Chapter 10: On the Way to School (2)
I thought they would all raise their hands, but surprisingly, they didn’t.
Only three people raised their hands: Lee Junhyeok, Seo Haim, and Ha Junseo.
Of course, everyone probably wanted the center position, but I didn’t want to step into something that could easily turn into a fight.
As long as you had the skills, you'd get a chance to stand in the center someday anyway.
After being nominated as a center candidate for the signal song, I figured I should lie low for now.
Of course, that’s assuming I actually became the center in the center evaluation—talk about counting your chickens before they hatch….
If I wasn’t careful, I could end up being criticized for trying to hog everything.
“How should we pick the center?”
So instead of aiming for center myself, I decided to watch and see who would get it.
Jin Sehyun calmly voiced his opinion.
“The center is kind of like the face of the song, right?”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“Shouldn’t we pick someone who suits the mood of the song best?”
By that logic, the first person to be ruled out would be…
“Oh, do I not suit it?”
Lee Junhyeok let out a sheepish laugh and scratched his head.
Wow, no one even looked at him, but he still took it personally.
Guess he knew deep down.
This is a youth drama OST.
Not a gangster film.
“Hmhm.”
He smiled while speaking, but his eyes were still cold.
That’s definitely going to get caught on camera. It was nerve-wracking just watching.
Jin Sehyun spoke again, without even glancing at Lee Junhyeok.
“Personally, I think Haim suits it best.”
“Oh, me?”
I agreed with Jin Sehyun’s opinion too. Setting aside any bad feelings toward Lee Junhyeok, if the setting was a school, then the one who looked best in a school uniform was Seo Haim.
Ha Junseo also had a cheerful and kind teddy bear-like look, but he couldn’t match the freshness of a minor.
He was good at facial expressions, and his dancing was decent too.
Thinking back to the Stardust days, his singing was beyond doubt.
“I agree as well.”
He was more skilled than Lee Junhyeok too.
When I also supported Seo Haim, Ha Junseo smiled and nodded.
“Oh, then I’m with you.”
“What? Are you giving up already, hyung?”
“Now that I think about it, he really does fit. It just screams… school.”
“Hey, someone gets it.”
And with Ha Junseo’s support…
I knew this well—that kindness came from the heart.
That’s why when other members dropped out one by one, he took the blame and kept the group going.
The touching sacrifice of the eldest brother flashed through my mind. Along with his face, which had become so haggard.
Hyung, please don’t age in this life….
“Thank you! I’m confident I can do well!”
Seo Haim bowed repeatedly in thanks.
At this point, it felt like the center position was pretty much his. But of course, the unpredictable element wasn’t going to sit still.
“Wait a moment.”
“…Yes?”
“Can I say just one last thing?”
I had a hunch what he was about to say.
Maybe it would be better if he didn’t.
Unfortunately, Lee Junhyeok couldn’t keep his mouth shut.
It was already too late.
“Why does it feel like you already picked the center before the vote? Image isn’t everything, you know.”
Oh. Please.
“Shouldn’t we decide based on skill, not words? I don’t even know this guy’s name.”
He even said ‘this guy’.
So hostile. It was already scary how intense it sounded.
I could already imagine how the subtitles would look.
Even though we all knew what kind of personality he had, my mouth was dry.
It was honestly amazing he made his debut safely. Maybe he had run into members he could control easily back then and snagged the center spot.
Or maybe Doubles Entertainment had packaged him really well.
It was incredible nothing had happened during the auditions.
An idol who couldn’t even manage his expressions on camera….
“Then why don’t we start by checking vocals!”
It was up to me to ease the frozen atmosphere. I really didn’t want to step in, but the rest of the team looked completely out of it, so I had no choice.
It was understandable. I would’ve been speechless too if I saw this kind of behavior at that age.
Thanks to my words, Ha Junseo finally came to and nodded.
“Let’s each sing a line.”
“Try making expressions too, let’s see how well it matches the mood.”
Jin Sehyun added sharply, his eyes observant.
First up, Ha Junseo softly sang a highlight line from “On the Way to School.”
Though his original position was rapper, Ha Junseo’s vocal skills weren’t bad.
It was a bit lacking in the original song’s freshness, but his skills were solid.
Next was Seo Haim’s turn.
“Oh, he’s good.”
“Wow. That’s impressive.”
He was a sub-vocal in Stardust, but he sang as well as the main vocalists in other groups.
Even though he’s only like this now, a few years later he’d become a monster vocalist with experience.
No flaws, as expected.
Seeing all these talented people debut together, it was weirder that they didn’t succeed.
Finally, it was Lee Junhyeok’s turn.
“……”
Well, he wasn’t bad.
In terms of skill alone, Lee Junhyeok could hold his own anywhere.
It was just his overflowing arrogance and poor attitude that held him back.
“Let’s vote.”
“Three votes for Seo Haim, one for Ha Junseo, one for Lee Junhyeok….”
The center was ultimately decided as Seo Haim.
“Thank youu! I’ll really practice hard and become a center-worthy center!”
At least the center selection ended without any bloodshed. Since we even voted, Lee Junhyeok couldn’t say anything more.
But there seemed to be one more thing left.
Just as I muttered that under my breath, Seo Haim beat me to it.
“Oh, we need to choose a leader too!”
Already bright from becoming the center, Seo Haim’s expression grew even brighter.
