In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 6

“You dance well, don’t you?”

Seon Woojoo was dancing to the beat of the electronic music, twisting and bending his body in various ways.

His skill was extraordinary at first glance.

It wasn’t amazing.

But as the saying goes, one can tell ten from one. He had the potential to become a main dancer level if he invested a few months.

“His flexibility is a bit lacking though.”

Maybe it was because he had stopped practicing for two years.

Some of the movements that should have been smooth were rough.

But flexibility was something that could be solved with stretching, so CEO Park Kyuho gave him a passing score for his dance.

He had the skill worthy of a six-year trainee.

“Why did Director Yoon pick on him so much?”

He turned his head with a curious feeling and looked at Director Yoon Seokhwan, who was sitting at the edge.

His face was wide-eyed.

He looked like he had seen a ghost.

“That’s impossible.”

Yoon Seokhwan’s eyes shook uncontrollably.

Who was Seon Woojoo?

He was the one who was known as a log or a robot among the trainers of TJ Entertainment.

The unfortunate trainee who failed because of his dance skills despite being good at singing.

“Should I be moved by this, or angry?”

He felt happy to see the person he cared for like a younger brother dance well, but honestly, he was also flustered.

What happened in front of his eyes was something he never imagined, something he thought was impossible.

Seon Woojoo was the person who stayed up all night practicing but still got a failing grade for his dance at the end of the month evaluation and felt depressed.

How could a person change so much?

He felt proud and dizzy at the same time, and on the other hand, he felt a pang in his heart as if he was looking at a child who had grown up well.

“If you improved your dance so much in two years, you should have told me sooner.”

He felt bitter that he had worried for nothing for three weeks.

The freestyle ended soon.

Seon Woojoo, who was wiping his sweat and panting in the middle of the practice room, smiled when he met his eyes.

What a cheeky guy.

Yoon Seokhwan clapped in his mind and looked around.

“He passed.”

He could tell from the eyes of the judges who looked at each other without saying anything.

Seon Woojoo passed the audition.

People liked his dance, too.

There were really all kinds of things in the world, he thought and smiled.

***

After the audition, Seon Woojoo signed a contract with Lemon Entertainment.

For now, three months.

It was a contract that said that either side could terminate it at any time if they wanted, and that it would automatically extend if there were no problems.

CEO Park Kyuho brought up the topic of debut.

“Next June?”

The debut date was June 2014.

It was almost December, so the remaining time was about six months.

“The investors are on fire. They say it’s been two years since the trainees were released, so they want to see the results.”

“I’m fine with that, but are you sure? The schedule seems a bit tight.”

“It’s okay. If it doesn’t work, I’ll beg the investors, or something.”

President Park smiled and reached out his hand.

“So don’t give up and just work hard. Got it?”

“Yes. I will.”

“It’s your first day, so let’s start the lesson tomorrow. Do you want to say hello to the kids?”

“Right now?”

“You’re going to see each other anyway, so isn’t it better to do it sooner?”

“Yes, sure.”

Seon Woojoo gladly accepted the offer.

They were going to see each other and get along, so President Park Kyuho’s words were right that it was better to do it sooner.

The basement practice room.

President Park went in first, and Seon Woojoo fixed his clothes for a moment. When he gestured for Seon Woojoo to come in, curious eyes followed him.

Seon Woojoo paused for a moment when he saw the four trainees.

They all had extraordinary visuals.

Seon Woojoo didn’t know about their skills, but he felt something like an aura from them.

Two trainees with a handsome and a pretty boy vibe, both tall and with thick lines.

And a trainee who was still young but had a visual that made him think ‘he’s an actor’ as soon as Seon Woojoo saw him.

Seon Woojoo felt their eyes meet in the air.

“Say hello,” President Park said with a smile.

“This is the new member who will be practicing with you from today.”

They awkwardly nodded their heads and greeted each other.

As they exchanged words like “Nice to meet you”, the CEO introduced the trainees to Seon Woojoo.

He was just telling Seon Woojoo their names, but to be honest, he couldn’t tell who was who right now.

One of the trainees, who had a calm face, raised his hand.

“CEO, I have a question.”

“Sure, go ahead. Bijoo.”

“You said he will be practicing with us, so does that mean he is the one? The member that Director Jo Gyuhwan said he would bring in…”

“That’s right.”

