Chapter 99: Bomb? (10)
99. Bomb? (10)
'I knew this would happen.'
Our runaway truck with no brakes once again plowed straight into Yu-geon today. Even from a distance, I could tell he was flustered—uncharacteristically so.
'The first time you get hit like that, it stings the back of your head.'
At least Lee Do-ha reacted as I'd expected. Someone like Yu-geon would find blunt, no-nonsense types far more comfortable than overly emotional people like Seo Tae-hyun or Dan Ha-ru, who ooze 200% sentimentality.
Now that I knew the full story, the pieces were finally falling into place about Yu-geon—his excessively carefree attitude, his Copy&Paste trait, and even the debuff affecting him.
[Lee Yu-geon (Affiliation: Miro)]
—Debuff: Due to the influence of his unique trait, all stats are reduced.
Vocals: D (C+)
Dance: B+ (S)
Expressiveness: C- (A-)
Charm: D+ (B+)
Special: Copy & Paste (B)
—At a certain probability, fully assimilates the target he immerses himself in.
Appeal Points:
'There are still twelve ships left.'
—Responsibility, tenacity, strong immersion.
'I don't know what his unique trait is... but he needs to feel responsible to immerse himself fully, and only through that immersion can he internalize things. But if he has zero intention of debuting, how could he ever feel responsible?'
But that was the story until now. The quest hadn't disappeared yet, and no matter what, I had to get him through this stage safely.
To do that, I needed to instill a sense of responsibility in him...
'How do I reel in someone with such a massive ego? Just throw it at him—"You killed the vibe, so take responsibility"?'
As I watched Yu-geon flounder under Do-ha's direct approach, trying to figure out how to hook him, Joo Eun-chan, who had been sitting quietly in the corner, raised his hand.
"......?"
All eyes turned to Eun-chan. He looked at me with an intense gaze, as if asking for permission to speak.
"Uh, yeah. Go ahead, Chan."
"Yes. I'd like to say something. So, the reason Yu-geon hyung isn't fully participating in practice is because of his part-time job, right?"
"Well... yeah. He's been covering all the shifts at the convenience store in exchange for weekly pay."
"Then I can solve that problem."
Huh?
Eun-chan's bold statement left everyone with question marks floating over their heads. And in that moment, another realization flashed through my mind.
'No way...'
"Hey, Joo Eun—"
"I'll hire him. As our choreography instructor."
Before I could stop him, Eun-chan pulled something out of his wallet—the same card I'd seen at the housewarming party, belonging to his older brother, Eun-seok.
"The contract will last until the survival show ends. If we're on the same team, I'll pay double the hourly rate."
This was ridiculous—you can't just hire someone with money like this...!
The team members, shocked by Eun-chan's words, all turned to Yu-geon at once. But contrary to their worries, Yu-geon just stared at Eun-chan and the card in his hand before—
"Customer, I'll serve you with the utmost kindness. How much were you thinking?"
His eyes lit up as he instantly transformed into a slave to capitalism.
...I'm losing my mind, seriously.
Of course, the insane idea of Eun-chan personally hiring Yu-geon didn't actually happen.
"Han Seong-woo's already dealing with bad rumors. If word gets out that trainees are exchanging money, what do you think will happen?"
Jung Si-woo calmly and kindly talked them out of it, stretching out his "stop talking nonsense" into a long, persuasive speech. Thankfully, Yu-geon had only half-jokingly agreed, so he didn't push further and just laughed it off. (Though Eun-chan seemed dead serious.)
So how were we going to solve this problem? Surprisingly, the answer came from Yu-geon himself.
"Actually, before coming here, I already told the store manager I'd have to quit."
"Huh? Why?"
"...I do have a conscience, you know? I really tried to make it today before filming, but I ended up losing my phone while dealing with a difficult customer, so I couldn't even contact anyone... Ugh, whatever. Just because I don't plan to debut doesn't mean I want to be a burden."
But since things had gotten this bad because of his job, he figured it was time to call it quits.
"So does that mean you can practice with us now?"
"Normally, they'd wait until they found a replacement, but the manager's son just got discharged from the military and has nothing to do, so they agreed to let me quit today."
"What about living expenses...? Are you okay?"
"I've got some savings. And the appearance fee should be coming in soon. I'll manage for a month or two. And..."
Yu-geon leaned back in his chair, his words trailing off. For the first time, a hint of hesitation and awkwardness colored his expression, bringing a rare seriousness to his demeanor.
"Some of my younger brother's friends watched the broadcast and... apparently talked trash about me."
"Ah..."
"I don't have much to pass down to my brother as it is. If I embarrass him on top of that, how am I supposed to keep my dignity?"
With that, Yu-geon flashed his signature wide, easygoing grin.
"So, should we get this collar on?"
"It's a choker."
When I snapped back at him, laughter finally erupted in the meeting room. Even Si-woo shook his head in disbelief, letting out a deflated sigh.
