Our Rookies’ rise to fame peaked in the second week.
This activity song, Meteor, is a digital single, so there’s no merit in music shows, which is why our Rookies decided to only perform until the second week.
That day, we just went to the music show tallies for the top spot announcement.
Bang.
[This week’s Music Boom Boom 1st place candidates are!]
[Meteor – Rookies]
It wasn’t surprising that the Rookies were top candidates anymore.
We had maintained the top candidate position in all music shows during the first week.
However, since Meteor was a digital single, similar to Breaking Bad!, there were no album sales.
Album sales significantly impact the music show rankings, so the possibility of Rookies taking first place with no sales was quite low.
I glanced at the other top candidates without any expectations.
One group was a 1.5-tier boy group from JJ.
And the other group was…
Bang.
[Love like dark – Python]
It was Python from YW, who was our direct competitor.
‘Well… Python will probably take first.’
The JJ boy group had released their song a while ago and were lacking firepower.
But Python was gaining popularity and had high album sales, and they were second in digital performance right after us.
Brush.
I sneaked a look and saw that the Python members had hopeful expressions, expecting their first place.
And their leader, O Ah-ra…
‘…Is there something bothering her?’
She had a cold, expressionless face.
With the cameras all around, you’d think she’d manage her expressions better, but she still looked displeased since last week.
At that moment, as I tilted my head…
[Alright, let’s see who the first place is! One, two, three, bang bang bang~]
The MC announced the first place.
Tick.
As the MC shouted, the numbers on the screen started rising.
Time passed, and finally, the group that took first place was…
[Meteor – Rookies]
[Congratulations! This week’s Music Boom Boom 1st place is Rookies’ ‘Meteor’!]
…It was our Rookies.
“…Huh?”
“…What?”
With our sudden first place, both I and the other members…
“Wow…”
“Wait, what about a digital single…?”
The other idols on stage looked wide-eyed too.
In the confusion, we froze, but the frantic gestures of the Music Boom Boom staff prompted us to finally move to the center of the stage.
As I was the first to grab the microphone for our acceptance speech, I couldn’t believe what was happening and struggled to find words.
“Uh… um… I’m so sorry. I really didn’t think we would get first…”
First place without album sales.
This meant that Rookies had overwhelmingly outperformed the other groups in all other metrics.
Getting first place in a music show with a digital single was an incredibly rare achievement, and I couldn’t help but feel dazed.
The fan chants pulled me out of my stupor.
“Wooooo-!!!!!”
“Crazy-!!!!!”
“Ha Ye-rin-!!!!”
The fans, as surprised as we were by our unexpected music show win, cheered with all their might the moment I got the mic.
Seeing the fans’ ecstatic faces brought me back to my senses.
I smiled faintly at the fans who always supported me and Rookies, then bowed my head.
“…We owe this incredible achievement to all our fans. I really want to say thank you.”
“Thank you-!!”
“Wooooo-!”
As I bowed, the members behind me also joined in a chorus of gratitude, and soon enough, our encore stage began.
Since we hadn’t gotten first place in the music shows during Breaking Bad!, it had been a long time since we performed an encore stage.
Although it was an unexpected and sudden encore, we managed to perform it smoothly, thanks to our practice.
“Thank you-! Really, thank you!”
“Wooooo-!”
The unexpected first win was overwhelming, and the emotions finally flooded in.
By the time we wrapped up the encore stage, I was smiling as widely as when Na Ah Ah got first place.
“Great work today, everyone.”
After wrapping up the music show recording and heading to the waiting room, Director Jeong was there to greet us.
Maybe because of our music show victory, a smile was plastered across Director Jeong’s face.
“Winning first place in a music show purely based on digital performance is really amazing! I’m so proud of you all.”
“No, it was just luck. Hehe.”
“We were lucky.”
As we humbly responded, Director Jeong shook their head and said with a content expression.
“Luck alone doesn’t achieve this. It must have been the result of all your hard work, sacrificing sleep every night.”
Indeed, thanks to the vocal training, the overall quality in this release had vastly improved.
With Director Jeong, who was normally stern, sincerely praising us, I felt even prouder.
“Today’s schedule is done. Now you can go to the dorm and rest. You all worked really hard today!”
“Yeees!”
“Oh! And to celebrate the hard work of the members, a special meal is prepared, so I hope you’ll look forward to dinner, even if it’s a bit late!”
“Wooooo-!”
I was already super hungry since I missed meal time.
Hearing that a special meal was prepared made me and the members cheer and quickly change clothes.
I was the first to gently lean my face over to my stylist to get my makeup removed.
But then…
“Sister.”
“Yeah? What’s up, Han-na?”
While I was taking off my makeup, Na Han-na, getting changed next to me, asked me with a curious tone.
“Is something wrong with the leader of Python?”
“…Why?”
“Um… I was just watching our encore stage earlier, and I saw the leader from Python glaring at you.”
“……”
Every time I had caught eyes with O Ah-ra today, her expression hadn’t been good.
But she was watching me during the encore stage as well…
O Ah-ra and I were both regressors with the same goal of becoming top idols.
We were essentially rivals.
It was natural that we wouldn’t get along.
