Idol of the Heavenly One - Chapter 12.1
“What?”
“Be on the same team as me.”
“Why would I.”
“If you don’t, I’ll tell Go Hee-min everything.”
“What the—!”
“So just do the monthly evaluation with me.”
“Hah—”
I really had no intention of telling him. But I tried playing dirty. Since Baek Jae-heon secretly looked out for Go Hee-min from the shadows, I figured this might work.
He was probably helping him in secret because he was confident they would debut together. Someone might say I was being too petty, but when something this important is on the line, trying to play fair would just make me an idiot. That’s how essential Baek Jae-heon was for me in this evaluation.
“Go Hee-min already agreed to team up with me. So let’s do it together.”
“……Fine.”
I knew he’d agree. One big obstacle was out of the way. In fact, this was probably the biggest one.
“What about me?!”
“Hm?”
The kid standing next to Baek Jae-heon suddenly jumped in. He was the same one who had been chirping nervously but enthusiastically next to him the first time I saw Jae-heon.
“I—I want to be on Jae-heon’s team too!”
I gave him a head-to-toe scan. Since Jae-heon had always drawn my attention, I had never looked at this guy properly, but he was good-looking too and had great proportions. Just in case, I asked his name.
“What’s your name?”
“Wh—why! Wh-why does my name matter?!”
But when I asked, he suddenly started chirping again like he had last time. Actually, it was less chirping and more screeching, honestly.
“Let Soonbok join too.”
Then Baek Jae-heon spoke up, saying the name—presumably his—and suggesting he join. Wait, Soonbok?
“B-Baek Jae-heon! Why’d you say my name…!”
“What’s wrong with your name. Lee Soonbok, it’s a great name.”
“It… it is?”
Lee Soonbok? Hah— I almost burst out laughing. Not because the name itself sounded funny, but because I wondered how the company managed to gather kids with names like this.
Lee Soon (耳順) refers to the age when one’s ears become “obedient,” meaning one can listen to others objectively and understand everything.
Had the company just realized after picking us that we had this weird commonality, or had they deliberately gathered kids with meaningful names like this? Hearing his name, I felt certain he would end up in the debut lineup too, so teaming up with him sounded like a good idea.
“You mean the one you had in mind was Baek Jae-heon?”
Seeing that I still hadn’t come back, Go Hee-min casually strolled over. Baek Jae-heon just gave him a slight nod in greeting. What was that? Secretly looking out for him behind the scenes—was this a tsundere thing?
“Yeah. And let’s do dual.”
“You can even dance?”
Go Hee-min looked at me with suspicion and worry mixed together. I nodded firmly. This was something I had to make happen, no matter what. And I was confident I could pull it off. Practice could overcome anything.
“Hold on.”
“Huh? Are you going to bring another person?”
When I stood up, all three of their heads turned toward me at once.
“No, two people.”
If I wanted to turn my 70 percent chance into a sure thing, I had to prove that I was the perfect fit for the project they had in mind.
I walked over to two kids near the far end of the practice room who were hesitating as if they were still deciding.
“Joo I-rip, Kwon Ji-hak.”
“Uh, Myeong-hyeon? I told you, I’m older than you!”
“Myeong-hyeon-hyung! Are you teaming up with us?!”
“Yeah. Let’s do it together.”
They looked surprised that I had come to them first.
“Well, Myeong-hyeon’s vocal tone isn’t bad.”
“With this hyung’s perseverance, I think he’ll dance just fine too!”
“Alright, then let’s pick a song that’s good for three people—”
“No, six.”
“Huh? Six? What do you mean, six.”
“Six members.”
Joo I-rip, Kwon Ji-hak, Lee Soonbok, Go Hee-min, and Baek Jae-heon. With these solid debut lineups—they wouldn’t be able to leave me out.
***
I could feel the eyes of the other trainees on us. It was no wonder. This team had at least one member who everyone secretly thought, “He’s definitely debut material.”
Joo I-rip, Go Hee-min, and Kwon Ji-hak seemed a little surprised at first that Baek Jae-heon was included, but before long, they must have realized that having him was actually a huge plus, because they joined the six-member team without complaint. Smart kids.
“Alright, guys. What kind of concept should we go for?”
“Strong vocals.”
“M-my vocals are weak though… can’t we just do something hip…?”
“Agreed! Let’s go with something hip!”
When Joo I-rip asked, Go Hee-min suggested a powerful song that would make his vocals shine. Lee Soonbok, sounding insecure about his singing, suggested something hip instead, and Kwon Ji-hak, who was also on the dance line, agreed enthusiastically.
“What about you, Baek Jae-heon?”
“Anything.”
Perhaps feeling outnumbered two to one, Go Hee-min immediately asked for Baek Jae-heon’s opinion, but he seemed indifferent and answered carelessly.
“Ji Myeong-hyeon.”
Without missing a beat, Go Hee-min turned his sharp gaze to me. Unlike the casual look he gave Baek Jae-heon, the look he gave me felt like he was shooting lasers from his eyes, as if to say, Answer carefully if you ever want to get more vocal lessons from me.
“Hmm…”
If I had to choose which side I leaned toward, then of course Go Hee-min’s idea—a second-generation idol style, powerful song—was better suited for me. Here, the ones with strong vocals were clearly Go Hee-min and me.
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