Chapter 136. Chocolate Storm (1)

KangYoon was currently visiting Priella Entertainment, the single biggest music distribution company in Korea. He was having a meeting with Lee TaeShik, the head of the music charts department.

Department head Lee TaeShik brewed KangYoon some coffee, which was rare for someone of his position.

“Eunha’s popularity is great these days. She keeps playing at the top of the charts.”

Department head Lee TaeShik of Priella Entertainment could not hide his surprise.

“Thank you. We appreciate it as a company.”

KangYoon sipped some coffee. He was here with a nervous expression, but it was good that some pleasant conversation was going.

It had been two weeks since the music was released.

Although the charts should be changing by now, Eunha’s album did not show any signs of going down anytime soon. The title song ‘Speak Happy Day’ played around the 5th position, while the other songs were solidly in the charts at 10th and 20th respectively.

Lee TaeShik did not hide his praises saying that this was a very rare occasion when digital singles were mainstream nowadays.

“We are in a situation where visual music is the majority, so Eunha’s rather traditional ways have created a lot of fans. She’s good on stage, and her songs are easy on the ears. Honestly speaking, though, I didn’t have high expectations of her.”

“I only hoped it would go well.”

“The only thing that was lacking was the music video. A lot of people were disappointed after looking at the music video after they saw her debut stage.”

“Hahaha….”

KangYoon laughed awkwardly. It wasn’t that he didn’t put much thought into the music video, but the live stage just had too much of an impact.

However, Lee TaeShik said that it was okay and spoke on.

“Eunha’s promotional video right now is the music video. I believe that we should change it to her debut video.”

“That sounds good. Please do it that way.”

KangYoon spoke about a lot of other things after that. He also asked about the reactions offline, as well as the reactions of other companies. Lee TaeShik said that there were no differences in offline sales.

And also…

“What’s interesting is that the senior singers are paying attention to her voice. Many say that her vocal output is good. I’ve met several of them myself.”

“Hahaha. I wonder who they are.”

“Eunha must have it good. A lot of her seniors want to work with her. Though, it may tire her out since they are quite picky people.”

Department head Lee TaeShik said in a prankful tone.

They talked about the distribution of music afterward for a long time.

When the sun was about to set, KangYoon stood up from his seat. It was time for him to go back.

“I wish we would meet in better conditions next time.”

“Please have a safe trip home.”

KangYoon left Priella Entertainment like that. This meeting gave him a lot of benefits.

‘Let’s go then.’

KangYoon returned to his company after that meeting.

When he went to the office, Lee HyunJi and Lee SamSoon were talking to each other.

“President, you’re here.”

Lee HyunJi greeted him. Lee SamSoon also stood up from her seat to greet him.

“I’m back. SamSoon’s here too?”

“I was talking about Modern Farmer with the director.”

The two were talking about the program that Lee SamSoon would soon participate in. KangYoon also sat on the sofa and joined in on the conversation.

“So there are a total of 6 singers including SamSoon in the participants. But wait, Nael… I thought it was another person until just a few days ago.”

KangYoon was confused. Lee HyunJi shook her head.

“It looks like they had their own circumstances. The chief producer for that program and GNB’s president seems to be on close terms. I believe that there was an exchange somewhere.”

“It’s good that we weren’t the ones who were excluded.”

“Well, not like we would stay still if we were.”

KangYoon shook his head at Lee HyunJi’s words.

“Maybe. But well, SamSoon is a very desirable character for a program like this. For them, she’s not someone to change for someone else.”

Unless the producers were idiots, Lee SamSoon was a card they could never abandon. She had experience appearing on TV, had knowledge about the countryside, and she had her own unique traits as well. Who would throw her away?

“That Nael kid, it sure looks like they’re backing her up a lot.”

KangYoon replied with a smile at Lee SamSoon’s words.

“Her company is big after all. When you girls first had your debut, the company backed you up a lot as well.”

“Really now?”

Lee SamSoon tilted her head. It seemed that the frog did not remember its tadpole days. Even Lee HyunJi burst out laughing when she saw that. Lee SamSoon could not understand why they were laughing.

Switching topics, KangYoon talked about Lee SamSoon again.

“There are a total of 8 participants including SamSoon. They will go farming in Hoengseong in Gangwon-do for two days and one night. They will literally be living there for two days. That’s the theme.”

“It says two days one night, but it also says that they may increase it to three days later. All meals are self-made and… wow, that looks like one tiring schedule. The producer sounds greedy.”

“Well, if editing goes well, it would definitely look good on TV. I believe that this is a good theme.”

KangYoon switched topics to the other participants. Lee SamSoon also focused since this was about the people she would spend time with.

“Kang HyunMi, age 41. She’s the oldest among the ladies. She’s the big unni. She has some heft to her, and she’s definitely a veteran in TV programs.”

“Her reputation is good as well. SamSoon, you also appeared on TV with her right?”

Lee SamSoon nodded her head at Lee HyunJi’s question.

“Yes. HyunMi-unni is a good person. She gave me a lot of food.”

KangYoon couldn’t help but smile at that answer.

“That’s not the only reason you like her, right?”

