Chapter 72: The Techniques of an Idol Who Never Fails

Pretending to be tough after signing the contract, I felt a bit groggy. Since I had already had enough of the power struggle, I had no energy to intervene when the members fought at the ring shop.

“I’ll wear it on my pinky.”

“Isn’t the ring finger better?”

“Everyone can wear it where they want.”

“Hey, it’s a team ring, that’s a bit too casual.”

The members couldn’t even agree on which finger to wear the team ring. I didn’t expect everyone to be so serious about matching rings. I almost said, “If you were this serious, you should have matched them earlier,” but I kept my mouth shut, fearing they would blame me for my instability.

I was about to doze off again when Minjiho’s voice woke me up.

“Damn! You’re so pretty!”

“...Minjiho? Try to speak more politely.”

At my words, Minjiho whispered.

“Damn. Pretty.”

The members, as well as the ring shop owner, started laughing at this. The owner was my sister’s college friend, who had recently returned to Korea and opened the shop. We had talked about the team ring a few times before, and today we finally contacted her and came to the shop.

An Juyuan was translating the members’ random comments into design ideas. After a while, he seemed to get tired and sat next to me, asking,

“It’s going to cost a lot. Shouldn’t we all chip in? Or ask the company to pay?”

“I got a lot of advance money, so I’ll buy it. How often do we get a chance to show off like this for so long?”

I yawned and closed my eyes again. I planned to keep it even after leaving the company, so I swallowed the words about not asking for company support.

When I woke up again, the members had finished their argument and made a decision. On the design An Juyuan had sketched based on our opinions, the rings with the closest thickness were placed. Seven white gold rings for the right ring finger. After taking a photo with the members and posting it on Xbus, I told them,

“Wait in the car. I’ll be right out after a quick chat.”

“Bro, you’re spending too much money.”

“I really got a lot of advance money.”

I said this as I sent the members out and spoke to my sister’s friend, the shop owner.

“Sis, can you make them in platinum instead of white gold? They might tarnish if we don’t take good care of them.”

“Really? Isn’t that a bit too much?”

“It’s our first ring, and I feel bad for not renewing the contract earlier. Can you have them ready before our concert?”

“Sure, I’ll do it.”

“Thank you.”

“You should be the one to thank me. Thanks.”

Despite all the arguments, the final product was simple. They fight over trivial things, but in fact, everyone likes simple designs. We decided on a clean 4mm ring, with the Latin word LUX, meaning dawn and light, engraved on it, and a unique number inside.

As we left the ring shop and headed back to the dorm in the car, it started snowing heavily. It was an early first snow.

“I need to tell the Haeuls.”

Minjiho quickly turned on Xbus.

* * *

[Is this about Haewon renewing the contract with TRV? 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[↳Yes 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[↳I can’t believe it 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[↳Did he do this in a hurry because he was worried about us?]

[↳↳Haewon would do this and more...]

[Minjo: Haeuls!!!!!!!!!!!! We’re on our way back to the dorm, and it’s snowing! What’s happening in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Congratulations on Haewon’s renewal and the matching rings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[Damn, I’m crying.]

[Let’s really last long 😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[Jaewoon: What’s this? It’s snow to celebrate my college entrance exam.]

[↳Minjo: No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[↳Jaewoon: It’s snow to celebrate the hard work of the Haeuls who took the exam.]

[↳Minjo: !!!!!!! That’s right…… It’s snow to celebrate Haewon’s renewal, the matching rings, and the hard work of the Haeuls who took the exam!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

Then, a little later, Shin Jiwoon posted a photo of the lunch box he made in the morning on Xbus.

[Jaewoon: The members woke up early to make this lunch box…… It tasted surprisingly good?]

[↳Sunrise: Main chef Hwang Sunyeop + behind-the-scenes video shooting Jeong Haewon + egg roll An Juyuan + salad Han Hyosik + ham Minjiho, Park Sunjae]

[Wow 😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[Are the members really trying to make the Haeuls cry today? 😭😭😭😭😭]

[But the ham 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 They did 1 person’s share together 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂]

[↳Youngest: Minjo cut it, and I cooked it, so it’s 2 people’s share!!!!!!]

[↳↳Miraculous calculation 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂]

[↳↳Sunjae, I love you, but it’s still 1 person’s share…….]

[↳↳↳Youngest: Aww 😭😭😭😭]

[↳↳↳↳Oh 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭]

[↳↳↳↳Got it, let’s do 2 people’s share! Who said it’s 1 person’s share!]

Today, from early morning, making lunch boxes, taking the college entrance exam, renewing the contract, and getting matching rings…… Firstlight really lived a dramatic day 😂😂

And as the incident wrapped up, the conversation returned to the contract renewal.

[But did Haewon really renew with TRV? After what the company did?]

[It’s great that he renewed, but it’s hard to let it go…….]

[It seemed almost certain that he would go to Terminal Entertainment…….]

[But the strangest thing is…… why did the renewal news break when VMC was getting cursed out? The renewal was still a month and a half away.]

