Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 310. Until Spring Comes (2)

‘No matter how expensive and nice it is, a hospital is still a hospital.’

Hajin thought as he sat in a chair in the hospital corridor, staring at the framed artwork on the wall opposite him.

The corridor had expensive-looking paintings hanging on the walls, and security guards were stationed at intervals along the entrances and hallways. With few patients occupying the rooms, the atmosphere was quiet and serene, making it an ideal place to collect his thoughts….

Yet, his heart felt heavy.

No matter how polished the exterior, this was still a place where the sick were gathered, a constant reminder of the underlying truth.

“…Want one?”

A low voice, tinged with a hint of kindness, broke through his thoughts.

When Hajin looked up, he saw Doha standing in front of him, offering a cold can of soda. In the other hand, Doha held several more cans, as if he had grabbed drinks for all the members.

Hajin let out a small chuckle at the sight of the traditional rice drink, sikhye, prominently standing out among the cans.

“Siwoo-hyung is drinking sikhye? Not sujeonggwa?”

“He said he needed some sugar to relieve stress.”

“…Stress?”

“It’s a hospital.”

“…….”

“Just being here is probably pretty unsettling.”

“…You…”

Hajin thought to himself how casually Doha made such a statement, then readily accepted the can of soda. He took a big gulp of the sweet, cold sports drink, feeling the icy temperature jolt his nervous system awake.

“…Aren’t you going to go in?”

Doha plopped down next to Hajin and asked, both of them gazing at the door of another hospital room in front of them. Hajin glanced at the patient nameplate beside the room.

****

Joo Eunchan was labeled as *Joo *chan, so it seemed that both he and Ji Suho had names that couldn’t hide their identity well, despite the attempt at anonymity. Without answering, Hajin finished the rest of his drink. The empty can crumpled loudly in his hand.

Doha spoke again.

“The surgery went well, and all the tests came back normal. They say he’s just not waking up. The hospital mentioned that in some cases, this can happen, and they recommend waiting until at least tomorrow to see if there’s any change.”

“…….”

“…It’s the same condition as yours, right? The director.”

Perfectly healthy, just asleep.

Doha’s guess that Ji Suho was in the same unconscious state as Hajin had once been was met with a silent nod from Hajin. Thirteen still hadn’t returned.

“…So, what do you plan to do now?”

Doha asked just like that.

Instead of asking why or how things had turned out this way—questions Hajin couldn’t answer—he focused on what Hajin needed to think about moving forward.

I’ve found a really good friend.

With that newfound appreciation, Hajin responded.

“What else? I have to work. We’ll have our comeback, and we’ll keep busy… live life on the go again.”

“…….”

“They say crisis is opportunity. When we’ve got this much attention, we need to hit them with some amazing schedules, build up a narrative, you know? I want to reassure the fans who are worried too.”

Hajin spoke in a deliberately upbeat tone, and Doha nodded quietly, playing along. After all, it wasn’t just Hajin who wanted to dive back into preparations for their comeback as soon as possible.

While it was true that Eunchan’s accident had temporarily put a halt to their comeback plans, the hospital had given the opinion that Eunchan could return to activities after a few weeks of rest, as long as he took care of himself.

After much deliberation, the company and the members decided to keep the original comeback plan, granting Eunchan a month of rest instead. Eunchan himself was determined, and neither the members nor the company could easily bring up the idea of postponing it.

Everyone sensed that Kairos was at the critical tipping point, just before they would ride an unstoppable wave of success.

“Hajin.”

“Yeah?”

Doha wanted to say something to Hajin, but when their eyes met, he found himself closing his mouth. Hajin’s weary eyes were filled with fatigue. Seeing how drained Hajin looked, Doha figured that’s why he had suddenly burst into tears in the hospital room earlier.

“…I was wondering if you had any specific activities in mind. Most of our original plans have been canceled or postponed.”

So instead of saying what he originally intended, Doha asked a question that Hajin could easily answer. Hajin always perked up when talking about work, and Doha hoped that discussing this would lift his spirits.

