After the [Idol One Heart Sports Day], on the way home…
“Hehe…”
I happily hummed a tune while gazing at the prizes stacked in the trunk.
The members laughed and asked me, “Wow… Ye-rin unnie, you won so many prizes!”
“Ye-rin looks really happy!”
“Of course! Just the prizes I won today alone are quite a few!”
Though I only received notifications about massive electronics like air purifiers and TVs to be given separately later, the prizes I got on site were enough to warm my heart.
Feeling like a rich person, I excitedly shouted to the members, “One of the prizes was a Hanwoo set! We’ll grill that for dinner when we get to the dorm! Our activities are over now!”
But just then, a heavy voice cut right through my excitement.
“It’s nice to eat, but we’ll be taking the oily sirloin and brisket on our side.”
“Ah…”
It was Director Jeong sitting in the passenger seat.
“Weight management is something that collapses easily with just a moment of negligence. Only eat lean tenderloin and chuck roll.”
I couldn’t help but sulk at Director Jeong’s stern declaration.
“I wanted to eat brisket…”
“Brisket has too much fat. Just eat parts with less fat. Naturally, sauces and rice are off-limits; you should have it with the salad planned for dinner today.”
“Ahhh…”
I was banned from enjoying beef with rice, the perfect match!
Seeing my gloomy expression, Lee Hye-jeong patted my head and said, “Don’t be too disheartened, Ye-rin. The director said he’d give us vacation soon. We can eat something delicious then.”
Vacation.
Yeah, vacation is just around the corner.
After running non-stop, we Rookies were desperate for it, and when we heard the word “vacation,” we perked up, eyes wide open, and bombarded Director Jeong with questions.
“That’s right, vacation! Director Jeong! You said we’d get a vacation!”
“You’re sending us Rookies on a trip for vacation, right? Domestically? Overseas?”
“…Hehe, everyone, calm down.”
It seemed our clamoring made Director Jeong a bit uneasy, as he wiped some sweat from his brow and replied,
“I would love to send you right away, but… wasn’t there something you forgot?”
“Forgotten what? Ah…!”
Oh right, Director Jeong had mentioned there were other schedules before our vacation aside from the [Idol One Heart Sports Day].
And that was….
“Fan signing event. It’s scheduled for the day after tomorrow.”
It was the fan signing event.
“Oooh… the fan signing event…”
Hearing those words, excitement sparkled in everyone’s eyes.
The fan signing event was a direct way to communicate with fans, an event that every idol experiences.
‘The fan signing event…’
I, too, felt a flutter in my heart at the thought of directly seeing my supporting fans.
“Tomorrow, we’ll have rehearsals and briefings for the fan signing. Let’s relax thoroughly as soon as we get to the dorm.”
“Yes!”
So, the car returned to our dorm, carrying our hopes for the fan signing event, and the day soon arrived.
On the day of the Rookies’ fan signing event.
Tremble, tremble.
Sergeant Yoo Chang-seon, no, civilian Yoo Chang-seon, was trembling with excitement at the Art Hall where the Rookies’ fan signing event would take place.
Soon, he would actually see Ha Ye-rin in person!
‘Am, am I really going to see Ha Ye-rin right in front of me…?’
Sure, he had seen Ha Ye-rin during the music show recording before, but that was just a brief encounter as she passed while moving to the stage. This time, he would be talking to her one-on-one while getting an autograph!
“Please pick a waiting number.”
“Yes… Yes, uh….”
Tremble, tremble.
In excitement, Yoo Chang-seon received his waiting number with trembling hands.
‘What should I do? I’m going crazy from happiness.’
Of course, getting there wasn’t without a huge expense.
The idol fan signing events are conducted via lottery, and for every album you buy, you receive one entry ticket.
So, somebody who bought 100 albums would have a chance of winning 100 times more than someone who bought one album.
And that person who bought 100 albums was Yoo Chang-seon.
Since one Rookies album costs 18,000 won, he spent a total of 1,800,000 won.
Yoo Chang-seon had to break his military savings to cover the cost.
Some might call him a fool for that.
