Chapter 126

Shock Entertainment Building.

Choreography Practice Room.

Chae-rin Unni, sitting on the sofa, had a subtle expression.

“The contestants this time are boys.”

“And why is that a problem?”

Of course, the participants of [Just choose your idol] Season 4 were male. It’s a survival program rule, switching between genders. The talent pool is limited too.

“So?”

Unlike the other members who were accepting the confirmed schedule, Chae-rin Unni showed discomfort.

“We won’t get unnecessarily involved with the contestants, right? I heard our company’s trainee is participating this time.”

Normally, Chae-rin Unni would have shrugged it off, but…

[Exclusive] Radiance So Ah-yeon ❤️ Tu of Inus in a Relationship “Respect Their Privacy”

So Ah-yeon of Radiance and Tu from Inus are dating. According to Asia Ten’s investigation on the 2nd, So Ah-yeon and Tu have been meeting each other… They are a same-age couple born in 2004 and the first dating rumor among 4th generation idols.

So Ah-yeon and Tu have recently hinted at their relationship through SNS posts. They visited the same places and wore matching outfits, leading fans to start suspecting their relationship.

The director from Inus’s agency stated, “We respect their personal lives.”

– Newbies should… they can date freely, but it might affect the other members, so they should hold back.
– It’s been so little time since debut… even if you tell them not to show it off, there are always those who don’t listen.
– If they’re dating, then they’re dating.
– Still, they shouldn’t flaunt it…
– They admit it now, huh?
– “When I say, ‘Tomorrow Osaka, the day after Tokyo, come,’ there’s no guy who would actually come. Be it a boyfriend, husband, or even a father, there aren’t those kinds of guys. Only the fans cater to such whims. So love must be kept hidden. That’s consideration for the fans,” reminds me of the famous line from a Japanese MC.

It seemed a little concerning, especially since there was a recent instance where one girl group’s comeback album sales halved due to a dating rumor involving a member.

Of course, it’s not a crime for idols to date. They can do it. I’d respect it if Seo-yoon Unni started dating right now.

But knowing Seo-yoon Unni, she’d probably give up on dating for the group’s and the members’ sake. She’d consider how it would affect them.

‘So if a rookie is dating… they’re just immature and lacking respect for the members, if not the fans.’

It’s not without reason that agencies impose a three-year dating ban after debut. By that time, they won’t be shaken by dating rumors.

‘Especially since this case involves a rookie dating while openly showing it off.’

I just feel sorry for the members of the Radiance girl group.

Idols are the fans’ love. To put it bluntly, it fundamentally targets pseudo-romantic feelings.
It was all about targeting.

Like me, there’s a need to temporarily set aside personal feelings, such as forced cuteness.

“Our idol Ye-eun… hehehe.”

Sigh…

“Unni, you can’t act like that outside, okay?”

The reason idol artists with artist syndrome fail is similar.

The moment you think of yourself as an artist, you tend to prioritize your own feelings.

“Yeah…?”

In that sense, Ye-eun unni seems to be showing signs of having celebrity syndrome or artist syndrome.

But since she has such an introverted personality, it seems there’s no need to worry.

She probably only acts that way in front of comfortable members.

“Anyway, there’s nothing to worry about with Chae-rin unni.”

Ha-rang unni nodded as if she agreed with my words.

“Right~ What’s there to worry about~”

Ha-rang unni also seemed confident that there wouldn’t be any involvement with the male participants.

Ha-rang unni isn’t foolish.

If anything, considering her language skills, you could say she’s smart.

Being able to speak interestingly is also a skill.

“But if they’re handsome, it might not be so bad to get involved…?”

It’s just that there’s not much filtering.

“More than anything, there’s no reason for Mwave to buy our brand value and drop it.”

Seven, just think about how much profit we’re bringing in at the moment.

Are they going to cut open the goose that lays golden eggs just to ensure Season 4 goes well?

No matter how crazy the broadcasting staff is about sensationalism, they wouldn’t eat into their own flesh.

“Instead, participants might end up getting edited out. ‘Participants who are mesmerized by the rising idol stars,’ ‘Participants distracted from practicing by Seven members’—something like that.”

It’s the kind of predictable Mwave-style editing anyone can see.

“Well, true. Still, you know? Everyone has to be careful. You never know how things can turn out, right?”

Hana unni concluded and then stood up.

And she clapped loudly.

Clap—

“Alright, break time’s over! Everyone, stand up! We need to work hard!”

“Right, we have to practice.”

I got up abruptly from the practice room sofa and walked to the center of the practice room.

And the mirror filled with my reflection.

“I’m kind of worried.”

“What about?”

The reflection in the mirror.

Just a hint of red lip balm on my lips, no makeup at all.

An oversized white tee that was loose.

Comfortable, well-worn sweatpants.

“Even looking so plain… my eyes just naturally follow…”

On filming day, I’ll go to the salon.

I’ll be wearing the pretty clothes the coordinator chose for me.

“If I dress up, the participants’ eyes are going to go wild… What if they blame me…”

Kim Seo-yoon, as if used to it, finished her stretching.

