novelraw Chapter 296: Birthday Party For One (1)
Chapter 296: Birthday Party For One (1)
Ahead of the 1st anniversary self-produced content filming, Spark began preparing for the content. There was a dancing content, so practice was necessary, and after being cooped up in my room just thinking, moving my body was the perfect way to clear my head.
However, I didn’t just mindlessly focus on the practice in front of me. During breaks, I also prepared to respond to accidents that could happen at any time.
For example, like now.
“Choi Jeho, stand still here for a moment.”
“Why?”
Choi Jeho asked, but I didn’t answer. Instead, I stood him in the middle of the practice room and rushed at him with all my might from a corner, ramming into him.
It was part of the so-called ‘Push Choi Jeho away to save him no matter where the lights fall’ grand operation.
“What are you doing?”
“Haa…”
Sadly, this operation went straight into the trash can. Because Choi Jeho didn’t budge an inch.Is this b*tch really human? Is he a dump truck that has transformed into a human through some mechanical welfare?
“I’m sorry for suddenly bumping into you. I won’t do it again.”
“So what exactly were you doing?”
I apologized since I had hit a person without warning. Unfortunately, Choi Jeho’s displeased mood didn’t ease up. I bowed my head once more.
“I will find a better way.”
“Do you have a grudge against me or something?”
“No. But I want you to get knocked over when you collide with me.”
“Hey, we decided to call that having a grudge!”
Lee Cheonghyeon chimed in. It’s a misunderstanding, Cheonghyeon. I’m just doing my best for Choi Jeho.
The ‘push Choi Jeho to save him’ method was discarded. I needed to think of another plan.
Fortunately, Choi Jeho didn’t question my rude behavior any further. His indifferent personality was helpful in times like this.
Feeling grateful for Choi Jeho’s personality for the first time in my life, I was lost in deep thought when Jeong Seongbin approached.
“Hyung, are the birthday stream preparations going well?”
“Huh? Ah, yeah.”
It was an unexpected question, so my answer came out jumbled.
“Is there really nothing we can help you with?”
“No. Just call in at the scheduled time. We don’t want fans looking for you guys for too long.”
Jeong Seongbin’s face was full of apology. I was the one who told them not to come, so why did he look troubled?
My birthday became known when I was filling out my debut profile around this time last year. The guys had looked shocked to find out my birthday had already passed.
‘Why didn’t you tell us? It’s already passed twice without us knowing!’
‘It was right after I joined as a trainee, so it was a bit awkward to mention. I’m also the type who doesn’t care much about birthdays, and we were busy preparing for our debut, anyway.’
At that time, the guys vowed to celebrate my next birthday grandly.
I thanked them for their sentiment, but I already knew it was an unrealistic story. A member’s birthday was important. But it was not more important than Spark’s nth anniversary.
Rumors about favoritism among members would be bad, but rumors that the company and the members didn’t have any affection for the group would be even worse. So I decided to settle it by finding a reasonable compromise. Though it seemed these guys couldn’t compromise.
“If you’re really concerned, just say happy birthday to me in the morning. So I can talk about it on the broadcast.”
“Of course we’ll do that.”
“Okay, I’ll be waiting.”
I smiled and patted Jeong Seongbin’s shoulder. Beyond the mirror, my eyes met with Kang Kiyeon, who was getting up from his seat. Kang Kiyeon shook his head back and forth.
* * *
I dreamed of my noona for the first time in a long time. Not something like memory data, but a real dream. A dream where the noona in my memories appeared.
That winter was not cold at all. Because noona’s hand, which I held for the last time, and the morgue were much colder.
She had said ‘let’s have a meal for your birthday’, but our schedules didn’t match, so we barely managed to set a date on a weekend close to my birthday.
Even then, my noona had told me to sleep in and come out late, and had come all the way to my neighborhood.
When I said I’d see her off, she scolded me, telling me to just go home—I didn’t know that would be the last time. If I had known, I would have taken her all the way to her front door. No, I wouldn’t even have made the appointment in the first place, saying that at our age, there was no need to bother with birthdays.
I still didn’t remember the intersection where my noona had her accident, but I clearly remembered the business card for a psychiatrist that was in her belongings that were handed over to me. The single, blackened business card that my noona had been holding in her hand.
At that time, I was just heartbroken. I thought that life must have been so hard for her to look for a hospital. I only thought that I, who didn’t know that, was pathetic.
Why didn’t I notice sooner? That the map drawn on the business card was strangely close to my house.
The reason why, in this day and age where you could make memos and reservations with just a phone, my noona had deliberately brought that hospital’s business card on the day she met me.
Noona had always been like that. She tried to take care of the things I never paid attention to.
I was really grateful for that. That was why I had never been envious of people who were loved by their parents. Because I had my noona.
But noona. If you just keep giving like this until the end.
If the reason we met, the time we met, the place we met, and the words you were about to say to me were all really just for me.
And then you just go off on your own.
How am I supposed to live, crushed by guilt toward you?
Did I look that cornered to you? Enough that you went as far as to look into a hospital for me?
Weren’t you tired, coming all the way near to my house?
At the intersection where you were going back alone, what were you thinking, holding that business card?
I don’t know. I can’t even guess.
