Chapter 386
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 386
Slam!
"Hey, hey, hey! Did you see the homeroom teacher’s hair today? He used wax!!"
"Yeah, it’s hilarious. And is that suit for real? Is he actually going on a marriage setup? Someone go ask him, quick."
At that moment, Bloy’s attention shifted to the classmate who had kicked the front door open and was shouting boisterously. After confirming it was nothing important, she looked back toward the parking lot, but the van was already gone. She felt strangely uneasy, but figured it was nothing and started preparing for class.
After morning assembly and handing in her phone, first period began. After overcoming several bouts of boredom and a few moments of nodding off, she was finally facing fourth period.
"Hey, are we moving for art class today too?"
"Yeah, they said to come to the art room. Apparently, there's a special lecture."
"A special lecture for art at a time like this? Since when did our school become so cultured?"
"Ugh, I don't know. Maybe the instructor is a relative of the chairman or something."
The students gathered and dispersed according to their elective classes.
Bloy moved at a leisurely pace, yawning repeatedly. Since it didn't seem like it would affect her grades much anyway, she sat in the very back row and opened a math workbook she had brought separately. As she did, a Ju Woo-seong photocard from the 'Get Over' era popped out.
The night before, she had told herself she had to study, but she couldn't focus and ended up reorganizing her photocards; it seemed this one had accidentally slipped inside.
"Whoa, what’s this? Kang Hye-jin, you even have Ju Woo-seong’s debut photocard?"
"Sick, right?"
"The rookie vibes are insane. What’s the market price on that?"
She laughed and said it wasn't that expensive, but back then, as a little elementary schooler, she had emptied her entire savings—from New Year’s money to her allowance—to buy it.
Then, a friend wearing silver-rimmed glasses pulled a card holder out of her pocket.
"Ta-da! It’s only polite to reveal mine if the other person shows theirs."
It was a Seo Ho-yun photocard from the 'Second Chance' era, which was valued at the price of an apartment in Banpo, Gangnam.
"Are you crazy?!"
"Oh, holy sh—!"
"You—you didn't have this! How did you get it?!"
Usually, 'candid' photos taken by others were worth less than selfie-style photocards, but that specific photo of Seo Ho-yun was so rare and popular that it was hard to even find a seller.
"—Well, let’s just say I practically begged my mom and signed a slave contract. I got this card by putting my life on the line!"
Just as her friend’s voice swelled with pride—
"Hmm. Maybe not your entire life..."
A strange whisper drifted from the back of the art room. Everyone’s eyes shifted toward the sound.
"Seo Ho-yun, guarantee this and that..."
"Guarantee it! Guarantee it!"
Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun, who had somehow snuck in through the back door, were crouching beside Seo Ho-yun and protesting. Despite the cold weather, they were all dressed in nothing but white shirts and navy slacks.
Seeing the students frozen in shock, unable to react, Seo Ho-yun let his lips curl into a smirk.
"...Then, shall we take a photo together?"
The moment he finished speaking, a scream loud enough to shake the school erupted.
"Crazy! This is crazy!"
"Quick, someone slap me."
A high school full of adolescents was basically a jungle to begin with, but adding the hottest idols of the moment to the mix made it even more intense. For a second, even Bloy was almost swept up in the feverish frenzy.
Soon, Kim Seong-hyeon and Seong Ji-won appeared at the front door. Seo Ho-yun stood up and took the lead, with Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun following him down the center aisle to stand beside the other members.
"The rising dawn, we are The Dawn! The 'School Bell Rings!' has sounded, so shall we all have some fun?!"
I knew there was a strange van in the parking lot!
Hearing the fixed catchphrase of the program known as Hakjongttaeng among K-pop fans, Bloy felt like someone had whacked her on the back of the head.
It was a show where idols would secretly visit schools that had applied in advance to create memories for the students.
A few kids who had lied and hadn't turned in their phones that morning quickly pulled them out to start filming. Naturally, the teacher standing next to The Dawn did not look happy.
"Aaaaah!"
Of course, no one cared.
It seemed they were picking one class at random to get some minor footage before performing for the whole school in the auditorium.
"Seong-hyeon-aaaaah!"
"You're so handsome!!"
