Chapter 233: Chapter 234:

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 234

“Jiho is talking inside?”

“Yes.”

Woojoo tried to listen carefully, but he couldn’t hear anything.

The closed iron door seemed to ask them, ‘What are you talking about? Do you hear any sound from me?’

Junghyun pointed to the emergency exit.

“I can hear Manager Jo’s and Jiho’s voices from inside.”

“Really?”

Woojoo pressed his ear to the door. Along with the cold touch of the metal, he heard a faint voice.

-Please give me some more time to think…

It was the voice of Manager Jo, the manager of the Actor Team.

“Wow, really?”

“…Are they really in there?”

“Come on, you guys listen too.”

They shook their heads at Woojoo’s words.

“I think we should respect their privacy, since it seems like a personal conversation. It’s a bit rude to eavesdrop…”

“Why do we have to listen to that? Let’s come back later.”

Woojoo was curious.

Various facts combined in his head.

Jiho, who showed a remarkable performance in the first episode of Slip yesterday. The good response from the other drama production team, who asked him to cast him for a role as soon as Saturday morning. The viewers who wanted him to save Officer Heo by time traveling or something.

In such a situation, the manager of the Actor Team came to see their youngest, not on any other day, but the day after the first episode aired?

And the place was the emergency exit.

There were many empty offices, but why here?

It was suspicious.

If they had something to say secretly where no one could hear, the content was obvious.

Woojoo was curious.

Should he go in and shout, ‘I’m going to tell everyone about this conversation’?

He gave up on that idea soon.

Jiho must have his own thoughts, and he wasn’t a young child who needed him to step in for everything. Like Bijoo said, Woojoo should respect his privacy.

Yeah. Let’s just ask him later what happened.

“Let’s go for now.” Woojoo said to the other members, “Let’s ask him later what they’re talking about in there.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a golden opportunity that you can’t miss, that’s what I mean.” Manager Jo of the Actor Team, said, “Did you see the internet reaction after the broadcast yesterday?”

“Yes.”

“Noeul was searching the internet to monitor her acting, and she found a forum page full of Officer Heo posts.”

He handed Jiho a tablet PC.

“Take a look.”

“Wow…”

This was a site Jiho had never seen before.

There were a lot of stories about Officer Heo. Someone even uploaded a corrected gif, saying that he was too salty yesterday.

Jiho widened his eyes as Manager Jo smiled.

“You were on screen for eight minutes. You captivated so many people with your acting in just 10 percent of the total time. Of course, there are also such reactions when top stars with good acting skills appear as cameos, but you did it with your first acting, when no one knew you.”

Jiho lifted his head blankly and he said seriously, “You have talent, Jiho.”

“I know.”

“…Oh, you know?”

Jiho was confused by his reaction and said, “I know I’m good at acting.”

“Really? You always looked so sad on the set, saying you couldn’t do it.”

“Oh. That’s different. I know I’m good, but that’s not the same as satisfying myself.”

Jiho knew he was good since he was young.

Was it the kindergarten play he did in the Sun Class?

He made the parents cry with his role as the Little Match Girl. That day, Jiho realized that he had talent.

Acting was so fun that his dad even paid for an academy for him.

Every time he acted, he received compliments from the teachers and envious looks from the others. He knew he had talent.

But satisfaction was another story.

Just like Woojoo, who made a perfect song but cried, ‘I can’t show this garbage to the Soufflés!’ and played a gloomy harmonica.

Or maybe it was Bijoo Hyung who looked gloomy and wondered why his dancing skills didn’t improve, or Rihyuk Hyung who tore his hair out while listening to his own voice and saying, “Ha, what is this…” Junghyun Hyung was always satisfied with saying “My rap, nice rap”, though.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been satisfied with myself. Actually, I felt a bit proud yesterday when I heard that I did well. But it was different from feeling good. When I tried to review it again, it was so painful.”

Jiho could have made a more natural expression there.

That felt more like Woojoo Hyung than Officer Heo. He should have done it differently.

