Remaining in the break room hastily arranged by the organizers, Jion fell into deep thought.
What the hell is this situation? I’ve really come back 10 years to the past, and this is reality?
At first, he simply thought he was having a dream about those days because of Seonwoo Jin. But the pain was too real to think of it as a dream. Even with sleep anesthesia, you’d wake up if you got hit this hard. Jion rubbed a frozen water bottle against his swollen cheeks and regretted slapping himself so hard.
To call it a dream, he couldn’t control anything in the dream, and events different from past memories also occurred. Like receiving cheers on stage or Geumsori coming straight to the festival site without going to the hospital after the accident.
He didn’t want to make the imaginative assumption that he’d returned to the past, but there was one certainty.
If he hadn’t shamelessly sung trot and showed off unlike before. If he hadn’t suggested not to tell about Geumsori’s accident news. If, like before, facing empty audience seats, he’d lost spirit and trudged down without properly performing on stage.
Then the events in the dream would have flowed exactly the same as before.
“……Does that mean changes can occur through my actions?”
Jion muttered to himself and clenched his fist. The feeling of nails digging into his palm was vivid.
“Really, youth, let’s go once more……”
Wow, so countrified.
While cringing at his own mutter, Jion’s heart gradually began to flutter with excitement. Even if it’s in a dream, if he acts differently from before, the future him might change.
He recalled the words he’d said until his mouth was worn out to music major students during his seven years as an entrance exam lesson instructor.
“Who lives your life if not you?”
“This is your first and last time as a current high school senior. You have to practice now and do well now.”
“Am I telling you to do well your whole life? Just! This one year. Just! Once on practical exam day, that’s all. So what do you have to do? Work hard normally.”
Jion reflected on the words he’d shouted hoarsely at the glazed eyes of spaced-out current students. Thinking again, he was a true teacher incarnate. Having tasted life’s bitter, salty, astringent, fishy flavors…… everything except sweetness, 32-year-old Seong Jion decided.
For Jion who had flopped so spectacularly it was chilling, only venom remained now. Of course, it was still hard to believe this was reality, but what’s bad about trying hard in a dream? Succeeding even in a dream was a good experience. If it’s reality, even better…….
Right. It’s a free opportunity anyway! Whether dream or reality, let’s succeed somewhere!
Just as Jion clenched his fist and strengthened his resolve, someone opened the door and came in without reading the room. It was Seonwoo Jin. Jion quickly made a good expression and smiled.
“Oh, Woojin-ah.”
“Are you okay?”
Woojin approached with an extremely awkward expression and asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for worrying.”
“No, I was shocked. Suddenly self-slapping so hard like that……”
Seeing Woojin’s neck snap as he reenacted the storm slap, Jion thought he might really have talent in acting. In comparison, Jion’s sickly beautiful youth acting was awkward as hell.
“Sorry. Since it’s been a while since I stood on stage, I couldn’t calm my nerves even after coming down.”
“But you did well.”
“Thanks.”
“Really.”
“……Yeah.”
At Woojin sending unexpectedly friendly support and encouragement, Jion was inwardly flustered.
Why is this bastard like this?
Jion hastily tried to recall memories about their relationship.
BNCZ was a group hastily assembled by the president mobilizing his connections during the idol boom era. They picked up Ryu Geon who had trained long at a failing small agency, and Jinyeong in similar circumstances was recruited that way too. Eungi was the only non-trot applicant among six audition participants, and Jion, unable to debut without a main vocal, joined through the recommendation of his vocal academy teacher.
In this situation, there was no friendship among members before debut. At best, Ryu Geon and Jinyeong were from the same region so they had some acquaintance.
Naturally, Seong Jion and Seonwoo Jin who shared a room for 3 years also had no friendship, and their relationship was awkward until disbandment. It had to be that way. The two had too different personalities from the start.
Main vocal Seong Jion, scouted from a famous Seoul vocal academy. With a pretty face, gentle and timid personality, plus automatically losing spirit at the sight of sharp-edged punks—a loser of losers.
Conversely, Seonwoo Jin, cast as a good-looking civilian from SNS, was the humanization of sharp edges that made Seong Jion lose spirit just looking at his face, and a terrible man-eater. Moreover, there was no way Seonwoo Jin, who had no thought of building camaraderie with members nor any thought of practicing his lacking vocals, rap, or dance to solidify his position, could become close with members who wanted success.
While sharing the same room, it was difficult for there to be any point of contact between Seonwoo Jin lying in bed all day just doing SNS and Seong Jion stuck in the practice room only singing, so the two had so little friendship they might as well have been strangers.