“Really? He was brought in by Director Jo?”

The CEO nodded, and a strange atmosphere spread among the trainees.

The way they looked at Seon Woojoo, how should he put it?

They looked like people who had been waiting for a long-awaited delivery and finally received it.

A tall trainee asked.

“So, are we debuting?”

“We have a rough schedule. The A&R and management teams are still in a meeting, but you can expect it to be around June next year.”

“Wow!”

The youngest-looking member exclaimed without realizing it.

Then he said, “Hyungs! We’re debuting!” and hugged and cheered with his peers.

The CEO smiled at the sight.

Seon Woojoo felt like a broomstick that had been thrown in, but he laughed along with the trainees.

Seon Woojoo knew how they felt.

Debuting was more than just appearing on TV for trainees.

It was a ray of light that appeared in an endless tunnel.

They couldn’t help but be excited.

Even if the outside world warned them not to get their hopes up too high, they felt elated.

They wanted to hug everyone they met.

That was what debuting meant to the people running in the tunnel.

The moment they saw the end of the tunnel, their hearts raced and they couldn’t help but smile.

Seon Woojoo empathized with them.

“Guys, calm down,” the President said with a smile and pulled out a card.

“Since we have a new trainee today, let’s have a welcome party and grill some meat at the place nearby.”

A loud cheer followed.

Seon Woojoo smiled quietly as he heard the noise.

All in all, it was a good first impression.

***

They finished the first day by breaking the ice over dinner.

The real lesson started from the second day, which was today.

Seon Woojoo arrived at the practice room and turned on the light.

It was 7 a.m.

The lesson started at 9 a.m., but he arrived two hours early on purpose.

To make up for the lack of practice time.

Seon Woojoo was far behind.

He had stopped practicing for two years.

He warmed up his body by doing some leg splits and other exercises, then connected his smartphone to the speaker with an AUX cable.

-Cold Brown: See You

It was a hit song on the Billboard chart recently.

An R&B song with a prominent dance performance.

Seon Woojoo saw a video of this performance on YouTube this morning on the subway.

Soon, the moves that he would have never been able to do before flowed out of his body.

Wave.

A series of movements that combined to form a single ripple, and that ripple transferred from one arm to another.

Now he could understand the whole process.

Seon Woojoo could not only imitate the movements, but also intuitively grasp how they worked.

Amazingly, this ability also applied to singing.

The ability to understand and mimic the movement of muscles.

Maybe it was because the vocal cords were also muscles.

In fact, he had recovered 60 percent of his original skills before the audition, thanks to this. At this rate, it wouldn’t be impossible to reach the minimum level of debut in a month.

Thud-

After sweating enough from dancing, Seon Woojoo was groaning while doing the leg-splitting three-set, when the first trainee entered the room with the door open.

He had fair skin and neat features.

He gave Seon Woojoo the impression of a gentle deer for some reason.

His name was Kim Bijoo, I think.

Kim Bijoo, who was yawning constantly as if fighting off fatigue, smiled brightly when he saw Seon Woojoo.

“You came early, Hyung.”

“Hi.”

“Did you come early because it’s the first day?”

“Yeah, it would be bad to be late on the first day.”

Seon Woojoo heard a clear laugh.

From observing him yesterday while having dinner together, he found out that this trainee with a soft appearance had a very calm personality.

Kim Bijoo sat down next to Seon Woojoo and started stretching.

He admired how his legs stretched like rubber.

He was very flexible.

Was his position the main dancer?

As the best dancer in the group, his movements were somehow smooth and graceful.

He smiled when their eyes met while Seon Woojoo was admiring him inwardly.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You seem very flexible.”

“I guess it’s because I’ve been dancing since elementary school. That’s why my dance skills improved, but I don’t think I’m growing taller.”

He made a sad face, saying ‘It’s sad, right? ㅠㅠ’.

Seon Woojoo smiled at him.

“Don’t worry. You’ll grow more.”

“I’m turning twenty in two months, Hyung.”

“What? Didn’t you say you were all high school students?”

“Me and Junghyun, I mean the tall guy, we’re graduating next year. The youngest is going to high school now.”

The tall guy must be the one with a slightly rough vibe.

Anyway, Seon Woojoo mistook him for seventeen because of his boyish looks, but he was more baby-faced than he thought.

