After the concert ended.
We arrived back at the dorm after sharing drinks and stories with our families, and made a video call with CEO Park Gyu-ho.
On the screen, CEO Park chuckled.
“I must have looked suspicious again, hah-hah! It took ages to clear up that misunderstanding. I still don’t know why they jumped to conclusions.”
“Well, yes,” we laughed.
“Maybe the security staff were just doing their jobs so diligently.”
“That’s right—they did exactly as they should.”
He later told us he praised the flustered security guards once the misunderstanding was cleared: even the company CEO must follow the rules without exception. Then he boasted that he’d treated everyone to at, and we laughed and said how generous he was.
“Anyway. You all worked so hard these past three days doing the concert. The single drops tomorrow, right?”
“Yes, CEO.”
“Get so good rest. Enjoy that at.”
“We’ll eat it gratefully!”
The CEO gave us a wistful smile of “Eat plenty and bring back lots of money,” waved, and the call ended.
“All right.”
I declared to my wide-eyed brothers, “The ti has co, you rascals.”
“at! at!”
“Let’s throw a at party!”
“Waaaah...”
Just as we were about to cheer, Biju pointed at his watch, worried about the handso boys below getting a good night’s sleep.
Hearing it was almost midnight, we quietly applauded.
Jiho, staring at his phone, said, “Should we call them up and share a few pieces of at? I think they said they’re hungry from preparing the coback.”
“No—if we interfere with their diet while they’re working on the album, that’d be wrong.”
“Right, right.”
We giggled happily.
In the spacious duplex villa’s kitchen, we set up the tabletop grill, and Junghyun pulled premium, heavily marbled beef from the fridge.
“Waaaaaah!”
We flapped our hands in delight. The CEO had sourced this top-quality beef from a friend who runs a ranch.
Looking up at the chandelier, we praised him. “Thank you, CEO!”
“We’ll eat well and earn big money...!”
And so the at party began.
Junghyun’s dazzling scissor skills cut perfect strips of at that he devoured, trembling with joy. Yes—this was the taste we’d dread of. We wrapped each bite in leafy greens and fed one another in brotherly fashion.
“A bite for our cute maknae~”
“A bite for our respected hyung~”
“Ha-ha-ha-hat!”
Thanks to the sweet beef, the atmosphere turned warm and convivial. Maybe because it wasn’t zero-calorie cola this ti, we got carried away by the festivity.
“You guys really worked hard on the concert and album.”
“Everyone did so well, truly.”
“This ti felt like the hardest yet—preparing a concert and recording an album at the sa ti.”
We vowed firmly that next ti we’d choose to do just one or the other.
Ri-hyuk grimaced and added, “And we mustn’t forget MiP—filming the variety show really drained our stamina.”
“Right, MiP too.”
“Hyungs! Since we’re on the topic, let’s watch MiP!”
But we didn’t need to hook up a tablet PC or move to the living room to watch Mister Producer: we had the perfect solution.
Jiho gave a sly grin and held up his phone. “I’ll summon it.”
Suddenly, sothing began glowing and shifting in the living room.
[Welco, Master.]
[Please wait a mont.]
With a whirring sound, the kitchen rolled in a giant TV on wheels, and we all burst out laughing.
Monday afternoon.
Suple eagerly awaited the upcoming music video and single.
“Love you, NewBlack!!!”
“Just a few hours until release... but I’m not ntally ready.”
“My heart’s pounding 😭😭😭😭”
“Even though I know the song is great, I’m so nervous.”
“Can’t wait to see the MV 😭 I missed the concert and MiP, so the MV is all I have.”
“Is the MV director the sa one as for Nine? The teaser’s visuals are gorgeous 😭😭😭😭”
“Director, let’s keep walking the NewBlack path.”
When we first heard we’d work again with the director who fild Nine’s 100M-view MV, we worried.
“Will they capture the Korean-ness well...?”
Nine’s heavy cyberpunk and neon style was so different. But the mont we saw the teaser’s stunning cinematography, our doubts vanished. Now, we just wanted to watch the full MV.
Refreshing the MiTube page and typing “bijusi♡” in the community chat, suddenly:
“It’s up...!”
The MV appeared on the official NewBlackTV channel.