And yes, he was indeed a fool, but…
‘No way, this will be worth every penny of the 1,800,000 won!’
He believed this event was worth that much as he anxiously awaited the start of the fan signing event.
Then at 2 PM.
As soon as it was time for the fan signing event to start….
Thud.
“Ah? Wowwwww-!!”
The Rookies members appeared on stage.
“Hello! We are Rookies!”
“Waaaaahhhh-!!”
How could I see Rookies up close like this….
Overwhelmed with joy, Yoo Chang-seon roared in happiness and quickly located Ha Ye-rin.
Ha Ye-rin’s spot was at the very end on the right.
She seemed to be the last one, after all.
“Now, we will begin the signing event.”
“Waaaaah-!”
With the staff’s announcement, the fan signing event commenced.
Yoo Chang-seon, who was exactly in the middle of the waiting line, watched as Ha Ye-rin signed for other fans while waiting for his turn.
Ha Ye-rin welcomed the fans with a warm little smile, clearly pleased to see them.
‘So cute….’
Even just watching Ha Ye-rin made time fly.
“Next, please come up.”
“Ah, yes!”
His turn was fast approaching, he nervously headed towards the stage.
Thud, thud, thud, thud.
As he got closer to the Rookies members whom he had only seen on TV…, his heart raced, feeling like it might explode.
With legs trembling from nervousness, he stepped forward with great difficulty.
“Hello!”
“Ah, h-hi there…!”
The first signing spot was Lee Hye-jeong.
‘Wow… she’s seriously so beautiful…’
Lee Hye-jeong had never caught his full attention much aside from her friendship with Na Ah Ah, but seeing her in person, she was the prettiest among everyone he’d met.
A fresh face with a not-so-innocent body.
She was a true example of a bagel beauty.
“Where should I sign for you?”
“Uh, here please…. I, I cheered really hard for you during Na Ah Ah!”
“Really? Thank you!”
Even though he tossed out some random words not knowing what to say, Lee Hye-jeong smiled sincerely and bowed her head in appreciation.
Feeling his heart heal a bit, Yoo Chang-seon moved onto the next one.
“Hello!”
“…!”
Next was Park Yoo-jung.
Park Yoo-jung gave off the vibe of being the popular kid in every school.
“Thank you so much for coming! You listened to all our songs, right?”
“Ah…, yes… I listened to, um, all of them.”
“Wow, didn’t our song turn out great this time? I especially….”
For a brief moment, Yoo Chang-seon felt as if he’d become one of the cool kids too as he moved on to the next.
“Hello!”
“Hello…”
This round was Na Han-na.
“Where should I sign for you?”
“Ah…, I’d like to ask you to sign here.”
“Sure.”
Na Han-na signed with her trademark sleepy eyes.
That didn’t translate into her signing carelessly, however.
She thoughtfully added a heartfelt message alongside her signature.
Yoo Chang-seon felt more at ease as he moved on to the next.
“Hello!”
Next was Seo Yoo-jin.
“I’ll sign for you, oppa!”
‘O, oppa…?’
Seo Yoo-jin, with her bold and cheerful demeanor, had a charming look reminiscent of a little sister from an anime.
There was a sense of nobility about her, almost like a rich girl.
“I’ve liked you since Na Ah Ah…!”
“Ah, really?!”
It wasn’t a lie that he liked her since Na Ah Ah.
While he absolutely adored Ha Ye-rin, Seo Yoo-jin was next on the list for him.
“Thank you so much, oppa!”
Seo Yoo-jin smiled brightly and called him oppa once more.
“See you next time! For sure!”
“Yes, yes…!”
Stunned by Seo Yoo-jin’s continuous “oppa” attacks, he moved to the next.
And….
“Hello.”
“…Huh.”
Seeing Yoo Seol next in line, he froze.
‘D-Did she look this pretty…?’
Back during Na Ah Ah, he had somewhat suppressed his support for Yoo Seol as a leading member of the anti-Yoo Seol faction.
But the real Yoo Seol was astonishingly beautiful; he couldn’t believe someone like her existed.