Then, perhaps thinking she couldn't miss this opportunity—which was better than a fan sign—her friend Noeul, the one with the silver glasses, jumped up and shouted.
"Oppa! Ho-yun oppa! I'm a member of Noeul 1st Gen! Could you please solve just one math problem for me?!"
"Ayy, I don't know stuff like that."
"Boo! Just once! Please?"
Since when did you care about math...
Bloy kept her mouth shut for the sake of her friend's dignity.
Seo Ho-yun, who had been wearing a troubled smile, looked at the friend who was pleading with her index finger raised, then slowly walked over.
"...Hmm, try substituting 1 for x here. Then b comes out to 0, so—..."
After scanning the book her friend pointed to for a moment, Seo Ho-yun solved it instantly and went straight into the explanation.
Her friend, whose obvious goal was just to admire Seo Ho-yun’s face up close for as long as possible, looked flustered at first but soon became absorbed in the explanation as if she’d actually had an epiphany.
"Ohhh..."
"You get it, right?"
...What is this? Why does he seem like a private tutor?
Suddenly, the atmosphere turned into a study session.
"Hmm, this word needs to be expressed as a long vowel, so it needs a 'u' at the end. That makes this choice incorrect..."
Seong Ji-won translated Japanese multiple-choice questions, and Kang Yi-chae solved difficult English passages.
Kim Seong-hyeon tried to help too, but instead of giving him problems, everyone bombarded him with mischievous or ridiculous questions, making his ears turn bright red. Jeong Da-jun also started out full of enthusiasm, telling everyone to ask him anything, but after receiving one question, he said, "I'm sorry, I'm an idol..." and slunk back toward the middle of the group.
"Alright, alright, the bell is going to ring soon. Let's hand out the gifts and move quickly."
Someone who looked like a staff member shouted while checking their watch. At that, The Dawn finished up what they were doing in an orderly fashion and began splitting into groups of two or three to hand out hot packs and candy.
...He really is handsome.
Bloy herself had never actually seen a celebrity in person, not even Black Call, so her heart began to race as they drew closer.
"Hello. Would you like a hot pack?"
Seong Ji-won, who had reached her, asked with a bright smile.
"No."
However, a blunt refusal slipped out of Bloy’s mouth.
At that moment, she realized something: when she was too surprised, she became expressionless and cold.
"Oh, are you sure? It’s really cold outside today."
Seong Ji-won’s eyebrows knitted together in worry, but they soon relaxed as he offered a gentle smile and another suggestion.
"Hmm, then do you like candy? Ho-yun and Seong-hyeon are handing them out."
Bloy couldn't bring herself to coldly reject that kind face again, so she nodded hesitantly.
Meanwhile, Seo Ho-yun was slowly weaving through the desks, handling the random comments being thrown at him by the classmates.
"Me, me! I bought this mechanical pencil because it’s the Year of the Black Rabbit!"
"Oh, it’s cute. It suits you."
"It’s 'oppa-themed'! I debated sooooo much between the cat and the rabbit!"
"Did you really buy it thinking of me? You're not just saying that?"
"Really, really! I have two, do you want one?!"
Bloy was impressed by how he skillfully handled the interactions, hitting the right spots to make them happy while maintaining a proper boundary.
Is this why Seo Ho-yun is so popular?
Bloy glanced at the approaching Seo Ho-yun and waited for her turn.
And her turn came sooner than expected.
"Here, have some candy. Enjoy it and have a happy day today."
Until just a moment ago, she had resolved to just take the gift and move on coolly.
She was a fan of Black Call, and she didn't believe there was anything she wanted from The Dawn or anything she would take to heart.
"Um, excuse me..."
"...Yes? What is it?"
Seo Ho-yun looked at her with a curious expression.
She could feel her friends filming the situation with their phones nearby.
Despite that, Bloy just gripped the candy stick tightly, her lips trembling.
"Ah, well..."
Is Black Call having a comeback? The company keeps sending our boys to overseas events; is there no way to stop them? Why is Ju Woo-seong closer to Seo Ho-yun than his own members? And, and...
"...It's just..."
...Is our Woo-seong healthy? Is he hurting anywhere?
Damn it, get a grip, brain.
All the grievances she had bottled up until now erupted in her mind like a volcano, but they were things she could never say out loud. No matter how true and desperate a fan of Black Call she was, the moment she let those words out, she would become a nuisance.
