Chapter 340: Chapter 341:

The moment the intro played, my heels began to twitch, and my shoulders and head nodded along involuntarily. The electronic beats, mixed with a symphony of sounds, reverberated through the concert hall’s amplifiers.

“Wow—!”

The sharp fans noticed; this was a different vibe from the Nine they were used to. This was Nine, rearranged for a grand concert hall, a version fine-tuned by the leader of New Black after numerous discussions with the members.

The jumbotron lit up with the members, their energy infectious.

“Hong Kong!”

“I need you to make some noise!”

The youngest, holding the mic, flashed a smile so bright it could light up the surroundings, eliciting gasps from the crowd.

And then…

Behind the protruding stage where New Black stood, dancers lined up on the central stage, assuming their positions.

“Oh…?”

As cheers and warmth filled the air, the members kicked off with a short dance break, perfectly timed with the intense prelude. They moved in unison, bending arms and legs smoothly from left to right. The leader, in the center, chuckled, dusted off his shirt, and gestured to the camera, beckoning it closer.

“Wow.”

The fans, momentarily captivated by his expression, were soon enveloped by the chorus of Nine as green lights cascaded from all directions. The members, once clustered in the center, dispersed with such speed it was hard to follow.

From the very start, it was a stage designed to captivate.

“Wow—!”

The audience in the standing area, waving their light sticks, began to jump in unison. As the members, drenched in sweat from the intense choreography, appeared on the jumbotron, the atmosphere, which had quieted during the ‘Wind Flower’ interlude, was once again ablaze with excitement.

The internet viewers shared the sentiment.

“Watching this live, it’s insane 😂 They dance so well!”

“Right now, it’s just wow, wow, wow.”

“Woojoo really knows how to use his face… I want to rewind and see that smirk with the mic again.”

“It’s surprising every time how impactful Woojoo’s parts are, given he doesn’t have many.”

“Woojoo 😭😭😭 Our flower grandma has rejuvenated!”

“My dad sitting next to me is in denial. He says the New Black he knows isn’t like this 😂”

“Dad’s so cute 😂😂😂”

The comments about New Black’s members, shining brightly on the TV screen, kept pouring in.

Every time they danced, their joyous laughter was infectious. Every time the members’ faces appeared on screen, it inexplicably lifted everyone’s spirits.

“Did Rihyuk always dance this well??? He’s so different from last year’s Masquerade.”

“I’m more amazed by how they hit the high notes while doing those moves.”

“Button: It was about to pop, wasn’t it?”

“Every time I see Jung-hyun’s physique, I love it… So powerful.”

“ Bijoo 😭😭😭 Our sweet baker is a stage master.”

“Our kid’s really (a) bursting with fruity charm.”

“Can I, as an aunt, like Jiho?”

“They move so fast on stage, it’s hilarious how the camera keeps trying to catch a front shot 😂”

“Every time the camera tries to switch, they’re somewhere else.”

As the praises echoed, the fans watching touched their cheeks, trying to cool their excitement.

“They’re really good.”

Most idol fans watching the KMA Awards felt the same. Unlike usual, when they only watched their favorite singer’s performance, awards shows and year-end stages allowed them to see other artists perform. It was often during these times that their perceptions of certain groups changed.

“They’re really making it big.”

The reaction of the fans on-site and the crucial timing of the second part’s ending, spanning nearly 15 minutes, not to mention the singers’ skills, all contributed to reshaping the image of New Black in the minds of those who had been paying attention since their grand prize win at Mango.

The perception of New Black among idol fans, separate from the mainstream image, was evolving.

“Watching this performance, I’m convinced again why they rose to fame 😂”

“At this point, it’s almost official 😂 Non-fans know their songs + faces + performance = Kyu-ho’s happiness”

“Don’t mention Kyu-ho 😭 I can imagine a giant Kyu-ho face looming behind New Black right now.”

“Kyu-ho is like the 6th member, the financial backbone.”

“But it really feels like they’ve firmly made it 😂 They’ve surpassed the rising stage.”

“Teen Teen New”

“It’s Teen Ten New, damn it 😂”

While a brief tumult ensued online.

Whether it was the audience cheering on-site or those watching the broadcast.

There was one member of New Black who stood out the most.

“He’s really…”

For those who had only seen Woojoo as a visual member, it was a fresh shock. The lead dancer, drenched in sweat, shook his hair free and danced as if his life depended on it, his movements clear and powerful.

