Chapter 95
Chapter 95
I summarized Seon A-hyun’s struggling explanation.
“So… you turned it on to say hello, but then you suddenly got scared and turned it off.”
“…Y-Yeah.”
“Hmm.”
Seon A-hyun hung his head low as if he were a criminal. It was a bit funny seeing him sitting on the floor in front of the room like that.
“What exactly were you scared of?”
“The p-people… I thought they’d h-hate me.”
“If they hated you, they wouldn’t watch.”
“…They s-said mean things.”
“Hmm, did you see that in the live comments?”
Seon A-hyun nodded vigorously.
‘I bet some crazy bastard jumped in as soon as the notification went off just to spout some bullshit.’
I really don’t understand why so many people spend their lives trying to hurt others.
‘How frustrating.’
Regardless, Seon A-hyun had seen an absurd level of vitriol even back when he was appearing on Idol Inc.
The fact that he had endured it well then but broke down now was likely because the incident at the fan signing event acted as a catalyst.
‘The fact that the comments pop up in real-time probably played a part, too.’
It must have felt like he was hearing it directly to his face.
I massaged my shoulders and spoke.
“Even if it wasn’t this job… you can’t only meet people who like you. Someone is bound to hate you. And some people just find it fun to badmouth others.”
“…….”
“Of course, it feels terrible. It’s something that can be scary… but if it’s scary enough to make you want to quit, I think it’s better to get some help.”
“……!”
“Wouldn’t it be better to get counseling now? Our promotions are in the final stages anyway.”
“I-I’m okay.”
Why is he being so stubborn?
I narrowed my eyes.
“It seems like you just don’t want to get counseling.”
“…It w-was useless.”
Seon A-hyun squeezed his eyes shut.
“B-Before… I f-fixed this, the s-stuttering… but it’s l-like this again.”
“…….”
“It’s u-useless.”
Seon A-hyun lowered his head deep.
“I-I just have to live like this forever…….”
“…?”
What kind of extreme conclusion was that?
“Didn’t you just… happen to meet a quack?”
“…! A q-quack…….”
“And I didn’t mean you have to fix the stuttering; I meant wouldn’t it be better if you were at least less worried about it?”
“…….”
“If you don’t believe me, should I call the other guys and put it to a vote?”
“……?!”
Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have any trauma related to that, so I conducted a survey with Seon A-hyun’s dazed consent.
First, Ryu Cheong-woo.
“I can’t speak lightly on it, but… in any situation, it’s good to keep up with rehabilitation. Don’t give up until you see a conclusion. You made a good call.”
“……Y-Yes.”
Next were Keun Se-jin and Kim Rae-bin. They were in the living room looking at comments for the fan song.
“Whoa, you definitely have to see a different doctor. If you tell the company, they’ll probably introduce you to a famous one. A lot of the staff here worked at other agencies before.”
“I believe you cannot generalize based on a single prior experience. You would need to compare and analyze at least five cases to establish reliability.”
“I-I-Is that so…….”
Cha Yu-jin, who was in the kitchen, didn’t quite understand the word ‘quack.’ After I explained the meaning, I asked him again.
“Throw away the quack! Meet a new doctor!”
“…….”
It felt like a summary of a daily soap opera plot for some reason, but it was simple and clear.
Finally… I asked Lee Se-jin, who was lying on his bed.
An unexpectedly serious answer came back.
“…Doctors vary wildly. There are some where you wonder why you’re paying them to talk… and then there are good ones.”
“Y-Yes.”
“If it doesn’t feel right, it’s best to switch quickly. ……Not that I’ve been in treatment for long, though.”
Then, after hesitating, Lee Se-jin added quietly.
“…Good luck.”
“—!! Y-Yes!”
It was unexpected backup fire.
Alright, the investigation was over. I crossed my arms and asked again.
“Well?”
Seon A-hyun seemed quite moved this time, agonizing over it with a groan.
And soon, he clenched his fists and spoke.
“……T-Then… as s-soon as promotions end, I’ll tell them.”
“Will you? Alright.”
“……Y-Yeah!”
“Send that to your parents right now.”
“E-Ehh?!”
It was obvious he’d try to slide out of it once the date got closer.
I sat there and waited until Seon A-hyun contacted his parents to inform them of the counseling plan.
Since he had said it himself, Seon A-hyun eventually sent the text while sweating, and his parents replied almost instantly.
And just like that, Seon A-hyun’s counseling schedule was successfully set.
“Good job.”
“O-Oh, uh……”
He looked dazed, as if he couldn’t believe what had just happened. I gave him a pat on the back and returned to my room.
That evening, I received an unexpected thank-you call from Seon A-hyun’s parents.
It seemed Seon A-hyun had told them that I was the one who persuaded him.
‘…Was that necessary?’
It was a bit embarrassing.
—Thank you. There are… well, areas that we just can’t reach…….
Her voice sounded a bit choked up. After clearing her throat a few times, the gratitude continued.
“No, it’s nothing. I just brought it up.”
—Even so.
…From what I overheard later, it seemed Seon A-hyun had been subjected to verbal abuse after his relapse, being told things like he’d have to live like that forever.
I could bet my bank balance it happened at school. Not that I had much in there.
‘As expected, peer relationships were the problem…….’
Anyway, I ended the call with Seon A-hyun’s parents with appropriate politeness.
Man, I really experience all sorts of things.
I leaned my arms on the balcony railing, where I had gone to talk privately, and felt the summer breeze.
‘……Tired, but refreshing.’
