Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Have You Never Doubted It?
Have you really never doubted it?
After finishing the final shoot for White Tiger, Lee Han-gyeol of One Seven headed straight for the dorm.
“Oh? You’re back early, hyung.”
“Is I-jun not back yet?”
He ignored his fellow member, Kang Jun-woo, and threw open the door to his room.
“I don’t think he’s done with his schedule yet.”
“Really?”
It had been a long time since he’d seen the usually stoic and unreadable Lee Han-gyeol so discomposed. Not since their debut, or when Yu Yeon-seo had left the group…
“What is it? Did something happen?”
“...I have something to talk to I-jun about first.”
Whoa, what? Did they fight? Kang Jun-woo crunched on the potato chip in his hand. If he had something to talk about first, that meant he’d tell him later, right?
Lee Han-gyeol sat on the sofa and crossed his arms. He hadn’t been able to focus on filming ever since he overheard the conversation between Im Seung-hyeon and Oh Beom-su.
After Yu Yeon-seo left and they took a short break, One Seven had made a comeback at least twice a year.
They had released a lot of albums. They did a full three weeks of music show promotions and even filmed overseas sometimes. They had moved into this dorm before their resurgence…
‘So, did he pay for all of this with his money?’
As he was roughly calculating the money that had been poured into One Seven, a certain phrase came to mind.
[What if, what if I’m right.]
Kim I-jun, who had uttered those unexpected words after visiting Yu Yeon-seo in the hospital. He must have heard something to say that.
“I’m back! Is everyone here?”
“Just saw Ju-won-hyung out front.”
As if he’d been waiting, Lee Han-gyeol shot up and headed for the entrance.
“I-jun, just a moment.”
“Wh-what?”
Kim I-jun was dragged into the room before he could even take off one of his shoes. He clutched his shoe awkwardly and looked up at Lee Han-gyeol.
“Back when you went to Yeon-seo’s hospital room, did he say anything to you?”
“Uh… back then?”
Kim I-jun tossed his shoe onto the floor and perched on the edge of the bed.
“He told us to stop being pathetic and live our own lives.”
“Not that… You said something strange back then. About there being another reason…”
Why is he bringing that up? Kim I-jun had actually been leaning towards the idea that Yu Yeon-seo had another reason.
But after saying that, he felt like he had made the atmosphere among the members too weird, so he kept it to himself and never brought it up again.
“...Actually, something’s been bothering me.”
“What is it?”
“He said, ‘But I’ll acknowledge the resurgence. It’s finally worth the investment.’ That’s what he said.”
Lee Han-gyeol sucked in a breath.
“Is there something I don’t know? I kept thinking about it… but I felt like I made the mood weird back then, so I didn’t bring it up again.”
“…”
“You heard something, didn’t you?”
Seeing the sudden change in Lee Han-gyeol’s expression, Kim I-jun frowned. Was my suspicion actually right?
“What I heard was…”
Lee Han-gyeol briefly explained the conversation between Im Seung-hyeon and Oh Beom-su. As he listened, Kim I-jun’s expression slowly turned to one of horror.
“Then he really…”
“I think our payments were suddenly delayed because of that, too.”
“No, haa…”
Kim I-jun ran a hand through his hair and exhaled. It wasn’t frustration over the delayed payment.
He just thought the company was doing well. Unaware of the truth, they had been busy fighting whenever they ran into each other. A wave of guilt washed over him, but also resentment. Why hadn’t he told them?
“No, but why would he? Why didn’t he say anything?”
So he really left because of his family’s opposition, and he invested in them for seven years because he felt sorry for leaving so abruptly? Even for a chaebol, doesn’t that sound ridiculous? The Yu Yeon-seo he knew?
“What did you guys just say?”
At the leader Yoon Yu-chan’s words, Kim I-jun and Lee Han-gyeol turned their heads. The door they thought was closed was wide open. The remaining four members were clustered at the doorway, their faces filled with despair.
“Guys. Have you really never doubted it?”
