Free Web NovelThe Iris members’ eyes widened.
“Wow.”
He was really handsome.
Distracted by Woo-ju’s face on the way in, they hadn’t noticed, but the senior singer before them looked unreal too.
A pronounced nose.
Soft lips.
If you didn’t know him, you’d gasp, “Oh, an actor!” fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
“Are you all right?”
Ji-ho reached out and helped the fallen member to his feet.
“Oh dear. There’s dust all over your clothes.”
“Th-thank you.”
Ji-ho, quietly watching the staff member disappearing down the hall, gave them a bright smile.
“You’re new here, right? Did you debut today?”
“Yes, we... Oh right! Greeting! Hey. Greet!”
The seven of them lined up in a row and bent at the waist ninety degrees.
“One, two, three! Hello, we’re Iris!”
“Ah, don’t greet like that. It’s embarrassing.”
Ji-ho waved his hands in embarrassment. Even that looked cool to Iris.
“Why so shy...?”
“Mm-hm, you don’t have to stand so stiff and greet like that. We’ve only been active for just over a year ourselves...”
“No way. You’re our seniors.”
NewBlack had officially debuted about eleven months ago.
Even counting from Something, their active time was only around a year and three months. Not long.
But to them it felt ancient.
Like first-year middle schoolers seeing third-year seniors, to a newly debuted rookie boy group every poster in the hallway seemed monumental.
And NewBlack, of course, towered above them.
In an industry where popularity is everything.
As of May 2015, NewBlack was one of the hottest boy groups.
Five of their songs were in the daily Top 100.
To Iris, whose only wish was to break into the charts, it felt impossibly distant.
–“I heard both the No. 1 candidates today are NewBlack’s.”
They recalled their manager’s words: the songs’ popularity had earned them No. 1 nominations.
They had even talked about “A Poem About Yesterday” themselves.
“Wow. That song is amazing. How did they make it?”
A member with composing skills had promised to analyze it, then buried his head in his hands moaning.
True to their reputation as skilled performers, each NewBlack member was outstanding.
“Hey. Want to try this for our end-of-month evaluation?”
They first heard NewBlack during the overseas fandom’s buzz over “Masquerade.”
They discovered the song while searching for precise choreography.
“Are you telling me to learn that?”
Watching Biju dance with such flexibility it looked like he spun in midair, the trainee dancing as main dancer let out a hollow laugh.
The result was plasters attached all along his waist and trainers ordering him to strengthen his core muscles.
Watching the performance was intimidating.
Others felt the same.
“They’re hitting high notes while dancing that hard?”
In “Masquerade,” Rih-yeok danced intense choreography and still hit the high notes.
The trainee planned as main vocalist groaned, “Just pick one! Either dance or sing!”
“...Weird. That rap part didn’t look so hard. Don’t muffle the pronunciation? No! That’s what he does well!”
Junghyeon’s rap part was no easier.
And...
“Who wants to try acting out the bridge part with all those expression changes?”
“...”
“Nobody?”
“...”
The part belonging to the person standing before them went without saying.
Expression acting may sound simple, but doing it naturally without making viewers uncomfortable is no mean feat.
Watching the beautiful man sweep his hair back, they all thought the same thing.
“It really feels like seeing a real star...”
When practicing “Masquerade,” NewBlack had seemed only a successfully debuted senior rookie group.
Now the gap felt immense.
Much of that came from media exposure.
Before, you had to search MiTube to see their faces; now they were everywhere on TV and social media.
Music Discovery, History Expedition, various variety shows...
As their thoughts went there, something occurred to them.
“Hm? Why does his speech sound different now?”
On variety shows Ji-ho’s speech had been halfway between “-yeo” and “-yo.”
Mischievously laughing, “Geuraeyeo? Jinjjaro?” that sort of feel.
“Oh!”
They lit up with the answer.
“That’s just for the show!”
