Translator: MarcTempest
Editor: Rxel
Chapter 74
The atmosphere of the event hall came alive.
It was just a small gesture, but the audience burst into laughter at the aegyo of the youngest member of New Black.
As whispers like âHeâs funnyâ and âHeâs cuteâ went back and forth.
In the lively mood, New Black started to sing a trot song.
Of course, it wasnât as high-quality as their live performances of Night Sea or Something.
The people in the hall knew that too.
But the reason why the audience could enjoy the show sincerely was thanks to the effort of the idol members.
They showed their determination to make people happy, even though they were not familiar with the genre of trot, and even though they could have embarrassed themselves by singing it wrong.
That was evident in their performance.
They went on stage not to show off their coolness, but to have fun with them.
The audienceâs eyes softened at the sight of the singers who were soaked to the skin after coming down from the stage in less than 30 seconds.
The leader who sang while peeling off the hair stuck to his forehead, the dancer who moved his wet body gracefully on the muddy ground, the vocal who shivered and lost his voice but still tried to clear his throat.
The rapper and the youngest who became a duo and led the audienceâs reaction diligently.
Even though it was a short song, their best effort touched the audience.
And.
There was someone who smiled at the audienceâs reaction.
âWell done, good job.â
Mayor Kim Younggeon had been smiling broadly since a while ago.
His reaction was completely different from when New Black first came on stage.
Unlike before, his eyes were dripping with honey as he looked at the five singers.
He thought the festival was completely ruined today.
No, it actually was.
But an unexpected rookie boy group appeared and pulled the event out of the swamp.
He thought there would be no other team among the ones who performed today that could elicit such a response, except for the trot singers.
Rather, if another team had come up, the atmosphere might have gotten worse.
It was a godsend that New Black came up.
He decided to go and thank them personally, maybe shake their hands or something, when the event was over.
âWhatâs the problem?â
He saw something strange in his eyes.
He couldnât see well because of the backlight from the spotlight, but there was a commotion behind the stage.
What was the problem?
He narrowed his eyes and ordered the staff behind him to find out what was going on.
When the staff ran over and reported the situation, his mood that had soared to the sky came back to the ground.
ââŚWhat?â
âThat is, the pump that drains the water broke.â
The staff quickly added as he frowned.
âThey said it will be fixed soon, so donât worry. They said they will fix it before New Blackâs stage is over. The water overflowing is temporary.â
He couldnât just take their word for it, so he decided to have one staff member go over with an umbrella and monitor the situation.
When he turned his attention back to the stage.
Before he knew it, the first verse of âStay with Meâ was over and Kim Junghyun was rapping with a microphone.
It wasnât as much as the trot, but the rapper who was waving his hands and feet to induce a response was applauded by the audience.
And then, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.
âCould it beâŚâ
He wondered why New Black had come down from the stage at first. Then he thought, âOh, it was to get the audienceâs reaction.â
But now it seemed like that wasnât the only reason.
âCould it be, theyâre trying to divert the audienceâs attention from there?â
At first, it was a doubtful thought, but soon he was convinced.
It was obvious.
If New Black had continued to perform on stage, the audience would have inevitably noticed the water stream flowing in from the side because of the direction of the light.
Of course, that wouldnât have ruined the event.
Just the mood.
His eyes moved from the youngest member of New Black who reminded him of his son who went abroad, to Seon Woojoo who was smiling and moving his body next to Kim Junghyun.
âWellâŚâ
He decided to think about what he could do to repay them better, along with the thought that he owed them a lot today.
He would at least send them some rice.
He was thinking about that when the tone of the song changed gradually.
âAre they going to do something other than trot?â
Kim Junghyunâs rap sped up as if it was approaching the climax, and the atmosphere became more intense.
And finally, when his rap ended.
Thud-
The lights that illuminated them went off at once.
For a second, people blinked in confusion.
Then the lights came back on.
Thud-
But the place where the lights shone was not where New Black members were.
At the back of the straight line of seats.
There, standing with a cheerful smile, the singerâs face received a huge cheer from the audience.
Along with the upbeat second verse intro.
Singer Song Bohyung walked towards New Black in the front row and greeted the audience with enthusiasm.
-Hello! Iâm back!
A collaboration stage between an idol group and a trot singer at an unexpected time.
Everyone, regardless of age or gender, clapped and cheered at the sight.
It was a stage that everyone could enjoy with a smile, transcending generations.
***
Woojooâs heart soared with the hot cheers.
The idea of switching with the trot singer before the end of the stage was what he suggested today.
-You know the MR we have is the one we used for the year-end evaluation, right? The first and second verses are different songs. The second verse is âThank Youâ by Jang Sowon. If we do it as planned, the reaction wonât be that great.
That was because the audience at that time already knew that the first and second verses were different.
