Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: The Final Party
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Creatin released a new album just before the final episode of ‘Twisty Puzzle’.
Upon their comeback, they achieved the impressive feat of entering the charts.
While they weren't yet contenders for first place, it was a significant improvement considering their last album.
Creatin, too, was satisfied with the current results.
“Our fans! We made it onto the charts! Thank you.”
On their way home from work, Creatin waved brightly to their fans.
“Guys! See you tomorrow!”
“Bye!”
The fans waved back at Creatin.
Only after the car started and pulled away did Creatin stop waving.
“Phew. I’m so happy.”
“I know, right?”
“We have to go to the final filming for ‘Twisty Puzzle’ now, right?”
“Yeah.”
The manager answered Jae-hee's question.
“But they said it’s a party today.”
After all the competitions were over, the production team invited all the participating groups to a final party to celebrate their hard work.
“They wouldn’t pull anything today, would they?”
the manager said with a carefree expression.
But Creatin couldn't feel the same.
They were told to just enjoy the delicious food and have a good time, but they couldn't let their guard down until the very end.
After a long drive, they arrived at the party venue.
“Creatin, you may enter.”
“Okay.”
With tense faces, Creatin stepped inside.
“Whoa.”
Contrary to their worries, the inside really was a party hall.
Long tables were lined with a variety of food and drinks, buffet-style.
It seemed the production team had prepared a lot.
The other groups from ‘Twisty Puzzle’ had already arrived and were chatting inside.
‘Well, the final episode has already been filmed. Surely they won’t do anything else here.’
“This looks delicious.”
“Can we really eat all of this?”
As if they had never been tense, Creatin’s mouths watered at the sight of the food.
Having only eaten cold packed lunches due to their busy schedule, it was an understandable reaction.
“It looks like all the participating groups have gathered.”
The PD appeared.
“When I said I was throwing a party, you all got suspicious, didn’t you?”
“Yeees!”
Everyone in the party hall answered in unison.
Despite that, the PD didn’t even blink.
“I thought so. Because everyone who appears on the survival shows I plan ends up with a healthy dose of paranoia.”
The PD actually smiled as he said it.
“So I’m used to it. But please, know this.”
Creatin listened closely to the PD’s words.
“I felt so bad about deceiving you all from the start this time that I went easy on you. Really easy.”
He wasn't wrong.
Compared to other survival shows, this one had the fewest cruel elements.
It was less provocative, but thanks to deceiving the rookie idols by saying it wasn't a survival show at the beginning, and the fact that the performances turned out so well, the ratings weren't disastrous.
“So for today, please just enjoy yourselves to the fullest. You’ve all worked very hard.”
“Yes!”
The other groups were chatting cheerfully with their members and eating, but Zero to the Boy could not.
Their faces were utterly gloomy, unfitting for a party.
It was understandable.
While the other groups had greatly benefited from ‘Twisty Puzzle,’ Zero to the Boy had not.
They had ruined all their performances, becoming objects of ridicule instead.
[What is Zero to the Boy even doing? It’s pathetic. At this point, you guys should just quit being idols. Ruining every stage and crying, I’m sick of it. Practice and get better.]
↳Seriously, you guys are always last.
↳Even if you haven’t debuted, this isn’t it.
↳At this point, no one would complain if they replaced the group’s members.
[‘Twisty Puzzle’ must have felt sorry for them, because they kept showing them working hard, but still…]
↳The editing is what saved them.
↳Without the editing, it would’ve been a disaster. Public opinion only got slightly better because the PD showed them practicing hard and having a ton of meetings.
↳But I think it’s partly the manager’s fault, too? It’s like the manager is the leader of Zero to the Boy. Whenever they come up with an idea, he’s like, “No. Not that,” and brings some weird idea from who knows where. If he had just let them do what they wanted, it probably wouldn’t have been this bad.
[I get the feeling Zero to the Boy is trying to compete with Yoon-seul…? Not the members, of course, but the company. I don’t think the members are to blame. You can tell just by looking at their faces. There’s no life in their eyes. That innocent cheerfulness you see in kids their age? None of it. I have a few reasons for thinking this. 1. The ideas their manager came up with are weirdly similar to the ones Yoon-seul suggested on ‘RED CUBE’. 2. Remember how it suddenly started raining on stage during their last performance? The artificial rain? The one where the kids got soaked and couldn’t perform properly. That felt like they were copying that voter event, the one where they sang on the street. And not just that, their styling too. (Collection of photos showing similar styling between Seo Yoon-seul and Zero to the Boy)]
↳…I had the same thought.