Of course a kind person like this wouldn’t viciously torment the “brothers” as “Ha-gyagya! Imprison them all!” like a cruel magistrate.
They erased from memory the scene of Ji-ho dressed as a magistrate and Woo-ju beside him shouting “Yay!”—and Mid-hyun tied and dragged in ropes.
Ji-ho smiled and said,
“Don’t dwell on what just happened. The staff here are so busy...”
With a thoughtful look, he whispered,
“When you’re just debuting, things like that happen all the time. If you take it to heart you’ll go crazy.”
“Yes...”
“We had that too when we released our first album. Shoulder bumps, insults...”
Nodding as if to encourage them, he gave them a moment of comfort.
Then as a staff member passed by, Ji-ho bowed.
“Hello!”
“Uh, Ji-ho, hi.”
He smiled only at Ji-ho, ignoring the Iris members who greeted him.
Ji-ho awkwardly laughed and turned his gaze.
“The dry rehearsal starts soon. You’re Iris, right?”
“Yes!”
“Congratulations on your debut. Hope to see you around.”
“Thank you!”
Though in their second year of high school, Ji-ho didn’t look it at all.
As these newborn idols gazed at the senior singer exuding so much presence, they responded in awed voices, “Thank you!”
“Hey!”
A sharp, piercing voice rang out.
As Ji-ho made an “Eek” face, someone showing the ultimate chill walked over.
“What are you doing here, Bi-j....”
“I was looking for them and ran into you.”
“Yo?”
At Rih-yeok’s question, Ji-ho nodded three times quickly.
“Yo.”
“Ah... yo.”
As if exchanging code, each line drew Iris’s attention back and forth.
“Hello!”
Once more they greeted loudly.
Having heard the explanation, Rih-yeok gave a calm smile.
“I see. Congratulations on your debut.”
Their eyes went wide.
He had seemed so cold on TV, but in person felt warm.
“See, it’s all just a show!”
While they chatted, someone hummed a tune.
“...That’s it. Deok-soon-ah.”
As the song approached like an entrance theme for a wrestler, two tall figures appeared.
Woo-ju and Junghyeon.
Every member of Iris exclaimed again.
“Jo—”
Before they knew it they nearly blurted “He’s fucking handsome.”
Their faces shone with a halo, as if an artist painted light instead of features.
NewBlack’s members beamed at their admiration.
“What are you guys doing here... um?”
Woo-ju’s gaze turned to the rookie group, then he smiled and greeted them.
“Oh, it’s Iris. Right?”
“Yes?”
“How did you know...?”
“We listen to every idol song that comes out. ‘I Rise’ is great. I heard Red C composed it? It’s experimental but good. Mumba-ton isn’t mainstream here yet but...”
Even simple compliments like “Love the song, fighting” left the Iris members speechless.
They’d even watched the MV, heaping praise, which astonished them.
After all, the world isn’t twenty-four hours—who makes time to listen to junior idols’ songs...?
As they soaked in the warmth, Woo-ju exclaimed,
“Look at me. Hey. Where’s Biju...?”
“She’s not here?”
“She wasn’t when we checked.”
“You guys didn’t see her?”
Woo-ju made a puzzled face.
“Yo?”
“Yo.”
“Ah... yo.”
While they whispered among themselves, Junghyeon handed each of them a gummy.
Rainbow-colored bears matching their hair colors rested in their palms.
Shrinking back at his quiet generosity, they saw Junghyeon’s gentle smile.
“Want more?”
This person really was kind!
Just then, four of NewBlack’s members huddled in urgency and whispered as someone slowly emerged from the restroom.
“...Huh?”
All eyes turned to the bright-brown-haired boy.
“Biju-ya!”
“Biju hyung.”
They chattered among themselves that they’d been worried he might have gotten lost.
“Oh, I forgot to say where I was going. I found my way fine today. You know? If you walk along the right wall from our waiting room you’ll find the restroom.”
Fortunately Iris couldn’t hear their whispers.