Just as Doha predicted, Hajin straightened up as soon as the topic of work came up, slinging an arm over Doha’s shoulder.

“Hey, think about it. What month is it right now?”

“March.”

“What comes to mind when you think of March?”

“…Fine dust?”

“……Enrollment, man. School. Youth. Cherry blossoms. Our glorious spring days.”

Hajin looked aghast at Doha’s unromantic answer, prompting Doha to chuckle and nod in response, signaling him to go on. Hajin, falling into his old habits, snapped his fingers and excitedly continued.

“Our overall vibe has been pretty gloomy lately. So, don’t you think we need to bring in something bright and cheerful?”

“Are you planning to do some cherry blossom festival events?”

“Something like that. If there are cherry blossoms and crowds, that’s basically a festival, right?”

“I still have no idea what you’re planning.”

Even as Doha tilted his head, clearly puzzled, Hajin just shrugged with a sly smile. Then, he stood up and tossed the empty can into a nearby trash bin.

The familiar, refreshing smile that hadn’t been seen much lately spread across Hajin’s face as he turned back to Doha.

“Well, we can adjust the schedule later when everyone’s together.”

“…….”

“But there’s something more important to take care of first.”

“……?”

When Doha tilted his head, as if to ask what else needed to be done, Hajin casually slipped his hands into his jacket pockets and spoke in a lively tone.

“We need to pick up our runaway Cherry first.”

If we’re too late, he might actually sulk.

The playful expression on Hajin’s face was undeniably his usual self. Doha let out a sigh of relief at the sight and, as always, nodded without hesitation.

* * *

“Taehyun, are you sure you’ll be okay? We could just ask your dad…”

“It’s fine, really. All the guests have checked in, so I just need to watch the counter. Go ahead, I know you’re super busy.”

“Alright then, we’ll be back as soon as we can. Just keep an eye on things for a bit, okay? And if anyone suspicious shows up…”

“No one’s coming. All the reporters who were here ran off. Don’t worry, just go.”

It was evening in Gangwon-do, where the mountains were green and the sea was clear.

Taehyun gently pushed his worried mother, who hadn’t even managed to put on her shoes properly, out the door and pulled a white baseball cap over his head. With his small face, the cap covered half of it.

“See? Now go. You said Seongho-uncle’s place is short-staffed and in a panic.”

“…Okay, okay. We’ll be back soon, alright?”

It had been several days since Taehyun and his family had fled to their home in Gangwon-do instead of their original destination in Namhae due to the sudden rumors.

Thanks to the tourists who had come to Gangwon-do for an early taste of spring in March, Taehyun was busier than ever, making his retreat seem almost unnecessary. Sometimes, he even forgot why he was here in the first place.

‘Aren’t cherry blossom festivals supposed to start in the south? It’s still pretty cold in Gangwon-do.’

Well, business doing well was good for him, his parents, and his uncle.

Even now, a group from a training program had filled the neighboring pension and restaurant, leaving Taehyun’s mom and uncle scrambling to help out as part-time workers.

His mother still seemed uneasy about leaving her son, who had come all the way here to escape the chaos, alone at the desk. But Taehyun himself found the quiet time alone at the desk rather peaceful.

‘…It’s quiet.’

Now that his mom and uncle were gone, and the guests were all enjoying their evenings in their cottages, Taehyun grabbed a thick coat and stepped outside the shop. He locked the door, hung a sign saying he would be back shortly and left the pension’s contact phone number.

On the slippers he wore were the initials “TH,” clumsily written in marker. Haru had scribbled them on so they wouldn’t get mixed up with the others at the dorm.

“Ugh, it’s really cold.”

March in Gangwon-do was still quite chilly, especially at night.

But Taehyun bundled up in his coat and walked over to the platform in the pension yard. He lay down on the platform, using the sounds of the mountains and sea and the distant murmur of people as his backdrop.

The sky was full of stars. Tonight, they shone brighter and more numerous than usual.

“…….”

Taehyun had always wanted to be a star.

Looking back, it seemed like he had felt that way since he was very young.

