The Bear Hunt Mission
The mission was progressing smoothly. It had taken over an hour to clear the second mission. It wasn't that it was difficult—if we’d rushed, we could have finished in ten minutes. The reason the filming took so long was to ensure we had enough footage. The ultimate goal of this shoot wasn't just to clear the missions, but to use them as a platform to showcase ourselves. The content was important, but what the viewers really wanted to see were our diverse charms. The moments where we laughed, chatted, and goofed off with each other, regardless of the mission, were all part of that strategy.
Today’s shoot was slowly drawing to a close. Once we cleared the final mission, we’d either receive a prize or a penalty, and then it would be over. *Sigh*... It was a shame. Honestly, being lovey-dovey while filming wasn't easy. A camera was following each of us around, and there were small cameras installed everywhere, acting like CCTV. The cameras were one thing, but more than that, I’d barely had a chance to get close to Yujun-oppa since the very beginning. What kind of role did he even take on? I knew they needed one person for a mascot costume part-time job today, but I hadn't heard exactly what he’d be doing while wearing it. Yujun-oppa, inside that bear suit, was just staying still in the corner as if he were a real stuffed animal. I wanted to enjoy some thrills, but... damn. If it was going to be like this, my asking the CEO to hire him for this gig was all for nothing.
"Ugh..." I wasn't getting what I’d hoped for, and my schedule was just getting longer. Ah! Of course, getting work as an idol is something to be grateful for. The idols you see on TV programs are just the tip of the iceberg. In this world, there are twice as many idols who aren't seen as those who are. Even if they debut, there are idols who never make it. Idols who disband just days after debuting. There are so many who entered this world with big dreams, only to end up sucking their thumbs because they lack recognition. I’d experienced it myself. The team formed through the survival audition program got some brief attention, but it didn't really take off. In the beginning, we were busy every day because of the buzz, but as the interest naturally faded, the work dried up. It wasn't like that for everyone, though. The members who were doing well kept doing better, and those who weren't fell further behind. And I was one of the ones who wasn't doing well.
There was also the agency issue. The team, composed of 11 trainees, was a one-year project collaborated on by several agencies. Although one entertainment company was in charge of management, behind the scenes, each agency exerted power to push their own trainees more. It was natural that idols from large agencies received more active support. At the time, Starlight Entertainment, which I belonged to, was a startup with no other idols, so we had less leverage than the others. That’s why I had to step up and actively seek out work myself. Generally, it’s the manager's job to secure work, but for the manager to do that, they needed to build my image well at the broadcasting stations. Back then, really... I had to use every bit of charm I had and fawn over people with a smiling face just to get on their good side. I smiled so much... my cheeks were practically cramping. Thanks to that, I can now pull off a 100-point smile, though.
Anyway. Getting work as an idol is always something to be thankful for. Even if... it meant fewer chances to do naughty things with Yujun-oppa... *Whimper*.
"Ugh... I shouldn't be like this." I need to restrain myself. But this rabbit-like libido of mine just won't be suppressed. When I open my eyes, I think of oppa. When I close my eyes, I think of oppa’s cock. That meat-scepter, which gave me such moving pleasure like when we first won 1st place on a music show, was like a drug. Once you suck it, you want to suck it again, and once you’ve been fucked, you want to be fucked again. If I keep this up, I’m really going to cause a scandal one of these days... I’m aware of the danger myself. But I can't stop, intoxicated by the thrill of not knowing when I’ll be caught, the sense of guilt for doing something an idol absolutely shouldn't do, and the achievement of being held by the man I love.
"Unnies! Here’s the final mission!" Yeryeong ran over, waving a mission sheet.
"The final mission is... tag?"
"Tag?"
"Is that really the mission?"
"Yeah! If we don't get caught until the bell rings, we win!"
I glanced around. "But who’s the tagger?"
"Shouldn't we decide among ourselves?" Hana-unnie said, holding up a fist as if to suggest rock-paper-scissors.
Just as the five of us gathered to play rock-paper-scissors, a siren blared: *Beep-beep, beep-beep!*
A voice announcing the danger blared from the speakers.
"A bear?"
"What do we do! What do we do!" Led by Iroha, who started jumping up and down in place, everyone put on terrified expressions. But none of them were actually scared. Like true idols, they were lying. There was no way a bear would escape in the middle of such a city. If this were Japan instead of Korea, they might have actually used a real bear. I’d seen on a Japanese hidden camera show Iroha showed me that they actually used a live lion to prank a comedian.
"Let’s hide, for now."
That was when— *Bang!* The door connected to the first stage swung open violently, and the bear burst out.
