Chapter 29
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Until the Day We Stand at the Top
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“…Hyung!”
A faint voice calling my name echoed through the darkness.
“Eun-ho hyung!”
My eyes snapped open.
Tears that had pooled in the corners of my eyes spilled down my cheeks the moment I woke.
As I sat up, Eun Hae-sol looked down at me with worried eyes.
“Were you crying?”
I stared at him for a moment before slowly opening my mouth.
“Could you step out for a bit?”
“…Pardon?”
“I want to be alone. Please go.”
Eun Hae-sol’s face twisted in confusion, but he obediently headed out the door.
The second the door clicked shut, I covered my face and let out a long breath.
‘Damn it.’
Having just emerged from Kwon Hee-yul’s memories, I was still deeply immersed in his emotions.
Looking at Eun Hae-sol in that state stirred up a tangle of feelings in the corner of my heart.
What was it, exactly?
The urge to grab that potted plant by the window and hurl it across the room?
If it weren’t for that guy, Hee-yul wouldn’t have been let go.
If he hadn’t been there…
*Slap—*
I smacked my cheek hard.
‘Get it together.’
Now that we were on the same team as Eun Hae-sol, I couldn’t afford negative emotions.
I had to discard useless feelings, sweep them away, empty them out. I knew that, but…
The whirlwind of thoughts refused to settle.
The moment I entered Kwon Hee-yul’s memories and became that kid, I understood.
What it meant to harbor resignation in the face of your dreams.
‘Always think positively.’
That phrase Kwon Hee-yul always had on the tip of his tongue—it was his survival method. Realizing that hit me with regret.
When Kwon Hee-yul felt like the world was crumbling, if only I’d been there to hold him up…
Things wouldn’t be this cold and distant between us now.
‘I need to talk to him.’
I turned on my smartphone and opened my contacts. I stared at the name Kwon Hee-yul for a long time.
Should I text? But what?
‘You doing okay?’
‘How’ve you been?’
‘Wanna grab a meal sometime?’
I typed and deleted messages over and over before tossing the phone aside.
When did Kwon Hee-yul and I become like this? We used to be so close we could guess each other’s thoughts from a single word.
After agonizing, I made up my mind.
“I’ll just call him.”
I tapped the name Kwon Hee-yul in my contacts and hit call.
I bit my nails, waiting for him to pick up.
‘Please answer.’
Just then, the ringtone cut off, and Kwon Hee-yul’s voice came through.
“Hello.”
Joy surged, and I blurted out.
“Hee-yul. It’s me.”
Silence flowed from the other end.
“Jeong Eun-ho?”
“Yeah. I got your number from last time. You doing alright?”
“…What do you want.”
His curt response felt utterly foreign.
I swallowed my emotions and said.
“No real reason. I just wanted to talk to you.”
Heavy silence fell again.
I didn’t know what happened after he was let go, but his completely changed attitude choked the words in my throat.
Then came Kwon Hee-yul’s voice, laced with a bitter laugh.
“Why call out of the blue? You didn’t bother once after I got kicked out.”
“That’s…”
I trailed off.
It was true I hadn’t contacted him since that day. Facing Kwon Hee-yul, who’d been practically chased out of the debut lineup, terrified me.
I should’ve pushed through the fear, but back then, I didn’t have the strength.
In the end, that drove an irreparable wedge between us.
“You weren’t there at the lowest point of my life, and now you call?”
His icy voice made my heart plummet.
I sorted through my jumbled feelings and managed a reply.
“I didn’t know what to do. Everything changed so suddenly. You weren’t a trainee there anymore, so I wondered if it was okay for me to reach out…”
“What? Scared I’d feel inferior to you?”
I could only listen as his words stabbed like daggers through the phone.
“Did I seem like that kind of guy?”
“No. I tried calling. But you’d changed your number, so it felt like we’d missed each other.”
I chose my words carefully, hoping to salvage things.
But Kwon Hee-yul’s response was frigid.
“Whatever. Like you said, I’m not a member there anymore, right?”
His harsh words pierced my ears.
Every time I tried to smooth things over, it only tangled worse.
As I stifled my rising breath, Kwon Hee-yul spoke.
“Sorry.”
His sudden apology caught me off guard.
“Honestly, maybe you’re right. I might feel inferior. Your group’s doing great, but mine… isn’t.”
His voice, flatly recounting his situation, tugged at my heart.
Still in that deadpan tone, Kwon Hee-yul continued.
“Eun-ho. Don’t worry about me. Let’s just do our best from where we are. Someday, we’ll both reach the top. Right?”
“……”
“Let’s talk then.”
The call ended abruptly.
In the quiet room, I stared blankly at the darkened smartphone screen.
Lost in indescribable emotions, I felt a presence behind me.
Turning, I saw Cha Jae-hyun peeking through the cracked door.
“You talk to Hee-yul?”
I nodded silently.
“Come out for a sec.”
“……”
“Snap out of it and come on.”
I followed Cha Jae-hyun to the kitchen.
As we entered the living room, the members on the sofa turned their eyes to us.
I sat at the table, and Cha Jae-hyun took the seat across.
“You guys hear that?”
“Yeah. Sorry for eavesdropping.”
Lost in thought, biting my nails, someone set a mug in front of me.
*Thud—*
I stared blankly at the steam rising from the mug, then turned.
Song Yu-bin stood there.
“What’s this?”
