ALL NOVEL Chapter 98
Chapter 98. Bomb? (9)
As Haru mentioned, the convenience store was quite a distance from the new office building. It was a bit far if they walked, about 10 minutes by car, and 15 minutes by bus.
Due to Haru’s concern that someone might recognize them, the two decided to take a taxi.
“Taehyun hyung kept saying he wanted just one spoonful of ice cream. Seriously, I was so scared that we’d get caught…. I used all my energy trying to stop him from going to the fridge!”
“What are you going to do if he goes there while you’re out here?”
“……! It’s, it’s okay. I told Jaeyoung to text me if Taehyun hyung heads towards the kitchen, but I haven’t heard from him yet!”
As Hajin had predicted, going out with Haru was a good choice. Listening to Haru chatter the entire time, unaware of what had happened with Yugeon, gave Hajin a momentary reprieve from his thoughts.
‘Mental care is… still a bit shaky, though.’
Even though he was much better than before, it still felt like if he didn’t keep a firm grip on his sanity, his emotions might overflow uncontrollably.
At least he wasn’t overwhelmed with tears like last time, so that was a relief.
‘It’s okay. There’s still nothing happening until the third mission ends.’
There was still time. Just as Hajin was trying to set his mind at ease, the taxi arrived at their destination.
“They won’t be out of ice cream, right…?”
“You checked the app, didn’t you? Then they should have some.”
“What if the store’s closed…. It’s still so early in the morning.”
“Convenience stores are all open 24 hours these days.”
As Hajin replied indifferently to Haru, who was whining beside him, they approached the entrance of the convenience store. That’s when they saw someone hurriedly open the door and rush out.
“…….”
“…Huh?”
“What? How did….”
Yugeon hyung?
Haru called out in surprise as he recognized the person exiting the store. Yugeon, who was wearing a gray hoodie pulled low over his face, froze in place, just as startled as they were.
That’s when it happened.
“H-Hajin hyung!”
“What the hell are you doing here? What are you doing right now!”
“No, it’s just—.”
“Hajin hyung, stop!”
The moment Hajin saw Yugeon’s face in such an unexpected place, he felt something inside him snap, something he’d been holding back. He strode forward and grabbed Yugeon by the collar. Yugeon, equally taken aback, didn’t avoid Hajin but only managed to push his shoulder away.
Haru rushed over and barely managed to pull Hajin off, but Hajin, having already exploded once, looked ready to lunge at Yugeon again at any moment.
“Hyung, please calm down! Okay? Yugeon hyung, say something!”
“…….”
“Haru, let go. Yugeon, you—!”
Because of you, everything is about to fall apart!
The words welled up to the tip of his tongue, but Hajin managed to swallow them down. He realized that he was extremely impulsive and violent at that moment.
Just then, someone else emerged from the convenience store.
“Yugeon student! Here’s your phone…?”
“…….”
“……?”
“Oh my. Is something wrong?”
♪♩♬♩― ♬♪♩♪―
A middle-aged woman in a convenience store uniform glanced back and forth between the three, looking startled. Yugeon’s old 2G phone, which she held in her hand, was ringing incessantly. As everyone remained tense, Yugeon took a deep breath and moved.
“…Thank you, Manager. Yes, this is mine.”
“Weren’t you in a hurry to leave? Oh dear, because of us….”
Manager?
Just what exactly is going on here? As Hajin was about to call out to Yugeon again,
[시ㅣ니4492슽ㅌ테멤 ㅂ곡구 ㅇ!303 #중@…]
[ㅁㅁㅁㅁ멬ㄴ탈 @#4어 시슽ㅌ001!템 복#$6/.][ㅂ구 중….]
[…]
[…]
“Ugh….”
“Hyung!”
BEEEEEEP—
The tinnitus that had tormented Hajin in the early morning started again. As he reflexively curled up, the broken system windows updated with new errors.
“What the heck is wrong with him?”
“I don’t know. He’s been like this since yesterday….”
