166 – Final Activity (5)
“Yes, yes… I understand.”
“No. Yes. That’s right.”
“Okay, then let’s go out.”
Manager Oh Hyun-soo came out of the general manager’s office and took a deep breath.
“Huh…”
Suddenly remembering the cigarette he had quit, Manager Oh Hyun-soo left the Shock Entertainment building and headed to a nearby convenience store.
“Please give me a Masse Light.”
And he asked for a cigarette, which he enjoyed smoking in the past.
“Yes?”
“Ah… The name has changed. That’s Mobius Light. And please give me a lighter too.”
Manager Oh Hyun-soo took the cigarette and lighter and headed to the rooftop of the office building again.
And then he took out a cigarette and lit it.
He chuckled a little from the cigarette smoke he had been inhaling for the first time in a long time, but soon got used to it and inhaled deeply.
“Write… Huh…”
It’s already been 7 years since I quit smoking.
In the past, when I was still a road manager, I was in charge of the first unknown girl group.
For the sake of the children who complained about the smell of cigarettes when they got into the car, I quit smoking and have continued to do so.
“Phew… Masese is also forgotten…”
He just remembered his part-time job at a convenience store.
Masera did not understand cigarettes.
It was only natural that it had been over 10 years since the company name change.
There are still some part-time workers who will understand you when you say Mase.
I think the famous Mild Seven, which was number one in sales in the world, eventually became a name that was forgotten one by one.
Celebrities and idols were like that too.
No matter how famous they are, they are forgotten one by one as time passes.
Of course, an unknown idol doesn’t even have a name that can be forgotten.
Still, as a manager, I remembered that much.
The first girl group he was in charge of.
Everyone may be scattered and continuing their lives.
He was with the members every day for 365 days and still remembers it.
And the smell of cigarettes was still a perfume to him.
“Now, every time I smoke, there will be other kids I’ll think of… Sigh… Phew…”
After burning the entire cigarette, he hesitated for a moment and then took out his cell phone.
I then called Joo Da-hong, the dedicated road manager of Saven, and then called Saven’s leader, Hana.
“Uh, Hana. Are you practicing right now? Uh, okay. Have you eaten? Oh, Dahong ordered it. Yes. Uh, I have something to say. I’ll take the kids after 10 minutes… No, just one thing. 3 “Come up to the conference room on the floor.”
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It was difficult to meet all the members.
* * *
It was something I had already been expecting from the moment I got a call and said I had something to say.
“Yes, it’s okay.”
The smell of cigarettes that I first smelled from Manager Oh Hyun-soo was just a reassuring factor.
“I… I’m sorry to you guys.”
And actually, it was something I had expected before that.
It was also planned.
“…No, team leader. It’s company business.”
The manager was trying to hide his emotions, saying he was an adult and was in a position to support the members, but his expression showed all his confusion.
“I’ll talk to you carefully.”
“Okay, I’m sorry… It’s the last time, so let’s all cheer up and work hard until the end.”
Looking at the manager like that, Kwon Hana smiled.
“Don’t worry too much. I’m sure the kids all knew.”
* * *
One evening.
Originally, we were supposed to practice at work until late at night, but today, for some reason, Hana came back to the dorm after finishing evening practice.
The members quickly changed out of their sweaty practice clothes and were resting.
Everyone was smiling energetically after a long break, but their smiles were somewhat uneasy.
Hana gathered the members.
We sat in our respective seats in the living room.
Unni Hana opened her mouth brightly, smiling as if to hide her red, bloodshot eyes.
“Guys, it’s our last concert, so let’s prepare hard until the end.”
And one by one, even the members’ somewhat uneasy smiles slowly disappeared.
“Huh…”
Pure emotions flowed from Ye-eun’s young eyes.
And once the wave started, it quickly grew and spread.
Some people are quiet and vague.
Some people wet the neckline of their t-shirts like a flood of water.
I went into the bathroom and washed my face repeatedly.
It was a very hot day in early spring.
When we, the members, were notified by the company that there was no extension, there were 5 days until the concert and less than 2 weeks until the end of the contract.
Even though I was expecting to break up, I didn’t have enough time to mentally prepare.
* * *
After practicing the next evening, we headed to our accommodation.
But Ye-eun said that her older sister seemed to be strangely stubborn and that she would stay in the vocal room.
“Go first. I’ll pick you up later.”
I decided to wait for her sister.
The members said they understood when they saw my serious expression.
“I want to wait too…”
“It’s okay. She’s resting at the dorm, okay?”
“Hmph…”
After about an hour, I knocked on Yeeun’s older sister’s vocal room.
ㅡKnock knock
“I’m going in.”
When I opened the door, I saw a lot of lyrics marked down and a person who was engrossed in the song as if he was studying it.
After seeing her face, Ye-eun lowered her head again as if to avoid meeting her eyes.
“Sister, should I rest now? I’m going to hurt my neck for no reason. There’s a rehearsal the day after tomorrow, so I need to be careful.”
“Yes…”
It wasn’t a very serious tone.
Ye-eun was looking at her lyrics in a strange way.