Only now had we truly reached the starting line.
"Ha-jin, are you feeling okay?"
"Huh?"
The originally scheduled filming didn't start until after lunch, slightly delayed.
The assigned writer suddenly asked about Ha-jin's well-being as he was filling his tumbler with water. Ha-jin froze for a second, but noticing Si-woo subtly gesturing behind her, he quickly composed himself and smiled.
"Ah, yes. I took some medicine and rested, so I'm fine now."
"I was so shocked when I got the call this morning! For people like us, our bodies are our assets. You have to take care of yourself."
"Haha, thank you for your concern. I'm sorry for startling you. I didn't mean to delay filming."
"Oh, don't say that. Health comes first. We're not the kind of people who chase after cameras when someone's sick."
It seemed they'd used Ha-jin's health as an excuse for the delay when explaining things to the production team. Not entirely false, since he had been unwell.
"Alright, alright. Today, we'll just film the song selection meeting and some practice sessions. Oh, Ha-jin, did you get any self-cam footage yesterday?"
"Ah, that."
When the PD asked, Ha-jin retrieved the self-cam bag he'd left in the practice room and handed it back. Then, with an exaggeratedly apologetic expression and aegyo dripping from his voice, he said:
"Ah~ I'm so sorry. I filmed a lot yesterday, but I must've pressed something wrong because none of it recorded..."
That was a lie.
The camera had worked perfectly during last night's two-part secret meeting. It wasn't like this was some complicated DSLR or camcorder—just a basic Vixia that only required turning it on and hitting REC. There was no way Ha-jin could've messed that up.
"Oh no, really? None of it recorded?"
"I swear I did it exactly as you taught me... But to make up for it, we'll really go all out today!"
The real reason Ha-jin had formatted the memory card was simple: no part of last night's discussion could air.
There were plenty of entertaining moments that would've been fun to keep (like Won-ho and me working late on choreography), but he'd already recorded those separately on his phone and emailed them to the writer.
Technically, since Miro had final approval, he could've just asked Ji Soo-ho to cut the problematic scenes.
'But to minimize the risk with Yu-geon, it's better to erase the footage entirely.'
The PD looked disappointed at first, but seeing Ha-jin's exaggeratedly apologetic pout, he just clicked his tongue and let it go.
"Well, it was just backup footage anyway... So you've finalized the song selection?"
"Yes! I sent the details to the writer yesterday!"
"Okay. Can't be helped, then. We'll cover the song selection in interviews, and today we'll just..."
The PD quickly adjusted the schedule after discussing with the writer. Ha-jin subtly steered the conversation toward the direction he wanted, making sure they didn't feel like he was being too pushy. The key was balancing the intensity just right.
"Alright, let's go with that."
And so, today's scenario was set!
"Blue Flare Team's concept today is: 'We Learned Sexy from Books! Baby Trainees' Clumsy Attempts at Being Sexy!'"
"Yes. Plus, 'Yu-geon's Chaotic Introduction to Rapping.' Focusing on Yu-geon and Do-ha should be fun since their dynamic flips when dancing versus rapping."
"And it's Eun-chan's first time showcasing his vocals... Last time, Si-woo and Ha-jin had that epic vocal battle, but now they're on the same team. This team's full of drama."
'Rumors of discord between Jung Si-woo and Lee Yu-geon' or 'Conflict due to Yu-geon's bad attitude.'
The keywords Ha-jin had painstakingly brainstormed to shed those titles now flowed effortlessly from the PD and writer's mouths.
Of course, they were all clues Ha-jin had subtly dropped into the conversation—but neither of them realized he'd been guiding them the whole time.
"But how did Yu-geon end up doing rap instead of Eun-chan?"
When the writer asked, genuinely curious, Yu-geon—who'd been stretching nearby—laughed awkwardly. Then, word for word, he recited the answer Ha-jin had drilled into him minutes ago.
"I've always been a little interested, and the team encouraged me to give it a try. So I'm taking this opportunity to challenge myself. I want to show our Desty fans a new side of me. I'll do my best to become a cool duo with Do-ha hyung."
"Hahaha, that's the spirit! I'm looking forward to it."
The PD shot Ha-jin an impressed look at Yu-geon's sudden enthusiasm, wondering how he'd managed to tame that wildcard.
—Wait, I've never rapped before. How am I supposed to do this? We have Eun-chan!
—We already had that heartwarming discussion yesterday, so if you're curious, just watch the broadcast.
—Huh? It hasn't even aired yet, how can I— No, that's not the point!
—You said you'd take whatever's left, right? That it didn't matter?
—Well, yeah, but you should at least give me something I can do...!
—If you can't do it, none of us can.
—.......
—Choose. Will you obediently wear the choker and take the rap part with a good image, or will I force the collar on you and make you take the leftover parts while looking unreliable?
—What's the difference!?
...I put the collar on him.
Ha-jin silently answered the PD's impressed gaze in his mind.