The Little One Who Cheered Everyone Up
Kim Jin-hyung, one of the members, crouched down in front of me so our eyes were level.
“Gongja. Hyung’s sorry I teased you.”
A normal kid probably wouldn’t have understood a word of it. Even if they had, they’d likely just turn away in silence.
But I’m different.
I patted Kim Jin-hyung’s cheek with my hand. Then I grinned and said, “It’s okay!”
Kim Jin-hyung, who’d taken my touch to heart, opened his eyes wide.
“Whoa, Gongja forgave me!”
Gongja’s forgiveness has made Halo member Kim Jin-hyung happy.
Wow.
It goes up more than I expected.
No, but why was he getting emotional over something like this?
I blinked at Kim Jin-hyung. The Halo member scratched his cheek in mild surprise.
“I honestly didn’t think you’d forgive me.”
What, for something this small?
“Why?”
“Ah—no. Well, I mean... why do I think that?”
Why are you asking me that?
“Because usually people don’t forgive you when you mess up?”
“Really? Who doesn’t?”
“Everyone?”
Rough crowd. Then again, that was show business for you.
There are so many idols out there, too.
Still, these guys were Halo, weren’t they?
Well, everyone’s a rookie once.
Come to think of it, I vaguely remembered hearing that Halo had struggled a lot when they were still rookies.
“Everyone really does that?”
“Yeah.”
Oh no.
“Hyung.”
I patted Kim Jin-hyung’s head.
“Gongja’s okay.”
Beside us, the other members groaned in unison.
“Wow!”
“The baby’s so sweet!”
“He’s even more mature than Jin-hyung!”
Kim Jin-hyung blinked, then pressed a hand to his forehead.
“Damn it. Stop teasing me.”
“Mr. Kim Jin-hyung. How does it feel to be comforted by a baby?”
“Honestly?”
Kim Jin-hyung blinked and said, “It feels good. It feels so good my head’s kind of messed up right now.”
“Bwahahahaha!”
“I’m dying.”
“You should be Gongja’s little brother!”
“Damn it! Stop teasing me!”
Kim Jin-hyung huffed, then held out the ball for me and said, “Gongja, kick the ball once.”
What a good kid.
“Ung!”
I kicked it. The soft rubber ball bounced away in a wobbling arc.
“Aww. That’s short, but cute.”
Short?
Take back the part where I said he was nice.
Well, he’s not wrong that I’m short because I’m a baby.
Just you wait. I’m going to grow tall.
And I’ll make my legs long, too.
If I have to, I’ll use coins.
I was making my quiet little vow when the ball rolled back toward us.
This time, I tried to kick it more carefully. I still wobbled the same way, and Kim Jin-hyung caught me again.
Then another member in front kicked it back. But something about the way it was flying looked dangerous.
It looks like it’s coming straight for my head...
If it hit my face, that’d be bad.
I stretched out my hand as far as it would go and covered Kim Jin-hyung’s head.
Thump.
The ball brushed my arm and fell to the floor. For a moment, the living room went silent.
“W-What!”
“Hey, what if you kick it that high!”
“Ah, sorry! Hey, are you both okay? Of course you’re okay, I know that, but still!”
“What did I just witness?”
The Halo members rushed over.
“Jin-hyung, are you alive?”
“I’m alive! Whoa, did you see Gongja cover my head just now?”
“Yeah! His tiny little arms wrapped around your giant head!”
“Damn it! My head isn’t that big!”
They were making a racket.
But the Halo members weren’t done overreacting yet.
“Mr. Kim Jin-hyung. How old is he? One year old? Anyway, how does it feel to be protected by a one-year-old baby?”
They really do know how to play.
Kim Jin-hyung picked me up and stood.
“It’s a little weird, but... nice.”
“Really nice?”
“Yeah. Though at the same time, I’m wondering why I’m so weak that I need a baby to protect me. But I’m going to hand all those complicated thoughts over to Yoo Ji-chan, who kicked the ball.”
Kim Jin-hyung lifted my arm and ran over to another member.
“You nearly put us in danger! I shall punish you with Gongja’s hand!”
