The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 96
I stared at Choi Gun Young, who was swaggering in front of me, and organized my thoughts.
Today, there were two outcomes I needed to achieve.
“God, this isn’t what I imagined….”
One was finding out the reason behind Logan’s impending departure, who was muttering anxiously behind me with a somewhat uneasy expression.
Specifically, why he had decided to quit and whether it was something I could stop if I tried.
And the second was to successfully complete the busking performance—for both my ranking and to address the situation at hand.
Given that a sudden mission had popped up, it was clear that we wouldn’t be able to proceed with the busking unless we resolved the current conflict.
“Anyhow, it’s our team’s performance time right now. So either you move or you wait until we’re finished. Those are your only two options. Got it? Now get out of the way. You’re annoying.”
Since I’d remained quiet, Choi Gun Young, seemingly thinking I’d backed down, snapped at us with a sharp voice, assuming his attitude had overwhelmed me.
“No, but this is our scheduled time that was filed properly. We have all the paperwork to prove it.”
“We also submitted our application to Mapo District Office. I even showed you the reservation earlier. And we were here first, so stop being unreasonable!”
From the conversation between the junior staff and Choi Gun Young, I immediately understood why the wait had dragged on for so long, and why this situation had arisen.
Both parties had submitted performance requests to different agencies, and due to an administrative error, the times overlapped.
We had official documents on our side, giving us legitimacy, but they had booked the spot and arrived earlier, so they had the right to claim the space.
Whatever the situation….
“Excuse me.”
“…What?”
I couldn’t just stand by idly any longer.
I swiftly removed the hat and mask that were half covering my face and locked eyes with Choi Gun Young. Upon getting a full look at my face, he visibly flinched.
“What, wait. A trainee…?”
He’d been causing a fuss about me, claiming I didn’t look like a dancer based on my eyes alone.
“Yeah, that’s right. Let’s just talk this through, shall we?”
Not quite what you expected, huh?
I’ve received plenty of nasty comments because of my thug-like face, after all.
I glanced between the startled expressions of Choi Gun Young and the junior writer, keeping my tone casual as I continued.
“Why waste our energy? How about we just do this together?”
“Wha-? Trainee Kim Chunyong, what are you…?”
“From what I heard, if we both make a few compromises, we should be able to perform together just fine. It’s not our fault the permits overlapped, right?”
“—Nonsense. You think the sound won’t clash? One side’s singing while the other side’s dancing? You think this space is big enough for that? Get your head out of the clouds!”
“Well, I didn’t say I’d only be singing. Despite what my appearance suggests, I’m actually a decent dancer.”
“Oh, come on! Cut the crap!”
Choi Gun Young, not wanting to hear any more from me, quickly cut me off with an outburst.
I had been aiming for a cooperative approach, but apparently, that wasn’t going to work with someone whose pride as a street dancer pierced the sky.
“This is crazy, what? You think you’re good at dancing too now?”
Choi Gun Young muttered under his breath, mixing in some curses.
“Street dance is a joke now. Trainees who aren’t even worth mentioning think they can stand toe to toe with us. These broadcast jerks really think they’re in charge….”
‘This rude piece of trash.’
Though he pretended to mutter it quietly, his voice was loud enough to make sure I heard every word.
And hearing that right in front of him, the junior writer’s face turned bright red with a mix of shock and anger.
“What did you just say? Can you take responsibility for your words? Hah, we were trying to handle this nicely.”
“Nicely? Who was it that came over demanding we clear out because they needed to film?”
“I clearly asked if you could move if there was another spot available!”
“Are you kidding us? Why should we be the ones to move? You guys can go somewhere else!”
An explosive standoff of pride between Choi Gun Young, his crew, and the broadcasting staff.
Unable to contain his anger, the junior writer stomped his foot and, in desperation, began to raise his voice, bringing up the renowned figures involved in their program.
“You keep talking about dancers, dancers. Do you even know who the dance mentor for our program is? Looks like you don’t think of them as real dancers, huh!?”
“Ugh, seriously….”
…At this rate, I think we’ll have to resolve this a bit differently than I had planned.
While I was quickly running through the possible next steps in my head, Choi Gun Young sneered and fired back, unrelenting.
“And who’s this big-shot dance mentor you’re bragging about? If they’re a media dancer, they’re all the same,”
“—International Dance Competition Krump Division Winner, Jin Dasol! The Jin Dasol! And did you know that this ‘non-dancer,’ as you put it, just asked this trainee, Chunyong, to join his crew? You don’t even know what you’re talking about!”
“…Wait. Dasol? Jin Dasol hyung, you said?”
They just brought up the mentor, and now I’m getting dragged into it too.
I glanced at Choi Gun Young, whose mouth hung open in disbelief, clearly never expecting this, his words now stumbling.
Choi Gun Young, the winner of Dancing Street?
A handsome face. A straightforward personality. Incredible dance skills and choreography abilities—there are so many ways to describe that guy.
But if there’s one thing that stands out the most…
[‘Dancing Stage’ Choi Gun Young bursts into laughter during his victory speech… ‘I freaking love you, Dasol hyung’]
[‘Dancing Stage’ winner Choi Gun Young’s team ‘IllRic,’ all members join Jin Dasol’s crew!]
…It’s that he’s a die-hard fan of our Targeting Star judge and dance mentor, Jin Dasol.
Or rather—
[Choi Gun Young: I’m thrilled to be able to dance alongside my lifelong idol. I would vouch for Dasol hyung no matter what. I haven’t asked him about it, but still, that’s how much I want to be tied to him—desperately, if need be.]
…He’s a toxic fan.
An ex-toxic member and a toxic fan meeting like this—it’s kind of funny when you think about it.
“Dasol hyung wants to take who into his crew?”
Choi Gun Young, now pointing a finger at me and darting his eyes around like a cornered colt, started stomping his feet in frustration.
“This trainee? Since when?”
“Um… it was on the first day of filming.”
“Don’t make me laugh.”
The fact that Jin Dasol had invited me to join his crew seemed to shock him so much that it made him forget all the polite speech and courtesy he had been maintaining.
“Gun Young hyung. It’s true. Dasol even said on yesterday’s broadcast that he wanted that guy to join his crew.”
Hearing one of his team members mutter that under his breath, Choi Gun Young grabbed the back of his neck and let out a silent scream.
Then, glaring at the junior writer with pure disdain, he leaned toward me, snarling.
“I won’t believe it until I see it with my own eyes. Who gave you permission to join Dasol hyung’s crew, anyway?”
“It doesn’t really need your permission, but I’m going to be an idol, so I’m not joining anyway.”
“What do you mean, ‘not joining’?!”