The subtle things bothered him.

Others called it a gem, but when he saw it, it was full of scratches… A diamond. No. He didn’t like diamonds.

He should go for a ruby.

Jiho quickly stopped his wandering thoughts and shook his head.

“That dissatisfaction is a good thing.”

Manager Jo smiled.

“It means you have a desire to improve yourself. It’s also proof that you can be a good actor.”

Manager Jo kept commenting on his acting. Meanwhile, Jiho tilted his head.

‘Did he like my acting that much?’

The other person came after lunch. He said he had something serious to talk about.

He said it was something important and he didn’t want anyone else to know, so he moved to a quiet emergency exit.

Jiho had a hunch since he called him separately after Slip episode 1, and sure enough. As soon as he arrived at the emergency exit, he made a proposal.

‘Do you want to try acting separately?’

At Lemon Entertainment, managers varied depending on the field.

For example, if an actor sang, the Singer Team staff would oversee the whole scene, and if a singer went to a drama set, the Actor Team staff would manage it. That was because each environment is different.

What Manager Jo proposed was that he wanted to grow him as an actor.

He talked for a long time about how impressed he was by his acting yesterday, and what possibilities he saw for the future.

“These are the contacts of the directors I know. I casually asked them and some of them said, ‘Who is that guy from Slip yesterday? He’s really good.’ Do you see Director Song’s text? Do you know the movie Black Flower?”

“Oh, yes. I know.”

Black Flower was the ten million movie that Director Jo Gyuhwan wanted to cast the company’s actors.

“Director Song said he’s having a famine of new actors, and he’s looking for a good sprout. He said to bring him a suitable actor for the supporting role audition.”

“Oh.”

“If you want, I can tell him.”

“Wow, thank you.”

He smiled at the gratitude. Then he tucked the tablet PC under his arm and looked down at Jiho.

“What do you think?”

He looked at him as if he had done enough and Jiho smiled brightly, “Well.”

“Well?”

Manager Jo narrowed his eyes at the calm answer.

“Do you remember what I just said? It’s an opportunity you can’t miss. Timing is everything in the entertainment industry. Even top stars can fall if they miss a good opportunity, and no one knows if you’ll get another chance like this when you act again.”

He told him his experience.

“I’ll tell you about an actor I used to manage. After he hit it big as a supporting male in a drama, scripts poured in. But he turned down every opportunity to improve his acting skills, and even though the company tried to stop him, he went into an indie film. You know what happened? The movie flopped. After he came back, there was no room for him. He’s running a shaved ice shop now.”

He meant to say that he shouldn’t think he could hit another home run next time.

So you should grab the opportunities that come your way when you get some attention as Officer Heo.

Jiho listened quietly and opened his lips.

“What if I say yes?”

“Hmm. Okay.”

“How about my album activities?”

“You’re funny. Did you think I’d tell you to quit singing and just act? Of course I have to consider that part.”

He laughed confidently and Jiho thought for a moment and smiled.

“I’ve thought about it carefully, and I think it’s better not to do it.”

“What?”

“I don’t want to do the acting activity you just suggested.”

“…You came to this company saying you wanted to be an actor. I heard that from Manager Yoon.”

“It’s true that I came in wanting to be an actor, and I still want to act. And I’m not saying I won’t act in the future. But I don’t think it’s the right time now.”

The other person looked frustrated. He had a look that said, ‘He doesn’t get what I’m saying.’

“Because of the group activities?”

“Yes.”

“Jiho. Think long-term. The New Black members are great, and you’re doing well now, but you have to think about the future. The other members are all making their own paths. Woojoo has a producer, Junghyun has rap, Bijoo has solo, Rihyuk has OST and various songs, they’re all making their own paths. You have to do something too.”

“I will,” he said. “But not now.”

“Why?”

“Everyone is cheering for us to succeed together, but suddenly I’m the only one who has to act. I don’t want to do that.”

“…They’ll understand.”

