Survive! Foolish Bottom!

 

Junwoo and Haeun were set to appear on the variety show

“God of Live,”

one of the many singing competition programs that were popular these days. The show was relatively new and aired on a cable channel, which put it at a disadvantage compared to shows on major networks.

 

However,

“God of Live”

had managed to gain considerable attention with its fresh format and catchy slogan,

“Find the God of Live!”

They secured well-known celebrities as panelists, which contributed to its rising popularity. Recently, the show had recruited Yejun from Black B2ers, the hottest idol at the moment, as a regular panelist, resulting in high viewership ratings.

 

The format was simple. Singers performed behind a veil, and the panel had to guess whether they were singing live or lip-syncing. Each week, four celebrities performed, and the winner was decided through a tournament format. The singer who managed to fool the most audience members would advance to the next round.

 

The show mainly attracted singers who wanted to showcase their live singing skills. It often featured unknown idols looking to gain recognition or established singers with a reputation for not being able to sing live. Occasionally, actors or comedians who loved singing also made appearances.

 

Unexpectedly, Stone Cherry, who were assumed to be there to perform and potentially lip-sync, found themselves among the panel of famous celebrities. Their task was simply to distinguish between live singing and lip-syncing behind the curtain, which didn’t seem too challenging.

 

Additionally, Yejun, a top idol and one of the target characters in the game, was also appearing as a panelist. This episode marked the first time Haeun would cross paths with Yejun, making it a significant event.

 

He couldn’t believe he would be appearing on the same show as Yejun at the start of the game. Of course, the screen time and roles were vastly different but the fact that he would be filming in the same studio felt surreal.

 

Stone Cherry now had around 80,000 followers, whereas Black B2ers boasted nearly 10 million followers. The difference was staggering, well over a hundredfold.

 

Haeun had never particularly thought that having a lot of followers made an idol remarkable. But now, having experienced what it was like to be an idol himself, he suddenly understood that sentiment. He found himself admiring Yejun quite a bit.

 

“What are you thinking so deeply about?” 

 

Junwoo interjected with a smile. Normally, he didn’t have such gentle eyes, but now he was trying to act nice because there were many people around.

 

Haeun wanted to push Junwoo’s face away as he approached, but if he did that, Junwoo, who had a nice image, would seem pitiful. He knew that once there was an attitude controversy, everyone would start insulting Park Ha and leave. He had to avoid such a disaster. Haeun replied with a bright smile.

 

“I must be too tense! How embarrassing………”

 

Junwoo smiled faintly, but at first glance, he seemed like a good younger brother who looked warmly at a nervous elder. However, looking closely, he was also looking at Haeun with eyes that weren’t so nice this time.

 

That’s why those eyes were so annoying.

 

“But today you look good, hyung.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Yes. So don’t have an accident today.”

 

“…”

 

It would be a joke to pretend, but it wouldn’t be a joke. Haeun turned his eyes away from Junwoo, doing his best to control his facial expressions.

 

The video of Haeun refusing to do aegyo on a live broadcast and then suddenly switching to doing it became somewhat of a sensation. Recently, a challenge mimicking this video has been subtly trending on platforms like TikTok.

 

Haeun couldn’t understand why people were making videos lip-syncing to him saying, “Aegyo, f-” followed by, “I’ll show you~ Ppuing ppuing!” and then acting cute.

 

Nevertheless, this unexpected buzz led to him being invited to such shows, which was a fortunate turn of events. It was obvious that he’d mostly be in the background, clapping and reacting, but you never know. 

 

In the group, ‘Park Ha’ was already one of the more recognizable faces, often appearing on various broadcasts. Given that he was invited because of this recent trend, there was a chance that he might get a few words in on air.

 

To avoid any further mishaps, he needed to perfectly mimic the old ‘Park Ha.’ So, until the day of filming, Haeun watched several variety shows that ‘Park Ha’ had previously appeared on. 

 

On screen, Park Ha was always smiling sweetly, clapping, and trying her best to act cute. Watching only the broadcasts, one might scoff and think, “What a try-hard,” but Haeun, having played the game, knew that this was genuinely Park Ha’s personality.

 

He couldn’t believe that he had to act like that. It’s hard to act nice these days, but how painful would it be to act like that? Haeun hoped that the questions wouldn’t come to him and that Junwoo, who was such an excellent actor that it was almost unbelievable how different he was on and off camera, would get most of the attention.

 

“Are you ready?”

 

Junwoo spoke again. Haeun, who was immersed in other thoughts, only looked out the window and did not answer.

 

“Hyung.”