“Hana unni, where do we start?”

“Let’s start with the sub-part. The points weren’t right earlier. The formations are off. Guys, when you’re going right, and when you’re going left, focus on your points. Ha-rang, get up quickly.”
“Grab the points and let’s go. Haring, wake up quickly.”

“Yeeeee~”

The members don’t even respond anymore.

“Totally cute…”

Except for one.

“Eun Se-ra, you always give in, that’s why they keep acting like that.”

“I don’t know… it’s cute…”

“Ha… because of me, I can’t debut. I really don’t want this…”

Shouldn’t I be wearing a mask or something? I’m really worried.

*

“Wow… I really haven’t been here in a long time…!”

Excited Ye-eun Unni.

A huge filming set where the ranking announcement ceremony is held every time. The exterior of the building, seen after half a year, felt different.

A feeling of exhilaration.

“Seo-yoon, don’t memories from our first day just flood back?”

“Yeah. You, who thought of appearing without makeup on the first recording.”

“Oh my.”

Thinking back, it was pretty impressive that I thought to go without makeup not knowing how to put any on.

“What do you mean, ‘Oh my’? What would you have done if there wasn’t me and Na-eun Unni?”

Of course, I was confident even in my bare face.

“But still, now you know how to do it to some extent, right? Isn’t that admirable?”

I practiced by asking the makeup artist unnis one by one.

Becoming someone who knows their shortcomings and strives to improve…

“Sigh. Let’s not talk about it.”

Of course, there was also a member who didn’t romanticize the memories of that first day.

Like Se-ra Unni, who muttered.

“I waited in the parking lot for 3 hours because I was the last in line… But I was alone, so I was bored… I was bored sitting alone in the 1st place seat… I was alone the entire shoot, from lunch to the next morning…”

Reflecting on the memories of that first day, we entered the set.

[Direct Season 4] was in full swing.

As we stepped into the set, we saw familiar staff members.

Camera director, sound director, lighting director, writers, and the production crew.

Most were kind to even nameless trainees, so the members happily approached the production staff to greet them.

“Oh, you’re here! Our Seven?”

However, there was a production staff not so welcome.

The main PD, Hyun-woong Lim, approached with an unusually high tone to welcome us.

“Ah, hello!”

One of the few staff that made the participants uncomfortable.

Honestly, how can it be comfortable? They made several victims through bad edits.

“I knew Seven would do well!”

Right away, there were even members who had received such edits.

For the eliminated participants, it must have been even worse.

It’s only natural that someone introducing themselves as ‘our Seven’ feels strange.

“You just need to follow the script.”

Main PD Hyun-woong Lim explained the general direction before the actual filming began.
“The focus is on successful senior idols! You know what that means, right?”

It was written like this in the script.

[Just Do It 3] comes out with the title track “Fell in Love.”

The members take turns reading the cue sheet and explaining the changes for this season.

After that, they send a word of support to the participants.

“I’ll be going in 20 minutes~”

A familiar voice is heard during the wait.

“Oh my, Do-hee! How have you gotten even prettier over there!?”

It was Cheon Ji-hye, the PD.

She was the assistant director I first met during the [Just Do It Season 3] audition.

“Hello, PD!”

I chatted with the delighted PD, asking her about her recent life.

In the middle of that, the producer had a strange smile.

“By the way, there’s someone among the participants that Do-hee knows well~”

“Participants?”

Now that I think about it, the Topist male trainees are also participating.

“Oh, the Topist trainees?”

We kept a reasonable distance but were on good terms to the point of joking when we met.

There seemed to be some unspoken bond among the trainees.

“Oh, Topist! Right, they’re also here.”

But the assistant director’s tone didn’t seem to be referring to the Topist trainees.

“You’ll know once you go in. You’ll be completely shocked!”

“Uh… but I’m really not lying when I say I don’t have any close guy friends…”

“Aww~ You can skip that with me. Anyway, just wait and see.”

And not long after, it was time to shoot.

We received the cue sheet and went into standby.

“We’re going in now!”

In sync with the signal, we walked down the glamorous hallway in a line with the members.

The set, decorated in blue light, was different from Season 3.

Passing the end of the hallway, the familiar ranking seats finally unfolded.

“Whoa… Seven..!!”

“Is this for real?”

Just like Season 3, the male participants sat in their desired ranking seats.

“Wow… this is insane.”

“So pretty.”

Whether it was a natural gasp or an exaggerated reaction to get caught on camera, it was hard to tell.

—Waaaaaaaah!

The studio was filled with cheers.

—I’m in seventh heaven! Hello, we are Seven!

It felt like an indirect experience of becoming a celebrity among celebrities.

With a delightful excitement and thrill, my vision naturally narrowed.

Despite that, among the well-dressed male participants, one boy caught my eye.

“Eh.”

He had strangely reddish eyes.

As our eyes met, he elegantly folded them and smiled.

A feminine and beautiful face resembling Min-ha Auntie.

Yet, the features were distinct.

‘What’s that guy doing here?’

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