Every time he moved, his well-trained lower body anchored him, allowing his limbs to stretch out with vigor. The sweat droplets that flew off him seemed to scatter green light as they reflected off the stage lights.

And with ‘Nine,’ the performance that seamlessly transitioned between rap and vocals.

Every time he was in the center, his unique facial expressions added to the allure, drawing everyone’s gaze.

“It’s crazy…”

The fans on-site couldn’t help but exclaim.

Centered around the rapper Jung-hyun, the frenzied dance continued into the third verse’s bridge.

As the song built to a climax, everyone jumped even higher.

“Wow!”

A near-scream erupted from the crowd.

As ‘Wind Flower’ ended and the waiting dance team joined New Black on the protruding stage.

The dance break continued in the center of the stage, with neon-like lights focusing on the members’ faces, which came into sharp focus.

And then.

The leader, riding the wave, gently lifted his chin to the sky, his image captured by the camera from below.

As the cheers poured in, there were those among us who were bewildered.

“What’s going on…?”

“Why are they like this today? No, why are they like this at all?”

“I wonder where Seon Woojoo really is right now.”

The screen showed TNT members, their mouths agape in awe during the dance break as Sunwoo took center stage amidst the applause.

Taehyun, the main dancer, went through a cycle of approval and doubt, his reactions a mix of nods and head tilts.

All eyes were focused on the center.

“Wow…”

Perhaps it was the angle, from bottom to top, that made it seem as if he monopolized the light.

A cheer erupted as the dance break unfolded, muscles relaxing and shaking off from head to toe.

After the 30-second dance break ended, the crowd went wild.

“Waaaaah!”

The second part of the performance concluded with a 15-minute spectacle, ending with the panting faces of the New Black members.

And then…

“Heave…! Huff…!”

In the darkened stage, the New Black members collapsed, not realizing their energy had drained away.

Their faces, as they looked at each other, were lit up with happy smiles.

Backstage after the performance.

“Oh my…”

“Ouch. Hey, bro, can you stick this patch on me here?”

“Ugh…”

“Rihyuk, do you need a plastic bag?”

There we were, sprawled out as if we were on the brink of exhaustion.

It was truly tough.

It felt like every muscle in my body was throbbing, and nausea seemed to rise from deep within.

Rihyuk spoke while heaving dry retches.

“No way… the dance…! The dance had like 5 intros… ugh!”

“Stay still. The more you talk about it, the more you’ll want to throw up.”

“Ugh!”

Everything was spinning.

While the third part’s commercials played and the VCR sounds filled the stage, we were surrounded by smiling faces.

“You guys did really well. You’ve worked so hard.”

“You were amazing! Truly!”

“This fancam is going to hit 100 million views!”

The managers and staff, handing us water bottles and towels, comforted us with their smiles.

“Thank you, Minki hyung.”

The dancers exiting backstage also gave us thumbs up as a sign of respect.

We barely managed to get up and move.

Jiho, cooling himself with a mini fan, looked pale as he spoke.

“That was the toughest 15 minutes of my life. The dance just kept going on and on.”

“I was at my limit towards the end too.”

“You worked hard, hyung. You had a lot of parts, didn’t you?”

“Not really. It was manageable.”

I waved off Bijoo’s apologetic smile as he massaged his neck.

This performance had been particularly demanding, with many intense moves, and I had been at the center of several of them.

Bijoo, who had planned the choreography, had collapsed once during practice from exhaustion.

“Everyone really worked hard.”

“You too, hyung. But it was really rewarding.”

We all agreed, laughing. We had split our sleep into fragments to work on the Soufflé Week and the next album.

The performance, which we had practiced even while receiving IV drips, felt rewarding indeed.

The managers, their eyes shining, said we would now attract a lot of new fans.

“Let’s go back.”

After touching up our makeup in the waiting room, we returned to the singers’ seats for the start of the third part.

As soon as we arrived, eight pairs of eyes were on me.

Taehyun pointed at me and said,

“Give us the real Seon Woojoo, not this imposter.”

“I’m too tired to come up with a witty comeback. Just give me a compliment.”

“The transformation of your humble self is always a wonder to behold.”

I couldn’t tell if it was a compliment or an insult, but it made me and the TNT members burst into laughter.