“Hyung, I was really worried.”
“Yo?”
“Yo.”
“I see. A ‘yo’ situation.”
Then Biju’s bright smile turned back to them.
After a brief exchange, NewBlack waved to them.
“See you at dry rehearsal.”
“Yes!”
Watching NewBlack walk away together, they stared blankly.
“Amazing...”
Their impression of NewBlack only grew.
“That’s our spot.”
“Oh, sorry...”
As they took seats in the public hall before dry rehearsal, another boy group claimed those were their seats.
A solo singer barely gave a nod when they greeted him.
The more time passed, the more NewBlack seemed like celestial beings.
“Thank you for your hard work!”
After dry rehearsal, Iris headed back to the waiting room.
They greeted DreamTicket, who debuted a few weeks earlier.
Thanks to trainees who knew each other, they chatted easily.
Soon the topic turned to NewBlack, now a No. 1 candidate.
“NewBlack sunbaenims were so calm! So kind! Amazing!”
“Right? They’re great.”
DreamTicket nodded but frowned.
“Calm? They were the opposite of calm...”
As the story continued, the gap between the two rookie groups’ impressions of NewBlack only widened.
“...?”
“...?”
While they stared at each other, one DreamTicket member muttered,
“Weird. They weren’t like that yesterday... Are we meeting the same people?”
I followed someone’s lead and greeted,
“Hello. I’m NewBlack’s Ji-ho.”
“Puhahaha!”
“Hey, don’t tease me! I did my best. And I—what was it? When have I ever pulled that sleazy face?”
Ji-ho glared at me, but I just smiled.
“Hmm, my little lamb... Shall this sunbae help you?”
“Yes. Please take my hand.”
“Then let’s hold hands and get you up, shall we?”
Biju reached out and played along. Our staff burst into laughter.
“Ah, really! So annoying!”
Ji-ho shook his head on the sofa in mock annoyance, banged his head on the wall, and yelled “Ow!”
We clapped and laughed.
“Puhahaha!”
“Huhahat!”
“Annoying. Just you wait. I—”
“Well then. What could our maknae do?”
When I copied the expression of Ji-ho’s eldest sister to make him stop, he froze mid-sentence.
“...”
Perhaps he’d found no fitting revenge, so he huffed and grumbled like a maknae.
As Biju quietly soothed him, Rih-yeok chuckled.
“I thought there were five Woo-jus just now. All smiling the same.”
“I didn’t dare imitate, so I stayed silent.”
Junghyeon said proudly.
I chuckled.
So that’s who they were imitating—it was me.
I wanted to protest, Do I smile that sleazily? but decided to give up.
“Well, the original’s different. He has that uncopyable aura. More harmful and provocative than sleazy.”
I chose not to ask more.
Instead—
“Ji-ho, Ji-ho.”
“Yes?”
“Hyung has something to say~”
“Aaaah!”
We giggled as the maknae dashed out the dressing room.
Remembering the rookie boy group from this morning, I shivered.
We were the seniors.
They looked at us with sparkling eyes as if we’d done something amazing.
There was even someone older than me.
I was fine with others calling “sunbaenim,” but hearing it myself felt strange. Does it just bother me? Maybe I’ll try Rih-yeok.
“Sunbaenim.”
“Aaah!”
“Why so startled?”
“Oh, you scared me. Why are you doing this?”
“You feel awkward too when someone calls you ‘sunbaenim,’ right?”
“Is there anyone who isn’t?”
Junghyeon began scribbling rap lyrics in his notebook: “Your words are awkward, awkward, awkward / If it’s awkward, it’s the Turtle Ship.”
His lyrics briefly interrupted my thoughts.
What was I thinking about?
I’d been watching the rainbow-haired idols’ first stage on TV when I suddenly remembered something.
Me [Right]
Me [Eun-seong ah, when do you debut?]
Five minutes later I got a reluctant response with an emoji.
