Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Even as a Villain, I Want to Debut
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There was no time to think.
I charged straight at Hyeon Si-woo and wrapped my arms around him, yanking him back from the railing.
"Wh-what the hell?"
Hyeon Si-woo struggled in my grip, and only after we'd gotten a good distance from the railing could I finally let go.
He turned around to face me, his expression utterly baffled.
"Do Won-woo? What are you doing?"
'What?'
His reaction left me flustered too.
"Those shoes down there."
"...Huh?"
"Why'd you take them off like that?"
Hyeon Si-woo turned his head to look at the shoes sitting in front of the railing.
"Oh..."
Finally piecing it together, he burst out laughing.
"What, that's why? You thought I was gonna kill myself?"
Hyeon Si-woo clapped his hands, cracking up.
"It wasn't like that! My feet just hurt, so I took them off. You think I'd really try to off myself here? With all these cameras around?"
Heat rushed to my face in an instant.
'This is seriously embarrassing.'
I'd overreacted after hearing the misfortune narrative had shifted to Hyeon Si-woo.
"Sorry."
"Nah, it's partly my fault for setting up that misunderstanding."
"No, I'm sorry for grabbing you and dragging you like that without asking."
After all, I'd jumped to conclusions and treated him like he was about to jump. It wouldn't be weird if he was annoyed.
But despite my repeated apologies, Hyeon Si-woo just waved it off, insisting it was fine.
"Man, what a situation. You and me, we're hilarious."
Saying that, he hurriedly shoved his feet back into his shoes.
"Won-woo."
"Yeah?"
"I'm not the type to die that pathetically. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't right now."
He tapped the floor a couple times with his toes to adjust his shoes, then looked at me with a smile. It held a mix of emotions.
"Thinking about the fans cheering me on, my family, or the old me who worked so hard up till now... I could never think of dying."
"Yeah, I know..."
I nodded.
'That's the kind of guy Hyeon Si-woo is.'
No matter how much reality beat him down and frayed his mind, he wasn't the type to give up everything and leave.
I knew that, but the misfortune narrative had amplified my worry, making me act on impulse.
"Sorry. I guess I just got too worried about you, hyung."
"Come on, why keep apologizing? I'm seriously fine. Just saying there's no need to worry."
With that, the corner of Hyeon Si-woo's mouth twitched up.
"But hey, I didn't know our Won-woo cared this much."
"......"
Right now, I wanted to crawl into a hole on some deserted island from the sheer embarrassment.
"Thanks for looking out for me."
Still, there was a subtle gratitude in Hyeon Si-woo's eyes.
As we came down the stairs, we ran into Won Ji-an waiting right below.
Seeing us side by side, Won Ji-an hurried over.
"What happened?"
"Nothing, really."
Nothing had happened.
Just something embarrassing.
"So, earlier Won-woo thought I was a goner and grabbed me from behind..."
"Ah, don't talk about it."
"It's funny. I thought it was hilarious."
Won Ji-an stared at us in confusion, not getting it.
"Oh, right. Hyo-seop hyung found another talisman in the gym earlier."
"So that's three now?"
We were chatting when suddenly an announcement blared.
Night already?
Creaaak—
At that moment, as the lights went out, the classroom door at the end of the hall swung open.
What emerged was a ghost with long, writhing hair shuffling toward us. Covered head to toe in blood, its appearance was straight out of a horror flick.
"...Hey."
"Yeah?"
"Run."
The ghost's shuffling picked up speed, and we bolted without looking back.
By the time we stopped, everyone had scattered.
"Hoo..."
I'd hidden in a nearby storage room and was catching my breath when—
"Hyung?"
I turned at the voice calling me from somewhere and saw Lee Won-jun standing there.
Meeting someone unexpected left me speechless in surprise.
'Why's he here?'
Then footsteps echoed from outside the door, and I instinctively ducked down.
Lee Won-jun and I huddled behind a partition in the storage room, waiting for the ghost to pass. Facing each other like this felt awkwardly tense.
'Hope it goes by quick.'
"...Hyung."
"Yeah?"
I turned at the timely voice. Lee Won-jun was looking at me.
"Sorry about that time."
That again.
"If it's about that hallway thing, I already said it's fine last time. I'm really okay."
Lee Won-jun bowed his head deeply.
The difference was, back then it felt perfunctory, but now it carried some sincerity.
'He's changed.'
No one stays the same forever.
Lee Won-jun must have too, after everything he'd been through. His mindset had probably shifted.
