Chapter 37
Chapter 37
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Midnight's Embrace, It's EverPlanet (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Hello, I'm Tae-hee, the eldest hyung of EverPlanet. I handle vocals and visuals for the team."
The lines after that were scripted by the company.
Back when we were just prepping for debut, they told us to introduce ourselves like this on broadcasts.
"Oh, vocals and visuals. Visuals! You said it so confidently that you're in charge of visuals."
"Yes, that's right."
"You seem really confident in yourself, Tae-hee."
"Honestly, I want to live humbly... but with this face, it's kinda hard. Y'know, I look in the mirror too, so I know. I'm handsome."
Bae Joo-yong burst out laughing at Han Tae-hee's words.
I stared in fascination at Han Tae-hee, who delivered those lines with a perfectly calm expression, like it was no big deal.
Not even embarrassed.
"Ah, what a fun character. But yeah, you really are handsome. I was shocked when I first saw you—way too good-looking."
"Aw, thanks."
"You kinda look like a certain actor. Who is it... Ah, Yoon Ji-ye! You resemble Yoon Ji-ye. Right? The facial features are spot on."
Yoon Ji-ye. She's Korea's top actress, with stunning looks and killer acting skills. At least for now.
Come to think of it, he really did look like her. How had I never noticed before?
"I might be doing Yoon Ji-ye a disservice, but thanks for the compliment."
"Oh, and now you're humbly accepting it."
"It's fine if I say I'm handsome on my own, but linking me with someone else might be rude to them."
"Fair point. Got it. We've met EverPlanet's visual, Tae-hee. Next member, please."
"Hello, I'm J-O, handling rap and fitness for EverPlanet."
Next up was Lee Jae-oh.
He'd been forced to take the stage name J-O because his real name, Jae-oh, had a similar ring to it.
They said rappers needed cool stage names to look the part.
"Yes, J-O. Wow, though. I'm no slouch when it comes to a good physique myself. As the leader of X.Y.Z., you know. But I gotta bow to you, J-O. Seriously... wow. You know it, right?"
"Yeah... Yeah?"
"No, your body's insane. That doesn't come from just a day or two of workouts. I can tell."
"Ah, thank you."
"By the way, I heard you did some pro sports back in the day. What kind?"
I could see Lee Jae-oh's expression stiffen slightly at Bae Joo-yong's question.
But he quickly regained his composure and answered calmly.
"I did some fencing."
"Oh, fencing. Cool. It suits you. Which kind? Like épée, sabre, that stuff."
"I was an épée fencer. It's the style where the whole body is the target area."
Lee Jae-oh was an épée fencer, huh.
I didn't know much about fencing beyond Olympic highlights, but somehow, it sounded badass. Of course it did—classic Lee Jae-oh.
"I see. So what do you do now to stay in shape? Gotta be consistent with training for a body like that."
"Mostly gym work and rehab exercises these days."
"Got it. Let me know which gym sometime—I wanna check it out. Next member."
"Yes, hello. I'm B-light, the 19-year-old handling rap and producing for EverPlanet."
Kim Kwang-myeong, sitting next to Lee Jae-oh, followed up with his intro during the official schedule.
"Rap and producing. So, did you work on any tracks for this album?"
"Yes. I contributed lyrics and composition to every song on the album. Worked with CEO Oh Woong-jae and our company's in-house producer, YellowG hyung."
"Oh, impressive. We call these self-sufficient members in the biz lingo. But stage name's B-light—what's that mean?"
"Yeah. My real name's Kwang-myeong, which means light. So I combined 'bright' for shining and 'light' into B-light."
"Nice meaning. Rolls off the tongue. Did you come up with it yourself, or the company?"
"I made it up. Been using it since before debut."
He'd named it himself. News to me.
Makes sense, though—his diss rap on L-Tube was credited as B-light.
"Ah, so underground scene?"
"Yeah. I originally dreamed of being a hip-hop rapper."
"I see. So how'd you end up an idol?"
"Well... I auditioned for hip-hop rapper and producer roles to join the company. But CEO Oh Woong-jae convinced me I'd suit idols too... and somehow, here I am."
"Quite the story. So now that you're an idol, are you satisfied with it?"
Kim Kwang-myeong nodded without a second thought.
"Yes, very much. Standing on stage is always fun."
"Good to hear. We've met B-light. Next up."
Next was across the table—Teddy's turn.
Teddy winked at the camera and boomed out his greeting.
"Hello! I'm Teddy, handling dance and English for EverPlanet! I'm twenty this year."
"Teddy! Like the teddy bear?"
"Yeah, that's where it comes from."
