Idols Are Cold
Idols are cold.
“Alright… now that we’ve cleared up the misunderstanding and finished the introductions, shall we talk about training?”
“Ah, yes.”
Vocal trainer Kang Suhyeon, true to her expressionless face, was a rational person; she got straight to business.
“You said you’ll be appearing on My Idol Academia in a month, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Hmm….”
Kang Suhyeon swept her gaze over my face once, nodded, then asked,
“How long have you been a trainee?”
“Ah… I haven’t really gone through a trainee period….”
“…What?”
“I only signed the contract with the company the day before yesterday.”
“……?”
My answer left her pale with shock.
Dance trainer Lee Jiwoo beside her was just as stunned; she shouted at the top of her lungs.
“…What?! You’ve never been a trainee? And yet you’re going on My Idol Academia in a month?”
“That’s… how it turned out.”
“…Hah.”
A short gasp followed my reply, then silence settled over us.
“…….”
“…….”
Clap!
Trying to break the awkward atmosphere, dance trainer Lee Jiwoo clapped once and forced a cheerful tone.
“Th-then we’ll just have to work hard starting now…! Haha…!”
“…….”
“First, Yerin. Could you show us a bit of dance or singing, even briefly…? We need to test you before we start lessons….”
Lee Jiwoo was clearly trying to hide the bewilderment she felt right now, but….
“…….”
Kang Suhyeon still hadn’t managed to close her open mouth.
The bewilderment on her face soon shifted into resignation.
“…Yes. If you have something prepared, show us.”
“Yes. Then I’ve been practicing something I saw on YouTube these past few days….”
“YouTube… yes, go ahead.”
Well… thinking of sending a complete newbie onto an audition program in a month would feel hopeless, of course.
I could understand how she felt.
But….
“Yes, then I’ll play the music.”
Whatever she thought, whatever she felt, I still hadn’t given up.
To prove it, I played the song I’d practiced while watching YouTube these past few days and took my stance.
Kang Suhyeon had spent five years as a vocal trainer at JJ Entertainment, one of Korea’s top three agencies, and in that time she had seen countless idol trainees.
So many children flocked to entertainment companies, dreaming of becoming idols.
Not a single one among those who began trainee life failed to dream of a glittering future.
But….
This industry is harder than any other job.
What the kids admired and dreamed of was only the bright end result of being an idol.
They had no real idea how grueling the process of becoming one truly was.
Especially children with overwhelming looks like Ha Yerin standing right in front of her.
Having worked at JJ, Kang Suhyeon had seen plenty of beautiful kids who, while not quite on Yerin’s level, came close.
Those children never imagined they might fail.
Being an idol isn’t something you can achieve just by having a pretty face.
In a market that was already practically saturated, looks were merely one condition among many.
Dance, singing, acting ability, charisma, character—those were the basics.
Even after meeting every one of those requirements, plenty of people still faded away from sheer bad luck.
The idol market was nothing short of a pyramid of hell.
Success here was possible only for those who never stopped honing their skills and constantly prepared.
And yet….
She never even went through a trainee period, and she’s going on My Idol Academia?
Looking down on the industry was one thing, but this was going too far.
Well… with Ha Yerin’s outstanding looks, she would certainly draw attention.
But the public was merciless.
The moment her lack of skill was exposed… the audience whose expectations had been betrayed would hurl stones more fiercely than ever.
…I’m worried.
And it seemed she wasn’t the only one fretting.
“Um… Suhyeon….”
Though they had only known each other a few hours, dance trainer Lee Jiwoo had already formed a deep bond with her, the two of them clinging together like close comrades amid the chaos.
She wiped away the bright expression she had worn in front of Ha Yerin and whispered to Kang Suhyeon with a dark face.
“This is… will it be okay? She says she’s never practiced on her own, and she’s going on air in a month….”
“…I know, right.”
“And the production team there is famous for their nasty editing! What if she goes out with terrible skills, gets flamed, and that young kid ends up hurt….”
Certainly… a contestant who was only pretty and short on skill was perfect witch-hunt material.
The agency president had probably hired the two trainers precisely to prevent that kind of disaster, but….
A month is far too short…. It’s already too late.
No… the truth was that Ha Yerin was late not only for My Idol Academia but for becoming an idol at all.
Most kids started practicing from elementary school; if you began at nineteen, when would you ever debut?
Teacher… I’m so tired…. I want to give up now….
The reason Kang Suhyeon had quit her job as a vocal trainer at JJ.
It was because she no longer wanted to watch children suffer.
The sight of star-filled eyes colliding with reality and filling with resignation and helplessness was simply too hard to keep watching.
If she hadn’t needed quick cash and answered the job posting, she would never have set foot in this industry again.
That was why she decided to evaluate Ha Yerin—who would clearly be her final student—with cold objectivity.
If her basic skills looked lacking, she planned to tell her sharply to give up not only the show but the entire path of becoming an idol.
“Yes, then I’ll play the music.”
At last Ha Yerin started the song on her smartphone….
♪♩♬-!
The MR of a currently popular idol title track began to play, and at the same moment Ha Yerin took her stance.
“Hmm…?”
“Oh….”
Seeing that, Kang Suhyeon and Lee Jiwoo both flinched at the same time.
“Looks like she’s going to do it as a performance with dance and singing together.”
“…Seems so.”
Dance and singing at the same time.
That was not merely as difficult as adding the two skill levels together.
It’s at least twice as hard as doing each one separately.
Matching pitch and rhythm while performing intense choreography was never going to be easy.
And yet a complete beginner was going to attempt both at once?
The enthusiasm is nice, but well….