So tell me.
Tell me to pay you back now that you’ve taken care of me this much.
On the next appointment, tell me to come to your neighborhood on my birthday.
Tell me to repay your kindness, to let you receive some filial piety from your younger brother.
The alarm went off. As I reached out and turned off the alarm, the lock screen of my phone lit up brightly.
February 14th had dawned.
I wasn’t feeling too great. Thinking of my noona made me gloomy, then I tried to pull myself together, then sank back into gloom, rolling around under the blankets.
What pulled me out, who was curled up and hiding, was Jeong Seongbin’s voice.
“Hyung, are you still asleep?”
He must have come after hearing the alarm. More importantly, he woke up early today.
I must have slept quite deeply. To think I didn’t even hear my roommate getting up.
“I’m up. I’ll be out now.”
Yes, I have to go out even if I don’t have the energy.
There’s a mountain of work to do, and I have to work to be able to see my noona again.
I slapped my cheeks a couple of times to wake myself up and got up, and a familiar smell wafted in.
It was the smell of food, but this…
“Do we have seaweed soup in the dorm?”
“We made it. Please have breakfast.”
“Huh?”
All the members were already sitting at the table. To think I was the last one. I couldn’t believe it.
“Happy birthday! For the next 9 months, you’re really the eldest hyung!”
“Happy birthday, hyung.”
“Happy birthday… really.”
A flurry of congratulations followed. Looking to the side, Jeong Seongbin was smiling.
“We said we would congratulate you, didn’t we?”
I felt a surge of emotion. It was the first time I’d ever felt so vividly what it meant to have mixed emotions. What I mean is—I am touched.
* * *
The five-eyed-bird-mark seaweed soup was delicious. As expected, a person improves at whatever they do, be it cooking or anything else. The guys who couldn’t even season spinach had grown up a lot.
After arriving at the company, we split into two groups. It was called two groups, but I was the only one separated.
The birthday table was as lavish as I had been told. It was to the point where you could believe it was Kim Iwol’s first birthday party. If talk about ‘special treatment’ cropped up again, it’d be a problem. The evidence this time was too blatant to explain away.
Even the staff who weren’t participating in the live came to the meeting room to wish me a happy birthday. I felt embarassed, but I accepted it gratefully.
And as soon as I turned on the live stream…
≫ Iwol, happy birthday
≫ Celebrating Kim Iwol’s birth
≫ happy birthday~
≫ I’ve been waiting for this day, happy birthday Kim Iwol to death
…the biggest congratulations in the world poured in.
“You’re all really giving me so many congratulations. Thank you. Actually, the members made me a birthday breakfast this morning. And the company also prepared such a grand birthday table… I guess I’m blessed with good people.”
Usually, I breezed through broadcasts like a presentation, but today was different. It was because the atmosphere was focused solely on celebrating me and my
birthday.I must’ve been bumbling more than I realized, because the chat quickly filled with laughter
≫ The awkwardness is piercing through the screen
≫ Embarrassed Kim Iwol… a rare sight
≫ I’m sorry, Iwol, I can’t stop grinning
“…Is it that obvious?”
≫ What to say
≫ I actually like it
≫ A great release of the 22-year-old baby content
Me, a baby. An unbearable sense of shame washed over me.
At that moment, the manager in front of me sent a hand signal. It was a signal of salvation!
“Everyone, just a moment. They said a call just came in…”
≫ Huh
≫ Who???
≫ It would have been nice if all the kids came… a shame
≫ They couldn’t come because of the schedule, please refrain from mentioning it
Facing the raging chat, I was handed a phone. The caller was Lee Cheonghyeon.
“Cheonghyeon?”
─ Yeah. I’m the first, right?!
“Yeah. Did you want to be the first?”
─ Yeah. So I stole all the members’ phones.
The chat window was filled with ‘ㅋ.’ As expected of Spark’s official phantom thief. He stole Sparklers’ money whenever merchandise came out, and now he was actually stealing things.
─ Happy birthday! I even prepared a word of blessing for you, hyung.
“A word of blessing?”
─ May you be the happiest twenty-two-year-old in the world! Got it?
Because of his tone, I thought Santa Claus had come. It seemed the youngest Santa hadn’t clocked out yet.
“Okay, thank you.”
─ Lee Cheonghyeon, hurry up and pass the phone.
Kang Kiyeon’s harsh voice was heard from behind.
“Is Kiyeon there?”
─ Yeah. He chased me.
“Where are you now?”
─ The emergency exit.
He ran that far. My temples throbbed.
Kang Kiyeon, who eventually succeeded in catching Lee Cheonghyeon, sent a simple yet polite and sincere congratulation. Everyone was moved by Kang Kiyeon’s heartfelt congratulations.
─ You won’t gain much weight just by eating a little on your birthday, so might as well eat up. You said you were going to bulk up anyway since all your muscles are gone. You need protein for muscles to grow…
“Yeah, Kiyeon, thanks for the congratulations. I’m going to hang up now!”
Towards the end, the nagging went on and on, so I hung up. If he had more to say, he’d probably call separately.
I had only received calls from two people, but I was already a little tired. Was this really a birthday party for one? At least, it was certain that I wasn’t lonely at all.