“Uhm, about half, I guess?”

When Lee SamSoon replied in a joking tone, KangYoon burst out laughing.

They continued to talk about the other cast.

There was Song HakTae, the oldest of them all; Miri and Yeri, who were both around her age, Yoon SeulGi, who was quite old for an idol, as well as the rookie Nael. KangYoon and Lee HyunJi talked about what they thought of each of these people and told Lee SamSoon how she should act.

“…So in conclusion, I should just do what I did before I became a trainee?”

KangYoon agreed to the clear conclusion.

“Yes. The producer wants exactly that.”

“Won’t I look like some poor country girl?”

When Lee SamSoon got worried, KangYoon shook his head.

“It’s fine. Everything’s okay as long as it’s not dating rumors, okay?”

“Dating rumors? Pfft, okay. Gotcha.”

Lee SamSoon said she understood the clear directions and stood up from her seat.

When she returned to her dorm, Lee HyunJi asked KangYoon.

“Shouldn’t we look for at least two people to manage Eddios?”

“We should. But it’s quite hard to cover for them all…. Phew, it’s giving me headaches.”

“Looks like you’ll have to act as one for a while.”

“…Please employ one as soon as possible.”

It was quite tiring that he could do everything. KangYoon felt a headache about what’s to come regarding Lee SamSoon’s schedule.

***

4th floor of Lunas. Eddios’s practice room never saw the dark of the night.

All members of Eddios including Jung MinAh regained their senses through practicing day and night. They also did not forget to train their bodies.

Jung MinAh and Christie An were practicing late into the night.

“Fuu….”

Christie turned off the music and collapsed onto the floor. Her body was already drenched with sweat.

“Should we rest a little?”

She accepted Jung MinAh’s rest proposal gladly.

When Jung MinAh sat down, Christie approached her like a ghost and rested her head against her thigh.

“…You really don’t change even after all these years.”

“This is the comfiest spot. It’s not too hard, and not too soft.”

“People will misunderstand, you know? When we stick to each other like this all the time.”

“What can we do about that? It’s not a rumor but the truth.”

“Eeek?”

When Jung MinAh freaked out, Christie’s face became an evil smirk.

“Fufufu, obediently hand over your body.”

“N… no!”

The two played around like that.

After a round of messing around, Jung MinAh also laid down on the floor. The lights from the high ceiling seemed to urge her to practice.

Christie An rolled around on the floor a little bit before turning around to Jung MinAh’s direction.

“MinAh. Your solo album is in March, right?”

“Yeah, he said so.”

“So there’s not a lot of time left. Is the song out yet?”

“No, they were busy with JiMin’s debut. I think mine just got started.”

“I hope it goes well. Both you and SamSoon.”

“It will go well. Isn’t that obvious?”

“Right?”

Jung MinAh smiled with a confident expression. But then, she seemed to have thought up of something and abruptly stood up.

“Right! This is not the time to be here!”

“What’s up?”

“Sorry! I’m going back first!”

Unlike her usual self, Jung MinAh hurriedly dressed up before leaving the practice room.

She didn’t even take a shower.

“What’s up with her? Did something happen?”

Christie, who was left alone, tilted her head.

***

Recently, shops that taught how to make hand-made cakes were in the boom.

For Valentine’s Day, many women filled such shops.

Lee HyunAh and Lee ChaHee were two of them.

“Why did you have to drag me here?”

Lee ChaHee complained while squeezing fresh cream out of a bag she had never used before. However, her hands were nonetheless delicate with their movements.

Lee HyunAh was satisfied with Lee ChaHee’s dexterity.

“Yes, that’s it, ChaHee! How could I do this without your help? Huh?”

“Like I said, why am I the one doing this?”

“ChaHee~.”

Lee HyunAh asked her friend for help while acting cute. Lee ChaHee ended up chuckling and slowly squeezed the fresh cream.

When the cake looked somewhat like a cake, Lee HyunAh put chocolate on top. She wrote some letters with the chocolate.

[World ENT Forever]

Lee ChaHee spoke while reading the chocolate letters.

“Our company isn’t yet 1 year old, no?”

“Nah, but who cares? It’s all about the mood.”

It wasn’t an anniversary…

Around them were many ladies who were making cakes for their boyfriends.

Lee ChaHee simply couldn’t understand her friend.

‘So, what’s the relationship between Valentine’s Day and the 1st year anniversary of the company?’

However, she couldn’t ask that question out loud when her little friend looked so excited.

Lee ChaHee quietly helped Lee HyunAh finish the cake.

***

Meanwhile,

Eddios’s dorms

*Sizzle!*

“Unni! The pot is burning, the pot!”

Seo HanYu panicked when she heard an unusual sound from the kitchen.

“Water, get some water!”

“Unni!”

Two people who had nothing to do with cooking were in a mess. In the end, the chocolate became black charcoal, and the kitchen was filled with smoke.

With all the mess in the kitchen, Ailee, who was watching TV in the living room, came to them.

“What the hell are you girls doing?”

“We were making Valentine’s chocolate….”

Jung MinAh mumbled. Since the kitchen was filled with smoke, she had no excuses.

