Chapter 593
Chapter 593
Just this situation.
Do you know that feeling? The feeling that if you could just escape this exact moment by a hair’s breadth, everything would be okay.
Back when Keun-dal was still Park Moon-dae, sitting alone and idle on a moth-eaten mattress in a moldy studio apartment, such thoughts would often cross his mind.
Hypotheticals.
If my parents were alive.
If I had a family to live with.
If I had someone to talk to.
The hypotheticals grew smaller and smaller until they finally became just "if there was someone."
He used to imagine what he would do if that were the case.
Of course, the will and energy to waste on such meaningless thoughts eventually withered away, vanishing at some point.
Perhaps that was why he was only realizing it now.
—Even if the situation changes, I remain the same.
It was strange.
He knew he no longer had to help anyone as a status window, nor did he have the pop-ups that allowed him to converse freely with his hyung.
However, there was clearly a massive environmental difference between now and when he was a twenty-year-old orphan lying listlessly in that dilapidated studio.
He now had a respectable job and a home. He was no longer the Park Moon-dae who didn't know how to do anything.
Yet, despite the situation changing so drastically, he didn't particularly feel a surge of strength or a desire to move proactively.
It was strange. His environment was one where he should be perfectly fine.
Why couldn't he be? Why was he sitting alone in his officetel feeling the exact same way he did in the past?
In the end, until the disappearance incident occurred, he had gradually become as lethargic as he was in the past, unable to even convince himself otherwise.
Alone.
But now, there was someone else in the house.
"Do you eat japchae?"
"Ah... yes? Yes!!"
"Then that's fine."
Keun-dal blankly watched his hyung boiling glass noodles.
TeSTAR’s Park Moon-dae.
His hyung, who had handed over a bundle of signed TeSTAR MD and albums—some members had even written letters!—had already finished grocery shopping.
‘It must be his precious vacation time!’
But before he could even feel sorry, his hyung moved quickly.
He prepared holiday food, urged him to unbox the MD, and laughed while watching his reaction to the TeSTAR goods...
"I'm turning on the TV."
"Ah, yes!"
They ate, chatted while watching programs, and brought up everyday topics.
"Did the leave of absence you mentioned get processed okay?"
"Ah, yes! My leave starts today for one year. It's called a self-development leave..."
Keun-dal realized he was sitting comfortably on the sofa, sharing such trivial and inconsequential stories.
‘Ah.’
It was a feeling he had experienced before.
Back when he was under the Civil Service Examination Status Effect.
It was similar to the feeling he had once a year during his exam prep, when his hyung—then a status window—would return to check on him and ask how he was doing.
The difference was that his hyung now had a physical body, and he didn't have to wait a year after seeing him today.
—I think I'll stay at this place for a few more days before heading back up.
—...Pardon?
—Let's just rest together.
His hyung had settled in naturally, as if he had just come home to his parents' house.
And now, he was eating a holiday meal provided by his hyung and even watching him clear the table...
"Wait, I'll do that!"
"It's fine."
Waving his hand and saying he was here to get some proper rest, his hyung finished tidying up the leftovers and even suggested they go out together to buy ice cream.
Then, with ice cream in his mouth, he sat in front of the TV and asked casually.
"Is there anything fun to watch lately?"
"Ah..."
Keun-dal, who had been swept along this far, was slightly flustered.
In truth, he hadn't been actively doing anything this time either.
This was because he had spent all his time cleaning up the mess of his unannounced absence since the TeSTAR concert.
He racked his brain and finally remembered one thing.
"That... Oh! It's on WeTube."
A video that makes your heart feel at ease!
He had watched it occasionally before going to bed.
Keun-dal quickly operated the remote to access WeTube on the smart TV.
However, the first thing that appeared on the screen as a recommended related video was... a well-produced stage video.
But it was of another idol group.
‘Huh?’
Blinking, Keun-dal soon realized.
It was an idol group he had come across by chance while scrolling, and he remembered watching them intently. They must have appeared in the recommendations because his watch time was long.
"Ah, that group debuted around the same time as 'HaloHe-im'... They aren't quite as popular, but their songs are good and they work hard!"
He felt a steady gaze on him.
"Not TeSTAR?"
"Ack."
Aaaack...
"It's a joke."
His hyung chuckled.
"Do whatever you like. Don't worry about what others think or pay attention to them."
It felt as if the words 'even if that someone is me' were omitted.
"......"
Ah.
Keun-dal suddenly faltered.
That attitude of 'I won't be disappointed or upset no matter what you do.'
The feeling that he was just being taken in out of pity because a connection had happened by chance... that feeling suddenly surged up.
‘Why am I being like this?’
He felt ashamed.
But as if he had noticed, his hyung spoke suggestively.
"Are you planning to suddenly ignore me if I quit being an idol?"
"...! No way!"
"See."
"......"
"So don't worry about who you support and just do it."
And slowly, Keun-dal properly understood the meaning of those words.
Whether he was a fan of TeSTAR or not, that didn't matter.
Because.
"In the first place, you didn't even know me when I was an idol, so why do you care about that?"
"......"
