“You’re the one who stole Kang Kiyeon’s pillow during the farming experience, right?”
“So it was you?”
Kang Kiyeon, who had been listening quietly, glared. He must have suffered quite a bit sleeping without a pillow.
Lee Cheonghyeon’s eyes widened.
“How did you even see that?!”
“You think there’s anything in this team I don’t know?”
Kim Iwol was confident. He exuded so much confidence that Won Chaehee wondered if the only thing he didn’t know were the mbers’ resident registration numbers.
“It seems we have a stalemate.”
“They’re just picking at each other’s weaknesses…”
Jeong Seongbin and Choi Jeho expressed their surprise in different ways. In any case, the fans were thrilled.
“I really didn’t want to bring this up.”
Lee Cheonghyeon placed his hands on his hips. His stance carried an air of determination.
“Hyung.”
“Yeah?”
The two n exchanged leisurely glances.
This pairing had great visuals. Thinking that, Won Chaehee pressed the video recording button.
“Hyung, you saved Seongbin hyung’s na in your contacts as ‘Spiritual Pillar Jeong Seongbin’, right?”
“Pfft!”
A huge bomb had been dropped. Screams erupted from everywhere.
Kim Iwol’s face, as he choked back a mouthful of water, turned as red as an apple. Jeong Seongbin’s face was even redder.
“You… you saw that?”
He even confird it was true. Kim Iwol’s face alternated between red and blue.
Then, starting from under his shirt collar, his skin gradually turned red. Finally, even his ears were flushed. It was an unusual sight for Kim Iwol, who was usually as pale as a polar bear.
He’d acted so professionally in front of the cara, and now she was witnessing Kim Iwol crumble.
“You asked to send out the video conference link for you last ti. I saw it then.”
“Ah…”
“Our Seongbin hyung must be a pretty reliable leader to you, huh? Right? I love our leader so much too!”
Won Chaehee’s intuition scread that this was an extrely rare situation. She eagerly captured every fra of Kim Iwol struggling to keep his expression in check.
“First, let explain. Everyone, I absolutely did not snoop on hyung’s private stuff! Hyung asked first! He asked to send sothing using his account! We don’t have our own phones yet, so we share a laptop, and things like this happen often.”
“Don’t you usually use your tablet?”
“We were on vacation in Busan then, so I didn’t have it.”
Then Spark briefly lanted the ‘difficulties of group life without personal electronic devices’. It was a harsh story for modern people who couldn’t live without their smartphones.
“We’re always logging in and out of accounts on the laptop and shared phone.”
“Or Seongbin hyung just relays ssages for us.”
“Right. So, half of Seongbin hyung’s ssages are ‘Joowoo confird!’ or ‘The maknaes confird!’”
She didn’t expect UA to be so old-fashioned. But it was better than having dating scandals or controversies because of personal phones. She was curious when UA would finally allow them to have personal phones.
“For the record, I saw everyone’s saved nas because it was in the group chat. Mine was ‘Cutie Pretty Visual’?”
Laughter erupted from everywhere at the nickna that seed to revere beauty. Kim Iwol buried his face in his hands.
Lee Cheonghyeon, the person involved, was unfazed. He seed to be living up to his nickna. He made a flower pose with his hands, then wiggled his fingers and approached Kim Iwol.
“Hyung, am I that cute?”
“…….”
“Cheonghyeon is quite pretty, right?”
“…….”
“Maybe I’m actually ant to be the visual of this team?”
“Ha…”
Kim Iwol let out a deep sigh. His head had been hanging low for a while now.
Lee Cheonghyeon slung an arm around Kim Iwol’s shoulder.
“Well, it’s not strange that you think of that way, hyung.”
“…….”
“You complint my face a lot. You’re strict about skincare, but still. I would have been a bit hurt if you just saved it as ‘Spark Lee Cheonghyeon’.”
Lee Cheonghyeon teased,
“But it was a bit surprising that you think of Kang Kiyeon that way too.”