I sat on the chair next to her older sister.
And she held out her hand.
“Hand.”
Ye-eun still has her eyes on the house, but obediently gives her hand.
“Sister Ye-eun.”
And when I called her name, my sister, whose eyes had become swollen and small, finally looked at me.
Even though a day had passed, I felt like I was crying again.
Ye-eun, with her moisture stuck here and there, stared at her sister’s face and opened her mouth.
“Isn’t the song sad?”
“Uh-huh…”
Ye-eun answered with a cracked voice as her throat closed.
“Look at this, I’m going to hurt myself before the concert for no reason.”
Ye-eun only nodded her head this time, as if hiding her voice.
Well, I’ve already heard the cracked voice, but I wonder what’s the use of it.
Still, it was quite cute.
“The weather is nice, let’s take a walk and then go home.”
Ye-eun shakes her head.
Ye-eun’s older sister pointed to her gasaji with her finger.
I held my sister’s hand and helped her up.
“It’s more fun to play during exam period.”
After leaving the vocal room, we went out onto the street.
Perhaps because the sun had set and it was already dark, there were fewer people passing by.
Yeeun, who was wearing sunglasses and a mask even late in the evening, looked like a child suffering from celebrity disease.
I guess she’s just trying to cover her puffy eyes because she’s embarrassed.
We walked down the street quietly.
It was a road full of memories for a year and a half.
That’s a quiet cafe where Chaerin often goes.
That’s a mala soup restaurant that she started eating often because she pretended to like it.
That’s the convenience store where I get energy drinks.
Also, this is the street where Hana filmed the first teaser for her YouTube channel ‘What Are We Doing Today’.
And just the way I always walked to work and home from work.
It’s still early March.
The night was quite cold with the winter vibes still on, but the sky was clear.
It was a good day to see stars even in the city.
I quite liked days like this.
“Sister, take off your sunglasses and look over there.”
Ye-eun thought for a moment and then took off her sunglasses.
Still, the swelling in my eyes had calmed down compared to before.
“You can see the star triangle over there. It’s called the Great Winter Triangle, and the brightest thing is Sirius, Betelgeuse on the upper right, and Procyon on the upper left.”
I told him about the constellations that were clearly visible between the buildings.
Gemini, Taurus, Chariot, Orion.
Actually, the reason I like stars is simple.
Because I am a star, I can give such light reasons.
“There are stars, whether in the West or the East, past or future people, they are indicators that can be recognized anytime and anywhere. They are shared by everyone. That’s why I really like stars.”
In some ways, it’s an unfamiliar and sentimental statement, but the stars in the clear sky were so bright that it didn’t feel strange at all.
And then Ye-eun quietly opened her mouth.
“What do you think of our team…?”
I laughed awkwardly.
“Well.”
Ye-eun, her older sister, glanced at my expression and answered in a still cracked voice.
“I, I love it so much…”
“Really? The sisters will like it.”
“Are you…?”
“Me too.”
My answer contained two meanings.
I’m happy because my sister likes it.
I also like our team that much.
In a somewhat sentimental mood, I lifted my head from the stars and walked down the street.
Her older sister followed behind her and asked.
“Why, why… Do you like it?”
“I don’t know, it’s good, but is there a reason?”
But Ye-eun and her older sister always thought about something.
“I have…”
I answered quietly.
“If you don’t do well, they tell you that it’s not good enough… And if you do well, they happily congratulate you… And they put in that much effort first… Above all, our members are regular, but they let you do whatever you want…”
And that whispering voice.
“I really like it.”
A low voice.
“…I see.”
“Yes.”
It flowed gently in the chilly night air and was heard exceptionally clearly.
“But aren’t all successful teams like this? There’s usually no discord. You’re lucky.”
So, as always, I wanted to avoid anything too sentimental.
Ye-eun pursed her lips and put on sunglasses.
We walked quietly to our accommodation.
Still, he said something.
“It’s my own way of expressing affection. Playing around.”
That’s why mom, dad, and even Doa get pranked all the time.
“…Yes.”
And I had that question.
Being able to clearly point out why this team is good.
What did it mean to Ye-eun?
* * *
When I arrived at the accommodation, I quickly washed up and got ready for bed.
With the concert just around the corner, it was important to manage my condition and sleep early.
And when we went to the bed room, Sarah was pouting her lips.
“…Hug me too.”
“Okay, sister, come here too.”
Her Ye-eun was just as emotional as her older sister, and she cried all day yesterday.
I felt sorry for Sarah, so I gave her a corner of my bed and hugged her.
“Shall we sleep together today?”
“Yes!”
And in the meantime, Chaerin looks lonely looking at a book with her headset on.
“I want to hug Chaerin too~”
I spoke in a voice that was not very loud.
“…I guess so.”
Chaerin pretends to think for a moment and then comes to this side of the bed.
If she had been listening to the song with her headset on like usual, she wouldn’t have even been able to hear, but that cute sight made me laugh a little.
One way or another, even though she called her sister because of her physical age, she was like a younger sister to the girls.
Very bittersweet