45. Sense (1)

45. Sense (1)

On the day of the face-to-face fan signing event.

The members headed to the fan signing event venue, each stamping their feet or rubbing their hands, all nervous.

I couldn't stand to see that any longer, so I held back a sigh and said.

"You've all done fan signings before, right? Why are you so nervous?"

"Seeing through a screen... ... is different from meeting in person...!"

Ryu Hyun-seung, who had been the most nervous of the members and now practically a vibrating bell, answered with difficulty.

That's not all. Even Ahn Jung-woo, who was always easygoing, swallowed his saliva next to him.

"....."

The surprising thing here was Baek Han-gyul. Unlike his nervous appearance right before the stage, Baek Han-gyul was cheerful now, and he seemed to feel great joy and happiness at the fact that he was meeting people and talking.

"I want to meet my fans soon!"

Look at that, he's so excited. In the end, I let out a sigh and let go of the strength in my body.

"Just focus on the fan in front of you and answer sincerely. Or you can ask them a question first. The important thing is to continue the conversation sincerely. If the previous turn is delayed, there will be a little bit of time. Only then do you pose for the camera."

"Is that... okay...?"

"Yes, 'Oh, really' and Dongtaenun (fish eyes) are getting cursed at for a similar reason. It's because they find it annoying to talk to fans. If not... everyone will understand that it's their first time and they're a little awkward."

On the contrary, some people like the awkwardness because it makes them feel like rookies.

The tiki-taka at fan signings and the quick response when answering questions are partly due to their sense, but they also need to experience it over and over again.

Only then do you feel the members feel relieved.

'But time is limited, so it's good to be skilled, but........'

It seems like he felt pressured to do something because of the fan signing event participation structure that I taught him last time. It was worse to be impatient and make mistakes by pushing himself too hard.

"I'll try hard......."

Ryu Hyun-seung took a deep breath. While patting his back, Ji Young-heon sneakily approached him and handed out Cheongsimhwan (calming pills) to the members.

Only Baek Han-gyul and I didn't take it. Even Hwang Bo-kyun seemed to be unable to stop being nervous because it was a fan signing event.

'There's nothing I can do.'

I looked around at them and held out one hand. The other guys looked at my face as if asking what I was doing.

"Aren't you going to say fighting?"

"Huh......?"

There was nothing better than saying fighting when something big was coming up. It relieved the tension appropriately but didn't let it go at all.

Everyone's eyes widened as if my words were so surprising.

"Let's decide on a proper cheer today. We promised that before."

"...! Now that I think about it, we promised that before the pre-recording for the music show!"

"Wow, I didn't know you remembered that, Young-i."

...... Actually, I had forgotten until just now.

There was no need to pour cold water on the guys who were just so touched, so I didn't mention it.

Since there was something to discuss, everyone became more stable and talked.

"What kind of fighting cheer should we make?"

"Well, since we're going to make it properly, why don't we try to make it fit our concept?"

"Concept?...... Oh, are you talking about the game?"

"Yeah."

The members were each troubled by Seol Yi-soo's opinion. It was a fighting cheer related to the game.

Suddenly, a phrase I had heard before came to mind. It was the Intro introduction phrase that Nine had said on the radio.

To be exact, the phrase 'a talented rookie idol who enjoys the stage'.

"How about this? 'Let's have fun today too'."

"Oh, that's okay. If we go with that cheer, I think we'll be able to enjoy the situation."

"If you've decided, quickly reach out."

It was surprisingly easy to accept, perhaps because they couldn't think of a better phrase than mine.

I raised my hand once and said,.

"Kyeon-i hyung will shout the cheer."

"Oh, I understand."

After everyone's opinions were gathered, their hands were joined. Hwang Bo-kyun shouted the cheer loudly, feeling very excited. His voice was even stronger than the day of the pre-recording.

"Let's have fun today too! Let's win! Intro~ Woo!"

At the same time, everyone's hands shot up. The crowd disperses with the usual small applause.

'There seems to have been something strange in the middle.'

At that moment, Baek Han-gyul, who was standing next to me, was heard whispering to Hwang Bo-kyun.

"But what do 'Let's win' and 'Woo' mean? Who should we beat?"

"Hmm, Han-gyul. We should pretend not to know about that kind of fighting spirit."

"Was it like that? I'm sorry......."

"No, no~ You're nice."

It seemed like some kind of nonsensical conversation was going on, but I let it go.

It didn't matter what the spirit or the cheer was; as long as the members came to their senses, that was all that mattered.

***

After greeting them and sitting in my assigned seat, I looked around. As expected. I saw a few familiar faces.

Hwang Bo-kyun picked up the microphone on the table and asked.

"Did you all eat?"

"No...."

"Yes."

"Oh my, why are you so tired?"

Answers could be heard here and there. Hwang Bo-kyun shook his head with a sad face.

Since taking photos and videos was allowed, there were often cameras wedged between the seats. After checking all 100 fans, I sat still and smiled at the camera taking my picture.

"This is our first time meeting in person and doing a fan signing event, so I'm nervous... but I'll do my best."

The murmurs of cuteness died down, and after a bit more private chat, the fan signing event began.

Since I was in the first seat, I was able to meet the fan who was number 1 in line before long.

There was no particular reason why I sat in the first seat. Since the members were so nervous, I thought it would be better for me, who was used to it, to be the first to demonstrate.

"Hello~"

"Hello, oppa!"

A fan wearing a white one-piece sat across from me and greeted me naturally.