"Grrrrooooar!" Appearing with a roar, the bear raised both front paws.
...What do I do? My face, which was acting like it was terrified, twitched. Unlike the serious broadcast about a bear escaping, what appeared before us was a pink, fluffy teddy bear. Visually, it was just too cute. Since I knew who was inside, I almost started laughing.
"Kyaaa!" I screamed and started running. We scattered in all directions. I ducked into a corner of the third stage and hid. I bowed my head and hugged my knees.
"Pfft... Kuck...!" I held my breath and swallowed my laughter with all my might. Thinking back on the situation, it was hard to keep a straight face. The teddy bear that appeared, making "Grrrrooooar" noises as if it were angry—how cute was that? The bear itself was cute, but seeing Yujun-oppa’s image overlapping with it made it even cuter. My oppa is a beast, after all~♡ That, and... his acting is so bad...! Would he be sad if I said that? I know he tried his best to mimic a bear’s roar, but it sounded like he’d typed "Grrrrooooar!" into a translator and played the pronunciation. Aww, seriously! He’s so cute I want to kiss him. Just wait a little longer. After the shoot, I’ll go to the bathroom and kiss that cock of yours.
"Grrrr...!" Just as I was stifling my laughter, the bear entered. Ah... please...! His robot-like acting is driving me crazy.
"Hup...!" I covered my mouth with both hands. I could hear the bear getting closer. I could feel the hidden camera nearby focusing on me. Hmm... looking at the situation, it would be better to use this scene, right? I had two choices here. A passive choice and an active choice. The former would be to act like a rabbit terrified of a predator, which would earn me praise for being cute and trigger a protective instinct in the viewers. But that doesn't fit our group’s image. LaStella is a girl group with a generally bubbly charm. So, my choice was already made.
I waited for the perfect moment. And just before I was caught by the tagger, "Waaaaaah!" I leaped out and lunged at the bear. I tackled it as if throwing myself into its arms. Caught off guard by the head-on collision, the bear’s large body toppled backward. I climbed on top of it. Then, I lay on top of it and hugged it tight so it couldn't move. I was desperately trying to subdue the bear, but on camera, I must have looked like an adorable girl hugging a giant teddy bear.
"Help me!" As I shouted for help, the other members, who had been hiding, rushed out and piled on top of me one by one, like a hamburger prank. It had turned from "tag" to "tackle the tagger." What’s important in variety shows? As long as it’s fun, that’s all that matters. Even if the content is a mess, if it gives the viewers a laugh and is entertaining, it’s a successful variety show. As we struggled to subdue the bear, the filming staff were also biting their lips to keep from laughing at the unexpected situation. Idols shouldn't always be perfect. Sometimes, you have to be willing to ruin your image like this.
"I surrender! I surrender!" As five women piled on, the bear tapped the floor with its palm, just like a mixed martial arts fighter tapping out. I hugged the teddy bear tight. It’s a shame, but I have to get my lovey-dovey time in somehow.
* * *
Ugh, my back. I thought I was going to break it. All the staff told me was to act like a real bear and scare the LaStella members as much as possible. I didn't know they’d all hunt me down as a group. Hunted by five people, I was now lying in a corner, tied up tightly with a jump rope. The LaStella members were eating delicious food as a victory reward and preparing to wrap things up. I want to throw off this mascot suit so badly. I knew it would be hard, but I didn't know it would be *this* hard. Once you start sweating, the inside turns into a sauna. Even now, just by staying still, sweat was pouring down.
"But isn't the bear-ssi too pitiful?" The youngest, Yeryeong, said, chewing on a salmon salad while pointing at me. Yeryeong approached me, holding her plate. "Bear-ssi, do you want some salmon?"
I shook my head vigorously. Considering the cameras were still rolling, shaking my head "no" here wouldn't look good.
"Eat my chicken too!"
"Mine too, mine too!"
The other members gathered around me, holding their own plates. Su-a was among them. How did she know? She was holding out the sausage I liked best. I’m hungry. My stomach growled at the sight of food. They were holding out food, telling a person in a mascot suit to eat. In a way, they were quite vicious, weren't they? Is this what they call "pure evil"?
"Let’s untie bear-ssi now." Su-a spoke up to wrap up the shoot. The other members agreed, saying, "Yeah, yeah, let’s untie him." Su-a moved her small hands, busily working to untie the jump rope around my wrists.
"Bear-ssi, you can't eat us, okay?"
I nodded my head. Then, Su-a moved only her lips to add one more thing: *'Except. For. Me.'*
Su-a gave me a playful wink.