They looked at me quizzically, having somehow accepted the fact that I had suddenly become good at dancing, but today’s performance had made them wonder.

“Don’t look at me like I’m an alien.”

TNT’s leader, Guseonwoong, joked around.

“Ah, it’s just because we’re happy. Hey, can you check behind my neck? Is there a small dot?”

“Don’t touch my neck. You might lose a hand.”

“You’re no fun, Seon Woojoo.”

“…”

My attempt at quoting a movie line fell flat, and my younger members laughed.

Then they whispered to me as I sat down.

“But how much did you skip dance practice when you were a TJ trainee to say something like that?”

“I practiced a lot. I just lacked talent.”

“I don’t think so.”

They looked at me with disbelief, as if questioning how I could possibly be bad at dancing.

It was as if they treated the old me like a ghost story about a plaster statue in the art room that moves only at midnight.

While I received puzzled looks from both sides, the Street Boys nearby made me laugh as they fumbled in their pockets and pulled out a thumb.

“Yes, the 2015 Knet Music Awards. We’ve finally reached the much-anticipated third part. In this part…”

A famous Chinese actor finished the opening remarks for the third part in English.

Then the ceremony continued with performances by senior artists and the award presentations.

-Best Male Group Artist Award!

-Congratulations! TNT!

TNT, along with us and Teen Spirit, had been nominated for the Best Male Group award, and it went to TNT.

After that, Teen Spirit’s performance and TNT’s concert-like stage passed by.

At last, the award I had been waiting for was announced.

Though I had anticipated it to some extent, the winner was decided with surprising smoothness and without any tension.

“Song of the Year!”

“Baramkkot, congratulations!”

Despite everything, it felt good.

Amidst the cheers of the fans and the applause from the other singers who stood up around me, something inside me melted away like ice cream as I went to receive the award.

If the feeling I had after finishing the second part’s ending stage was one of liberation and relief, now something was welling up inside my chest.

I thought the thrill might be less since it wasn’t my first award, but I was wrong. The more awards I received, the better it felt.

“Thank you so much.”

The dazzling lights and the audience below seemed to blur into several streams.

If it weren’t for the cold touch of the trophy awakening my senses, I might have burst into tears right there.

“Ah-huhuhu!”

“Oh-ho-ho-ho!”

“…”

My siblings were wailing, shedding the tears I held back.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

I cleared my throat to hold back my own tears, but my voice still came out choked.

“Just the year before last, I remember watching TV with my siblings, wondering when we would debut. And now, here I am, receiving such a prestigious award. I’m truly, so happy.”

Even as trainees, we would watch these year-end stages and dream of debuting.

There was a time when I thought it was all over.

But that end turned into a new beginning, leading me to this moment, and my heart swelled with emotion.

“I’m already so happy just to stand on stage, but to receive such a significant award, thank you. Before I start my acceptance speech…”

I sniffled and continued.

“I got scolded for not mentioning this sooner last time… To my grandmother watching TV and clapping for me right now, Mrs. Kim Deoksoon, I love you so much.”

Light laughter reached my ears as my siblings beside me alternated between crying and laughing, then sobbing again.

After thanking everyone who deserved gratitude.

“Soufflé, we won the award!”

I saved the most important acknowledgment for last.

The waves of light sticks in the audience and the cheers of the fans reached my ears.

“Ever since our debut, there’s been a thought that always comes to mind.”

Memories of the army or the winters when I was preparing for the college entrance exams would swirl in my head.

The winters I felt while walking down snow-covered paths, watching award ceremonies on TV or the internet.

It was a thought that came to me every time I looked back on the path I’d taken.

“Thank you for finding us, for becoming our fans. Before debuting, this time of year always felt particularly cold, and the coming of the new year seemed like a frightening season.”

Then I smiled at the fans watching beyond the camera and those in the audience.

“Thanks to the Soufflés, I’ve experienced the warmest winter of my life. Thank you so much.”

A huge cheer came from the audience, and a smile spilled across my face without me realizing it.

Truly. It was the warmest winter of my life.

Following New Black’s award, the other grand prize winners were announced.

Just like the last Mango Chart, the idol community was a scene of chaos and destruction.

The atmosphere that was merely ‘oh’ after New Black’s award had now caught fire.

Unlike the Mango Chart Awards, this time TNT won the Album of the Year, and Teen Spirit won the Singer of the Year, stirring up the crowd.