“Of course they’ll support me if I say I want to do it. I know their personalities.”

They were like that.

“But it’s not the time for me to think about my own path. We haven’t even secured our place as a group yet.”

He didn’t have any ambition for acting. He just didn’t like the idea of starting an acting career like this.

“You told me to think about your future, and I am. I’m practicing acting too. I even asked the manager to look for some web drama scripts for me. I’m thinking about the future too,” Jiho said calmly.

“I want to focus on the group first, and then do some acting later.”

“Jiho, you know that idols who act can raise the group’s popularity by appearing in dramas…”

“Really?”

Jiho tilted his head.

“Hmm?”

“I’ve seen some idol seniors on the way to music shows, and there were only their names on the placards. The fans were also divided and standing separately.”

“…”

“And sometimes the seniors didn’t even look at each other.”

Jiho hadn’t seen a case where a group became popular because one member acted. Maybe if the acting member was already successful.

“I like singing too. I’m not as good as the others, but I’m doing my best as an idol.”

“…”

“And I love the fans too. But they’re not cheering for me to do well alone.”

Most of all.

“I don’t know about anything else, but I can’t do it right now just by looking at Woojoo Hyung’s face. Even in the early days of our debut, he was the only one who got attention, right? He had a lot of opportunities to do solo activities too.”

Every time he went to the Management Team’s office, he saw a lot of messages asking for the member ‘Woojoo’ to be cast separately.

Some of them were accepted for promotional purposes, but.

“He refused most of them. He said it was a bad sign to get attention alone.”

And now was a crucial time.

They couldn’t sleep at night because they were worried about the next album.

They were all wondering ‘what should we do…?’ and Jiho felt too selfish to think about acting.

If the next album was successful and the group made a leap forward, it would be the same.

As much as possible.

Jiho wanted to go up together.

He didn’t want to break this atmosphere where they and the fans were cheering for each other.

If Jiho had received this offer at the beginning of their debut, he might have been tempted, but not anymore.

“Hmm… I feel a bit frustrated.”

The other person smiled awkwardly.

“Well, I guess it’s fine for now since you’re all close and friendly, but…”

He looked at Jiho with a pitying gaze, as if he was giving him a chance and he wasn’t taking it. Jiho listened quietly to his rambling.

There was another reason why Jiho couldn’t accept his offer.

Jiho asked softly, “By the way, I’ve been wondering since earlier.”

“First of all, you…”

“Hmm?”

“Did you talk to our manager about this?”

There was a brief pause.

It was very short, but Jiho didn’t miss it. The other person smiled gently.

“Well, I haven’t talked to him yet, but I had to ask you first. I can’t proceed without knowing your opinion.”

He smoothly dodged the question.

Anyone could see that he was trying to lure Jiho out, but Jiho didn’t bother to mention it.

“Next time, please talk to our manager first. He knows more about the entertainment industry than I do.”

“…Well, I’ll do that.”

“I’ll follow the manager’s opinion on my acting activities too. If you don’t have a problem with that, I’ll tell him right now.”

The other person’s face showed a hint of embarrassment.

He must have thought that Jiho was a young kid who would fall for his persuasion. He rubbed his neck awkwardly.

“Then it’ll be awkward for me. There’s no need to cause trouble between the teams, right?”

“…Hmm?”

He said something strange.

“It sounds like I’m causing trouble. We’ve always been reporting everything to the manager regarding our work,” Jiho said.

The sound of a sigh came from Manager Jo, who seemed to have nothing to say. He looked at Jiho with a disdainful gaze, as if he was annoyed by his childishness.

“…You’re not ordinary either.”

Jiho didn’t understand why adults always did that.

They treated Jiho lightly at first, saying “You’re young”, but when he act differently from their expectations, they say “You’re not like a child” and did that.

“Well, I’ll take it as a rejection for now, but think about it on your own. In case you change your mind…”

“Yes, I’ll let you know if I do.”

“…Okay.”

Manager Jo walked away with an irritated expression.