At Lee Han-gyeol’s question, the other members’ expressions grew serious.
At the awards ceremony, the singers who were performing and receiving awards sat in a waiting area next to the stage, while the actors could wait in their own designated rooms for their turn.
Looks like there are a lot of cameras filming the singers’ waiting area. Can’t even use your phone. How boring. Thinking this, Yu Yeon-seo opened the door to his waiting room.
“Aren’t you bored just waiting?”
“Isn’t it fun to watch the performances? I want to see what the current trends are, too.”
“Really?”
Yu Yeon-seo ended up sharing a waiting room with Choi Yu-jin. Perhaps because it was for VIPs, the spacious room was furnished with elegantly plated finger foods and even a massage chair.
“Oh? Mr. Im, wasn’t today your day off?”
“I have to accompany the young master to his schedules.”
Im Seung-hyeon, who had arrived at some point, was standing next to Lee Tae-gyeom.
“And I have something to confirm.”
He had his usual smiling face, but the atmosphere felt strangely off. Lee Tae-gyeom took a step back from Im Seung-hyeon. He wouldn’t be fooled by that announcer-like, proper appearance anymore.
‘He came to shake down Oh Beom-su.’
Yu Yeon-seo smirked.
Apparently, Oh Beom-su had called first, and then the CEO called, pleading for leniency, saying they couldn’t come up with the money right away.
‘Should have known when to stop.’
Of course, there would be no leniency. He was going to collect every last penny out of spite, but since he had more than enough money, he could at least extend the deadline.
However, Im Seung-hyeon had insisted on seeing it through to the end himself since he’d been told to handle it, and Yu Yeon-seo had allowed it. Honestly, it was a hassle to deal with.
Im Seung-hyeon had an uncanny ability to find the precise point where AST Entertainment seemed just about to secure the embezzled funds, and then he would tighten the screws, saying, ‘If you don’t send it by this date, you’ll end up like Entertainment Jump.’
“Just go easy on them.”
“Yes, I’ll have a moderate amount of fun with them.”
What are these people talking about? Lee Tae-gyeom took another step back. In truth, they were partly doing this because his reactions were amusing.
Yu Yeon-seo’s mood improved considerably. Im Seung-hyeon would surely wear them down more effectively than he ever could.
(Yes, the 2018 JMA…)
The awards ceremony began on the screen. Yu Yeon-seo made a brief appearance in the flashy introductory video of the presenters. After a short introduction from the MC, a performance by a rookie group that debuted this year began.
Yu Yeon-seo watched the performance, occasionally chatting with Choi Yu-jin. When the commercial break started, he covered his mouth with his hand.
‘I thought I threw up everything earlier.’
Feeling a strange wave of nausea, he discreetly headed outside. Looking around for an empty restroom just in case, he almost collided with someone at a corner.
“Oh?”
It was One Seven. They were drenched in sweat, having just come down from their performance right before the commercial break.
Right… the original Yu Yeon-seo and One Seven used to clash, didn’t they? I probably shouldn’t use the auto-action mode because of the memory synchronization side effects… So how should I treat them?
‘Should I act the same as before?’
Having gotten the hang of it at the engagement ceremony, Yu Yeon-seo felt he could now mimic the original’s likely behavior even without the auto-action mode. He just needed to run his mouth in a suitably annoying way.
While Yu Yeon-seo was seriously contemplating this, Lee Han-gyeol, at the very back, raised his hand first.
“Yeon-seo. It’s been a while.”
“Yeah, long time no see.”
One Seven was quieter than expected. Are they tired from their performance? Yu Yeon-seo stepped aside to let them pass.
“...What? You’re not leaving?”
“Why did you do it?”
Is asking questions without a subject a One Seven thing? Yu Yeon-seo frowned. He was already not feeling well, and their strange talk was starting to annoy him.
“Do what?”
“Investing in us. Han-gyeol told me.”
Lee Han-gyeol? No way… Was there someone else there besides me? When Yu Yeon-seo looked at Lee Han-gyeol, he nodded with a heavy expression. No wonder he seemed so out of it near the end of filming.