The fan had a very excited face, and her mouth was wide open. She must not be used to fan signing events.

"Um, your name is Hyowon nim? Is that right?"

"Ah... Ah! That's right."

Since I had looked at the order list in advance and memorized all the fans' names, I was able to make eye contact and talk to them without any problems.

I fixed my eyes on the fan in front of me, Hyowon, and opened the page I was going to sign. I always practiced opening the page I was going to sign without looking at it before going into the fan signing event, so this was easy.

"You're wearing nice clothes."

"Really? Thank goodness. Oh, could you write my first impression for me?"

"Of course~"

After quickly writing my first impression, I signed without looking at the paper. Once I got used to this, I could easily sign without having to check what I had written.

While signing, when the other person didn't show any sign of speaking, I quickly added.

"Why are you so nervous?"

"Uh... This is my first time coming to a fan signing event because I won the ticket......! "

"Oh, this is my first time at a fan signing event too. You're my comrade."

"That's right."

Hyowon nodded with a blush on her face. I kept smiling and read the post-it note stuck on the page.

Since the time for the fan signing event was limited, there were people who wrote questions on post-its to have more conversations.

'Let's see, the questions are....... You often appear wearing glasses in Behind-the-scenes footage. Do you have poor eyesight?"

I circled 'X' between the O and X options and looked up again.

The Post-it question was one of the best topics for conversation. The fact that they asked the question itself is proof that the fan is interested in the topic.

"It's not that my eyesight is bad, but my eyes hurt when I look at the monitor for a long time, so I only wear blue light glasses sometimes."

"Ah~"

"Does it look weird with those glasses on? Should I stop wearing them?"

When I tilted my head and asked, Hyowon opened her mouth for a moment and only repeated, "Huh?" her reaction intensified as I furrowed the corners of my eyes.

"If you say it's not good, I won't wear them anymore."

"Oh, oh, no! No, no. They suit you!"

"Really? Thank you. Is your eyesight good, Hyowon nim?"

"Uh... No. I'm still wearing contact lenses......."

"Contact lenses?"

When I realized that she was wearing contact lenses, I could see her grayish pupils.

She must have felt uncomfortable as I stared at her, so I straightened my posture again.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You must have felt uncomfortable because I was so close?"

"Ah... no, ah."

"Let's pass."

As soon as the limited time was over, Secu [short for security guard] calmly guided her to the seat next to me. It was really like a knife.

'As expected, the time spent in person at a fan signing event is too short........'

In the meantime, I wrote down P.S. on the post-it note. When I waved and saw her off, Hyowon moved to the side, dumbfounded.

"See you next time."

I turned my head to the side and saw the members who seemed to be suppressing their feelings. What, why, what.

"Hello~"

"Hello~"

After taking a sip of water, the next person sat down right away. She looked familiar. Oh, this person is.......

"Oh, you're the one who always takes pictures with that camera, right?"

"Huh? Yes! How did you know?"

"I know because I've seen you often. You helped me with our debut showcase and our first music show, and you even did a video fan signing, right?"

That's right. This person was the person who took pictures of me from the beginning. I could tell that the new account was being operated by the angle of the uploaded photos. I clearly remember that the account name that uploaded the photos was 'Cheongmi'.

When I told her that fact, Cheongmi nodded and asked.

"Yeah, that's me."

"Then should I sign with your real name? Or, Cheongmi nim? Which one do you prefer?"

"Cheongmi. By the way, how old do I look?"

Cheongmi, who was used to fan signing events, went straight into the question. I answered while making eye contact like before and signing.

"Um, twenty-one? Two?"

"Hey~ Don't lie."

"I'm serious, noona."

When I made a sincere expression, Cheongmi laughed. Fortunately, she didn't seem offended.

"Anyway, that's okay. But you call me noona."

"Oh, since you speak informally, I naturally thought you were noona. Is that not a big deal?"

"No, because I like it~ Oh, that's right. Please write this. It's the first time, so I brought something light."

What Cheongmi-nim gave me was a rabbit-shaped headband. Basically, gift giving was prohibited at our fan signing events. However, since there were no restrictions on fan service items commonly called fan sign items, I wore the headband without hesitation.

My long, droopy ears popped up.

"It really suits you. You're so handsome.....'

Cheongmi-nim took a deep breath and muttered to herself. I smiled and asked.

"Thank you. Do you like rabbits, noona?"

"Huh?"

"I see, opinions are divided on whether it's rabbits or dolphins. That's what I'm saying."

When I pointed at her with my hand, Cheongmi nodded.

There were currently divided opinions on the internet about which animal I should be moe-fied, but it seemed like Cheongmi was a rabbit fan.

When I checked my post-it, there was a related question. Rabbit fan or dolphin fan. It was a question asking which one was better.

"Well, since noona likes rabbits, I'll choose rabbits too."

"Huh? Right?! Rabbits are cute~"

"Yes, they are cute."

I nodded and drew a rabbit on the post-it. I wasn't able to draw it as well as a professional, but I finished drawing a cute rabbit character.

I always moe-fied animals like tigers, so it felt strange to draw a cute animal like Yoo Young.

"The rabbit drawn here is a gift."

"Thank you~ You drew it so cutely."

Cheongmi looked at the picture happily and gave a small thumbs up. I followed suit and gave a thumbs up and bumped our fingers together.

As expected, Secu came and guided her to the side and waved to finish greeting.

When all the members finished signing autographs for their fans, the fan who had been hesitating sat down.

Coincidentally, he was the one who caught the attention of everyone at the fan signing event.

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