“Omnikin Balnyaang!”
“Eek!”
Jion desperately stuck his leg under the floating ball and screamed as he lifted it with the top of his foot. There were various rules for the kinball game, but to explain most simply, the team that was attacked must not let the weakly floating ball drop to the floor.
Why was the team composition like this—the two teams excluding Jion’s team were all lively and energetic people, and they were all busy running around frantically because of how solidly they hit the ball into places without defenders. But among them, there was only one member who didn’t do anything and walked around listlessly without energy, and as everyone expected, it was Park Homin.
“Our attack!”
Since he said he wanted to take the attack, the teammates who succeeded in defense were all holding the ball and waiting, but Park Homin walked over leisurely and just tapped the ball half-heartedly, showing no will to score. Watching the ball that flew with a ‘thwack’—not floating gently or even just floating, but ‘thwack’—and the other team that caught it far too easily, the teammates looked at each other’s faces.
If this bastard Park Homin isn’t going to do anything, why didn’t he just sit there instead of coming out?
It was clear everyone was thinking the same thing. Park Homin must have also sensed the teammates’ cold atmosphere, as he muttered curses to himself.
“Ah, shit. This won’t save my swag……”
As if there was ever a time his swag was saved. Hearing those words, Jion looked at Park Homin disdainfully but couldn’t do much about it. Jion gave a bright smile to the female idols who were awkwardly reading the room.
“At least we’re not in last place.”
An ambiguous comment that was neither encouragement nor comfort, but just adding a smile to it was enough to refresh the atmosphere. It was regrettable that if only kinball wasn’t a game where all team members had to participate, they could have coolly abandoned Park Homin. In the meantime, he had to get another one-shot so he tenaciously took the attack.
“Omnikin Bolgging.”
Watching the ball that was weakly tapped again and the defending team that walked over to hit it back, Jion almost failed at expression management.
Really, Jion’s kinball team was practically surviving on the lives of the two female idols running with them. Jion, whose body was slow and reflexes dull, worked hard but wasn’t much help, and because of Park Homin who didn’t even participate in the game let alone help, this team was at a level of 1+1+0.5+0.1.
“Omnikin Balnyaang!”
At least thanks to the two people defending well with their incredible athletic ability, they could avoid last place, but it wasn’t easy to lead a team game with two aces. The ball the team in front hit flew toward the vicinity of Jion and Park Homin.
The ball was much closer to Park Homin, but there was no way Park Homin, who was packed with entertainment district fat, would move. Jion, who had no expectations, moved his body first and ran to save the ball. The ball was right next to Park Homin, and Jion stretched his leg out to save the ball. It was a strategy to make it at least touch the top of his foot and float it up.
Since he’d saved the ball narrowly several times before, he thought it was worth trying this time too, but this time there was a terrible variable. Perhaps thinking he’d be cursed at if he did nothing when the ball came right next to him, Park Homin moved. And without even looking to the side, he suddenly moved his foot first.
“Ah!”
“Gasp, what do we do? Jion’s ankle got stepped on!”
Hayeon, who witnessed Park Homin stepping on Jion’s ankle as he moved his body, screamed. BengYeoju also forgot to pretend to be a Venom fan and shouted in great panic. Fortunately, it was a moment when all the Venom fan seats were agitated so she wasn’t caught, but the atmosphere was serious.
“Fuck, what!”
The moment Park Homin kicked Jion’s calf as if he’d been tackled, even though he’d stepped on Jion’s ankle himself, the atmosphere in the venue became irreversible.
“What do we do!”
“Isn’t there medical staff?”
“Time! Time!”
The teammates ran over to help Jion up, and Yoon Hyeok from the opposing team quickly made a T sign with his hands to the host, requesting a game suspension. When the referee belatedly blew the whistle and the game was suspended, only then did Park Homin act sheepish and grumble at Jion, who was being helped up by the female idols.
“Ah, well, it doesn’t seem like you’re badly hurt……”
“No! I saw it and he totally stepped hard on it……”
“No, did I step on it on purpose! You came over and stuck your foot in! Are your eyes crooked?”
When the female idol who was supporting Jion made a serious face and argued back at Park Homin, Park Homin yelled with veins bulging in his neck. He was really crazy. Jion mouthed “it’s okay” to the female idols who shrank back in surprise, then stood on his one uninjured foot and grabbed Park Homin’s shoulder and approached him closely.
Surprised by Jion suddenly approaching, Park Homin tried to step back slightly, but perhaps thinking it wouldn’t save his swag, he put on airs by placing Jion’s arm on his shoulder.
