The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 41
Kim Joo An snuck out of the lively practice room, frowning deeply.
‘I don’t like this.’
He had hoped that with Ji Hwa Sung’s sudden outburst and the subsequent fight, the team’s morale might finally break down a bit. He planned to use the negative atmosphere to showcase himself practicing diligently alone during his individual interview.
“…Kim Chunyong.”
Yes, Kim Chunyong.
That guy had once again foiled his plan.
Joo An muttered the name and involuntarily stomped his foot.
Joo An disliked seeing Kim Chunyong showing off by working hard at everything. It made his own attempts of “doing just enough” look bad in comparison.
…And it felt like a disregard of his own efforts.
Without realizing that this was a reflection of his own petty inferiority complex, Joo An ground his teeth and pulled out a bunch of isotonic drinks from the vending machine in the hallway.
Now that the others had taken all the spotlight in the practice room, he might as well maintain his angelic image.
“Should I tamper with Kim Chunyong’s stuff? No, that could blow up and ruin my debut chances… need to think of something else…”
As Kim Joo An, with his hamster-like appearance, was engrossed in his sinister thoughts, someone approached quietly.
Without turning around, Joo An replied curtly.
“Ah, I’ll move in just a sec.”
However, the voice that replied was familiar to him.
“Uh-huh, no rush. Take your time.”
“…Huh? Jae Ha hyung?”
Behind him stood the leader of the team Joo An had longed to join, Son Jae Ha, along with another team member.
Despite being drenched in sweat, Jae Ha still shone with his radiant looks. That’s definitely the Ace of AG.
‘Ah, if only hyung had chosen me, I wouldn’t be suffering like this! Why didn’t he pick me? Ah, I’m getting angry again.’
Yet, hiding his inner feelings, Joo An flitted a breezy smile and handed them the two drinks he had selected.
“Here, you two have these. I just had one earlier.”
“Ah, thanks. Hyung, take this.”
“Um, the one next to Jae Ha hyung, what’s your name…?”
“Ah, I’m Bang Yu Chan. Yu Chan.”
“I’m Kim Joo An! You’re older than Jae Ha hyung, so feel free to speak casually to me.”
“Um… Okay, sure. Got it.”
“Joo An, how’s practice going? I heard from Hwa Sung there was a bit of friction yesterday. Seems like it’s resolved now, right?”
Kim Joo An, conveniently omitting that he was the root cause of their team’s first conflict, put on a woeful face and responded.
“Well, it’s been a bit of this and that. Hwa Sung’s been having a tough time… But I’m trying my best to help out!”
“…It’s good you’re helping. Hwa Sung looks up to me a lot, and I was a bit worried about him being on a different team.”
“Ah, it’s okay. I’ll let Hwa Sung know that hyung is thinking a lot about him. Both of you keep up the hard work!”
Kim Joo An, not forgetting to butter up Son Jae Ha until the end, hastily returned to his practice room. Watching his retreating figure, Yu Chan whispered in a low voice,
“Jae Ha, is he a close friend?”
“Ah….”
Hesitating slightly at Yu Chan’s question, Jae Ha soon wore a fresh smile and replied,
“I’ll have to wait and see.”
* * *
In the 8th-floor lounge of Music Days, commonly known as M Days.
“Say it again.”
Despite feeling a headache coming on, Lee Hyeon Jeong relayed all necessary information to the main PD.
“They covered the camera with a hood, so… we don’t know exactly where the two went. Though they went down the emergency stairs, nothing was captured by those cameras either.”
“Huh, these kids haven’t even debuted and they’re acting all high and mighty. Where did they learn that kind of trickery?”
But for all his grumbling, the main PD’s face didn’t seem particularly angry. Knowing his obsessive nature, Lee Hyeon Jeong was surprised and asked,
“Is that all?”
“What do you mean?”
“Normally, you would have… cursed a lot. Calling them ignorant for even covering up their own broadcast footage, usually you’d swear a storm.”
“Ah, well.”
The main PD casually tore open a candy wrapper and popped it into his mouth, replying nonchalantly.
“Yeah, like the writer said, I would have normally. But Kim Chunyong, he’s done such a good job at the beginning that it’s annoying but bearable.”