“Sit him down here for now. Manager, can we get some water? We’ll pay for it.”
“No, no need to pay. I’ll bring it over, just a moment.”
Yugeon, alarmed at seeing Hajin looking like he might collapse at any moment, quickly approached and sat him down on a bench outside the convenience store. Yugeon then checked Hajin’s pupils and pulse and assessed his consciousness.
“Look at me. Can you see me clearly?”
“…I’m, I’m okay. If I just stay like this for a bit… I’ll be fine.”
Yugeon handed Hajin the water that the manager had hurriedly brought over. After a few more system windows updated, Hajin could feel his mental state slowly recovering as his vision cleared and his mind sharpened.
Pressing his still-throbbing head, Hajin made eye contact with Yugeon, who was crouched in front of him to align with his gaze.
“…….”
“Do we need to call 911?”
“My vision is coming back. How many fingers do you see?”
“…Two.”
“It’s three.”
“…I said it’s two.”
“You’re fine.”
It took a little more time for the tinnitus to fully subside and for Hajin to regain his usual state. Once his emotions settled, clues he had previously overlooked began to reassemble themselves in his mind.
-Yugeon joined the company to debut.
-I just happened to find out by chance.
Yugeon, who didn’t seem to care at all about debuting as an idol.
Seo Taehyun, who had learned of Yugeon’s situation by chance.
-The ice cream is a limited edition? You have to go past the main intersection to get it.
The convenience store that sold the special diet ice cream Seo Taehyun had gone out of his way to obtain, and Yugeon, who seemed to know the store manager well.
The outdated 2G phone in Yugeon’s hand that couldn’t even send messages.
-My parents are coming to this competition, so I can’t wear anything weird.
-That’s a lie. So does that mean I’m getting a leash?
-He never does weekend practice either….
And the final piece of the puzzle that tied all these situations together.
“Haa….”
As his thoughts reached that conclusion, Hajin gently grabbed Yugeon’s wrist.
“…Does it hurt? Should I call 911?”
“Yugeon. I’m about to ask you a really rude question.”
“…….”
“If it pisses you off, just punch me. But I have to ask this to be sure, so don’t misunderstand. If it’s true, just nod.”
Hajin looked Yugeon straight in the eye as he confidently warned him about the impending rudeness. Yugeon, who rarely got flustered, could only nod in response to Hajin’s deep, clear eyes and overwhelming presence.
“Are you the head of your household?”
“…….”
“Is that why you joined Miro? Do you go to work part-time after every practice?”
It was indeed an extremely rude question, but Yugeon could tell that Hajin had no intention of mocking or belittling him. In fact…
‘…What a strange look.’
It wasn’t pity, sympathy, mockery, or disdain. It was a strange look.
With that thought, Yugeon quietly nodded.
* * *
The Blue Flare team rushed to the meeting room as soon as they received a message from Hajin that he had found Yugeon and that they needed to discuss something quietly.
“Yugeon!”
“Shh. Keep your voice down, Kim Wonho.”
They had deliberately chosen the meeting room instead of the practice room to avoid being overheard or seen. Remembering the intention behind that choice, Wonho quickly covered his mouth and approached Yugeon.
“Are you okay? Where the hell were you?”
“Uh, sorry.”
Once Eunchan and Doha also entered, the meeting room door was closed.
“…….”
Unlike his usual self, Yugeon seemed slightly tense. He was aware that today’s incident was entirely his fault.
‘Of course, I have my reasons.’
But he knew that his excuses would only sound like just that to the older members sitting across from him. So Yugeon stood up first and bowed deeply.
“First of all, I’m sorry. I was in the wrong this time.”
Despite his sincere apology, there was no immediate response. This, too, was something he had expected….
“Is that all?”
“…Pardon?”
Startled, Yugeon looked up at Siwoo, who spoke in a calm voice, contrary to what he had expected. Siwoo, whom he thought would be angry like during the first mission, and Doha, who always looked at him with an unreadable expression.
