Chapter 171

Wow!

The scream echoed through the live hall with just a greeting.

The pressure I felt, desperately trying to wrap up this time's ending, eased a bit.

"It's been a long three months, or short, depending on how you see it."

Simultaneously, fans waving triangular cheer sticks and slogans, crying messily, caught my eye.

"At the end of it all, we've achieved first place. It's all thanks to Noeul. I'm sorry for making you all worry these past few months."

Many must be curious about what I'll say beyond the screen, shedding tears.

But sadly, my eyes were dry as a bone.

After expressing gratitude to those I had to mention, I hesitated briefly before speaking again.

"Thank you to the members too. I may have forced a lot, but they followed me silently."

Glancing around, I saw Jung Dajun, who had finally calmed down, covering his face with both hands. I chuckled at him.

"Thanks to our families too."

Now was the time to say what everyone wanted to hear.

"We'll always cherish this."

After spitting out the prepared words, I slowly lowered the mic. Then, I lightly tapped Kim Seonghyun's back, whose eyes were reddened.

As Kim Seonghyun stepped forward, I stepped back, only to be pulled into a hug by Seong Jiwon. It felt warm and moist on my shoulder.

".....Hoyun."

Calling out his name, I waited for Sung Jiwon, who just sniffled without saying anything.

Expecting Seonghyun to express his feelings about winning first place, as he usually did.

"There's so much to say, but Seo Hoyun has already said it all."

However, Kim Seonghyun unexpectedly said, pausing to catch his breath.

"As always, Noeuls have been by our side like a guardian."

When the boy who seemed to be choking back tears for a moment, raised his face again, he had a smile amidst the traces of tears.

Our leader,

"We five will always be together. Thank you."

He's truly a good guy.

"Great job!"

"Congratulations, even more!"

"Wow, it was really touching. Congratulations!"

As we descended from the stage, the staff backstage, still busy, threw words of congratulations one by one.

All the members bowed their heads slightly as they passed by them.

At that moment, perhaps because the program had safely ended until the last broadcast, the assistant director with the brightest expression among all approached.

"Are you going to the after-party?"

"Ahaha, the members will go... "

Glancing back, I noticed that the members who had been following until just now were standing a bit further away, their steps halted.

They seemed to have been held back by members of other groups or staff.

"I'm a bit tired."

"Oh, I see. It's a shame since the atmosphere really heats up with Seo Hoyun around."

The assistant director seemed slightly regretful at my response but didn't insist further. Instead, she added, "If there's a chance next time..." and snapped her wrist as if breaking a glass, then quickly disappeared.

Watching her retreating figure for a moment, I was about to call out to the members still held back by others when I noticed mentors gathered at the end of the corridor.

'Wow...'

Lim Hyeonsu, Joo Woosung, Ha Seoyeon, Han Chaeri.

And even Chae Jungwoo was there.

"Hey!"

Thinking it would be annoying if I caught their attention for no reason, I tried to avoid them, but I heard a faint sigh behind me.

"Hey, Seo Hoyun."

As I slowly turned my head, Lkm Hyunsoo approached with a bright smile.

"Wow, you didn't lose your vigor. Congratulations on first place, kid."

"Yeah, it's all thanks to the composer, isn't it?"

"Haha, look at you, being all modest."

With the courtyard in plain view, there was no way lIm Hyeonsuu wouldn't know how we achieved first place, but he didn't mention that aspect.

However, I could easily imagine what everyone would murmur behind our backs.

Seo Hoyun sold out his personal life just to win first place.

'Well, I'll admit it.'

Because it's true.

"The final song was great. It was ridiculously good."

"...And who do you think made that happen?"

"Haha."

Watching lim Hyunsoo laugh cheerfully, I linked arms with her.

"Want to go see Gahanna? She'd like it."

"Eh, no, it's fine. Maybe some other time."

Swinging his hand back and forth, lim Hyeonsu glanced towards where Gahanna was before chuckling softly. She stood there emitting a strong aura, paying no attention to his surroundings.

Feeling a strong sense of impending trouble, I decided to ignore it for now.

"Are you going to the after-party?"

"No, I'm going alone."

It would be difficult for all the members of the winning team to skip the after-party, so the members were planning to attend. However, the one who had orchestrated this narrative couldn't just show up at the dinner party, laughing and joking while showcasing his drinking skills.

Both at work and in private, the company, the managers, and I all agreed on this.

Without going into detail, Im Hyunsoo understood the situation tactfully.

"...Alright. Then, let's grab a meal together once things settle down. My treat."

"Oh, well, if you insist. You'll have to treat me nicely though."

"You're both shameless and awesome."

Shaking his head with an expression of disbelief, lim Hyeonsu glanced around before locking eyes with Ju Woosung. At the same time, Woosung started walking towards us.

"Seo Hoyun."

I thought things were getting annoyingly complicated, but I had no escape.

As Woosung approached, he somehow looked tired.

"Uh..."

After hesitating for a moment, he awkwardly cleared his throat.

"...Congrats on first place."

"Well, thanks. Thanks to you, senior."

"Hey!! Didn't I tell you it's thanks to me?"

Interjecting, Im Hyunsoo chuckled, and Woosung laughed awkwardly.

"What do you want from this kid, huh? He's really good at talking nonsense."

After throwing me under the bus like that, he just stood there silently. So, I decided to take the initiative.

