Chapter 43: Special Mission! Shine Brightly (4)
43. Special Mission! Shine Brightly (4)
"So, uh..."
Seok's hands trembled as Hajin strode toward him, his brow furrowed deeply.
In reality, Hajin had simply taken out his contacts while washing up and was squinting to see Seok's expression clearly. But Seok, unaware of this, only grew more flustered by the misunderstanding.
"If it's not important, I'm going back inside, hyung."
"I—I..."
—You know, 'next time' doesn't come as easily as you think.
—So when you have something to say, you should say it when you can. That's what my grandma always told me.
But he had made up his mind.
"I—I'm sorry!"
"......"
"I heard what the others did to you. I don't think of you like that at all! I—I just want to practice well with you and put on an amazing stage!"
Seok's voice, filled with newfound courage, echoed through the hallway. Haru, who had been awkwardly lingering between them, took the hint and quietly slipped away, sensing this wasn't his place to be.
Now, only Hajin and Seok remained in the hallway.
Seok, still burning with shame and guilt as the older one, kept his eyes glued to the floor. Hajin sighed and turned his head.
"It's fine, hyung. Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong."
"...I'll talk to the others. They're just scared, you know? All they know how to do is complain and blame others... I used to be like that too."
"......"
"But practicing with you made me think a lot. I felt so ashamed. Once I realized I could do better, I started wanting more. I really want to do well in this survival show."
Seok wasn't the best with words, but he was doing his best to convey his sincerity. He was embarrassed, but he couldn't deny how relieved he'd felt when Hajin said they were on the same team—that he was the leader. But he couldn't just let their first mission fall apart like this!
Hajin, meeting Seok's desperate gaze, sighed and scratched his head before nodding.
"...Alright, you can stop now, hyung. I wasn't planning on ditching you or anything."
"S-So we're practicing together?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Great! Then I'll call the others and talk to them! Since I'm the hyung, they'll listen if I—"
"No, no. That's not necessary."
Seok beamed, muttering thank goodness under his breath. Hajin, muttering what's there to be thankful for, stopped Seok before he could turn to gather the others.
"Just give me their numbers, hyung."
"Huh? Oh, yeah, I have them."
"Just send them a message for me, one by one. Not all at once—separately."
"Huh?"
Seok blinked. One by one? Not all together? Confusion painted his face, but Hajin just squeezed the water from his hair with a towel and muttered to himself.
"At least there's one less guy to threaten."
"Huh? Th-Threaten?"
"Hm? Oh, I meant persuade."
You definitely said 'threaten' just now...
No, no, he said 'persuade'!
Hajin's gentle smile as he smoothly changed the subject sent Seok's pupils shaking uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, there was Park Jaeyoung (18), the trainee who had kicked off Miro Maze's fresh start with the humiliating rank of 18th place (dead last).
He was thinking:
Is this really okay?
He'd gotten swept up in the older trainees' tough-guy act and ended up joining the "Kang Hajin boycott," but... truthfully, he didn't even understand what Hajin had done wrong in the first place.
Even if he did mess up, shouldn't we focus on doing well in the mission first?
Besides, he'd originally been ranked 19th—if it weren't for Yoon Taehui voluntarily dropping out during the three-day break, he wouldn't even be here right now.
What the hell are these hyungs thinking?
In the group chat they'd made without Hajin, they'd spent ages arguing about what time to meet for practice tomorrow. But even that had fizzled out, with some members not even bothering to participate anymore.
Jaeyoung was genuinely worried. Is this really okay?
He remembered the last words Taehui had left him with before leaving.
—I really thought I did well in this month's evaluation. But I was 18th. Honestly, it hit me hard.
—Looking at the other hyungs, I realized—oh, so this is the kind of person who gets to debut... So I'm quitting.
—You should keep going, though. I'll cheer for you when the show airs. Oh, and this is just personal advice, but...
There was something else important he'd said, but before Jaeyoung could recall it, a message popped up.
[Gong Seok-hyung]Hey, Jaeyoung-ah, sorry, but can you come to the lounge real quick? There's something I need to give you for the survival show—you're the only one I haven't given it to yet.
"Give me something?"
Huh? Without suspicion, Jaeyoung threw on a fleece and headed to the lounge. If he'd stopped to think, he might've wondered why Gong Seok—who wasn't even the leader—was handing things out. But as an 18-year-old making his first TV appearance, he just cheerfully made his way to the lit-up sofa.
"Seok-hyung, I'm he—huh?"
"Hey, Jaeyoung-ah."
And there, lounging lazily on the couch with his head tilted, was Hajin.
"H-Hyung, why are you—?"
"Oh, I had something to say, so I asked Seok-hyung for a favor. Sit down first."
At first, Jaeyoung was wary, but this was the lounge—just the two of them, no one else to pressure him. Hajin's kind voice as he gestured to the seat beside him made Jaeyoung sit down as if entranced. Before he could even sink into the plush cushions, Hajin spoke.
