NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 14
Translator: MarcTempest
Editor: Rxel
Chapter 14
Daily Life, and the Dorm
Two weeks after the end-of-year evaluation.
After spending three golden days of vacation in Gunsan, Seon Woojoo turned twenty-two as the New Year arrived.
2014.
The entertainment industry was bustling from the start of the New Year.
The news of a famous girl group member and a top star actor’s romance swept the entertainment news, and a drama that reminisced the 90s was making headlines every day.
And there was also the upcoming big event.
Something about a kingdom.
An animation that Wang Jiho had been raving about ever since he saw the trailer on YouTube, saying ‘Hyung! Hyung! You have to watch this for real!’ was about to be released.
Should Seon Woojoo book the tickets for him?
He was checking the screening schedule on his smartphone when he closed the window at the notification that asked him to log in.
Ugh, too much hassle.
Kim Bijoo or Seo Rihyuk would do it, right?
Then Seon Woojoo zipped up his padding jacket all the way.
The chilly wind was blowing in the alley of Sinsa-dong.
Seon Woojoo walked briskly into the Lemon Entertainment building.
Seon Woojoo was about to go to the practice room with a heater when he saw a stranger in front of the elevator.
It was a woman wearing a black mask and a padded jumper.
She pressed the elevator button several times, then noticed a paper that said
“Ugh, this sucks!”
A husky voice.
She was a singer.
“Why does it have to break down today of all days!”
She seemed to be furious at the thought of having to carry her luggage up the stairs.
A heavy-looking carrier.
“Can I help you…?”
“Why today, of all days!”
She burst out again, and Seon Woojoo quietly backed away.
He was the weakest link in this company.
A lowly citizen like him just passed by quietly.
“Excuse me.”
And a failed escape.
“Excuse me?”
The black mask went down to her chin, revealing her fair skin.
She had a big and distinctive pretty face.
And a face that Seon Woojoo knew.
She was one of the members of Scarlet, a senior group in the company.
“Sorry, but can you help me with this?”
“Yes!”
Seon Woojoo smiled brightly and nodded.
“Of course I should help you.”
The basic of social life was to look good and be liked by the seniors.
Besides, it was just a carrier.
‘Let’s get it over with quickly,’ Seon Woojoo thought, and grabbed the handle of the carrier.
“That’s really heavy, so be careful-”
“Don’t worry. This much is nothing… Hrk!”
Seon Woojoo lifted the carrier and fell over.
“I told you. It’s really heavy.”
“I didn’t know it was this much.”
Even though he did 100 push-ups every day after being discharged from the military, he strained his muscles.
It felt like a sack of rice.
After several attempts, Seon Woojoo finally lifted the carrier, and the other person went up the stairs and reached out her hand.
“What is it?”
“I asked you to help me move it.”
“Yes. You did.”
“I meant let’s carry it together.”
Seon Woojoo didn’t want to pass the luggage to her, but seeing her roughly 150 cm height and thin arms and legs, he changed his mind.
It would be easier for him to do it alone.
“I’ll just carry it, Senior. Just show me the way.”
She stared at Seon Woojoo’s face closely as he climbed up slowly, one step at a time.
“I don’t recognize your face. You’re a new trainee, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’m a senior singer.”
Seon Woojoo smiled at the sight of the other person who was puffing out her seniority with a stern face.
“You obviously know who I am.”
“Of course.”
Seon Woojoo also knew her name.
“Aren’t you Daisy, Senior?”
“That’s right.”
Daisy of Scarlet smiled with satisfaction.
“You’re a great junior.”
“Thank you for your… Ahhhh.”
“Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m, I’m fine. Senior.”
“You don’t look fine. You have the expression of a grandfather who’s about to collapse.”
“…”
Rain poured down in his heart.
“Sigh.”
Lemon Entertainment, second floor.
As Seon Woojoo passed by the recording studio where he learned composition from Director Jo Gyuhwan every week, another studio appeared deep inside.
When Seon Woojoo finished the delivery there, sweat was pouring down his armpits and back.
“Good job.”
Daisy handed him a tissue as if to wipe off the sweat.
Seon Woojoo watched her open the carrier while poking her eyes.
What was in there?
The box of red ginseng was packed so ambitiously.
No wonder it was heavy.
Seon Woojoo was surprised when another item was added.
“Do you carry dumbbells around the studio?”
“They’re for stretching my feet. The chair is too high. Like this.”
The short senior singer lifted the dumbbell with difficulty and placed it under the studio chair. Then she sat down and tapped her feet.