Keun-dal nodded vigorously.
Yet, he still mumbled.
"...Still, I think I'll keep supporting TeSTAR..."
Yeah, I know.
TeSTAR’s Park Moon-dae burst into laughter.
"Actually, isn't half of that group made by you?"
"What do you mean I made half of it, Hyung!"
"You made me debut."
Park Moon-dae pointed at himself seriously!
"As the main vocal, I am the very voice of TeSTAR."
"Ack! Hyung, why are you suddenly being like this!"
While shouting that it didn't suit him, Keun-dal navigated through WeTube.
His heart felt light.
Then, an equally light question followed.
"So... what should we do tomorrow?"
A question about the near future.
Tomorrow.
He instantly thought of countless answers, and that surprised him.
"......"
It was something that could be done this easily.
Just having a comfortable, friendly, and dependable elder to talk to freely could make it like this...
‘There were things I wanted to do...’
Feeling strangely choked up, he hurriedly composed his voice.
"Then... um, how about skiing?"
"Sure."
And his hyung, who accepted the proposal on the spot, immediately finished the reservations.
Thus, in the late early spring, the two of them had a blast skiing, tumbling a few times at a quiet ski resort.
"Wow! Hyung, you're really good!?"
"This is a spoiler for a variety show, but I ski there too."
"No way! In Part 2?"
They exchanged random words without hesitation, talking about whatever they wanted.
"Hyung, night skiing? You down?"
"Let's go to the intermediate slope."
Keun-dal became increasingly comfortable and joyful.
Even when they returned home from the ski resort and he brought up things to do, he no longer hesitated.
He didn't even walk on eggshells when bringing up TeSTAR anymore.
"Ah, the new season of <Doll Hunter>... it's being released tomorrow at 12!"
"Yeah."
"I have to catch the premiere!"
"Since when does Netplus have a premiere... well, sure."
And so, the next day.
The two of them sat in the living room, watching the drama with kimchi stew made from leftover mung bean pancakes and japchae in front of them.
‘...It's warm.’
A satisfying sense of peace and stability made the tip of his nose sting.
Keun-dal blinked a few times to keep from crying and then looked at the screen.
"I'm pressing play."
"Yes!"
It was an ordinary day spent with family on a day off.
For the record, at the same time, a similar situation was unfolding in San Diego, USA.
8:00 PM.
"Todo estaba muy bueno!"
The dining table of the large family, having finished a long dinner, was bustling with his younger brother's guests.
‘It’s been a while since it was like this.’
Cha Yu-jin’s older brother, Ethan, whistled as he cleared the dishes with his siblings.
As soon as they graduated from high school, his brothers and sisters had already left this large family home to become independent.
However, at the news that the second son, who was the first to become independent, was coming, everyone except for the younger sister who was in the middle of her semester gathered at the house.
Cha Yu-jin’s declaration of independence had been quite radical, after all.
—I’m going to Korea.
—...?
—I’m going to be a K-POP singer there.
—Did you get hit in the head with a ball while playing football?
This family was full of energy and strong spirits.
Among them, his younger brother, who had strangely good intuition, eventually made his words a reality.
To think he would return after succeeding like this.
‘I even joked that if he came back a failure, we should hand over the surfboard shop to him.’
They had said they should welcome him warmly, like the prodigal son from the Bible.
Rubbing his chin as he recalled that time, Cha Yu-jin’s brother turned his gaze to Kim Rae-bin, who was struggling to help clear the dishes across from him.
‘The fact that Yu-jin made many good colleagues must have definitely influenced that success.’
Meeting them more closely than when they had visited with cameras a few years ago, they were still thoughtful and full of personality despite the passage of time.
‘These guys are trustworthy.’
It was certain, seeing how much his intuitive younger brother liked them.
Skillfully taking the plates from Kim Rae-bin, he offered a greeting with a grin in Korean that was even more proficient than Cha Yu-jin’s.
"Thank you for taking care of our troublemaker Yu-jin for the past few years."
Kim Rae-bin was slightly flustered.
"Ah, no. I am the one receiving help from Cha... Cha Yu-jin!"
"Hehe!"
"......"
Cha Yu-jin, passing by with a laugh, was annoying!
However, he couldn't possibly grab the guy by the collar in front of Cha Yu-jin’s siblings, parents, and grandmother.
Especially when that grandmother was even offering him snacks...
"Toma unos bocadillos, mi dulce!"
"Gra... Gracias!"
Beside him, Cha Yu-jin’s brother passed by with a wink.
‘I am... overeating...’
Feeling like he was about to break into a cold sweat, Kim Rae-bin accepted the cinnamon churros and walked slowly.
Still, he had been spending his vacation in San Diego for several days, moving as much as he ate!
—You can surf during the day! Kim Rae-bin, you ride too!
—Aaaack!
...He had even learned how to surf.
‘To think even the dogs in Cha Yu-jin’s house can surf!’
Amidst the three families as boisterous as if they had been one large family from the start, he was a bit nervous, but as someone who grew up in a rural village with many neighbors, he adapted steadily.
For the record, Ryu Cheong-woo had adapted immediately from the first day of arrival and was now at the point where his Spanish skills were improving.
