Chapter 10
The day after the debut group was confirmed.
Eden left for work before the other members.
'We're about to debut, so we have to do well.'
Eden had a chubby body until he graduated from elementary school.
Because of that, his nicknames were always related to his weight.
Since he entered middle school, all his weight has gone up to his height and he hasn't gained any more weight, but Eden was always on guard.
'I'll have to walk to work like this from now on.'
As he got busier and busier preparing for his debut, his activity level would increase, but he also had little time to exercise.
The office building wasn't as far away as he thought.
Eden rubbed his palms and ran toward the main gate of the office building as if he was running in the cold weather suddenly.
At that time, a fan he often ran into in front of the office building greeted him.
"Eden, congratulations on your debut!"
"Huh?! How did you know?"
Eden, who stopped in surprise, blinked quickly. There was no way the company had already leaked it.
"Do-woon told me yesterday. He seemed really upset."
"...Ah, Do-woon hyung."
Eden's mood sank for a moment.
Do-woon was the hyung who practiced with Eden the longest.
Even when he was frustrated after hearing harsh words during lessons, and when he was exhausted from practice that didn't go his way, it was Do-woon who helped Eden hold on to his heart.
But just because you've been a trainee together doesn't mean you can debut together.
This was something Eden felt deeply as he sent off countless trainees he'd been with for the past three years.
He felt bad, but there was nothing Eden could do.
"Oh, that's right. This! I made a congratulatory cake for you to eat with the members."
The fan handed over the box she was holding as if she'd just remembered it.
"Oh! I really appreciate it, but it's okay. If I receive something like this, I'll get in trouble with the company."
Eden smiled and refused with a firm tone. This was something that had been drilled into his ears by the company officials and the older trainees.
They always told him to be careful with his words and actions in front of his fans.
Especially, when you receive all sorts of things from fans while you are a trainee, it is very likely that you will be talked about after your debut, so they warned him.
If it were normal, he would have just greeted them and entered the building today, but he missed the timing when the topic of debut and Dowoon came up.
Eden smiled awkwardly at his own mistake.
"Still, I worked hard to make it.... Can't you accept it?"
Eden almost gave in for a moment, but he quickly steeled himself and answered bluntly.
"I'm really sorry, I'll just accept your kindness. Since you worked hard to make it for us, I think you'd be so happy if your family and friends enjoyed it too."
"...Okay."
"Oh, and... Please keep the confirmed debut members a secret."
Do-woon must have made a mistake because he was upset that the debut didn't happen, but Eden added his words out of concern.
"Yeah! Of course! When Do-woon spoke, I was the only one there. I didn't tell anyone!"
"Thank you."
Eden bowed and quietly exhaled as he entered the building.
'Did I do the right thing?'
But she must have waited for him in this cold dawn because she wanted to see him.
'No. I told her that I could receive it from the manager after the debut.'
Eden shook his head and tried to shake off his discomfort.
"Huh? Eden!"
Eden, who was waiting for the elevator to go up to the conference room, looked around when he heard someone calling him. The members were walking towards the parking lot.
"Hyungs!!"
Eden smiled brightly and joined the members. When they arrived at the conference room, the Rookie Development Team and the Research Planning Department Manager were waiting for them.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Yang Do-il, the Research Planning Department Manager. I'm in charge of the overall production of the debut group."
After greeting each other, they started talking about the debut in earnest.
"Our debut group's name is... M-eight."
As soon as the manager spoke, a PPT screen filled one wall of the conference room.
< M8 (M-eight) >
"If it's M8... is it Mate when you say friend?"
"That's right. M8 is an abbreviation for Mate. Mate means that we will become close friends with our fans, but Mate is also a slogan that warns us to take the king in chess. We will take the king of the music industry and become the king. That's what it means."
"Oh."
It seems plausible. Eden felt relieved inside. There were some scary rumors going around the company recently about the name of the debut group being 'Gasoline' or 'Unicorn'. The members also seemed satisfied.
"First, let's listen to the candidates for the debut song."
We're finally going to have our own song. Eden's heart swelled with excitement.
And after a while.
'What should we do?'
Eden bit his lower lip.
"Okay, among the four songs I just played, there's our M8 title song. Tell me how you felt about it. Even if you like them all, you have to pick just one."
It was all ambiguous.
In short, there was no song that stuck in the ears.
Isn't it TP that raised Pink Lime, who is known for producing not only title songs but also b-sides?
If things continued like this, it was obvious that the attention and expectations they received as 'TP's new male idol' would be met with a cold response.
'How do I say this?'
Only the manager looked very proud.
Eden really wanted to ask the manager one more time if he was really the general producer.
But at that moment, a direct remark flew in and shattered the manager's expression.
"They're all so-so."
"!"
Oops.
Eden covered his mouth and took a deep breath at Sungjun's one word.
In the meantime, the rookie development team showed strong agreement with their eyes.
The manager flinched and tried to smile brightly.
"Uh... That, really? What exactly is so-so?"
"It's just all so-so. The chords are so-so, the top line is so-so, the mixing is so-so."
It means a mess.
