The Rabbit Rolling Balls on Pink Hair
The rabbit rolling a ball atop pink hair. 『Following the light footsteps, we head to a small city buried in time, where I meet the old dream waiting for me again♪』
Im Yoo-jun’s stage is far narrower than his fame would suggest, yet his command of it is breathtaking. He strolls across the tiny platform with light steps, meeting the eyes of each audience member as he sings. Every movement draws their focus naturally. By the time the song reaches its climax, his subtle hand gestures make him look like a conductor. Every light motion, every step carries meaning. The playful Im Yoo-jun has vanished; only the nation’s top singer, the young man who earned the title of national singer at such a tender age, remains on stage.
『At the end of the journey I meet you, quietly take your hand and close my eyes. We listen to a song filled with tender longing and dream of eternity together♪』
Im Yoo-jun finishes the song, neatly tucks away his emotions, and bows his head toward the crowd.
—Waaaah!!!!
The audience erupts in cheers so loud the skin tingles. “That’s the uncle song he sang when I went on a trip.”
From the tiny gestures that dominate the stage to the way he looks at the audience, even the skill of moving slightly on the small platform to naturally draw everyone’s attention.
That was “The Rustic Travel Path” performed by singer Im Yoo-jun.
—Waaaah!!!!
The moment the MC finishes speaking, another wave of cheers crashes down. It is the song Uncle Woo-hyuk wrote and composed himself, “The Rustic Travel Path.” Gentle lyrics and lively rhythm make it beloved everywhere. When a good song is sung by a good singer, the result is the perfect stage. Im Yoo-jun dominates the tiny concert hall with flawless stage manners while still getting the crowd excited.
“He’s pretty cool.”
Watching a near-perfect stage up close taught me a lot.
Singer Im Yoo-jun has wrapped up the stage to make way for the juniors preparing their next performance. Next····
The MC, who had been speaking smoothly, suddenly stops. Im Yoo-jun is whispering something to him.
Ah! Im Yoo-jun says he has one more thing prepared. Let’s check it out!
Clap clap clap—! The gathered audience bursts into thunderous applause, clearly expecting another spectacular performance from Im Yoo-jun. At that moment, Im Yoo-jun turns his gaze straight toward me. He looks directly at me and gives a quick wink.
“Did that guy take drugs or something?”
I thought he might sing one more song, but a staff member comes up on stage, hands something to Im Yoo-jun, and steps back down.
“A ball!”
“It’s a ball?”
“Eung!”
As expected of a ball maniac, Baek Seol notices first. I feel her pressing her cotton-ball head firmly against mine. She must be bouncing with excitement.
“Fun!”
“Hmm.”
Im Yoo-jun, of all people, is the one getting our little fluffball excited. I can feel my internal evaluation of him rising a notch.
Uh····
While I’m holding Baek Seol down from my head, the MC’s voice rings out briefly. Just when I wondered what he was going to do with the ball, he starts juggling.
“What is he doing?”
“He’s really doing that because of this?”
It looks clumsy to anyone watching, but you can tell he’s giving it his all. The audience watches him with warm eyes and smiles at his unexpected antics.
—Waaaah!!!
Im Yoo-jun frantically catches the ball that had flown into the air, then smiles brightly as if nothing happened and greets the crowd.
That concludes singer Im Yoo-jun’s stage!
Clap clap clap—!
“He’s handsome!”
“Im Yoo-jun, I love you!!”
Whether it’s to respond to the fans’ passionate cheers or not, he waves his hand and steps off the stage.
“Kyaaah!!”
One of the audience members sounds like a deer in heat. It’s absolute chaos. Yet Im Yoo-jun keeps smiling as he leaves the stage. The MC returns to the platform.
Did everyone enjoy Im Yoo-jun’s wonderful stage?
—Yeees!!
The MC instantly seizes control of the audience. As expected of someone Uncle Woo-hyuk sent, his presence is no joke. I’ve seen him on TV plenty of times, but since I never paid much attention, I can’t remember his name.
Im Yoo-jun came out first for the sake of the juniors who worked hard preparing their first stage. You’re not all going to leave just because he’s gone, right?
—No!!!
The MC even shows off a skill for keeping the audience from leaving.
Please welcome them with a big cheer! Idol debut group, Serenade!!
Whether Im Yoo-jun appears first or last, it’s a problem. If he goes first, everyone after him disappears. If he goes last, he erases the memory of everyone before him. Now that I’ve met him today, I understand. That’s the kind of person he is.
Hello!! We are Love Dream, Serenade!!
When Serenade steps confidently onto the stage and greets everyone, the previously noisy market falls silent except for a few murmurs of “Who are they?” My worst expectation has come true right in the center.
Storm Song
“Serenade is so cool!!”
Kwa-gwa-ga-gak—!!
My voice rings out wide and clear over the roaring sound of a rising dragon, making the surrounding audience cover their ears and stare at me in bewilderment before turning back to the stage.
“Serenade, fighting!”
“You’re handsome, Serenade!”
The tense, stiff expressions on Serenade’s faces bloom into smiles at the unexpected support.
The final stage featured a cute rabbit!
A short stage with no encore, fitting for the small platform.
It was a cool performance that blew away the hot weather. Please follow the staff and head home safely. This has been MC Jang Bong-chun. Thank you.
The curtain falls on the stage. Im Yoo-jun’s late-arriving fans begin pouring into the market in droves. His bodyguards are going to have a hard time.
“Our little fluffball is really good at rolling balls, huh?”
“Fun!!”
She seems very excited after rolling the ball in front of so many people and receiving cheers. She keeps pressing her cotton-ball head against my shoulder and bouncing.
“They said the dance was something they already practiced and just changed the rhythm. The song was finished right before departure after turning off the broadcast. Was it okay?”