So they didnât find it strange that they collaborated with different songs.
But todayâs audience was not the trainee parents who looked at them with affection, but ordinary people.
If they raised the mood with trot and changed the second verse to a different song, there was a high possibility that the audience would be confused.
-So weâre going to do trot for the second verse too.
-What? How?
-Weâre not singing it, weâre passing the baton to Song Bohyung. Thereâs a part where Junghyunâs rap breaks off abruptly, right? Thatâs where we stop the song and start again. Itâs a song without a bridge, so it wonât be a big problem to play the first verse intro again.
-Wonât that be weird?
-The lighting team will help us make it smooth.
Fortunately, the lighting director agreed readily, and they checked the arrival time of Song Bohyung and put it into action.
The reaction was, as you could see.
Very good.
Every time Song Bohyung sang with a playful smile, the elderly and middle-aged audience clapped and cheered enthusiastically.
They all had the same expression.
The market lady who smiled and said Jiho was cute was also bouncing her shoulders as if she was excited.
Woojoo guessed experts were different.
In terms of vocalization and bringing out the charm of the genre, it was the same song, but Woojoo felt goosebumps on his body.
He didnât know you could sing it like this.
As they handed over the protagonistâs spot to Song Bohyung, they backed up the choreography so that it wouldnât look empty.
He seemed to appreciate their gesture.
He occasionally smiled at them as he sang.
Maybe he liked the sight of the audience cheering louder than when he sang.
Anyway, it was a good memory for New Black and for him.
-Thank you for your hard work today, New Black! Thank you!
After the song ended, instead of the MC, he waved his hand and thanked them, and they all gathered together and bowed deeply to the audience.
And then.
The rain that had been pouring down like a pole over them began to subside.
âDo you want me to rub your back?â
âIâm fine, donât worry.â
Rihyuk then plopped down next to Woojoo, who was crouching on the floor.
Soon, Bijoo also leaned his head on his shoulder and joined them.
The three of them were slumped against the backstage wall like zombies.
The two managers who were holding umbrellas over them didnât tell them to get up, but just smiled.
Seokhwan Hyung patted Woojooâs shoulder and laughed.
âYou did great, really.â
âI donât think I can ever do that again.â
âWhat are you going to do? It looks like weâre going to get a lot of gigs from this event.â
Woojoo rolled his eyes at his joking remark, but the mood was warm.
It was just physical exhaustion.
Woojoo was so nervous that he thought he was going crazy, trying to sing three songs in a row that they werenât even prepared for.
Thankfully, the audience seemed to like it.
âHyung, Iâm so coldâŚâ
âMe too.â
The kids who were soaked by the rain clung to Woojooâs shoulder.
The professional idols who were smiling and dancing on stage just a moment ago were nowhere to be seen. Now they were just his kids.
Woojoo wanted to get up and go to the car and rest, but he had no strength in his legs to stand up.
Oh, except for one.
âJiho.â
âYes?â
âWhy are you on Junghyunâs back?â
âMy legs gave out. I asked him to carry me.â
He grinned cheekily, hanging on to someone elseâs back.
The three Hyungs shook their heads at him.
âJunghyun, are you okay?â
âYes, Iâm fine.â
Among the five of them, he seemed to be the least affected by the fatigue and stress, maybe because he had a higher tolerance and stamina.
Well, he still looked pretty worn out.
Woojoo grabbed Seokhwan Hyungâs hand and got up, looking around at the others.
âThe managers must be tired of holding the umbrellas too. Letâs go to the car and rest for a bit. Turn on the heater. We need to change our clothes before we catch a cold.â
Bijoo and Rihyuk grabbed his hand and got up one by one.
âDo we have spare clothes?â
âWe have our regular clothes, not the costumes.â
âOh, I donât like them, theyâre dirtyâŚâ
âThen you can stay naked⌠Hey, whoâs looking at me like that? Youâre hurting my feelings, Hyung.â
âPlease, just get hurt already. When are you planning to get hurt?â
Bijoo squeezed in between them, who were bickering.
âRihyuk, Iâll lend you my blanket.â
He looked at Woojoo with disdain and muttered to Bijoo, âYouâre the best, Hyung.â
âWhat about me?â Woojoo looked at him and he only gave him a scornful look.
Woojoo thought to himself that he should get a box of water from him soon.
That was when it happened.
âExcuse me.â
A reporter came up to them as they were heading back to the car.
He was with a man carrying an ENG camera.
He looked at them and handed a card to Seokhwan Hyung.
âIâm Baek Cheolhwan, a reporter from Gyeonggi TV. I think we had a brief interview earlier, but I was wondering if we could talk more properly.â
âOh, sure.â
Seokhwan Hyung looked at them and said, âFirst, our kidsâŚâ
He was about to say that they needed to change their clothes, when they heard a loud thud!