“Wh-what, you’re fine. You’re walking fine on one foot.”
“Sunbae-nim.”
Jion, furious to the top of his head, leaned his body on Park Homin’s shoulder and whispered in his ear.
“……Cut it out moderately, you fucking bastard. Are you high? Why can’t you fucking tell what’s appropriate? Is your head cracked, fuck.”
“Wha, what?”
When swear words that couldn’t be imagined from Jion’s soft and gentle face came out, Park Homin’s mind went blank. Even though he’d gone around causing all kinds of shitty blunders, this was the first time he’d been cursed at like this to his face—no, in his ear—and it was too powerful a beating for his pathetically weak mentality.
“What did you just say to me? Huh?”
“Ah!”
“Jion!”
The moment Park Homin came to his senses belatedly and made a serious face and pushed Jion, Yoon Hyeok, who appeared from behind, caught and held Jion.
“What the hell are you doing!”
Yoon Hyeok yelled at Park Homin. To someone who didn’t know watching from afar, it looked like a junior with an injured leg leaned on a senior’s shoulder and the senior pushed the junior away. Moreover, since that senior was the one who injured the junior, it was natural for people to be angry. Even in the Venom cheering section, they couldn’t take their oppa’s side and sighs like
“Why is he like that……”
“What the hell……”
flowed out.
“Jion! Are you okay?”
“Ah, sunbae. Yes, but I think I hurt my ankle……”
“Isn’t there medical staff? Medical staff?”
The female idols stomped their feet and asked the production team to call medical staff, but there was no medical staff on standby. The staff who approached with a flustered face rolled up Jion’s pants leg and was at a loss.
“W-we have air spray and pain relief patches…… Would you like to try those at least?”
Anyone could see it was swollen red and puffy, so there was no way that would work. The female idols glared at the staff and confronted them.
“I think this needs an X-ray? Don’t you have something like a stretcher?”
“We don’t have anything prepared…… If you call your manager and go to the hospital……”
“Wait, you won’t call from here?”
“Uh, we don’t provide such personal conveniences……”
Yoon Hyeok, who was listening to the staff’s words while having Jion lean on his body, made a serious face and asked.
“This is a personal convenience?”
“……Ah, I’m sorry……”
The staff who realized they’d misspoken quickly apologized, but that didn’t bring a solution. Moreover, since BNCZ’s manager wasn’t an exclusive manager, after dropping them off at the IAC site, he’d gone to another trot singer’s local event. Yoon Hyeok, seeing the troubled Jion, was generous.
“I’ll ask our manager. We have three with us today. Take our car to the hospital.”
“Thank you……”
“No, seniors should help juniors.”
While saying that, Yoon Hyeok glared at Park Homin. It was a quite showmanship-like reaction.
The reason Yoon Hyeok was being so nice to Jion was partly to build friendships in advance to suck up the sweet benefits because BNCZ seemed like they would soon hit it big, but largely because he smelled the scent of downfall from Park Homin.
Yoon Hyeok was famous in this industry as a downfall detector. As it was, when Venom was at their peak, Yoon Hyeok had shared some friendship with Park Homin, so he needed some kind of incident or episode to show that he and Park Homin weren’t the same type.
“There, your members are stomping their feet now.”
Yoon Hyeok smiled and gestured with his chin toward the members running into the arena. At the front was Seonwoo Jin with a serious face.
“Jion!”
Seonwoo Jin with a frighteningly hardened face immediately snatched Jion from Yoon Hyeok’s arms as soon as he came close and held him in his own arms. It was a familiar princess carry. Yoon Hyeok raised his hands as if surprised and stepped back one step, and Ryu Geon bowed to Yoon Hyeok to thank him.
“Thank you for taking care of Jion.”
“Not at all. I heard your manager isn’t at the site right now? I’ll tell our manager, so take our car to the hospital and back.”
“I’m sorry……”
“Sorry for what. We help each other.”
Hidden in the words about helping each other was a subtle appeal asking them to speak well of him later, but Ryu Geon, who was flustered, didn’t catch the exact meaning of those words. Only Jion, who was being held in Seonwoo Jin’s arms, knew the hidden meaning and briefly exchanged glances with Yoon Hyeok.
I buy sympathy votes with the victim role, and you do media play as a senior who takes care of juniors, a concept idol who can’t stand injustice?
It wasn’t a bad deal. Jion wrapped his arms around Seonwoo Jin’s neck and deliberately made a more pained expression and made groaning sounds.
“Ah…… Woojin, my ankle hurts so much……”
Omnikin (옴니킨) – (official call used in kinball when serving/attacking)
