novelraw Chapter 285: Stranger (3)
Chapter 285: Stranger (3)
Park Joowoo and I returned to Seoul in no time, riding in a car driven by his uncle.
On the way, a system notification popped up saying that the KPI had been achieved, but I didn’t even get a chance to check it. It seemed to be thanks to the year-end performance and other such factors, but there was simply no time to confirm.
At the dorm we arrived at, Lee Cheonghyeon, his eyes swollen like steamed manju buns, was lying on the living room sofa.
“What? I thought you were coming the day after tomorrow?”
Lee Cheonghyeon jumped up in surprise.
“Does it look like I could wait until tomorrow?”
“Cheonghyeon, are you okay…?”
Seeing Lee Cheonghyeon’s eyes, Park Joowoo hurriedly wrapped two spoons in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer.
“What happened? How did you get to the dorm?”
As I held onto Lee Cheonghyeon and asked, the guy burst into tears. Park Joowoo and I were at a loss, doing our best to comfort him.“Did you fight with your family?”
At my words, Lee Cheonghyeon nodded.
“What was it about…?”
Park Joowoo asked cautiously. Lee Cheonghyeon avoided answering directly.
“Sorry. It’s a bit embarrassing to say specifically why I cried so much.”
Coming from a kid with spoons on his eyelids, it was an odd thing to say, but if he had cried that much, he must be feeling awful inside.
Lee Cheonghyeon asked us not to tell Kang Kiyeon that he had returned early. He was worried Kang Kiyeon might decide to come back early, too, if he heard. So I reported Lee Cheonghyeon’s whereabouts only to Jeong Seongbin and returned to my room.
‘Didn’t he say his family was against his idol career?’
That must have been what caused the friction. My head became complicated.
It was not like Lee Cheonghyeon would find it easy going against his family just to be an idol. Even when your family supports you, it’s nerve-wracking if results don’t show—especially when you’re in an unstable job like this.
+
[SYSTEM] A ‘New Task’ has been assigned.
▷ Family Consultation
+
And now this thing was messing with my head too. It was even more annoying because I could guess why it had appeared at this timing. The family probably referred to one of Lee Cheonghyeon’s parents.
Moreover, there was no reward.
If stepping in would improve Lee Cheonghyeon’s situation, I’d be willing to do as many interviews as needed, but wouldn’t the company be a better fit for something like this than me? How persuasive could a twenty-two-year-old be?
While Park Joowoo was staying with Lee Cheonghyeon, I also checked the system, which I had pushed to the back of my mind while flying from Daejeon to Seoul. It was a KPI completion notification.
+
[SYSTEM] The achievement of ‘Subordinate’s’ KPI ‘Capturing the Hearts of Potential Customers’ has been confirmed.
▷ Reward: Past Data (1 set)
+
It was similar to the ‘Memory Data’ I had received before, but the name was different. The fact that the data, which I had only ever received one at a time, was now a set also definitely meant something.
+
[SYSTEM] ‘Holding a Concert’ has been designated as ‘Subordinate’s’ KPI.
+
The next KPI was decided to be the concert that I had suspected a while ago.
Seeing the roadmap laid out so perfectly, it seemed a huge ordeal was coming my way. I had a feeling that holding the concert would be a thorny path.
‘I guess I should open the data.’
Didn’t I almost cross the River Styx last time because I postponed opening the memory data? There was a relatable proverb for a situation like this: ‘If you’re going to get hit anyway, better to get it over with’.
Anyway, for now, lifting up Lee Cheonghyeon’s spirit was the priority. So I went out to the living room and joined in on Park Joowoo and Lee Cheonghyeon’s light-hearted chatter.
That evening, we ordered something tasty, and in the end, I even dragged out all my bedding to the living room and lay next to Cheonghyeon, who kept insisting it was lonely sleeping alone.
“I think I’ll be able to sleep well tonight.”
“Why…?”
“Because I’m happy.”
Lee Cheonghyeon answered. I took off the face mask I had placed on his face and lay down.
“Thanks for coming.”
Lee Cheonghyeon said with his eyes closed.
“Sleep well.”
I gave the two of them a goodnight and lay down to sleep.
Then, closing my eyes, I activated the system.
With the message that the past data was being played, I felt my body float up.
* * *
An exceptionally striking middle-aged man sat by the window seat of a cafe.
There were hardly any people around. The only background sound was soft classical music.
I… judging by the circumstances, seemed to be looking down at the cafe from the perspective of a wallpaper, a wall clock, or one of those small rubber trees you commonly find in cafes.
At that moment, a familiar head popped up at my feet.
The back of the head and hairstyle clearly looked like Jeong Sungbin, but something felt different.
His shoulders were slightly hunched inward, and he kept turning his head anxiously, as if checking his surroundings.
The person presumed to be Jeong Seongbin hesitated before approaching the middle-aged man.
“Jeong Seongbin?”
“Yes… hello.”
Jeong Seongbin greeted him with his head slightly lowered.
The man exchanged a few words with Jeong Seongbin and then raised his hand to call an employee. It must have been a high-end cafe, as a waiter came to take their order.
The opening was concise.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Cheonghyeon.”
The man’s gaze was on Jeong Seongbin. However, Jeong Seongbin couldn’t seem to lift his head.
Judging by his face and tone, he seemed to be Lee Cheonghyeon’s father. Was it hard for Jeong Seongbin because he was a member’s parent? But then again, Jeong Seongbin hadn’t found it difficult with Kang Kiyeon’s parents or Park Joowoo’s aunt.
‘But why is he so…’
Intimidated.
