Chapter 15
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Debut Lineup Revealed
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Flame's leader, Lee Jae-yoon, had been in a foul mood since yesterday.
He put on a straight face during schedules, but the moment no one was watching, his expression shifted so dramatically that anyone could tell.
Naturally, the tense atmosphere left the roadies—and even Flame's other members—constantly walking on eggshells.
Finally, unable to stand it any longer, Section Chief Kim Min-jae pulled Jae-yoon aside.
"Something wrong? What's up with you?"
Lee Jae-yoon bit his lip and stayed silent for a moment before steeling himself and firing off a question instead of answering.
"Why'd you hide that Do-jun hyung went to another company?"
Kim Min-jae furrowed his brow, thinking here we go. He had no idea where Jae-yoon had even heard that.
He let out a short sigh and replied curtly.
"Because I figured you'd react like this."
"Why'd he go? Didn't you say you were gonna debut him as an actor?"
"It's none of your business. Focus on your schedule and don't worry about it."
Jae-yoon's eyes narrowed at the cold line in the sand. Kim Min-jae held his gaze without backing down.
"How am I not supposed to worry? Do-jun hyung is the one who helped me get into this in the first place."
"I know that, man. What, you think I was just sitting around back then? But that's personal stuff. I didn't say anything because I didn't want it affecting work like this."
"You're making me worry more by not telling me. You think I wouldn't notice? Is it right to just kick out someone who's been a trainee here for seven years?"
His words carried a sharp edge of reproach. There was no arguing it.
Min-jae let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his face. Then, in an exhausted voice, he continued.
"It was decided from above."
Hearing that, Jae-yoon clamped his mouth shut instead.
How long did the silence stretch on? Eventually, Lee Jae-yoon spoke in a calmer tone than before.
"Fine. The company can make those calls."
"At least he's at another com—"
"So I'll handle it myself."
"What? Hey! Lee Jae-yoon!"
Kim Min-jae hurriedly called after him at those loaded words, but Jae-yoon didn't even glance back as he walked inside.
I'd only caught a few winks all night, so I had no clue how the hours had slipped by. Even with morning light flooding in, it still didn't feel entirely real.
I really debuted? Me?
I'd appeared on Park Min-ha's radio show, sung songs, read incoming texts live, and responded to them.
I'd experienced radio not as a listener, but as a guest.
Every time I thought back on it, a grin crept onto my face. But what really made me beam the most was something else.
[Rookie Idol B.O.Y's Lee Do-jun Appears on 'Park Min-ha's Lazy Night']
['Park Min-ha's Lazy Night' Guest Rookie Singer Lee Do-jun: "We'll Officially Debut as a Group Soon—Please Wait for Us!"]
"Ooh."
Just two articles, but so what? The fact that I had press before even debuting as an idol was what mattered.
Brimming with joy, I tapped the top one.
Lee Do-jun, a member of the pre-debut rookie idol group B.O.Y, appeared as a one-day guest on CBK Radio's 'Park Min-ha's Lazy Night'.
That night, Lee Do-jun showcased his outstanding vocal talent, instantly captivating late-night listeners.
After the hour-long broadcast, Lee Do-jun shared his hopes: "We're debuting soon, so please show us lots of love. I hope to see the listeners more often."
CBK Radio's 'Park Min-ha's Lazy Night' airs every night from 12 to 2 a.m.
Insane. For real...
It was short, but it was the first article with my name in it. Reading it over and over made my chest tingle with excitement.
Suppressing a leaking smile, I checked my status window.
"Twenty-four."
Seeing the coins higher than yesterday finally made it sink in a bit.
The 'Park Min-ha's Lazy Night' crew tagging me on Goodstar must've helped—a late-night radio slot, and my coins had skyrocketed anyway.
Time was still running short, but the steady influx of coins eased the anxiety.
And the radio appearance hadn't just brought coins.
You can spin the Talent Roulette 'Instrument Playing'.
I'd considered spinning it yesterday, but after greetings with the radio staff and heading home, I was too wiped out and distracted to bother.
Instrument playing, huh...
I could already read sheet music, but actually playing an instrument was a whole different ballgame.
If I could handle even one, that'd be great.
Idols often showed off on music shows with them, or used them as personal talents on variety gigs.
Either way, one more skill couldn't hurt.
"How do I even spin th—"
Before I finished, a familiar roulette wheel popped up.
"Piano, guitar, trumpet, danso... what's that? Oh? Castanets? Is this thing messing with me?"
Yeah, sure, it's an instrument. Hey, even flies are birds, right?
Dozens of instruments crammed the wheel at a glance.
From crowd-pleasers that screamed jackpot to ones so obscure I had no clue what they'd be good for.
"Total luck of the draw."
A sigh escaped at the blatantly cheeky lineup, but what could I do? Free prize was free.
"If you're spinning, at least give me something popular."
With that, it whirred to life with a clatter.
Piano? Drums? No, no! Not harp!
Too pricey to even buy one. Can't lug that around for a quick talent show.
Ding-ding-ding, tick, tick, squeak.
As the wheel slowed, my heart raced faster. The near-stopped needle crept past one slot.
"Tam, tambourine—no!"
Please, please!
I knew it was pointless, but I puffed at the needle anyway.
And finally.
Tick!
'Guitar' has been selected.
Talent: Guitar added.
Status Window 'Talents' unlocked.