 

It wasn’t until he was called again that he noticed he was called. When he reluctantly turned his head, Junwoo didn’t even look this way. He was busy playing phone games with his head down; maybe he didn’t get motion sickness.

 

“Huh? What?”

 

“Have you prepared anything?”

 

“Ah, yeah. Of course.”

 

He replied with a passionate nod without realizing it. 

 

“I see,” Junwoo said as he smiled as if he was seeing something strange.

 

『With a pure reaction, cuteness up! It’s nice to see you treating your colleagues kindly!』 

 

The system was sending encouragement as if boosting morale. Ha-eun laughed inwardly while cursing. Junwoo, who had been quietly watching this pitiful sight, softened his expression slightly.

 

『Junwoo’s likability has increased by 1.』

 

It seemed like the first time he had heard this guy’s favorability rating had gone up.

 

‘It’s a big deal.’

 

Seongjae’s favorability rating has risen well when he showed such shortcomings. However, even though Haeun acts like an innocent idol, his favorability rating has never increased. What was the standard? 

 

With worries, I remembered a conversation from a few days ago. It was the day I knew this schedule was set. The conversation on that day was…… In short, it was terrible.

 

***

 

“Hey, you’re here.”

 

“Ah, annyeong?”

 

“It’s funny to say hello.”

 

“Haha…… Is that so? So you were in the living room.”

 

“Can’t I be in the living room?”

 

“It’s not that you can’t.”

 

“Then?”

 

“No, I just thought you’d be in the room.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

“Are you offended?”

 

“No, I heard we’re going on a show.”

 

“Yes, they say so.”

 

“Haha. I’m looking forward to it.”

 

The conversation was entirely awkward and mismatched. Junwoo kept smiling brightly while picking unnecessary arguments, making the atmosphere increasingly tense. Moreover, his forced laughter seemed to impose some kind of pressure.

 

At that moment, Ha-eun wondered if Junwoo might want to point out a mishap on stage like Seongjae did. 

 

“I’ll make sure this time I won’t cause any trouble.”

 

However, despite his careful and delicate apology, Junwoo’s response was far from satisfactory.

 

“You should do that.”

 

That damn annoying voice. Just thinking about it made him angry again.

 

Even when he tried to force himself to talk, there wasn’t much response. Today, just because he gave a somewhat awkward answer, his favorability had increased. He had no idea what the criteria were.

Should I just go for a blatantly less refined concept?

Amidst his pointless thoughts, Junwoo’s voice continued.

 

“What kind of preparations have you made?”

 

‘Is this guy a psycho? Always nitpicking. Are you an interviewer or something?’

 

Of course, Ha-eun had never been in an interview. Without realizing it, muttering to himself, the defiant Ha-eun nonchalantly replied.

 

“Just preparing answers while monitoring previous broadcasts, practicing important parts in case there’s a chance to show a new song… That’s about it.”

 

In reality, he had practiced answering in a kind and gentle manner like the Idol Park Ha, but there was no need to be honest about it. Junwoo looked somewhat concerned at his textbook response.

 

“Will that be enough?”

 

“Enough for what?”

 

“To do well. I mean, it’s not like you were recruited for that reason.”

 

“Then what do I do?”

 

Actually, Haeun understood perfectly well what he was getting at. He knew the broadcasting company probably called him because they wanted to see that shameless side of him again. If he showed that side again, it wouldn’t just end as a meme like it did last time. It would probably lead to even more criticism. But from the broadcasting standpoint, it might stir up interest.

 

Even the CEO seemed concerned about this. He strictly advised not to attempt such things again and to just show a kind and gentle image, even if he becomes a screen or a facade.

 

However, when he widened his eyes as if pretending not to understand and asked, Junwoo looked at Haeun with a puzzled smile. Feeling like he could see through what he was thinking made him feel unnecessarily bad.

 

‘What bad luck.’

 

While thinking like that, he maintained a wide smile. It seemed okay for Ilhyun or Seongjae, but he felt he shouldn’t give Junwoo any chance. He seemed to have a keen sense, so if he showed an unexpected side of Park Ha, he didn’t know how it would turn out.

 

Why did he bother so much like this? Originally in Eu-Idol, early Junwoo might antagonize the protagonist, but the difficulty level of winning him over wasn’t that high. 

 

If he chose a few options well, he could quickly see him being cute while acting coy. But now, Yoon Junwoo didn’t seem like someone who could pick a fight with Park Haeun, let alone act cute.

 

‘Ah, should I have just found and taken the medicine back then to raise his favourability? Did I twist things up like this just because I held out without taking it?’

Hey guys, this is Flo!

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