"'Cause you look like a teddy bear? Nah, you don't look bear-like at all."
He really didn't. If anything, more tiger-ish. Super sharp features.
"Nah, my real name's Theodore, nickname Teddy. CEO Oh said Teddy was the best pick for a stage name."
"Ah, you're mixed, huh. Yeah, your looks do have an exotic vibe."
"Yeah. Dad's British, mom's Korean. My hair was originally blonde."
"British-Korean mix. So you grew up in the UK?"
"Yeah! From York."
But his personality's kinda teddy bear-ish too. Cute.
"Wow, your Korean's really good, though."
"Started self-studying after getting into K-pop. Kept at it after becoming a trainee. Still lots I don't know—members teach me a ton. Learned 'rotation' yesterday."
"Aw, you learned 'rotation'? So cute, Teddy."
"Thanks!"
"So, from the UK—mind doing a quick intro in English?"
"Of course! Hello, everyone. I'm Teddy from EverPlanet. And I...."
Teddy redid his intro in English.
The smooth British accent rolling off his tongue was super charming.
"Wow, that pronunciation. Total British accent. Awesome. Good stuff. Next member."
Bae Joo-yong clapped in admiration, clearly thinking the same as me.
Then he pointed to Park Su-rim, sitting next to him.
Park Su-rim opened his mouth with a soft smile, like he'd been waiting.
"Hello, I'm Su-rim. Leader here. Handling vocals and head chef for EverPlanet."
"Our Su-rim's EverPlanet's leader, huh. But Tae-hee's the eldest— you're the leader?"
"Ah, yeah. It worked out that way. I've got about twice the trainee experience as Tae-hee hyung. So CEO made me leader."
For Oh Woong-jae, it was a no-brainer.
No matter that Han Tae-hee was oldest, he couldn't match Park Su-rim's decade of grinding through agencies as a trainee.
Plus, Han Tae-hee's personality wasn't exactly leader material.
I wasn't in the room when they picked, but I figured they'd weighed all that before handing the armband to Park Su-rim.
"Makes sense. Experience trumps age. As a former X.Y.Z leader myself, I feel you. Leaders got the most on their plate—looking after members, repping the team to the boss, staff always calling for the leader on schedules."
"Ah, yeah. Even just two weeks post-debut, it's like that."
"Only gonna ramp up. So, Su-rim, what's the toughest part of being leader?"
"Leader woes..."
Park Su-rim stroked his chin thoughtfully before continuing.
"Like you said, communicating with the CEO as team rep is probably the hardest. It's tough. He's kinda like the company boss, y'know."
"Yeah."
"But aside from that, no real gripes. The kids listen to me really well."
"Oh, really? Mine never did. Then again, EverPlanet guys all look so sweet—probably obedient. So, head chef—what's that about?"
"Cooking's my hobby. I whip up tasty stuff for the guys at the dorm sometimes, so I got honorary head chef."
"No way, how good is it?"
When Bae Joo-yong asked curiously, Teddy and Kim Kwang-myeong chimed in excitedly.
"It's seriously good."
"Yeah. Su-rim hyung's cooking is the absolute best."
I didn't say anything, but I gave a thumbs-up in agreement.
Park Su-rim's cooking really is that good.
"Now I'm curious. Gotta try it sometime. Next member."
"Hello, I'm Eun-young, handling main vocals and maknae for EverPlanet."
"Yes, our Eun-young. You're pretty famous already. By broadcast credits, you're my Sunbae."
"Oh, no way."
Go Eun-young took the baton after Park Su-rim.
He waved it off humbly at Bae Joo-yong's praise.
"Honestly, I was shocked when I heard Eun-young was debuting with EverPlanet. Listeners tuning into Midnight Hug probably were too. Most singers from that audition show you were on, 'Songs Got Better,' went solo. I figured you'd do the same. Eun-young, how'd you end up joining EverPlanet?"
"During Songs Got Better, CEO Oh Woong-jae was my mentor. He looked out for me a ton and helped with music... After the show, I thought I should stick with him, so I became a trainee. Like you said, idol debut wasn't the plan at first. But training with the hyungs got me hooked, and dancing was fun too. So I decided on idols."
"Quite the story."
Yeah. Who knew.
Learning a lot about these guys today that I didn't know.
And since he'd been on TV before, the questions were pretty specific.
Go Eun-young handled them like a pro.
Veterans are different. Maknae's got backbone.
"Got it, Eun-young. Looking forward to your new feats with EverPlanet. Last one, your intro please."
After Go Eun-young's bit, Bae Joo-yong nodded and signaled me.
Last was my turn.
I looked at the camera in the control room and opened my mouth.