Chapter 1: Idol debut

“The last member of the debut group is. Shin Siwoo, it’s you.”

“Pardon?”

Unlike his solemn voice, the man was smiling brightly as he looked at me, and I blurted out a foolish question.

He was a judge, a trainer, and the producer of this project.

I couldn’t believe that he had chosen me as the last member.

Like thin ice on the verge of cracking, the precariously maintained atmosphere instantly heated up.

“Hey! Shin Siwoo, damn it! It’s debut! Debut!”

“Hey, you bastard! You’re totally out of it!”

My fellow trainees, who wrapped their arms around my neck and slapped my back while shouting.

No, now they were my fellow debut group members.

I couldn’t even bring myself to open my mouth about what had just happened, and all I could do was take the hits.

To that extent, the current situation was shocking.

“Congratulations.”

“Th-thank you.”

I replied in a voice completely devoid of strength and shook his hand.

And at the same time, my eyes fell upon the people standing on the opposite side, a little distance away from me.

The intersection of joy and sorrow. Eyes filled with envy and jealousy.

Unlike the bright and overwhelming atmosphere around me, their infinitely subdued and gloomy mood was the exact opposite, as if printed by a decalcomania.

“Work hard in the future, and I look forward to working with you.”

“I will work hard.”

I deliberately turned my eyes away from them and looked at the man who held my hand tightly and my colleagues who were congratulating me.

On a joyous day like this, I wanted to remain in this warm, bright, and vibrant atmosphere that surrounded me.

****

– Really? So, are you eating well?

“Yes, I’m eating with the members right now. Have you eaten, Director?”

At the voice coming through the speaker, I felt like I might involuntarily burst into tears.

Even though I’d conveyed the important fact that I’d joined the debut group, the Director remained unchanged.

Every time I called, he’d act like he didn’t hear any other news, but he’d persistently ask about my meals.

Normally, wouldn’t ‘congratulations’ be the first thing to say?

Along with that thought, I exhaled deeply, praying for my tears to stop, even a little.

But the tears I thought I’d completely shed seemed to have welled up again.

I rubbed my tingling nose, watching my white breath.

– Of course I’ve eaten. More importantly, weren’t you eating? Your food will get cold while we talk, you rascal. Go back in and finish your meal.

“Yes, Director, please rest as well.”

– Alright, eat well.

“Yes.”

I took the smartphone away from my ear and stared silently at the screen.

Then, after about 3 seconds, the call ended.

His complaints about how difficult smartphones were to use came to mind, and my nose tingled again for no reason.

“Hey, if you’re done with the call, come in quickly. Taemin-hyung is going to eat all the pizza.”

“Alright.”

I nodded and followed him inside, my expression naturally scrunching up at the strong smell of alcohol filling the house.

And at the sight of the members sprawled out, the cause of the smell, I even sighed.

“Why did you drink so much?”

“Because there’s alcohol, so I drink! You drink too, you bastard!”

I asked Taemin-hyung, who was holding a pizza and grinning for some reason.

But all I got back was a foolish answer.

I wanted to tell him that I was a minor, but seeing the guy already tipping a glass next to him, the thought vanished.

“Hey, Yoon Siwoo, even you…”

“Why? Do you want some too? Minwoo-hyung, Siwoo wants beer.”

“No. I’m good.”

“Don’t hold back, just drink it too. When else will you drink if not now? After we debut, we won’t be able to drink even if we want to.”

“We’re minors.”

“Hey, what’s the problem if we’re drinking with a guardian?”

Yoon Siwoo said that and pointed at Taemin-hyung, who was diligently stuffing pizza into his mouth.

He was an adult, being 21 this year, but he wasn’t exactly trustworthy as a guardian.

“Here, beer.”

“I’m not going to drink it.”

“Oh really? Then I’ll drink it.”

At Yoon Siwoo’s words, Minwoo-hyung, who had actually brought the beer, demonstratively opened the can and chugged it.

He must have just become an adult, but he seemed quite accustomed to it.

“If the teacher catches us, we’ll get scolded.”

“Just don’t get caught.”

Minwoo-hyung left only those words and went back to sit at the table.

I was quietly watching him, staring blankly, seemingly lost in thought, when suddenly someone nudged my leg.

I turned my head and, as expected, saw Taemin-hyung, who was completely plastered.

“Hey, Siwoo. If you don’t eat the pizza, I’ll eat it all, okay?”

“No, hyung… leave one slice. I haven’t had any yet…”

“I havan’t had any yet~”

“…”

Even though he was completely drunk and not in his right mind, his annoying habit of teasing people remained.

As a form of retaliation, I snatched the pizza from this drunkard sprawled on the floor in front of the sofa.

He reached out for the pizza with an “Ah!” but it was already comfortably in my mouth.

His regretful expression was quite satisfying to see.

“Wow~ The maknae is even taking his hyung’s food now! Tes-hyung! What’s wrong with the world~”

“Hyung-ssi, Tes-hyung says to stop your drunken antics and go to sleep.”

With the already cold pizza in my mouth, I pushed away the hand he stretched out to me with my foot.

Then, muttering “TS-hyung~”, he just lay down on the floor.

He’s truly someone who would rather die than listen to others.

The ‘Tes-hyung’ that flowed from his mouth soon became ‘TS-hyung’, and then it turned into ‘TS-virus’.

It was a disease that was causing a huge fuss on the news and internet.

Perhaps it was because he heard it too much, or because it was that shocking, but it seems he’s even mumbling about it in his sleep.

More importantly.

“Is Taemin-hyung dead?”

“Leave him. He’ll figure it out.”

I tried talking to Yoon Siwoo, who was looking at his smartphone, but he showed no interest.

It would be a big problem if he caught a cold, so I tried to wake Taemin-hyung, but he was sleeping like the dead and wouldn’t get up.

Helplessly, I brought a blanket from the room and covered him.

Because if his physical condition worsened, it would affect practice.

“You’re truly devoted too.”

Yoon Siwoo always picked a fight with me whenever he saw me act like this.

With a slightly displeased expression.

“Now that we’re in the debut group, we need to be more careful.”

“Body management is their own responsibility, why do you go so far unnecessarily? You’re not their errand boy.”

“I won’t take care of you later.”

“You don’t have to.”

Saying that, Yoon Siwoo flopped onto the sofa and concentrated on his smartphone.

He was probably playing a game.

“You know we have filming tomorrow, right? Don’t stay up too late.”

“Okay.”

“Minwoo-hyung, you should sleep now too. It’s already 2 AM. We have to wake up at 4 AM.”

I tried talking to Minwoo-hyung, who was sitting at the table, staring blankly at the refrigerator, but he just showed me the beer can in his hand and didn’t seem to have any intention of sleeping.

Does that mean he’ll sleep once he finishes the can in his hand?

Or does it just mean ‘don’t bother me’?

Given Minwoo-hyung’s personality, it’s probably the latter.

He’s so self-willed and free-spirited, so that must be it.

There were two people sprawled in the living room, including Taemin-hyung.

Three people were awake.

The remaining two were probably sleeping in their rooms.

Yoon Siwoo and Minwoo-hyung here wouldn’t listen even if I spoke to them.

I’ll just leave them be and go to sleep.

“I’m going to sleep first.”

After saying that, I entered the room and immediately threw myself onto the bunk bed.

And then, at the soft touch of the blanket, my eyes instantly closed, and I finally fell into a sleep as if losing consciousness.