‘As expected!’
Admiring anew that the leader was indeed different, Kim Rae-bin suddenly felt a bit of regret.
‘It would have been nice if the other hyungs had come too.’
It was good... but a bit empty.
In fact, wouldn't a certain portion of this gratitude he received from these families go to the hyungs as well!
‘Because we are a group.’
Kim Rae-bin nodded to himself.
...He was also in a state where his group pride had reached its MAX after seeing Seon A-hyun’s meticulously arranged display of TeSTAR items.
But at the same time, he recalled Bae Se-jin hyung, who had been flustered and clutching a Spanish translator app during the video call Cha Yu-jin had made without warning yesterday.
—S-So... yes. Hola? Me alegro de verte...
—Ohhh!
The cheering Cha Yu-jin was truly annoying.
...As expected, enjoying this time without Cha Yu-jin seemed like it would be a more satisfying vacation!
He nodded, took a bite of the churro, and continued writing in his diary.
Recording things from time to time would help with musical inspiration when he opened it again someday.
Of course, even if it didn't, it became a memory.
—...So Grandpa and Grandma boarded the cruise, and I challenged snorkeling with Cheong-woo hyung. Hyung didn't excessively contact the marine life and skillfully navigated the current...
"Rae-bin, it's starting!"
"Ah, yes!"
He quickly closed the diary he was writing and ran out.
The TV showed Netplus, where the new season of <Doll Hunter> had been released.
[Have you guys seen the other seasons?]
[Of course! Yu-jin talked about it so much that I watched it as soon as it was released.]
Kim Rae-bin took a seat next to Ryu Cheong-woo. Beside him, Cha Yu-jin was perched on the rug below the sofa.
"......"
At that moment, Kim Rae-bin felt a sense of déjà vu from this composition.
—I'll play it.
—......Yes.
‘Ah.’
The last activity of Steer.
It felt like they were in this same arrangement when they watched their last music video.
Of course, it was in Steer’s last dorm in Korea, which was much smaller than this.
Kim Rae-bin, Ryu Cheong-woo, Cha Yu-jin.
It was something that happened because the numbers matched.
"......"
As Kim Rae-bin turned his head, he realized that Ryu Cheong-woo had been glancing at him and Cha Yu-jin before he did.
"...!"
"Why?"
"...I was just looking around the living room!"
Ryu Cheong-woo turned his head back with a smile.
But Kim Rae-bin thought instinctively.
That Cheong-woo hyung might have recalled the memories of that time much earlier than he did.
Almost reflexively.
"......"
Kim Rae-bin had actually mostly processed the memories of his time in Steer while releasing <10 Movements>. Now, it remained in his mind like a unique event he had experienced in the past.
Perhaps Cha Yu-jin was the same through the Waterbomb stage.
But...
‘Has Cheong-woo hyung had such an opportunity?’
Kim Rae-bin thought deeply. Nothing that felt exactly like that...
...came to mind.
‘......’
His heart sank for a moment.
Sometimes, if circumstances didn't align correctly, a person couldn't easily escape the past.
And unintentionally, it would suddenly pop up to torment them or hold them back from moving forward.
Even Kim Rae-bin, who was dull to the emotions of others, knew that...
"......"
‘No, wait.’
Cheong-woo hyung had recovered well, yet he was having such rude thoughts just because their eyes met!
The important thing was that now, the family could watch a member's activity all together.
‘Get it together!’
Kim Rae-bin snapped out of his thoughts!
After lightly tapping his cheeks, he focused again on the first episode of the new season of <Doll Hunter> that was playing.
—This place is hell. Are you looking for another hell in the living world?
And in an instant, he was sucked into the drama.
Battle, pain, thrill, horror... This drama, where everything that tugged at emotions was gathered, was incredibly gripping this season as well.
He watched the content intently...
Thud.
He was startled once more the moment the character played by Bae Se-jin, a medical student, appeared in the protagonist's second life and was murdered.
"...!"
It was partly because of the surprising and impressive acting, but that wasn't the only reason.
‘The BGM... it's our song!’
That’s right.
This induced dissonance was 'Misapprehension', the theme song for Jung Yi-sol that they had created.
And that wasn't all.
‘It’s... coming out again!’
When he first appeared in the snowy mountains.
When he comforted the protagonist for the first time.
The music director had skillfully cut and inserted TeSTAR’s OST into all of the medical student Jung Yi-sol’s impressive scenes.
And finally.
—Aaaaaack!
In the scene where the protagonist discovers Jung Yi-sol’s corpse, everything connected and exploded with immense synergy.
"......!"
Kim Rae-bin felt a literal shiver.
The pleasure of seeing a song he created being utilized in a new way by someone else, perfectly matching the intention.
And separate from that, the joy of watching a perfectly constructed work of art.
"Yes! That's the song we made!"
"Oh my god!"
And this was also the common reaction of people watching Doll Hunter.
Except for one thing.
—What's that classical song playing when Jung Yi-sol appears in Doll Hunter?
As for whether TeSTAR had composed this song, only a very small number of people knew yet.