“Pear blossom tea. Thought it might help you find some peace of mind, so I brought it.”
Cha Jae-hyun, watching blankly, asked.
“No cup for me?”
“Shall I pour you one?”
“Nah.”
“It’s good for your throat.”
“Then just one, please.”
As Song Yu-bin turned away, Cha Jae-hyun looked back at me.
He was probably checking my state. With the fansign so close, my mental crumbling would be a disaster.
Cha Jae-hyun spoke haltingly.
“No one here doesn’t know you two were inseparable.”
Baek Si-woo, listening from the sofa, chimed in.
“Totally. They shared a friendship you couldn’t watch without tearing up.”
“Can’t you tell him to shut up?”
“Si-woo! Be quiet.”
Baek Si-woo promptly zipped it.
Cha Jae-hyun started again.
“But unfortunately, you and Hee-yul aren’t in the same group anymore.”
“……”
“You might still cling to the past, but he might not. That’s what I want to say.”
I nodded slowly.
He was right. Kwon Hee-yul and I had split into different groups. In a way, we were rivals now.
Hearing that reality spelled out made my blood run cold, though I hadn’t wanted to admit it.
“Haha.”
A hollow laugh escaped.
Cha Jae-hyun asked.
“Remember what Hee-yul said at the end?”
“Yeah. Let’s meet at the top.”
“I took that as meeting when we can face each other with pride.”
Face each other with pride. I pondered, then spoke.
“What if we end up in different places? Does that mean we’ll never talk again?”
“Could be.”
A sigh-laced laugh escaped me.
“What a cruel world.”
Around fourteen, when no one would befriend me because I was “cursed,” Kwon Hee-yul was the one who approached without conditions.
Memories flooded back of us being each other’s pillars.
I clenched my fist.
“Then…”
I steadied my breath. My voice kept trembling.
Finally, I forced out the words.
“I’ll have to work even harder.”
Cha Jae-hyun’s eyes widened slightly at that.
Looking at him, I continued.
“Like Hee-yul said, to meet at the top again, I’ve got to bust my ass.”
Hearing that, Cha Jae-hyun finally relaxed, a faint smile forming.
“Yeah. Hee-yul’s probably grinding too. So let’s all push up together. That way, when we meet again, we can smile.”
Baek Si-woo shot his hand up from the sofa and shouted.
“I’ll work hard too!”
Song Yu-bin’s voice followed.
“Me too!”
Baek Si-woo teased Song Yu-bin playfully.
“Yu-bin, you practiced for the fansign? Don’t go red-faced and shaking again!”
“Hey, I won’t, seriously!”
“Can’t trust that.”
The members’ banter lightened the heavy mood.
Watching them, I vowed not to dwell on the past but charge forward.
The people I needed to protect and look after were right here.
So give it my all every moment.
Someday, maybe I could laugh alongside Kwon Hee-yul.
A day when we could reminisce openly about the past, saying, “That’s how it was back then.”
With that resolve, pouring all my strength into it, I stood.
* * *
The day before the fansign.
The members gathered in the living room, eyeing each other cautiously.
We’d assembled for Song Yu-bin’s fansign rehearsal.
Cha Jae-hyun took a deep breath and spoke.
“Shall we start?”
Everyone nodded.
Members lined up one by one in front of Song Yu-bin.
“Pretend we’re fans and respond. Got it?”
“Yes.”
Seeing them hold A4 paper in front of Song Yu-bin made me chuckle for some reason.
First up: Baek Si-woo. He placed the paper down, struck a flower pose, and said.
“Hehe. Hi, Yu-bin oppa!”
Song Yu-bin recoiled in horror.
“Si-woo hyung, do you have to go that far? It’s creepy!”
“Don’t you get it? This captures the venue vibe. I’m putting on this performance for you!”
Caught by Baek Si-woo’s quick retort, Song Yu-bin bowed in agreement.
“Hey now. Fan’s here, and you bow?”
“Bowed for a second!”
Baek Si-woo slapped his knee.
“Don’t fans treasure every second? Think of the money they spent!”
“Got it.”
Song Yu-bin seemed deflated by Baek Si-woo’s intensity. The rehearsal resumed.
“Yu-bin oppa, I came from Gangwon-do. Nearly got a leg cramp on the train.”
“Wow, really? You came from so far.”
A brief silence.
Baek Si-woo scowled.
“That’s it?”
“I was thinking what’d sound good…”
Cha Jae-hyun whispered in Baek Si-woo’s ear.
“Moving on.”
“Why so fast?”
“You wasted time with that weird impression.”
“Don’t call my masterful acting a weird impression.”
Cha Jae-hyun, now in front of Song Yu-bin, flashed an awkward smile.
“Hello?”
“Yes, hello.”
Without pause, Cha Jae-hyun rattled off his prepared lines.
“Song Yu-bin-ssi. One cheek heart, please. If you have time, a cheek poke too. For cheek poke, close your right eye and press your left cheek.”
Baek Si-woo whispered in my ear.
“Why’s his tone so robotic? And specifying the poke spot. Creepy in a whole other way.”
“Actual fans like that?”
Watching the chaotic scene, my turn came.
“Hello.”
The moment I spoke to Song Yu-bin in front of me, a familiar sound rang.
*Ding—*
‘This sound.’
[Sub Quest]
- Accept ‘Safely the First Fansign!’?
- YES / NO
“Damn it.”
The system window heralded the quest’s arrival.