Public opinion began to point out the timing of the news.

[Thinking about it, it’s even more strange that he’s going to a subsidiary of VMC 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂]

[The timing is strange, and the direction of the news is strange.]

Terminal Entertainment’s offer was excellent.

From PD Park Kyungseok’s perspective, even if Jeong Haewon didn’t sign with Terminal Entertainment, he expected Haewon to at least consider it for a few days. And during that time, the criticism of Kuk Sun-a would have calmed down.

However, the renewal was completed in just one day, and Jeong Haewon politely declined Terminal Entertainment’s offer.

VMC eventually demoted PD Park Kyungseok, but public opinion didn’t easily settle down.

* * *

The official concert practice began. It was fortunate that the renewal was completed quickly. My mind felt much clearer, and I could focus much better on practice.

We also had to prepare for the awards ceremony, so there was no time to dwell on the completed contract.

During the breaks, I would take out a snack pack from my padded jacket pocket. Rehearsing, arranging, rehearsing, and arranging repeatedly made me skip meals, and my weight kept dropping. While it might not be noticeable on TV, being too thin at the concert wouldn’t look good to the fans, so I was forcing myself to eat snacks to maintain my weight.

When I was peeling a chocolate bar in a corner of the practice room, Park Sunjae quietly sat next to me and asked,

“Bro…… is it good?”

“No. I’m just eating it because I have to.”

“Ugh, you must be tough. The world is really unfair…….”

Park Sunjae, who tends to gain weight easily, was banned from snacks for a while. Minjiho was also on a diet, reducing his usual 3-person share to about 1.5. It was a pretty impressive diet.

I slipped a chocolate into Park Sunjae’s pocket.

“Can’t you have one?”

Park Sunjae’s face brightened as he pushed the chocolate deep into his pocket.

“Yeah, one’s okay.”

“Eat it and exercise with Hyosik.”

“Absolutely not.”

Park Sunjae’s expression turned serious. It must have been really tough.

Meanwhile, Han Hyosik was practicing a solo dance break with the dancers, incorporating ballet moves for the concert. Park Sunjae said,

“Hyosik’s body is really beautiful.”

“Yeah, it is.”

His body, which he had meticulously sculpted through near-torture for pure art, could express emotions using even the muscles in his fingertips and toes.

I sat down and watched Han Hyosik’s choreography.

Wearing training clothes similar to the other dancers, he made the same dance feel like a different genre. His core strength, professional technique, and overwhelming flexibility were beyond what an ordinary person could imagine. Everything about him stood out.

When it was my turn after Han Hyosik, I sat down and stretched. I also had a short dance break.

“Haewon’s choreography is really good and intense.”

Minjiho, who had seen my choreography, said this. I stood on the tape marked with an X.

“Ah, after Han Hyosik……”

Despite feeling exhausted, I was glad I had been greedy with the arrangement.

It was our first concert, so we filled the setlist with intense songs without knowing better. PD Lee Jung-ho, who was directing the concert, even asked if it would be like using an oxygen tank. It was a setlist we could only do at our current age. There was no one to stop the madness. We were doomed. Haha.

While practicing, familiar people entered our practice room.

“Excuse us.”

“It’s been a while.”

Two members of the debut group ‘Boys,’ Kuk Sun-a’s debut group, had arrived to practice for a special stage at the VMC Music Awards.

Then, the last member, Choi Yunsol, appeared after two years.

“Hey, Yunsol!”

Park Sunjae ran over happily. The other members were also delighted to see Choi Yunsol, who they thought had left the entertainment industry.

Being human, I was a bit selfish and not entirely happy to see Choi Yunsol. First, Firstlight is a team from Kuk Sun-a’s debut group, excluding the manipulated member, and Choi Yunsol’s information is known internally, so it’s not a result of manipulation. On the other hand, I’m not from the debut group. Seeing Choi Yunsol made me feel like a fake and like I had taken his place.

Second, if I said I disliked him for this, I’d be considered crazy, but……

The moment I saw Choi Yunsol’s face, a brief piece of information from a long premonition I once had came to mind.

- This is a song based on the emotions I felt during the two years I was confined to my room.

In that future, Choi Yunsol had taken my story and made it into a song. Choi Yunsol is a great songwriter, and the song became a hit. I remember feeling horrified as my story was played everywhere as music.

Fortunately, I wrote my story first. I’m glad. Hehe.

At that moment, Minjiho clapped and shouted,

“Let’s practice quickly! We need to get back to our concert practice, so we can’t spend much time here!”

Thanks to his call, the nine members of the Boys found their spots.

The first practice after each member had trained individually with their personal trainers. The moment the intro of Kuk Sun-a’s fundamental song, The King, started, I felt that despite being extremely tired, I had made the right decision to be greedy with the arrangement.

I couldn’t help but stiffen when I saw the members, except for me, standing in their positions, but I smiled when my arrangement started playing. The members, who had heard it during practice, also marveled at it again for my benefit.

Since VMC didn’t even put my name in the song introduction, I need to tell everyone that I arranged it.