“…A lot of stars out tonight.”

For Taehyun, the spotlight was something he had always yearned for.

No matter how busy they were with the pension, his parents always made time to attend

his performances. After a successful performance, eating seasoned ribs bought by his parents while listening to their praise and pride was the greatest joy and reward for young Taehyun.

– *Taehyun-ah. Mom and Dad don’t have a lot of money or connections… But we’ll make sure you can do what you want.*

His mother always worried about how she and her husband were uneducated.

She would constantly search for and look up audition information, lamenting that if Taehyun had been born in Seoul, he would have had more opportunities.

His father might have acted indifferent about such things, saying he didn’t know much about the field, but Taehyun knew he had been clipping and saving every article about Taehyun’s activities from the time he was a child until now.

For his parents, Taehyun wanted to shine.

He wanted to debut, succeed, and show them more of his performances.

He wanted to reach such heights that his parents wouldn’t even have time to feel sorry for themselves.

He just wanted to shine brightly from that high place.

Suddenly, Taehyun recalled a post he had stumbled upon on a community forum last night.

**[Is Seo Taehyun really that good?]**

I got curious after seeing the recent controversy and went back to check out *Boy’s World*, but I don’t really get it…

The comments are all confident that Seo Taehyun would have made it even without the PD’s pick, so I’m curious about how good he actually was…..

I was surprised when I heard he held the #1 spot in *Miro Maze* even against people like Kang Hajin and Jung Siwoo. I thought for sure Siwoo would have been #1.

– Honestly, I don’t really get it either. I mean, I know he’s good, but is he that good?

– I think what stood out most during *Boy’s World* was that he was the youngest and didn’t have any other strong competitors for the fresh and youthful role. The show was called *Boy’s World*, but he was the only one who really embodied that boyish charm.

– I acknowledge that he had star power, but I feel like his popularity was more about his fresh smile than his actual talent. I remember Kang-hyuk and Cho-wook being more popular.

– I watched *Boy’s World* live… Seo Taehyun definitely got popular for being cute, but ultimately he got outpaced in terms of skill… He did well on stage, though.

– I’m skeptical about him being a PD’s pick too, but I was surprised when I heard he was #1 in *Miro Maze*.

– Huh? Seo Taehyun was amazing during *Boy’s World*. Did you guys even watch the show? Every time he was on screen, the live comments section exploded.

└ 222 You guys don’t know the legendary dumpling four-split meme??? You’re saying you don’t know??????

└ 33333 I can’t believe you’re denying this…

└ I’m not denying it. Yeah, he was a sensation, but it wasn’t just his talent. It was his cuteness + image that drew the reaction. I’m not saying he wasn’t popular.

└ That’s just ignorantㅋㅋㅋ Seo Taehyun got popular because he was cute and *really* good on stage, so what are you even talking about smh?

*Boy’s World*, which everyone treated as a painful memory, was actually a precious memory for Taehyun.

Through *Boy’s World*, Taehyun had shone brightly, beautifully, and had, for a brief moment, become a dream.

But now people were saying that Taehyun hadn’t really shone all that brightly back then.

Or, even if he had, they were denying that it was entirely his own doing.

Whether those were their true feelings or slightly biased evaluations, Taehyun now found himself asking the same question.

‘Did I really shine as brightly as I thought?’

Taehyun’s gaze was filled with the stars twinkling in the night sky.

And then―,

“Peekaboo.”

“……?”

Someone suddenly appeared above Taehyun, blocking his view of the night sky. Startled, Taehyun shot up, only to see that the person, who had clearly anticipated his reaction, was laughing.

Wearing a black mask, black-rimmed glasses, and with his black hair blowing in the wind, the man was none other than Hajin.

“What… What are you doing?”

“What do you mean, what?”

When Taehyun asked, clutching his chest in surprise, Hajin pulled his mask down to his chin and slipped his hands into his padded jacket pockets.

“I’m the leader who’s come running because I was worried our little Cherry’s mental state had turned to mush.”

Hajin’s face bore a warm, affectionate smile, different from when he had first arrived.