-ha, are you okay? What’s wrong?”
“...No, uh, I’m just a bit surprised!”
Park Min-ha jumped in surprise, then quickly put on a determined face. Her "energetic chick" appearance didn't seem to indicate any life-threatening danger.
‘I guess she’s okay.’
“Just a quick makeup touch-up here.”
“Yes.”
A stylist came in to fix the traces of Park Min-ha’s cold sweat.
And then.
“Could we get some lighting here, please?”
“Yes, yes.”
TeSTAR’s Park Moon-dae. He was seen briefly through the open waiting room door, talking to a staff member as he passed through the hallway.
And Seong Ha-rin saw it. The way his gaze briefly checked on Park Min-ha as he walked by.
“...!”
It was a fleeting, light glance, but Seong Ha-rin froze in shock.
‘That person... didn’t he just smile?’
The misunderstanding deepened once again.
“It’s noisy out there.”
“Tell me about it.”
Behind the pre-recorded concert stage, while waiting for the special broadcast stage, the bomb finally went off.
Of course, the staff were still moving in perfect order without issue, but the agency officials' behavior clearly gave it away.
Without smartphones and waiting right behind the stage, we had no way to verify anything, though.
“Hmm~ It looks like some articles are popping up.”
At Keun Se-jin’s words, Kim Rae-bin raised his hand.
“Should we consider the possibility that this is the type of problem requiring a modification of the performance?”
It was a necessary question. And...
“No.”
Ryu Cheong-woo stated with refreshing certainty.
“Just go out there and do exactly what we planned.”
Smiles spread among the guys.
“Good.”
“Understood!”
And when the standby signal came...
“Hyung, do well!”
Cha Yu-jin patted Seon A-hyun on the back. The one who was hit looked a bit surprised, but soon answered firmly.
“Okay.”
That damn system’s virtual reality had made life exhausting, but it wasn't without its perks upon returning to reality.
‘For instance.’
For instance, the years of professional ballet experience that guy had acquired.
“The viewers are really going to be surprised.”
Regardless of whether the agency was being turned upside down, twelve minutes later, they were on air.
Seon A-hyun began his intro solo dance.