– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Lea Purple?
…She’s like a ghost.
I let out a snicker and waited for a moment.
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: First of all
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Absolutely
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Do not ever touch them
– Me: ㅋㅋ
I sent a reply laden with the meaning, “You think I’m out of my mind?”
It was something both Lea Purple and I were already aware of.
What I wanted from Jihyeon was a way to somehow make this Bluetooth Circus Troupe look cooler, even if just conceptually.
– Me: You know what I’m asking, right?
– Me: Ah, I’m really looking forward to this one too
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: ㅎ
Jihyeon’s replies stopped for a bit.
She wasn’t the same Jihyeon who used to excitedly spill out her favorite ideas in front of the team leader with sparkling eyes.
She had leveled up, so to speak. Of course, it was in a dark attribute.
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Um… Hoyun-ssi
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Actually, I’ve been really tired these days because of too much workㅜ;;
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: And there’s this new event for my favorite character startingㅜ and I failed at my last attemptㅜ
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: To get even one special card of our Celestial Pilot, I’d need to spin at least a hundred times… and that’s not even enough to fully max it out…
What are you talking about…?
…Was she asking for a bonus? I barely deciphered her meanings.
I didn’t care whether Jihyeon got the game cards she wanted, and I didn’t even understand some of the words, but I was willing to grant her wish.
Of course, it wasn’t my money, but the company’s.
– Me: CEO ㄱ
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: Is double possible?
– Me: ㅋㅋWhat do you take me for?
– Me: Of course, I’ll make sure you get your favorite cards
– Me: No matter how many ^^
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: ㅇㅏ
– Planning Team Lee Jihyeon: I’ll sort it out and send it to you via email ^^! As expected, The Dawn’s top visual gets things done quickly, the best~
“Jihyeon is funny, isn’t she?”
I chuckled and turned off my phone.
It was rewarding to see that the foundation I had solidly built up within the company, starting with the Jeong Dajun incident and then periodically causing some ruckus, was paying off.
While enjoying the slightly chilly breeze, which felt refreshing, I sensed someone behind me.
“Why?”
“…Ah.”
Expecting it to be one of our members, I turned around emotionlessly, only to see Lea Purple’s main dancer fidgeting with her fingers, wondering how to start a conversation.
“Ah, hello!”
“Hello.”
Despite there being no one else around, Lea Purple’s main dancer looked around anxiously, as if she were at a crime scene, and let out a soft breath.
“I’m so s-sorry. I just wanted to apologize for any inconvenience our agency might have caused.”
“It’s not Lea Purple’s fault, though.”
“That… um, it still must be uncomfortable for The Dawn.”
I wished they would at least stop with the sexy concept if they were going to make us collaborate.
Lea Purple’s main dancer lowered her gaze and spoke in a slightly defeated tone.
“…We are the Bluetooth Circus Troupe, after all.”
She knew it all along.
“We can’t help it! I’m really sorry, for real! If we try to make a pretty stage and get involved with each other, we either get caught in a scandal or mocked for being the Bluetooth Circus Troupe. It’s a lose-lose situation, right??”
“It is a tough choice…”
“Right??!!”
Even though she was the one who proposed the idea, her pale face suggested she realized it wasn’t a good one after trying it out. When I showed a bit of agreement, the main dancer scratched her cheek and finally brought up what she really wanted to say.
“I’m not asking for understanding, but… you see, in our second year after debut… a rumor exploded.”
I knew it. It was a scandal.
For an idol, it was a fatal issue. Not only was it false, but it had also blown up terribly because they were linked with a rather famous male idol group at the time, making recovery rather difficult.
“The Victory is Mine, you know it, right? Ah, of course, you would. Hoyun-ssi, you were famous back then….”
“Yes, I know it.”
“At the time we appeared, we barely exchanged greetings with the group we were up against, but the editing made it look strange.”
Just thinking about it made the main dancer shiver.
“They spread rumors that we were deceiving fans by wearing matching couple items with that idol group’s members. Oh! Of course, we did have those items, but to be honest, some of the members bought them because they found them pretty… We were doing fairly well after our debut, but after that, we really tanked.”
Hmm, I knew that too. When I searched for Lea Purple, related search terms still came up.