"Jaeyoung-ah, I'm practicing the title track in Practice Room A tomorrow at 10 AM."
"...W-Why are you telling me this? We agreed to practice separately."
"Yeah, that's the plan. But I'm human too—practicing alone is depressing. So I called someone to join me."
Hajin pulled up a chat on his phone and showed it to Jaeyoung. The moment Jaeyoung read the messages, his blood ran cold.
[Kang Hajin, Leader of Team B]
Hello! Just letting you know—we'll be practicing tomorrow at 10 AM as discussed!
[Miro Maze_Hwang PD]Hello! Got it, we'll come by then!
[Miro Maze_Yoon Writer]We'll just be sketching some footage, so don't mind us~
[Kang Hajin]Understood! I'll let the others know. Have a good evening!
"The staff asked the leaders to confirm their first practice schedule before the interim check."
"Th-This is..."
"But since you guys aren't practicing with me, I guess I'll be filming alone tomorrow. Man, getting broadcasted as the lazy trainee who skipped practice—I'm gonna get so much hate."
"...N-No, hyung. Who said anything about filming—?"
"Are you ready to get flamed by the entire country, Jaeyoung-ah?"
Jaeyoung's face paled as he stammered.
"Tch, well. You guys did say you weren't practicing with me."
Hajin sighed, his expression full of genuine pity. Man, hate comments these days are brutal...
And as Jaeyoung stared at Hajin's shameless face, he finally remembered Taehui's last words.
—Oh, and this is just personal advice, but...
—If you ever end up on the same team as Kang Hajin, don't pick a fight with him. That hyung is terrifying.
Jaeyoung gulped. Something had gone horribly wrong!
Hajin watched Park Jaeyoung's frozen expression with calm amusement.
Time to reel him in.
Seeing the lamb's (Jaeyoung's) pupils shake forty times a second, Hajin quietly slipped his phone back into his hoodie pocket.
Then, to help Jaeyoung—who was now torn between the impending internet hate and the immediate label of traitor—he offered a sweet escape.
"By the way, four others—including Seok-hyung—are coming to practice tomorrow."
"......!"
He'd just given him accomplices.
People are scared to betray alone, but once there's a group, they find courage.
That's just human psychology. It wasn't like Hajin had done anything that terrible to them. It was obvious they'd just gotten swept up in Han Seongwoo and his friends' tough-guy act—where was the loyalty in that?
"Oh, and I'll be sure to mention in interviews how uncooperative the others were with practice. You know how survival shows love asking leaders about their team dynamics, right?"
"......."
"You guys were planning to practice at, what, 2 PM? The interim evaluation's at 7, so you'd have to wrap up by 5 to get ready for filming... So, like, an hour of practice?"
All Hajin had to do was sit them down one by one and remind them which side had the cliff edge.
"Wow, so you're gonna practice for one hour and then get evaluated by Seo Taeil-sunbaenim? You guys really have some balls—"
"H-Hyung!"
"Yeah, Jaeyoung-ah?"
"I—I'll come to practice tomorrow! I'll be there at 9:30 to warm up!"
People will always find their own way to survive.
Hajin grinned at Jaeyoung, who was now pale with realization.
"Yeah? You sure?"
"Y-Yes! Honestly, I never wanted this in the first place. I'm 18th—I have to do well."
Jaeyoung nodded fervently, even throwing in some desperation for good measure.
"Alright. See you tomorrow, then."
"Yes!"
"Get some rest—you must be tired. Staying up late makes your face puffy."
"Got it!"
With a pat on the shoulder, Hajin sent him off. The moment Jaeyoung scurried out of the lounge—
[System Alert: The System is disgusted by humanity's spinelessness!]
[System Alert: Everyone is so mean!]
The System, thoroughly annoyed by how easily people flipped sides, chattered angrily. Hajin sipped his hot chocolate and replied.
"Leave them be. They're just kids."
He pulled out his phone again, texting Seok to call the next guy over, then closed his eyes briefly. Honestly, at first, he'd thought Screw you all, I'll film alone.
—...I'll talk to the others. They're just scared. All they know how to do is complain and blame others... I used to be like that too.
—But practicing with you made me think a lot. I felt so ashamed. Once I realized I could do better, I started wanting more. The others can change too.
Hajin recalled his earlier conversation with Seok. For a moment, he was lost in complicated emotions.
"...This damn meddling habit of mine."
He downed the last of his hot chocolate. Footsteps echoed from down the hall.
"Whatever. Who's next?"
If even five showed up, it'd be a win. This time, he'd threaten them nicely. With that strange resolution, Hajin clasped his hands together.
The next day.
Team B's trainees found themselves in an awkward situation.
"...Uh, hyung?"
"Ahem."
"You too?"
At exactly 9:30 AM—the time he'd promised Hajin—Park Jaeyoung cautiously entered the practice room and froze.
"What the—why are there so many of you?"
Team B's first practice.
"Only one person's missing?"
Attendance: All present except one!