Neither of them showed any strong emotions and simply looked at Yugeon as usual. When Yugeon fell silent in surprise, Siwoo finally revealed a
small piece of emotion.
“More than an apology, I’d like you to explain. Isn’t that why you called us all together?”
Whether or not an apology was warranted was something he wanted to decide after hearing the full story.
Even as he continued, Siwoo’s tone wasn’t accusatory. Thus, Yugeon slowly sat down and, for the first time, began to tell his story.
“I’m not sure where to start….”
In the quiet meeting room, only Yugeon’s voice could be heard.
“There are four of us in my family—my grandfather, me, and my two younger siblings. My parents left when I was young, and I haven’t heard from them since.”
Before joining Miro, Yugeon’s daily life was all about starting and ending with part-time jobs. Fortunately, since he was tall and had a strong appearance from a young age, he was able to find various jobs despite being underage.
-Delivery here.
-Oh, it’s the young head of the household again.
-What are you talking about? You guys ran away from home too.
-Hey, calling it running away is weird. We’re independent, you know.
Dance, which was almost the only joy in Yugeon’s life aside from his family, was something he discovered after becoming friends with some dance academy instructors while making deliveries. Since he couldn’t afford the lessons, he learned by watching whenever he went to the academy.
-Hey, do you want to learn how to dance? You look like you’ve got a good body for it.
-I don’t have any money, though?
-If you help us film videos at night, we’ll teach you for free. How about it?
Thanks to the academy director, who had taken a special interest in him, Yugeon was able to learn something comfortably for the first time.
Finishing his evening part-time job and dancing with the older guys in the early morning.
Yugeon enjoyed those moments the most. At least then, he could forget the harsh reality.
“Then one of the choreography videos we filmed was uploaded to iTube…. Miro contacted me after seeing that.”
He initially refused. Because he couldn’t sing.
What changed Yugeon’s mind was Miro’s welfare support.
“They said if I joined the company, they’d cover my tuition, give me living expenses, and provide meals…. As a trainee, I only needed to attend four classes a day. So I agreed. That way, I could take care of my siblings’ meals, help out at my grandfather’s shop before coming here….”
“So, you have no intention of debuting?”
“Honestly, what debut? With my singing skills? There’s no guarantee of success. I was just planning to leave before I turned twenty. …I’m sorry to the staff.”
But then, the survival competition suddenly began.
“I honestly didn’t want to participate, but they said I’d have to leave the company if I didn’t. And then, my grandfather injured his leg…. They said they’d pay me for appearing, so I decided to do it.”
Even after deciding to participate in the survival competition, Yugeon added that he couldn’t quit his part-time job because of the high medical expenses for his grandfather.
Siwoo now understood why Yugeon always left right after the designated practice time.
“Then today’s incident?”
“Well, I usually work in the evenings and switch with the manager in the early morning. So I could come back on time, but suddenly a drunk customer came in and caused a scene…. We had to call the police, and by the time everything was sorted out….”
“…….”
“…Anyway, I’m sorry. I’ve always felt bad for you guys. But, well, since I wasn’t planning on debuting anyway, I didn’t want to bring it up and sound pitiful.”
When Yugeon finished his story, silence filled the meeting room once more. No one could easily break the silence.
‘This is why I didn’t say anything.’
Yugeon hated being pitied.
He didn’t even want to pity himself, so he tried to keep things light and easy. But people never seemed to notice his efforts and instead threw his life into the trash as if it was nothing.
‘You must’ve had a hard time,’ or ‘You’ve been through a lot….’
He absolutely detested that. But since this time it was his fault, he figured he’d just have to put up with it.
Feeling a bit disillusioned, Yugeon looked up at his team members.
As everyone hesitated to speak, someone finally broke the silence.
“So?”
“…What?”
It was Doha who spoke. With his usual expression that Yugeon found hard to read, he asked bluntly.
“So what do you plan to do now?”
“Huh….”
“Are you asking us to understand that you’ll continue with this uncooperative attitude?”
“What? N-No, that’s not it.”
This reaction… is new.