"I don't even know why I said those things back then. Like you said, you put in the effort too, and that's what led to your results now..."
Come to think of it, it had been a while. This was the first heart-to-heart since the hallway incident.
Even as roommates, I'd thought we'd never really talk.
"Keep going."
Lee Won-jun continued.
"...Back then, I was just resentful. It felt like you had everything. But after getting on stage myself, I get it now. How far short my skills are. I realized I need to put in the work before jealousy."
Lee Won-jun gave a bitter smile.
'That's probably why he's so down...'
The botched stage in the position evaluation battle was likely the biggest factor.
He seemed to sense it instinctively. That once the stage aired, he'd face a flood of hate and mockery. And in the next elimination, he might really be out.
"I'm just scared. Terrified."
Lee Won-jun mumbled, curling up.
'...Feels like I should comfort him.'
But as you know, I'm terrible at comfort. I've rarely given or received it.
Survival had only just started teaching me how. And here I was, somehow comforting someone again.
"Uh..."
I cleared my throat and spoke.
"Don't beat yourself up too much."
"......"
"It's all in the past now. If you're doing this because you think you hurt me with that hallway talk, I've already forgiven you. So it's fine."
Of course, my forgiveness wouldn't stop viewers from pointing fingers.
Can't be helped. Once it's filmed, it's etched in video forever.
'Lee Won-jun's stage this time will be immortalized too, unerasable.'
I didn't know what to say exactly, but I decided to give it my best shot.
Not really for him. With cameras rolling and someone breaking down in front of me, ignoring it would just earn hate.
If this aired and I looked indifferent, it'd give them more ammo.
"...Look."
So I spoke slowly.
"Not sure if this comforts you, but I think everyone in the world has some embarrassing moment they've been through."
Lee Won-jun listened quietly.
"Honestly, the younger you are, the less you know about the world, so you're bound to have more cringe experiences. Even adults rack up plenty of 'black history'."
I continued, facing him.
"But in life, everyone goes through something embarrassing at least once. And you learn from it how to do better next time."
Lee Won-jun nodded silently, hanging on my words.
"The only difference is, unlike regular folks, our black history gets broadcast to everyone here. But that's unavoidable. We chose a job that demands attention."
That's why it's such a harsh profession, but no helping it.
We picked idol life ourselves.
'Though I'm stuck doing this thanks to that damn system.'
Still, unavoidable. The world doesn't bend to my will. Lee Won-jun just realized it late.
"If you'd stayed home doing nothing, no one would've seen your black history. But this happened because you tried something, right? So what. Just do better next time. As long as you want to improve, you're good."
I patted his shoulder a couple times.
"No need to feel embarrassed or sad. Just tell yourself 'good job'."
"...Yeah."
Lee Won-jun closed his eyes and bowed his head after hearing me out.
Tears streamed down his cheeks.
'Why's he crying?'
I was flustered.
I hadn't meant to create some touching moment.
Was there even a感動 point in what I said? I was just grounding him in idol reality, saying everyone has cringe moments, so build skills and improve next time...
"Hyung, thank you so much."
Lee Won-jun wiped his tears and suddenly hugged me out of nowhere.
'Is he crazy? Hugging all of a sudden?'
I wanted to protest seriously, but with cameras, I kept a smile and patted his back lightly.
'Must be fragile state, getting emotional over anything.'
If so, nothing to do. I patted his back, then stood up.
"Shall we head out now?"
"Yeah, hyung."
Lee Won-jun's eyes sparkled at me unusually. Compared to his initial glare, this friendliness was a shock.
'Well... not bad.'
Time passed, and now only the last talisman remained.
The trainees buzzed around frantically, hunting the final talisman. It was obvious the broadcast would milk the dramatic finale.
"Won-woo!"
"Hyo-seop hyung."
Just then, I spotted Lee Hyo-seop approaching from across the way.
Lee Hyo-seop had found three talismans solo so far. Contrary to worries, he'd been nailing them and securing plenty of screen time.
'In the original, he didn't do this well with talismans.'
As I marveled at that, Lee Hyo-seop suddenly grinned at me.
"...Why the smile?"
"Nothing, you're just so handsome."
The sudden compliment left me rolling my eyes, unsure how to react.
Even after possessing this body, compliments on looks never got old.
"Doesn't it make you smile seeing a handsome face?"
"...Fair enough."
Lee Hyo-seop said with a laugh.
"Alright, Won-woo."
"Yeah?"
"For the last one, tell me where the talisman is. You seem to know."