Although I attempted to cleanse the associated search terms, at the time, all sorts of vivid words popped up, and it wasn’t much different now.
“Didn’t you clarify that it was just a rumor?”
“Of course, we did.”
And then she sighed deeply.
“But after that… who would care? It was a disaster.”
Of course, that’s how this industry worked.
If there was something to criticize, people swarmed like carnivores to a feast but would turn a deaf ear when someone tried to explain.
Lea Purple’s main dancer laughed awkwardly and scratched her head.
“We were lucky to have a song that charted again early this year, barely keeping us afloat. We’re treating this like our last chance… So even if we react overly sensitively like we’re following quarantine rules or something, please understand we have no ill intentions!”
“Uh-huh.”
“Our kids are really desperate! Su-Sumin really dances well!”
“Right.”
“And Siri’s voice is sweet like honey! You’d know if you listened to the drama OST she sang for…!”
The main dancer’s outpouring of love for the members of Lea Purple (which I interpreted as flattery) went on for quite some time. I gave the appropriate responses, but after five minutes, I started to feel a bit sick of it.
“…You really love your group members.”
= Enough already.
“I love them, though they don’t always listen, the stubborn little things! We’re not really close to other groups, especially after getting tangled in a scandal over a simple greeting, so I end up just hanging out with our kids all the time… Ah, oops. My apologies.”
Finally, Lea Purple’s main dancer seemed to realize she had gone overboard and fell silent.
Wow…
This must be a serious burnout. But I agreed with the sentiment. That’s why we were proceeding with a choreography that avoided any direct contact…
While I was contemplating, my phone rang again. Lee Jihyeon had sorted things out and sent me an email. I checked it briefly and couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
[Email Subject: Sending you Emergency Escape Number One]
“Ah, seriously? This is hilarious??”
“Huh?”
Accidentally finding someone with the same sense of humor, I stifled my laughter and opened the email. Since it was an urgent matter, she had just sent over a basic concept, promising to clean it up and send a more detailed version later.
I skimmed through the file and, finding that the content wasn’t much different from what I had in mind, I nodded and looked at Lea Purple’s main dancer.
“It’s a bit of a shame, isn’t it?”
“…Yes?”
“It’s the year-end stage.”
With a mix of awkwardness and apology, I left the main dancer hovering beside me and pondered over how to put it nicely.
Okay, good.
“Maybe we should change direction?”
It was too precious to waste on a half-hearted performance only because of a scandal, especially when we were given such a good opportunity such as a year-end stage.
“…What? Oh, but we’ve already decided on the song, and we can’t change it.”
“No, I’m not saying we change the song.”
I flashed a smile, the so-called harmless and kind smile that the members really disliked.
“Let’s just tweak the concept a bit?”
***
What the hell do I do?
The youngest member of Lea Purple sat hunched in a corner of the practice room, her expression one of despair.
I mean, The Dawn has been so popular lately… If we get associated with them, are we really saying goodbye to the world?
Even if they maintained a two-meter separation during their collab stage, if they presented a sexy concept–especially with a song from a senior artist in Lea Purple’s company–the blame and criticism would fall squarely on them like arrows.
No, no. Criticism is fine. We’re used to it after being cursed out so much… Just don’t get involved in a scandal this time…!
Those who wanted to criticize would do so anyway. She just hoped they wouldn’t fall into some weird flow and spark a scandal like last time.
Wow, I thought the world was ending back then…
The youngest member of Lea Purple stared blankly into space before looking around at the other members, who seemed to share her gloom.
Just then, at the far end of the practice room, Seong Jiwon, who had been talking to the members of The Dawn, caught her eye while taking a drink of water. Seong Jiwon reflexively widened his eyes and offered a new bottle of water.
“Want some water?”
“Oh, th-thank you… AAAHH!!”
Though there was no bad blood, the shock of nearly brushing fingers while receiving the water bottle made her react almost allergically. As she clutched her racing heart and stepped back, Seong Jiwon slightly lowered his eyebrows and laughed.
“S-sorry.”
“Haha… No worries.”
He then slid the water bottle toward her and sat down at a safe distance, rhythmically tapping his fingers on the floor, likely going over the choreography in his head.