They all turned their heads.
It was the sound of the drainage pump that was far away.
It seemed to have been fixed when they got off the stage.
But it broke down again in no time.
Thump, thump, thump-
The machine vibrated and spat out water.
The water was flowing back, and it didnât look good.
The youngest staff member, who looked thoughtful, ran to call the other workers, and they just stared at it.
The water that it had spat out earlier was nothing compared to this.
It was serious.
It wasnât their problem, but Woojoo felt a pang in his chest.
At that rate, it would reach the stage soon.
Woojoo swallowed hard, looking at the event stage where Song Bohyung was singing.
The machine was shaking as if it would explode at any moment.
It was when Rihyuk hid behind Woojoo, as if he saw a bomb.
âHey, Junghyun Hyung! Where are you going?â đ§đđŚđŚđâŻđŁđđ¸đżâŻđ.đđ¸đ
Junghyun, who was carrying the youngest on his back, walked towards them with big strides.
âWeâre getting wet!â
Just a while ago, the youngest went to the market side and made Woojooâs heart sink. And now, their rapper started to move.
âJunghyun, where are you going?â
âAh.â He said as if it was obvious, âI think I can help.â
***
Baek Cheolhwan, a reporter from GBS Gyeonggi TV, followed him with curiosity.
ââŚWhatâs going on?â
He wanted to get an interview, but the situation turned weird.
âIs it showing well on the screen?â he asked with a feeling that he might get a good scoop, and the cameraman nodded.
When they arrived at the scene.
The staff members rushed over at the call of the youngest staff.
âHey, what happened here?â
The director shouted with his scruffy beard trembling, but no one could answer him.
The youngest staff stuttered.
âWell, it broke down earlier, but then it was fine, and we checked itâŚâ
âAnd then?â
âIt broke down again.â
âDamn it, what kind of answer is that? Iâm going crazy, really. Hey! Someone, fix this!â
âDirector, we donât know why the machine is malfunctioning. If we touch it wrong, it might get worseâŚâ
The director, who was about to swear, closed his mouth at the appearance of the agent sent by the market side and the sudden camera.
And the New Black members too.
The eyes turned to them as if asking what they were doing here.
The staff members were pushing and shoving with buckets they brought from somewhere to stop the water, when Junghyun parted his lips slowly.
âI think I know how to fix that.â
ââŚâ
He opened his lips after a brief stunned expression.
âNo, I donât know what youâre talking about, but this.â
âI saw it before.â
ââŚ?â
âWhen I went down to the main house, it was the same thing. It broke down and I saw the adults fixing it. I know why it does that.â
The staff members blinked their eyes at his calm and relaxed voice that didnât match the urgent situation.
Splash, splash, splashâ
The director, who was lost in thought at the sight of the water flowing back, called someone.
âHey, Juyeong. You try to fix this.â
Then he turned his eyes to Junghyun.
âYou just said that, right? It was the same breakdown. Tell him what to do while he fixes it. This is urgentâŚâ
Junghyun quickly lifted the pump with the staff.
The conversation went fast.
The staffâs hand moved busily as Junghyun told him what to do with words like impeller and strainer.
The hand trembled and dropped the cross screwdriver every time, and he picked it up slowly and said calmly, âI saw my grandfather doing it, and he separated the filter from thereâŚâ
As the water overflowed more and more, the New Black members also joined the staffâs line to scoop out the water.
It was when the situation turned around in five minutes.
âItâs done!â The staff reassembled the machine and shouted. âItâs done!â
They quickly reconnected the electricity and turned on the machine.
Everyone clasped their hands and watched it.
The pump that was turned on started to work normally.
The water that had overflowed disappeared and the water started to drain.
It was a situation that would have taken 30 minutes to find and fix the cause of the breakdown, but it was done in five minutes.
The staff let out a sigh of relief, and the director washed his face with the rainwater.
As the atmosphere returned to normal, the staff returned to the scene, and the agent from the market side also disappeared quickly.
The director and the staff who handled the repairs thanked them with a grin.
The members and managers of New Black responded to him, but they looked very nervous as they glanced at one of their members.
Junghyun, who smiled leisurely at the director who grabbed his shoulder and talked to him.
And.
There was someone else who was watching this whole situation and laughing.
âIs the recording done?â
The cameraman raised his thumb at Baek Cheolhwanâs question.
While the shooting continued, he went to a place a little far away and took out his phone.
The call was connected right away.
âHey, itâs me. Writer Kim. I went to cover a festival in Icheon. I got some good scenes, but itâs a bit awkward to send them to the news, so I wanted to toss them to the program youâre in charge of.â
He said with a smile, âThis, the picture looks pretty good.â