"Sunbae, thank you for everything."

"...Huh?"

"I really appreciate all your help."

Until recently, I never imagined that I'd be in constant contact with Woosung and even receiving his assistance, even after targeting him on TV. No, honestly, I still don't fully understand it.

It's surprising that a threatened guy would help the one threatening him without any apparent benefit.

Staring at the speechless Woosung, I chuckled awkwardly.

"And do you believe you'll continue helping me in the future? I still have a long way to go."

"..."

I thought he might curse at me or at least try to be funny, but Woosung just remained with an ambiguous expression.

In that strange atmosphere, as I was about to raise an eyebrow, Im Hyunsoo grabbed Woosung by the neck.

"Hey, that's enough. He's fine. In fact, he's healthier than me. Woosung, let's go to the after-party and have a drink."

"...Ugh, I don't want to."

"Come on, let's go have some fun~!!"

Im Hyunsoo, dragging the reluctant Ju Woosung along with an enthusiastic Chae Jungwoo, chuckled and disappeared.

I shrugged my shoulders and approached the members.

"What's up?"

Just a moment ago, they were chatting with various people, but now they huddled together and bowed politely.

In the midst of it, Jung Dajun stuck to me like glue.

As I absentmindedly patted his head, the youngest, rolling his eyes, muttered nonsense.

"...Hoyunie, can't I skip the after-party too?"

"No, you can't."

"...But I don't want to."

"Just go and come back."

Even for top-tier celebrities like us, skipping such events without a valid reason would raise suspicions.

And if it were a bigger event like this one, not showing up could easily tarnish one's reputation.

"Jung Dajun."

Knowing that, Kim Seonghyun sighed and gently peeled Jung Dajun's clinging arms off me.

"Jung Dajun ssi , let's go."

"Ughhh...."

Jung Dajun still looked reluctant as he moved away with lingering regret in his eyes.

"Hoyun, be careful."

"Yeah."

"We'll be back soon too."

Shoving the dawdling youngest forward, Seong Jiwon waved his hand.

Throughout all this, Kang Ichae didn't utter a word.

Even as he turned back to follow the manager's call, I felt uneasy.

But I quickly shifted my thoughts to how to manage public opinion, how to transform my image, and what steps to take.

"I'll head back first, thank you."

"Really, you did great! Hoyoon, you're amazing!"

"Yes, great job."

I maintained my smile as I headed towards the van.

Since we were heading straight to the dorm anyway, I hadn't bothered to change my clothes.

The manager would be attending the after-party with the other members, so he was with the road manager.

"Today was really amazing!"

"Haha, thank you so much, Manager. Take care on your way back."

Arriving at the dorm, I greeted them as I got out of the car.

"...?"

Upon entering the door with the door lock code and stepping into the silent living room, I sighed.

"...Hmm."

After neatly hanging up my clothes and taking a shower, I wandered around aimlessly, sometimes flopping onto the couch and other times turning on the TV.

After flipping through a few channels, I turned off the TV and picked up my phone.

Buzzzz.

I intended to check the reactions from today.

As soon as I turned on my phone, missed calls, unread messages, and texts poured in like crazy.

Among them, the most frequently recorded name was Seo Hojin.

[Seo Hojin]

I roughly ran my fingers through my damp hair and collapsed onto the bed. After quickly scanning through the messages and checking the texts, I looked at the conversation with Seo Hojin and suddenly realized.

[Seo Hojin: Happy New Year]

[Me: Yeah]

Even on New Year's.

[Seo Hojin: Hyung]

[Seo Hojin: Happy birthday]

[Me: Thanks]

...Even on my birthday.

"...Hmm."

Since becoming an idol, my communication with my younger brother, Seo Hojin, had mostly been him initiating contact and me responding briefly afterward. I could at least excuse not sending a text on Seo Hojin's birthday since we had met in person.

"Did I... act a bit...?"

Hesitating, I sent a message.

[Me: Hey]

I hung up immediately as soon as the call came through, then typed out another message with tired eyes.

[Me: I won]

But even after a while, there was no reply.

I stared at my phone for a while, contemplating whether to just go to sleep, but then it vibrated.

[Seo Hojin: Can you pick up the phone?]

"Idiot..."

I had a feeling I knew what it was about.

[Me: Let's meet tomorrow]

[Me: And bring a big bouquet of flowers]

I added a joke to lighten the mood.

If he actually brought one, I could tease him about it later.

With no schedule for tomorrow and a desire to check on Seo Hojin's condition in person, I felt relieved.

"Everything's worked out."

Perhaps because the nerves that had been standing on edge lately had finally relaxed, I felt drowsiness overwhelm me.

"All I have to do now is handle the aftermath."

It was a bit of a stretch, but it wasn't a completely bad outcome.

Getting backlash was inevitable in the entertainment industry.

With this incident, I became an idol with a story, someone who could be utilized in variety shows or other projects.

Besides, the public tends to favor those who appear frequently in front of the camera—.

As I was thinking that, my eyelids suddenly felt incredibly heavy. My eyes closed, and I fell into a deep sleep.

"...Huh!"

I jolted awake, gasping for breath.

"Oh, ugh…."

I groped around with trembling hands, feeling my shoulders and arms. Cold sweat trickled down my back.

"Ah, damn…."

My left arm felt numb.

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