A building of an entertainment company in Seoul.
A trainee was preparing to part ways with her agency.
Many people dream of becoming idols and sign contracts with agencies, but… many of them also end up parting ways with their companies without achieving their dreams.
However, this case was a little different.
“Okay, Hye-jeong. It’s over. With this, your contract with Kidship Entertainment is ended.”
“Ah… Thank you for everything until now.”
Kidship Entertainment wanted to take Lee Hye-jeong all the way.
But… Hye-jeong ultimately rejected the contract extension with Kidship.
It wasn’t because Kidship Entertainment was bad.
In fact, the connection between Hye-jeong and Kidship was quite long and strong.
But Kidship Entertainment had a critical problem…
“Oh, what a shame, Hye-jeong. You could definitely succeed as a female singer.”
“……”
It was that they did not train idols.
The representative of Kidship wanted to grow Hye-jeong as a female solo artist.
In reality, Hye-jeong had achieved a ranking of 7th in the audition program K-Star during her high school years, proving her high potential for success.
But…
“I’m sorry, sir. I really want to be an idol.”
Hye-jeong simply wanted to be an idol, not just a singer.
With Hye-jeong’s firm heart confirmed, Kidship had no choice but to let her go.
“…Alright, Hye-jeong. I pray that only blessings fill your path from now on.”
“Thank you, President. I’ll contact you again.”
“Sure.”
Thus, Hye-jeong and Kidship Entertainment had a bittersweet yet warm farewell.
“Phew…”
Leaving the beloved agency and heading home, Hye-jeong thought.
I will definitely become an idol.
Hye-jeong wanted to become an idol and absolutely would.
And….
[Could you come to the building for an audition tomorrow morning? – From Ye-rin’s representative]
If she became an idol…, there were definitely people she wanted to be with.
The next morning.
“For a startup, this building is amazing…”
Lee Hye-jeong, who came to audition at Brotherhood Planning, was momentarily shocked by how much bigger and cleaner the building was than she had expected.
She was worried about it being a new company…
But just by looking at the building, it was far better than Kidship Entertainment, which had been in the industry for a while.
And while she was in awe…
“Unnie!!!”
Two girls screamed as they ran towards her.
“Hey guys!!!”
“Unnie!! So glad to see you!”
“It’s been a while. You’ve become even prettier in just a few weeks.”
It was Park Yoo-jung and Na Han-na.
Even after the Rookies disbanded, the members kept in touch regularly.
Thanks to that, the three of them could share the information about the audition at Brotherhood Planning today…
They planned this surprise while keeping it a secret from Ha Ye-rin and gathered in front of the main gate of Brotherhood Planning.
Thus, Hye-jeong, Yoo-jung, and Han-na shared warm moments of conversation before heading inside.
“Oh, so you three came at the same time.”
“Hello. Long time no see.”
“Yes, nice to meet you.”
Inside, Seo Yoo-jin’s temporary manager, Sang-gu, was waiting for them.
“Let’s go. Everyone is waiting.”
“Yes.”
The three of them followed Sang-gu to the interview room.
Meanwhile, Hye-jeong was a bit nervous.
Although she recklessly came because it was Ye-rin’s company…, what if the company people didn’t like her?
Also…, she doubted Ye-rin would dislike her sudden appearance but what if?
“Hyung, I brought them. We’re going in.”
“Yeah.”
But as the door opened….
“Puhahaha, pass. Definitely a pass.”
The moment he saw their faces, Ha Ye-rin declared their acceptance.
Seeing Ye-rin’s smiling face after such a long time, Hye-jeong felt all the worries she brought along melt away like poof.
“Unnie…! Guys…! Come in!”
“Ye-rin.”
Hug!
How long has it been since they saw each other…
Hye-jeong, Park Yoo-jung, Na Han-na, and Ha Ye-rin embraced tightly, as if they became one big plushie.
Hye-jeong felt so warm in that embrace.
This feels nice…
Hye-jeong truly wanted to be an idol.
She wanted to be an idol with her eternal companions here.
Hye-jeong, Park Yoo-jung, and Na Han-na swiftly finalized their contracts with Brotherhood Planning.
“Unnie, guys.”
As I was waiting anxiously outside the meeting room until they finished their contracts, I could see from the bright faces of the three coming out that everything went well.
“Did the contract go well…?”
“Yeah, the president is super easygoing!”
Hye-jeong’s words were supported by Yoo-jung and Han-na.
“There were no toxic clauses or vague terms… They immediately added the terms we wanted…”
“Definitely very different from the previous company.”
…The previous company.
Right, all three of them had contracts with respective companies.
So even though I wanted to bring all the Rookies members to Brotherhood Planning, I couldn’t easily suggest it.
But how did these three end up at Brotherhood Planning?