He lightly whacked Yoo Ji-chan with my hand.
“How dare you threaten us?”
“Aaaah, I’m sorry!”
Yoo Ji-chan crouched down and pressed his hands together.
“I was careless.”
“What if our Gongja had gotten hit in the eye?”
“I-It wasn’t that hard of a kick.”
That was true.
It just went a little high.
But Kim Jin-hyung was merciless.
“Do you not understand that such carelessness puts our Gongja in danger? Guards!”
Huh?
“Yes!”
Wait, what?
“Twist that villain’s wrists!”
Wow.
They really are having fun.
The other members hurriedly brought over a chair. They sat Yoo Ji-chan down like they were restraining him, but the real problem was something else.
The chair is a pumpkin chair.
It was the one Ansan-daek had bought as part of a set with a watermelon chair.
Maybe that was why it looked absurdly adorable.
“Pfft! That chair is too cute.”
“Hey, don’t laugh. We’re supposed to be serious.”
“Okay. Twist the criminal’s wrists.”
“I’m innocent, I tell you~”
They were such a perfect match for each other. Yoo Ji-chan, seated on the pumpkin chair, shuddered dramatically and cried out, “Please give me another chance!”
“You don’t even know what you did wrong, and you dare beg for forgiveness? Guards, twist them harder!”
“Yes~!”
“We’re gonna twist him!”
Wow, this is chaotic.
Is this how kids these days play?
It was hard to keep up.
“Forgiiiiive meeeee!”
Kim Jin-hyung held out his arm.
“Guards, stop the torture.”
“Stop it, they say!”
“Sob. Sob.”
I blinked. Kim Jin-hyung carried me in his arms and stepped in front of Yoo Ji-chan.
“I have no intention of forgiving you, but Gongja is different. Gongja, what do you want to do?”
Huh. The choice was mine?
I grinned and patted Yoo Ji-chan’s head.
“Gongja’s okay!”
“Gasp!”
“He’s insane!”
Yoo Ji-chan looked at me, then slowly collapsed onto the floor.
Kim Jin-hyung asked again, “Mr. Yoo Ji-chan, how do you feel?”
“Now I understand what you meant earlier.”
“Right? You have to experience it yourself to get it.”
“The baby is an angel.”
Yoo Ji-chan hurriedly got back to his feet.
“Gongja. Thanks for forgiving me.”
I said with a smile, “I’m okay!”
“Man, I’m dead.”
Yoo Ji-chan took me back from Kim Jin-hyung. Then he patted my back.
“You’re adorable! I wish I had a little brother like this!”
“You already have a younger brother, Ji-chan.”
“He’s not nearly this cute.”
Oh dear.
I looked up at Yoo Ji-chan and said, “Hyung is cute.”
There you go. These guys really were good at this game.
Then, all at once, the members collapsed dramatically.
What now?
When I looked around, they were all on the floor muttering to themselves.
“My God. Ji-chan’s cute.”
“He must not know what Ji-chan’s feet smell like.”
“Maybe Gongja really is the sweet one?”
“Should we get his eyesight checked? There’s no way Ji-chan is cute.”
Kim Jin-hyung held up two fingers and said, “Gongja, how many fingers is this?”
Excuse me, future world-famous idol.
As if I’d know numbers right now.
I did know, of course, but I was pretending not to. For now.
Kim Jin-hyung muttered, “He really doesn’t know.”
“Right. That’s why he says Ji-chan is cute.”
You guys...
I tilted my head and said, “All cute!”
“Huh?”
“What?”
I smiled as brightly as I could. “Hyungs are all cute!”
“Gah!”
“Huff!”
They all rolled around on the floor again.
“He’s an angel. An angel.”
“No, seriously, maybe the baby just doesn’t know what cute means yet.”
“Gongja, cute is what you call a kid like you.”
“Anyway, Gongja’s an angel.”
I trotted over to Yoo Ji-chan.
“Hyung, you okay?”
“Huh? Yeah, I’m fine. Everything’s fine because Gongja forgave me. Sorry. I kicked it too high.”
He was seriously apologizing over something this small.
“It’s okay. Gongja saved Jin-hyung.”
