Chapter 111
Chapter 111
'...Is this right?'
It had been over an hour since only the six of us were left abandoned in the middle of the studio.
Now, with no MC and no notable directions from the production team, we were just chatting, relying solely on the profile panels we had filled out.
Only the numerous cameras, lights, and production crew in black clothes before us served as a reminder that this was not an ordinary waiting room.
They told us to 'take care of it ourselves,' and we truly were taking care of it, but...
'Is it really okay to be like this?'
Aside from the presence of the cameras, it was truly no different from when we were together normally.
There could be people who liked this raw, unfiltered side of us... but that applied to when we filmed daily vlogs.
This was strictly a variety show studio, so a sense of crisis that this might not be okay was gradually creeping up.
'What if we get a reputation as a boring team at this rate?'
Then variety show offers would dry up in an instant.
With a nervous heart, I glanced over at the production team and happened to make direct eye contact with one of the writers.
...If our eyes had met by accident, it would have been polite to naturally turn away, but this eye contact felt different somehow.
'I got the feeling she wanted me to say something.'
What did she want?
Could it be... an unspoken pressure like 'Please save the show'?
In the moment before I could narrow my eyes to decipher the writer's gaze, a problem that needed solving reached my ears first.
It was the story regarding Han Neuti's [Likes].
"...Hyung, why didn't you write cucumber?"
"Hm, huh? I do like cucumbers, but not enough to write it here."
"Then what about me, who bought cucumbers every duty day because of you, hyung?"
"Hey, I... I didn't know that! Fine, I'll write it!"
Han Neuti added 'cucumber' next to 'green grapes' that were already occupying the [Likes] section.
Having satisfactorily achieved my goal, I looked back at the writer.
The writer, who had been watching us with a serious expression again, had her eyes light up once more the moment we made eye contact.
'...As expected, she definitely seemed to want something.'
What on earth was it?
No, before that, let's address this first.
"Sanho."
"Yes, hyung."
"Isn't it a bit shameless to call boxing your special skill?"
I knew you'd never even punched a sandbag and just did basic fitness before the gym closed recently due to the owner's circumstances.
"But besides boxing... I don't have any skills that look cool..."
"...Ah, is that so. Then keep that."
I corrected—no, accepted—Kim Sanho's special skill entry and looked at the writer again.
But...
The writer's expression had changed again.
Now it was no longer a look of expectation; it was a face that transcended everything, as if saying, 'Just do whatever you want.'
Seeing that expression, I became certain at last.
'We really are doing something wrong...'
"Hey, Seo Cha-gyeom."
"Huh?"
I turned my head to find Baek Gyeonwoo's finger pointing at the 'motto' section on my profile.
"How many seconds did it take you to come up with this motto, 'Let's cheer up and live'?"
"...Was it obvious?"
"There's not a trace of deliberation at all."
Kim Yuri also quietly confessed with a serious face.
"To be honest, I've never once thought in my life that I needed to set a motto."
"Then what did you write here?"
"I just searched 'good life quotes' on the internet and wrote one that left an impression."
And so, another ten minutes flew by meaninglessly with that motto talk...
* * *
Our aimless chatter came to a halt when we had gone through all six profiles and ran out of things to say.
When there were still no directions, the members gradually began to show signs of bewilderment.
At that moment, the production team shouted in a moved voice, as if this moment had finally arrived.
"Ta-da! Everyone, it was actually a hidden camera prank!"
No way.
'What part of that was a surprise?'
The members all had similar expressions to mine, but as if realizing this was a broadcast, they belatedly squeezed out reactions.
"Ah!"
"Ah, so that was it!"
"Ah..."
Seeing our effort-filled reactions, the production team gave an awkward laugh and explained.
"Yes, haha. We prepared a little event to capture the cute side of our newly debuted baby chicks, HAZERD."
"..."
"The topic for today was, 'What happens if you leave HAZERD alone without anything!' Haha."
"Ah, so that was it!"
Kim Yuri responded exaggeratedly.
'Ah, no wonder.'
I definitely felt strongly like we were being neglected.
Having finally understood the whole situation, I nodded along in agreement.
"We were really flustered. We couldn't grasp what we should be doing..."
"Hahaha."
The production crew slightly straightened their expressions and asked back.
"Were you really at a loss? Your faces showed no sign of it at all."
"Yes!"
To the members' confident answer, the production team nodded with a smile tugging at the corners of their mouths, clearly not believing it at all.
In any case, with the abandonment time that was no different from a warm-up behind us, it seemed like the actual filming was about to begin in earnest.
Because the face that could be called the face of 'Idol Comprehensive Review' had finally appeared.
"Ah, I thought we'd all just go home like this today. Did you guys have a fun time?"
The legendary second-generation idol sunbae and long-time MC of 'Idol Comprehensive Review' approached us with a cheeky remark.
We had taken the production team's words at face value that the MC wouldn't be joining due to personal circumstances, so we all startled and jumped up.
"Hello, sunbae!"
"Oh my, hello. Wow, you were all so talkative that I couldn't even find the right timing to call you, and I was just hovering around."
Now I understood why the writer kept changing expressions and looking at me earlier.
She had been timing when to reveal the hidden camera and bring in the MC.
I finally felt like all the puzzle pieces had come together. Along with the clarity, I felt unnecessarily sorry.