While streaming the album on music platforms, I took a deep breath and clicked play.
“Woaaaah...”
Under a navy sky, leaves glowed on tree branches. The leader’s hair fluttered as he gazed into the void.
Swoosh—
Petals scattered in the spring breeze. As they settled on shoulders and hair, a long, pale hand plucked one.
Smiling softly, he blew, and the petal drifted away.
The petal, having lost its luster as it fell, regained its brilliance and hovered in midair. Across it, shimring characters appeared:
Nakhwa (落花)
With the brush-written title, five n lined up in striking formation. Against a traditional-style backdrop, their dazzling choreography srized Suple, who watched entranced.
...My heart overflowed.
“Soone acknowledge how stunning our boys are!”
If beauty could save the world, NewBlack would be heroes of the alien invasion. Suple sighed deeply.
“Is this my spot to lie down?”
The rapper, sleeves loosened, perched on a tree branch under the moon. The main dancer, in a midnight garden, tilted an empty glass and let a tear drop fall into it. The main vocalist traced bare branches, coaxing flowers to bloom. The sub-vocalist, tears still glistening, wore jade earrings as he walked. Each shot was a fandom dream co true.
“Co back when flowers bloom
Co back when flowers bloom”
And the chorus, impossibly infectious, looped in our ears.
Suple moved to comnt... and paused.
“Why are there so many foreigners...?”
During the hiatus, Korean comnts had dominated. Now, it felt like an English wave would wash us away. The comnt section brimd with excited foreign languages:
“I don’t know much about Korean culture, but I’m sure I’ll learn from today”
“Dislike-ers, wanna co to my house? My double-barrel shotgun’s waiting to chat”
“This is insane”
“NBLK’s charm is so varied. Every new song I think, ‘How will they top this?’ And they do. I’m so into NewBlack.”
“Is NewBlack not famous in Korea? My new roommate’s Korean and was surprised I’m a fan.”
“02:47—rember that ti? My heart stopped.”
Seeing foreigners rave in English about how aweso NewBlack is, Suple blinked. Surely, a Korean-flavored track would find fans everywhere. But more than that...
“Why are you all even more hyped?”
Watching foreign fans bouncing around, drunk on NewBlack energy, we laughed. Below, comnts in Japanese, Thai, and unrecognizable scripts scrolled. MiTube, stunned by the skyrocketing views, paused the video to ask, “What is this?” anwhile, dostic streaming charts blazed:
【Realti Charts】
NewBlack – Nakhwa (落花)
NewBlack – Kkotnori
NewBlack – In (因)
NewBlack – Yeon (緣)
NewBlack – Annyeong
Wherever you looked, Nakhwa was #1, and the B-sides lined up below. MiTube views and streaming numbers exploded so violently that Suple wondered, “Did our fandom grow this big?” And the dostic and international reactions were only the beginning.
“Oh? A NewBlack song ca out?”
“I guess a NewBlack song dropped.”
“Was that the ghost song thing? Nakhwa?”
Thanks to Mister Producer’s 25% viewership, the general public took notice. “NewBlack” flickered on music apps and MiTube hopages, and fingers tapped rapidly.
“Oooh.”
First-ti listeners of Nakhwa all said the sa: “This song is really good.” Without hesitation, they tapped “heart” or added it to playlists. As the song made its legendary impact from the start, idol communities began posting the Nakhwa MV to their best boards:
[NewBlack – Nakhwa Official MV]
Each refresh brought dozens more posts.
“Hmm... cryptic.”
“I’m not sure I like it. It’s not at all what I expected.”
“NewBlackTV’s site is lagging rn lol.”
“Expected more from the teaser, kind of left ‘huh?’.”
“Foreign fans seem to love this oriental vibe they can’t get enough of.”
Anti-fan comnts grabbed the early floor, but:
“The MV’s shot so well.”
“Look at that sheen.”
“This is gonna be huge lol.”
“Critical mont; great song and MV.”
“Curious about the stage.”
“Baramkkot was so subtle; this one blasts you from the first note haha.”
“Views? It’s like they have five foreign mbers.”
Praise for the song and MV overwheld the comnts. At the sa ti, Suple’s own hangouts filled with new faces:
“Hello... I’m new Suple.”
“Hi Suple >ㅇ
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