No one tried to break the awkward atmosphere. The distance between the two remained until Jeong Seongbin’s coffee arrived.
When Jeong Seongbin barely took a sip of the coffee that had taken a long time to arrive, the father spoke.
“Cheonghyeon talks about you a lot. He says you’re a good hyung and that he trusts and follows you a lot.”
It was a compliment, but the father’s expression was stiff. He didn’t look like he was about to say anything nice.
“Seongbin, I won’t beat around the bush.”
The father clasped his hands together.
“I’d like you to persuade Cheonghyeon for me.”
Persuade? Persuade him of what?
Don’t tell me he’s asking him to convince Lee Cheonghyeon to quit Spark? Hasn’t he been watching too many weekend dramas?
I, too, had imagined being doused with water by Jeong Seongbin’s mother. But that was only an imagination. Such things rarely happened in reality.
On the other hand, what I was seeing was past data.
It was a scene that didn’t exist in my memory, but one that had actually happened in the past.
So this man, well past his youth, had resorted to childish intimidation in front of a teenager?
Lee Cheonghyeon didn’t leave Spark until before the disbandment. Seeing that, Jeong Seongbin must have managed to get through this situation appropriately…
“……”
…is what I thought.
Jeong Seongbin’s shoulders trembled.
His head was about to be buried in the floor, and his two hands were clasped together.
It was only then that I understood. The reason why Jeong Seongbin couldn’t smile in this atmosphere, which was so artificial it was laughable.
“In my opinion, I don’t think you guys can succeed in this industry.”
“……”
“If you’ve only been looking at this path since you were young, you might want to try more. I understand all of that. But Cheonghyeon is different. If he’s taken the wrong path, it needs to be corrected as soon as possible.”
The Jeong Seongbin in front of me was not the Jeong Seongbin I knew, the one who had completely washed away the scars received from Jang Junhoo.
To Jeong Seongbin, who had been gaslighted by Jang Junhoo for years, a tall man who was older, hostile, and overbearing was nothing but a threat.
Because to Jeong Seongbin, all the words he was hearing would feel like the truth.
Jeong Seongbin just listened to the father’s words without a word.
It was impossible to even guess how much Jeong Seongbin’s self-esteem had been chipped away during that time. Perhaps it had already been weathered away by Jang Junhoo.
“You’ve had no schedule for over half a year. Don’t you also think it looks tough, Seongbin?”
The fact that the company was not reliable enough for Jeong Seongbin to lean on must have also played a part. In the early days, didn’t UA just barely debut Spark and then neglect them?
It was rare for someone to give up on their debut or leave after debuting due to a lack of communication or disagreement with their parents. But it wasn’t unheard of. Such things happened more frequently the younger the person in question was.
Around this time in Spark, Lee Cheonghyeon would have just escaped his minor status. Which meant he was out of his parents’ direct sphere of influence.
That was why, instead of speaking directly to Lee Cheonghyeon, he was trying to change his mind through Jeong Seongbin. Simply because he didn’t want to be a bad parent.
“I heard you take very good care of your members.”
Lee Cheonghyeon’s father stared intently at Jeong Seongbin. His two eyes were all black.
“Consider it helping a close dongsaeng become a proper person and help him change his mind. I’m asking you.”
“……”
“He doesn’t listen to what his family says, but wouldn’t Cheonghyeon listen to you?”
The strength in Jeong Seongbin’s clenched fist increased. But it soon went limp and was released.
“…Yes.”
That hollow reply marked the end of the meeting.
What was that Jeong Seongbin thinking? I didn’t want to know.
* * *
Perhaps because the data was a set. Even though my darkened vision had brightened, instead of waking up, I found myself in the dorm before we moved, looking down at the guys from the perspective of a wall clock once again.
Jeong Seongbin and Lee Cheonghyeon were standing facing each other in the living room. Next to Lee Cheonghyeon was Kang Kiyeon.
Lee Cheonghyeon asked with a dumbfounded expression.
“What did you just say?”
Lee Cheonghyeon never spoke informally to the older members. I’d seen him use formal speech far more often than casual, and yet hearing him now in informal speech felt strange.
“Did I hear you correctly?”
“……”
“You’re telling me to leave? To go and do something else?”
“Cheonghyeon, that’s not what I said.”
“But it is. You told me that this path doesn’t seem right for me, so I should just go back to what I was doing, that’s what you said.”
Lee Cheonghyeon’s face flushed red. He asked in an agitated voice.
“What’s the reason?”
“……”
The Jeong Seongbin who became the leader had a lot of self-doubt. How much had he worried about whether he was fit to be the leader, whether he would harm the group? So much so that he had called me and Choi Jeho, whom he had found so difficult, at the same time for a consultation.
The Jeong Seongbin of this time must have still lacked confidence in himself. So much so that he couldn’t even answer Lee Cheonghyeon’s question.
‘Is it okay for me to keep watching this?’
It felt like I was secretly peeking at a side of someone that they had hidden and didn’t want to show. I felt a sense of guilt. But the data didn’t stop.
“Why would you say that when you can’t even give a reason? Do you also think I’m just doing this idol thing for fun?”
The father had clearly said, ‘he doesn’t listen to what his family says.’ Even just today, Lee Cheonghyeon had come out of his house crying.
Even putting that aside, just by listening to the way he normally spoke, it was easy enough to tell. That Lee Cheonghyeon was treated poorly at home.
And now, all that frustration that had been building up inside him finally burst out.
Because the person he trusted and looked up to—Jeong Seongbin, the one his father described as a ‘good hyung’ he relied on—had said the very same thing to him.