But…
‘Definitely, the way she looked at me wasn’t just the look of a competitor…’
It felt more like the gaze of someone who despises their opponent.
‘Why does she hate me so much…? Is it because I provoked her during the showcase?’
No, it didn’t make sense for her to hate me this much over that.
I was sure there was something more to this.
As I pondered this unknown something for a moment…
“I think I’ll just not care.”
I shook my head.
“Are you just going to ignore it?”
“Yeah, I don’t want to waste energy on unnecessary emotions.”
In my idol life, there were already plenty of things to worry about without O Ah-ra.
I didn’t want to waste energy on pointless emotional battles with her.
So I decided to focus on positive thoughts instead.
“More than that, I’m more curious about what that special meal Director Jeong mentioned for dinner!”
“That’s what I’m curious about too. What will it be?”
In Rookies’ green diet, which avoided all fats, there were times we got delicious food like this.
Of course, it wasn’t anything like fried chicken or pizza…
“Grilled chicken? Lobster? Sashimi?”
Fancy protein-rich dishes had appeared.
“Whatever it is, I bet it’s going to be delicious!”
“Of course.”
Because of this, Na Ah Ah and I continued to change clothes while making happy predictions about what the special meal would be.
“Ah, I’m so hungry. Let’s hurry and eat.”
“Yes!”
However, I…
Would never find out what that special meal was that evening.
“Alright, everyone, are you all in the car?”
“Yes-!”
“Then let’s go! Everyone, buckle up.”
With the manager’s words, we finished our seat belt checks, ready for departure.
Just then, as the manager got ready to start the car…
Knock knock.
“Hmm…?”
Due to the nature of our celebrity van, the tinting was so thorough that while we couldn’t see out, the outside was visible to us.
When I heard the sudden knock, I looked outside…
“…There are some guys outside the manager’s car?”
“What?”
There were two men outside looking a little intimidating, reminiscent of Brotherhood Planning associates.
‘What’s going on? Are they fans?’
Fans couldn’t enter this area. They didn’t seem like broadcasting station staff either.
The only thing we should do in situations like this is stay put in the car.
“Guys, hang on. I’ll go check it out.”
Bang.
The manager firmly closed the car door and approached the men.
“What’s up?”
“What do you want?”
“Just a moment.”
I tilted my head and pressed my ear against the door, attempting to hear the outdoor conversation.
Hearing it partially but not fully, I could piece together bits of their dialogue.
“…I don’t know who you are, but….”
“…It’s Detective Choi.”
Detective?
At the mention of that word, I noticed the men fumbling for something, and I could see the manager’s face become flustered.
“It seems like they might be police?”
“Police? Why are the police here?”
The manager stuttered in front of the officers before pulling out his phone to make a call.
In under five minutes, Director Jeong showed up.
He approached the police, looking a bit irritated, and raised his voice.
“…What’s the meaning of this? You can’t just…!”
“…It’s the principle to check if you have a warrant. Possession without a warrant is a crime.”
“…Do you have a warrant? You can’t be so aggressive…!”
“If we receive a report, we can investigate without a warrant. If you do not have one, please go back. There are a lot of rumors about drugs in the entertainment industry lately, so we have to check.”
After a few more minutes of heated discussion, Director Jeong let out a sigh and…
Click.
“…Everyone.”
He opened our car door.
“…Director Jeong.”
With the sudden visit from the police and a somewhat angry expression on Director Jeong’s face, we couldn’t help but feel tense.
“…Is something wrong?”
“No, there’s nothing major. However, it seems these guys have a huge misunderstanding. Please step out for a moment. They’ll just have a quick look inside the car.”
“…Yes.”
We stepped out of the car, feeling bewildered at Director Jeong’s words.
Meanwhile, two of the police officers entered our vehicle and began inspecting the seats and surroundings…
“Nothing here.”
They shrugged and quickly stepped back outside.
“See! Didn’t I assure you?”
“…We apologize. However, please also understand our position. Whenever we receive a report, we have to check.”
It seemed the issue would be wrapped up with the police lowering their heads to Director Jeong.
But…
“Officer, shouldn’t we also check their belongings just in case?”
“Their belongings?”
“Yes, just to be safe…”
When the young officer proposed that, the other officer pondered for a moment…
“Sorry, everyone, but we need to have a look inside your handbags.”
They pointed to our eco bags and handbags.
Since they had already checked the car, perhaps thinking it wasn’t a big deal, Director Jeong nodded at us.
So we opened our bags one by one for the police to see.
There wasn’t much in our handbags.
Just phones, basic makeup, mirrors, and the like.
Women often need several items when going out, so small bags are common, and that applied to me too.
‘There shouldn’t be anything besides my phone in here.’
Without thinking, I opened my handbag…
“…Huh?”
I couldn’t help but be startled by the contents.
Inside, besides my phone, there was something else.
“…Hold on a second.”
As I froze looking in my handbag, one of the officers took notice and approached.
He took my handbag, and…
“…Found it.”
“…What?”
Upon seeing what he pulled out, all the members, including the manager, Director Jeong, and even the police looked pale.
No wonder…
What he found from my bag was a cigarette.
A cigarette that reeked awfully and had green writing in another language.
“Ah…”
As I recognized it, I suddenly realized I had seen that before.
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