"...Do the artists under WH... eat well?"
"Pardon?"
So, out of all the things she could have said, what came out was a broad question about their well-being.
"If they eat well?"
Naturally, Seo Ho-yun tilted his head at the random question. Then, his gaze dropped. Following his eyes, she saw the Ju Woo-seong photocard she had left on top of her textbook in her surprise at seeing The Dawn.
Ugh, this is so embarrassing.
Seo Ho-yun gave a light chuckle, clicked the rabbit mechanical pencil he had just received, and scribbled something on the corner of her notebook.
"...Well, I think the food at the company cafeteria is pretty delicious."
After responding, he gave a bright smile and moved on to the next student.
After that, requests for autographs poured in like a flood. Even when faced with gym clothes and pens being shoved at him, Seo Ho-yun silently worked his pen without a hint of annoyance, only stopping when the staff intervened.
"We'll see you in the auditorium. Sorry~!"
The Dawn left the art room before the bell signaling the end of the period could ring.
However, news had already spread. Even though the teachers on standby immediately began controlling the situation, the scene was nothing short of madness, filled with students who weren't afraid of demerit points.
In the end, it took quite a while for the entire school to gather in the auditorium and for the performance to begin.
[I’ll tell you I love you tomorrow too, probably
Don’t play word games, I just wanna dance]
The performance that followed was quite good, even from the perspective of a fan of another group.
"Don't ask, just come out and dance, baby!! Like it's our last time!!"
Including 'Level S2,' one of the most beloved idol songs of the year, The Dawn performed a total of five stages in a row.
When it was all over, Jeong Da-jun mentioned that he had been so excited in the middle of it that he wanted to throw candy like he was doing a talent show on a school trip, which drew laughter from all sides.
I don't think the joke was that funny.
But on the other hand, she understood the students' behavior, as they were always starved for handsome faces.
After finishing all the scheduled events, The Dawn left the school with a final greeting, telling the students to eat a hearty lunch and study hard.
Two or three hours at most.
In a situation that felt as unreal as a daydream, the students heading back to their classrooms in a daze could talk about nothing but The Dawn.
"Sigh, seriously, that was insane."
"I suddenly feel a sense of school pride..."
"I... I finally understand why seniors are so crazy about Kim Seong-hyeon... I really do..."
As time passed and the students regained their senses, they talked about The Dawn even more actively.
Among them were students from other grades who had received The Dawn’s polaroids through a lucky draw.
"On TV, Kang Yi-chae just seemed like a mischievous kid, but seeing him up close, he had such a 'scary older brother' vibe."
"No, but listen to this. I went to a The Dawn fan sign about a year and a half ago. And Kang Yi-chae remembered that!"
"I heard The Dawn’s fan service is insane..."
After pushing through the crowds and finally reaching her classroom, Bloy was swamped by her friends continuing the chatter. The 3rd-grade dean had shouted at the auditorium entrance for everyone to return to their classes, saying the lunch schedule would be announced over the school speakers.
Her friend with the silver glasses, whose face was still flushed as if drunk on The Dawn, pressed her palm to her forehead and spoke.
"I feel kind of bad, like I'm the only 'successful fan' here. Do you think Black Call will ever appear on 'The School Bell Rings!'?"
Then, a friend with a bob cut poked her head in and retorted with a dismissive tone.
"Hey, hey, are you joking? There's no way. Did you see the scale of the stadiums during Black Call’s US tour? It’s not happening. Hye-jin can’t even dream of it."
"......"
"Whoa, look. Hye-jin’s pissed."
Bloy, who had been staring at her notebook, turned her sharp gaze toward her friends.
"...Ahaha, Hye-jin-ssi... sorry."
"Sigh..."
She wasn't particularly angry.
She was just feeling complicated.
Bloy’s gaze dropped once more.
Her eyes landed on the answer Seo Ho-yun had written to her question about whether the WH artists were eating well.
He’s doing well.
"...It’s hard for me too because he seems like a good person."
"Huh?"
For a long while after that, the members of The Dawn were worshipped like gods at Bloy’s school.
Though the youngest, Jeong Da-jun, remained simply 'Da-jun-ging.'