He seemed to be worried about what to say to Yoon Seokhwan, the director, who would ask him about it.

“Bye.”

Jiho hoped this would be the last time he saw him.

He didn’t want him to be in charge of his acting activities.

Jiho rummaged through the pockets of his windbreaker and took out his phone.

[Recording completed.]

He did as Woojoo, his Hyung, told him.

“Always record when someone suddenly calls you out and wants to talk to you. I got screwed over by people changing their words when I was at TJ.”

Wow, he recorded it too. He was an adult now.

He smiled smugly and heard the sound of the emergency exit door slamming shut.

He must have gone outside.

“Huah…”

Jiho finally relaxed and sat down on the stairs. Then he recalled what had just happened.

‘Didn’t I look pretty cool just now? Hehe.’

Jiho should have acted a little more cool, like an acting tone.

It was the first time he had rejected someone from the company so firmly, and his heart was pounding.

But he was pleased.

He was the one who kicked away the pumpkin that rolled in for the group activities.

He was the one who cared about his brothers.

He was fascinated by himself and chuckled. What would his Hyungs think if they saw this? Jesus, Deoksoon, their youngest was so cool…

That was bullshit.

“Hey, look at him trying to act cool. Puhaha.”

“Uh… You had something like that? Our Jiho has grown up. Do you want me to make you a chocolate shake? You’re not a baby? Yeah, yeah. I’ll make you a banana shake.”

“Oh. John-cool. You look like a stag beetle.”

“Do you like it when you act cool? Do you? Puhup.”

Ugh. He should have stopped thinking about them.

They would tease Jiho again by saying “Our great actor!” when he got back.

Bad Hyungs.

He opened his mouth in surprise as he thought of that.

“Wait a minute. Did I do the right thing by rejecting it?”

What if this was a great opportunity and he missed it?

His mom said she heard from a fortune teller that a good opportunity would come to her son this year. What if this was it and he kicked away his luck?

A scene came to his mind.

In the distant future.

A handsome old man with a cane and the drama staff who were looking at him in a filming set.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Who’s that extra grandpa?”

“He got some attention for appearing in a drama cameo once, but he never succeeded in anything after that, so he had a grudge.”

“So he’s still hanging around the drama set.”

Ugh. No. No!

“I should have said yes.”

But he rejected him too bluntly, didn’t he?

Jiho wondered if he had done the right thing.

His thoughts went here and there.

Jiho was wandering around the emergency exit, laughing and crying, and showing all kinds of emotions.

“Ah, whatever.”

Jiho shook his head.

Whatever. It was already done.

He thought of his dad’s teaching, “If you spill a cup of water, pretend it was someone else.”

The water cup was already spilled.

Jiho felt sorry for himself for missing the opportunity.

He sighed.

“I did well.”

His brothers might not know, but he thought he did well.

He would talk to Director Yoon about his acting activities and build up his career slowly.

He would have more fans and become a group that everyone knew when they heard New Black. And then, when his brothers start their own personal projects, he would think about acting.

‘Then I should get some group benefits too.’

Jiho, who was giggling happily, turned the emergency exit handle.

It was time to go back.

“I’m going to eat some chocolate with the Hyungs…”

He hummed a tune and pulled the emergency exit door open, only to be shocked.

Clank.

Something poured out from the gap of the opened door.

“Ahhhh!”

“Oof!”

“Blargh!”

Jiho stared blankly.

“…?”

He felt a moment of daze as he saw his four Hyungs piled up like a sandwich on the floor.

“Kim Junghyun! Kim Junghyun! I can’t breathe…!”

“Sorry.”

“Who’s hand is on my leg! Get it off!”

“Hey, I’m being squashed by Junghyun right now, how can I move my hand from your leg? Ouch, my back…”

“Just a second. I’ll get up.”

“Ack! Stay still! Stay still! Nobody move from now on!”

Jiho blinked rapidly at the novel mess of tangled limbs and grimaces.

‘What is this?’

He opened the door and the Hyungs spilled out.