“Why are you like that?”
“You’re… so pretty…”
“Ah….”
In response to his candid answer to her question, Yoo Seol mischievously smiled and whispered, “I was just born pretty.”
“……”
Yoo Chang-seon was completely smitten by Yoo Seol’s playful words.
If Yoo Seol were a nine-tailed fox, he would have willingly provided his liver!
‘N-No, pull yourself together…!’
He finally regained his composure after reminding himself that Ha Ye-rin was next.
Noticing Yoo Chang-seon’s daze, Yoo Seol giggled and asked, “So you came to see Ye-rin?”
“Ah… um…”
Faced with her unexpected question, Yoo Chang-seon hesitated but eventually nodded.
“…Y-Yes.”
“The next turn is Ye-rin. Thank you for coming, and see you again next time.”
“Yes, yes…! See you next time….”
Yoo Chang-seon bowed to Yoo Seol and attempted to move on.
Or rather, he tried to, but….
“Wow, really? Thank you! I’m….”
He still had to wait for Ha Ye-rin to finish talking to the fan in front of him.
While waiting, Yoo Chang-seon caught a close glimpse of Ha Ye-rin’s face, feeling as if time had frozen.
So beautiful.
Seriously beautiful.
If Yoo Seol was the prettiest person in the world just now…
Ha Ye-rin was the prettiest in the universe.
1,800,000 won?
Not a penny wasted.
Even if it were 18,000,000 won, he would’ve gone into debt to be here.
Seeing Ha Ye-rin up close filled Yoo Chang-seon with the conviction that he could sacrifice anything for her.
“Okay, goodbye! Hope to see you again!”
And just like that, as the fan before him left, it was his turn.
Yoo Chang-seon stepped forward with a racing heart toward Ha Ye-rin.
The moment she stood before him….
“Uh?”
Ha Ye-rin’s eyes widened, as if she recognized him.
Could it be…?
‘Is she remembering our brief encounter during the music recording?’
Thud, thud, thud, thud.
My favorite idol, Ha Ye-rin…! She remembers me…!!
In that moment, it felt like he was about to fly into the sky!
“Were you that Japanese guy from before?”
“……?”
Surprised by Ha Ye-rin’s statement, a question mark floated over Yoo Chang-seon’s head as he quickly came to understand the situation.
‘Oh, it was because I called her Ye-rin-chan back then….’
She must have clearly misunderstood.
Trying to clear up her misunderstanding, he began to say…
“I….”
“Ohayo? Konnichiwa?”
‘…So cute.’
Hearing Ha Ye-rin mutter Japanese while tilting her head was so adorable that he froze instantly.
He didn’t want to break that pure charm.
For Ha Ye-rin’s sake, he could give up anything.
“…Ore wa nihon-jin desu.”
“Ah, haihai!”
He sacrificed his Korean identity for Ha Ye-rin.
“…Dokdo wa kankokuno tandesu.”
“…Arigatou?”
“Sign here please.”
“Ah, kimi no namaewa?”
“Yoo Chang, I mean… um,… Tanjiro desu.”
“Tanjiro-kun. Arigatou.”
Ha Ye-rin, happy to see her Japanese fan at the fan signing event, even asked for a handshake.
Gah…!
Yoo Chang-seon shakily reached out to shake hands with Ha Ye-rin.
‘Fck, fck, f*ck…!!’
While he had given up being Korean, he earned this reward in return.
No regrets.
But…
“……”
“……”
As he turned his gaze aside for just a moment, his eyes met Yoo Seol’s, who was looking at him like he was crazy, and he found it hard to contain his rising embarrassment.
In response, he….
“Ye-rin-chan, fighting…!”
“Arigatou! Bye-bye!”
He quickly bowed to Ha Ye-rin and hurriedly left the stage.
Hwaahh—.
The warmth of holding Ha Ye-rin’s hand felt like it had burned him, slowly heating up.
‘This is the same hand that touched Ha Ye-rin just 10 seconds ago…’
Yoo Chang-seon cherished his hand, making sure it didn’t touch anything else.
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