The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 6
Jieun and Minji simultaneously shut their mouths.
The man from practice room 8, whom they had been eagerly awaiting, had appeared in front of them. Kim Chunyong.
Kim Chunyong watched Jieun and Minji, who were hands on each other’s faces and a laptop, and mumbled with a puzzled look on his face.
“Uh, are you busy right now?”
“No? Why would we be? I came here to work.”
Before Kim Chunyong could finish his sentence, Jieun quickly replied. In the meantime, Minji had muted the sound from the Leopold video.
Kim Chunyong, slightly flustered but still polite, asked them.
“Uh, do you happen to have a tripod or something that I could rent? I want to shoot a video.”
“A tripod, a tripod. Wait a moment. Let me check and get back to you.”
Jieun grabbed Minji’s arm and quickly entered the storage room. Their eyes met in mid-air.
“Did you see him?”
“I did.”
“Your thoughts?”
“Kim Jieun is going to go crazy. He looks nothing like his name. Handsome like a delinquent who probably never wears the school jacket. But somewhat rebellious. Awesome, insane.”
“Yes! I told you so!”
The two girls stomped their feet in excitement. Such moments rarely came in their daily lives.
After seeing a handsome man who was treated like a unicorn in real life, Minji, who had been watching beyond the screen for a long time, smiled with satisfaction, then began to question Jieun.
“Hey, why did you come into the storage room? You said it’s where you take a nap when you’re sleepy.”
“…I have a plan in mind. Just trust me, my friend. Okay?”
A moment later, Jieun and Minji came back outside, cleared their throats, and spoke.
“So, we couldn’t find a tripod, sorry for making you wait.”
“Oh, it’s okay. If it’s not available, there’s nothing we can do. Then…”
“But, if you don’t mind.”
…Could we shoot it for you?
That’s right. Jieun wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through her fingers.
A handsome man is a rare find.
The chance to see a handsome man for an extended period was even rarer.
The chance to film a video of a handsome man in person was priceless.
“Well…”
Kim Chunyong seemed to hesitate for a moment but then nodded coolly.
Jieun and Minji enthusiastically applauded while holding hands tightly.
Quickly entering the practice room, Jieun and Minji took their places in front of the mirror.
Kim Chunyong handed his phone to Jieun and asked her to press the button when the music started. Jieun nodded in agreement, thinking.
‘Well, I can’t really tell if someone dances well or not just by watching. I’ll just focus on his face. Piece of cake.’
Jieun knew very little about dancing, and mostly knew that you had to move your body to the rhythm. So she couldn’t really differentiate between idols who danced well and those who didn’t, unlike Minji, who was obsessed with idols.
“Okay… I’ll start. Thank you for your cooperation.”
“Sure!”
However, when the synth sound-based beat reverberated through the practice room and Kim Chunyong started to step to the rhythm.
“Oh…”
Jieun could only open her mouth and let out an astonished gasp.
– When I see your fluttering hair
It felt like my heart stopped
Smooth, precise arm movements that cut through the air, impeccable control of tempo, and a flawless execution of every detail.
The rhythm was masterfully divided, and even someone unfamiliar with dance would think…
“What’s this? He’s really good at dancing, isn’t he…?”
Indeed, Kim Chunyong had always been a good dancer.
Before he went back in time, his position in his group was sub-dancer. It was a given that he would be good.
But, above all, Kim Chunyong loved dancing on stage while singing.
It was enjoyable for him to move every muscle in his body at will and be happy syncing his movements with the voices of the other members.
When he was on stage, it felt like something he could do forever.
…Until his family’s accident, which left his heart shattered.
“I’m trash.”
He felt like he was dancing in vain. He felt that he was unworthy. It seemed like the people in the audience were pointing fingers at him.
As a result, he practiced less and less, and ultimately spiraled down the path of no return.
Since then, Kim Chunyong went from being a dance member with an eye for detail to being known as Trash-Rex, the malicious member.
“But it’s different now.”
In his quest to reclaim what he had once lost, he was willing to give it his all, with no reservations, and, above all…
Regardless of how the journey had been, his head was filled with hundreds of experiences from countless stages.
“What’s a sub? This time, I’m also the main dancer.”
– I love your black shirt
Oh, A black shirt…
After the music ended, the sound of Kim Chunyong panting echoed in the practice room. Jieun and Minji simply watched him in a daze, as he struggled to catch his breath.
Perplexed by their frozen expressions, Kim Chunyong cautiously spoke up, his head tilting slightly.
“Are… Are you okay? Was it filmed well?”
“Heck, y-yes, yes!”
“Insane… this is insane!”
In haste, Ji-eun pressed the stop button and handed her phone to Kim Chunyong with trembling hands.
“Th-thank you for your help; it seems to be filmed well.”
However, even after Kim Chunyong finished thanking them, the two of them couldn’t move from their spots.
Perplexed by the two women’s unknown expressions, Kim Chunyong, after a brief pause, spoke with a bright smile.
“Are you perhaps going to give me some specific feedback? Did I miss any steps?”
“Please let me know in more detail.”
“I’ll try to do better and fix it.”
At that moment, Jieun and Minjii thought that there was definitely a halo behind Kim Chunyong’s fierce face.
“Oh, no, we don’t really know much about dancing, so we don’t need to give feedback. Right, Minji?”
“Uh huh… more than that…”
The part-timers’ eyes sparkled as they watched Kim Chunyong.
Oh, wait. A second.
Kim Chunyong knew, more than anyone, where, when, and from whom this kind of gaze was directed to him.
Not only did he know, but he had been desperately yearning to see such looks again.
This was unmistakably…
“Could you give us an autograph?”
“Me too, please! I know you’re an amateur, but I’m sure you’ll make it big in the future!”
It was the gaze of a fan.
At that moment, a notification popped up on Kim Chunyong’s phone, startling him. Due to this, he hastily stumbled through a response.
“Yes, I’ll sign it.”
“Awesome! Just a moment; I’ll grab some paper and a pen!”
As they rushed out of the practice room, Kim Chunyong checked the notification on his phone. He tapped on the phone a few times.
“Be careful with the timing… send it discreetly, considering the circumstances…”
[Encyclopedia: The First Encounter with a Fan
Congratulations! Since your return, you’ve gained your first fan.
Every journey starts with that first step, right? Your first fan will support you, cheer for you, and won’t be afraid to raise their voice. Let’s make even more fans in the future!
Collectible Reward: <Skill> Idol’s Aura (F)]
“My first fan…”
Kim Chunyong’s face crumbled with a mixture of joy and relief.