Seo Haim turned his head, his voice excited.
“Does anyone want to volunteer as leader?”
Honestly, Ha Junseo was the right fit for this.
Where else would you find such a textbook leader type as that hyung?
“From what I saw earlier, I think you’d suit being leader. Want to do it?”
“Wha…what?”
Out of nowhere—just when I thought someone had whispered in my ear—it was Lee Junhyeok.
Didn’t seem like he meant it kindly. Something about my behavior must’ve rubbed him the wrong way.
There was no way someone as young as me could become leader, but maybe he was trying to test the waters.
That kind of intent was obvious.
Wow, how funny.
What exactly triggered him?
Was it because I backed Seo Haim? Or since he lost the song selection?
A sharp-tempered guy stared at me with chilling eyes.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little intimidated. The me from eight years ago might’ve been shaken.
Before I could get lost in thought, Ha Junseo chimed in.
“Should we go with the youngest as leader? I think he’d do a good job.”
Huh? Is this really happening?
It felt like Lee Junhyeok just threw out the comment casually to see me flustered, but I didn’t expect Ha Junseo to step in like that.
“You picked the song, so you’re the leader too.”
“Yeah, leader it is.”
“I agree too!”
Lee Junhyeok’s expression began to twist with disgust.
You were the one who brought it up.
Were you expecting everyone to say there’s no way the youngest could lead?
“Oh, me? As leader?”
Still, I was surprised. They were really giving me this position?
I blinked in shock and thought for a moment.
To be honest, being a leader is the perfect way to get cursed at.
Just like being the group leader in a school project—if you do well, you get vague praise with vague presence, but if you mess up, you’re the worst person ever. A no-win position.
But in an audition, it might be a bit different.
Rather than sitting around with no roles like center or leader, it might be better to step up.
Ha, I’m really not the leader type though….
Still, can’t be helped.
Even though I was being pushed into it, I decided to go with it.
Even if this position was handed to me as some kind of trap by Lee Junhyeok, I was willing to accept it.
“Yes, I’ll give it a try.”
Let’s do this.
“Waaah! Just like that?”
“Maknae! Leader! Maknae! Leader!”
“Please take good care of us!”
Between the enthusiastic reactions of Ha Junseo and Seo Haim, Lee Junhyeok’s darkened face stood out even more.
“Ha… I just said it without thinking….”
Why?
Didn’t expect that, did you?
Lee Junhyeok chewed on his lower lip and let out a deep sigh.
Meanwhile, his fists trembled with frustration. Naturally, nothing nice came out of his mouth in such a state.
“These damn teammates are so annoying. F*ck.”
“What’s wrong?”
A shadowy figure tilted their head and asked.
Lee Junhyeok gave a quick rundown of today’s events.
Nothing had gone his way.
Not the song choice, not the center selection.
“They were so smug about it. F*cking bastards.”
Before the audition, he had been with Doubles Entertainment for a long time, so no one dared mess with him.
No, actually, most of them practically bowed down to him—except for that newly arrived Do Seohan.
But now that they were in this audition, everyone was doing whatever they wanted.
Maybe that’s natural, but for someone like Lee Junhyeok who had played king at Doubles Entertainment, it wasn’t something he could accept.
“So you ended up losing the center spot?”
“That’s how it went.”
“Seriously, I don’t get it. Aren’t you better? You should’ve won easily.”
Even though he was clearly being outclassed skill-wise, Lee Junhyeok clung to his pride.
He cleared his throat a few times, then lashed out in irritation with a string of curses.
Seo Haim, who took the center spot. Jin Sehyun, who made calm but logical points with a blank face.
Even Ha Junseo, acting all nice like a fool in the middle of it all—he hated all of them.
But the one that got on his nerves the most today was Do Seohan.
“That youngest brat keeps getting under my skin.”
“Do Seohan? Is that his usual image?”
“Who knows. I’ve never even talked to him properly.”
He used to be so invisible I didn’t even pay attention to him, but now he felt like a different person.
The quick way he moved his head, the strange weight behind his words even though he was the youngest.
More than that, he seemed to be watching me carefully.
‘That punk’s definitely wary of me.’
Sure, there were plenty of people who hated me back at Doubles Entertainment, but this guy just arrived. He shouldn’t know the dynamics that well.
Is he watching me for another reason? What is it?
He acts like someone who’s been at Doubles Entertainment as long as I have—just doesn’t sit right with me.
Lee Junhyeok frowned and said,
“Hey, didn’t they say he was a trainee somewhere else before this?”
“Oh, yeah, I think so?”
“If we dig a little, I’m sure something will come up.”
Ideally, something that pisses off the public, even if it’s not an audition disqualification.
Like some old SNS post, a history with drinking or smoking. Or maybe a scandal among trainees.
Lee Junhyeok, who fit all three categories, shamelessly chuckled.
“Didn’t you say you’ve got some connections?”
“Oh, I’ll look into it. Shouldn’t be hard.”
The shadow figure laughed along with Lee Junhyeok.
Up until now, things were going pretty well for them.
“Just wait. If I find even one thing, I’ll personally….”
At that moment—
“Huh?”
“The center evaluation results are out!”
Lee Junhyeok jumped up from his seat, eyes wide.
“Who got it?”
As long as it’s not that bastard, Do Seohan.