With that, Kang Suhyeon’s expectations for Ha Yerin sank even lower.
Just as those expectations dwindled, Ha Yerin began her stage.
……Huh?
First of all, Kang Suhyeon could tell at a glance that Ha Yerin truly had zero trainee experience.
Her voice and movements carried none of the repetitive habits or tics unique to trainees.
But….
…Huh?
Watching Ha Yerin’s stage, Kang Suhyeon’s chilled eyes widened again and began to regain life.
The same was true for Lee Jiwoo.
Lee Jiwoo had covered her slightly open mouth with one hand and was staring at Ha Yerin’s performance.
“Hoo… yes, I’m done.”
“…….”
“…….”
When Ha Yerin’s short prepared stage ended, the two of them found it hard to speak.
A month passed in a flash.
During that time I alternated between school and the company, practicing dance and singing under the two trainers’ coaching.
Most of the contestants appearing on My Idol Academia were long-term trainees who had prepared to be idols since childhood.
I figured the only way to close that gap was practice, so I even cut back on sleep and threw myself into it.
And that continued right up until tonight—the night before the first filming of My Idol Academia.
Clap!
“Alright~! Yerin, that’s it for today!”
“Hoo… hoo….”
The moment I finished the final move of the dance track we would perform on the show, dance trainer Lee Jiwoo cut the music with a bright round of applause.
I wiped the sweat running down my chin and asked her,
“Teacher, did I make any mistakes?”
“Nope~ Perfect right down to the last beat.”
Lee Jiwoo had a warm, affectionate personality, but when it came to dance she was a perfectionist.
If someone like her said it was perfect, then it really had been perfect.
Still, maybe because tomorrow was the first filming, anxiety pricked at me and I reached out to play the music again.
“Good…. Then one more time….”
“Wait.”
Lee Jiwoo stopped the hand that was about to restart the track and smiled as she spoke.
“Yerin, do you know what time it is right now?”
“Huh? Ah… already the time….”
Only then did I realize it was already 11:30—thirty minutes past my usual practice cutoff.
“You have to head to the station from dawn tomorrow, right? It’s finally the first filming, so you should sleep early tonight.”
“But… I still feel like I’m lacking a lot.”
When I answered dejectedly, Lee Jiwoo patted my shoulder firmly.
“Aww~ What’s that supposed to mean, Yerin.”
“…Jiwoo Teacher.”
“I watched how hard you practiced this whole month. This is enough. Right, Suhyeon Teacher?”
At Lee Jiwoo’s words, Kang Suhyeon, who had been sitting in the corner of the practice room, stood up from her chair.
Even though she had finished my vocal lessons long ago, she hadn’t gone home; she had stayed and watched me practice.
She walked over to us, kept her usual expressionless face, and delivered a cold line.
“Honestly, it’s not enough.”
“…Y-yes?!”
“There’s no way you can catch up to kids who practiced nonstop for years with just one month of practice. Honestly, Yerin is still quite lacking.”
“…I see.”
“N-no…! Yerin, that’s not…! Suhyeon Teacher…! You can’t say that to a kid who’s going to an audition tomorrow…!”
Lee Jiwoo looked flustered by Kang Suhyeon’s icy words, but I understood and slowly nodded.
Unlike the optimistic Lee Jiwoo, Kang Suhyeon was a rational, realistic person.
The pitch is off—again.
You should have belted the high note right here.
Again.
One more time—again.
She judged my skills objectively and drove hard at my weaknesses.
Because someone like her had said it, I could be certain.
I’m still lacking.
So if I wanted to show results on My Idol Academia, I had to push myself harder… even harder….
Just as I was driving myself further, it happened.
Grip.
“But you’re doing well.”
“…What?”
Kang Suhyeon took my hand as she spoke.
“Yerin, you’re doing well enough right now.”
“…….”
“You’re still lacking at the moment… but before long you’ll show an even better side of yourself. And I guarantee this….”
Just like when she had told me I was still lacking.
With an expressionless face that nonetheless held nothing but sincerity, Kang Suhyeon continued.
“If you keep going like this, you’ll become an amazing idol.”
“…….”
“So work hard on My Idol Academia too, and keep going just the way you are now.”
“…Suhyeon Teacher.”
Maybe it was because I could feel how sincerely she was cheering for me.
The words she gave me right then hit me so hard they ached.
Of course no tears came from my eyes… but tears burst out somewhere else.
“Hiiing… yeah, Yerin. It’ll definitely go well.”
“Jiwoo Teacher, why are you crying.”
Lee Jiwoo, who had always been quick to cry, hugged both me and Kang Suhyeon at once and sobbed.
“Hic… we got so close over this month, it’s sad to part like this…. Yerin, I’ll always be cheering for you while you’re on My Idol Academia. Suhyeon Teacher, even if you find another job, keep in touch with me… hooeng.”
“Yes… Jiwoo Teacher.”
Perhaps the thought of saying goodbye had stirred her emotions; even the usually expressionless Kang Suhyeon’s eyes reddened.
Of course I wasn’t quite at that level.
No, it’s not like we’re parting forever—we can keep contacting each other—so why are they crying…?
…Maybe because I was a man in my past life, there are still plenty of times I don’t understand women’s tears.
Even so… it wasn’t as if their feelings failed to reach me.
Grip—.
“Thank you so much for everything, Teachers.”
“…Yeah.”
“…Yerin—! Hwaaaaaang—!!”
If only for the sake of the two teachers who had helped me with blood and sweat for a whole month, I intended to show meaningful results on My Idol Academia.
Thinking that, I hugged the two teachers tightly.