My first experience of group living in a long time was ending like that.
The last music show broadcast ended well without any major issues.
“Everyone seems to like the shorts.”
“I-It was good because it was e-easy to move in.”
I liked it because it was cool.
Though I thought Keun Se-jin, who had a kneeling move at the end, might have felt differently.
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[Hello, Loviewer.
This is Moon-dae (Puppy Emoji)
This is today’s outfit. (Photo) (Photo)]
=========================
After uploading the final group photo to social media, it really felt like our first promotions were over.
“Vacation starts tomorrow.”
“Yay~!”
“I’ll be able to head down home after a long time.”
Everyone looked excited at Ryu Cheong-woo’s words.
That’s right. The agency gave us a vacation, just like they said in the media play.
Exactly four days.
‘For the guys living in the provinces, they’ll just have enough time to go down, eat, rest, and come back.’
Still, it was better than nothing. From what I’d overheard while preparing for music shows, there were plenty of groups who didn’t get any break at all and were immediately put to work on the next album.
As soon as they finished a commercial shoot that evening, TeSTAR arrived at the dorm, skipping dinner, and one by one, they picked up their pre-packed bags and left for home.
“Well then, see you all in a few days~!”
“See you!”
“Let’s meet again in good health.”
“B-Bye…….”
Even in the midst of that, Seon A-hyun seemed incredibly nervous about going to counseling, disappearing with stiff, awkward movements.
Click. Beep-beep-beep.
The front door closed.
And just like that, I was left alone in the dorm.
‘…This is heaven.’
Just thinking about spending four days using this spacious place all by myself in peace made me feel like my stamina was already recharging.
I let out a long sigh of relief and lay down on the sofa.
‘I’ll just lie here for a bit, then get up, eat… and I should do a detailed monitoring of what I’ve missed…….’
…I got that far in my thoughts before I drifted off to sleep.
And that evening.
Waking up in the living room, I realized something was wrong.
My body wouldn’t move.
It was the exact same symptom I’d experienced after the first filming of Idol Inc.
It meant I had come down with a terrible case of body aches and exhaustion.
‘…I’m going to die.’
It was even worse this time. It felt like my brain was boiling.
At first, I tried to do something, but I soon realized I wasn’t in any condition for that.
‘How is even watching TV this hard?’
With a heavy hand, I turned off the TV, which was streaming WeTube.
I had intended to monitor the preview for the first episode of Get Close First that I filmed with Cheong-ryeo, but I had no idea what I’d even watched. My head throbbed.
‘…Let’s check my temperature.’
Beep.
[38.8°C]
This is insane.
I rummaged through the container where I’d found the thermometer and found some pain relievers and fever reducers. I just chewed them for now.
They were incredibly bitter. But after a while, the pain subsided slightly.
With that, more productive thoughts became possible.
‘…The managers are resting, too.’
It wasn’t serious enough to contact the company yet. It was just that the tension in my body had snapped, and all the accumulated overwork had exploded at once.
‘I guess… I’ll have to spend my vacation recuperating.’
It was the same as resting anyway, but resting because you’re sick wasn’t exactly fun. It was a shame, but there was no helping it.
‘Let’s make some porridge while I still have the energy.’
I boiled some plain porridge using instant rice, ate a few spoonfuls, and lay down on the bed.
And while the medicine was still in effect, I started monitoring.
‘First… the reaction to the stages.’
The individual fancams of the comeback stage uploaded by MusicBOMB had already racked up quite a few views.
It seemed like there was a subtle competition going on between the individual fans.
[(MBomb Fancam) TeSTAR Moon-dae ‘Magical Boy’ / 1.12 Million]
‘…I surpassed a million views, too.’
The effort I put into dancing was worth it. I clicked on the video with a faint smile.
It just rubbed off on me naturally because we all did it together. Since I lacked the basics.
‘Still, it feels good.’
I guess this is why people throw their lives into work, work-life balance be damned.
Hmm, there were quite a few English comments, too, but my brain wasn’t working well enough to read them. I moved on to the next item for now.
This was something I did periodically… but I hadn’t been able to do much of it lately because I was so busy.
Let’s search ‘Park Moon-dae’ on social media.
“…….”
Just like last time, videos, photos, and fan art poured out.
To be honest, it still didn’t feel real that so many people were interested in me.
But it was fun looking through them one by one. I slowly scrolled down the timeline, checking what people were saying.
Then, I found some peculiar ones.
=========================
Park Moon-dae TeSTAR Moon-dae Idol Inc.
Park Moon-dae, please go back to blonde. Black hair does NOT suit you at all. Please go blonde! Why did you go back to black after dyeing it? ㅠㅠ It’s hair that would grow back black anyway, please just go blonde.
=========================
“…….”
The determination for me to see this search result pierced through the screen.
Below it, people were busy arguing with the person, asking why they were doing this.
“Good grief.”
A hollow laugh escaped me. I should probably take a vote or something for the next album and change my hair color.
“Next is…….”
Did I just say that out loud?
I blinked and looked at the smartphone screen. It seemed a bit blurry…….
My head hurt. It felt like the medicine was wearing off fast.
‘Fuck.’
This is seriously exhausting.
In my hazy state, I buried myself in the bed. I don’t know. I’ll probably feel better after a nap…….
My thoughts cut off there.
My body felt heavy. I must be experiencing sleep paralysis.
…I heard a voice.
“…dae? Hey! Park Moon-dae!!”
“……!”
In an instant, my consciousness snapped back.