"Huh?"
Did my breath actually work? The needle had just barely ticked over one more slot.
"Whoa!"
I let out an involuntary cheer. One of my top two hopes—alongside piano—had hit.
Who knew this thing could be so nice?
No, wait... a hair slower, and it'd have been tambourine. Nearly conquered karaoke instead of stages.
"Phew. Dodged a bullet. Guitar it is."
Suddenly, my mind painted me on stage, strumming and singing. In the vision, I even waved smoothly to cheering fans.
"Awesome!"
So cool, so cool. Guitars for men, no question.
I was lost air-guitaring into empty space when—
Bang.
"Hyung, the team leader's comi—"
"Nngh... Huh?"
I froze solid. And there stood Lee Jae-ha, equally frozen in the doorway, eyes locked on mine.
"...ng soon. Together."
"Ahem, khm."
Mortified, I cleared my throat and played it cool like nothing happened.
"Yeah? Let's go."
Keeping my face neutral, arm down, I stepped out of the practice room.
But inside, I was anything but calm.
Why always at times like this...
Like that cafe photo op last time—ghostly timing every single embarrassing moment.
Luckily, Jae-ha didn't ask what I'd been doing. We walked in awkward silence to the office.
"You're here? Come in."
We knocked and entered; Kim Han-soo, peering at something, stood quickly and offered seats.
But as I went to sit, our eyes met.
Jae-ha smirked, remembering, then looked straight ahead. Not mocking, so it didn't bug me much—just embarrassing.
Did they install hidden cameras or something?
How else did he nail the timing every time? Maybe test it later.
Such nonsense cleared my head as Kim Han-soo spoke.
"The debut lineup is finalized."
"Pardon?"
I blurted in shock. Jae-ha beside me looked stunned too—news to him apparently.
Only Kim Han-soo remained composed in the room as he explained.
"You two included, five candidates made the final cut. As you know, nothing's set in stone—it could change anytime."
"Of course."
Answering left a bitter taste. Hated learning this the hard way.
"Jae-ha, most faces will be familiar, but it'll be new for Do-jun, so help bridge the gap."
"Who's in?"
Lee Jae-ha finally spoke. Kim Han-soo calmly listed three names.
"Kim Ha-woon, Park Tae-hoo, Lim Joo-won."
"Ah... Uh."
Jae-ha, listening quietly, let out a low groan at the third name.
He seemed about to say something, lips parting—then shut them.
What was that?
"Dorm move-in's still a ways off, but getting friendly early will make it smoother."
Kim Han-soo's words continued amid the quiet. I'd wondered if this was even proceeding, but prep was apparently done.
One thing I knew: prioritize health management.
If I end up hospitalized now...
Even half the six months I'd blacked out before would doom the timeline.
Then I'd just die lying down.
Chills ran through me. Falling leaves were a hazard now.
"We'll all meet for intros in an hour, so talk more then. Called you two early since it'd be good to know ahead."
Like he said, with changes possible anytime, it felt less real than the radio debut.
Leaving the office, I asked Jae-ha.
"You know those three names?"
"Yeah, all of them."
"What do you think?"
"They're fine."
"Really?"
His earlier reaction screamed otherwise for just "fine."
I wasn't expecting much detail—Jae-ha was quiet by nature, rarely gossiped about other trainees.
Still, details this time would be nice.
Of the three, I at least knew Kim Ha-woon.
Super friendly—greeted me first, chatted me up. First trainee whose name I learned. We'd grabbed coffee together.
Slightly wavy hair, cute seventeen-year-old looks that stood out. No shock he made debut lineup.
Never seen his dancing or singing, but one downside: shorter than me.
He's only seventeen—might grow more.
Not a huge gap; with time, he could outgrow me once mine stalled.
Hmm, that'd suck...
Still, shorter than me would be preferable.
Lost in such petty thoughts, a hesitant voice called.
"Hyung."
"Yeah?"
I stopped and turned. Jae-ha stood with a grave, stiff expression.
"...Never mind."
"Fine" my foot—something was up. Too obvious with debut members not to probe.
"What is it? Spill casually."
But Jae-ha still hesitated.
What's the deal?
Something was definitely there, but why keep starting and stopping? Made me want to hear it more.
Debating to press gently, Jae-ha seemed to decide and spoke slowly.
"Might sound like badmouthing. Lim Joo-won hyung... his personality's a bit off... unique, I mean."
"Unique how?"
Once started, hesitation vanished; Jae-ha continued steadily.
"Put nicely, he's confident. Put harshly, arrogant. Even among trainees, his words and actions polarize people."
Sounded like the "harsh" side dominated.
Heading to practice, I'd heard Lim Joo-won rumors before—dismissed debuted idols publicly, treated other trainees like inferiors, acted superior.
The stereotypical jerk every agency seemed to have one of.
So familiar I just nodded calmly; Jae-ha's face grew more serious with a warning.
"He composes and arranges, so he sees idols who can't as just dancers. Goes far enough that rumors say he got booted from another agency."
Bootings weren't rare, but considering who was telling me, better pay attention.
He'd sized me up as the new guy at first, but Jae-ha wasn't the backstabbing type.
"Thanks for the heads-up. I'll keep it in mind."
No matter how rotten the personality, would he act up right away with a stranger?
But I'd overlooked one key fact.
...Words always come back to bite.