“……!”
“You saved Kang Kiyeong’s na as ‘King of Cuteness[1]Aigoo, it’s a pun. King of Cuteness→Wang Gwiyoun. Sounds similar to Kang Kiyeon’s na. ’…”
“Let’s stop. I lost.”
Kim Iwol declared, covering Lee Cheonghyeon’s mouth with an antibacterial tissue.
Unfortunately, in the ti it took him to pull out the tissue, the damage was already done. He must have been delayed by the naive thought that he shouldn’t touch Lee Cheonghyeon’s face with his bare hands.
Kang Kiyeon covered his mouth with his hand and muttered.
“King of Cuteness?”
Hearing Kang Kiyeon’s muffled voice, Lee Cheonghyeon broke through Kim Iwol’s tissue barricade and shouted.
“He saved Kang Kiyeon as ‘King of Cuteness’!”
Kang Kiyeon’s face flushed like a boy who’d just received a confession.
The fans went wild. Requests poured in for the other mbers’ saved nas.
“Everyone, are you curious?”
Kim Iwol, now drowning in embarrassnt, asked in a resigned voice.
“Totally!”
In such situations, idols had several options. First, a war of nerves. Second, pretend not to hear and change the subject. Shift the bla to the mber who started it and kill the mood.
But Kim Iwol didn’t let go of the microphone. The fans had faith that Kim Iwol would do anything they wanted.
“Then I guess I have to tell you.”
His voice was full of resignation. It also sounded like he was surrendering to fate.
“Joowoo hyung’s was really funny. Hurry up and tell them, hyung.”
Lee Cheonghyeon slung an arm around Kim Iwol’s shoulder and stood leaning against him.
They said that Spark never hung their heads for long in front of fans. True to that, Kim Iwol quickly lifted his head. However, his hand still covered his flushed cheek.
“19-Year Vintage tal Marbles Park Joowoo…”
Now Kim Iwol was practically whimpering.
“So, are you going to update Joowoo hyung’s nickna every year? 20-Year-Old, 21-Year-Old, like that?”
“Don’t ask.”
Kim Iwol gently pushed Lee Cheonghyeon away with a miserable expression.
Cheonghyeon only grinned as he staggered back for show. Won Chaehee passionately captured the scene with her cara.
“Still, hyung, I’m really happy.”
“Why? Because you’re Cutie Pretty Visual?”
“No.”
Lee Cheonghyeon smiled the most innocent smile in the world.
“Because our oldest hyungs are so close.”
“……!”
“Who would have guessed? Hyung saved Jeho hyung as ‘Center Emperor Choi Jeho’. As expected, Jeho hyung is number one in hyung’s heart, right? Cheonghyeon is so touched by your friendship that he might cry.”
Through the lens, she saw Center Emperor Choi Jeho freeze. Kim Iwol had perished gloriously.
She found out later that ‘Center Emperor Choi Jeho’ had been trending in real-ti since the middle of the fan eting.
It was a beautiful friendship.
* * *
After Kim Iwol’s spectacular display of public embarrassnt, Jeong Seongbin regained control of the situation. The atmosphere didn’t settle down easily, but the audience eventually quieted down.
“Actually, everything up until now was just the appetizer, right?”
Jeong Seongbin addressed the mbers.
It had felt more like a full-course al though. Perhaps because it had been a while since she last used her long lens cara, Won Chaehee’s arms were starting to ache.
“Since everyone’s probably tired from taking pictures, and it would be a sha to only see us through your cara lenses, we’ve prepared so content for you to relax and enjoy with your eyes and ears! So, please put down your caras and phones for a mont!”
In other words, this was no-leak segnts. Won Chaehee wasn’t new enough to misunderstand.
Of course, so people still didn’t put down their phones.
However, it was a pointless act. The lights in the venue went out completely.
Then, the beam projector turned on.
‘Is it a fan VCR or sothing?’
If that was the case, people would want to record it even more. At the very least, they’d try to capture the audio.