But why is he suddenly coming here and acting friendly?
Jion inwardly kept guard against Seonwoo Jin while simultaneously thinking about what he’d done in the two days in the dream. There was nothing different. Getting annoyed when spoken to…… acting a bit friendly when he sulked…….
Ah. Could it be this?
Jion suddenly thought he knew why Seonwoo Jin became human.
Acting friendly. Right. Acting friendly was the problem. No, the cause.
The human called Seonwoo Jin, while pretending to be complex, had simple, childish, and self-centered thinking structure, so he liked anyone who was nice to him. Liked them even more if they were women.
Just in case, Jion made a particularly weak expression and tried acting nice.
“Coming to check on me like this…… Woojin, I only have you……”
“……We’re same-age friends sharing a room. I should look after you.”
And seeing Woojin subtly showing he liked it while avoiding eye contact, Jion was certain.
This bastard. I really can use him if I coax him along.
The moment he realized that fact, a roadmap of the future began unfolding at rapid speed in Jion’s head.
Originally, Seonwoo Jin had the best visuals among members, so even when the dating scandal broke, they heard things like “It’s also a skill not to rise when you have someone this handsome.” Thinking conversely, couldn’t they now use this handsome face to rise?
The future is in my hands, and I pioneer my own life.
Recalling good words like a senior year class motto, Jion smiled brightly.
“I only have you, Woojin-ah.”
In this life of mine, I’ll polish my path sparkling clean with you as my rag.
Originally, BNCZ would finish a stage no one watched in Uicheon and receive their career-high song 6 months later. Thinking about it now, the song didn’t seem that good, but maybe they just received some buff from Seonwoo Jin whose beauty was in full bloom. The problem was that water overflowed in another direction and a dating scandal broke out.
So Jion had no thoughts of doing anything immediately either. Having bought 6 months until receiving the career-high song, he planned to redo the members’ basic vocalization practice from scratch, practice dance himself too, and wait for the right time. Becoming close with Seonwoo Jin and regulating his man-eater behavior a bit.
“Huh? Isn’t this us?”
However, once changed, reality brought unpredictably large changes like a butterfly effect. The protagonist in the YouTube video Eungi showed the members was none other than BNCZ.
[Nugu idols with crazy determination at Uicheon Garlic Festival]
It was a malicious title full of mockery, but the comment reactions weren’t bad.
@eofhlekw2dfse
Really hearing about an idol called BNCZ for the first time since growing hair on my head;
@alice_34332
Still, it’s nice to see they’re sincere even on stages like this
└ @uxxxxn_dfe
They can only stand on stages like this so they better be sincere lololol
@ykes3421
There are really boy groups working this hard, wish desperate kids would rise more
@뀰따는굠
The guy dancing stiffly in the back is handsome
80% were comments finding them admirable for working hard, 18% were mocking comments calling them nugu, and 2% recognized Seonwoo Jin’s face. There seemed to have been young students among the audience even though he hadn’t expected it.
The videos uploaded by students started riding the algorithm one by one, and finally 『Youth, Let’s Go Once More!』 that Jion sang to liven up the atmosphere hit the jackpot in views.
📌Pinned Comment
@미궁의라비린스
Nugu guy singing beef tripe hangover soup with a French onion soup face
Finally, people who recognized the group name appeared, even if just online. Jion endlessly watched their shorts being uploaded with only thumbnail changes. He’d received quite a bit of praise for singing well, but since this was the first time being evaluated by the public, reading the comments was fun no matter how many times.
And Jion wasn’t the only one shaken by this sudden attention.
“I’m going to the convenience store, does anyone need anything?”
“Jinyeong-ah.”
“Yeah?”
“You should wear a mask.”
Ryu Geon solemnly handed over a black mask, the symbol of celebrities. They hadn’t risen enough for anyone to recognize them on the street yet, but achieving 1 million views on shorts seemed to have greatly impressed him. Even Jinyeong, who would have sneered before, obediently accepted and wore it, so he too was clearly conscious of this attention.
Really cute kids…….
Jion looked at them warmly while simultaneously sensing that time to be leisurely no longer remained.
Jion was an idol who had experience flopping and had analyzed cases of numerous flop idols who flopped together for 7 years. He judged that now was the time to row. And to row? First, the oar needs to be sturdy.
“Should we go practice after Jinyeong comes back from the convenience store?”
The basics of basics are fundamentals. With my 7 years of experience as an entrance exam specialist instructor, I’ll make your vocalization reach the level of top admission to Ansan Arts University vocal major. Jion clenched both fists.