Sidekick [Hyung]
Sidekick [That]
Sidekick [Is]
Sidekick [Classified]
Me [One more letter and I’ll block you]
Sidekick [I cannot provide that information, Sergeant Sun-woo-ju]
What secrets does he have?
I know which company he joined, just not when.
At Ssum Entertainment.
A small indie agency famed in the industry as a hidden gem.
Great trainee welfare, good staff, strong planning—two successful solo artists.
When I was in the military they’d taught me “If you enter a company, consider these,” and thankfully it stuck.
Still, when will he debut?
Even if he can’t join “A Man Goes,” I need to give him some incentive.
“No. First among our group...”
As my gaze swept the room, everyone jumped and looked away.
The PD said to nominate someone for the show—who should I pick?
Just then, our siblings came to the rescue.
“NewBlack! We’ll get everything ready!”
“Yes!”
They grabbed their mic packs and dashed off, and I called after them.
“Hey! Where are you going! You’re supposed to go with me to the military!”
Our staff laughed, and Mingi hyung checked my mic pack.
“Hyung, want to be an extra civilian on the show?”
“You and your jokes...”
“The PD said they’re taking civilian recommendations. All you need is variety sense.”
“...”
The color drained from his face.
Friday evening.
As the live broadcast of PBS’s music show “Music On” neared its end, more people tuned in.
–ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ I’m curious
–Gotta watch live
–NewBlack versus NewBlack?? lol
–Their fans must be thrilled... seriously hot and not
In the usually quiet idol world, NewBlack appearing as both No. 1 candidates was huge news.
“Now, please welcome NewBlack.”
MC Jeon Yu-bin and the guest girl-group MCs made room for NewBlack.
The members looked slightly nervous.
Fans watching at home chattered like crumbs scattering.
–My babies are such a mess
–Don’t know how to stand lol first time seeing that
–Ahh.. I’m eight... drunk on their looks
–Don’t mess with them lol
–This granny cries just seeing your faces
–They’re breaking the beauty record today
–Need a gif-making tool
On screen, NewBlack bit their lips or took deep breaths to steady themselves.
Then the scores were revealed one by one.
When thumbnails of “Wind Flower” and “A Poem About Yesterday” appeared side by side,
“And today’s No. 1 is?”
“Yes! Congratulations! NewBlack!”
Bang! Confetti showered down.
Out of habit they shouted their group name, but the members merely blinked.
Realizing the mistake, the MC corrected,
“No, Wind Flower!”
“Whaaa!”
NewBlack hugged each other in joy, then froze and looked confused.
“Wait, I won, but did I really...?” their faces asked.
“Won but lost?” they smiled awkwardly, and both online and offline viewers burst into laughter.
–lol I know exactly how that feels
–Relatable lol I won but lost
–Won but lost lol
–lololol
–So did they win or lose? tie?
–My head hurts
–They won, right? Isn’t it an album track...?
–A draw??
–Maybe like gold and silver medals?
–That logic is weird... can you win both gold and silver? Shadow clone jutsu??
While debates raged online over whether it was a win, loss, or tie,
On TV NewBlack performed the “bread dance” for their fans to celebrate No. 1.
“Wow, No. 1!”
“No. 1!”
“No. 2?”
“No. 2!”
We debated for a while whether we’d won or lost, then decided ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) to just enjoy it.
“One, two, three, hello! We’re NewBlack!”
To celebrate having two No. 1 candidates, we did a live broadcast with fans for an hour.
We laughed, chatted, and had a blast.
Fans were ecstatic over the No. 1 and No. 2 news, and we were even louder and more raucous.
Arriving at the office, friendly staff congratulated us.
“Guys! Congrats!”
The CEO appeared like a genie, handed us cards, and sprinkled glitter while saying, “Eat whatever you want...”
With messages pouring in, we decided to reply later and tried to choose dinner.
Then we received another piece of news.
“What? Our concert venue?”
We’d secured the location for our first solo concert.