“Perfect height, right?”
It felt like she was saying ‘Ta-da, impressive, right?’ but Seon Woojoo was just dumbfounded.
“Senior.”
“Yes?”
“Have you ever heard of a footrest? It’s one of the great inventions of the 21st century.”
“…”
“Senior?”
She wasn’t listening to him at all.
Daisy, who was humming a tune and filling the studio fridge with red ginseng drinks, handed him several bottles.
“You worked hard, so drink a lot.”
“Thank you.”
Seon Woojoo drank the red ginseng juice as soon as he took it.
It tasted bitter and healthy.
As expected, free stuff was the best.
Seon Woojoo looked around and asked, “Is this the studio of Scarlet seniors?”
“Yep.”
Seon Woojoo was envious.
He wondered if they could get a studio someday.
“Who did the interior design?”
“Who do you think?”
She asked Seon Woojoo back with an expectant look. He pretended not to know.
“Did you do it, Senior?”
“That’s right. I did a great job, didn’t I?”
A pink sofa with a zebra cushion.
It was the kind of interior that an interior designer would change for free.
“By the way,” Daisy asked as she closed the fridge door, “I heard a while ago that you’re collaborating with Jang Sowon Senior?”
“Yes.”
“There was a huge rumor in the company.”
“What rumor?”
“The new trainees did a great job, and the PR team staff were gossiping about it. They said the manager’s mouth was up to his ears because they got free publicity.”
She showed her curiosity.
“How is it going now?”
“I don’t know. They said they’re negotiating with Hwai Entertainment.”
Daisy opened her mouth and said ‘Hmm’.
“Well, I hope it goes well.”
“Thank you.”
With that, they said goodbye.
“It’s time to start the lesson. I’ll go now.”
“Wait a minute.”
She stopped Seon Woojoo from leaving.
She opened her wallet from her padding and handed Seon Woojoo something.
“What is this?”
“It’s a tip. Buy some snacks with the kids.”
There were two Shin Saimdangs.
All the fatigue he had so far melted away.
“Oh, it’s okay…”
“Why don’t you lower your mouth and say it? Take it before I change my mind.”
“I’ll take it gratefully, Senior. I’ll buy a delicious meal with the kids.”
“What senior.”
It was time for her to say to call her comfortably.
“Call me Noona next time.”
“Huh?”
“Call me Noona comfortably.”
“Well, I can call you that if you want, but…”
She tilted her head at Seon Woojoo’s words.
“What are you talking about? You’re not a high school student, are you?”
“I’m twenty-two.”
She suddenly went silent and blinked her eyes.
“…Really?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, you look so young. Good job and see you next time.”
Seon Woojoo smiled quietly as he watched Daisy fumble with her words. Then Seon Woojoo bowed his head and left.
As soon as he closed the door, he heard a faint scream of ‘Embarrassing!’
Seon Woojoo took out his smartphone and typed ‘Daisy’ in the search bar. Her profile appeared.
-Daisy (Kim Nayoon)
-Singer
-Born: 1996.03.27
-Group: Scarlet
-Agency: Lemon Entertainment
She was three years younger than him.
What was this happy feeling?
Seon Woojoo didn’t feel this way when he was in high school, but now that he was in his twenties, he felt happy when he heard someone say he was young.
He had to tell his siblings quickly.
***
Lunchtime.
They had finished their morning work and came to a nearby restaurant.
Black Pork Butcher Shop.
It was their favorite spot for lunch, cheap and tasty.
As usual, they ordered the bulgogi set and chatted about what happened to Seon Woojoo this morning.
“So what did he say?”
“I’m twenty-two, you know. Her pupils started shaking when I said that.”
The members burst into laughter.
They were always laughing at the slightest things, since they spent all day in the practice room.
Kim Bijoo added, “I get where Nayoon is coming from.”
“Huh?”
“I felt the same way when I first met Hyung. I thought he was younger than me.”
“Me too, I thought he was a high school student.”
“Right. If he hadn’t told us his age from the start, we would have made a mistake too.”
“Hmm.”
What was this satisfying feeling?
“Well, I do look young, don’t I?”
“Nah, that’s not it,” Kim Junghyun said with a smile.
“Hyung, the more I look at you, the more I see that old vibe.”
“True.”
“Doesn’t Hyung have that thing? Whenever he gets a chance, he goes ouch~ and rubs his back.”
‘ㅋㅋㅋ’
A similar laughter spread among the kids.
Maybe they had become close enough to do that.
They whispered jokes without hesitation.