“Haa…”
Yu Yeon-seo let out a deep sigh. Honestly, I’d like to know too. Why did the original do it?
‘Can my body handle this?’
Yu Yeon-seo hesitated for a moment, then pressed his lower lip firmly with his teeth.
‘Beta. Turn on auto-action mode.’
<Master, you are not in good condition…>
‘Just for a little bit, then turn it off.’
<…Understood.>
Yu Yeon-seo’s mouth moved on its own.
“No reason.”
“What?”
“Do you need a reason to give charity to a beggar? Other than pity?”
Lee Han-gyeol let out a deflated sound. The old Yu Yeon-seo might have fallen for that, but not now. He had already pieced together the whole situation and had seen a different side of him on White Tiger.
“Yeon-seo, that doesn’t work anymore.”
Hit right on the mark, Yu Yeon-seo’s face crumpled into a frown.
“...Fine. I had to take some responsibility for leaving so suddenly, didn’t I?”
“You did that for seven years?”
“Should I have just left you? You guys were nothing without me. And I have a lot of money.”
I said that doesn’t work anymore. Lee Han-gyeol was about to retort, but it was true that One Seven had gained recognition in their early days because of the attention Yu Yeon-seo brought. It was also true that interest had waned after he left.
“I was just going to do it until the artist contract period was up. After all, I would have been active until then if I hadn’t left suddenly.”
“But you left because of your grandfather.”
“Well, there was the fact that I couldn’t persuade my grandfather…”
He didn’t deny it further, since Kim I-jun had overheard everything from under the hospital bed.
“Hyung, why didn’t you tell us sooner…?”
“Yeah. Why didn’t you tell us? If you had…”
We wouldn’t have resented you so blindly, would we? As the One Seven members added their own comments, the commotion in the hallway started drawing the attention of a few people.
“There was no reason to tell you.”
“What! Why wasn’t there a reason?”
Kim I-jun scratched his head in frustration. He wanted to say something, but he couldn’t form a proper sentence.
“Were you aiming for this? Did you want us to find out later and feel all sorry for you?”
“Well, that does sound like something he’d do…”
“Guys. What kind of madman would hold out for seven years?”
“He is a madman.”
This bastard. Yu Yeon-seo shot a glare at Kim I-jun without thinking.
Kim I-jun fell silent. He knew this wasn’t the time to argue. He wanted to say thank you, and that he was sorry for being angry all this time, but the words wouldn’t come out easily. He was also embarrassed for having disliked him for so long.
<Master, I believe it would be best to deactivate now.>
‘Right, turn it off.’
He had a rough idea of the reason now. The assumption that he had tried to maintain a sense of loyalty because he had been quite happy during his time with One Seven seemed correct.
‘This is getting weirder and weirder…’
Looking at his childhood memories, it wasn’t like he was born with a nasty personality. He had a sense of responsibility and wasn’t completely heartless. So why did the original act like such a jerk? It got worse as he got older.
<Master, prepare for bleeding.>
Almost as a reflex, Yu Yeon-seo ducked his head. Blood dripped down. Startled, the members of One Seven rushed toward him.
“Hey, hey! You’re bleeding!”
“What do we do, hyung?”
“I have a tissue!”
“You used that to wipe your sweat.”
“Not this one! It’s new!”
The One Seven members surrounded Yu Yeon-seo, making a fuss.
Ugh, it’s so chaotic. Yu Yeon-seo pressed the tissue someone from One Seven handed him to his nose. His heart pounded pleasantly. It wasn’t a bad feeling.
- I was a helper at the awards today and saw OSB and YYS fighting
They were yelling and everything. Someone even got a nosebleed.
After the JMA awards ended, an anonymous post on a community forum quickly garnered comments as soon as it was uploaded.
Most of the comments slammed the poster, questioning the credibility of an unverified industry insider, and the post was eventually deleted by the moderators for spreading baseless rumors.