↳Seeing the photos compiled like this is crazy. They have a lot of the exact same outfits, and even similar hairstyles.
↳Yoon-seul tried a lot of fresh concepts on ‘RED CUBE’, so there’s no way it’s a coincidence.
↳That agency is really something else. Hahahaha. Just leave our Yoon-seul alone.
↳Let’s just go our separate ways. Why are you doing this? You were so excited when you kicked him out and announced a new group, so why the change of heart? Let’s just go our separate ways. Please.
↳Everyone should go their own way. It’s better for Zero to the Boy, too.
For Zero to the Boy, today’s party was anything but joyful.
If they could have skipped it, they would have.
“I’ve never seen such useless kids! Seo Yoon-seul left ‘RED CUBE’ and is doing just fine, but what about you! Ha. Seriously. What is this? You should have done it properly! How could you throw away an opportunity like this! Haven’t you seen Creatin? Look at them now. They’re completely different. Do you even want to debut?”
After hearing such verbally abusive words from their CEO and manager, they couldn't possibly come to the party with smiles on their faces.
The groups started exchanging light greetings, but no one dared to approach Zero to the Boy first.
The atmosphere around them was just too heavy.
Creatin was concerned about Zero to the Boy, but since there was nothing they could do, they could only send comfort and support in their hearts.
“Everyone. Are you enjoying the party?”
“Yes.”
“Creatin, who took first place in the end.”
“Yes?”
At the sudden call, Creatin put down their drinks.
“We would like to grant one wish for Creatin, who has consistently shown us wonderful performances.”
As the PD finished speaking, the others applauded.
“Creatin. Would you like to think about your wish?”
Creatin’s gazes met in mid-air.
They quickly began to confer.
They had to be careful about what wish they made.
“Besides Leon and RE-V, there are so many people we’re grateful to. Isn’t there something we can do to repay them?”
After some serious deliberation, Creatin nodded as if they had made a decision.
“We’ve decided.”
Jae-hee raised his right hand slightly and spoke.
“Yes, go ahead.”
“We want to go on a company-wide retreat!”
“A company-wide retreat?”
“Yes.”
Besides Leon, Creatin, and RE-V, JR Entertainment also had a girl group.
If all of them gathered, it would be quite a large group.
“Understood. We will discuss it with your agency.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Bound to keep the promise of granting their wish, the writer quickly tried to contact the manager.
* * *
We finished the additional music video shoot and returned to the dorm.
“Ugh.”
As soon as we got back to the dorm, everyone collapsed in the living room.
“What should we have for dinner tonight?”
“Let’s just order delivery. I really can’t cook today.”
Jung Eun-woo said, shaking his head vigorously.
“Of course. We couldn’t possibly ask you to make dinner on a day like this.”
When we didn’t have a busy schedule or came back to the dorm around mealtime, Jung Eun-woo usually cooked for us.
But when we were busy, we would just eat a simple meal with side dishes brought from home or order delivery.
‘This is only possible because the company gave us a credit card for living expenses.’
Considering our situation before we’ve received any payment, the company provided us with a card for living expenses.
It wasn't loaded with a huge amount, but it was a tremendous help for our daily lives.
“What should we get?”
“Anything. Just something to fill our stomachs.”
To be honest, I was hungry, but I was so exhausted I could have skipped a meal. But if I did that and woke up in the middle of the night to eat something, it would be even worse.
“I’ll order from that place we ate at last time.”
“Okay.”
Lee Ho-jun ordered the food.
Since there were only two bathrooms, we took turns showering while waiting for the food to arrive.
I kept offering to shower last, so this time the members pushed me into the bathroom, telling me to go first.
Thanks to them, I was the first to finish showering.
After washing up, I lightly dried my hair and applied some toner and lotion.
‘So refreshing.’
Then I went straight out to the living room.
Ding-dong.
Not all the members had finished showering yet, but the doorbell rang.
“That was really fast.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll get it.”
“Okay.”
I went to the front door and came back with the food.
He said he was ordering from the same place as last time, and it was a pig's trotters and boiled pork wraps set.
As I was setting the food on the table, the members started gathering one by one.
Haru, who was the last to shower, ended up just vigorously rubbing his hair with a towel before sitting down.
“I’m starving. Let’s eat.”
Everyone started stuffing food into their mouths as if they hadn’t eaten in days.
“Shooting music videos seems to be the most physically demanding.”
“I agree.”
It was a statement I couldn’t help but agree with.
Bzzz.
While we were eating, all of our phones vibrated.
“Huh?”
“What’s this?”
Everyone put down their chopsticks and stood up.
Then they checked their phones.