Seon Woojoo looked at the duck hot pot boiling on the gas burner.
It was a special treat he bought with the 50,000 won someone threw at him this morning.
Kim Junghyun savored the delicious smell and said, “But Nayoon must be making a lot of money. She pulled out a 50,000 won bill and paid right away.”
“Of course she is. Honestly, 100,000 won wouldn’t be a problem either.”
Ouch.
“Scarlet is one of the top girl groups right now. If they keep it up for another year or two, they could buy a building in this neighborhood with cash.”
“Really?”
Seo Rihyuk nodded at Seon Woojoo’s question.
“They have more sales than bigger groups, but our company pays well.”
“Oh.”
“Woojoo Hyung, you didn’t know that when you joined?”
The youngest explained.
Among the small agencies, Lemon Entertainment was one of the few that matched the big four in terms of welfare for their artists.
Oh.
That was news to him.
The youngest showed Seon Woojoo the internet and explained how other companies paid. Then he suddenly changed the topic as if he remembered something.
“Right. Guys, do you know this? There was a post about us a while ago.”
“What?”
“Hold on.”
‘For real? For real?’
Everyone crowded around Wang Jiho.
“It was the first episode of Street Boys’ reality show yesterday. So there were some reactions posted, and we were mentioned too.”
[Anyone watched the new reality show on K-net?]
[I usually start stanning groups through reality shows]
[I turned on the TV and saw Street Boys?]
[They have a reality show now]
[It was not very fun so I was about to turn it off, but the scene where they did the year-end evaluation or something was interesting lol]
[The kids from Lemon Entertainment seemed to do better]
[37 comments]
-I don’t usually stan groups through reality shows or variety shows
-The reality show was boring… It’s only the first episode so it’s hard to tell, but I don’t really want to watch more
┖Honestly, when was the last time a debut reality show was fun? You watch it for the fresh vibe
-Who knows the name of the brown-haired guy in the main picture? It’s urgent!
┖What’s the rush lol
┖What are you going to do with them, they haven’t even debuted yet
┖How would I know the profile of a trainee who hasn’t debuted
-They only appeared briefly but they were good… I was more drawn to them
-Are they all staff from the agency or what? They’re not just good-looking, right?
┖Ugh, I smell a male fan with bad eyesight ㅋㅋ
The fight started in the middle of the comments, and out of the 40 comments, 70 percent were arguing.
“What?”
Seo Rihyuk frowned.
“Is this all we get for our reaction?”
“Well, technically, it’s a reaction to Woojoo Hyung, so it’s our reaction.”
“Yeah, Rihyuk,” Kim Bijoo said with a smile.
“Honestly, it feels good just to be mentioned, right?”
The members scrolled down the comments to see if there was any mention of them.
But at some point, they became quiet.
They followed a link and played a video, and then they all looked at Seon Woojoo.
“What’s wrong?”
“Woojoo Hyung.”
The members’ eyes were filled with admiration.
“You gave up the college entrance exam to save a grandfather?”
They all looked at him as if they had completely misunderstood something.
***
“Hey!”
Break time.
When Seon Woojoo came back to the practice room after drinking water, Wang Jiho shouted.
“It’s him! It’s him!”
And then various jokes followed.
These guys were hooked on this.
He felt embarrassed every time he heard the awkward nickname of ‘hero’.
The younger ones threw a word or two at Seon Woojoo, as if they enjoyed seeing him embarrassed.
As they joked around and rested, their manager, Yoon Seokhwan, appeared at the door.
“What are you doing, not practicing?”
He always came when they were resting.
He looked like he was going to nag them like a grandmother who would come into their room and scold them during exam periods, so Seon Woojoo cut him off.
“What brings you here?”
“Oh, right.”
Yoon Seokhwan nodded.
“I have something to tell you. I have three pieces of good news for you. Which one do you want to hear first?”
“The best one first.”
“We just finished the revenue-sharing negotiation with Hwai Entertainment. We signed the contract, so you’ll be collaborating with Jang Sowon right away.”
Finally, the schedule was fixed.
“What’s the other news?”
“Second, we also finalized the contract for your dorm. You can move in from this weekend, so adjust your schedules accordingly. The sooner you move in, the better.”
They had a dorm now.
They all exchanged glances and muttered ‘awesome’ with their mouths. They were looking forward to the last good news, but they were surprised by the words that came out of his mouth.
“Lastly, your group name is also confirmed. It’s New Black, the name you came up with.”
…Wait.
The name they took from his sweatshirt logo?