“Urk.”
“I’m losing it.”
The other members rolled around on the floor.
“Seriously, so cute.”
“He said he saved Jin-hyung.”
“Mr. Jin-hyung, how do you feel?”
“Ah, why do you keep asking? Obviously I feel great. Honestly, I kind of want to forget everything in the world and take a nap with Gongja.”
Another member, writhing on the floor, muttered, “Ah. A nap. Come to think of it, I’m sleepy.”
“No way. We’re filming!”
So they really were exhausted. They probably weren’t getting enough sleep.
Hang in there. You’ll be famous soon enough.
I smiled softly.
“Nap? Let’s do it! A little!”
“Huh?”
“Take a nap with Gongja!”
Kim Jin-hyung turned around.
“What is ‘nap’?”
“Oh, I know. It means a short sleep.”
“Huh? You want to sleep with me right now? Because I look tired?”
Kim Jin-hyung hugged me tightly.
“You really are an angel. Gongja, hyung is fine.”
Kim Jin-hyung stood up and lifted me.
“This is a child-rearing program, right?”
“Right?”
“Then why does it feel like Gongja is the one raising us?”
Huh, he’s sharper than I thought.
“You felt that too?”
“Yeah. I feel like we’re getting healed somehow.”
“Right?”
Kim Jin-hyung patted my shoulder.
“Whatever, it doesn’t matter. Gongja, play with hyung!”
Ah. I had to entertain them again.
I nodded with a smile. “Yes!”
“Good. Gongja, what do you want to play?”
The members all got up and wandered off. I let out a small breath.
Honestly, I was a little tired.
Is that just my imagination?
The idols were kind of like a pack of hyperactive puppies.
* * *
It was already afternoon.
Is that going to be okay?
I glanced toward the kitchen. A few of the members were stirring something with great concentration.
Guys. If it’s edible, I’ll eat it. Just don’t burn it, okay?
They said they were making baby food, but I was deeply worried. When I kept craning my neck toward the kitchen, Kim Jin-hyung picked me up again.
“Guys. Gongja’s getting anxious.”
“Gasp!”
“It’s okay, Gongja! We’re succeeding!”
“That’s right! We’re making delicious baby food!”
Would it actually be edible?
Still doubtful, I watched as Kim Jin-hyung carried me to the window.
“Tell the hyungs to keep working on the baby food, and come play with hyung!”
Ah, so I had to play again.
Kim Jin-hyung readjusted his hold on me and asked, “Gongja, what’s your dream?”
Excuse me.
If you ask a one- or two-year-old baby what his dream is, do you really think he’ll understand?
I looked at Halo’s Kim Jin-hyung. Surprisingly, he seemed quite serious for a question he was asking a baby.
“Gongja likes big things!”
“Huh? You like big things?”
“Yeah! I want to go there!”
Would he understand that?
That’s the best my language skills can do right now.
But his reaction was astonishing. Kim Jin-hyung understood immediately.
“You want to go somewhere big? Gongja, is being an actor your dream?”
Wow. For a second, I was genuinely moved.
He understood that?
I nodded.
“Yes!”
“Whoa. Wanting to be an actor at such a young age? Who do you take after?”
Why ask something like that?
“Mama!”
“Ah, Gongja’s mother was senior actress Ma Soo-jung.”
Thanks for understanding, Jin-hyung.
Kim Jin-hyung adjusted his grip and said, “Gongja, hyung has a dream too.”
Of course he did.
But you have to ask me about it.
That seemed to be what he wanted.
“What is it?”
“Hmm. Hyung’s dream is to hold concerts in countries all over the world.”
Ah. That one.
You’re going to do it, though.
No—better than that, you’re absolutely going to do it.
Didn’t they become popular in North America and go on a world tour?
Kim Jin-hyung, unaware of his own future, muttered, “So I’m learning English too, but everyone makes fun of me for it. They ask if we can really pull it off.”
How annoying.
There are always people like that wherever you go.
Kim Jin-hyung sighed and looked out the window.
“Do you think hyung can do it?”
“You can!”
Of course you can. I’d already seen that future!
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah! And punish them!”
“Punish them?”