Still, she didn’t want to be scolded by security for doing sothing she wasn’t supposed to do at a fan eting of a relatively new group. Won Chaehee decided to just watch the video.
The screen showed soone’s hands playing a piano in a sunlit music room with green leaves visible through the window.
『I rember you,
The one who watched over 』
A warm lody, fitting the color palette of the screen, filled the air.
The scene shifted to a classroom, where a hand wrote sothing small in chalk on the corner of the blackboard.
The sound of chalk tapping on the blackboard was incorporated into the accompanint along with the acoustic guitar.
As the person turned, a na tag that read ‘Park Joowoo’ was visible on their clothes.
Park Joowoo’s characteristically scratchy voice, almost a whisper, added depth to the song.
『At the end of my drawing,
It was always you
To et you,
I drew even in my dreams
You, us』
A hand bouncing a basketball, a hand solving problems in a workbook, a hand fiddling with a pen held in the mouth, a hand locking a classroom door…
The crowd, which had beco montarily noisy, thinking it was a new song, quickly quieted down.
The lyrics appearing on the screen revealed that this was a fan song.
『This hand that wondered
If soone would hold it
I carefully reached out
With a trembling heart』
Jeong Seongbin’s delicate falsetto flowed smoothly.
Jeong Seong-in, who had been solving problems in a workbook, looked towards the window.
『You held it
That warm hand
I wanted to hold it forever
And run』
Kang Kiyeon’s hand, about to lock the door, gently grasped the old lock.
Even though he wasn’t a main vocalist, Kang Kiyeon’s vocals were smooth. Even Won Chaehee, who wasn’t yet fully biased, could tell. It hinted at the amount of practice he put in.
The screen changed again, shifting to a gymnasium with the squeaking sound of shoe soles.
Choi Jeho, wearing a white t-shirt and gray sweatpants, engrossed in playing basketball, filled the screen.
『Even though I erased and erased,
And took many detours,
Still, you know,
Won’t you listen to ?』
The lody was so low that it was hard to tell if it was a question or a statent, but this made it feel less like a request and more like gently inviting the listener to sit down.
Choi Jeho’s basketball bounced on the floor again. With the rising basketball, the scene transitioned upwards.
Lips holding a pen were highlighted again. As the cara zood out, Kim Iwol, looking at a notebook, was revealed.
Kim Iwol held the pen in his mouth, rested it on his lips, and twirled it with his fingers.
Then, hesitantly, he wrote sothing.
『This heart
Tell it’s okay to give it to you
Let give it a na』
The notebook was zood in on.
It was a page with the word ‘like’ written on it.
『Love』
The drum beat beca stronger. More instrunts joined in, enriching the lody.
And finally, it gradually faded.
『Let’s sit side by side
And watch the bright night sky together』
The crackling sound of lit sparklers filled the space left by the fading guitar.
The sound of crashing waves and the gentle pressing of a few piano keys blended together like paint.
『This mont
Let’s never forget』
Two lit sparklers burned down on the screen.
Then, the screen went dark.
‘I’m dood.’
In the darkness, Won Chaehee realized sothing.
She had just fallen head over heels.
―
Profile
Na: Park Joowoo
Birthday: September 22nd
Birthplace: Daejeon, South Korea
Height: 181 cm
MBTI: INFP
Nicknas: 19-Year-Old Vintage tal Marble, Human of Dawn Mountain Fog, Fluffball, Sloth, Limited-Ti Sniper
Likes: Bands, microfiber blankets, cleanliness
Dislikes: Spicy food
Motto: Let’s all be happy together
Favorite Food: Yogurt
Preferred Scent: Unscented
Favorite Music Genre: Rock
Favorite Sport: Billiards
Most Confident Body Part: …Biceps?
Unique Habit: Wearing headphones with no music playing
1. Aigoo, it’s a pun. King of Cuteness→Wang Gwiyoun. Sounds similar to Kang Kiyeon’s na.
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