As she watched him, Lea Purple’s maknae couldn’t help but be impressed. She wondered if he was thinking about reviewing the choreography even in this situation.
“…Wow, that’s impressive.”
“Huh?”
“Ugh!”
She had told herself to be careful, yet she blurted out what she was thinking. As Seong Jiwon turned around, she desperately tried to explain herself.
“Oh, no. I was just thinking you’re amazing. I knew you were famous for practicing hard, but… it looks like you’re still at it even now.”
It was 100 percent sincere, but the more she spoke, the more it sounded like she was being sarcastic. Just as she wished she could sew her mouth shut, Seong Jiwon smiled ambiguously.
“It bothers you, doesn’t it?”
“…”
“It’s okay, really.”
“…Yes?”
It was a perplexing feeling.
From a short distance away, Kang Ichae, who had been sprawled out, sat up and brushed back his tousled hair as he said,
“Ah~ isn’t it about time he comes back?”
“If he said he was going out for some fresh air, then it’s a hundred percent sure.”
Other members of The Dawn added their comments, making her feel even more lost in a maze. Regardless, Kang Ichae dug into his pocket, pulled out a candy, and chomped down on it noisily.
“I wonder who he is nagging this time?”
“Either the planning team or Composer Cheongbeom.”
“It must be the planning team. Didn’t the composer go to the US recently?”
“Eh? Why?”
However, his question was soon answered when Seo Hoyun returned alongside Lea Purple’s main dancer.
Seo Hoyun spoke in a nonchalant tone.
“Let’s have a quick meeting.”
“Yessir~.”
When everyone gathered in the center of the practice room, Seo Hoyun started to speak,
“I think we should start with a concept revamp.”
“Are you thinking of ditching the sexy concept?”
“No, not that… I was thinking of adding another concept on top of it.”
The more Seo Hoyun explained, the more the members were drawn into his logic, despite initially thinking, “What kind of crazy talk is this?”
“Really?”
What started as a doubtful response…
“…Oh, that makes sense??”
…turned into agreement.
Based on Lee Jihyeon’s concept, the members of Lea Purple and some from The Dawn (namely Kim Seonghyeon and Jeong Dajun) looked at him as if they were enchanted.
“It’s such a good song and a valuable opportunity to perform on such a big stage; it would be too much to just let it pass.”
Indeed, they could kill two birds with one stone: remain true to the song’s concept while avoiding any scandals.
Seo Hoyun finished his explanation by declining the candy offered by Kang Ichae.
“…So, what do you think about doing it this way? The lyrics are perfect for it.”
“Yes!!”
“Let’s do it!”
Everyone nodded their heads excitedly. Kang Ichae, in particular, was thrilled, chewing on the candy Seo Hoyun had refused and scribbling down ideas for the arrangement.
“Then, let’s go with that. Let’s meet again in two days.”
“Please take care of us!”
“Yes, please take care of us.”
Seo Hoyun said his casual farewells and stood up with The Dawn. Kim Seonghyeon nudged Seo Hoyun teasingly.
“It’s Lee Jihyeon, right? What did you give her?”
“I don’t know, something about card game illustrations. If she really wants it, why doesn’t she just take a screenshot.”
“Well, she probably wants to collect it.”
Kang Ichae chimed in from the side. As they bantered about how they could just print their photo cards, too, The Dawn left the practice room.
Left alone in the bustling practice room, Lea Purple’s youngest finally recalled the conversation The Dawn members were having and muttered in dismay,
“There’s a reason why The Dawn is so popular…”
It was a curious thing.
“There really was a breakthrough.”
Unaware that this breakthrough had been won by offering mobile game gacha as a bonus to Lee Jihyeon, she sincerely admired Seo Hoyun.
.
.
.
And Seo Hoyun, who had suggested this breakthrough, was about to face an unexpected crisis.
It started the moment he got into the van. The manager excitedly shared the news.
“Hoyun!! I’ve got such great news! Yu Jia and Min Jiheon have each been nominated for the acting awards! To celebrate, they’ve been asked to do a special performance, and you’re included!!”
“…What?”
“That’s right, Yu Jia, Min Jiheon, and you—the three of you are going to perform at the awards ceremony!”
“…”
Seo Hoyun was flabbergasted.
With Min Jiheon and Yu Jia?
