In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

PBS Song Festival stage.

When we came on second and stepped to the center, the Soufflés waved their light sticks to welcome us.

"—Waaaaaaaa!"

While we waved big and greeted everyone, the Sweet Potato Trio seniors leaned over.

"Do you know what’s going on?"

"No. Not at all."

"For that, you sure came out and landed like you’d rehearsed. They carried you like a coffin."

"Well, we do this kind of thing so much..."

At the line that my body just reacted first, he burst into hearty laughter.

"—Waaaaaa!"

After us, other singers came out one by one.

Backstage, people who’d been flustered going, "What is that? What’s with the VCR?" were now sauntering out with playful smiles.

At the ㅅ slot, Street Boys strode out solemnly and took up a spot right beside us.

"Hey."

Hanj o whispered,

"What is this?"

"I don’t know either."

"...Weren’t you supposed to know the opening ahead of time?"

I shook my head at the Street Boys members’ sparkling eyes.

They must have misunderstood from the way we first bounced out that we’d known in advance.

Jiho shook his head and said,

"Hanj o hyung, if we’d known in advance, would that be all we did? Wooju hyung would’ve been out on wires by now."

"Ah!"

"Huh?"

I was genuinely curious how far my image had spread.

Since we were in front of the audience, I kept a brilliant smile and narrowed my eyes a touch, and the Street Boys members pretended not to notice and just rode the rhythm.

Then the ㅌ slot.

The TNT members, who’d set a formation and made a cheeky entrance, came up to stand next to us. My original lackey’s eyes turned this way.

"Hyung."

"Don’t know."

I answered roughly with my eyes, and he nodded.

"[Teen Spirit!]"

As the radiant pretty boys appeared, the heat in the venue spiked. Fans were making strange bird cries.

The Teen Spirit members flashed slight smiles.

From our view, their expressions said, We’re freaking strong, and they looked satisfied. LB, standing beside Teen Spirit next to us, said,

"NewBlack didn’t know either."

"Confirmed."

Teen Spirit accepted it immediately.

Maybe because the director was variety PD Shin Muruk, the mood was basically, If NewBlack doesn’t know, nobody knows.

I asked Biju with a smile,

"It’s not because of our image, right?"

"It’s not."

Biju and I smiled toward a few impure colleagues nearby whose lips were twitching.

"..."

"..."

Since there was no answer at all, it definitely wasn’t because of our image.

After the opening where all performers waved and sang "One Candle" together, we sat in the singer section.

Murmur, murmur.

Maybe because of the lingering shock from the opening VCR, you could hear the singers in the seats whispering.

"Was it okay to just mention the low ratings out loud...?"

"What even is the Song Festival this time."

"I heard even the NewBlack seniors don’t know how this happened."

...Those were the lines Junghyeon relayed with ears perked.

Apparently that last one was from Wonder Child, who’d done the mentor–mentee thing with us. I wore a briefly sad smile.

"But how did this actually happen? I’ve never seen anything like this watching year-end stages."

"Me neither."

Ri Hyuk covered his mouth and replied,

"Feels like they went with a hard counter because of the low ratings. Like, call PD Shin Muruk and try to make the year-end show fun."

"...It is definitely fun."

Year-end shows usually feel pretty samey.

Repeating the same format every time, even as a singer you get curious when someone tries something new.

Other singers seemed to feel the same.

"[Music is ‘story.’]"

After the opening, a briefly serious VCR played.

If the concept was to fill the Well of Ratings that had dried up in the drought, what they were showing now felt like the theme.

"[Our joy, our sorrow, our fun, our memories... music is with all of it. Have you had that feeling? When a song brings those old memories back, crisp as ever.]"

It was narration by Ha Seungju, host of PBS Music Café.

"[Today, at the PBS Song Festival, we want to talk about the singers who sing the music—and the stories about their songs.]"

As the images under the narration blurred, Ha Seungju appeared, seated at a grand piano.

The bespectacled pianist snapped his fingers elegantly.

"[...!]"

"Ha Seungju, where are you going?"

Ha Seungju stopped playing and hurried out.

"Huh?"

The next scene made me, my younger members, and other singers go wide-eyed.

Because I was walking into that grand-piano studio where Ha Seungju had disappeared. Me, coming in with a "Hello."

The Soufflés shrieked.

"Wait."

I remembered filming a VCR like this during a recent PBS visit.

Back then there had definitely been no one there.

While I narrowed my eyes, the edited footage flowed.

"[Do I read this line? Music is our story.]"

Starting from that, tons of idols went, "Music is story!" like a campaign slogan.

And then a cookie-scene-like last bit.

"[Huh?]"

It was me asking while looking at a steaming mug of coffee nearby.

"[Whose is this?]"

And a shot of Ha Seungju, who had been about to come back in behind me, quickly turning on his heel and vanishing.

As the crowd laughed, the caption rolled: "[PBS Song Festival begins now]."

Ri Hyuk said with a laugh,

"You both acted well. Senior Ha Seungju really looked like he was running away."

"He really was running away."

"..."

"No wonder it felt weird that day. I kept feeling like someone was staring at me from behind. And there was just this steaming cup sitting there."

"Wow, so he really did run."

I’d better message PD Ha Seungju afterward.

While the stage screens that had been in blackout lit up again, the Mister Producer members appeared in kingdom-noble costumes.

To those lingering by the [Well of Ratings], Choo Giseok came running with something in a bucket.

"[I have here a pre-pre-precious tonic!]"

"[A tonic?]"

"[Yes, even a single drop of this will make the clogged ratings gush forth! I definitely heard it! It’s true!]"