“Did these crazy people choose the grand prize winners with a fan?”

“Is TNT supposed to take the Best Artist Award and then buzz off?”

“If it’s going to be like this, they might as well decide with a slot machine; at least that has some excitement.”

“Kennet being Kennet, lol.”

“Look at Teen Spirit, embarrassed to win the Singer of the Year, lol. What kind of way is this to give out awards?”

“Even if the indicators are neck and neck, TNT is still ahead.”

“Sixty has always been a mess, and now this…”

“I knew it when they started handing out awards like candy. Wouldn’t be surprised if they had a ‘Best Child of the Year’ award.”

As the legitimacy of the awards and the host’s ridiculous mistakes became the topic of heated discussion once again.

Time passed, and as things quieted down, various posts about the awards began to rise to the top of the best boards.

“New Black’s Universe Nine’s legendary KMA fancam.”

“New Black’s Universe trending worldwide after the awards.”

“The most memorable stage of this KMA.metube.”

The reactions to New Black’s stage, which had garnered much attention, were coming in.

“I’m a Charcoal fan, but I’m really feeling the New Black hype, seriously.”

“They have a knack for performing on stage.”

“After watching the awards, I’ve ended my three-month denial phase of fangirling. I’m heading down the path of a true fan.”

“After this, I see why they have so many fans, lol.”

“Personally, it was a rediscovery of Universe for me. I thought he was just for producing/memes, but he’s amazing on stage.”

“It’s so sad to be watching this on a small phone in the study room…”

Especially among these, GIFs of dance breaks or catching a microphone mid-air were circulating on social media.

Hot reactions were also coming from various fancams and official clips uploaded on Metube.

“This is the stage where Kyuho’s billion was broken…”

“I fainted from the intro’s coolness, so I don’t remember the main stage.”

“As everyone knows, but that gray-haired guy is 23-year-old Sun Woojoo from Gunsan Elementary. Please give him lots of love.”

“If your parents are puzzled whether New Black are idols, show them this. Just make sure to turn off autoplay. Otherwise, you’ll get the unicycle clip.”

“No matter how much I think about it, I should have bought Lemon stocks when New Black debuted.”

While overseas K-pop fans were discussing Nine’s KMA stage in their communities.

The clip that caught the most attention from Korean fans was one released by K-Net as a behind-the-scenes.

“Welcome to New Black Bakery.”

The thumbnail of Scarlet Daisy running away with a bread bag like Jean Valjean was too enticing not to click.

After a mysterious BGM and shots of a waiting room frequented by singers.

The production team approached TNT.

[Production Team] “What were you doing inside?”

[TNT] “Huh? Oh, nothing.”

TNT, hiding a Soufflé bread behind his back, ran away.

Then came the gentle smiles of Teen Spirit and the awkward expressions of Street Boys to the camera.

The production crew asked me as I stepped out, “Did you just receive some bread inside?”

I couldn’t help but beam with joy, “Yes! It’s incredibly delicious!”

Every time someone came out holding a soufflé bread, their faces lit up with happiness.

Even Daisy, who was last, came out humming a tune, a bag of bread swinging in her hand.

It was a behind-the-scenes moment that brought laughter to the viewers.

K-pop business unites over bread, LOL!

How many did they even take to Hong Kong, LOL!

The waiting room turned into a gourmet spot.

Their annual sales must be over 50 billion, but going for a 500-won bread is just hilarious.

What, they went all the way there for bread, LOL!

It wasn’t camaraderie; it was distribution!

This kind of friendship is a first, for real, LOL!

As these comments about how delicious the bread must be for idols to visit the waiting room themselves surfaced online,

I burst into laughter.

The soufflés, having checked these internet reactions, were now leaving the KG24 convenience store one by one.

The long-awaited soufflé bread had finally been released.

Those who had lined up early were now carefully opening their bags in various places.

“It must be really tasty…”

Just as I was about to taste the bread,

Thump.

A small piece of paper fell out from inside the bread.

“…?”

It was a small paper, the size that could fit a sticker.

I blinked as I picked up the paper from the floor and turned it over.

‘…What’s this?’

In my hand was a character seal from New Black.

“Lv.7 Jung-hyun Riding a Black Goat”

Seeing the sticker of mini Jung-hyun charging into battle on a black goat, I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.