Idol of the Heavenly One - vanish into fiction

“Soon-bok hyung, your dream was to become a police officer?”

“ISUNE.”

“ISUNE hyung?”

“Not a police officer… 707 Special Mission Unit.”

Lee Soon-bok appeared on screen, wearing the dark navy tactical uniform characteristic of the counter-terrorism unit, aiming a gun, and removing his goggles after completing the operation. The members murmured in admiration. I focused quietly on the screen, waiting for Baek Jae-heon to appear again.

“Oh, what? Baek Jae-heon is coming out again.”

“You sure like making cameo appearances, hyung.”

As expected, Baek Jae-heon appeared once more. He and Lee Soon-bok danced together in casual training clothes in front of a mirror, looking genuinely excited and happy. Then it was my turn.

“Baek Jae-heon isn’t supposed to come out now?”

“I guess…?”

“Looks like Jae-heon hyung used up all his screen time on cameos.”

Since the scenes were in age order, Baek Jae-heon should have appeared right after Lee Soon-bok. Skipping him and showing me instead puzzled the members. But once they saw the profession I had dreamed of, they burst out laughing like they were shouting. Joo I-rip even hit the space bar to pause the video. Everyone stared at me, but I could only smile faintly without reacting. My mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Baek Jae-heon’s dream.

“What is this!”

“Seriously, I didn’t expect you to have such a sense of comedy.”

“That’s cheating.”

“So cute.”

“Hyung, how successful are you trying to be?”

I gave a tired laugh and motioned for everyone to continue watching. Joo I-rip looked at me with an ambitious expression, clicked his tongue, and hit the space bar again.

After my scene ended, a sunset alley appeared. Baek Jae-heon and I walked side by side, eating ice cream, laughing, and chatting. Then he leaned forward, resting his forehead on my shoulder, and I gently patted his back.

Next, Kwon Ji-hak, looking troubled, was shown alone in a classroom. He doodled on a desk, stood quietly in front of the blackboard, and eventually sat by the window with his chin resting on his hand. Moments later, feeling a hand on his shoulder, he turned to see Baek Jae-heon in stage attire, extending his hand. Kwon Ji-hak looked at it for a moment, then smiled brightly and took it, and the two of them ran onto the stage.

The members who were dancing on stage first welcomed the two and performed the choreography of the new song. Kwon Ji-hak watched them, smiling and happy. After the performance, the members all walked down the stage in school uniforms. Kwon Ji-hak looked around, as if searching for someone, then turned back. The other members followed his gaze, and in the background, Baek Jae-heon ran toward them, ending the music video.

“Wait a minute, I’m supposed to be the main character!”

Kwon Ji-hak immediately protested, standing up. Why did the video end with Baek Jae-heon running in at the end? “Damn it, it’s Jae-heon again!” he exclaimed playfully. Joo I-rip quickly calmed him down, pulling him back into his seat.

“Well, you do seem like the main character. But if Baek Jae-heon finishes the scene, won’t the views go up?”

Go Hee-min commented from the side. It was funny, but I couldn’t bring myself to laugh. Watching the members laugh and joke among themselves, I turned to look at Baek Jae-heon sitting behind me. He smiled and tapped my cheek lightly with his index finger. I tried hard to keep my lips from turning down.

“Huh? What? Jae-hyeon is crying?”

Hearing Go Hee-min’s comment, I finally broke down. I had been holding my tears back, but now it was out of control.

“What? At what point are the tears coming from?”

“Wow. Myeong-hyeon hyung crying is hilarious.”

“T-tissue…”

Not wanting them to see me crying, I turned my body. Baek Jae-heon, handed a tissue by Lee Soon-bok, pressed it against my eyes. I silently let the tears flow. Baek Jae-heon held my face in both hands and smiled, calling me cute. Joo I-rip and Go Hee-min watched me, unable to breathe from laughing. They were laughing without knowing anything.

If they knew what Baek Jae-heon’s dream was, they would probably cry even more than I did. Of course, in this lifetime, they would never know, and that made me cry even harder. If they had known, it wouldn’t have hurt this much.