Eden couldn't help but feel relieved at Sungjun's straightforward words, while also feeling worried.
Then, Yoohyun, who was looking into space across from Eden and furrowing his brow, opened his mouth.
"I have a suggestion."
"Yes, what is it?"
The rookie development team leader answered in place of the dumbfounded manager.
"How about leaving our song to producer Downjay?"
"Downjay......?"
'Bitter Sweet Downjay?!'
Pink Lime's representative song,
Downjay is a producer who has often worked with Pink Lime since then and created numerous hit songs.
"We would like Downjay to work on it, but isn't his own opinion the most important?"
Yoo Hyun smiled faintly at the meaningful words of the team leader.
"We can just ask."
Yoo Hyun stared at someone at the team leader's words.
"How about it?"
"?"
Who are you talking to?
Eden's face, which had been following Yoo Hyun's gaze, gradually turned into a look of shock.
'...... No way.'
"Down Jay is Sung Jun hyung?!"
***
[Main Quest Arrival!]
[Reach 1 million views on YouTube within 24 hours of the debut song music video release!]
[Reward Life 24:00:00]
The main quest that came up during the meeting.
1 million views? It's easy to say.
Maybe 7 years before the regression.
At this time, only idols with a certain fandom could surpass 1 million views on YouTube.
But for a rookie idol who just debuted, achieving 1 million views in just one day of release?
Of course, if the debut song and music video are amazing, it might be possible, but...
'It's impossible with the song the manager puts out.'
When working at a music show, you naturally have no choice but to watch and listen to dozens of teams' performances.
Then, there were songs that we would hum along to without realizing it, and those songs would eventually become popular, even if they made a comeback later.
'There's not a single verse in this melody that's memorable.'
I knew all along that Sungjun was a composer. He was a talented guy who had a hit song when he was just a high school student.
Wasn't it thanks to Sungjun's songs that he was able to lead the members of Tighten, who were in a mess, to the top?
His songs that I have listened to hundreds of times while working. They're catchy enough to come out right away, but that doesn't mean I can sing the songs he'll write later right here and now.
I might get entangled in something annoying.
'Why are you digging when you have such great talent right in front of you?'
You do the hard work, Choi Sungjun.
"I want to do it too."
But?
If you want to, you can do it, it's not like you can't....
'Ah.'
You can't?
'Are you in a slump?'
Choi Sung-jun avoided my eyes and kept his mouth shut.
***
We decided to decide on the debut song after receiving Choi Sung-jun's song a week later.
Choi Sung-jun also looked uncertain, but eventually nodded.
"What about Sung-jun?"
"I heard he's going to the studio?"
"Today too?"
It was past midnight.
As soon as we finished practicing, I asked the manager where Choi Sung-jun had gone.
He went to the studio. It's already been three days.
When I saw him practicing today, his face looked pale, and it seemed like his condition was getting worse.
'No way.'
I got impatient about the debut that was going to end up being a disaster, so I ended up putting Choi Sung-jun.
If he goes to UJ because his mental health is at risk, I'll end up digging my own grave.
I gave up, looking vaguely at the car waiting to take me home from work.
"I'll practice a little more and then go."
"Now? It's past 1 o'clock?"
"It's okay. The dorm is within walking distance."
After sending the car carrying the members, I turned back to the office building.
When I arrived at Choi Sungjun's studio and knocked, I heard a faint voice from inside.
'Is that a call to come in?'
When I entered the studio, Choi Sungjun was lying face down on the desk, fumbling around.
"Are you sleeping?"
"...No."
"Is the work going well?"
"...No."
"Why, what's not working?"
"Dirty."
That seems to be the case.
It's a mess.
His hair was messed up even more than when he was practicing because he had been pulling it out so much.
"Ahh! X!"
Why are you like that?
I cleared my throat, moving as far away from Choi Sungjun as possible.
"Did I bring up something unnecessary?"
I glanced at Choi Sung-jun.
In fact, it's empty talk. If it weren't for you, there's no answer.
"That's okay. If we had debuted with those songs anyway, we would have just failed."
At least he said it after filtering it during the meeting.
Actually, my opinion is not different.
"...If it continues like this, it will be ruined."
This jerk is in full pessimistic mode.
'Hmm. It sounds like he has the will.'
I looked Choi Sung-jun up and down.
"Are you sleeping well?"
"...No."
It looks like that. The dark circles under his eyes are down to his knees.
"How long have you been out of bed?"
"Quite a while. I can't sleep."
I sighed at the words I had expected to hear. Yeah, then it can't be solved. However, the solution to his chronic illness was clear, so I quickly smiled with confidence.
"Get some sleep."
Choi Sung-jun wiped his haggard face and buried himself in his chair.
"How can I sleep? I have to send it by tomorrow or the day after, but there isn't a single topline that's been done properly."
"Will it come out if you stay up all night? How's your work progressed in the past three days?"
"... Almost nothing."
"Is there any chance that the work will be completed if you stay up all night?"
"... Almost none."
"Let's go."
I pushed Choi Sung-jun's back and left the studio.
"What, what... Where are we going at this hour?!"
—