Maybe because of the character, it was obvious at a glance he looked like he’d been scammed.

To the kingdom folk staring with eyes full of distrust, Choo Giseok unveiled the bundle wrapped in cloth.

"[Behold, Refreshing Vitamin! Full of juice!]"

"[Refreshing vitamin?]"

"[Just a single drop of this and... the ratings gush!]"

"[Let’s try one.]"

As Choo Giseok chucked a giant pill into the well, a caption rose over the screen.

"[Mission 1. Refreshing! Juice-packed Vitamin!]"

It looked like they were presenting the act-one stage concept.

When the Mister Producer members went "Let’s see," and peered into the well, the girl group High Color was inside, gathered in a stage formation.

And—

"Oh..."

It cut straight to the live stage, and from the overhead camera, High Color’s formation onstage spread out exactly like in the VCR.

"—Waaaaaaaa!"

As the fresh-and-bright concept stage of a group that debuted last year continued, the audience cheered.

The VCR timing was on point.

I couldn’t help admiring the sense of a national variety PD who had secured plenty of stage time. And the most amazing part was—

"Hyung."

Junghyeon widened his eyes and whispered,

"It’s still amazing when I look again. The camera is fine."

"Exactly."

Just like we’d checked in rehearsal, the camera work was steady.

No wobbly zoom in, zoom out; no sudden whoooosh pulling way back.

They held the group’s stage formation with a stable full shot and used close-ups at proper moments.

When I turned my head, I saw elderly veterans standing behind the cameras.

"The old guard is great."

"Agreed."

I nodded, smiling with my younger members.

I wondered what expressions the Soufflés watching live on TV were wearing. I hoped our stage would come out pretty later too.

While we took in the act-one stages, Jiho—who was handling the act-one ending for the 98 line—kept whispering.

"You know I’m on this one, right?"

"Yes."

"You’ve gotta keep both eyes wide open and watch how awesome I am. If you miss it, I’ll hold a grudge for the next forty years."

"I’ll watch well."

I told him over and over not to worry.

As Jiho headed down from the singer section with the other 98s, I waved, and Biju said,

"Looks like they practiced a ton."

"Let’s clap really big. A standing ovation should do."

I rehearsed an overjoyed face with big applause, and Biju burst into laughter.

Ri Hyuk frowned.

"Stop encouraging him. When you smile at him, this guy gets confident about being absurd."

"Ri Hyuk."

I winked and sent him a finger heart, and got nothing back. I lowered my hand, smiling.

"...I don’t lose confidence over stuff like this."

"I’ll give you jelly later, hyung."

While we were talking, it finally came time for the act-one ending stage.

The screen darkened and a VCR rolled.

"—Waaaaaaaaaaa!"

As the English names "Jiho," "Hahyun" matched with photobook shots, screams erupted.

Yun Giwon, Gil Chaegyeong, Petit Pumpkin, Yoran, and so on—

The video began with 98-liners from various debut years gathering in one place.

"[In a few days, when the New Year comes, we ‘98s become adults, right? We prepared this stage with that in mind.]"

"[The song we prepared is Twinkle by our seniors Twinkle!]"

"[By day we’re ordinary students, but at night we become magical girls and magical boys who vanquish villains—that’s the concept.]"

It was a VCR boldly stating their ambition to show a stage on that border between child and adult.

Right after, our maknae showed up in the VCR interview.

"[I’m about to become an adult. I want to put what I think ‘adult’ feels like into the stage and show it.]"

We went "Ooooh" and laughed.

Another 98, Hahyun, continued with an interview like, "Hahyun wants to be an adult! Ppuing!"

The Teen Spirit members shot kill-lasers with their eyes.

Then came the practice clips, and our maknae kept catching the eye in between.

"[There’s TPO on stage, right? Time, place, oc...]"

"[Oc?]"

"[Occasion—oh! That’s what I mean! Oh!]"

"[Oooooh!]"

He put my TPO gag from getting ready for the 2013 year-end evaluation to solid use.

"[Let’s match the choreo.]"

When he led choreo with Gil Chaegyeong, Biju’s expression showed up.

"[Mm, let’s raise our key about a half-step?]"

When Ri Hyuk did vocal directing, his hand cues were there.

And when they ate, he ate with Junghyeon’s expression.

"..."

Junghyeon, who’d been full of anticipation, drooped his shoulders, crestfallen.

"I’ll give you jelly."

Anyway, it was cute and funny how the maknae, trying as hard as he could to act adult, borrowed someone’s behavior point by point.

Apparently, to him, his hyungs were what "adult" meant. freēwebnovel.com

We’re still kids ourselves.

"..."

"Don’t talk to me with your eyes, Ri Hyuk."

"Hmph."

In any case, it was a warm VCR.

Even seeing Girls on Top’s Gil Chaegyeong and Jiho—known to be sworn rivals—laughing together.

When Hahyun recoiled from a bug during practice, a freezer label reading "Hahyun’s" appeared on the frozen pupae in the neighbor’s refrigerator.

As we smiled at the 98s being "adult" in their little fibs—

"Hyung, it’s starting."

Determined not to get an earful from the maknae later, I fixed my eyes on the stage as the blackout curtain lifted.

Like Tinker Bell sprinkling pixie dust, a sparkling VCR rose as the backdrop.

As the lights brightened, the 98-line idols in school looks came into view.

"Jiho...!"

Soufflés, online and off, erupted.

Jiho, in a white shirt and gray vest, beamed a juice-popping smile, and the star-shaped glitter on his cheek sparkled in the lights.