In the meantime, the MC sat down on the prepared chair, gave us a quick scan, and said:
"But it's weird? Why do you all seem more awkward now that I'm here? Earlier, you were deciding on cats and whatnot among yourselves, and you looked perfectly happy."
"That's not true! We've been waiting eagerly for you to come, sunbae!"
...Though to call it that, everyone definitely seemed more nervous than before.
Sunbae, having caught onto Kim Yuri's socially adept remark, smiled benevolently.
"Really? That's a relief. Alright, shall we begin the real 'Idol Comprehensive Review' now? I think you all did the profile introductions among yourselves earlier, but before we move on, let me just point out a few things I'm curious about."
The first place sunbae's gaze landed on was Baek Gyeonwoo's profile.
"I overheard earlier that you seemed quite shocked upon hearing your symbolic animal is a bear. Gyeonwoo-ssi, do you have a special reason for wanting to be a rabbit? Are you aiming for a cute image like a rabbit?"
Baek Gyeonwoo's lips twitched slightly before he carefully chose his words and spoke calmly.
"I don't want to be a rabbit."
"Oh, really? Then why were you so disappointed?"
Baek Gyeonwoo averted his gaze to the floor and murmured.
"...The fans used to call me a rabbit before, but suddenly they called me a bear."
"Yes, yes."
"I worried... I mean, I was scared that maybe I had done something wrong."
"Ahh, so because they once called you cute like a rabbit and then suddenly a rough, bulky bear?"
Baek Gyeonwoo nodded expressionlessly.
After hearing Baek Gyeonwoo's unexpectedly delicate sincerity, what should I say...
'I'm dumbfounded.'
Wouldn't that sort of thing only be convincing if he said it while also making an effort to look cute?
With everyone seemingly thinking the same as me and collectively at a loss for words, the MC skillfully diffused the situation.
"Alright, dear fans! You heard that, right? So that our Gyeonwoo-ssi doesn't get hurt, from now on, you must unconditionally call him a rabbit! No bear! Promise!"
"A bear isn't fitting, but a rabbit is even less fitting..."
Jeong Sowol's words were stopped by Kim Yuri, who was sitting right next to him.
Sunbae smiled benevolently once more and smoothly moved on to the next segment.
"Alright, we've done plenty of sitting and chatting, so now it's time to move our bodies a little, don't you think?"
"Yes!"
"It's the unavoidable initiation ceremony for rookie idols! Random Play Dance!"
Finally, something worthy of being called variety content had appeared.
Random Play Dance.
A game where you perform choreography on the spot to a song the production team plays at random.
If you messed up, it could become a laughing point, but that was only possible when you had built up enough experience.
For a newly debuted rookie idol, this segment... was not simple variety; it was a test to verify their practice volume.
In other words, we had to do well no matter what.
"It's time to definitively see just how sincere our HAZERD members are about practice, right? Of course! There are also generous prizes prepared for success!"
[Rattle] With a noisy sound, a staff member pulled in a mobile rack displaying the prizes.
"Wow!"
"Wow, meat."
"Oooh..."
The members diligently let out broadcast-appropriate exclamations.
On the rack were canned ham, a fruit basket, and a Hanwoo beef set.
And... a somewhat plain-looking piece of paper sat there all by itself.
[Idol Comprehensive Review Appearance Ticket]
Sunbae pointed at the paper and spoke emphatically.
"Last but not least, this is an appearance ticket that can be used anytime you, HAZERD, want to appear on the show! It's by far the most valuable prize here! A value that cannot be converted into money!"
We nodded earnestly at sunbae's passionate explanation.
Then, the MC faltered a bit and continued.
"No, but still, the real most expensive thing is that Hanwoo beef set over there, so you must definitely win the Hanwoo set. You got that? Even if it means making the production team spend a lot, I want to feed my hoobaes some meat. It's not my money anyway..."
Well...
It seemed like the broadcast appearance ticket would be far more valuable than meat that would disappear once eaten.
Of course, that was my thought, but for the sake of sunbae's dignity, I nodded.
"If you succeed five times in a row, you can take all the prizes here. However, every time you fail, one prize will be removed! Understood?"
"Yes!"
While the staff moved the chairs out of the way, we stretched and warmed up in the center.
Once we were ready, the first song soon flowed out.
I step in
feel the vibe
game on sight...
'This song is...'
It was 'Aiming,' the hip-hop track from our album.
It was Baek Gyeonwoo's teaser concept song and a song we had only performed at the showcase; I hadn't expected it to be the first song.
Naturally, I'd expected the title track to come first.
'Well, not that I was flustered.'
We immediately exchanged glances and got into formation.
Baek Gyeonwoo stood in the center, and we began executing the choreography to the music...
"Bzzt!"
Huh?
"That's a buzzer! Unfortunately, that part wasn't the first verse but the second verse!"
"The second verse?"
Kim Yuri asked back.
"That's right! In the second verse, Sanho-ssi and Sowol-ssi should have switched positions, right? Am I right?"
I stopped and looked around at the members.
Seeing our bewildered faces, the sunbae shouted in a voice that was... acting pitiful.
"Oh dear, our HAZERD! It seems you still get confused with your own song's choreography since it hasn't been long since debut! It's okay, all rookies are like that! Now, then, coldly! Please choose one prize to remove!"
We had made a mistake?
...There was no way?