They chatted while stretching, but it was inevitable that it was awkward since they only met once.

It was like a conversation of ‘Wow, you’re handsome, ㅎㅎ.’, ‘No, you’re more handsome, ㅎㅎ.’.

When the conversation stopped for a moment.

Kim Bijoo, who saw Seon Woojoo struggling with the leg-splitting, opened his lips quietly.

“Woojoo Hyung.”

“…Yeah?”

“When you were at TJ Entertainment, you said you were selected for the debut team but failed because of your dance, yesterday.”

“That’s right.”

What was he trying to say?

“It’s a bit out of the blue, but I hope you debut with us this time.”

“Huh?”

Seon Woojoo was bewildered.

“What do you mean?”

“The President said we’re going to debut in June next year. We only have half a year left, and it’s going to be really tough to prepare in that time. You might get a lot of stress because of your dance skills.”

“That might happen.”

“But you can’t give up in the middle, okay?”

“Okay.”

“People’s feelings are unpredictable. If you feel like giving up, please tell me,” Kim Bijoo said with a serious face.

“I can buy you food if you’re having a hard time. And… I can also give you some advice or something. Don’t worry and just tell me anytime. If you’re having trouble with the dance, I can help you even if I have to stay up all night.”

“Thanks. I’ll remember that.”

He was so serious that Seon Woojoo wondered what he was talking about, but as he listened to him, he gradually smiled.

He was scared right now.

He had experienced two times before, when his debut was canceled because the members left right before the debut, and that was stuck in his head like a trauma.

He was afraid that Seon Woojoo would leave like the previous situations.

And he heard Seon Woojoo say yesterday that he gave up because of the dance, so he must be anxious from his perspective.

He wanted to debut, but it would be troublesome if Seon Woojoo, the last one to join, left.

Did Seon Woojoo say something wrong yesterday?

Seon Woojoo briefly summarized his trainee history and told them, but he guessed he said it in a way that could be misunderstood.

What should he say to him?

Seon Woojoo couldn’t tell him that dance was no longer a problem because he had superpowers.

“…”

He seemed embarrassed after saying something, and he was stretching with a sheepish face.

Seon Woojoo smiled involuntarily at the sight.

Thump-

While he was stretching silently with Kim Bijoo, another trainee appeared.

A coat with tteokbokki and a beanie.

He had a handsome face like Kim Bijoo, but a different vibe.

If Kim Bijoo was a warm spring, he was a chilly winter, with a calm and neat impression unlike Kim Bijoo’s arrogant prince-like one.

A very cold feeling.

Was his name Seo Rihyuk?

Seon Woojoo remembered him clearly.

He had such a strong impression that Seon Woojoo remembered his face even when they had dinner yesterday.

He said he would turn eighteen next year.

Seon Woojoo greeted the kid who came in with earphones, but he only nodded his head in reply.

When Seon Woojoo blinked, Kim Bijoo whispered to him, “He’s always like that.”

“He’s chic.”

He was about the same height as Kim Bijoo, in the early 170s, but he had good proportions.

A slender body and an intelligent face.

He leaned against the wall and quietly listened to music, then briefly turned his head to Seon Woojoo’s gaze and ignored him.

He was prickly.

Seon Woojoo had a conversation with Seo Rihyuk when he went to the hallway where the water purifier was to clear his throat.

“You there.”

Seon Woojoo turned his head and saw his sharp eyes.

Seon Woojoo smiled and replied, “My name is not ‘there’, it’s Seon Woojoo.”

“Oh.”

“If it’s awkward to call me by name, you can call me ‘there’.”

With a gentle smile and a sweet voice.

From experience, Seon Woojoo needed to speak softly but firmly to these people who seemed to have a personality.

Otherwise, they would eat you alive.

“You said your name was Seon Woojoo Hyung, right?”

He looked like he didn’t like calling Seon Woojoo Hyung.

“I have something to say, do you have time?”

“What is it?”

“I couldn’t say it yesterday because I didn’t have time.”

Seon Woojoo unfolded the paper cup and blew on it, then poured water and nodded his head as if to tell him to speak.

His black eyes stared at him.

“Yesterday, you, no, Hyung said you gave up being a trainee because of dancing.”

“…”

Are you guys some kind of close brothers?