“Did you sort things out with the previous companies? How did you end up at Brotherhood Planning without even telling me?”
When I asked, they answered one by one.
“Ah… My contract with my original agency expired.”
“Your agency was Kidship Entertainment, right? I thought it was a company that didn’t do idols…”
“Yeah, that’s right. So I was looking for a new company, and then a few days ago, Director Kang from Brotherhood Planning called me.”
Once Hye-jeong finished speaking, Park Yoo-jung cheerfully raised her hand and spoke.
“I also just finished my contract with Levi Entertainment. I was considering re-signing, but Brotherhood Planning contacted me, so I came right away. I want to debut again with my unnie!”
Despite saying that, it must have been hard for her to part with a company she had grown attached to.
Still, I was grateful that Yoo-jung chose Brotherhood Planning.
And lastly, Na Han-na.
“I still had time left on my contract, but my company said they weren’t going to make a girl group for the next year.”
“Ah…”
“But then Director Kang from Brotherhood Planning said he’d cover the penalty fee… And since I really wanted to be with my unnie, I came right away.”
“The president said he’d cover your penalty fee?”
“That’s what he said.”
Surprised by the unexpected news, I asked, and just then, Kang Hyung-man, who was finishing up the contracts, answered instead.
“I talked with Han-na’s previous agency, Heyest, since yesterday, and they agreed to transfer the penalty fee within this week.”
“Must have been a hefty amount…”
Of course, for me, Na Han-na’s worth was way beyond that penalty fee.
But for Kang Hyung-man, it would have been more efficient to find another trainee than to pay the penalty fee for bringing Na Han-na over.
So why would he go so far as to cover the penalty fee to bring Na Han-na?
As if he read my thoughts in my eyes, Kang Hyung-man chuckled softly and replied.
“Even if I didn’t say it, weren’t you missing the Rookies members?”
“……”
“I wanted to find the members who would fit best with Ye-rin.”
So in the end, it was for my sake.
“…Thank you, President.”
As I expressed my gratitude by bowing my head, Kang Hyung-man patted my shoulder, saying it wasn’t necessary.
“Of course, besides that, I also highly valued Han-na’s abilities. Over the past year, I saw how shining you all are through Rookies’ activities. I wanted to bring all of you to our company.”
“Excuse me, sir.”
Once Kang Hyung-man finished speaking, the sociable Park Yoo-jung raised her hand and asked.
“Does that mean you extended offers to all Rookies members as you said, sir?”
“……!”
Now that I thought about it…
There were a total of six Rookies members, but only four of us, including me, were here.
“That means….”
“Correct. I made recruitment offers to all Rookies members. And the only ones who accepted are the four of you who are here.”
“Then the other two…”
“I haven’t heard from them yet.”
Yoo Seol and Seo Yoo-jin.
Both of them had deep ties with Rookies, but they couldn’t just decide their future based on that alone.
From their perspective, remaining with their original companies, JJ and SAV, would likely be a more attractive option than Brotherhood Planning.
‘It’s selfish to think this way, but… I still hope they join Brotherhood Planning.’
But this wasn’t something I could control just because I wanted to.
The four of us, including me, Hye-jeong, Yoo-jung, and Han-na, could only wait for the other two to contact us.
In a university hospital in Seoul.
“It looks like you can be discharged now.”
“…Really, doctor?”
“Yes, of course, you will need to come for check-ups every three months, but… your current condition can be considered ‘cured.’”
“……!”
Cured.
Upon hearing those words, Yoo Seol lowered her head and began to cry tears of joy.
“Thank you, doctor. I really appreciate it.”
Her mother, who seemed like she would soon leave her side, was able to return to a normal life that day.
As they completed the discharge procedures in the hospital room, which felt like home, her mother gently embraced Yoo Seol’s shoulders.
“…Seol-ah, you really worked hard. And…, I’m sorry, my dear.”
“…What are you apologizing for?”
There were times when she once resented her mother.
Debuting at JJ Entertainment, which Yoo Seol had longed for since childhood.
When her mother suddenly collapsed, Yoo Seol lost her focus and ultimately failed to debut at JJ.
And her mother, who understood Yoo Seol’s situation better than anyone, held her hand and said.
“…Our Seol. I’m really okay now, so don’t worry and just do what you want the most.”
“What I want the most…”
What did Yoo Seol want the most?
…One thing came to mind.
Thus, Yoo Seol organized her thoughts and turned on her phone.
[Brotherhood Planning – Kang Hyung-man, Representative]
[JJ Entertainment – Manager Park]
Coincidentally, two messages from them had arrived on her phone.
Without hesitation, Yoo Seol chose one of the contact numbers and made the call.
“Hello, this is Manager Park. Yes, I’m on my way to the company now.”
Today, Yoo Seol’s first destination was JJ Entertainment.
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