Ailee had fires lit up in her eyes, which was rare for her.

“How high heat did you cook the chocolate?”

“Huh? Just normal….”

“What? Then you did it under high flame? Without even double boiling it?”

“…..”

“No, no, no. Girls, what in the world have you done?”

Hearing their fellow’s shouts, both Jung MinAh and Seo HanYu looked down in shame. They became sinners after the kitchen was filled with black smoke. Although the two were usually quite sharp, they were clueless about cooking.

“Sheesh, I can’t stand this.”

Looking at the dejected duo, Ailee sighed before rolling up her sleeves.

She took out another pot and poured some whipped cream into the bowl before putting it on the stovetop. She turned the fire to low heat and added some icing sugar. When the whipped cream started boiling, she added chocolate and brought it to a simmer.

“Wow….”

Seeing that Ailee’s cooking was just like the pictures on the internet, Seo HanYu exclaimed deeply. Even though they used the same method… she couldn’t understand how the results were drastically different.

Ailee shrugged before speaking.

“You put too little whipped cream in it. There was too much chocolate as well. No wonder it got burnt.”

“Ah…..”

Jung MinAh also understood. Right now, Ailee couldn’t be prettier.

Eventually, the chocolate melted and the contents of the pot became viscous.

“Give me the mold.”

Jung MinAh immediately gave her the mold at her orders. It was a cute mold of a character from an animation. Ailee carefully poured the chocolate onto the mold.

“Oh, there’s cocoa powder as well? You can just sprinkle it on top and refrigerate it.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Jung MinAh immediately got to work in confidence. Since there was a lot of chocolate, it took quite some time.

When it was all poured into molds they put all the chocolate into the refrigerator.

“*Yawn*….”

After a long process, Ailee stretched her arms out.

Jung MinAh massaged her shoulders.

“Ailee! Thanks a lot! It’s all thanks to you!”

“Heh, it was nothing much.”

Ailee puffed out her chest and smiled. The Ailee that was unable to follow a dance routine was no longer here. Right now, she was the goddess of cooking!

Seo HanYu was also surprised at Ailee.

“Thank you, unni. But wait. MinAh-unni, who are you planning on giving them to?”

“Those? Oh… Uhm. The people at the company?”

“Really? Everyone will like them for sure.”

“Ri… right?”

Jung MinAh sweated seeing that Seo HanYu didn’t have any suspicions.

***

“Here’s some obligatory chocolate.”

KangYoon asked in a confused tone seeing Lee HyunJi give him some high-class chocolate as soon as he came to work.

“Is today special?”

KangYoon asked back in a confused tone as he accepted the chocolate. Lee HyunJi chuckled and looked at KangYoon like she was seeing an idiot.

“Today’s Valentine’s Day.”

“Ah? Oh, today’s already….”

KangYoon turned around to have a look at the calendar.

February 14th.

It was the day where men and women of all sorts of relations got into chaos.

“Then I’ll be looking forward to March.”

The chocolate Lee HyunJi gave him was the expensive variety. KangYoon thanked her before popping it in his mouth. The chocolate seemed to contain something and tasted quite delicious.

Jung HyeJin was the next one to come to work and give him a bar of chocolate that was sold in the market.

“President, can I look forward to March?”

Seeing Jung HyeJin’s expectant eyes, KangYoon only replied with an awkward smile.

Lee HyunJi, who had brewed some coffee for herself, asked KangYoon.

“You called for a general meeting today, right?”

“Yes. JiMin’s album is going well, and we need to talk about our next big matter. Looks like we’ll have one like this once every month at least.”

He hurriedly prepared some materials for everyone at the meeting.

Not long after, Kim JaeHoon and Kim JiMin opened the door. Kim JaeHoon had something in his mouth, his hands holding onto a big piece of rectangular chocolate.

Kim JiMin gave KangYoon some chocolate as well. It was one that could easily be found in the market.

“You want me to eat all this by myself?”

“Can you? Your teeth will rot.”

KangYoon joked with Kim JiMin but was replied with worry instead.

Seeing the artists come to the office one by one, everyone went down to the studio.

Not long later, HeeYoon, Christie An, Ailee, and the others started entering. All of them had some chocolate for KangYoon. In no time at all, KangYoon’s hands were full of chocolate.

Seeing that, Lee HyunJi said in an envious tone.

“Looks like our president is one lucky man.”

“This is a first for me too.”

“Please give me some later. I’m lacking in some blood sugar lately….”

“Hahahaha.”

The studio was filled with laughs at Lee HyunJi’s joke.

At that moment, the door opened and Jung MinAh and Lee HyunAh came in together. In Jung MinAh’s hand was a large paper bag, and Lee HyunAh’s hands were holding a large cake box.

“Wow. MinAh and HyunAh’s chocolates are on a different order of magnitude.”

Seeing the ‘gifts’ in their hands, Lee HyunJi’s eyes became big. Others had the same reaction. Before they could even ask who it was for, both of the girls presented their gifts to KangYoon.

“These… are for me?”

KangYoon panicked and smiled awkwardly.

“……”

“……”

At the same time, sparks lit up in the eyes of the two newest ladies.