Trrrring—!
“Just a second.”
Click.
“Yes, hello.”
— Gaeul-ah!! What on earth is going on? You really worked hard.
“I did.”
— Haha, yeah. I’ll make sure to show my thanks properly. Serenade is causing an absolute uproar right now.
“The reaction is good?”
— Good? It’s insane. Everything’s great except for that one member who stuck out like a sore thumb in the debut group!
“They have nothing to do with me.”
They were waiting right in front of debut, and according to Uncle, their mouths are sticking out a whole span. I’m too busy taking care of my own kids to spare even a speck of interest for people whose faces I don’t even know.
“By the way, who made the song the kids sang? It was amazing. You sent it today—when did you prepare something like that?”
“I made it by roughly tapping on the MIDI.”
— Huh? If even Uncle Woo-hyuk, who used to be a singer and is now a businessman, representative producer, and composer, reacts this way, then it must have turned out pretty good, just like the viewers said.
“It was decent, right? I even gave them the music copyright as a temporary debut gift for Serenade.”
— Ah, no. There’s so much I want to say I don’t even know where to start. You made that by just randomly tapping? Gaeul, want to compose with me?
“Hmm. I’m good. I’m already really busy, Uncle.”
It’s the kind of thing that could easily be called a lie, yet he believes my words completely even now.
— Heo, seriously···· Yeah, let’s talk about that when we meet later. So what happened with Im Yoo-jun? He was over there?
“We just happened to talk about Im Yoo-jun, and he came after watching my stream. Now that I think about it, he must have had nothing better to do. Did he just scratch his balls at home and decide to come out?”
— Aaaah! Aaaah!!
Suddenly Uncle Woo-hyuk starts screaming into the phone.
“Why are you like that?”
— How the hell are you so carefree? Do you even know how big that guy’s fandom is?
“Eh, it’s fine because we’re friends. Uncle, have you ever seen me be rude to my elders? I treat every human being with respect.”
— Right. In this day and age, where else would you find a kid as polite as you? You’re right, but···· Haah, listening to you say nothing but correct things makes me feel ten years older. When are you going to make friends?
“These days it’s ‘let’s be friends’! It’s not like that. Just smooth. Natural.”
— Whew. You’re something else, kid.
Uncle Woo-hyuk lets out a sigh of relief. He must have been really flustered.
— I was so surprised I forgot. Gaeul, are you thinking of appearing on Idol Sports Festival?
“The idol physical competition you mentioned earlier?”
— You little punk. Who says it like that? The season changed, so it’s the Idol Sports Festival now. Literally idols doing sports. It seems to be exactly the sports festival Haeng-myeong mentioned. She pulled up the info right away, so she must be quite knowledgeable about this side of things.
“The name is literally Idol Sports Festival—am I even allowed to participate?”
— Even the Olympics are fine. Someone like you would devour it. All you have to do is go and smile brightly and everything’s okay.
“Hmm. I don’t mind, but do I really have to go? There are plenty of unemployed celebrities out there.”
— Right. Everyone’s eyes are bloodshot trying to get in. But you broadcasted with that Kang PD ID, didn’t you?
“That’s true.”
I borrowed Uncle Man-seung’s ID that I used during the travel broadcast to give Serenade a little more exposure.
— The Idol Sports Festival PD saw that and is throwing a fit asking me to bring you.
“Hmm.”
Uncle must have been in a hurry too—his dialect is getting thicker. Or maybe I’ve just gotten a lot more comfortable with him. Even during the trip, when it was just me and Uncle Kwak-jin, his dialect would thicken.
— Today’s incident is also because of me, so I know I shouldn’t say this, but you asked me to send an MC and I immediately put in a top-tier one.
“You did.”
— Right? Mutual benefit.
Uncle Woo-hyuk’s words carry a lot of implications.
“So the entertainment industry is a society based on connections rather than skill?”
— Hey! Just leave it alone for once. If you fall into water, only Joo-di floats. If you go to the afterlife, even King Yama will grab the back of his neck because of your group.
Uncle Woo-hyuk agrees too. I guess my understanding was correct.
“If I refuse, will it put you in a difficult position, Uncle?”
— No! Absolutely not. I already owe you a debt I can’t even begin to repay today. What right do I have? If you want to do it, do it.
『Gaeul-ssi, please!』
A voice I’ve never heard before comes from the other end of the phone. That must be the Idol Sports Festival PD. He must have been pestering Uncle nonstop.
“I might ruin everything if I go?”
『All you have to do is smile, Gaeul-ssi!』
It seems he switched to speakerphone—he answers right away.
“I can just be there?”
『Of course! Do whatever you want, Gaeul-ssi!』
“A totem?”
『Little PD, you might regret this. If that daughter causes trouble, even Buddha couldn’t stop her.』
“I can hear everything, Uncle.”
— Ahem! You heard? Haha, what do you want to eat, our Gaeul?
“Anything except fresh fish is fine.”
No. 00004 │ Market Festival Review
No. 00003 │ Serenade Debut Video 2♥♥
No. 00002 │ Favorite Maknae Sae-byeok Fancam
No. 00001 │ Serenade Debut Video 1♥♥
1. Im Yoo-jun
2. Im Yoo-jun Juggling
3. Rabbit Rolling Ball on Pink Hair
4. Serenade
5. The Rustic Travel Path
6. Cloaked Rabbit
7. Baek Seol
8. White Rabbit
9. Lottery Winning Numbers
10. Pink Hair
Click. Rattle.
The reaction is quite satisfying.
“Thanks to you guys, it went well. Thank you.”
“Is the next best thing the best·····”
“Burp. You guys’ love is intense.”
They’re always grateful, and grateful again, these friends.
“I love you guys.”
“Probably? They said I can do whatever I want.”